The lock clicked into place. Dorian leaned his head against the wood, listening to his mother's footsteps fade. His chest felt tight—not from the "Phantom Drowning" this time, but from the look on her face.
He took a shaky breath and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
[Chaos Points: 100]
[Life Timer: 23:58:12]
The screen flickered. As the word 'Shop' appeared, a strange sensation washed over him—a mental map of a marketplace he'd never visited, yet understood perfectly. He didn't need to ask how it worked. He just knew.
"Open it," he muttered.
The violet light shifted, displaying a list of options that felt more like a list of bribes.
[THE CHAOS SHOP - BASIC]
Permanent Stat Point: 100 CP
Void Step (F-Rank Skill): 100 CP
Elixir of Vitality (Temporary): 50 CP
Mystery Box: 75 CP
Dorian looked at his hands. They were still thin, the veins faint. He felt brittle, he'd probably break if a small wind blew.
I can't fight with seven minutes of breath and a body that's failing, he thought.
"Put it all into Vitality. Give me the stat point."
[100 CP consumed.]
[Vitality: 6 ➔ 7]
A dull warmth spread through his torso. It didn't make him feel like a god, but the constant, hollow ache in his bones eased just enough for him to stand up straight.
He walked to the washbasin, splashing cold water on his face. He looked twenty again, but the person staring back in the mirror had seen too much death to feel young.
A heavy knock at the door made him stiffen.
"Master Dorian?"
It was Harding, his valet. In his last life, Harding was the only one who didn't run when the manor burned. He'd died with a spear in his back while Dorian was busy being a coward.
[New Mission: The Loyal Dog's Lesson.]
[Goal: Break Harding's spirit. Ensure absolute, fear-based obedience.]
[Reward: 150 Chaos Points / Sovereign's Gaze (Passive)]
Dorian stared at the door. He wanted to open it and tell Harding to run—to get out of this house before it started, but the timer on his vision was a cruel reminder. If he didn't play the villain, he wouldn't be alive to save anyone.
"Come in, Harding," Dorian said, heart in his throat as the door opened. Harding was a man of fifty with graying temples and a posture so straight it looked painful.
He took one look at the shattered vase and the dust on Dorian's boots, and his eyebrows twitched.
"Your mother is quite upset, sir," Harding said, reaching for a broom. "She says she's never seen you act so….rude"
Dorian didn't help him. He sat in the velvet armchair, crossing his legs and watching the older man kneel to sweep up the mess.
"People change, Harding," Dorian said, his voice flat. "Usually when they realize the people around them are useless. Why is the floor still dirty?"
Harding paused, a shard of porcelain in his hand. He looked up, confused. "Sir?"
"I asked a question." Dorian leaned forward, his eyes cold. "You've been my valet for years. If you can't even keep a room clean, why am I still paying you?"
Harding's face paled. He wasn't used to this Dorian. "I... I just got here, Master Dorian, I'll have it cleared in a moment."
"Do it faster," Dorian snapped, pointing at a small piece of glass near Harding's knee. "And do it on your knees, it suits you better."
Harding's fingers curled into his palms, but he didn't say a word. He gathered the last of the porcelain and backed out of the room, his head bowed lower than usual.
[Ding! Mission Complete: The Loyal Dog's Lesson.]
[Reward: 150 Chaos Points / Skill: Sovereign's Gaze (Passive) Unlocked.]
Dorian didn't feel the rush of victory. He just felt tired. He walked to the wardrobe and pulled out a clean black tunic, dressing himself with stiff, mechanical movements.
[Chaos Points: 200]
[Life Timer: 23:55:04]
The new skill, Sovereign's Gaze, felt like a thin layer of cold glass settling over his eyes. It didn't change his vision, but it changed the way the room felt—sharper, as if everything was now subject to his judgment.
A notification pinged at the edge of his sight.
[The Sanguine Evaluation begins in: 15 minutes.]
In his previous life, this was the hour his father, Duke Alaric Thorne, officially declared him a "failed investment." It was the day he was stripped of his inheritance and told he would be nothing more than a political pawn.
Dorian checked his reflection one last time. He looked like the frail F-class boy they expected, but the way he carried his shoulders was different.
He didn't check the shop again. He didn't have time to browse. He stepped out of his room and headed toward the grand staircase.
The manor was quiet, the servants giving him a wide berth. Word of the shattered vase had clearly traveled fast. He reached the heavy oak doors of his father's study and didn't knock. He simply pushed them open.
Duke Alaric sat behind a desk of dark stone, his silver hair catching the light of the fire. Beside him stood his younger brother, Julian—the "prodigy" of the family, already a B-rank mage at eighteen.
"You're late," Alaric said, not looking up from his papers. "And I hear you've been making a spectacle of yourself with the staff."
"The staff was slow," Dorian said, walking to the center of the room. "And I'm exactly where I need to be."
Julian snickered, leaning against the wall. "Big words for someone whose mana veins look like dried-up weeds. Ready to fail for the fifth year in a row, brother?"
Dorian turned his head slightly, his new passive skill—Sovereign's Gaze—locking onto his brother.
Julian's smirk faltered. He shifted his weight, his hand instinctively moving toward the mana-focusing ring on his finger. He looked confused, like he'd suddenly forgotten what he was about to say.
"The evaluation," Dorian said, looking back at his father. "Let's get it over with. I have things to do."
Alaric finally looked up, his eyes narrowing at his eldest son. "Very well, place your hand on the Sanguine Stone. Let's see if you've managed to grow even a spark of mana in the last six months."
Dorian walked toward the pedestal in the center of the room. Atop it sat the Sanguine Stone, a jagged hunk of translucent crimson crystal that pulsed with a faint, rhythmic light. In his past life, he had approached this stone with trembling hands, praying for a miracle that never came.
Today, he felt nothing but the hum of the system in his peripheral vision.
[Life Timer: 23:42:15]
He reached out, his palm making contact with the cold, jagged surface.
For a heartbeat, the stone remained dim. Julian's snicker returned, louder this time. "Same old Dorian. Empty as a—"
The air in the room suddenly grew heavy.
Deep within Dorian's chest, the Void Heart gave a predatory thrum. It didn't just offer mana to the stone; it reached out and began to feed. The crimson light of the Sanguine Stone didn't just brighten—it inverted.
The red bled into oily purple, then a pitch black that seemed to swallow the firelight in the room.
"What is this?" Alaric stood abruptly, his chair screeching against the stone floor. "Julian, get back!"
The stone vibrated, cracks spider-webbing as black light swallowed the room. Dorian didn't pull away, he watched as the shadows crawled up his arm, his F-class mana veins glowing a deep, dangerous violet.
[Notice: Compatibility with 'Sanguine Stone' is 0%.]
[Notice: Initiating 'Void Devour'.]
With a sound like shattering bone, the Sanguine Stone exploded.
Shards of red crystal flew across the room. Julian yelped, throwing up a panicked mana shield, while the Duke swiped his hand to dissipate the debris before it hit his face.
Silence followed, broken only by the crackle of the fireplace. The pedestal was empty, save for a pile of gray dust.
Dorian lowered his hand, his expression unchanged. He looked at his father, whose face was a mask of disbelief and burgeoning fear.
[Ding! Chaos Act Confirmed: Destroying a Family Heirloom.]
[Chaos Points: +300]
[Status Updated: The 'Failure' has been Deleted.]
"The stone was defective," Dorian said, dusting off his tunic.
"Defective?" Alaric's voice was a low growl. "That stone has served House Thorne for six generations. You... what did you do?"
"I outgrew it," Dorian replied. He turned toward the door, ignoring the way Julian was staring at him like he was a ghost. "If there's nothing else, I have a city to visit. I'm sure you can find a more 'robust' stone for the next evaluation."
He walked out, the heavy doors thudding shut behind him.