The sky over the human world clouded over, then cleared again.
It lasted only a fleeting moment—so brief that no one without keen eyes would have noticed.
The people at the market merely felt that the wind was strange. They didn’t see four black shadows seep down from the sky and settle among them.
They were Dowa, the first prince; Dosu, the second; Dopung, the fourth; and Domok, the fifth—the third prince, Doam, had stayed behind at the Palace to guard the barrier. The four slipped straight into a deserted alley and only then changed into human clothes.
“The princess’s presence cuts off somewhere around here,” Dowa said in a low voice. “Move without drawing attention. Understood?”
Dopung, the fourth prince, was about to scan the rooftops when Dowa’s sharp glare made him slow down. “Got it, got it. Quietly.”
Domok, the fifth prince, was already walking toward a familiar presence on the other side of the alley. It was So’s laughter.
Inside the alley, Derek was still leaning against the wall, catching his breath. So was chattering excitedly beside him.
“—So those men came chasing after me, and then—”
“So!!”
Domok spotted So at the mouth of the alley and ran toward her. So’s face lit up. “Big brother!”
But Domok’s gaze immediately locked onto the unfamiliar human boy pressed close beside So. Right next to his youngest sister’s wrist. Domok’s expression hardened in an instant.
Derek knew exactly what that look meant. *I’m dead.*