Seo Reun lifted his head, the water lapping at his neck, eyes locking onto the two boys sprinting ahead with his possession. They were fast but he was faster. He needed to act quickly; he had no idea where the river would take him.
With a sharp inhale, he plunged beneath the surface, his body slicing through the water like a blade. The current didn't fight him, it embraced him, carrying him forward as if he were a part of it.
But the moment the water swallowed him, the past surged up, dark and suffocating.
He was a child again, struggling against the crushing weight of the river, his tiny limbs thrashing, his screams vanishing into the current. His lungs burned, his vision blurred, and just as the world began to slip away, a feminine hand, strong and desperate, grasped his frail wrist, yanking him from death's grip.
His chest tightened at the memory. Then he opened his eyes.
The river was not the same. He was not the same.
That day, he had been pulled up only to be plunged back in. From that moment on, he had learned to swim, not out of choice, but out of necessity. The experience of nearly drowning had burned itself into him, turning survival into instinct and fear into determination.
With a powerful kick, he surged upward, breaking through the surface with a deep gasp.
Laughter rang in his ears, yanking him back to the present. The boys were still running, unaware that their lead had shrunk. Seo Reun pushed forward, determined to reclaim what was his.
One of them stumbled, still clutching the tightly wrapped weapon, the box still secured to their back. The other hesitated, turning to help, that was all the opening Seo Reun needed. With a final push, he launched himself from the river, his body soaring onto the riverbank.
The boys' eyes widened in horror.
They scrambled to flee, panic overtaking them. The boy clutching Seo Reun's robes flung them away as if burned, his hands suddenly desperate to help his companion up as the hat he stole shifted back on his head.
But Seo Reun barely touched the ground before he lunged, just as he was about to strike, his instincts screamed.
He twisted back, just as an arrow slammed into the earth where he'd been about to step.
His head snapped up, muscles tensing.
A sudden, chilling awareness prickled at Seo Reun's senses, he was surrounded. In his desperation to catch the boys, he had ignored his surroundings, a mistake he couldn't afford. His jaw tightened, a deep frown settling on his face.
Carelessness.
Figures stepped out from the tree line, one after another, like shadows drawn to blood. The boys, instead of cowering, ran toward them, relief washing over their faces.
Seo Reun's jaw tightened. Bandits.
Anger simmered beneath his skin, not at the bandits closing in, but at himself.
The woman who had fired the arrow smirked, lowering her bow. She stood with an air of dominance, her long, jet-black hair woven into a thick, single braid that hung over her shoulder. Her sharp eyes gleamed with amusement, dark and assessing. She wore a rugged warrior's garb, a dark, fitted jeogori with the sleeves bound for ease of movement, sturdy baji tucked into leather-wrapped boots, and leather bracers strapped over her forearms. A quiver rested against her hip, its arrows swaying lightly with each step.
"What a pervert," she sneered. "Chasing after two little boys naked." Her voice sharp and stern.
Seo Reun remained silent, his mind working fast. Her way of speaking was different , strange, almost melodic. He hadn't realized he'd traveled so far from where he met the lost child that the accent had to be so different. He inhaled slowly through his mouth, ignoring the way his pulse pounded in his ears probably due to how straineous he was swimming so fast. His soaked loincloth clung to his skin, leaving him vulnerable, but that was the least of his concerns.
Behind the archer, six men stood in a loose formation, their weapons gleaming even in the light. These were no mere thieves. They were killers.
The largest of them, a brute with arms thick as tree trunks, rested a massive hammer on his shoulder as if it weighed nothing. Another casually spun a rope dart around his fingers, the metal tip glinting as it sliced through the air. The others gripped swords, spears, and axes with the ease of men who had used them many times before, their hairstyles were different, some short, some packed into a ponytail, some head was completely bald while some had their hair loose.
And then there were the women, scarred, hardened, their gazes unreadable.
Seo Reun's eyes flickered past them, landing on a lone figure sitting on a rock, half-hidden in the shadows.
Unlike the others, this person seemed utterly unbothered. A wide hat covered most of their face, only their profile visible, and a catnip stem dangled lazily from their lips. Their back rested against a tree, body relaxed but Seo Reun could feel it in his veins. That one was the most dangerous of them all.
"Cat got your tongue?...boy...." the hammer-wielding man rumbled, his deep laugh setting off chuckles among the others.
"Is he a dullard?" The archer tilted her head, stroking her chin in mock curiosity. She stepped forward. "Wait..."
Seo Reun stiffened as she approached, he took a step back. He didn't step back out of fear but to plant his feet more firmly, the ground beneath him was loose and he had to stand firm, every muscle taut, ready for the moment things turned messy.
Her sharp eyes studied him. Then, she murmured, fascinated, "Your eyes… are they... blue?"
The bandits straightened, their casual stance shifting into something more alert. A few stepped closer to get a better look. Even the man in the wide hat lifted his head slightly, though he didn't turn fully.
Seo Reun didn't move, nor did he bother to adjust his bangs to hide his eyes. The bandits were his enemy, and he had been taught never to turn his back on an enemy. Letting his hair fall over his eyes would only obstruct his vision, something that could lead to far more dangerous complications.
"Those two boys took my possession," he said evenly. "I want it back."
It was pointless to ask for his possession back, these were bandits. Taking what didn't belong to them was their way of life. They didn't return stolen things; they hoarded them, traded them, or destroyed them out of spite.
Even if he reasoned with them, even if he demanded what was his, they would only laugh in his face. To them, his belongings were already theirs, and there was no chance they would simply hand them over.
The woman's brows furrowed. "Eh? Are you from the south?" She asked. Her face impassive, neither showing excitement or curiosity of wanting to know.
Seo Reun remained silent. He had imitated her strange, lilting accent perfectly, but that seemed to have only made her suspicious of him.
One of the men looked down at the two boys, his gaze sharp with quiet disdain. "He's not much older than you two," he said. "Just a little taller and a bit of muscle. You can handle him."
The boys flinched, their bodies tense, as if the very idea of running was a mark of disgrace something they hadn't expected anyone to witness.
"Never mind," she said shaking her head, ignoring the man that talked in the background. Then, her expression hardened. "Since we have everything you own, just walk away. I'll let you go because you talk like us. And because you're just a child so I will let you keep your eyes."
Seo Reun raised an eyebrow.
A child.
He knew he was fourteen, his father had told him his age once. But he had never felt like a child.
"I want it back," He said.
Something in his voice, sharp, commanding sent a shudder down the woman's spine. Her fingers twitched.
For a moment, silence stretched between them.
Then, her face twisted in fury.
"I think I will be needing that eyes but do not worry, I will sell it a high price!" She moved fast, her dagger flashing as she lunged, aiming to bury the blade in his throat.
But Seo Reun was faster.
His body reacted before his mind fully processed the attack, his head snapped back, the dagger slicing through empty air. At the same time, he drove his left foot into the side of her knee. A sharp, brutal strike.
She staggered, but before she could recover, his palm struck her wrist, forcing her hand away. The dagger flew from her grip, spinning through the air before landing softly in the dirt.
She hit the ground hard, dropping to her knees like she had just taken a fatal blow.
For a moment, everything was still because it all happened in a blink of an eye.
Then....
The other bandits' eyes widened, stunned into silence.
One of the men tightened his grip on his sword, his knuckles white. Another took an instinctive step back.
Even the man with the hat exhaled, the catnip slipping slightly from his lips and this time his eyes was on them.
Seo Reun didn't move, his breathing slow and steady. He had only paralyzed her momentarily, it wouldn't last. Soon, she would be back on her feet.
Her crime was twofold: trying to take his eyes and daring to tell him to turn his back on what was his.
The woman remained kneeling, her hand trembling as she reached for her lost dagger then stopped. The dagger was a few feet away and quite impossible to reach, her stunned expression shifted to something darker.
Amusement.
She let out a breathless chuckle.
And then, she grinned.
"Your eyes is green." She said.