Re:Vengeance: Rise of the Sovereign Outcast

The path to the sanctum narrowed into a hollow, winding bridge of stone suspended over an abyss of swirling void. Pillars of twisted rock rose like the spines of some ancient leviathan, and the corrupted light of the sanctum pulsed ahead—taunting them.

Sylvie walked a few paces ahead of Reynar and Liora. She didn't speak.

She didn't need to.

Her footsteps were fast. Sharp. Angry.

But it wasn't anger that drove her forward.

It was fear.

Every moment she spent near them—those two with their questions, their warmth, their infuriating empathy—she felt her resolve slipping.

She couldn't afford that.

Not with her master watching. Not with failure this close.

And so, she stopped.

Her eyes fixed on a jagged side path snaking off the main bridge, partially cloaked in mist.

It was narrow. Treacherous. But it led away from them.

She moved.

Quietly. Quickly.

But not quickly enough.

"You're leaving," Liora said, her voice firm behind her.

Sylvie froze.

"I told you to stay out of my way."

"And we let you walk ahead," Reynar said. "But we're not blind."

Sylvie spun around. "You don't understand! I don't need your help! I never did!"

Reynar stepped forward slowly. "Then why are you running?"

"I'm not—"

"Yes, you are," Liora said. "You're not running from the dungeon. You're running from us."

Sylvie's fists clenched. "You think this is some kind of game? That we can fight monsters together and suddenly be friends? Is that what you want?"

"No," Liora said calmly. "But I don't think you want to be alone, either."

"Stop it."

"Then tell us," Reynar said gently. "Tell us what you're so afraid of."

Sylvie shook her head violently. "You wouldn't understand—"

"Try us."

And then the dam broke.

"I was born a curse!" she snapped, voice cracking. "A beastkin. Filthy. Worthless. My people—my entire village—slaughtered like cattle when I was five. They sold their bodies, their organs. I was the only one they kept."

Liora's breath caught.

"They put a collar on me and made me fight dungeons," Sylvie spat. "Every day, I went in alone. Every time, I came back just barely alive—because if I didn't, he said he'd make me wish I had died inside."

Her knees buckled. She dropped to the cold stone floor, trembling.

"I'm not strong. I just know how to survive. I have to survive. If I fail this mission… I'll be punished again. I'll lose everything I've worked for. I'll never be free."

Her voice cracked into a sob. "You don't get it… I don't want to feel this. I don't want to care if you die in there. I didn't want to need anyone."

Silence.

Then Liora stepped forward and knelt beside her.

"You're wrong," she said quietly. "I do understand."

Sylvie looked up, eyes wet with disbelief.

"My parents were murdered too. Because they found out too much. I escaped, barely. And I've been alone ever since."

Sylvie turned to Reynar.

And he nodded.

"I grew up in a world where I wasn't even wanted. Abandoned, bullied, forgotten. I ended my life because I thought no one ever would care."

Sylvie's breathing shook.

"But they did," Reynar said. "Eventually, someone did. Just like we care now."

Liora extended a hand.

"You're not alone anymore."

Sylvie stared at it.

And then, with trembling fingers… she reached out.

Her hand slipped into Liora's, and something inside her broke.

But in its place—something new began to bloom.

[System Notification]Companion Acquired: SylvieAffinity Level: 21%Title Unlocked: Broken Chain – You have given hope to the forsaken.