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Kael collapsed against the dumpster, pipe clutched like a lifeline—its glow pulsing with the heartbeat of a dead god. Somewhere in the city's spires, lightning flashed again.
### **CHAPTER 2: THE PRICE OF BLOOD**
Kael slumped against the reeking dumpster, the System's bronze text burning behind his eyes. Broken ribs screamed. Sanity: **88/100**.
> **SYSTEM:** *"ADVANCED BIOMETRIC SCAN CONFIRMS: TWO (2) FRACTURED RIBS, INTERNAL BRUISING, CONCUSSIVE TRAUMA. SUGGESTED ACTION: CRY. THEN, FIND MEDICAL AID BEFORE YOU ASPHYXIATE. PRIORITY ORDER DEBATABLE."*
Before Kael could retort, harsh torchlight cut through the alley's gloom.
**"City Guard! Hands where we see 'em, gutter rat!"**
Three armored figures approached, led by a hulking Sergeant with a sneer and a jagged scar bisecting his lip. His insignia – the silver hawk of Aethelburg – was tarnished. Corrupt. Kael knew the type. They preyed on Zeros.
> **SYSTEM:** *"ANALYSIS: GUARD SERGEANT (CORRUPT). THREAT LEVEL: MEDIUM-HIGH. OBJECTIVE: PROFIT OR PAIN. CURRENT VITAL SIGNS INDICATE HE SAW THE QUIRK ACTIVATION ENERGY SIGNATURE. PROBABILITY OF ARREST/EXECUTION: 97.3%."*
> **"RECOMMENDATION: RUN. NOW. DIRECTION: NORTH-NORTHWEST. ALLEY 7-BETA."**
Kael forced agony aside. *Run*. He lurched into the maze of crumbling tenements, the guards' shouts echoing.
*"Zero killed Bruiser! Got some forbidden artifact! Don't let 'im escape!"*
Boots pounded behind him. Pain blurred his vision. He turned a corner – **dead end**. A rotting door hung ajar. Desperate, he stumbled through.
**WARMTH.** The scent of herbs and honey washed over him, replacing the alley's stench. A small, cluttered apothecary glowed with candlelight. Behind a counter stacked with dried flowers and crystal vials stood a woman. Middle-aged, eyes kind but sharp as obsidian. **Elara.**
*"Child!"* she gasped, seeing his bloodied state. *"By the Veil, what—"*
**BANG! BANG!** Fists hammered the door. *"Open up, healer! Harboring fugitives carries a penalty!"*
Elara's eyes hardened. *"Quickly. Behind the curtain."* She shoved Kael towards a heavy drape concealing a cot just as the door burst open. Scarred Sergeant filled the frame.
*"Seen a wounded Zero, woman? Dangerous. Stole Guard property."*
Elara met his gaze, unflinching. *"Only patients I see pay in advance, Sergeant Vorlag. And they knock politely. Did you?"*
Vorlag's eyes darted around the shop, lingering suspiciously. *"We'll be watching."* He spat on her clean floor and left.
Kael sagged onto the cot. Shock warred with pain. *I killed a man. I have… this thing in my head. They want me dead.* A cold resolve crystallized. *I won't die in the gutter. I'll get stronger. Strong enough to crush Vorlag. Crush them all.*
Elara worked silently, her hands glowing with soft, emerald light. A rare **Life-Affinity Healer** – persecuted by the Temple for not worshipping their "approved" gods. Warmth seeped into Kael's ribs. The blinding pain receded.
*"This wasn't just a beating,"* she murmured, fingers hovering near his chest. *"Something… *cold* lingers here. Ancient. Wounded. What did you touch, boy?"*
Kael flinched. *"I don't know what you—"*
> **SYSTEM:** *"WARNING: HEALER POSSESSES MINOR COSMIC AWARENESS. DIVULGING SYSTEM EXISTENCE INCREASES TERMINATION RISK BY 89.1%. SUGGEST DENIAL."*
*"Just… bad luck,"* Kael rasped.
Elara studied him, then sighed. *"Luck has little to do with wounds touched by divinity's echo. Rest. You're safe here… for now."*
As the healing warmth settled his body, the System's voice sliced through the calm:
> **SYSTEM:** *"PRIORITY OBJECTIVE UPDATE: NEUTRALIZE WITNESSES. THUGS DESIGNATION 'LIMPY' AND 'BLINKER' HAVE REGROUPED. PROBABILITY OF INFORMING CORRUPT GUARD AUTHORITIES: 98.7%. THREAT TO USER SURVIVAL: CRITICAL."*
> **"ISSUING HUNT PROTOCOL: 'SILENCE THE ECHOES'."**
> **• LOCATE & ELIMINATE TARGETS.**
> **• REWARD:** 25 War Points | Unlock [PERCEPTION STAT]
> **• FAILURE:** User Termination (Imminent Capture/Execution).
Dread coiled in Kael's gut. *More killing?* But Vorlag's sneer flashed in his mind. *No choice.* He waited until Elara retreated to her storeroom, then slipped out into the night.
> **SYSTEM:** *"SCANNING... TARGET 'BLINKER' DETECTED. FREQUENTING 'THE RUSTY NAIL' TAVERN. DISTRESS SIGNALS INDICATE PLANNING TO SELL INFORMATION."*
> **"NAVIGATING."**
The hunt was brutal, guided by the System's cold precision:
* **Blinker:** Ambushed in a reeking privy behind the tavern. The System calculated the exact angle to snap his neck silently against the wall. (+15 War Points)
* **Limpy:** Found whimpering in a collapsed sewer tunnel. The System overrode Kael's hesitation: *"EMOTION IS WEAKNESS. EXECUTE."* A swift pipe strike to the temple. (+10 War Points)
Kael stood over Limpy's body, bile rising in his throat. The emerald warmth of Elara's healing felt like a cruel joke under the grime and blood.
> **SYSTEM:** *"OBJECTIVE COMPLETE. REWARDS CLAIMED. TOTAL WAR POINTS: 35."*
> **"RECOMMENDATION: RETURN TO HEALER LOCATION FOR SANITY STABILIZATION. CURRENT SANITY: 72/100. DETERIORATION RATE ACCELERATING."**
He staggered back towards Elara's apothecary, the System's warnings about sanity loss becoming terrifyingly real. Whispers echoed – not the System's voice, but the *thugs'* dying gasps, warped and mocking. Shadows seemed to writhe with crimson light. His vision tunneled.
He reached the familiar alley, saw the warm glow of Elara's window... and collapsed face-first onto her doorstep, darkness swallowing him whole.
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