"That would upset Lady Sigora," Jorghan pointed out reasonably. "And while your father might protect you from certain consequences, do you really wish to earn her displeasure?"
A flicker of uncertainty crossed Kael'var's features. Sigora's position within the clan was... complicated. Not truly Nor'vack by birth, yet brought in through marriage, her power was respected even by those who questioned her decision to bring a human child into their midst.
She was mostly like the head after the patriarch, her husband.
But the momentary doubt was quickly replaced by renewed bravado. "Who said anything about pushing you? I simply thought you might benefit from a swimming lesson." Kael'var gestured toward the Silver River, which at this point formed a deep pool before cascading over the edge of the island. "The river waters would deliver you safely to the world below... eventually."
Jorghan glanced at the swirling waters. The Silver River was notorious for its unusual properties—its currents flowed according to mana patterns rather than gravity, making it unpredictable even for experienced Nor'vack swimmers. For someone without their natural affinity for wind and water elements, it would be a death trap.
"Five against one," Jorghan observed calmly. "Hardly seems sporting."
"Life isn't sporting, groundling. Didn't your dead clan teach you that much?" Kael'var's mocking words were deliberately cruel, intended to provoke an emotional response that would justify whatever came next.
Jorghan felt the tattoo on his neck pulse warmly in response to his carefully controlled anger. The crimson patterns beneath his high collar glowed faintly, visible even through the fabric if one knew what to look for. He kept his breathing steady, using the techniques Sigora had drilled into him over countless hours of training.
[Bloodborne Rage: Suppressed]
[Mana Circulation: Stable]
[Bloodline Ability: Carnage Requiem – Dormant]
"My clan taught me many things," Jorghan said, his voice taking on a subtly different quality—older, colder, reminiscent of the crime lord whose soul shared his existence. "Including how to recognize when someone is overplaying a weak hand."
Before Kael'var could respond, Jorghan rose to his feet in a single fluid motion that seemed too graceful for human limbs. "You want me in the river? Very well."
Without warning, he stepped backward and plunged into the Silver River.
The Nor'vack youths rushed to the edge, their expressions shifting from shock to triumphant glee. Their expected outcome—watching the human struggle against the currents before they magnanimously "rescued" him—seemed to be unfolding exactly as planned.
Except Jorghan wasn't struggling.
Beneath the surface, he moved with preternatural precision through currents that should have overwhelmed any non-Nor'vack.
[Mana Manipulation: Active]
[Elemental Resonance]
[Water Affinity: Assimilated]
On the riverbank, the Nor'vack youths' expressions of triumph slowly morphed into confusion as seconds stretched into a minute with no sign of the human resurfacing.
"Where did he go?" one of them asked nervously, peering into the crystalline depths. "I don't see him anywhere."
Kael'var frowned, his tail twitching with uncertainty. "He couldn't have swum all the way to the falls already. No one could move that quickly through the currents."
"Maybe he sank?" suggested another, voice tight with sudden worry. "If Lady Sigora discovers—"
"Discovers what?"
The voice came from behind them, causing all five Nor'vack youths to spin around in alarm. There stood Jorghan, completely dry, his crimson eyes reflecting the twilight sky with an inner light that seemed almost amused.
There was no sign that he had ever entered the water.
"How—" Kael'var began, his silver eyes wide with disbelief as he glanced from Jorghan to the river and back again. "You jumped in. We all saw you!"
"Did you?" Jorghan asked, his voice still carrying that unsettling older cadence. "Or did you see what you expected to see?"