The rain fell like ash.
It hissed against the shattered stones of Eredale, turning dust into mud and smoke into steam. The once-prosperous border town was now nothing but a graveyard — burned fields, silent homes, and corpses lining the streets.
Kael Ardent walked among them without slowing down.
His boots sank into the wet earth, the faint stench of iron clinging to his cloak. His face was calm, his eyes colder than the storm. The fires of the raid still glowed in the distance, painting the clouds red. Behind him, the bodies of the men who had once been his comrades lay scattered — knights, bandits, villagers, all the same now.
He didn't remember how long he'd been walking.
He only knew one thing — he should've been dead.
A deep gash ran across his chest, where the captain's blade had pierced through armor and bone. Yet the wound had closed, leaving behind only a faint mark and a sickening pulse beneath his skin. Every beat felt wrong — as though his heart no longer belonged to him.
Kael stopped before a cracked mirror half-buried in mud. His reflection flickered under the lightning's flash. For a moment, he saw something else staring back — eyes like liquid void, veins crawling black under pale flesh.
Then came the whisper.
"Do you want to live?"
The voice wasn't from the storm. It came from inside him — soft, cold, and impossibly ancient.
He didn't answer.
"Your blood was worthy," the voice murmured. "Your rage… exquisite. I can give you strength, Kael Ardent. But there is a price."
Kael's hand clenched around his sword hilt. His mind flashed with the image of his fallen unit — their screams, their betrayal, their faces twisted in the firelight.
A faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips. "Then I've already paid enough."
The ground trembled. Shadows spread from his feet like ink in water, curling around his body. His reflection in the mirror vanished — replaced by a void with burning white eyes.
A black sigil carved itself into his chest, pulsing once, twice… then silence.
[System Awakening Detected]
Entity: The Hollow Curse
Stage: I – Rebirth
Host: Kael Ardent
Synchronization: 12%
Kael staggered back as the world tilted. Power — raw, violent, and hungry — surged through his veins. His heart thundered like a war drum, every beat whispering that same phrase:
"Feed me…"
He gritted his teeth, fighting the urge to scream. The rain turned crimson for an instant, as if the sky itself bled. When the light faded, Kael stood still, breathing heavily.
The wound was gone. His strength had returned — but so had the hunger.
He looked toward the burning horizon where the raiders had fled.
If the curse demanded to be fed, he would feed it on the guilty.
Without a word, Kael lifted his sword and started walking toward the flames.
The night followed him — and the sky wept blood once more.