The Guild was restless.
Taerim could feel it in the air — the tension, the murmurs, the tightening security. Something big was coming, and the Commanders knew it. But what worried her most wasn't the danger.
It was the name that haunted her dreams:
Han Iseul.
He had vanished the night he appeared — no records, no proof, just his chilling whisper echoing in her head: "You're not the only one who survived."
That meant one thing.
There were more like her.
More experiments.
---
Three days passed.
School returned to its usual rhythm on the surface. Students laughed in the courtyard. Teachers handed out assignments. Clubs resumed. But beneath it all… something festered.
Taerim sat alone on the rooftop garden, where the wind carried whispers no one else could hear. Her eyes followed a red string tied to her pinky — a power she barely used anymore. Thread of Soul, they once called it. It connected her to people whose fates were tied with hers.
Today, it pulled faintly.
Like something was getting closer.
Or someone.
"Skipping lunch again?" came a voice behind her.
She didn't turn.
Juwon approached, holding out a small box of rice and side dishes. "I figured you'd forget to eat again."
She hesitated, then took it.
"…Thanks."
He sat beside her in silence. The tension between them had lessened since the explosion, but it lingered — like smoke after fire.
"You think Siyoon's telling the truth?" she asked, poking at the rice.
Juwon didn't answer immediately.
"He's not a liar," he said finally. "But… he's good at hiding things."
"Like how he used to be part of them?"
Juwon nodded once.
"I want to trust him," she whispered. "But I keep seeing that footage. Seeing me. Screaming."
He placed a hand gently on her shoulder.
"You survived."
"Barely."
"Still counts."
She managed a weak smile.
And then the red thread tugged again.
Harder.
"What's wrong?" Juwon asked, noticing her flinch.
"Someone's close."
---
That night, a red alarm rang through the campus.
Not an attack.
But an arrival.
Students gathered in the Grand Hall as Guild Officers descended from the skies in a sleek black transport. Three figures stepped down.
Tall.
Powerful.
Wearing long black coats with silver insignias.
The hall fell silent.
"The Commanders are here!" someone whispered in awe.
Taerim's blood froze.
Joon Joonbyul. Joon Joonseok. Joon Joonhyuk.
Her brothers.
She hadn't seen them since the fire ten years ago. Since the lab. Since—
She gasped.
Her knees nearly gave out.
Juwon caught her. "You okay?"
She shook her head, staring ahead in disbelief.
Because they hadn't changed.
Not really.
Their faces were older, hardened. But she recognized them. Her thread pulsed wildly — the crimson string now glowing between her finger and theirs.
The middle brother, Joonseok, spoke first.
"Guild students. Effective immediately, all dorms will be locked down after hours. No one leaves without a pass. We've received intelligence that a former experiment has infiltrated the city."
A buzz swept through the crowd.
Another experiment?
Taerim's head spun.
But her eyes locked on Joonbyul — the oldest.
He was staring right at her.
Expression unreadable.
But his hand was clenched into a fist.
---
Later that night, Taerim's door creaked open.
She looked up from her bed, startled.
The three commanders stood in the doorway.
Her heart stopped.
"W-We're not allowed to have guests—"
"It's fine," Joonhyuk interrupted gently. "We're not guests."
She blinked.
Joonseok entered slowly, eyes scanning the room. "Looks like you've been keeping busy."
Joonbyul said nothing. He stepped forward and crouched beside her.
"You don't remember us, do you?"
Tears welled up in her eyes.
"…Oppa?"
The word was so soft, it barely escaped her lips.
He reached out — and for the first time in ten years — she felt warmth.
Home.
"Taerim-ah," Joonbyul whispered. "We've been looking for you."
"I thought… you died."
Joonhyuk sat beside her, rubbing her back gently.
Joonseok leaned against the wall, arms crossed but eyes shining.
"We escaped the fire," he said. "We thought you did too… but when we found the ruins, you were gone."
Taerim's shoulders shook.
"I was adopted… by a woman who used me. I didn't remember anything. Not even my name."
"You're not alone now," Joonbyul whispered.
She cried for the first time in years.
And her brothers held her until the tears stopped.
---
Outside the room, Juwon stood quietly in the hall.
He had seen the reunion.
He said nothing.
But inside his heart, something twisted.
Because no matter how far she had come — no matter how powerful she was now — she was still a girl who had been broken and pieced together again.
And maybe, just maybe…
She still needed to be protected.
---