KNIGHT OF THE END

Rebirth

Faint footsteps echoed in the pitch-black corridor. The youth， dressed in thin pajamas， walked with lifeless eyes down the cold， silent hall. Although the night's chill and dew assaulted his body， they did not halt his steps. He passed through the dark， silent corridor and dilapidated stairs， arriving at an empty hall. However， the youth did not stop; right in front of him， the originally flat ground suddenly cracked open， revealing a bottomless darkness.

A cyan flame flared up， illuminating the darkness while also revealing a mysterious path.

If it were an ordinary person， they would have reacted somewhat to this sight. However， facing the bizarre scene before him， the youth remained as indifferent as a puppet. He did not stop， walking straight into the corridor deep underground. Behind him， the cracked ground fluttered and closed up again， swallowing the youth's silhouette like a demon consuming its sacrifice.

Cold dew dripped onto the youth's face， making him pause blankly. At the same time， those previously lifeless eyes suddenly regained their luster.

“Where is this...“

The youth's eyes widened in surprise， staring in disbelief at the scene before him.

Within the vast underground hall， cyan flames flickered and danced， illuminating the space. Gorgeous， mysterious patterns cascaded down the surrounding walls， and stone statues were placed all around， bringing an eerie and mysterious atmosphere to the place.

“What exactly happened?“

The youth shook his head， seemingly trying to figure out everything happening before his eyes， but he quickly realized that his body was completely unable to move.

As if captured by some invisible force， he couldn't even move a single finger. Despite having clear and distinct consciousness， his body felt like a frozen ice sculpture， entirely unresponsive to his commands.

“T-this is...!“

Facing this unimaginable scenario， the youth appeared panicked and uneasy. He gritted his teeth hard， instinctively trying to break free from the restraints， but he couldn't succeed at all. Even so， the youth still didn't give up; he concentrated his mind， struggling in an attempt to regain control of his body. Because of this， he didn't notice the swaying shadow illuminated by the firelight gradually lengthening. Like a poisonous snake condensed from a dark shadow， it slowly and silently crept to the youth's side， and then tightly wrapped around his body.

A piercing， bone-deep coldness enveloped the youth's body. The intense agony made him unable to endure any longer; he opened his mouth wide， trying to scream out. But soon， the entangling shadow suddenly erupted， completely shrouding the youth's figure within it. Along with the scream that he hadn't yet been able to voice， he was thoroughly smothered in the dark abyss.

Then， the shadow dissipated.

The youth still stood quietly in place. The difference was that his face now completely lacked any expression of panic or unease. Instead， those pitch-black eyes revealed an unprecedented calmness and leisure. If one looked closely， they would also notice other changes: compared to the originally frail youth， the person before him was clearly more robust. Moreover， that dark brown hair had completely turned pitch-black， and his thin face no longer revealed weakness， but confidence and arrogance.

A nice new body.

Julian flexed his fingers， gazing with smug satisfaction at the final bit of radiant soul light in his hand. That was precisely the previous owner of this body， and now， under Julian's grasp， it was nothing more than a fragile flame of a soul. Although it struggled and wailed in an attempt to reclaim its body， unfortunately， there was naturally no way Julian would let it succeed.

“This is the end. Thank you for your help.“

With a gentle smile， Julian clenched his right fist， ending the fragile soul's final resistance.

Stepping out of the hidden tunnel and looking at the ruined castle before him， Julian couldn't help but feel a hint of helplessness in his eyes. Upon obtaining this body， he had also merged with the youth's memories， naturally understanding the origin of this body. This youth was the descendant of a fallen noble family; the entire family lineage had dwindled down to just him in this generation. Three months ago， the youth's parents were deceived by a grand noble， trading their only remaining property—a fertile manor—for this fiefdom. After realizing they had been duped， his parents tried to reason with the grand noble， only to be thrown into prison by the other party. Overcome with grief and anger， they both fell ill and died. Facing this reality， the youth himself could only helplessly carry his grief and indignation， leaving his homeland under the “send-off“ of those grand nobles， and arriving at this desolate and barren border fief to start his new life.

Of course， all of this meant nothing to Julian. Although he could experience the youth's unwillingness and resentment from his memories， it had nothing to do with Julian himself. Obviously， this youth did not know that the castle he resided in was previously Julian's property， and at the same time， it was a necessary prop Julian had prepared to resurrect himself.

And he had become the necessary tool for Julian to return to this world.

Through the youth's memories， Julian also gained a detailed understanding of the current situation.

This castle was once one of the castles owned by Julian. After his death， it changed hands several times. The first owner was the commander of the border legion， who died of a sudden illness after living here for only three months. Subsequently， the commander's family left the castle and sold it to a nearby wealthy merchant. Although strictly speaking， merchants were not allowed to purchase military structures like castles， it was far from the emperor's reach， and no one cared to enforce it， so the transaction was finalized. The wealthy merchant didn't last any longer than the previous legion commander after moving into the castle—he stayed for merely half a year before suddenly dying in his study. This time， even the healers couldn't explain his cause of death. The merchant's family made the same decision as the previous occupants; they immediately left the castle and put it up for auction again.

But this time， few were willing to buy it. After all， a castle where two consecutive owners had died certainly had an ominous feel to it. But as the saying goes， men die for wealth， birds die for food. An Earl who had recently moved from another region purchased the castle and attempted to build it into his base. Consequently， as people had predicted， this Earl also passed away four months later after being hit on the head by a loose stone brick falling from the ceiling.

This time people finally understood; this castle was fundamentally a haunted house. After this， no one dared to target it anymore. And the ownership of the castle returned to the hands of the grand nobles. Although those nobles wouldn't come to live here personally， upon hearing the rumors， they naturally found a better way to utilize it. The last two owners of this castle were used and deceived by those grand nobles， sent here， and then died inexplicably. Since it didn't dirty their own hands and provided such an easy method to eliminate hidden enemies， why not do it?

The original owner of Julian's current body suffered the same fate. Those nobles didn't want to carry the accusation of murder， so they spared the kid and “generously“ awarded him this fief as a reward and consolation. To those who didn't know the inside story， this indeed seemed like a very humane approach.

Only Julian knew the true cause of death for these people.

Walking up the steps， Julian looked back at the dead， silent hall. Then， he extended his right hand and gently snapped his fingers.

“Snap!“

Cyan flames flared up， illuminating the space before him. At this moment， countless swirling and crisscrossing dark shadows appeared on the walls. They emitted roars and low moans that ordinary people couldn't understand or hear， circling around Julian. These were the castle's most mysterious guardians—the wandering souls. They roamed the castle， protecting it and mercilessly obliterating all intruders. Until their master returned. Although the scent and flesh of the living were close at hand， these frenzied souls did not make any dangerous moves as they usually would， because they clearly sensed the powerful and terrifying soul aura emanating from this body. This not only horrified them but also brought them deep fear and respect.

“I'm back. Clean this place up.“

Gazing at the wandering souls before him， Julian issued his command. Then he turned around and comfortably stretched his back.

Indeed， having a body is the best... Next， it's time to get a good sleep.