he night air didn't feel cold to Leonardo anymore. To him, the darkness was now a warm, familiar blanket. As he ran across the moonlit plains, the newly acquired [Ring of the Silent Hunter] pulsed against his finger, its obsidian surface absorbing the red moonlight. Every few seconds, a faint, ghostly whisper would echo in his mind—fragments of voices he didn't recognize, speaking in a language that felt older than the kingdom itself.
[System Notification: Stealth Mode Passive Activated.] [Detection Rate: Reduced by 40% in low-light conditions.]
Leonardo stopped at the crest of a hill. Below him, nestled in a valley, lay a small fortified outpost of the Royal Army. It wasn't a major city, but it was a crucial checkpoint for anyone heading toward the Capital's underground. Torches flickered along the stone walls, and he could see the silhouette of guards pacing back and forth.
For the first time since this journey began, Leonardo didn't feel a pit of dread in his stomach. Instead, he felt a predatory curiosity. He wanted to see if the sacrifice of his father's song was worth the power he now held.
"Let's see what you can really do," he whispered.
He didn't use [Shadow Flash] immediately. He wanted to test his new passive ability. He walked down the hill, his footsteps making absolutely no sound on the dry grass. It was as if the shadows around his boots were swallowing the vibrations of his movement. He reached the base of the outpost's wall, standing directly under the glare of a sentry's torch.
The guard looked straight down, but his eyes passed over Leonardo as if he were nothing more than a smudge of darkness against the stone.
[Skill Activated: Shadow Bind!] [Mana Cost: 60 MP. Target: Sentry 1.]
Leonardo reached out his hand toward the guard's shadow on the wall. As his fingers closed, the guard's shadow suddenly grew solid, wrapping around the man's throat and limbs like iron chains. The sentry couldn't even scream; he was yanked into the darkness of the parapet, his spear clattering silently against the wood.
[Target Neutralized. Exp Gained: +150.]
Leonardo scaled the wall with unnatural ease, his fingers gripping the cold stone like claws. Once at the top, he didn't head for the main gate. He headed for the commander's tent. He needed information—not just about the resistance, but about the 'Blue Screen' itself.
Inside the tent, a middle-aged officer was hunched over a map, a half-empty bottle of wine beside him. He looked tired, his eyes bloodshot under the flickering candlelight.
"The King is losing his mind," the officer muttered to himself, unaware of the shadow lengthening behind him. "Hunting children... using forbidden seals... this isn't war. This is madness."
Leonardo stepped out of the corner, his violet eyes glowing in the dim light. The officer froze, his hand slowly drifting toward the dagger on his belt.
"Don't," Leonardo said, the metallic vibration in his voice making the candles flicker. "I'm not here for your life. I'm here for answers."
The officer turned, his face turning pale. "You... you're the boy from the Whispering Woods. The 'Anomaly'."
"Is that what they call me?" Leonardo asked, walking closer. The obsidian ring on his finger began to hum, a cold vibration that made the officer's teeth ache. "Tell me about the Blue Screen. Why does the King fear it? And why am I the only one who can see it?"
The officer laughed, a dry, bitter sound. "You think you're the only one? Boy, the King has been trying to 'summon' that screen for decades. It's called the [Architect's Interface]. Legend says it only appears to those who are destined to rebuild or destroy the world. The King didn't fear the screen... he feared he wasn't the one chosen to see it."
[Warning: Restricted Information Accessed.] [System Penalty Imminent...]
Leonardo winced as a sharp pain stabbed through his skull. The Blue Screen turned a violent shade of red.
[New Objective: Silence the Officer. Prevent further information leak.] [Reward: +1000 Exp. Penalty for Failure: Reset of Shadow Mastery.]
Leonardo stared at the man. The officer wasn't a monster; he was just a tired soldier who saw the truth. But the system was demanding a 'silence' that could only mean one thing.
"Is this the efficiency you talked about?" Leonardo gritted his teeth, fighting the cold numbness spreading through his chest. "Killing everyone who knows the truth?"
The officer saw the struggle in the boy's eyes. He didn't reach for his dagger. Instead, he stood up straight and looked Leonardo in the eyes. "If you're going to do it, do it fast, Weaver. But know this—once you start killing the innocent to satisfy that screen... you'll never be able to go back to the boy you were."
Leonardo raised his sword, the purple energy crackling around the rusted blade. The room felt like it was losing air. Outside, the wind picked up, howling through the cracks of the outpost.
He had a choice. Obey the system and gain massive power, or defy it and lose his mastery over the shadows.