Darkness.
That was all she remembered.
Not the pain. Not the screams. Not the scent of burning silk or the sound of her crown shattering beneath the weight of betrayal. Only a silence so complete, it felt like the world had forgotten her name.
But then... a whisper.
Not of gods. Not of angels.
A voice made of gears, flame, and ancient code.
"Initializing… Flameborn Protocol v.0.9."
"Subject: Kaelira Ardyn."
"Memory Sync: 73%... Complete."
Kaelira gasped, her back arching as if life had slammed into her chest like a hammer. Cold air bit her lungs.
Her fingers clenched over damp sheets
not ash, not chains. Just soft fabric. Breath returned, ragged and shallow, and when her eyes fluttered open, the world greeted her with pale twilight filtering through a broken wooden roof. She was alive. No, not alive.
Reborn.
A single lantern flickered in the corner of the old stone room. Muffled voices murmured outside. Somewhere, a kettle hissed. The scent of dust and moss lingered in the air.
Kaelira sat up, clutching her chest.
Her heart was racing, her skin young untouched by the war-scars she once bore. Her long black hair fell across her shoulders like silk, not scorched threads. Her fingers, slender and unbroken. Her back no lash marks. Her stomach no dagger wounds. Even the rune branded above her navel in her execution... was gone.
This was not the body of an empress.
This was a girl seventeen winters old, forgotten by the world.
"So… the gods really did give me a second chance," she whispered. But it wasn't the gods. It was something else.
"System initializing…"
"Welcome back, Flameborn Sovereign."
"Current Rank: C– | Level: 1 | Stats: Unawakened"
"Main Objective: Reclaim the Throne."
"Warning: Hellgate corruption detected within proximity of Kingdom Vaeloria."
"Subroutine active: Sin Memory Retention."
Kaelira stared at the glowing text only she could see hovering before her like molten glass suspended in midair.
The System was real.
The very same whispered myth from ancient Hunter scrolls.
The one power none could control one that chose its wielder by flame and fate. "So that's what brought me back… not mercy. Not justice. But this." She didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Her mind reeled. The seven kingdoms…
Were they still the same?
1. Solcrax – the steel-walled empire of human hunters.
2. Fenroar – the wolf-beast nation of the north.
3. Lunareth – moonlit kingdom of beastkin and assassins.
4. Velmora – where she was once queen, now enemy territory.
5. Dravien – land of fire beasts and dragon-bonded tribes.
6. Eriavelle – floating city of mystic scholars.
7. Xeraphen – sealed gates of the demon hells, cracking slowly.
Each of them held a piece of the world… and a piece of her pain. And somewhere, hidden beneath these lands, the devils were waking. She could feel it in her bones in the way shadows whispered behind light, in the strange static under her skin.
This world had moved on without her.
But she wasn't done with it yet. "If I've truly been given another chance… then I won't waste it begging for justice," Kaelira said coldly, rising to her feet. "I'll take everything back my power, my beasts, my crown.
And this time…"
Her eyes burned crimson as the system glowed softly in response. "They'll burn for me."
The streets of Graymere were colder than she remembered. Kaelira walked slowly through the muddy path of the border village, her bare feet silent against the cracked stone. Her clothes were borrowed stitched linen too thin for the wind and her face was unfamiliar to the people she once ruled over. They looked past her now.
Just another orphan. Another hungry mouth. She had fallen far from thrones and silk halls, but this anonymity… it was a blessing. No one knew she was the girl once crowned Queen of Velmora — the Flame Sovereign who had once stood atop dragon bones and held the loyalty of beast clans in her palm. Let them forget. She had work to do.
"System Active."
[First Mission: Eliminate Lesser Corrupt Beast]
Location: Sewer Tunnel 09, Graymere Outskirts
Reward: +1 Flame Sigil | Unlock: Stat Panel Access"
Time Limit: 6 hours.
So this is how it begins, she thought.
Not on a battlefield… but in a rat-infested hole beneath a village.
She was no longer Kaelira the Sovereign.
She was a C– Rank Hunter, starting from the filth. She didn't hesitate.
The entrance to Tunnel 09 was rusted, half-covered in overgrown ivy. A hunter's sigil had once been carved into the stone, but it had faded under dirt and neglect.
She stepped into the dark, her hand tracing the old marks. A whisper passed through the shadows behind her.
She froze. Not system text. Not wind. A sound... soft, ragged… breathing? She turned, eyes narrowing. And then, from beneath a broken crate, something moved tiny, trembling.
Kaelira stepped closer, cautious. A child. Barely five, maybe six. Covered in filth, skin ashen. But what caught her eye wasn't the boy's fear it was the faint shimmer of beastmark on his cheek. A glowing sigil… hidden beneath his hair. "Beastkin."
Her blood turned cold. A beastborn child. In a human village. Alone.
If the townsfolk found him, they'd kill him no trial, no mercy. The treaty was fragile, and children like him were hunted like pests. Beasts were tolerated in their own kingdoms. Not here.
"Who left you here?" Kaelira asked softly, kneeling. The boy flinched, curling into himself.
"I-I… I don't know… I woke up and M-Mother was gone… and then the black dog came and" He choked, tears forming.
"Shhh." She reached forward, her voice steady. "I'm not here to hurt you." Suddenly the ground shuddered.
From deep within the tunnel, a guttural snarl echoed. "Target Approaching: Lesser Corrupt Beast – Class D."
"Warning: Unarmed."
"Initiating Trial Protocol…"
Kaelira stood, shielding the boy behind her. Her fingers curled into fists. She had no sword. No armor. No backup. But she had the flame. And if this world wanted to test her again so be it.
"Stay behind me," she whispered to the boy.
"Because I'm not losing anyone else today."
Her breath grew warm. The system pulsed. "Flameborn Sovereign Combat Initiation Sequence: Begin."
The beast emerged from the tunnel like a shadow crawling out of hell. It was no mere animal. Its skin was torn and steaming, its ribs protruding like rusted blades. A single black horn curled from its skull, dripping with corruption. Its eyes glowed a sickly green and they locked onto Kaelira.
[Corrupted Hellhound – D-Class]
Threat Level: Moderate
Status: Berserked
Weak Point: Chest Core, 7 cm below ribcage.
The system's text flickered across her vision like firelight. Her pulse thundered.
She felt the boy tremble behind her. The beast snarled, saliva hissing onto stone.
Kaelira exhaled once steady, focused.
She had no blade. No shield.
But she had something else.
Memory. Rage. Flame.
"Flameborn Protocol Activation – Core Permission Detected."
"Unlocking Initial Skill: [Ignition Strike]."
"Mana Source Stabilized. Flame Output: 9%. Stat Tree Access Granted."
Her palm burned. A symbol an ancient sunburst with a crown in the center blazed across her skin. Heat surged through her veins like molten lightning.
The Hellhound lunged.
She moved.
Her body twisted to the side with impossible precision. Instinct? No memory. A thousand battles lived again in a single moment. Her foot struck stone her hand snapped forward.
"Ignition Strike!"
Flame exploded from her fist, a brilliant arc of golden fire tearing into the beast's chest. The impact roared like thunder, and the Hellhound slammed into the tunnel wall with a scream of fury. It staggered, writhing, half its body scorched.
"Health Remaining: 21%"
Kaelira didn't hesitate. She surged forward, both hands ablaze, fury and will fused as one.
"For every child they hunted…"
"For every lie they called justice…"
"Burn."
She drove her hand into its chest and the beast shattered in a burst of blinding fire.
Silence fell. The tunnel hissed with smoke and ash. The boy stared, wide-eyed, as Kaelira stood over the corpse — glowing, panting, eyes lit like twin embers.
[Target Eliminated.]
[Mission Complete. +1 Flame Sigil Earned.]
[Stat Panel Unlocked.]
[Bond Trait Detected: Proximity Link – Unawakened Beastkin Child.]
She turned, her body trembling with heat and fatigue. But her voice was calm. "What's your name?" she asked softly.
The boy blinked. "L-Lior." "You're not alone anymore, Lior."
"I swear it. No matter what this world throws at us… I won't let them take you." He ran into her arms. For a moment, the ashes didn't feel so cold. Far above, in the towers of Velmora, a council watched the rising flare in the distance. Flame. Ancient. Forbidden.
"The Flameborn… has returned," one of them whispered.
And far below, beneath the seventh kingdom, something… laughed.