NOVEL NEXT Chapter 69: The Pack’s Trial
Scene 1: The Shadows Unleashed
The air shifted before the attack began.
A low growl reverberated from the walls, followed by the skitter of claws across stone. One shadow split into three, then five, then a dozen. Eyes gleamed in the dark like burning coals, circling Jemil and the swordmaster. The silence they had walked through just moments ago shattered, replaced by the predator's chorus.
The swordmaster's hand tightened around her blade. Her breathing slowed, sharpened—every fiber of her body alive with instinct. Jemil felt it too, the hairs on his arms rising as his system pulsed warnings through his veins.
"Stay close," she murmured, her voice low, steady, but tense. "They hunt in formation. If we split, we're done."
Jemil nodded, stepping to her flank. The glow of the curse on his chest pulsed faintly, almost as if the pack's presence fed it.
From the dark, the first hunter lunged.
Scene 2: Claws Against Steel
The creature was fast—too fast. It streaked from the shadows with its claws extended, a blur of muscle and hunger. But the swordmaster moved faster. Her blade flashed, clean and precise, splitting the hunter's charge down the middle.
Blood hit the ground in steaming arcs.
But as the body fell, two more filled the gap. Jemil ducked, summoning a burst of arcane force that pushed one away while the swordmaster pivoted, her blade slicing the other's throat.
Yet the hunters kept coming. For every one that fell, two more emerged, weaving through the shadows, testing their defenses with darting feints and quick retreats. They weren't just attacking—they were herding.
"They're driving us inward," Jemil realized aloud, parrying a clawed strike with his summoned shield.
The swordmaster's eyes narrowed. "A pack tactic. Which means…"
Her words were cut off as a heavier presence stepped into the chamber.
Scene 3: The Alpha Appears
The growls ceased. The pack circled back into the shadows, as though waiting.
From the darkness, a figure stepped forward—not beast, not man, but something in between. Its form was upright, broad-shouldered, but its eyes burned with the same feral glow. In its hand was not claw nor fang, but a blade.
A sword.
And when it raised it, the movement was flawless—identical to the swordmaster's stance.
Her breath caught. The grip. The pivot of the feet. Even the way it held its shoulders. It was her style, mirrored perfectly, but twisted with a predator's savagery.
The alpha's voice was a growl shaped into words.
"Betrayer. Hunter. You walk with prey… and yet you claim the right to stand?"
The swordmaster's knuckles whitened around her hilt. "That's… my technique."
It raised the blade, pointing it at her. "Your reflection. The instinct you buried. The part of you that kills without hesitation."
And then it charged.
Scene 4: Blade Against Reflection
Steel met steel.
The impact rattled the chamber, sparks flying as their blades clashed. The alpha's strength was monstrous, its speed uncanny, every strike a perfect inversion of hers. Where she cut high, it cut low. Where she feinted, it predicted. It knew her rhythm because it was hers.
Jemil tried to intervene, summoning bursts of force, but the pack pressed him back, snapping at his heels, testing his reflexes. He could barely keep them at bay while the duel raged.
The swordmaster faltered. Each clash dragged at her lungs, each reversal struck deeper into her doubts.
"Why hesitate?" the alpha snarled, pressing her to her knees. "A true hunter doesn't waver. You betrayed your oath, and now you cling to weakness."
Her grip trembled. The words bit deeper than the blade. Memories surged—of her betrayal, of the one she left bleeding behind.
Her sword wavered.
And the alpha's blade was poised to finish her.
Scene 5: The Curse Ignites
Jemil's voice cut through the clash.
"Stand up! You swore an oath to me!"
The swordmaster's head jerked up. Her gaze snapped to Jemil—bloodied, struggling, holding back three hunters with nothing but grit and glowing curse-marked force. His chest burned with golden light, the curse spilling like molten fire across his skin.
The hunters recoiled from the glow. Even the alpha paused.
The swordmaster felt it—his trust, his call. The vow she had spoken in the Iron Chamber wasn't a memory. It was alive.
Her blade steadied. Her fear burned away.
With a roar, she surged upward, catching the alpha's strike and twisting. Their blades locked, but this time her strength did not waver. Jemil's presence bolstered her, his voice anchoring her in the storm of guilt.
"I am no betrayer," she spat, her blade carving sparks into the alpha's chest. "I fight for him!"
The alpha reeled, its reflection breaking for the first time.
Scene 6: The Trial's End
The duel turned.
The swordmaster moved like a tempest—every cut fluid, every parry sharpened by resolve. The alpha countered, but its rhythm faltered. With each clash, it weakened, its form flickering between shadow and flesh.
Finally, with one decisive strike, she split its blade in two. The alpha staggered back, its chest glowing where her sword had pierced through.
It did not fall. Instead, it bowed.
"You have chosen… your prey no longer. You hunt together."
The shadow shattered, dissolving into the pack. The hunters retreated into the darkness, leaving only silence behind.
The swordmaster collapsed to her knees, her chest heaving. Jemil staggered to her side, his curse-mark burning like fire.
She caught his wrist, her voice hoarse but steady.
"I won't run again. Even if this curse consumes you… I'll be at your side."
The vow was no longer words. It was truth.
And as the chamber opened to the next floor, the curse pulsed again—hotter, hungrier.
The trial was far from over.
Next Chapter Preview – Chapter 70: The Sword That Hunts
The chamber opens, but the reprieve is fleeting. The swordmaster has proven her resolve, yet the trial only sharpens. On the next floor, the lingering curse sears hotter across Jemil's chest, spreading its molten marks in patterns that even his wives can no longer ignore.
The air itself grows heavy, alive with whispers that test their unity. Weapons rattle as phantom blades clash in the dark. For the swordmaster, the next test is not against an enemy—but against her own blade, now alive with the instincts she once denied.
For Jemil, the danger deepens: the more he leans on the cursed fire to survive, the more he risks being claimed by it. His wives must decide—will they anchor him, or will their fears tear their bond apart?
And when the sword begins to whisper back… the hunt may claim more than prey.
Call to Action
Jemil and the swordmaster stood victorious, but the curse is only tightening its hold. What will happen when the next floor pits them against blades that cut into their very bonds? ⚔🔥
👉 If you're ready to see whether Jemil can keep his vow alive—or be consumed by it—then don't miss Chapter 70: The Sword That Hunts!