I wake up to the system screaming in my head.
Not literally screaming. But you know that passive-aggressive tone where it feels like someone's sending you a calendar invite for your own funeral?
Yeah. That.
[Global Alert – Regional Raid Imminent]
[Adventurer Guild Recon Identifies Ashring as Hostile Subdomain]
[Invasion Countdown: 30 Days]
I stare at the message, then roll over, directly into my stone basin, which is now cold and still full of water. I cough, choke, and slap the system screen away.
Dignity? Never heard of her.
I'm soggy, sleep-deprived, and apparently now a minor regional threat.
Cool. Great. Fantastic. Love that for me.
It pops right back.
[Guild Classification: Minor Dungeon Enclave]
[Affiliation: Demon Lord Army – Tier: Feral Vassal]
[Contaminant Link: Ashen Blade Signature Detected]
Pause. Deep breath.
I read that again.
"...Excuse me?"
It does not excuse me.
[Status: You are now considered a provisional outpost of the Demon Lord's forces. Congratulations.]
[Perks Unlocked: None]
[Drawbacks: Adventurers will try to kill you.]
Is that a feature? A bug? A reward?
Who benefits from this system.
Because it sure as scales isn't me.
I sit upright. Very fast. Too fast. My spine makes a noise it should not.
"No, no, no, we are not part of any army. I didn't sign anything! I didn't fill out forms!"
System offers a help window titled: "You May Be Demon-Aligned If..."
I close it before the bullet points can traumatize me.
Dragging myself out of the basin, I shuffle into camp hoping, praying, desperately deluding myself into thinking maybe this was a dream.
It wasn't.
Ashring… isn't Ashring anymore.
It's a village. A real one.
The paths are swept. There are buildings with frames. Two kobolds are reinforcing a roof using actual structural bracing made of bone and scavenged timber. There's a banner hanging over the entry tunnel. It's stitched from moss and scrapcloth and reads "Welcome Home."
I consider lighting it on fire.
A group of kobolds nod at me as I pass. One even straightens up, presses a claw to her chest, and says, "The Flamekeeper returns."
I haven't even had breakfast.
I haven't had food, sleep, or an emotional support kobold.
I do have three notifications, one fishbone necklace, and an entire cultural revolution happening before I've brushed my teeth.
[Settlement Rank Up – Category: Civilized Node]
[Tag Gained: Structured Leadership]
[Notoriety Increased – Regional Awareness: Moderate]
[Visibility Status: Registered]
"I didn't do this," I mutter.
System pings in a tone I swear is smug.
[You did exactly this]
Artisan is leading a class on rock shaping near the central wall. Yes, there's a lesson happening. An actual lesson.
With diagrams.
And kobolds are taking notes.
With charcoal.
On bark sheets.
We're so close to paper it physically hurts.
Bitterstack's shouting inventory counts while a young kobold tries to categorize different kinds of moss like they're valuable assets. Someone built a community board. There are requests posted. With drawings.
Another kobold hands me a flower made of fish bones and whispers, "Blessings of the Flame."
I don't know where to look.
[Influence Thread Detected – Ritual Behavior Strengthening]
[Title Expansion Pending: Sovereign Path Rooting in Progress]
[Adventurer Threat Level: Rising]
I turn to the system, tired, lost, angry.
"You told them I was a sovereign? You made me look like I'm doing this on purpose."
[Correction: You are doing this on purpose]
[Very badly, but effectively]
I sit down on the nearest pile of soft moss and press my hands to my face.
One month.
Thirty days.
Then the guild sends adventurers to burn down the thing I didn't mean to build.
And apparently, I've already been drafted into the Demon Lord's army.
Without pay. Without health insurance.
Damn you Demon Lord!
---
The stranger is gone.
No note. No farewell. Not even a dramatic walk into the mist. Just ash. Piled neatly where he used to sit.
The spot smells like burnt ink and cracked stone. There's a twist in the air when you breathe too close, like the mana's folding sideways. Even the fire near it flickers red now, just once, then steadies.
System pings.
[Entity Departure Logged – Identifier: Ashen Blade (Sealed)]
[Residual Effect: Demonic Mana Infusion – Flame Node Contaminated (31%)]
[Consequences: Pending]
Pending?
I poke the ash with a stick.
"That's not encouraging."
A few kobolds gather near the fire. I recognize two of them. Sort of. They used to be scrappy little tunnel-rats, always lurking near the food stash. Now?
One has scales that shine like metal. The other's got ember-flecked horns curling from her brow, faint glow trailing behind every step. Their eyes have vertical slits. They don't blink enough.
System pings again.
[Flame-Born Mutation Detected – Origin: Hybrid Flame/Demonic Contamination]
[Variant Subspecies Forming – Traits: Resistance | Channeling | Adaptive Physique]
[Status: Stable | Named Units Registered: 5]
Oh no.
The one with the horns walks forward. Doesn't bow. Doesn't flinch. Just looks at me like I'm supposed to know what happens next.
"I am Embergleam," she says. Voice like polished coals. "The flame chose. We followed. We changed."
That's cult-speak.
That's definitely cult-speak.
"That's not normal," I say.
She nods.
"It's not supposed to be."
Three more step up behind her. One flexes claws that spark on stone. Another exhales something that fogs cold. The last carries a bone staff and has spirals burned into his forearms.
System politely buzzes in my skull.
[New Trait Cluster Forming – Title Seed: Ashbound Flameguard]
[Named Units: Leadership Affinity – Awaiting Direction]
[Corruptive Influence: 33% – Synergy Potential Detected]
I want to crawl into the drainage trench and hibernate.
Instead, I sit down. Because that's apparently the only thing I'm still good at—sitting and panicking with style.
They don't press. They just sit across from me, perfectly still, like patient statues waiting for a prayer.
I don't give them one.
Instead, I pull up the system window and scroll until I find the part labeled Oh Gods What Now.
The system, of course, pings anyway.
[Settlement Rank Threshold Reached]
[Secondary Role Assignment Available – Options: Warlord | Priest | Architect | Speaker]
[Warning: Role Selection Will Affect Future Development Path]
Where's the option for "Exhausted Project Manager"?
What about "Kobold Therapist"?
"Emergency Fermentation Specialist"?
No? Just power and consequences? Cool.
I stare at it.
My settlement has development paths. My kobolds have names. The fire is humming like it's got opinions.
And I have to pick a second-in-command?
I close the system.
Open it again.
It's still there.
I sigh.
"...Can I undo a demonic flame upgrade? Asking for five mutated kobolds."