Kai stood at the end of a narrow alley, which was shadowed by stone walls of the buildings and the afternoon haze. His crimson eyes as cold before fixed themselves on the five men, who were slowly approaching him.
The leader, a bulky man in clad armor, sneered as he cracked his knuckles. There was a giant axe in his back.
"You got guts walking alone, kid," the man said with his smug tone. "Hand over the money. We might let you leave with your limbs."
Kai didn't respond. He simply slid the longsword from the scrap bag that was strapped strapped to his back. The steel sang in the air as it left its sheath, glinting dully in the fading sunlight.
The group hesitated, caught off guard by his lack of fear. Then, with a shout, they rushed him.
Kai also moved at the same time.
Because it was a narrow pathway, only one man can fit while swining their weapon.
The first man swung a rusted dagger at his side, but Kai sidestepped smoothly, pivoting on his back foot. With a flick of his wrist, his sword pommel smacked against the attacker's jaw, sending the man sprawling unconscious to the ground.
The second man came at him with a club. Kai ducked low, driving his elbow into the man's ribs, then swept his legs. The thug hit the ground hard, gasping for breath.
Death Qi…
Kai could feel it now slithering through his body like smoke given life. He can now use death qi using the curcuit created by his familiar.
At first, he had thought it only lingered in his physical core, but during this clash, he noticed something else. His magic core, though spell-less, brimmed with the same qi. He didn't need to cast spells to use it. He can use it same as his physical core and channel it directly through his limbs.
Excitement flickered through his heart.
'I can circulate Death Qi from my magic core just like my body core. It is also filled with death qi.' He got happy now he had got many times larger reserve of death qi than the person who is using simple qi at the same level.
He focused, drawing that dark essence through his qi pathways. His vision sharpened. His limbs felt lighter. His movements got quicker.
The third man lunged at him, brandishing a short sword. Kai parried the blow, the impact jarring up his arm but he flowed with it. He twisted around and slammed the hilt of his weapon into the man's temple, knocking him into the wall.
Speed. Strength. Reflexes. All improving as I circulate Death Qi.
By now, only two had remained one had folded his arm in front of him and was standing near the alley's entrance, the other a lean man backing toward the side wall.
Kai dashed forward. The lean man tried to flee, but Kai was faster. He struck behind the man's knee, making him fall, and disarmed him with a smooth, practiced motion.
He didn't kill any of them. Not yet. All four of them were now lying in the alley, groaning, bleeding, and unable to run.
And then came the leader.
The bulky novice apprentice stepped forward. He was taller than Kai, broader too, with a two-handed axe slung across his back. Unlike the others, this one had real training, though far sloppier than what Kai had endured under his father's unforgiving tutelage.
"You're dead, YOU BASTARD!!!," the man growled, swinging the axe off his shoulder.
The duel began.
The axe came down like a hammer, but Kai met it with his sword, angling his blade to redirect the force. His arm shuddered from the impact, but he didn't back down. He circled to the side, slashing low at the man's thigh.
The attacker grunted and stumbled back, narrowly avoiding the full strike.
They exchanged blow after blow in that confined space, dust and blood marking the cobbled floor. Kai's movements were sharper, more instinctual. Every sparring session with his father the pain, the repetition, the drills echoed in his muscles.
He sidestepped another cleave and slammed his shoulder into the man's chest, knocking him off balance. A swift kick to the ribs followed, and the man dropped to one knee.
Kai's blade hovered at his throat.
The man looked up, fear dawning in his eyes.
"W-Wait please…"
Behind him, the other four had began to beg for their life too, whimpering like cornered dogs.
But Kai's face didn't change.
His sword moved.
One by one, he silenced them. Not out of vengeance. Not out of hate.
But necessity.
As each body stilled, wisps of invisible energy lifted from their corpses Death Essence. It coiled around Kai like a ghostly mist before being drawn into his body.
I can't afford to let it fade, he thought.
Remembering how much death essence had been faded during the slaughter of his clan. He drew a conclution that Death Essence dissipates too quickly.
Even with his entire clan's deaths, he had only managed to reach the Novice Apprentice stage. Now, with each life taken under his blade, he felt that power growing again.
A spark ignited within his core.
'So close…' he thought. 'So close to becoming an Inept Apprentice.'
The alley fell silent.
No cries. No breath. Just the scent of blood and still air.
But Kai didn't linger. He knew better. If those men were backed by someone stronger, their deaths would be noticed and soon he would be questioned. He needed to vanish before questions found him.
He sheathed his sword, wiped the hilt clean, and exited the alley by a different route. The market bustled as usual, but to Kai, it was all a blur. Every step was calculated, every glance observed.
They were his first kill but he didn't feel sympathy at all. All he felt was joy, that his strength was improving and he is growing used to death qi in his body.
Minutes later, he reached the inn.
Jack, the innkeeper, glanced at him as he entered, sensing the tension in the air. Kai didn't stop to explain. He went to his room, packed his belongings quickly, and slung the bag over his shoulder.
In the stables, his horse waited patiently.
"Good job," Kai whispered, patting the horse's neck.
The animal nickered softly, as if sensing the urgency.
Jack appeared at the stable entrance, frowning. "Leaving already?"
Kai nodded. "I've stayed too long."
The man didn't ask why. He simply waved. "Safe travels. If anyone comes asking, I never saw you."
Kai paused for a moment and nodded although he did not trust this man he was unable to trust anyone.
How can he trust, prime suspect of his clan massacare was the best friend of his father.
If Kai was able to kill Jack now he would have done it already, but he knew this inn owner was stronger than him. And if he was able to kill Jack he did not even have to leave this town fleeing from some gangsters.
.
.
The wind met him as he rode out of the town, leaving behind its dusty streets and bloody memories.
His destination was set.
The Graveyard of the Dead an academy of shadows, where the stench of death clung to every stone. Not a place for the righteous. Not a place for the weak.
But it would serve him perfectly.
And with each corpse left behind, with every death essence absorbed, Kai Drakkor would carve his path forward.
Not as a boy seeking justice.
But as a Warlock embracing the cold, necessary truth of power and revenge.