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Chapter Five – The Moon That Fell Before It Was Whole
Night had not yet fully descended, yet the sky above the Saō Family Manor seemed as though it had lost all color.
The air was heavy—unnaturally still. Even the insects had fallen silent, as if the world itself were holding its breath, awaiting something inevitable.
Saō Hyun stood in his usual place near the wall, his small hands raised toward the sky. He no longer felt pain. Nor numbness. Only a cold emptiness settled deep within his chest. His thoughts drifted to Shon Ai's words… to escape… to the sun as it sank beyond the horizon.
Then—
The manor shook.
A muffled explosion echoed, followed by screams.
The ground trembled beneath his feet, and Saō Hyun was thrown to the earth. Before he could understand what was happening, the sky ignited in a deep, violent crimson.
—
Inside the main hall, Shon Mokum stood beside Saō Ham. The moment the tremor reached them, his expression hardened completely.
"This…" he muttered.
His words were cut short as one of the walls shattered inward, and a dark aura flooded the hall.
They entered one by one—men clad in pitch-black garments, faces concealed, their breaths cold, as though exhaled from a grave.
And then—
He entered.
He was taller than the rest, his body lean yet taut, like a blood-soaked bowstring drawn to its limit. Long black hair fell wildly around his shoulders.
His eyes—
His eyes were empty.
No rage.
No hatred.
No pleasure.
Only absolute certainty.
He took a single step forward.
"Cha Geun {Silent Fracture}."
His voice was calm, as though he were introducing himself not to them—but to history itself.
The moment his name was spoken, Shon Mokum felt his heart constrict.
This man… was no mere commander.
—
Shon Mokum stepped forward, sword in hand, blood already streaming from his arm after a brief, violent clash.
He spoke steadily, the remnants of a lifetime's dignity clinging to his voice.
"The Saō Family Manor is not a battlefield. If you seek blood… take mine, and spare the children."
Silence followed.
Then—
Cha Geun laughed.
A short laugh. Hollow. Soulless.
He approached slowly, stopping an arm's length away. He looked down at Shon Mokum.
"You do not understand," he said, without emotion.
He raised a single finger.
No sword.
No stance.
Just a motion.
The next instant, Shon Mokum's body froze.
His eyes widened.
Blood erupted from his chest.
He fell to his knees… then collapsed.
Shon Mokum was dead.
Effortlessly.
As though he had never been one of Murim's great elders.
Su Rien screamed. Shon Mobai dropped to the floor, staring at his father's body, unable even to cry.
Saō Ham did not move.
His eyes were empty.
—
Outside, Saō Hyun had seen it all.
He did not understand the details. But he saw the man in black. He saw the body fall.
And then—
His eyes met Cha Geun's.
For a single moment.
The commander smiled faintly.
As though he recognized him.
And in that instant, the first dark thought was born in the child's heart.
If this is the world… then the world does not deserve to exist.
—
Night fully descended.
And the moon…
Was incomplete.
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Total Chaos
The moment Shon Mokum's body struck the ground, the silence shattered.
A sharp scream tore through the courtyard.
"Father!!!"
It was Shon Ai.
She rushed forward without thought, her steps unsteady, her pink eyes drowned in tears. She collapsed beside his body, shaking him with her small hands, as though refusing to let her heart accept what her eyes had seen.
"Wake up… please wake up… you promised you wouldn't leave me…"
But the body was cold.
She screamed—not the scream of a child, but of something irrevocably broken.
At last, Saō Ham moved.
With a furious roar, he drew his sword and charged at Cha Geun with every shred of strength left in him.
"Stay away from them!!!"
Cha Geun did not step back.
He smiled.
He moved with impossible lightness, passing Saō Ham like a shadow.
Then—
Saō Ham's arm fell.
He did not scream at first.
He stared blankly at the blood pouring from his shoulder… at his severed arm lying on the ground, still gripping the sword.
A moment later… the scream came.
Saō Ham collapsed to his knees, writhing, blood staining the stone floor.
Cha Geun chuckled softly.
"Do not try to be a hero… you are not one."
Elsewhere, Saō Baek was fighting.
Not with legendary bravery—but with the desperation of an older brother.
He lunged at one attacker, slashing his throat. Then another—his blade piercing the man's abdomen.
His breathing was ragged, his eyes bloodshot, his body trembling.
But there were too many.
A sword pierced his thigh.
A kick sent him crashing to the ground.
He tried to rise, dragging his sword up again, screaming:
"I'll kill you… I'll kill you all!!!"
But his voice was the voice of a child screaming into a storm.
The other children…
Were hiding.
Saō Yan trembled behind a stone pillar, hands clamped over his ears.
Saō Ha cried silently, unable to move.
Saō Yui stared at the servant who had died saving her—her body stiff with shock.
And amid all of it—
Was Dai Shia.
The woman who had always screamed and struck did not make a sound.
She stepped back… then another.
Her face pale, eyes wide, breath broken.
"No… no… this isn't possible…" she whispered.
She collapsed to the ground, crawling backward, her robes soaked in blood, hands raised as if to push the nightmare away.
She looked at Cha Geun…
And saw death itself.
All across the manor…
The battle had become a massacre.
Saō soldiers slaughtered.
Swords shattered.
Bodies pinned to walls.
And in the midst of it all—
Saō Hyun stood.
Silent.
His silver eyes reflected everything.
The severed arm.
Shon Ai's scream.
His mother's collapse.
Then—Cha Geun.
And deep within him, the first words formed.
If this is the world… then it does not deserve to remain.