[System Alert: High-risk encounter imminent.]
Hostile Units Detected: 4 Elite Royal Assassins
Special Condition: You must survive without Kaelion's aid to earn "Queen of War" title.
Reward: +150 Reputation, Unlock Legendary Skill: Sovereign Instinct (Lv. 1)
Midnight – Virellia Stronghold
Selene moved through the empty halls, her cloak whispering against the stone.
She didn't need a warning.
She felt them before they struck.
One dropped from the rafters. Two from the shadows. One from the ceiling beam behind her.
Daggers sang.
She didn't scream.
She moved.
The Fight
Steel flashed. Blood marked marble.
Selene danced between blades, red magic pulsing through her veins — not wild like before, but controlled. Cold.
She wasn't just fighting back.
She was leading the kill.
[System Sync Achieved. Magic Surge Unlocked. Enemy Kill Confirmed: 1/4.]
The last assassin fled.
She let him.
"Tell them," she said to his shaking form, "that I don't need protection."
"Tell them the crown didn't make me powerful."
She turned toward the flames rising behind her—
"Survival did."
Elsewhere – Royal Watchtower
Kaelion stood alone, watching from a farseeing mirror.
He saw it all.
The way she moved. The way they died. The way the world would soon fear her.
"She doesn't need saving," he murmured.
"She needs no one."
Final Scene
[System Alert: Title Gained – Queen of War]
Skill Unlocked: Sovereign Instinct (Lv. 1) – Detect lies, threats, and hidden motives in real-time.
Reputation Surge: The people now whisper your name with awe.
Selene stood atop her battlements, blood dripping from her blade, wind tearing through her hair.
And far below, peasants — once silent — began to chant her name.
Not like a rebel.
Not like a lover.
But like a ruler.