Golden light seeped into Jae-ha’s body as well, making him grimace before he even realized it. He didn’t want to leave Hae-hyun behind. Worry gnawed at him. He wanted to stay with him until the very end.
But there was nothing Jae-ha could do right now.
The unfamiliar customs, the foreign scenery, the strange clothing—all of it had blurred his sense of reality. Now it was sharpening again, and the realization that the only person he could rely on here was Hae-hyun, who always seemed so much younger than him, hit with shocking weight.
Only then did Jae-ha understand how ridiculously optimistic he had been about all of this.
No matter how peaceful the festival seemed, no matter how noisy and friendly the people appeared, they weren’t here for fun. They had snuck into another lord’s fortress. Not once had he stopped to consider that their lives could be threatened so directly.
The gap between himself and Hae-hyun became starkly clear. And it wasn’t just about spiritual power. He now understood why, when Myeongheoseong was first mentioned, Hae-hyun had worn that troubled expression and said it might be better not to bring him. He understood why, even after they came here, Hae-hyun kept shielding him from strangers at every turn.
Realizing he was just baggage stung, but Jae-ha wasn’t dumb enough to ignore reality completely.
Fighting while protecting someone was far harder than fighting alone. His presence could only get in the way. Hae-hyun had been right. Again.
Swallowing his frustration, Jae-ha retreated a few steps, ducking behind the storage stalls set up behind the brewery. From there, he peeked out to assess the situation. Luckily, Hae-hyun’s overwhelming presence drew all the attention; no one seemed to notice him.
Instinctively, Jae-ha glanced at Hae-hyun. He couldn’t help it.
The guards had closed in around him, their leader barking orders from behind while the others tried to circle him. Their hostility was unmistakable.
Wait.
Something about their formation struck him as odd—strangely scattered, like they’d been spread out on purpose…
KWAANG!
A thunderous crash erupted from Hae-hyun’s direction.
Jae-ha’s head whipped around. One guard was sent tumbling across the ground, while Hae-hyun—slightly hunched—held the follow-through stance of someone who’d just struck with immense force.
Golden energy surged from him like a crashing wave, sweeping the guard up and slamming him against the wall. The man twitched once before going limp. But while Hae-hyun’s focus flickered for that instant, another guard lunged. Hae-hyun frowned and lashed out with a rough sweep of his hand, his movements now stripped of earlier ease.
There was no more time to analyze formations. Jae-ha moved quickly.
***
“Haaap!”
A sword slashed toward Hae-hyun. He twisted aside, dodged the blade, and shoved energy into the guard, driving him back several steps with a grunt.
But there were too many of them. No matter how many he struck down, more pressed forward.
Even though Hae-hyun was a once-in-a-generation prodigy born with the strongest Haetae energy in Ju family history, not even that could overturn the old saying: no one can withstand a mob.
It was only thanks to his ability to wield complex, layered spells freely that he’d lasted this long. Any other exorcist would already be subdued, forced to their knees.
At least Jae-ha seemed to have gotten away safely—there was no trace of him nearby. Hae-hyun couldn’t check while fighting, but since the guards’ focus hadn’t shifted, it was probably true.
They wouldn’t dare cut down a descendant of Cheonrok outright, but there was still the chance he might be hurt if he lingered nearby. In a situation like this, distance was the best protection.
He’s not waiting for me, is he?
The thought tugged a faint smile from Hae-hyun. His sunbae always seemed cold but was softer than he let on. If Hae-hyun begged, he would sigh helplessly, turn back, and hold out his hand. Even when he acted unreasonably, his sunbae would laugh in disbelief and indulge him anyway.
That was why he worried.
Of course, Hae-hyun had no intention of dying here. But when did life ever go the way you wanted? His family’s trade was exorcism, dealing with souls. Ju Hae-hyun lived closer to the boundary of life and death than anyone. Losing your life in this line of work wasn’t uncommon.
And this wasn’t even the human world—it was the Celestial Realm. Not just anywhere, but the fortress of one of the Fourteen Celestial Lords. Ordinary guards were manageable, but if one of the appointed generals—or Fortress Lord Yeomjeong himself—stepped in to deal with intruders, even Hae-hyun wouldn’t escape easily.
Jae-ha didn’t know, and never would, but Hae-hyun had already prepared himself for the worst the moment he set foot here.
The fact that Jae-ha had been dragged to Seo-cheon while he was right there—that was his failure. He could have stopped it, but he’d been distracted. The thought still burned him with frustration and regret so fierce it made him sick. He should’ve stayed focused. He could’ve worried about the rest later.
What was done was done, but the responsibility was his. For now, the priority was to separate Jae-ha from the guards’ sight and get him somewhere safe.
His eyes darkened. He had burned through a lot of energy since entering Myeongheoseong, but as the family’s best output—Hae-ryeong’s words—he still had plenty left. …He’d even managed to recover a bit earlier. Enough to blow up a room, at least.
Then it would be safer to—
“FREEZE!”
A thunderous voice shook the brewery. It was so loud it drowned out the clash of steel, the shouts, even the groans of the fallen.
And it was the one voice Hae-hyun absolutely should not be hearing right now.
His eyes flew wide as he turned sharply toward the sound. His body creaked with the motion, but he couldn’t care less.
Atop the massive fermentation vats stood Jae-ha, grinning.
In one hand he lightly held the rubber tube connected to the vat, in the other a massive kitchen knife he’d found somewhere.
“Anyone moves, and the Hwanggwaju’s gone!”
As he spoke, he hooked the blade against the tube. One slice, and the priceless liquor would pour uselessly onto the floor before anyone could stop it.
The captain’s face froze, and Jae-ha’s eyes curved in satisfaction. He’d been right.
Inside this space, Hae-hyun was the only real threat. If the captain had committed his entire unit to subduing him, the fight would’ve ended much sooner.
But instead, he’d held men back and scattered them around the brewery—concentrating even more around certain areas than on Hae-hyun himself.
Specifically, around the fermentation vats.
Hwanggwaju was so rare and precious that even lords equal in rank to Yeomjeong coveted it. Yeomjeong himself had refused to part with a single Baeksa fruit, angering his peers, and had even withdrawn public prizes rather than give any away. His obsession proved the liquor’s value.
The captain, as Yeomjeong’s right hand, obviously knew this. So of course he would guard the Hwanggwaju as fiercely as he would fight intruders—maybe more. His decision to spread men in advance was proof enough.
Which meant that threatening to ruin a liquor brewed only once in a hundred years was no bluff they could ignore.
And Jae-ha’s gamble had landed perfectly.
“Sunbae?”
In the lull of frozen attacks, Hae-hyun muttered in disbelief, his face a little dazed before twisting in frustration.
“What are you doing up there? That’s dangerous!”
He’d bought him time—he could’ve just left! Why take such a reckless gamble instead? He never listened. And how had he even climbed up there? The vats were far taller than Jae-ha. What if he slipped?
Hae-hyun glared at him with a mix of exasperation, worry, and irritation. But Jae-ha only smirked back, teasing, unfazed.
“How could I leave you behind?”
In the Celestial Realm, where strange powers were the norm, Jae-ha probably was deadweight compared to Hae-hyun or Su-min. He couldn’t cast spells like Hae-hyun, couldn’t disguise identities like Su-min, couldn’t heal wounds like a true Cheonrok. He didn’t even understand this world.
He had no powers. If anyone swung a blade at him, he wouldn’t even dodge—he’d be cut down instantly.
“Abandoning a dog is illegal. And you’re a big breed.”
But that didn’t mean he was useless.
“Abandon a big dog, and you go to jail.”
There was no reason to ignore the hint staring him in the face. A theory had formed in his mind. It seemed plausible—maybe even a way to get them both out of this alive. Without sacrificing Hae-hyun.
That was the only reason Jae-ha acted.
