Kael tore the note from the board.
"Hmm…"
He murmured under his breath.
'So this is one of the reasons Syleena has been getting so much trouble.'
The black market mission board was very different from the one on the surface.
Normally, when taking a mission from a government board, you would tear off the request you planned to complete. This prevented Luminaires from fighting each other for rewards. The strong would otherwise claim every mission before weaker Luminaires even had a chance.
But none of those rules existed down here.
In the black market, competition was encouraged. Not for the sake of killing each other, but to complete the mission. It meant jobs were finished far faster. It meant more traffic for the vendors. And increased traffic meant more buyers, more sellers, and more desperate Luminaires willing to pay high prices.
It also meant the most urgent, high-risk, high-reward missions ended up here first.
Kael turned the note in his hand, studying the faded ink.
'Syleena's assassination request.'
His expression darkened as he read the details.
'And such a high reward too…'
The payment listed at the bottom had once been two hundred mindstones, written neatly in elegant handwriting.
But it had been crossed out.
Rewritten.
Crossed out again.
Replaced.
Raised.
Raised again.
After more than two years, the bounty had been rewritten so many times that the bottom of the note was layered in ink.
The current reward stood just short of ten thousand mindstones.
Kael slipped the note into his pocket and sat down again.
Normally it was against the rules to tear notes from the black market mission board, but he didn't care. He still needed Syleena.
'There is no mission that fits all my criteria.'
He had spent nearly an hour combing through the board, reading every request twice, and he was still empty-handed.
'Should I open a shop here in the black market'
The thought dissolved almost as quickly as it appeared.
Even if it was a viable way to earn mindstones, it was nearly impossible in his current situation.
To open a shop, he would first need to buy a booth along the street, and that alone would cost several thousand mindstones. And even then, he would need something to sell. Kael was not even sure what he could offer that others could not.
'Refinement.'
It was the only option that made any real sense. Kael's ability to refine was far superior to most Luminaires at his rank. But even with that advantage, his success rate was only slightly above fifty percent for rank one motes, assuming he even reached the final stage.
'Still…'
The thought clung to him, refusing to let go.
Completing a custom refinement was no simple task, and the reward reflected that. Refining a mote was to go against heaven itself. Everyone knew that. That was why the desperation for refinement Luminaires was so large.
In theory, every Luminaire could create a refinement orb and attempt to refine their own mote. But very few actually did.
Why?
Simple.
Refinement demanded resources. Expensive ones. Most Luminaires would need to pour nearly all their mindstones into a single attempt, and almost every refinement failed at the final step. A complete loss.
Because of this, many, if possible, preferred seeking out someone else to refine for them. At least that way, they were guaranteed to get a portion of their mindstones back if the refinement failed, and hiring a specialist increased the success rate by a few percent.
A few percent was worth everything when chasing power.
Kael drummed his fingers on the table again, staring into the warm haze of the bar.
'Maybe this is the only path left.'
Even though custom refinement jobs were incredibly sought after, they were almost impossible to come by. Kael had not even walked the full length of the black market yet, but he was certain there was not a single stall offering mote refinement.
This was because, in the entire world, Luminaires who awakened on the refinement pathway were as rare as stars scattered across the night sky.
A person could not choose the path they awakened as. It was possible to guide a child from a young age, teaching them certain techniques or pushing them toward a preferred direction, but nothing was ever guaranteed. Syleena was the perfect example. The Eireindaile had shaped her entire upbringing around the blade pathway, teaching her sword history, footwork, and every form of practice a young Luminaire-to-be could handle. Yet when she finally awakened, her soul aligned with the mind pathway instead.
Kael let out a quiet snicker at the thought.
After all, Syleena awakening as mind pathway was the very reason he had been dragged into this entire mess.
And when it came to the refinement pathway, the odds were even worse. The concept of refining a mote was impossible to fully grasp unless you were already a Luminaire. But that created the problem. If understanding refinement required being awakened, then your chance to awaken as a refinement Luminaire was already gone. Your soulbound motes were already set. There was no second awakening, or second chance.
That was why Refinement Luminaires were nearly extinct.
Why their services were priceless.
Why the black market had none.
Kael tapped the table once more, slower this time.
He had stumbled into a field where demand was endless, and supply did not exist.
It was risky.
It was unstable.
But it was an opportunity.
Kael raised a hand and ordered a glass of water.
'I will have to think about this carefully.'
The idea was clear. The profit was undeniable.
But was it worth the risk?
He sat alone for hours, turning every variable over in his mind, running through every outcome he could think of, then discarding them one by one and starting again. The noise of the bar barely reached him.
He only snapped back when something pressed suddenly onto his shoulder.
"What the hell can you possibly be thinking about for so long in this loud fucking bar?"
A brunette girl around his age leaned forward, smiling with bright white teeth. Her presence cut through the haze of noise like a knife.
"What?"
Kael did not move. Fighting was strictly forbidden inside the bar, so her proximity did not concern him.
She raised an eyebrow, then rolled her eyes dramatically.
"So you're telling me you didn't notice me staring at you"
Kael turned his head slightly.
He obviously had. He simply had not evaluated her as a threat.
"No."
She stared at him for a moment, then picked up his glass and sniffed it.
"And who the fuck drinks water at a bar"
She grinned, amused by him.
Before Kael could respond, she dragged a chair over and sat beside him as if she had every right to be there.
She reached out a hand.
"Hi. My name is Olivia."
Her smile was bright and confident.
Kael looked at her hand, then shook it.
"Kael."
She released his hand and signaled the bartender for two drinks.
"Kael, as in mighty warrior and wholehearted" she said, eyes still on the counter.
"Precisely."
He narrowed his eyes slightly.
His mind turned instantly.
Did he know this woman?
What was her objective?
Who was she connected to?
When the drinks arrived, she pushed one toward him.
"This one is on me."
Kael raised a hand, stopping hers mid-reach.
"I do not drink."
Her eyebrows shot up.
"Fuck off?! You're for real?" She grinned, then shrugged. "More for me then."
She downed her own glass in one smooth motion, then reached for his and drank that too.
She grimaced sharply and shook her head.
"Yea… good thing you didn't drink that."
She slammed the empty glass onto the table and looked at him with a loose, lopsided smile.
"So… Kael… what brings you here"
Her fingertip traced slow circles around the rim of her glass, her eyes drifting between him and the crowd.
The night had grown late by the time Kael stepped back onto the black market street. The air was cooler now, the noise muted under layers of stone and distance.
Even though he had spoken very little, Olivia had somehow managed to carry an entire night's worth of conversation by herself. She talked easily, laughed loudly, and never seemed bothered by his silence.
Kael glanced down at her.
Olivia was clinging to his arm now, wobbling with every step, struggling to stay upright.
His eyes narrowed.
She had asked plenty of questions, most of them useless chatter. A few had been personal, but she never pushed far enough to be suspicious. Kael had kept the boundaries tight.
"Where do you live"
He asked.
In truth, he did not care whether she got home safely or not. But leaving the bar alone after sitting there motionless for hours would have drawn more attention than walking out with someone at his side.
"Atte… eethee… centr…"
She slurred the words, barely forming them.
Kael sighed softly and stepped out of the church, guiding her through the entrance and onto the snow-covered streets of Velthoria. Since he was already committed to this act, he might as well see it through.
The moon hung high above, casting a pale, cold glow over the city. The fresh snow reflected the light back into the sky, turning the silent streets into a shimmering white sea.
Olivia stumbled again, tightening her grip on his arm.
Kael kept walking, his expression unreadable.
After a few blocks, her steps faltered. She suddenly let go of him and staggered toward a nearby wall, bracing herself as she bent over.
Kael walked to her side and slipped one hand from his pocket, holding her hair out of the way while she vomited.
When she finished, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and let out a soft, embarrassed laugh.
"God… sorry you have to see this side of me."
Kael shook his head once and turned, continuing forward. She hurried after him, clinging to his arm again.
"I swear this is not how I normally act," she said with a smile.
But her eyes looked tired. Sad, even.
"Sobering up?" Kael asked.
She blinked, caught off guard by the question, then smiled faintly.
"Yea… throwing up sure works wonders."
"Where do you live?" he asked again.
"In the center of the Luminaire district. Building B."
'She is my neighbor then.'
Kael thought, looking at her.
"Not too far."
They walked another ten minutes before stopping in front of a white stone building. Its polished facade reflected the moonlight across the street.
"You will manage from here?" Kael asked.
"Yes… thank you for taking me home. And sorry for causing you trouble."
She brushed a few strands of hair behind her ear, cheeks slightly flushed.
"How embarrassing," she murmured to herself.
She let go of him and walked to the entrance. Before stepping inside, she turned and gave him a small wave.
Then she disappeared into the building.
Kael remained on the street in silence, the cold air settling around him. After a moment, he reached into his coat and pulled out the small note she had slipped into his pocket, assuming he would not notice.
'Her address?'
The note was barely readable, nothing but a handful of crooked letters and numbers scrawled across the paper.
He folded the note and tucked it away.
Kael exhaled into his hands, watching the puff of mist rise and vanish in the gentle wind.
Then he turned and began the quiet walk back toward his own building.
It was not that Kael was allergic to having a good time.
But he knew better than anyone how easily alcohol could dull a person's senses.