The sky was drowned in raging black clouds. Lightning tore through the heavens, flashing faintly as if mocking the man bleeding out beneath it.
His breath came in ragged gasps, his body riddled with wounds, and his once-bright blue eyes burned with betrayal.
That man was Lian—a mercenary killer, a shadow who knew only death.
He had trusted no one, relied on no one… except one man. The only person he had ever called a brother.
Yet the blade that pierced his heart was not an enemy's blade.
It was his brother's.
A bitter smile tugged at Lian's lips as he tasted his own blood.
"Even you…? Seems I was more of a fool than I thought. This world… knows only betrayal."
As darkness devoured his fading consciousness, he whispered with venom dripping from his voice:
"If I am ever born again… then I shall be betrayal itself."
…
When he opened his eyes once more, there was no void, no hellfire.
Instead, he found himself lying on the cold floor of a damp stone cell. The air was thick with rot, the walls wept with condensation, and iron chains bit into his wrists.
But more shocking than his surroundings was his own body—slimmer, younger, and far from the scarred form he once knew.
Before he could comprehend it, a chilling metallic voice echoed inside his mind:
Sin System Activated.]
[Host: Lian]
[Primary Sin Detected: Wrath]
[Reward Granted: Skill – "Blood Fury"]
Lian froze.
And then, slowly, a twisted grin spread across his face, soon breaking into manic laughter.
"A system?! … But not a hero's system, not one of justice and virtue… No. A system of sin? Ha… Hahaha! How beautifully ironic!"
He staggered to his feet and stumbled toward a small pool of stagnant water in the corner.
In its faint reflection, he saw not the man he once was, but a younger face, sharpened features, and eyes glowing with an eerie crimson light.
It was as if darkness itself had chosen him.
…
The heavy screech of iron shattered the silence as the cell door creaked open.
A burly guard in battered armor stepped inside, his sneer full of disdain.
"So, you're awake, scum? Enjoy your last night. Tomorrow, you'll be executed before the crowd."
At that moment, a new prompt flared before Lian's eyes:
[Starter Quest: Kill the first one who stands before you.]
[Reward: +50 Sin Points (Wrath)]
Lian's crimson eyes gleamed, and a devilish smile twisted his lips.
"So… you'll be the first."
The guard chuckled and approached, boots clanging against the stone floor.
But in a single, sudden motion, Lian lunged forward. Chains shattered as though they were paper, and he crashed into the guard with inhuman ferocity.
The man shouted, raising his weapon in panic, but Lian's hands clamped onto him like steel.
With savage strength, he slammed the guard's skull against the stone wall. Once, twice, again and again—until the sound of cracking bone drowned out the guard's screams. Blood sprayed across the damp cell.
And then, silence.
The system's voice rang once more:
[Sin Committed.]
[+50 Sin Points (Wrath).]
[New Feature Unlocked: The Sin Tree.]
Before him appeared a translucent screen, shaped like a twisted, black tree. Seven branching paths glowed faintly, each marked with a symbol: Wrath, Envy, Greed, Lust, Gluttony, Sloth, Pride.
His hand instinctively reached toward the branch of Wrath.
The moment he touched it, fiery power coursed through his veins, igniting his blood and making his vision burn crimson.
His entire body trembled, not with fear—but with exhilaration.
"So this is just the beginning…" he muttered, his grin stretching wider. "Then what kind of monster will I become… when I embrace all the sins?"
He sank down onto the guard's corpse, watching the glowing text flicker before his eyes.
No regret. No fear. Only the intoxicating thrill of power blooming from darkness.
His laughter echoed wildly off the prison walls.
"If the world gave me betrayal and death… then I'll repay it with sin and blood. From this moment on… I will not be human. I will be—"
His crimson eyes blazed as his voice roared in the silence:
"—The Lord of Sin."
Thus began the tale that would one day plunge the world into chaos.