The sky cracked open like glass. Purple lightning danced across storm clouds, and the ground trembled under the weight of two legends.
One stood tall, sword gleaming with holy light. His armor shone like justice itself.
The other—draped in black, with blood dripping from his gauntlet—smiled through cracked lips.
Lucien Blackthorn.
The final boss. The villain everyone hated. The one players lived to kill.
And today... he was about to lose again.
"You always show up right on time," Lucien said, voice calm even as the wind howled. "You heroes really love your dramatic entrances."
Across the field, the Hero pointed his sword.
"Your reign ends here, Blackthorn."
Lucien chuckled. "You've said that in three expansions. Still waiting for you to make it stick."
They clashed.
Steel rang. Magic exploded in the air. Ice met fire. Light met shadow.
It wasn't a fight—it was a war in fast-forward.
Lucien moved like a ghost, blinking behind the Hero, slashing with a cursed blade. His cloak flared like wings, and his voice echoed with dark energy.
But the Hero was stronger. Faster. Blessed by the gods.
And Lucien—he was just a boss. A scripted villain. No matter how well he fought, the ending was always the same.
The blade pierced his chest.
A slow breath escaped his lips. He looked down at the glowing sword, then up at the Hero.
"…You really never miss."
The Hero didn't answer. He just pulled the sword free.
Lucien fell to one knee.
In the distance, the fortress crumbled. His armies turned to ash. The world began to "reset."
Everything... ending, just like before.
Except this time—Lucien felt something strange.
Not pain.
Not fear.
Just…
Tired.
---
Somewhere else. Sometime later.
A man lay on the pavement, blood pooling beneath him. A crushed phone screen flickered beside his broken hand.
The screen still showed the death screen from the game.
YOU HAVE BEEN DEFEATED.
His name wasn't Lucien.
Not here.
Just some guy who used to be a developer on the MMORPG Eternas Reborn. A guy who poured five years into making a villain so iconic, he became a meme.
Now, he was just another headline waiting to happen.
A truck had run the red light.
His fingers twitched once… then stopped.
---
Darkness.
Total. Complete. Empty.
Until—
DING.
> [System Rebooting…] [Lucien Blackthorn Protocol Detected.] [Welcome back, Commander.]
His eyes snapped open.
Cold stone. High ceilings. Gold-trimmed curtains flowing in the wind.
He was lying on a velvet throne.
Not a bed.
Not a hospital.
A damn throne.
Lucien sat up.
His hands—gloved in black armor.
His voice—lower, smoother.
He wasn't in his world anymore.
He wasn't himself anymore.
"…No way."
The mirror across the room didn't lie.
Tall. Jet black hair with silver streaks. Crimson eyes. A smirk that belonged in a villain monologue.
He looked exactly like—
"Lucien Blackthorn," a soft voice whispered behind him.
He turned.
A woman stood in the shadows. No… not a woman. Something more.
Skin pale like starlight. Hair that shimmered like silk threads pulled from the night sky. A smile that was kind and cruel all at once.
"You've died," she said gently. "Twice, in fact. Once as a man. Once as a monster."
Lucien stood, trying to summon his stats window. Nothing appeared.
"Where… am I?"
The woman floated forward. Her feet didn't touch the floor.
"I am the Goddess of Fate," she said. "And you are in between stories."
Lucien blinked. "Excuse me?"
She ignored him. "Your world was a lie. A script. A loop. But something changed."
She raised a hand. A golden orb hovered over her palm—his soul. It shimmered, cracked, unstable.
"You were not meant to remember," she said. "But you did. Somehow, you defied your code."
Lucien didn't like the sound of that. "I didn't ask for this."
"You didn't need to. The game is over. The gods are bored. But you… you can be fun again."
Lightning flashed through the windows.
The castle trembled.
Lucien stepped back. "What do you want?"
The Goddess smiled. "I want you to become real. Not a villain. Not a boss. A player. In my game."
A new screen appeared before his eyes:
> [You have been chosen by the Goddess of Fate.] [System Reformat in Progress...] [Villain Protocol Updated: You are no longer bound by Fate.]
Then another screen.
> [Main Quest Activated: Destroy the Hero.]
Lucien stared at it.
He remembered the Hero. That self-righteous, golden-haired poster boy who killed him a dozen times across multiple storylines.
He remembered all the heroines meant to love the Hero.
All the side characters meant to suffer.
Everything had always belonged to the Hero.
Not anymore.
Lucien smiled.
"…Alright, Fate. You want a real game? Let's play."
---
Far away, in a peaceful village…
A young man sneezed.
He looked up at the sun, confused.
"...Why do I feel like someone just declared war on me?"
His name was Cedric Dawnbringer.
The Hero.
And the real story hadn't even started yet.
Question for readers:
What would you do if the villain became the main character?