"Seize him!"
The heirs moved first. A dozen cultivators erupted from the clearing, their auras flaring with freshly awakened Laws—blades of wind, arcs of lightning, and claws forged from pure steel. Ragnar's throat tightened. His body was weak, untrained, barely holding together from yesterday's skirmishes. He wasn't some chosen prodigy. He wasn't even ready.
He was trash.
The shadow at his feet didn't agree. Dark tendrils coiled like living serpents, twitching with anticipation.
"Kill them," it whispered, low, menacing.
"No!" Ragnar hissed, shaking his head. His fists trembled, heart hammering, but something deeper surged inside him. "Not yet…"
The nearest heir sneered, blades sparking in the morning light. "Still pretending? That beast fell by chance. Hand over your Core, thief, or I'll—"
The boy didn't finish.
In an instant, shadows erupted upward like a tidal wave of black fire, lashing across the heir's face with a crack of raw energy.
Sssshhhk!
The heir screamed, clutching his cheek as his Law-light dimmed, flickering like a dying candle. The others froze, hearts pounding.
[ Fragment of Law: Steel Fist — Acquired ]
[ Fusion: Shadow + Steel = Piercing Claw ]
Ragnar's breath came in ragged gasps. He hadn't even meant to strike—yet the Nexus Core devoured another fragment, merging it with the shadow, reshaping him. The shadow's voice chuckled, dark and sly.
"See? They are prey. We are the hunter."
The heirs stumbled backward, whispers rippling through the clearing:
"Impossible… he stole it again!"
"Laws can't be taken!"
"Monster! He's not human!"
Ragnar's eyes scanned his trembling hands. Flames and steel shimmered faintly in the dark veins crawling across his shadow. Monster. Maybe they were right.
But beneath that terror was something else. A spark. A thrill.
He lifted his head, amber eyes gleaming with defiance.
"Come closer," Ragnar rasped. "Let's see who's really the thief."
The heirs hesitated. Their arrogance faltered. This was no ordinary boy. This was a boy walking with a darkness that had a mind of its own, a shadow that consumed Laws and bent reality.
They lunged anyway.
Ragnar's shadow reacted before he even moved. Tendrils whipped around, intercepting blades midair, snapping through the very aura that sought to bind him. Sparks flew as metal met darkness.
[ Skill Unlocked: Shadow Reflex — Predict Enemy Movements ]
Each heir's attack was met with near-perfect precision. One lunged with lightning claws; a shadow coil wrapped around his wrist, yanking him into the dirt. Another swung a whirlwind blade—snapped by a twisting shadow whip. Ragnar's hands moved instinctively, tendrils slashing, fusing Laws into extensions of his will.
[ Fusion Achieved: Shadow + Steel = Piercing Claw ]
The heirs screamed as the shadows ripped fragments of their power, leaving them disarmed and terrified. Ragnar wasn't just surviving—he was dominating, bending the rules of this world.
Then came the alpha heir. Larger, faster, fangs glinting, aura crackling with lethal Laws. Ragnar's heart raced. Every instinct screamed to run, but the shadow coiled tighter, ready.
He lunged. Tendrils lashed with deadly precision. Flames of stolen Laws merged with the darkness, and the alpha was thrown off balance. Ragnar struck, piercing the heir's core with a shadow-forged claw, stealing his fragment mid-strike. The world seemed to hold its breath.
Silence fell.
Whispers turned to murmurs of fear. The other heirs scrambled, stumbling over each other. Ragnar's chest heaved. His shadow twitched, alive, triumphant, almost mocking.
"You…" the alpha gasped, voice breaking. "Impossible…"
Ragnar stepped forward, amber eyes blazing. "You're not hunting me. I'm hunting you."
The heirs froze. They understood, finally, that this boy was no mere thief. He was the Law Thief, a monster of shadows who devoured power and bent the world to his will.
The shadow whispered again, low and hungry.
"Next."
And Ragnar smiled, just a flicker, dangerous and wild. The forest seemed to shiver. A new predator had awakened.