The shore was quieter than I expected.
Most of the injured students were lying on makeshift beds made from torn sails and driftwood. Some were sleeping. Some were staring at the sky, eyes empty, like they were counting breaths just to remind themselves they were still alive. The sound of waves filled the gaps where conversation used to be.
I stood near the water, letting the sea reach my feet and pull back again.
I felt… normal.
That alone felt wrong.
"You—!"
Her voice broke the silence.
I turned just in time to see her running toward me. The girl from the cave. Her hair was messy, her steps uneven, like she hadn't rested properly. When she stopped in front of me, she bent forward slightly, hands on her knees, breathing hard.
She straightened up and stared at me.
Her eyes moved fast. Too fast.
My face.
My arms.
My chest.
"…You're not hurt?" she asked.
I waited a second before answering. Not because I didn't know what to say, but because I knew what *not* to say.
"I'm fine," I replied.
Her brows pulled together. "That's impossible. Last night you were—"
She stopped herself.
I could see the memory flash through her eyes. Blood. Too much of it. My body barely standing.
She took a step closer and lowered her voice. "You were covered in red. I saw it. I didn't imagine that."
I met her gaze calmly.
"You did," I said. "I just look worse than I am."
That wasn't entirely false. I had always looked worse than I felt.
She searched my face, like she was waiting for a crack, a sign of pain, something to confirm her fear. When she found nothing, her shoulders slowly dropped.
"…I'm glad," she said quietly.
I nodded. That was all.
There were things she didn't need to know.
Things she shouldn't know.
Time moved differently inside Datora. More than a week had passed for me, rest, silence, recovery. My body had healed long before the sun rose over this shore again.
For them, only one night was gone.
We walked back toward the others together.
Food was being shared, simple things, mostly fish and whatever fruit could be found. People ate slowly, carefully, like they were afraid it would disappear if they rushed.
I sat with them, listening more than talking.
That's when one of the students stood up and dragged something across the sand.
Six fishing rods.
He dropped them in front of us. "We can't keep waiting for supplies. The sea's full of fish. We catch our own."
A few people nodded. Others looked tired but relieved.
I reached out and picked one up.
"I'll help," I said.
The moment I did, the mood changed.
It was subtle. A pause that lasted half a second too long. A conversation that didn't restart right away.
I felt their eyes on me.
Not openly. Not accusing.
Just… watching.
Her friends sat together a little closer. One of them leaned in and whispered something I couldn't hear. Another avoided looking at me entirely.
Their trust wasn't gone.
It was held back.
I understood why.
I came out of the cave alone.
With their friend.
No explanation would fix that.
If I were them,* I thought, *I'd be careful too.
No one said anything, though. Eventually, someone cleared their throat.
"Alright," the same student said. "Let's go."
We took the fishing boat out into the sea. The island slowly shrank behind us, the shore becoming a thin line between water and sky.
The sea was alive.
Fish moved beneath the surface, silver shapes cutting through the blue. It reminded me how small we were, how easily we could disappear here.
I dropped my line.
Less than a minute later, I felt it.
A pull. I pulled back. A fish broke the surface, thrashing, water spraying everywhere.
Silence.
"…Already?" someone said.
I removed the fish and laid it down.
"Just luck," I replied. "They're easy caught."
One of them laughed nervously. "Luck my ass."
Another crossed his arms. "You sure you didn't—"
"Fish bite when they're hungry," I said calmly. "Nothing strange about it."
No one argued, but I could feel their doubt pressing against my back.
I caught another.
Then another.
Each time, their reactions grew quieter.
Not amazement.
Suspicion.
When the boat was full enough, someone spoke up. "That's enough. We should head back."
I stood instead.
"I'm not done."
"What?" one of them asked.
"I'll catch a few more," I said. "You can go back without me."
"That's stupid," someone snapped. "You'll drown."
I met his eyes. "I won't."
Before they could grab me, I jumped.
Cold water swallowed the sound of their voices.
The world changed instantly.
No shouting.
No doubt.
Just pressure and motion.
I swam deeper, my body moving easily, like it remembered something my mind didn't. Fish scattered around me, flashes of silver and dark shapes slipping into the distance.
Stranger things appeared the deeper I went.
Plants that glowed faintly.
Creatures that watched from far away.
Then I saw it.
An altar.
Stone, old and heavy, resting where it shouldn't exist. It felt wrong just looking at it, like it didn't belong to the sea, or the world.
A cover rested on top.
As soon as I saw it, I understood.
Blood.
The cover stopped it from drifting upward.
Or sinking downward.
Two paths.
Two contracts.
My chest tightened.
So this is where they're made.
I approached slowly. My reflection stared back at me in the stone, distorted by the water.
I cut my palm.
Blood spread, but it didn't float away. The altar reacted immediately. Light spread across the surface, warm and heavy, pressing into my bones.
A name echoed inside my head.
Illuminated Honor.
I clenched my jaw.
A contract meant a mission. A mission meant consequences. I didn't know what it would ask of me. I only knew this world never gave anything freely.
Please, I thought, don't let it be easy.
The light faded.
I pushed myself upward, breaking the surface with a sharp breath.
The boat was still there. They were all staring at me.
"…What the hell were you doing?" someone asked.
I climbed back aboard, water dripping from my clothes.
"Fishing," I said.
They didn't laugh.
Neither did I.