The Hollow Throne was silent again.
Aren sat atop the obsidian seat, bruised, blood-dried, and half-starved. The cold bit at his skin through the tears in his academy uniform. His fingers clenched the armrest as if it were the only thing anchoring him to this world.
And maybe it was.
Fang curled near his feet, breath rhythmic and deep. His shadow beast had taken damage—its form flickered with instability—but it was alive. Loyal. Real.
Unlike the people Aren once called friends.
The system glowed faintly in the air before him.
[System Update: Sovereign Protocol - Phase 1 Complete][Domain Defense – Initiated][Memory Core Stabilized: Recalling Fragmented Memories…]
Suddenly, images surged behind his eyes.
The academy courtyard.Luthien's face twisted with scorn.The spirit ceremony—where all others were crowned, and he was cast aside.
The crowd's silence.The priest's forced apology.The branded mark on his record: SPIRITLESS.
He remembered Lira—the only one who didn't look away that day.
Until she did.
"Why did you all turn your backs?" Aren whispered, voice hoarse.
He stood and walked past the throne into a deeper chamber of the shrine. There, buried beneath rubble, was a small altar—half-collapsed, but untouched by time.
An item floated above it: a black half-mask, shaped like a broken crown, jagged and incomplete.
[Relic Detected: Sovereign's Mask – Fragment I]Origin: Forgotten King's RegaliaEffect: While equipped, grants Presence of the Unseen King– Minor aura of dread– 5% chance to cause [Spirit Desync] in weaker enemies– Increases Domain Influence radius +10%
Bind to User: Aren Vahl?Cost: 5 Soul Essence
He didn't even blink.
"Yes."
The mask dissolved into smoke, then reformed over the left side of his face. Cold metal kissed his skin. Something inside him locked in place.
The broken mask didn't hide him—it marked him.
And as it sealed to his flesh, the system flared again:
[Title Unlocked: Shadow of a Sovereign]Domain Morale: +10Trait Progress: Sovereign's Will +2%New Passive Unlocked:➤ Presence of the Unseen King— Nearby spirit-bound creatures suffer fear or resistance glitches— Domain awareness expanded to 50m radius
For the first time since awakening, Aren smiled.
It wasn't warm.It wasn't kind.But it was true.
He wasn't a mistake in their system.
He was a system they couldn't comprehend.
Outside the Hollow Throne, far beyond the edges of his ruined domain, a noble's messenger bird flitted toward a tower of white stone.
It carried a sealed letter.
"To Lord Valeus of the Spiritbound Court,
We've received word that the Spiritless exile has survived.The Null Signal has flared three times.
We suggest immediate suppression before the anomaly reaches critical deviation."
The world had cast Aren Vahl out like a failed spark.
Now they would feel the weight of what they threw away.