The rays from the morning sun passed through the windows of Velazha's room. She was cuddled up like a life size doll with Renji.
Renji woke up to a sharp chilling sound which came right through the windows. He quickly sat up, Velahza was still asleep, it was clear she was tired from last night. Renji carefully slipped out from the silken blanket, not trying to disturb Velahza and went outside to the large corridors.
He went to Zach's room. But there was no sign of him or even Mira. The mansion seemed quieter—no servants, no guards, no noblemen. He felt a nervousness inside his heart.
"Where is everyone?", he thought to himself.
Suddenly a shadow appeared before him, the same girly samurai he saw on that dream was now standing before him. A bloody portal shimmering behind her.
The corridor chilled, as though the mansion had suddenly forgotten its warmth. Renji instinctively stepped back, his feet brushing against the cold marbled floor. Before him stood the masked figure—exactly like in his dream.
She was draped in a blood-red kimono, soaked at the edges, embroidered with ominous patterns that shimmered as if alive. A porcelain mask covered her face, emotionless and smooth except for two streaks of crimson painted like tears beneath the eye slits. Her katana, long and curved, hung low in her grip, its blade humming quietly—as if craving blood.
Behind her, the portal twisted and swirled—a vortex of agony and crimson mist, whispering with the voices of the damned.
"You," Renji whispered, his voice low, cautious.
The samurai said nothing. She tilted her head slightly. The silence screamed louder than words.
Renji's instincts kicked in.
A cold sweat broke out on his skin as he stepped back and entered his Exile stance. His system interface blinked open.
[ ALERT!!! ]
[ Hostile recognized — Blood Moon Clan ]
[ Threat Level: High ]
[ Estimated Power Division: One-fourth Exile System Control ]
"I saw you in my dream," he muttered. "You were about to kill a child."
Finally, she spoke—her voice was chilling, beautiful, and deathly still, "He was a sacrifice. Nothing more."
The katana rose.
"And you, heir of the Grand Order… are the next offering."
She dashed forward with impossible speed.
Renji's shadow leapt out of his body, splitting into blades—Stealth Shadow: Fang Splitter—just as the katana slashed down. The floor cracked. Sparks erupted as their blades collided. He was fast, but she was faster.
Renji flipped back, barely dodging another strike, his arm grazing her blade. Blood sprayed into the air. He didn't even feel the pain—just the cold.
She followed up with a silent dash, spinning midair and lashing out with a crescent arc slash that glowed blood-red.
Renji activated Divine Reflex and slid beneath the slash, countering with a burst from his palm—Justice Impact.
She blocked it mid-air.
No recoil. No stagger.
She was absorbing his skill.
"She's built for killing people like me," Renji thought grimly.
Seraphina's voice crackled faintly in his head, "She is part of the Blood Moon Clan, Renji. Their power draws directly from the corrupted roots of the Exile System. Be careful—they cannot be reasoned with. Only broken."
"Noted," he grunted, wiping the blood from his brow.
The samurai slashed again, this time summoning a blood ring mid-swing—Blood Moon Arcane: Red Lotus Execution. Renji was yanked mid-air by the gravity pull, and the ring closed in like a death trap.
He growled and let it happen.
And then unleashed.
[ EXILE MODE: EMBER CORE ]
A fiery explosion erupted from him. The red ring shattered as a pillar of light burst through the corridor ceiling. His arms glowed with inscriptions from the Grand Order, and his hair swayed with energy.
He vanished—and reappeared behind her.
His hand surged with golden energy. Heaven Cleave.
He struck.
The masked samurai turned just in time, caught the blow on her blade, but the force sent her skidding across the marble like a pebble on a lake.
Her kimono tore slightly.
Renji blinked.
Her body was riddled with chains—cruel, jagged ones bound tight under her skin, glowing faintly. She was enslaved… bound to this battle.
"You're not here by choice," he murmured.
The samurai froze.
A small, nearly imperceptible tremble passed through her shoulders.
Then her voice, quiet, "…I don't get to choose."
Renji stepped forward. "Then let me break those chains."
She laughed softly—bitter, broken, "Try."
With a scream that sounded more like a cry, she charged again—katana glowing, sorrow bleeding into every motion.
But this time, Renji was ready—not to kill, but to save.
He'd danced with monsters. Slept with sins. But this?
This was redemption waiting to be carved from blood.