The morning began like any other, with the soft rustle of rice paddies swaying in the breeze and the warm glow of sunlight spilling over the village. Kang Jinhyuk stood outside his small home, surveying the land he and Min-Seo had worked so hard to cultivate. Their child laughed nearby, chasing a stray chicken, while Min-Seo humored him with gentle scolding.
For a fleeting moment, Jinhyuk allowed himself a rare smile. Life was simple, unremarkable, but it was theirs. Peaceful. Too peaceful, perhaps.
And then the sky split with the thunder of hooves.
He saw them before he heard them: black-armored riders streaking across the fields, banners unfamiliar and cruel. The first arrow whistled through the air, piercing the roof of a nearby home, shattering Jinhyuk's fragile serenity.
No… no, it can't be…, he whispered, heart tightening. His pulse raced, muscles tensing as instinct screamed at him to protect his family.
Min-Seo screamed. She clutched their child and dashed toward the woods behind their home, but the attackers moved with terrifying precision. The village erupted into chaos...screams of fear, the clash of steel, fire consuming homes, and the acrid stench of smoke filling the air.
Min-Seo! Jinhyuk roared, lunging forward, fists swinging at the first raider he encountered. The blow connected, but more came, dozens, dozens, relentless. He could not reach them fast enough.
The world became a blur of terror and motion. Mothers screamed, children cried, and villagers fought desperately with sticks, farming tools, and whatever they could grasp. Jinhyuk blocked an incoming strike with a broken wooden plank, feeling the splintering wood bite into his palms.
Get away from her! Get away from my family! he shouted, swinging, striking, yet each movement felt slower, heavier. He was only one man against a storm of blades, an invisible tide that crushed everything he loved.
He saw Min-Seo through the chaos. Her face was pale, eyes wide with horror, as she shoved their child behind her. But the attackers were merciless. One vaulted over the roof of a burning hut, striking Min-Seo with a sharp blow that sent her sprawling.
No! Jinhyuk screamed, his voice cracking as he surged forward, clearing a path through the attackers. His arms ached, his legs burned, yet he refused to falter. He reached for her, only to be intercepted. A raider struck his side with the flat of a blade, sending him flying backward into a puddle of mud and blood.
When he rose again, the world had changed.
He saw the aftermath—the mangled remnants of their home, the charred fields, the lifeless bodies strewn across the earth. And there they were: Min-Seo, motionless, her hair matted with blood, eyes staring blankly at the sky; and their child, his small form crumpled beside her.
Jinhyuk fell to his knees, hands trembling as he grasped them. No… no… this isn't real… you can't be… gone…, he choked, voice breaking into a hoarse whisper. Tears streamed down his face, mingling with soot and dirt.
He pressed his face into Min-Seo's chest, inhaling the faint scent of her hair one last time, a scent that would haunt him for years to come. Why… why did this happen?!
The rage was instantaneous, a wildfire that consumed all else. He wanted to fight, to kill, to tear the world apart, but he was powerless. Every swing, every strike he had attempted had been too little, too late. The attackers vanished as suddenly as they had come, leaving ruin in their wake and a void in Jinhyuk's soul.
As he staggered through the wreckage, fragments of memory returned with shocking clarity. He had glimpsed emblems on some of the raiders' armor, subtle, but unmistakable hints of the Namgung and Murong clans. His blood ran cold.
They… they knew…, he muttered, voice shaking with disbelief and fury. This wasn't random. It was… orchestrated.
The truth settled over him like a blade against his chest. Political betrayal. Personal betrayal. The clans that had once been distant shadows in his life The Namgung Clan and Murong Clan...had reached into this village, into his home, and taken everything.
Every heartbeat of despair became a hammering drum in his chest. Every tear became a spark, igniting the first fires of vengeance. He pressed his fists into the soil, willing himself to focus, to survive, to transform this unbearable grief into a weapon.
I… I will not forget you, he whispered to Min-Seo and their child. I will rise. I will grow stronger… stronger than any clan, stronger than any blade. And I will make them pay.
He moved through the village like a shadow, eyes burning, surveying the destruction. Survivors wandered in stunned silence, their faces pale with horror. Some had lost everything. Jinhyuk's heart ached not just for his own loss, but for the collective suffering inflicted upon the village he had sworn to protect.
No more, he vowed, voice low and unwavering. No more will the innocent fall while I stand powerless. I will train. I will fight. And I will reclaim what the world has stolen.
A spark of clarity emerged amidst the chaos. This tragedy, brutal and unforgiving, had forged a purpose within him. The boy who had been powerless, the man who had cherished fleeting peace, would now rise in its place a storm of vengeance and strength.
The wind carried the acrid smoke, mixing with the scent of blood and charred earth. Kang Jinhyuk stood amid the ruins, fists clenched, chest heaving. The world had taken his love, his family, his peace... but it had not taken his resolve.
This… this is only the beginning, he whispered, voice carrying across the devastated fields. Namgung… Murong… whoever had a hand in this… you will feel the fire of my wrath. I will not rest until the debt is repaid in full.
The sun climbed higher, indifferent to the human tragedy below. But Kang Jinhyuk, kneeling amidst the ashes of what had been his life, swore a silent oath: that grief would be sharpened into a blade, sorrow into armor, and rage into a force the world could not ignore.
This was the day the boy became a man. The day vengeance was born. The day Kang Jinhyuk stepped onto the path that would shape his destiny.
And the world would tremble before him.