Rain hammered against the broken canopy of the forest, a cold, relentless drumming that drowned out everything except the sound of his own breath. Mud clung to his boots. His cloak—once bearing the crest of a house he no longer claimed—hung heavy on his back.
He had been running for days. Bleeding for two. And now, judging by the sharp sting under his ribs, he was nearly out of time.
He stumbled into a clearing, one hand pressed to his side, essence flickering weakly around his core like a candle guttering in the wind.
Not now… not yet. He forced a breath, stepping forward.
A branch snapped.
His hand flew to his blade, but the voice came first.
"Still alive, then."
His heart froze.
That voice—steady, deep, threaded with the faintest annoyance—belonged to someone he had buried in his memory long ago.
He didn't turn. Couldn't. Not yet.
"Come to finish the job?" he said, forcing his tone to stay even. "Or are you here for the bounty?"
A low chuckle answered him. Not mocking. Familiar.
"If I wanted the bounty," the voice replied, "I would have arrived here with a platoon of Grandmasters and youd you'd already be in chains."
He turned.
Kael stepped from the shadows wearing the same beaten leather armour he had always worn—patched, scarred, mismatched, but somehow still dignified. His hair was longer now, tied back, streaked with silver that hadn't been there the last time they'd stood together.
But his eyes…They were exactly the same.
Unforgiving. Sharp. And beneath the hardness—something like hurt.
"You look worse than I expected," Kael said, arms folding across his chest. "Running doesn't suit you."
"Neither does betrayal," Levi shot back.
Kael's jaw tightened."So that's how you're playing this."
Lightning cracked overhead, illuminating the two of them—former brothers-in-arms reduced to silhouettes divided by years and lies.
Kael took a step forward. He took one back.
"Don't," Levi warned.
Kael raised an eyebrow."Don't what? Approach you? Speak to you? Try to stop you from dying in the middle of a forest?"
"I don't need saving."
"No," Kael said quietly. "You need honesty."
The words hit harder than the rain.
"You disappeared without a word," Kael continued. "Left us to clean the blood and the rumours. You think I didn't look for you? You think I didn't fight for you?" His voice cracked slightly. "You were my brother."
He didn't answer. Couldn't. Because if he did, he knew the truth would spill out along with the guilt he had swallowed for years.
Kael stepped closer.
"Tell me," he said softly. "Was it worth it? Throwing everything away? We were so close to succeeding, Levi."
Silence. Only rain.
Lightning flashed again—and this time he moved.
His blade whispered free, slicing a silver arc through the darkness toward Kael's throat—
—but Kael was faster.
Steel rang against steel, sparks scattering across the wet ground as Kael met his strike effortlessly, sliding him back with a twist of the wrist and a kick to the chest.
He hit the ground hard.
Kael stood over him, blade angled down, rain dripping off its edge.
"If you wanted me dead," Kael said, "you should have swung with your heart, not your guilt."
He stared up at him, chest heaving, fury boiling beneath his skin.
"You don't understand," Levi spat.
"Then make me understand."
He pushed himself to his knees, rain washing the dirt and blood from his face.
"I left," Levi said, voice raw, "because if I stayed… all of you would have died."
Kael's grip on his sword faltered.
"For years," he continued, "I thought I could outrun it. The truth, the mark, the curse—whatever you want to call it. But I couldn't… not from myself."
Kael's expression shifted—anger fading into something heavier.
"So you ran alone," Kael said. "Suffered alone. Bled alone. That was your grand solution?"
Levi met his old companion's gaze.
"It was better than watching you die."
Kael exhaled, breath shaking, rain masking the frustration on his face.
"You idiot," Kael whispered. "You absolute idiot."
For the first time in years…They stood without weapons between them.
And then—
A tremor ran through his chest. His vision dimmed. Essence surged violently, uncontrollably.
Kael reached for him—
"Wait, something's wrong, LEVI NO!"
He gasped as the world snapped back, light bursting behind his eyes. The forest dissolved. The rain vanished. And Kael's voice was swallowed by a blinding, rising glow.
The world went dark.
With barely restrained panic, he shot upright in his bed.
My bed? Why am I in bed?
Ah. Right. He had passed out just after awakening.
He looked around slowly. His chambers were quiet, orderly, and washed in soft daylight. The sun filtered through the windows in narrow golden bars, illuminating the polished floor. Judging by the angle at which the light hit the ground, it was nearing midday, perhaps just past ten… maybe noon.
He hadn't realised it yet, perhaps it was a sensation he had grown accustomed to, but now, for the first time, he could fully feel the essence coursing within him and flowing all around him. The experience was intoxicating, a quiet thrill that pricked at the senses. It was, in a way, his first time truly sensing it, but not the first time he had encountered it. And yet… even so, it was undeniably pleasant.
How long was I out? I hope it's only been a few hours. It could be days, he thought, trying to recall how things unfolded in his previous life.
He drew in a deep breath.
Gosh. That dream.
Right—it was a dream. A memory, more like. A fragment of the past he had left behind… or carried with him.
Kyle… how long has it been? He turned his gaze to the window, eyes distant. Where are you now, old friend? What are you doing?
As he sank deeper into thought, the door to his chamber swung open—hard enough that the impact echoed across the room.
A young woman stepped inside and froze. She stared at him, stunned—whether from his unexpected recovery or the realisation that she had barged in far too abruptly, he could not tell. Perhaps both.
He simply watched her, silent and waiting.
She cleared her throat, composed herself, and closed the door softly behind her.
"Good morning, young master. It seems you have awoken."
Levi did not return the greeting—only offered a small nod.
"You are in perfect condition," she continued. "There is nothing alarming to report, my lord. It seems your body has finally decided to awaken after all these years. Do you… Perhaps know how to view your threads?"
Another quiet nod.
She exhaled in relief. "That's—good. I suspected that after so long, your awakening might cause you to be irregular… or incomplete. But it seems I was worried for nothing. I will report to the Duke."
She rose quickly from the chair beside his bed and began toward the door.
"Stop."
The word was calm, but she still flinched. Hard .
Right… I was not exactly gentle with them in the past, he reminded himself bitterly.
"Does my mother know what happened?" he asked.
"Yes, my lord. The Duke informed her personally."
"What about my sister?"
"Your sister only knows that you are under my care, my lord. Nothing more."
Silence settled between them again.
"What is your name?" Levi asked.
She blinked, unsure for a moment. "Crystabel, my lord."
Right… It's Crystabel. I almost forgot.
"Forgive me," Levi murmured—though mostly to himself. "You are excused, Crystabel. Go inform the Duke that I've awoken. He'll want to see me."
"Yes, my lord. Thank you."
She dipped her head quickly and slipped out of the room, closing the door with considerably more care than she had opened it.
Now alone, Levi exhaled softly. He raised his hand—and with a mere thought, summoned his status veil to confirm what had changed… and what had not.
Name: Levi Ardyn Solareth
Race: Human
Titles: The Lightless Heir, Dying Sun, Prince of Blades, The Returned, Warlord, Ghost of the Sun, Heavenly Virtue, Monarch.
Core Rank: Adept
Heritage Threads:
Aurora Dominion—Type: Elemental (Light), Rank: Transcendent
Cryo Dominion — Type: Elemental (Ice), Rank: Sovereign
Acquired Threads:
Diligence — Type: Concept (Virtue), Rank: Mythic
[??????] — Type: Law (Null), Rank: Undefined
To his surprise, his Core was already at Adept. That's strange… why has my Core already evolved?
He looked down at his right hand, flexed his fingers, and felt the power thrumming within him—the unmistakable strength of an Adept. Yes, that's correct… but why did I skip the Initiate stage? And my heritage threads have received their ranks? Aurora Dominion is obviously a transcendent-ranked thread, but Cyro is a Sovereign-ranked thread? Cyro's dominion was only a refined rank in the previous life? What the hell is going on?!
He struggled to reconcile it, yet a thought formed: perhaps it was the nature of Diligence itself, one of the more ridiculously overpowered heavenly virtues, out of all the heavenly virtues and deadly sins, only three were recorded as mythic-ranked powers. The rest were transcendent, with the sole exception of Pride, of course, the only divine ranked among them. His Thread, stubborn and persistent, was reconciling the record of his previous self with the current Levi. In doing so, it had propelled him forward, saving him the years it would have taken his peers to advance. Upon awakening at ten, he had bypassed the Initiate stage entirely—a silent boon for which he felt an unexpected surge of gratitude.
The door opened. The Duke walked in, his eyes locking with Levi's. There was something indecipherable within them, something that Levi could not yet read. The Duke closed the door behind him and, with deliberate composure, took the chair opposite Levi's bed.
"Hello, Levi," said Duke Draken Solareth.
"Hello, Father," Levi replied, his voice steady.