Keiran barely had time to react before rough hands shoved him into the darkness of an alleyway. His back hit the damp wall, the cold seeping through his thin clothes. Instinctively, he reached for anything—his knife, a weapon, something—but found nothing. He lifted his gaze, breath steady despite the tension.
A figure stood before him, cloaked in black, a scarf covering the lower half of his face. The dim alley light cast sharp shadows over his form, but one thing stood out.
His hair.
White.
Keiran's eyes narrowed. His voice was low, measured. "You… you're the white-haired boy."
The figure exhaled, then pulled the scarf down, revealing his face. "Vael. Vael Morgrave."
"Right. Vael." Keiran rolled his shoulders, the initial surprise fading. "So, is this supposed to be a kidnapping or something?"
Vael scoffed. "Of course not. I'm here to ask who you are and what you're planning."
Keiran tilted his head. "What else? I'm escaping. Isn't that the goal for all of us?"
Vael stepped forward, his piercing eyes locked onto Keiran's. Then, without a word, he glanced around, as if ensuring they were alone, before lowering his voice. "I saw you today. In the factory. You were watching Armon."
Keiran didn't answer immediately. He had been careful—or so he thought. But Vael had noticed.
"You were looking for something," Vael continued. "You weren't just another worker."
Keiran crossed his arms. "And what if I was?"
Vael sighed and leaned against the opposite wall. "Then we have something in common."
Keiran frowned. "…What Series are you?"
"Seventeen."
Seventeen? Mine's sixteen guess we almost the same then keiran asked. "…And your age?"
"Eleven."
Keiran's breath hitched slightly. "Eleven? How the hell did you survive that paralysis shot? You are younger then me.."
Vael smirked. "It was just paralysis."
Keiran huffed. "Yeah, for most people, paralysis means you get beaten, thrown into a pit, and don't come out again."
Vael's expression darkened, but he shook his head. "Forget that. I want to escape, too."
Keiran studied him. He had already decided not to leave anyone behind if he could help it. He wasn't a hero, but he knew what it felt like to be alone in a place like this.
He smirked and gave Vael a light push on the chest. "Then stick with me."
Vael didn't react immediately. "Do you have useful information?"
Keiran shook his head. "I have information. Important information. I'll tell you later." His gaze sharpened. "What about you?"
Vael hesitated for a moment, then exhaled. "I don't have any information… but I have something just as important."
He lifted a hand and pointed at the ground. There, a rotten rat carcass lay in the shadows of the alley. His voice was calm, almost indifferent.
"Burn. Burn till nothing remains."
At first, nothing happened. Then—
Flames erupted, devouring the rat's body in an instant. The fire wasn't normal; it was too bright, too intense. The corpse disintegrated within seconds, leaving behind no ashes, no trace.
Keiran's breath caught. His eyes darted between the empty ground and Vael, his voice barely above a whisper.
"…How?"
Vael lowered his hand, the fire vanishing as quickly as it had come. "Path of a oath. The Oath of the Ashen Pact. It grants me the power of fire."
Keiran's breath was slow, controlled. "That's… incredible." Then, without thinking, he added, "How did you get it?"
Vael exhaled slowly. His fingers twitched, his body rigid as if bracing for something vile to crawl up from his memory. His voice, when he spoke, was quiet—too quiet.
"The moment I was shot… everything stopped."
Keiran didn't speak. He couldn't speak.
"The pain was gone. The air was still. Even time itself… it was like the world forgot to move." Vael's golden eyes darkened. "And then… I heard it."
Keiran felt his skin prickle. "Heard what?"
Vael didn't blink. "A voice."
Something was wrong.
Vael's voice was steady, but his expression—his eyes—weren't normal. He wasn't just remembering it but it felt like he was there again.
"A voice deeper than anything I've ever heard. No, not deep—it was heavy." His fingers curled. "Like something ancient. Something hungry."
A silence stretched between them, thick and suffocating.
Then Vael spoke, like his voice was not his own.
'Do you desire power, soul?'
Keiran's body went cold.
It wasn't just how he said it—it was what he said. The words felt wrong, like they weren't meant to be spoken by anything human.
He swallowed. "And you…?"
Vael's lips curled into something that wasn't quite a smirk.
"What else? I said yes."
Then he let out a breath. His fingers twitched. And his next words made Keiran's blood run colder than ice.
'Then swear it.'
Vael's voice had dropped. It didn't even sound like him anymore.
'Swear it upon the heavens and the depths below. Swear it upon your soul, and it shall be yours.'
The words rang in Keiran's head like a whisper from something unseen.
Vael exhaled sharply. "And I did."
Something in the air shifted. The distant sounds of the town—people walking, murmuring—felt far away. Like a veil had dropped over them.
"The moment I swore it, the world changed." Vael's voice was eerily steady. "The voice disappeared. The pain disappeared. And then… the fog came."
Keiran felt something press against his chest—an invisible weight, like the air itself had turned wrong.
"Black fog. Thick. Suffocating. It swallowed everything." Vael's golden eyes gleamed, hollow and haunted. "I couldn't see. I couldn't move. And then, ahead of me, I saw it—"
Keiran inhaled shakily.
"A light?" he asked, though he already knew the answer.
Vael shook his head slowly. "No."
Keiran's heart pounded.
"The path leading to it wasn't meant to be walked." Vael's voice turned sharp. "The ground—burning coal. The cracks—rivers of molten rock. The air—so thick with heat it crawled into my lungs."
His fingers twitched.
"I stepped forward. My feet burned. My body screamed." Vael's expression didn't change. "But I kept walking."
Keiran didn't move.
"I screamed. I cried. My tears fell." Vael's breath came slower. "And when they touched the ground… they burned."
Keiran shuddered.
Vael continued, his voice disturbingly even.
"But I endured." His golden eyes flickered. "And when I reached it, I finally saw what had been waiting for me."
Keiran's breath hitched.
"It wasn't a light." Vael's lips parted slightly. "It was a heart."
Something twisted in Keiran's gut.
"A heart made of fire."
A silence so thick it choked.
"It pulsed." Vael's voice dropped. "Like it was alive. Like it was waiting."
The world around them felt wrong. The shadows stretched just a little too long. The air was a little too still.
Then Vael whispered:
'Do you swear upon your soul to wield this fire?Do you swear to burn those who oppose.'
Keiran felt his entire body tense.
"I didn't hesitate," Vael murmured.
Then he spoke his final words—soft, quiet, but deafening.
'Yes.'
The moment he said it, something unseen passed between them. Keiran felt it—like a whisper at the edge of his mind, something unseen watching from the dark.
Vael exhaled. "The voice vanished."
His fingers brushed against his chest.
"And then the heart moved."
Keiran clenched his fists.
"It rose into the air… and then, it sank into me."
A long, suffocating silence.
"And the pain—" Vael let out a hollow breath. "It was worse than death."
Keiran's heart pounded against his ribs.
"The fire ate me." Vael's voice was devoid of life. "It burned me from the inside out. I felt my veins melting. I felt my flesh tearing."
Keiran shuddered violently.
"I screamed. I begged. But there was nothing. No mercy. No escape." Vael's golden eyes were empty. "I was alone in that endless fire."
The silence stretched.
Keiran swallowed thickly. "And then?"
Vael exhaled, like pulling himself back to reality. "I blacked out."
His smirk returned—bitter.
"When I woke up, I was back in the real world." His eyes flickered with something unreadable. "The paralysis was gone."
Then, his smile sharpened.
"And then they dragged me away and beat me senseless."
Keiran couldn't find the words to respond.
Vael chuckled under his breath. "That's the price of power, Keiran."
Then his golden eyes locked onto Keiran's with something unnatural.
"And you?" His voice was soft. "Do you still want an Oath?"
Keiran hesitated, then gave a slow nod.
Vael sighed. "Then let me warn you—stay careful."
With that, he loosened his shirt and pulled it open slightly, revealing his right side. Keiran's eyes widened. The skin was burned, raw and red, as if scorched by something that never truly healed.
"This is the Flame Heart—the power of my Oath," Vael said, his tone eerily calm. "It doesn't just come with benefits. The curses outweigh them."
Keiran remained silent, watching as Vael's fingers hovered over the burn marks, the edges of which still seemed to glow faintly in the dim alley light.
"It never stops burning," Vael continued. "Even if I get used to it, it always hurts. And sleep?" He gave a dry, humorless chuckle. "I can barely sleep for more than two or three hours before the fire in my veins wakes me up again. It keeps me alive, but it never lets me rest."
Then, his expression darkened.
"And you can't hear him, but I can."
Keiran tensed. "Him?"
Vael nodded, his eyes distant.
"The heart speaks to me. To control and maintain its power, I have to burn something… feed it something every time it demands. It doesn't care what or where. Just… something."
For a moment, the alley was silent, save for the faint rustling of wind.
"…But despite the curse, the benefits are real too," Vael finally said. "I can burn anything I want. And—" his eyes gleamed slightly, "—there are two more things I don't know about yet. Every time I ask the heart it just says. It's not the right time boy"
Keiran took a deep breath, then shook his head. "That's enough for now."
Grabbing Vael by the arm, he pulled him out of the alley. The dim streetlights flickered as they stepped back into the open air.
Keiran let go. "Where are you staying?"
Vael smirked and pointed at a building—right next to Keiran's.
Keiran blinked. "Huh. Would you look at that? We're neighbors." He let out a dry chuckle. "Well, nice to meet you, I guess."
Vael grinned.
Before parting, Keiran turned back. "Be ready at 6 AM tomorrow. I'm bringing someone with me."
Vael raised a brow but nodded. "Got it."
Keiran turned, heading back toward his apartment. But as he approached the entrance, he froze.
Selara stood there, arms crossed, eyes watching him with quiet amusement.
Keiran's stomach dropped. "Should I even ask?"
Selara smirked. "Should I come too?"
Keiran stared. "You… you were listening?"
She shrugged. "Not much. Just enough." Her gaze flicked toward the alley. "Was that who I think it was?"
Keiran exhaled. "Yeah."
Selara nodded. "Then I'll be there at 6 AM."
Without another word, she turned and walked away.
Keiran stood there for a moment, feeling a strange sensation settle in his chest.
Just two days ago, when he was dragged into this place, his emotions had been ripped from him, leaving only numbness.
But today… for the first time, he felt a spark.
A flicker of something dangerously close to hope.
The next day, Keiran woke up early. The room was cold, the air still heavy with the remnants of sleep. He got up, freshened himself, and changed into his usual clothes—still uncomfortable, but he had no choice.
By the time he stepped outside, the sun was barely rising, a faint golden hue breaking through the thick, gray sky.
And yet, despite the dullness of the morning, there was something else inside him. Something small but steady.
Hope.
As Keiran glanced around, his eyes landed on Vael.
The white-haired boy was standing near the entrance of the apartment, holding something in his hand—a small fruit.
Except… it was burning.
Thin, controlled flames curled around the fruit's surface, slowly turning it to ash without any sign of smoke.
Keiran frowned, walking up to him. "What are you doing?"
Vael turned his head slightly. "Fueling the fire."
Keiran's eyes flickered toward the flame. He didn't ask further—he understood.
The Flame Heart needed fuel. And Vael was giving it something small, something harmless, instead of… something worse.
Before Keiran could say anything else, a voice spoke from behind.
"You're early."
They both turned.
Selara stood a few feet away, hands tucked into her coat pockets, her dark blue eyes studying Vael with interest.
Vael looked at her, clearly confused. "Who's she?"
Selara smirked. "You may not know me, Mister Vael, but I know you."
Vael narrowed his eyes slightly. "Do you now?"
"I've seen you before. You tend to disappear before anyone gets the chance to talk to you. That, and—" her gaze flickered to the fading embers in his hand, "—I know about that little trick of yours."
Vael let out a small, amused huff. "Guess I'm not as hidden as I thought."
Keiran crossed his arms. "Enough introductions. We don't have time to waste."
He glanced at both of them, then took a breath.
"Let's get started, shall we?"