The entire city seemed to hold its breath.
When she appeared.
A small shadow, with a child-like silhouette, materialized. Without a sound. Without transition. She was simply there.
The world stopped.
And in the blink of an eye... She was staring at Jin, so close that Jin could feel the cold emanating from her body.
Kaellia fell to her knees, eyes wide, her expression one of utter panic. Tears streamed down her face, and her lips murmured disjointed words, as if trying to ward off the terror with silent prayers.
Kael's eyes widened, gasping, his hand trembled as he tried to draw his weapon—but he stopped. "What... what is that...?" he murmured.
Marcus tried to step forward. His body didn't respond. "By the gods..." he growled, in shock. "My body won't obey..."
No one moved.
Not even Jin.
Lyn's body was thrown before them—alive, but unconscious—as if she were just a toy discarded on the ground.
And the shadow merely watched him.
Jin took a step forward.
His eyes met the small figure's. And, for a moment... he hesitated.
"What are you...?" Jin asked, his voice deep and low.
A pulse of energy ran through the ground, as if the city itself had sensed the confrontation about to happen.
Then she spoke. "I loathe you," her voice was calm, but her tone showed utter contempt.
Jin still stared at her.
That's when Bouros whispered, from within him:
"Don't do it, kid..." She's different. She'll make you feel something even I couldn't.
Jin stopped.
It was the first time Bouros didn't sound arrogant... or annoyed. Just serious.
Even so, Jin didn't back down. But he didn't advance either. He remained still, breathing slowly.
And then, Bouros tried to assert himself.
"Show respect to the Maestro, creature!" his voice sounded irritated, as if trying to regain control of the moment.
The shadow slowly tilted her head. She had no eyes, but everyone knew... She saw them... Watched their every move.
"I loathe the Maestro..." she said with a muffled, dragging, almost spectral voice. "Loathe what he has become. A broken, idiotic child." And even more I loathe you, Bouros.
The air grew cold.
No one could move. Bouros' voice... the shadow... and even Jin's posture... it all held them still.
"I could decimate you!" Bouros roared, trying to mask the fear in his voice. "I am Bouros! The Scourge of Worlds, the Celestial Terror—"
"Shut up," Jin said, low, icy.
Bouros fell silent.
Jin leaned towards the shadow. His voice remained neutral, without anger, without emotion.
"Soon, Bouros... you will be just another pawn in my symphony. Just like you," Jin said, looking towards the shadow.
Everyone shuddered.
The shadow stared at Jin for a few seconds, then turned and began to walk, uttering one last phrase:
"Devour each other..." Her tone slowly changed. "But... don't involve me in this pathetic little show." Arrogant, intimidating... Her words were not just words spoken to the wind... Her tone demonstrated all the loathing and contempt she felt.
The shadow walked slowly ahead of Jin, through the city alleys, as if dancing on a stage of death. Everyone followed her... unwillingly.
With each step, the fear intensified. The shadows around them fell silent. Not even the corrupted souls dared to move before her.
The group pleaded with Jin not to follow her.
Until she turned into a narrow alley, as if inviting Jin to enter.
He entered. Alone.
The alley seemed to absorb the light. Even the common shadows, always restless, kept their distance from the figure ahead.
The shadow's form was just that of a child. Faceless. But with a presence that crushed everyone's chest.
Jin stopped. His eyes fixed on her.
"You... will bow too," he said, his voice cold, firm, like ice molded by force. "All of you will end up bowing to my blade."
The shadow did not respond.
No one moved.
Kaellia trembled, tears streaming down. Marcus, immobile, clenched his teeth as if trapped inside his own body. Saphira clung to Kael's arm without even realizing it. Even Allan—now obedient to the darkness—was tense. But he remained carrying Lyn's body.
The shadow tilted her head slightly towards Jin. Her voice came as a whisper and a laugh intertwined:
"You speak well, little maestro..." But not even joining your useless demon there... would give you enough strength to try and force me into your dance.
Jin's eyes narrowed.
"You will dance. Like all the others."
Silence. And then, the shadow took a step forward, without making a sound—but every member of the group felt as if the entire world had moved with her.
"You still don't understand, do you?" I'm not here for you. I don't bow to your game. I am... part of the most terrifying symphony ever played, you should all bow to the Herald's stage.
That word shattered the air.
Everyone was even more shocked, as if that were still possible... Everyone knew those words, the Herald of destruction... That was something capable of swallowing the world for pure amusement.
Bouros held his breath—if he still needed to.
"Oh, great..." he said, with a choked sarcasm. "A fragment. As if one wasn't enough. We should have brought wine for this early wake, maestro..."
And then, the shadow spoke with relish, letting the revelation fall like poison:
"My name... is Zufia."
Marcus took a hesitant step forward. His eyes wide, almost pleading.
"Zufia...?" he murmured. "You... is it you...?"
The shadow turned to him, her head tilted slightly, like a curious animal.
"Should I know you...?" she asked. "You're just another badly finished shadow of this useless one."
Marcus felt as if he had been stabbed in the chest. But there was no blood. Only memory.
Jin looked at Marcus with disdain. Then he turned his eyes back to Zufia.
"If you're a fragment, then you'll be mine too." I will make you dance.
Zufia laughed. Low, macabre.
"You have fire in your eyes, little maestro..." But it's just a candle trying to shine within the abyss. Keep playing your broken symphony... Let's see how many dancers you'll lose before you understand that you were never the maestro.
And then she disappeared. Nothing dramatic. No shadows moved. She simply... wasn't there anymore.
Bouros, from the depths of Jin's soul, murmured:
"I hope one day you understand, kid..." You're not leading anything. You're being led, and by people like her. Your power is great... Enough for mine to bow before it.
Jin did not respond.
He simply turned his back, looked at the ground, and seemed to think.
Saphira seemed curious, her fear subsiding, and then she asked, "What is the Herald...?" She didn't seem to grasp the weight of those words.
Marcus then began, "Listen carefully," his tone was frightening... "don't say that name out loud... they say he listens... From within the shadows."
Saphira swallowed hard.
Kael then continued. "They call him Mizuto, the Moon Dancer. But that... that's just the name the living managed to give to something that came from a time before life itself. He wasn't born. He was... composed. An error of the universe, perhaps. A symphony made of ruin."
Each word came out with fear, as if they were reciting an ancient curse.
"They say he dances while he destroys," not out of malice, but as if he were correcting the world.
Kaellia then said, "Remember when we told you about the fall of the seven cathedrals...?"
Saphira remained frightened; the story alone was enough to send shivers down her spine.
Jin remained still, immersed in his thoughts.
"An eclipse lasted three days. When Mizuto danced on the largest of them, they all exploded at once. The fire was black. And the priests... they laughed as they burned."
The words seemed to form a film in everyone's mind.
"His deeds don't stop there...?" but before Marcus could continue the story... Jin started walking again.
And then he said, "The city no longer calls to me..." Everyone was confused. Jin was retracing the confusing paths he had come from.
After many steps and hours of walking, Lyn woke up.
Jin stopped, for the first time in a long time seeming to feel empathy for someone.
"Lyn, you're okay..." Kaellia said, smiling and crying...
Saphira breathed a sigh of relief... Kael just smiled, Marcus looked at her with curiosity.
Lyn seemed confused, but her eyes seemed to have seen something.
Some moments passed, Jin remained waiting, as if giving everyone time to rest.
"Sorry..." the voice came out low, no one quite understood. "I made you walk for hours following me, without saying a word, Allan almost died, Lyn too. So sorry," Jin looked at the ground, still pensive.
Everyone just smiled; it was the first time they had seen Jin show anything. And no words were spoken about it.
The journey back to the capital was silent, enveloped in an air of unresolved tension. Jin walked ahead, eyes downcast, lost in thoughts he couldn't control. Images of his recent arrogance, the cold words he had spoken, and Allan's empty gaze as he obeyed his commands, replayed in his mind. "They saved me... took me in... why am I having thoughts like this about them?" he murmured mentally, fighting a silent battle with his own shadow.
The city they were leaving seemed to release them only after deciding to. As soon as they crossed the borders of the City of Silent Souls, they were ambushed—small, grotesque, and deformed creatures that emerged from the dense forest around them. The group armed themselves promptly, but before anyone could react, Jin, in an almost unconscious whisper, said:
"Allan... finish them."
And Allan obeyed.
His body shot forward like an arrow, enveloped in shadows denser than the night itself. Each movement was precise, lethal, inhuman. He exterminated the monsters in a matter of seconds, but his eyes remained empty, as if his will had been extinguished. The group watched in silence, terrified.
"He's... stronger," Kael murmured, frowning. "But... this doesn't feel right. He's not doing it willingly."
A few more days of walking passed. When the capital's wall finally appeared on the horizon, a bittersweet feeling washed over the group. They were safe, but nothing was as it had been before.
Upon reaching the capital, the sky was cloudy, and a cold breeze seemed to announce that something had changed. As soon as they crossed the gates, the group was greeted by a patrol of guild guards, who came running towards them, armed and alert.
"For the love of the Gods... You... you're alive?" said one of the guards, panting.
Kaellia frowned. "Of course we are. Why?"
The guard hesitated, then opened a scroll with the main guild's seal. "You were presumed dead. The mission was considered a failure. Six months have passed since you left."
The silence that followed was suffocating. Everyone exchanged stunned glances. Saphira was the first to react.
"Six... months? We weren't even in that cursed city for a month."
Marcus closed his eyes slowly. "The City of Silent Souls manipulates time... that's why..." He let the sentence die in the air, his mind visibly connecting the pieces with something larger.
The group was led to the temporary guild headquarters to give explanations. After the bureaucracy, outside the building, Marcus turned to the group, his eyes tired but firm.
"It was an interesting partnership." He looked at Jin for a moment longer than necessary. "I have to go my own way. Zufia... she wasn't just part of the past. If she's alive in some way, then the Herald is closer than we imagine." He looked at Jin again and then hugged him.
Jin remained quiet for a few seconds... and then hugged him back.
"We'll meet again, kid. You'll be stronger and more handsome." Marcus said with a cheerful smile on his face.
Kael, with a slightly less intense gaze than usual, adjusted his armor. "I'll say goodbye too. I need to go back to my guild... and see my family. Good luck to you all. Take care."
Both left without fanfare, their presences leaving a subtle void in the group.