(This was the first crack in the path he thought was his)
The climb down was easier, though Kael didn't feel lighter. His legs ached, and his thoughts wandered restlessly—lingering on the fights, the cheers, the quiet tension beneath it all.
He had just reached the shadowed bend near the southern ridge when something stopped him cold.
A body—collapsed under the twisted roots of an old pine.
It was Riven.
Kael rushed forward.
Riven's robes were soaked with sweat. His breathing came in jagged gasps. Veins along his neck pulsed with unnatural energy, and his lips were stained a faint green.
Kael crouched beside him and pressed two fingers to his wrist.
The pulse was chaotic—too fast, then too faint. There was spiritual energy in him, but it wasn't flowing naturally. It churned like a storm inside a fragile container.
Kael's brow furrowed.This wasn't normal cultivation backlash. It was something else—something darker.
He pulled a small satchel from his robe and began preparing a mixture of crushed bitterroot and mint oil, a remedy he'd once read about in Master Elric's library—specifically in a scroll marked Restricted: For Poison Response Only.
As the paste touched Riven's lips, the boy jerked violently—his eyes snapping open.
For a moment, he looked confused. Then, recognition—and something colder—slid into his gaze.
His hand moved with terrifying speed, drawing a hidden blade from under his belt and pressing it against Kael's throat in a blur.
Kael didn't flinch.
"You're awake," he said calmly. "That's good. I was starting to think the poison would win."
"Why?" Riven hissed. His voice was raw. "Why did you help me?"
"Because you were dying."
"That's not a reason."
Kael sighed. "Fine. Because I've spent years learning how to keep people alive, not watch them die."
Riven's hand didn't move. The blade remained at Kael's neck.
"You know what I took."
Kael met his gaze. "Lifesurge. It burns your lifespan for strength."
Riven's eyes darkened.
"Then you know why I can't let you walk away."
Kael smiled—just barely. "I knew you might try to kill me. Honestly, I expected it. But I still helped you."
"Why?"
"Because I'm an idiot," Kael said dryly. "And because if I hadn't, I'd be walking home wondering if I let someone die who didn't have to."
Riven's grip faltered.
"I could end you right now," he said.
"You could," Kael said, voice steady. "But then you'd be murdering the one person who can help you survive the next backlash. I can create something to ease the pain, to keep you stable. I'll do it. I'll keep your secret."
Riven stared at him, silent.
"You expect me to trust that?"
Kael shrugged slightly, careful not to press into the blade. "You don't have to. But consider this: If I was going to ruin you, I wouldn't have bothered saving you. I'd have left you here to rot."
Silence. The tension in the air was thick, electric.
Kael's voice lowered.
"You can kill me. Or you can take the deal."
The knife hovered… then withdrew.
Riven shoved it back into his belt, slowly pushing himself to a seated position. His breaths were shallow, but the rage in his eyes had cooled to wary calculation.
"You're a fool," he muttered.
"So I've been told."
"I still think you're lying."
"I'm not," Kael said. "But if I ever do break my word, you'll be the first to know. Just… try not to stab me next time."
That earned him a weak, bitter laugh.
Riven paused, then spoke again—more quietly.
"You really swear not to tell anyone?"
"I swear."
"Fine. You keep your mouth shut, I'll keep my blade sheathed."
Kael nodded.
But something inside him shifted as they walked in silence—Riven limping, Kael carrying the weight of what had nearly happened.
He had saved someone's life tonight.
And that someone had nearly ended his.
He told himself it was worth it. That it was the right thing to do.
But deep down, a new thought bloomed—cold, sharp, and quiet:
"Next time… I won't help unless there's something in it for me."
He didn't say it aloud. Not yet.But the seed had been planted.
That night, Kael shed something soft from his spirit.Not entirely. Not all at once.
But the first piece of his old self had been left behind in the dirt beside Riven's blade.