2026-06-30 21:40:28Nick froze, the word landing like a stone dropped into still water.
His origins.What could she possibly mean by that?For as long as memory served, he had been a son of the Crane house. He had grown up behind those walls, eaten at that table, carried that name. There was nothing mysterious about where he came from.And yet.He forced himself to think clearly, sifting back through years of half-remembered moments. There had been something, hadn't there? A certain tens
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078
"Look at the size of this ginseng root we found! It's absolutely massive!""I know, right? If Lydia hadn't been with us, we never would've spotted something this good.""And I picked up a fresh whole chicken too. I'm going to make soup for everyone when we get back.""Perfect! I can't wait to try Celia's cooking again.""Don't give me all the credit. Phoebe's even better in the kitchen than I am."The bright chatter of voices drifted in from outside, and Serena and Helena snapped to attention. Celia and the others were back.Nick tensed, pulling his focus inward. In one smooth motion, he adjusted his clothes and swung himself off the bed. Serena and Helena scrambled to straighten their own clothing, faces flushed at the memory of what had just transpired. By the time the front door opened, both women had composed themselves and followed him out into the main room.When Celia stepped inside and saw the two women standing there, color restored to the
077
Nick knelt between the two cots and examined the wounds with clinical focus.Serena had taken a blade across her abdomen. The gash was deep, the edges ragged where the steel had punched through muscle. Helena's wound sat higher, a clean puncture just below the collarbone that had narrowly missed the lung. Both women were pale, their breathing shallow but controlled, the discipline of fighters keeping them conscious through pain that would have dropped anyone else."This is going to hurt," Nick said, his voice low and even. "I need to set needles along several meridians to redirect your inner force and let the damaged channels mend. Some of the points are sensitive. The process will push heat through your entire system."Helena clenched her jaw and gave a single, sharp nod. "Do what you must, Overseer."Nick steadied himself. Both women's training garb was soaked through with blood, the dark fabric clinging to their bodies. He could not work through ruined cloth.
076
The engine roar cut through the quiet morning air outside Clearwater Manor, shattering the stillness that had settled over the grounds like a held breath.Tires shrieked against asphalt. Nick yanked the wheel hard, sliding the car to a flawless stop right at the gate, gravel spraying out from beneath the wheels in a wide arc.Celia burst through the door before he'd even killed the engine. The moment she saw him step out, her composure shattered completely. Tears spilled down her cheeks as she ran straight into his arms, clutching him like he might vanish again if she let go for even a second."Where did you go?" Her voice cracked, raw with fear and relief tangled together. "I thought... I thought something terrible happened to you."She pulled back just enough to look him over, hands trembling against his chest, and that's when the smell hit her. Blood. Thick and metallic, clinging to his clothes like a second skin. Her hands flew across his chest, his arms, his
075
Griffin Preston and Callum Frost had no room left for hesitation.Five Sovereigns lay dead, cut down by a man who should have been weakened and vulnerable. If they waited another heartbeat, that window would close forever.Neither had imagined this outcome. Nick Crane had broken through to Warlord Saint mid-battle, ascending as though slaughtering five peak warriors was a warm-up. His inner force should have been wild, his foundation unstable. That was their only advantage, and it was slipping away.Griffin dove forward, channeling everything into his signature technique. "Thunderwyrm Soulreaver!" The Thunderwyrm Sword screamed through the air, trailing arcs of crackling energy.Callum charged from the opposite angle, palms rotating through the ancient patterns of Orion Palm. He moved like a predator on wounded prey, confidence burning despite what he'd witnessed."Good," Nick said.The Nightwyrm Blade swept horizontally, splitting the air itself. Steel
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" Nick!" Roman Lockwood's voice boomed across the clearing, dripping with satisfaction. "You pathetic waste of breath! You were so full of yourself a moment ago. What happened? Run out of steam already?"He circled Nick Crane like a predator toying with wounded prey, trading blows with the other four Sovereign-tier warriors while hurling taunts between each strike. The five of them moved in practiced coordination, hemming Nick in from every angle, their combined pressure enough to crush any ordinary fighter into dust."Enough talk," Nick said through gritted teeth. "You want to fight? Then fight."His voice was clipped, almost distracted. Not because he was afraid, but because his attention was elsewhere. Deep within his body, something was shifting. A tremor ran through his meridians, faint but unmistakable. He could feel it: the threshold of a breakthrough, hovering just beyond reach like a door left ajar.He needed time. He needed pressure.He needed them
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At Callum Frost's command, every remaining fighter from the Register surged forward.They had underestimated him. Every single one of them.Corinne Hale stood apart, longsword held loose at her side. She did not rush in with the others. Friendly steel is just as deadly in a chaotic fray, and Nick Crane fought bare-handed. No matter how deep his inner force ran, surely he could not deflect sharpened steel with nothing but his fists.What happened next shattered every calculation she had made.Nick drew his inner force to the surface of his body, and the air around him seemed to harden. One punch connected with the nearest assassin's chest, launching the man backward like a battering ram had struck him, ribs caving inward before he hit the ground. Another killer closed from the flank, blade whistling toward the throat. The edge never arrived. Nick shifted a half-step and the strike carved empty air; his return blow cratered the man's sternum.No matter how fas
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