Ren, Aria, and Kael enter a dungeon where another adventurer joins them… but one of them betrays the group for power, awakening Ren's Black Celestial further and giving us the first true battle scene where betrayal directly fuels his strength.
The dungeon breathed like a living thing.
Ren Nakamura stepped into the darkness with Aria at his side and Kael following close behind. The air was heavy, damp, and humming with whispers that weren't theirs. The walls pulsed faintly, as if veins of light and shadow ran through the stone.
"This place…" Aria muttered, lifting her staff, "was built on broken promises. I can feel it. Every step we take, we're walking through betrayal's echo."
Kael gave a dry chuckle. "Sounds like home."
Ren said nothing. His Black Celestial burned faintly on his arm, reacting to the dungeon's energy. It was waiting, like a predator sensing prey.
They weren't alone for long. At the entrance, a fourth figure had caught up with them: a young man with messy blond hair, twin daggers strapped to his belt, and a grin that seemed too easy for this world.
"Wait up," he called, running to join them. "Name's Rylan. Heard there was treasure in this place. Didn't think I'd find company."
Ren narrowed his eyes. The grin. The confidence. It felt like a mask. But Aria shrugged. "Another blade can't hurt."
Kael muttered, "It can if it's in your back."
Still, the four entered together.
The first chamber was filled with Hollowborn twisted shadows shaped like wolves, their bodies fractured by glowing Celestial scars. They moved in packs, jaws snapping with hunger.
"Form up!" Kael shouted, raising his sword. His Celestial of Crimson Vow ignited, faint flames licking across his blade as his speed surged. He cut through two wolves in a single swing.
Aria lifted her staff. "Chains of fire, bind them!" Her Celestial of Ember Chains flared, lashing out in glowing red arcs that pinned three Hollowborn in place as they shrieked.
Ren felt his Black Celestial burn hot. He moved in, blade flashing. One wolf lunged but Ren's body reacted faster than he could think. He sidestepped, slashed, and black fire erupted along his strike. The Hollowborn dissolved in screams.
Rylan darted past him, twin daggers flashing. He was fast too fast. "Not bad, huh?" he called, cutting through a wolf's neck in a blur. His grin widened. "Guess I'm the best of us here."
Ren's instincts screamed. That grin. Too confident. Too smooth.
And then, it happened.
The second chamber opened into a vault lined with glowing Celestial patterns. At the center stood a pedestal, upon which lay a shard of crystal burning with starlight.
"A Celestial shard," Aria breathed. "It can strengthen our bonds. If we"
She never finished.
Rylan's daggers flashed not at the Hollowborn, but at Aria. She gasped, stumbling back as one dagger grazed her arm, blood spraying.
Kael roared, swinging his sword. "You bastard!"
But Rylan danced back, smirking. "You're too trusting. This shard belongs to me alone. Do you know what power betrayal gives in this world? More than friendship ever will."
The Celestial marks on his arms flared, twisting dark. His True Celestial had become a False Celestial, feeding on the act of betrayal. His speed doubled, his daggers glowed black, and his eyes gleamed with madness.
Ren's Black Celestial throbbed. He felt the betrayal like a blade in his own chest, but instead of weakening him, it seared into his skin, carving deeper black lines across his arm. His body burned with power.
Rylan lunged, twin daggers aimed for Ren's throat. Ren caught the strike with his blade, black fire erupting on contact. Sparks flew, shadows bent.
"You think betrayal makes you strong," Ren growled, pressing back. His voice was low, dangerous. "You don't know what betrayal makes me."
Rylan laughed, breaking free, his daggers moving in a blur. But Ren's body moved faster not his strength, not his skill, but the curse itself. The Black Celestial fed on Rylan's treachery, sharpening Ren's instincts beyond human.
Their blades clashed again and again, sparks of black and red fire illuminating the chamber.
Kael joined the fray, swinging his sword with fury. Aria, wounded but defiant, summoned chains of flame that lashed at Rylan's legs.
Pinned for a moment, Rylan snarled, "You fools think you can win together? Bonds are weakness!"
Ren's mark flared. His voice cut through the chamber. "No. Betrayal is your power… but it's my weapon."
He thrust forward, his blade bursting with black fire, piercing through Rylan's chest. For a moment, Rylan's eyes widened shock, disbelief. Then his body dissolved into shadow, his Celestial shattering into fragments.
One fragment seared itself into Ren's flesh. The Black Celestial drank it, etching another scar onto his arm. His body ached, his chest burned, but power surged through him like wildfire.
Aria stared at him, eyes wide. "You… absorbed his Celestial."
Kael exhaled, lowering his blade. "So that's what your curse means."
Ren said nothing. He only stared at the fading shadows of Rylan, his fists tight.
The dungeon whispered around them, as if amused.
In Ebonveil, betrayal never died. It only changed hands.