THE BILLIONAIRE’S SECOND CHANCE BETRAYAL
the Auditor said quietly, staring at the World Tree.
The tree’s gold glow was gone. Now, it turned a deep, blood red.
"The Reaper didn’t come for the light," the Auditor whispered, voice shaking. "He came to plant something. Look at the tree’s base."
June looked.
At the bottom of the World Tree, where golden sap had spilled, something new was growing. Not silver. Not green.
It was a dark, oily black—like a crown of thorns. It shot up faster than any tree before. As it grew, the golden seeds in villagers’ hands started turning black.