Reeve woke up to silence.
Not the usual silence of Ironridge—the kind filled with distant footsteps, clanking armor, and murmured commands—but a hollow quiet, as if the world itself was holding its breath.
He blinked once.
Then again.
"…Lunareth?" he called.
No answer.
His heart skipped.
He sat up abruptly and scanned the room. Her bed was empty. The blankets were untouched, neatly folded as if no one had slept there at all.
That was wrong.
Lunareth always slept lightly. Even when exhausted, she left signs—creased sheets, displaced pillows, the faint scent of metal and cold air.
Reeve swung his legs off the bed and stood.
That was when he noticed it.
The window was open.
A thin stream of cold air flowed inside, brushing against his skin like a warning. He stepped closer, a strange unease crawling up his spine.
Outside, Ironridge Fortress stretched endlessly—layer upon layer of stone paths, towers, iron railings, and narrow bridges. Smoke rose lazily from chimneys. Guards patrolled below, unaware.
Then—
Movement.
A figure ran across a distant rooftop.
Fast. Fluid. Familiar.
Reeve's breath caught.
"…Lunareth?"
The figure moved with unnatural balance, leaping across a gap between buildings without hesitation. The way they landed—light, controlled—was unmistakable.
Before Reeve could lean farther out, the figure disappeared behind a tower.
His pulse quickened.
He searched desperately—
And froze.
Another figure appeared.
This one was different.
Heavier steps. Broader silhouette. Purposeful.
Chasing.
Reeve's fingers dug into the stone windowsill.
"What…?"
The second figure followed the same path, vanishing behind the same tower—
And then—
Nothing.
No footsteps.
No sound.
No trace.
Both figures were gone.
Not hidden.
Not concealed.
Gone.
As if Ironridge itself had erased them.
Reeve staggered back from the window.
His mind raced.
Two people? Or one person being followed?
Was the first even Lunareth?
A cold thought settled in his chest.
What if she's being hunted… again?
Lunareth returned an hour later.
She opened the door calmly, as if nothing had happened.
"You're awake," she said.
Reeve turned sharply. "Where were you?"
She paused briefly, then stepped inside. "Out."
"The window was open."
"Yes."
"I saw someone running."
That made her stop.
"…You did?"
"And then another person," Reeve continued. "Chasing them."
She turned slowly, her expression unreadable.
"What did they look like?" she asked.
"I couldn't see clearly," Reeve admitted. "But the first one moved like you."
"And the second?"
"…Like someone who already knew where they were going."
Silence stretched between them.
Then Lunareth smiled.
Not sharp.
Not cruel.
Playful.
"You're imagining things," she said lightly. "Ironridge messes with people's heads."
Reeve frowned. "You told me lying badly gets people killed."
She stepped closer and tapped his chest with one finger.
"I didn't lie," she said softly. "I redirected."
That didn't comfort him.
Training began shortly after.
Harder than before.
No warm-up.
No mercy.
"Again," Lunareth said.
Reeve attacked.
She parried effortlessly and struck his ribs with the flat of her blade.
Pain flared.
"Too slow."
Again.
Again.
His arms burned. His breath came uneven. Sweat soaked his clothes.
"Focus," she ordered.
"I am," he snapped.
"No," she replied calmly. "You're thinking too much."
She stepped behind him and corrected his stance, striking his shoulder sharply.
"Your body knows something you don't," she said. "Stop arguing with it."
Reeve gritted his teeth and moved again.
This time, his strike was faster.
Sharper.
Lunareth barely dodged.
Her eyes widened slightly.
"Oh?" she teased. "Did you finally wake up?"
"Don't get excited," Reeve muttered.
She leaned close as they reset. "Too late."
They continued.
Minutes blurred.
Then—
Something went wrong.
Not exhaustion.
Not pain.
A sudden drop.
Like the ground vanished beneath him.
His vision blurred violently.
His knees buckled.
"Reeve—!"
He tried to speak.
Nothing came out.
His legs gave out completely, and he collapsed onto the training ground.
Stone scraped his side.
Pain flashed, then dulled.
Lunareth was beside him instantly, gripping his shoulder.
"Hey. Stay with me."
Reeve tried to respond.
His eyelids felt unbearably heavy.
Inside him, something twisted.
The hunger surged—then shattered.
His breathing slowed.
And when his eyes fully closed—
It happened.
Lunareth felt it.
A violent, uncontrolled surge of mana burst outward from Reeve's body.
Not explosive.
Not dramatic.
Silent.
Deadly.
The grass beneath him withered instantly—green fading to grey, then black, curling in on itself like burned paper.
The stone beneath cracked faintly.
Lunareth recoiled half a step, eyes wide.
"…Uncontrolled," she whispered.
The mana wasn't attacking.
It was leaking.
As if his body could no longer contain what slept inside him.
"Reeve," she said sharply, pressing her hand against his chest.
The mana trembled… then slowly receded.
The ground around him was dead.
Completely.
Lunareth stared at it.
For the first time since meeting him—
She looked genuinely unsettled.
"I pushed you too far," she murmured.
Reeve didn't hear her.
He was already gone.
And somewhere unseen—
Something ancient smiled.