Chapter 14 – A Throne of Betrayal
The grand hall of the Heavenly Sword Sect stood in eerie silence, the once-glorious throne now a symbol of disgrace. The towering pillars that had witnessed a millennium of power now bore the weight of treachery.
Haneul stood at the center, his silver hair gleaming under the dim torchlight. His golden eyes swept over the kneeling elders, their faces pale, their robes damp with sweat.
Fear.
They reeked of it.
Finally, Elder Nam dared to break the silence.
"He is… gone, My Lord."
Haneul's fingers twitched. A crack split the marble floor beneath his feet.
The temperature in the hall dropped.
"Explain."
Elder Nam swallowed thickly.
"Your brother, the Sect Leader, disappeared five years ago. We searched for him, but he left no trace."
A lie.
Haneul could hear the stutter in his breath, see the tremor in his hands.
But he did not expose him. Not yet.
His gaze shifted to Grand Elder Seo.
"And who sits on the throne now?"
Seo hesitated.
Haneul's patience thinned.
"Speak."
Grand Elder Seo finally met his gaze, his knuckles white.
"The Golden Sect has declared dominion over us."
Silence.
A deep, suffocating silence.
Then—
CRACK.
The floor beneath Haneul's feet split apart.
The elders flinched as an invisible pressure crushed the air around them. Some collapsed, their bodies trembling under the suffocating force.
Haneul's voice was calm, but his words carried the weight of a blade against their throats.
"The Golden Sect… rules over my throne?"
Grand Elder Seo clenched his fists.
"We had no choice."
Another crack rang through the chamber. The walls trembled, fractures spreading across the ancient pillars.
"No choice?" Haneul echoed. His voice was barely above a whisper, yet it sent a shiver down every spine in the room. "You had a choice, Grand Elder."
Seo's lips parted, but no words came out.
There was nothing to say.
"And you chose betrayal."
It was not a question.
It was a sentence.
The weight of his words stole the breath from the room.
Elder Jo broke first. He slammed his forehead to the ground.
"Mercy, My Lord!"
The others followed.
"We only did what we had to in order to survive—"
"Silence."
The word was soft. Not loud. Not shouted.
Yet it commanded the very air.
The elders froze.
Haneul exhaled slowly.
His disgust, his fury, burned through his veins like molten fire.
But he did not kill them.
Not yet.
Instead, he asked one final question.
"Where is the current ruler of the Golden Sect?"
Elder Seo hesitated, but when Haneul's gaze bore into him, he quickly answered.
"The new leader of the Golden Sect… is holding court at our sect's main temple."
A slow smile curled at Haneul's lips.
A cold, merciless smile.
"Then I will pay him a visit."
And this time—
He would not return empty-handed.
---
The Shadows Stir
Night fell upon the Heavenly Sword Sect, casting long shadows over the decaying ruins of its former glory. The air was thick with the weight of betrayal, yet beneath that weight, something else lurked—something ancient and waiting.
In a hidden chamber beneath the sect's ruins, a figure stood before a flickering candle. His crimson robes billowed as he traced his fingers over a cracked mirror.
"He has returned," the man whispered, his voice barely audible over the crackling flame.
Behind him, four figures knelt—his Shadow Demons.
The strongest of them, a warrior draped in obsidian armor, spoke first.
"Shall we move?"
The man did not answer immediately. Instead, he pressed his palm against the mirror.
And in the reflection—golden eyes met his own.
A slow smile spread across his face.
"No," he murmured. "Let him come."
Then, with a flick of his wrist, the candle was snuffed out—plunging the chamber into absolute darkness.