The Lower Slums orphanage was a grim three-story building that housed children nobody wanted. Run by a corrupt administrator named Grell who skimmed funds meant for the children's care, spending it on wine and gambling while the orphans ate watery gruel and wore threadbare clothes, the orphanage was perfect cover for a Crimson Hand safehouse.
Nobody looked too closely at an orphanage. Nobody asked questions when crates were delivered at odd hours. And if suspicious sounds came from the basement late at night—screams, sometimes, or the smell of blood—well, who was going to investigate? The city guard certainly didn't patrol the Lower Slums, and the children had learned long ago that complaining only made things worse.
Kael hated this place on principle. Using children as cover was a new low, even for the Crimson Hand. It reminded him too much of his own childhood, though he'd grown up on the streets rather than in an institution. Same desperation, different walls.
Seven members, heavily fortified. According to Lyra's intelligence, the basement had reinforced steel doors, escape tunnels leading to the sewers, and supply caches that could sustain a siege for days. But Kael wasn't planning a siege. He was planning an execution.
He approached the orphanage as evening settled over the city, the twin moons beginning their ascent. Children played in the small courtyard—thin, dirty, but still finding moments of joy despite their circumstances. They glanced at Kael curiously as he passed, their eyes holding the wariness of those who'd learned young that adults brought trouble more often than help.
"Mister, do you have any food?" a small girl asked. She couldn't be more than six years old, with tangled dark hair and a dress that was more patches than original fabric. Her ribs showed through the thin material, and her eyes were far too old for her face.
Kael paused. He had gold now—plenty of it from looting the safehouses. He pulled out five gold coins and pressed them into the girl's small hand. "Hide this. Don't tell Administrator Grell or any of the adults. Use it to buy food for you and your friends from the market. Can you do that?"
Her eyes went wide as saucers, staring at the small fortune in her palm. "But this is—this is so much! Are you sure?"
"I'm sure. It's a secret, just between us." He ruffled her hair gently, feeling an unfamiliar tightness in his chest. When had he become someone who cared about random children? "What's your name?"
"Mira," she whispered, clutching the coins like they might disappear.
"Well, Mira, things are going to get better here soon. I promise." He straightened and moved past her toward the orphanage entrance.
The administrator sat in his office, a converted storage room on the first floor, counting coins with fat fingers. Grell was a corpulent man with greedy eyes, stained clothes, and the distinctive red nose of a heavy drinker. He looked up as Kael entered without knocking, his expression shifting from annoyed to nervous in an instant.
"We don't take adults for adoption. If you're looking to adopt, you need to come back with proper papers and authorization from the—"
"Where's the basement entrance?" Kael interrupted, his voice cold.
The administrator's expression shifted again, this time to barely concealed fear. His hand moved slowly toward a drawer—probably contained a weapon or alarm. "I don't know what you're talking about. This is a respectable institution. Now get out before I call the—"
Kael activated Void Siphon, just enough to make Grell feel his life energy starting to drain. The administrator's words died in his throat, replaced by a strangled gasp as dark tendrils of energy wrapped around him.
"The basement. Now. Or I drain you dry and search the building myself."
"B-behind the bookshelf!" Grell stammered, pointing with a shaking hand toward a tall bookcase against the far wall. "There's a hidden door! Please, I just rent them the space, I don't know what they do down there! I don't ask questions!"
Kael released him, disgusted. "Leave. Take all the children. Get them out of the building for the next hour. There's going to be violence."
"But I can't just—"
"DO IT." Void energy crackled around Kael's hands, purple light casting dancing shadows on the walls. "Or I'll make you one of the casualties. Your choice."
Grell fled, shouting for the orphanage staff to evacuate all children immediately for an "emergency drill." Within minutes, Kael heard the sounds of children being herded outside, their confused voices fading as they were led away from the building.
Good. No innocents in the crossfire.
Kael approached the bookshelf and pulled it aside—his enhanced Strength making the heavy furniture move easily. Behind it, a reinforced metal door blocked his path. He could hear voices beyond, muffled but audible. The seven Crimson Hand members, unaware that death was about to visit them.
He placed his hand on the door and poured Void energy into it. Not trying to break through by force, but to corrode, to decay. The Void was entropy itself, the heat death of the universe given form. Metal was just organized matter, and all organization eventually failed.
[Void Energy: 90/155]
The door began to rust at an accelerated rate, decades of corrosion happening in seconds. Structural integrity failing, molecular bonds breaking down. Within thirty seconds, the door was weakened enough that Kael simply kicked it down, the corroded metal crumbling like dried clay.
Seven men stared at him from their fortified position inside. They'd arranged furniture into defensive barricades, had crossbows loaded and ready, weapons within easy reach. They'd clearly trained for this scenario—defending against an assault on their safehouse.
"Well planned," Kael acknowledged, his voice echoing in the basement space. "Won't help."
The crossbows fired in coordinated volleys. Six bolts streaked toward him in a deadly spread pattern designed to make dodging impossible.
Kael activated Void Armor and Void Grasp simultaneously. The armor absorbed most of the impacts while Void Grasp caught the bolts mid-flight, dark energy suspending them in the air. With a gesture, he sent them flying back at their sources.
Three of his attackers went down immediately, struck by their own ammunition with the added force of Void enhancement.
[3/7 neutralized]
The remaining four charged as one unit. They'd trained for coordinated assault—no hesitation, no fear, just professional execution of tactics. Two with swords moving in parallel, one with a spear providing reach, one with a chain whip for control and entanglement.
But they'd trained against normal opponents. Against people who followed the rules of physics and conventional combat. Kael was neither normal nor conventional.
He used Void Step to appear behind their formation, materializing in the space they'd left undefended in their forward charge. Before they could turn and reset their positions, he released Void Pulse at point-blank range.
The shockwave sent all four tumbling into their own barricade, furniture scattering, weapons clattering from hands.
Before they could recover, Kael was among them. Void Siphon draining in rapid succession—one, two, three. Each fell within seconds as he moved between them with supernatural speed.
The last one, the chain whip user, managed to entangle Kael's arm before going down. The chain tightened painfully, and the man yanked, trying to pull Kael off balance for a follow-up strike.
Kael let himself be pulled forward, closing the distance instead of resisting. His free hand shot out, grabbed the man's throat, and Void Siphon finished what the struggle had started.
[7/7 neutralized]
[Safehouse cleared: 6/6]
[+250 EXP]
[QUEST COMPLETE: BURNING BRIDGES]
[Rewards: 600 EXP, +3 to all stats, Title Earned: "Crimson Hand's Bane"]
[LEVEL UP! You are now Level 9]
[LEVEL UP! You are now Level 10]
[MAJOR MILESTONE REACHED]
[Class Evolution Available: Void Initiate → Choose your path]
Power flooded through Kael's body like a tidal wave of liquid lightning. His Void markings spread further, covering his arms completely and beginning to creep up his neck toward his face. His connection to the Void deepened dramatically, and he felt abilities unlocking that he'd never imagined possible.
The System presented him with three options, each representing a different future:
[CLASS EVOLUTION OPTIONS:]
1. Void Reaper (Combat Specialist)
Focus: Pure offensive power and combat prowess
Bonuses: +5 Strength, +5 Agility per level
Unique Ability: Reaper's Edge - All weapons gain Void properties
Path: Unstoppable warrior who grows stronger with each kill
2. Void Phantom (Stealth Specialist)
Focus: Assassination, infiltration, subterfuge
Bonuses: +8 Agility, +3 Intelligence per level
Unique Ability: Phase Shift - Become intangible temporarily
Path: Master of shadows, striking from nowhere
3. Void Sovereign (Balanced Growth)
Focus: Versatility and adaptive power
Bonuses: +3 to all stats per level
Unique Ability: Sovereign's Authority - Perfect Void control
Path: Master all aspects, limited by nothing
Kael read through the options carefully. Void Reaper offered raw destructive power perfect for direct confrontation. Void Phantom would make him the ultimate assassin, able to infiltrate anywhere and escape any trap. Both were tempting specializations that would make him extremely effective in their respective domains.
But Void Sovereign offered something the others didn't—freedom. No limitations, no pigeonholing into a specific combat style. He could adapt to any situation, learn any skill, become whatever he needed to be.
He'd spent his entire life being told what he couldn't do, where he couldn't go, what he wasn't allowed to become. The Crimson Hand had tried to put him in a box labeled "disposable thug." Vorcen had tried to dispose of him when he asked inconvenient questions.
Never again would anyone limit him.
"I choose Void Sovereign."
[CLASS EVOLUTION COMPLETE]
[Void Initiate → Void Sovereign]
[All stats increased by 10]
[New Ability Unlocked: Sovereign's Authority (Unique) - Perfect control over all Void energy]
[New Ability Unlocked: Void Armory (Rank E) - Create weapons from pure Void energy]
[Skill Cap Removed - May learn unlimited skills from any source]
[Dungeon System Unlocked - Portal available]
The transformation was intense and overwhelming. Kael's body restructured itself at the cellular level, muscles becoming denser without adding bulk, bones strengthening, nervous system enhancing to process information faster. His Void markings blazed with brilliant purple light that illuminated the entire basement before settling into intricate patterns covering his torso and arms.
When the evolution finished, he felt transcendent. He pulled up his status:
[COMPREHENSIVE STATUS]
Name: Kael Draven
Level: 10
Class: Void Sovereign (Unique)
Title: Crimson Hand's Bane
Attributes:
Strength: 32
Agility: 35
Vitality: 31
Intelligence: 30
Wisdom: 28
Void Affinity: MAX
Health: 310/310
Void Energy: 200/200
The power difference was staggering. In just three days, he'd gone from a dying thug in an alley to someone who could face trained mages and win. The System had accelerated his growth beyond anything traditional cultivation could achieve.
Kael looted the basement, finding supply caches worth exploring. A hundred and twenty gold coins, various weapons including some quality blades, dried food, medical supplies, and documents detailing Crimson Hand operations across the city.
[+120 Gold]
[Current Gold: 340]
He emerged from the orphanage to find Administrator Grell returning with the children. The man took one look at Kael—covered in Void markings that now extended visibly up his neck, radiating power that made the air shimmer—and fell to his knees.
"Please, I won't tell anyone, I'll disappear, I'll—"
"The Crimson Hand is done using this place," Kael said, his voice carrying an authority it had never held before. "Use this building for its actual purpose. Take care of these children properly. If I hear you're still skimming funds or mistreating them..." He let Void energy crackle around his hand menacingly.
Grell nodded frantically, tears streaming down his face.
Kael addressed the children gathered nearby, little Mira among them clutching her hidden gold coins. "If anyone tries to use the basement again for bad things, you come find me. Ask around the fighting pits for the Voidborn. I'll protect you. That's a promise I intend to keep."
A dozen small heads nodded, eyes wide with a mixture of fear and hope.
He walked away, leaving the orphanage behind. The evening report deadline had passed. Across the city, Vorcen was discovering that all six of his safehouses had fallen in a single day. The captain would be panicking now, calling in every asset, preparing for war.
Perfect. Let him panic. Let him prepare. It wouldn't be enough.
Kael had one clear objective now: destroy the Crimson Hand completely. And it started with killing Vorcen at the ley line convergence, absorbing decades of accumulated power.
The hunt was almost over. Soon, it would be time for the kill.