Kael clutched his side, blood seeping between his fingers. The pain was sharp, but not fatal.
Reven's blade had cut deep—but not deep enough to kill.
Mira hurried to his side. "We need to stop the bleeding."
Orin's expression was grim. "They could've ended you, Kael. But they didn't."
That was what troubled Kael the most. Reven had the perfect chance.
But instead, they left him alive.
Unraveling the Mystery
Back at their hideout, Mira stitched Kael's wound while Orin paced restlessly.
"It doesn't make sense." Orin muttered. "Reven is one of the Syndicate's best. They don't leave unfinished jobs."
Mira frowned. "Unless…"
She didn't finish.
Kael narrowed his eyes. "Unless what?"
Mira hesitated, then spoke carefully. "Unless Reven doesn't actually want you dead."
Orin scoffed. "Then why attack at all?"
Kael exhaled, thinking back to their duel. Reven had fought like a specter, faster, stronger, just as precise as he remembered.
Yet, there was something else in their movements—hesitation.
Kael had seen it. Just for a fraction of a second.
And then, there was what Reven had said before vanishing.
"You're weaker than before, Kael."
It wasn't a taunt. It was a warning.
A Message Left Behind
Mira finished tying the bandages. "We need more information."
Kael nodded. There was one place where they might find answers.
Before Reven disappeared, they had dropped something. A small scrap of parchment, barely noticeable on the floor.
Kael picked it up, unfolding it carefully.
One word was scrawled across it.
"Sanctuary."
Orin frowned. "What does that mean?"
Kael's eyes darkened. He knew exactly what it meant.
It was the name of an old meeting place.
A place where Syndicate assassins went when they needed to speak in secret.
Reven hadn't just let him live.
They had given him a clue.
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