The Runcandel Clan fortress towered like a black mountain, its walls carved from centuries-old obsidian stone. Every night, the torches along its halls burned with cold blue flame — a reminder that this was not a home, but a battlefield where only the strongest survived.
Inside those halls walked a boy who was neither welcomed nor feared.
He was simply ignored.
Taki Runcandel.
At twelve years old, he stood smaller than most of his peers, his hair black as moonless night, his eyes a deep silver that seemed to swallow the light around them. Those eyes alone made others uncomfortable — but what truly made him an outcast was the curse flowing through his blood.
Void Veins.
A condition that prevented mana from circulating properly. A condition that made sword training not just difficult — but deadly.
Anyone with Void Veins was expected to die young.
And so, the clan wrote him off before he could speak his first word.
Training Grounds, Dawn
The clang of swords echoed as dozens of young clan members sparred. Taki entered the yard quietly, gripping a wooden sword that had splinters along the handle.
As soon as he stepped onto the ground, the whispers began.
"Why's he even here?"
"He'll just collapse again. Void Scar, that's what he is."
"He should've died at birth like the others."
Taki ignored them.
He always ignored them.
He walked toward the corner where a wooden dummy stood — the one no one used because it was cracked. To Taki, it was perfect.
He raised his practice sword.
Thump.
He struck.
Pain immediately surged through his right arm — the familiar burning sensation of blocked mana struggling to circulate.
His body trembled.
His vision blurred for a moment.
But he didn't stop.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
Each strike cost him breath.
Each strike made the veins across his arm bulge in black lines.
Each strike reminded him that he wasn't meant to live long.
But something deep inside him refused to accept that fate.
Something stubborn.
Something fierce.
Something… hungry.
"You're embarrassing the clan, Taki."
A cold voice echoed behind him.
Taki paused mid-strike.
His half-brother, Rayan Runcandel, stood there — fifteen years old, ranked first among the junior swordsmen. A prodigy. A genius. A future clan leader.
And a tyrant.
Rayan smirked. "Look at your arm shaking. You're going to collapse any second."
"I'm training," Taki said quietly.
"That's what I mean." Rayan stepped closer, tapping Taki's forehead with his training sword. "Your existence is embarrassing."
Taki didn't respond. Silence angered Rayan more than words ever could.
Rayan smirked, lowering his voice.
"You want to know a secret, little Taki?"
Taki didn't look up.
"You were never meant to live. Father ordered the elders to dispose of cursed children like you. But your mother interfered." Rayan laughed. "She died for nothing. You still turned out pathetic."
For the first time that morning, Taki's grip tightened on his wooden sword.
"Fight me."
The words slipped out before he could stop them.
Rayan blinked. "What did you say?"
Taki turned around, silver eyes burning.
"I said… fight me."
The training grounds went silent.
Whispers rose like a wave.
"Is he insane?"
"Rayan will kill him."
"He can't even channel mana properly!"
Rayan's expression twisted with amusement.
"You want to fight me? You can't win."
"I know." Taki lifted his sword. "But I won't die running."
That line struck deep — not at Rayan, but at every onlooker who had always mocked him.
Rayan clicked his tongue. "Fine. One strike. If you can stay standing after one attack… I'll consider you a Runcandel."
He stepped forward, mana swirling around him like a golden storm.
Taki felt his legs tremble.
He had no mana to fight with.
No technique.
No strength.
But he had resolve.
Taki raised his sword.
"Rayan. Enough."
A powerful voice cut through the tension.
An elder walked into the yard — Elder Kairon, the clan's enforcer.
He looked at Taki with cold, uninterested eyes.
"Child. You are not permitted to spar today. Return to your quarters."
Taki's jaw clenched.
"But—"
"That is an order."
Rayan laughed under his breath, lowering his sword.
Elder Kairon turned to Rayan.
"And you. Stop wasting your time. Real opponents await you."
With that, Taki was dismissed like trash.
But something changed inside him.
As Taki walked away, he whispered to himself:
"One day… I'll stand on the same stage as them."
He didn't know how.
He didn't know when.
He didn't know what path would open for him.
But that night… destiny would answer.
Because in the deepest basement of the Runcandel fortress…
something ancient was waiting.
Something that only a boy with Void Veins could awaken.