Kei released his pocket dimension, and the air tore open with a sharp, deafening crack. The plain wooden walls of the infirmary shattered like thin ice, crumbling away into deep darkness.
Freezing wind slammed into Kei's face an instant later. A vast plain of pale snow stretched ahead, swept by a violent blizzard. But when he turned, the cold ended abruptly at a jagged, broken line. On the other side lay Vincent's domain — a ruined city drowning in a sea of roaring fire. The two realms collided with violent force, churning up blinding plumes of hissing steam where falling snow struck red-hot stone.
Kei focused his Deathsight. Piercing through the thick smoke and ash, he spotted faint, familiar clusters of prana trapped deep within the sea of flames.
"Fenral," he called out softly.
A towering shadow broke through the whiteout. Fenral stepped forward, frost clinging to his thick silver coat and breath billowing like frozen mist. Kei grabbed the beast's thick fur and swung himself onto his back without wasting a breath.
"We don't have much time," Kei said. "We need to gather the others, wake Vincent, and get out of this place."
Fenral threw his head back and let out a booming howl. From the swirling snow behind them, a huge pack of shadow wolves rushed out, charging straight into the flames. They surged forward with their icy paws leaving trails of hardened frost that smothered the embers beneath them.
Fenral leaped after the pack, carrying Kei straight into the burning city.
As they crossed the threshold, the howling wind gave way to voices — raw, desperate, and sharp with panic.
"SOMEONE HELP US!" a woman's voice wailed from the smoke.
"WHAT DID WE DO WRONG? WHY IS THE KING DOING THIS TO HIS OWN PEOPLE?" another man cried out.
Kei scanned the burning environment, his grip tightening. The city was empty. There were no bodies, only lingering memories trapped in the heat.
"This is terrible," Kei muttered. "I know he usually talks a lot, so I expect a lively environment in his domain, but this is entirely different. These people sound like they're being tormented."
"Your friend's domain is completely unstable, Kei," Fenral's deep voice echoed in his mind. "His nightmares and worst memories are bleeding into this space. That is why this environment is so chaotic. He either slaughtered these people himself, or he was caught in the middle of a great tragedy."
"WHY IS THE KING DOING THIS TO US? WE DID NOTHING WRONG!" another voice shrieked.
The wailing voices rose and fell in an endless, sickening rhythm. Pushing deeper through the heat, Fenral vaulted over a collapsed stone archway and skidded onto a cracked plateau. There, huddled together in soaked, soot-stained uniforms, stood Tsuyu, Hajun, and the Blood Rose retainers.
The arrival of the shadow wolves brought an immediate wave of freezing air, cutting through the suffocating heat and giving the exhausted squad room to breathe.
"Kei!" Tsuyu gasped, dropping to one knee with a ragged breath.
Hajun and the guards scrambled back, their hands flying to their hilts as they stared wide-eyed at the towering beast behind Kei. "What is that thing? It's huge!" Hajun stammered.
"Are you hurt? Where is Vincent?" Kei asked, slipping down from Fenral's flank.
"We're holding on," Hajun said, wiping sweat from his eyes.
Tsuyu pointed toward a jagged cliff rising above the sea of fire. "Haein went up there. She spotted a figure on the ridge and went ahead to check."
Kei mounted Fenral again and looked down. "Fenral, can your wolves carry them out?"
"My pack is made of shadow, Kei," Fenral answered plainly. "They have no flesh to carry mortal weight. Trying to drag them along will only slow us down."
Tsuyu pushed herself to her feet, her jaw set firm. "Kei, take me with you. I started this watch, and I'm going to see it through."
"Are you sure?" Kei asked.
Tsuyu nodded.
Kei did not argue. He reached down, caught her forearm, and hauled her up onto Fenral's back behind him. "Let us at least leave a path for them, Fenral," Kei urged.
"Very well." Fenral gave a short, guttural command. Half of the pack circled the platform, weaving a barrier of frost to keep the encroaching flames at bay. With a massive push of his hind legs, the great wolf leaped clear of the plateau, racing across the burning roofs toward the cliff.
High above on the stone ledge, Haein was locked in a brutal struggle. The giant serpent of liquid flame struck at her again and again, spitting plumes of white-hot fire across the rock. Haein met every strike with chilling precision, her dark blade drinking the flames down to empty air. Deprived of its fiery shield, the serpent's body tore open beneath her fast, lethal cuts.
She was driving the beast back — until the small silhouette on the cliff finally stirred.
Young Vincent slowly turned his head. His skin was pale, smeared with soot and ash, but his eyes burned with an unsettling, hollow fury. Haein slowed her blade, the suffocating heat suddenly feeling cold against her skin.
"Vincent?" she called out, keeping her voice steady. "Can you see me now?"
"Ashes, ashes... nothing left but ashes..." The boy's voice began as a ragged, choking whisper before tearing into a frantic shriek that shook the ridge. "YOU KILLED THEM! ALL OF THEM! I'LL BURN IT ALL DOWN! I'LL BURN EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU!"
He thrust his hand forward, blasting a tidal wave of massive infernal flames. It surged across the stone faster than any spell he had cast before. Haein threw herself sideways, gritting her teeth as the blistering air scorched through her sleeve.
Before she could reset her footing, columns of fire erupted straight out of the cracked earth beneath her boots. Haein leaped, twisting through the air, but the heat chased her relentlessly. She came down hard on the jagged rock, coughing violently as black smoke filled her chest. Her vision blurred, her limbs growing heavy from the unbearable heat.
Vincent raised his open palm and twisted his wrist. The surrounding flames gathered inward, spinning into a massive, roaring twister of fire. It ripped across the stone plateau, swallowing everything in its path as it tore straight toward her.
Haein lifted an arm to shield her face, her breath coming in ragged gasps.
The wall of fire was barely a foot away when the air shattered. A violent blast of arctic frost slammed directly into the twister, snuffing out the flames in a deafening hiss of boiling white vapor.
"What?" Haein whispered, surprise evident in her eyes.
Back in the physical world, the quiet infirmary sat in tense stillness.
Yejin paced the stone floor, her hands clenched tight at her sides. The small energy cores still hovered silently against the wooden ceiling, but she could do nothing to help her retainers trapped inside. She could not even see the cores with her eyes.
"Maybe we should call my brother for help," Yejin said, looking toward the door. "Eunjoo might be around."
Lai Zhin Te offered an easy, reassuring smile, resting one hand casually against her hip. "Easy there, Lady Yejin. Have a little faith. I took a good look at Kei's energy before he opened his pocket dimension, and I must say, he has quite a unique prana flow. Never seen anything like it in my 10 years of battle experience. If raw strength would be the basis, I'd say he already surpassed even myself."
Yejin stopped, blinking in surprise. "Really? Kei is that strong?"
"You hauled in quite a big fish for your division," Zhin Te laughed, giving an appreciative shake of her head. "I'm almost jealous."
However, soon after, her laughter faded into silence.
The warm air in the room suddenly thinned. A bitter, unnatural chill swept across the stone floor, cold air creeping over their shoes and causing the lantern flames to sputter.
Zhin Te's relaxed posture vanished instantly.