The quill scratched loudly against the parchment.
Kaelen leaned over the mahogany table in the estate's dusty library, reading the draft Seraphina had just written. The smell of old paper and mildew filled the room, a stark contrast to the fresh blood drying on the courtyard stones outside.
"Too noble," Kaelen critiqued, tapping a sentence with his dirty fingernail. "You wrote, 'Rian abandoned us.' That sounds like a complaint."
"It is a complaint," Seraphina argued, rubbing her ink-stained fingers. "He left us to die."
"Complaints make you look weak. We want to look like martyrs," Kaelen corrected. He grabbed the quill. "Change it to: 'Lord Rian was forced to make a tactical withdrawal while I held the line. I do not blame him for his fear.'"
Seraphina blinked. "That... that sounds like you're forgiving him."
"It sounds like I'm the bigger man," Kaelen smirked, his violet eyes cold. "It implies he ran away out of cowardice without explicitly saying it. The nobles will read between the lines. Rian can't deny a 'tactical withdrawal' without admitting he abandoned his fiancée. It traps him."
He tossed the quill back to her.
"Write twenty copies. Vex will deliver them to the servant quarters of the major Houses tonight. Servants love gossip more than gold."
Vex, perched on top of a bookshelf sharpening her daggers, chuckled. "I charge extra for courier duty. But ruining a Golden Boy's reputation? That I might do for free."
Kaelen checked the [System Clock]. 09:00 AM.
"Finish the letters," Kaelen ordered. "We need gold. The Loot from Floor 1 wasn't enough for the Mana Barrier. We're hitting Floor 2."
He stood up, his joints popping. The exhaustion was still there, a heavy weight in his bones, but the [Sin Eater] was demanding movement. Stagnation was death.
The entrance to Floor 2 of the Pocket Dungeon wasn't a door. It was a pool of silvery liquid at the bottom of the spiral staircase.
"Into the soup," Vex muttered, holding her nose as she jumped in.
Kaelen followed, dragging a reluctant Seraphina with him.
They emerged in a corridor that defied logic. The floor was polished obsidian, the ceiling was invisible, and the walls... the walls were mirrors. Thousands of them.
[Ding!]
[Floor 2: The Hall of Vanity.]
[Environmental Effect: Reflection.]
[System Warning: Your greatest enemy is yourself.]
"I hate this already," Seraphina whispered, looking at her reflection. The Seraphina in the mirror wasn't bruised and dirty. She was pristine, wearing her Academy uniform, looking arrogant and untouched. It was a mockery of her current fall from grace.
"Don't look at them," Kaelen commanded. "Keep your eyes forward."
They moved in formation—Kaelen point, Seraphina middle, Vex rear.
Suddenly, movement flickered in the glass.
It wasn't a monster jumping out. It was the reflections themselves stepping out of the frames.
A copy of Vex slid out of a mirror, silent as smoke. A copy of Seraphina stepped out, her hands glowing with mana.
And a copy of Kaelen.
But the Mirror-Kaelen wasn't wearing rags. He was wearing the shining white armor of a Paladin. His eyes weren't violet; they were a heroic blue. He looked like the hero Kaelen had wanted to be before the betrayal.
[Enemy Identified: Mirror Shade (Rank E+).]
[Ability: Mimicry.]
"Target the caster!" Kaelen barked.
The Mirror-Seraphina cast [Light Bolt].
Real-Seraphina screamed and threw up a [Mana Shield]. The impact shattered the silence, sending shards of light everywhere.
"Vex, on me!" Kaelen drew his Mithril Sword.
He charged his own reflection. The Mirror-Kaelen smiled—a warm, sickeningly kind smile—and drew a sword made of pure light.
Clang!
Mithril met Light. Kaelen was thrown back. The reflection was stronger.
'It mimics my stats,' Kaelen realized, his feet sliding on the obsidian floor. 'But it mimics my 'Ideal' stats. It's fighting with the strength I would have had if I were a Hero.'
"You look tired, Kaelen," the Mirror-Kaelen spoke, his voice melodic. "Why struggle? Just lie down. You were always meant to be a stepping stone for Rian."
"Shut up," Kaelen growled.
He lunged again. The Mirror-Kaelen parried effortlessly and kicked Kaelen in the chest.
[-20 HP]
Kaelen rolled, tasting blood. He looked back. Vex was fighting her own doppelganger, a blur of steel. Seraphina was pinned down by the Mirror-Mage's barrage.
They were losing. The reflections were perfect versions of themselves. No fatigue. No trauma.
'How do you beat perfection?' Kaelen thought, wiping blood from his lip.
He looked at the Mirror-Kaelen. It stood tall, righteous, using standard Academy swordsmanship. Perfect form.
Kaelen laughed.
"You're a good copy," Kaelen said, standing up. "But you're copying the old version."
The Mirror-Kaelen tilted his head. "I am the best version."
"No," Kaelen dropped his sword. "You're the predictable version."
Kaelen spread his arms. He didn't summon a weapon. He summoned the [Abyssal Sun].
But he didn't aim it at the reflection.
"Seraphina! Drop the shield!" Kaelen roared.
"What?! I'll die!"
"Drop it! Vex, close your eyes!"
Seraphina, conditioned by fear and the [Soul Bond], obeyed. The shield vanished.
Kaelen clapped his hands together.
[Skill: Abyssal Flash.]
He didn't unleash fire. He unleashed absolute, light-eating darkness. The [Abyssal Sun] reversed the polarity of the room. Instead of emitting light, it sucked every photon out of the air.
The room went pitch black.
"My eyes!" The Mirror-Kaelen shouted.
The reflections were light-based constructs. Without light to reflect, they destabilized.
"I can't see!" the Mirror-Seraphina shrieked.
"I don't need to see," Kaelen whispered from the void.
He activated [Abyssal Sight]. In the total darkness, the Mirror Shades glowed like beacons of leaking mana.
"Vex! Three targets. Use the heat signatures!"
Vex, a Drow accustomed to the Underdark, didn't need instructions. She moved through the blind battlefield like a wraith.
Slash. Slash. Slash.
The sound of glass shattering echoed three times.
Kaelen walked up to the blind Mirror-Kaelen, who was swinging his light-sword wildly at nothing.
"The problem with being a Hero," Kaelen whispered, grabbing the reflection's glowing throat, "is that you need the spotlight."
He activated [Sin Eater].
"Devour."
The Mirror-Kaelen screamed as his essence was ripped apart. The light shattered into motes of dust, sucked into Kaelen's palm.
[Ding!]
[Enemies Defeated: Mirror Shade Party.]
[XP Gained: 1,500.]
[Loot Acquired: Mirror Shard (Crafting), 400 System Coins.]
[Sin Absorbed: Vanity.]
[CHR (Charisma) +2.]
Kaelen dissipated the darkness. The hallway returned to normal, littered with broken glass.
Seraphina was on the floor, breathing hard. Vex was wiping glass dust from her daggers.
"You blinded us," Vex complained, blinking rapidly. "Warn a girl next time."
"I told you to close your eyes," Kaelen said, picking up the coin pouch the Mirror-Kaelen dropped. He checked the total.
[Current Funds: 580 SC.]
"Enough for the barrier," Kaelen nodded. "We're done here."
Two Hours Later.
The sun was setting over the Vance Estate.
Kaelen stood by the broken front gate, holding a blue schematic scroll. Vex and Seraphina watched as he poured his mana into the paper.
[System Construction: Basic Mana Barrier.]
[Cost: 500 SC.]
[Duration: Permanent (Requires Mana Well recharge).]
A hum resonated through the ground. A translucent blue dome shimmered into existence, covering the manor and the overgrown garden. It wasn't strong enough to stop a siege, but it would electrocute anyone trying to climb the fence and alert Kaelen instantly.
"Safe," Seraphina whispered, touching the barrier. "We're finally safe."
"For now," Kaelen muttered. He turned to go back inside.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
The sound came from the iron gate.
Someone was standing just outside the new barrier.
It wasn't a student. It wasn't the Committee.
It was a tall man wearing a grey trench coat and a wide-brimmed hat. He held a silver cane. Around his neck hung a heavy iron pendant—the symbol of a chained eye.
[System Warning.]
[High-Level Entity Detected.]
[Faction: The Inquisition.]
Vex hissed and reached for her daggers. "Inquisitor."
Kaelen raised a hand to stop her. "Stand down. If you attack him, the entire Church descends on us."
He walked to the gate, the blue barrier humming between him and the stranger.
"Can I help you?" Kaelen asked, his voice steady.
The man looked up. His eyes were milky white—blind. But he smiled as if he could see Kaelen's soul.
"Mr. Vance," the man said, his voice like dry leaves. "My name is Inquisitor Silas. I heard some... troubling rumors."
"Rumors about Rian Valerius?" Kaelen deflected.
"No," Silas chuckled softly. "Rumors about a boy who walked out of the Abyss with a shadow that doesn't match his body."
He tapped his cane on the barrier.
Crackle.
The brand new barrier flickered.
"I'm just here to deliver a notice," Silas said, sliding a black envelope through the bars. "The Church takes an interest in... miracles. We will be watching the Ranking Tournament next week. Do try not to disappoint us."
He tipped his hat and turned away, walking into the twilight.
Kaelen stared at the envelope. He didn't pick it up immediately.
"He knows," Seraphina whispered, terrified.
"He suspects," Kaelen corrected. He picked up the black envelope. It felt cold. "Suspicions can be managed."
He looked at the barrier, then at the retreating figure of the Inquisitor.
The game had changed. Rian was a rival. The Academy was a hurdle. But the Church... the Church was the predator.
"Vex," Kaelen said quietly.
"Yeah, Boss?"
"Forget the rumors about Rian being a coward."
Kaelen crushed the envelope in his hand.
"Start a new rumor. Tell them Rian has been meeting with Heretics. If the Church wants a witch hunt... let's give them a target."