For Kariel, every corner of this city seemed monstrous and horrifying.
And although he knew it like the back of his hand…
He wasn’t used to it.
He had never managed to get used to it.
What was worst was that when looking from above, this feeling only intensified.
And observation from a height was an integral part of his work.
It was like forcing a person with a fear of heights to pilot a plane — frustrating to the point of absurdity.
Together with the icy, foul wind, all these sensations merged into one, crashing down on Kariel with a deafening roar.
“I see, yes,” Kariel whispered, shaking his head.
He gave his promise again to the nameless dead.
“I will not forget my oath.” Standing atop the grim tower, he began to rub his fingers along the blades of two swords.
Ghost was not behind him.
Fifteen minutes ago, he had disappeared, dissolving into the night.
In just a day and a half, he had perfectly mastered a technique that Kariel had honed for decades.
Now, Ghost fully lived up to his name.
A midnight ghost.
If he wanted, no one could find him on such a dark night.
This was a huge asset in his work.
Besides, Ghost possessed terrifying strength and speed.
At this thought, Kariel gave a silent smirk.
There was something complex in his smile.
He lowered his gaze.
Down below, a survivor that Ghost had missed was moving.
He exhaled quietly, stood up, and began to stretch his shoulders and arms.
Bones cracked, accompanied by a slight pain.
Kariel frowned in vexation, but it didn’t last long.
Soon his face became impassive again.
He was used to it.
And these pains will pass soon.
The time is near.
With a single leap, Kariel jumped down from the grim tower and, like a shadow, raced across the dark sky.
The piercing cold wind that struck his face was filled with tiny ice shards that mercilessly cut his skin.
Pain and numbness immediately began to torment his body, but the ghost remained impassive.
He landed easily, his feet touching the filthy ground, kicking up splashes.
The hem of his cloak slid across the grimy corner of a wall.
Two blades slipped out from his sleeves, and he approached the patrolling bandit quickly and silently.
The ghost had missed him before, but this time it didn’t matter.
A cold gleam, and blood gushed forth.
The wounded man’s eyes flew wide open, but the scream of pain and terror never left his lips — before he could make a sound, his throat was slashed by a massive wound.
Two strikes, two wounds — simple arithmetic.
A flick of the hand took a life — terrifyingly simple.
Violence.
The ghost sighed silently.
He pulled out the blades, supported the body, and dragged it to that same corner.
Closing the lifeless eyes, Kariel threw the corpse into a dark alley.
He didn’t need to clean up the blood — in the Underhive, there were many creatures thirsting for it.
He didn’t need to dispose of the body — the hungry beasts lurking in the darkness would come to the scent of blood on their own.
An artificially created ecosystem.
Cruel, efficient, and challenging human morality.
Just like Nostramo itself, like an absurd joke.
Kariel narrowed his eyes.
He heard quiet running above.
His expression unchanged, he took a step to the side, and the next second, a shadow crashed down from the sky.
“Kariel,” the shadow called quietly.
“I’m done.” “Good work, Ghost, but be more careful next time.” Kariel turned and pointed his blade at the corpse in the darkness.
“You need to fully check the patrol routes too.
The fourth post you took out was on his route.” Ghost pressed his lips together in displeasure.
He wanted to say something, but Kariel cut him off.
“No, don’t apologize.” “But I…” …Don’t apologize, Ghost.
Looking him in the eye, Kariel slowly and gently shook his head.
“You’ve officially started working; you’re gradually learning the nuances…
So don’t apologize to me.
I’m not responsible for your work.” “Responsible?..” Ghost frowned in bewilderment, looking a little upset.
“But I didn’t do everything perfectly, Kariel.” “Perfect is an absurd word, Ghost.
Everyone has their own definition.
You don’t need to be perfect by my understanding; you only need to be honest with yourself.” As usual, Ghost didn’t understand his words.
But he remembered them.
“To be honest with yourself.” He pondered this strange expression.
In the Nostramo language, there was no word with a similar meaning.
Kariel used a complex eight-syllable word to convey his thought precisely.
Ghost repeated it in his mind, and the next moment, a strange shiver ran through him.
The source of this feeling was elusive, as if it came from the void.
But it struck Ghost deeply.
His breathing remained steady, quiet, and cautious, but in his eyes, a dead silence stirred again.
“Until someone’s hand grabbed his wrist.
Ghost, trembling, lowered his head and saw two blue points flare and then fade.
“You need to learn to refuse them, Ghost,” Kariel said quietly.
“That instinct, gift, or curse that lets you see the future for a brief moment — it exists because of you.
You are its master.” He let go of his hand and added calmly: “Master it, alright?” Ghost nodded, confused, even forgetting to ask how Kariel knew about his ability.
Silence fell.
A cold wind blew.
The empty alleyway was already deserted.
In the dirty corner, shadows crawled in a dense mass, and after a moment, a quiet sound of chewing came.
…
Back on the same gargoyle, looking down at the square below, Kariel frowned.
They hadn’t worked on this square during the first half of the night; it was clearly meant for a performance.
Starting here now would be like scaring off the prey.
Before the main event, it wasn’t bad to practice on some gangs in another part of the city.
After all, the Great Purge was approaching, and the gangs had all imposed curfews on their territories, setting up posts and patrols.
“Their numbers don’t match…” Kariel said quietly.
He had no need to voice his thoughts.
It was a habit of his.
But there was someone who needed this view from the shadows.
That someone was now sitting behind the gargoyle, listening quietly.
“Such a deployment of forces has nothing to do with guarding the performance, Ghost.
They clearly came here with other intentions.” Kariel fell silent and looked at the center of the square.
There, out of nowhere, an elegant metal podium had appeared, on which the coat of arms of House Skraivok shone brightly.
“Even the coat of arms is made to glow.
So tasteless…
But…
placing so many people in advance…” “Did they already suspect something?” Kariel narrowed his eyes and became alert.
He carefully and thoroughly examined the houses with closed windows, then the empty square and every dark street around.
However, he found no other evidence.
Besides the obvious mismatch in numbers, nothing confirmed his terrible suspicion.
“Kariel?” At that moment, Ghost spoke quietly.
“What’s wrong?” “I think…” Ghost said uncertainly.
“Something’s wrong.” Kariel frowned sharply.
He certainly didn’t take Ghost’s “wrong” as a conclusion about the situation below.
Ghost hadn’t yet learned to recognize the hidden threat in the details.
But that didn’t mean he should ignore Ghost’s words.
“Another episode?” Kariel turned and asked seriously: “Two episodes in a short time?
Has that happened before, Ghost?
How do you feel?” Before he could finish, a blue light flashed in his eyes.
“No, no!” Ghost hastily stopped him.
“No, I just feel like someone…” He didn’t finish.
And Kariel saw Ghost’s face contort at that moment.
The next second, his perception of time slowed down, the second strangely split.
Kariel could have dodged instantly.
However, for some reason, he decided to stay put.
Ghost let out a low growl, swiftly extended his right hand, grabbed Kariel’s arm, and leaped sharply.
“And the split time immediately glued itself back together.
“Bah!” A muffled shot shattered the silence of the night.
The bandits didn’t react.
A huge bullet flew past, turning the gargoyle they had just been sitting on into a cloud of dust.
Ghost pulled him along, quickly moving away from the spot in a few leaps.
Kariel silently turned around and managed to see a black barrel being retracted from under the podium.
“Interesting.” He smirked silently.
Half a minute later, they stopped on the roof of a church a few hundred meters from the square.
Ghost set him down, looking at him anxiously, breathing heavily.
His heartbeat was clearly audible.
He was silent, but the question was written on his face.
And Kariel knew that with Ghost’s stamina, he couldn’t have tired from just a few jumps.
“I’m fine,” Kariel replied quietly.
“But it seems the head of House Skraivok isn’t the most patient man, Ghost.” Ghost nodded silently.
He didn’t understand what Kariel was implying.
His face was twisted with anger, slowly spreading across it.
“Calm down,” Kariel said with a slight smile.
“Remember what I taught you, Ghost?” After a long pause, Ghost replied: …..”Calmness is the deadliest weapon after the blade.” “Yes,” said Kariel, lifting his head.
“Calmness is the deadliest weapon after the blade, but that phrase has a second part.” “A second part?” “Yes…” Kariel stretched his lips into a tight smile, answering Ghost’s question.
“Anger can sometimes be more terrifying, if you know how to use it.” He turned, and the blades had already slipped from his sleeves.
The time is near?
No, the time has come.
Standing on the edge of the church, Kariel took a deep breath of the foul air.
Ghost stood behind him, silent.
The first was ready and determined, while the second knew nothing.
The night was still long, long enough for many things to happen.