The Sovereign’s Retribution: Daily Login to Godhood

Chapter 05: The Night of the Crimson Rain

The penthouse windows vibrated under the assault of a sudden, unnatural storm. The sky wasn't grey; it was a bruised, sickly purple.

Silas stood in the center of the dark lounge, his eyes closed. He didn't need light. His [Dragon-Slaying Perception] rendered the room in lines of shimmering gold and deep shadows. He could feel the heartbeats in the building—Sarah’s frantic, bird-like pulse in the bedroom, and a second, cold, rhythmic thrumming approaching from the elevator shaft.

Not the elevator. The shaft.

[System Warning: 'The Cleaner' has entered the combat zone.] [Detection: High-Frequency Vibration Blades detected. Target is a 'Modified Human'.]

The glass of the balcony door didn't shatter; it disintegrated into dust. A figure draped in a high-tech, matte-black cloak stepped inside. Where a face should have been, there was only a glowing red visor. In each hand, the assassin held a monofilament wire that hummed with a deadly, invisible frequency.

"Silas Vane," the voice was a synthesized rasp. "Julian Thorne sends his regards. He said to tell you that dead men should stay in the dirt."

Silas opened his eyes. They glowed with a predatory blue light. "Julian always had a flair for the dramatic. It’s a pity he never learned to do his own dirty work."

The Cleaner moved. He was a blur, the monofilament wires lashing out to bisect Silas where he stood.

[Ghost-Step Activated!]

Silas didn't jump; he simply wasn't there. He reappeared three inches to the left, the wires whistling past his ear and slicing through a solid marble pillar like it was butter.

"My turn," Silas whispered.

He lunged. His fist, empowered by the system’s passive strength, slammed into the Cleaner’s chest. The impact sounded like a car crash. The assassin’s cloak rippled, absorbing the blow, but the force sent him flying through the air, crashing into the obsidian desk.

[Quest: 'First Blood' – Progress: 50%] [The System detects an 'Aether Leak' in the enemy's armor. Strike the power core!]

The Cleaner snarled, his visor flashing. "You... you're a Practitioner? No, your energy is different. It’s too pure." He reached into his belt and slammed a vial of glowing red liquid into his neck.

His muscles bulged, tearing through his suit. His speed doubled. He became a whirlwind of blades, turning the luxury penthouse into a slaughterhouse of shredded silk and broken glass.

Silas retreated, his mind calculating. He needed a weapon.

[Ding! Emergency Daily Login Triggered!] [Day 3 Login (Early Access): Congratulations! You have obtained:]

[Weapon: The Soul-Reaper’s Dagger (Growth Type)] – A blade that ignores physical armor and strikes the spirit.

[Cultivation Foundation: The Ember of the Sovereign] – Your first step into the world of Aether. Unlocks the 'Internal Energy' stat.

A weight appeared in Silas’s right hand—a dagger of black glass that seemed to swallow the light. At the same time, a spark ignited in his chest. The pain was gone, replaced by a roaring furnace of power.

[Major Change: Host has transitioned from 'Human' to 'Tier 0 Cultivator'.]

The Cleaner screamed, diving at Silas with both wires crossed in an 'X'.

Silas didn't dodge this time. He stepped into the strike. The wires hit his forearm, but instead of cutting through, they sparked against a shimmering blue skin-tight barrier—his new internal energy.

With a roar, Silas drove the Soul-Reaper’s Dagger into the center of the Cleaner's red visor.

The glass shattered. A burst of black smoke and crimson sparks erupted. The assassin froze, his body convulsing as the dagger drank his life force. Within seconds, the hulking modified human collapsed into a heap of empty armor and ash.

[Quest 'First Blood' Completed!] [Rewards: 500 System Points, 'Mind-Read' Skill Scroll, and 10x 'Aether Shards'.]

The storm outside ceased instantly. The purple sky faded back to the black of a city night.

The bedroom door creaked open. Sarah stood there, her eyes wide as she looked at the wreckage of the multimillion-dollar penthouse. She saw the black dagger in Silas’s hand before it dissolved into digital motes.

She didn't scream. She didn't run. She walked toward him, her breath hitching. She fell to her knees, not out of fear, but out of a profound, soul-deep realization. The man she had saved in the hospital wasn't just a billionaire. He was a force of nature.

"You're... you're not like them," she whispered, looking up at him with a mix of terror and absolute devotion. "The Thorne family, the Nightshades... they're just playing at being gods. But you... you actually are one."

Silas looked down at her. He reached out, his hand still warm from the Aether, and tilted her chin up. [Affection Level: Sarah Miller -> 75% (Soul-Bound Reliance)].

"The world is bigger than Julian Thorne's greed, Sarah," Silas said, his voice echoing with a new, metallic edge. "Tonight, I saw the veil. Julian isn't just a businessman. He's a puppet for something much darker."

He looked at the pile of ash where the Cleaner had been. Tucked in the remnants of the armor was a small, silver coin embossed with a weeping eye.

"The 'Order of the Blind Eye'," Silas murmured. "If they want a war between worlds, I’ll give them a massacre."

[Status Update:] [Name: Silas Vane] [Level: Tier 1 Cultivator (Newbie)] [Wealth: $100 Million + 'The Cleaner's' Bounty ($5 Million)] [Current Objective: Infiltrate the Thorne Gala and unmask the 'Blind Eye'.]