After their narrow escape, Vincent and Kei finally found an inn with a sign hanging out front that read "The Blue Heron Rest." But their relief quickly turned to surprise when they heard the cost of a room.
"Wait a second—hold on right there!" Vincent exclaimed, turning to the female innkeeper with wide eyes. "You're saying one night here costs 60 kyeols per person? Are you joking with us?"
The innkeeper crossed her arms, her expression firm. "I don't joke about business. If you can't afford it, then there are plenty of other places in town—though none as clean or safe as mine, I'll add."
Kei glanced at Vincent, shaking his head slightly. "Are you really going to get into an argument with her?"
"Of course I am!" Vincent shot back, looking at him like he'd said something absurd. "We can't just make kyeols appear out of thin air—we need to watch what we spend!"
With a quiet sigh, Kei stepped forward and gave the innkeeper a polite bow. "Please forgive my friend's outburst. We understand you need to make a living, but 60 kyeols per person for a single night does seem rather steep, don't you think?"
As he spoke, the innkeeper's gaze met his—and a faint blush rose to her cheeks. Kei had a calm, steady charm that was hard to resist, and her stern expression softened noticeably. "Well… alright, you've got a point there. I can drop it to 30 kyeols each."
Kei pretended to smile gently, his eyes holding hers. "That's better, but could we ask for just a little more consideration? We've traveled a long way, and our funds are limited. Please?"
The innkeeper let out a light laugh, shaking her head in amusement. "Oh, fine—you win! 20 kyeols per person. That's the best I can do."
"Thank you so much," Kei said gratefully, handing over the coins.
Once they'd settled into their room, a small but tidy space with two cots and a window overlooking the street, Vincent collapsed onto his bed and burst into laughter.
"I can't believe that worked!" he chuckled, wiping tears from his eyes. "Where did you learn to do that?"
Kei didn't answer his question—instead, he settled onto his bed and stared up at the ceiling, his mind already working through their next steps.
"Now how do we even get into one of these fortresses?" he murmured, more to himself than to Vincent.
Vincent stretched out on his own cot, matching Kei's gaze toward the wooden beams above. "What we know is that there are four fortresses total. Oden Fortress is the main capital—so that's definitely where the Emperor's palace is."
"Foreigners aren't just going to be let in freely," Kei pointed out. "And we don't even need to go to Oden—our target is Shengyowon, which is in Lingwen Fortress."
Vincent let out a low hum, tapping his fingers against his stomach as he thought. "Then we need to make ourselves useful—do something heroic that gets us noticed by the right people. If we can earn some respect here, doors might start opening."
"Agreed—but we can't take too long about it," Kei said firmly. "We only have five months until the Fang Heian event, and we need to be settled in Lingwen well before then. We've got maybe a week to make a name for ourselves here in Daengho—any longer and we'll be wasting precious time."
The room fell quiet as both men continued to stare at the ceiling, each turning over different ideas in their heads. Outside, the sounds of the town began to fade as night settled in, leaving only the soft crackle of the inn's hearth and the distant call of a watchman's horn.
The sound of loud chatter and footsteps from downstairs roused them early the next morning. When they made their way to the landing to see what was happening, they found the common room packed with townsfolk gathered around a strikingly handsome man. He had narrow, sharp eyes that seemed to take in everything around him, and a lean, powerful build that spoke of training and discipline. Pinned to his dark cloak was a rose emblem—just like the one they'd seen on the woman from the day before.
Curious, Vincent slipped downstairs and tapped one of the onlookers on the shoulder. "What's all the fuss about?"
The man turned, his face lit up with excitement. "You're not from around here, are you? That's Zu Yul of the Blood Rose—one of the finest Hwa-Samurai in the empire! They say he was offered command of his own unit, but he turned it down to serve directly under Princess Yejin."
"Blood Rose… so he's really strong, huh?" Vincent asked, glancing over at the man. "But why's everyone making such a big deal out of him being here?"
"Are you kidding? He's practically a hero to us! Not only is he good-looking, but he's always been generous with his coin and his help—fixed roofs, helped feed families when times were tough, even drove off a band of bandits last year. Everyone here looks up to him."
Vincent made his way back up to where Kei stood watching the scene unfold. "So that's Zu Yul from the Blood Rose. People say he's strong, but he doesn't look like much to me," he said, squinting at the man from above.
Kei didn't respond right away—his eyes had begun to glow with that familiar blue light as he studied the samurai. He could see the steady flow of prana moving through Yul's body, controlled and powerful in a way that only came from years of rigorous training. "He's more than capable," Kei finally said quietly. "We should leave this inn before he notices us. If he's with the Blood Rose, and that woman from yesterday wore the same emblem… it's only a matter of time before she shows up here too."
"Right you are," Vincent nodded, already heading back to their room to gather their things. "Once we're out of here, let's start asking around about how to get into Lingwen Fortress. We can't afford to waste any more time."
Just as they were shouldering their packs to leave, they rounded a corner in the inn's hallway—and came face to face with the woman from yesterday, Princess Yejin.
"Oh?" Her eyes widened slightly as she locked gazes with them, her expression going momentarily blank.
"Damn it—she found us," Vincent muttered under his breath.
But what happened next caught them completely off guard. Yejin took a step forward, bowed her head respectfully, and spoke in a voice full of sincerity. "I owe you both an apology. I acted rashly yesterday and accused you of something terrible. I've already spoken to the child—she told me everything, how you were only trying to help her and her father. I am truly sorry for my mistake."
Vincent's tense shoulders relaxed, and he broke into a warm smile, scratching the back of his head. "Oh, that's no problem at all! Things were pretty crazy yesterday—we didn't exactly get a chance to explain ourselves either."
"No, please—none of this was your fault." Yejin straightened up, her gaze steady and kind. "You mentioned you were from Gammora, right?"
"Uh—yeah, that's right!" Vincent nodded quickly, keeping up their cover story.
"Then as a thank you for helping one of our people, I'd like to treat you both to a proper meal. I came here today to pick up a friend, and I think you'd get along well with him—he's someone who cares deeply about helping others too."
"I'm sorry, but we actually have somewhere we need to be—" Kei began, but Vincent cut him off with an enthusiastic wave of his hand.
"Nonsense! We've got plenty of time, right Kei?" He shot his companion a look that clearly said don't ruin this. "My friend here's just a bit shy is all. We'd love to join you for a meal!"
"Thank you. I'm glad to hear it." Yejin turned behind her and called out to her comrade. "Tsuyu! Please go get Yul. Tell him we'll be heading to Shushu resto for our breakfast."
"Right away, my Lady!" Tsuyu replied, hurrying back into the inn to fetch Yul. Soon after, they made their way to the street where a grand calash awaited them—not pulled by horses like those in Elion or Gammora, but by three massive syndyrs: deer-like creatures native only to Iona, standing as tall as full-grown bulls with sleek coats and impressive antlers. Inside the spacious carriage, they sat across from Yejin, Yul, and Tsuyu.
"You two aren't like other foreigners who pass through our lands," Yejin began, her gaze fixed on Kei. "Yesterday, this one dodged every single one of my strikes with ease—and even pinned my sword down with just his foot. You're clearly skilled warriors."
"Well, we do know our way around a fight," Vincent admitted with a small grin. "But we only use our skills to stand against injustice. Please don't be suspicious of us. We have no intention of harming anyone here."
"I already believe you mean no harm," Yejin said with a gentle smile, though Kei could sense a lingering wariness in her eyes as she studied them both.
"Please understand—our caution isn't meant to be offensive," Yul added, his voice calm and steady. "As I'm sure you've heard, our empire is currently at war with the nations of the South. So long as you have no ties to the South Alliance Treaty, you have nothing to fear from us."
"Of course, we know all about their ambitions," Vincent nodded. "They've been trying to push into Iona, Horris, Nother, and even the Oddin-Artemia alliance. Their greed seems to know no bounds."
"That's sadly true," Tsuyu chimed in, her expression growing serious. "The town of Kyungsuk bears the brunt of their attempts to land troops—they're always the first target when the South tries to invade our shores."
After a moment of quiet, Kei spoke up. "But what about the Gates of Abaddon? How often do they appear here in Iona?"
"Gates of Abaddon?" Yul raised an eyebrow, exchanging a look with Yejin. "They're the least of our worries right now. We might see one or two appear in our entire region every couple of years at most."
Yejin leaned forward slightly, her curiosity piqued. "That's an unusual question to ask. I can't help but wonder if there's more to why you've come to our land than you've told us."
"Oh, it's nothing like that," Kei said calmly. "It's just that in Gammora, the Gates have become a terrible problem—they're spreading faster every day."
"Faster is an understatement!" Vincent cut in. "Just last week alone, we had thirteen gates open up across the country!"
"Thirteen in one week?" Yejin's eyes widened in shock. "Good Goddess Amaterasu… that is catastrophic! We've never faced anything even close to that here."
"Absolutely, it's insane," Vincent agreed. "If a dozen gates opened in one place all at once, even a major city could be overrun in hours without skilled hunters to hold them back."
When the calash pulled up at the Shushu restaurant, a beautiful wooden building overlooking a quiet stream, Yejin led them inside to a private room where they were served an array of delicious local dishes. As they ate, they talked freely about Iona's customs and people, though Vincent and Kei carefully avoided mentioning their true mission. Instead, Vincent explained that they'd been trained to travel from place to place, offering protection against bandits and other threats in exchange for fair payment.
"So that's how you became such strong fighters?" Tsuyu asked, her eyes wide with interest.
"Exactly!" Vincent laughed, taking another bite of his meal.
Yejin was quiet for a while, her gaze thoughtful as she watched them both. Then, without warning, she spoke up: "What if I offered you 10 silver kyeols each day to fight under my banner to help us defend against the South Alliance invaders, would you accept?"
Yul and Tsuyu both looked shocked. Tsuyu even let out a small gasp. "Princess Yejin?"
"I'll be honest with you," Yejin continued, her voice steady. "At first, I thought you might be spies from the South. But hearing about what's happening in Gammora, about the Gates of Abaddon… I know your goals lie elsewhere. I still don't know everything about why you're here, but I'm certain it has nothing to do with the South. And after our encounter yesterday, I know firsthand how capable you both are in combat."
Vincent and Kei exchanged a look before falling silent. Then Vincent's face broke into a confident smile as he leaned forward slightly. "Trust is what builds strong relationships, and our organization has never seen your empire as an enemy." He lifted his right hand, and a small, controlled flame flickered to life above his index finger. "We're not just wandering mercenaries. We're part of an elite group that operates mostly in secret—the Fabled Class. Our true work is hunting fiends and closing the Gates of Abaddon. I lied about who we were. My real name is Vincent, and this is Kei."
"Vincent, are you out of your mind? Why would you—" Kei started to protest, but Vincent held up a hand to silence him, his expression now serious as he looked at Yejin.
Yul and Tsuyu tensed immediately, moving as if to draw their weapons, but Yejin held up a hand to stop them. She took a deep breath, her eyes fixed on the flame dancing above Vincent's finger. "Thank you for being honest with me. I've never heard of the Fabled Class before, but the way you command that flame tells me you're no ordinary warrior."
"So what do you say, Princess?" Vincent asked, letting the flame fade away. "Our organization can help your army stand against the invaders. But we'll ask for one thing in return."
"What is it?"
"As I said, we fight to close the Gates of Abaddon, and I wasn't lying about how often they're appearing now. We came to Iona to learn about the Heavenly Crystals. We know the legends—that the Goddess Amaterasu scattered them across the world to keep fiends from our realm. But something is weakening them, and we need to find out why. We have to locate the crystals and investigate what's happening, or the entire world could be swamped by those Gates."
Yejin sat quietly for a long moment, absorbing every word. Then she nodded slowly, again and again. "I understand. You guys are fighting a conflict more serious than any war between nations. I'll do everything I can to help you. But first, I need to have your skills formally verified at Zheng Fort before I can officially welcome you into my ranks. And to seal this agreement, let me properly introduce myself: I am Choi Yejin, Seon-Gak of the Blood Rose, and Princess of the noble Choi household. I accept you two to serve under my banner and protect the empire from the invaders of the South."
Vincent and Kei stood and bowed deeply in respect, acknowledging both her position and her willingness to help.