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📍 Underground Passage – Near Sector 9
The sewers beneath Juren reeked of rot and mana residue, but they offered something the surface no longer could—secrecy.
Kael knelt beside a rusted gate, marking runes with his finger. Behind him, the Shadow Guardian hovered like smoke, and Silent Blade scouted ahead.
> [Servants: 2/3 Active]
Bond Strength: Stable
Shadow Merge: Ready
He was close now.
The Dragoon Guild's sealed archive had a secondary entry—a forgotten route buried in the foundations of the city.
But Kael wasn't the only one moving in the dark tonight.
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📍 West Plaza – Myrla's Trail
Myrla pressed her hand to the alley wall, feeling the faint trace of residual mana. It was cold and sharp—Kael's new energy. She closed her eyes and followed.
"He's alive," she whispered again. "But different."
A cloaked figure stepped from behind a vendor stall.
"Looking for ghosts?"
Myrla's hand went to her blade instantly.
But the figure didn't draw.
Just smiled.
"Be careful chasing phantoms, silver-hair. You might not like what you find."
The figure disappeared into the mist.
Myrla frowned. The underground was stirring. Others knew Kael had returned.
---
📍 Dragoon Guild – Inner Circle Room
High above the city, Elrik stood before the council orb.
"The bounty has yielded nothing."
A younger officer stepped forward.
"We received word from one of our spies. The Shadow Wielder has killed Varon. No witnesses."
Elrik remained silent.
Then he smiled.
"So the monster lives."
> [Operation "Scorched Crown" – Reactivated]
Target: Kael Virek
Objective: Terminate
Status: Top Secret
---
📍 Kael – Inside the Archive Sub-Level
The door opened with a hiss of ancient mana.
Kael entered.
Shelves of forbidden records lined the walls. Names of erased hunters. Blacklists. Internal corruption orders. And… one glowing file:
> [Class Seed: Executor of the Abyss]
Status: Sealed
Key Required: System Override Token
Kael's hand trembled.
> "The system isn't broken," he murmured. "It's being controlled."
He reached out to the file—
But something else touched his mind.
A whisper. A presence not his own.
"You're not alone in this war, Kael Virek."
He recoiled.
The shadows around him flared.
---
📍 Meanwhile – Crimson Fang Guild
A rival guild watched the Dragoon chaos with amusement.
"Let them burn," said the guildmaster, sipping wine. "The Shadow Wielder will either destroy them… or join us."
A new player had entered the city.
And no one was safe anymore.
---
📍 Kael – Rooftop Exit
Kael emerged back into the moonlight, his hands shaking.
The truth burned in his chest like fire.
The guilds weren't just corrupt.
They were controlling the system itself.
> [Mission Updated: Expose the Inner Circle]
Bonus: Class Unlock – Executor of the Abyss (Tier SS)
Status: Locked
He looked to the city skyline.
> "You made me a ghost.
Now I'll become your reckoning."
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📌 Next: Chapter 8 – Hunter of Shadows
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