Being in a quiet, dark forest had given her a moment of reflection after all the things that had happened. They had to take their turns to watch and the others would rest. The main concern for Jiyoon was to know how many of the prisoners were alive and if among them could be someone who would recognize her. 
It would be like greet an old friend, she thought with irony, because such encounter would mean death for one of them, she can't let them escape. No one has to know. Leaving traces wasn't her style and yet she had taken care of those people around her, she had saved the princess... 

The princess, she could imagine her, lying in a luxury bed, covered in thick sheets preventing her from losing her warmth from that tiny, fragile body, sleeping peacefully, unaware of the danger lurking over her. Maybe that woman was at her door, like a faithful dog, ready to slain whoever might dare to put a finger over her beloved princess.  She disliked her, her petty attitude, her concern, her genuine care for her princess. Jiyoon had hated her superiors for a long time, but she hadn't dared to escape. Because she knew that everything was connected and sooner or later they might find her. Mainly because of fear. She believed that in this world it didn't exist a place for her. Who would want to get involve with a killer, if not another one like her? And between hunters there would be always this distrust, the fear to be betrayed, for money, power or any other reason.
That medal felt heavier, hidden in her robes. 

“I trust you to succeed, and after that, you will be by my side.”  Gayoon's words echoes in her mind, making her chest tighten in fear at the thought of actually killing her.  She tries to ignore her thoughts and stays alert on her task. She hears someone approaching and it must be one of the guys.

"Good morning" one of them said. Jiyoon just nodded. She wasn't in the mood for such trivial greetings. It was better for them to get use to that kind of treatment. She wanted to avoid any kind of attachment towards them. They started to walk again, being careful of their surroundings as they moved.

Like yesterday, they started to hear screams that quickly fade out and stood there in silence. 
"We have to help them!" Sohyun said but Jiyoon wasn't sure of that.
"We can't do that. It could be a trap" Jiyoon frowned.
"We have to try, at least. Please" Sohyun pleaded and Jiyoon sighed.
"Stay alert and hidden" She ordered and they hurried towards the source of the sounds. As Jiyoon had guessed, only the rests of dead bodies were lying on the ground, some of them with their limbs scattered, cut with a deadly precision"
Sohyun wanted to vomit at the sight and she scolds her. "Don't look away. This is how war looks like!" 

The other guys searched around but whoever did the slaughter was gone and it only remained four dead bodies, now only recognizable by the metallic tags.
Judging by the cuts and the way of how they were killed, the aggressor had a preference for swords and knives as weapons. The bow and the quiver that one of them had were left intact. She looked around trying to imagine the pattern of the attack and had a bad feeling about who it might be.
"Sohyun..."
The young girl was trying to get herself together and stood there, pale and shaken.
"Take the bow. You will be behind us, with Sungjae. Minhyuk follow me."
They kept moving towards the black lake, with a weather becoming warmer and a brilliant sun over them. They could find a source of water and take a brief rest in the top of the nearby trees. They heard the same noises again and like the last times, it ended up quickly. Jiyoon was dreading of meeting that prisoner. She remembered that one of the most dangerous members of the organization was captured two years ago in an attempt to kill the king. His way of eliminating people was very gross and he liked to literally cut people into tiny pieces and send their head to the leader as a "souvenir" as he liked to call it. Sometime, he even dare to send pieces of the leftover to their families. Not many people could actually make her tremble and feel as disgusted as that guy did. 

When they approached the place, this time, the poor victims were killed in a worst way. Now even Sungjae and Minhyuk were traumatized by the sight of the very disturbing scene.

"We have to get to that black lake and get out of this nightmare!" Minhyuk shouted.
"What is the commander thinking?" Sungjae was pale.
"He wants us to be the best against these kinds of monsters!" Sohyun said trying to get some logic behind all of this.

Jiyoon wasn't sure about the commander's intentions and ordered them to keep moving. This time, they almost got attacked by a snake, until Sohyun killed it with a precise arrow on its head. Sohyun blushed when she congratulated her and continued their road.

The day was about to end and everyone became worried again. They had to find a shelter again and being even more alert at the potential killer on sight.
Suddenly, a couple of guys appeared and they captured Minhyuk and Jiyoon while on the other side, Sungjae and Sohyun stood there, frozen in panic. The guy unleashed his sword and Sohyun holds the bow.
"Keep calm...breathe...what do we do...!? No Sohyun, no one is going to save you now…!! I...have to protect myself!! "

As Jiyoon stab the sword into the man: "You...trai...tor.." The guy was about to spit blood on Jiyoon but she shuts his mouth.
"This is for a greater good, my dear comrade." Jiyoon whispers as she retires the sword from his dying body. 

Jiyoon breathed deeply and went to help Minhyuk. The poor boy was about to get stabbed by his aggressor until he turns his back to face Jiyoon and he receives a knife in his head, falling on the ground. Minhyuk was astonished to see that guy falling so easily.
"You don’t need to be stronger, just smarter. Now, take his weapon"

Minhyuk, still coughing took all the weapons that he had and followed Jiyoon. They heard sounds of swords clashing and hurry to that place. Sungjae was alone and he was going to be finished by one of the prisoners. Minhyuk rushes to help him and falls into a net that drags him to an effective trap. The prisoner smiles and sees Jiyoon standing beneath the trap.
"Good to see you, kid!"
Sungjae is bleeding and Minhyuk is desperately trying to break the net.

"The lovely commander left some goodies around the place: weapons, food, tools to make traps. Perfect, and very sweet from him. A reward, maybe...after waiting so long...and now we are going to paint that pristine castle with their blood..."

Exactly as she remembered him. Sadistic, brutal, dangerous and with a big mouth.

"Look at these kids. One of them ran away in fear. But I knew you were coming as soon as you hear the little birds sing....oh~ God, I had missed that song... I bet you too...hehehe Remember all those agony scream that we use to hear, I missed those moments" he laughed out loudly

Jiyoon clutches her sword in rage. She can’t deny all the things that she had done, but joy wasn't something that she felt after commit those acts. Nor pity or sadness. Just things that she had to do to survive.

"But I can see your intentions, kid...what are you up to, kid?...you have no place, no home to return to...like us...we are...lost..."

He attacked Jiyoon by throwing knives at her that she dodges and they start to duel, their swords colliding violently in a frantic dance. Her rival manages to make cuts on her arms, not deep, but she knows that he's starting to discover her patterns and get excited at the sight of blood.

"Oh come on sweetie...you can do better than this, have you lost your touch? Come on" he smirks

He throws a tiny bag and it explodes, blinding her for a moment, enough to attack her but she repels his sword and counter attacks. Her blood is boiling with rage. She can't guess how long it will take until she can recover her sight again.
"You can’t see, poor thing...now die!"

An arrow flies towards the killer and he dodges it. Sohyun, who had been hiding on the trees, now has to move, but another prisoner appears from nowhere and captures her.

"The last tiny bird..." He murmurs throwing her on the ground and snatching her weapon.

"Good! Now let's finish this, or should I wait until you can see how I destroy this tiny little sweet bird...eh?"
"Don’t touch her, you bastard!" Minhyuk screams.
"Shut up!"

Sohyun stares at Jiyoon whose eyes are trying to adjust again and can see her gesticulating something with . She reaches for her pocket, while the other guys try to silence Minhyuk. It was a small bag, filled with explosive.

Sohyun throws the bag towards the guys and it explodes, making them burn and scream in pain. Jiyoon reaches one and stabs him finishing him instantly, but the other one, the most dangerous one is about to attack her from behind but Sohyun holds him and breaks his neck in a swift movement.

Jiyoon now can see clearly the man on the ground and Sohyun breathing deeply and shaking with fear. She realizes that Sungjae is still hanging and cuts the trap to liberate him. Jiyoon looks around, noticing that Sungjae is unconscious.

-------

The night falls over them and they find other comrades, fortunately they had food and medicines, a truly blessing for everyone especially for Minhyuk, who was better but he was pale and extremely tired. They had a discussion about the road, how many prisoners would be there. They were determined to carry Minhyuk until the black lake.

Jiyoon had stayed silent, looking at the sunset, thinking about that guy's words.

"...and we are going to paint that pristine castle with their blood..."

She breaks the small piece of wood that she had been holding on her hand, discarding the broken pieces on the ground. In the end it was all about this, to conquer, destroy and murder. Those kids wanted to do something good with their lives. Protect and serve. She wanted to break their little bubble and tell them that's how death looks like. Go to a distant place and kill a stranger... a father, a brother, a lovely husband...or sometimes wars could happen at home and then follow orders to murder your own comrades. Everything was a mess. But she remembers the medal again and what it meant. She didn't want to even imagine what would happen if that monster would have reached the castle.

"unnie...."

Sohyun looked less scared but still stern. She asked if she could sit next to her and she nodded.

"You did a great job back then"  Jiyoon commented.
"Not great enough. I ran away"
"But you came back."
"But what if..."
"It's ok. You learn your lesson"
They stay silent for a while.
"He.....he was evil, right? But you are not like him, unnie"

Jiyoon's eyes were showing so much fear. She had forgotten all the words that he had said. Were they listening carefully to it? Could she suspect something?
"I'm sure you are one of us. We are friends, don't forget it."
"Sohyun...."
"They said you were good at leading us. And we want to reach the lake with you guiding us..."
"You must be insane. Appointing me as leader."
"That's a yes?!"
Jiyoon sighed. "Fine! but you can't hesitate, you heard me!"
"Yes!" as she jumped into Jiyoon arm and hug her tightly
-----

They spend the night, doing rounds, staying alert. The next day, after walking a few hours, they finally got out of the forest and finally found the black lake. The lake, surrounded by big tress, looked peaceful, without any fog. They spotted the big tent, with the flags indicating that it was the end of the long and complicated test. The commander, surrounded by a dozen of soldiers was waiting for them. The wounded and sick were treated. Sohyun was mentally tired and she stayed in a bed, resting.

Jiyoon got out of the tent; other soldiers were preparing food and drinks. The commander, apart from them was looking at the lake. It was her chance to face him.

"Sir...what a beautiful sight, right?"
He looked at her. "Yes. Contemplating nature can heal a broken soul..."
"...Or maybe ease the pain for a moment"
She remembered that quote. He had told her once, after a particular training that broke her a few ribs. He was the only one that had showed a tiny gesture of sympathy, always hidden behind a stern face but with his eyes showing something that she couldn't understand.

He smiled. "I heard of your excellent performance right there. And who could have guessed that you would guide them safely here? You could be a squad leader"
"I'm not interested in that, to be honest. I'm just a soldier" 
"Really, isn't there anything that you would want?"
"Nothing. there's nothing that I would want"

The commander nods. "That's good, Jiyoon. I don't want you to get tempted and make mistakes. So far you have done an outstanding job in earning the princess' trust. Now, go get her full trust in you, with blinding faith. Make her teach you the secrets of her family, of the castle ...and the birds will sing for us...a new song. When this ends...we'll break free from our cages, Jiyoon...I promise"

The words of that man linger on her mind, in this sunny day: The graduation day. After the test, she has earned the trust and respect of those who survived next to her. They are now in the castle ground, the ceremony was about to begin. She raises her gaze and she can see the king, next to him, his wife and the princess, at king's left side, smiling widely towards her. That radiant smile that she had witnessed before.

Jiyoon wants to return the smile, in another circumstances she would be just a humble girl that was lucky enough to become a royal guard. Her parents would be proud of her. But she had no one and this was a fake act. She already has the medal on her chest like her comrades, pronouncing the oath to protect and serve the kingdom and the royal family. She can see him among the top rank commanders surrounding the king, smiling at her as well, but this time, he's sending the message: "You are not alone... I'm watching you"
And she had expected this. They can't trust a little pawn to destroy the king. But why he said to break free when this ends? What was Junhyung plotting?

However she carries on with her act of pretending. Her now loyal friends are surrounding her, Minhyuk and Sungjae telling how she killed those prisoners, adding more positive traits to her. And not far from them was the commander, and Kim Hyuna, watching her carefully. She doesn't have to worry about her now. And like Junhyung said, she had to make her trust in her too, not like the princess would do, but enough to make her lower her guard and then...

"Jiyoon!" Sohyun whispers on her ear." The princess ordered me to bring you to her"

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Here's another chapter! Hope you guys will enjoy it and hope to hear your comments :)