Chapter 1 — Epilogue — The Legend Logged Out
The notice went up at 2:13 a.m.
Not prime time. Not dramatic. Just late enough that it looked intentional.
Most people were asleep.
The rest were online.
—————
[Official Notice — The Rise of Erevos]
> The character "Aerion" has been transferred to a new representative under strategic partnership agreement.
Rain read it once.
Then again.
Like maybe the sentence would blink and correct itself out of embarrassment.
It didn't.
"Transferred" was polite. "Strategic partnership" was expensive.
Which meant Aerion — rank one, unbeaten, myth-tier Archmage — had been sold.
He leaned back in the plastic café chair. It creaked louder than necessary.
"…Fast."
The cashier glanced over from the counter. "That your wizard game?"
"Yeah."
"You win something?"
Rain tilted his head slightly. "In a way."
He logged out.
Aerion disappeared from the character screen without music, without delay, without asking if he was sure.
It felt cleaner than it should have.
—————
Three days later, the relaunch stream went live.
Rain had a can of coffee open beside his mouse, the aluminum sweating onto the desk like it was nervous.
The new voice on stream sounded confident. Smooth. Just polished enough to feel rehearsed.
"Let's not drag this out," the streamer said with a grin you could hear through the mic. "You already know why this character's number one."
Arena lights flared.
White-blue robes. Familiar staff. Archmage stance unchanged — like the body remembered even if the owner didn't.
Chat detonated.
STILL KING
SOLD OUT BUT STILL KING
DON'T FUMBLE
The match opened aggressively.
Mana flared wide across the floor. Blink forward.
Rain's eyes narrowed just a fraction.
"…Early."
Not wrong.
Just unnecessary.
Blink carried a thirty-second cooldown. Burning it that fast to force space was flashy — good for the crowd — but not optimal.
The pressure continued anyway. Clean inputs. Fast reads. Strong fundamentals. The opponent collapsed before stabilizing.
Chat roared.
UNMATCHED
DIFF
HE'S HIM
The second weave came out hard — full commit.
It worked.
Rain rolled the can slowly under his palm.
"…Too eager."
Most players wouldn't catch it. Most wouldn't survive long enough to try.
But early blink plus forced commit? That was a habit forming.
The streamer laughed. "Still unmatched."
Rain exhaled softly. "Sure."
Not bitterness.
Observation.
He crushed the empty can lightly, tossed it into the bin without looking, and clicked Create New Character.
—————
The class list scrolled past.
Knight. Berserker. Ranger. Assassin.
He paused at Twin Sabre.
Hybrid control. Dual blades. Tight execution windows.
"…Annoying," he muttered.
Which meant interesting.
He selected it.
White hair. Blue eyes.
The model rotated slowly, blades resting at the sides — no over-the-top animation, no screaming aura.
Good.
Name field blinked.
Rain typed: Regan.
Confirm.
—————
The beginner city was loud in that specific way only online hubs can be — movement, spam, people talking like anyone was listening.
Someone clipped his shoulder.
"Watch it— oh. Newbie."
Rain adjusted the camera sensitivity instead of responding.
He tested dash first.
Regan slid forward.
Shorter than Archmage blink. Grounded.
He triggered mana pulse.
A thin arc spread outward — precise, but not dominant. It wouldn't bully space on its own.
He tried canceling the recovery.
Late.
The blades hesitated just enough to get him punished in real PvP.
"…Tight."
He reset.
Slash. Second slash.
Cancel.
Too slow — recovery lingered.
Again.
Earlier input this time.
The second blade cut mid-motion instead of after it.
Better.
Rain shifted his grip slightly, thumb pressing the mouse a little firmer.
Slash. Slash.
Cancel.
Clean.
The transition felt smoother — not perfect, just consistent.
He nodded once.
"Okay."
A player nearby had been watching the whole time.
"Bro, that class is mid-tier."
Rain didn't turn.
"Archmage still broken. You should reroll before twenty."
He tested the cancel again, just to make sure it wasn't luck.
"…Is it?"
"Yeah, trust."
"Mm."
He moved on.
Arguing would've required effort.
He'd already spent enough today.
—————
Later that night, the announcement spread.
Open Arena.
Anyone can challenge the new Aerion.
Rain read it once and closed the tab.
No dramatic reaction.
He logged back in and opened the guild finder instead of ranked.
Casual.
No spotlight.
An invite popped almost immediately.
Guild: Lemon
Casual PvE / Friendly PvP / No pressure
Rain stared at the name for a moment.
"…Lemon?"
He accepted purely because of that.
Voice chat came alive instantly.
"HELLO? New recruit? Mic working? Don't make me talk to myself."
Rain adjusted his headset. "…Yeah."
"Oh good. I'm Alice. Welcome to Lemon. Don't ask about the name."
"I wasn't going to."
"See? I like you already."
Another mic clicked on.
Female. Calm. Steady.
"You're Twin Sabre."
Rain rotated his character once. "Yeah."
A small pause.
"You don't sound new."
He didn't answer immediately. He was watching the mana pulse spacing again.
"Am."
"…Right."
Alice jumped back in, cheerful and slightly chaotic. "We're chill. No sweatlords. If you're planning to grind your way into esports history, wrong place."
"Good."
"Good?" Alice repeated.
"Yeah."
The calm voice returned.
"You sound relieved."
Rain leaned back in his chair. "I just want to play."
A quiet beat passed.
"Everyone says that," she replied.
"…You don't?"
Another beat.
"I play properly."
Alice laughed. "Lyra, you're terrifying."
"Am not."
"You are."
Rain checked the roster.
SnowFairy.
Lyra.
"If you're staying," Lyra added, voice level, "don't drag."
Rain didn't hesitate.
"Won't."
—————
Across the city, under bright sponsor lights, the new Aerion raised his staff to roaring applause.
In a dim internet café, Rain replayed the opener one more time.
Blink early.
Second weave forced.
He let the clip run for another second before closing it.
"…That'll cost him."
Not today.
But eventually.
Rain queued for a Lemon dungeon run.
No announcement.
No challenge issued.
Just another match.
He wasn't in a hurry.
He was just playing.