Chapter 53 - The keepers are watching you (1/2)

I am standing in the middle of the road to the capital after 14 years. I don't know the exact date and time when my aunt and Yu Chen will meet. It's night. The weather is cold. I walk toward in the opposite direction to the capital.

After walking for a few hours, I see the inn. It's late, but the door is open. I don't go inside. How do I find out? If Yu Chen comes, he will pass by this inn. If it is my aunt, she will also pass by this inn. I sigh and go toward the stable behind the inn. I see a young boy tending to the guests' horses.

”Hey.”

Startled, he turns around and looks at me. He runs to me and says eagerly, ”Guest, do you need a room?”

I have no money. I doubt that modern cash from my country will work here. I don't have any gold here. I should have stolen some from Li household before I came here. I just want to know the news regarding Yu Chen. ”Well, I need- ”

I look down at the source of pain. The keeper's dagger is deep inside the left side of my lower belly. The boy gives me a smile. ”We have been waiting for you here.”

I spew out blood. He twists the dagger.

”You destroyed the timeline. You gravely altered history.” The boy smiles at me. ”Master Li was right about you coming here for your aunt.”

I scream when he pulls out the dagger. He is going for the second hit. I touch his forehead and enter his mind. Our bodies fall to the ground. I find myself at the bottom of the staircase. I look for the memories of Li Jun and the timekeepers.

I see my aunt in his memories. She also works in the inn. He is observing her for the time being and waiting for me to appear. Yu Chen is supposed to arrive after a few days. They are sure that I would come here anytime this year. Master Li is the timekeeper inside Li Jun. He has sent the letters to the timekeeper organization after I met him on his 10th birthday. Because of my conversation with Li Jun, he knows that I will try to find Yu Chen and my aunt. They won't try to capture me and freeze me in the prison as they planned initially. They will kill me at sight anywhere in time because I have turned into a top-ranked anomaly the moment I absorbed the time crystal.

I flick my fingers. The young boy's mind crumbles like sand. If I let him go, he will kill me right away. The boy might look young, but he is not any better than that time crystal plant. My body has been stabbed once. I press my hand on the wound and pick up his dagger. My clothes are drenched with blood.

***

Kwon Yoori cleans up the table. The guests are back in their rooms. It's nearly the end of the year. The owner is already asleep. She goes out of the inn to stretch her arms and legs. Then, she recalls that the stable boy is still tending to the horses alone. She decides to check on him.

She hears his scream. She runs toward the stable. She sees him lying on the floor with his mouth open. His eyes are rolled back. A few meters away from him, a girl is walking away. She widens her eyes when she sees the dagger. She would recognize it anywhere.

”Keeper,” She yells. ”What did you do to this boy?”

The girl turns around her head. Yoori realizes that something is different. The girl's clothes and her bag don't belong to this time. She is clutching the side of her belly.