Chapter 4 - 3: Quiet Bloom
The blade hadn’t swung yet. But tension cracked the air like a storm about to break.
Jinmu’s foot shifted once more, settling deeper into the stance. Calm. Controlled. Ready.
But something inside him held still.
If I use it here...
He scanned the room from the corner of his eye. Seryeon crouched behind the pillar, shielding their mother. Customers huddled beneath overturned tables. The little girl who’d spilled tea was crying into her father’s arms.
They’ll see everything. The forms. The flow.
Someone will notice. Someone always does.
Even the Crimson Flow Blade Union wasn’t stupid. They’d recognize high-level technique. Maybe not by name, but by shape. By presence.
And worse—
What if it triggered attention from someone else?
From someone stronger?
This ability... I need to keep it secret. Until I can use it without fear.