Jan became more determined to expose Raven as she moved forward with her dangerous plan against him.
Not really knowing what to do, I noticed something strange—Raven had not been seen for the whole day. For some reason, I tried to convince myself that it was just his usual behavior. Maybe he is avoiding people again, I thought to myself.
The next morning, I woke up very early. The sky was still dull, and the school compound was quiet. I stood by the window, my eyes searching the familiar path near the tree where Raven usually passed whenever he wanted to sneak out unnoticed. I stayed there for a long time, hoping to catch even a glimpse of him leaving.
But he wasn't there.
That made my heart sink.
It had been two days already, and Raven had not been seen anywhere—not in class, not around the school, not even near the tree. No one had said anything about him, and no news had been heard. It was as if he had vanished into thin air.
The worst part was that Raven didn't really have friends I could easily ask about him. He always kept to himself. Even Minho barely spoke about him,
That afternoon, after class, Jan came to my room. Her face looked serious, and I knew immediately why she was there.
She asked about Raven and about our plans.
"Jan," I said quietly, sitting on my bed, "I haven't seen Raven for close to two days now. I'm scared."
She looked at me without speaking, allowing me to continue.
"I know he sometimes hides so he won't be seen," I went on, "but I always manage to see him leave, or at least feel his presence. This time… I haven't set my eyes on him at all."
Jan sat quietly, listening to every word I said.
"So after the day we went to Eunwoo's mother," she finally asked, "you haven't seen him?"
I shook my head.
"Jan, I won't lie to you. I don't even have his number. And the number he used to call me that day—it's not going through."
Jan took a deep breath.
"Jina," she said slowly, "we have to find him. Except… maybe he noticed what was about to happen and disappeared."
Her words hit me hard.
For a moment, I didn't know how to feel. Part of me felt relieved that he couldn't be found—maybe for his own safety. Because honestly, at that point, I wasn't even sure I could go through with the plan Jan had suggested.
"Jina," Jan said suddenly, standing up, "today we need to leave the school. We're going to see Yen's relatives "
"Yen?" I asked, confused.
"Yes," she replied. "I told you I know where her relatives live."
I stared at her.
"So we're leaving… now?"
She watched me for a few seconds before nodding.
"Yes. Now."
"Jan, I don't know if I'm ready for all this," I said honestly. "What if whoever is behind all this notices that I've started investigating again? I'm not ready, Jan. I don't even have the strength yet to fight ."
She walked over and pulled me up gently.
"Nothing will happen to you or me," she said confidently. "Besides, we're doing this outside the school, not inside."
I thought about Raven's warning—the way he had looked at me that day, serious and concerned. My eyes drifted to the empty tree outside the window.
What am I supposed to do? I asked myself.
After a long pause, I nodded.
"Okay, Jan. If you insist, I'm ready."
She helped me close the door, and together we walked out of the hostel. We entered a taxi, and at first, the drive was smooth and quiet.
But after some time, the driver suddenly increased his speed.
I turned to look at Jan, but she didn't seem worried.
The man sped up further, driving toward an unfamiliar route. Soon, we reached an empty area. The town looked lonely, abandoned, and strange.
I turned to Jan again.
"Jan, what is this place? Is this where Yen lives?"
I saw fear flash across Jan's face as she stared back at me.
"Jina," she whispered, "I don't know this place. I think—"
Before she could finish, two women dressed in black appeared from nowhere.
Everything happened so fast.
One grabbed Jan, and the other dragged me away. I tried to scream, but fear stole my voice. The woman pushed me hard to the ground in an empty space.
She brought out the same strange object they had once used to tie my hands and tied them tightly again.
Moments later, something appeared—something white, unnatural, almost unreal.
My heart froze.
"I've seen this before," I whispered in terror. "It's a jiangshi…"
Fear consumed me. They want to take away my powers.
The creature moved slowly toward me, its eyes empty and cold. As it came closer, it stared deeply into my eyes and suddenly stretched out its long tongue, moving toward my face.
I screamed.
Suddenly, glass shattered everywhere.
Someone flew in.
Panic broke out among the people around. I looked up and saw him—the masked boy.
He arrived with the same overwhelming energy as before.
He fought effortlessly, flying up and down, burning the attackers with waves of fire. In seconds, bodies fell to the ground.
I struggled to my feet.
"Jan!" I cried out. "Where is Jan?"
I tried to run toward the direction where the woman had dragged her, but the masked boy grabbed my hand immediately after striking down the last attacker.
"My friend is on the other side," I pleaded, looking into the mask. "Please, can you help her?"
Without a word, he lifted me into his arms. He looked at me closely and blew something like a gentle breeze across my face.
Everything went dark.
I woke up in my bed.
I jumped up immediately and ran to Jan's room.
It was still locked.
"Oh no…" I whispered.
I rushed back to my room, panic rising.
He didn't help Jan.
I had to do something.
I ran downstairs toward the school gate, but someone suddenly held my hand firmly.
I turned.
It was Raven.
I stared at him in shock.
"Raven… where have you been?"
He didn't answer. He pulled me toward the tree, still holding my hand tightly. When we reached it, he finally let go.
"Where were you going?" he asked coldly.
"Raven," I said quickly, "my friend is in danger. We left together, something happened, and I escaped—but she's still there."
He stared at me intensely.
"And you think you have the strength to save her? Don't you think about your mother? Is this how you treat the people close to you, giving everything without thinking?"
I froze.
This was the first time Raven had ever raised his voice at me.
Before I could respond, he grabbed my hand again and pulled me toward the cafeteria.
He stopped suddenly and fixed his gaze on someone.
I followed his eyes.
Jan was sitting there—smiling—with another girl.
"Jina!" Jan exclaimed when she saw me, running over and hugging me tightly. "Thank goodness you're safe."
"How did you get here?" I asked, confused.
"The same person who saved you saved me," she replied with a smile.
I sighed in relief.
Raven looked at me with curiosity for a moment, then turned away and climbed the tree, lying down silently.
"Who is the masked boy?" Jan asked. "He always comes to the rescue."
"I wish I knew," I replied honestly.
As Jan led me to sit down, she whispered,
"Jina, what about Raven? Remember our plan—"
"Jan," I interrupted gently, standing up, "I need to rest. Please. I don't want to do anything right now. My life has been hell this week."
I walked away.
When I reached the tree, I looked up at Raven. His eyes were closed.
"Jina," he said softly, "
please I need some rest
I am very weak and tired I have had a very long exhausting day and you need to rest too
We can talk later
Raven said as he still closes his eyes
I nodded and returned to my room.
Lying on my bed, one thought struck me painfully.