His father's fist connected with his jaw. Blood sprayed across marble floors. His mother stood frozen, one hand pressed to her mouth, tears streaming down her face but feet rooted to the ground.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNgRG6KuNfp
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"Weak!" Another blow. "Pathetic!" The voice thundered through the dining hall.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRZdnpQBDRr
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Cel tried to speak, to beg, but his father's hands were already at his back, nails digging into divine flesh, tearing away the Moon Goddess's mark—90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2IndvcrAtU
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His eyes snapped open.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtoJ9Cqmc3x
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Ash-covered stone ceiling. Broken walls. The hollow silence of the Ashlands pressing in from all sides.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3YQNC5nETv
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His chest heaved, breath coming in short gasps. The nightmare clung to him like oil, coating his thoughts with remembered pain.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwkwxD9oq7X
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"You're awake."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYfi5shPoQd
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Cel's body jerked, his left hand instinctively reaching for Silent Moon before his mind caught up. The weapon materialized halfway before he registered the speaker.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNXnZj3cyOX
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Raven knelt beside him, one hand extended toward Cel's torso. Something dark and viscous coated his fingers - a sticky black mass that glistened faintly in the dim light filtering through the ruins.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaOOMuj5joo
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"Don't move," Raven said, his tone flat.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Kaqju1QOo
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Cel's gaze dropped to his own chest. His armor had been partially removed - the mantle and cloak set aside, the tunic pulled up to expose his ribs where the Ashlurker's claws had torn through flesh.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs1uakzPIX7
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The black substance covered the wounds in thick layers. It didn't smell like anything Cel recognized. Not medicinal herbs, not the acrid burn of cauterization. Just... earthy. Ancient, somehow.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPtbtNA1cxU
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"What is that?" His voice came out rougher than intended.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ00SHo9VsIp
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"Medicine." Raven's fingers worked with practiced efficiency, spreading more of the substance across a particularly deep gash. "Found it growing in the darker places. Don't know what it's called. But it works."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh4mdeHfU7Y
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The matter-of-fact delivery was oddly reassuring - proof that survival was possible even here. 90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZoztErcifo
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"How long was I—"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmf6fjJx7cw
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"A few hours. Maybe less." Raven's crimson eyes flicked to Cel's face, assessing. "You talk in your sleep."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvuhR0bNRLD
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Cel's jaw tightened. "What did I say?"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgbH0g2CkMa
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"Nothing clear." A pause as Raven applied more of the black substance to the wounds on Cel's shoulder. "Sounded like it wasn’t a pleasant dream."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpi0ZDwWqrz
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Cel looked away, focusing on the creature's corpse still coiled a few steps away.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSdksfVMfi8
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"Your wounds looked worse than they are," Raven continued, his tone unchanged. "Bled a lot. But the cuts weren't deep enough to do real damage. You got lucky."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBd27OGMT9z
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"Didn't feel lucky."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTGxEOFcWUi
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"Luck isn't about feeling." Raven sat back on his heels, examining his work. "You survived. That's what matters."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiK1zQXbpIU
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Cel's gaze tracked to his own body, really looking at it for the first time since the fight. The wounds were there - angry red lines where claws had opened flesh, burns from the worm's molten breath. But Raven was right. Nothing had been torn away. No exposed bone. No organs punctured.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2rFPnmvZ2W
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The burns on his left arm, which should have charred muscle down to bone, showed only reddened skin beneath the black coating.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkdQqYQFzJR
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"Your body's good," Raven said, following Cel's gaze. "Even for a Chosen."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtdxWH5eyGc
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Although it was not his own accomplishment, a kind of satisfaction settled in Cel's chest. The Moon Goddess had forged him this body - a body that could apparently endure more than he'd given it credit for.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgJsSU8lwqs
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His gaze drifted to Raven's eyes. Crimson iris against black where white should be.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhiJOSI53NG
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The question burned in his throat before he could stop it. "Your eyes. What happened to them?"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl2VQerW6DF
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Raven froze.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYHSiwbpl3u
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The reaction was subtle - just a momentary stillness in his movements, a fractional widening of those red eyes. 90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKC2qKn9bSa
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"What?" The single word carried genuine confusion.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaQLBzXRpNx
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Cel's jaw set. "The black. Where white should be. What caused it?"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡioTiDDIjot
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For a long moment, Raven simply stared at him. The silence stretched, heavy with something Cel couldn't name.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEKzClamNwo
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Then Raven's expression shifted - not quite a frown, not quite suspicion. Something caught between the two.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnKbXBkL35F
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"You really don't know?" The question came quiet, careful. "You can't... feel it?"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyipxP1VEXQ
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"Feel what?"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl7wFQzZ5L4
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Raven's eyes narrowed, studying Cel with an intensity that made his skin prickle. As if seeing him for the first time. As if everything that had come before had been surface observation and now Raven was actually looking.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8gji9G7rWI
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"The aura," Raven said finally, each word deliberate. "The wrongness. The disgust that comes off me like heat off stone."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB21ZTYW6Sd
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Cel blinked. "What are you talking about?"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiT9bFcDi18
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Something flickered across Raven's face - too fast to identify, but there. Real emotion breaking through that carefully maintained neutrality.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMp2tWIfxLX
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"You seriously can't sense it." Not a question this time. A statement of dawning realization. "The corruption. The stain. The thing that marks me as—" He cut himself off abruptly.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2u1QUvMDtk
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"Marks you as what?"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡniDR9snmYI
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Raven remained silent, his gaze locked on Cel's face as if searching for deception. Finding none seemed to disturb him more than anything else.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyXRRT0wq1H
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"Cursed," he said finally. The word dropped between them like a stone into still water. "I'm one of the Cursed."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJVfUG3rGgT
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The declaration hit Cel like a physical blow.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6x7Uin2yHo
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His breath caught. His body went rigid. Every childhood warning, every whispered story, every nightmare used to frighten disobedient children - all of it crashed through his mind at once.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLVNHjgwqod
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'Behave, or you'll end up as a Cursed.'90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCrfEKCTLTB
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The Cursed were the absolute bottom of society. Lower than slaves, lower than criminals. People - if they could still be called that - who bear marks of corruption - twisted flesh, cracked skin, signs that divine grace has left them forever.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX8RvnmHbq7
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Cel had never met one before. No noble child did. The Cursed were exiled from civilization, driven into the wilderness or hunted down by Chosen who believed killing them earned them the favor of their god.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe3CoNJgJ4g
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And now one stood before him, had been applying medicine to his wounds with practiced hands.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRyKoB3k4cb
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The realization should have triggered fear. Should have sent Cel scrambling for Silent Moon, putting distance between himself and this corrupted thing wearing human skin.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9tnOLlu3Cx
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But all he felt was... confusion.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2ry6ocimbW
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"You helped me," Cel said slowly. "Even though you're—even though—"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwuuHBS8uFR
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"Even though I'm supposed to be a monster?" Raven's lips twisted. "Shocking, isn't it?"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnhKsAqwDO8
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The bitterness in those words cut deep. Cel had heard that same tone in his own voice, directed at his father, his family, everyone who'd judged him as worthless before casting him aside.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV4pto102B9
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"I don't understand," Cel admitted. "The stories say the Cursed are... wrong. Dangerous. That losing divine favor corrupts more than just the body."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSknBlypJhf
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"Stories tell a lot of things." Raven moved to the broken wall, his silhouette sharp against the gray light filtering through.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDCLDSyU6z1
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"But the marks—the corruption—"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvYTQjHnPwz
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"Are real." His jaw clenched. "But it doesn't make us monsters. Just... abandoned."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ6H3kBCp92
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The word resonated in Cel's chest. Abandoned. He knew that feeling intimately - the crushing weight of being cast aside by those who should have protected you.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6PTyFTJcQK
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"How?" The question escaped before Cel could stop it. "How do people become Cursed?"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Ba3VkCv2a
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Raven's gaze grew distant. 90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvlpqRf2plQ
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"Different ways."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡibmuOSQA2D
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The silence that followed made it clear - this topic was not open for discussion. Whatever had happened, whatever had led to Raven becoming Cursed, he had no intention of sharing.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv2VHa6rdjR
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Cel recognized that wall. He'd built enough of his own.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9PkCknPYV6
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He shifted against the wall, trying to find a more comfortable position. The black medicine pulled at his skin where it had begun to dry.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM6pY2guoMN
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Raven's gaze fixed on him, those crimson eyes sharp. "You didn't."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAnAk5nhS1f
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"Didn't what?"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxhqSUxjWSv
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"Didn’t know that I am a Cursed." Raven tilted his head slightly. 90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSyhpaYTm7S
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He moved closer, studying Cel with unsettling intensity. 90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM87fTVDbf4
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"The aura alone should have told you. The wrongness. The revulsion. And Chosen feel it even stronger." He paused. "But you don't seem affected at all."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXwbtfFuiTS
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'Shit.' Cel's mind raced. This was dangerous ground. If Raven realized he couldn't sense divine energy, it would expose a critical weakness - one that could get him killed.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJY9KwtWrEl
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"I'm just—" Cel forced his expression neutral. "I'm controlling it. The reaction."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhDRV9dkejS
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The lie felt weak even as it left his mouth.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡazMoEkatdt
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Raven's eyes narrowed. "Really?"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJDhTU2o5wR
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"Yes."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDXhDKQtHBB
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"You're not even trying to maintain distance.” Raven's tone remained neutral, but pointed. "Most Chosen can barely stand being in the same room. Need space. Fresh air. Something to cut through the wrongness."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeEdJ1tQxkU
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Heat crawled up Cel's neck. His hands curled into fists.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7y40riVrk4
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"Maybe I'm just better at controlling my reactions than most."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡczYkiDJWHn
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"Or maybe," Raven said slowly, "you can't sense it at all."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYL5PlOgtpb
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The corner of his mouth twitched. "That's ridiculous."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQZ9UqfkOTg
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"Is it?" Raven gestured to himself. "You asked what happened to my eyes. If you could sense the aura, you wouldn't need to ask. You'd know what I was the moment you saw me."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpyBfU9E7kX
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"I was just—I didn't want to assume—"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe6Y99EJjIl
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"You're a terrible liar." Something that might have been amusement flickered across Raven's face. 90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRgE1CwjRvM
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Shame burned in Cel's chest. Even this - even the simple act of hiding his deficiency - was something he couldn't do properly.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWJj9pXemwA
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"So what if I can't sense it?" The words came out sharper than intended. "It doesn't change anything."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJzBH10l2hh
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"Doesn't it?" Raven's expression shifted, genuine curiosity replacing accusation. "Every human can sense the Cursed. It's not learned. Not trained. Just… part of what makes one human." He paused. "But you can't."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGeoowl8MUH
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Cel looked away, fixing his gaze on the creature's corpse across the room. Anywhere but those crimson eyes that saw too much.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHf4ZCXzaFY
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"What about Divine Energy?"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv8rty0ognH
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"I can sense it," Cel answered quickly. Too quickly.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx8Odyrbpsj
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“You should really work on your acting skills.” Raven's voice came quieter now. 90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPQJixgRiYw
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Cel's throat tightened. His hands clenched harder, nails digging into his palms.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRDgGgJxem5
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"It's pathetic, isn't it?" The words came out bitter. "A Chosen One who can't even sense the most basic thing every human has."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDe8da8Sxc7
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"That's not the word I'd use."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvG20rmxszW
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"Then what would you call it?"90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwbTM6PyAH9
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"Impossible." Raven moved to lean against the opposite wall, his posture relaxing slightly. "You're blessed by the Moon Goddess. Can manifest divine artifacts. But can't sense the energy that powers them." He shook his head. "That shouldn't work."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWdiZ0ENcF8
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"But it does." Cel's jaw clenched. "Somehow."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzdHrAkmhsM
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"Yes. Somehow." Raven studied him with that unsettling intensity. 90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAq2gzwymdO
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"Does this mean something's wrong with me?" Cel's voice came flat.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf7lj45VtkF
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"I don't know.” Raven’s honesty was brutal. “I've never heard of a Chosen who couldn't sense Divine Energy. It should be impossible."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJzYGRIt8m0
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"Everything about me seems to be impossible lately."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡneFJFloRWj
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Raven simply stared at him. Then he exhaled slowly - not quite a laugh, but close.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGIKj2hy8cJ
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Silence pressed heavy between them.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6IR2qelte2
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Cel studied the young man before him - the exhaustion carved into his features, the way he held himself like someone perpetually ready for violence. A year alone in this nightmare. Hunted by monsters and abandoned by the divine.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYIx0mu5tYQ
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And yet he'd still helped a stranger. 90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw2VVkXOomw
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"Why did you help me?" Cel asked finally. "Even though I'm a Chosen One. Even though most Chosen would hunt you."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZgXFgVAXx2
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Raven was silent for a long moment, those crimson eyes unreadable.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjYX4j4I9YR
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"Because you looked at me and saw a person." His voice came quiet. Raw. "Not corruption to be destroyed. Not a threat to be eliminated. Just... another human trying to survive." He paused. "Not even my family did that."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqfvX4veYQw
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The honesty in those words struck deeper than any blade. A glimpse beneath the careful neutrality Raven maintained like armor.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtNQ5HCVRhK
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Cel understood that loneliness. Had felt it himself beneath his father's rage while his mother and brother watched in silence - present but absent, seeing his suffering but not seeing him.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmxFntOIrYE
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"I'm sorry," he said. "For what happened to you. For what you lost."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhPC6SvIVVA
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"Don't be." Raven's expression hardened again. "Sorry doesn't change anything."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvJPHxTuUvr
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"No," Cel agreed. "It doesn't."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv40tq8F2ex
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Another silence. But this one felt different. Less heavy. More like an understanding passing between two people who'd both been broken by circumstances beyond their control.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoLwziwbM1X
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"Your wounds will heal faster with the medicine," Raven said, breaking the quiet. "But you need rest. Let your body recover."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9i6vsaDyGS
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Cel glanced down at the black substance coating his injuries.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa9WY5YF8yo
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"Thank you.”90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ11b8iEPz5a
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Raven paused, looking back at him. For a moment, something almost like warmth crossed his features. Then it was gone, replaced by that familiar neutral mask.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwCIvHYXIkC
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"Rest," he said. "I'll keep watch."90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjm4Cez7FqF
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Cel wanted to protest, but exhaustion pulled at him like an undertow. 90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIdezCZpzla
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"Call me if something happens," he said instead.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT0Ei5PS0Fv
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Raven nodded once, moving to position himself near the entrance gap where he could see approaching threats.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZAsuig8QE0
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Cel leaned back against the wall, feeling cool stone against his spine. His eyes tracked to where Raven stood silhouetted against the gray light beyond.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrEggRNLxbs
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Cursed. Abandoned by the gods. Hunted by society. Marked with corruption. 90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgRyRc427Xw
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Yet for the first time since entering this cursed realm, Cel felt something close to safety.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpOHecNq2ya
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Not because the danger had diminished.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTMqTSRMm47
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But because he was no longer facing it alone.90Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwkUVnngW0w
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'Maybe the gods make mistakes too.'1234 copyright protection86ＰＥＮＡＮＡSflBpZawvV 尼

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