The forest had gone silent again. Not the kind of silence that comforts.10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfSWNbNZ0To
The kind that warns.
Luce stood at the head of the group, eyes like glass, jaw clenched. He hadn’t spoken since Juno’s death. But now… his voice dropped, deep and dangerous:
“Find Sayaka. At all costs.”
Raiden stiffened. “Luce—wait. Why so sudden?”
Lev stepped forward. “You want us to look for her now? After Juno? Why her?”
He looked to Avni for backup. But she didn’t side with him.
She exchanged a look with Raiden. A knowing look. Then, calmly, she said:
“Because this is how he gets when he's serious.”
Lev frowned. “What do you mean?”
Raiden sighed. “We’ve seen it before. During the Initial Descent. When Luce dragged two unconscious kids back from the jungle and didn’t speak for an hour. You weren’t there, Lev.”
“I was in the infirmary,” Avni added softly. “He came in… covered in blood. Quiet. Dead calm. We thought he was going to pass out. Instead, he smiled and asked for tea.”
Lev glanced at Luce again, this time with unease. There was something off about the way he stood. Still, unreadable.
Raiden folded his arms. “He only acts like a clown. But he’s colder than any of us.”
Lev muttered, “And I’m supposed to trust that?”
Avni replied, quieter now. “Sayaka is my cousin. And I know something’s wrong. I don’t trust her. But I know she’d never harm the people she cares about—not unless she was being forced. If there’s anyone who can get to her... it’s Luce.”
Lev said nothing.
But the tension between the two “leaders” in the group now crackled like static. One cold but kind. The other, kind but cold.
Meanwhile — Umbra Island, COMA HQ
The silence in the war room shattered. A third red dot blinked out. Then a fourth. Then another.
Sayaka Kurogane. Signal Lost.10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX1ZYUcN2iz
Luciano Moretti. Signal Lost.10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbGRiUxDRu9
Avni Rathore. Signal Lost.10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡphHJwaLg5C
Raiden Kurogane. Signal Lost.10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnJLQz40yLe
Lev Morozov. Signal Lost.
Elda Kurogane snapped, slamming both palms against the table. The room froze.
“No. Not all of them. Not my heirs.”
Irina Volkova was the first to break the silence. “Our grandson is gone.”
Sylus said nothing. But his eyes hadn’t moved from Lev’s blinking dot since it vanished.
Gianluca Moretti growled, “He destroyed the trackers. Luce did this.”
“Good,” Selene Argyros said softly. “He’s playing smart.”
“Smart?!” Naoko Rathore barked. “We don’t even know if they’re alive!”
“Enough!” Elda roared.
Her silver eyes were wild now.
“They’ve taken Sayaka. They’ve taken Luce. That means they’ve taken COMA’s future.”
Viktor Reznov stood, voice like ice. “Then we take it back.”
Selene nodded. “Fighter jets. Twelve hours. We retrieve the ones whose signals still blink. The rest—”10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcM2ifSw4wx
“—we find,” Elda cut in, “or burn Caelthorn to the ground trying.”
Back in the jungle — Team Luce
Lev slowed to a halt. Something soft and stained was caught in a tree branch.
He pulled it down.
Sayaka’s jacket.
Bloodied. Torn. The name stitched faintly at the collar: SAYAKA KUROGANE
“She was here,” Raiden said. “Recently.”
“She wanted to be followed,” Luce murmured, already moving.
They followed the trail in silence—muddy footprints, splashes of blood.
Until the trees opened to a horrific sight.
Dead bodies. Six. All former students. Oathless.
One was missing a head. Another’s fingers were crushed. Whoever did this hadn’t just killed them—they’d sent a message.
Raiden cursed. “Who the hell—”
“Oathless,” Luce muttered.
Lev’s head snapped. “You said that earlier too. How do you know who they are?”
Luce didn’t answer. He kept walking.
The group reached the edge of a clearing. A massive mansion, eerily intact, stood among overgrowth. No broken windows. No ivy on the doors.
“It’s too clean,” Avni whispered. “This place is lived in.”
Inside, the air was sterile. Too quiet.
They entered a study, where files lay shredded across the floor.
Luce knelt and picked one up. Half a name was visible.
…Kurogane.
Raiden found another.
Natalia Dragunov.
There was a silence—then Lev whispered, almost in shock:
“That’s my mom.”
Luce froze. Turned sharply. “Your what?”
Lev’s hands shook. “Natalia Dragunov. That’s my mother’s name. I lost her few years back. But I know her name.”
Luce stood silent. His stomach dropped.
Natalia Dragunov. The daughter-in-law of the former Valgrave head. The one who killed under mysterious circumstances. Luce had never known she had a child... Let alone Lev.
Before anyone could speak again, someone from the scout group shouted:
“There’s a surveillance room!”
They ran in.
Dozens of monitors flickered. One was still playing. A looping video. Low quality. Grainy sound.
Sayaka.
Six weeks ago. Entering this very mansion. Talking to someone off-screen. Calm. Cold. She looked… different.
Lev turned, eyes wild. “She was here. Is she—?”
Raiden clenched his jaw. “Is she the traitor? oh my damned sister.”
Juno’s whisper from earlier echoed in everyone’s mind:10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLGDv40Y6r7
Traitor.
“No.”10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFeJhI4VbbB
Luce’s voice cracked out before anyone else could speak.
The room turned to him.
His fists trembled. His mouth opened, then shut. He finally said:
“Not this. Not her. Not like this.”
“She might be the traitor,” Avni said slowly, “but she’d never hurt her friends. She’d never kill her team.”
Raiden nodded. “She’d rather die.”
The screen continued to play.10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2mnFjqBl4q
Sayaka’s face flickered across the monitors.10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbygMUcDSOs
Alone. Surrounded by ghosts (unknown people).
And somewhere on Caelthorn, she was either waiting for them—10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7orVTwFNqR
—10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKOVlox6iQg
Or hiding.
and then Add to home screen.