Sign In To The Body Of Chaos At The Start

Just as the group of four were talking, Damon turned around, feeling the air shifting behind him, an intention ripple. It was subtle, but impossible for someone like him to miss.

A shadow peeled itself from the far wall, stepping into the light with smooth, confident ease.

Reina had arrived. The appointed Head of the Syndicate. Mistress of espionage, global underground trade, intelligence operations, and subtle political manipulation. She was the woman who made kings vanish and empires dance, quietly.

Clad in a tailored obsidian battle-dress lined with spirit-weave, Reina was a picture of effortless poise. Her dark auburn hair was pulled into a sleek ponytail, and her deep violet eyes locked onto Damon with respect and amusement.

She bowed slightly, the Syndicate sigil glowing faintly over her gloved hand.

"My Lord," Reina said softly, "the shadows of the world greet you once more."

Damon nodded, "Reina. You're late."

"Only fashionably," she said, straightening, "Besides, I couldn't interrupt you while you were being praised by holograms and angel influencers."

Artemis chuckled at the joke, while Astralene tilted her head, observing Reina with sharp interest.

Cassandra gave a courteous nod and stepped back, letting Reina take the floor.

Damon gestured, "Report."

Reina's voice shifted to that of a tactician. "The global influence of FURIA and The Syndicate is now beyond questioning. We've penetrated the top councils of all major empires, Demon, Human, Dwarven, Elven etc.

Our operatives run the trade lines between the Cloud Nations and the Abyss-bordering sectors. We've installed mana spikes in every major city that synchronize with our DeepLayer Network, each one feeding into your personal oversight algorithm."

She paused, letting the weight of that reality settle.

"You now control the majority of the world's information flow, commerce, and mana-driven technology. Whether they know it or not… they all answer to you."

Damon's fingers steepled beneath his chin, "And the threats?"

Reina's playful demeanor thinned slightly.

"We're tracking Abyssal sympathizers in two of the Beastman Kingdoms. Subtle activity, ritual circles being carved beneath their cities. Their aim is unclear. There's also the issue of the Seraphim Accord, someone's leaking our ShadowNet prototypes. Probably a spy. I've narrowed it down to three suspects within the Embassy."

Damon's gaze sharpened as he heard that. The protocol for spies was simple, make sure they could never talk again.

"Handle it. Quietly." He said.

Reina bowed again, "Of course."

She walked over to the strategy table, fingers gliding across the display. "I've also compiled dossiers on potential threats and alliances. There's an interesting uprising happening in the Crimson Archipelago. Their pirate queen claims to have discovered a 'special Divine artifact' that she'll auction to the highest bidder. Might be worth buying her loyalty, or taking the artifact for ourselves. She's calling it the Crimson Seraph Blade,"

Astralene's eyes twitched slightly at that name, and Damon immediately noticed that, asking, "You've heard of it?"

"The Crimson Seraph Blade. If it's real… it was forged from the bones of a Fallen Ancient Sovereign, and the Blood of a Monster Emperor."

Everyone in the room stilled.

Damon smiled slowlym "Reina. Double the resources allocated to that operation. I want that blade before anyone else even breathes near it."

"Done," Reina said.

Artemis leaned forward, "So… what's the next step, boss?" She said with a teasing smile on her lips, hiding the absolute awe at how rich and influential Damon really was.

Damon turned away from the strategy table and walked back to the terrace.

He looked out once more at the skyline. The wind tugged slightly at his coat, filled with the scent of ozone, iron, and ambition.

"The world is changing," he said quietly. "Too fast for most to see it. But I can feel it."

He closed his eyes, drawing upon the immense ocean of mana that coursed through his body, his spirit, his will. The runes of space and darkness engraved into his soul pulsed in response, eager to be unleashed once more.

"The Abyss is moving. My enemies are watching. So it's time… to move first."

He said and everyone nodded. The council room slowly emptied, the echo of strategy and power still lingering in the air.

Reina bowed one final time before vanishing into the corridor's shadows, her orders already in motion. Cassandra gave Damon a soft nod before turning toward Artemis, raising a silver eyebrow.

"Would you care for a tour, Lady Artemis? I believe you'll enjoy the Artisan Sector. There's a Spirit-forged bow on display that might just make your mother weep."

Artemis smirked at the challenge and glanced at Damon, "I think I'll take her up on that."

Damon nodded, "Stay close to her. She'll protect you if anything goes wrong,"

Artemis gave a mock salute and followed Cassandra down the corridor, their conversation fading into the gentle hum of arcane lighting that lined the halls.

That left only Damon and Astralene on the marble platform, overlooking the immense Divine Demon Empire below. Wind curled around them, warm and laced with the scent of mana-charged ozone.

Astralene didn't speak. She simply stared at the horizon, her silver-lavender eyes reflecting the strange stars above this world.

Damon approached her slowly, the distance between them closing not just physically, but emotionally.

"Come," he said softly. "There's something I want to show you."

They walked together, his steps confident and slow, hers light, curious, graceful, like a moonbeam that refused to be swallowed by darkness.

He led her through spiraling corridors of jade and obsidian, their steps never echoing, as if the palace itself knew to stay silent for them.

Soon, they emerged onto a vast, open-air garden suspended high above the ground on a series of floating platforms.

Hundreds of luminous vines glowed along the archways, and radiant flowers bloomed even in the absence of sunlight. Their petals shimmered in strange colors, some gold, some translucent, and others burning with flame or chilled by frost.

It was the Divine Medicinal Field, one of Damon's earliest Sign-In Rewards.

Each section of the platform was a different biome entirely. One had skyblue grass and mana-glass trees from the Spirit Realm.

Another contained thick fungal blooms and red mist from the lost continent of Yggraline. A third platform resembled a tranquil forest with hovering lakes of liquid starlight.

"This… This is from a dozen different eras," Astralene whispered, her voice like silk caught in wind. "Some of these plants went extinct before I was born."

Damon nodded, stepping aside to let her wander freely. She moved as if entranced. Her fingers gently brushed a rose that bled silver sap. Another flower folded into itself at her touch, purring softly like a contented creature.

"This has taken years to construct," He muttered.

Astralene turned, her gaze landing on him. "And you did this?"

"Of course," he said, and Astralene laughed softly and knelt by a glowing blossom whose petals seemed to hum.

"This… is beautiful," she said.

Damon sat beside her on a bench of woven vines and obsidian. His voice was low.

"I never apologized," he said suddenly.

She blinked, then turned, "Apologized?"

"For not giving you the time you deserved after I saved you. For being too buried in war, politics, investigations… for treating you like a relic I uncovered, rather than a person I should've stood beside more often."

Astralene's expression softened, "Damon…"

But he raised his hand. Not to stop her, but because he needed to say it.

"When I first freed you, I was excited to spend time with you, but so many things happened in such a short amount of time." He said.

The garden shimmered around them. Distant mana-lotus blooms unfurled, casting pale glows upon their faces.

She reached out and took his hand.

"Do you know why I fell in love with you?" she asked.

He looked at her quietly.

"It wasn't only fate, it was seeing the way you act. You never treated me like some relic from forgotten times who was an idiot. You saw me. Not for what I was, but for what I could be."

Her voice dropped lower, more intimate.

"And even now, with your empire and armies and shadows and powers that make gods tremble, you're still just Damon to me."

He couldn't find words. Not immediately. So he pulled her close.

Their embrace was not dramatic or overly passionate. It was warm. Steady. The kind of closeness that came from understanding, from the fire that had burned low but never faded.

"I don't deserve you," he whispered.

"You don't have to," she replied, resting her head on his shoulder.

They sat together, surrounded by thousands of glowing plants, the very air alive with spiritual energy. Even the wind stilled in respect.

And then, without ceremony or hesitation, Damon leaned forward and kissed her.

It wasn't their first. But it felt like the first true one.

One without duty. Without guilt. Without prophecy hanging over their heads.

Just two people who had endured too much, finding peace for a fleeting moment.

When they pulled away, her fingers brushed his jawline.

"Thank you," she said.

He smiled faintly. "For what?"

"For not forgetting who you are."