The morning light streamed through the stained-glass windows of the Valos Guild, painting the main hall with golden and blue hues. Silence hung among those present, but tension simmered in their gazes. At the central table, Lino debated with Kaellia in front of three guild officers. The topic: the red fragment.
In the side benches, the other adventurers merely observed. Mireya sat with her arms crossed, Allan with half-closed eyes, Tolen scratching his temple. Saphira stood, staring intently at Jin, who sat hooded in the corner of the room.
Jin kept his gaze lowered, shrouded by the shadows of his hood. His right arm… was gone. Only the empty sleeve, folded and secured with a band, remained. Beside him, Ziek, also awake, had his arm in a cast, his eyes serious.
Across the room, Lyn broke the silence with a direct voice:
"Jin… there's no magic that can reattach an arm. None." She glanced at him sideways. "I'm sorry."
He didn't respond. He only nodded, once.
At the table, Kaellia spoke firmly:
"The fragment was obtained during a guild mission. The reward should be formally delivered. The group that took it, though efficient, provided no documentation."
Lino countered:
"The fragment was secured during our fight. There was no documentation because you didn't even know what that man was. We didn't fight for glory, but for a greater purpose. The fragment doesn't belong to the guild."
One of the officers cleared their throat and responded with authority:
"All retrieved fragments belong to the Central Guild. It's regulation—for safety, study, and control…"
And then, Jin stood.
The sound of the wooden bench scraping echoed like thunder in the silence. All eyes turned to him.
He spoke slowly, his voice hoarse but steady:
"It's simple. The glory, the fame, the mission's reward…" he raised his gaze and faced the table. "…keep it."
He paused. The silence was absolute.
"But the fragment… is ours."
One of the officers, irritated, stood up:
"You're not part of the guild. You can't just… claim something like that!"
Jin turned his face toward him. His eye still glimmered with a faint gray hue.
"We're not part of this." The word dripped with disdain. "If I decide I want the fragment… then it's mine."
Without waiting for a response, he turned and began walking toward the exit.
That's when Kaellia stood and called out:
"Jin…" her voice was firm, but there was a hidden tremor. "Don't you think we should at least talk?"
Saphira also stood, crossing her arms, and Lyn followed:
"Yeah. You vanished for a year. And after coming back, you don't even say hi…" her gaze faltered. "…after everything?"
Jin stopped at the door. He didn't turn. He took a deep breath.
And then spoke, without raising his voice:
"Sure. Let's talk."
He turned his face slightly, just enough for them to see half of his scarred face.
"But somewhere else."
And then he walked out, the daylight swallowing his silhouette like a shadow returning to the world.
"That's irrational!" Kaellia insisted, leaning her hands on the table. "No one's trying to take anything from you. We just want to follow proper protocol. That kind of fragment is unstable!"
Lino narrowed his eyes.
"Protocols don't matter when the world is crumbling. You showed up at the end and want to dictate the rules? We bled for that fragment. Jin nearly died."
"And you think he's the only one who's ever bled for something in this world?" Kaellia shot back, her tone sharp.
The officer at the center held up the fragment with tongs, as if it were a cursed jewel. He was about to store it when Eira stood, walked to him with determined steps, and took the red crystal straight from his hands.
"If he's decided…" Eira said, looking directly at Kaellia, then at the officer, "…then that's how it'll be."
And she turned her back and walked out, unhurried, without looking back.
Lino followed, a wry smile tugging at the corner of his lips. But before leaving, he turned to Kaellia and her companions:
"Jin wants to talk, right?" He looked at everyone, including Lyn and Saphira. "We'll be at the Sounu Tavern. The one across from the fountain in the east square."
And he left, hands in his pockets, as if there was nothing more to say.
Ziek was the last to stand. He bowed slightly to the officers, his arm still in a cast.
"Thank you for the treatment," he said politely. "We'll have more time to get acquainted later. If you wish."
And he, too, left.
The hall fell into absolute silence.
All eyes were fixed on the door through which the three had just exited. Mireya broke the silence, whispering:
"They… changed."
Allan shook his head, tense.
"Jin… he's different. Colder. More… mature."
Tolen finished, "And the group respects him in a way…"
Before he could continue, Lyn cut in:
"Submission… That's not respect."
Kaellia took a deep breath and turned to the officers.
"We'll handle this," she said firmly. "We'll bring the fragment back. We just want to talk."
One of the officers nodded, relieved.
"Please, do. This kind of thing… it's not for children to play with."
And with that, Kaellia's group left the Guild.
---
Later that day.
The amber light of dusk blanketed the city of Valos, and the fountain in the east square reflected golden and crimson tones. The Sounu Tavern, usually filled with laughter and musicians, was silent.
When Kaellia's group arrived, they were greeted by an attendant who merely gestured them forward. The place was empty.
"He…" the attendant said nervously, "rented the whole place. Said he wanted 'peace.'"
The tables were all vacant. Only one table at the back was occupied.
Seated there, with his back to them, was Jin, his hood down, the empty left sleeve swaying lightly with the breeze from an open window. The distant sound of the fountain was the only soundtrack.
The reunion would begin here.
And for the first time, without shadow or mask—they would have the chance to look into Jin's eyes… and see what he had become.
Their boots echoed on the wooden floor as Kaellia, Lyn, Allan, Saphira, Tolen, and Mireya crossed the empty hall to the table at the back.
Jin raised his gaze slowly, hooded, eyes half-closed, expression neutral. He didn't seem surprised to see them, but there was something… resolute in his demeanor. Something that wasn't there before.
They sat in silence.
There were five chairs beside Jin. But only four bodies.
Filiria's absence was a gaping void, even if no one spoke her name.
Lino kept his eyes fixed on the table. His trembling hand clutched a silver medallion. Jin recognized it.
It was Filiria's.
The shadow of the girl seemed to loom over them all—and over him most of all.
The scrape of wood against the chairs sounded louder than any words.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Until Jin broke the silence with a half-smile, almost provocative.
"Made new friends, huh?"
Kaellia crossed her arms and replied in the same tone:
"Not just us."
Allan let out a muffled laugh, trying to lighten the mood.
"What's with this vibe? We're reuniting after so long."
Saphira leaned over the table, looking at Jin with softness in her eyes.
"Yeah… how have you been, Jin?"
Lyn leaned toward Jin, as if to say something… but her voice died in her throat.
"You…" she murmured, her eyes traveling from his empty shoulder to his face.
Saphira gripped Lyn's arm tightly. She wasn't crying—not anymore—but there was something broken in the way she averted her gaze.
"What did they do to you?" she asked at last, not as an accusation, but as someone lost before an unrecognizable version of an old companion.
And then, as if time slowed, Jin looked at all of them… and, narrating in his own mind, began to speak.
---
I told them how I spent the first two months in Valos, fighting alone against snow monsters and cold sharper than blades…
I spoke of when I found Eira, surrounded by void hunters, and how I threw myself into the fray, nearly dying.
I told them about the twins, about Filiria's scream, about Lino's rage, about Eira's mistake. About the mission that broke us in half and forced me to do the unthinkable… to tame a shadow that wasn't mine.
I explained how I created something I refused to call a guild. How we rejected titles, medals, even names.
I spoke of how Bouros taught me what true power is… and how the world smiles on those who wield it without hesitation.
I talked about the pain in my body, the absence of my arm, the constant numbness… the coldness that came with time. And how, despite it all, I kept moving forward.
And finally… I asked them:
"…And you? How have you been?"
Kaellia smiled lightly and responded, glancing at the companions around her:
"We're officially registered now." She pointed to Tolen, his hair tied back and expression vigilant, then to Mireya, her eyes calm yet alert. "These are Tolen and Mireya. Together, we've become one of the capital's main forces."
She raised her chin with a hint of pride.
"Things have changed a lot around here since you left."
The silence after Kaellia's words lingered for a few seconds.
Jin merely stared at Tolen and Mireya for a moment. Mireya's empty eyes didn't waver under his gaze, while Tolen sized him up as if assessing a threat—or a potential ally.
Jin let out a faint sigh and raised an eyebrow, with an almost imperceptible touch of irony:
"So now you're the capital's elite…" his eyes stopped on Allan and Saphira. "And you let this happen?"
Allan shrugged, smiling as always.
"Someone had to keep the name clean while you were off playing fugitive shadow."
Saphira laughed, but her eyes stayed on Jin. Her smile was kind, but her gaze carried silent hurt.
Jin leaned back, pulling his chair with one leg and resting his arm on the backrest.
"Hm. Didn't think I'd be surprised by much today."
"There's more," Kaellia said, resting her elbows on the table. "We're now officially tasked by the Central Guild with missions to track the Herald's fragments."
The word "fragments" broke something in the air. As if the true weight of the conversation finally settled on the table.
Jin rested his arm on the table and uncrossed his legs. The shadow behind him stirred slightly—almost like an involuntary reflex.
He spoke firmly, without hesitation:
"Then we're on the same path."
"Doesn't seem like we're walking in the same direction," Tolen said, speaking for the first time, direct.
Mireya observed Jin closely, as if trying to see beyond flesh. Beyond shadow.
"And if we cross paths?" she asked softly.
Jin responded as if stating a fact:
"You'll step aside. And I'll keep walking."
"You think you're the only one who's lost, Jin?" Her voice cracked. Just for a moment—a brief fracture. Then it returned to its rigidity. "We all bled these past months. We all broke. But you vanished."
Kaellia fell silent. She tapped her fingers on the table, once, twice. Then raised her eyes:
"Don't you dare act like the pain is yours alone."
Lyn, who had been quiet until then, slammed her fist lightly on the table, irritated:
"You've changed, Jin."
He looked at her with a blank expression.
"So have you."
While the conversation at the table grew tense, Eira, seated beside Ziek, observed in silence. She leaned slightly and whispered:
"Jin never talked about them."
Ziek crossed his arms and replied in a calm but attentive tone:
"Yeah… the vibe seems pretty tense."
Saphira, who hadn't taken her eyes off Jin, let out a quiet confession:
"You seem to be losing yourself again, Jin. You were getting so much better… and now…"
Jin didn't respond immediately. He took a deep breath, his eyes fixed on the wooden table before him. Then, in a low voice:
"I've heard so much… and thought about those things for a long time."
Kaellia lowered her gaze, clenching her interlocked fingers on the table.
"Sorry… I never had the chance to apologize for what I said to you that day."
Jin raised his eyes slowly, but his expression was calm, resigned.
"No need for apologies. You were right."
He paused.
"I should've died. But I didn't."
An uncomfortable silence settled over the table. The weight of his words fell like a stone at the center of the conversation.
Saphira shifted uncomfortably and said quickly:
"We don't need to get into that…"
Lyn nodded slightly.
"Yeah… not the best topic for a reunion."
Jin adjusted himself in his chair and, without ceremony, said:
"I'm working with Marcus. In secret."
The expressions of everyone, including Eira, Lino, and Ziek, shifted. A wave of shock rippled through the group.
"We're hunting the fragments. One by one. Our next destination… is the City of Silenced Souls."
The faces of Kaellia's group changed instantly. A shiver ran through them all.
"If it falls into the wrong hands, there'll be no going back," Kaellia murmured.
"And if it's already in the wrong hands?" Allan countered.
The silence that followed was thick as smoke.
Jin raised his eyes.
"We'll protect that fragment. But on our own terms. If the guild doesn't accept… let them come."
The statement wasn't a challenge. It was a warning.
Kaellia was holding back, as if reluctant to say what was on her mind.
"You're planning to go back to that cursed place, after everything that happened there?!" she said, horrified.
Lino furrowed his brow and turned to Jin.
"Who's Marcus? You never told us about him."
Jin stared into the void for a moment and answered:
"My grandfather. My only living family. He plans to revive Zuphia."
A deathly silence filled the room. No one dared speak. It was as if the air had been sucked out of the tavern.
Saphira broke the silence, shocked:
"You've got to be kidding… We almost died there, Jin! And now… You don't even have an arm!"
Jin stood from his chair. The wood creaked under the weight of his movement. His eyes, once distant, now held a dark glint.
"I'm not the same scared, confused kid anymore… I'll be the king of that city."
He began walking toward the door, his steps slow. Before leaving, he turned his face slightly over his shoulder:
"Enjoy and get to know each other better. It's all paid for. Eat and drink as much as you want. Take it as a celebration for the mission… and a thank you for looking out for me."
And then he left the tavern, leaving behind a profound silence and gazes lost in everything they'd just heard. Nothing remained of the Jin who had left. But sometimes, to survive, you have to bury what was. And wear the shadow of what you've become.