The crowd was thick. The night alive with color. And yet, in that sea of faces, the hunter had already found his prey.
The man's steps slowed as the market thinned, lanternlight spilling softer across the quieter rows of stalls. He let the silence stretch just long enough before speaking again, his tone low, warm, carefully measured.
"You don't even know my name," he said with a faint smile, as though sharing a small secret. "Luomeng." The syllables slid easily from his lips, offered without weight, as though they carried no history at all.
Liayin glanced at him, uncertain, but he continued before doubt could root itself.
"This world must seem strange to you. Blinding, perhaps. But it is not all as it appears." His hand swept lightly toward the rows of crystalline stalls, the arches gleaming with pearl and glass. "Beneath the shimmer lies an order old as the rivers themselves. Some guard it with chains. Others… understand it for what it truly is."
The words dripped with calm certainty, and yet behind them coiled a darker thread.
"Take Mingzhu," Luomeng murmured, his smile tightening at the edges. "To many, he is a protector. But to those who see clearly, he is a jailer binding not just his enemies, but those he claims to keep safe."
Liayin's step faltered, the faintest flicker in her eyes. He saw it, and pressed gently, never forceful, never obvious.
"Has he ever truly told you what he hides? Or does he simply command, expecting obedience without reason?"
Her lips parted, but no answer came. The crowd shifted around them, muffling her silence.
Luomeng did not press further. He only offered another of those patient smiles, the kind that promised understanding. "In time, you will see. I do not ask for trust not yet. Only that you walk beside me long enough to decide for yourself."
And with that, he guided her deeper into the glow of the market, where shadows waited between the light.
Luomeng did not leave at once. Instead, he lingered at the edge of the market, where the lanternlight dimmed and shadows thickened like waiting hands. His voice was softer now, almost a whisper meant only for her, yet it carried with the clarity of water rushing over stone.
"You walk between two currents, Liayin. One binds you with chains of silence. The other offers freedom, though its cost is never spoken aloud. Do not let yourself drown believing one current is safer than the other."
He reached for her hand, not to hold it, but to brush his fingers lightly across her knuckles, like a vow given without words. Then, with a smile that seemed both kind and distant, he bowed his head.
"When the night grows heavy, remember truth often wears the mask of a lie. And lies… wear the mask of guardians."
Before she could answer, he was gone, swallowed by the crowd, leaving only the weight of his words behind.
Liayin's steps back toward Mingzhu's dwelling were heavy, her thoughts fraying at the edges. His voice lingered in her mind like a tide she could not escape. Protector, jailer, keeper of secrets… Which one was true?
When she reached the door, a pale light spilled through the narrow crack. She hesitated, hand hovering near the frame, when voices drifted out.
Dòu Dòu's voice came first, tinged with unease. "She has crossed into this world because fate demanded it. You know that as well as I do. But with the curse still binding everything, what will you do with her now?"
Silence stretched, the pause heavy as stone. Then Dòu Dòu spoke again, voice lower. "If the curse endures, none of us are safe. But if it breaks…"
Mingzhu's reply was colder, carved from steel. "If it is to break, there are only two paths. Consent… or death."
The words cut through the silence like a blade.
Liayin froze, breath seizing in her chest. The shadow of fear coiled tight around her ribs. Was he speaking of her?
She pressed herself against the wall, heart racing, unable to step inside, unable to turn away. And in that single moment, the seed of doubt became something darker...something that threatened to unravel every fragile thread of trust she still held.