Syed_Ariz

Requiem of the Fallen
Once called a prodigy, Ariz al-Suleiman was cast aside when his power was sealed. Betrayed, beaten, and left for dead, he awakens with a mysterious system and a second chance.

But the world doesn’t forgive. And neither does he.

When the Church burns his home and kills his grandfather, Ariz sheds his humanity. No longer a hero—he becomes a force of vengeance, bound to destroy everything that wronged him.

With blood as his path and demons as his future, Ariz’s war is just beginning.

THRONE OF SHADOW AND SIN

Chapter 25 – Whispers in the Silk

Part 1: The Job No One Takes

Dawn scraped across the sky like an old sword being drawn.

The outer gate guards of Almaarad didn't speak when they saw him. One of them—a spearman with a crooked jaw—stared at the figure walking calmly up the southern path, boots leaving dark prints on pale stone.

Kael's coat was streaked with blood.

His hood was down. His eyes—unnervingly still.

In his left hand: a cloth-wrapped bundle.

Four long, silver-furred tails hung from the cloth. Each one still bore the faint twitch of death magic lingering inside elite bodies.

Inside the Iron Tusk guild hall, early drinkers froze mid-sip when the door opened.

Kael entered quietly, walked through the silence, and laid the blood-stained wrap on the front desk with a soft, wet sound.

The clerk looked up slowly. "All four. Alone."

A blade sharper than pride hung in the air.

The man behind Kael at the doorway whispered to someone too loudly, "That's him. The one from the quarry. From the beetles. The wolves now."

Someone else murmured, "No squad. No team. Not even armor."

Kael turned away before the silver was fully counted.

The clerk didn't stop him this time.

Kael passed the bounty boards without looking.

He headed straight to the Red-Tagged Wall—where the jobs didn't wait for hunters. They waited for corpses.

The desk clerk saw the color and paled. "No."

[Quest: Vel'Zheran Brood Nest – Tier-3 x3]Location: Shrine of the Faint Star – Lower CatacombsStatus: Unclaimed for 29 daysWarning: Illusions. Neurotoxin. Whisper-lures. Use fire, avoid mirrors.

"Kael—people lose their minds down there."

The clerk sighed. "No one comes back sane."

Kael met his eyes for the first time.

"Then I won't come back sane," he said softly.

Kael turned, the new hunt tucked in his coat.

Behind him, the whisper started again.