Lord of Deception

The battlefield was silent.

Not the peaceful silence of victory, nor the solemn hush of mourning. This was a dead silence, where even the wind dared not whisper, as if the world itself held its breath in fear of what had transpired.

Kael stood amidst the wreckage, his boots sinking slightly into the blood-soaked earth. The battle had been long, but the outcome was never in question. Lucian was finished. Not just as a warrior, not just as a hero—but as a man.

Kael had ensured that.

His eyes scanned the field. Burnt banners, shattered weapons, and the lifeless remains of those foolish enough to challenge him. The remnants of Lucian's forces had either fled or surrendered. The so-called Holy Champion was now nothing more than a broken man, stripped of his righteousness and abandoned by the gods he worshipped.

Yet despite his overwhelming triumph, Kael felt nothing.

No satisfaction. No pride. Only the cold realization that this was just another battle in a far greater war.

A familiar presence approached, disrupting his thoughts.

"You let him live?"

Kael turned slightly, his gaze landing on Selene.

Her silver hair shimmered under the dim, flickering light of the dying fires. She stood at the edge of the battlefield, her piercing blue eyes studying him with an expression that was both questioning and calculating.

"He's no longer a threat," Kael replied coolly.

Selene crossed her arms, tilting her head slightly. "That's not what I asked."

Kael smirked, amused by her persistence. "Would you have preferred I killed him?"

Selene's lips curled into something between a smile and a grimace. "I would have preferred you made an example of him. The world needs to see what happens when they challenge you."

Kael exhaled slowly, his gaze turning toward the distant horizon.

Killing Lucian would have been easy. Too easy.

Instead, he had stripped him of everything—his purpose, his faith, his very will to exist. Death would have been a mercy. But this? This was worse.

"He's a broken man," Kael said at last. "He has no kingdom, no allies, no gods. He will wander, searching for meaning, only to realize he has none. In the end, the world will forget him."

Selene's eyes gleamed. "Cruel."

Kael glanced at her. "Efficient."

She chuckled. "And what now?"

Kael didn't answer immediately. His mind was already moving several steps ahead. The war with Lucian was merely one step in a much larger game. There were far greater forces at play—forces that had remained in the shadows, watching, waiting.

He could feel it.

An unseen pressure. A presence lingering beyond the veil of reality, observing him.

They were watching.

Selene must have sensed his shift in focus because her expression turned more serious. "Kael?"

He finally turned to her. "Now, we deal with the real threats."

Selene arched a brow. "The Holy Order?"

Kael shook his head. "No. The ones who orchestrate from the dark. The ones who think they can control fate itself."

For the first time in a long while, Kael felt the chains of the past tighten around him.

The game was only just beginning.

To be continued....