The karmic ripples from Elias's manipulation of the alchemist's lab spread far beyond his personal relationships, igniting a new wave of violence and chaos. The Alchemists' Guild, convinced that the attack on their lab was an act of aggression by the Bloodkin, retaliated with brutal force.
They launched a coordinated assault on a Bloodkin trade enclave, a neutral zone where various species exchanged goods and resources. The attack was swift, merciless, and utterly disproportionate. The Guild alchemists, fueled by rage and a desire for revenge, unleashed a barrage of potent, volatile compounds, turning the enclave into a raging inferno.
The Bloodkin, predictably, responded in kind. Their assassins, masters of stealth and deadly precision, targeted three prominent Guild alchemists, striking them down in their homes and workshops. The cycle of violence escalated, threatening to engulf the entire city in a bloody inter-species war.
Elias watched the news reports, a grim satisfaction warring with a profound sense of responsibility. He had set this chain of events in motion, his desperate attempt to protect the Sylvans had spiraled into a full-blown conflict. He couldn't undo what he had done, but he could try to mitigate the damage, to minimize the innocent casualties.
Working under the veil of the midnight window, Elias accessed the Ledger's intricate network of personal karmic profiles. He sifted through the vast data, identifying the karmic signatures of Guild members who were truly innocent, those with no direct involvement in the resonance bomb project or the enclave burning. He also pinpointed the most hardened, culpable alchemists, those whose karmic debts were undeniable.
He then sent anonymous, encrypted messages, disguised as internal Bloodkin intelligence, to the assassin cells. These messages didn't directly order them. Instead, they contained detailed, highly accurate Ledger-gleaned intel on the daily routines, security weaknesses, and most importantly, the karmic affiliations of various Guild targets. He subtly highlighted the Guild members who were actively engaged in the resonance bomb project, framing them as the "true architects of the enclave attack." Conversely, he provided information that subtly indicated the innocence of others, painting them as "unaware, minor associates."
His manipulations were designed to ensure they avoided innocents, guiding the assassins' blades towards those truly responsible, or at least those deeply complicit. He felt a cold, detached satisfaction as he watched the karmic threads shift, saw the assassins bypass a Guild research facility filled with junior apprentices, only to strike at a secluded laboratory known to be a key component in the bomb's calibration.
He was still manipulating, still playing with lives, but now he was trying to steer the chaos, to prevent the innocent from becoming collateral damage in a war he had inadvertently ignited. The Bloodkin's fury, though brutal, was now focused, precise, and subtly directed by Elias's hidden hand. He was becoming the shadow conductor of a symphony of revenge.