Reversal - Chapter 7 Chaos [Unedited]

「Shimizu-san, you dyed your hair black.」「Ah, yes.」「Why did you dye it all of a sudden?」「Because…yesterday…」Shimizu-san, who sat next to me and had dyed her hair from blonde to black gradually lowered her voice, slightly blushed, and laid her face down on the desk.

As part of the imperial family, every move by Chu Yuan in this game of chess is made with apprehension, fearing that with a moment of inattentiveness, the whole match will be lost in a single move.

Ascending to the throne at eighteen, not half a year passes before civil strife erupts in Yun Nan. Though the thoughts of the old guard at the imperial court are not exactly identical, they are all waiting to see how the new emperor will put an end to this.

Unexpectedly, before this side could make a move, a few thousand miles away, the King of Xi Nan, Duan Bai Yue, had already personally commanded troops to attack in all directions; not half a year had passed when peace was restored.

Sparse moonlight shines into the palace; Chu Yuan stamped the wax seal himself, and had a secret letter sent urgently to Yun Nan 800 miles away — this time, what must we(1) give in exchange?

Brush marks passed through the back of the paper; it almost can be seen, when writing this line, how angry the young emperor was.

Duan Bai Yue spread out a piece of paper unhurriedly, replying with only one word.

You.

Notes:
(1): Chu Yuan is using the royal ‘we’ here.

- Description from Novelupdates

Cultivating his power by slaying demons and taming countless beasts, the emperor solidified his throne as the world's ruler. But not once in his life had he expected that his disciples would use research on demonology to sap the world tree's power and push the world to destruction.Trying to fix his mistake, he opted to use all of his cultivated power to cure the world tree and block anyone from sapping its power ever again. But in exchange, he was to lose all of his power.But...the worst had happened, his wife... had betrayed him.

Betrayed. Ridiculed. Killed.That was my past life.I trusted the wrong people, and they buried me for it. But fate wasn’t done with me yet. When I opened my eyes again, it wasn’t in my old body—it was in a world overrun by the undead. And this time, I was one of them.A fucking zombie!But I’m not like the others. I think. I feel. I remember.What’s this voice in my head?[Welcome to the Silent Requiem System!]The system feeds me power, unlocking missions and skill buried within this body. I have one goal: rise in rank, take control, and make sure no one ever tramples me again.The humans I move with have no idea what I really am. To them, I’m just another survivor, clawing my way to the top. But in battle, I use my abilities in secret—manipulating the undead, eliminating threats, and turning every fight in my favor.But rumors are spreading. There’s talk of an undead hiding among them, unseen and unstoppable. If they find out the truth, they’ll hunt me down like a monster.And my past? It’s here too. The people who betrayed me in my last life are standing right beside me, unaware of who I am. But I remember them. They turned on me once—I won’t give them the chance to do it again.Then there’s him. The commander of the city, sharp-eyed and ruthless. He’s watching me too closely, asking too many questions. If he figures out the truth, I’ll have to make a choice: eliminate him, outplay him… or pull him into my trap before he can destroy me.Because in this world, power is the only thing that matters. And this time, I refuse to be at the bottom.***“How did you survive when everyone else died?”I guess death just didn’t want me.“Why do the zombies ignore you?”Maybe I just have a face they don’t like.“You were just a nobody yesterday—how are you suddenly so strong?”Hard work, luck… and a little bit of hex.“Why do I feel like I've seen you somewhere before?”Déjà vu’s a funny thing, isn’t it?“What are you?”Wouldn’t you like to know?