There was nothing after the explosion.
No sound. No movement.
Just empty space where Isshin had been.
For a few seconds, no one reacted.
Rune stood still, staring forward. The paper bag over his head hid his face, but dark spots slowly spread across it. He didn't move.
Karin dropped to her knees.
The tears came out before she could stop them.
He was gone.
It didn't feel real. They had just started. Everything they planned, everything ahead of them—it ended here.
All that remained was a torn piece of cloth, drifting in the wind.
The sect eventually arrived.
People gathered, but no one spoke loudly. Even those who didn't know Isshin understood something had happened. Elders stood in silence. Disciples lowered their heads.
A grave was made in the center of the sect.
Karin stayed there.
Through the rain. Through the sun. Days passed, and she barely moved. Rune stayed nearby, but not close. He didn't interrupt. There wasn't anything to say.
On the fourth day, he walked up to her.
"I'm leaving," he said.
Karin didn't respond at first. Then quietly, "Where?"
"I have something to do. I've been waiting for it." He paused. "I can't explain it yet."
Karin looked at him. Her eyes were tired. "I might go home."
Rune nodded.
He left at sunrise.
Karin stayed.
Until she heard a voice behind her.
"Princess… it's time."
She didn't turn. "There's nothing to go back to."
A woman stood behind her, dressed in black. Only her eyes were visible. Her presence alone was heavy, even though she was holding back.
Karin's hands tightened. "You were there. Why didn't you help?!"
The woman lowered her head. "I didn't expect that technique. Final Flow… it shouldn't have been possible for him to use."
Karin shook slightly. "I don't care."
The woman didn't argue.
She stayed there.
Eventually, Karin stood up.
They left together.
Back to the empire.
The Heavenly Demon Empire.
Her real position.
Princess.
When she returned, people noticed immediately. But something felt off. Too quiet. Too controlled.
She didn't stop anywhere.
She went straight to Gale.
He was in his study, going through documents like nothing had changed.
"I want to see my father!" Karin said.
Gale looked up slowly. "You can't."
Karin frowned. "Why?"
"He sealed himself inside your mother's room," Gale said. "No one can enter."
Karin froze. "What?!"
Karin's expression changed.
Her mother…
She walked away immediately.
Ignoring Gale, ignoring everything else.
She reached the room and started banging on the door.
"Open it! Say something!"
Nothing.
The door didn't move.
Her guard tried to stop her, but Karin pushed her away. She tried to break the seal herself.
It didn't work.
Eventually, her strength gave out.
She collapsed.
Crying.
Later, the guard returned to check on her.
She was gone.
Far away, in the South Desert Kingdom, Rune stepped off a carriage.
Heat filled the air. Sand moved through the streets.
He paid the entry fee and walked into the city.
He didn't look around much.
He found a small tavern and sat down.
While drinking, he overheard a group nearby.
"I heard the Death King is planning something big," one of them said.
"Keep your voice down," another replied.
"Something about attacking the Virtuous Murim Alliance…"
Rune listened quietly.
Another voice spoke. "There's internal problems too. But if he fixes that, he'll move soon."
Rune leaned back slightly.
He didn't say anything.
But he understood.
Everything was moving.
And now, it mattered to him.
More than before.
When the guardian realized Karin wasn't in her room, she reacted immediately.
Her first thought went to the worst possibility.
Karin had left.
Within moments, she alerted the guards and nearby disciples, sending people across the palace to search every corridor, courtyard, and tower.
The search went on for hours.
Only when it started to feel hopeless did she finally find her.
Karin was in a quiet, dim section of the great library, surrounded by old books. She hadn't moved much. Pages were scattered around her, filled with diagrams and theories.
She didn't even look up when the guardian approached.
"You disappeared without saying anything," the guardian said, her voice tense. "We've been looking everywhere."
"I'm fine," Karin replied quietly, still reading. "I just needed to check something."
The guardian stepped closer and looked at the pages.
Immortality.
Resurrection.
"You're looking into this?" she asked.
Karin nodded slightly. "I need to know if there's a way."
The guardian let out a slow breath. "People have spent entire lifetimes on that. Most of it leads nowhere."
"I know," Karin said. "But I can't just sit there and do nothing."
There was no hesitation in her voice.
The guardian watched her for a moment, then gave in.
"…Then I'll stay with you. If you're going down this path, you'll do it properly. I'll guide your cultivation myself."
Karin didn't respond.
But she didn't refuse either.
Far to the south, in the desert kingdom, Rune had already started moving.
He came downstairs from his room the next morning, fastening his sword as he walked. The inn was filled with travelers and mercenaries, most of them armed, all of them watching without looking like they were.
Rune walked up to the counter.
"Do you know anything about a group called the Dust Phantoms?" he asked.
The innkeeper's expression changed instantly.
His hand moved under the counter.
A knife came out.
Rune reacted without hesitation.
Qi gathered in his hands, and two blasts shot forward, hitting the man and throwing him back into the wall.
The entire room moved at once.
Chairs scraped. Weapons were drawn.
The "customers" weren't customers.
Rune stepped back and kicked a chair into one of them, knocking him off balance. Another attacker came from above, dropping down with a blade.
Rune shifted back just enough for the strike to hit the table instead.
The sword got stuck.
Rune didn't waste the opening.
One movement.
The attacker dropped.
The rest didn't last long.
Rune moved through them quickly, clean and direct. One after another, they went down. Within seconds, the room went quiet again.
Except for one person.
A man sat in the corner, untouched.
He wore a long coat and a wide hat, his face mostly hidden. A cup of tea sat in front of him, steam rising slowly.
He took a sip.
Rune walked toward him. "You're not joining in?"
"I don't bother with things that don't concern me," the man replied.
Rune studied him briefly, then turned away. "Then keep it that way."
He walked to the door and reached for the handle.
The man spoke again.
"If you open that door, you'll die."
Rune stopped.
His hand stayed on the latch.
"That doesn't mean much here," Rune said. His voice was calm, but the meaning was clear.
The man took another sip of tea.
"It does," he said. "When the one leaving is a royal traitor."
Rune didn't turn around.