“You’re right,” Ash admitted. “We’ve known for a while that Hybrids exist.”
It was a confession Yiran didn’t want to hear. What other secrets were the Guild and his grandfather keeping?
“You shouldn’t hide the truth from the people,” he said.
“We shouldn’t hide the truth?” Ash scoffed. “Don’t be naive, Xiao Ran. You’ve seen the Hybrids, they look like normal human beings until their weapons come out. Do you want to live in a society where everyone is suspicious of their neighbor? Of their family and friends? People will be policing each other, pouncing on anything that seems a bit different, even if it’s nothing. What do you think life will be like?”
“But if they knew about the Hybrids, maybe less people will be killed. If people knew what to look out for, how to identify one, how to... I don’t know...” Yiran clenched his fists, hating that Ash was right. Fear and paranoia would run rampant. The city would dissolve into chaos.
“There’re already people out there questioning the Guild; we can’t let that snowball,” Ash said. “We can’t change the fact that our presence draws Revenants and Hybrids, but no one must thinkwe’rethe problem. We need people to know we’re doing our jobs and doing them well, that we are their protection. We may have magic, but we still bleed when their bullets strike us.”
What will happen if they decide we’re no longer doing our jobs well? That we’re redundant? Or worse, that we are dangerous?This was what Song Wei was worried about, what he harped on whenever he disciplined Yiran.
“Things are never so simple,” Ash continued, sounding brittle. “Nothing is ever black and white, and we fight and survive by working in the gray.Youare a part of this too. You’re one of us. Never forget who you are, Song Yiran.”
You’re one of us.
For as long as Yiran could remember, this was something he wanted to hear. What he wanted to feel. It wasn’t his grandfather saying it, but for a moment, it felt almost enough.
Was it so bad that the Guild was hiding things? It wasn’t like theywere leaving ordinary people to fend for themselves. The main goal was to rid the world of Revenants, and extraordinary circumstances required difficult decisions. Maybe some lies had to be told. Maybe the lies kept everyone safe.
Ash gripped his shoulder. “Soon you’ll be an Exorcist. You’ll fight by my side, and we’ll make Dad proud. I need you with me.”
You’ll fight by my side, and we’ll make Dad proud.
The light in Ash’s eyes broke through Yiran’s last defense. It didn’t matter whether Ash had been sent by the Guild to interrogate him; Yiran knew Ash meant what he said. Drowning in the well of emotions, Yiran was tempted to confess everything: how he’d gotten his magic, how Rui actually killed the Hybrid, how Zizi might have accidentally made a spell that could turn the tide of the war in the Hybrids’ favor.
It wouldn’t be an act of betrayal. He never made a promise. He would be doing the right thing. But the confession stayed stuck in his throat.
... deep inside that soul of yours, you know what’s right and that makes you a good person...
Zizi was wrong.
Yiran wasn’t a good person. A good person would put everyone else ahead of his own desires. But Yiran couldn’t bear to lose his magic and his chance to belong.
“Are you with me?” Ash asked, in a tone that was soft but heavy with meaning.
Yiran nodded. He would be complicit in hiding the truth from the public. “What happens now?” he asked.
“You keep training, I’ll keep hunting Revenants. Life goes on.”
“Just like that?”
“Just like that.”
“What about Rui and Zizi?”
“Well,” said Ash, looking uncannily like their grandfather. “I guess it depends on whether their stories match up with yours.”
38
Rui
Rui had fallen unconscious, but her body retained impressions of the car ride. It was smooth and winding, slowing down at turns that felt too narrow to be city roads. The Exorcist Guild headquarters was in the middle of downtown. Everyone knew that. Where Rui had woken wasn’t the headquarters.
The blond Exorcist—she’d said her name was Surin—was sitting across the metal table. Dressed in a black tank top that showed off her impressive biceps, she was filing her nails with the blade of a large butterfly knife. From the way she handled it, Rui guessed it was likely her spiritual weapon. It was unusual to say the least; you had to getcloseto a Revenant to use it. She placed Surin to be around Ash’s age. Pretty impressive to be a Captain too.
Surin smiled. White teeth. Friendly eyes. Dimples. She’d kept up a chummy attitude throughout the interrogation. Rui wasn’t convinced.
