Two figures stood opposite each other beneath the bell tower of Kaelthorn's ruin district, one cloaked in stormlight, the other carved from shadow.
Kaiser stared into his own eyes.Or what used to be his.
The Echo wore his face, same black hair, same quiet stare, same scar beneath the left eye. But there was something… off. Too perfect. Too smooth. No humanity behind the gaze.
The Echo tilted its head.
Then, it smiled.
Kaiser drew Vow breaker without a word.
[System Limiter Active.]Physical stats: -20%Skill access: LockedCombat assist: DisabledRemaining Energy: 67%
"Of course," he muttered.
No backup.
No enhancements.
Just him… and it.
The Echo moved first, fast. Faster than any assassin had a right to be. Its blade flickered out in a silver arc, silent and precise.
Kaiser barely dodged, rolling under the strike and countering with a low sweep. Sparks flew as steel met steel. The clang echoed down the narrow alley, slicing through the fog like lightning.
He felt the Echo's strength "his strength" and something more beneath it. Like fighting a reflection sharpened by every mistake he'd ever made.
They fought like twins born for war.
Each move anticipated. Each strike mirrored. Each breath stolen.
Kaiser grunted as the Echo's blade cut across his shoulder. Not deep, but enough to sting.
"You're not me," he hissed.
The Echo didn't respond.
It just smiled wider.
Memories Unleashed
[System Triggered: Resonance Detected.]Memory Fragment Unlocked.
The world slowed.
Images flashed in Kaiser's mind.
A child… crying in a storm.A blade buried in a man's chest.A voice: "Power has a price, little crow."A hand offering a contract written in blood.
Then-nothing.
Kaiser gasped as the vision faded.
"What the hell was that?"
[You've glimpsed your First Sin.]Synchronization: 12%Echo Stability: Weakening
The Echo lunged again, this time driving straight for Kaiser's chest. He twisted, letting the blade graze his side, then slammed his elbow into its throat.
It didn't choke.
Didn't bleed.
But it stumbled.
That was enough.
Kaiser followed with a brutal combo: feint-high, cut-low, pivot-step, upward slash. Vow breaker roared in his hand, burning hotter than it ever had before.
Steel met shadow.
And the Echo cracked.
Its face "his face" split open like porcelain. Black mist leaked from the wound.
[Weak Point Identified.]Execute? [Y/N]
Kaiser didn't hesitate.
He rammed Vow breaker straight through the chest of his copy.
The Echo froze.
Its smile never faded... not even as it crumbled into dust, whispering something Kaiser couldn't hear.
Then silence.
Just the storm again.
Just Kaiser, breathing heavy, blade dripping with his own blood.
[Enemy Terminated.]Echo Removed.Trait Gained: Shadow Sovereign (Seeded)Your presence now marks a path of resistance within the System. Echoes will evolve in response.Side effect: You are now detectable by higher-tier anomalies.
Kaiser knelt in the wet alley, breathing hard.
His hand trembled not from fear.
From the weight of knowing something deeper had just started.
Behind him, Lira appeared again.
She hadn't interfered. Hadn't stepped in.
"You let me fight it alone."
Lira nodded. "You had to. That was the test."
"What test?"
She looked at him, dead serious.
"To see if you're ready to kill yourself."
Before he could reply, the air split open.
A ripple.
A tear.
Something massive stirred within the fog. Not a man. Not a shadow.
A presence.
[Warning: Class-D Echo Entity detected.]Initiating combat protocol lockdown. Escape advised.
Kaiser turned slowly… and saw it.
Ten feet tall. Dozens of blades hovering in a ring behind its back. No face. No voice. Just a name etched into reality:
[ECHO: CROWNLESS KING]