Bayle

Rumors of a cursed swordsman have spread like wildfire throughout the taverns, camps, and courts of Velrune. Bards have dubbed him Bayle the Betrayer, though few know the true origin of the name. Reports claim he roams from village to village, slaying monsters and men alike. Mothers whisper his name to frighten their children, while lords revile him as a scourge. Yet wherever he travels, there are always those who swear his blade has saved them.

Behind the stories and myths, Bayle carries a burden heavier than his massive sword. Long ago, his family was torn apart by a conspiracy surrounding the murder of the Lord of Ashlar. House Wolfe was condemned and exiled, leaving only Bayle and his younger brother alive. Together, they clung to a singular purpose: to prove their family’s innocence.

One fateful night, Ashlar soldiers descended upon their makeshift camp in a sudden ambush, led by a mysterious dark sorcerer. Bayle fought savagely, unleashing a feral rage as he tore through their assailants with terrifying force to protect his brother. From the shadows of the chaos, the sorcerer watched intently, fascinated by the raw, untamed power coming from Bayle’s unbridled fury. Bayle unknowingly was playing right into the sorcerer’s hands, too consumed by rage to notice his brother had been captured and slain in cold blood. Despite his best efforts, Bayle had failed.

Overcome with grief, Bayle hunted down the sorcerer, who proposed an interesting, yet cruel bargain: the boy’s life would be returned, but Bayle would be bound by the shackles of servitude for the rest of his life. Out of options and desperate to be with his beloved brother, the swordsman reluctantly agreed. With a whispered incantation, the sorcerer cast a hex that bound the brother’s soul to Bayle’s sword, which now glowed a sinister red in the moonlit forest, eerily pulsing with each beat of Bayle’s heart as if it were… alive.

Though the brothers could no longer truly be together, Bayle swore he’d heard whispers from the sword. Initially, the voice felt familiar and comforting. Yet, with each life claimed by the blade, his brother’s spirit seemed to grow twisted under the curse, corrupted by the darkness entwined with it. Only one question remained: could Bayle unravel the secrets behind this curse and save his family before it was too late?