Chapter 7: Shadow of the Curse

Two months had crawled by since the gang incident—two months of blood, training, and restless nights.

Kurumi had spent that time deep within the Veil of Shadows cult, sharpening herself in the young soldier division. She wasn’t naturally gifted with the blade, but she had clawed her way to a level where missions were finally within reach.

Raikan, the cult’s sword master, watched her stance with a faint smirk.

“Straighten your posture. Again.”

Kurumi groaned under her breath.
“I’m terrible at this…”

Raikan folded his arms.
“Perhaps your talents lie in ranged weapons instead of swords. We’ll revisit that after you return from your mission.”

Kurumi froze.
“…Mission?”

A spark lit behind her eyes—an almost childlike excitement she failed to hide.

“Wait—a mission? For me?!”

A knock echoed from the entrance.
A guard stepped inside.

“Kurumi. Rex is summoning you.”

Raikan chuckled. “Go on. You’ll hear the details from him.”

Kurumi left the training hall, heart pounding against her ribs. She took a deep breath and forced herself to walk with dignity.

Stay calm. Walk in confidently. Say ‘What is my mission, sir?’ Don’t stutter. Don’t act excited. Acting composed means more missions…

She pushed open the cult house door.

Amy was waiting for her—her tiny figure illuminated by dim lantern light.

“Welcome back, sis. Training again?”

Kurumi nodded proudly.
“Yes. And Rex finally gave me a mission.”

Amy’s eyes widened with fear.
“You’re going on a mission? Will you be safe?”

Kurumi ruffled her sister’s hair.
“I’ll be fine. I need to see Rex now.”

She walked through the dark, narrow corridors—walls lined with binding runes and flickering candles. Her breath trembled despite her attempts at calm.

She stopped at Rex’s door and knocked.

“Enter.”

Kurumi stepped inside.

Sae was there—white hair draping over mismatched eyes, one gray, one burning red. His presence filled the room like a silent storm.
Hu stood beside Rex—the red-haired warrior from the Osaki stronghold, looking as confident as ever.

Hu clicked her tongue.
“Took you long enough.”

Kurumi bowed.
“My apologies. I was training with Raikan.”

Rex waved it off.
“It doesn’t matter. Let’s begin.”

His voice dropped into a grave tone.

“This is confidential, Kurumi. The Veil of Shadows has one primary objective:
To obtain the cursed demon weapon—AZAGRETH.”

Kurumi stiffened.
“A cursed demon weapon? What exactly is that?”

Hu stepped forward.

“There were once three cursed demon weapons in Runland.
During the Shuran–Turon War, three heroes wielded them.
But the curses twisted their minds. They rebelled against the god Himself.
In retaliation, God sealed each hero inside their weapon—turning them into eternal prisoners.”

Kurumi felt her throat tighten.

Hu continued, voice low.

“A century ago, ARONLAUS broke free from his weapon.
His body and the weapon fused into a single form.
No one alive has seen him clearly… but rumors claim he now stands around eight meters tall.”

Sae’s voice, cold and quiet, cut in.

“Seven or eight. Something like that.”

But his hatred was unmistakable.

Hu went on.

“Fifteen years ago, ZARONSELIUS—the third weapon—also broke free.
Two heroes managed to destroy him permanently.”

Rex leaned forward.

“And now, only AZAGRETH remains. No one knows where it is.
But there is a map that reveals its location.
And another map showing where that first map is hidden.”

Kurumi blinked.
“A… map of a map?”

Rex ignored her confusion.

“In one week, the Dravok will host a fighting tournament.
The map-of-the-map is one of the tournament prizes.
You will enter and retrieve it.”

Kurumi felt her excitement collapse into dread.
Dravok tournaments had only one rule:

Only one fighter leaves alive.

She swallowed.
“Once we find this weapon… what do you intend to do with it?”

Rex stood, shadows stretching behind him.

“Cursed demon weapons hold anti-healing magic.
Any wound inflicted by them cannot be undone.
No magic. No regeneration. No resurrection.”
He paused.
“These weapons will decide the Ayanon–Dravok war.”

Sae stepped forward.

“I will find the weapon. And it will obey me.”

Kurumi wondered if such a thing was even possible for him—
but she had seen stranger things in Sae’s shadow.

Rex gestured dismissively.

“That’s all for now. Hu will brief you on the details.
Prepare for Shunakon. You have one week.”

Kurumi bowed and stepped out, her mind spinning with cursed names and ancient horrors.

Hu called after her.

“Kurumi.”

“Yes, Hu?”

Hu shrugged.
“No need for honorifics. We’re partners for this mission.
Don’t panic. We're just retrieving a map, not fighting a god.”

Kurumi exhaled.
“Thank you.”

Hu smiled.
“I believe in you.”

Kurumi bowed again and returned to her room.

Amy was asleep—curled up peacefully.

Kurumi kissed her forehead.
“Sweet dreams…”

She lay down on her own bed, staring at the ceiling.

Sae knew ARONLAUS’s height too precisely…
He’s hiding something again. I’ll figure it out eventually…

Her eyes grew heavy.
Darkness quietly consumed her after a long, exhausting day.