Milo:

The mood shifted in an instant. Sang-min stopped whistling, raising a hand to signal us to halt. Orla’s eyes darted around, wide with unease. The quiet wasn’t natural. Every instinct in me screamed that something was coming.

I tightened my grip on Raven’s reins, my pulse hammering in my ears. Every rustle, every shift in the trees had me on edge. Orla was just as tense, her eyes scanning the forest like she could see what I was already feeling.

Then it happened.

A sharp hiss sliced through the air. Before I even had time to think, I yanked Raven’s reins, pulling him and Orla hard to the side just as an arrow buried itself into the ground where we had just been standing. My breath caught in my throat.

“Ambush!” Sang-min shouted, already in motion, his daggers flashing as he dove forward.

Figures emerged from the shadows, their black cloaks blending into the night. Hoods concealed their faces, but I caught sight of an emblem stitched into their cloaks—a lotus flower, stitched in a dark outline. These weren’t random bandits. This was organized. Dangerous.

If they had more numbers this time, Orla wouldn’t stand a chance in a fight. I had one thought: get her out of here.

“Orla!” I grabbed her arm. “You need to ride—now!”

She froze, her eyes flicking between me and the shadows closing in. “What? No!” She yanked her arm free, panic tightening her features. “I’m not leaving you!”

We didn’t have time for this. “Listen to me. You have to go. You’re the only one who can. Head west, follow the path, but stay off it. Sang-min and I will hold them back. You’ll be safer in Seongjin-ri.”

She shook her head. “But—”

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

“Go! I’ll find you. I swear. But you have to go now!”

Another arrow flew past, forcing us both to duck. The enemy was closing in. I could feel it, time slipping away.

“Milo, I can’t just—”

“Orla, you need to do this!” I shoved Raven’s reins into her hands. “Now!”

She hesitated, eyes locked onto mine like she wanted to fight me on it, but the next volley of arrows made the decision for her. She shifted into the saddle, gripping the reins tight. “You’d better find me."

“I will,” I promised, my chest tight. “Now go!”

She gave Raven a kick, steering him west. But just as she started moving, another arrow flew past, too close. Raven reared up with a wild, terrified neigh, his hooves flailing as Orla struggled to hold on.

“Easy! Easy!” she shouted, pulling hard on the reins, trying to calm him. But it was no use. Raven bolted, panic taking over, and Orla had no choice but to hang on as the horse veered off into the forest.

“Orla!” I yelled, but she was gone. My stomach twisted as more figures emerged—this time on horseback. They were after her.

“Run, Orla! Don’t stop!” I shouted, hoping she could still hear me.

Everything in me wanted to chase after her, to run until I caught up. But I couldn’t. Not yet. The only way to help her was to take as many of them down as possible. I notched an arrow and let it fly, hitting one of the riders, but it barely slowed him down.

Sang-min was already in the fight, fending off two attackers at once. His daggers flashed as he moved, dodging, striking, his precision terrifying to watch. He leapt onto a rider’s horse, slicing clean through the man’s throat before kicking his body to the ground.

It wasn’t enough. There were too many.

“We need to pull them away from her!” I shouted, nocking another arrow. Killing them all wasn’t an option—we needed a bigger distraction.

Sang-min stabbed another rider in the leg, sending him toppling from his horse. “On it!”

I fired again, striking one of the cloaked figures in the arm. Still, they kept coming. Unrelenting. I could still hear the distant pounding of hooves chasing after Orla, her voice fading as Raven carried her deeper into the trees.

I couldn’t see her anymore, but I started running in their direction.

“I don’t think we can catch up on foot,” Sang-min called.

“We have to try,” I said. “If I can get the leader in sight, maybe I can slow them down.”

I wished we had another horse, but Raven was more useful to Orla right now. I aimed at the tail end of the group, fired another arrow, but my gut was sinking fast. They were too fast. Too many.

Orla’s voice faded into the distance, and a sick feeling coiled in my stomach.

She had to make it.

She had to be okay.

©Sky Mincharo