Chapter 21 – Three Cuts, One ShadowPart 2: The Queen Below
The clerk was still muttering about beetles when Kael returned to the board.
He didn't browse this time.
He took one paper, wordlessly, and walked back.
The clerk looked up. His eyes narrowed.
"...You want the quarry job?"
Kael nodded.
"That's not sewer slime or bugs, Kael. That's a nest. With a queen. You'll need a team."
"I don't share."
The clerk ran a hand through thinning hair. "You know how many went after that thing?"
Kael just looked at him.
The silence answered.
The stamp hit the form a little harder than usual.
"Bring back the tail. Or a head. Just—don't die in a pit."
The Old West Quarry sat like a mouth at the city's edge—dark, open, lined with broken mining rails and rusted carts. Fog settled into the collapsed tunnel mouths like sleeping breath.
Kael arrived before dawn. No birdsong. No workers. Only stillness.
He descended without sound, sword drawn but low.
Each level deeper brought a stronger scent of decay. The rock walls oozed moisture. The wind whistled oddly, like voices in water.
The nest was active.
Spire Rats weren't normal vermin. They learned. Worked together. Created hives. And deep within… a Matron.
He moved like a ghost between collapsed beams and cracked stone. Dropped five of them before they even noticed. No squeals. No mess.
Only cuts. Clean. Fast.
A rusted helm lay half-buried near a dried blood smear. One of the previous adventurers.
Kael didn't look twice.
He blinked forward, slid beneath a leaning cart, and plunged his sword upward into another rat's gut.
It didn't even finish turning.
They came in waves.
Fifteen. Maybe twenty.
He didn't count.
He moved like water over jagged rocks—curving, slipping, slicing.
Shadow followed his movements like a memory, and Flowing Shadow kept him from ever being where they struck.
Only when the last body fell and the stone stopped echoing did Kael pause.
Not to breathe.
Just to listen.
Then he heard her.
Low scraping. Heavy.
The Matron.
She emerged from a crack in the stone—twice the size of the others. Pale, veined flesh pulled tight over ridged bones. Her eyes—black and many—locked on him. Her teeth scraped stone as she opened her mouth.
It didn't screech.
It hissed one long breath, like boiling air.
Then it charged.
Kael didn't move.
He waited.
At the last second, he blinked—not away, but through.
He came out at her flank. Sword already reversed. Jammed it beneath the chitin and pulled.
The beast screamed.
She thrashed.
But Kael didn't retreat.
He stepped forward, ducked a flailing claw, planted a boot against her inner leg joint, and drove the blade straight into the base of her throat.
The scream choked off.
She collapsed, twitching.
Kael stepped back. Watched her bleed.
Then—just once—he blinked behind her and sliced upward, severing her spine.
Stillness.
No fanfare.
Only silence.
He stood for a long time.
Blood pooled around his boots.
Then the system whispered.
[System Notice]✔ Third Solo Guild Quest Complete✔ Combat Efficiency: 94.2%✔ Clean Sweep Bonus Applied
Rank Advancement UnlockedYou are now: Apprentice Swordsman
🎖 New Skill Acquired:Shadow Carve (Lv. 1)Strike detected rhythm points. Bypass armor if timed.
"You no longer strike to survive. You strike to end."
He returned at sunset.
Carried only the Matron's jaw, still glistening.
The clerk dropped his pen.
"You…"
Kael dropped the jaw on the counter. It thudded wetly.
"I—uh…"
Silver was counted. Pouch passed.
Kael didn't look at it.
He was already walking away.
That night, in his rented room, Kael sat shirtless, staring at the flickering candlelight. The two sigils on his ribs pulsed faintly, like slow heartbeats out of sync.
He opened his system.
[Rank: Apprentice]
Next Rank: Adept➤ Conditions:
• Kill 10 elite enemies alone (Tier 3+)
• Destroy a church stronghold
➤ System Shop unlocked as a reward for consistent combat excellence and confirmed divergence from standard human growth patterns.
Kael closed the window.
No expression crossed his face.
But deep inside, beneath the skin, the shadow stirred.
Not loud.
Not screaming.
Just… waiting.