The entire Tower of the Kings continued to shake violently. The thick stone walls rumbled and spewed fine dust that drifted through the air and obscured her vision. Across the stone floor, patterns of blood-red magical lines glowed and flickered rapidly in time with an irregular pulse.Seraphina stood frozen in the dim light. Her trembling fingers clutched tightly at the hem of her torn gown. Her voice was so soft that it was almost drowned out by the building’s rumble."He...has returned."But Kai heard her perfectly clearly. Every syllable felt like a stab to his chest.The pitch-black system screen flickered repeatedly in his field of vision. The text glowed a blinding red, piercing through the dust-filled haze.[Target: True King][Status: Active][Location: Unknown][Threat Level: Absolute]Kai clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles turned white. The tip of his sword touched the stone floor, trembling in time with the thudding of his heart."Who is my father?" Kai asked

"You are the Shadow King who chose to be reborn."Those words struck Kai like a bolt of lightning in the agonizing silence. Every joint in his body stiffened suddenly, as if the cold air had frozen his blood instantly."No..." Kai whispered softly, rejecting the reality that had just been revealed to him. His gaze turned cold, radiating immense distance. "That's impossible."Azrael simply looked at him calmly, without a trace of deception in his eyes. "You can deny it all you want, Kai. But your memories will never lie.”Kai’s breathing became short and irregular. His knuckles turned blue from gripping the sword hilt too tightly. Inside his chest, flashes of ancient memories swirled like a violent whirlpool. A black stone throne. A magnificent, spiked crown. The blaze of war. And the image of himself sitting on the throne as king of the darkness.Seraphina stepped hesitantly beside Kai and extended her trembling fingers. "Kai, please listen to me for a moment."But Kai didn’t turn his

"We've finally met again."Kai’s entire body tensed amid a sea of frozen memories. Before him stood a figure clad in black and gold. The man’s face was exactly like his own. His voice, the thickness of his eyebrows, and the line of his jaw were all identical. However, the man’s eyes held profound weariness, accumulated sorrow, and tens of thousands of years of regret that could not be described in words.Kai took a step back and shook his head vigorously. "No... That's not me."The figure offered a faint, bitter smile. "Long ago, I said exactly the same thing when I stood in your place."Suddenly, the transparent screen in the air began to flicker wildly, refracting a red light that trembled violently.WARNING!TIME PARADOX DETECTED.RISK OF TIMELINE COLLAPSE: 87%.Kai’s breath came in gasps, and his chest heaved as he fought the tremors tearing at his soul. For the first time since this journey began, a foreign fear crept into the crevices of his heart. It wasn’t because he was facin

Something opened its eyes.There was no massive explosion that shattered the heavens. There was no deafening roar. Nor was there a wave of energy that disrupted the order of the heavens. Yet, the entire void suddenly stopped pulsing.Time froze instantly. The movement of shadows froze in midair. Even the rows of numbers on the transparent screen in front of Kai turned to stone, no longer flickering.A drop of cold sweat froze on Kai’s temple. For the first time in his life, an utterly unfamiliar fear crept through every joint in his body. It was not the fear of defeat or the threat of death, but pure, instinctive terror, the kind that arises when a human comes face-to-face with something that should not exist in this universe.The Eternal One took a step back. The blinding radiance on his body suddenly dimmed.Beside Kai, the First Monarch clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles turned white. "We must close that gate now!"Kai turned in panic, his breath ragged. "Gate?"The cr

A being capable of devouring dimensions and shattering the logic of space simply knelt before a small child.The atmosphere within the void was utterly silent. There was no wind or rumble of energy. Even their breaths caught in their throats. The black shadow shrouding the empty ground swayed gently beneath the weight of those tiny feet.Kai stood stiffly, his limp fingers gazing at the child before him with a dazed expression. "My son?"The child looked up and offered a faint smile that felt incredibly pure. "Yes."Kai slowly shook his head, taking a step back, filled with doubt. "That... can't be.""To you, I haven't been born yet," the child replied softly, pointing to his chest. "But to me, you've been dead for a long time, Dad."That simple sentence struck Kai so hard that he was robbed of all words.Suddenly, Seraphina stepped forward. She placed herself in front of Kai and stared at the child with a panicked expression and ragged breath. Her fingers clutched the fabric of her d