The First Cut
The silence in the grand hall was suffocating.
Every eye in the room was on Kaito, waiting for him to choose.
On his left, the disciple from the Hidden Serpent Sect—bloodied, barely conscious, but still clinging to life. A trained killer, just like him.
On his right, the child—no training, no strength, just wide, terrified eyes pleading for mercy.
Wu-Jin sat on his throne, watching like a god testing his creation. The masked disciples lining the hall were still, their presence more oppressive than the shadows clinging to the walls.
This was no simple test.
This was a declaration.
Kill one, and he would be marked as theirs.
Refuse, and he would not leave this hall alive.
But Kaito knew something they didn't.
He wasn't here to join them.
He was here to learn their weaknesses.
And he had just found one.
---
A Blade Against His Throat
Kaito exhaled slowly, stepping toward the two prisoners.
He crouched before the child first, examining him. The boy's body was trembling, his lips bloodied from where he had bitten down in terror.
Kaito placed a hand on the boy's shoulder, leaning in.
His voice was barely a whisper.
"Don't move."
The boy's breath hitched, but he nodded ever so slightly.
Kaito stood and turned to the Hidden Serpent disciple.
This one was harder to read. His body was broken, but his spirit wasn't.
That made things complicated.
Kaito reached into his robe and withdrew a dagger—a small, curved blade, its edge gleaming even in the dim light.
Wu-Jin's lips curled into a pleased smirk.
But that smirk wouldn't last long.
Because Kaito didn't play by their rules.
---
A Choice That Wasn't One
In a single, fluid motion, Kaito drove the dagger downward.
Straight into the wooden floor.
Silence.
The tension in the room snapped like a drawn bowstring.
The masked disciples stiffened, their hands inching toward their weapons. The silver-haired assassin beside him tensed, her eyes narrowing.
Wu-Jin's smirk vanished.
Kaito's voice was calm, almost lazy.
"You said I had to kill one of them, right?"
His fingers wrapped around the handle of the dagger, twisting it deeper into the floor.
"But you never said how."
Wu-Jin's expression darkened. "Explain."
Kaito straightened, dusting off his robe.
"The moment I kill one of them, I become yours. That's what you want. Loyalty, through blood."
He gestured at the bound prisoners.
"But there's a problem."
His gaze flickered toward the Hidden Serpent disciple.
"This guy? He's already dead."
Wu-Jin's fingers drummed against the armrest of his throne. "Elaborate."
Kaito sighed, shaking his head.
"He's a disciple of the Hidden Serpent Sect. You think they won't retaliate if one of their own is executed by an outsider?"
Wu-Jin's eyes narrowed.
"The only reason he's alive is because they wanted to test me. And if I kill him, they'll have their answer."
Kaito turned to the boy.
"And this kid? Too young. Too weak. You kill him, you prove nothing except that you can make a man slaughter a helpless child."
His fingers curled around the dagger handle once more, yanking it free from the floor.
He let it dangle between his fingers, his tone casual.
"You want proof of loyalty? Give me an opponent worth killing."
---
A Dangerous Game
Wu-Jin leaned back, studying him. The silence stretched unbearably.
Then—
Laughter.
Low at first, then rising into a deep, amused chuckle.
Wu-Jin clapped his hands together, his grin returning.
"Fascinating."
The masked disciples remained motionless, but the air in the room shifted.
Kaito had bought himself time.
But that didn't mean he was safe.
Wu-Jin gestured toward the silver-haired assassin.
"Zhen, what do you think?"
She hesitated, then stepped forward.
"Clever," she admitted. "But he's just delaying the inevitable."
Wu-Jin's grin widened. "True."
He snapped his fingers.
The Hidden Serpent disciple's body slumped to the side.
Dead.
Kaito didn't even see the attack—just a thin needle protruding from the man's neck. Instant. Precise.
His grip on the dagger tightened.
Wu-Jin's voice was almost playful.
"You're right. The Hidden Serpent Sect would retaliate." He tapped his chin. "Which is why I had already planned to send his corpse back as a warning."
Kaito hid his irritation.
He had miscalculated.
But at least he hadn't been the one to do the killing.
Wu-Jin turned his attention back to Kaito.
"I like you," he mused. "You think fast. You refuse to be controlled. But…" His grin sharpened.
"You're still just a pawn."
Kaito smirked, despite the tension in his chest.
"I've been called worse."
Wu-Jin clapped his hands.
"In that case—let's see if you can survive what's coming next."
The doors at the back of the hall burst open.
A figure strode in.
Tall. Armored. Eyes gleaming like a predator.
Kaito recognized him instantly.
Bai Long.
The Butcher of the Eastern Provinces.
A monster in human skin.
And the man who had once, in the original story, butchered an entire village just to prove a point.
Kaito's smirk didn't falter.
But inside—
He knew he was in deep, deep shit.