The rooftop wind bit at Kael's skin as he finally pushed himself to his feet. The city lights flickered far below, cold and distant, just like they always did. But inside his chest, something felt different after yesterday's fight. The vow he had whispered to himself still sat there, heavy and real. I will get stronger. No matter what.
Sleep didn't come easy that night. Every time he closed his eyes, the pain from the cuts and bruises flared up again. His muscles screamed whenever he shifted position. But it wasn't just the pain keeping him awake. It was the fear whispering in the back of his mind. If he kept depending on Riven or waiting for someone to show him the way, he would stay weak forever. He would always be that skinny, trembling kid who almost died in an alley.
He had to test himself. Alone.
Early the next morning, before the streets filled with people, Kael grabbed the same old rusted pipe and headed out. His body still ached from the training drills and the scavenger fight, but he ignored it. He had heard rumors about a small monster nest in the abandoned subway tunnels on the east side of Shira City. Low-tier scavengers and burrowers had made it their home, slipping out at night to attack anyone unlucky enough to pass by. It wasn't some grand dungeon that high-ranked hunters would bother with. But for Kael, it was the perfect first trial.
He reached the cracked entrance just as the sky started to lighten. The tunnel mouth looked like a black hole waiting to swallow him whole. Kael stopped there, heart already hammering hard against his ribs. His hands felt clammy around the pipe. What the hell am I doing? I barely scratched that big monster yesterday with help. Down here, no one's coming to save me. One mistake and I'm dead.
He squeezed the pipe tighter until his knuckles turned white. "Shut up," he muttered under his breath. "You said you wanted strength. Then stop standing here like an idiot and go."
Kael took a deep breath and stepped into the tunnel.
The air inside hit him immediately — damp, heavy, and sour, like something had been rotting down here for weeks. Water dripped steadily from the ceiling, echoing in the darkness. It was almost pitch black, but strangely, Kael's eyes started adjusting faster than they ever had before. That faint spark he had felt during the first fight was still there, humming quietly somewhere deep in his chest.
A low growl rumbled from the side tunnel.
The first creature exploded out of the shadows — small and wiry, with jagged claws that caught even the faintest light. Kael jerked back on pure instinct. The claw whistled past his face and scraped across his shoulder instead. Sharp pain flared hot and immediate.
He didn't think. He just swung the pipe as hard as he could. Metal connected with flesh in a dull, heavy crack. The monster screeched and tumbled sideways, but it wasn't dead. It scrambled back to its feet and came at him again, even faster.
Kael's breathing turned ragged almost right away. This energy… it's not like in training. It drains way too quick. Every wild swing pulled more out of him than he expected. If he kept fighting like a madman, he would burn through his stamina and collapse before he even reached the deeper part of the nest.
More growls answered the first. Two more creatures appeared from the darkness. Then another. Fear clawed up his throat again, cold and familiar. You're still the same weak kid from the alley. This was stupid. You should have asked Riven to come with you.
But running wasn't an option. Not anymore. Kael backed up until his shoulders pressed against the cold tunnel wall. At least this way they couldn't surround him completely. He forced himself to stop swinging with everything he had. Instead, he watched how they moved — their quick lunges, the way their claws flashed. He aimed for the joints, not the tougher parts of their bodies. He used the narrow space of the tunnel to make them come at him one or two at a time.
He dodged a sudden leap and swept the pipe low, cracking one creature's leg with a sickening snap. It collapsed, screeching. Another jumped over its packmate and Kael rolled to the side, coming up fast to smash the pipe into its ribs. The impact jarred his arms painfully.
It wasn't clean or heroic. His shoulders burned. Sweat poured down his face. A claw grazed his side, tearing through his shirt and leaving a hot line of blood. The pain was sharp, but he kept moving.
Every solid hit made that inner spark pulse a little brighter, like it was slowly waking up. But his stamina kept dropping. His legs started to feel heavy. His swings grew a fraction slower with each exchange.
The swarm kept coming. Kael lost track of how many he had hit. His vision started to blur at the edges from exhaustion. One desperate swing missed completely and the monster's claw raked across his chest, ripping fabric and skin. Blood soaked into his torn shirt. The pain dropped him to one knee. He gasped, pipe trembling in his grip.
I can't keep going like this… I'm not strong enough yet. I'm still weak.*
Doubt flooded him, heavy and suffocating. For a second he almost gave in and tried to crawl back toward the entrance.
Then the biggest one emerged from the deeper shadows.
It was the nest guardian — much larger than the others, its body covered in thick armored plates, long hooked claws scraping the ground. Its eyes glowed a faint, angry red. The roar it let out shook dust and small tiles from the ceiling.
Kael forced his shaking legs to stand. His whole body wanted to freeze in terror, but he shoved the fear down as deep as he could. Not raw power. That won't work here. Think. Control the energy inside you.
He moved sideways along the wall, keeping the space tight so the big claws couldn't swing freely. When the guardian charged, he waited until the very last second, then slid under the massive arm and struck upward with the pipe, aiming for the softer spot under its jaw.
The hit landed hard. A small burst of that inner energy flared through his arms like a spark igniting. The monster shrieked and staggered back, shaking its head.
But it recovered fast. It swiped again in rage. The blow caught Kael's shoulder and slammed him violently into the tunnel wall. Pain exploded through his body. He heard the old pipe crack loudly in his hands — one more solid hit and it would shatter completely.
His vision darkened at the edges. His stamina was almost gone. Breathing felt like fire in his lungs. For one terrifying moment, Kael thought this was where it ended. Alone in a dirty tunnel, just another weak kid who reached too far.
Then the spark inside him suddenly burned hotter than ever before. It felt like something clicked into place. Kael pulled every last bit of energy tight, squeezing it down like a coiled spring instead of letting it scatter wildly. With a raw shout that echoed off the walls, he stepped in close — inside the guardian's reach where the long claws couldn't swing properly — and drove the broken pipe straight into the same soft joint with everything he had left.
A bright flash of light burst from the point of impact. The pipe shattered completely, metal pieces flying in every direction. The guardian let out a final, piercing scream that shook the tunnel. Its body convulsed once, twice, then collapsed heavily to the ground and went still.
Silence fell. Only Kael's harsh, ragged breathing filled the air.
He slid down the wall until he was sitting in the dirt and blood. His whole body trembled uncontrollably. Fresh cuts burned across his chest, side, and arms. The broken pieces of the pipe lay scattered uselessly beside him.
He felt completely drained, empty… but something deep inside was different now.
That inner spark no longer felt faint or fleeting. It felt steadier. Warmer. Deeper. Like the desperate fight had forced it to grow, even just a little. When Kael thought back to that final focused strike, he could almost sense how to do it again — pulling the energy together instead of wasting it on wild swings. It wasn't a full skill yet. Just the very beginning of one. But it was there. Something real he could build on.
Kael stared at the pile of dead monsters around him. A tired, shaky laugh escaped his lips.
"I actually did it… alone. And without the damn pipe at the end."
The doubt was still there in the back of his mind, reminding him how close he had come to dying. But the determination burning in his chest felt stronger than before. This pain, this exhaustion, this near-death struggle — it was the price of getting stronger. Swinging wildly like before would never be enough. He needed control. He needed real power.
And he definitely needed a real weapon now. The pipe was finished.
Kael pushed himself slowly to his feet, wincing as every cut and bruise protested. His legs felt like lead, but he forced them to move. By the time he limped out of the tunnel entrance, the sun was already setting. Orange light washed over the broken streets and ruined buildings of Shira City, making everything look almost peaceful for once.
He didn't notice the pair of golden eyes watching him again from a distant rooftop, cold and calculating.
Kael only knew one thing for sure as he clutched his bleeding side and kept walking.
This was just the beginning of his climb. No matter how much it hurt, no matter how many times he almost broke, he wasn't going to stop.