Kane wiped a fresh bead of sweat from his forehead, breathing steadily as he lowered Mjoldr to his side.

The courtyard of the inn was relatively quiet now, save for the grunts of his warriors training nearby.

He spent the last two hours drilling through intense combat forms, pushing his battered ribs to their absolute limit.

The crimson weapon pulsed in perfect rhythm with his heartbeat.

Primal Resonance flowed through his veins, making every swing feel faster and much more precise than the last.

Across the dusty yard, Kessa was still running Brak and the Bloodfang vanguard through a grueling set of evasive maneuvers.

She barked corrections, refusing to let any of them rest until they perfected their defensive stances.

Kane watched them for a long moment, feeling a sense of pride swell in his chest. His team was adapting to this hostile environment rapidly, and Kessa was proving to be an effective instructor.

’Time to go,’ Kane thought, sheathing his axe.

He washed the grime from his skin and put on a clean shirt, preparing for the evening meeting Firlia arranged.

Leaving the inn behind, he navigated the busy avenues of the merchant district.

The sun was fully setting now, painting the silver spires in vibrant shades of orange and purple.

Elven citizens filled the cobblestone streets, drinking sweet wine and laughing loudly as they celebrated the ongoing tournament.

Nobody paid any attention to a lone barbarian keeping entirely to the shadows.

Except for a few women who stole glances at him.

Firlia picked a very secure location for this conversation.

The destination was a rooftop garden sitting on top of a tall commercial building. It was elevated enough that anyone watching from street level could not lip-read, providing perfect privacy in a city crawling with royal spies.

Kane climbed a winding stone staircase and pushed open a wooden hatch, stepping out into the night air.

The seer was already there when he arrived.

She sat cross-legged on the outer stone ledge, her feet dangling casually over a five-story drop as if it were a comfortable chair in a tavern.

She didn’t turn her head when the roof hatch closed, but she clearly knew exactly where he stood.

"You aren’t afraid of heights," Kane observed, walking slowly toward the edge.

"I can’t see them," she said simply, her voice carrying a melodic tone.

He sat down on a nearby stone bench directly across from her, then took a moment to study her face under the moonlight.

The blindfold was an expensive cut of silk, deliberately chosen and perfectly tied. It wasn’t a disability covering a wound.

"You have been reporting my movements to the prince," Kane said.

There was no anger or accusation in his voice, just a calm statement of fact.

"Yes," she agreed without hesitation.

"And warning me simultaneously."

"Also, yes."

"That’s a dangerous game to play in a city like this," Kane noted, crossing his arms comfortably.

"Playing both sides usually gets you killed by one of them."

She tilted her head slightly, catching the evening breeze.

"All games are dangerous when you can see how they end."

Kane leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees to give her his full attention.

"Then tell me how this one ends."

She stayed quiet for a long moment, listening to the distant music drifting up from the lively streets below.

"I have seen seventeen versions of this tournament," she said softly.

"In sixteen of them, the prince wins. His royal bloodline continues without any interruptions. The queen rules for another five hundred years, and the world stays exactly as it is today."

"And the seventeenth?" Kane asked, feeling his pulse quicken with anticipation.

She turned her face directly toward him, even though her eyes could not see.

"You."

A blue window came to life right in front of Kane’s face.

[Hidden Quest Unlocked: Thread of Fate][The Seer has made her choice]

[Warning: Seers don’t choose losing sides]

Kane processed this new information carefully.

Reading the system notification gave him a strange sense of validation.

The game was literally rigged for the elven prince to win every single time, making Aelrindor the ultimate protagonist of this world.

Kane was the sole anomaly.

’She is betting her entire life on the one timeline where I tear this place apart,’ Kane thought, studying her calm posture.

"What do you want from me in return?" Kane asked, knowing nothing in this city came for free.

"The queen," she answered, her tone turning completely serious.

"When you take the empire, and you will take it, I want the queen to live."

Kane stared at her in surprise.

He expected her to ask for gold, a position of power, or maybe safe passage out of the continent.

"Why?"

The seer’s peaceful expression didn’t change at all.

"Because some threads need to survive what’s coming next. She is one of them."

Reaching a pale hand into her emerald robes, she pulled out a small object and placed it on the stone ledge right between them.

It was a communication crystal.

"This shows the prince everything I tell it to show him," she explained, pulling her hand back.

"From tonight onward, I will feed him exactly what you want him to see. He will only know the lies we choose to construct together."

Kane picked up the crystal and turned it over in his calloused fingers.

"You’re handing me control of his intelligence network."

"I’m handing you the next three days," she corrected him smoothly.

"What you do with them is your choice."

She stood up effortlessly on the narrow stone ledge, looking impossibly balanced against the strong wind.

"One more thing," she said, pausing for effect.

"The queen already knows you are here. She has known since you walked through the border gate."

Before Kane could process that terrifying piece of information, the seer stepped forward off the ledge.

Kane reached forward instinctively to catch her, jumping out of his seat.

His fingers grasped nothing but empty air.

She hadn’t fallen to the bustling street below, and there was no sound of impact. She simply vanished into the night, leaving the stone ledge empty.

Kane stood alone on the rooftop garden, holding the glowing crystal tightly in his fist.

He looked out over the elven capital, feeling the invisible board shifting under his feet.

[Seer: Miria - Alliance Status: Active]

[Intelligence feed to Prince Aelrindor now under Kane’s control]

[Time remaining before quarterfinals: 18 hours]