Luke moved through the shattered streets of the ruined city. The jagged silhouettes of half-collapsed buildings stretched across the rubble, and the echo of his footsteps bounced off cracked walls. His mind was still stuck on what had happened at the camp. Those Bastion soldiers hadn't just been wandering around, they'd been waiting for him.

Months outside the barrier… and now I'm on Bartholomew's hit list.

"Looks like my element of surprise is gone," he muttered. "Now everyone's going to know I'm back."

"Why didn't you just kill every last one of those idiots?" Artemis's voice dripped with provocation.

He'd thought about it. Of course he had.

"I left pretty much all of them crippled," he replied.

"If you'd killed them, you wouldn't have to worry about Bartholomew or whoever's pulling the strings finding out you returned from the capital," she pressed.

"There could've been innocents mixed in."

Artemis laughed. "Innocents?"

He took a deep breath and picked up speed, stamina surging through his legs as he dashed through the streets of that place in seconds.

"I know… it's stupid," he admitted. "But how am I supposed to convince people I want to save them, that Bartholomew's the real villain, if I just butcher everyone I meet?"

"Fine… I won't judge you. For now. How's your heart?"

"Still beating."

His gaze dropped to his chest. The arrow had punched through his light armor, a trophy from the time he'd killed an orc captain, and nearly gone clean through him. Anyone else would have dropped dead. He stored the armor in his inventory, drew a kukri, and tore open the shirt of his adventurer's outfit to inspect the wound. The hole in his chest was sealed over by a thick layer of Dark Blood, that black, pulsing substance that moved with his own heartbeat.

The arrow hadn't just carved a thousand HP out of his health bar, it had pierced his heart, starting a bleed that should have emptied his life away in seconds. But Luke knew his body better than anyone. Months outside the barrier had been filled with experimentation, testing limits, learning what he could survive.

He had two types of blood running through him. The red blood that had once belonged to Mother Freya, and the black blood, Dark Blood. It wasn't spread evenly; maybe ten to twenty percent of his total. The rest was normal, but the densest concentration was in his heart. It made sense. The heart was the pump.

Dark Blood naturally sealed any hemorrhage. And since that black, parasitic lifeblood was most concentrated in his heart, he basically had a heart wearing armor.

[Dark Blood (Uncommon)]: Your blood becomes a living, symbiotic organism that feeds on the essence of your enemies. This blackened blood strengthens your body, enhancing your resistance and regeneration. But it is not merely a part of you. It grows. It learns. And one day, it will no longer remain confined to your veins. When that time comes, it can manifest as a second skin if you allow it. An extension of your being. Together, you will become something far greater.

Luke pulled a healing potion from the pendant around his neck.

"Hard to believe… first hour back in this tutorial area, and I'm already burning through something I thought I wouldn't need for a while."

[Healing Potion (Common): Restores 503 HP.]

The liquid burned down his throat. Beneath the skin, Dark Blood squeezed around his heart like an invisible fist, pumping. The pain of the wound knitting shut was a living flame in his chest. But that wasn't all. He pulled the arrowhead that had struck him out of his pocket and immediately caught the sharp, bitter scent.

"Poison…"

During the fight, the projectile hadn't just pierced his heart, it had been coated in a paralytic neurotoxin that was slowly locking up his body. A shot like that, straight through the heart, would have been instantly fatal for anyone else. But he had a secret weapon.

[Corrupted Blood of Mother Freya (Ultra-Rare)]: The botanist's blood, once blessed by Mother Freya and now fused with a demonic symbiotic essence, has evolved into a living organism. It functions as a perfect catalyst, enhancing and stabilizing any plant-based concoction. When applied to flora, it regenerates damaged tissue, accelerates growth, and can even revive near-dead specimens. It allows cultivation in infertile soil and can induce natural mutations, reshaping plant structures. Internally, the mutation has fortified the user's body. The blood now grants high resistance, or even immunity, to most poisons and diseases, thanks to active antibodies that seek and neutralize threats with lethal efficiency.

Bit by bit, the numbness faded. His body began to respond again, muscle strength returning. That's when he noticed, glancing back every so often, that he was being followed. Turning into a side street, something sliced the air and slammed into the ground ahead of him with a dull, heavy thud, a spear. He glanced over his shoulder. The group tailing him had closed the gap.

Six shadowy figures stood atop the buildings, silhouettes cut against the overcast sky. All wore black clothes and skull masks identical to Kruger's. Two carried crossbows, one had a pair of daggers, the other three held spears.

"What is this, Halloween?" he asked.

"Who would've guessed you were actually alive," the woman replied, a smile hidden behind her mask. "Waiting around here this long was starting to get boring."

He sized them up in an instant: two ranged, three mid-range, and a leader. Their movements were tight, coordinated.

"How the hell is he still alive?" one muttered. "He should've been dead… even with high HP, he should be lying there paralyzed."

"That archer woman must've missed," another said.

"Missed? No way. She's Bastion's best shot. The bastard's just got good armor."

By then, his chestplate was already back on through the system interface. The six dropped from the rooftops. Three hit the ground and vanished into it, melting into the shadows.

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Assassins from the Order of Lakarion.

The clothes, the masks, the synchronized movement… and the fact they'd been lying in wait for him pointed straight back to Bartholomew.

The woman twirled her daggers. "Doesn't matter. The mission's still the same. You being alive just made it more fun."

He raised his kukris and locked eyes with her.

[Predator's Mark activated]

To his surprise, the red outline blinked out immediately. What?

They began to fan out. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a shadow sliding along the ground toward him.

"Tonight we feast on your blood!" the woman shouted, pointing. The shadow lunged.

He didn't back away, he charged. The kukri smashed the first attacker's spear aside with enough force to throw him off balance. The assassin stumbled, caught off guard. [Demonic Blade Dance] flared to life. The darkness mimic appeared, a living reflection running at his side.

"Cocky bastard," one of them growled.

A root burst from the ground under his enemy's foot; Luke spun with the dance, his blade carving a clean arc through the air. The man's head flew free, bouncing across the dirt.

[You have slain a Human – Lvl 32 (Shadow Assassin Apprentice of Lakarion – Lvl 38 / Blacksmith – Lvl 23)]

[+1 Soul Fragment acquired]

The two assassins on the same flank froze for a moment.

"Hey, hey! He killed my cousin, damn it!" one of them shouted.

"Don't worry," Luke replied, spinning his kukris. "I'll send you to the same place he went."

The assassin leveled his spear, shadows curling around the blade. At the same time, the leader and another fighter moved in from the side, both melting into the darkness to box him in.

Luke didn't hesitate. He hurled both kukris at the crossbowmen, the metallic clang echoing as they struck. In that instant, one assassin burst from the ground, clamping onto his leg, while another charged with a shadow-wrapped spear.

He pointed his hand toward the ground and activated [Corrupted Plant Growth]. Roots erupted like serpents, coiling around the first attacker's neck and hauling him into the air. Luke sidestepped the spear thrust, sent another root snapping around the wielder's leg, and drew his bow from his inventory. The arrow he loosed pierced the base of the man's skull.

[You have slain a Human – Lvl 28 (Shadow Assassin Apprentice of Lakarion – Lvl 29 / Artificer – Lvl 18)]

[+1 Soul Fragment acquired]

The one still bound took a kick to the head so vicious it killed him instantly.

[You have slain a Human – Lvl 16 (Shadow Assassin Apprentice of Lakarion – Lvl 31)]

[+1 Soul Fragment acquired]

Something slammed into his back, bolts fired by the remaining crossbowmen. He spun just as the dagger-wielding woman stepped from the wall's shadow, driving a kick into his chest that knocked him back.

"Feel it, don't you?" she said, stalking forward with her blades. "Your steps slowing… your heart stuttering… your vision fading. Those bolts were poisoned."

She didn't spare a glance for her fallen allies. Luke called the kukris back with magnetic force. Her eyes widened. The shock didn't last. She darted in, daggers flashing in tight, rapid patterns, looking for openings. He blocked the first strike, slipped past the second. One kukri left his hand, spinning toward her face. She dodged, and Luke's free hand smashed a fist straight into her jaw before the other blade buried itself in her side.

She staggered back with a snarl and tossed a small black sphere to the ground. It burst, flooding that part of the street with thick smoke.

Bolts and knives hissed through the fog. In the chaos, she emerged with a high kick, her boot concealing a sharp blade. He ducked at the last instant, the steel grazing over his head. The thrown kukri snapped back into his grip. She struck again, and he caught the blow. The clash of blades erupted in a blinding flare from her weapon, searing into his eyes.

The assassin grinned. "Now you can't see a thing." She lunged to stab him, but he caught her wrist and answered with a brutal headbutt that made her reel.

"H-how? How can you see in this smoke… and after that light?"

He didn't need to see; he was using his refined perception field, able to feel every breath and every step she took.

He charged straight at her. She broke into a retreat.

"Shoot him! Shoot him!" she screamed, panic edging her voice as he closed in.

A kukri flew from his hand. She dodged, vanishing deeper into the haze, until he casually raised his palm.

[Magnetic Return activated]

The blade curved back, slamming into her gut. She turned toward him, shocked, and Luke hurled the second kukri into her throat. The leader dropped to her knees, clutching at her neck. Desperation lit her eyes as she reached for her bracelet, fumbling for a healing potion.

Luke advanced, slow and deliberate.

"N-no… please…"

Before she could drink, he drew his bow and loosed an arrow clean through her skull.

[You have slain a Human – Lvl 36 (Shadow Assassin – Lvl 38 / Projectile Weaponsmith – Lvl 16)]

[+1 Soul Fragment acquired]

Her body toppled sideways, still clutching the potion.

[Healing Potion (Common): Restores 150 HP.]

Luke plucked it from her hand, sniffed to make sure it was safe, then drank.

"Thanks," he murmured.

The smoke began to thin.

"Where are they? What's going on in there?" The last two assassins' voices echoed faintly.

Luke already had an arrow nocked. The moment one stepped into view, he loosed it, straight through the skull.

[You have slain a Human – Lvl 33 (Assassin – Lvl 21 / Lumberjack – Lvl 38)]

[+1 Soul Fragment acquired]

Another arrow was in his hand before the first body hit the ground. He fired at the second. The shaft slammed into the assassin's chest, right over the heart. The man staggered back, eyes going wide as the realization hit. He clawed at the arrow, yanking it free, and that was when the blood came, pumping out faster.

"You shouldn't have done that, man…" Luke's tone was almost casual as he started whistling, drawing another arrow.

Panicked, the assassin fumbled not for one potion but two from his bracelet.

"You were supposed to drink it first, then risk pulling the arrow," Luke sighed, watching him pale and crumple to the dirt.

The man tried to call for help, but it came out as nothing more than a wet, choking grunt. The potions rolled away.

"At least you'll still be useful for one last thing before you die."

Luke drew, aimed, and ended it.

[You have slain a Human – Lvl 19 (Assassin – Lvl 15 / Miner – Lvl 35)]

[+1 Soul Fragment acquired]

"Even weak ones still give me a Soul Fragment. Whatever that means," he muttered, dismissing the bow.

[Healing Potion (Common): Restores 150 HP.]

[Healing Potion (Common): Restores 150 HP.]

He walked over, scooped up the two fallen potions, sniffed them for safety, then downed them one after the other.

"Thanks," he said again, glancing at his HP bar.

[Health Points (HP): 3530/3530]

"Back where we started," he noted, watching it sit at full.

He turned toward the street ahead. "The message to Bartholomew's been delivered… and it was a loud one."

Then he broke into a run.

"Time to trigger that damn second mechanism."

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