“Have you said your goodbyes to your brother?” I asked as Nicky led me to the pile of corpses she had gathered at the center of the room.
She hesitated for a moment, eyeing his corpsed place at the base of the small mound of bodies. His lifeless and scarred face stared back at her, and she took in a deep breath.
“I have,” she said as she nodded at me.
“Good,” I replied and stepped forward. I brought up a hand and created a ball of black flames. It was a small sphere, barely an inch in length at most. And as I flicked it out onto the pile of bodies, I whispered the name of the Skill it was supposed to be. “[Infernal Destruction].”
And all at once, the tiny black flame exploded in size. It engulfed the mound of corpses, incinerating everything that had been piled up in an instant. It happened so quickly, there wasn’t even an intense flare of heat that overtook the room.
All the evidence of what had transpired today— it was all gone, just like that.
Nicky recoiled, reacting a second after the flames had disappeared. Then she stared at the dissipating smoke lingering where the bodies had been. And she slowly let out a breath she had been holding in.
“It’s over. The Blood Swords are gone.” Her eyes fluttered shut as I drew back.
And I rebuked her as I eyed a pair of objects that had been discarded to the ground. “Oh, no. The Blood Swords aren’t gone.”
And Nicky blinked, glancing at me quizzically as I strode up to the fallen objects and picked them up. It was a mask and a dagger— both of which had belonged to Nicholas.
“Wait, what do you mean by that?” Nicky asked as she narrowed her eyes at me.
“I mean what I said, the Blood Swords aren’t gone,” I replied simply, inspecting the Lesser Death Dagger, before sheathing it at my side. Then I held up the skull-like mask over my face and looked back at Nicky as she stared at me uncomprehendingly. “The Blood Swords is just under new management.”
And she finally understood what I meant. “Oh...”
***
It was still night when we left the warehouse. The area we were in had already been practically deserted, but it was even emptier now at this time. So nobody saw Hannah, Nicky, and I dragging Ethen’s unconscious body with us until we were at a secluded alleyway near the main street.
“Set him down here,” I said as I looked back towards Nicky.
She had been the one who was carrying the young man around for us, since she was the only adult here. I had also handed off my new mask and dagger for her to hold onto for now. After all, I didn’t want to be seen walking around in public with those.
Nodding, she did as she was told, and I stepped up to him. Hannah peered over my shoulder with pursed lips.
“I was only able to keep him stable while I was healing him. But he’s still in really bad shape, Eli.”
“Don’t worry,” I said as I brought a hand out. “I’ll save him.”
And just like before, my hands were overcome with a golden light. But this time, I wasn’t manually casting a spell on my own. I was using my brand new Skill— [Healing Touch].
The magical glow blanketed Ethen’s body as I exhaled softly. His wounds began to close up, and his discolored and bruised skin returned to normal. It didn’t happen in an instant. It took a few minutes. Longer than it should have been, since I wasn’t just manually healing him without a Skill.
After all, that was both the advantage and disadvantage of using a Skill— they were efficient. They would be extremely cost effective with my mana usage. However, there was a limit to what they could do, especially for an Iron Rank Skill.
Sure, the Skill would be more powerful and effective the more mana I pour into it. But there was a limit to what my Skill would allow, because of just how inefficient it was to add more mana to a spell to increase its efficacy. That was why I was able to heal Nicky much faster earlier, when I manually-casted the spell.
Because I had simply expended an exorbitant amount of mana to heal her quickly, since her wounds were far more grievous. And the only reason I could get away with such an inefficient way of healing her was because of my abundance of mana.
Regardless of my slower rate of healing now, the last of Ethen’s wounds eventually faded away. And I stepped back, dusting my hands off.
“Alright, he should be mostly fine, although I doubt he’ll be waking up anytime soon,” I said as I turned to Hannah.
Even though I was speaking so casually— like I didn’t care— a part of me was relieved that the young man survived. It was probably the remnants of Eli’s soul influencing my feelings again.
“Thank the Goddess…” Hannah sighed in relief as she placed a hand on her chest. She slumped against the side of the alleyway’s wall for a moment, allowing herself to relax. And then she suddenly jumped up and turned to me in a panic. “But wait, what are we going to tell Ms Mary? And what are we going to tell Ethen?”
“Well, obviously, we can’t tell him about me,” I said knowingly as I glanced at the little girl and Nicky. The former just nodded, while the latter shifted back uncomfortably. “So, here’s our cover story.”
I clapped my hands together as Hannah leant in closely while Nicky just listened.
“Just like what actually happened, Nicky decided she had enough and intervened. But in this scenario, it was not just her. Other members of the Blood Swords decided they were tired of listening to Nicholas, and fought alongside her too. So a big battle broke out, and eventually, Nicky’s side emerged victorious.”
“So you want me to take credit for rescuing you,” Nicky said with a raised brow.
I nodded back at her. “Exactly.”
However, Hannah spoke up, chewing her lips. “But what do we say when Ethen asks how you survived? And if he questions how he survived too? I can’t tell anyone about my healing… Ms Mary says that nobody can know I can do this…”
“Well, nobody needs to know,” I said reassuringly to the young girl. “I’m a [Healer] too, now. I can just say that I healed myself then healed him. I mean, that’s technically the truth too.”
“But if people find out that you’re a [Healer]...” Hannah stared at me. “Won’t the Church take you away?”
That’s exactly what I’m hoping for, I thought, before shaking my head. It was not guaranteed, of course. But [Healers] were a valuable commodity. The fact that they were more effective than expensive alchemical concoctions like healing potions, whilst simultaneously being able to do much more like curing disease and plagues…
[Healers] were very much desired. However, just because the Church of Life would seek my services, didn’t guarantee that I’d be sent to the Holy Academy like I wanted. Especially in a backwater city like Velmond.
It was entirely possible I’d just be recruited to work at the local temple. And that was it.
After all, they might not have the resources or connections necessary to send me all the way to the Capital of the Sanctus Empire. And that was why I wanted to become the leader of the Blood Swords in the first place. To take advantage of their influence they had over this city.
However, I was getting ahead of myself. For now, I just straightened and nodded at Hannah with a smile.
“Everything will be fine,” I said simply. “Let’s just get back to the orphanage before Ms Mary gets too worried, alright?”
Hannah hesitated, before agreeing, “...alright.”
***
And with that, we returned to the orphanage. It was just after midnight, so I thought Mary would’ve been asleep and we’d have to wake her up. But when we arrived, we found her waiting at the front porch, pale-faced and worried sick. She wasn’t alone either. Most of the other children at the orphanage were there waiting for us too.
When she saw us return, she almost flared up in anger, ready to reprimand us. But when she spotted Hannah, she cooled down, and simply demanded to know what happened.
So we regaled the story we had prepared beforehand as she and the other children listened. And when I revealed I was a [Healer], everyone gasped. Mary turned to me in shock.
“Gracious Goddess— why didn’t you tell me this sooner?” she asked with round eyes.
“Sorry,” I said as I scratched my cheek sheepishly. “I’ve been hiding it for a while now. But that’s why I snuck off— I thought I could, you know, do something to help out since I had a Class now. But all I did was get Ethen hurt.”
At some point during the story, the young man had woken up. Hannah stayed by his side, and she explained whatever parts he had missed. He was still in a daze, completely confused about what had happened. So she had to repeat herself a few times.
“I can’t believe you’re really a [Healer]!” Alice exclaimed, eyeing me with sparkling eyes.
“What Rank are you?” Alan asked as he leant closer. “How did you get the Class?”
“I was Iron, and now, after what happened, I’m Bronze,” I said, before winking at the twins. “And as for how I got the Class… it was an accident. I guess I was just lucky?”
“What does that mean?” Jay piped up from the side, frowning at me. “How do you accidentally become a [Healer]? Don’t you have to reach Level 10 before you can even rank up to get a Class?”
I shrugged back at him. “I got into a scuffle with a couple of thugs and almost died when I fell into a creek with them. And that’s when I ranked up and was given the option to become a [Healer]. That’s actually how I survived— by healing myself with my brand new Class.”
Mary pursed her lips when she heard that. She was evidently worried, wondering when exactly this happened. But the children just looked at me in awe. Even Jay seemed to be impressed. And it wasn’t like I was exactly lying. I just mixed in partial truths with complete fabrications in my explanation of everything.
“Well, I am just glad the three of you are fine,” Mary said as she hugged Ethen, Hannah, and I tightly.
I couldn’t help but smile at her warm embrace. I was also quite relieved that everything was resolved without anyone dying— well, anyone who Eli cared about. A lot of people died. Just people I didn’t quite care about.
“I’m sorry, I messed up,” Ethen piped up as he spoke almost ashamedly. “I thought I was helping, but I…”
“Don’t blame yourself, you did what you could,” Mary said as she turned to him. “As I always say, what’s important is that you’re all safe.”
“Right…” Ethen trailed off.
Mary let go of us and turned to Nicky who had just been awkwardly standing off to the side the entire time.
“And thank you for saving my children,” Mary said, bowing her head deeply.
Nicky paused, before she looked my way. I just smiled at her, and she shifted back uncomfortably. She averted her gaze as she replied simply.
“R-right. It was nothing.”
“Now, let’s get you all to bed,” Mary finally said as she ushered us back into the orphanage. “And hopefully, we can put this… event behind all of us.”
Oh, but we won’t, I thought as I glanced back towards Nicky who was just watching us go. I gave her a knowing look, and she slowly nodded back at me.
We had already discussed what was going to be happening going forward— how we were going to meet again tomorrow to discuss the future of the Blood Swords. So she turned away to leave as I entered the orphanage, a smirk plastered on my face.
After all, I am just getting started.
Next chapter
2025-04-08 17:17:12 +0000 UTC
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Nicky stared at the pile of corpses she had gathered before her. Most of the desiccated bodies had already been brought here when they had been briefly reanimated as undead. However, there were still those who had been killed before that, and they had been left untouched.
Now though, every single member of the Blood Swords was gathered together in a massive mound of bodies. Half of their corpses were still recognizable to Nicky since she had been the one to kill them earlier on. She even spat on Justin’s corpse as she tossed him into the pile.
And at the very top of the pile, she had placed the body of their leader.
Nicholas the Bloodied Blade.
She stared at his lifeless face for a moment, mourning the death of her brother once more. She wished there were more words she could say. However, no words left her mouth. Because she knew that he had long since been no longer the brother she knew back then.
So she said the only thought that was left in her mind.
“Goodbye, brother,” she whispered.
Closing her eyes, Nicky simply bade farewell to her brother one last time. And then she turned away from the dead members of the Bloodswords, ready to embrace her new life she was about to start.
She looked towards Eli— or rather, the Death God— and she approached him, about to inform him that she was finished with the task he had given her. There was still some… apprehension she felt about the fact that as the Death God he was supposedly going to bring about the death of the Goddess of Life. But she was indebted to him.
He had saved her life. He fought to protect Hannah and Ethen. He couldn’t be so bad, right?
Nicky didn’t know for sure. She had many questions she wanted to ask the boy. But as she walked up to him from behind, she paused when she realized he was staring off into empty space.
And she knew that he was very likely dealing with his notifications from the Atolas after wiping out the Blood Swords. So she stayed back, waiting for him to finish what he was doing for now.
***
ding!
You are now eligible for five new Classes:
There are currently seven Class options for you to choose from!
[Death Knight]
A rare specialized Class that focuses on death magic spells to enhance close-quarters combat proficiency. A [Death Knight] may not be as physically strong as an ordinary [Warrior], but they make up for their lack of strength with their magic to whittle down their enemies in battle.
+10 [Magic]
+5 [Strength]
[Death Mage]
A rare specialized Class that focuses on casting death magic spells from afar. A [Death Mage]’s magic may not be as destructive as a regular [Mage] due to the taxing nature of their spells, however they are often far more durable and capable in one-on-one confrontations.
+10 [Magic]
+5 [Vitality]
The first two Class options offered to me were the same two that I had seen before. I dismissed them quickly, since they were related to death magic. I wanted to blend in— I especially wanted to get a Class related to life magic to help me get into the Holy Academy of the Church of Life. Although… that was not necessary, since any [Mage]-Class that wasn’t death magic-related was the main requirement to attend. But it would still increase my chances of being accepted to the school.
So I pulled up my next option, hoping that it would offer me something I wanted. Unfortunately, it did not.
[Harbinger Of Death]
A mythical Class that only exists in legend. Stories tell of a prodigy born once every ten thousand years who is so proficient in the ways of death magic, their rise in power will bring about the death of tens of millions across all of Parvos.
+30 [Magic]
“...what?” I blinked a few times as I stared at the option.
I had never even heard of this Class— or this legend— in my past life. And for an Iron Rank Class, it was extremely powerful. Under any other circumstances, if I was offered this Class I would accept it without even thinking twice. Especially if I had been given it early on in my past life.
However, not only was I already quite proficient in death magic with a high [Magic] Attribute, it would also be counterintuitive for me to accept this Class option as I would not be allowed into the Holy Academy of the Church of Life.
Furthermore, I did not want to be responsible for millions of deaths. I was trying to end the cycle of suffering— not just for me, but for the world.
So I shook my head as I dismissed it as my Class, even if it piqued my interest.
What else? I pulled up the next two Classes.
Unfortunately for me, they were ordinary death magic Classes.
[Lesser Shadowmancer]
An uncommon Class that focuses on shadowmancy in combat. A [Lesser Shadowmancer] will use the shadows in whatever way possible to defeat their enemies, in the same way a [Pyromancer] would use fire.
+7 [Magic]
+3 [Strength]
[Lesser Necromancer]
A rare Class that focuses on necromancy in such as manipulating bones or raising the dead. Not necessarily a combat Class, a [Lesser Necromancer] is capable of reanimating corpses to do their bidding, or carry out some basic healing such as closing open wounds or mending broken bones.
+10 [Magic]
+3 [Vitality]
I once again dismissed the Class options that were presented to me. Anything that was even adjacent to death magic was a problem. I hoped that my last Class option would actually be useful to me right now.
And fortunately for me, it was.
[Light Healer]
A rare specialized Class that focuses only on the healing aspect of light magic. A [Light Healer] may not be able to cast a wide array of offensive spells, but they are capable of drawing from the essence of life to heal grievous wounds and even aid their allies during battle.
+10 [Magic]
+5 [Vitality]
“A [Healer] Class, huh? I should’ve expected that…” I muttered under my breath.
After all, the only other spell I knew was a healing spell I copied from Hannah, before refining it so that it would be stronger. It wasn’t the most efficient spell, of course. But I had an abundance of mana to draw from, so it didn’t matter.
From my past skirmishes against the Church of Life, I knew that [Healers] were extremely rare— that ordinarily, [Priests] or [Clerics] would be the ones who dealt with minor wounds, since their light magic allowed them to carry out minor healing spells.
But a full-on [Healer] was considered a commodity, and they were often kept far from the battlefield, protected at all cost. After all, a powerful [Healer] was capable of regrowing even a missing torso.
Which means I will very likely be able to enter the Holy Academy of the Church of Life with this Class, the thought crossed my mind as a smile slipped onto my face.
And with that, I made my choice. It was a pretty obvious choice, despite the option of [Harbinger of Death].
I had a plan in mind— my friends, my followers, and my minions all risked their lives and some even sacrificed their lives to help me take the first step towards my goal. I wasn’t going to stray from this path I laid out because of an extremely rare Class option.
So I made my choice.
ding!
You are now a [Light Healer]!
You have gained the Class Skills: [Aura Of Light], [Healing Touch], [Sacred Flame]
+10 [Magic]
+5 [Vitality]
And now, I was a [Light Healer]. I finally had a Class. Not only that, it was the perfect Class for infiltrating the Holy Academy of the Church of Life. But even though I had already chosen a Class, I wasn’t finished with everything I had to deal with just yet.
My eyes flickered as I pulled up another notification that was lingering in the back of my mind.
(Rank Up Available)
Let’s get this over with, I braced myself as I focused on the notification.
And then like before, I saw a vision. The shifting of my soul.
Not much had changed since I last ranked up just a day ago. An iron core that lay inert in a sea of fire deep within me, unmoving and unchanging. Until this very moment where it began to crack and molt. Its silvery surface peeled off as I felt a sharp pain erupting from my chest.
I winced, but the pain was bearable. I just watched as the vision continued to unfold— as the burning inferno surrounding the iron core burned off its metallic paint, revealing a bronze surface underneath.
And then the flames cooled. A bronze core floated there, about the same size as the iron core. But it was different. It was more… dense.
Then the vision came to an end as I sighed softly, before a ringing sound pierced my ear.
ding!
You are now Bronze Rank!
+5 [Strength]
+5 [Speed]
+5 [Magic]
+5 [Vitality]
+5 [Dexterity]
+5 Free Points
And with that, my rank up was finished. I groaned as I raised my head, glad that it was over. Ranking up was always painful because the very core of my soul would be altered— this was true even in my past life.
The only difference was that it was now more painful because of that sea of fire orbiting my core.
I shook my head as I took in a deep breath. “Now, there’s one more thing for me to deal with…”
After all, now that I had ranked up, I could upgrade my Class if I wanted to.
ding!
You are now eligible for a Class upgrade:
There is currently one Class upgrade option for you to choose from!
[Light Mage]
An uncommon Class that uses the power of light to protect those they care about. A [Light Mage] does not often engage in battle, but they will do what they must when the time calls for it, even if it means using the essence of life to bring about death.
+12 [Magic]
+5 [Vitality]
Not a bad option, I thought as I stared at the blue box. However, I prefer staying as a [Healer].
Compared to a [Healer], [Light Mages] were bountiful— they weren’t special in the slightest. The fact it was only an uncommon Class was a testament to that fact.
Right now, I hadn’t accomplished enough feats to have more Class upgrade options for me to choose from. So this was the only one, and I was not going to be accepting it. Just like before, I made my decision to wait until a better option presented itself to me to choose it.
Preferably, an option that allowed me to remain a [Healer].
I’d probably have to do a lot more healing rather than killing for that, I considered as I dismissed the blue box for now.
And finally, I pulled up my brand new Status, taking in the changes that had overcome me. But I froze when I saw it.
Name: Nox (Eli)
Race: Human
Rank: Bronze - Level 1
Class: [Light Healer] (CLASS UPGRADE AVAILABLE)
Class Skills: [Aura Of Light], [Healing Touch], [Sacred Flame]
Titles: [Nascent Death God]
Title Skills: [Death Magic Mastery]
General Skills: [Quick Dash]
Attributes:
[Strength: 17]
[Speed: 26]
[Magic: 528]
[Vitality: 25]
[Dexterity: 29]
Free Points: 24
My name is both Nox… and Eli? I blinked a few times. When did that happen?
The last time I checked my Status, my name was simply listed as Nox. But now, that was not the case anymore as Eli was listed as well in parentheses.
Interesting, I mulled over this as I tapped a finger on my chin. It seems messing with the reincarnation process has really resulted in a few fascinating outcomes, huh?
I was not too surprised, because I had theorized earlier that some remnants of Eli’s soul might have remained in this body. But it was nice to get some confirmation that that was the case.
At the very least, I hope you enjoyed getting your revenge against your killers, I thought as I shook my head, looking back towards the pile of corpses gathered at the center of the room. Because I know I did…
Perhaps me bringing the boy to justice— giving in to the compulsion I felt to make them pay for what they did— had somehow caused me to embrace the lingering remains of his soul. Which was why my Status had changed. This was only a hypothesis. I hadn’t known it for certain. And it was very likely it was going to take a while before I figured this out.
For now, I just returned to Nicky to finally wrap up this entire ordeal.
Next chapter
2025-04-08 17:08:06 +0000 UTC
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I stepped away from the pile of corpses as I dismissed the shadow dagger I had created. It hadn’t been my best work. But it was going to take a while before I got used to casting spells without a Skill. At the very least, replicating my old Skills would be easier once I got the Title of a Fledgling Death God and my [Death Magic Mastery] was upgraded to [Death Magic Supremacy].
However, I was still a few Ranks away from that. So for now, I focused on what I could do. I turned around and walked over to Hannah, Nicky, and Ethen who were off to the side of the room. The former two had watched the scene unfold, but the latter was still unconscious from the beating he had taken.
Hannah had been constantly healing the both of them as I dealt with Nicholas and the Blood Swords. But now that I was finished, she stopped what she was doing and dashed forward towards me.
“Eli!” she exclaimed as she threw her arms around me. “You did it!”
I chuckled as I awkwardly hugged her back. “I did, indeed. But…”
I paused as Hannah peeled herself from me. She was practically beaming, looking me up and down in relief. I smiled back at her, however the expression slipped from my face. My gaze darkened as I sighed.
“I’m not Eli, Hannah. You heard what I said, didn’t you?” I shook my head as she blinked a few times. I placed a hand on my chest. “I am the Death God.”
Hannah stared at me for a moment, and I wasn’t sure how she’d react. On one hand, I’d do anything to preserve my safety. But on the other hand, for whatever reason, even though I just met the young girl, a part of me really didn’t want to hurt her.
I wasn’t sure if I could bring myself to kill her if it came down to it. It was like my very soul was wrestling with me against the very idea of it.
Fortunately, that didn’t seem like that was going to be the case as Hannah just laughed and patted me on the shoulder.
“I heard that. But I don’t care.” She rolled her eyes, before grinning at me. “We’re family— I’m your sister. I know you better than anyone else, and you are Eli. If not, you wouldn’t have risked your secret identity to save us all.”
“That’s…” I opened my mouth to argue. But then I caught myself.
While I didn’t believe what she said to be true— because I wasn’t Eli, and even if I was, they weren't actual blood-related siblings in the first place, so she was just wrong— it didn’t matter. Because I was just relieved that she was alright, and that was all that mattered for now.
Besides, now I knew she wasn’t going to rat me out to the Church of Life. Sure, there was a chance she could be lying. But deep down, I knew in my heart that she was telling the truth. So I just smiled and nodded back at her.
“Well, I’m glad to hear that.”
But she wasn’t the only person who had seen me reveal my true identity as the Death God. I looked past Hannah— towards Nicky who was weakly rising to her feet. The red-haired woman groaned as she fell back to the ground.
Hannah took a step forward as she raised a hand. “Don’t worry, I’ve got you—”
“I’ll handle this,” I cut Hannah off, stopping her from running forward.
The little girl blinked as I nodded reassuringly at her, before I walked up to Nicky. I brought a hand forward and touched her as the redhead shrank back.
“W-wait, please don’t—” Nicky started in terror.
But a golden glow overcame her as she paused. I rolled my eyes at her as I used healing magic on her. Unlike Hannah’s magic, I didn’t slowly heal a small portion of her body at a time, because I wasn't limited by having a small mana pool.
Instead, I inundated her entire body with healing magic, having refined and altered the spell I copied from Hannah so that it would be far more effective while also covering a wider radius in its effects.
“I’m not going to kill you,” I said as life returned to her discolored skin. “Not yet, at least.”
As each second passed, her wounds began to close up, and she eventually was able to get back to her feet after a minute or so. She looked down at herself in awe at what just happened, not saying a word.
“That’s amazing!” Hannah exclaimed as she looked on from the side.
I smirked back at the young girl. “It’s only thanks to your help that I can do that, Hannah. So you’re the only amazing one here.”
Nicky finally raised her head and faced me after inspecting herself. I wasn’t sure what she was going to say. But I was still taken aback by it regardless.
“I… where’s my brother?” she asked, her lips trembling.
I gestured back towards the pile of corpses. “I mean, he’s right there. But he’s… you know…”
Nicky ignored me as she walked forward in a daze. I watched her go, and Hannah scratched the back of her head. But I held up a hand and nodded at her.
“Just look after Ethen for now. Make sure he doesn’t die. I’ll tend to him after I’m finished with this.” I spoke casually as I trailed after Nicky.
“Right!” Hannah said affirmatively and quickly got to work.
I left her behind, watching as Nicky stared down at the pile of corpses. She looked like she was about to dig through them, and I flicked a hand out. The desiccated bodies moved to the side, revealing Nicholas’s mangled body underneath.
“Brother…” Nicky whispered as a curtain of shadows fell over her eyes.
She dropped to her knees right before his body. She cradled him in her arms, before removing his mask. His face had been the only part left untouched by the undead. Even still, I saw a scar— a burn mark— marring the side of his face. Nicky ran a hand over her cheeks as I watched. She didn’t say a word for a long moment, before I finally spoke up.
“He’s dead,” I remarked simply.
“...I know.” Nicky lowered her head as she took in a shaky breath.
“I killed him,” I continued.
And Nicky closed her eyes. She remained silent, and I wondered how she’d react to me speaking so bluntly about being responsible for her brother’s death. Finally, she exhaled as she raised her head.
“My brother and I… we both grew up in a terrible home…” Nicky said in a trembling voice. “Our parents hated us. They had hoped we would be… I don’t know— I guess they just didn’t expect children to be as difficult to raise as we were. They probably thought we’d just be a pair of extra helpers around the house, not a pair of extra mouths to feed.”
I just raised a brow, listening as Nicky continued to regale her history.
“But our parents kept us around instead of giving us up to the orphanage because we at least helped them out a little bit. They just… underfed us too. Which was not a problem until we started growing older, and the amount they fed us remained the same. And one day, I had enough, and tried to steal food from our parents.”
Nicky spoke almost like she was reminiscing fond memories, despite the actual contents of what she was saying. She shook her head as she chuckled bitterly.
“Of course, I was a little child, and I was caught by my dad. He gave me a terrible beating as a punishment for what I did, so that I would never do it again. I thought I would die that day.”
Tears began to slowly slide down Nicky’s cheeks as she recounted her childhood. They dripped down to her brother’s dead face as she tried to wipe away at her cheeks.
“And my brother… when he found out about what happened, he had enough. He set fire to the house, burning it all down and killing both our parents. That’s actually how he got this scar— from protecting me from the flames.”
Nicky spoke as she gently touched her brother’s scarred face. She lowered her head, meeting his lifeless gaze as he stared back at her.
“My brother would do anything to protect me. Even if it meant killing our parents.” Nicky bit her lower lip as more tears poured down from her cheeks, spilling onto Nicholas’s lifeless face. “And yet, today, he tried to kill me. He almost killed me. All for the sake of his pursuit of power.”
Nicky took in a deep breath, before drawing back away from her brother’s corpse. She carried his skull-like mask in her hand and stared down at it for a moment, before tossing it aside.
“My brother’s been dead for a long time. And I never realized it until today. Whoever you killed, he is the one who killed my brother. So I only have to thank you for killing him. I am grateful to you for what you’ve done.”
Nicky spoke callously as she wiped away the last of her tears from her face. I nodded understandingly as she finished.
“I see. I see.” I quirked a curious brow at her. “And do you still feel that way even though I am the incarnation of the Death God?”
Shaking her head, Nicky turned to face me and placed her hand on her chest. “I do not care that you’re the Death God. For saving me, I owe you my life. So I am forever in your debt.”
“You’re willing to serve me, even if it means potentially drawing the ire of the Church of Life?” I pressed her even further. I scrutinized every twitch of her facial muscle as I asked the question.
“S-serve…?” Nicky hesitated when she heard that. “You want me to become your servant?”
“Servant, follower, minion, underling, ally— I don’t care what word you use for it. My question is if you’re willing to be on my side, even if it means making an enemy out of the most powerful institution in all of Parvos?” I eyed Nicky almost dangerously.
She gulped for a moment, not giving an immediate answer. But she straightened and nodded. “I don’t know what you want from me exactly, but after what you’ve done for me today, my answer is yes.”
I squinted at Nicky, but she held my gaze. She looked me in the eyes, refusing to back away. And when I saw the face she wore, it reminded me of the faces of my subjects who served me in my past life. My followers who fought for me— who died for me.
So that we could all fulfill a common dream.
To end this cycle of suffering that had gone on for too long.
And that was why I trusted Nicky’s words. Because I knew she was sincere— that what she said was true.
“Good.” I smiled satisfactorily as I drew back away from her, before looking at all the corpses littered around the room. “Now then—”
I clapped my hands together as I nodded in the direction of the dead bodies. “First order of business, we’ll need to get rid of all these bodies so that nobody discovers what happened here. So just gather them all in a neat pile for me, will you?”
“R-right, I’ll get to it,” Nicky said as she moved.
She did as she was told, and I watched her for a moment. But then I turned away from her.
And second order of business, I thought as my focus shifted onto the myriad of notifications that had been waiting for me in the back of my mind to pop up. Let’s take a look at what these have to say.i
With a single thought, the blue boxes appeared like a deluge, blocking my vision and ringing incessantly in my ears.
ding!
You have slain a [Human - Bronze] - Additional experience is awarded for killing an enemy above your Rank!
ding!
You have slain a [Human - Bronze] - Additional experience is awarded for killing an enemy above your Rank!
ding!
You have slain a [Human - Iron] - Additional experience is awarded for killing an enemy above your Rank!
…
ding!
You have slain a [Human - Gold] - Additional experience is awarded for killing an enemy above your Rank!
ding!
You have reached Level 2!
+1 [Speed]
+1 [Strength]
+1 Free Point
…
ding!
You have reached Level 19!
+3 [Magic]
+1 [Dexterity]
+1 Free Point
ding!
You have reached Level 20!
+2 [Vitality]
+1 Free Point
ding!
For reaching Level 20, you are now eligible to advance in Rank!
As I expected, wiping out the Blood Swords brought me to the maximum level of my current Rank. Now, I was able to rank up to Bronze. However, that was not what caught my attention. Instead, it was the blue box that popped up right afterwards that piqued my interest.
ding!
You are now eligible for five new Classes:
There are currently seven Class options for you to choose from!
I grinned as I saw the notification floating before me. I finally have new choices, huh? Alright… let’s see what you have to offer me now…
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2025-04-08 17:04:01 +0000 UTC
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I had hoped that Nicky would’ve been able to deal with the Blood Swords all on her own. When she intervened, I had placed my hopes on her to come out victorious— or at the very least, help Hannah escape from the building. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen, and I had no choice but to step in.
I hadn’t wanted to reveal my identity to Ethen or Hannah. I wasn’t sure how they were going to react when they found out I was the Death God. So I had initially thought that I would be able to convince the Blood Swords to at least let the two of them go since they wanted me.
However, for whatever reason, Nicholas— the leader of the Blood Swords— turned out to be completely insane and decided to have us all killed. With his Lesser Death Dagger, which was apparently an Artifact of Death, he attacked me with a [Deathbeam] and left me for dead.
Fortunately for me, I had already prepared myself for a battle before I entered the warehouse. I haphazardly copied a barrier Skill I had back in my past life, when I was an Emerging Death God— [Protection Of Vindication]. I used [Death Magic Mastery] to replicate it as best I could. Unfortunately, I could only create an inferior version that was not capable of deflecting anything except for physical attacks.
The original version was capable of deflecting any and every attack— although to a lesser degree. But this weaker version would simply negate any magical attacks instead of deflecting them.
If I had more time, I would’ve been able to recreate the original Skill. However, I had been in a rush, and this was the fastest discreet aura of protection I was capable of casting at that very moment. Anything else would’ve been too obvious— either in its casting, or in its effects.
So I had been waiting around all day with this inferior and manual-casted [Protection Of Vindication], which saved me when Nicholas attacked me. Since then, I had simply been lying against the wall, playing dead.
All the while, I observed the situation and hoped— hoped that things could be resolved without my intervention. Unfortunately, that proved to not be the case. And that was why I stepped in now. Especially since I understood the full extent of what Nicholas was capable of doing with his Lesser Death Dagger now.
I strode forward, a wry smile plastered onto my face, as he looked at me with narrowed eyes.
“If that’s truly a C-grade weapon, and a [Deathbeam] is all you’re capable of casting, then I’m sorry, but you don’t actually know how to use that Lesser Death Dagger,” I said, shaking my head. “I mean, [Deathbeam] isn’t a bad spell by any means. But it’s only a Gold Rank Skill— a far-cry of what a C-grade weapon should be capable of emulating.”
Even though Nicholas was hiding his face underneath a mask, he was visibly confused. Everyone was. The thugs standing off to the side looked at each other quizzically, and Nicky craned her neck back in shock. Hannah was the only one who wasn’t surprised to see me still standing.
She smiled at me as I nodded back at her.
Nicholas just pointed his weapon my way and demanded, “Answer me: how are you still alive?”
I eyed the dagger’s dark surface, before sighing. “And that’s not to mention that you’re using that dagger like it’s a wand. Seriously, this is a pathetic sight. And you think you can ever hope to be a threat to the Church of Life? You’re utterly delusional.”
My words must have struck deep as Nicholas snapped a moment after, swiping down with his dagger.
“Shut up and die!” he snarled.
A [Deathbeam] shot out my way once again and struck me on the face. There was a flash of purple light. The impact of the spell snapped my head back, and I stumbled for a moment. But then I straightened as Nicholas’s eyes grew wide.
“How are you doing this?” he breathed.
I shrugged as a flicker of purple light washed over my body once again, before I swept my gaze over the room. “The reason is simple: just like your little minions who follow every order you bark, you are weak.”
I could practically hear Nicholas’s teeth grinding together in frustration as I finished what I was saying. He backed away, before turning to his thugs. He yelled at them, snapping them out of their collective stupor.
“What are you incompetent idiots doing?” Nicholas screamed and pointed at me. “Kill that boy!”
It took a moment for the thugs to process what their boss was saying. And then, even with uncertainty evident on their faces, they charged forward after me.
They roared as they came at me from all sides. But I barely even gave them a glance. Instead, I looked back down towards Hannah who was watching to the side.
“Look after Nicky and Ethen,” I said to the little girl. “Keep them alive while I deal with this.”
“Yes!” Hannah nodded quickly, before she moved to help the redhead up to her feet.
The two of them scurried off to the side where Ethen was lying, and I looked back towards the approaching thugs. After Nicky had culled their numbers, there were just under a hundred of them left. Just enough for me to make my demonstration.
I shook my head as I turned to face Nicholas. I met his gaze, my eyes flashing red.
“A C-grade weapon should be capable of replicating Platinum Rank Skills at the very least— even Sapphire Rank ones,” I said as I created a purple sphere in the palm of my hands. “Here, let me show you an example of that.”
I released the purple sphere as it grew in size and floated up to the top of the room. The thugs slowed down and stared at my magic in shock. Nicholas blinked in confusion.
“That’s death magic…?” he whispered, and I spoke over him
“[Lance Of Annihilation].”
And all at once, the sphere morphed into a single sharp-edged spear that shot out across the room, illuminating the darkness. The shadowed silhouettes of the thugs could barely react as my attack reached the first of them.
“What in damnation is that—” one of the thugs started.
And the ray of death reached him, promptly cutting him off and ripping through his chest. He was sent flying back as the other thugs looked on in stunned silence for a moment. But they didn’t have much longer than a split-second to process this as the purple spear trailed through the air and impaled a second victim.
Then the attack began tearing through their remaining numbers as they cried out in terror.
“Saints save us!”
“No…”
“Gracious Goddess—”
But even though they tried to run— even if they tried to block the incoming attacks. It didn’t matter. The [Lance Of Annihilation] would curve around their defenses and give chase to them until it struck them, piercing them through the chest.
Some of them thought that attacking me would stop the spell. They fired arrows my way, aiming straight for my head. Others even flanked me from behind and struck me with their blades. But their attacks were easily deflected by my barrier, and they fell dead from a flicker of purple light reflecting back against them.
One by one, flash by flash, the thugs fell dead. Until their screams were nothing more than echoes, and the light from my magic faded away.
And then there was only Nicholas left, looking at this scene in sheer terror.
***
Nicholas couldn’t believe his eyes. It happened in a mere instant. But his entire gang— all of the Blood Swords— were wiped out before he could even process what was happening. They were the strongest group in all of Velmond. They ran this city.
And yet, they had all just been defeated by a child.
It just made no sense to the Bloodied Blade. He had been certain that the boy was dead. Somehow, Eli had survived a [Deathbeam]. Not once. But twice.
It was baffling. More than that, it was terrifying.
Nicholas backed away as the last of the bodies of his men dropped to the ground. Their corpses had shriveled up into desiccated husks, a hole burrowed through their chests by a hundred [Deathbeams].
Except… Nicholas felt his breathing quicken as he looked towards Nicky who was off to the side, being healed by the little girl. My [Deathbeams] are weaker than that.
So not only could the boy conjure up a hundred attacks similar to a [Deathbeam], each one was far more powerful in effect.
“I-I don’t get it…” Nicholas whispered, his heart hammering in his chest. “How did you do that?”
Eli just chuckled as he waved a hand off dismissively. “I told you, there is so much more to death magic than simply firing a beam of death at people. Especially when you’re using a dagger.”
Raising a hand, a spell circle formed at Eli’s fingertips. There was a crackle of electricity as an outline of a blade began to form there. Flakes of purple light gathered and coalesced as Nicholas’s eyes widened.
“Wait, that’s—” he whispered.
And there was a flash of light as Nicholas averted his gaze for a moment. He covered his eyes, before looking back up at the boy who was holding an object in the air. It was… a dagger.
A black dagger. It was similar in size and shape to the Lesser Death Dagger. The main distinction was that it was not made out of metal. Instead, it took on the form of an aura blade. Like it was pure energy.
Eli waved it around as he inspected the weapon he had just created. “It’s a bit crude. But it’s more than enough to show you how to use death magic to its fullest potential.”
“Life be damned, how did you…?” Nicholas started.
And Eli dashed forward, thrusting out with the dagger he created. Nicholas blinked, taken by surprise for a moment. However, the Bloodied Blade was much faster than a mere boy. He easily sidestepped the attack as he tried to gather his wits.
I can’t let this boy intimidate me— the thought crossed his mind as he avoided the stab.
But then a numbing pain erupted from his stomach. He blinked as he clutched himself. But then he saw a stab-wound open up, pouring with blood.
He stared at it as he tried to understand what just happened. But then he heard a set of footfalls rapidly approaching him. This time, Nicholas wasn’t able to react in time as Eli reached him. But how? Was it because of a movement Skill? It had to be. But how it happened didn’t matter, all that mattered was that the boy managed to land a small cut on the side of the Bloodied Blade’s arm.
Nicholas stumbled back as his arm hung limply from his side. Even though it was a small cut, he failed to even raise his arm an inch. He looked down to see his arm rapidly decaying as his mind raced in confusion and fear.
Looking up, he saw Eli just standing there, twisting a finger in the air. Nicholas tried to muster up a scream as he charged forward with his dagger.
“I will kill—”
And a searing pain erupted from his stomach. Nicholas staggered to a halt as he looked down at himself. A sea of blood was pouring down from his stomach as his wound opened up until he could see his innards.
Nicholas didn’t understand what was going on at all. But his survival instincts still drove him. He tried to rise back to his feet, only for something to grab him by the legs, holding him in place.
Blinking, he looked down and stared at a pair of desiccated hands holding onto his ankles. They were the hands of the corpses of his men.
“W-w-w-what…?” Nicholas sputtered as he fell to the ground.
He backed away as even more of the corpses in the room began to crawl their way towards him. He saw their blackened bodies— he could see their skulls under their shriveled skin— but even though they were very much dead, they moved towards him from all sides.
All the while, Eli just chuckled and walked up to the leader of the Blood Swords, twirling his weapon in his hand.
“[Shadow Manifestation: Weapon Creation]. [Phantom Blade]. [Decaying Touch]. [Blood Drain]. [Reanimate Corpse],” the boy said simply. He wagged a finger at Nicholas as another corpse grabbed onto the Bloodied Blade from behind. “Death magic is not simply casting spells with the prefix of ‘Death’ in them like [Deathbolt], [Deathbeam], or [Deathblast]. It is more than that. Shadow magic, demonic curses, rot, blood manipulation, and necromancy. All of it falls under the umbrella of death magic.”
Unable to escape or move, Nicholas just screamed in terror as he threw his Lesser Death Dagger at the boy. “Get away from me, you monster! [Piercing Throw]!”
But the weapon just bounced off Eli’s shoulder with a flash of light. There was a flicker, then a tendril of purple magic whipped out, striking Nicholas on his shoulder with nearly the same intensity as his own attack.
Nicholas cried out in pain as he fell backwards. He tried to crawl away, but more of the reanimated corpses grabbed onto him, stopping him from leaving. They hissed and moaned as he began to hyperventilate, unable to stop himself from babbling in fear. They forced him to turn his head back and faced Eli who was still strolling forward casually.
“I-I don’t understand. How are you capable of doing this? How can you cast death magic like this? Just what are you…?” Nicholas asked in a barely coherent voice.
Eli rolled his eyes as he came to a halt before the man. “Use your head, you’re an adult. I wasn’t capable of doing this when you last saw me, and then you sent your goons to kill me. Now, I can use death magic like it’s second nature to me. What do you think I am?”
Nicholas’s mind was barely working. He was too stricken with fear. But still, he tried to comprehend— rationalize— this situation. “You’re… an Avatar? No— those do not take the form of people. Then that means…”
And finally, it clicked. Nicholas’s breathing slowed. His eyes bulged out of their sockets as the realization settled in. He understood it now.
“Y-y-you’re…” He pointed at Eli, before mouthing the words. His voice couldn’t leave his throat.
“That’s right,” the boy said as he smiled innocently back at Nicholas.
The undead corpses began to crawl on top of their former boss, covering his vision and suffocating him under their weight. They chomped down at him, scratching at his arms as he tried to scream in pain. But all that came out was a muffled voice as he was completely buried by the mass of bodies.
The last thing he saw was the glinting crimson eyes of Eli. Then his vision was drowned in darkness as the boy’s voice echoed all around him.
“I’m the Death God.”
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2025-04-08 17:01:57 +0000 UTC
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