The academy's storm drains howled beneath the concrete walkways—moaning with the sound of wind and something deeper.
Kael walked alone under the flickering academy lights, his shadow long and broken across the floor.
Tonight would mark the end of the quest.
And something told him... it was also the beginning of something worse.
---
[Quest: Establish Dominance – Final Target Identified]
Target 3/3: Karra Vinn
Location: Reactor Training Room – Zeta Wing
Warning: Essence Mutation Detected. Subject may be unstable.
Optional: Defeat without using Shadow Veil or Madness.
---
Karra Vinn.
The only person in Zeta rumored to have killed a teacher.
Not officially, of course. The story was that a training accident got out of hand.
But Kael had seen her.
Built like a serpent—lean muscle, wild white hair, and scars over both arms. Her essence had a strange scent to it. Corrosive. Wrong.
> Unstable core. Twisted essence.
He didn't know if she was a victim of experiments or a born monster.
But it didn't matter.
The system had marked her.
And Kael needed what came next.
---
Reactor Training Room – Midnight
The room was massive, circular, and dim—meant for high-energy combat testing. The inner walls were laced with dampeners. Inside, Karra stood barefoot on the platform, her sleeveless vest flapping in the artificial wind created by ventilation shafts.
Her yellow eyes gleamed in the dark.
"You're the one they're whispering about," she said, baring her teeth. "The quiet boy who hits like a demon."
"I'm no demon," Kael replied, stepping onto the arena.
"Then why do I smell blood on you?" she whispered.
Kael said nothing.
A deep growl echoed from her chest.
"Doesn't matter. I like breaking monsters."
---
> [Begin Duel? Y/N]
Kael accepted.
Karra attacked with terrifying speed, a blur of claws and shrieking essence. Her mutation had granted her curved bone-blades that extended from her arms like mantis limbs, coated in acidic energy.
Kael danced around the slashes, blood pumping faster with each dodge.
She wasn't just strong. She was feral.
And every time her essence flared, it disrupted the lights—sparking them like glitches in a failing simulation.
> Can't use Shadow Veil. Can't risk Madness.
He relied on instinct. On cold precision.
He read her patterns.
Three slashes—feint—tailspin kick.
Kael ducked, swept her legs, and drove his fist into her midsection.
She hissed and retaliated with a scream, essence exploding outward.
Kael took the hit full-on, slammed back into the wall—but didn't fall.
His vision blurred. Blood dripped from his lip.
But he smiled.
> [Combat Intuition – Lv. 1 Triggered]
Weakness Detected: Bone Blades = Direct Core Conduit
He lunged forward, catching her right arm mid-swing. He twisted—not the arm, but the blade—and drove his elbow into the base of the bone.
Crack.
Her energy flared, then collapsed.
She screamed, essence spiraling into the air as the bone shattered.
Kael followed up with a knee to her gut, then a sweeping leg kick that sent her sprawling to the floor.
Karra tried to rise—shaking, furious—but he was already standing over her.
She hissed. "Do it. Kill me like the others."
Kael stared.
> I don't want to kill her.
I want control, not carnage.
"No," he said softly. "I'm not your predator."
Karra blinked. Then laughed—sharp, wild.
"You're worse."
She coughed blood.
"I yield."
---
[Quest Complete: Establish Dominance]
> All 3 Targets Defeated
BP Gained: +300
Bonus Achieved: No Madness Triggered
Trait Unlocked: [Bloodline Restraint Lv. 1]
Bloodline Tier Progress: 10%
New Bloodline Path Available: "Fangs of Judgment" or "Crimson Phantom"
---
Kael stepped away from the battered girl, chest heaving. Sweat rolled down his back. The hunger stirred inside him.
But he didn't feed.
He wouldn't give the system everything.
> Not yet.
---
Outside the Training Room
The moment Kael exited, he found himself face-to-face with Lyra Voss.
No words. Just the click of her boots as she approached him in the hallway, flanked by two junior instructors.
One of them held a silver scanner, glowing faintly.
"Kael Draven," she said, tone cold, eyes harder. "You've caught a lot of attention."
Kael's jaw tightened.
"What do you want?"
She held up a small crystal. It shimmered with pale blue light.
> A truth core.
"Place your hand on it," she said. "Standard testing. Ensures students aren't using banned bloodlines or external systems."
Kael froze.
The system pulsed violently in his head.
> Warning: Host signature will be revealed. Do not comply.
> System initiating escape protocol?
No… not yet.
Kael smiled faintly and stepped forward.
"Then test me," he said.
Lyra hesitated. So did the instructors.
And in that moment—
> [Shadow Veil – Activated in Stealth Mode]
Kael vanished.
Gone in a flicker of darkness, like a breath swallowed by night.
---
Back in the City – Old Drainway
Kael leaned against the wall of a ruined building, panting.
His cloak faded. The system dimmed.
But inside… something changed.
A presence stirred.
> Bloodline Vision Unlocked – "Throne of the Nameless King"
You have glimpsed the origin of your curse. The blood remembers. The blood awakens.
New Quest: Seek the Hidden Coffin. Unlock the First Seal.
Kael's hand trembled.
He looked down at the faint imprint on his skin—an ancient symbol etched in crimson.
And above him, the blood moon burned brighter than ever.
---
End of Chapter 5