Hope walks like it owns the world.
That's what Elias was. The Hero of Light. The Savior of Men. The walking contradiction of this rotten empire. And for the past two days, he'd been parading around Varellion estate like it was already his.
Courtyard sparring matches. Smile-forged diplomacy. Charmed servants. A few harmless laughs with Kael at the banquet table. It was all performance. But I wasn't watching the play.
I was studying the audience.
Elias didn't know it yet, but his presence alone was war. Even Kael's most disciplined knights were starting to crack beneath the pressure of that "righteous" aura. One of them even dropped their blade mid-training yesterday when Elias passed.
And that's when I realized something crucial.
Everyone here feared the Hero.
Everyone… except me.
[New Thread Condition Met]
Hero Proximity > 48 hours
Fear Resistance: MAXED
System Unlock: CHAOTIC PRESENCE [Passive]
"The more they fear him, the less they notice you."
The System always had perfect timing.
I stood on the watchtower roof that morning, cloaked in wind and silence, as Elias sparred below with one of the Varellion champions. Kael watched from a seat of blackened iron, arms crossed, judging. The other nobles looked impressed.
Me?
I was already rewriting the script.
The champion swung high. Elias dodged low. Another strike—deflected, countered, perfect form.
Applause.
Cheers.
He lowered his sword and offered a hand to his opponent.
So noble. So pure. So textbook.
And so easy to manipulate.
I narrowed my eyes. He wasn't flawless. He was rehearsed.
And rehearsed heroes break the hardest when the script goes wrong.
That night, during the ceremonial feast, Kael toasted to "brotherhood" and "peaceful alliances." Elias smiled, raised his glass, played along like the protagonist he thought he was.
I barely touched my drink.
He noticed.
"You don't enjoy wine?" he asked me across the table.
"I don't enjoy false celebrations," I replied.
Kael chuckled. "You'll have to forgive Lucien. He's become… difficult lately."
"Not difficult," I said without breaking eye contact. "Just awake."
That made Elias pause. Just for a second. A flicker of interest. Maybe unease.
Later, he found me alone on the northern balcony. The stars above were sharp. Cold.
"You're not what I expected," Elias said, leaning beside me. "I thought Kael's brother would be more like him."
"I was."
"And now?"
"I'm something else."
He studied me, brows narrowing. "Are you dangerous?"
The System buzzed.
New Dialogue Thread Triggered
Choose Response:
"Only to my enemies." "Not yet." "You tell me." [Say nothing]
This time, I didn't hesitate.
"Not yet."
He stared at me.
Then he laughed.
Not mockingly. Not with fear.
But with curiosity.
That was fine.
Curiosity was the first step to underestimating me.
But that moment was shattered a few hours later.
Alarms.
A scream.
A servant girl stumbled into the main hall—her throat partially burned, her eyes wide with fear.
"They… they came from the wall… they broke the outer…"
Before she could finish, her body hit the floor—lifeless.
A brand on her shoulder glowed faintly.
Kael stood from his throne instantly. "Raiders."
"No," I whispered, stepping forward. "That's not how the novel went…"
The System flashed violently.
[UNKNOWN THREAT DETECTED]
Timeline Contamination: 11.4%
New Variable: Shadowspawn (!!!)
"Entities not present in original story now appearing."
I had changed the script too much.
Something unnatural was being pulled into this world. Something that didn't belong.
The doors burst open.
Black-cloaked creatures surged in—humanoid, but wrong. As if sculpted from mist and bone. They didn't just move — they twitched between moments.
The nobles screamed.
Knights drew swords.
Elias reacted instantly—light bursting from his blade as he stepped forward, slashing through the first wave like a flame in the dark.
Kael joined him with cold, surgical brutality.
I?
I stood in the center, still. Calm. Watching.
Because one of them came for me.
Straight for me.
Its clawed hand swung—
And I didn't move.
[DODGE OPPORTUNITY: 0.3 SECONDS]
System Intervention Triggered
CHAOS THREAD ABILITY UNLOCKED: [Return to Sender]
"Redirect fatal intention back to the source."
The shadow-creature's strike froze in mid-air — and then, with a sickening twist of time, it sliced itself open, vanishing into dust.
Elias turned, eyes wide.
Kael stared.
Even the knights stopped.
"…What was that?" Elias whispered.
I stepped forward through the ash.
"They came for me," I said. "And I sent them back."
No fear.
No pretense.
No more playing the quiet brother.
[System Update: Divergence Rate = 14.7%]
You are no longer invisible.
You are now an anomaly.
Some threads fear you. Others will hunt you.
Power recognized. Position changing.
Kael approached slowly, wiping black blood from his blade.
He looked at me with something new in his eyes.
Not suspicion.
Not hate.
Respect.
"You're not Lucien anymore," he muttered.
"No," I agreed. "Lucien died the day this story started."