Chun pressed close to his shoulder, her voice barely more than a whisper.
"Wei… what do we do now?"
Wei barely hesitated.
"Of course we go home."
He paused, then added quietly,"But we can't just rush straight in. Stay close."
"All right!" Chun grabbed the hem of his robe in one quick motion, clutching it like a lifeline.
Wei's eyes darted around, scanning the edges of the path. He edged toward the village cautiously, every step deliberate.
Yet, despite the tension, a small, inexplicable sense of satisfaction crept into his chest.
Chun often mocked him for acting without thinking. Yet here she was, the danger pressing close, and she was following his lead without question.
A faint smirk touched Wei's lips as he considered the situation, his voice unconsciously taking on a tone of authority, seasoned with experience.
"In my experience," he murmured,"beasts this big… they aren't exactly clever."
He thought back to the time the villagers and he had cornered a wild boar. The beast was massive, strong, terrifying—but in its panic, it had stumbled and fallen off a cliff.
The memory brought a fleeting, almost guilty smile to his face. That boar had been delicious.
Wei licked his lips, then continued.
"By now, that creature's probably torn the village apart. The thatched huts—"
Chun tugged at his sleeve gently before he could finish.
"I know what you're thinking," she said quickly."But it's dark now. If we try to circle around, we'll have to go through the forest."
Wei paused, adding softly,"Going through the forest now… it's not a good idea. The traps alone are dangerous. And at night, any predator there… neither of us could handle it."
But Chun clutched his sleeve tighter, her pull constant and insistent.
Wei frowned, impatient."What now—"
He froze mid-sentence.
Her wide eyes were almost overflowing with fear. Her voice quivered.
"W-what… is that?"
Following her gaze, Wei's own eyes widened.
A massive shadow moved slowly through the village. The torchlight stretched it thin and long, a dark figure advancing with deliberate calm.
It didn't quicken its pace.
It didn't hesitate.
It walked like it owned the dust beneath its hooves.
Nobody spoke. Nobody needed to.
The outline was enormous, yet entirely shrouded in darkness. Just a vague, hulking shape.
The air seemed to compress around them. Wei could hear his own breathing—rough, ragged, out of control. The world ahead, by contrast, was unnervingly still.
No huffing.
No growls.
No footsteps.
It just… existed.
As if it had been waiting for this exact moment, and the outcome was already certain.
"It…" Chun's voice trembled."It's coming."
-----------------
Wei reacted instinctively, yanking Chun behind him and placing himself between her and the shadow. His hand clenched around the hunting knife so tightly his knuckles went white.
Step by step, he retreated.
The shadow didn't quicken.
It didn't falter.
It simply kept its slow, steady pace. Like a cat that had cornered a mouse, but suddenly lost interest in tearing it apart—preferring instead to savor the panic of prey with nowhere to run.
Wei continued backpedaling.
"Clang—"
A thud behind them. Both Wei and Chun collided with a thick, sturdy tree. There was no room left to retreat.
Then it emerged from the darkness.
Not lunging.
Not roaring.
On four legs, slow and measured, it advanced.
A horse.
Black mane hanging straight, coat glinting oily in the torchlight. Its tail groomed neatly. White mist puffed from its nostrils, curling like little clouds in the cool night air.
"Could it… be a wild horse?" Chun whispered, so softly even she feared she'd spoken aloud.
"No," Wei said firmly."It's not afraid of people. And it's not afraid of fire."
Wei sometimes overlooked details. Other times, he noticed everything.
Even from a distance, a wild horse would have bolted the moment it saw two humans. But this one… did not.
The closer it came, the more obvious it became.
This was no wild horse.
It was groomed. Tended. Controlled.
"Could someone have come riding into the village?" Chun suggested, voice uncertain, more hope than conviction.
"Look at its body," Wei said, low but sharp enough for her to notice. The horse wasn't a simple pack or work animal.
Chun followed his gaze.
A brand burned into the horse's haunch.
A wolf's head.
Her throat went dry."W-what… does that mean?"
"I've heard my father say the Imperial cavalry brands their horses with tribe-specific marks," Wei replied.
"This… does that mean someone from the Empire is in the village?"
Chun's voice shook. She had grown up in this village, hearing stories of the Empire only from the elders. The mere mention was enough to silence crying children at night.
Wei's mind raced. Lately, the lands beyond the mountains had been restless—but the nearest Imperial towns were still hundreds of miles away. How could anyone from the Empire have come here?
Yet the horse seemed entirely unconcerned with their presence.
It ambled past them with an almost casual grace, stepping into the open village square, lowering its head to graze on tender grass.
Quiet.
Composed.
Completely unconcerned.
Its movements were slow, deliberate, almost as if it were chewing on something far heavier than mere grass.
Wei and Chun exchanged a glance. Neither spoke.
But they both made the same decision.
They would keep moving toward the village.
Whatever had happened, they had to find out.
Because something in the village… had already gone wrong.