The sun had fully risen outside the cave, casting long shadows over the rugged terrain, but deep within the bandit stronghold, the atmosphere remained dark and suffocating. The bandit leader, his boots echoing against the stone floor, made his way toward the deepest part of the hideout—the prison cells.
A smirk tugged at his lips as he walked past Rui's cell without a second glance, his real focus on the neighboring cell where the captured women were held. The moment he stopped before them, his presence alone made the air heavy with tension.
"Good afternoon, ladies," he greeted with an exaggerated bow, his voice dripping with amusement. "I do hope our previous… introductions were to your liking."
Saya wrinkled her nose, pinching it shut with two fingers. "You reek."
The insult made one of the lackeys bristle with anger, his hand reaching for his weapon, but the bandit leader simply raised a hand, stopping him in his tracks. He clicked his tongue and shook his head.
"No, no, no… that won't do," he mused, wagging his finger at her. "Missy, my boys here? They're all hungry—starving, even. And you know what happens when the hungry don't get their fill?" He let his words hang in the air, letting the weight of his meaning settle. "The more brazen you act, the worse their appetites get."
Lina, curled up in the corner of the cell, trembled at the unspoken threat.
Yet Yiren, unlike the others, remained composed. She took a step forward, her expression cool and unreadable. "I'm sure you didn't come all the way down here just to talk about appetites." A smirk tugged at her lips. "You want something."
The bandit leader chuckled. "Smart girl. Of course, I do." He spread his arms as if to appear reasonable. "Despite my rough exterior, I am, at heart, a businessman." His smirk widened. "And business is all about mutual benefit, isn't it?"
Saya scoffed, crossing her arms. "I have nothing to share with the likes of you."
The bandit leader exhaled through his nose, clearly entertained by her defiance. "Oh, but I think you do," he replied smoothly. "You see, we can help each other out here." He began to pace slowly. "You give me your information—your name, your family, your sect—and I, being the generous man that I am, contact your loved ones." He turned to face them once more, rubbing his fingers together in the universal sign of wealth. "They bring me Spirit Stones, and in exchange, you get to be…" He grinned. "Free."
His voice was silk, but his eyes were steel, sharp and calculating.
For a moment, the cell was silent, the weight of his words pressing upon them.
And then Saya spat on the ground. "Rot in hell."
The bandit leader's smirk twitched.
"Oh, sweetheart," he sighed, shaking his head. "I was really hoping you'd be smart about this."
"Because you know what's next?" he mused aloud. "There's this little word called slavery. In case I didn't mention it yesterday." He turned his gaze back to the girls, watching for their reactions.
"I don't think you'd want to do that," Rui suddenly spoke up from the other side. His voice was calm, laced with a quiet confidence that made the leader pause. "In fact, if I were you, I'd be thinking about packing up and leaving this stronghold."
One of the bandits immediately snapped, "Hey! Shut up! The boss ain't talking to you!"
But the bandit leader held up a hand to silence his underling. He furrowed his brows and stepped toward Rui's cell, boots clicking against the stone floor. Inside, Rui sat with his legs crossed, his expression unreadable, his whole posture emanating an unsettling sense of mystery.
The bandit leader tilted his head. "Oh? And what do you mean by that?" His voice was smooth but carried an edge. "Are you threatening me, boy?"
Rui chuckled. "No, I'm warning you."
The bandit leader stared at him for a moment—then suddenly burst into laughter. The echoes of his amusement filled the cavern, his lackeys quickly following suit, their laughter bouncing off the rock walls.
"Hah! A warning, you say? And just what kind of warning is this?" The leader leaned forward, eyes gleaming with amusement. "What, is your family going to come knocking on my door? Will they march in and raid my stronghold just for you? Would they sacrifice that much for some brat?"
Rui smiled knowingly. "Oh no, not me."
The leader's smirk faltered slightly. "Then who?"
"When Jang kidnapped us, he missed one," Rui said, his tone deliberately slow, each word carrying weight. "One very dangerous figure."
The laughter died.
The bandit leader's brow twitched. "One is missing?" His voice was sharp now, his gaze flickering toward the other captives for confirmation.
Saya blinked, trying to piece together what Rui was getting at, but Yiren immediately caught on. Her eyes widened before she smirked. "Oh, right! He did miss him!" She gasped dramatically, turning to Saya. "That guy—he escaped! And he's by far the most influential out of all of us."
The bandit leader's face hardened.
Rui leaned against the cell bars, his heart pounding slightly, but his smirk never wavered. "Now, now. You could call Jang here to confirm whether or not I'm lying." He tilted his head playfully. "But watch how he shivers when you ask him."
The bandit leader's jaw tightened. Then, with a snap of his fingers, he barked, "Call Jang here. Now!"
Jang strode into the dimly lit cavern, his usual cocky demeanor still present, though slightly dulled by the tension in the air. He glanced around, his brows furrowing as he took in the stiff expressions of his comrades.
"What's going on, boss?" he asked, voice laced with confusion.
The bandit leader sat forward on his crude stone throne, his fingers gripping the armrest. His eyes bore into Jang with unsettling intensity. "Did you let one get away?"
Jang blinked. "What?" His gaze flicked toward Rui, who sat calmly in his cell, an unreadable expression on his face.
"Look at me!" The bandit leader's voice boomed, echoing through the cavern, making Rui wince at the sheer force of it.
Jang turned back quickly. "I-It was just a kid," he stammered, then scoffed, shaking his head. "Not a big deal."
The bandit leader narrowed his eyes. "And how, exactly, do you know this 'kid' isn't a big deal?"
Jang smirked, confidence returning. "Because that kid had a miserable life. His arranged marriage was canceled. He just survived a Soul Rot! The brat's a nobody!" He scoffed. "Even if he's alive, he's barely hanging on."
Silence.
Then Yiren chuckled. A soft, amused sound, but in the thick, tense air, it felt like a sharp blade cutting through. She turned to Jang, her expression mocking. "Jang, you idiot."
Jang stiffened.
"If he survived Soul Rot, then that means his family could afford the best physicians," Yiren continued, shaking her head. "Think about it—do you really believe a nobody could survive something like that? If they could get their hands on a physician capable of curing Soul Rot… doesn't that tell you everything you need to know?"
Saya's eyes widened in realization. Hope flickered in her chest like a small flame. But she knew better than to react too strongly. Instead, she subtly placed a hand on Lina's shoulder, squeezing it lightly—a silent warning to keep her mouth shut.
The bandit leader's expression darkened, his fingers tightening around the hilt of his sword. His voice was dangerously low as he growled, "Jang… is that true?"
Jang opened his mouth, but no words came out. He swallowed, his smirk faltering. "I… I didn't think about it," he admitted, voice shaking slightly. "I'm sorry, boss. I didn't kno—"
The bandit leader moved faster than anyone could react. In one fluid motion, he drew his sword and thrust it straight into Jang's throat.
Jang's body froze, his eyes widening in shock as the cold steel embedded itself in his throat. His hands instinctively reached for the blade, but it was too late. A sickening gurgle escaped his lips as blood trickled from the wound, staining his clothes in deep crimson. His knees buckled, and the bandit leader sneered as he twisted the sword before ripping it out, letting Jang collapse onto the cave floor like a discarded rag doll.
"You didn't know?" the leader spat, shaking his head in frustration. "You never think, Jang. That's the damn problem."
The cavern fell into dead silence. Even the other bandits, hardened criminals who had seen their fair share of bloodshed, stiffened at the ruthless execution.
Yiren smirked inwardly. (Gotcha.)
The bandit leader exhaled sharply, wiping the blood off his sword with Jang's tattered vest before turning his gaze toward Rui. His eyes were colder now, calculative.
The bandit leader exhaled sharply, wiping the blood off his sword with Jang's tattered vest before turning his gaze toward Rui. His eyes were colder now, calculative.
"…So tell me," he muttered, his voice losing its previous mockery. "Who exactly did Jang let slip through our fingers?"
Rui kept his expression neutral, but his mind raced. He hadn't expected Jang to be cut down so quickly, but this was even better—he had rattled the leader enough to make him question everything.
Yiren was the one who answered. "You're scared," she teased, tilting her head. "You wouldn't have killed Jang if you weren't."
The bandit leader scoffed, but she saw the tension in his jaw. He clicked his tongue and turned to one of his men.
"Double the guards at the entrance," he ordered. "I want every path leading here watched—no one gets in or out without my say-so."
His subordinates immediately scurried to obey, leaving behind a lingering unease in the air.
Rui watched all of this unfold with an amused glint in his eyes. (Good. Keep worrying. Keep making mistakes.)
Because little did they know, their real problem was already inside.
As the moon climbed high into the midnight sky, its pale glow filtering through the cracks of the cavern, a silent force stirred deep within the stronghold. Beneath the mountain of Spirit Stones—now drained of their luster, reduced to nothing more than hollowed-out husks—a pair of eyes opened. They gleamed with an unfathomable depth, cold yet burning with an undeniable hunger. A conqueror's eyes.
Kazel exhaled, feeling the raw power thrumming through his very being, his body revitalized, his soul stronger than ever before. He flexed his fingers, and a faint ripple of energy pulsed through the air, silent yet deadly.
The bandits thought they were the hunters.
They had no idea the real predator had just awakened.