"I've had enough of that word. Seriously, can we not? Telling me to kneel, even that brute always tells me that same thing. Be man of style you're supposed to be and change for fuck's sake!" the guy said, cutting off Louis mid-sentence.
His tone wasn't loud, but it hit like a truck. Cold, sharp, no room for argument. "And about that deal? Yeah, hard pass. But hey, listen up—"
He paused, tilting his head slightly with that annoying, smug grin of his.
"Why don't you go suck that brute's d*ck instead?"
The words were a dagger, and the smirk on his face twisted it deeper. The air seemed to freeze for a moment. The lackeys stared at him, stunned, almost questioning if they'd just heard right.
Louis's face went bright red, his jaw tightening. "Kill him," he snarled, the words practically dripping with venom.
The command hung in the air, and for a split second, no one moved.
There was an unspoken hesitation, like they knew this wasn't exactly an honorable fight. But Alec—the brute—cracked his knuckles, taking a step forward with a grin that showed a little too much enjoyment.
"Alright, tough guy," Alec muttered, his voice low and rough. He didn't need to be told twice.
He walked over, his boots crunching against the dirt, and without a warning, drove his foot into the guy's back.
The hit sent him crashing face-first to the ground, dust flying up around him.
The others followed, throwing kicks and punches, each hit landing with a sickening thud. Blood splattered onto the ground, pooling beneath him, but even as the guy got torn apart, his grin never left.
The smile wasn't normal—it wasn't joy or fear or even pride. It was taunting. Like he was telling them, "This all you got?"
Strangely, none of them used their power even though no one was around to report them for using their powers against an non-awakened.
Maybe it was arrogance, or maybe they just wanted to feel his bones break with their own hands.
Either way, it wasn't pretty.
"Alright, enough!" Louis's voice cut through the chaos.
The group stepped back, breathing heavily, leaving the bloodied mess on the ground. "Finish him off, Alec!"
Alec hesitated, his grin fading. Taking down a guy in a fight was one thing. Killing him? That was a whole new level.
"You are seriously hesitating right now?" Louis snapped. His voice was cold, mocking. "You call yourself a Rank 4 Ember, and you can't handle one useless nobody? Either you kill him, or you kiss your shot at meeting the prince goodbye."
Alec flinched. His hands clenched at his sides, his jaw tight. That deal was the only reason he was here, enduring being Louis's dog.
What did he even have against the kid? Either way, he won't lose his chance to meet the prince.
The ground beneath him started to tremble, a dull brown glow lighting up his hand.
Chunks of earth rose around his feet, swirling together into a jagged spear.
He gripped it tightly, his hands trembling. The guy on the ground didn't move, didn't say a word.
"Sorry, man," Alec muttered under his breath. He raised the spear and drove it down, right into the guy's chest.
The spear hit home, piercing through muscle and bone. Blood spurted out, warm and sticky, soaking the ground even more. But the guy didn't scream.
Alec's eyes widened. The dude wasn't dead. Pulling the spear out, Alec thrust it back in, again and again, until the chest was a ruined mess of blood and broken ribs.
He was so aggressive at it, Louis smiled, as expected of Alec, a Nagas, Alec—a snakefolk was so violent.
Finally, the life drained from the guy's eyes. His grin was gone.
Alec stumbled back, dropping the spear like it had burned him. His hands shook as he stared at the mangled body in front of him.
"Get rid of it," Louis said, his tone sharp and emotionless. "We can't leave any evidence."
Nodding quickly, Alec stomped on the spear, breaking it apart into harmless chunks. Without another word, the group disappeared into the night, their footsteps fading away.
Left behind was the bloodied, broken body of the guy they'd killed.
But then...
[Ding...]
****
"What the hell is this? Who could be this messed up?"
The voice came out of nowhere, soft and almost trembling with panic. A young woman in a white dress ran toward the scene, her heels clicking against the alley pavement.
She froze when she saw him. Blood everywhere, his body lifeless.
****
Minutes later...
"Oh my god, who could be this heartless to such a handsome young boy?" a young woman's voice broke through the silence, sharp and full of disbelief.
She rushed over, scooping up the bloodied body of the young man without a second thought. His clothes were filthy, stained with dirt and blood, but she didn't care that it ruined her pristine designer white dress.
"He's not breathing! No, no, no! That can't be right!" she muttered frantically, her voice trembling. "Okay, we're getting you to a hospital. Now!"
With zero effort, she lifted him like he weighed nothing and bolted, moving faster than any normal person had a right to. Her figure blurred as she shot out of the slums, heading straight for the most prestigious region of the Sunless capital.
Given her speee, she either had a Speed ability or she was in the Kindled Stage, a level above Alec's Ember Stage.
The part of the city she was heading to was locked down tighter than any other place in the entire Sunless Empire—hell, maybe even the whole world.
Guards patrolled every inch of the walls, armed to the teeth and ready to stop anyone suspicious.
But as the woman raced toward the gates, none of them dared to get in her way. They knew better. They recognized her with widened eyes.
"Who's Young Miss is carrying?" one guard muttered, his eyes wide as she sped past.
"And what happened to him? No, when did Young Miss become softhearted to help someone?" another asked, equally stunned.
She was known for being ruthless.
They didn't get an answer. She was already gone, a blur of white and red, disappearing into the heart of the city as if nothing could stop her.
****
Light. Blinding, suffocating light.
The boy groaned, his head pounding like he'd been hit by a truck. He didn't open his eyes just yet, fearing the light might blind him.
"Huh. Soft?" he muttered, running his hand over whatever he was lying on. "Wait... I don't have anything soft in my apartment. Or in my life."
Bits and pieces of memory started coming back to him—the fight, the kicks, the spear...
"Oh yeah," he said, almost casually. "I died."
There was a weird kind of peace in saying it out loud. He'd been ready to die for a while, anyway. What did it matter now?
"So... what now?" he asked the silence. "Am I supposed to wait for some judgment or whatever? King Yama? Pearly gates? Eternal darkness?"
Something tugged at the edge of his mind. It was subtle, but impossible to ignore.
"What the hell is that? I'm dead, and I still can't catch a break?!"
[Ding... Of Blood and Darkness System Activated.]
A soft, shimmering dark-blood-red screen appeared in front of him, words glowing against the dark.
He froze. His brain scrambled to make sense of what he was seeing.
"What in the...?"
Unlike most, the guy wasn't familiar with systems or games. He hadn't grown up with time for books or screens—just enough food to survive.
He was unlike other awakeneds who had systems.
So whatever this was, it was completely alien to him.
[Ding... A suitable host has been found. Evaluating host...]
"Yeah, okay," he muttered, swallowing hard. "This is either good, or really like really bad."
And knowing his luck? It was probably the latter.
__
Guys take care of me!