Liora stood trembling on the rooftop with excitement.
The ruined city below her swarmed with undead. Thousands of them. Their decaying bodies dragged across the broken streets like ants. But to her, they weren’t just zombies.
They were experience points.
Her fingers curled tightly around the cracked edge of the rooftop railings as the familiar excitement of her shadows. She could feel their eagerness to come out. Her eyes gleamed with a sharp, eager light, and a wild grin tugged at her lips.
She was going to level up.
Beside her, Xu Kai stood in silence. Calm and Focused. His sword caught the faint gray light in the smog-choked air. He scanned the endless sea of the undead, then turned to her.
"Should we go down and kill them up close?" he asked, his tone casual.
Liora didn’t hesitate. She shook her head quickly. "No need."
Xu Kai raised an eyebrow, curious. "No?"
She turned to him, her voice steady and clear. "You don’t need to fight. Not unless I fall. Until then... just stay with me."
There was a pause. Something flickered in Xu Kai’s gaze—maybe concern, maybe quiet understanding—but he nodded anyway. "Okay."
Liora offered him a soft smile, then moved toward a rusted steel slab lying nearby. It had likely fallen from an old rooftop unit, but now, it served perfectly as a makeshift bench. She dragged it toward the ledge and sat down, sighing in quiet satisfaction.
Then she patted the space beside her. "Come. Sit."
Xu Kai didn’t question her. He walked over and sat beside her, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
Together, they stared out over the crumbling city.
Liora’s eyes narrowed, the anticipation building inside her nearly unbearable. Then, in a whisper only the wind could carry, she spoke:
"Go, my babies... Kill them all."
And the world behind her changed.
The air thickened. Dark mist began to rise, swirling with strange pressure, and the rooftop was filled with movement. One by one, shadows emerged—some crawling like hounds, others gliding silently like mist, and some rising with the bulk of horned giants or the wings of dark birds.
They had no single shape. Some resembled wolves, others serpents, winged beasts, jagged hounds, or massive quadrupeds with horns and glowing eyes. Their outlines shimmered with darkness. Their aura was so strong that it could choke anyone.
There weren’t dozens. There were hundreds of them behind her.
Xu Kai straightened slightly at the sight. His eyes narrowed as he studied the army of shadow beasts. A single brow lifted, but he didn’t speak. His lips curved into just a small, knowing smile.
He had seen them before, when she was still Aeris. But even then, her power hadn’t been .
Now... it was stronger. More controlled and more dangerous.
Liora remained still. She didn’t look back at him. She didn’t need to.
"All of you," she commanded, her voice firm and calm, "hunt every zombie in this city. Kill as many as you can and bring me the crystal cores."
The shadows twitched in response, but she could feel their hunger for killing.
"I’ll let you keep half of what you collect," she added.
And the rooftop trembled—not from any outside force, but from sheer excitement. A ripple of hunger, joy, and anticipation spread across the army like a wave. Shadows couldn’t speak, but they didn’t need to. Liora felt their emotions through their bond, as clear as if they had shouted.
She could feel it: they were thrilled.
With one final motion, she flicked her fingers toward the city. "Go."
The shadows vanished in bursts of mist and silent wind—falling through cracks in the rooftop, leaping across to nearby buildings, diving into the sky like a silent army of vengeance.
Liora watched them disappear.
They were hers—souls of powerful beasts she had once defeated, bonded with, or absorbed. Now reborn through darkness and shadow, they answered only to her.
A few days ago, she had discovered something unexpected. One of her shadows had accidentally swallowed a crystal core instead of delivering it. She had thought the core would drop below. But instead, it disappeared, and the shadow had evolved. Its body grew darker, stronger, and more solid. The change had been immediate.
That was when she realized her shadows still could grow. And this news soon spread to all her shadows.
They didn’t speak with words, but they communicated with feelings—and with each other. A strange link bound them together, like a family. And they were all deeply loyal to her.
She couldn’t release them all at once, not always. Their numbers had grown to nearly a thousand, and calling them out too often drained her energy. But tonight... she had let them all go.
Tonight, they had a feast waiting.
And from where she sat, she could already feel it—the tremors of battle in the distance. The screeches of the undead, the crunch of bones under claws, and the rush of shadows as they tore through streets and rooftops. Through her connection, she could feel their joy. The hunt. The thrill of the kill.
The crystals were theirs to earn—and they were hungry.
She leaned back, eyes half-lidded, letting herself feel the rush of it all. The bloodlust, the joy, the fire of combat.
Beside her, Xu Kai watched silently. One hand rested near his blade, but he didn’t reach for it. His eyes remained on the horizon, his expression calm but thoughtful.
"You’ve changed," he said after a long moment.
Liora didn’t glance at him. "Have I?"
"You used to be the first to jump into battle."
She smiled faintly. "Now I lead from above."
Xu Kai chuckled softly. "So this is what my baby looks like."
Liora was too focused, watching as her shadows cut through the city like a wave of darkness. They leapt from rooftops, ambushed from alleyways, and tore through zombie hordes like paper.
It was efficient. Ruthless. Almost beautiful.
Then she whispered with a soft smile.
"Eat well, my beasts. Today... we rise."