Chapter 29
The silence of the underground was broken only by the drip of water from the stone.
Kael moved forward, hunched, every step dragging pain through his body. His frame, still ravaged from his experiments, cried out for rest, but he had no such luxury.
His illusions flickered.
His stomach clawed at him with hunger.
He reached a narrow alley leading to one of the lower markets, wrapped in a cloak of shadow.
It was there he saw him.
The Encounter
A boy, no more than twelve, carrying an armful of stale bread and a small waterskin, stumbled through the gloom.
When his eyes landed on Kael—gaunt, drenched in sweat and dried blood—he froze.
Kael instinctively raised his hand, ready to unleash an illusion.
But the boy didn't move.
Instead, he stepped forward timidly, offering the bread.
"You look… sick, sir. Take this."
Kael stood frozen.
No one had looked at him with anything but fear, hatred, or calculation in years.
"Why…" His voice was hoarse, unsteady.
"Why give this to me?"
The boy shrugged, a clumsy smile tugging at his lips.
"Mother says we should help those who have less than us."
A Crack in the Shadow
Kael took the bread, his fingers trembling.
He could have crushed the boy. He could have erased him with a thought.
But he didn't.
As he bit into the dry loaf, a strange warmth stirred inside him.
Not mana, not hatred.
Something human.
And it angered him.
"You're naïve," he said coldly.
"The world devours souls like yours."
The boy didn't seem to understand, but he nodded as if Kael had spoken some grave wisdom. Then he turned and vanished into the darkness.
An Unexpected Impact
Kael remained still for a long time.
That simple gesture had fractured his iron armor.
He placed a hand over his chest, feeling the heavy beat of his heart.
"Naïve… but true."
He clenched his teeth, as if to crush the weakness within.
Yet when he resumed his training the next day, the pain felt a little more bearable.
As if that fragment of innocence had strengthened him, despite himself.