Chapter 23
Calvenne was suffocating under its own paranoia.
Every street corner hid spies, every tavern buzzed with whispers of the bounty. Even ordinary citizens eyed each other with suspicion, as if anyone might be a traitor ready to sell out their neighbor.
Kael, still concealed behind his illusion, moved through the heart of this seething anthill.
But he knew his anonymity had limits: sooner or later, someone would pierce the veil.
A Double-Edged Trap
That night, he entered an abandoned building, candles barely lighting its crumbling walls.
Five figures were already waiting for him, armed and poised to strike.
"You won't leave here alive," one snarled, a scar slashing across his face.
Kael gave a faint smile.
"You really think you're the hunters, but…"
His illusion burst outward. The walls of the room seemed to dissolve into a bottomless abyss.The hunters staggered, terror clawing at their minds.
In their confusion, Kael conjured false doubles striking from every angle, while invisible blades—this time real—slipped through flesh in the shadows.
When the last one collapsed, Kael whispered:
"…you were prey from the very beginning."
Selene at the Edge
Back at the inn, he found Selene sitting near the window, watching the streets drowned in darkness.
She didn't turn when he entered.
"You keep disappearing at night…" she said quietly.
Kael stepped closer, resting a hand on the back of her chair.
"There are things I have to handle alone. For our protection."
Her fists clenched.
"But every time you return, there's blood in your eyes."
Kael met her gaze in the reflection of the glass, then leaned in close, whispering against her ear:
"The world gives us no choice. Either you're the hunter… or you're the prey."
Selene shivered. Was it fear… or something deeper? Kael couldn't tell, but he saw the cracks widening in her mask.
The Invisible Chessboard
In the days that followed, Kael launched his own counter-offensive.
He scattered false information across the city:
fake meetings to lure hunters into traps,
false descriptions of his appearance,
even fabricated rumors about his allies.
The factions, already unstable, tore themselves apart chasing phantoms.
Kael watched with cold satisfaction.
He had turned the hunt into a war of illusions.
But he knew: the more the prey evades, the more the hunters obsess.
The Shadow of Betrayal
One night, while finally resting, Kael caught Selene writing a letter.
She hid the parchment quickly, but her movements were too clumsy, too nervous.
Kael said nothing.
A faint smile touched his lips.
So… the moment draws near.
He didn't raise his voice.
He didn't accuse her.
Instead, he gently laid his hand over hers.
"You know I trust you, Selene."
The words rang like a promise… or a warning.