Veylorn did not sleep. The City of Chains never did.
Even as night cloaked its streets, the air pulsed with life. Merchants shouted in the dark markets, thieves prowled alleys, whores laughed in perfumed brothels. And now, amid the chaos, one name began to spread like wildfire: Kael Draven.
The man who broke the Slave Guild.
The man who turned Aurelia, the Guildmaster's untouchable daughter, into his pet.
The man whose aura made even guards bow.
Rumors grew with every whisper, and with them, resentment.
---
Kael stood at the balcony of the guildhall, Aurelia kneeling behind him, her lips brushing his cock eagerly. Below, freed slaves cheered his name while others wept at their newfound liberty. Nyra and Selene had begun whipping the remaining guards into line, reshaping the guild's structure under Kael's rule.
But Kael's eyes weren't on them. His gaze stretched outward, toward the sprawl of Veylorn.
"This city will not yield easily," he muttered.
Nyra padded to his side, licking her lips. "Then we'll make it yield, Master. One den at a time."
Selene frowned. "It won't be that simple. The Guild was powerful, yes—but the Merchant Council rules here. They control the markets, the soldiers, the nobles. You've taken one piece of the board, but the game has just begun."
Kael smirked. "Then let them come."
---
They came.
That night, the guildhall was silent save for the sound of Aurelia's soft moans in the chamber. Kael had just spilled his seed into her again when his instincts screamed.
The air shimmered. A shadow peeled from the wall, blades glinting. Another emerged from the ceiling. Then another.
Assassins.
"Master!" Aurelia gasped, clutching him, but Kael shoved her aside and rolled from the bed as a dagger slashed down where his chest had been.
Three masked killers surrounded him, their movements fluid, their eyes cold.
"You've overstepped," one hissed. "The Council does not tolerate upstarts."
Kael's lips curled in a grin. Finally, a challenge.
The first assassin lunged. Kael caught the blade in his bare hand, blood spilling from his palm, and yanked the man close. Crimson chains lashed out, wrapping the assassin's limbs. The man screamed as his body convulsed, pleasure and pain overwhelming him—until Kael snapped his neck with a twist.
The others didn't falter. One slashed his thigh open; another drove a blade into his shoulder. Pain seared through him, sharp and real. His aura flared, but it wasn't enough to instantly break them.
For the first time since awakening the system, Kael bled.
---
Nyra burst into the room, her claws bared, Selene right behind her with a blade glowing with magic.
"Master!" Selene cried, throwing herself into the fight. Her sword clashed with one assassin's dagger, sparks flying. Nyra pounced on the other, sinking her fangs into his throat with a savage growl.
Kael staggered, blood dripping down his leg, but his eyes burned with fury. He reached deep into the pit of his desire, summoning not just lust—but rage, hunger, the primal need to dominate and survive.
The chains erupted, sharper and darker than before. They didn't just bind—they pierced, drilling into flesh, feeding on the assassin's screams. Kael roared as the last killer writhed, his soul sucked dry by the Chains of Eternal Desire.
Silence fell. Blood soaked the room.
Kael stood panting, his wounds burning. Selene's eyes widened as she rushed to him, pressing cloth against his thigh. "You need healing—quickly."
Aurelia crawled forward, trembling, licking the blood from his hand with desperate devotion. "Master… you're hurt because of me. Let me heal you… with my body…"
Kael smirked faintly, though pain laced his voice. "Later. First… I need answers."
---
The assassins' bodies were searched. Each bore a mark burned into their flesh—a serpent devouring its own tail.
Selene paled. "The Merchant Council's seal."
Kael clenched his fist. So, the Council had moved against him already. He was no longer dealing with petty slavers—he was facing the city's true rulers.
And they would not stop until he was crushed.
Nyra growled, her mouth stained with blood. "Let them send more. We'll tear them apart."
Kael shook his head. "Not blindly. They control the city. If I strike without care, we'll be crushed beneath their armies." He turned toward the window, his eyes glinting with determination. "We need power. Wealth. Allies. And we'll take them one by one, until this entire city kneels."
Selene hesitated. "Master… the Council isn't the only threat. There are whispers of something deeper in Veylorn. A cult. Old, hidden, dangerous. They deal in forbidden magics… magics even your system may not overcome."
Kael's lips curved into a dangerous smile. "Then I'll devour them too."
Later that night, Kael sat in the blood-stained chamber, Aurelia curled against his chest. His wounds ached, but the system whispered in his mind.
[Host has survived mortal peril.]
[New Path unlocked: Evolution through Battle.]
[Carnal Energy can now be fused with Combat Experience.]
Kael grinned. Pain had birthed strength. Hardship had carved a new path.
"The city wants me dead," he muttered, stroking Aurelia's hair. "Good. It means they already fear me."
He looked out at the sprawling lights of Veylorn, his voice low and hungry.
"This city belongs to me. And I'll fight, bleed, and fuck my way through every obstacle until it does."