Chapter 14 · The Gatekeeper's Gambit - Chapter 14: That Token Won't Save You

Mo Han didn't wait for Su Jin to finish her question. He pocketed Wei Tiegu's blood-red token and turned toward the western corridor before the echo of the black door's words even faded. The mark-holder. The door had called him that, and Su Jin had heard every syllable.

"Where are you going?" Su Jin's voice cut through the dim hallway.

"To find someone before Wei does." Mo Han kept walking. His hand stayed in his pocket, fingers tight around the token. The metal was still warm. Wei Tiegu's name sat carved into one side, and on the other, three small notches. Three witnesses. Three people who knew something they shouldn't.

Su Jin caught up in two strides. "You can't just walk away after that. The door knew you. It called you—"

"I know what it called me." Mo Han pushed through the next door without slowing. "And if we don't move right now, Wei's going to clean up his mess before we get a single name."

Yun Sheng was waiting in the outer hall, back pressed against the stone, her eyes locked on the direction Wei Tiegu had gone. She straightened when she saw them. "He left.