The drunk man—Darius—moved faster than Aiden had ever seen. With a single, fluid motion, he grabbed the monster’s arm and twisted, pulling it to the ground. The sound of bones snapping echoed in the street.

  The beast howled, but Darius was already on top of it, driving a bde deep into its chest. Blood spttered across the cobblestone street as the creature’s roar died out in an instant.

  Aiden stood frozen, eyes wide. The man had killed the monster so effortlessly, like it was nothing.

  Darius stood over the fallen beast, his chest rising and falling with shallow breaths. He wiped the blood from his bde, then turned to Aiden with a smirk.

  “You’re lucky I was here,” he said casually, as if he hadn’t just taken down a beast in seconds. “That thing would’ve torn you apart.”

  Aiden swallowed, still trying to process what he had just witnessed. “How... how did you...?” His voice trailed off, too stunned to finish the question.

  Darius’s gaze flicked over him, his eyes narrowing slightly. “I’m Darius Thornhart. And you are...?”

  Aiden took a shaky breath. “Aiden. I... I want to be stronger.”

  Darius raised an eyebrow. “Stronger?” He snorted, wiping his bde clean. “You’re weak. There’s no pce for weaklings in this world.”

  Aiden clenched his fists. “I won’t stay weak. I need to get stronger. Please, train me.”

  Darius chuckled, shaking his head. “You really think you can handle it? Tell me, kid—what powers do you have?”

  Aiden hesitated for a moment, his gaze drifting to the ground. Power? What power did he have? He had nothing but pain.

  “Pain,” he whispered. “That’s all I have.”

  Darius stopped mid-ugh, his eyes narrowing as he studied Aiden more closely. There was a brief fsh of shock in his eyes—surprise, even.

  “Pain?” he repeated, his voice soft. “I’ve never heard that before... Maybe.”

  He stood silent for a moment, contempting. Then, with a heavy sigh, he finally spoke.

  “Alright. I’ll train you. But don’t expect it to be easy. It’s gonna be hell. And you’ll want to quit... but if you really want this, you’ll need to push through.”

  Aiden’s heart raced. This was it. His chance.

  “I won’t quit,” Aiden said, his voice firm.

  Darius gave a half-smile, though it was far from reassuring. “We’ll see about that.”