The smoke had cleared. The shrine lay in ruins, the last bandit turned to ash. Qingsai stood in silence, his palm still faintly glowing.
Then—he heard crying.
Behind the crumbling wall of the broken shrine, the two girls he'd tried to save were huddled together, bound but untouched by the flames. He rushed to them, falling to his knees.
"It's okay," he whispered, hastily cutting their bindings with the broken dagger. "You're safe now. I promise."
The first girl, trembling but poised, pushed herself upright. Her long violet-purple hair, streaked with dust, fell like a shimmering curtain to her waist. Her eyes, the same color, fixed on Qingsai with a commanding sharpness that didn't suit a girl her age.
The second girl clung to the first—her honey-blonde ringlet curls bouncing as she moved, her emerald eyes wide and teary. She looked at Qingsai as if he were both a savior and a phantom.
The purple-haired girl cleared her throat. "You… what is your name?"
"Qingsai," he said, blinking.
The girl bowed slightly, regal despite her bruised appearance. "I am Meiyan Zhuanyi, princess of the Orilan Kingdom of Eirsola."
The blonde girl peeked from behind her, her voice barely a whisper. "I-I'm… Chunsi Fengrui. My father is… Prime Minister of Orilan…"
Qingsai's eyes widened.
Orilan was the heart of Eirsola, the capital of the Holy Light Kingdom. These girls… were nobility. Royalty.
"What were you doing here?" he asked softly.
Meiyan's gaze hardened. "We were traveling under disguise, visiting a sacred spirit temple in secret. It was meant to be a private journey of prayer. But our caravan was ambushed in the forest. Everyone was killed."
Chunsi's lip trembled. "W-we thought… we were going to die…"
Qingsai swallowed. "You would have. If I hadn't seen you."
Meiyan looked him over. "You used Spirit Flame. And not just any flame. That… was Soulkindled fire."
Qingsai looked away. "I don't know what it was."
"You saved us," Chunsi whispered. "Please… can you take us home? To Orilan?"
Meiyan took her friend's hand. "We won't survive alone. But with you, Qingsai… we might make it."
Qingsai nodded slowly. "I'll take you."