Cold.
That was the first sensation. Not pain. Not fear.
Just cold.
Azel Raen opened his eyes to darkness. The scent of blood and burnt stone filled his lungs, dry and cracked. His fingers twitched against jagged gravel. Somewhere nearby, a crow cawed once, then silence returned like a curse.
He coughed. Something wet and metallic spilled from his mouth.
This body is dying
His mind, sharp as shattered glass, processed everything in seconds. Broken ribs. Starvation. Blood loss. A snapped mana root. Whoever this boy was, he was already one foot in the grave.
Azel's eyes narrowed.
He wasn't supposed to be here.
He remembered fire. Chains. Twelve golden thrones surrounding him as he bled on sacred marble. The kings he saved. The students he trained. The woman he once protected. All standing there, unmoved.
Then came the dagger.
"You're too dangerous, Azel."
"You think too far ahead. We don't need another god."
"Forgive us."
They killed him. His reward for winning their wars. For rewriting magic theory. For tearing down their enemies.
He died laughing.
And now, he was here. Reborn. But into what?
Footsteps echoed faintly. He turned his head slowly. A gang of boys, filthy and hungry, stood watching him like wolves.
"He's still breathing?" one muttered.
"Doesn't matter. He'll die soon anyway."
"Check his pockets."
They came closer.
Azel didn't move. Couldn't.
But his mind, even bound in this broken shell, whispered with clarity.
Observe. Memorize. Exploit. Survive.
A faint chime echoed in his skull. Soft. Ancient. Not natural.
> [System of Eternal Return detected]
Integrating with Host: Azel Raen
Synchronization 12 percent... 54 percent... 100 percent complete
Welcome back, Sovereign Candidate
His pupils dilated. Not from shock. From opportunity.
This wasn't an ordinary system. It didn't feed on quests or monsters.
It fed on loss.
> Trait Unlocked: Cold Cognition
Passive: Logic is unaffected by emotion or pain
Title Acquired: The Forsaken
Azel smirked, barely visible through the blood.
Fitting
He forced his body to shift. The nearest boy flinched.
"I'd...back away if I were you," Azel rasped, voice brittle but steady.
"Pfft. What's he gonna do? Bleed on us?"
Azel didn't argue.
He just looked up, straight into the boy's eyes, and smiled. The kind of smile that doesn't promise survival.
Then, something inside him pulsed.
Not rage.
Calculations