The rain had stopped.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcYCUdnEb0Q
Morning light bled faintly through the trees, a dull gray that barely warmed the forest floor. Mist curled around the roots like restless spirits. Somewhere nearby, birds chirped cautiously—as if even they feared to break the silence.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ64UNC0u4dC
Bjorn stirred.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlwQcOghncB
His body ached like he'd been trampled by fate itself. His eyelids fluttered, crusted with dried blood and mud. He was still at the base of that tree—the same cursed tree he'd chosen last night. Its bark now dug coldly into his back.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtclh3NuEMY
He didn't open his eyes fully. Not yet.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPnUBdT0X6E
Voices. Close.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXnMTraUZQb
He lay still, listening.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgzfkOSapDy
> "Why the hell didn't you finish him off last night?!"
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcmwrjViqXV
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp8pzcn5iBf
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNOOviHg0Xg
A harsh voice. Guttural. Full of restrained violence.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcEV4sTMvzR
The Wrath faction leader.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjUfXFYG4LU
Bjorn could feel the weight in that voice—the kind that didn't make idle threats.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7BxdBYq6qy
Another voice answered. Calm. Sharper. Less predictable.
Not what Bjorn expected from someone under Wrath's command.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmMTfENTQQ2
> "Because you're not thinking."
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl5IUW0FdM2
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ5jA4Px9m7
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXbpxawXace
A beat of silence.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLeYzTGwSU5
> "He survived the Walpurgis. Alone. Did you see the trail of bodies behind him?"
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMtr2RpKCIq
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB7L4t76eba
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8b0PDJxkYR
The leader didn't reply immediately.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9adPsILt9V
> "We don't know what that witch will send next. We've got six more days in this hell. Would you really waste a weapon like that just to flex authority?"
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRocWyjWBjx
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOVtrANi9tg
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRqjDGt3ond
The tension in the air thickened. Even the birds had gone quiet again.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPAqkMtdQB4
Bjorn's fingers twitched slightly in the dirt, but he didn't move.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ3vdjcUiMi
Not yet.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeZFiEoNpwI
The "smart one" continued.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ62uFfeeoM6
> "You want to lead us to victory? Then start treating strength like strength. Not trash."
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7HCNejGndg
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf8U5HhBjqC
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlhaGECAZ3J
Footsteps. Closer now.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2FnFsVgW9o
Bjorn forced his breath to remain shallow, steady.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2vfAi6rlJo
One wrong twitch and they'd know he was awake.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡglbXTp2AFJ
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoK55Gdyldt
---
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvi1n1MrPcT
Elsewhere, in the clearing where Pride broke itself...
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvMehbBgu2f
Kane, former leader of the splintered Pride faction, knelt before Lucien, forehead pressed firmly to the ground. His armor, once polished and proud, was now dented and stained with drying blood. His face was swollen—one eye sealed shut, lips cracked, bruises blooming like ink beneath his skin.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnxtUeluQzk
He didn't speak.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuyj7h2cqi7
Didn't dare.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWjRpCOGfdZ
Lucien stood before him—unmoving, silent. The storm was gone, but its memory lingered in the air between them.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1fCrbc7tzO
And as Kane remained prostrate, blood dripping from his split knuckles into the dirt, his thoughts drifted—backward.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkGJKha2s3J
To last night.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKb1Xw6iMYb
To the slaughter.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQQGsfxxIUu
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyaxZpoqT04
---
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEuFPP38j7H
It had started with a scream.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpXLDUnZCy8
And then—chaos.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJTyajkaTiD
No tactics. No warnings.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN4bYe681Ec
Just fists and bodies.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoUjHA3xzsU
Rain had turned the clearing into a swamp of mud and rage.
Lucien's group surged forward—not like soldiers, but like a pack of wolves.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHSDvyJbbYt
They didn't fight clean.
They fought to break.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7S0opJW6rI
Kane remembered how one of Lucien's men tackled a brawler from his side straight into a tree, slamming his skull repeatedly against the bark until it cracked like wet wood.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Lfct4QPjZ
Another was pulled into the muck—choked, elbowed, buried beneath swinging fists.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhHxdiXKzvR
Kane had barely turned to shout an order when Lucien blindsided him—exploding through the crowd with bone-breaking precision. His first strike shattered a rib. The second dislocated Kane's shoulder.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnhWIp3LQnm
Lucien didn't shout.
He didn't curse.
He just moved—with terrifying calm and efficiency.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX2PiY5Kpbm
He grabbed Kane's arm, snapped it back, and used the momentum to drive him into the mud.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUgqUTAHyRU
Around them, bodies collided like beasts.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5ch5CNhXVI
One man lost his teeth to a knee.
Another was thrown headfirst into a puddle—drowned screaming.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqq0JHGtAk4
Elbows. Claws. Knees. Fury.
It wasn't a battle.
It was a culling.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrIhTkqWhz8
Kane had tried to rally.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡscjP7kiE57
Tried to scream orders—but his voice drowned beneath the downpour and the dying cries of his own men.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMNaY7S598T
Lucien's fighters were leaner. Faster. More precise.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAhtYs7mpu7
And worse—they didn't stop when someone fell.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdPX4NMISlj
They stomped them.
Dragged them back up.
Dropped them again.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH5HmU3utZY
No honor. Just wrath sharpened into discipline.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjLsluiIXvh
By the time Kane fell for the final time, he couldn't remember how many bones were broken.
Only Lucien's calm expression staring down at him—face soaked in rain, fists clenched.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiyGqCo5OdR
No words.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKIqbcMEjAq
Just victory.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0uARKOd0Gi
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOWLJ2W037r
---
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1rCQICh8UX
Now, in the morning silence, Kane remained kneeling.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtVJ8CxzYH3
The war was over.
The battlefield still.
Those who had stood against Lucien had either fled… or joined him.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhlYiDAuKzJ
Lucien stared down at the man who had once called him unworthy.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjcmY8Dv5ec
And finally, without blinking, he spoke.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWGjeiAzjGP
> "Get up."
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9mdzuR1Hhr
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHQ42UIulNR
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5KwYk1YqTs
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5TLlBa7iwc
---
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaey8d9DdjB
The trees thinned into a moss-covered clearing, where everything moved slower—like the air itself had grown tired of rushing.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7TSap7SFYL
Aira stood at the edge of the Sloth faction's territory, breath unsteady, clothes still damp, legs trembling beneath her. Her feet had carried her here on instinct—on sheer desperation.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFvIOSHrXqz
It was quiet.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2mZ0w6mHz9
Too quiet.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4iwAtdltkI
The only sign of life was a boy lying in a hammock strung between two trees, lazily tossing berries into his mouth and missing half the time. He glanced at her, then pointed toward a crooked hut made of vines and wood.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqTLrpa5PPe
> "You've been summoned."
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhQMv8dDrDO
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ1pFEjLEYU
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI9Rr6VS0UD
Her heart jumped.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5PZMeNEGwl
Summoned?
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSDHa38vlCb
By the Sloth leader?
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEOAITmXHvy
She moved hesitantly toward the structure, wiping her palms on her torn tunic. Her mind raced.
Did they know? Did they find out what happened in the woods?
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoRvj5okgZT
She stepped inside.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHnsWeAaqVM
The room was dim, hazy with incense smoke.
At the far end, lounging like a jungle god on a throne of woven roots, sat the Sloth leader—a man with heavy-lidded eyes, long black hair draped over his shoulders like a tired curtain, and a voice that always sounded one sigh away from sleep.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzdzkcF54b6
But it wasn't just him.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuKxn820G9E
Standing beside him, draped in crimson silks, her presence sharp and serpentine, was the Lust leader.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeFdrtEnhsM
Aira froze.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRnzLuONDR9
The room suddenly felt too small.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbIaefiPdNR
The Lust leader turned her head slowly, eyes narrowing as they landed on Aira.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpmAl4GDoh9
> "So..." she said, voice smooth like poison.
"You're the little rabbit who stabbed one of mine."
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbWvMW0eXwK
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHF2CuE1ek3
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm6aiHOE1vm
Aira's throat dried up. She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkforGBaqrY
> "Do you know what we do to people who touch what's ours?" the Lust leader continued, stepping closer.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJUvj2VPYWQ
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAOdXVjVLsj
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4jJiDqdWJL
The air thickened.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOnof0W7oEi
Aira felt her knees tremble, every instinct screaming to run—but her feet remained frozen.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA902ikkIym
She looked at the Sloth leader, silently begging for help.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTt0Ap3Lcnv
He didn't move.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsFZHzilsfY
In fact, he slid sideways in his throne, draping one leg lazily over the armrest and popping a fruit into his mouth.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHsIwBcr2hE
> "Mmm... why all the tension?" he mumbled, eyes half-shut.
"She panicked. The boy was being stupid anyway."
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNRj7XqSgDI
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrwLkFxZ8vu
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡltINOYluJw
The Lust leader didn't smile.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3v6qWiSqO3
> "He was my subordinate."
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR0yTk56N0v
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJI38vosT3L
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYvJqG33oFM
> "Mmm... and now he's a corpse," the Sloth leader muttered through a yawn.
"What do you want, revenge? Discipline? A stern warning? I'm too tired to care."
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2EHQCEM3J6
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWkmv0in4qB
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡquEJdlyGsm
Aira's eyes flicked between them, unsure what game was being played—or who was winning.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCaMAlHFytJ
The Lust leader stepped forward again, eyes piercing Aira's soul.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk7GhyS3KtM
> "Tell me, girl. Why did you stab him?"
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcVGWhXUOhI
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ30u0ZqYr4i
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6mNDu3u0Mj
The words hung in the air like a noose.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnQCRK0Q08C
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3nS7nl3lVU
---
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlRX0yb27rH
Far from the clearing, in a cave that stank of fat and smoke, two more sins conspired.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsi8RgIl8iu
Tallow candles melted into the dirt, dripping into half-eaten bones and rotting fruit. At the center of it all sat Bran, leader of Gluttony—bare-chested, wide as a boar, stomach spilling over his lap, eyes like two greedy pits. He gnawed on a greasy hunk of meat while three younger subordinates stood behind him, faces flushed from overeating or fear—or both.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXMWd75zQ2q
A rustle outside.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡalPlEj82Oa
Footsteps.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1M5BKm5dhw
Then, from the shadows at the mouth of the cave, stepped Silas, leader of Greed.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl4qqMWCCSL
Tall, draped in gold-threaded robes despite the filth, Silas carried himself with a calm elegance that felt... calculated. His eyes didn't glow with joy, but with want—the kind that never slept.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡANtYo2cMmh
He didn't step in fully. He glanced around the cave like it was beneath him, then curled his lip in amusement.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6qhU3E8xHm
> "Still dining like a king, I see."
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp9h654U6sP
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ0yNbMk9NC
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡai6BEOJjag
Bran laughed, bits of meat falling from his lips.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡepEDodAYt4
> "Better than starving like a prince."
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2K4IDTkeNv
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS2wlT1Alqt
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr9NWDCtvP0
Silas stepped forward, footsteps slow and precise. He waved off one of Bran's underlings offering him a seat—choosing instead to lean against the wall, arms folded, eyes razor-sharp.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkNOorlNQ5C
> "We both know where this is heading."
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHCL19kZA9b
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGthPrMuvSF
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXPG7npzbHs
Bran raised an eyebrow, still chewing.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMuryfvjs2C
> "Oh?"
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBR68oVJs7k
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2QgGXVhchV
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAsNasxmuha
> "The factions are splitting. Wrath's unstable. Pride's fractured. Lust and Sloth are playing house. That leaves us—you and me—with a choice."
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG3PVKkvDW4
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCP69RAKWaS
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgVV5EM5FmH
Bran licked the grease off his fingers.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE4AgHtxw7v
> "Go on."
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU0SaC7Gp8a
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhBEHiFbVlC
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxHMiQDMlKd
Silas lowered his voice, almost conspiratorial.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ95TPdfarAQ
> "We align. We keep our resources close, but we act together. Shared intel. Shared spoils. No heroics. Just... control."
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZaUxJnN0oM
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHLguj3GAFw
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSdOrBdWaAa
A long silence followed, broken only by the pop of fat in the fire.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ92sZFdj5II
Bran tilted his head.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmz5ns6CDrb
> "You want me to fight your battles?"
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVQsKhTB7rm
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGoqaKqFKa5
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoht2eSOuHB
> "No," Silas replied with a faint smile.
"I want you to eat what I feed you. And when the time comes... we'll both be full."
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6D3auEEWQP
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHTJF5DflQj
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrrJWJzi03e
Bran grunted, tossing the bone aside.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUab6VEbEBh
> "Fine. But I don't carry dead weight."
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlabgGS0sKC
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJeabXoBOLB
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh7FhdbHLyM
> "And I don't share with beggars," Silas said smoothly.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvx6ymnXffj
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJHrfS7H8Au
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOv7eUnhfQE
They clasped hands—not with trust, but with intent.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGVYqHoOhaW
A handshake drenched in vice.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡndLLx8FBgx
And as Silas turned to leave, his thoughts burned bright behind his calm, calculating gaze.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAsnqvqCUGh
> Let's use these fools.
Let them think it's an alliance... while I drain them dry.
5Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsfPVxjS5KV
and then Add to home screen.