The scalpel's cold kiss on hThe scalpel's cold kiss on her abdomen was the last thing Lilith remembered.
Not the scream caught in her throat, nor the way Kane's wolf eyes had widened when the monitors flatlined. What seared into her bones was the feel of her unborn child's final flutter—a tiny fist, maybe, pressing against her ribs like a goodbye.
Then darkness. And then—ice.
Lilith jolted awake, gasping as frigid water sloshed over her shoulders. The stench of mildew hit first, then the metallic tang of rusted pipes. Not an operating room, but the decrepit basement of St. Agnes' Orphanage, where the radiators hadn't worked since 2019.
"Look who finally decided to drown," a snickering voice cut through the haze.
Lilith's gaze snapped up. Tyler, the orphanage's resident brute, stood above her with three cronies, their sneakers propped on the edge of the moldy bathtub she'd been shoved into. His grin revealed a chipped front tooth—same as the day he'd held her head under these very waters at twelve years old.
Wait. Twelve?
She stared at her hands—small, bony, with a fresh scrape on the palm where she'd tried to claw the porcelain. Not the calloused, scarred hands of a woman who'd endured a lifetime of torment. These were the hands of a child.
A memory sliced through her: Tyler shoving her, the crack of her skull against the faucet, blackness as she sank into the icy water. The last time she'd been here, she'd almost died. And then…
The system will now activate.
The voice was crisp, mechanical, echoing directly inside her skull. Lilith yelped, sloshing water over the tub's edge. Tyler laughed harder.
"Freak's talking to herself. Maybe we should hold her under longer this time."
Host: Lilith Voss. Current age: 12. Status: Reborn.
A glowing gold sigil materialized on her wrist—an intricate spiral that pulsed like a heartbeat. She touched it, and a holographic screen flickered to life, visible only to her.
Cause of previous death: Hemorrhage due to forced extraction of fetus.
Rebirth catalyst: Fetal soul (Ten-Life Virtuous One) sacrificed all merits to the Divine.
Objective: Accumulate World Contribution Points to restore fetal soul.
First mission: Survive the current threat. Reward: Basic combat proficiency, eidetic memory.
The words blurred as Lilith's breath hitched. Her baby. Her sweet, unborn child—who'd given up eternity to bring her back.
Tyler's sneer sharpened. "What's that on your arm, loser? A tattoo? Sister Margaret'll tan your hide for that." He reached for her wrist.
Something snapped in Lilith. Not fear, but a white-hot fury that burned away the last traces of her old timidity. When she'd died, she'd promised herself she'd never be weak again. For her baby, she'd become a storm.
She didn't think—just moved. Using the momentum from sitting, she launched herself upward, slamming her shoulder into Tyler's gut. He yelped, staggering backward into his friends. Water cascaded off her, soaking the concrete floor.
"B*tch!" he roared, lunging.
Lilith ducked, her new combat instincts kicking in like muscle memory. His fist sailed over her head, and she drove her elbow into his ribs. The crunch of cartilage was satisfyingly loud. He doubled over, wheezing.
The cronies hesitated. She turned on them, eyes blazing. "Who's next?"
One stepped forward. She remembered him—Jake, the one who'd held her legs while Tyler drowned her. Without hesitating, she swept his feet out from under him, then drove her heel into his wrist when he tried to grab her ankle. He howled, clutching the limb at an unnatural angle.
The third boy bolted. Smart.
Tyler glared up at her, blood trickling from his nose. "You'll regret this. Ella'll hear about—"
"Ella?" Lilith's voice dropped to a venomous purr. She leaned down, grabbing his jaw hard enough to make him whimper. "Tell her I said hello. And tell her… I'm coming for everything she stole."
She released him, standing to her full height. Water dripped from her sodden hair, but she didn't shiver. The cold no longer touched her—not with the fire in her veins.
Mission completed. Rewards unlocked.
The sigil on her wrist warmed. Knowledge flooded her mind—pressure points, defensive stances, the exact way to disarm an opponent twice her size. And when she glanced at the faded calendar on the wall, every detail burned into her memory: October 17th, 2027. Three years before the king would find her. Three years to prepare.
Warning: Host's body temperature dropping rapidly.
Right. The cold. She climbed out of the tub, ignoring Tyler's glare as she grabbed a moldy towel from the floor. The sigil pulsed again, projecting a new message.
Fetal soul status: Dormant in the Elysian Pool. Emotional resonance detected: Pride.
Lilith pressed a hand to her flat abdomen, tears stinging her eyes. For a moment, she swore she felt a faint warmth there—a ghost of the child she'd lost.
"I'll do it," she whispered, more to herself than the system. "I'll get you back. No matter what."
She wrapped the towel around her shoulders and marched toward the basement door. Tyler scrambled to his feet behind her.
"Where do you think you're going?"
She didn't look back. "To tell Sister Margaret exactly what you did. And if she doesn't believe me…" She tapped her temple. "I remember every second of it. Every word."
The door slammed behind her, leaving Tyler sputtering in the dark.
Lilith stood in the dim hallway, the towel doing little against the chill. But for the first time in as long as she could remember, she felt unbreakable.
The system's screen flickered once more.
World Contribution Points: 10. Keep going, Host.
She smiled, a sharp, fierce thing. Oh, she would. For her baby, she'd burn the world down and build something better from the ashes.
Starting with the people who'd made her suffer.
Ella. The king. Kane.
They all had debts to pay. And Lilith Voss was here to collect.oss was here to collect.