Suddenly, I heard the sound of several footsteps rushing from around the corner behind us. Instinctively, I turned to look back. Positioned behind me, Ha Hyun appeared tense. The owners of the footsteps soon approached us.

Soon enough, those who appeared were very familiar figures, making the momentary tension seem pointless.

“Priests!”

“Hey, guys!”

“Ha Hyun, Ha Heun! Are you guys okay?”

Among them were priests whose clothes had gotten a little dirty and looked tired, and who seemed to have been putting out the fire, as ashes smeared their cheeks. As I recognized them, Yu Baek, who was at the forefront, met my eyes and looked surprised.

He quickly approached me and grabbed my shoulders.

“Ha Heun!”

“Yu Baek?”

“What happened? Can you see well now?”

“Huh?”

Confused, I questioned, but Yu Baek pressed under my eyes with his sleeve without further explanation. Unknowingly, I closed my eyes and only understood the situation when I saw the dark red powders on his sleeve.

“Ah, this is….”

I hesitated for a moment to explain that it wasn’t my blood.

It occurred to me belatedly, even though the dark sorcerer had touched my face with his bleeding hand, there wouldn’t have been this much blood. He had only lightly touched, not smeared.

‘Did I bleed that?’

It seemed likely.

Although the realization was late, guessing the cause was not hard. I vividly remembered the burning pain I felt when he removed the spell from my eye.

‘Wasn’t it just painful?’

I made a mistake, thinking it was just his blood in the absence of my wits.

Then I finally understood why the servant I encountered near the burning building earlier had reacted strangely. His shaking eyes pointing at my face and somewhere on my clothes. The reason why Ha Hyun was hesitant to extend his hand earlier also became clear.

Slowly, I blinked.

And I began to check what was happening around me.
While I was with Yu Baek Sah Baek, Ha Hyun was standing nearby, seemingly on guard, and Yu Baek Sah Baek was still looking at me with a worried expression, waiting for my answer.

‘Everything looks fine.’

Yes. Ever since I missed that sorcerer, I’ve been fine, so there probably won’t be any major issues now.

‘Furthermore…’

Considering they left me untouched during the childhood attack, the evil sect likely needed me in perfect condition. I don’t know why, though.

I whispered back to Sah Baek.

“I’m fine now. The explanation would be too long, but it seems like the problem occurred when they focused on my eyes during this attack and then removed it. I have no issues with my sight.”

“It’s good that you’re fine, but we’ll have to check once things settle down. I’ll also need a more detailed explanation then. You never know what might happen later, so stay back as much as possible. It might be better to keep your eyes closed. You’ve been through a lot.”

Sah Baek gave my shoulder a firm grip, then gestured for Ha Hyun, who had been standing guard, to come closer.

“Did you hear? So, stay near your troops. I need to identify and detain individuals who might have useful information, so I’ll have to distance myself from you.”

“Understood.”

After hearing my reply, Sah Baek plunged into the mostly settled situation, picking a few people who seemed to be in good condition among the survivors, drawing their blood, and tying their hands and feet.

All the while, I just stood there, staring at Ha Hyun’s back.

‘I should strike up a conversation.’

Asking if he was okay or if anything hurt, something like that.

However, the tension had noticeably eased, perhaps because the situation was visibly improving. Though I shouldn’t be entirely at ease yet, I tried to regather my tension but failed.

Instead, exhaustion I hadn’t felt until now surged forth, even blocking my words.

‘…I really can’t speak.’

In the end, Ha Hyun and I remained silent until everything was wrapped up.

Although my body wouldn’t cooperate with my thoughts, I couldn’t figure out why Ha Hyun remained silent.