Chapter 3 — Echoes of the Fallen Sect
The corpse of the Shadowfur Dire Wolf lay heavy and still, its blood steaming against the charred courtyard stones. Jin forced himself up, leaning against a broken pillar as Cael wiped her hands clean on her robes.
For a moment, neither spoke.
The night wind carried ash and the faint crackle of dying flames. The sect that once stood proudly here was now nothing more than echoes and ruin.
Cael finally broke the silence.
"We need to move," she said, her voice low and hoarse. "The beast wasn't acting alone. Something drove it here." She paused, eyes narrowing at the shadows. "Or someone."
Jin swallowed, the memory of the masked assassin's cold stare flashing through his mind.
He couldn't tell her—not yet.
He didn't even fully understand it himself.
But the body remembered.
The boy who died remembered.
And that memory throbbed like a bruise behind his eyes.
Cael glanced at him. "You're limping."
"I'm aware," Jin said quietly.
"You sure didn't sound aware when you threw yourself in front of a Dire Wolf."
"…That was more instinct than intelligence."
She raised an eyebrow. "Instinct from where? Yesterday you could barely lift a practice blade."
Jin's breath caught.
The system pulsed faintly:
[Do not reveal system information.]
His jaw tightened.
So even that was restricted.
Cael's gaze lingered on him, as if trying to read a truth she knew didn't fit the boy she remembered.
Before she could question further, a distant horn echoed through the mountains—low, drawn-out, and unmistakable.
Cael stiffened.
"The Black Crescent Riders…" she whispered. "They're sweeping the area."
Jin frowned. "Who are they?"
"A mercenary faction," she said. "Hired by whoever ordered the attack on the sect."
Her voice darkened.
"They kill everyone. Survivors, witnesses… even children."
Jin's chest tightened. The old owner of this body had lived among these people—trained with them, ate with them. And in one night, they were wiped out.
He clenched his fist, nails digging into his palm.
Cael stepped closer and grabbed his wrist. "Don't lose yourself. Not now."
Her grip was firm, grounding.
"We move to the inner archives," she said. "There might still be survivors. Or at least… answers."
Jin nodded. He didn't trust his voice.
Cael led him through the shattered corridor, stepping over fallen beams and crushed stone. The once-grand halls now felt like tombs, each broken doorway a reminder of what had been lost.
As they approached the old archive chamber, Jin felt a pressure in his skull—soft at first, then sharper. The system's presence flickered like a cold whisper at the edge of his consciousness.
[Warning: Distorted energy detected.]
[Preservation Instinct activated.]
Jin froze mid-step.
Cael turned. "What is it?"
He didn't answer—couldn't. A low hum vibrated from inside the archive, growing louder with every breath he took. The doors had been blown open, their wood splintered outward.
Inside, the glow of an orb pulsed faintly.
Cael's eyes widened. "No… That's impossible."
"What is it?" Jin asked.
She stepped forward slowly, as if approaching a sleeping predator.
"That orb… it's the Sect's Core Memory. It holds every technique, secret, and history of the Ashen Vale Sect."
Jin felt his heart skip.
Knowledge was power in this world.
Knowledge was survival.
But the system whispered again:
[Host must not touch the core without protocol clearance.]
Jin stiffened.
Restricted again.
Why?
Cael reached a hand out toward the orb—
and for a split second, Jin's vision blurred.
Not darkness—
but flashes.
The old sect master.
The masked assassin.
The wolf's attack.
The betrayal.
All overlapping, too fast to parse.
His breath caught as the system forced clarity:
[Host synchronization unstable. Maintain distance.]
"Cael—stop!" Jin grabbed her wrist.
She turned sharply. "Why?"
"Just—trust me." His voice was harsher than intended.
Cael hesitated, then withdrew her hand slowly.
A long silence stretched between them.
Then, from the far end of the chamber—
Footsteps.
Multiple.
Slow. Heavy.
Jin's blood turned cold.
Cael whispered, "They found us."
The system pulsed:
[New Mission: Escape the Archive Hall.]
[Failure: Containment and Termination highly probable.]
Jin stared at the glowing orb, at the dark entrance, and at Cael's resolute face.
His next decision would shape everything.
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