BLOOD SOVEREIGN

Chapter 10: Breaking the Vault

"If those magitech runes trip, we'll have half the guild's elite strike team on our necks before we can even blink."

Vesperia Vance's warning hissed through the damp midnight air as she pressed her back hard against the rotting timber siding of the east bazaar warehouse. Cold rain slicked the cobblestones, turning the narrow alleys into dark, reflective trenches.

Kael crouched beside her, his fingers resting steady and cold against the reinforced iron-and-oak frame of the minor merchant store's back door. He didn't answer her nervous whisper with words; his mind was entirely locked onto the pulsing, invisible hum of arcane energy vibrating through the wood. The immediate trouble was right here—a high-tier security lock designed by guild artificers to vaporize unauthorized intruders.

According to the plan they mapped out after leaving the Blue Lantern tavern, this black-market drop point held the illegal financial ledgers, rare catalyst stones, and high-value blood vials managed by the corrupt local clerk.

Vesperia pulled a set of thin steel lockpicks from her belt, stepping up to the heavy keyhole with a tense breath. "Let me try. I've dealt with low-tier guild wards before—"

"Step aside," Kael interrupted quietly, placing a firm hand on her shoulder and shifting her out of the way.

Vesperia frowned, about to snap back at his arrogance, but choked back her words when she saw his eyes. The faint, glowing crimson resting deep within his pupils gave off an unsettling, absolute focus.

Kael didn't bother with metal picks or manual tools. Instead, he placed his palm flat against the cold iron surface of the door, closing his eyes to channel his focus inward.

A single, quiet system prompt flickered briefly at the edge of his vision, remaining completely unobtrusive.

[Skill Active: Sovereign's Precision (F-Tier)]

[Analyzing mechanical lock geometry and internal rune-pins...]

[Success. Weak points mapped.]

To Kael’s enhanced sensory perception, the intricate internal machinery slowed to a crawl. He felt every tumbling gear, every spring, and the suppressed current of the arcane ward. With a subtle, calculated shift of his wrist, he channeled a fraction of his physical strength directly through his fingertips.

*Click. Clack. Snap.*

The sound was sharp, precise, and instantaneous. The heavy internal locking mechanism gave way all at once, disengaging the arcane wards completely before they could trigger an external alarm.

Vesperia stared at the heavy iron door in absolute disbelief. Her jaw dropped slightly, and she struggled to find her voice. It had taken her twenty minutes just to study a basic mechanical lock on her previous contract, yet Kael had dismantled a reinforced guild vault mechanism in less than three seconds without even scratching the paint.

"How did you—" Vesperia started, her eyes wide with shock.

"Open," Kael murmured, pushing the heavy door inward.

A wave of dry, dust-laden air rolled out from the dark interior. Kael stepped inside, pulling Vesperia past the threshold before closing the heavy door softly behind them.

The back room of the shop was cramped, lined with steel-reinforced storage lockers and wooden shelving units. In the center of the room sat a massive iron floor safe, glowing with faint, fading blue runes. This was where the real assets were kept.

"Keep watch on the door," Kael instructed, moving toward the iron safe without a moment's hesitation.

Vesperia swallowed hard, still trying to process what she had just witnessed, but she nodded and took her position by the entrance, her hand gripping her sword hilt as tension gripped the room.

Kael knelt before the iron safe. This lock was older, heavily reinforced with physical deadbolts rather than complex magitech. He didn't waste time trying to pick it. Planting his feet firmly against the wooden floorboards, he channeled his upgraded strength parameter directly into his arms.

He gripped the heavy steel locking wheel with both hands and wrenched it hard to the right.

*CRACK.*

The thick internal iron bolts snapped like dry twigs under the sheer, supernatural force of his grip. The heavy steel door of the safe swung wide open, kicking up a small cloud of dust into the dim room.

Inside the safe sat rows of glittering catalyst stones, heavy leather coin pouches filled with imperial gold, and a stack of confidential guild ledgers bound in thick black hide. At the very center rested three glowing glass vials filled with concentrated, high-purity blood extract—the exact kind of catalysts used by corrupt elites to artificially boost their combat ratings.

Kael reached in, grabbing the leather ledgers and the glowing blood vials. As his fingers brushed against the glass vials, a warm surge of energy hummed through his palm.

[System Notification]

[High-Tier Resource Acquired: Pure Blood Extract (x3)]

[Stored in Inventory.]

[Available Blood Points (BP): +5]

"We found what we came for," Kael said, standing up smoothly and slipping the ledgers into his heavy travel cloak.

Vesperia turned around, her eyes darting from the wide-open, destroyed safe to the calm, composed expression on Kael’s face. A shiver ran down her spine. This man wasn't just a skilled rogue or a bitter mercenary; he was a force of nature tearing through the guild's infrastructure with terrifying efficiency.

"The guild clerks are going to lose their minds when they find this missing by morning," Vesperia whispered, a fierce, satisfied grin finally breaking across her face.

"Let them," Kael replied coldly. "This is just the first ledger. We're going to strip them down to the bone."

Without another word, Kael slipped back out through the broken rear door into the rainy alleyway, vanishing into the dark shadows of the east bazaar with Vesperia right behind him.