Fate is a silent serpent.
It strikes without warning, dragging fools into the abyss—and, sometimes, just sometimes, it offers the chosen a second chance.
The city sky was gray that morning.
Low clouds pressed down on rusted buildings, and the smoke of engines veiled the streets like a toxic mist.
It was just another day for Riven — an insignificant name, a forgotten shadow among thousands of hurried souls.
He walked the metallic corridors of a crumbling factory, his eyes heavy, shoulders bent under the weight of a life without glory.
Work, hunger, exhaustion.
Endless repetition.
Dreams had long since withered away.
But fate does not forget its instruments.
The crash was sudden.
A crane failed. Steel beams crumbled.
Within seconds, tons of iron rained down.
Riven didn't even have time to scream.
In the space between life and death, as pain exploded across every nerve, something ancient stirred within him.
A voice echoed in the void of his fading mind:
> "You have fallen in this life. But in the next... you shall ascend."
Visions flashed before his eyes — golden fields, crystal towers, beasts of fire and ice.
And then, darkness.
When Riven opened his eyes again, the world had changed.
The sky was a blue so deep it hurt to look at.
The air was pure, thick with living energy.
Above him, a translucent panel hovered, its golden letters pulsing with power:
> [Eternal Memory System Initiated]
Welcome, Riven Valen.
Detected skills: Supreme Archer (7th Life), Royal Strategist (15th Life), Elemental Mage (32nd Life)...
Synchronization: 3%...
He blinked, dazed, trying to absorb the impossible.
Around him, vast forests stretched to the horizon, and in the distance, ancient walls protected a city of towering spires and crimson banners.
Riven didn't know where he was.
He didn't know who had brought him here, or why.
But one certainty burned in his chest: this time, he would not live a meaningless life.
This time, he would carve his name into eternity.
The first of many journeys had only just begun.
And the Empire of Magic would never forget the name of Riven Valen — the Archer of a Thousand Lives.