The world was dark, cold, and silent. The only thing Canila Panort could feel was the weight of failure pressing against his chest. His once-glorious reign as the Shadow King had ended, not in a blaze of glory, but in betrayal. His trusted allies, his guildmates, had abandoned him during the final raid. And as he fell to his knees, surrounded by the overwhelming force of his enemies, he realized just how foolish he had been.
This is how it ends?
Those were his final thoughts before the world of Elysium, the most immersive virtual reality game ever created, faded to black. Canila's avatar, a symbol of fear and power, was no more.
But fate had other plans.
With a gasp, Canila shot up, his heart pounding in his chest. He looked around, disoriented. He wasn't in his bed, nor was he in the endless void where his consciousness had lingered for what felt like an eternity. No, this was different. He was back in the game—back in Elysium.
He checked his hands, expecting to see the familiar power he had wielded for so long. Instead, he found himself in the body of a novice, his stats reset to Level 1, his equipment nothing more than the basic gear every new player received.
"How... how is this possible?" Canila muttered, his voice shaking with a mixture of disbelief and awe. He shouldn't be here. The game had been shut down after the final event, the one where he had met his end. But somehow, against all logic, he had been brought back to the very beginning.
He clenched his fists. This was no mere chance. He had been given a second opportunity—a chance to rewrite his fate, to reclaim the power that had been stolen from him. And this time, he wouldn't make the same mistakes.
I'll rise again. Stronger. Faster. And this time… there will be no mercy.
With a quick flick of his hand, Canila opened his interface and scanned through his character's stats. As expected, he was back at Level 1:
Level: 1
Class: Novice
Strength: 5
Agility: 4
Endurance: 6
Intelligence: 3
Luck: 2
Everything was back to square one, but that was fine. Canila knew the game better than anyone else. He knew where to find hidden treasures, legendary quests, and secret dungeons that would give him a head start over everyone else.
With a sharp breath, he pulled up the map of Elysium in his mind. His first destination: the forgotten caves of Ashfall. No one would think to go there at this stage of the game, but deep within those caves lay a hidden quest that would give him a powerful weapon and a rare class—the key to his eventual return as the Shadow King.
"First step," Canila whispered to himself, "is to reclaim the shadows."
Canila stepped out into the starting village of Ashvale, where fresh players were still getting their bearings. His eyes scanned the horizon, already planning his route. The village was bustling with activity, new players running around doing basic quests, chatting with NPCs, and grouping up. But none of them had any idea what the future held for them.
Canila knew. And he was going to make sure it bent to his will.
He glanced at his basic equipment—just a rusty sword and plain leather armor. It wouldn't do for long, but it would be enough to survive the trip to Ashfall. His heart was pounding with anticipation. This was it. His second chance.
His fingers tightened around the sword hilt. The Shadow King had returned.