Chapter 1
Blood.
Power.
Control.
Those were all I had ever cared about, and after years of clawing my way through my enemies, after endless battles, I finally reached my goal.
Standing on the balcony of the immortal palace, I could see the entire realm stretched out beneath me, or at least what was left of it. The city was in ruins. Black smoke poured into the sky, the streets littered with bodies. The moans of dying soldiers mixed with the crying of children, and the smell of fire and blood clung to the air like it would never leave.
Most people would have felt something at a sight like this. Maybe guilt. Maybe regret. But I felt nothing. Not after what I'd once gone through. I had sacrificed too much to get here, and I was not about to waste a single thought on pity for the ones who stood in my way.
The heavy wooden doors creaked open behind me, and I turned just enough to see who dared enter. It was Kael, my general, my most trusted man. His armor was streaked with blood, not all of it his own, and his expression was as controlled as ever. Even after days of fighting, his steps were steady. That was one of the reasons I valued him, he never faltered under pressure.
He came forward and knelt. "It's done," he said, his voice low but clear. "The last of the resistance has fallen. The immortal king is dead."
A wave of satisfaction rolled through me. I had waited too long to hear those words. "Good," I told him, allowing a small, genuine smile. "Then nothing stands in my way now."
Kael rose to his feet. "The council awaits your command for the final cleansing my lord. Shall we proceed?"
"Burn every trace of their rule," I said without hesitation. "Every record, every monument, every god they worshipped, destroy everything. When history remembers this realm, it will be mine."
He gave a single nod, but as he turned to leave, I caught the faintest hesitation. His hand lingered on the hilt of his sword for just a moment longer than it should have. My eyes narrowed. "Something you wish to say, General Kael?"
He glanced back at me. "Only that I swore to serve you until the end."
I gave a short laugh. "Good. Remember those words."
I turned back toward the balcony, my guard lowering for the first time in days. That was my mistake. I didn't sense the change in the air until it was already too late, the faint hum of magic building behind me. I started to turn, but Kael's sword was already in motion.
Pain ripped through my side as the blade sank deep. My breath caught and my vision blurred for a second. It wasn't just the injury, it was the fact that it was him. The man who had stood with me when no one else did, who had saved my life more than once.
"You…" The word was a growl, my voice thick with shock and rage. "Kael, why?"
His face didn't change. "I'm sorry, my lord. But your reign ends here."
"My reign will live on for centuries, don't you dare." I growled, my hand gripping the blade and forcing it out of the wound, my eyes flaring. I had worked too hard to let it all end like this, no way in hell was that happening.
Just then, the room shifted as more figures stepped in from the shadows. White-robed mages, their voices already weaving together in a chant that made the air hum with power. Chains of light burst into existence, wrapping around my arms and legs, burning into my skin like heated iron.
I pushed back with everything I had, mana surging so violently that the palace walls trembled and cracks spread through the marble floor. The chains tightened, forcing me to my knees.
Kael stood just out of reach. "You're too strong to kill," he said, his tone flat, almost regretful. "So we'll seal you for eternity."
I glared at him, my eyes desperately searching for a reason behind those eyes of his, why would he do this? Why would he suddenly turn on me after all we'd been through. For the first time in years, a flicker of emotion slipped into my mind, sadness, pain, I hadn't felt those since forever.
The magic dragged at my strength, pulling it out of me and feeding it into glowing sigils beneath my feet. My muscles screamed in protest, my vision started to darken, but I kept pushing back, refusing to give in.
Right then, the immortal king stepped into the room, very much alive, and the smug look on his face told me everything. They had planned this. Waited until I believed I had won, until I let my guard down.
"Cowards." I breathed out, barely able to talk.
The light swallowed my vision, my body locked in place.
No way, I couldn't lose like this. This wasn't the end. Damn it just when everything was finally on track.
Why? Why would nothing ever go as I wished. Why was the world against me? Because I was evil? What about the people who did me more evil, is it wrong to pay them back with twice what they caused me?
I could feel my eyes already closing, I was losing consciousness, I had already been drained of all energy. At this moment, I just wanted to curse at everything. But at the same time I wished there was a way to reverse all this, to make this right. Not so I'll become a better person, but so that I could cause more destruction. I was too soft, I had let my guard down, that was the only reason I ended up like this, pathetic and helpless.
God or devil, whatever is it that can help me...I just want a second chance.
My thoughts were cut off as I drifted off to unconsciousness.
---
Pain brought me back. It wasn't the sharp stab from before, this one felt heavy, crushing, like my chest was being squeezed from the inside out. I became aware of noise. Shouting. Footsteps. Voices overlapping in a dozen different tones. None of them sounded familiar.
When I opened my eyes, I was staring up at a dull grey sky framed by faces I didn't recognize. My ears rang so loudly it was hard to make out their words.
"Is he… alive?" I heard someone say.
I tried to move, but my arms and legs felt impossibly heavy. I wasn't in armor anymore. I was in different clothing that felt weird against my skin, like it were soaked in blood. And the ground under me wasn't polished stone, it was rough pavement.
Confusion hit me. The last thing I remembered was Kael's betrayal and the mages' seal, so how in the hell was I here? And why was I surrounded by strangers who were looking at me like I'd just crawled out of the grave? Did the seal not work, how come I'm still conscious.
A sharp pain stabbed through my head without warning, and then the memories came.
I saw unfamiliar memories, a small messy apartment. A group of people seated together in what seemed to be a classroom. The sound of laughter. Fights. Getting beaten. Then standing on a rooftop, looking down at the street far below. And then… jumping down.
What the hell, those memories weren't mine, yet i could remember them so vividly.
The body I was in had commited suicide. And now, somehow, I was inside it.