The southern mist carried the stench of rot. Trees bled sap the color of rust, and the moon above hung swollen and red a bad omen even for hunters.
Han Jaewon moved silently through the underbrush, Sumi at his flank, and six Yin Hunters behind them. Their talismans flickered faintly like dying stars.
"The air's too still," Sumi whispered, her breath forming pale ribbons in the cold.
Jaewon nodded. His crimson Qi pulsed faintly beneath his skin, warning him. Something was awake here.
They had been tracking a nest for two nights not vampires, not quite werewolves. Something between. Every corpse they'd found was drained dry, yet torn apart by claws.
"Keep your formation," Jaewon murmured. "They're watching."
The forest answered with silence. Then—
A growl rippled through the trees.
Shapes burst from the fog fast, feral, bone-white. Werewolves, but their eyes glowed crimson. One landed before Jaewon, saliva sizzling where it touched the ground.
He drew Bloodvein in a single motion. The sword hummed, its edge alive with both Yin Qi and something darker.
The creature lunged.
Jaewon moved a blur of steel and bloodlight. His blade cleaved through flesh and bone. The werewolf's corpse collapsed, dissolving into smoke.
"Corrupted," Sumi breathed. "Their blood's mixed with vampire Qi."
"Varos's work," Jaewon said coldly. "He's binding both species."
Sumi's talismans lit the air, sealing the corpse. But the ground beneath them trembled. From the fog, more figures emerged not wolves this time, but men in silver armor.
Jaewon froze. He recognized their insignia: the Silver Fang Sect.
At their head stood a man with dark hair, a scar down his cheek, and a blade gleaming like moonlight.
"Long time, Jaewon," he said.
"Jinwoo."
The rival hunter smiled thinly. "Still walking between light and blood, I see."
The two groups faced each other, tension like drawn wire. The werewolves snarled in the dark, circling.
Sumi stepped forward. "We don't have time for sect rivalry. The corruption's spreading."
But Jinwoo's eyes stayed on Jaewon. "Funny. You talk of corruption while it runs through your veins."
Jaewon's grip tightened on Bloodvein. "Stand down, Jinwoo. This forest isn't your battleground."
"Everything touched by the night is mine to cleanse," Jinwoo snapped. "Including you."
Before either could move, a howl split the sky deeper, older, resonating with power that shook the trees. The ground erupted.
A massive form stepped out a hybrid beast of fur and fangs, its veins glowing like molten iron. Its voice was layered, half growl, half whisper:
"The Blood Moon rises… and my master awakens."
Jaewon's heart stuttered. Varos.
The creature struck first. Hunters scattered as claws ripped through stone. Sumi threw her seals, binding its legs for an instant — long enough for Jaewon to leap.
"Yin Strike Fifth Form!"
His sword flashed crimson-silver, slicing deep across the beast's chest. Black blood sprayed, burning through the soil. But the creature didn't fall.
It laughed. "Your blood sings to him."
Jaewon faltered the red in his Qi flaring violently. His pulse matched the monster's rhythm. The corruption called to him like a heartbeat.
"Jaewon!" Sumi's voice cut through the haze. "Control it!"
He clenched his jaw, focusing. I am the hunter. Not the prey.
With a roar, he drove Bloodvein through the beast's heart. The impact shook the forest. Crimson mist exploded outward and the monster crumbled to ash.
Silence returned.
Jaewon fell to one knee, breathing hard. Sumi knelt beside him, her hand steady on his arm. "You held it back."
"Barely," he said, eyes still glowing faintly red.
Jinwoo sheathed his blade, frowning. "You're becoming the very thing you hunt. When that line breaks, I'll be the one to end you."
Jaewon met his gaze. "Then you'd better be faster than my curse."
The two stared at each other as the Blood Moon faded behind the clouds.
In the distance, a whisper carried through the wind soft, ancient, and unmistakably human:
"My children have begun to sing again."
Jaewon froze. The voice wasn't in his ears. It was in his blood.
Varos was awake.