The ruined capital appeared on the horizon like a corpse that refused to rot.
Broken towers pierced the sky like jagged bones. Smoke lingered in the air even after a decade, as if the city itself exhaled grief. The outer walls had collapsed in multiple places, leaving gaps where monsters, bandits, and desperate refugees came and went.
Arienne stood on a cliff overlooking it, her cloak fluttering in the cold wind.
"This is the capital?" Caelan asked quietly.
"Yes."
He frowned. "It looks dead."
"It is," she replied. "But power never dies. It only changes hands."
The Hunger System pulsed faintly.
[Location Detected: Ruined Capital – Former Imperial Seat]
[Hidden Entities: High]
[Threat Level: Extreme]
Arienne's lips curved slightly.
Good.
She wanted danger.
---
They did not enter through the main road. Instead, Arienne led Caelan through the sewer tunnels beneath the collapsed eastern district. The stench was unbearable, but the tunnels were forgotten, unguarded, and—most importantly—unknown to most survivors.
"This place… was once magnificent," Caelan murmured as they climbed through a broken grate and emerged inside the city.
Arienne did not answer.
She remembered marble streets, golden towers, imperial banners fluttering in the wind.
She remembered walking these streets as a noble, admired and feared.
She remembered being dragged through them in chains.
The Hunger System pulsed.
[Memory Echo Detected]
[Emotional Instability: Minimal]
She suppressed the memories.
Sentimentality was weakness.
---
They moved through collapsed alleys and abandoned marketplaces. The city was not truly empty—shadowy figures lurked in ruined buildings, watching them from a distance. Some were scavengers. Some were gang members. Some were worse.
"This place is crawling with rats," Caelan muttered.
"Yes," Arienne said. "And rats are useful."
She stopped near a broken statue of the former Emperor.
Its head had been smashed off.
"How long ago did the capital fall?" Caelan asked.
"Ten years," she answered.
He stiffened.
"That's when the Empire collapsed."
"Yes."
He looked at her.
"And that's when you died."
She didn't confirm or deny.
The Hunger System chimed softly.
[Warning: Past Identity Recognition Risk]
She stepped away from the statue.
The city remembered her.
She would make it forget.
---
They reached the inner district by dusk. This area had once housed nobles, generals, and imperial institutions. Now it was a battlefield of ruined palaces and shattered mansions.
Arienne slowed her steps.
"Someone is watching," Caelan whispered.
"I know."
Her senses extended outward.
Powerful.
Controlled.
Not human.
She stopped on a rooftop overlooking a collapsed plaza.
"That's enough," a voice echoed.
The air itself seemed to freeze.
A figure emerged from the shadows below.
He wore crimson armor that looked grown, not forged. Blood-like veins pulsed across its surface. His eyes glowed faintly red beneath a silver mask shaped like a knight's helm.
Caelan felt his blood run cold.
"Blood-Knight Sovereign," Arienne murmured.
The Hunger System erupted with warnings.
[High-Level Entity Detected: Blood-Knight Sovereign]
[Threat Level: Catastrophic]
[Survival Probability: 3.2%]
The man tilted his head.
"So the little reborn princess returns to her corpse of a city."
Caelan's heart slammed.
He had heard legends. Everyone had.
The Blood-Knight Sovereign was a warlord who rose during the collapse, slaughtered entire battalions, and claimed the capital's ruins as his territory. Some said he was immortal. Others said he drank blood to survive.
Arienne stepped forward calmly.
"You talk too much."
He laughed.
A low, amused sound.
"Still sharp-tongued. Still arrogant. Still deliciously predictable."
Caelan moved to Arienne's side.
"You know him?"
"Yes," she said. "He killed me once."
The Sovereign spread his arms.
"I merely finished what your Empire started."
The air thickened.
He moved.
In an instant, he appeared in front of Arienne.
Caelan barely saw it.
A shockwave exploded as Arienne blocked his strike with her dagger. The ground cracked beneath them.
Her arm trembled.
He was far stronger.
She smiled.
He noticed.
"How many years has it been?" he asked. "You smell different. Like something that crawled out of a grave."
"I did."
He leaned close.
"Show me what death taught you."
He attacked again.
Arienne activated Shadowstep, her form flickering backward. The Sovereign followed instantly, his blade slashing through afterimages.
Caelan watched in horror.
This was beyond anything he had seen.
He tried to move, but his body refused.
Their fight was invisible to him.
Arienne struck, her dagger coated in dark energy. The blade pierced the Sovereign's armor.
Blood splattered.
He looked down, surprised.
Then he laughed.
"So you grew fangs."
He grabbed her wrist, crushing it.
Bones cracked.
Pain exploded.
The Hunger System screamed.
[Damage Critical]
[Emergency Skill Trigger: Shadow Resilience – Activated]
She twisted free, flipping backward and landing on a ruined wall.
Her wrist healed slowly, shadows knitting flesh.
Caelan's eyes widened.
Healing.
Regeneration.
"Interesting," the Sovereign said. "You're not just reborn. You're… rewritten."
He raised his blade.
"I should kill you now."
Arienne met his gaze.
"You won't."
"Why not?"
"Because you're curious."
He froze.
Then smiled beneath the mask.
"You always knew how to read monsters."
He sheathed his blade.
"For now, you amuse me. Grow stronger. Become something worth devouring."
He turned to leave.
Then paused.
"I am hunting you, Arienne Virelith."
Caelan stiffened.
That name.
Virelith.
Imperial bloodline.
Former noble house erased during the collapse.
The Sovereign glanced back.
"Run. Hide. Build your little power base."
His eyes glowed brighter.
"I will find you again. And when I do—"
His presence vanished.
The city exhaled.
---
Caelan collapsed to one knee.
"That… was him."
"Yes."
"You fought him… and lived."
"For now."
He looked at her, trembling.
"You planned that?"
"Yes."
"Why confront him?"
"To confirm something."
"What?"
She stared at the horizon.
"He remembers me."
The Hunger System chimed.
[High-Level Predator Mark Detected]
[User Marked as Prey]
She smiled.
Perfect.
A predator meant challenge.
A challenge meant growth.
---
They moved deeper into the city, avoiding major factions and known territories. Arienne mapped the ruined capital in her mind, recalling old layouts and new changes.
She noted gang territories.
Hidden markets.
Underground arenas.
Everything.
This city would be hers again.
Caelan followed silently.
"Why does he hunt you?" he asked eventually.
"Because he wants to see how far I'll go."
"And if you fail?"
"He will kill me."
He nodded.
"I won't let that happen."
The Hunger System pulsed warmly.
[Emotional Bond Strengthened: Caelan Veyran]
[Power Growth Amplified]
She felt the power surge.
People were fuel.
And Caelan was burning brightly.
---
They found shelter in an abandoned noble mansion. Broken chandeliers hung from cracked ceilings. Dust covered once-luxurious furniture.
"This was House Lirenth's estate," Caelan said.
"Yes."
She walked through familiar halls.
She remembered attending banquets here.
She remembered politics, poison, betrayal.
She remembered smiling while planning murder.
"This city is rotten," Caelan said.
"Yes."
"And you want to rule it?"
She looked at him.
"I want to devour it."
He nodded.
---
That night, she stood on the balcony, overlooking the capital.
The Hunger System appeared again.
[New Objective Unlocked: Capital Domination Route Available]
[Warning: Blood-Knight Sovereign Interference Probability: 87%]
She clenched her fist.
Good.
Let him hunt her.
Let the city fear her.
Let the Empire notice her.
She would rise.
And when she did—
This time, the execution scaffold would be built for others.
---
Far beneath the capital, in a cathedral of blood and bone, the Blood-Knight Sovereign sat upon a throne made of corpses.
He watched a floating crimson orb showing Arienne's image.
"So the princess returned," he murmured.
A servant knelt.
"Should we mobilize?"
He smiled.
"No. Let her grow."
His eyes burned.
"The tastiest prey is the one that believes it can become a predator."
---