The city didn't sleep.
I used to think that was just something people said to make Eryndor sound dramatic. But now that I was seeing the city from rooftops and alleyways instead of buses and sidewalks, I realized it was true. Even at two in the morning, the streets still pulsed with life—cars rolling through intersections, neon lights flickering outside late-night shops, music drifting faintly through open bar doors.
But beneath that life… something darker moved.
Something most people would never notice.
I leaned against the railing of the warehouse rooftop, staring down at the empty street below. The encounter with the scout was still fresh in my mind. The way he smiled. The way he studied me like I was some kind of experiment.
And the way he vanished before we could stop him.
Behind me, the metal door creaked open.
"You're awake," Kael said.
I didn't turn around.
"Couldn't sleep."
"That's becoming a pattern."
"Almost dying tends to do that."
Kael stepped beside me, folding his arms as he looked over the city skyline.
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
Then I asked the question that had been bothering me since the fight.
"Why did they run?"
Kael glanced at me.
"They accomplished their objective."
"Which was?"
"Testing you."
I sighed.
"Again with the testing."
"The hunters are patient," Kael said calmly. "They do not rush into battle without understanding their enemy."
"So they send scouts to measure me."
"Yes."
"And then what?"
Kael's gaze drifted toward the distant towers of the city center.
"Then they decide how to kill you."
I rubbed my face.
"You know, you're incredibly bad at motivational speeches."
Kael ignored the comment.
"What did you feel when you used your power in the alley?"
I thought about it for a moment.
"The same thing as before," I said slowly. "That… surge."
"The bloodline."
"Yeah."
I looked down at my hands. Shadows curled faintly around my fingers like wisps of smoke.
"It's getting stronger."
Kael nodded once.
"It will continue to grow."
"That's the part that worries me."
Kael raised an eyebrow.
"Why?"
"Because I barely control it now," I said. "What happens when it gets stronger?"
Kael's expression didn't change.
"Then you either master it… or it masters you."
I stared at him.
"That's not comforting."
"It's the truth."
The wind picked up slightly, carrying the distant smell of rain.
I turned my attention back to the streets below.
"You said there used to be more bloodlines like mine."
"Yes."
"What happened to them?"
Kael was quiet for a moment.
"Most were destroyed."
"By the hunters?"
"Some."
"And the rest?"
Kael's voice hardened.
"By each other."
That answer didn't sit well with me.
"So this whole bloodline thing… it's basically a history of powerful people wiping each other out."
"In simple terms," Kael said, "yes."
"Great. That makes me feel so much better about inheriting one."
Kael's lips twitched faintly.
"You're still alive."
"Barely."
Before he could reply, something shifted in the shadows near the edge of the roof.
My body reacted instantly.
The bloodline pulsed.
"Did you feel that?" I asked.
Kael nodded slowly.
"Yes."
The shadows along the rooftop wall rippled slightly, like a dark reflection disturbed by a stone.
"Another scout?" I whispered.
Kael's gaze sharpened.
"No."
"Then what?"
The ripple spread across the rooftop.
Then stopped.
And from the darkness near the stairwell, a figure stepped forward.
Not a hunter.
Not cloaked in black.
Just a woman wearing a long gray coat.
Her dark hair fell loosely around her shoulders, and her eyes reflected the dim rooftop light.
But there was something strange about her presence.
The shadows around her moved differently.
Cautiously.
Like they were unsure how to react.
Kael's posture stiffened.
"You should not be here."
The woman tilted her head slightly.
"And you're still as welcoming as ever, Kael."
I looked between them.
"You two know each other?"
Neither of them answered immediately.
The woman's gaze shifted toward me.
"So," she said quietly, "you're Adrian."
I frowned.
"And you are?"
She gave a faint smile.
"Someone who's been looking for you."
That immediately set off alarms in my head.
"Yeah, that sentence has never led to anything good in my life."
Kael stepped forward slightly, positioning himself between us.
"What do you want, Lyra?"
So that was her name.
Lyra raised an eyebrow.
"Straight to business. No friendly greetings?"
"You lost that privilege years ago."
Lyra sighed softly.
"You're still holding grudges."
Kael didn't respond.
Lyra's gaze returned to me.
"I'm not here to fight," she said.
"That's exactly what someone here to fight would say," I replied.
She smirked.
"Fair point."
The rooftop grew quiet again.
Finally, she said something that made my stomach drop.
"The hunters aren't the biggest threat to you."
Kael's voice hardened instantly.
"Enough."
But Lyra ignored him.
"You think Veylan is the problem," she continued calmly.
"But he's just the beginning."
I felt the bloodline stir uneasily in my chest.
"What are you talking about?"
Lyra studied me carefully.
"The shadow realm is waking up."
That sentence sent a chill down my spine.
"I don't even know what that means."
"You will," she said quietly.
Kael stepped forward again.
"Leave."
Lyra sighed.
"You always rush things."
She reached into her coat pocket.
Kael's hand instantly moved toward his blade.
"Relax," she said, holding up a small black object.
It looked like a coin.
Old.
Worn.
She tossed it toward me.
I caught it instinctively.
The moment it touched my hand, the bloodline reacted violently.
A pulse of cold energy shot through my arm.
"What the—"
"That," Lyra said, "is proof."
"Proof of what?"
"That you're not the only one being hunted."
My chest tightened.
"What does that mean?"
Lyra turned toward the rooftop edge.
"It means the war you've stepped into is much bigger than you think."
She glanced back over her shoulder.
"And it's already started."
Then she stepped backward into the shadows.
And vanished.
Silence settled over the rooftop.
I stared down at the coin in my hand.
The shadows around it twisted faintly.
"Kael," I said slowly.
"Yes?"
"What did she mean by 'war'?"
Kael looked out toward the dark horizon of the city.
His voice was quiet.
"Exactly what she said."
My stomach sank.
Because something deep in my bloodline agreed.
The hunters.
Veylan.
The shadow realm.
Whatever was coming…
It was only just beginning.