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Morning sunlight streamed through the gaps in Russell's battle-scarred yard, illuminating what could generously be called "post-apocalyptic landscaping." The crater where his fountain used to be had filled with rainwater overnight, creating an impromptu pond. Chunks of stonework lay scattered like a giant's discarded toys. The whole place looked like someone had decided to recreate Syria in suburban Northgate.
"Definitely need to call Misty about getting a construction crew," Russell muttered, stepping over what might have been part of his garden wall. Or maybe his neighbor's fence. Hard to tell at this point.
Kai might have cleaned up the evidence of Wade's murder—no blood, no body parts, no incriminating DNA—but he'd done absolutely nothing about the property damage. The man had all the subtlety of a sledgehammer and about as much common sense. If Russell thought the entire Spirit Begging Society was staffed with people like that, he'd be laughing himself awake every night. A terrorist organization run by incompetents wouldn't last a week, let alone become the boogeyman of the establishment.
He'd already planned to visit Misty today anyway. Might as well mention the yard renovation while he was at it. He wasn't particularly trusting of random construction crews—too many questions about how a yard got quite *this* destroyed—but Misty wouldn't dare try anything sketchy. Not after she'd seen him make Kai bark like a dog. When the work started, he'd just have his Shadowkhan lurk around keeping an eye on things. Nothing said quality control quite like demonic ninjas watching your every move.
Lost in thought about contractors and cover stories, he almost missed the subtle shift in the manor's energy. The guardian card Hazel had left—a simple protection spell that would alert her to danger—suddenly vanished. Not triggered, not dispelled, just... gone.
A heartbeat later, a figure materialized in his living room.
*Senior Sister's back.*
Russell quickly washed his face, finger-combed his hair into something resembling order, and headed downstairs. "Senior Sister," he called out, finding Hazel sitting on his sofa with her eyes closed, looking like she hadn't slept in days.
At his voice, she opened her eyes. Even exhausted, her face maintained that sharp intellectual beauty, though the bags under her eyes told a different story.
"Junior Brother."
He was opening his mouth to suggest she go home and get some rest when something round rolled across the floor and bumped against his foot with a wet *thunk*.
Russell looked down.
It was a head.
Specifically, it was Patriarch Wu's head, eyes wide in permanent surprise, mouth hanging open like he'd been interrupted mid-sentence. Which, knowing Hazel, he probably had been.
"...?"
*Well, shit.*
So much for thinking she'd just rough him up a little. His senior sister had gone straight for the nuclear option. No wonder she'd been out all night—decapitation took planning, especially when the target was a powerful cardmaker surrounded by security.
"...Thank you, Senior Sister." What else could he say? 'Hey, thanks for the severed head, really brightens up the living room'? He wasn't about to ask if this would cause trouble either. If the sky fell, there'd always be someone taller to hold it up. Blake, specifically. Besides, she'd meant well, even if her idea of a thoughtful gift was anatomically separated family members.
"They won't have any objections," Hazel said, her cold voice cutting through the morning air. She'd read his hesitation perfectly, as usual.
The truth was, Russell was overthinking it. The other aristocratic families hadn't had time to properly distance themselves from the Wu family disaster. Who was going to stick their neck out for a dead clan? They'd all tacitly approved when the Wu family contacted the Spirit Begging Society, but now that the plan had spectacularly backfired, they had nothing to say. No skin off their backs—if anything, they were probably already drawing up plans to divide the Wu family assets. One less competitor for power, more pie for everyone else.
"I didn't find Wade," Hazel continued, genuine concern creeping into her exhausted features. "By the time I got there, he was gone. Be careful, Junior Brother."
Russell's face went carefully blank. Of course she hadn't found Wade. Hard to find someone whose component atoms were currently scattered across the shadow dimension. But he could hardly tell her that.
"Maybe he ran away with the Spirit Begging Society?" he suggested, proud of how casual he sounded. "You know, since they failed to kill me, maybe they took him as compensation or something."
"Perhaps." She didn't sound convinced. "Still. Be careful."
"I will. Senior Sister, you should really go get some rest."
Hazel, never one for unnecessary words, simply nodded. Lightning crackled around her for a split second before she vanished, leaving behind only the faint smell of ozone and a severed head on his floor.
Russell scratched his head, looking at the empty living room. Well, that solved one problem. He'd been worried about the whole 'beat the younger one and the older one comes for revenge' thing, but now they'd had their reunion. Granted, it was about six feet underground in the metaphorical sense, but still. Family togetherness and all that.
Come to think of it, the saying "beat the younger one and the older one comes" seemed more applicable to his own situation. Wade had tried to hurt him, and Blake had demolished their manor. The Wu family had hired assassins, and Hazel had returned with a head.
"Today is a good day," he decided, carefully picking up Patriarch Wu's head with a dish towel and tossing it in the trash. He'd have the Shadowkhan dispose of it properly later.
Despite his ever-growing body count and increasingly flexible morality, Russell found himself in an excellent mood. He hummed while getting dressed, even doing a little dance step as he prepared to meet Misty.
What he hadn't expected was to find the Everspring Clinic closed.
The 'CLOSED' sign hung crooked in the window, unusual for Misty's typically meticulous operation. Still, he had a Shadowkhan transport him through the shadows directly to her top-floor office. The space was empty, Misty's usual perfume barely lingering in the air.
He pulled out his phone.
**[Russell]:** Come see me. I'm in your office.
The response was nearly instantaneous.
**[Misty]:** I'll be there soon!
Three exclamation points. She was either very excited or very terrified. Knowing their relationship, probably the latter.
While waiting, Russell contemplated what kind of weapon to create for Artoria. She couldn't be a one-shot wonder forever—he needed something to fill the gap when Caliburn was on cooldown. With over 9,000 points saved up, he had options.
His first thought went to the Divine Weapons from those old martial arts comics he'd read in his past life. The Divine Emperor sword could work, or maybe even Tianjing. Both had that legendary weapon vibe that would suit Artoria's noble bearing.
"Nah," he mused aloud, spinning in Misty's executive chair. "Too limiting. Plenty of other options."
The door burst open, and Misty practically fell through it, sweat beading on her forehead despite the morning cool. Her usually perfect makeup was slightly smudged, like she'd been running.
"Lord Six!" She forced her trademark seductive smile, though it came out more like a grimace. "What brings you here so early? How can I serve you?"
*Really need to work on her groveling. Too heavy on the fear, not enough on the respect.*
"The Wu family is finished," he said without preamble. "Both father and son. Also, I'm having Kai go completely dark for a while."
He gave her the cliff notes version—Hazel killing the patriarch, him killing Wade, Kai's spectacular failure at everything except murder.
Misty's eyes rolled so hard he was surprised they didn't pop out. "That idiot," she muttered, clearly meaning Kai. Then, louder: "Lord Six, can you tell me more about the Wu family's elimination?"
"My senior sister decapitated the old man and brought me his head as a present. I killed Wade myself. Kai helped with disposal."
The casual way he delivered this information seemed to break something in Misty's brain. She stared at him for several seconds before shaking her head.
"Patriarch Wu really made the worst possible move," she said finally. "The moment he approached the Society, the Imperial Court wrote him off."
Russell nodded. That made sense. The Court couldn't be seen working with terrorists, even through proxies. The Wu family became expendable the moment they made that call.
"Alright, that's all. I'm leaving." He stood, stretching. "Oh, and my yard needs repairs. Send a crew, will you? Kai made a mess."
"Of course, Lord Six. I'll handle it personally."
"Good. And Misty?" He paused at the door. "If I find anything suspicious about the construction work, we'll be having another conversation about following orders. Understood?"
Her face went pale. "Perfectly understood, Lord Six."
Russell disappeared into shadows, leaving Misty to collapse in her chair and wonder, not for the first time, how her life had gotten so complicated.
---
"Could you two stop looking at me like that?"
Russell's exasperated voice carried across the classroom. It was his first day back at Northgate University since the Wade fight, and apparently, he'd become something of a celebrity. Not surprising, given that his battle had been broadcast across the city, but Heath and Keith's constant staring was getting annoying.
Heath chuckled, not even trying to hide his fascination. "We're just trying to see if there's anything different about you now. You know, after you basically ascended to godhood or whatever."
"My cards aren't from the same dimension as yours," Russell replied dryly. When Heath opened his mouth to ask more questions, a Shadowkhan materialized behind him and stuffed a sandwich in his mouth. "Eat. Don't talk."
The fat man's muffled protests were lost in whole wheat and turkey.
Thanks to his very public demolition of Wade, no students were volunteering to challenge him anymore. The focus had shifted to Sonny and Yuna, who were fielding daily challenges from ambitious underclassmen.
Russell's phone buzzed.
**[Coach Carter]:** Class is over. Come gather at the Battle Club.
Not surprising. The national competition was approaching, and Carter probably wanted to discuss strategy. Or more likely, how to build an entire game plan around Russell's overwhelming power.
"Russell!" Lucian's face lit up as Russell entered the club room. "Haven't seen you in forever, man."
"Been busy," Russell replied, which was technically true. Murder and conspiracy counted as busy.
Once everyone assembled, Coach Carter got straight to the point. "The national competition is coming up fast. Northgate actually has a shot this year." His eyes locked on Russell with laser focus. "A real shot."
"I'll do my best," Russell said simply. Beating Wade didn't make him invincible. There were other monsters out there, other reincarnated individuals, other broken ability sets. Overconfidence was how idiots died.
"Good attitude." Carter nodded approvingly. "Now, the school's arranged secret training for all of you. But first, we're having a friendly match with Soochow University this weekend. We leave Friday."
He glanced at Russell again, something knowing in his expression. Russell laughed awkwardly. The last inter-university battle had ended with him basically traumatizing Southeastern's entire team.
"Coach," Russell raised his hand. "Can I go to New Metro after the Soochow match? It's close by."
"Sure, just take the bus back yourself."
Russell nodded, then paused. Wait. What home was he going back to? The Spirit Begging Society had literally blown up his New Metro apartment. He'd been homeless for months and somehow forgot.
*Right. No home. Just rubble. Cool.*
"Alright, dismissed," Carter announced.
---
Friday night found them in Soochow, piling out of Carter's van to the sound of yet another questionable music choice.
"WHAT IS JUSTICE...?" the speakers blared.
Russell shared a look with Lucian. Their coach had the musical taste of an anime protagonist.
The university had covered all expenses, and Carter had splurged on king-size rooms for everyone. Luxury treatment for their new superstar and his supporting cast.
"Coach, I'm going out for a walk," Russell announced.
The others immediately expressed interest in joining him.
"Just be back early," Carter warned. "We're due at Soochow University at nine sharp tomorrow."
Russell waved acknowledgment, then grabbed a rental bike from the street corner and pedaled off into the evening. The city was different from Northgate—older, more cramped, with that particular smell of too many people in too little space.
He noticed several "Everspring Clinic" branches as he rode. Were they all Misty's, or was it a franchise? He had zero interest in finding out. Some questions were better left unasked.
The real difference between Soochow and Northgate became apparent as he moved toward the suburbs: the beggars. They were everywhere, huddled in doorways, lurking in alleys. But these weren't ordinary homeless people.
In Russell's perception, each member of the Spirit Begging Society glowed like a beacon. And there were so. Many. Of. Them.
*Jesus Christ. It's like cockroaches—see one, there's a hundred more in the walls.*
The thought made him pause.
*Wait. That makes me the Cockroach King. Fantastic. Really moving up in the world.*
He was about to turn his bike around when his Lord Six senses tingled. Something was wrong. Several Society contracts in his perception had just... vanished. Not moved, not hidden—completely severed.
*Someone's killing Society members.*
He hesitated. On one hand, not his problem. He was here for a university competition, not Society business. On the other hand, he was Lord Six. These were technically his subordinates.
*Fuck.*
---
"Boss, please go ahead! Leave us alone!"
The young man's face was a mask of blood, his voice weak but desperate. The sturdy man carrying him said nothing, just kept running through the dark streets, breath coming in ragged gasps.
"Boss, if this continues, none of us will escape!"
The strong man was silent for a long moment before speaking, his voice rough with emotion. "I promised your mother I'd take care of you."
A cold wind swept through the alley. The sturdy man, revealing his nature as a vampire, tried to transform into mist—but nothing happened. His card was on cooldown.
"Shit!" He stumbled, nearly dropping his injured companion.
The young man, barely conscious, felt despair wash over him as the cold wind intensified, promising death. Both their cards were exhausted. They were helpless.
Just as the freezing wind reached for them, ready to tear flesh from bone, a tall figure emerged from the shadows.
"I can't pretend I didn't hear that."
Russell stepped into the dim light, his form casting long shadows. A man in a black suit materialized nearby—the source of the killing wind.
The newcomer's eyes narrowed at Russell's appearance. "And who might you be?"
Russell smiled, the expression not reaching his eyes. "Just someone taking a walk. Though I have to say..." He glanced at the injured Society members. "Attacking people under my protection is rather rude."
(End of this chapter)
Plz THROW POWER STONES.