Siren of the Nightmare System

Blood Debt

the dungeon had been a tomb of rotted silk and obsidian, the lobby was a cathedral of flickering

ntic, rhythmic pulsing that felt like a secondary heartbeat. She looked at her hands; they were gau

," a voice chirped, dripping

of solidified shadow. A merchant, a floating construct o

ice rasping like sandpaper. "And keep your d

like it. You're from the Grave, aren't you? You smell like decay and bad decisions.

bs. "I don't need scramblers. I need access. High-level encryption, internal M

gorithms. "Mercer accounts? That's suicide. But for the right price... o

Abyss-shard Jericho had left her. She channeled the cold, violet energy into her palm,

's exquisite. A genuine fragment of a Shadow Essence

groan and yield. A holographic feed bloomed in the air before her, revealing the interior of the Mercer estate. It was

ght with a mixture of bile and cold fire. "She

quite well after your 'unfortunate' disposal. They're selling your ass

hyrine laugh as Lysander kissed her hand-a gesture th

ed helpfully, zooming in on a bronze plate being instal

intoxicating hunger. She traced the lines of the code, realizing with a start that the S

n't I?" Astrida asked, a dark, sha

the merchant replied. "You want to crash their market share? You want

isplay, rewriting the authorization keys for the Mercer family's offshore accounts. She moved with a strange, flu

ant whispered. "That much power i

flashing violet. "I'm tired of bei

ed numbers cascading like blood across the feed. She didn't stop there. She accessed Lysander

usted, drained, yet more alive than she had ever

ting complication," the merch

e of Lysander. She reached out, her finger hovering over the 'S

Grave, Lysander. And the

d device chimed with a sound like a death knell. She watched through the screen as

pered, turning away from the light.