The Name in the Dark
In the kingdom of Noctyrr, where shadows drank the moonlight and silence ruled louder than war, one name was spoken only in whispers Lord Veinyard.
Born beneath a blood-red eclipse, he was not crowned by birth, but by fear, loyalty, and unmatched intellect. His enemies never saw him coming only the aftermath. Cities fell without siege, empires bent without battle, and kings negotiated rather than challenge his gaze.
They called him tyrant.They called him devil.But those who served him knew the truth…
He was inevitable.
And inevitability does not announce itself.It arrives and the world rearranges around it.
Chapter One
The City That Slept Standing
Noctyrr did not sleep.
It merely closed its eyes.
Black towers clawed at the clouds like frozen lightning, their windows glowing faintly with ward-light and torch flame. Stone bridges stretched across endless chasms where fog churned like restless spirits. Bells rang only when someone had died — and in Noctyrr, bells rang often.
Yet this night was different.
The streets were empty.
Not from curfew.Not from fear of crime.But from instinct.
Merchants shuttered shops before dusk. Taverns closed early. Even thieves stayed indoors. When Noctyrr felt wrong, the wise listened.
High above the city, in the eastern spire of the Obsidian Citadel, a lone figure stood at a balcony of black glass.
Lord Veinyard watched the city without blinking.
His cloak fell in dark folds behind him, woven from shadow-thread and lined with crimson silk. The sigil of the Veinyard house a thorned crown encircling a blood-drop gleamed faintly on his shoulder clasp. His hair was jet-black, pulled back in a warrior's tie, and his eyes… his eyes were wrong.
Not in shape.
In depth.
They did not merely look at things. They measured them.
Behind him, the chamber doors opened silently.
"Three envoys from the southern coalition," said a voice. "Two generals. One priest."
Veinyard did not turn. "How long before they betray each other?"
The man hesitated. "An hour, perhaps two."
"Good," Veinyard said calmly. "Seat them together."
The voice shifted uneasily. "Together, my lord?"
"Yes." He turned now, gaze sharp as cut glass. "Let them discover who they truly fear."