The silence between the throne and the balcony lasted too long.
Kael forced himself to breathe slowly. There was a shaky feeling in his chest that did not belong to an Emperor—it belonged to the man who sat alone in a game for ten years. His hands briefly clenched the railing, then he let go.
He had to move. He had to see.
He turned to Alyss. "Come with me."
"Yes, my Lord." Her voice was calm, but Kael heard the fear underneath it. She wasn't a programmed character anymore. She was thinking. Feeling afraid.
The two of them walked down into the inner halls of Elysion Prime.
The design was familiar; Kael had spent years on it. But now, every detail felt heavy and real. The walls were dark stone with veins of gold and crystal. The air smelled of cold metal, faint oils, and the static electricity of the powerful mana engines.
Every footstep echoed loudly. This was not a computer server. This was a tomb of half a million souls waiting for their leader.
The Stasis Chambers
They reached the first stasis chamber.
Alyss stopped suddenly. Her eyes widened.
Rows and rows of black crystal coffins lined the huge hall, like a church filled with frozen citizens. Each coffin was carved from clear black crystal, with glowing lines etched into the surface. Inside each one lay a person—still, silent, caught in a dreamless sleep.
Kael's breath caught for half a second—a human reaction. Then he forced himself back to the calm of an Emperor.
He walked to the nearest coffin. A woman lay inside, a civilian worker whose uniform was perfectly neat. Her hands were crossed on her chest. Not one of her eyelashes moved.
Kael reached out a metal-gloved hand and touched a glowing line on the crystal.
The line flashed. The Sovereign Nexus spoke:
[SOVEREIGN NEXUS // CITY REPORT]
Population: 500,000 (Sleeping)
Awakened: 2 (Sovereign Kael Draven / Alyss Venera)
Awakening Protocol: BLOCKED
Reason: Not enough Imperial Authority
Needed: New Land + More People Under Rule]
Kael's jaw tightened.
Alyss turned to him, her voice strained. "We cannot wake them… my Lord?"
He answered with a flat calm he didn't feel. "No. Not yet."
She swallowed hard. "What must we do?"
Kael stepped away from the crystal coffin, his armor whispering. "We need land. Villages. Towns. Cities. People who accept the Valefar Imperium."
He looked up at the rows of sleeping people. There were fifty in this room alone, and he knew there were hundreds more. Half a million lives. All waiting for him. Waiting for his conquest.
This world demanded payment. Power here wasn't about pressing a button. There was no game admin console.
This world only accepted authority earned in reality, not in code.
He spoke quietly, mostly to himself. "In the game, we created armies from data. Here, we must earn them."
Alyss looked down, her voice a small sound. "Then, we must conquer. Is that right?"
Kael looked at her. "Yes. This world does not see our fake rule. We must build a true empire. With real land. With real force. With real territory."
Alyss nodded once. She had found her answer. "Then I will follow you, my Emperor."
She said it not like a programmed line, but like a sacred promise.
The Seed Vault
Kael walked deeper into the chamber. The stasis chamber led to lower levels. A circular ramp spiraled down, and the air got colder the deeper they went—a freezing magical chill.
Every floor held more crystal tombs. Rows upon rows of souls.
Kael stopped at the lowest platform and looked over the edge. Darkness gaped below—another thirty or forty floors of coffins disappearing into the mountain rock.
This was not a city. This was a seed vault for an empire. He was the sovereign gardener.
He touched his forehead. A burning rush of data flooded his mind from the Nexus.
[SOVEREIGN NEXUS // AWAKENING STATUS]
Requirement to wake the First General:
1. Take 1 New Territory (Village Size) outside Elysion Prime.
2. Get 2000 new, living subjects to rule over.]
Kael clenched his fist. To wake even one general, he had to take land. He had to rule. He had to conquer.
Alyss's gentle voice broke the silence. "Is Earth… gone?" It was the first time she had mentioned it.
Kael didn't answer right away. He looked at the endless crystal coffins. Earth. His apartment. The empty soda cans. The dead game server.
There was no going back.
He finally answered: "Yes."
Alyss looked down, accepting the truth. Then she lifted her chin. "Then the Valefar Imperium must become this world's truth."
Kael turned from the sleeping souls and walked back up the ramp. Alyss followed, her steps now steady.
When they returned to the main hall, Kael looked out a narrow crystal window. Beyond the barrier dome, the twin suns burned over alien mountains. There were villages out there. Towns. Cities. Empires.
Kael spoke softly, his voice deep and steel-hard: "This world will not give us power. We will take it."
He headed toward the exit that led deeper into the city's command center. "We start with finding out what's nearby. We find the closest settlement. We see how strong they are. We seize them or we make them kneel."
Alyss bowed. "I will prepare my Lord."
Kael nodded. "Do so."
Alyss turned to leave, then paused. "My Lord."
"Yes?"
"When you awaken them… the Generals…" She hesitated. "Will they remember being… game characters?"
Kael answered without a moment of doubt. "No. They will be people."
Alyss gasped, then smiled faintly—not a romantic smile, but a look of belief.
She bowed deeply.
Kael stood alone, in a world that demanded conquest for his army. He looked at the endless coffins one last time. Half a million souls. All waiting for his crown to be real.
The Sovereign Nexus silently flickered:
[NEXT STEP: FIND NEAREST OUTSIDE SETTLEMENT]
Kael turned away. "Then begin the age of conquest."
The walk of an emperor began.