-Jiu’s POV-

The air tastes unusual. That was the only way I could describe it. As I lay there in the dark, something warm and very human touches my face.

“Hey! Kim Jiu. Now really isn’t the best time to be sleeping.” A deep voice whispers harshly into my ear. I snap awake, aware of the situation we got ourselves into right before I out. There were several people wearing dark robes, surrounding us in a tight circle. Bora, Siyeon, Handong and Yoohyeon were in a defensive stance, watching the strange people with wary gazes.

Gahyeon helps me sit up and looks fearful at the dark tunnel we’ve landed in. The only exit is the light source coming from behind the group of robed people. Their faces and bodies are completely obscured from view. Our chances of avoiding confrontation are not looking too good. Especially if this is the CM cult.

An extremely tall robed figure steps out to the front. He/she is even taller than Yoohyeon. But now that I think about it, all these robed people are really tall. Like model height tall. “How did you enter our territory?” A feminine voice. It was muffled but it sounded familiar somehow.

“We don’t know, we just fell through-” Siyeon’s explanation is cut short by a sword swinging up to her cheekbone. The blade is imbued with some magic, giving it a sharp quality. If Handong were standing closer, she might’ve been able to stop it. But she isn't and I see a thin line of blood seeping from Siyeon’s cheek. Bora growls next to the younger girl, ready for a fight.

“You lie, girl. How can you just ‘fall’ through? That is impossible.” The figure says.

“We’re telling the truth! Maybe your security just !” Bora is positively angry now and the heat begins to radiate off her skin. Seeing the aggression, the other robed figures pull out their magic swords, pointing it at us. A single wrong move could end us here and so please Bora, be quiet. Now is not the time to be defending your crush with fire.

“Or one of you is carrying the mark of one of us. Who did you kill to get it?” Mark? So that is why the smell is unusual and also familiar...Without waiting for a response, the figure swings her sword at Siyeon’s head.

--

-No POV-

“AVA! WAIT!” The healer jumps in front of the rank 1 student, to the surprise of everyone. The sword stops near her face, leaving a bleeding cut despite not making contact. She holds her hand to the side, stopping Bora from moving. Turning back around to face the robed figure, Jiu pleads with her eyes. “Ava...please.”

The figure withdraws her sword.

Jiu hesitates, wetting her dry lips with her tongue. She knows that what she is about to reveal will undo her current life but her friends were in danger. She won’t let them die. “It’s me...Minji.” And there it was. The name that she forsaken has come back to haunt her. She can feel Yoohyeon’s eyes drilling holes into the back of her head but she can’t waver now.

The figure lowers her sword and signals the others to do the same. The girls look around nervously, waiting for some sort of ‘just kidding’ and get attacked. The only good thing is that Jiu… or rather Minji? seemed to know these people. Which means that they aren’t CM. The downside is, they have no idea if these people are friends or foes. Jiu-Minji has never mentioned knowing people that live in this mountain. Or that people lived here at all.

The figure raises her hand and removes her hood. The face underneath is a beautiful older woman with a sort of cold beauty that was similar to Siyeon. Her hair and eyes were a deep purple color. She stares at Jiu’s face for god knows how long. “...Minji, you came back...” she says in a whisper, as if she could not believe her eyes. But it really was Minji in the flesh. The fact that the group was in the territory proved it to her. Only those of the Coven can freely enter their territory with the right words. After all, they are no longer at the mountain. The peak was merely an entrance that teleports them to the dimension that the territory lies in.

“Ava...it was an accident. We-I didn’t know that the Coven was moved here...So please, let us go back.” This ‘Ava’ person raises her hand to Jiu’s still bleeding cheek and caresses her face with her thumb. Then suddenly, a slap echoes throughout the cave with Jiu’s head whipped to the side. Jiu holds her hand out in time to stop Yoohyeon from doing something rash but that does not stop the younger girl from growling at them.

“Go back? You broke the rules of the Coven and dared to return? Bringing outsiders no less?!” JIu was frightened by the woman’s tone but she had to stand strong. The others surrounding them raised their swords again.

The healer swallows her saliva, suddenly feeling dry up. “I know you’re angry...but please, they have nothing to do with this and it really was an accident. I swear I would have never returned until I....” Shifting eyes. “I didn't even know the entrance to the Coven changed. We were just looking for something.”

The woman raises her head haughtily, “And what were you looking for that made you journey up a mountain?”

“A pillar.” The moment Jiu says that, the woman’s expression shifts to one of surprise.

“How do you know about that?”

“Something is happening in the outside world. Demons and some rogue heroes are acting up and we think it is related to these pillars as well. So we were trying to investigate.” The woman studies Jiu’s expression for a while before coming to a decision.

“Arrest her and the others.”

Jiu’s face fell but she turned around quickly to speak to her friends. “Listen, don’t do anything rash. This is a part of the way the Coven works. Just trust me. Please.” She can see that Yoohyeon and Bora are ready to protest but a guard has already placed a lock and a muzzle on her hands and face.

“Your...friends will be sitting in the cells. Nothing will befall them, unless you make it so.” It was the first time the girls have seen Jiu look so meek with her head down. The rank 5 student has always been a sort of model to others with her head held high and her masterful articulation. None of this was making any sense but the blonde asked for their trust and in this situation, fighting their way out may not be the best option.

Siyeon grabs onto Yoohyeon’s hand, knowing that the younger girl is itching to do something. And she agrees with her. If that were Bora in Jiu’s place, Siyeon would have torn off that muzzle and ripped the locks off like a crazed animal.

The guards motion the group of girls to move, all while keeping their swords trained on them. They can only watch helplessly as Jiu is taken to another location with that woman.

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