Years of searching. Years of bloodshed. Years of chasing stories everyone else thought were myths.

And finally. Here.

The ship slid into a narrow cove hidden by overhanging trees. The moment the anchor dropped, the silence on deck became something heavier. Something watchful.

Hongjoong stepped onto the sand first.

The second his boots touched solid ground, the jungle came alive.

Not with animals. With people.

They emerged from between the trees without a sound. Dressed in ocean-colored fabrics that rippled like water. Blades already drawn. Faces unreadable.

At least a dozen of them.

One stepped forward. Tall. Intimidating. A scar cut across his cheek like a white river through stone.

Complete silence.

The kind of silence that had weight. That pressed against the ears. That made every heartbeat feel too loud.

The scarred man moved fast. Faster than Hongjoong expected. Faster than anyone could react.

A blade pressed against Hongjoong's throat. Cold. Steady. Unforgiving.

But Hongjoong barely registered any of it.

Because his attention had shifted.

To the top of the stone steps nearby.

Someone else was standing there.

Tall. Unmoving. Dressed in flowing robes of pale blue and white, like sea foam frozen mid-wave. Dark hair caught the weak sunlight filtering through the trees. Features so delicate they seemed almost unreal.

The stranger watched him.

Not with hostility. Not with fear. With something quieter. Something that made Hongjoong's chest tighten in a way he didn't understand.

The scarred man followed his gaze. A muscle in his jaw twitched.

The stranger descended the steps slowly. Each movement deliberate. Graceful. Like water flowing downhill.

He stopped a few feet away from Hongjoong. Up close, his eyes were striking. Pale. Almost silver in the dim light. Ancient in a way that had nothing to do with age.