Lunaris sprinted through the clan, not with worry this time, but with unrestrained fury.
'That damn girl… Not even half a day has passed since she's been discharged, and she's managed to get herself admitted again?'
His jaw tightened angrily as he ran with a book in his hands.
"I swear," he muttered through clenched teeth, "when I see her, I'll..."
The thought cut off as he reached the reception hall.
The nurse at the counter, recognizing him instantly, stood and bowed deeply. "Greetings, Young Lord. For what reason have you come?"
She knew perfectly well why, but courtesy demanded the question.
"Where is Caelrisu?" he asked flatly.
"Her room remains the same, Young Lord."
Lunaris didn't reply. He simply nodded once and went towards the fourth floor.
When he turned the corner, his eyes widened.
Namgoong Gyo stood outside Caelrisu's room, his uniform shredded and streaked with blood. There were several shallow cuts lined on his clothes, and a significant area of his clothes was shredded around his left abdomen.
Clearly showing where the wounds were and how deep they had been before healing.
Lunaris froze mid-step. "What happened, Namgoong Gyo?"
The man bowed slightly. "Young Lord. The young lady… came to me to spar as before."
Lunaris nodded, knowing that full well.
"At first," Namgoong continued, voice calm, "she demonstrated the techniques you gave to her. Her execution was remarkable, far more refined than I expected after only three days of practice. As if she had trained for months, if not years."
Lunaris's anger faltered for a moment, replaced by reluctant pride.
Namgoong continued. "She adapted fast. I guided her sword mid-battle by purposely not attacking. But then,"
His tone darkened slightly. "When I delivered a downward slash, expecting her to dodge or block, she instead took the hit. Directly on her shoulder."
Lunaris blinked. "She what?"
"She bore the strike deliberately," Namgoong said grimly. "Let the sword cut into her flesh, then locked her muscles to trap my blade for a moment. I couldn't withdraw in time. She used that instant to channel all her strength into a thrust at my abdomen."
He touched the healed wound on his side. "That is how I ended up like this."
For a moment, Lunaris just stood there, speechless. His mind replayed the words, her taking the hit, using her own wound as a weapon. The image made his heart ache.
"She…" he whispered, half in disbelief, "she tanked a sword strike? Intentionally?"
Namgoong's expression didn't change. "She did. It was reckless but tactically brilliant. She knew I would never expect such a move."
Lunaris exhaled sharply through his nose.
He pinched the bridge of his nose. "What about the muscle injuries, her biceps and shoulder tendons?"
Namgoong hesitated, then replied slowly, "It appears to be the effects of a self-harming technique. She concentrated her essence into her muscle fibers, and then she detonated that essence from within to provide a boost to her strikes."
Lunaris's eyes widened. "That's pretty much asking herself to be crippled."
"Yes," Namgoong said quietly. "We should be grateful her physique is unusually durable. If her body were even slightly weaker, she would have lost the arm entirely."
Lunaris stared at the closed door in silence. A faint flicker of Essence light pulsed beneath it, the hospital's healing array working overtime.
Inside that room lay the same girl who used to laugh and cry with him.
He felt something twist inside him, part frustration, part helpless admiration.
"I guess I should talk to her," he muttered bitterly.
Namgoong bowed slightly. "Yes, you should, Young Lord. It seemed like she desperately wanted to achieve something."
Lunaris sighed, glancing down at the manual still in his hand.
'Should I give it to her?'
"…I'll go talk to her," he said finally. "Before she decides to 'train' herself into the grave next time."
Namgoong smiled faintly. "Good luck with that."
Lunaris pushed the door open. The faint scent of crushed herbs drifted out, bitter and clean. The sunlight fell across the white sheets, and Caelrisu stood by the window, her bandages gone, her hair stirred by the breeze.
"Caelrisu," he said, his voice trembling with the anger he was holding back. "Tell me why you did it."
She didn't turn around. "What do you mean, brother?"
"You know exactly what I mean."
She turned then, her lips curving in a faint smile that didn't reach her eyes. "Oh, brother. You look angry."
He took a step forward. "That's because I am angry. Furious, even. So, tell me, why?"
For a heartbeat, neither of them spoke. Then she said softly, "I want to leave this mountain. And grow strong."
He frowned. "You would've left anyway. Whether you won that foolish bet or not."
"I know," she whispered. "But I wanted to leave with my own strength. Not because I was allowed to."
"Why?" His voice cracked slightly. "Why are you so desperate for this?"
She looked straight at him now, and there was something burning behind her calm. "You already know why."
Lunaris's temper snapped. "Revenge, huh. You're still clinging to that! Why are you so obsessed with something so empty? I'm already doing everything I can!
I don't want you to walk the path of self-destruction that I have started walking, Cael!!! It breaks you piece by piece until you forget who you are! I just... I just want you to be safe!"
"Safe?" Her laugh was small, almost broken. "I wanted you to be safe, brother. I want to protect you, too."
"Your entire life could be destroyed, Cael."
Her voice trembled, but she didn't look away. "If something happens to you, then it would be anyway.
When Father died... when our uncle and aunt, when they all fell in front of us, I watched everything I loved burn away. At that time, Lunaris, I broke apart.
And I smiled like a fool for years, pretending I was fine, just so you wouldn't worry.
But inside, I was drowning. After that I met Fremileo, Uncle Vermas, and even the Clan Head started treating me like family again... and I realized how much I still had to lose.
Especially Fremileo, I would have drowned if he had not been there, just by my side."
Tears pooled in her eyes, spilling down her cheeks. "So, tell me, how can I stand still while you throw yourself into danger? How can I live if something happens to you? Please... don't make me lose you too, Lunaris. Please, I beg you."
Her voice broke on the last word.
The room fell silent, except for the faint sound of the wind outside. Lunaris stood frozen, watching her cry, the sister who never cried, not even when she was wounded or beaten or lonely. Something in him cracked open, the same pain he'd been burying since that day.
"Cael..." His voice softened, rough and low. "I learned something new today."
He hesitated, the words almost catching in his throat. "You... you love Fremileo, don't you?"
Her breath hitched for a second. Then, slowly, she wiped her tears with the back of her sleeve and smiled faintly through them. "Yes, I do. I love him, not as a friend, not as a brother-in-arms... but as a man. I love him."
Lunaris's eyes darkened, not with judgment but with quiet pain. "Then why... why did you stay silent all this time?"
She looked down at her hands, fingers tightening around her skirt. "Because, Lunaris, I don't know if you've noticed... but Fremileo is always chasing something. Something he can't let go of. How could I ever bind someone like that to me?"
Her voice trembled, but she forced herself to go on. "I love him without a doubt, but for him... I'm just a girl who happened to be there. Someone he helped once, and who happens to stay where he stays. Nothing more."
Lunaris was silent. The sadness in his eyes wasn't just for her; it was for the quiet way she'd learned to bury her heart and the way she smiled even when it hurt. "You should still tell him," he said softly. "Even if he doesn't return it... you'll breathe easier. And if he does, then perhaps you'll both find peace."
Caelrisu's eyes lifted, glimmering faintly with resolve. "I will," she whispered. "Someday. When I'm strong enough not to regret it, no matter the answer."
Lunaris exhaled long, shaky, and tired. The fire of his anger was gone, leaving only weariness... and love that hurt too much to hold. He said,
"I'll take you into the plan."
Her head shot up. "You will?"
"Yes," he said, his tone hardening though his eyes softened. "But there are conditions. You'll wait three years. You'll wear a mask whenever you go outside. And you must reach the Peak Rank in martial arts before joining me. No exceptions."
Her lips curved into a trembling smile, the light returning to her face. "I'll do it. I promise."
He turned slightly, looking toward the window where sunlight spilled across the floor. The mountains in the distance shimmered in the haze, eternal, untouchable. "Good," he murmured. "Because once it begins... you'll have to be ready to throw everything away."
She smiled gently, a quiet kind of strength in her eyes. "Then can you tell me the plan?"
"Sorry, but I can't. I will have to steel my heart."
The silence that followed wasn't empty. It was full of unspoken fears.
Lunaris turned toward the door, his steps heavy but steady. Just before he reached it, her voice came softly from behind him.
"Brother," she said.
He paused, one hand on the door.
"Thank you," she whispered. "For not letting go of me."
He didn't turn back. But his hand tightened around the doorknob, his voice low and rough as stone. "Just make sure," he said, "you don't make me regret it."
The door clicked shut behind him, leaving Caelrisu standing alone in the sunlight. She pressed a hand over her heart and smiled through the tears that wouldn't stop falling.
Then, she turned her gaze and found an old book on the table.
Title: First and Final Sky.