The night deepened, folding the fields into shadows. Kairo's group moved cautiously, every step measured, the wind whispering through tall grass like the hushed warnings of unseen eyes.
"They'll come," Kairo said softly, voice carrying the weight of inevitability. "Hunters, bounty seekers… anyone with a coin and a name. They'll be relentless."
One of the older children shivered. "But… how can we hide from everyone?"
Kairo crouched, crimson eyes scanning the horizon. "We don't hide. We move. We vanish from paths they expect us to take. The world is wide, and most only look where it's convenient." He straightened, his gaze sweeping over the group. "And some lessons are best learned when they think they see us."
Igron stretched, rolling his shoulders, then met Kairo's eyes. "You really do enjoy this, don't you? The chase, the fear in their eyes when they realize they can't catch us…"
Kairo didn't respond, though the faintest corner of his lips twitched. He had no time for sentiment, but he allowed the illusion of calm to settle among the children. They needed hope—even a shadow of it—to keep moving.
Meanwhile, beyond the Trade Realm, the first hunters had already been dispatched. Dark silhouettes moved between the trees and underbrush, eyes trained on the fields. They carried weapons, traps, and maps, each one eager for the bounty that promised wealth beyond their wildest imagining.
One hunter paused at the edge of a clearing, sniffing the night air. "They're close," he murmured. "I can feel them… something unnatural in the wind."
Back with Kairo, a soft crack of a branch alerted him. He froze, listening. The children held their breath, instinctively following his lead. The night was alive with subtle sounds—the shuffle of feet, the distant call of an owl, the faint rustle of cloth against grass.
"They're coming," Kairo whispered, tone calm, almost serene. "And we'll be ready."
Igron's smirk returned, sharper now. "Then let them come."
And in the darkness, the hunt had truly begun.