“Najun! Run!”

  Shinoa’s scream echoes through the entire hall.

  The hope Najun had held onto until now collapses completely.

  He hears the two Icebreakers trying to enter the hall, but they are unable to cross the boundary.

  “What are those things?”

  “They’re called Red Icebreakers. They can’t enter this place because the bird keeps all evil away with some kind of magic.”

  Najun walks over to Naki and checks his condition.

  “He’s injured, but nothing life-threatening… yet.”

  Najun stands up again and turns to Shinoa.

  “What happened? How did this happen?”

  “After we fought many of those Icebreakers, we ended up here. At first, we thought this place was connected to your cave, but then the ice melted and the bird flew in. And then… everything became blurry. It attacked us, but it didn’t kill us on purpose. I think it wanted you to see this.”

  “Did it talk to you?”

  “In a way… I guess.”

  Najun looks terrified, but he swallows his fear and takes a step toward the bird.

  “Najun, don’t be stupid. You can’t do anything against that thing,” Shinoa tells him.

  “We have to do something. Naki is out of commission, so someone else has to fight.”

  “No. With this fairy staff, I can ensure our survival. But you have to stay close to me. It keeps all evil away. Come here.”

  Najun steps closer to Shinoa. She raises the staff and moves it several times until an invisible force surrounds them. At the same time, she activates her Birth-Protection to analyze the bird.

  “I can’t see any weak point or injuries. It’s in perfect condition.”

  “Then maybe we can grab Naki’s sword and fight. Or take him and leave.”

  “But what do we do about the bird? This might be our only chance to save Mom.”

  Najun pauses. He knows this might truly be their only chance to find his mother, but right now, survival matters more than the mission.

  “Wait… you have something on your forehead,” Shinoa suddenly says and removes a small shard of ice. Her hand remains on his forehead.

  “Do you have a fever?”

  Before Najun can respond, he collapses and struggles to move. A strange intoxication overtakes him, and his muscles begin to cramp.

  “Finally.”

  “W-what are y-you s-saying…?” Najun asks weakly as he crawls along the floor.

  “The poison finally took effect. That’s what I meant.”

  Najun tries to crawl toward Shinoa to understand what she’s talking about, but she kicks him away and walks toward the Wondrous Bird.

  The bird begins to struggle against an invisible force, but it can’t escape. It looks like a massive bird trapped inside an impossibly small cage.

  “My fairy staff doesn’t protect against evil. It creates invisible barriers. Yes, it keeps evil away from me, but that’s not its true function. I can shape those barriers however I want. Even to restrain this bird.”

  Najun stares at her in disbelief. He can’t believe what she’s saying. He can’t believe his own sister poisoned him and is tormenting the bird they need.

  “Shinoa, this isn’t funny. We need to talk to it or take it with us!”

  “Shut up. This isn’t about you or your stupid mother. This is about someone far more important.”

  “Who could be more important than our mother?”

  “My mother. And to be clear: she’s your mother, not mine. The woman who gave birth to me is my real mother.”

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  Najun barely manages to stand.

  “No… you don’t mean that.”

  “Yes, I do. I’ve never even seen that woman once in my life. Do you really think I care what happens to her? You, Naki, and Father are all fools. You actually believed I—or any of the other children whose mother isn’t missing—would support this ridiculous mission.”

  “But you wanted to find her! You said you were doing this for her! Go help Naki and then we take care of the bird.”

  “No it was hard to get his blood without killing him. For the records I was talking about my mother. Not ‘ours.’ My mother deserved to be number one. But your stupid mother got in the way.”

  Najun says nothing. He just looks at her with a broken, empty expression.

  “Don’t look at me like that, or I might feel sorry for you. I want to use the bird to make my mother number one. I’ll wish for your mother and mine to swap places. And then I’ll search for her—just like you searched for yours.”

  “You want to do that to your own mother? Send her to some unknown place just so Father loves her the most?”

  “I’d be doing her a favor. She’ll finally know what it’s like to have a perfect husband. To live in luxury. To raise a child properly.

  I lied before. My mother didn’t want to give me away. She fought. She screamed. She bit and cursed. She almost couldn’t be restrained. That’s not fair… don’t you think that’s unfair too?”

  She walks toward Najun and presses the staff against his throat. He swallows nervously and doesn’t move an inch. She smiles and gently strokes his hair.

  “Don’t piss yourself. I won’t release my anger on you. Father and your mother will suffer for all of this.”

  The bird grows more violent, and cracks begin to spread across the barrier.

  “I should hurry.”

  She walks back to the bird and tightens the barrier until it can no longer stand. The bird begins to scream in pain.

  “That’s it. Scream for me.”

  Shinoa’s demeanor has completely changed. She still looks kind and gentle on the outside, but her presence has turned sinister and disturbing. She enjoys hurting the bird.

  “Stop! You’re hurting it!”

  “So what? I have to break its will. Violence is the easiest way.”

  Shinoa continues the torture, coming dangerously close to killing the bird.

  “Your mother is trash. She never deserved to be part of this family.”

  Shinoa freezes when Najun says those words.

  “What did you just say?” she asks in a low, furious tone.

  “You heard me. She doesn’t belong here. Neither do you. Thinking a Wondrous Bird can fix that is ridiculous. Even with its power, she would still be a terrible mother. My mom is the better one. The best of all.”

  “No. Stop talking about her like that! My mother is the best.”

  Shinoa begins to cry. She screams, lashes out, and behaves like a small child.

  Then she charges at Najun.

  “What gives you the right?! You’re the one who doesn’t belong here! You only do everything for Father, not for your own mother. You lie to yourself and everyone else. You’re just like the others. All you care about is attention and love!”

  She kicks Najun in the face and beats him repeatedly.

  “You know what? I think I’ll kill you first and tame the bird afterward. Naki can bleed out here for all I care. Look—his blood is already on my clothes. Don’t worry. I’ll kill you slowly and painfully.”

  She raises the staff to his face and begins forming a barrier. The air around him disappears. Najun starts to suffocate.

  Lying beside him on the ground, he feels an icicle. He grabs it.

  Should I scare her with it? Scratch her? I have to do something or I’ll die. Then Naki will die too… and she’ll destroy the family. I just need to scratch her. Just scratch…

  Najun swings the icicle forward.

  Instead of scratching her, he plunges it into her neck.

  It’s a deep wound. Blood pours out violently. Najun freezes in shock and drops the icicle, now soaked red almost entirely.

  “N-Najun…?”

  Shinoa tries to speak, but the icicle is lodged too deeply. She collapses.

  “I… I didn’t mean to. I just wanted to scratch you.”

  Najun tries to stop the bleeding, but there’s too much blood. He watches her strength slowly fade away.

  “No… no… no… We still have to find Mother. We still have to make Father proud. Stay with me.”

  Shinoa looks at him with pity in her final moments. She raises her hand and lightly slaps him across the face.

  “You have to stop this. If even after my death all you think about is Father and success, then you’re not my brother.

  Still… it was nice having you as a brother.

  But don’t think I forgive you.”

  Shinoa dies, leaving behind a storm of curses directed at Najun, Naki, her father, and the entire family.

  Najun breaks down. He cries uncontrollably. He embraces her lifeless body and clings to it. Then he looks at Naki… and finally at the bird.

  The barrier is gone. The Wondrous Bird stands before him.

  “Please… can you save her? I’m begging you. Please save my little sister.”

  The bird looks at Najun, tilts its head, then bows deeply.

  “I am sorry. Your blood is no longer worthy of making a wish. Just like the first time your family sought me out.

  I truly hoped the three of you would finally make your blood worthy… but murder within the family, betrayal between siblings, and hidden hatred have cast you out once more.

  I am forbidden from helping you.

  Your family is doomed to ruin, and I must leave so your curse does not reach me.”

  The bird spreads its wings, flies through a massive opening in the ceiling, dissolves into particles of light, and vanishes completely.

  “What… what am I supposed to do now? What do I do? I have to get them to a doctor. I have to save them. They need medical help. Now. Quickly…”

  Najun lifts Shinoa and Naki and carries them out. Along the way, he passes countless red stones, each emitting strange noises.

  “What are these stones…?” he wonders.

  He makes it outside with them. Daylight greets him once more.

  Using the fairy staff, he supports their weight and walks back toward the temple without saying a word, his expression completely empty.

  When he finally reaches the temple, darkness overtakes his vision.

  The last thing he sees is his father picking him up and carrying him inside.