Somewhere beneath the academy—beneath even the sealed catacombs—a candle flickered in a chamber that shouldn't exist.
The flame didn't give light.
It gave whispers.
Seven figures sat around a low, circular table. All cloaked. All masked. None spoke aloud, but the shadows between them twisted and shimmered with intent.
"The dragon stirs."
"The fragments converge."
"The error from two millennia ago has returned."
One figure leaned forward.
"Jiwoon… has gathered more than power. He has gathered loyalty."
A low hiss echoed.
"Then it's time to tear it away."
Back in the surface world – Academy library hall
Jiwoon walked beside Vera and Kaelya, flipping through a thick, ancient text.
Not because he needed it…
But because he wanted a moment of normalcy.
"You're oddly quiet," Kaelya teased.
"Just waiting for the next attempt on my life," Jiwoon replied casually.
Vera didn't laugh.
She looked toward the sky instead.
"It's too quiet."
That night
A small, black envelope appeared on Jiwoon's bed.
No one had entered. No one had touched the window.
And yet, the seal was already broken.
Inside: a single sentence.
"We know who stands beside you. Let's see how long they last."
Jiwoon crushed the paper in his fist, rising from the bed.
Kaelya stood in the doorway, already dressed in black. "You felt it too?"
He nodded.
Vera stepped in beside her.
"Then what's the plan?"
Jiwoon turned to them both.
"We leave."
Kaelya blinked. "Leave?"
"We disappear for a while. Let them think I'm retreating."
"You're running?" Vera asked—not accusingly, but curiously.
"No," Jiwoon said, eyes calm.
"I'm choosing who I protect… before they take the choice from me."