Scene 1 – Aftershocks of the Mirrors

The chamber of fractured reflections sealed itself behind Jemil and his wives, the mirrored shards dissolving into black mist. Their footsteps echoed down a silent stone corridor, but the weight of what they'd just endured clung to them. Each wife carried the memory of her reflection—the twisted doubts, the unspoken fears—but none more heavily than the swordmaster.

Her grip was white-knuckled around her blade. Not from readiness, but from restraint. Her reflection's accusations still rang in her mind: You will always betray… you cannot hold both the sword and a heart.

Jemil slowed his pace to walk beside her. His presence was steady, almost irritatingly calm. "You fought well," he said softly.

The swordmaster gave no reply, only tightened her grip until her knuckles strained pale. She wanted to dismiss his words, but something inside her wavered.

The other wives exchanged glances but said nothing. The silence was not weakness—it was a fragile truce, everyone giving space for wounds to heal in their own way.

Scene 2 – The Door of Oaths

They reached the end of the corridor, where a great door waited—tall, seamless, forged of black steel veins wrapped around a single embedded sword. The weapon pulsed faintly with light, as though alive, its rhythm matching the thrum of a beating heart.

The Tower's voice whispered, low and resonant:

The blade hunts its master. The oath binds—or breaks.

Choose your vow, and bleed upon steel.

The swordmaster stepped forward before Jemil could. Her eyes locked onto the embedded blade. She could feel it—the raw, predatory instinct radiating from within. It wasn't a weapon waiting to be wielded. It was a creature waiting to test its prey.

Jemil touched her shoulder. "You don't have to—"

Her reply was sharp, trembling with something she couldn't hide. "Yes. I do."

For the first time, the other wives didn't argue. They saw it in her stance—this trial was hers.

Scene 3 – The Living Blade Awakens

With a deep breath, she placed her palm on the hilt. The moment she did, the world seemed to shudder. The sword tore free from the door with a sound like grinding bone. Black steel bled into silver light, the blade stretching, twisting.

It moved.

The weapon slithered free from her grip, floating into the air, and its edge curved like a serpent ready to strike. A voice echoed from the steel itself, cold and predatory:

Master me… or be hunted.

The chamber reshaped around them into a circular arena, walls shimmering like molten steel. Shadows of blades lined the edges, watching, waiting.

The swordmaster raised her weapon, sweat already tracing her brow. For years she had buried her instincts, suppressing the part of her that wanted not just to fight, but to hunt. Now that denial was laid bare.

Scene 4 – Predator and Prey

The living blade struck without warning. A flash of silver. A shriek of air splitting apart. She barely blocked, sparks cascading as steel clashed. But her arms trembled—this wasn't just speed. The weapon knew her. Every hesitation, every self-doubt, it attacked mercilessly.

You betrayed before. You will betray again, the voice whispered with each strike.

You fear your own hunger. You cannot control me.

Her breath grew ragged. The wives shouted encouragement, but their voices felt far away. Jemil's, however, cut through.

"You're not fighting to prove your loyalty. You're fighting to prove you exist beyond your mistakes."

The words struck harder than the blade. She gritted her teeth, parrying another strike, her instincts screaming at her to lash out—not with defense, but with predator's intent.

For the first time, she didn't smother that instinct. She embraced it.

Scene 5 – The Oath Forged

Her eyes sharpened, a predator's glint flickering within them. She let her body move not as a restrained knight, but as the hunter she had always feared becoming. Her strikes grew precise, merciless, elegant in their brutality.

The living blade reeled back, as if startled. Its voice grew harsher.

So you choose hunger. So you choose betrayal again.

"No," she hissed, every word punctuated by a clash of steel. "I choose truth. I am not only a blade, not only a betrayer. I am a woman who has made mistakes—and will not run from them anymore."

With a roar, she drove her weapon forward, locking the blade against its floating twin. She leaned in close, whispering the oath that bound her soul:

"I will hunt—but I will never turn my fangs on him. My blade is Jemil's. My heart is Jemil's. That is my vow."

The living sword screamed, its light fracturing into shards that rained across the arena. And then—silence.

When the glow faded, the weapon hovered before her, no longer hostile. It bent, folding like a beast lowering its head to its master. She took it into her hands, its edge pulsing warmly now, not with hunger but with recognition.

Scene 6 – The Aftermath

The arena dissolved, leaving the wives and Jemil in stunned quiet. The swordmaster collapsed to one knee, clutching the blade to her chest as if it were both a prize and a burden.

Jemil approached, crouching before her. Their eyes met—hers, raw with vulnerability; his, steady with unwavering acceptance.

"You bound it," he said softly.

"No," she whispered. "I bound myself. To you."

The wives drew closer, their earlier doubts softened by what they had witnessed. Even the curse burning across Jemil's skin seemed momentarily subdued, its golden glow flickering like embers instead of fire.

The trial was passed.

But the Tower would not let them rest for long.

🌌 Next Chapter Preview – Chapter 74: The Predator's Path

The swordmaster has claimed her vow, binding blade and heart together in a single oath. Yet the Tower has no mercy—the moment one trial ends, another begins.

The walls shift again, revealing a vast hunting ground beneath a blood-red sky. The scent of iron lingers in the air, and distant howls ripple across the terrain. This is no simple battlefield—it is a domain where instincts rule, and predators decide who survives.

But something is wrong. The golden curse carved into Jemil's skin burns hotter here, feeding on the primal energy of the trial. Each step forward feels like fire in his veins, and the wives can see it spreading. The Mistress's mark is no longer just a reminder—it is a chain, dragging him toward collapse.

For the swordmaster, the path ahead is even more treacherous. Her oath may have bound the living blade, but now the Tower twists her instincts against her, testing whether her vow to Jemil can withstand temptation, bloodlust, and fear of betrayal.

And as the pack of spectral predators close in from the shadows, Jemil and his wives must fight not only to survive—but to keep their unity from being ripped apart, tooth by tooth, fang by fang.

⚔️ Call to Action

The oath has been sworn, but the hunt has only begun. 🩸

Can Jemil and his wives endure the Predator's Path, or will the curse and the Tower's fangs tear them apart from within?

🔥 Don't miss Chapter 74: The Predator's Path—where loyalty is tested under a blood-red sky, and the true hunt begins.

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.