Rain hammered against the roofs of Blackthorn Village, turning dirt into sludge and washing blood from the courtyard where Kael had executed Elder Haryn. The villagers hid behind shuttered windows, whispering prayers or curses, depending on which side of terror they stood.
Kael stood at the center of the square, drenched but calm, as if the rain itself feared to touch him. The Blood Circuit hummed beneath his skin—quiet, perfectly controlled, no longer the raging storm of its first awakening. It felt like a living organism adapting to him, aligning with his thoughts, optimizing his muscles, sharpening his senses.
He could hear every heartbeat within a hundred meters.Every hushed voice behind locked doors.Every swallow of fear.
Good, he thought. Fear speeds obedience.
His goal had crystallized: control. Over Blackthorn Village first, then the valley, and eventually the entire Northern Reach. From there—unified power, enough to uncover who destroyed his clan and why. He would not merely revive the Jin Family… he would rebuild it as the dominant force of the continent.
But first came the immediate step.
"I will need troops, " Kael murmured to himself. "And troops require loyalty. Loyalty requires leverage."
Lightning cracked the sky. Beneath the flickering glow, Kael turned toward the trembling cluster of elders who remained kneeling after Haryn's execution.
He approached them slowly.
Each step splashed crimson water.
Each step made them flinch.
"Get up, " Kael said quietly.
They rose. Not because they wanted to, but because his voice left no room for refusal.
Old Elder Rin spoke first, voice brittle. "Kael Jin… what do you plan to do with us?"
Kael almost smiled. He appreciated directness—especially when flavored with desperation.
"You're all going to help me, " he said.
"H-help you… rule?" another elder stuttered.
Kael leaned in until he could smell the man's fear. "No. You're going to help me reshape Blackthorn. And you're going to do it gladly, because the alternative is something I really don't want to waste time doing."
The Blood Circuit warmed, eager, almost hungry. The elders swallowed back terror.
Kael raised his voice so the whole square could hear. "Blackthorn Village has been rotting for years. Corrupt elders. Weak leadership. Exploitation. Fear. Complacency." His gaze swept across the dark windows. "I will fix it. But don't mistake that for mercy. What I do, I do for my purposes."
Elder Rin bowed. "What… what do you require of us, Lord Kael?"
Lord.Kael liked the sound.
He clasped his hands behind his back and walked slowly, letting the moment settle.
"First, " Kael said, "bring me the records. Family registries. Births, deaths, debts, crimes. Everything."
The elders exchanged confused looks.
Kael explained, his tone patient but sharp. "To rule efficiently, I must know everyone. Their strengths, their weaknesses. Their secrets."
"That may take time—"
Kael turned to the elder who spoke. The Blood Circuit sharpened his gaze into something that made the man instantly drop to his knees.
"You have until sunrise."
The elder bowed into the mud. "Y-yes!"
Kael continued. "Second, assemble the youth training groups. I will need fighters who can be molded."
Many elders stiffened. Everyone knew the youth groups were unruly gangs raised under the old system—violent, undisciplined, barely loyal to anyone.
"Is that… wise?" a woman elder asked timidly. "Those boys aren't exactly obedient."
Kael smiled, and it was a cold, razor-thin expression.
"Then it is fortunate, " he said, "that obedience is not required when fear works faster."
He walked past them all, heading toward the remains of the council hall. The roof was smashed, bodies removed, but the blood had not yet been washed away. When he reached the doorway, he paused and spoke without turning.
"And bring me the village forge master."
The elders hesitated again.
"Now."
They scattered like frightened animals.
Kael stepped into the ruined hall and inhaled deeply. Blood still clung to the air like a copper perfume. His heart remained steady, unbothered.
The Blood Circuit adapts to killing remarkably well, he noted internally. Useful.
He sat on the cracked stone chair that once belonged to the elder council—claiming authority with the ease of someone born for it.
Moments later, the forge master arrived. A broad man with scarred arms and soot-stained clothes. He bowed low, whether out of respect or self-preservation.
"You summoned me, young master."
Kael studied him. "Your name."
"Derrin Forgehand, sir."
"I have work for you, " Kael said. "Work that will require secrecy. Precision. And new designs."
Derrin hesitated. "New… designs?"
Kael lifted his hand. A small flash of red light pulsed beneath his palm as he activated a minor thread of the Blood Circuit. Tendrils of crimson energy crackled across his skin.
Derrin stumbled back. "Is—Is that demon magic?!"
"No." Kael's tone was calm. "It's the future."
He let the energy dissipate.
"You will craft weapons. Light, fast, durable. But also…" He reached into his sleeve and dropped a strange piece of metal onto the table. It was polished, curved, and engraved with circuit lines. "These."
Derrin picked it up shakily. "What am I looking at?"
"Power conduits for the next generation of fighters, " Kael said. "I will teach you how to forge them."
Derrin's eyes widened. "Teach… me? B-but, what even is this material?"
"It is alloyed from the ore of the Crimson Rift, " Kael said. "Something your old council feared. They banned it."
He smiled faintly.
"Fear, " Kael continued softly, "has kept this village weak. I intend to correct that."
Derrin swallowed. "What do you want built first?"
Kael leaned back in the cracked stone seat and steepled his fingers. "Arm a squad of ten with the best weapons you can forge. Deliverable in seven days."
"T-ten fighters? For what purpose?"
Kael stood, walking past Derrin, his voice low but edged with purpose.
"For the first move in my war."
He pushed aside the ruined door and stepped into the rain. The elders had returned, carrying stacks of scrolls and records. Behind them came a mob of youths—lean, violent-looking boys and girls who stared at Kael with a mix of curiosity and challenge.
Perfect.
Kael faced them, expression unreadable.
"You are here because you want power, " he said. "But power comes only from discipline. Blood. And purpose. Those who can't follow will break."
One youth snorted. "Who says we should follow you?"
Kael didn't answer.
He simply vanished.
One blink later, he appeared behind the boy. A sharp crack echoed as Kael struck the back of his knee, dropping him instantly. Before the others could react, Kael seized the boy by the throat and lifted him effortlessly.
The boy gasped, kicking.
Kael leaned in, voice soft and terrifyingly calm. "Weakness. Arrogance. Impulse. These are traits that get you killed. I can fix all of them."
He dropped the boy to the mud, who scrambled backward, eyes wild with terror.
The others stood frozen.
"Anyone else want to test the difference between us?" Kael asked.
Silence.
Kael nodded. "Good. Then training begins tomorrow at dawn."
He turned to the elders. "Bring me every file. Every secret. And someone who knows the geography of the valley."
"Why?" one elder whispered.
Kael's eyes glinted with cold ambition.
"Because controlling Blackthorn is only the first step. There are clans nearby… dirty ones. One of them holds the information I need to uncover the truth about my family's destruction."
He stepped forward, rain cascading off his shoulders as he spoke.
"And by the time I'm finished, the entire Northern Reach will kneel."
The Blood Circuit throbbed, hungry for more.
Kael smiled.
"Chapter Three ends with the first move, " he whispered. "Next comes conquest."