Killing a common man meant nothing.
Killing an assassin made his friends nervous.
But killing a member of a secret sect?
That made you a problem.
And problems were always eliminated.
Kael understood this the moment he wiped Verik Langris' blood from his blade.
He had made his move.
Now, he would wait for their response.
And he knew it would come quickly.
The Crimson Moon hideout was still littered with corpses.
But Kael couldn't stay there.
The Scarlet Sect wasn't stupid.
If one assassin escaped, more would soon be hunting him.
He needed a new place to lie low.
But more than that—
He needed a plan.
Because now, he wasn't just defending himself.
He was declaring war.
Kael moved through the silent alleys of the Mist District, avoiding patrols and prying eyes.
He didn't return to The Silver Serpent.
Daren had been useful, but trusting him would be a mistake.
So, he went somewhere no one would think to look.
The Forgotten Temple.
On the eastern edge of Myr, hidden among crumbling ruins and winding alleys, stood an abandoned temple.
The walls were cracked and overgrown with moss.
The altars were shattered. The statues broken.
It was perfect.
Because no one dared enter a place the gods had abandoned.
Kael found a sheltered corner and sat on the cold stone floor.
He needed to think.
He killed Verik.The Scarlet Sect knew.Now, they would retaliate.
The only question was how.
Would they send more assassins?
Would they strike from the shadows?
Or would they send someone stronger?
Kael was betting on the last option.
Because he understood how organizations worked.
If one enforcer died, another took his place.But if that one died too…
Then it became a problem too big to ignore.
And Kael wanted to be that problem.
Because only then would he draw out the ones at the top.
And when he found them—
He would rip the truth from their throats.
Even if he had to break them apart to do it.
By the next day, Kael noticed the shift.
Rumors spread through the streets of Myr.
"Someone killed a Scarlet Sect assassin.""They say it was an outsider.""And he's still alive."
Kael felt the eyes on him as he walked through the marketplace.
He sensed the rising tension in the air.
The city was whispering about him.
And that meant his enemies were listening, too.
Then—
The first warning came.
In the heart of Myr, a corpse hung from the main square.
A man, stabbed multiple times, a symbol carved into his chest with blood.
The mark of the Scarlet Sect.
And in his stiff, lifeless hand—
A scrap of parchment.
With a single sentence written on it.
"We know who you are, Kael Zhan."
A hushed silence fell over the square.
All eyes turned toward the message.
But Kael?
He just smirked.
Because now—
The real game had begun.