Minwoo stood in the vault, Kinro beside him, as the walls began to dissolve into smoke. The air turned cold. The shadows around Minwoo didn't just respond—they opened.
A portal formed.
Not magic. Not tech.
Memory.
Kinro growled. "That's the Shadow Realm. Where your power was born."
Minwoo stepped forward.
Then it's time I see what I really am.
He entered.
Inside the Realm
The Shadow Realm wasn't dark—it was alive. A world built from broken timelines, forgotten battles, and echoes of Sovereigns long erased.
Minwoo walked through a forest of frozen moments. Each tree held a memory:
Jin training in silence. Saejin hiding Minwoo beneath the table. Minwoo, alone, holding the Nexus Blade for the first time.
Kinro's voice echoed. "This place is built from you."
Then the ground cracked.
A figure rose.
Jin.
But not alive. Not dead.
A shadow echo.
"You've come far," Jin said. "But you're still afraid."
Minwoo raised his blade.
"Not anymore."
They clashed.