The Sky Turned Gray
The Sin Tempest still roared in the distance, swallowing light and time. Jiwoon stood with smoke in his hair and a broken blade in his hand.
The world felt quieter now, but not safer.
Kravein and Kaelya returned to his side, bruised but alive.
"You alright?" Kaelya asked, wiping blood from her cheek.
Jiwoon nodded — but his eyes were somewhere else.
System Notification
Sin Points: 4,920
Status: Unstable Soul Sync
Fragment Integration in Progress…
Jiwoon's Thoughts
He had seen it.
A glimpse of a war older than history.
A name spoken in whispers by dying gods: Ashborn Sovereign.
And in that name… a curse.
Flash Memory
He stood atop a burning mountain.
A thousand warriors knelt before him.
His hands were black with soot — and power.
"You will obey sin… or be turned to it."
But his own voice had shaken.
Even then… he hated what he had become.
Back to the Present
Jiwoon's child-sized frame trembled. The storm inside him was louder than ever.
Kaelya knelt. "You need to rest."
Kravein glanced toward the darkened horizon. "It's not over. That thing… it's waiting."
Jiwoon looked at his palms — flickers of flame danced between his fingers.
"I'll fight."
"But—" Kaelya started.
Jiwoon cut in, softly. "Not as your god."
He stepped forward.
"As your friend."
The Storm Fades
The Tempest began to die down — not from victory, but retreat.
Like it had learned something.
Like it had recognized him.
One Last Message
As the group turned away, a black feather fell from the sky — unnatural, pulsing with sin.
Jiwoon caught it. On contact, a voice entered his mind:
"We remember you, Ashborn."
"And we are not done."