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Chapter 12: Threads of Memory
The group traveled northeast, toward the snow-covered forests of Jiryong Ridge, where the third shrine was hidden—beneath the ruins of an old fortress swallowed by time.
As they passed through a village shrouded in silence, Ji noticed something strange: the villagers stared at him with fear—not awe. Whispers followed him. Murmurs of cursed light. Of a boy too close to the moon.
Duri frowned. "They've heard the rumors… Baek Rin is poisoning the people's minds."
They stayed the night in an abandoned shrine hall on the outskirts. There, Ji sat alone with the second key, turning it over in his palm.
Seora joined him quietly. "You okay?"
"I saw her eyes," Ji said. "Soo-min. She didn't want to fight. She's still in there."
"She's stronger than most. But you reaching her? That's rare."
He looked up. "Do you ever wish this wasn't your path?"
Seora didn't answer immediately. Then: "Sometimes. But then I see you. And I remember why I kept going."
The next morning, they entered the fortress.
The third shrine lay in the heart of the ruins—a circular chamber wrapped in vines, moon glyphs carved into the floor. But this shrine was different.
Instead of illusions or guardians, it was filled with floating threads—memories. Ji stepped inside, and a memory tugged at his chest.
Suddenly, he saw himself—five years old, holding his mother's hand at the royal garden. Her voice echoed:
> "No matter what they say, you are light."
Yeonhwa watched another memory—her brother swearing to return from war. He never did.
Duri saw his past too: laughter, celebration... and a sharp cut to exile.
Seora stood still. Her mother's last words: "Run, Seora. And survive."
Then the chamber darkened.
From the shadows, Baek Rin's voice echoed:
> "You chase light, but you cannot outrun truth."
A spectral version of Ji appeared—corrupted, crowned, surrounded by fallen friends.
"You will fail," the vision whispered.
Ji clenched his fists. "I'm not afraid of who I was—or who I could become. I only fear doing nothing."
He stepped forward and embraced the shadow.
The room exploded in silver.
And from the light emerged the third lunar key—a crystalline feather.
Ji took it, breath steady.
Three keys. One to go.
And far away, Baek Rin stood at the foot of the final shrine—the Gate of Shadows—waiting.
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To Be Continued in Chapter 13: The Final Key