Wolf packs were like that—relentless against weakness, fleeing from strength. As the Silver Moon pack scattered, Lucio shouted, "Don't let the alpha escape!" A Bronze Rank windrunner wolf's claws, fur, and core were valuable, its flesh rich in energy for douqi cultivation.
Lucio gave chase, but the forest favored the wolf. He nocked another arrow, coating it in bronze qi. The bolt tore through the wolf's hind leg, blood spraying as it stumbled. Kyle and Leviathan's fire spells followed, searing its torso, leaving it gasping.
Lucio approached, blade raised, and battered the wolf into submission. "Sean Highness, the alpha's done!"
Sean, methodically finishing off dying wolves, joined him. His sword pierced the wolf's heart—calm, efficient, almost ritualistic.The Theology of SlaughterLucio, used to bloodthirsty gladiators in Yorn's arena, frowned. "Why insist on killing them yourself, My Lord?"
Sean's expression turned solemn, mimicking a praying bishop. "If you knew the Church's Heresy Inquisition, you'd understand. Killing them is the Light's will—only through my hand can their souls reach paradise. Otherwise, their prey's pure souls—humans, stags, hares—would condemn them to hell. Even the Light's love has a price in blood."
Lucio blinked. "But we hunt stags and hares too."
Sean hesitated, then recovered smoothly: "Heaven sends new pure souls to Earth annually. Without replenishment, the Light's divine realm would empty."
"Praise the Light," Lucio nodded, satisfied. Sean wiped sweat—that was close. The "Son of the Light" title was a shield, but he needed to refine his theology before Yorn's scheming nobles picked it apart.Fire and ControlThe group cleaned the battlefield. Kyle's fire spells, though powerful, only ignited two dry bushes. With a wave of her staff, the flames dwindled; Windsor smothered them with a wolf pelt.
"Didn't know you could do that, Kyle," Sean said.
"Fire control is basic for pyromancers," she replied, glancing meaningfully. "Of course, a water mage would make it easier."
Sean sighed. I am a water mage, he thought, eyeing Lucio nearby. Revealing that risked his cover. But Lucio's Bronze Peak strength was too valuable to lose—better to keep his magic hidden, for now.The Cost of SecretsAs they hauled corpses, Sean plotted. The wolf pack had yielded +35 EXP—not bad, but slow. With Kyle's meditation boosting his gains, he might hit Level 17 in three days. Yorn's luxury market waits, he mused, fingers brushing the dragon egg in his pouch.
Lucio, meanwhile, inspected the alpha's core, unaware of Sean's dual life as both holy figure and hidden mage. In the Elven Forest's shadows, secrets grew as thick as the trees—secrets Sean would guard, until the day his power outgrew the need for them.
The grind continued, each kill a step toward Bronze Rank, each lie a brick in the fortress of his divine persona. In a world where faith and power were twin blades, Sean wielded both, ready to carve his path—even if the Light's realm did risk emptying, one soul at a time.