The cave was no longer silent.
Each breath Auron took cracked the air like ice breaking underfoot. His silver eyes scanned the jagged stone walls—not for enemies, but for memories. Ghosts of the past hung heavy in the air, whispering lies in familiar voices.
"Trust me."
"You're not alone."
"We'll climb the heavens together."
He laughed, once.
The sound echoed off the stone and died.
There was no trust now. Only war.
The Oathbreaker System pulsed faintly in his mind—silent for now, but alive. A sleeping serpent coiled in his spine, waiting to bite.
Auron stared down at his hands.
They were small. Young. Unscarred.
This body is weak. But I remember how to make it strong.
His soul—the soul of the Sovereign who shattered heaven's gates—was far too large for this fragile frame. Every heartbeat felt like a thunderclap, barely contained.
He would need power. Quickly.
---
Outside, night had fallen.
He stepped into a world that hadn't yet betrayed him.
Mist crawled across the dead grass. The moon hung low, cracked and silver, casting shadows like broken blades. Auron's feet led him down a path his mind hadn't forgotten—even after five centuries.
The path to Seris.
Three days until she betrays me.
That knowledge didn't bring pain. Only purpose.
She would play her part, like everyone else. And when her oath shattered, he would take everything from her.
But for now…
He needed to survive.
---
By morning, he stood before the outer gates of Ashenveil—his old city.
It hadn't changed. Same crumbling towers. Same smoke-choked sky. Same guards sneering at him like he was trash.
"Oi, rat," one of them grunted. "Entrance fee's doubled today. Ten shards."
Auron's eyes flicked to the man. Ten shards was a month's wage. He reached into his tattered cloak and pulled out a broken coin. Tossed it. It clattered on the stone.
"Here's one," he said. "The rest you can take from my corpse."
The guard stepped forward, eyes dark. "You got a death wish, kid?"
Auron didn't blink. "No. You do."
The man raised a hand to strike.
And then the air rippled.
[Passive Skill Activated: Vow Sense I]
"When one intends harm with no binding cause, their oath cracks."
The system whispered in his mind.
A faint sound followed—a chime. The sound of a lie being born.
The guard froze mid-swing.
His pupils dilated. His breath hitched. Sweat poured down his brow. Auron hadn't moved—but something in him had shifted.
Something old. Something divine.
He leaned close, voice like cold steel.
"You've made a vow to protect the city, haven't you?" he whispered. "But here you are… ready to kill a boy over a coin."
The man staggered back, clutching his chest. Veins bulged. Blood ran from his nose.
"W-What… are you?"
Auron walked past him.
"A reminder."
---
The streets of Ashenveil welcomed him with familiar filth. Rotten food. Broken dreams. The stink of ambition dying in gutters.
He made his way through the maze of alleys and backdoors until he reached it.
The Broken Bell Tavern.
It looked the same—wood warped from rain, windows fogged with smoke and failure.
Inside, laughter rose like smoke—false and fleeting.
At the far table, surrounded by half-drunk mercenaries, sat Seris Valen.
She was younger here. Softer. Her black hair was tied in a loose braid, her smile as radiant as the day she first saved him.
Auron stepped into the room.
Time slowed.
Seris looked up. Her smile widened.
"Auron!" she called out. "By the stars—you're alive!"
He didn't smile back.
He just looked at her.
Three days.
And then she'd try to kill him.
She ran forward and hugged him like nothing had changed. Like time was still kind and hearts were still whole.
He let her.
But in his mind, he was already burying her.
---
[Hidden Quest Accepted: The First Fracture]
Objective: Survive Seris's betrayal. Break her oath. Claim her divine fragment.
Reward: Oathbreaker Title (Level I)
---
He whispered to himself beneath his breath:
"Let it begin."
---
End of Chapter 2