The System Reincarnator: From Zero to Shadow King

Victory had sharpened the Shadow Alliance like a sword drawn from the forge.But even the sharpest blade could shatter… if cracked from within.

The Council's Secret Weapon

Sephira knelt before the Celestial Altar in the Council's Grand Cathedral.

Around her, the High Inquisitors sang an ancient rite known as the Rite of Soul Severance.

A single silver shard hovered in front of her, a remnant of Kaelen's past.

Sephira twisted her lips into a chilly smile.

"It's done." "The shadow empire will fracture from within."

Virehold — The Shadow King's Stronghold

The war room was filled with tension.

Kaelen stood at the center table, eyes perusing the most recent reports.

Eira reported first.

"The southern kingdoms have pledged neutrality."

Valen nodded.

"Our raids on the holy army's supply lines have crippled their advance."

Raze smirked.

"And we've taken three Council outposts in the last week."

Nyssa stayed silent, arms crossed, while eyeing Kaelen.

Something changed in her eyes.

A Shadow's Doubt

That night, as the council disbanded, Nyssa remained in the shadows.

Her palm trembled as she produced a slim dagger—the Soulbrand Dagger, its edge throbbing slightly with Sephira's emblem.

"End him." "Your past will be erased, and your freedom granted."

The Council's command rang through her consciousness.

She had previously been Sephira's assassin - a tool in the Council's quiet hands.

They had her soul in shackles.

They had now assigned her the task of assassinating Kaelen.

But…

Nyssa tightened her hold.

She remembered his words.

"In my shadow, you are free. No shackles. No gods. There is only one choice."

Her heart trembled.

The Assassination Attempt

Midnight.

Kaelen remained alone atop the eastern tower, watching the storm clouds gather.

There are footsteps behind him.

Soft. Silent. Deadly.

"Nyssa." His voice was calm.

She froze.

"You knew?"

Kaelen did not turn.

"I suspected."

Her sword gleamed in the darkness.

"I could kill you… right now."

"You could," Kaelen agreed. "But you won't."

Nyssa's eyes reflected a silent conflict.

Loyalty, Fear, Freedom, and Betrayal.

"I was theirs before I was yours," she murmured.

Kaelen eventually turned and locked eyes with her.

"You were never theirs." "You just didn't realize it yet."

The dagger slipped from her fingers and fell to the floor.

Tears she didn't realize were still blurring her vision.

"I… can't do it."

Kaelen put a hand on her shoulder.

"You just made your choice."

The Betrayer Revealed

But before Nyssa could speak, a blade flashed from the darkness.

A actual assassin surged forward, dagger aiming at Kaelen's heart.

Not Nyssa.

It was Dareth, Kaelen's trustworthy quartermaster.

"For the council!" "For the Gods!"

The double betrayal occurred in a moment.

Kaelen responded instantly, with shadows coiling about him and wrenching the sword away.

Valen dashed towards the tower, sword drawn.

"Traitor!"

A violent clash erupted.

Dareth fought like a man possessed, using Council-enhanced power.

But Kaelen's shadow grew.

[Domain Skill: Shadow Entomb]

Dark tendrils crushed Dareth's limbs, slamming him to the stone floor.

Nyssa delivered the killer stroke, her dagger taking Dareth's life before another betrayal could occur.

Aftermath — The Shadow's Resolve

Kaelen looked down at Dareth's corpse, her voice low.

"There will be others."

Nyssa caught his gaze.

"Then we'll end them together."

Valen sheathed his sword.

"The Council's reach is deep."

Kaelen's eyes blazed with violet flame.

"So is our shadow."

Sephira's Fury

Sephira, far away in the Council's chamber, shattered a crystal in wrath.

Her twofold strategy, the betrayal of Nyssa and Dareth, had failed.

"Fine," she hissed.

"If shadows will not break him… light shall burn him."

She summoned the next pawn.

A figure emerged from the golden mist.

High Templar Aurelius is the God-Killer of the North.

The Alliance Tightens Its Guard

In Virehold, Kaelen assembled his inner group.

"We strengthen our ranks. No foreigner is free. "No soldier goes unwatched."

Raze cracks his knuckles.

"Any betrayer dies by my hand."

Eira's icy magic buzzed.

"I'll freeze the hearts of any Council spies."

Nyssa met Kaelen's gaze.

"And I'll kill the ones you can't reach."

Kaelen nodded.

"The Shadow Empire stands… together."

The Shadow King's New Creed

"Loyalty is not commanded. It is earned.

Betrayal is not forgiven. "It's destroyed."

The words reverberated throughout the alliance, a quiet warning to all.

The Council believed shadows were feeble.

They would discover that a shadow of trust was indestructible.