Inside the Rezvani, the news broadcast dissolved into chaos.
The image flickered violently as static swallowed the signal, while the anchor’s voice broke apart between bursts of interference.
"...Emergency... emergency announcement... Unknown anomalies have appeared across the globe... Please... all citizens remain calm... Stay indoors... Do not... The military has already..."
The transmission suddenly stabilized. Not because the interference had ended, but because something stronger had seized control.
The screen switched to what appeared to be a hastily assembled emergency command center. The backdrop was simple and unadorned, yet it projected unmistakable authority.
A man stood before the camera.
He wore a perfectly tailored dark combat uniform. Tall and straight-backed, he possessed striking features and calm, unwavering eyes. Even through the screen, he radiated a commanding presence that naturally inspired trust.
Damien Bale. Aiden recognized him instantly. The Dragon Sovereign.
In Aiden’s previous life, Damien had become humanity’s public leader, a legendary figure revered by billions.
He was also one of the people responsible for forcing Aiden into the space-time rift to merge their class.
Long before the apocalypse, Damien had already been an influential figure. Born into a powerful political family, he was regarded as the heir his family had spent decades cultivating, with deep connections across both government and business.
Compared to the man Aiden remembered, however, this Damien was noticeably younger.
He had yet to acquire the quiet majesty that came from years of absolute authority.
Instead, there was something sharper in his eyes.
Something hungrier. And behind the concern on his face...
Aiden saw the beginning of the ambition that would one day consume the world.
Damien looked directly into the camera.
His voice was calm, steady, and powerful, carrying a reassuring confidence that seemed capable of anchoring hearts amid the chaos.
"Citizens of the world, my name is Damien Bale."
"As you can all see, our world is experiencing an unprecedented catastrophe. For reasons still unknown, the virtual reality game Eclipse Online is merging with reality."
"Do not give in to panic. This is both a disaster... and an opportunity. Every one of us has received a datafied body and a single chance to awaken a God-Given Class. This is the first step on humanity’s path of evolution."
"These monsters are terrifying, but they are not invincible. If we stand together, we will defeat them and rebuild our civilization from these ruins."
"I call upon everyone who has awakened a combat sequence: take up your weapons. Protect the innocent. Fight back against the invaders."
"We will establish survivor bases for the displaced. We will form hunter guilds to reclaim our cities. As long as humanity still draws breath, our flame will never be extinguished."
"I am Damien Bale. And I will stand beside you until the very last moment."
The speech was passionate, measured, and impeccably delivered.
To countless frightened people watching from shattered homes, overturned vehicles, and blood-soaked streets, Damien Bale appeared like a beacon piercing through the darkness.
He gave them hope, purpose and someone to follow.
But Aiden knew better. He had heard those same words once before. And he knew exactly where they would lead.
Inside the Rezvani, Aiden Cross stared at the familiar yet detestable face on the screen.
As Damien’s impassioned speech echoed through the cabin, the corners of Aiden’s mouth slowly lifted into an icy smile.
It held no panic. Only boundless hatred... and the quiet mockery of someone who had already seen through every lie.
"Protect the weak? Rebuild our homes? Fight side by side?"
His voice was barely more than a whisper, audible only to himself, yet every word carried the chill of countless buried corpses.
"Damien Bale... you really do love carving yourself a monument."
In his previous life, he had believed every one of those stirring promises.
He had fought through mountains of corpses and rivers of blood, convinced he was helping save humanity.
In the end... He had been offered up as nothing more than a sacrifice.
Aiden’s smile grew colder. "This time, I’ll let you watch."
"I’ll strip away every force you’ve built, piece by piece."
"I’ll shatter the foundation beneath your throne."
"I’ll drag your precious title of ’Savior’ through the mud until the whole world sees what you truly are."
"And the Sovereign of Fate you guarded so desperately...will become the stepping stone beneath my feet as I ascend to godhood."
His gaze left the screen. Beyond the windshield, the city had already become a living hell.
Buildings burned. People screamed. Monsters hunted openly through blood-soaked streets.
His expression remained utterly unmoved.
Chaos was the richest soil from which power could grow.
Taking a slow breath, Aiden reached into the tiny auxiliary storage space connected to the Damaged Ring of Greed, a minor benefit granted by purchasing the ring from the Hidden Shop.
It was a trick few people knew.
Using the remaining moments before the apocalypse, he had completed one final transaction with the Shopkeeper of Light and Shadow. Although the item itself had originally cost only five hundred gold coins, obtaining it under those circumstances had required an additional five thousand.
Resting in his palm was a small jade talisman engraved with ancient runes that emitted a faint white glow.
It was the [Inferior Experience Rune].
Without hesitation, he crushed it.
CRACK!
The jade shattered into countless motes of white light that surged into his body like a warm current, flooding every muscle, bone, and nerve.
[Ding! You have used the "Inferior Experience Rune."]
[You gained 1,000 Experience Points.]
[Ding! Level Up!]
[Current Level: 2]
[Strength +1]
[Agility +1]
[Constitution +1]
[Spirit +1]
[You have gained 5 free Attribute Points.]
A surge of strength coursed through him. Compared to the first time he had leveled up in his previous life, the increase was incomparably greater. Every muscle felt lighter, every breath smoother, every sense sharper. The world itself seemed to become clearer before his eyes.
The [Damaged Ring of Greed] grew faintly warm against his finger.
Its blessing had awakened. At the same time, deep within his consciousness, the dormant icon of the [Sovereign of Souls] Class began to change.
The once-gray emblem slowly glowed crimson, like dying embers stirred back to life.
A deep, instinctive hunger spread from it. A craving to seize. To absorb. To claim the souls of all living things as his own. Only one thing remained. A catalyst. His first kill.
Aiden pushed open the car door and the cacophony of screams, explosions, and monstrous roars crashed over him like a tidal wave.
With the kitchen knife enhanced by the Mantis’s Slightly Sharp trait, the blade glinting in his hand, he stepped onto the battlefield, where blood and fire intertwined.
His gaze settled upon a Level 1 Mutated Dog.
The beast had just torn down a fleeing pedestrian and now lowered its head, greedily devouring the corpse.
Aiden’s eyes were as cold as frozen steel. His footsteps were calm and unwavering.
The hunt had begun.