---
The sun had fully dipped beneath the ridge by the time Kael and Silna reached the outpost. Hidden between jagged hills and cloaked in camouflage runes, it looked like nothing more than another pile of ruinous stone — until Kael crossed the boundary.
Magic flared like a ripple across his skin. A veil parted, revealing a compact but fortified camp built from scavenged obsidian slabs and rune-carved steel. Fires burned low in covered braziers. Figures moved through the haze — lean, quiet, and armed.
"Don't speak unless spoken to," Silna warned, striding ahead. "And for the love of gold, keep that cursed glow on lockdown."
"I'm trying," Kael muttered, pulling his collar higher. The sigil on his chest pulsed dimly, reacting to the wards in the air.
Inside, the air was taut. Kael could feel the tension in the way mercenaries glanced at him, hands twitching near weapons. He wasn't welcome. Not yet.
A tall man with a shaven head and a brutal scar over his nose stepped forward to block their path. "Silna. You were late. Again."
"Had a guest trial to monitor," she said without flinching. "Turned out to be a Crownless anomaly."
The man's gaze shifted to Kael. "Him?"
"Unfortunately," she said. "I've drafted him as a provisional shadow. He'll be under me until we verify he's not a ticking relic."
Kael felt the air grow colder.
---
> [System Alert]
Title Obtained: "Shadow of the Commander"
⚠ Temporary Mercenary Status Granted
• Command Hierarchy: F-Rank, Observer Tier
• Daily Evaluation: Active
Reward (Pending): Access to Guild Codex (Partial)
---
The man grunted and stepped aside. "Don't cause problems."
Kael nodded once, silently cataloging everything. Patrol rotations. Weapon types. Ward anchors in the stone. He didn't know where this instinct came from, but it flowed like breath now — the system enhancing not just his strength, but his perception.
Silna led him into a tent reinforced with beast-leather and runeplates. She tossed her coat aside and sat on the edge of a crate.
"You hungry?"
Kael shook his head.
"Good. No ration credits yet. You're on observer status."
She kicked over a small box for him to sit on. Kael settled slowly.
"What happens now?" he asked.
"We wait," she said, her tone sharpening. "Someone saw the flare. They'll come looking."
Kael stared at the ground. The Crownless Sigil still hummed faintly beneath his shirt.
"If they ask questions?" he said.
"I answer for you. You're mine. For now."
He frowned. "You're going to lie?"
She leaned forward slightly, shadows crossing her sharp features.
"I'm going to survive. And you? You'll follow orders, learn fast, and not die."
Kael met her gaze. "And if I don't?"
"Then I gut you before the Magisterium does. Cleaner that way."
Silna smiled, but there was no humor in it. Just exhaustion.
Kael nodded. Somehow, the honesty made him trust her more.
---
That night, Kael sat outside the tent, watching the firelight flicker in the distance.
He didn't know what tomorrow would bring — but for the first time since waking in this world, he wasn't just reacting.
He was adapting.
---
📘 End of Chapter 9
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📣 [System Humor Log #5]
[System]: You are now part of a mercenary unit.
[Perks]: Suspicion, Hunger, and Probably Betrayal.
[Kael]: What about insurance?
[System]: If you die, I delete your record.
---