The sun was heading down in the late afternoon, Derek Wiley, Ye-Jun, Jang, Chae, Soo-Ae, Duri and Sun-Young were all sitting down in the Hyun manor's dining room together. "Chae's this family's greatest cook." Said Soo-Ae as Chae stared at her, Derek noticed she had a barely visible smile on her. "My duty." Chae replied with a slightly different voice than before Derek noticed. "Her food is some honest slop." Jang commented while playing with it. "A junk head can't give his opinion on the concept of good food, Arch." Duri remarked as he refused to let him get away with his statement. "How do you not know what that means, dude?" Jang asked his little brother before he chuckled slowly. "It means someone with a Junk food obsession, right?" Duri asked with a befuddled tone. Jang didn't answer back, he continued enjoying his brother's ignorance. "It's been hours and we forgot to get you your gift, here we uniform ourselves with the colors and fashion of our past family. Think of it as something you can keep to remember we'll always stay by your side." Ye-Jun spoke to Derek. The family present went upstairs to the guest room, on the way Derek observed everything his sight allowed him. The architecture and decorative pieces of the home was something he felt honored beholding and seeing. Many old men and women's portraits hung up through the corridor, so many doors leading to unexplored and mysterious rooms to him. Many stories he desires to hear. He didn't let his curiosity take hold of him, he continued following his cousins and Grandfather down this extremely lengthy hall instead.
Finally, the present family members arrived at the guest room Derek assumed he'll be staying in during his time at the manor if his family found a cure of some sort. "Your great-great grandfather's long coat, his gauntlets and leg gear, they're all yours now." Ye-Jun informed his Grandson while he was feeling grateful and honored. The most he's ever felt in his life. "I'll always be grateful and respect these, use them without hesitation if the time comes." Said Derek as he touched the coat. "Fff, Dork!" Duri mumbled before he left to the family's meeting room. "Welcome to the family, couso." Jang cheered before he followed after his little brother. "I hope we get along very well." His mysterious cousin Soo-Ae stated. Chae left without a word and Sun-Young had already vanished into thin air it seemed to Derek as he recently noticed she was nowhere to be found. "You look just like him, a stunning mimic of growth and courage." Ye-Jun declared with a soppy voice. "Could you tell me about him?" Derek asked without the same sop. "We have loads of journals from our older family in the manor's phonistery when you want to learn about some of the others, he wasn't a very kind man but he was compassionate when he needed to be. He's the reason our family is in Jeju-si. He discovered a special technique done with a blade, ashen swordsmanship, that can make a dull sword undoubtedly unbreakable and even sharper than before. I'm not sure how Soo-Ae and Sun-Jin plan on helping you if they've found a way but I'll show you if we get through this." Ye-Jun apprised his Grandson with a warm smile. Derek looked out the window and at the moon, he turned his attention towards. "Smoke and Ash?" Derek asked himself with an unsure tone. "The gear isn't an invite for you to join Duri in any local combat competitions by the way." Ye-Jun felt like he needed to make it clear.
"We asked you for one job, Jang, a single duty, be sure your ill cousin arrives safely." Said Sun-Jin as he rubbed his temples. "See— I got jumped by members of Gan gang Ja's den myself and it was like 20 of them who ambushed me and— And.." Jang used this as his excuse but he was stuttering overwhelmingly. "Do you feel good or accomplished lying?" Sun-Jin asked with his fatherly tone that terrified Jang. He sent his son out of the room feeling shameful and hoping he felt it. "You're Phil's kid, hmm?" Derek's Aunt Dal-Rae asked after Jang left the room. "Yeah." The hero of Chaelb answered her. "The stunning image of Jacob and Tae-lee together, Soo-Ae should be arriving with the worm soon." Dal-Rae commented then informed him as he noticed her beautiful jewels around her neck. "Worm?" Derek asked as he felt his leg bones aching intensely while he was sweating. "Are you— afraid of worms?" Dal-Rae asked after noticing his condition and him falling to the ground from the pain. Derek didn't answer her question and instead held his leg until one of his arms began going numb and the other leg that wasn't aching followed. "Our bloodlines coming together are almost like a curse born from magic, the children from the mixture don't come out stable, thanks to Soo-Ae's practice and training in her ashen answers, we know what we didn't before, our powers aren't very compatible without some meddling to stabilize them." Sun-Jin briefed his nephew. "She'll tell us the rest about it when she's prepared, she hates being misled and misleading." Dal-Rae let Derek in the picture.
"I apologize for your long wait, the final answers came to me." Said Soo-Ae as she arrived and her tone annoyed Derek to his core. An unexplainable feeling kept bothering him every time she came around him. "No problem." Derek replied as he noticed Soo-Ae holding something small in her hand, it was clenched and knew what it was, he tried to back up but he fell to the floor again. "Happened quicker this time." Derek thought to himself as he tried crawling away but his arms went out. Sun-Jin rushed to his aid and helped him stay on his feet. "Have it ready?" Sun-Jin asked his daughter as she was preparing it. Derek noticed Soo-Ae held the worm in her open palm and cream beige ash falling slowly covering this vile creature, a tiny creature, one he tried his greatest effort to make an escape from but he couldn't move at all. "Yes, we need him to devour it and after a few months then this mysterious illness should never be a bother to him again." Soo-Ae informed her family. "Something slipped past you that you should mention?" Duri asked his sister knowing her. Soo-As stared at him until she realized her fault. "Thank you, yes, this is his guaranteed way to being cured but there's complications in the way like anything medical, he'll still be physically weak for the process of stabilizing or losing the powers of our family." Soo-Ae revealed leaving her entire family shocked with their facial expressions revealing how much. "No prob, Soo." Duri replied to his sister. "That was pretty important." Sun-Jin commented as he realized Derek's condition improved to where he can stand on his own. "Child's Frozen from fear." Dal-Rae commented. Soo-Ae walked up to Derek with the worm clenched in her hand, with her empty, she grabbed him and lifted up her head and he saw no hair. "Please, for all of us and your sake, take the risk and free yourself from your suffering." Soo-Ae pleaded with her younger cousin, he could hear the sincerity. Derek stood where she walked up to him, with a firm look on his face. After thirty minutes of hesitation, he decided that he'll swallow it for all of his Grandparents, brothers, cousins, Aunt, uncles and Settembre.