The comment section was filled with speculation:
"I picked the Ember Wisp as my first contract. Decent damage and fire resistance"
"Lunar Guardian Wolf is OP for early game. Increases defence exponentially"
"Anyone figure out how contract evolution works? I'm level 8 and still have no idea"
"This class seems super complex. Might reroll to something simpler"
"The real question: can we contract with PLAYERS? The description says 'entities' not 'NPCs'"
That last comment had 89 replies of people debating whether PvP contracts were possible.
Max kept scrolling, looking for any mention of specific contracted entities and their abilities. He found a poll:
What was your first contract?
Lunar Guardian Wolf – 54%
Ember Wisp – 38%
Corrupted Sprite – 8%
Other – 0%
Max's blood ran cold.
Shadow Echo wasn't even listed as an option. Zero percent had selected "Other."
He refreshed the page, thinking it was a glitch. The numbers remained the same.
He opened the thread about starting contracts:
Posted by: SpiritSeeker – 8 hours ago
"Okay, so at the Spirit Monolith in each starting zone, you get three choices for your first contract:
1. Lunar Guardian Wolf - Defensive/tank type
2. Ember Wisp - Offensive/DPS type
3. Corrupted Sprite - Debuff/support type
Which did everyone pick and why?"
The replies were all discussing those three options. Max scrolled through hundreds of comments. Not a single mention of Shadow Echo. Not one.
He used the forum search function: "Shadow Echo"
0 results found
His hands started shaking slightly. He searched again: "shadow spirit"
0 results
"Shadowy figure"
0 results
"Fourth contract option"
0 results
Max leaned back in his chair, his heart pounding.
The Shadow Echo hadn't been an option for anyone else. They had only seen three choices at the Spirit Monolith.
He opened another thread, this one from someone who had started in the Fractured Abyss like him:
"Voidborn starting zone is sick! Did my contract at the Valley of Whispers. Picked the Lunar Wolf. What did you guys choose?"
Replies: "Wolf too. Seemed safest"
"Ember Wisp. I want damage"
"Corrupted Sprite. The debuffs look interesting for endgame"
Every single Voidborn player in the thread had seen the same three options. The Shadow Echo had only appeared for Max.
His mind raced through the character creation process. What had he done differently?
Voidborn race—lots of players picked that. Soulbinder class—rare, but nearly 2,000 forum threads worth of players had it. The Fractured Abyss starting zone—that was determined by race.
Then what?
He remembered the notification:
[UNIQUE CLASS DETECTED]
[HIDDEN QUESTLINE UNLOCKED: "CHAINS OF ETERNITY"]
[WARNING: This class path contains mature themes and high-difficulty content. Proceed?]
He had said yes.
Max pulled up his quest log in his mind, remembering what he'd seen:
[CHAINS OF ETERNITY – PART 1: THE FIRST BOND]
Status: COMPLETE
Reward: Unlocked unique contract option and summoning mechanics
It wasn't just that his mechanics were different. His entire contract was different. The Shadow Echo was a unique entity that only appeared because he'd triggered a hidden questline.
Max searched the forums for "Chains of Eternity"
0 results
"Hidden questline Soulbinder"
3 results – all general speculation about whether hidden quests existed for classes, nothing concrete.
"Unique class path"
0 results
Nobody knew. Nobody had triggered what he'd triggered.
Max opened his skill list again, looking at what the Shadow Echo had given him:
ACTIVE SKILLS:
[Soul Contract - Rank F] – Form a binding contract with a willing or defeated entity
[Soul Sight - Rank F] – Perceive the spiritual essence of beings
[Shadow Step - Rank F] – Instantly teleport to a shadow within 10 meters
[Shared Senses] – See through your contracted spirit's perspective
[Summon Contract: Shadow Echo] – Manifest your bonded spirit. Cost: 20 MP. Duration: 10 minutes
He went back to the forums and searched specifically for Soulbinder abilities:
"Shadow Step Soulbinder"
0 results
"Shared Senses Soulbinder"
0 results
"Summon Contract"
847 results – all relating to Summoner class, not Soulbinder.
Other Soulbinders couldn't summon their contracts at all. They received passive bonuses from their bonds—stat increases, minor utility skills, buffs. But they couldn't manifest their contracted entities as active combat companions.
Max could.
And his contracted entity was something nobody else had access to.
He sat in stunned silence, staring at the screen. The implications were enormous. If his build path was completely unique, if the Shadow Echo and its abilities were exclusive to his character...
He couldn't tell anyone. Not yet. Maybe not ever.
Information was the most valuable currency in an MMO. A unique build, unknown mechanics, exclusive abilities—these were the things that separated top-tier players from everyone else. The moment he revealed what he had, thousands of players would try to replicate it, and even if they couldn't, they would know his capabilities. His element of surprise would be gone.
Max opened a private message to Velara on Discord, keeping it casual:
[Max]:Hey, quick question. Your Shadowblade class—do you have any summon abilities? Like, calling forth entities to fight with you?
The reply came within a minute. She was online.
[Velara]: Nah, Shadowblade is pure DPS. Stealth, burst damage, mobility. No summons. Why?
[Max]: Just curious about class mechanics. Trying to figure out what makes each class unique.
[Velara]:Summoner class is the main summoning one. They can have like 3-5 entities out at once by endgame supposedly. Why, you thinking of rerolling?
[Max]: Nope, just researching.
[Velara]: Nerd. Hey, you free later? We're hitting the Corrupted Grove at 8 PM. Need a fifth.
[Max]:Maybe. Let me see how the day goes.
[Velara]:Cool. Offer's open.
Max closed Discord and stared at the forums again. Millions of players, thousands of Soulbinders, and not one of them had what he had.
He was completely alone in his build path.
The question was: what else was unique to his questline? What other abilities or mechanics would unlock as he progressed?
And more importantly—why had he been the one to trigger it?