CHAPTER 52: WITCH

"We have to find him," Jae murmured.

"Not now," Jess intervened firmly, crossing her arms in front of them. "You can’t go outside. Wandering the woods could reveal this place’s location. You have no idea how dangerous that would be."

"Then let me go," Caelan said immediately. "I’m used to wandering alone in the forest, I won’t make a sound. And besides, Rong Ye won’t show himself if people he doesn’t know come after him."

"You’re not going out, Caelan," Jess said, her tone sharper this time. "It’s too risky."

"Why don’t you want us to leave?" Jae asked, narrowing his eyes. His tone wasn’t challenging, but it was suspicious. Something about Jess’s attitude didn’t quite sit right with him.

Before she could respond, the cabin’s front door creaked open. A small, brown-haired boy walked in. His face lit up at the sight of Caelan and Jae, and he smiled curiously, but when his eyes fell on Jess, his smile faltered and faded. He froze in the doorway, staring at her in confusion.

"Sam, let me in," a female voice said from outside.

Caelan and Jae stood completely still.

"Did you hear that?" Jae whispered. "It sounded exactly like her..."

The boy stepped aside and behind him appeared another woman.

Another Jess.

The second Jess strode through the doorway as if she owned the place. She looked so much like the first that, for a moment, Jae thought his eyesight was playing tricks on him. Same height. Same face. Same braid falling over her shoulder. But while the second Jess watched them with a weary, hard look, the first Jess looked at them with a mischievous, almost mocking smile, as if she enjoyed the confusion in the room.

The second Jess didn’t seem surprised. She just rolled her eyes and snorted, visibly irritated.

"Who are they?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at Jae and Caelan.

Jae clutched his head.

"She’s a witch?!" he blurted out.

The second Jess didn’t respond immediately. Instead, she turned to her double in exasperation.

"What did you do now?"

The first Jess didn’t respond. She held her smile for just a second longer, then disintegrated into thousands of golden particles that floated in the air.

Caelan took a step back, stunned.

"Please tell me what’s going on," he said. "Because, honestly, I’m going to go crazy."

Jess sighed, putting a hand to her forehead as if she had a centuries-old migraine.

"Before that, identify yourselves. How did you get here?"

"I’ve already explained this to like a dozen people," Caelan complained.

"Then explain it to me one more time," Jess said. "Unless you want me to kick you out, of course."

Caelan and Jae exchanged a long, resigned look. Then they both sighed wearily.

"We know Rhys," Caelan said.

As soon as he said the name, the brown-haired boy, Sam, stood up with excitement.

"Rhys is here?" he asked, his eyes shining.

One look from Jess was enough for the boy to instantly fall silent.

"Rhys was going to bring us to this place," Caelan continued. "Certain things forced us into hiding, and he said this place could be a safe haven. But an interdimensional creature attacked us on the way, and we ended up separated. We searched the woods for him but couldn’t find him, so we came here. We figured he would too."

Caelan paused, taking a deep breath.

"But when we arrived, we were attacked by hooded men. They caught us and brought us here... and it was the other Jess who welcomed us. And now there are two versions of her, apparently. I don’t get any of this."

"Also, one of our friends disappeared," Jae chimed in. "According to the other Jess, he got away from a guy named Nolan. And we have to find him."

As soon as Jess heard that name, she took a step toward them, her eyes blazing with urgency.

"What is your friend’s name?"

Jae opened his mouth, but hesitated. Caelan, beside him, frowned, as if searching for an excuse.

"Is he a Lee?" Jess asked directly.

Jae hesitated, but ended up nodding.

"Yes... but he’s not dangerous. Rong Ye wouldn’t hurt anyone."

Jess didn’t respond immediately. She just looked at Sam gravely.

"Go find the others. Now."

The boy didn’t ask anything. He ran out of the cabin, leaving the door open behind him.

Jess turned and walked quickly to an adjoining room. Caelan and Jae followed her nervously.

"Rong Ye isn’t a threat," Caelan insisted from the doorway. "Even if he doesn’t look like it, he’s a good person."

Jess didn’t answer immediately. She walked over to a low cabinet, opened a hidden compartment, and took out a rifle. While checking that it was loaded, she raised her voice with strained calm:

"He’s not the problem," she said. "The problem is Nolan. I know him like he’s my own son. And I know the hatred he feels for the Lees. If his friend fell into his hands, we have to find him as soon as possible."

***

Rong Ye didn’t know exactly how many hours had passed. All this time, he had been feeling the bonds until, at some point, a small nail sticking out of the rotten wood allowed him to tear one of the loops. Rong Ye took advantage of this to free himself.

When the restraint was removed, his wrists were red, with red marks and dark lines where the rope had cut off circulation.

Untying the rope from his ankles was easier, although the burning sensation rose up his legs.

When he finally sat up, his limbs were shaking and he felt dizzy from lack of food.

Luckily for him, the shed wasn’t locked. He cautiously opened the door, praying there was no one on guard. On the other side, only the dark woods awaited him. Then, he bolted.

He didn’t know where to go, all he knew was that he had to get away from there. He looked everywhere for any threat.

Then, he heard a voice.

Rong Ye stopped in his tracks and hid behind some bushes.

Between the trees, he saw Nolan, standing there, seemingly alone. The man’s gaze was fixed on nothing, as if he were talking to someone Rong Ye couldn’t see.

"I can’t believe I spent all those years trying to convince you to leave that place," Nolan said. "But you never listened. And now a stranger comes along and convinces you with a couple of words."

Nolan was silent, as if an answer had come.

"You can’t go back to him," he continued. "If you return to the Esper, it’ll mean your death."

"The Esper".

Was he referring to Eun-woo?

Rong Ye stepped back without meaning to and snapped a branch beneath his foot.

Crack!

Nolan raised his head and fixed his gaze right in the direction where Rong Ye was hiding.

For a second, Rong Ye stood still. He didn’t know if Nolan had seen him or if it was just a coincidence, but the possibility was enough to put him on alert. He didn’t wait for confirmation. He turned and ran, pushing through the undergrowth without looking back.

Bushes tore at his clothes and branches whipped his face. Behind him, Nolan ran without shouting. He was about to catch up with him.

Rong Ye wasn’t that fast; he was weak and in pain. But he ran with all his might. Occasionally, he stumbled or slipped in the mud, but he always got back up.

When Rong Ye dared to look back, he saw a creature floating among the trees, shrouded in a dark mist. Its body was long and translucent, like that of a jellyfish.

Rong Ye held his breath.

The creature then launched a beam of dark energy at Nolan, the man barely shielded himself before the blast knocked him off his feet.

Rong Ye didn’t wait to see any more; he kept running until his legs gave out. He hid inside the hollow of a fallen tree and stayed there, curled up and shivering. His chest ached, and he was breathing heavily.

"Rong Ye!" It was Rhys’s voice. "We’re here! Come out!"

Rong Ye peeked out for a second. He wanted to jump out and run to Rhy, but his suspicion stopped him. There was no way Rhys could find him that easily, right?

Then, he heard Eun-woo’s voice.

"It’s safe now, Rong Ye," Eun-woo said. "You can come out. Nebu already took care of Nolan. The creature is on our side. I’m sorry if it scared you before."

"Nebu". That was the creature’s name.

Rong Ye closed his eyes tightly, still hesitating on whether he should go out or not.

Finally, he slowly sat up.

"I’m here!" Rong Ye shouted as he came out of hiding.

His eyes scanned the forest, but he didn’t see Eun-woo or Rhys. He spun around, and then he saw him. He was right there, less than a meter away: Eun-woo. But something wasn’t right. Eun-woo’s eyes had an amber glow that was impossible to ignore.

Rong Ye’s body reacted instantly, he took a step back, as if something inside him recognized the danger before he could name it.

"You... you’re not Eun-woo," he whispered.

That thing pretending to be Eun-woo didn’t radiate anything like what Rong Ye felt when he was with the real Eun-woo. There was no warmth or innocence. There was fear, the same fear he’d felt when he saw "Nebu".

Rong Ye turned to run, but a kick to the stomach made him double over. He fell to his knees, panting.

The fake Eun-woo walked over and knelt beside him.

Rong Ye instantly grabbed a nearby rock and raised it to hit him, but the imposter caught his wrist in midair with a force that immobilized his limb.

The impostor smiled with a chilling calm.

And he struck him with his open palm.

Once. Twice. Three times. Rong Ye’s face shook with each impact. The metallic taste of blood filled his mouth.

"You should have stayed in the shed," the imposter whispered.

Then he grabbed Rong Ye by the neck and slammed him to the ground.

Rong Ye kicked and clawed at his attacker, but the fake Eun-woo’s fingers closed like iron around his neck. No amount of scratching could stop him or make him budge.

Rong Ye was losing strength.

And then...

"Enough!" Nolan’s voice broke the silence.

The imposter stopped, barely looking up at Nolan.

"He’s no good to us if you kill him," Nolan concluded.

Fake Eun-woo sighed in disappointment and let go of Rong Ye’s neck.

Rong Ye lay on the ground, coughing violently, tears blurring his vision as he fought to breathe. The world around him spun, as if the earth were about to give way beneath him.

His vision blurred.

And then, everything went black.