Infinite Ascent

Darkness hung like a funeral shroud in the endless chamber, its edges devoured by a hunger no light could satiate. Flickering in staccato bursts—a dying star's last gasp—the lone lamp revealed fragments of Kael: the glint of his katana's hilt, the tension in his jaw, the obsidian cloak clenched in his fist like a promise of violence.

Footfalls echoed slow, deliberate, as if the void itself were counting his steps. From the writhing shadows, a figure emerged, robed in black so absolute it seemed to bleed into the nothingness. Only his voice took shape: a landslide of gravel and venom.

"Again, Kael?" The words slithered, resonant and wrong. "Must you paint every battlefield with the entrails of my hounds?"

Kael stood motionless, his left hand resting on the serpent-curve of his katana's hilt. "They shouldn't have worn your collar," he replied, tone flat as a guillotine's blade. "Dogs that bite… get put down."

Kael's silence was his answer—a glacier's indifference. To the world, he was a reaper's shadow: every step a dirge, every breath a promise of endings.

The robed man exhaled, the sound like coal grinding beneath a boot. "Let me… clarify." He stepped closer, the void trembling beneath his feet. "Each life you take—each 'guilty' soul you carve—drags you deeper into a war older than stars. A war that will devour you.*

His gaze sharpened, needlepoints of fury in the dark. "You think your blade absolves you? That bloodshed is a language the gods understand?"

Still, Kael did not move. Did not blink.

"They hunt you," Ankara rasped, "because they fear what they cannot name. To them, you're a ghost story told by cowards… and ghosts must be exorcised."

Kael's eyes glinted beneath his hood—twin shards of frozen mercury. "Their ignorance," he said, voice a scalpel's edge, "is why they deserve death."

The old man stepped into the fractured light. His face was a map of scars and stolen years, skin leathery from decades squinting . "What if I told you… your vengeance writes their victory? Every corpse you stack becomes a stairway for Nythragael to ascend."

Kael's blade hissed an inch from its sheath. "Spit it out, old man."

"The assassins you slaughtered tonight?" Ankara's voice dropped to a whisper. **"Had you spared even one… they'd have slit your throat under a red moon five winters hence. But now—" He spread his hands, the gesture apocalyptic. "—your path fractures into forks drenched in blood or starlight. Choose wrong, and she dies screaming."

"She?" Kael's grip tightened on his katana. "Speak plainly, or I'll carve the truth from your ribs."

Ankara's next word fell like a coffin's lid:

"Nythragael."

The air turned to tar. Shadows writhed like serpents baptized in blasphemy.

"They are the rot beneath the world's skin," Ankara said, each syllable a nail in a gallows. "And now, they stir."

Kael didn't flinch. "What's that to me?"

"Because you're the blade that can cut them from the weave… and the key that could let them in."

Silence.

"Find Shazmeen Daneena," Ankara commanded. "Heir to Vallhala's rotting throne. She is the fulcrum the axis on which this world tilts toward salvation… or oblivion."

Kael barked a laugh, bitter as arsenic. "The Vallhalan princess?" His lip curled. "Her family's games make me retch. They branded me a fugitive. Hunted me like game."

"This isn't about their petty cruelties," Ankara snapped, his voice cracking like thawing ice. "It's about the end of everything. Nythragael's tendrils already coil around her. If they claim her, the sky will burn, and your vengeance will mean nothing."

"She sails for Hikani Isle," Ankara pressed, undaunted. "An Exile hunts her there—one of Nythragael's hollowed puppets. Intercept them. Escort her to the island's heart. Its isolation will shield you both… for a time."

"Shield?" Kael's smirk was a razor's kiss. "Or cage?"

"Your choice, Kael Thalrune." Ankara's eyes gleamed, ancient and terrible. "Die a villain… or live long enough to become worse."

By the Sea Old Hut

The roar of the waves hit the shore, creating an endless symphony. Kael stood in the doorway, staring into the hut lit only by a dim light.

Nearby, a girl lay unconscious. His clothes were wet, messy, but the aura of nobility still lingered on him.

Shazmeen Daneena.

Kael opened his eyes, remembering the word Ankara.

"He… is he really the one in question?"

looking down at the sword still sheathed at his waist. His mind was still filled with questions.

"That bastard Ankara… He could actually see what happened inside?"

Just as he was thinking about leaving, Shazmeen started to move. His eyes opened slowly, and in an instant, he looked at Kael in fear.

And then…

"You… Bastard! You kidnapped me, didn't you?! What did you do to me?!"

Kael looked at him expressionlessly.

Then, in a flat and cold voice, he answered.

"Shut up. Or I will really do something you don't want.

Shazmeen was wide-eyed when she found out that the person who kidnapped her was Kael Thalrune, the most wanted person in the world.

In a frightened tone 

"You...you.....That bastard Kael, your face has been spread all over the world, what do you want?"

Kael looked at him sharply and cynically 

"What are you like, that's how you respond to the person who just saved you from death!"

"That's just a trick of yours, you bastard!" 

Kael snorted a little and then left, leaving Shazmeen in the hut soaking wet. However, as he walked away, Kael felt something.

The same sensation as when he saved Shazmeen before. He glanced sharply towards the ocean.

BOOOMMMM!!!

A giant tentacle hit the hut where Shazmeen was, destroying it instantly.

SHUSSHHH!!

However, before the hut collapsed completely, Kael had sped off at incredible speed, picked up Shazmeen and carried her away from the shore.

Shazmeen gasped, confused. What really happened?!

From behind the waves, a tall, towering figure appeared. His black robe fluttered in the night breeze. His red eyes glowed like burning embers.

Exile. One of the members of Nythragael.

"Kael Thalrune... Finally we meet."

Exile's voice was heavy and deep, as if it came from the bottom of a dark abyss. Kael just stared at him flatly, one hand still holding the katana which was still sheathed.

"There's nothing to talk about," Kael muttered coldly.

Exile grinned. "You're right. I was sent for only one thing... To bring that girl."

Without warning, Exile shot towards Kael at incredible speed. His hands formed sharp claws, ready to tear.

CLANG!

In an instant, Kael's katana was out of its sheath. With one swift slash, he deflected Exile's attack with ease.

Kael stepped lightly to the side, dodging Exile's follow-up attack, then slashed horizontally. The wind generated from his slash was enough to split the ground beneath them.

Exile jumped back, but the back of his robe had been torn. His gaze turned serious.

"Kael Thalrune... Damn, you're much faster than I expected."

Kael remained silent. His gaze was cold, full of certainty.

Without warning, Exile raised both hands. The shadow beneath his feet pulsed like a living creature, then exploded in the form of dozens of viciously spinning black tentacles.

"Abyssal Devour!"

The tentacles shot out at incredible speed, turning the area around Kael into a deadly field. Some of them move to target blind spots, while others try to limit their movement space.

However, before they could touch it—

"Void Steps."

Kael disappeared. A split second later, Exile felt a terrifying pressure from above. He turned around quickly, but it was too late.

"Solaris Lighting Storm."

Kael's katana moved like lightning covered in dark black lightning, which made Kael move incredibly fast and slash the tentacles that Exile released.

SLASH!

With one swift movement, Exile planted his hand into the ground. The shadow beneath him expanded, creating a vortex of dark energy.

"Black Spiral Veil!"

From within the shadow, a black pillar emerged that spun like a giant drill, exploding upwards with enough destructive force to destroy the cliff behind Kael.

BOOOM!!!

Kael jumped back, but before he could land, Exile was waiting for him in the air, his black claws glowing with deadly energy. A black slash shot out from its claws, heading straight for Kael.

Once again Kael disappeared moving very quickly right behind Exile and slashed his sword so that Exile's body was cut into two parts.

Exile grimaced in pain and couldn't do much. However, before Kael could end the fight, suddenly—

WUSSHH!

Another force emerged from the shadows.

BRAKKK!

Kael was hit by a powerful kick strong enough to shatter rocks.

However, he remained standing straight, only being pushed a few meters. The smoke slowly dissipated, revealing a new figure. A masked woman in a dark robe stood beside Exile.

Unknown 5.

"So this is Kael Thalrune, the person who made the world shake..." he said while stretching.

Kael narrowed his eyes.

"Reinforcements?"Unknown 5 chuckled. "No. I'm just making sure Exile doesn't die in vain."

Kael sighed, then raised his sword again. "I don't mind killing both of you at once."

Unknown 5 grinned. "You're very confident. But not today." 

Without warning, he pressed his palms onto the ground. In an instant, Exile and himself were enveloped in shadow, then disappeared as if swallowed by darkness.

Shazmeen who saw the incident was silent, they fought at an incredible speed. He was confused as to why he was being targeted by people who made a big question mark on his head.

Kael left the location very coldly ignoring Shazmeen's presence there, Shazmeen who saw that then chased Kael.

"Hey...wait, your business with me is not finished yet."

Kael stopped in his tracks.

"That...that...person?" Shazmeen asked questioningly.

Kael very coldly ignored Shazmeen's question and continued on his way, but Shazmeen chased and blocked Kael's path.

Kael answered coldly and ignored Shazmeen.

"I don't have time to talk to ungrateful people, go wherever you want."

Hearing that, Shazmeen smiled and followed Kael behind him.

Kael walked without looking back at all, his steps remained steady on the dark path. The night wind blew, making his robe flutter slightly. Behind him, Shazmeen was still following him, her eyes staring at Kael with annoyance and curiosity.

"Hey! Do you hear me? I'm still talking!" Shazmeen shouted as she quickened her pace.

Kael remained silent, as if the whispers of the wind were more important than Shazmeen's chatter.

Shazmeen snorted in annoyance. "You cold man, acting shy again!" she said to herself.

Kael immediately stopped. Shazmeen didn't have time to slow down and almost bumped into him again.

"Ouch!"

Kael glanced at her briefly, his expression still as cold as ice.

"What do you think?"

Shazmeen wondered how he could know what was in her heart.

"Then why?"

Kael was silent. He just glanced at her, then continued walking as if the conversation was not important at all. Shazmeen puffed her cheeks in annoyance, but still followed him from behind. Every time Kael quickened his pace, Shazmeen quickened hers too.

Kael stared at her blankly. "I just wanna to make sure of something."

Shazmeen swallowed. "What?"

Kael turned around, walking in the opposite direction. Shazmeen was shocked.

"Eh, eh, eh! Where are you going?!"

Shazmeen was stunned, then quickly turned around and chased after Kael again. "Hey! That's cheating!"

Kael disappeared in an instant, who knows where he went, leaving Shazmeen alone.