Page 1 —
Night falls on the village.
But the darkness above is not natural.
A golden fissure splits the clouds, spilling blinding light like fresh blood from a wound.
Villagers drop to their knees immediately, trembling.
Kael, still bleeding from his wounds, looks up.
A figure descends through the fracture —
delicate, elegant, terrifying.
Luneva — 99th Goddess.
A low-ranked deity, but still far beyond mortal imagination.
Her feet never touch the ground.
Her dress floats like living smoke.
Her eyes glow with soft, cold cruelty.
> Luneva:
"Two Purity Hounds dead… in a place like this?"
Her smile is thin.
Beautiful.
Deadly.
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Page 2 — The Divine Scent
Luneva walks through the village without looking at the people prostrated before her.
Every step she takes releases a faint sweet scent —
and every villager she passes starts coughing blood,
bodies weakening like their souls are being drained.
Kael watches from afar.
He tightens his fists.
His shadow shifts uneasily beneath him, reacting to her presence.
She stops near the crushed hounds and kneels gracefully, touching the broken skull.
Her eyes widen a fraction.
> Luneva:
"This… isn't mortal strength."
"Abyssal residue… how delightful."
She stands, turning her head slowly, like a predator tasting the air.
> Luneva:
"Come out, little impurity."
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Page 3 — Cornered
Kael steps forward.
Not because he wants to.
But because the villagers are staring at him with terror, whispering.
He can feel the fear spreading.
He knows hiding is pointless.
Luneva's eyes trail over him.
She looks at him the way someone looks at a rare insect.
> Luneva:
"Ah. You."
Kael clenches his fists.
His ribs ache.
His shoulder burns.
He can barely stand.
But her presence…
it crushes him.
His bones feel heavier.
Breathing grows difficult.
> Kael (thinking):
"This… is what killed my parents."
The curse inside him writhes violently.
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Page 4 — Grace and Cruelty
Luneva appears before him in a single heartbeat.
Her fingers grip his chin, lifting his face.
He tries to pull away —
but his body refuses to move.
Her voice is gentle.
Almost loving.
> Luneva:
"You carry a forbidden taint.
Do you know how rare that is in humans?"
Her smile widens.
> Luneva:
"You will be a marvelous specimen."
She raises her hand —
a thin needle of divine energy forming at her fingertip, aimed at his heart.
Kael's shadow flares in panic —
black tendrils lash out, but the goddess waves her hand lazily.
The shadows shatter like broken glass.
Pain explodes through Kael's body.
He collapses to one knee, coughing blood.
> Kael (thinking):
"She… broke the shadow…?"
Luneva watches him struggle, amused.
> Luneva:
"Let's take you apart slowly."
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Page 5 — The Curse Awakens
The divine needle descends.
Kael's vision blurs.
The world spins.
His heartbeat becomes a drum of pure terror.
The voice inside him whispers —
louder than ever before.
> Voice:
"Let me in."
Kael grits his teeth.
> Kael: "No…"
The goddess touches his chest.
Pain.
White-hot.
Blinding.
His scream tears the night apart.
The shadow beneath him convulses —
splits —
rises into a monstrous shape, howling.
Black veins crawl up Kael's neck.
His eyes turn pitch black with a single crimson ring.
> Voice:
"YOU CANNOT FIGHT GODS AS A HUMAN."
The shadow surges upward, smashing into Luneva with a force that cracks the earth.
For the first time,
the goddess flinches.
Her smile fades.
> Luneva:
"…Interesting."
The cliff behind her collapses from the impact.
Kael falls forward, exhausted, half-conscious.
The shadow coils protectively around him, ready to fight.
And somewhere in the divine halls above,
Seraphina opens her eyes — angered, intrigued, and afraid.
→ End of Chapter 5
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