The night had calmed, but the air still hummed with energy.
The battle with Riven had left scars on the land, on the people—and in Elias's chest. He stood at the edge of the cliff overlooking the crimson plains, a red mark glowing above his head.
> [System Notice: New Title Acquired – Domain Holder of Lust, Crimson Path Sovereign.]
[Effect: All Lust-type abilities now scale exponentially with emotional resonance.]
Behind him, the girls were recovering. Lilith nursed her broken wing, Serina rested her blade in the grass, and Aya—despite the burn on her arm—watched Elias with steady, unreadable eyes.
Only Nyla remained distant, her arms wrapped around her knees by the fire, eyes lost in the glow.
Elias felt it—the tension. Something was changing.
And then the sky changed again.
---
Arrival of the Golden Sovereign
Golden light sliced through the night sky like a blade, stopping the moon mid-orbit.
From that light descended a figure—neither falling nor flying, but gliding through space like a monarch walking down her throne steps.
She landed barefoot on the grass, radiant and cold.
A woman draped in veils of gold, her skin shimmering like polished amber, with hair like woven sunrays that danced in slow motion.
Her eyes? Not just glowing. Burning.
The temperature dropped. The girls stood instantly, all senses on edge.
Lilith's jaw clenched. "That's… a Sovereign."
Elias stepped forward, calm, but internally bracing.
"I expected an army," he said. "Not a queen."
The woman smiled—slowly, dangerously. "You've disturbed the balance, Elias Black. Killed one of ours, claimed his throne, and… your aura." She inhaled. "It's intoxicating."
> [New Entity Detected: Sovereign of the Golden Path – Israya, Queen of Desire and Dominion.]
[Threat Level: Unknown. Do not engage.]
Israya circled him like a lioness might a rival beast.
"You don't even understand what you are, do you?"
Elias didn't blink. "I'm learning fast."
"Good," she purred. "Then learn this—your system isn't random. It was seeded. You're a vessel, Elias. A heart grown to house something… far older than lust."
Elias frowned. "Then why are you here?"
She smiled wider. "To offer you a trial."
---Trial of Sovereigns
> [Sovereign Trial Invitation Received – "Touch of the Golden Path"]
[Rules: Enter Israya's Trial Realm. Survive three challenges. Prize: Elevated Core, Sovereign Favor, and one Truth.]
The girls stepped in.
"He's not going alone," Aya said.
"Damn right," Lilith added.
But Israya raised a hand, and time around them slowed.
Only Elias could move now.
"You must come alone," she whispered, stepping closer. "Lust must be tested in solitude. If you survive, you'll become more than a player. You'll become… chosen."
Elias looked back once at his harem—frozen in concern, love, and fear.
He reached forward.
Touched her hand.
And vanished.
-- Trial Realm – Golden Spire
Elias woke inside a tower made of pure gold, floating in a void of stars. The floor pulsed like a heartbeat, each pulse humming with power.
> [Trial One: The Mirror of Want]
[Confront the version of yourself ruled by nothing but base desire. Defeat him to move forward.]
A door creaked open.
From it walked another Elias. But twisted—more confident, more arrogant. Surrounded by women with hollow eyes and forced smiles.
"Look what you could be," the mirror-Elias said. "King of pleasure. No rules. No burdens. No love—just power and obedience."
The real Elias said nothing. Just clenched his fist.
"Fight me," the mirror-Elias hissed. "Or be consumed by the truth: You are me."
And so, he fought.
End of Trial One
Fists flew. Power clashed. Chains of lust shattered against pure resolve.
But Elias was not the same man anymore. He wasn't fighting for control.
He was fighting for his people.
With one last blow, he shattered the mirror-Elias into dust.
> [Trial One Complete – Resistance Achieved: You are not a slave to Lust.]
A golden door opened.
Ahead—Trial Two awaited.
The golden door creaked open, revealing a spiral staircase winding infinitely upward, its steps shimmering with fragments of glass and memory.
> [Trial Two: The Tower of Memory]
Climb. Each step will confront you with moments you've buried. Reach the top to proceed.
Elias stared up the staircase. The tower pulsed like a living thing, and as he took the first step, the world flickered.
He blinked—and he was back in his childhood room.
The air was cold, heavy with the smell of damp wood and burnt wires.
A boy sat in the corner—skinny, bruised, and silent.
It was him.
Memory One – The Forgotten Night
"Don't cry," the boy whispered to himself, knees to his chest.
Elias stood there, older, unable to speak. Watching.
A woman's scream echoed from another room.
Glass shattering. A man's rage.
And then… silence.
The boy turned his head slowly and looked straight at Elias.
"They never came for us. Not even when she begged."
The vision shattered like a mirror breaking in slow motion.
> [Step One Complete – Pain Acknowledged]
---
He moved forward.
Each step became harder.
Every flicker pulled him deeper.
Memory Two – The Betrayal
A cold lab. Steel walls. Blinking lights.
A younger Elias strapped to a table. Needles in his arm.
"Just one more test," a familiar voice said. "You were born for this."
Dr. Veyna. The woman he once trusted.
Her silhouette leaned in, smiling falsely. "You're special, Elias. But only because I made you that way."
Snap.
The restraints vanished. He stood, older again, staring down at the doctor's ghost.
He didn't scream. Just walked through her.
> [Step Two Complete – Trust Severed]
The Girl Who Wait
At the top of the tower stood a garden.
And there—by a tree with golden leaves—waited a girl.
Barefoot, glowing faintly, her long hair drifting like silk in the windless air.
Her back was to him.
Elias approached slowly.
"Who are you?" he asked.
She turned, and her eyes were galaxies.
"I am the part of you you've been hiding," she said.
"Your heart… before all the power. Before the lust. Before the system."
She stepped closer.
"And I've been waiting to know… Do you still feel anything that isn't hunger?"
Elias froze.
Did he?
Lilith's smirk. Aya's quiet worry. Nyla's fading smile. Even Serina's fiery loyalty.
He did. He just didn't know how to carry it.
He reached out.
Touched her hand.
The garden lit up with fire.
> [Trial Two Complete – Heart Unlocked: Emotion Integrated. New Ability: "Sovereign's Bond" Acquired.]
Your connections now grant you power. Every girl in your harem amplifies your strength, will, and presence.
---
A portal opened in the tree.
And the final voice of Israya echoed:
> "Now we test your ability to lead, Elias. The final trial… is not about you."