A thin mist clung to the rooftops as dawn light began to peel back the darkness over the Assembly's southern quadrant. Baek Sun-Ho sat cross-legged on the veranda of their borrowed courtyard, a soft pulse of qi cycling beneath his skin. The energy now responded with both warmth and crackling clarity—fire and lightning, harmonized.
His breath stilled.
Inside, Yeon and Ji-Mun were asleep under layered quilts. Ma-Rok snored beside the window, curled up like a boulder that decided to nap mid-roll. Yul-Rin was already up, adjusting her robes and quietly cataloging her poisons before tucking them back into her belt sash.
So-Ri stepped into the courtyard, hair braided, face solemn.
"You didn't sleep," she said.
Sun-Ho opened his eyes, giving a small nod.
"I felt the shift in the night," she continued. "Something moved."
"Not just inside me," he said, glancing toward the east. "The sects are beginning to choose sides—quietly, but clearly."
So-Ri took a seat beside him. "The Burning Moon faction? Or the court-connected Wild Sect?"
"Both. And something darker beneath them. The traitor's shadow still hasn't surfaced, but I can smell it moving closer."
Before she could respond, a quiet knock echoed at the side gate.
Yul-Rin, already halfway there, opened it with one hand on a concealed blade.
A young disciple stood outside, face pale.
"Baek Sun-Ho… you've been summoned. Petal Garden. An heir awaits."
Sun-Ho frowned. "Which one?"
"No name was given. But… they wore silver plum blossoms."
So-Ri stiffened slightly. "That's Jin Ye-Hwa."
"The Velvet Thorn," Yul-Rin muttered. "She doesn't move unless she's about to shift the board."
Sun-Ho stood. "Then let's see if she came to sharpen blades or words."
---
Petal Garden – Morning
The Petal Garden had once been a training ground for the Falling Blossom Pavilion's elder masters—its stone paths were overgrown now, but the cherry trees still bloomed unnaturally, petals swirling despite the season.
She stood beneath one of those trees—Jin Ye-Hwa, clad in silver-edged robes, her long sword resting point-down beside her. Her beauty was soft but precise, like a blade hidden in silk. A handful of followers stood in the distance, keeping respectful distance.
"You came alone," she said without turning.
Sun-Ho walked slowly across the grass. "It was either that or bring my hammer-obsessed bodyguard. He gets too excited around trees."
That coaxed a faint smile from her lips. "You speak like a poet. Fitting, for someone who hides thunderstorms behind words."
He stood a few paces away. "And you speak like someone who didn't call me here for small talk."
"Sharp," she said, turning to face him. "You've disrupted expectations, Baek Sun-Ho. And in Murim, disruption invites knives. I wanted to see—before those knives are drawn—whether your mask hides a monster… or something more dangerous."
"What's more dangerous than a monster?"
"A reformer."
He met her gaze without flinching. "Then I'll take that as a compliment."
"I don't offer many," she said. "I came to offer something else. An alliance."
He raised an eyebrow.
"You'll face Kang Mu-Jin soon," she continued. "He's the Grand Order's favorite. Immovable, doctrinal, ruthless. But they underestimate people like you—and me."
Sun-Ho crossed his arms. "Why help me?"
"Because I don't believe in following broken systems. I believe in choosing the winner before the others realize they've already lost."
For a moment, silence stretched between them, broken only by the soft rustle of falling blossoms.
Finally, Sun-Ho said, "Then you should know—I don't take shortcuts. I win clean or not at all."
"I expected no less," she said. "This isn't a shortcut. Just… a shared path. For now."
She stepped closer and whispered, "They will try to assassinate someone close to you. Today or tomorrow. Be ready."
Then she turned and walked away, her sword trailing lazy patterns behind her.
Sun-Ho stood still as petals brushed past his shoulders.
---
Back at Camp
"She offered what?!" Ji-Mun nearly dropped the skewer he was roasting.
Sun-Ho relayed the conversation calmly. Yul-Rin leaned forward, chin in palm.
"She's playing her own game," she said. "But the warning… it's likely real."
Ma-Rok cracked his knuckles. "Let them try. I've been bored since last week's duel."
Master Jang poured his tea slowly. "Expect assassination, then. Expect it to come from somewhere you don't."
So-Ri paced nearby, expression thoughtful. "We need to tighten shifts. No one leaves alone."
Sun-Ho nodded. "And I'll meditate tonight. If it's me they're targeting, they'll try for a silent strike. I want to see it coming."
Yeon passed him a folded note, simply written:
They'll come from below.
He blinked, then looked at the stone flooring under their feet.
"So… sewers?" Ji-Mun said, disgusted. "Great. Stabby assassins and sewage."
"Seal the lower corridors," Sun-Ho ordered. "And So-Ri—help me map their timing."
She nodded, eyes sharp.
Above them, the wind carried faint chimes. But beneath the floor, something had already begun to move.
---
End of Chapter 106 – Storm in the Petal Garden