The Ethermal Chronicles - Chapter 8: Reunion of flames

In humanity’s final war against the Demon Lord, the strongest heroes fell—not by the enemy’s hand, but by their own, twisted into madness by a cruel illusion. Betrayal. Bloodshed. Despair… and then, silence.Only one person remained: Riley—the weakest warrior of them all. Powerless. Ignored. Forgotten.But he saw through the Demon Lord’s deception. The tyrant was on the brink of death—so weak even a fly could’ve finished him off.And Riley did just that, drawing every last ounce of strength to bite off the demon’s head.Victory? Not quite. A final, desperate strike from the Demon Lord pierced him from behind, killing him instantly.But fate wasn’t done with him yet.Riley awoke ten years in the past—when the online game [Apocalypse] was launched. Before demons descended. Before monsters overran the world.And this time, he wasn’t starting from nothing. He had a decade of experience—and a second chance.Even more shocking, he didn’t awaken his old D-rank Strength Boost talent. This time, he received something far more terrifying: an SSS-Rank Gluttony talent!He could now devour anything—monsters, items, talents, even traits—and gain their power.Ding![You have devoured: Iron Fang Wolf][Acquired: +4 Strength, +2 Agility, Skill: Bite (F-rank)][You have devoured: Goblin ShamanAcquired: +8 Intelligence, Skill: Mana Bolt (E-rank), Talent: Minor Spellcasting Efficiency][You have devoured: Flaming Salamander Drake][Acquired: +22 Endurance, Trait: Dragon’s Resilience, Skill: Flame Breath (C-rank)]Now, there is no demon, no god, no monster who will stand in his way. He will devour everything—and save the world.But the power of Gluttony was a double edged sword. If he wasn’t careful… he could be the one getting consumed.

Earth was supposed to be a safe haven.And for a time—it was.Until one night, golden stars lit up the sky like cosmic flames. The heavens swirled, the winds howled, and the world braced for its end. But just as quickly as it came... the phenomenon vanished.Weeks later, everything changed.Humans began to awaken powers once thought to exist only in fantasy. Skills—mystical, world-shaking abilities. Some used them for good. Others unleashed devastation.What could a gun do against a man who could turn into a living bomb?Portals tore through the sky, connecting Earth to monstrous realms. Beasts, demons, and nightmares poured into the world. Amid the chaos, powerful humans rose to fight back—and won. The survivors called them one thing: Heroes.Among them, one boy was left behind.Han Trystan—orphaned during the Sendok Calamity—carries the burden of rebuilding his parents' legacy, protecting his three younger siblings, and finding a cure for his dying aunt. But all of that hinges on one thing: awakening a powerful Skill.And when his time finally comes…> Name: Han TrystanSkill: Book FormationRank: EThe lowest rank. A joke. Practically powerless. Hope? Shattered.Until Han discovers the truth.His skill isn’t “Book Formation.” It’s something far greater.Creation. Not just of weapons or armors. But artifacts, pills, barriers—even other Skills.The world labeled him weak. But he was never meant to follow their system—he was meant to break it.Years later…> “Did I see that right...?”“Yeah. He just wiped out hundreds S-Rank monsters—alone.”“So the title ‘White-Black-Haired Monster’... it wasn’t exaggerated after all.”In a field of fallen beasts, one man stands untouched. Eyes calm. Power immeasurable.> “Weaklings.” Han mutters.Follow Han Trystan’s journey from the lowest-ranked misfit to one of the most powerful beings in the multiverse—and witness the rise of a legend the system tried to erase.

At twenty‑nine, she was the youngest CEO in the tech industry—NetVault Security had gone from small startup to Fortune 500 in just six years. The media called her a prodigy. Her board called her unstoppable.Her therapist called her alexithymic.Unable to understand or describe her own emotions.The elevator chimed. Elara didn’t look up. Only one person had after‑hours access.“You’re late,” she said. “The investor meeting is in twelve hours. Did you review the—”“I’m not here about the meeting.”…“Ugh.”Elara lost her life that day at the hands of her mentor and adoptive father. By the next morning, the same people who once called her a genius and praised her to the sky were calling her a coward who killed herself to escape scandal.Then Elara woke up.Not in her office. Not in a hospital.In a different world. In a different body.She was now Elara, the Fourth Princess of this so‑called great kingdom—only to find that this princess was an utter pushover, completely useless in everyone’s eyes. No one feared her. No one respected her. Even her own palace was full of other people’s spies.How is Elara supposed to survive this palace battle, when seven princesses fight in the shadows and she’s known as the weakest one? And can she ever escape this place… or will she decide to win instead?……“Your Highness, please… ugh…”The leash of light around Mahir’s neck—the head of the knights—tightened with a soft pull. His face flushed red, and not from pain.“Princess, here.” Ken, the strongest beast knight, knelt closer and held out a small pill between his fingers, guiding it gently to Elara’s lips.“Swallow it,” he said quietly. “You used too much power today.”On the floor below the bed, three beastmen knelt in a row, broad shoulders tense, ears twitching, their eyes fixed on her with dazed focus. Thin, glowing leashes of magic ran from their collars to the bands at Elara’s wrists.“Please…” Ken’s voice dropped, rough and a little hoarse. “Put your foot here.” He touched his gloved hand to his chest. “On me.”Elara sighed, half annoyed, half amused, and rested her foot lightly on his armored chest. All three of them drew in a sharp breath at the same time, faces turning even redder as the magic between them flared.Their eyes—gold, amber, and deep brown—looked up at her with the same lost, devoted gaze.

After transmigrating into the Marvel-DC multiverse, he, once an ordinary person, has now become a world-renowned mercenary and assassin.Things have changed. Should he become a righteous hero, or continue his dark profession?“Don't use such shallow concepts like good and evil to judge me. I only do what I want.”Suddenly, the protagonist appeared behind the author of this synopsis, punched him, and sent him flying.“The truth is simple. I am the death knell that rings in everyone's ears!”