Chapter 5: The Phantom's Game
The air in Aelthar Academy was tense that morning. Rumors swirled among the students: whispers of a dark organization, the Phantom, and mysterious events that had inexplicably prevented disasters across the kingdom. Everyone had theories everyone except Cael Renard, who quietly observed from his usual bench in the courtyard.
Even Kryos Valen could feel the stirrings of unease. Over the past weeks, every plan he had attempted against the Phantom or even to expose him had failed. Every time, shadows moved faster, traps appeared where none should exist, and the so-called villain remained untouchable.
"You've been very lucky, Valen," a student whispered to Kryos. "But luck runs out eventually."
Kryos' gaze flicked toward Cael, whose expression was blank. "I know," Kryos muttered under his breath. "And I think I know why."
Meanwhile, by nightfall, Cael had already mobilized the Umbra Circle. Reports had come in: a secret cabal of nobles and corrupt mages planned to assassinate a high-ranking official and destabilize the kingdom. The operation would require careful planning, precise execution, and absolute secrecy.
"Targets located," Liora reported. "They are heavily guarded, but we have an advantage. Your plan, Master Cael?"
He studied the map of the city, each street, alley, and rooftop memorized. "Divide into three squads. One to create distractions, one to intercept reinforcements, and one my squad will infiltrate directly. Speed and stealth are everything."
By midnight, shadows swallowed the city streets. The Umbra Circle moved like living darkness, dismantling guards, subduing enemies, and neutralizing threats without a single innocent harmed.
Above them, a figure watched from a rooftop Kryos. He had followed a lead, convinced he could finally confront the Phantom. What he saw instead were shadows acting with unnatural coordination. Every step of Cael's plan was executed flawlessly, almost as if the entire city bent to his will.
Kryos' eyes widened. "Impossible…" he muttered. "No ordinary Phantom could control this… this level of precision…"
By the time the operation ended, the cabal had been eliminated, their schemes erased, and the city's leaders remained blissfully unaware of the danger. The Phantom had struck again silent, invisible, untouchable.
Back in his dormitory, Cael recorded the night's events. He glanced at a parchment, marking Kryos as a potential long-term rival. A smirk appeared on his face.
"Kryos is curious," he mused. "Good. A nemesis makes the game interesting. But he will never discover the truth not yet."
He leaned back, gazing out at the moonlit city. The kingdom slept, unaware of the battles fought in shadows, unaware that a fourteen-year-old noble boy commanded a secret army, directing justice from the darkness.
And in that quiet, perfect balance between light and shadow, Cael Renard smiled.
Because in the shadows, he was untouchable.