Raven turned her head.
Four people were walking toward her from inside the village. Karin was in the lead, followed by Kyle, Lisa, and Kevin.
Lisa immediately glared at Raven.
"Oh my gosh… you've really gone too far, Raven."
Kyle crossed his arms and gave a faint smile.
"Well, it's not like you're any different."
Raven gently massaged her temples.
"You guys too?"
Karin shrugged, but her gaze was sharp.
"You should know Hana has been waiting for you here for three days."
Her tone turned colder.
"And what you just said… it really makes me sick, Raven."
Karin's gaze was filled with anger and irritation.
But Raven didn't even turn to look at her.
Her eyes immediately shifted to Hana.
"Three days?"
Lisa nodded.
"Yes."
"She's really been waiting here since the day you disappeared from the village."
Hana immediately panicked.
"Lisa! Karin! Don't say that!"
She hurriedly tried to cover their mouths, her face flushing.
Karin snorted softly.
"It's too late."
Raven stared at her a few seconds longer than usual.
"You waited… three days?"
Hana turned her face away.
"That doesn't matter."
Raven let out a soft sigh.
Raven's gaze narrowed slightly.
"So how could you be sure I was still in the village… that you'd wait for me that long?"
Hana fell silent for a moment, then finally answered.
"I didn't know right away… at first I was just guessing."
She clutched her own arm, staring at the ground as if piecing her memories back together.
"After we gathered with the others that day… Adriana and I went to see the village chief. I hadn't seen you since morning, so we wanted to ask where you'd gone."
She paused for a moment.
"When we asked… the village chief immediately replied that you'd already left the village."
Hana lifted her gaze slightly.
"But for some reason… I just didn't feel convinced."
Raven remained silent.
Hana continued slowly,"The way he answered was too quick. Like… it was a prepared response."
Kyle raised his eyebrows slightly, but he didn't interrupt.
Hana looked down again, recalling what happened next.
"Not long after that… a strange phenomenon appeared from the direction of the forest."
Her expression shifted slightly as she recalled it.
"That terrifying red light… it caused many villagers to panic."
"Some even ran out of their homes."
Lisa nodded slightly. She remembered the incident too.
"But the village chief came out and calmed them down," Hana continued.
"He said everything would be all right."
Hana looked at Raven again.
"What's strange… he looked so calm."
She paused for a moment.
"Even though when he was telling us about the village being attacked by a band of robbers before… he looked like someone who had lost all hope."
"But that time was different."
Hana's gaze softened slightly.
"It seemed… he knew it wasn't something to be afraid of."
She took a small breath.
"As if he knew there was something that wouldn't hurt the villagers."
Karin, Lisa, Kyle, and Kevin were now completely silent, listening.
Hana continued, her voice softer.
"And for some reason… that expression reminds me of something."
She fell silent for a moment.
Memories of the cave resurfaced in her mind.
When Raven entered with a calm expression…
When he slaughtered the bandits without hesitation…
When fear and relief mingled together.
"Back in the cave… when you saved us."
Hana looked at Raven.
"To be honest, back then I thought you looked a little scary."
She gave a small, almost bitter smile.
"But at the same time… I also felt that you were reliable."
She let out a soft sigh.
"The expression on the village chief's face… looked similar."
Silence fell between them.
No one interrupted her.
"That's why I started thinking… maybe you hadn't left and were still here."
Hana continued,
"For three days I sat by the village gate, convinced that you really hadn't left."
She shrugged slightly.
"At first, I was just waiting."
"But eventually, without realizing it, I started paying attention to my surroundings and everyone coming in and out of the village."
Kevin looked a little surprised.
"The way they walked. Even their habits."
"After two days… I memorized everything and observed my surroundings carefully."
She looked at Raven again.
"So when someone walked by this morning… I realized it right away."
His gaze was fixed on Raven.
"Because that person was different."
He looked straight at Raven.
"You really haven't changed."
Hana took a small breath.
"Even though you do look a little different now…"
Her gaze briefly fell to Raven's broader shoulders and his much more sturdy build.
Then she looked back into his eyes.
"So I was sure it was you."
That explanation made Karin, Lisa, Kyle, and Kevin exchange glances.
They were clearly surprised.
They knew Hana was a high-achieving student at the university and was known for being smart, calm, and often the center of attention on campus.
But her keen observational skills and her remarkable memory… meant they never truly realized it.
Only Raven didn't seem surprised.
He looked at Hana in silence.
Raven had known her for a long time.
Ever since they were children.
Hana had always been like that quick to grasp things, sharp in remembering details, and almost always excelling in her studies thanks to her abilities. Her grades were always high, and every time the test results came out, the girl would often come to him with a proud face, showing him her report card while waiting for one thing.
A compliment from him.
That memory flashed briefly through Raven's mind.
But ever since they were thrown into the world of Murim, the girl had seemed lost, like someone who had suddenly gotten lost in a world she didn't understand at all.
Now…
Raven saw that old side of her again.
Karin suddenly grinned.
"Besides, Raven…"
She looked at him with a defiant smile.
"Weren't you the one who said that each of our lives is our own responsibility?"
Raven raised his thin eyebrows.
Karin continued casually,
"So why are you forbidding us now?"
Lisa immediately chuckled.
"Looks like you're caught in your own words."
Kyle chimed in, casually patting Raven on the shoulder.
"We're your friends too, Bro."
He looked toward the road outside the village gate.
"And besides… isn't adventuring together more fun than going alone?"
Raven let out a long sigh.
He looked at each of them in turn.
As if trying to confirm whether they were truly serious.
Then his gaze settled on someone.
"But… why are you coming too, Kevin?"
Kevin, standing in the back, looked a bit paler than the others. His body still looked weak after being unconscious for several days.
But he slowly lifted his head and looked at Raven with eyes full of determination.
Kevin, who was usually the least close to Raven, finally spoke softly,
"I think going with you is safer than staying here."
He paused for a moment, then added in an even lower voice,
"Besides… I have my own reasons."
Hana immediately looked at him with concern.
"Are you sure, Kevin? Your injuries don't seem to have fully healed yet."
Kevin scratched the back of his head.
"Ah, it's fine."
He smiled awkwardly.
"I rested long enough yesterday. I'm feeling much better now."
Karin glanced at him with a smirk.
"Hmm… I think I know the reason."
Kevin turned to look at her in panic.
"Hey! Don't start that again!"
Kyle immediately covered his mouth to stifle a laugh.
Lisa just shook her head slightly at them.
The previously tense atmosphere slowly lightened.
Raven watched everything in silence.
Their soft laughter, their teasing, and the way they stood behind him without hesitation.
He stared at them for quite a while.
Finally, Raven shook his head slowly.
"You guys are really stubborn."
No one answered.
Because they knew…
That wasn't a rejection.
Raven finally turned to face the village exit.
Morning mist still hung thinly over the dirt road leading to the valley and the outer forest.
"Do as y'all want."
He stepped through the gate.
But before walking any further, he said without turning around.
"If you want to come along…"
He paused for a moment.
"…hurry up."
A small smile appeared on Hana's face.
Without needing to be told, they all immediately followed him.
The six of them walked away from the small village, leaving the morning mist slowly fading behind them.
The village's wooden houses grew smaller in the distance.
And without them realizing it,
That journey wasn't merely about leaving the village.
It was their first step toward the true world of Murim.