The cold, jagged stones scraped against Zenith's skin, his body bruised, bloodied, and broken. His last breath, an agonizing rasp, left his lungs just moments before his vision went dark. He was no longer the legendary hero of the Azure Realm, the one who had defeated the Demon King and brought peace to a war-torn world. No, he was nothing but a casualty of betrayal.

In his final moments, he had seen their faces his closest allies, the ones he had trusted with his life gathered around him. His heart had shattered, not from the pain of the blow they had dealt him, but from the realization that all he had fought for was in vain. They were no heroes. They were vultures, waiting for the moment of his death to claim his glory.

Fools, he had thought. All of them.

His vision blurred with the image of a smiling face. The Demon King, his old enemy, his arch-nemesis, had not been the one who ended him. No, it had been those he had called friends. He had never seen it coming.

But the darkness was not the end for Zenith.

Before he could drift into oblivion, a voice echoed in his mind cold and distant, yet filled with an eerie sense of power.

"Do you seek revenge, Zenith? Do you desire to take back what was stolen from you?"

The words cut through the despair that clouded his consciousness. He clung to them, his fading will latching onto the promise of retribution. Yes, revenge. He would rise again, not for justice, but for himself. For his own satisfaction. His enemies would learn what it meant to betray him.

"I offer you a chance to rewrite your fate," the voice continued. "I offer you the power to ascend, to break free from the chains of fate and carve your path through the world. Choose, Zenith."

His broken body, lying lifeless on the cold stones, seemed to stir, as if answering the voice's call. His mind, too, ignited with a surge of hope no, hunger for what lay beyond.

He would rise again. But not as a hero.

"I choose power," he whispered into the abyss.

---

Zenith awoke with a jolt, his senses flooded with the sounds of birds chirping and the faint rustle of wind through trees. His hands grasped the earth beneath him, cold and damp, as if his body had been laid there for centuries. Slowly, he pushed himself up, his limbs stiff, but functional.

The world around him was not the battlefield he had died on. No, it was a familiar landscape the village where he had spent his early years before fate had dragged him into the life of a hero.

How? He blinked, eyes wide in disbelief. Am I... alive?

The memories of his final moments returned in a flash: his comrades turning on him, their treacherous smiles as they delivered the fatal blow. That knowledge burned in his chest like a fire, but there was something else something strange. The voice in his head.

"Welcome, Zenith. You have been granted a second chance, but it comes at a cost."

The voice was still there, as if woven into the very fabric of his thoughts. The Villain System. It had to be.

His eyes narrowed as the system's interface materialized in his mind. A glowing blue panel flickered to life, displaying his status.

---

[Villain System]

Name: Zenith

Level: 1

Rank: Reborn Villain

Reputation: Negative 10 (Reputation will increase with deeds of betrayal, destruction, and manipulation.)

Skills: None (Start your journey to gain new abilities through nefarious actions.)

Special Trait: Fallen Hero's Knowledge (Knowledge of past world events and powerful techniques.)

Objective: Destroy the ones who betrayed you and rise to ultimate power.

---

Zenith grinned. The Villain System had given him everything he needed to exact his revenge and more. As he scanned the interface, a dark thrill surged through him. He could feel his power growing, the seed of his ascension taking root in his soul.

He had been reborn in a world full of fools. And he would be the one to tear it all down. Starting with those who had betrayed him.

But first, he needed to gain strength.

He stood tall, his eyes burning with renewed purpose. It was time to reclaim everything that was taken from him and carve his name in blood and chaos. The hero's path had led to nothing but ruin. Now, it was time for the villain's rise.

The Villain System was his tool, his weapon, and his guide.

And Zenith would use it to reshape the world in his image.