"Hey, boy, are you awake?! What a pain it is to babysit a boy of this age. Honestly, this is frustrating!"
Tim stirred faintly at the words, his head pounding, his vision swimming in a blur. He could barely make out the silhouette of a young woman—her voice sharp yet tinged with concern.
"What… happened to me?" Tim muttered, his voice hoarse and faint.
The words felt hollow, as though they bounced off the walls of his own mind. A fog clouded his memory, but fragments began to resurface, nagging at him like unfinished puzzles.
Tim's fingers twitched as he tried to focus. What happened? He and Kano had been at the station… right? Yes, they were talking, and then…
"A man with a tattoo," he whispered, more to himself than anyone else. "He… he was following us."
The pieces began to fit together, sharp and jagged. The station. The stalker. The fight.
_____
"Kano…" he murmured, panic fluttering in his chest. "Is he safe? What about the passengers? Did anyone survive?"
And then, like a punch to the gut, another thought struck him. The container. The parchment paper. The will of the Golden Ring.
Tim's heart raced as he tried to sit upright, his body rebelling with sharp pains. Where is it? It had been his responsibility. It was supposed to stay with him, no matter what.
"Where… where is the container?!" he exclaimed, his voice weak but desperate. "Where did it fall?!"
His frustration boiled over, merging with the helplessness clawing at his chest. "I just wanted a simple, happy life! A life without this madness! A life without discrimination!"
Tim's breathing grew ragged as he clenched his fists. He wanted freedom. Freedom from this harsh, unjust world. Freedom from the weight of expectations, from responsibilities thrust upon him, and from the shackles of inequality that bound him.
"Nah… nah…" His voice trailed off into a muffled cry. "No… no…"
And then, everything went dark. His body, overwhelmed by the strain, sank back into unconsciousness.
______
The young woman carrying Tim paused to shift his weight. With ease, she soared through the air, her Flyer abilities allowing her to glide effortlessly above the crowded streets. Her name was Reshya, a third-year cadet of the prestigious KTD Academy (Kensan Tech and Defense).
Reshya glanced at the unconscious boy slung across her back. His face was pale, his breathing shallow. "What am I going to do with you, huh?" she murmured, half to herself. "You're quite heavy for someone your age."
The events of the last hour replayed vividly in her mind.
It had started like any other day. As part of her service duty, she had been patrolling the outskirts of the city, ensuring that none of the tunnels posed a threat. Routine work, nothing extraordinary. But when she passed the 7/6 Tunnel, a wave of powerful kensan energy stopped her dead in her tracks.
Even an untrained Flyer could have sensed it, let alone someone of her caliber. The sheer intensity of the energy was unnatural—volatile, dangerous.
Acting quickly, Reshya had called for backup and entered the tunnel. What she found there would haunt her for years to come.
______
The scene inside the train compartment was beyond gruesome. Bodies were scattered like broken dolls, lifeless and cold. The air was thick with the stench of blood and death. Some victims had been whipped to death, their flesh torn to shreds. Others bore marks of mutilation so severe that it was impossible to identify them.
And then there were the insects—carnivorous creatures likely summoned by a Xenian to feast on the remains.
Amidst the carnage, Reshya's eyes fell on one figure in particular: a man covered in tattoos, his body surrounded by a lingering, malevolent kensan aura. He was dead, his lifeless eyes staring blankly at the ceiling. Even in death, the aura around him was enough to send shivers down Reshya's spine.
"Who did this?" she whispered, unable to comprehend the power it would take to bring down someone so dangerous.
And then she saw him.
A boy, barely sixteen, lay amidst the wreckage, his chest rising and falling weakly. His body was covered in bruises and scars, his clothes torn and bloodied.
Without a second thought, Reshya rushed to his side. She placed her hands over his wounds, chanting a basic healing spell. The boy's body was cold, dangerously so.
"Hang in there," she whispered softly, her focus entirely on him.
_______
As Reshya carried Tim toward the Dragon Feast, his breathing steadied but his mind remained restless. In his unconscious state, he whispered faintly, his words broken yet filled with emotion.
"Dragon Feast… Kano… is this a dream?"
Reshya's ears perked up at the mention of the festival. She slowed her flight slightly, listening.
"I want to be there… with you, Kano… Iami…" Tim murmured. He shifted slightly, his voice cracking. "I need to unseal the Golden Ring… it's for Kano… he deserves a better life..."
Reshya's grip tightened on him. Golden Ring? Her heart skipped a beat. This boy—this commoner—was tied to something far bigger than she'd initially thought.
But Tim wasn't finished. His words grew more desperate, more sorrowful.
"I want… freedom… freedom beyond these walls… beyond this city… this nation… this reality…" His voice faded into a whisper. "Even if it's just fiction… even if it's just a dream… I want to live in a world that I can write myself."
Reshya's chest tightened at his words. She could feel the weight of his longing, his despair, his hope.
______
With a sigh, Reshya adjusted her grip on him. "What a troublesome kid," she muttered, though her tone was softer now. She had a duty to report what she'd seen at the tunnel to the KTD Academy. There was no doubt in her mind that something sinister was brewing—something that posed a real threat to the city.
But leaving this boy alone, unconscious and vulnerable, simply wasn't an option. She would take him to the Dragon Feast. After all, she was headed there eventually, and it sounded like attending the feast was this boy's dream.
"Hey, wake up already," Reshya said, shaking him gently. "You're heavier than you look, you know."
Tim didn't stir.
Reshya sighed and picked up her pace. "Guess it's up to me to fix this mess," she muttered, glancing at the distant city skyline.
_______
A few kilometers away, Iami soared through the Keit Marks, her Flyer abilities carrying her swiftly toward Haeankang Station. But the looming clouds above made her uneasy.
A cloudy day on the Dragon Feast… it's considered a bad omen.
Iami glanced at the time. It was already 2:30 PM, and the Keit Marks were busier than ever. Flyers zipped past her in every direction, creating a whirlwind of movement.
"Tim and Kano better not slow me down," she muttered, pushing herself forward. "They'll catch up eventually. For now, I need to get to Haeankang."
______
Meanwhile, in an unspecified location, a voice whispered in the darkness.
"So, many Contiquists have their eyes on the Golden Ring," the figure said, his crimson eyes gleaming.
"Indeed, Master," another voice replied. "The 7/6 Tunnel incident confirmed that much. They made their move before the Dragon Feast even began."
The first figure smirked. "How amusing. Let them chase their dreams. The Golden Ring won't be so easily captured. It has always eluded us—and for good reason. But this time…" He paused, his grin widening. "This time, the game will end differently."