The streets of Blackridge had grown quiet again.
Most of the city had returned to its usual midnight silence. Only a few lanterns still burned along the crooked roads, their weak light flickering against the damp stone walls.
Kael moved quickly through the shadows.
He avoided the main streets, staying inside narrow alleys and abandoned paths between buildings.
Every few steps, he stopped and listened.
The city felt different tonight.
Before, Blackridge had been a dangerous place—but it had been a familiar danger. Street gangs, thieves, corrupt guards… problems Kael understood.
But now…
Something else was hunting him.
Something far more organized.
The Black Council.
And according to the mysterious woman, they had already begun searching.
Kael tightened his grip on the dagger he had taken earlier.
"I need somewhere safe," he muttered quietly.
The streets near the city center were too crowded.
Too many people.
Too many chances to be seen.
Kael knew a better place.
The Old Quarter.
Years ago, that part of the city had burned during a massive fire. Most buildings were abandoned now—empty shells left behind by people who never returned.
Perfect for hiding.
After several minutes of careful movement, Kael finally reached the broken iron gates marking the entrance to the Old Quarter.
The area was dark.
Almost completely silent.
Half-collapsed buildings stood like skeletons against the cloudy sky.
Kael stepped inside slowly.
His shadow stretched across the cracked road as the moon briefly appeared between the clouds.
Immediately, he felt something.
The shadows here were deeper.
Thicker.
Almost alive.
A strange comfort spread through his chest.
"This place…"
The darkness felt stronger here.
More responsive.
Kael walked toward a ruined house at the end of the street.
The roof had partially collapsed, but the inside still offered shelter.
He stepped through the broken doorway.
Dust covered the wooden floor.
Old furniture lay scattered across the room, most of it destroyed by time.
But it would work.
Kael sat down against the wall and exhaled deeply.
For the first time since the night began, he allowed himself to relax slightly.
His body ached.
Bruises from the earlier beating still throbbed painfully.
Yet strangely…
The shadow energy flowing through him seemed to dull the pain.
Kael looked at the black ring on his finger.
"You caused all of this."
The symbols on the ring were faintly glowing again.
Not brightly.
But enough to remind him that the artifact was far from ordinary.
Kael closed his eyes.
He focused on the strange connection between himself and the shadows.
The darkness inside the ruined house slowly gathered around him.
Small wisps of black mist formed along the floor.
Kael extended his hand.
The mist followed.
It twisted around his fingers like obedient smoke.
"Okay…"
He took a deep breath.
"If I'm going to survive… I need to understand this power."
The shadows responded instantly.
They moved when he imagined them moving.
But controlling them precisely was still difficult.
Kael tried shaping them again.
Slowly pulling the darkness upward.
This time the shadow rose higher.
Almost reaching his chest.
But then—
Footsteps.
Kael's eyes snapped open.
Someone was outside.
Not loud.
Not careless.
Slow.
Measured.
A hunter's steps.
Kael immediately stood up.
The shadows around him spread along the floor instinctively.
Through the broken window, he saw a figure walking down the ruined street.
A tall man wearing a long black coat.
His face was partially hidden beneath a hood.
But even from a distance, Kael could feel it.
Power.
Real power.
The man stopped in the middle of the road.
He slowly turned his head toward the ruined house.
Directly toward Kael.
"So…"
The man's voice carried calmly through the silent street.
"This is where you decided to hide."
Kael's heart dropped.
He stepped back into deeper darkness.
The man smiled faintly.
"You can come out now."
There was no anger in his voice.
No urgency.
Only confidence.
"I can feel the shadow energy from here."
Kael clenched his fists.
So the hunters really could track him.
The man took a few steps closer.
"You should consider yourself lucky."
Kael didn't respond.
The hunter continued calmly.
"You are the first vessel the Shadow Sovereign has chosen in centuries."
He stopped just outside the ruined doorway.
"Which means…"
His eyes glowed faintly under the hood.
"You are extremely valuable."
Kael slowly stepped forward into the doorway.
The shadows around his feet twisted like living snakes.
"I'm not going with you."
The hunter chuckled softly.
"That wasn't a request."
He raised one hand.
The air around him suddenly shifted.
A faint red energy spread across the ground.
Kael felt it instantly.
A pressure.
Heavy.
Dangerous.
"This will be easier if you don't resist," the hunter said.
Kael's eyes hardened.
For years, he had run from stronger people.
But tonight had already changed everything.
The shadows around him began rising again.
Dark mist gathered along the ruined walls.
Kael stepped forward slowly.
"I'm done running."
The hunter tilted his head with interest.
"Good."
A small smile appeared beneath his hood.
"I prefer prey that fights back."
The red energy around the hunter exploded outward.
The shadows inside the house surged violently in response.
And for the first time—
Kael faced an enemy far stronger than anything he had encountered before.
The ruined house trembled slightly as the two powers collided.
A dark pressure filled the air.
Kael stood inside the doorway, shadows swirling around his feet like restless smoke.
Across from him, the hunter remained calm.
The faint red aura surrounding the man spread slowly across the cracked ground.
It felt heavy.
Oppressive.
Like the air itself had become harder to breathe.
Kael clenched his fists.
"So this is their hunter…"
The man stepped forward casually.
Each step echoed through the silent street.
"My name is Varek," he said calmly.
"Night Hunter of the Black Council."
Kael didn't care about the title.
All he knew was one thing.
This man was dangerous.
Much more dangerous than the thugs from earlier.
Varek tilted his head slightly as he studied Kael.
"You're inexperienced."
His eyes moved toward the shadows shifting along the walls.
"But the power inside you…"
A faint smile appeared on his lips.
"It's magnificent."
Kael raised his hand.
The shadows immediately gathered around him.
"I said I'm not going with you."
Varek sighed softly.
"That's unfortunate."
Before Kael could react—
Varek vanished.
Kael's eyes widened.
Too fast.
Something slammed into his chest.
BOOM.
Kael was thrown backward across the room, crashing through a broken wooden table.
Pain exploded through his ribs.
"Too slow," Varek said calmly.
Kael struggled to stand.
His breathing became rough.
The hunter had moved faster than his eyes could follow.
Varek slowly walked inside the ruined house.
"You rely too much on instinct," he said.
"That might work against street criminals."
"But against trained hunters…"
His red aura flared slightly.
"It's useless."
Kael wiped blood from his lip.
His mind raced.
If he tried fighting normally…
He would lose.
The speed difference alone was overwhelming.
Varek stepped closer.
"Don't worry."
"I won't kill you."
The hunter raised his hand.
A red energy blade formed along his fingers.
"But breaking a few bones should make you easier to carry."
Kael's eyes hardened.
Enough.
The shadows inside the ruined house began moving violently.
Dark mist spread across the walls.
Across the floor.
Across the broken ceiling.
Varek frowned slightly.
"Hmm."
Kael slowly stood up.
His breathing steadied.
He focused on the darkness around him.
Not forcing it.
Listening to it.
The shadows responded immediately.
They gathered behind him like a rising tide.
Varek's eyes narrowed with interest.
"So you're finally learning."
Kael didn't speak.
Instead, he lifted both hands.
The shadows erupted forward.
Like black waves crashing toward the hunter.
Varek moved instantly.
His body blurred.
The red blade sliced through the first wave of darkness.
But the shadows didn't disappear.
They split.
Reforming instantly.
Varek jumped backward as another shadow tendril shot toward his leg.
"Interesting."
He slashed again.
But more shadows kept rising.
The entire house was filled with darkness now.
Kael stepped forward.
His voice was low.
"Your mistake…"
The shadows gathered around his arm.
"…was coming into my territory."
The darkness beneath Varek's feet exploded upward.
A massive shadow arm grabbed his leg.
Varek twisted in midair, slicing through the tendril.
But another one immediately wrapped around his wrist.
Then another around his waist.
The hunter finally lost his calm expression.
"Tch."
He slammed his palm against the ground.
A shockwave of red energy burst outward.
The shadows shattered apart.
Kael staggered backward from the impact.
But something strange happened.
The broken shadows didn't vanish.
Instead…
They gathered together behind Kael.
Forming a shape.
A larger shape.
The darkness slowly condensed.
Two glowing eyes appeared within the shadow mass.
Varek froze.
"…What?"
Kael felt it too.
The shadows were changing.
Becoming something new.
The dark mass rose from the ground.
It grew taller.
Broader.
Like a creature forming from pure darkness.
The glowing eyes locked onto Varek.
A low growl echoed through the ruined house.
Varek's expression changed completely.
For the first time—
The hunter looked shocked.
"A shadow… summon?"
Kael stared at the creature behind him.
He hadn't planned this.
But somehow…
The shadows had answered.
The creature stepped forward.
Its massive claw slammed into the ground.
Cracks spread across the stone floor.
Varek slowly stepped back.
"…This is impossible."
Kael raised his hand.
The creature moved instantly.
It lunged toward the hunter like a living nightmare.
Varek barely managed to dodge.
The claw smashed through the wall behind him.
The entire house shook violently.
Dust filled the air.
Varek landed outside the building.
He looked back at Kael and the shadow creature emerging from the ruins.
For a long moment, he said nothing.
Then—
A slow smile appeared on his face.
"So the rumors were true."
He wiped blood from the corner of his mouth.
"The Shadow Sovereign really has awakened."
Kael stood beside the towering shadow creature.
The darkness swirled around him like a crown.
Varek slowly stepped back.
"This changes things."
He looked directly at Kael.
"We'll meet again."
Then the hunter suddenly jumped onto the rooftop.
Within seconds, he disappeared into the night.
The shadow creature slowly dissolved back into darkness.
Kael fell to one knee.
His body trembled from exhaustion.
But despite the pain…
A single thought filled his mind.
Tonight had proven something important.
The hunters were strong.
But the shadows…
Were stronger.