He stood alone amid the ruin he had made.
The forest seemed to breathe around him, smoke curling lazily from the blackened earth, ash drifting down from scorched leaves. The air smelled heavy, a mix of burned flesh, iron, and charred wood. Everything was quiet, but the silence pressed down like a weight, carrying the echoes of what had just happened.
Jae's red eyes swept over the clearing, taking in every detail, the bodies, the scorched trees, the deep gouges in the ground where flames and force had met resistance.
A rustle broke the stillness. Byun's shadows appeared first, weaving between trees like living threads before retreating back into his control. The movements were precise, almost cautious, as though they were feeling out the area, checking that nothing was left to strike unexpectedly.
