---
Kael crouched in the tannery's oppressive gloom, the System's cold analysis in his head, Elara's herbs clutched in his fist, and Vorlag's hate ringing in his ears. He was stronger, faster, could *see* more. But the cold echo in his soul remained, and the whispers waited just beyond the herbal barrier. The hunt was far from over.
Vorlag's bellow shook the crumbling tannery walls: *"He's here! Seal the exits! Lightbringers – purge this blight!"* Kael's newly unlocked Perception (**PER: 1**) painted a terrifying picture through the gloom:
- **Scarlet Torchlight:** Cutting through chemical fog, wielded by Temple Enforcers in polished white armor – *Lightbringers*, zealous hunters of the "impure."
- **Vorlag's Rage:** A pulsing red aura of fury near the shattered apothecary wall. The System tagged him: **[THREAT: BOSS (MINOR)]**.
- **Flanking Shadows:** City Guards, less disciplined but vicious, moving through side alleys and over crumbling rooftops.
> **SYSTEM:** *"OBJECTIVE UPDATED: SURVIVE THE PURGE."*
> *"XP REWARD: 60 (SCALED TO THREAT DENSITY & USER LEVEL)"*
> *"WARNING: XP REQUIREMENT FOR LEVEL 3: 100/100. LEVEL 4: 200/200. PROGRESSION SCALING ACTIVE."*
> *"RECOMMENDATION: UTILIZE ENVIRONMENT. MAXIMIZE CHAOS."*
Kael ducked behind a massive, empty vat as a Lightbringer's searing beam of holy energy scorched the wall where he'd stood.
> **SYSTEM:** *"TANNERY STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS COMPLETE. WEAK POINT: FLOOR GRATING (COORDINATES: 7.3 METERS NORTHWEST). CORROSIVE RESIDUE DETECTED BELOW."*
Kael scrambled, feeling the heat of another beam on his heels. He reached the rusted grating. One powerful kick (**STR 12**) shattered the corroded locks. He dropped into utter darkness, landing knee-deep in viscous, stinging sludge – decades of toxic runoff.
*"Burning!"* he gasped.
> **SYSTEM:** *"CHEMICAL COMPOSITION: CAUSTIC. MINOR SKIN DAMAGE DETECTED. ENDURANCE CHECK PASSED (END 7). MOVEMENT IMPEDED BY 40%. PROCEED DOWNSTREAM. CAVE SYSTEM DETECTED 50 METERS AHEAD."*
The sludge river flowed into a narrow, natural limestone tunnel. Torchlight flickered at the entrance behind him – guards were following.
> **SYSTEM:** *"TUNNEL DIMENSIONS NARROWING. USER AGILITY REQUIRED. AGILITY CHECK: DIFFICULTY 8."*
Kael squeezed sideways, sucking in his gut, scraping against rough rock. Behind, a guard cursed, armor scraping loudly.
> **SYSTEM:** *"GUARD AGILITY INSUFFICIENT. PREDICTION: STUCK IN 5...4...3..."*
A bellow of panic echoed, then cut off – the guard was wedged immovably, blocking the tunnel entrance for others. Kael pushed forward into wider blackness. **(+10 XP - Environmental Hazard Exploit)*
The tunnel opened into a cavern glittering with faintly phosphorescent fungi. It was eerily beautiful, but the System screamed:
> **SYSTEM:** *"BIOLUMINESCENT SPORES DETECTED. PSYCHOACTIVE PROPERTIES. DIRECT INHALATION INDUCES: VISUAL HALLUCINATIONS, AUDITORY DISTORTIONS. SANITY RISK: HIGH."*
> *"HOLD BREATH. NAVIGATE USING PERCEPTION GRID. THREAT DETECTED: CAVE FISHER (LARGE ARACHNID) - AMBUSH PREDATOR. POSITION: CEILING, 3 O'CLOCK."*
Kael froze, holding his breath. His Perception highlighted a monstrous, chitinous shape blending perfectly with the glowing ceiling, silk threads glistening. He saw the faint vibration in the air – a descending net of sticky filaments.
> **SYSTEM:** *"TIMING: JUMP LEFT IN 0.8 SECONDS. AIM FOR THE STALAGMITE CLUSTER."*
He lunged. Sticky strands brushed his shoulder as the Fisher struck empty air where he'd stood. Kael slammed into sharp stalagmites, pain lancing through him, but scrambled away as the enraged creature shrieked. The spores made the walls seem to pulse with Vorlag's laughing face. Sanity: **74/100**. **(+15 XP - Predator Evasion)**
Emerging into another sewer pipe, Kael heard splashing ahead – *more* guards cutting him off! He was cornered between the cave and the patrol.
> **SYSTEM:** *"ANALYZING OPTIONS... OPTIMAL SOLUTION: DIVERSION. USER POSSESSES 40 XP. UNLOCK GLITCHED SKILL: [ECHO OF WRATH] (TEMPORARY)? COST: 30 XP. EFFECT: PROJECT AUDIO/EMOTIONAL BURST OF FALLEN GOD'S RAGE (RADIUS: 20M). SIDE EFFECT: SANITY DRAIN (10-20 POINTS)."*
*"Do it!"* Kael hissed, desperate.
> **SYSTEM:** *"UNLOCKING... WARNING: SANITY PLUMMET DETECTED. ACTIVATING [ECHO OF WRATH]."*
A wave of pure, soul-crushing fury – the dying scream of a god – erupted *behind* the approaching patrol. It wasn't loud, but it vibrated in the bones, filled the mind with primal terror. The guards screamed, dropping weapons, clawing at their helmets. *"The Contagion! It's behind us! RUN!"* They fled back the way they came.
Kael gasped, doubling over. The cavern walls swam with blood. Vorlag's laughter mixed with the War God's scream. Sanity: **54/100**. **(+20 XP - Tactical Diversion / Skill Use) | XP TOTAL: 85/100**
**Twist #5: The River's Mercy and Wrath**
Bursting out of a sewer grate, Kael found himself on the banks of the **Styx Canal**, a foaming, polluted artery cutting through the Gutter District. Torchlights flared on the bridge above – Vorlag, directing more forces.
> **SYSTEM:** *"FINAL OBSTACLE: CROSS CANAL. OPTIONS: 1. BRIDGE (HEAVILY DEFENDED). 2. SWIM (TOXICITY LEVEL: LETHAL. CURRENT: STRONG). 3. ALTERNATE ROUTE: COLLAPSED PIER (50M DOWNSTREAM). STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY: 4%."*
Kael sprinted for the pier – a skeletal finger of rotten wood jutting into the raging water. He could hear Vorlag's roar: *"THERE! SHOOT HIM!"*
Crossbow bolts hissed past. Kael reached the pier's end and leaped without hesitation, fueled by desperation and the System's cold calculus.
> **SYSTEM:** *"TRAJECTORY CALCULATED. AGILITY CHECK: DIFFICULTY 9. USER AGI: 8. ROLLING..."*
He flew, the black water roaring below. A bolt grazed his thigh. He slammed onto the opposite bank, rolling through mud and refuse. The rotten pier, struck by multiple bolts behind him, collapsed entirely into the torrent. Vorlag's enraged scream echoed across the water, but the chasm was now impassable.
Kael lay gasping in the mud on the *wrong* side of the Styx Canal – deeper into the forbidden, unexplored ruins of Old Aethelburg. The System's voice was a strained monotone:
> **SYSTEM:** *"PURGE EVADED. OBJECTIVE: SURVIVE - COMPLETE."*
> *"XP GAINED: 60. TOTAL XP: 100/100."*
> *"LEVEL UP AVAILABLE. UPGRADING: LEVEL 2 → LEVEL 3."*
> *"+1 STR (13), +1 AGI (9), +1 END (8), +1 PER (2)."*
> *"SANITY: 54/100. [ECHO OF WRATH] SKILL LOCKED (COOLDOWN: 24 HRS). WARNING: PSYCHOSIS THRESHOLD APPROACHING (SANITY < 50)."*
The bronze text shimmered, then faded. Only the howl of the wind through skeletal ruins and the distant, fading sounds of Vorlag's impotent fury remained. Kael had escaped. But he was deeper in the dark, his mind fraying, and the only path forward lay through the corpse of a dead city, haunted by the ghost in his skull. The cost of the next level? **200 XP.** The War God's path was paved in ever-increasing blood and madness.
--