Chapter 109: Cha.108 Old Team (5)

Night covered Corwata.

Team Four moved through the castle like shadows.

No words were spoken.

Nasun led them through the corridors, memorizing every turn. Gareth followed closely behind, his modified shield strapped to his back. Syran kept one hand near her magic equipment, while Mark moved silently at the rear.

Their destination was simple.

The king’s room.

They reached the door.

Nasun slowly opened it.

Nothing.

The room was empty.

Syran frowned.

"Where is he?"

Nasun stepped inside.

He looked around.

The king’s bed was untouched.

The desk was empty.

There was no sign that anyone had been there.

Then—

BOOM!

The door behind them exploded open.

Royal guards flooded into the room.

Weapons were already drawn.

"TEAM FOUR!"

Nasun’s expression changed.

"You are under arrest for attempting to assassinate the king!"

Mark’s eyes widened.

"What?"

Nasun immediately understood.

We were never supposed to meet him.

They had been waiting for them.

"Run!"

The team fought their way through the castle.

They didn’t try to kill anyone.

They only needed to escape.

Gareth blocked arrows with his shield.

Syran blasted open a corridor.

Mark fired arrows behind them to slow the guards.

Nasun led them through a window and into the darkness outside.

They ran.

They kept running until the castle disappeared behind the trees.

Then they stopped.

Because someone was waiting for them.

Four people.

Team Three.

Yorness stood in front.

His face was cold.

"You really did it."

Nasun looked at him.

"You knew?"

"I knew you were going to do something stupid."

Nasun’s hand moved toward his weapon.

"We only wanted the truth."

"And now you’re traitors."

"Are we?"

Nasun stepped forward.

"Tell me, Yorness. If the king has nothing to hide, why did he send guards after us?"

Yorness didn’t answer.

"Move."

"No."

The two teams stood facing each other.

Then Yorness raised his hand.

"Take them."

The fight began.

Magic exploded through the forest.

Gareth charged first, his shield crashing into one of Team Three’s fighters.

Syran unleashed fire.

Mark fired arrow after arrow.

Nasun moved toward Yorness.

Their weapons collided.

CLANG!

Yorness pushed him back.

"You should have stopped!"

Nasun attacked again.

"Not until I know what the king is planning!"

Their blades crossed.

Yorness swung.

Nasun dodged.

Then he saw an opening.

He took it.

His blade cut across Yorness’s face.

Yorness froze.

Blood ran down his cheek.

His right eye had been cut.

He screamed and stumbled backward, clutching his face.

Nasun stared at him.

For one second, neither moved.

Then Yorness looked at him through his remaining eye.

Hatred filled it.

"Traitor."

Nasun lowered his weapon.

"I never wanted to fight you."

They escaped.

But there was nowhere left to go.

The months that followed were nothing like their old lives.

They had no home.

No base.

No kingdom they could safely return to.

They became fugitives.

They traveled from one place to another, sleeping wherever they could.

Sometimes in forests.

Sometimes in abandoned buildings.

Sometimes beneath bridges.

But they didn’t stop searching.

They gathered information wherever they went.

And they watched Corwata from afar.

The kingdom grew.

Its cities expanded.

Its influence spread.

Its armies became stronger.

But so did the darkness around it.

Criminal organizations appeared.

Violence increased.

And eventually, people began whispering about a terrorist group calling themselves...

The Scientists.

Team Four heard the rumors.

They kept moving.

They kept searching.

They refused to give up.

But neither did their enemies.

Royal forces continued hunting them.

They were always one step behind.

Until one day...

They weren’t.

They were traveling through a forest when someone appeared in front of them.

A man.

He was tall.

Broad-shouldered.

His body was covered in polished armor, each piece carrying the emblem of the Royal Guards.

His hair was short and silver.

His face looked almost unnaturally calm.

A long sword rested at his side.

He looked at the four fugitives.

"Team Four."

Nasun immediately drew his weapon.

"Run."

Nobody moved.

The man smiled.

"Don’t bother."

He disappeared.

BOOM!

Gareth was thrown through a tree.

"GAH!"

Syran immediately cast a spell.

The Royal Guard walked through the flames.

Untouched.

Mark fired three arrows.

The man tilted his head.

All three missed.

"What...?"

He appeared in front of Mark.

A single strike.

Mark flew across the ground.

Syran screamed and unleashed everything she had.

Fire.

Lightning.

Wind.

The forest shook.

When the smoke cleared, the Royal Guard was still standing.

He looked almost bored.

"You have improved."

Nasun’s heart sank.

He’s playing with us.

"Gareth!"

The tank charged.

His shield slammed into the man’s chest.

The Royal Guard caught it with one hand.

Gareth’s eyes widened.

The man twisted.

The shield shattered.

Gareth fell to his knees.

Before he could stand, the sword pierced through him.

His body went still.

"Gareth!"

Syran’s voice broke.

She attacked wildly.

The Royal Guard moved behind her.

One strike.

She collapsed beside Gareth.

Mark tried to run toward them.

An attack stopped him.

He fell.

His bow landed several meters away.

Nasun stood alone.

Three bodies lay behind him.

His hands trembled.

The Royal Guard slowly walked toward him.

Nasun attacked.

Again.

And again.

Every strike was blocked.

Every movement was predicted.

The gap between them wasn’t something skill could overcome.

It was absolute.

Nasun was thrown to the ground.

He tried to stand.

His legs refused.

The Royal Guard placed his sword against his chest.

Nasun looked past him.

At his team.

His family.

His eyes became wet.

"I’m sorry."

The Royal Guard raised his sword.

Nasun closed his eyes.

He thought about the first time he had met Valen.

That troublesome little boy.

He remembered chasing him through the base.

He remembered Syran’s laughter.

Gareth’s silence.

Mark’s stupid jokes.

And the promise they had made.

We’ll follow you.

No matter where you go.

Nasun smiled faintly.

"At least..."

His voice was barely audible.

"...we tried."

The sword fell.

And Team Four’s story ended there.

Years later, the world would remember them differently.

Traitors.

Criminals.

Enemies of Corwata.

Their names would disappear from official records.

Their achievements would be forgotten.

But the truth was never so simple.

They weren’t traitors.

They were four people who became afraid of what their kingdom might become.

Four people who chose to search for the truth.

And when they discovered something they couldn’t accept...

They chose to fight.

They lost.

But they never surrendered.

And somewhere in the darkness beneath the Goblin Forest, the roots continued to grow.