The door swung open slowly, creaking ominously as if protesting the darkness that seeped through the threshold. A chill enveloped the room, and Wei felt his heart race as a figure stepped into the pawnshop's dim light.
It was a man clad in a long, dark cloak, his features obscured by a hood that cast deep shadows over his face. A cold, malevolent energy radiated from him, causing the hairs on the back of Wei's neck to stand on end.
"Ah, the little pawns," the man said, his voice smooth yet laced with contempt. "How quaint that you think you can shield yourselves from the Shadow Sect."
"Who are you?" Wei demanded, stepping forward, trying to mask his fear with bravado.
The man chuckled, a sound that echoed unnervingly in the silence of the pawnshop. "I am Kael, an emissary of the Shadow Sect. I've come to collect what is rightfully ours."
