[Evernight Palace — Night]
Moonlight spilled over the stone balcony of the royal nursery.
Queen Althea Evernight stood there in silence, her arms gently wrapped around baby Arden. She hummed a lullaby older than the kingdom itself, her voice soft, a song passed down through the Evernight lineage.
Leon slept quietly nearby. But Arden, in her arms, was wide awake.
Within the infant's core, a storm of digital code and celestial defiance churned silently.
[MindHub System: Active]
— Core Stabilization: 100%
— Clone Network: 12 Nodes Online
— Secret Skill: "Shadow Dominion" Initiated
— Infiltration Plan: Phase 1 Execution Ready
He had waited long enough.
The Watcher's intrusion had confirmed it.
The Celestial System considered him a threat.
It was time to expand. To prepare.
To dominate.
[Unlocked: Evernight Bloodline - Phase 1: "Sovereign Embryo"]
This ancient bloodline contains the latent ability to influence realms with sheer presence.
The Sovereign Embryo grants:
[Blood Command: Compel lesser bloodline users]
[Night Vein: Passive regeneration in darkness]
[Realm Imprint: Begin binding external land to your dominion]
Arden absorbed it all, each revelation deepening his understanding.
[Evernight Shadow Garden — Secret Realm]
One of his hidden clones, stationed inside a spatial fold near the southern forest, completed construction.
A Base.
Nothing grand — not yet. But enough:
A blackstone keep masked by twisted magic
A vault for artifacts and skill cores
A resonance gate connecting it to Arden's main core via MindHub
He called it:
Shadow Root One
And from it, Arden began broadcasting a recruitment protocol.
To the forgotten.
To the enslaved.
To the ambitious.
To the broken.
"Swear loyalty to the shadows. Awaken. Ascend."
They came.
Two at first — a runaway noble girl from the Kingdom of Veilmar, and a blind mercenary who heard voices in dreams.
Arden marked them.
Gave them the Game Interface:
[System Link: Shadowborne Pact Initiated]
User: Elia Veyren
Class: Bloodblade Witch (Locked)
EXP: 0/100
Quests: [Scout noble intelligence. Report silently. Reward: +EXP / +Skill Node.]
[System Link: Shadowborne Pact Initiated]
User: Darran Crow
Class: Soulhowler Sentinel (Locked)
EXP: 0/100
Quests: [Protect Shadow Root. Patrol Veilmar border.]
With every connection, Arden grew stronger.
Every success added Celestial Coins and Experience Points to his MindHub core.
[Evernight Palace — Morning]
"He's smiling in his sleep again," Althea whispered, tracing Arden's cheek.
Leon rolled in his cradle beside them and murmured something indistinct. A beam of sunlight slid through the glass, painting both twins in gold.
King Veylan stepped in quietly.
"Althea. We need to discuss the increasing reports from Veilmar. Bandit activity. Maybe worse."
Althea nodded, her mind torn between royal duty and her sons.
Arden remained still.
But deep within, he saw everything.
Veilmar.
A corrupt land. A dying kingdom.
His first target.
He sent a directive:
[Mission Update: Begin Veilmar Infiltration]
Step 1: Gain intelligence
Step 2: Seed low-tier dungeons near population zones
Step 3: Draw out awakened individuals
Step 4: Bind loyal to Shadow Garden
Arden's influence extended slightly into Veilmar's land as his clone reached it.
The Realm Imprint process began.
Just a seed.
Just a root.
But it was enough.
He would conquer not through brute force, but through networks, mindlinks, and promises of power.
The world would never see it coming.
But soon...
The Shadow Evernight Empire would rise.