Morning – Forest Trail Outside the Ruins
The sun broke lazily through the clouds, dappling the trail with golden light. Mist still clung to the ground like a sulking child. Birds chirped. Squirrels chattered. Ji-Mun threatened them with throwing knives for being too cheerful.
"Do you think ancient sects ever worried about mosquitoes?" she asked, slapping her neck.
"They worried about ghosts and betrayal," Yul-Rin replied dryly. "Your kind of morning."
Sun-Ho walked ahead, deep in thought, one hand absently hovering over the sealed scroll they'd retrieved from the Iron Banner ruins.
So-Ri noticed. "You've been quiet since last night."
"Because this," he tapped the scroll, "changes everything."
---
Moments Ago, Before They Left the Ruins
Master Jang and Sun-Ho had stayed behind a few extra minutes while the others prepared.
Jang said, "There's more in these ruins than you're letting on."
Sun-Ho unrolled the final Iron Banner document, its ink faint but furious. "There's mention of a secret—an alliance between minor sects long ago. One that swore to rise again if the five great clans became too powerful."
"A resistance," Jang muttered. "Still alive?"
"If even a fraction remains... they might support us. But I'll need to find them—and not as Baek Sun-Ho."
The master gave a knowing smirk. "So the Elementless Sovereign returns again?"
Sun-Ho nodded. "And this time, he needs allies."
---
Midday – Approaching a Hidden Sect
The group arrived at a stone cliffside where water trickled from cracks in the mossy surface. The map they received from Elder Hwa led here — to a place forgotten by most of Murim: Chul-Gaek Peak.
According to legend, it was home to the Cloud Veil Sect, a once-neutral group known for battlefield healing and support formations. Rumor claimed they vanished after refusing to choose a side in the Great Division War.
"So," Ma-Rok asked, scanning the mossy rocks. "Where's the door?"
Sun-Ho bent down, touched the smallest crack in the rock, and released a ripple of qi — a whisper of balance, not force.
Click—shhhhkt!
The cliff shifted sideways, revealing a spiral path.
So-Ri gave an impressed whistle. "How did you know?"
"It's always the quietest place that yells the loudest."
Ji-Mun whispered to Yul-Rin, "That sounded wise. Did he just invent that?"
Yul-Rin wrote on her notes: 'Heroic nonsense #52.'
---
Inside Cloud Veil – Tension Rises
The path opened into a natural hollow filled with pale mist. Dozens of figures emerged from the fog — masked, dressed in pale blue robes, spears and bows drawn.
An elderly woman stepped forward. Her voice was stern. "You've trespassed into Cloud Veil territory. Speak one word too loud, and it shall be your last."
Ma-Rok took a step forward, then stopped as Yeon grabbed his sleeve and shook his head vigorously.
Sun-Ho bowed. "I come not to command — but to ask."
He pulled back his cloak slightly, revealing the edge of the Iron Banner scroll.
"I bear the legacy of those who stood when the world crumbled."
The woman blinked.
"You speak as if you are one of them."
"I walk the path of those forgotten," Sun-Ho replied. "And I would have your wisdom join us before history repeats."
The air held.
Then the woman gave a short, dry laugh.
"You speak too boldly for a humble man. But boldness... we respect."
---
Private Hall – A Pact Begins
Later, seated at a wooden table carved into the stone itself, the party shared their cause.
Cloud Veil's elders listened, stone-faced.
Until Sun-Ho said:
"We will not destroy the Murim Alliance. We will fix it. But first, we need strength not tied to greed. We need those who fight for people, not profit."
A long silence.
Then the elder woman leaned forward. "You're asking us to resurface, to war with clans that would erase us."
"Yes," Sun-Ho said honestly. "And I'll stand at the front."
She watched him for a moment longer, then nodded.
"We will not fight under the Murim Alliance... but we will fight beside the one who fights for balance."
Yul-Rin smiled faintly. "That's a poetic way of saying yes."
Ma-Rok raised his hand. "Do they cook?"
---
Later That Night – Camp Outside the Hollow
The group pitched camp just outside the mist-shrouded hollow. A small fire crackled. So-Ri ladled stew into wooden bowls as Ji-Mun prepared a fire-dried herbal bandage for Yeon's scraped hand.
Sun-Ho sat slightly apart, staring at the stars through a jagged crack in the mountain's edge.
So-Ri approached and sat beside him. "Heavy thoughts?"
"More like too many at once."
She nudged his shoulder. "We've faced worse than foggy monks and haunted ruins."
"I know." He gave a faint smile. "It's not the danger that wears on me. It's how many people are watching. Waiting."
"You mean those expecting Baek Sun-Ho to be weak enough to control?"
He chuckled. "Something like that."
She leaned against him, gentle but warm. "Then let them wait. Let them believe you're a pawn."
"And what do you believe?"
"I believe the man who once said he was just lucky... is going to change the world."
---
Crimson Spine Clan Hall
A scroll burned in a brazier. The fox-masked man watched the flames consume a list of names.
"You failed to stop him at Iron Banner," a cloaked subordinate muttered.
"No," the masked figure replied. "I succeeded in confirming what I needed."
"Which is?"
The masked figure turned.
"That the Elementless Sovereign walks again… and this time, he's not alone."
---