The city of Arven was unusually quiet that morning.
Not peaceful—terrifyingly still. Police sirens flashed against the abandoned warehouse in District 7, but the officers hesitated to step inside. Something was wrong. Unnaturally wrong.
Detective Hale stood before the entrance, trying to steady his breath.
"Let's move," he ordered, though his voice cracked slightly.
The door creaked open, revealing a scene that made every officer freeze.
Blood everywhere.
Coating the walls.
Pooling on the floor.
Too much to be humanly possible.
But there were no signs of struggle.
No weapon.
No screaming neighbors.
No broken windows.
It was as if time itself had been muted.
"The Silent Carnage…" someone whispered.
Then they found him.
A boy—beautiful in a haunting way—sitting alone in the center of the room. Around seventeen or eighteen, with soft dark hair falling over his pale skin. His clothes were soaked in blood, but none of it was his.
His eyes were empty. Dark. Deadly calm.
He didn't blink when officers surrounded him. Didn't react. Didn't show fear.
"Kid," Hale crouched carefully, "can you tell me your name?"
No response.
Another officer whispered, "He's like… a doll."
Then Hale saw it.
A mark under the boy's left ear—
a clean imprint, carved sharply into the skin like a brand.
"V."
"What the hell does that mean?" an officer muttered.
No one knew.
But the instant they touched the boy's shoulder, the air shifted.
Lights flickered.
Cold wind swept through the room.
Something ancient rippled across the walls.
Everyone felt it.
Power.
Silent, suffocating power.
"Step back!" someone shouted.
But the boy didn't move. Didn't even seem alive—
until his eyes slowly lifted…
…looking straight toward the mountains.
---
Far away, in the isolated province of Hallowen Ridge, Taejin woke up gasping for air.
His heart pounded painfully. Sweat lined his forehead.
He had dreamt of someone.
A boy.
Beautiful but terrifying.
Eyes as hollow as an empty night sky.
A letter on his skin.
"V…"
Taejin touched his neck instinctively and froze.
His birthmark—something he always thought was meaningless—was glowing faintly under his left ear.
A strange warmth traveled down his spine.
"No… impossible…"
But deep inside, something ancient stirred.
A connection.
A call.
A bond.
And somewhere in Arven—
the V-marked boy's empty eyes softened for the first time, as if he heard the whisper of someone meant only for him.
Someone the world thought was lost.
Someone named Taejin.