The trembling man didn't move, didn't speak.
He just stared at me like I was his last hope.
I could feel Damon watching me, silent and expectant, arms loosely crossed over his chest. There was no pressure in his stance, but I knew what he wanted.
A decision.
Final.
Absolute.
I swallowed hard. "You said every broken contract must be judged."
Damon gave the smallest nod. "Yes."
"And if I choose mercy?"
His expression didn't change, though something flickered in his piercing blue eyes—curiosity, maybe even amusement. "That is not how the world works."
"But I'm part of this now," I countered. "So it should be my choice."
He studied me for a long moment.
Then, with a slow exhale, he stepped aside.
"Very well," he murmured. "Judge him yourself."
I turned back to the man on the ground.
He looked up at me, lips trembling. "Please… I only wanted to live."
There was something pitiful about him. Not just his fear, but the way he clung to life like it was slipping through his fingers. Maybe that's exactly what was happening.
I crouched down, meeting his eyes.
"What was your deal?" I asked quietly.
He swallowed. "I wanted her back. My sister. She died in a fire. I made a deal to bring her home."
My chest tightened.
I understood that kind of desperation.
I had done the same thing.
But unlike me, he hadn't kept his end of the bargain.
"I couldn't do it," he whispered. "The tasks were too much. I ran."
I stood slowly, turning to Damon.
"He's broken the contract," I said. "But he tried. He loved someone enough to give everything."
Damon tilted his head slightly. "And your judgment?"
I took a breath.
"I won't kill him."
Damon's eyes darkened, the air around us thickening.
"You disappoint me, Li Yiren," he murmured.
I squared my shoulders. "Then punish me. But I won't be your executioner."
For a long moment, silence stretched between us.
Then, to my surprise, Damon smiled.
Not cruelly. Not coldly.
But like he had been waiting for this.
"Interesting," he mused. "You're learning faster than I thought."
I frowned. "What does that mean?"
He stepped closer, close enough that I could feel the heat beneath his coat despite the chill in the air.
"It means," he said softly, "that mercy has its own price."
Before I could ask what he meant, the man behind me gasped.
I turned just in time to see black tendrils of shadow curling from his skin, pulling free like threads unraveling.
He screamed once—sharp, short—and then collapsed.
Dead.
I staggered back. "No…"
Damon watched without emotion. "Judgment isn't always carried by a blade. Sometimes, it's simply the weight of consequence."
I stared at the body, heart pounding.
I had spared him.
But fate had not.
Damon reached out, brushing his gloved fingers against my cheek.
"You'll learn," he murmured. "Mercy changes nothing. Only you."
I didn't pull away.
Because despite the horror clawing at my chest…
I still wanted to understand him.
To know why he let me decide.
And why I felt more connected to him than ever.