Chapter 18.4 – Mercy Is a Weakness

The training ground had changed.

No more summoned creatures. No more target dummies.

Now there was a person.

A real one.

Kneeling.

Tied and gagged.

Braydon stared at him, fists clenched, the weight of floating stones circling slowly behind him like moons in orbit.

"What is this?" he asked.

Riven stood to the side, calm as ever. "A trial."

Braydon narrowed his eyes. "He's unarmed."

"And so are your enemies before they strike," Riven replied. "Do you hesitate for the innocent… or only for those who look innocent?"

Braydon said nothing.

The man on the ground trembled, eyes wide.

"Is he dangerous?" Braydon asked.

Riven smiled faintly. "Does it matter?"

Braydon raised his hand.

The stones responded instantly, rising into the air with deadly tension.

His power was stronger now. Controlled. Focused.

He could end this with a flick of his wrist.

But something in his chest twisted.

Pate's voice.

KJ's laughter.

Shoto's fury.

Elizabeth's calm.

He lowered his hand.

"I'm not a killer," he said.

Riven's smile vanished.

"Not yet."

He stepped forward — fast — and with a single wave of his hand, the man vanished into mist.

An illusion.

A test.

And Braydon had failed it.

Riven circled him slowly. "You still have too much heart. That will get you killed."

Braydon looked down at his hands. "Maybe."

Riven leaned in. "Next time, it won't be a test."

Above them, the sky cracked — a flicker of red light split across the clouds.

Something was shifting in Valoria.

And everyone would feel it soon.