Ashveil wasn't on any map.
Tucked between the jagged hills north of Blackreach, the village looked like it hadn't aged since the Purge Wars—if it had ever lived at all.
Rot-wood houses. Mud paths. A faded statue of a beast-killer god at the center square, moss-eaten and weeping rust from the eyes.
Cain pulled his hood lower.
Nyx growled low inside his mind.
"I don't like this place."
"Neither do I," Cain muttered.
But his coin was gone. Supplies dwindled. And rumors of a traveling binder had pointed him here.
The moment he crossed the threshold, he felt it.
The wards.
Invisible lines. Old runes etched into stone and tree, meant to detect beast signatures. The kind the Church of the Pure Flame once used to root out "corruption."
Cain winced as a sharp prick ran down his spine.
[System Alert – Anti-Fusion Wards Detected]Fusion Sync Suppressed to 8%Passive Traits Weakened
Nyx howled in outrage.
"They're trying to choke me out. Filthy mortals—"
"Stay low," Cain whispered. "Just for today."
The townsfolk watched him with the same warmth they might give a rotting deer carcass.
Wary. Quiet. Suspicious.
He stopped by the apothecary. Spoke few words. Bought gauze and powdered barkroot for pain. The woman behind the counter flinched when his gloved hand brushed hers.
"You're not from here.""Just passing through.""We don't get many travelers. Not since the beast.""What beast?""The one that talks."
Cain blinked.
That… wasn't him.
He booked a room at the inn. Paid in silver shards. The old man who ran it took his coin but muttered a prayer under his breath.
Cain didn't sleep.
At midnight, the bells tolled.
Not church bells.
Warning bells.
He was already moving when the scream hit.
"It's back! The beast—it's inside the village!"
Cain burst from the room, leapt the stairs three at a time.
Torches burned along the path. Villagers ran in every direction. A hunter's dog barked and was silenced mid-yelp.
And at the center of the square…
A figure.
Not beast. Not man.
Cloaked in fur and bone. Long claws. No eyes—just a stitched smile carved into its wooden mask.
It turned toward Cain.
"Ah. You're here," it said, voice dripping honey and blood.
Cain didn't wait.
He drew steel. Shadow danced at his feet—just enough for one Step.
He blinked behind the creature, dagger raised—
And missed.
The thing twisted mid-motion, parrying his strike with unnatural speed.
"You reek of Nyx," it hissed. "You're his, aren't you? The last seed."
Cain's blood ran cold.
The creature lunged. Claws met Shadowskin. Sparks flew.
Villagers screamed—but not all of them ran.
Some were chanting.
Old words. Forbidden hymns. The statue in the square began to bleed.
"What the hell is this place?" Cain growled.
"Cult," Nyx spat. "They're not warding beasts out. They're feeding one in."
Cain locked blades again. The creature's movements were wrong—glitchy, twitching between planes like it was barely real.
[Umbral Step – Ready]
He blinked up to a rooftop. Breathed.
Let the fear burn through.
Then dropped like a hammer.
He drove his blade straight into the masked thing's chest.
It shrieked, arms flailing—and burst into black ash.
But it laughed as it died.
"You've already joined the game…"
Cain stood, breathing hard, as the cultists scattered.
Torches dropped.
The statue cracked down the middle.
By dawn, the village was quiet again.
No one spoke of the attack.
Cain's room was still there. His door still shut. The old innkeeper greeted him with a smile, as if nothing had happened.
But under his breath, Cain heard him whisper:
"The hound walks among us. Let the Hunt begin."
[System Alert – Secret Quest Unlocked]🕯️ The Smile Beneath the MaskA village plays host to a dead god's cult.Track the source of their rituals before the forest consumes Ashveil entirely.
Reward: ???Risk: High. Death or permanent corruption possible.Time Limit: Unknown.
Cain walked to the edge of town that evening.
Nyx stirred again.
"That thing… it knew my name.""Why?""Because the one who broke me is still watching."
Cain looked at his hand, still stained with ash.
"Then we hunt them next."