They did not speak about her. Not directly. But no one pretended she was gone anymore. The road narrowed as they pushed deeper into uneven ground, trees growing closer together, branches low enough that Taren had to angle his spear just to keep it from catching. Seris moved with measured steps, her attention split between what lay ahead and what might be following behind. Raizō walked between them, eyes forward, posture steady, but his awareness never fully settled. Whatever Shizume was doing, she was no longer subtle about being nearby. Taren broke first.

  “This is getting old,” he said, irritation cutting through his exhaustion. “If she’s going to stalk us, she could at least have the decency to stop pretending.”

  Seris didn’t answer. Her jaw was tight, thoughts clearly elsewhere. She kept scanning the tree line, counting gaps, listening for anything out of place. Raizō said nothing. They crested a shallow incline and entered a clearing choked with mud and trampled grass. Too open. Too exposed. Raizō felt it a second before it happened. Not danger. Not pressure. Movement.

  Something heavy landed between them with a wet, metallic thud. Taren reacted instantly, spear snapping forward as he shifted into a defensive stance. Seris raised her shield, boots sliding half a step as she adjusted her footing. Raizō’s lightning flared reflexively along his arm before he forced it down. The object lay still. An Order Knight helmet. Cracked along one side. The crest dented beyond recognition. Dark blood streaked across the metal, still fresh enough to glisten where it caught the light.

  No one spoke. They did not ask where it came from. They did not ask who had thrown it.

  Taren’s grip tightened. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

  A voice spoke from the shadows.

  “They were less than a minute behind you.”

  No direction. No movement. Just the voice, controlled and even.

  Seris’s eyes flicked from the helmet to the surrounding trees. “How many,” she asked sharply.

  A pause.

  “five.”

  Taren let out a short, bitter laugh. “So, this is your idea of help,” he snapped. “You butcher them and throw the evidence at our feet like we’re supposed to be grateful.”

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  “I removed a problem,” the voice replied. “One you wouldn't have had time to handle.”

  Raizō stepped forward, stopping just short of the helmet. He did not look at it for long. He looked at the tree line instead. “How long,” he asked.

  Another pause.

  “Since the city.”

  Taren spun toward the sound. “You’ve been watching us this whole time.”

  “Yes.”

  That landed harder than the helmet.

  Seris’s shield did not lower. “Then answer this,” she said. “Are you doing this every time we’re close to being found.”

  “No,” Shizume replied.

  Taren barked out a laugh. “Of course not.”

  Raizō turned his head slightly. “When do you intervene.”

  “When the outcome becomes irreversible.”

  Taren took a step forward, anger finally breaking through restraint. “You don’t get to decide that.”

  The shadows did not respond immediately.

  “I already have,” Shizume said.

  The air felt tighter for a moment, not threatening, but final.

  Seris’s expression hardened. “This isn’t protection,” she said. “It’s control.”

  “Yes,” Shizume answered without hesitation.

  That caught them off guard.

  Taren stared into the darkness. “Then say it plainly. What do you want.”

  Silence. Longer this time. Raizō felt the absence shift slightly, not withdrawing, not advancing. Waiting.

  “I will not continue intervening blindly,” Shizume said at last. “I will not protect you without coordination. And I will not reveal myself without consent.”

  Taren scoffed. “So, we either let you pull the strings or we die.”

  “No,” she replied. “You either decide how this proceeds, or it proceeds without you.”

  Before anyone could answer, a distant horn sounded. Low. Muffled. Close enough to matter.

  Seris turned sharply. “Another patrol.”

  “Yes,” Shizume said. “I won't help you this time. This one won't turn away.”

  The quiet withdrew all at once. Not violently. Not dramatically. Simply gone. The forest rushed back in, sound crashing into place as movement erupted through the trees. Voices. Footsteps. The unmistakable rhythm of trained pursuit.

  Raizō cursed under his breath. “Move.”

  They ran. This time, there was no unseen hand clearing the way. No sudden silence. Branches snapped. Mud pulled at their boots. An arrow hissed past Raizō’s shoulder and buried itself in a tree ahead. They barely made it through a narrow ravine, Seris bringing up the rear, shield ringing as it caught a glancing blow. Taren stumbled once, caught himself, then kept going. They escaped by skill alone. When they finally stopped, breath ragged, bodies were burning.

  No voice spoke.

  Seris leaned against a rock, chest rising and falling hard. “She’s right,” she said quietly. “This is selective.”

  Taren slammed his spear into the ground. “I don’t care.”

  Raizō stared back the way they had come, lightning flickering weakly beneath his skin.

  “She’s not offering trust,” he said. “She’s offering terms.”

  None of them liked that. And none of them could deny what the helmet meant. They moved on again, the weight of the choice pressing heavier with every step, knowing now that refusing to decide was its own kind of answer.