Depthless Hunger

By the end of the brawl, Kai was swaying on his feet. Taking so many potions at once had worked, but it had been reckless. Far from granting him the abilities of multiple Classes, all the new sources of mana had churned inside him until he wanted to vomit.

The shock on their faces had been worth it, though. Kai had no idea what he'd looked like, but he'd been venting mana in all directions, so it must have seemed overwhelming.

Now, despite the way his head was spinning, he had won. The Earthenshield was down for good, the other hunter was still pinned under a Tonjin, and Fhazi was no threat on his own. He turned around to face the Lantrian brat and couldn't help but smile.

"That's enough."

And, with those words, Kai's world upended in a much worse way than mere dizziness. He whirled, already recognizing the voice: Hannagan Lantrian stood in the alley with official Guild hunters. It beggared belief for him to be there randomly, which meant it had all been set up, which meant...

"Look at this." Hannagan shook his head as he spread a hand over the alley. "Fine hunters beaten half to death, and some of them may well lose their hold on life. Don't just stand there, you fools, help them!"

Several of the hunters went to provide medical aid, while two remained back to block the entrance. Not that it mattered. Kai could see where this was going and running would do him no good. Possibly nothing he could say would matter, given who stood against him, but he couldn't give up even when it was this unfair.

"I was forced to defend myself," Kai said. "I hope I didn't deal any serious injuries, but they would have done worse to me."

"I challenged him to a friendly sparring match!" Fhazi blurted out as he struggled to his feet. "Ask anyone in the tavern! My friends were just here to make sure he played fair, then he started attacking us!"

So it really had been like that from the very beginning. Kai started to grind his teeth and stopped, since glowering couldn't possibly help him. Hannagan looked over the damage as if he was really considering the evidence.

"He shot Yerinna!" Fhazi gestured around the corner wildly. "Tried to shoot her right in the heart!"

"And who was throwing poison needles?" Kai demanded. He didn't know if this was a pure farce, but he couldn't let the most obvious evidence go unmentioned.

"These are very serious accusations." Hannagan stroked his beard and began slowly walking through the alley. "The Hunters Guild will, of course, investigate the truth thoroughly."

Even before they turned the corner, Kai knew that it was hopeless. The female hunter who had gone down early no longer had any needles in her back. Most likely there would still be poison in her body, but it wouldn't matter. The only way the needles could be gone was if someone removed them, perhaps even the hunter now applying a poultice to her back. He didn't see a single sign of a needle in the alley.

It seemed as though Yerinna would live, though she would require extensive healing. Kai wasn't sure how he felt about that. Given what she'd likely done to his life, he almost wished that he'd really aimed at her heart. Then at least Fhazi wouldn't have a loyal assassin enforcing his cruelty.

"It seems we have no choice but to accept grave truths." Hannagan spoke loudly, which didn't make sense until Kai realized there was a growing audience. "Kai Granfian provoked a bloody battle and used completely inappropriate levels of violence. This is no little scrap or rivalry. This was an attempt to murder some of our city's finest young hunters."

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From that moment on, Kai followed in silence. It was the only dignity he had left, because it was clear he would never be given a fair trial. In fact, they gave him no trial at all: Hannagan claimed that as a new hunter he had few protections. Because of the "egregious recklessness" of his actions, a sentence would be handed down almost immediately.

They still dragged him from the alley to a central square to make everything public. There were always older hunters gripping his arms now, as if he was going to run. As if he was fighting people, instead of the combined authority of the Lantrian clan. No, he'd won the physical brawl and run directly into a trap that made his strength useless.

What else could he have done? Fhazi had clearly been tracking him, so he would have arranged a fight eventually. The only way to avoid the accusation would have been to accept the beating, and Fhazi would have tried to make it disabling. Even if he had fully recovered, Fhazi would never have been prosecuted for the same crime, so he could just repeat the beating.

Ultimately, Kai couldn't see any way out. If the head of his own Hunters Guild was against him, then he didn't have a future here.

More people gathered in the square, though it was going to be a sentencing instead of a trial. Kai spotted Inafay at the edges looking furious, but other members of the Corinin clan physically dragged her away. It was better that way. She would only leap to defend him, and though she might be important enough to get away with it, she couldn't change the result.

Perhaps it really did come down to power after all. If Kai had awakened a different Class, they would never have targeted him. He could have been the one flouting the law and everyone would have looked the other way because of what he could offer the city.

The entire system was rotten, but it was all he had ever known.

Before the official event began, Gunjin appeared beside him quietly. If Kai had held onto any hope, it would have disappeared at the sight of his former mentor's face. He'd given up on hope long ago, but it still hurt to realize what would be said before the first word.

"You're going to be banished," Gunjin told him, "and there's nothing I can do."

"Nothing you can do?" Kai wanted to spit, but he was too exhausted for hatred. "You mean that you're choosing to do nothing."

"That is correct. I am sorry that it has come to this, Kai, but I won't feel guilty. It would cost me far too much of what I have built to defend you against this charge, and I cannot afford that. Even if the sentence was commuted, the Lantrian clan would only make sure to finish the job."

"Then there's nothing to say."

"I suppose not." Gunjin stared at him for a long time and his lips twitched as if he was about to say something, but then he turned on his heel and vanished into the crowd.

Finally they stopped dragging it out: Hannagan stood up on a platform and shouted for the crowds to be silent, then began a speech he had clearly prepared.

"After careful investigation, the Hunters Guild has discovered that several of our own young hunters engaged in a reckless fight. Many are injured, and several are near death... all because of the actions of one man." The guild leader's finger swung down on Kai like a hammer. "Kai Granfian, you stand accused of harming your fellow humans and undermining our city and our nation. Do you have anything to say in your defense?"

What would be the point of saying anything? Most of those watching already knew that the city could be unfair, and the others wouldn't believe him. Perhaps it made more sense to stay quiet and not disturb the unity of Monskon City... but no. He refused to simply let them shove this injustice down his throat, not while he still lived.

Just as he drew breath to speak, a palm struck him in the back. Icy mana flowed through his body and his jaw locked up. All Kai's strength was only enough to stare at the hunter beside him, an older woman who didn't even look in his direction while she bound him in place.

"Your clan has already rejected you, and now so does the city." Hannagan raised his voice even further, his words ringing off the walls. "From this day forth, you are Kai Clanless. You are banished from Monskon City, never to step past its walls again on pain of death. You are barred from entering any Guild anywhere in Goralia, and you are unwelcome at all our outposts. From this day forth, the wasteland is your only home."

He had known it was coming and had expected it to still hurt. When Kai Clanless was marched to the city gates and thrown out, he felt nothing at all.

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