The wolves hesitated.
Their crimson eyes remained fixed on the young man standing between them and their prey. Three of their pack already lay dead, their bodies scattered across the cavern floor.
Kael slowly exhaled.
His grip on Eclipse relaxed instead of tightening.
The lessons Lyra had taught him echoed through his mind.
"Strength defeats the weak."
"Technique defeats the strong."
"Wisdom defeats everything."
The lead wolf snarled before lunging.
Kael didn't move.
Not immediately.
At the last possible instant, he shifted half a step to the side.
The wolf's jaws snapped shut on empty air.
Eclipse rose in a smooth arc.
A single slash.
The beast landed behind him before collapsing, its body split by a clean cut across the neck.
No wasted movement.
No wasted strength.
Another wolf attacked from the right.
Kael twisted his wrist.
Steel met claw.
Instead of blocking the full force, he redirected it just enough for the wolf to lose its balance.
His knee drove into its ribs.
Before it could recover, Eclipse pierced its throat.
The remaining wolves circled cautiously.
They no longer saw prey.
They saw another predator.
The elderly Hunter stared in disbelief.
"Impossible..."
"He's just one person..."
The girl beside him whispered, "He's winning..."
Kael activated Void Sense.
Instantly, every wolf appeared in his mind as glowing silhouettes.
He could feel their breathing.
Their heartbeats.
Even the tension building in their muscles before they attacked.
Left.
He sidestepped.
A wolf flew past.
Behind.
Without looking, Kael swung Eclipse backward.
The blade struck precisely where the beast's neck met its shoulder.
It collapsed instantly.
Another notification appeared.
Shadow Wolf Eliminated.
Void Energy +2
Evolution Progress: 101%
Excess Evolution Energy Stored.
Kael frowned briefly.
"So progress continues even after evolving..."
The System didn't answer.
Five wolves attacked together.
The old Hunter shouted.
"Look out!"
Kael planted one foot firmly against the ground.
His breathing slowed.
Void Breathing.
Everything around him seemed to move more slowly.
He stepped forward.
Not away.
Into the center of the attack.
Eclipse danced through the air.
One slash.
Two.
Three.
The movements flowed together like water.
By the time Kael emerged from the pack, five bodies struck the ground almost simultaneously.
Silence filled the cavern.
Only eleven wolves remained.
Then...
Their leader howled.
The pack immediately turned and fled into the darkness.
Kael didn't chase them.
A cornered beast fought desperately.
A fleeing beast carried fear.
Fear spread.
He preferred that.
The battlefield became quiet.
The remaining Hunters continued staring at him.
No one spoke.
Finally, the elderly man leaned heavily on his spear before giving Kael a respectful bow.
"You have our deepest gratitude."
Kael sheathed Eclipse.
"You should treat your wounded first."
The old man nodded.
"Leona."
The teenage girl hurried toward the injured Hunter, quickly wrapping his bleeding shoulder with strips torn from her cloak.
Kael observed the scene quietly.
These people weren't weak.
They were simply exhausted.
Their supplies lay scattered across the cavern.
One wagon had been completely destroyed.
Several wooden crates had been ripped apart.
The old man noticed Kael examining the battlefield.
"We were transporting medicine to Frontier Outpost Seven."
"A monster migration caught us by surprise."
Kael frowned.
"A migration?"
"Yes."
The Hunter's expression darkened.
"Magical beasts throughout Ravenfall have become unusually aggressive during the past month."
"They're leaving their territories."
"Attacking villages."
"Even approaching the city walls."
Kael immediately remembered the dragon's words.
"The prison weakens whenever I awaken."
Was it connected?
Before he could ask another question, the old Hunter spoke again.
"I don't believe we've met."
"My name is Gareth."
"Captain of the Third Expedition Unit."
Kael hesitated.
If they learned he was supposed to be dead...
Questions would follow.
He answered carefully.
"My name is Kael."
Nothing more.
Gareth didn't press further.
Instead, he smiled.
"Regardless of where you came from..."
"You saved our lives."
He reached into one of the surviving crates and removed a leather pouch.
"Please accept this."
Kael looked inside.
Several silver coins.
A handful of healing herbs.
And a folded map.
"I can't."
"You need these more than I do."
Gareth shook his head firmly.
"A Hunter always repays a life debt."
"If you refuse..."
"You insult those we've lost today."
Kael looked toward the three bodies covered with cloaks.
After a brief silence, he accepted the pouch.
"Thank you."
Gareth smiled.
"That's better."
Leona suddenly approached.
She couldn't have been older than sixteen.
She looked at Kael with obvious admiration.
"I've never seen anyone fight like that."
"You didn't even look scared."
Kael gave a small smile.
"I was."
She blinked.
"You were?"
"Courage isn't the absence of fear."
"It's moving despite it."
She quietly repeated those words to herself.
As the surviving Hunters gathered their remaining supplies, Gareth unfolded the map.
"We're returning to Ravenfall."
He pointed toward a route leading out of the cavern.
"There's an old elevator used by mining guilds several miles ahead."
"It connects to the surface."
Kael's eyes narrowed slightly.
The surface.
He was finally close.
Very close.
Gareth rolled the map shut.
"You saved us."
"The least we can do is guide you out of the Abyss."
Kael looked toward the tunnel leading upward.
Beyond it lay Ravenfall.
The city that believed he had died during the Hunter Trial.
The city where Marcus and the others were likely being praised as survivors.
He slowly closed his hand around the hilt of Eclipse.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Then..."
"Let's return."
Far above them, within the towering walls of Ravenfall City, celebration banners still hung over the Hunter Association.
The names of the Trial survivors had already been announced.
Among them...
Marcus Vale.
But one name had been permanently removed from the records.
Kael Draven.
Status: Deceased.
None of them knew the truth.
The boy they had betrayed was already climbing back toward the surface.
And he was no longer the same person they had thrown into the Abyss.