《Chaos (old)》


 Beginning with an End

    The sky was on fire.


    Crimson flames blazed upon the clouds as two suns drowned within the sea.


    A young boy, around fifteen years of age, sat before a simple grave, watching the death of the day. As he had every other day. Ever sincethen. And yet, his eyes seemed to gaze elsewhere.


    The boy was, in many ways, abnormal.


    His eyes were clear and yet clouded with grief.


    His irises and hair seemed to be crafted of shining gold.


    His face seemed divine as if he were a god, and yet he radiated an unbearable sadness.


    He had been sitting in the same spot for a year now.


    As the night began to encroach upon the sky, the boy opened his mouth and sang.


    As he had every other day. Ever sincethen.


    His lament echoed across the ocean, holding endless grief and pain, seeming to beseech the twin suns for answers.


    "I do not remember who I was.


    I do not know, do not wish to know, what I was.


    I cannot recall how I died.


    I have no thought of how I lived.


    I cannot ache for what I loved.


    I know only the wretched creature before you.


    So why would you believe that I deserve to know?


    I am a being born from lament.


    A being whose misery was from existence.


    A being whose life was from suffering


    Suffering from the pain of being completely.


    And utterly.


    Alone.


    So why do you believe that I should be rid of this solitude?


    I have not known warmth nor compassion.


    Nor fury nor sorrow nor joy nor regret.


    Emotions were a foreign concept, humanity a simple myth.


    This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.For myself I felt only emptiness, and for life, apathy.


    The hell of agony to end my solitude.


    Yet I needed to be cured of life, the state of being alive, the action of liveliness.


    So why do you insist that I suffer through it again?


    I have preyed upon the lives of hundreds of thousands.


    Ripped souls from bodies and annihilated the bodies of souls.


    My very presence is enough for the sky to bleed black and lament in a downpour of tears.


    My existence makes blood run cold and instills the air with despair.


    I feel no remorse, I feel no pleasure, I feel nothing at all.


    I am a monster without, a demon within, and purgatory given form.


    So how can you possibly say that there is humanity within me?


    I took you from your home, I took you from your friends.


    I took you as a captive, and again and again, reminded you;


    It is hopeless to hope. It is useless to believe.


    I took the people who were your hope and ended them before you.


    So why, at the end, do you still reach for me like you care?


    I feel my wings burn, but there is no pain.


    Ashes we were and ashes we will become, just dust in the wind.


    I do not know why but I reach for you, in vain.


    Because I turned my gaze to yours, expecting jubilation.


    And instead there are tears, glittering bright.


    I was the monster that stood for all you despises, all you denied.


    So why, as I was fading, did you still accept me?


    You showed me the weakness in my strength.


    You showed me the fall within my flight.


    You showed me how I was broken behind my mithril walls.


    You showed me the blindness in my omniscient eyes.


    You showed me the heart I never had, buried and beating in yours.


    You showed me your brightest light in my darkest time.


    The light that I always wanted.


    The light that ever eluded my eyes.


    The light that escaped between my fingers.


    For I never realized


    That in my unnoticed quest


    All I had to do was open my eyes.


    And now they will close forever, and I will never see that light again.


    Do not cry for me. Do not mourn for me.


    I do not deserve the small piece of your heart you have given me.


    But then again, you have always done what I least expected, what I never saw.


    As I turn into ash and ash into dust, my memories of you will fade.


    Because beautiful things always fade."


    He sang for the girl who he had ended.


    He sang for the one who had exchanged herself for him when he had been fading...


    He sang for the god who had given her life for his.


    He sang for the child whose life he had taken.


    And then it was night.


    His golden irisesfaded to an inhuman black.


    His hair seemed to float for a moment, becoming an empty white.


    Many believed that black and white were opposites, but both colors were the same to the boy.


    For both were the colors of the void.


    The empty void.


    The void with nothing to give.

 Wanderer

    It was night.


    Below the veil of the night sky, a boy sat on a cliff. Before him was a simple grave.


    As the white-haired child stared into the sky, a hint of envy clouded his jet-black eyes. For though the sky was dark, it was not empty. Countless stars speckled the darkness, and the moons, of which there were two on this night, shone brightly down, both perfect circles.


    The boy sighed. There had been two suns during the day, and there were two full moons tonight. It had been a year since then. As per his promise, it was time to go. And so, on Finis, the beginning of the new year, the Demon King left the cliffs of the Edge.


    The suns rose.


    Upon the road was a boy, now golden-eyed and blonde, clad in simple clothes and a traveler''s cloak. Frigun had passed, but snow still lay upon the road and in the forest of pine trees. Incipere had yet to truly begin, but a few green sprouts pierced the icy cover.


    The wanderer stopped for a moment, gazing at the sky. Two suns were in full view, glowing dimly, while the rim of a third peeked traveled slowly upon the horizon. From the moment that the second sun was fully exposed in the sky, Frigun ended, and Incipere began. In a few months, all nine suns would blaze in the sky, and it would be the middle of Calun, the hottest season of the year.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    Surely, as of now, all of his subordinates thought him dead. He had departed from his castle to fight the strongest of gods, after all. The only slim hope they had held would be that the godess, known to be gentle and forgiving, would not kill him - but after what he had done to her and those she loved, it was doubtful.


    Even he had not expected to live.


    In fact it had been his wish that she end him, simply so that for once he could give - even if it was his life that was given.


    But in fact, she had given him so much more than a life. And he had taken what she offered.


    And so he had shattered the curse that bound his people. Of course, they would still be discriminated against by the "good" races: humans, elves, dwarves, beastmen, et cetera, but now there was a chance of peace. And even without him, his four generals knew what to do. Though, he feared that they might hesitate to dirty his name.


    The world needed a common enemy, after all. And the "good" races had viewed the Demon Kings as a symbol of evil and injustice for centuries; and was it notjust like such horrible beings to enslave their own people?


    After pondering a moment, the boy continued his trek, leaving no footprints in the deep snow.

 Change

    It was night. Two gibbous moons shone down on a snow-cloaked forest, and the corner of a crescent moon peeked over the horizon.


    Within the forest, a boycompletely colorless hair continued his trek, tireless even after a week of the same. Abruptly, he came to a halt, staring at the space in front of him. As if this was a signal, four more figures appeared before him - each with five long, slender horns. "Your Majesty," they said as one, kneeling in unison.


    The boy let out a long, weary sigh. With a single breath, he communicated an exhaustion that even the most world-weary elderly would not be able to comprehend. The four figures did not move, but if one examined their faces, one would find a carefully hidden sadness in their eyes. After all, they were meant to be his guardians, and the single breath reminded them that they had failed to protect their charge.


    As the four great generals of the Demon King, their loyalty was unsurpassed. And so, they blamed themselves for the emotional scarring that the boy had undergone.


    "The Demon King is dead," said the boy, "I am a simple wanderer."


    The generals trembled, and one of them spoke out, saying "You will always be our king, Your Majesty, regardless of what you say."


    The boy sighed once more, seeming to give up on the argument. He stepped past the still kneeling figures and continued his walk.


    The four stood when he passed him, and watched, as still as statues, as the boy journeyed onwards. Then they simply disappeared, as if they had never been there.


    The boy walked on, never turning back to confirm the departure of his most loyal followers. Eventually, sounds of clashing blades and the flickering light of a flame came into sight. Unruffled, the boy continued on his course.


    The clashing of blades ceased.


    A group of four bandits had overcome a surprisingly talented warrior, who had been equipped solely with half-plate armor and a blade, and somehow managed to hold them back for what the boy calculated as five minutes.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    Although, the fight took place several miles from the road. The boy''s superior senses had easily detected what had happened, but none of the participants of the struggle had noticed him. He could just continue walking without any hindrance, and he did just that.


    Then after a few steps, he stopped. Within his mind flashed the memory of who he used to be, and who he wished to be. And for the first time, he realized that nothing held him back from changing.


    [POV change]


    Jax cursed his luck.[1] He had been on his way to Terbon, one of the major cities of the Irkej Kingdom, when he had been accosted by bandits. He had figured that, as Frigun was barely over, most bandits would not be watching the roads due to the usual lack of travelers.


    He had been wrong.


    During the night, Jax had awoken feeling that something was wrong, and armed himself just in case.


    He was a natural warrior, after all. The man had learned to trust his instincts.


    Upon their arrival, Jax had decided to fight rather than flee, as he trusted his natural talent for the blade. If he infused mana into his sword, even ten regular men would not have been his opponent. And few of those who were actually decent warriors would fall to banditry.


    However, against all odds, two of the bandits were his equal in skill and magic, while the other two simply watched as he was defeated. Jax did not know whether this meant that they were too weak to participate, or so much stronger that they simply did not bother.


    Now he was tied up and disarmed, presumably to be sold as a slave. Battle slaves at his level of skill would be worth almost a gold coin, enough for the bandits to live lives of luxury for a week or live simple lives for a month. Once more the man cursed his luck.


    Suddenly, his bindings came loose.


    Surprised he looked behind his back to find that the ropes that had held his hands had been had disappeared. Keeping his hands together, so as to keep this fact hidden from the bandits, the man looked up.


    And realized that all four bandits had been chained.


    Upon closer inspection, the chains were engraved with runes, which would make it impossible for any of the bandits to cast magic. That meant that no one needed to keep watch on these bandits - the chains would not break without the designated key. However, they were absurdly expensive and difficult to make, which was why the bandits had had to make do with regular ropes on Jax.


    Confused, the man looked around his campsite, suddenly discovering something strange about his pack. Upon it lay a note and a key. The note was short and simple, and did nothing to alleviate the man''s confusion.


    It said, "Do with them as you wish."

 Onwards

    Two suns peeked halfway over the horizon. As each sun was only around thrice as bright as a moon, it was not yet considered daytime by most.


    Within the snow-covered forest, a boy was walking. He left no footprints behind him.


    The Demon King had removed his hood, and hair that seemed to glow golden was exposed to the faint sunlight. Combined with his facial appearance and otherworldly way of walking, the boy seemed almost like a full blooded Fae. For a moment, he halted his steps, absorbed in his thoughts. Originally, his father had been a demon and his mother was the last of the Fae, so he had been a Demonic Fae, capable of both supernatural strength and strong magics, which had helped him greatly in his struggle for the throne. However, after he had ascended to godhood, there had been some changes to his body, so his race would be different, though most changes affected his soul more than his physical composition.


    Mages and fighters were differentiated through their affinity for magic. While a fighter could train and grow their physical abilities, anyone with a high affinity for magic would get little to no results from training their body. As such, only those with a low affinity for magic were able to become fighters. Due to the fact that most mages capable of supporting themselves ended up as nobles, mages developed a sense of superiority to fighters, and only very rarely would the bloodline of a mage mix with that of a fighter. Even if they did, such pairings were never fertile. At least, not until the boy was born.


    The Demon King''s parents had been surprised when he was conceived, as it had previously been regarded as impossible for anyone with a high affinity for magic to have children with someone with a low affinity for magic. However, they had not thought that he would have both high compatibility with magic and supernatural strength. Initially, the boy had thought that he was a mage, as his body kept its delicate beauty no matter how much he trained. He had kept this belief until he had accidentally obliterated a mountain in a moment of anger. The boy sighed as he remembered the days when he had been proud of his ability to kill more than anyone else, before he had become the first Demon King in history whose mind escaped the control of the Void Soul. He had always found it vaguely amusing that, as the seventh Demon King, he had been the only being able to cast high tier magic. The number seven had long been associated with Demons, as they carried one of the seven deadly sins: Greed, Lust, Envy, Wrath, Sloth, Gluttony, and Pride. And Demons had never been able to cast magic.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    However, as the Demon King of the Seventh Heaven, he had been the first demon to do so. It used to be that every time he heard that name, he would feel the intense, addictive happiness that came every time any Demon acted according to their sin. Though, that had stopped when he had finally managed to reclaim his freedom on his fifteenth birthday, after five years of mental struggle. For a short time, Demons had immersed themselves even further into their sins, but that had stopped when he had announced that the sins had simply disappeared. After all, the Demon King was acknowledged as the leader of all religious matters due to the fact that Demon Kings "gained" access to all seven sins. Most Demons even acknowledged the Demon King as their god.


    In fact, the struggle for the throne and the right to fuse with the Void Soul was, more or less, simply a bunch of drug addicts fighting over who gets the largest amount of the drug.


    Letting out yet another sigh, the boy continued walking. Ever since he began his trek seven days ago, the boy had not stopped once for rest or sustenance, which was one of the benefits of being a God. In fact, the only interruptions that his journey had undergone were his occasional stops when he was too absorbed in thought. However, these moments of pondering were to be expected; he had only recently gotten control over his thoughts back, and he had ascended to godhood as well. In addition, he had both gained and lost his first loved one when he had ascended. Even after more than a year, his mind was not recovered.

 Companions on the road

    Three suns shone from the apex of the sky. It had been almost a month since the boy had saved the man from slavers. He had yet to rest. The snow was mostly melted now,and so the Incipere had truly begun. Very few settlements existed on the cliffs of the Edge, but the boy had made much progress in this time, even if he walked on foot. Soon, he would most certainly come into contact with the merchants who traveled on the newly opened roads, seeking as early a beginning as possible for their trades. And with said merchants would come the bandits that preyed on them.


    The boy''s path soon came to an end with a Y-shaped crossroads. He could choose to go left or right, but there was no path directly forward.


    The boy paused for a moment. He sensed a mid-sized group of people approaching from theright branch. He considered leaving the road until they passed, but decided he would have tointeract with humans sooner or later.


    The boy turned back and waited just beyond the horizon, timing his approach so that he would be near the crossroads early enough that they wouldn''t miss him completely, but late enough that he would arrive a bit later than the caravan; after all, that would be just too suspicious of a coincidence.


    The caravan contained three wagons and a carriage; two wagons clearly belonged to merchants, one contained guards, and the carriage, covered in ostentatious finery, likely housed traveling nobles.


    "Hail the caravan!"


    Despite over a month of silence, the boy''s voice remained the same; even as he called a simple greeting, itheld more beautythan the best of songs; for this, the boy blamed his Fae blood.


    "Halt!" commanded a man who seemed to be the guard captain. The guards were twenty in number, more than any merchant or minor noble could afford. They were dressed in chainmail tunics, with leather and half-plate armor on top, and open-faced helmets on their heads. All of them wore a crest that depicted a shining spear on the left breast of their armor. Three were mounted. Clearly, the nobles traveling with the group were of some renown, as no minor noble could afford such a number of guardsmen with such high-quality armor. And by the way that they moved, they were relatively well trained. Not to mention the three horses.


    The boy did not recognize the crest, as in his time at war with the humans, his aspects of pride and wrath had decreed that he need not know which ants he was crushing beneath his feet.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.


    The guard captain, distinguishable by a small plume of feathers on the top of his helmet, rode over to the boy. From the boy''s height, the guard could distinguish that he was likely quite young, but he kept a sense of caution, as he would with any stranger on the road. Especially because that the boy''s voice was, most definitely, unusual.


    "Take off your hood."


    The guard''s command was short and direct, if a bit overbearing. After all, he was the guard captain of a highly ranked noble.


    The boy complied, and both the guards who watched alertly from their positions and the merchants who watched nervously from the safety of their carriages sucked in their breaths.


    The boy''s face was beautiful.In fact, all of the members of the caravan would mistake him for a female, if not for the fact that there was something aboutthe atmosphere he generated that made his gender absolutely obvious.


    Though they were not aware, this was an effect of his Fae blood. The fae all appeared inhumanly beautiful and were definitely feminine by most standards, but the males were able to emit a masculine aura that seemed to contradict their appearance, though in fact, it suited them greatly; they seemed almost as masculine as a seven-foot-tall man with bulging muscles, and yet it somehow fit their beautiful appearances.


    The boy had always emitted this aura, as he disliked being mistaken for a female for... many reasons. The only time he had repressed it was when he had used his Fae appearance to assassinate one of his six competitors for the throne, who held the aspect of Lust.


    The guards felt that this was very abnormal, but they avoided commenting on it; they knew that fairies, supposedly distant relatives of the legendary Fae, had a similar aura, and the noble family they served was not racist like many others.


    After a moment of stupefaction, the guard captain grunted and gestured to his two mounted subordinates. The two stood on guard, one watching the boy and the other surveying the surroundings while the captain took a glass orb the size of an infant''s fist out of his saddlebags.


    The man cautiously handed the orb to the boy, wary of any sudden movements. The boy took the orb, and it turned white for a moment before clearing. The guards lost some of their tension, but continued surveying the surroundings; the orb had decreed the boy innocent, but that did not mean that they could lose concentration;the boy''s innocence merely meant that if bandits attacked, he would just be another innocent victim.


    The guard captain left watching the surroundings to the nine other guards currently on duty, and said with a friendly smile "Hello, boy. Quite young to be alone on the road, aren''t you?"


    The boy pulled his hood back up and shrugged, replying "Indeed. That''s why I wanted to ask if I could travel with you."


    The man''s smile turned into a grin[1], as the boy''s attitude reminded him of his son. "As long as you can carry your own weight, it''s no problem. What''s your name, boy?"


    The boy looked up, meeting the man''s brown eyes with his own golden ones, and opened his mouth to speak.


    "Fenrir."

 Night

    Fenrirkept pace with the wagons. The caravan''s people were very welcoming, which the boy would normally have found suspicious. However, the expensive Telling Orb had dispelled any suspicions about his character, and the merchants and guards all had surprisingly bright souls, showing their naturally good disposition. Fenrir could tell that the nobles in the carriage also had relatively bright souls, which surprised him due to the murderous atmosphere that the boy assumed all courts had.


    The caravan had accepted Fenrir due to the kind personalities of the travelers, and all of his new companions agreed that as long as the boy was not too much of a hindrance, he did not have to offer any form of payment. However, Fenrir despised the idea of only taking from these kind travelers and giving nothing in return. So, he secretly supplied the horses and guards with pure energy. For a mortal, manipulating pure energy would generally be impossible without the cooperation of a spirit, and even then the caster would have to gain the consent of anyone who they wished to strengthen. Luckily, Fenrir was not a mortal.


    Of course, the guards noticed an increase in their stamina, but they were aware of the prerequisites for such a spell. It did not seem to be a threat, so they mostly dismissed it, but they did keep note of the fact. After a short discussion, the captain decided that the novelty of a new companion had given them a spike of energy, which would eventually fade.


    The three suns neared the horizon. The boy made sure his hood was securely in place, with the shadows of the cowl covering his hair and eyes. Then, he chantlessly cast some magic so that the darkness would always just barely cover his hair and eyes, as long as the hood was on. He considered accomplishing the task by manipulating the laws of the world, but that would give his position away if another god happened to be in the world at that moment; though the world''s creator was dead, that did not make it impossible for other gods to pass through the world.Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!


    The caravan searched for a good place to spend the night and decided upon a mid-sized clearing around half a mile from the road. The captain had glanced strangely at Fenrir when the boy had pointed it out, but did not question it; he was already quite certain that the boy was something like an elf or a fairy, or perhaps a subspecies of the forest-dwelling races. While he would not have as much Fae blood as his more pure-blooded counterparts, it would still be able to explain the discovery of the clearing; any race with even a drop of Fae blood would feel at home in the forest, as well as having higher night vision and other senses than humans. Although, they would not have as much stamina and strength as humans. In fact, strength and stamina were the human race''s best points; while dwarves had them as well, the short race''s fighting capability was not as strong due to body structure, and the only race that truly exceeded the humans in strength and endurance along with fighting capability was the demons. However, demons could not use magic, a fact that the humans used to their great advantage; while humans were not nearly as talented in magic as the descendants of the Fae, they were definitely more so than the demons.


    The boy was even able to nimbly maneuver the bulky wagons and carriage through the woods.


    As the guards and merchants set about putting up tents and starting a small campfire, the boy ran off to hunt, seemingly enthusiastic to be of help.


    The guard captain smiled; he felt that Fenrir''s actions were almost identical to that of a child eager to please his parents. Once more, he was reminded of his son.

 Hunting

    Fenrirstalked through the forest like a wraith. His hood still obscured his features, but eventually he pulled it down off his head. The suns were setting and the moons were rising, but the day was still bright enough to see clearly, even if he weren''t half Fae.


    The boy had told the guard captain, who introduced himself as Rokvur, that he was going hunting. The man had seemed worried about his lack of weapons and still seemed slightly concerned when the boy had pulled a sling from the folds of his cloak. After all, even if Fae were rulers of the forest, a rabid or starving animal would still attack them. And though Fae races tended to age slowly, the boy still could not be more than fourteen; for fairies, elves, and all other descendants of the Fae, the body aged at a normal pace until around sixteen years old, at which point it slowed almost to a halt.


    And so, Rokvur rightly judged Fenrir''s age. However, he greatly underestimated the boy''s abilities; after all, the man had no clue how fierce and bloody the competition for the position of Demon King was, nor did he know that Fenrir was actually a demon and a participant, let alone the winner. The boy was quite touched, though, as it had been a long time since someone had worried for him, ever since he had killed his parents. Even his four generals were not concerned for him; they held absolute confidence in their king. If their king believed that there was even the slightest chance of survival, they would be completely certain that he could obtain said chance; and if he was certain of his death, like when he left to fight a god, then they would be absolutely sure that he would die, and grieve for him. They never felt the nagging uncertainty that was classified as worry. After convincing the man that he was perfectly capable of surviving, Fenrir had departed from the campsite. He felt it odd that the nobles within the carriage had not yet disembarked, but his previous arrogance meant that he was currently clueless about society, so it may have simply been due to a custom that he was unaware of.


    Upon leaving the camp, Fenrir proceeded with purpose and direction. He soon came upon his destination: a bandit camp located a few miles away, which he had deemed a threat. And threats were to be eliminated.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    While the boy could have simply walked openly into the camp and began a slaughter, he felt that it would increase the minuscule risk of escapees if he did so, while using subterfuge would not increase the required effort by much. It was much more efficient to begin by killing most of the bandits stealthily, then wiping out the rest in one fell swoop. Of course, he could use magic and wipe them all out at once, but his Fae instincts demanded a hunt.


    The bandits seemed to be rather professional, likely a former mercenary group. Several small tents surrounded a larger one, with sentries patrolling the perimeter. In total, the bandits likely numbered around fifty, which would have been a serious threat to the twenty guards of the caravan.


    Fenrir quickly slew the sentries, disposing of their bodies. Then, he proceeded to eliminate the inhabitants of the smaller tents. None of them were able to put up anything close to a good fight, even though he did not use magic.


    Approaching the larger tent, Fenrir suddenly stiffened.


    Souls did not tell the exact personality of a being. A newborn would have a bright soul, which would darken as their nature began to be corrupted by desires and "evil". Upon death, the soul would be sent to a level of Hell to be cleansed of the darkness, and then enter the cycle of reincarnation as a pure, bright being. However, sometimes beings would remain "good" people even after being faced with the problems of the world. As long as the true nature of a person was "good", then their soul would remain bright. Though uncommon, it was not exceedingly rare for a person with a seemingly terrible surface personality to actually have a bright soul; the soul showed the unconscious mind''s condition, not that of the conscious mind.


    Out of the bandits that Fenrir had killed, a few still held bright souls, likely having been forced into their banditry. However, now he saw a sight that he had thought impossible: a soul that was encased in a shell of darkness, but shone brightly from within. Up until now, he had only seen souls with uniform colors, mostly varying shades of grey.[1] Even with his inherited knowledge as a god, the boy had never seen anything like what was before him at that moment.

 Dinner for One

    After pausing for a moment, Fenrir cautiously proceeded into the tent. The only soul that it housed was the seemingly mutated one, but it was something he had no knowledge of, so Fenrir acted with utmost caution.


    Upon entering the tent, the boy paused, taking in the sight before him. A man, seemingly the bandit leader, was standing before what he recognized as a tear in space. Though he was familiar with the identity of the patch of nothingness in the air, Fenrir was astounded that he felt no spatial fluctuations from it, even as he stood so close.


    Though spatial ripples from tears in space would not be discernable to even a god under normal circumstances, no matter the distance, this tear was in Fenrir''s home world. His inherited memories came from the being who created the world, so he was intimately familiar with the laws of the world. As such, he should be able to clearly feel spatial fluctuations from any tear in the fabric of the world even if he wasn''t in the world himself, but now he stood only a couple meters away and yet he felt nothing. This could mean two things: either he was not fully adjusted to his power, which he was, or someone from a higher world was obstructing his senses. However, Fenrir was able to tell that the man before him had a connection with his cycle of reincarnation, so he could not be the one who was hiding the fluctuations...


    With a jolt, Fenrir stiffened. The only plausible explanation for this was an invasion from a hollow world, which meant that the higher existence that did the shielding was...


    The man grinned.


    His neck tilted to an impossible angle as he bent his head until it was upside down and touching his back, looking at Raz with bleeding eyes. His very existence began to emit a destructive aura, disturbing the fabric of the world. Though, any mortal who saw the aura would percieve it to be mere darkness. After all, "darkness" was simply the lack of "light", and the aura was tearing apart reality itself, which of course included light. Or at least, it was destroying what a mortal would perceive as reality. It was simply the second layer of reality created by a god; this was known as a "world". Meanwhile, under that layer was the Primordial Chaos, in which all worlds were located, and no laws existed. Even the strongest of gods would be unable to damage the Primordial Chaos[1].


    Suddenly, the man was no longer where he had been before. He had moved seemingly instantaneously to right in front of Fenrir, and his hand extended into the boy''s chest. His face was twisted as he exulted in his newfound power. Fenrir''s heart had been pierced through, and so he stood stunned, unable to process the situation.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Or, so it seemed to the man. The boy''s afterimage faded as he stopped before the tear in space and mended it.


    Before the man could turn around, he collapsed. Fenrir had erased his soul completely, feeling a twinge of guilt. Even if there were millions of souls in the Cycle, each one was nigh impossible to replace. That was why souls were meant to be able to recover from any damage sustained. However, this soul had likely been infected by a world''s enemy, and so Fenrir had been forced to remove it from the fabric ofexistence itself. The Law of Conservation of Matter did not affect gods. After all, they were the ones who created the laws of the worlds, and so the worlds'' laws would bend to their will. Only the dark outer shell remained. The boy gazed at the shell for a moment, and sighed. It seemed his conclusion was correct. In that case, it meant he would have to make some preparations, even if all he could do was to react. After all, this world was the creation of that person. He could not permit it to come to harm.


    While the higher existence was definitely stronger than Fenrir, he was not afraid. After all, he held an ability that not even the greatest of gods had. He reached out and grabbed the dark shell, which he now knew to be a creation of a hollow world, designed to corrupt and destroy anything it came into contact with, able to tear apart even the universal laws of the world and he... ate it. After swallowing, he felt the familiar feeling of his power increasing, as well as a new ability whose sole purpose was to destroy worlds. Once more, the boy sighed. He no longer enjoyed his increase in strength, especially after he had become a "God Eater", as she had titled him. After a moment, though, Fenrir realised that she would not have wished him to feel such grief, and tried to make himself to enjoy the meals as he used to. A smile appeared on his face, containing endless melancholy and a small spark of nostalgia. Luckily, there were no others around, or he would have caused another "Calamity of the Bloody Rain", which was what the witnesses had dubbed the last time he had smiled in public. Every single demon who had seen his smile had stood stunned for almost a full minute, and a few had developed nosebleeds. Upon coming to their senses, those demons with the sin of Lust had lost control of themselves and jumped at him, and his sins of Pride and Wrath had demanded that he kill them all. Ever since that day, he had always used magic to suppress what the Goddess had called his "charisma stat". He never did learn which world that phrase came from.


    "Thanks for dinner," he said, facing the space where the spatial tear had been.

 Dinner for Many

    The three suns were beginning to sink below the horizon, and their dim rays filtered between a thin canopy of leaves, barely giving enough light for a human to see by. The atmosphere of the forest changed as the nocturnal animals left their homes and the diurnal ones sought shelter for the night. At this time, a pair of rabbits, both covered in brown fur, crouched in the grass of a small clearing with a thin layer of grass, having one last meal before returning to their burrows. Suddenly, a stone shot through the air, crushing the skull of one rabbit before glancing off past its corpse and knocking the other unconscious. A figure walked out from the trees, his white hair seeming to glow in the faint lighting. Reaching down, he lifted the unconscious rabbit from the ground, killing it with a sharp jerk of his hand. He then grabbed the other by its hind legs, healing the remains of its head until the wound looked like it came from a normal sling. Turning, he left the clearing, entering the darker area beneath the trees. After walking a short distance, he came upon a tree slightly taller and thicker than the rest, and set the two rabbits down. With smooth, practiced movements, he seemed to flow up the trunk of the tree. One by one, more dead rabbits fell from the canopy to join the two he had just killed, until around ten formed a pile at the bottom of the trunk. Then, the figure returned to the base of the tree, surveying the fruits of his hunt.


    Fenrir cocked his head. Indeed, ten rabbits would be enough for every member of the caravan to have two fifths of a rabbit, along with the bread that the travelers had brought. It would be plenty enough for a satisfying meal. However, it was definitely not normal for a person to be able to hunt this many; likely, the guard who would usually do the hunting would only catch five rabbits at most, which would be barely enough to sate the travelers'' appetites. Ten rabbits was a completely unusual amount. The boy realized that he might have been a bit too enthusiastic in repaying his benefactors'' kindness.


    After a moment, Fenrir shrugged. The members of the caravan already knew that he had at least some Fae blood in him, so even if they were a bit surprised about his hunting prowess, they would not be too surprised. It would probably help that he had already left the camp for an unusually long amount of time, so they would assume it took him quite a bit to get so much food. Fenrir picked each rabbit up by the hind legs and tied the ten rabbits into five pairs. Then, he quickly slit all their throats with magic, and slung the pairs over the branch with one on each side. The rabbits'' blood would drain by the time he came within close proximity with the camp, so the smell of blood would notdraw any predators too close.


    Lifting the branch, Fenrir covered his head with the hood of his cloak and began walking back to the camp.


    ~~~~~~~


    Rokvur worriedly paced the camp. Fenrir had left almost two hours ago, but he had yet to return. The man worried for the boy''s safety, and cursed himself for not sending Yu, the guards'' hunter,to go with him. After all, even if the boy was of the races of the forest, bandits would still be a major threat, and if he came upon a demonic beast then it would all be over. Chewing his lip in worry, Rokvur thought about the boy''s enthusiasm to help the group, and his paternal instincts raged at him once more for allowing Fenrir to go alone. Honestly, the boy reminded him far too much of his son.


    "Who goes there?" called Yu, who happened to be on sentry duty. Rokvur immediately began to strain his ears for a reply, praying that it was Fenrir''s safe return.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.


    "It''s me," said an enchanting and familiar voice, "I brought food."


    The tension left Rokvur''s shoulders as he sighed in relief, glad that the boy had not run into trouble. However, his eyes widened in the next instant as he beheld the bounty of Fenrir''s hunt.


    As the guard captain gaped, the boy''s posture seemed tensed and worried, as if he was waiting for praise. Upon noticing this, Rokvur couldn''t help but think back to the boy''s eagerness to be of help. ''He really is just like a child...'' he thought as he smiled warmly and said "Good job. We''ll be able to eat well tonight."


    ~~~~~~~


    The tension left Fenrir''s body and he smiled, glad that there was no suspicion in Rokvur''s voice. He noticeda strangely familiar expressionon the man''s face, though, and after a moment he realized that it was the same look his parents had had whenever his acted childish. After pondering the reason for this for a moment, Fenrir mentally shrugged as he decided that it was probably unimportant.


    "Here, I''ll help you clean them," said Yu, the hunter, as he reached out an open hand. Fenrir realized that Yu had that same expression on his face, and after a quick look he realized that, in fact, the entire traveling group, minus the two nobles in the carriage, were looking at him with the strangely warm gazes, and his confusion intensified. Had he done something childish? He didn''t think so...


    Fenrir handed half of the rabbits to Yu and cleaned the other half himself, skinning and gutting them with swift, efficient movements. Yu looked impressed as he watched, thinking that he clearly had much experience with hunting.


    When they had finished preparing the rabbits, Fenrir impaled them on stakes and placed them by the fire that the others had started while he was away. Opening a leather satchel by his side, he pulled out some herbs and sprinkled them over the meat. The boy had taken the satchel from his dimensional storage to serve as his only luggage when he had been about to join the caravan. His fellow travelers looked on, slightly surprised by his cooking ability. In fact, one of Fenrir''s four generals had carried the sin of Gluttony, and the boy had made it a habit to cook for him, improving the already high skill level that his mother had imparted on him.


    After a while, a delicious aroma suffused the area around the camp, and the others gathered around Fenrir, salivating as they watched him cook. When he declared that the food was done, his fellow travelers fell upon the food like a pack of starving wolves. The boy made sure to save one rabbit for the nobles still in the carriage, and told the others that he had already eaten, so he didn''t need one for himself.


    With a chunk of dry, hard bread in one hand and a piece of rabbit in the other, Rokvur told Raz "When we''re done eating, the Lord and Young Miss will come out for their dinner. The Young Miss acts..." Rokvur made an awkward face, searching for the right words. "A bit hostile," he finished, "But she''s actually quite a nice girl, so please don''t mind it."


    Soon, the travelers had finished eating, and three of the guards went to the carriage. They pulled a polished wooden board from the roof, and four short posts from the corners of the carriage. Then, the guards placed the posts in four slots on the board, and then a table with elaborate carvings stood beside the carriage. Another guard walked to the merchants'' wagons and took out two sets of fine utensils, along with two well-crafted napkins and some plates,made two place settings on the table. The rabbit was placed on a plate, and a wedge of cheese and a loaf of bread were plated beside it. Two glasses of water were placed by the place settings, and chairs were taken from the merchants'' wagons.


    Rokvur knocked gently on the door, politely saying "My Lord, Young Miss, it''s time for dinner."

 Humans are... Weird

    Yerin Aelis stepped down from the carriage after her father, helped down by Rokvur. Sheglanced at her surroundings and noticed a dark and shadowy forest, which were clearly far more untamed than the well-groomed hunting grounds back home. Then, Yerin noticed an enchanting scent in the air and breathed in deeply. Turning to its source, she saw the perfectly cooked rabbit on the table, and felt vaguely confused. They had been eating rabbit almost every day, to the point that she was sick of it. However, the aroma of this rabbit was enough to reawaken her appetite. She wondered who had gotten cooking duty today. Taking a seat across from her father, Yerin flicked her white hair over her shoulder and picked up a fork and knife. Upon her first bite, Yerin''s red eyes widened in surprise, before preparing to take her next mouthful. The quality of the food surpassed even that of the Aelis family''s personal cook. As the cook of a family of Grand Dukes, the cook was definitely among the best of his profession, so it was practically impossible to surpass his skills for anyone except the royal chef himself. And after a moment, Yerin realized that the only seasonings on the rabbit were salt and pepper; this made the feat even more impressive. After finishing the food as quickly as possible without breaching etiquette, Yerin turned to Rokvur.


    "Who cooked this?" she asked, her tanned face expressing her curiosity, "And why didn''t they cook our other meals as well?"


    Rokver responded politely. "A lone traveler joined us on the road today, young miss. He was the one who caught and cooked the rabbits. His name is Fenrir"


    The carriage was mostly soundproofed for comfort purposes, and so neither Yerin nor her father had known that a new addition had been made to their group. And Rokvur had not asked them for permission either; he had full authority over the travel arrangements, as long as they arrived at the Capital safely. As the captain of the guard, he at least had that much trust. Yerin''s father, Trevor Aelis, surveyed the other travelers, who were preparing for the night. Upon sighting a slightly short figure wearing cloak, with its cowl pulled low over his head, Trevor politely greeted the him, expressing his gratitude. "Many thanks for the meal, Master Fenrir."


    The figure glanced their way and gave responded with a brief nod, before turning back to the pelts that he was treating. Yerin frowned angrily. The figure was clearly a commoner who had joined the caravan for the sake of safety. While he had indeed been useful for the meal, that merely made it so that neither party would owe the other; he had paid for his safety with food. But Fenrir was not showing the proper respect for a Grand Duke, as a commoner. He had responded to her father''s thanks with a quick glance and a nod. He hadn''t even removed the hood covering his features. Yerin opened her mouth to complain, but was interrupted by a quick word from her father. "Yerin," he said. Her face darkened. She did not understand why her father was so lenient to this commoner, but she obeyed hisfirm command.Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    ~~~~~~~


    Trevor Aelis mentally sighed in exasperation. His daughter had originally been quite kind to everyone they met, but ever since that annoying scion of the Fars family of Dukes had begun his one-sided pursuit of her, she had slowly become easily angered and prideful. The girl was fifteen now, and was quite irrational and would get angry at even the smallest perceived slight, though she always stopped after harshly scolding the offender, seemingly retaining some sense of restraint. According to his wife, who was far more knowledgeable about these affairs than he, her change was caused by a combination of adolescence and bottled up anger at the Fars boy. She could not shame the Fars boy directly, as the two houses were only separated by one rank. And so, she used commoners as an outlet for her frustration. As a father, Trevor felt helpless, and hoped that she would overcome this quickly. He was one of the more progressive nobles; while he did acknowledge that nobles were the ones who held the most power in the country, he did not hold as much prejudice against commoners as many nobles did. And so, while he did not feel that the boy''s response was the most appropriate for the situation, he didn''t feel that it was to the point of being offensive. It helped that the rabbit was delicious; if Fenrir had not been a total stranger, Trevor would have hired him as his chef on the spot. After all, even if the food was delicious, a noble of his status had to be wary of poison and the like.


    ~~~~~~~


    Fenrir cocked his head, slightly confused, after sensing the exchange between the two nobles. So far, humans had seemed to act just like demons, minus the influence of the Void Soul. However, that noble girl, apparently named "Yerin", had acted quite strangely. If she had simply held excessive pride, he would have understood; after all, he had met many demons who held the Sin of Pride, and had once carried it himself. However, he could tell from the fluctuations of her soul that her anger was not directed at him, while the father had showed a flash of sadness along with a tinge of anger, which had also been directed elsewhere. After a moment''s consideration, Fenrir saved the interesting interactions for later pondering, deciding that he did not have sufficient data at the moment. For now, he came to a temporary conclusion:


    Humans are weird.

 I Dont Understand

    Fenrir woke just before the first sun rose above the horizon. He had been offered a tent, but the Fae in him preferred to sleep with the earth as his bed and the sky as his roof. It was not yet anywhere close to what most considered day,[1] without even a single sun above the horizon, but Fenrir had never particularly needed sleep. In fact, the boy could go for eternity without a single wink of sleep, as long as he did not expend too much energy at once. He was technically a god, after all.


    Collecting the rabbit pelts, Fenrir prepared for the upcoming journey in complete silence. He had stretched them around small, portable frames of wood, and intended to sell them to the merchants when they were finished drying. After stacking the frames and tying them together, he added two loops of rope to form a makeshift pack. Bringing the pack with him, he entered the forest to gather breakfast for the travelers. He didn''t hunt anything; meat in the morning could upset the stomach. After approximately two hours, Fenrir had filled his satchel with berries and edible plants. Returning to the camp, he startled Yu, who was on sentry duty. The man hadn''t noticed when Fenrir had left, as the boy hadn''t made a single sound.However, the boy with a bundle of edible leaves and tubers in his arms was definitely Raz; he had lowered his hood to avoid any misunderstandings. After all, a hooded figure approaching camp in what most people would consider to still be nighttime would definitely raise the alarm.


    Fenrir nodded in greeting, and the slightly confused sentry nodded in return. Yu mentally sighed in envy; it had taken him decades of training to become able to move silently, and even then he doubted that he had the same level of stealth as the boy before him. Upon noticing the bundle of food in Fenrir''s arms and the smell of berries from his satchel, Yu could not help but smile. It seemed that the boy had snuck out of camp to avoid waking anyone, and then gathered breakfast for his fellow travelers. The guard thought that this was quite endearing, and his already good impression of the boy rose higher.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.


    Upon entering the camp, Fenrir quickly restarted the fire. "Borrowing" a pot from one of the sleeping merchants, the boy took some water from the many drums of water in the supply wagon and began to cook some soup. While the soup cooked, Fenrir piled the berries in his satchel onto a plate, along with several fruit he had found as he foraged.


    ~~~~~~


    As the second sun began to rose above the horizon, a time which would be considered relatively early in the morning,[2] a delicious aroma woke Rokvur. As the captain of the guard exited his tent, he saw Fenrir stirring a pot of soup, with a large plate of fruites and berries resting beside him. As he approached the pot, Rokvur realized that Fenrir had likely gotten up early to search for the food, and had even especially searched for relatively light dishes for the traveler''s breakfast.


    Fenrir turned to face him, and Rokvur perceived (imagined) a glimmering in the boy''s eyes that seemed to be saying "Praise me!"


    The man smiled, thinking that the boy was a very cute child.[3]


    "Good job," he said.


    ~~~~~~~


    Fenrir cocked his head, perplexed. The man''s words of "Good job" were slightly abnormal, as normally in this situation one would say something along the lines of "Thank you for the meal" or simply "Thanks." In addition, Rokvur''s face had that same expression again, the expression that Fenrir''s parents always had whenever he did something "cute". Yu had also had that expression when Fenrir had come back to the camp with food. However, he did not feel that he had been doing anything childish; he was simply repaying the debt he incurred by joining the caravan. ''I don''t understand.'' He thought, ''As expected, humans are weird.''

 Would You Be My Friend?

    The second day of travel passed uneventfully. The guards insisted that Fenrir ride with them in their wagon, as repayment for his delicious meals. The boy tried to refuse, but the guards wouldn''t back down. After all, Fenrir''s actions both at dinnertime and in the morning were viewed as childish and cute, and they thought of him as similar to a child trying his best to care for his parents.


    Of course, if Fenrir heard this, he would have likely fallen over in confusion.


    And so, Fenrir sat in the covered wagon that carried the guards who were on break, occasionally attending to his rabbit pelts. The guards were all very friendly to the boy, especially as those with children thought him very similar to an especially innocent child. Overall, Fenrir spent much of the journey feeling as if he had misinterpreted the doting expressions of the guards, but felt a warm feeling in his chest that he could not understand. Soon, the suns began to near the northern horizon, and Fenrir once more led the caravan to a suitable camping spot. Fenri left to hunt for dinner, and, encountering no abnormalities as he had last time, he came back with a young hardt, which looked like a tuskless boar with the horns of a moose. Yu helped him to skin the creature and remove its entrails, and Fenrir removed the meat from its bones, intending to make hardt stew. Using the bones for the broth, he had just finished adding in herbs, milk, and meat when Yerin interrupted him. She had exited the carriage earlier than usual, accompanying her father as he sparred with her. Fenrir had noticed that the two held higher than average spear skills, perhaps on par with a captain in his demon army. This was impressive for a human; demons held the most superior physical abilities of all the races, and that included an abnormal ability to learn to use weapons. The only reason demons had not absolutely crushed the "good" races was because the "good" races had the capacity for magic, and also because they numbered far more than the demons; After all, demons were only one race, and their opponents were many races united against them.


    ~~~~~~~


    The Aelis family were some of the most proficient spearmen of the human race. As daughter of the head of the family, Yerin was one of the strongest of them. She had been practicing her spear skills with her father when she noticed Fenrir watch them for a moment, then look away "dismissively". At this, the girl was infuriated; she felt that her abilities were insulted by the commoner''s attitude. After the girl and her father finished their match, Yerin told him that she would be staying outside until dinner was ready, complaining about the cramped conditions of the carriage.


    ~~~~~~~


    Trevor Aelis looked at his daughter, slightly suspicious that she was about to cause trouble. Mentally shrugging, the man decided that even if the girl tried to cause trouble, Rokvur would prevent her from going too far. Besides, Trevor''s mental state, worn down by three days of constant, mind-numbing travel, demanded that he get a quick nap. He was in no mood to deal with his troublesome daughter. After all, the man was not able to sleep when the carriage was moving; his training with the spear and experiences on the battlefield kept him constantly alert, especially when there was magic affecting him. His subconscious mind had noticed the soundproofing and shock absorbing spells cast on the carriage, and he was unable to sleep while they were active. Now that the carriage was at rest and only one spell, the soundproofing one, was in use, he would finally be able to get some rest.


    ~~~~~~~


    Fenrir cocked his head at Yerin curious as to why the girl had interrupted his cooking. While the stew would still need an hour until it was done, he really didn''t need to pay it much attention until then. Yerin was clearly angry, but Fenrir did not recall offending her in any way.


    ~~~~~~~


    "So, commoner," said Yerin, wearing an arrogant expression on her face, "You think you could beat me with the spear?"You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    Yerin was no fool; she was aware that Rokvur would intervene if she challenged the fool to a duel. However, unlike her tired father, Yerin had noticed that Rokvur was on sentry duty at the moment; he would not be paying attention to what was happening in the camp itself, even if his post was within clear view of the camp. In order to keep their eyes adjusted to the darkness, Rokvur had made certain to locate the sentry a decent distance from the campfire even though the suns had not yet set, so there was little chance that the guard captain would interrupt. None of the other guards had the authority to interfere, so she was free to oppress the commoner as much as she wanted.


    ~~~~~~~


    Fenrir nodded, confused. As a demon king candidate and as a demon king, he had never been approached by anyone who thought for certain that they were superior to him, so he did not quite understand Yerin''s intentions. Seemingly infuriated by his response, Yerin angrily growled "So you do, do you? Well then, if you''re so confident, then have a match with me."


    Fenrir shrugged, accepting the training spear that Yerin passed to him. He decided that he should probably hold back to avoid exposing his abilities. The pair walked to the area where Yerin and her father had been sparring earlier and readied themselves. Any guards that weren''t on sentry duty, as well as all the merchants, were all either in their tents or in their wagons, so the two didn''t draw any attention.


    "Begin in three... two... one!" cried Yerin, rushing at Fenrir with her spear pointed forward. Leaning slightly to the side, he dodged the spear by a hair, and brought his own spear to Yerin''s neck before she even perceived that he had dodged. Suddenly realizing that he wasn''t holding back enough, Fenrir then jumped away from Yerin, into the path of the spear. Upon being hit, he said "Ouch, that hurt." with a monotone voice. Needless to say, acting weak was not his strong point.


    ~~~~~~~


    Yerin froze, shocked by multiple parts of what had just happened. While the movements were barely slow enough for the girl to perceive, her opponent had definitely been on the brink of winning, before withdrawing his spear and even rushing into the trajectory of her spear. Then, he had said "Ouch, that hurt." in a completely unconvincing voice, which was somehow still more beautiful and entrancing than even the best of songs. Before, she had been sure that Fenrir was an uncultured, short man, probably with a scruffy beard and a hoarse voice. However, the voice made her realize that he was probably a boy her age, though she was slightly confused why she was so certain he was male. Somehow, her anger at the boy quickly dissipated as if it had never been aimed at him in the first place, and the voice helped her realize that she was the one who was being crass and rude, and it was her who should apologize to the boy for her attitude.[1] It seemed almost like the boy was one of the legendary Fae, who had held the ability to clear the minds of mortals with a single word or phrase, and whose minds would never be affected by any form of mental magic.[2] It was likely that he had some Fae blood in him, but he was definitely not an elf; the ears would be noticable even with the hood. However, elves were the race with the highest percentage of Fae blood, and it was rare even for them to have such an ability. Likely, he possessed even purer blood than that of the elves. Yerin wanted to ask what race Raz was, but her no longer clouded mind understood that such a question would be quite rude. She smiled, suddenly realizing that the boy''s complete failure at hiding his strength was rather cute.


    ~~~~~~~


    Fenrir was proud of himself. He had never tried holding back his strength before, but from the happy expression on Yerin''s face, and the happiness emitted by her soul, he deduced that she was satisfied with her victory and therefore his acting had been effective. Though, her expression was awfully similar to how Rokvur looked at him... He hadn''t done anything "cute", had he? Fenrir''s train of thought was interrupted when the girl bowed her head and said "Sorry, I''ve been rude."


    Fenrir nodded automatically, but his mind was confused. He didn''t recall any point where she had been rude. "It''s fine," he replied honestly, "I didn''t even notice."


    "No, I''ve been seriously terrible to you... If I don''t repay you somehow, I''ll never be able to forgive myself," replied the confusing girl.


    After a moment of consideration, Fenrir remembered his lessons fromher, beforethat had happened. He quickly separated himself from those memories, not allowing himself to dwell on the mental scars that had only barely scabbed over. "If that''s the case..." the boy hesitated, feeling that his next question would be rude if she still had not even seen his face. Removing his hood, he completed his sentence: "would you be my friend?"[3]

 Belonging

    After Fenrir asked Yerin to be his friend, she had stood still for a full minute. He had begun worrying whether he''d done anything wrong when the fifteen year old girl had given her consent to his request, though she had stuttered a bit. He had found this rather confusing, but simply assumed her strange behavior to be another part of humans being strange. He had never come upon anyone who acted like this; the only people he had had direct contact with were his parents, male demons, and her, so it was a possibility that Yerin''s behavior was because she was female. However, his parents had greatly stressed that men and women were equals, so he concluded that it was likely because she was human. Perhaps humans had some strange customs when it came to friendship? It seemed to have something to do with his face, as Yerin had almost begged him to put his hood back on, though she seemed somehow reluctant. When he asked why, she had replied "Your face is a cheat, and it''s distracting."


    Fenrir decided to give up understanding her actions, and simply note her actions for now. Drawing a conclusion could wait until he had a larger database to draw it from.


    Fenrir ''s mental deliberations were interrupted when Yerin asked him about the fight with eager eyes. "So, what was that movement just now? How did you move so quickly? How long have you been training? Who was your master? Why did you pretend to lose?"


    At the barrage of questions, Fenrir ''s face became downcast. It seemed that he wasn''t as good at hiding as he had though...


    ~~~~~~~


    Seeing Fenrir pout childishly, Yerin couldn''t help but laugh. Even though it was obvious that the boy was trying to hide his thoughts, anyone could easily tell from his body language. It was clear that, though he was undeniably skilled, the boy wasn''t even close to proficient at acting. Seeing his naivete, Yerin felt the slight sense of inferiority that had come with her defeat fade away. For a moment, she had thought of the boy as simply her benefactor, who seemed to be aloof and separate. Now, she thought of him as a friend who she could casually tease.


    "Heh, that acting wouldn''t even fool an idiot! It was obvious how you were pretending."


    Seeing Fenrir become even more downcast, Yerin grinned. "Here, I''m the heir of a family of Grand Dukes, I know how to act. If you teach me how you did that, I''ll teach you how to fool people."


    Soon, Yerin was exhausted. She just couldn''t seem to move as Fenrir did.


    "We should stop for today," the boy said. Yerin was about to say that she could continue when he added "If we continue, let alone progress, you might end up hurting yourself."


    Yerin felt that the timing of that statement was a bit off. It had come a bit too late for if Fenrir had originally intended to say the last part. It was almost as if he had gazed into her soul-


    "It was obvious what you were thinking," said the boy, seeming once more to read her mind. "Besides, if it was me in your place, I would want to continue as well."The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    "Whoa, it really is as if you can read my mind..." said Yerin, grinning broadly. "At least, you understand me much better than that damn Fars boy."


    Fenrir tilted his head, obviously confused. Seeing this, Yerin quickly explained. "The heir of the Fars family wants to marry me, but even though I clearly said I''m not interested, he''s treating me as if I''m his belonging, the shim bastard." Somehow, Yerin''s elegant composure evaporated before Fenrir. She felt comfortable with him; the boy''s voice had cleared her troubled mind, and he seemed to understand her better than even her family.


    Fenrir cocked his head the other way, an action that Yerin though made him look like a small animal. "If you''ve already refused, should he not respect your wishes? And why would he think that you belong to him? You''re a person too, aren''t you?"


    "I know right?" Yerin nodded emphatically. Fenrir''s comment had touched a nerve; since childhood, Yerin had trained in the spear, resulting in an independent and headstrong personality. Upon entering the world of politics, she had been frustrated at how all the other nobles seemed to view her as an object, just because of her gender. And thus began a long rant about the injustice of the world, as the girl listed her grievances about the stupidity of nobles (excluding her own house, of course) to the only one who seemed to understand her frustration.


    ~~~~~~~


    When Rokvur came back from his post, he noticed Yerin and Fenrir off to the side of the clearing. Suspicious, he walked over to them, hoping that the young miss was not causing any trouble. As he came into hearing range of their discussion, he realized that their conversation was rather strange. From the tone of Yerin''s voice, it seemed like she was teaching a close friend how to do something; she seemed to be gloating at Fenrir¡¯s ineptitude, but in only in a teasing manner. It reminded him of the saying: "When you fall, a good friend will help you up and ask if you''re okay; your best friend will help you up while laughing." He was rather confused; Yerin had clearly been quite hostile to Fenrir before, but now she treated him closer than her lifelong friends. Granted, she had never seemed to feel as if those lifelong friends had been true friends. She had always simply described them as connections; their relationships were just business. The only people who she treated even close to how she was treating Fenrir were her family, and even to them she sometimes acted cold, with an attitude that seemed to say "You just don''t understand me." With the boy, she acted as herself, before she had entered the uselessly complicated world of court intrigue. Her personality was bright and sunny, unlike the cold and elegant mask that she wore before other nobles. Seeing this, Rokvur''s confusion turned to relief; as the guard captain of the Aelis house, Rokvur had been there to watch the girl grow up, and felt as if she were his own family. Of course he had been worried as she had become colder and colder, forced into a mold by court society. Then he noticed the contents of the conversation; Yerin was teaching Fenrir how to trick people! Over the course of the few days since Fenrir had joined them, Rokvur had come to see the boy as half a son to him, especially due to his pure and almost childish actions. Now the young miss was teaching the innocent boy how to lie! He had to stop this!


    ~~~~~~~


    After some chaos, dinner was finished and the travelers ate. Trevor Aelis was surprised that Yerin was acting so friendly towards Fenrir, but did not investigate after she explained what had happened to him. Rather, he became slightly jealous that his daughter was closer to Fenrir than her own father... From the start, he had been a doting father. After all, Yerin was his only child, and Trevor had never quite gotten over the death of his wife. Eventually, the travelers finished dinner. Unlike before, they ate all at once; last time, Rokvur had been worried about Yerin causing trouble, and so had had Trevor and Yerin eat after the rest of the travelers. Once more, the food was delicious, and all of the members of the caravan felt their parental instincts stirred at Fenrir¡¯s obvious happiness when they praised it. Meanwhile, Fenrir finally recognized the warmth in his chest as a sense of belonging, and he thought back to his days with her. Soon, the travelers entered their individual tents and went to sleep...

 A Fleeting Dream

    Lhetan woke up. Looking around, he realized that he was back in the house Sera had built, the house where his happiest memories had taken place.


    The house where his saddest memory had taken place.


    At this thought, the white-haired boy shot out of bed, rushing out of his room. There were no suns in the sky, but the moon hadn''t set either. The constant, gentle sounds of the waves made its way through the wooden walls of the cottage. Slamming open the door to Sera''s bedroom, he almost collapsed in relief when he saw the beautiful, golden haired girl sitting up, her eyes blinking open. She did not really need to sleep, but she said it was a habit from the past that she would prefer not to break. Her room was decorated with strange, soft toys she called "plushies", and the scent of the ocean wafted in from an open window. Lhetan threw himself into her arms, his body racking with sobs. Her golden eyes filled with concern, Sera gently comforted him.


    "What happened?" she asked, after the black-eyed boy calmed down, "Did you dream about the past?"


    Ever since he had regained his sanity, Lhetan had been haunted by horrifying dreams of his past crimes. Most often, the boy dreamt of the day when he had killed his parents. He had been four at the time, and due to their deaths, he had never quite grown up. True, he was much smarter than before, smarter even than Sera. True, his thought process often resembled that of a machine, and he was capable of taking care of himself. But Lhetan''s emotions were simple, like those of a small child. He was absolutely trusting of Sera, which could sometimes be rather frustrating for the girl. After all, the boy barely even recognized familial love, let alone romantic feelings. His blind faith in her made him think of a small puppy she had been raising back on Earth.


    "No..." As the boy responded, he held her hand tightly, afraid she would disappear.


    "I dreamt of a future... Without you."


    "Heh!" The girl barked out a laugh, ruffling his hair. "As if I would ever leave you, you idiot."


    "Mn." Despite his mumbled agreement, Lhetan still seemed tense, not loosening his death grip on her hand.


    "Hehe," Sera giggled, looking at her companion.


    Lhetan cocked his head. Surely it wasn''t that funny?


    Noticing the boy''s confusion, Sera let out another giggle. This guy... really was just like a puppy.


    "Well, since we''re awake, might as well have breakfast."


    The day passed normally, with Lhetan cooking the meals and Sera eating in bliss. As always, Sera dragged Lhetan down to the beach, the two jumping down the cliffs of the Edge like it was nothing. The two frolicked in the waves, throwing tidal waves at each other for fun, laughing as Sera picked up a Sea Serpent and chased Lhetan, who had refused to get near one ever since he and Sera had gone to sleep floating on the ocean. He had woken up to find himself in the digestive tract of one of the ancient beasts, and realized that Sera''s lesson of "You are what you eat." had engraved itself farther into his mind than he realized.


    They returned to the cabin when it began to get dark, and the first moon rose. Sera told Lhetan strange stories after dinner. She told him tales of buildings that scraped the sky, carriages that ran without horses or magic, and pictures that could move. At his disbelief, she pouted and told him that one day, she would show them to him. Then she began to speak of more realistic tales, tales of princesses and apples, of glass slippers and glamour lost at midnight.


    And she told him jokes. Jokes that were funny, jokes that were confusing, and jokes that were downright strange. She laughed when he laughed, and laughed even harder when he didn''t. Her happiness brought him warmth, a strange warmth that he had never felt before. He knew that as long as she was with him, then he would wish for nothing more. That as long as she was happy, then he would be happy.


    And then the second moon rose, a mocking crescent in the night. And Lhetan began to feel nervous. Something was wrong. Somehow, he remembered this happening before. He remembered the grinning moon, tainted by an eery red hue. He remembered- And then the pain hit him. It was a soul shattering, excruciating pain, pain that originated from his soul itself. He couldn''t move. He couldn''t scream or grit his teeth. He couldn''t even breathe. As his vision faded to black, the last thing Lhetan saw was Sera''s concerned face, as she shook him and shouted... something.


    And then he was alone. Everything was dark, cold, and empty. The pain worsened, and soon it became all that he knew. For what felt like an eternity, he suffered in the darkness. And he began to lose hope for salvation... But she saved him. Suddenly, a warmth enveloped his soul, shielding him from the pain. He knew it was her. Somehow, he knew. She had come for him. But he was tired. So, so tired. The bliss of sleep beckoned him. As he sank into its embrace, he felt that something was wrong. This felt so familiar, like it had happened before. But he was tired, and sleep called him.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    And again Lhetan woke. He woke on the edge of a cliff, empty except for one other. When he saw her, he immediately rushed over, lifting her from the hard rocks.


    She smiled weakly at him. "Hi.... sleepyhead..." Her voice was like the whisper of a ghost.


    "Don''t talk," said Lhetan. "Rest. I''ll heal you."


    Sera looked up at him, smiling sadly. He didn''t know why her gaze was filled with such melancholy, and he cast his magic... But for the first time in his life, his mana was empty.


    "No... No-" The boy''s eyes widened in horror, and he struggled in vain to pull from nonexistent reserves. A hand touched his cheek, and he froze.


    "It''s fine. Don''t push yourself." Sera''s eyes were filled with empathy, though she was the one who was dying.


    The boy stopped for a moment, mentally conflicted between saving her and doing as she told him to. Then, his eyes filled with a hopeless resolve. Noticing his intentions, Sera cried "No! Don''t-" But it was too late. Reaching into his soul itself, Lhetan tore a portion off, gritting his teeth through the mind-numbing pain. Converting it into raw magic power, Lhetan once more cast the healing spell. A soft, warm light covered Sera, fading away to reveal...


    No change.


    "Wha-" Lhetan could not bring himself to believe his eyes.


    "You... idiot..." Sera rebuked, barely able to continue talking. "You can''t.... save... I''ll... going... ahead...don''t... wait................more...............................year..."


    And then she faded away, leaving nothing behind.


    "No- this-" Lhetan''s eyes widened and his pupils dilated, unable to face reality. He grasped at the empty air where Sera had been.


    "No... No! NO!" Wails of grief split the air as his grasping hands tore space itself.


    ~~~~~~~


    Months passed. Lhetan did not move from his spot, waiting for Sera to return. She wouldn''t leave him. She had promised.


    On the second month, four horned figures approached him, sympathy showing on their faces. One of them spoke.


    "My king," he said, "She''s gone. She won''t be-"


    Suddenly, his figure blurred, and he was smashed away from Lhetan, over the horizon.


    "She''ll be back!" the boy yelled, desperation showing on his face. "She promised! Sera won''t leave me! She''ll be back!"


    ~~~~~~~


    The sun rose, and the eleventh month began. The boy kneeled before a patch of rock, which gleamed from his endless tears. His voice had quieted, even his Fae throat losing to his cries of woe. Lhetan felt a familiar presence. Hope filled his eyes once more and he frantically searched his surroundings. But she wasn''t there. Then, he glanced downwards. Reflected by his tears, he noticed something strange. His hair... His eyes... both were an elegant gold. For a full hour he stared, uncomprehending. Then, the tears began to fall once again.


    ''Why? Why did you leave?'' he thought, heartbroken.


    Soon, the grief turned to rage. ''You promised. YOU PROMISED! WHY!? WHY DID YOU LIE TO ME!?''


    And the rage turned once more to grief. ''Why....why would you leave me?''


    And then, the grief turned to a heart wrenching loneliness, and desperation. Lhetan desperately begged for Sera to return, his thoughts progressively becoming more like those of an orphaned child.


    ''Was it because I didn''t believe your stories? I''ll believe them, I promise! So please, come back...''


    ''Was it because I didn''t listen to you, and tried to heal you anyways? I won''t do it again... I won''t! I''ll be obedient, always! So please, don''t leave me...''


    ''If you''re not here...Who will be by my side? Who will tell me stories? Who will tell me strange jokes? Who will laugh with me?''


    ''Who will teach me when I''m confused?''


    ''Who will hold me when I''m sad?''


    ''Who will play on the beach with me?''


    ''What will I do without you?''


    ''I need you... I promise I''ll be good... So, please....''


    ~~~~~~~


    Yerin woke in the middle of the night, feeling that something was wrong. Walking quietly out of the tent, her instincts brought her directly to where Fenrir was sleeping. Upon seeing him, she halted for a moment, shocked. The quiet boy who had given off an innocent, happy atmosphere during the day was shaking, his body shuddering as he sobbed in his sleep. His moonlit figure looked unbearably lonely, and tears streamed down his face. And his hair was white. The boy''s hood had been shaken off by his trembling, exposing the ethereal hair. Yerin hesitated for a moment, surprised by the change. However, she knew that a few races had different appearances during the day than during the night, though it was exceedingly rare. It was quite reasonable that Fenrir had hidden this trait, as most of those races were valuable in some way or other and hunted down for materials or by slavers. And more importantly, her friend needed her.


    Yerin knelt by his side and gently tried to shake him awake. However, the moment she touched him, he shot up and she only caught a glimpse of his beautiful black eyes before he hugged her, his body still wracked with sobs. Yerin froze. She had never been hugged before by anyone other than her father, and a faint blush appeared on her face. She hesitantly hugged him back.


    Through his tears, he was repeating "Don''t leave me. Please. Don''t leave me alone..." like some sort of mantra.


    Yerin patted his back, her heart aching for her friend. Even if they had only been friends for less than a day, she had felt a connection with him that she had never found with anyone else, even her own father.


    How can someone so strong, she wondered, feel so frail at the same time?


    Eventually, Fenrir calmed down. Exhausted, he fell asleep just as Yerin was going to ask him what had happened to make him feel so much pain.


    Fenrir¡¯s scent, the scent of a vibrant forest after a rainstorm, wafted into her nose. Yerin felt her heartbeat quicken and her face turned tomato red.

 A New Student

    Fenrir woke just as the first sun rose, as always. Feeling a strange softness beneath his head, he opened his eyes to realize that he was sleeping on Yerin''s lap. After a moment of disorientation, Fenrir sat up with a jolt as he realized what had happened last night. Recalling his nightmare and his tears, the boy''s face turned tomato red from the bottom up. Anyone who saw him would feel as if it was steaming, and one could almost hear the sound of a kettle screaming in the background. Fenrir stared at her for a while. Somehow, he felt a strong emotion of trust for the girl, even though they had only met recently. Though he did not realize it himself, his subconscious mind had become almost dependent on her; it was like a drowning man clinging to a piece of wood. After a while, the boy unclasped his cloak and wrapped it around Yerin''s shoulders, shielding her from the chill of early Incipere. Then, he walked into the forest, going to forage for breakfast ingredients.


    ~~~~~~~


    When Yerin awoke, she felt surprisingly comfortable and warm, and smelled the delicious scent of Fenrir cooking in the air. Given the fact that she had slept outside, even with her warm travel clothes, she had expected to wake up cold from the still slightly chilly air of Incipere. However, she could not just leave the boy alone in the night, and it was not quite cold enough for her catch a cold in mid-Incipere, especially with her travel clothes designed for earlier in the season. Opening her eyes, Yerin realized that she was wearing Fenrir¡¯s cloak. Under the enticing smell of Fenrir¡¯s cooking, she could smell his scent from the warm garment wrapped around her.


    Her face flamed red.


    Standing slowly, she went to return Fenrir¡¯s cloak, and the boy welcomed her with a bowl of stew that smelled far better than any of the other meals he had cooked recently. Somehow, despite Fenrir¡¯s masculine aura, Yerin thought that this must be how a man felt when he woke in the morning to a warm meal prepared by his wife. As she realized what had just gone through her head, her face turned red again and she wondered what was wrong with her. Before last night, she had been able to boisterously talk and laugh with the boy, but now Yerin kept blushing from even looking at him too long.


    "Do you not like it?"


    The question froze the thousands of little Yerins running around screaming in Yerin''s mind. She felt her mind clear from the voice, and the uncertainty in it made her want to hug Fenrir. She took a mouthful of the stew. It was good enough that Yerin almost wondered if she was eating the food of the gods. The taste was so delicious that she almost collapsed out in bliss. Now that her mind was more or less clear from Fenrir''s Fae voice, the girl realized that the stew was emitting a smell so good that, had her mind been in a calmer state, she would''ve drooled a waterfall. In fact, though Yerin did not know, Fenrir had cast a spell so that the smell wouldn''t spread too far and attract animals; just the residual aroma that made it past the spell was enough to slowly awaken the others in the camp. Yerin had awoken first because she had been much closer than the others.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    ~~~~~~~


    Watching Yerin wolf down the food he had cooked, Fenrir felt strangely happy, with a warm sensation in his chest that he couldn''t describe.


    Eventually, the other travelers woke, and upon entering the range of the barrier they immediately rushed over to the pot of stew. Chaos ensued as they clamored over the food, and not a single drop was left in the pot. Of course, Fenrir had set a portion aside for each person, but he hadn''t separated portions for second servings.


    Grand Duke Aelis, who woke later than the others, nearly cried when he realized that he could''ve gotten seconds.


    ~~~~~~~


    Once more, the trip was uneventful. By dusk, the caravan was only half a day''s journey from its destination. Normally, they would have encountered some small villages and farms at this distance, but the forest was unsettled ground because, for some reason, all domesticated plants were unable to grow in its soil. Added together with the fact that it stretched all the way to the cliffs of the Edge, which was considered bad luck, and that it was rife with bandits, people preferred not to live there. However, the forest separated House Aelis from the capitol, and traveling around would be far too much of trouble. Combined with the fact that the Aelis house was a combatant house, the group did not particularly fear bandit attacks, and so chose to travel through the woods. The young miss was going to the Academy, after all. To get used to the new environment, she would need some free time before classes started.


    ~~~~~~~


    After Fenrir had gathered the ingredients and begun cooking dinner, Fenrir and Yerin began their spear lessons. The boy was a great teacher, so Yerin''s skill with the spear had improved almost 50% compared to when she had sparred with her father only one day ago.


    Upon seeing this, Trevor''s eyes widened to the point that they seemed on the verge of popping out of his head, and his jaw opened so wide it might be able to swallow a rabbit whole.


    And then, immediately afterwards, he rushed over and asked Fenrir to teach him as well.


    He was from a combatant house, after all. He was far more straightforward than other nobles, and the art of the spear was essentially his life.

 Future Path: the Imperial Academy

    After thrashing-*ahem*. After training with Yerin and her father, Fenrir prepared a meal and an uneventful night passed. When dawn came, Fenrir awoke once more and prepared breakfast. Then, they set off for the Capitol. After half a day of travel, the caravan arrived at the capitol. The walls were, in Fenrir''s opinion, uselessly elaborite. While their size, six meters wide and fifty meters tall, was capable of stopping most normal attacks, especially with the enchantments woven into the stone, the creators had likely focused more on appearance. The walls were made with earth magic, formed from a singular piece of stone, and golden veins ran through the surface of the white rock. It encircled the city completely, with angular watch towers that complemented the elegant castle within. The gates were crafted from gold, which held enchantments better than most nonmagical metals. Exquisite carvings of past heroes and ancient monsters sprawled across the wide doors, and people flowed freely in and out, with their backgrounds checked by the magic barrier as they passed. A moat of clear water, fifty meters wide, circled the city, from each of the nine gates stretched a drawbridge, pointing in the nine cardinal directions like an enormous compass. At least, they did at sunrise. Just like a giant clock, the city turned as the suns moved, with each bridge pointing in the direction of its respective sun.


    The view at sunrise and sunset on the hottest day, Calora, was likely awe-inspiring, especially from the central tower of the royal palace. With the shimmering city sprawling out beneath them, one would see each gate open wide as the dawn arrived, and the drawbridges would form nine paths, each leading to sun.


    Of course, Fenrir cared very little for aesthetics. The demons had always been united behind whoever became Demon King; the position was equivalent to that of a god. There was no need for them to impress anyone, as they were all allies. To Raz, the most beautiful place in the world was that simple cottage on the cliff. All he saw when he looked at the city were wasted resources. The tastes of a demon and those of the races differed, it seemed.


    When the people of the city saw the Aelis family''s crest on the wagons and the guards, they parted like water. Their gazes were filled with reverence as they watched the caravan pass, and those at the gates knelt when they saw the group. This continued even after they entered the city.


    Eventually, they came to a halt in front of an obviously high class inn. Yerin and Trevor exited the carriage as the innkeeper came out to greet them.


    ~~~~~~~


    "Lord Aelis, Lord Heir Yerin, I am honored that you have chosen to stay at the Golden Apple[1]. Truly, the Aelis house has good taste. Lord Aelis is so handsome and ..."This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    While the innkeeper tried to flatter her father and her, the Aelis duo quickly cut him off and walked straight to where Fenrir was standing. The other members of the caravan waited by the side for their turn to say goodbye. The innkeeper felt like crying.


    "It''s been nice traveling with you," said the boy, his hood still obscuring his features. The innkeeper and the onlookers were entranced by his fae voice. Despite the fact that the voice was incredibly beautiful, they were somehow sure that the person was a male.


    "Yeah. Make sure to visit me at the academy." Yerin smiled sadly as she spoke. Once again, the onlookers were stunned. While Trevor Aelis was usually friendly, Yerin Aelis was known for being cold and distant to everyone, especially males. However, she was friendly and even seemed reluctant to part when she spoke to this unknown young man. Their gossip senses were tingling.


    "Oh!" Yerin was struck with an idea on the spot. "Are you interested at all in attending the Imperial Academy?"


    Fenrir pondered for a moment. He had no real goal at the moment, and he felt rather reluctant to part with his friend. In the end, he shrugged and nodded. This "Imperial Academy" seemed interesting, and it would be nice to stay with Yerin. Besides, that personhadbeen wearing some sort of uniform...


    Yerin''s smile turned into a bright grin, further surprising the audience.


    "You need a recommendation to get in, do you have one?" Now that they didn''t have to separate, Yerin seemed much happier than before.


    When Fenrir shook his head, Yerin''s smile widened. "Then, the Aelis family will recommend you. Do you know when the entrance exams are?"


    Once more, the boy shook his head. Yerin wasn''t too surprised; likely, Fenrir was a foreigner, especially given that he probably wasn''t entirely human. Her smile widened, its beauty entrancing some of the onlookers. Feeling strangely happy, she told Fenrir all the main details about the Academy. As she spoke, she decided that she enjoyed the contrast between the boy''s strong and mostly silent demeanor and his surprisingly innocent and ignorant personality.[2]


    Meanwhile, the onlookers almost fell over as they watched Yerin Aelis, well known as a cold, elegant girl, energetically spoke to this stoic, unknown young man.


    After agreeing to meet at the entrance exam in three days, Yerin gave Fenrir a hug and a quick peck on the cheek before he left. As she did so, her face turned as red as a lobster, and the people watching could almost hear the sound of a kettle coming to boil...


    "What are you looking at!?" The moment the boy left, she yelled at the bystanders.


    This time, a few of the onlookers, including the innkeeper, did fall over.

 Fox

    It was nighttime. The moons shone faintly through a layer of clouds, and Fenrir i''Syul wandered the streets, unsure what to do.


    Yerin and Trevor Aelis had talked with him throughout the day, showing him around the wealthier districts of the city. They''d assumed that Fenrir had had a goal in mind when he came to the capitol, and so did not ask him to stay with them, thinking that he''d probably already arranged a place to stay. However, Fenrir was in the capitol by pure chance, and did not really have a goal in mind. Since he no longer needed to maintain the illusion of needing sleep, Fenrir wandered through the city, the shadows of his hood obscuring his features. The capitol was heavily populated, but the stink that one would expect from such a dense community of people was not present due to magic used for plumbing. However, the elegant and clean streets did not extend into the slums. As it was a bit past midnight, the streets were practically empty, and nothing in particular caught Fenrir¡¯s eyes as he wandered. Suddenly, the boy stopped. About a mile and a half away, there was a commotion as two fully grown men beat a pair of children of about sixteen years of age.


    The children were scrawny, seeming to be on the brink of starvation, while the men were huge and covered in layers of muscle, each bearing a tattoo of a jagged dagger on their left bicep. As Fenrir watched, he noticed that though the men had already hit the pair of boys to the point that they each had several broken bones, the boys kept trying to resist, rather than fleeing or just curling up and enduring. Fenrir had teleported to the location and was watching from the roof of a nearby building, and he narrowed his eyes as he noticed a presence, though faint, farther down the alleyway. Upon further inspection, Fenrir discovered a girl who, despite her stunning beauty, seemed to fade into the surrounding shadows, her presence faint to the point that Fenrir had barely noticed her. She was fleeing from the fight, but kept glancing backwards as she ran, tears streaming down her cheeks. Fenrir sighed, put on a mask, and teleported between himself the men and the boys they had been beating, bringing the strange girl with him.


    ~~~~~~~


    Jon panted as he stood on trembling legs, his left hand barely mustering the strength to hold onto the broken cobblestone that he had been using as a weapon. Draf''s goons had come after Kijiro, as Jon had feared.


    He an Tam had always hidden their little sister from the public, as her beauty would bring the kind of attention that they didn''t want. The three siblings had been orphaned soon after the girl was born. In fact, their mother''s last action was to name Kijiro before she died. Only Jon, and Tam, who were twins, remembered their father; the man had been the main source of income for their family, but he died in an accident when the boys were five, and Kijiro had only been three. As per tradition, he had been the one who named the sons, while their mother, a foreigner, had named Kijiro. Upon their father''s death, the siblings had been unable to afford staying in the middle class district, and were forced into the slums, where the eldest siblings had scrounged, scavenged, begged, and stole for money enough to afford food, clothes, and a small shed in which Kijiro had been confined. The boys weren''t idiots; they were aware of their sister''s beauty, which was already on par with their mother''s, and they knew that it would attract the attention of the crime lords. If she was seen by anyone in the slums, then word would eventually get out and the girl would likely be captured and raped or sold off as a slave. Jon and Tam had stressed this danger to Kijiro, but on this day, her fourteenth birthday, Kijiro''s sole wish had been to go outside. After much debating, the boys had eventually decided that it would be fine; their little sister had a mysterious ability to seemingly become one with her surroundings for around an hour at a time, and during this time no one would notice her, no matter what she did. They had covered her face for safety''s sake and set out, keeping careful track of the time. However, Kijiro had gotten separated her elder brothers, and due to her ability the two hadn''t noticed until an hour passed and she wasn''t there. Jon and Tam had frantically searched for her, but by the time they eventually found her she had already been spotted by members of the Razor Edges, one of the three strongest criminal gangs in the entire city. Moreover, the person who noticed her had been the gang''s leader, a man named Draf. They had barely managed to temporarily escape, but Draf had ordered his goons to search the entire city for Kijiro. Eventually, the trio had been found by a pair of Draf''s goons, and Jon and Tam held the goons back while Kijiro used her ability to hide and run. Draf''s followers were unaware of where Kijiro had fled, so they decided to capture Jon and Tam for interrogation. Jon knew that he and Tam would be unable to resist interrogation if they were captured, and even if they could, they would likely die doing so. As such, they mounted a hopeless resistance, which resulted in the current circumstances.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    One of the men swung a fist at Jon, who was unable to dodge due to his haggard condition. He braced himself for impact, when suddenly a figure appeared between him and the approaching punch. A bang rang out, and for a moment Jon thought he was hallucinating. A person had appeared out of nowhere, almost like the how the long-forgotten teleportation spell was described, and had blocked a full-powered punch from a huge, muscle-clad man with his body. Moreover, the resulting impact gave out a sound as if the man had punched an iron wall. In fact, the man reacted as if he had punched an iron wall, collapsing and moaning over his now broken hand.


    After a moment of complete stupefaction, Jon turned to the mysterious figure. The boy''s build showed that he was around the same age as the twins were, but he wore a silver mask that obscured his features. He was wearing simple traveling clothes, with a cloak over them, the hood lowered to reveal white hair that glowed in the moonlight.

 Fox (Part II)

    Fenrir watched through the mask as one of the two bulky men groaned on the floor while the other stared at the boy with fearful eyes.


    ¡°You can remove your stealth now,¡± the silver-haired boy spoke in a calm voice.


    Nothing happened.


    Fenrir sighed. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You¡¯re safe now. Besides, you don¡¯t want your brothers to worry, do you?¡±


    In response, a beautiful, black-haired girl with fox-like eyes seemed to appear from nothing. She stood next to her brothers, clearly worried about their safety.


    Noticing this, Fenrir smiled gently. With a wave of his hands, the boys¡¯ wounds disappeared. They froze in shock. After all, everyone knew that magic required a chant to be cast, especially when broken bones were involved, but the mysterious figure had made it as if the wounds had never existed with just a wave of his hands.


    Fenrir turned back to the uninjured thug, who had been staring with apprehension. A gust of wind blew, and Fenrir was standing right in front of the man, with his hand on the thug¡¯s forehead. Before the man could react, his eyes went empty as Fenrir searched through his mind. After a moment, the boy released his grip and the man collapsed on the ground. No wounds were visible, but if anyone checked they would find that his heart was not beating and he was no longer breathing. In other words, he was dead.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Fenrir then turned to the other thug, who had stopped groaning and was staring at the boy with fear in his eyes. Letting out a sigh, Fenrir turned away. The man collapsed, also dead.


    Glancing over his shoulder at the confused and likely terrified siblings, Fenrir spoke in a calm voice.


    ¡°As of today, the criminal organizations in this city will come under my jurisdiction. If you have any trouble, go to any of their bases and ask for help. There will likely be few survivors, but at the very least they can inform me.¡±


    The trio have nervous nods. If a grown man had said what the boy- clearly just their age- had, they would assume that he was joking or insane. However, the boy had a sort of aura about him that, combined with what he had just done, made it seem certain that he would live up to his words. Fenrir¡¯s Fae voice helped dispel the fear and trauma they had accumulated over the course of the day, and the three siblings began to feel safe and at home.


    ¡°You should head home. You¡¯ve had a tiring day.¡±


    Fenrir¡¯s voice was gentler this time, and the three siblings nodded. Their subconscious mind had already established Fenrir as a ¡°big brother¡± figure. He had saved them from a hopeless situation, after all. His calm, mature demeanor and voice helped as well.

 Fox (Part III)

    Fenrir walked through the empty streets, now with a purpose in mind. As he no longer held control over the Black Hand, the information network of the Demon King, the boy figured it would be a good idea to find another way of gathering information. And criminal guilds already stole as one of their primary sources of income, so they would work just fine.


    After all, even if he was the god of the world, there was still a chance that an invader from a Hollow World would slip past his guard, especially if they attacked en masse. An information network would definitely help him ensure the world''s safety, and even if none came it would be useful to be aware of any potential dangers to his friends, though his friend group as of now basically consisted of Yerin and the rest of the caravan.


    Upon arriving at the door to the guild, he knocked a code on its wooden surface. When the door was opened, he found a man with a decently clean soul staring at him with suspicion.


    "Who are you?" asked the door guard.


    "Your new master," replied the boy.


    ...


    After a moment of surprised silence, the man raised the club in his hand. Only to find that it was no longer there. Rapidly backing away from the boy, the guard reached for the dagger in his belt.


    Only to freeze in shock, his eyes widening.


    Fenrir was holding both the club and the dagger. For dramatic effect, the boy crushed the heavy wooden club to sawdust with one hand and took a bite out of the dagger. It had been a while since he had eaten metal, and he wasn''t going to turn down this convenient snack.


    After all, most of the metal objects he had come into contact with recently had had some use, so he was beginning to miss the taste of good steel.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    Fenrir spoke in a soft voice.


    "You don''t need to worry. I''ll be giving this guild a better purpose. The only people who die in this takeover will be the more... unsavory ones. The ones who enjoy hurting others and whatnot."


    The man stood, still uncomprehending. With a sigh, Fenrir walked past him, into the main guild hall. Upon reaching there, he glanced around the room. All those with souls dirty beyond a certain point simply dropped dead. After explaining the situation to the dumbfounded remainder, Fenrir walked past the still stunned survivors towards the guild master''s office. Entering, he was immediately revolted. The man''s soul was the darkest Fenrir had seen in a while. He glared arrogantly at the masked boy. Having heard the commotion, he had aimed a crossbow at the door, immediately firing when the door was opened. Even now, he could see the feathered end protruding from the boy''s fingers as the fox-masked figure grasped at his open mouth. The bolt had gone straight down his throat. Then his head disappeared into a bloody mist, and the Guild Master of the Razor Edges died.


    Tossing aside the crossbow bolt, now minust its delicious steel arrowhead, Fenrir turned and appointed the man with the soul best suited for business- bright, but not bright enough to impede logical, emotionless decisions- and appointed him as guild leader. After passing him several orbs, enchanted to give anyone within a certain soul gradient moderate stealth, tracking, disguise abilities, and increased senses, FEnrir gave them their orders and proceeded to leave. The guild was only permitted to recruit people who needed a job, and would not use petty thievery. Only those accepted by the orbs would be qualified to join or remain in the guild, but the guild was not to force anyone to join. The main purpose of the guild was information gathering. He would give them two days to get fully organized, and then he would give them more specific orders. Payment would come from him. Everything else, Fenrir left for them to figure out themselves.


    After asking for the locations of the other guilds in the city, Fenrir left the Razor Edge guild and turned into a gust of wind, soon arriving at the entrance to the Crimson Claw guild. If Sera was here, he was sure she''d make a comment on the guilds being named by middle schoolers.


    He knocked out a code, given by a member he had found on the street, onto the door.


    The guard opened the door.


    "Who are you?" asked the door guard.


    "Your new master," replied the boy.

 Fox (Part III, Attempt 2)

    Fenrir stalked through the streets, now with a purpose. The thieves guild would make a good information network; the only change he would have to make would be having them steal information instead of goods.


    Fenrir knew that the best way to control criminals was to intimidate them, and for that he needed to create a personage that inspired fear. He was already using the fox mask, so the boy decided to just go along with the theme. He changed his current outfit into a montsuki, kimono, and hakama, going along with a theme that Sera had called "festive japanese". She had always liked to force him to wear various outfits...


    As Fenrir approached his first destination, he placed a pair of sheathed blades, one long and curved and the other shorter, into his belt. He did not intend to draw them; Fenrir wanted the thieves to see an unbeatable foe, capable of forcefully taking over without even drawing the blades by his waist. Now prepared, the boy arrived at the destination, and ignored the door, moving the wooden obstacle with his figure partially shrouded in shadow. Again, this was inspired by Sera; according to her, foxes were often associated with mystery and illusions in japanese mythology, and he felt that this entrance suited him well. He glanced at the startled guard for a moment, and then walked past him without even speaking. The guard only came to his senses once Fenrir was in the entrance of the main room of the guild, visible to everyone in the common room. After hesitating for a moment about whether or not to attack, the burly man jumped over and raised his club, only to find that said club disintegrated the moment he raised it. He stared blankly at his now empty hands. Then he disintegrated as well, still unable to process what had just happened.Stolen story; please report.


    The occupants of the room, almost the entirety of the guild''s members, all witnessed the death of the guard. Every single one of them froze, an unnatural terror taking hold of them, to the point that they were unable to move. The fox-masked figure seemed to them as Death himself, shrouded in darkness. Where his eyes should be were shadows, an emptiness that seemed to lead to oblivion.


    Fenrir, who had been using his connection with the world as a "god" to unleash his presence, gazed at the room full of hardened criminals, all of whom were trembling in their boots. The boy cocked his head thoughtfully, thinking that his experiment had been more effective than expected.


    The members of the thieves'' guild shuddered as the dark being tilted its head unnaturally. A few of them even lost control of their bladders. The figure walked over to one of their strongest and most violent members, as if a demon choosing his victim.


    "Take me to your leader."[1] The being''s voice was inhumanly beautiful, seeming to draw in any who heard it. Listening to the voice was fear itself, and yet the listeners were drawn to it; it invoked mystery and darkness, and yet it was still beautiful. It brought to mind the forest on a moonless night; it was the unknown, and it was danger, but it was an alluring unknown, an alluring danger, an alluring death. It was like the Grim Reaper was beckoning them to death''s sweet oblivion.


    Once more, Fenrir cocked his head. The man he had questioned had not responded. Rather, his eyes had rolled up into the back of his head and he was frothing at the mouth. This is troubling, the boy thought, turning to another member of the guild, a woman this time.


    "Take me to your leader," he repeated, as if the incident with the fainted man hadn''t happened.

 Fox (Part IV)

    Terror.


    Terror.


    Draf, leader of the Razor Edge Thieves'' Guild, had never felt such an emotion in his life.


    Until now.


    A few moments ago, his once familiar office had become enshrouded in an aura that made him feel as if he was already dead[1], a mere ghost, no longer belonging in the land of the living. In his childhood, Draf had only had a single goal: to survive. However, ever since he had risen into his position as one of the most powerful criminals in the city, Draf''s goals had shifted towards comfort, pleasure, and eventually debauchery.


    But now, something about the aura stripped all of those away from him. He had no brainpower to think about debauchery anymore. He wanted to survive. He didn''t want to die. And yet, he was certain that he was dead. He couldn''t even move.


    The door in front of Draf opened. The man saw a masked boy. A gleam of red emanated from the eye slits of the mask, a demonic[2] glow that enveloped his entire being. He knew that his time had come.


    "I don''t... want to go..."


    And so the guild master of the Razor Edges, one of the three most powerful criminals in the Imperial City, collapsed into a pile of dust.[3]


    Fenrir turned to the trembling man who had guided him to Draf''s office. Retracting the fraction of his Fae talent that he had extended over the guild, the surroundings stopped feeling so ethereal for the humans there, and Fenrir felt a little less at home.If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    "You are the guild leader now. You will obey me?"


    Shakily, the man nodded. He had one of the cleanest souls in the entire guild.


    Fenrir passed him a folded slip of paper.


    "Here are your orders. Carry them out well, and you will be rewarded. I will be watching."


    Then, the masked figure sank into his own shadow, and disappeared.


    That night, the criminal guilds of the city were all forcefully taken over. The criminals that the King''s spies had considered the most "evil" were all turned to piles of dust, and the King himself became anxious and worried about the disturbances this may cause in the underworld of his city. After all, as King, he naturally would be aware of the criminal activity in the capitol of his nation, and his seat of power. However, he knew that there was no way for him to completely eliminate it, and chose instead to do his best to control it.


    Of course, the fact that all of the crime in the city was now under the control of one person- this Fox- was cause for concern. The guilds previously kept each other in check with their petty rivalries. Now that they were united, they were a potential threat...


    As the King racked his mind for ideas, Fenrir lay on a rooftop, watching the stars. He had not eliminated all of the criminals with dirty souls; he had simply killed the ones who had souls dirty enough to disgust him. Just because one''s soul was currently dirty did not mean there was no chance of redemption. However, if someone with a dirty soul was about to do something unforgivable, he would kill them without hesitation. To allow them to live would be to take a gamble with no profit; losing an innocent life to pay for a possibility of an innocent life. There was no profit even if the criminal did reform themself. And as for the ones who he did kill... He was a Fae, after all.

 Intermission

    Beep... beep... beep...[1]


    In a certain room of a certain hospital, a girl lay on a bed. Her skin was smooth like satin, and her hair was as soft as silk. Her face could only be described as that of a goddess. Although she had been in a coma for a month now, it seemed almost as if she had simply taken a nap, and could wake at any time. Her breathing was deep and steady. Doctors had no clue as to what her condition was; she had simply passed out one day at school and had not woken up since then. There was no sign of any physical or mental stress, and according to all the knowledge of medicine they had, she should have woken up within a day of the incident.


    However, that was not the case. Moreover, over the course of the last couple weeks, golden streaks had appeared in her luscious black hair[2]. Even her irises had turned golden in color. To put it frankly, the doctors had no clue what was going on. The hospital was run by people with morals, who respected the privacy of her family, and this fact, along with her being located in a private room, kept her from being in the news too much; however, her hospitalization was still mentioned rather often, especially by local news. After all, she had been in the hospital for a month now, and, as a beautiful girl who had been scouted as an actress several times, she naturally drew attention from society. Coupled with the fact that she was from a rich and powerful family, and that many rich and famous suitors pursued her, it was an attestment to her family''s influence that she was not on the headlines. Control over the media was a fearsome thing.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    Beep... beep... beep...


    The door opened, and a nurse walked into the room. Checking all of the instruments, she sighed sadly. While she did not know the girl herself, her daughter was one of the patient''s classmates. She had also gotten to know the girl''s parents quite well over the last month, and as a mother, she understood their pain.


    After changing the IV bag and checking that nothing was out of order, the nurse left the room, closing the door quietly after her.


    Beep... beep... beep...


    In the dimly lit room, a pair of golden eyes opened.

 The Evil God Laughs at Mortals

    A restless night ended. As dawn arrived, Fenrir observed people waking and leaving their houses. Due to several... complicated matters,[1] he had rarely come into contact with humans other than Sera. Of course, Sera had taught him a bit about the morals and other such matters of society, but he had never actually seen human society for himself before.


    After watching for a while, Fenrir marvelled at humanity''s lifestyle. Both the demons and the Fae were far more direct with their conversations than humans were.


    For demons, strength was paramount; after strength, the most important thing was their sin, which was only second to strength because that strength dictated how much one could indulge in their sin, and because of instinct; perhaps it related to how the race used to be, before the Void Soul claimed godhood. But that was an enigma for his four friends to solve. At any rate, their values caused them to be very direct when communicating, excepting a few. Moreover, the idea of caring for another was rare, as many demons grew more and more selfish over the years.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.


    Meanwhile, most Fae acted almost solely on emotion; and, as emotion was usually spontaneous and uncontrollable, they had little to no sense of courtesy.


    Raised in such an environment, Fenrir found the actions of the humans living in the city to be fascinating. The people of the caravan had all been rather familiar with one another, and so their interactions were closer to what Fenrir was used to. However, the way in which the humans of the city talked with each other were new, strange, and sometimes even comical, from Fenrir¡¯s point of view.


    Some humans acted in completely unexpected manners; after all, Sera had not taught him everything there was to know about human society. There were some things that he had to figure out. For example, Fenrir knew practically nothing of sexual relationships; both demons and Fae reproduced through fusing mana, and placed no importance on sex. Even for demons of the Lust sin, sexual intercourse was merely a way to experience the euphoria that resulted from the activation of their sin.


    As he watched, Fenrir realised that, depending on one''s interpretation of the situation, his interest could be viewed as the evil god laughing at the pathetic lives and efforts of mortals. And, though he despised the idea of being the evil god, he somehow found the idea to be terribly funny.

 Academy Start

    The Imperial Academy.


    Located in the Capital of a certain human country, it was a school almost exclusively for nobles. There were four divisions: the lower division, for first through third years, most of whom were in their early teens; the intermediate division, for fourth through seventh years, most of whom were in their mid to late teens, and finally the upperclassmen, from seventh through eleventh years, most of whom were young adults.


    Upperclassmen were considered the cream of the the crop, the elite of humanity. Their prowess in combat was within the top 30% of humanity''s forces.


    Jusen was one such upperclassman... or at least he used to be.


    Now he was someone else entirely.


    Takumi Kodagachi[1] had been killed by a truck, and a being calling itself a god had reincarnated him into Jusen''s body, even giving him a cheat ability- access to some of the power of a thing called a "hollow world". He had always loved to read isekai light novels, and now he had become the main character of one.


    He had been using his power frequently, and could not wait to begin his domination of the world. He could see it already- harem of peerless beauties, kings and emporers bowing before him...


    His first action was to take control of a bandit chief, granting him some of the hollow world''s power. Though, said chief had somehow managed to die, even with such power... and even the power itself had not returned. This was because the being who killed the bandit had completely consumed said power. In fact, she had looked straight at Takumi''s surveillance spell and cheekily said "Thanks for the meal" afterwards...The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    However, this did not infuriate Takumi at all. He was the main character, after all.[2] He knew that the girl would be coming after him next. And so, he prepared for her arrival. Licking his lips, he fantasized about the beautiful girl''s fate after he used his power to control her...


    ~~~~~~~


    Fenrir sneezed. Rubbing his nose, he wondered if what Sera had told him was true. Is someone talking about me? It''s not like I can get a cold...


    After meeting up with Yerin, who had once again given him a peck on the cheek, Fenrir followed her as they headed towards their destination: the entrance examination to the Imperial Academy. Fenrir had dispersed his aura; partially because that something told him it would help with the strange gazes that the two were receiving, and partially because Yerin was a noble, and from the bit of information that he had already obtained from the thieves'' network, he had deduced that there was something wrong with a male and a female being such close friends, especially because Yerin was a noble. Of course, it was mostly because of Sera''s teachings: "When going undercover, no one expects you to change your gender. I''m not just saying this because I want to dress you up as a girl, either..."(Book of Sera''s Teachings, page 72)


    It still made him feel slightly uncomfortable, but Sera had mostly cured his hate for it. Or rather, he had been forced to get over it.


    Yerin had been slightly confused, but he had explained his reasons to her. Now, she was mumbling about having lost...


    Perhaps I''m being too spartan with the spear training? Or maybe I''m not a good enough teacher...


    Fenrir cocked his head.


    "My apologies if you feel that I have been going about the training the wrong way. This is my first time doing such a thing... If you have any suggestions, I will listen."


    As his enchanting voice filled the air, he felt that the passerby[3] were looking at him strangely again, only this time in a different way. For some reason, he felt stifled and vaguely annoyed by this...

 Examinations Begin, and an Encounter Occurs

    The entrance to the Imperial Academy was lavishly decorated, with gates of pure mithril and walls shaped by earth mages to seem like golden wings, with feathers pointing away from the gate. Though they were partially for aesthetic purposes, the materials also had a function; gold and mithril were some of the metals most compatible with enchantments. And this property was exploited thoroughly; so many enchantments had been woven into the structure that even a non-mage could feel the magic saturating the area.


    The mithril gates were far more impressive than the golden walls. Mithril was notoriously rare, though nowhere near as rare as adamantium or orichalcum, and to have such large gates made from the material was a testament to the wealth and power of the Academy. Even the forging of the gates would require at least a fifth-tier smith; working with mithril was an extremely complicated and difficult process. This was also the reason that there were no guards; enchantments would make it even more difficult for any thief to steal any gold or mithril, and they would have to be both a sixth-tier smith and a third tier enchanter.


    Fenrir approached the gates while holding hands with Yerin. The girl had randomly grabbed his hand as they were walking, and ever since then he had heard her mumbling things like "I just wanted to make sure you didn''t get lost..." under her breath, along with the whistling sound of a kettle slowly coming to boil, steadily increasing in volume.


    And then...


    "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"[1]


    Yerin screamed and threw him right over the gate, past the line. After flying in a perfect arc, Fenrir crashed face first into the stone floor, forming a small crater upon his impact. Afterwards, he gracefully stood up and, with a flash of light, the damage to the floor was fixed.


    Turning, he ignored the stunned line of examinees and cocked his head.


    Is this some form of human ritual? The boy wondered.


    Yerin stomped past the queue, no one standing in her way due to her status. Grabbing Fenrir¡¯s hand again, she pulled him straight to the first test- a mana measuring stone.The stone was alchemically made from various precious metals and mana sensitive gems.There were even trace amounts of orichalcum within it. As such, it was extremely valuable, and usually, only highly ranked nobles had access to commodities of its kind. The Academy was one of the few places where a commoner would have access to a measuring stone; it was no exaggeration to say that it was the most influential places in the continent, as denoted by the mithril gates.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    The examiner, upon seeing Yerin, bowed respectfully.


    ¡°What can I do for you, Heir Aelis?¡± he asked, his tone submissive.


    ¡°She¡¯s taking the examination,¡± Yerin responded curtly, pushing Fenrir towards the examiner. Nodding formally, the examiner gestured to the stone.


    Fenrir looked at the examiner for a moment longer than would normally be expected. Or more precisely, at his uniform. Hmmm, he thought, so that person really does attend here...


    ¡°Please inject as much mana as you can into the stone,¡± said the hooded man, moving to monitor a glass screen connected to the stone, on which several readings were displayed. The readings were categorized into the elements of magic: earth, air, fire, water, light, dark, holy, death, nature, and origin.


    Fenrir took a quick glance through time to see what the other examiners had done, then mimicked their actions: he placed his hand on the stone, and inserted just the right amount of mana to grant him a passing grade, mixing in impurities so that his mana was of average quality. The stone glowed for a moment, and then light travelled through the pipes connecting it to the screen.


    ¡°Average grade, passing quantity. No attribute,¡± the examiner announced, glancing at Fenrir and shrugging. He disliked those who entered the academy solely through connections; normally, the woman before him would barely be accepted into the academy. However, taking into account that she was with Yerin Aelis, who was renowned for her skills with a spear, it was likely that her potential as a warrior was higher than her power as a mage.


    Yerin dragged Fenrir to the warrior examination, which took place in an arena. Her face still slightly tinged red, she once more cut the queue, leading the cloaked ¡°girl¡± to the examiner. The warrior examination was a duel format; a participant fought with an examiner, in this case an upperclassman named Jusen who had a somewhat strange aura; almost as if he didn¡¯t belong in the world at all. Fenrir cocked his head, considering how much of his full strength he should use to pass the warrior test. Originally, he had intended to display spear skills on the same level as Yerin¡¯s, but the examiner¡¯s aura put him on his guard.


    Perhaps I should display barely passable strength, so he doesn¡¯t make note of me¡­


    Just then, Jusen glanced at Yerin with a lustful gaze that seemed to be licking her body. Yerin tensed, and was about to strike him down, but Fenrir subtly grabbed her hand, restraining her. For some reason, she started turning red again. Perhaps she¡¯s like the Jofkem? They change colors too¡­ but they have a much wider range of colors¡­ let¡¯s see, red would be¡­ anger? It¡¯s true that she would be angry in this situation, but what about the other times? Fenrir though idly as he stepped into the arena. He had changed his mind; something was telling him to completely crush the examiner. [Av¨©ci: Immortal¡¯s Hell]


    He was Fae, after all.

 Prelude to a Beatdown

    The warrior examination took place in an arena that suppressed the use of magic, and though the suppression was not perfect, the rules or the test dictated that any spells cast would lead to disqualification of the examinee. Skills, meanwhile, were fair game. By definition, spells were the manifestation of magic using mana as a medium, taking the form of one of the ten elements in order to accomplish a goal. The quality of mana was denoted by the amount of impurities mixed into it; if mana was water, impurities were dirt, and mana capacity was a container, then an average mage¡¯s mana pool would be a pond of watery mud. The ¡°water¡± was all that could be used in a spell; the impurities simply took up space. There were two requirements to cast a spell: the first was to be able to move the mana into a spell formation, which required control of the mana, and the second was to have enough mana to form the formation. Skills also had two requirements; first, one needed to have enough control over either the body or the world¡¯s laws to execute the skill, and second was to have enough energy to do so. World¡¯s laws, however, were only necessary at a certain level of proficiency with skills, such as [Fortress], which could the caster to be practically invulnerable for a short time at high levels. Meanwhile, at a low level, it was simply a defensive stance.


    [Av¨©ci: Immortal¡¯s Hell] was a skill created personally by Fenrir when he was training to capture, rather than kill, one of his rivals for the throne. The skill was named by the laws of the world, which were created based off of the experiences of its god; according to Sera, the name was that of one of hell¡¯s levels in a certain religion of her home world. The premise of the skill was simple, and reflected Fenrir¡¯s thoughts when he created it: anything¡¯s fine as long as they don¡¯t die. While the skill was active, the enemy would not be permitted to die even if they wanted to; if they were beheaded, dismembered, or even burnt to ashes, they would remain alive¡­ technically.The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    It had been a while since he last used it.


    Upon their entry into the arena, the a cubic barrier enclosed the contestants, approximately 10 cubic meters in volume. The barrier was a translucent blue, with its boundaries defined by four stone pillars. Each pillar was inscribed with two glowing runes, one at the top and one at the base, each of which designated a corner of the cube.


    And so the fight began. Both Fenrir and Jusen seemed evenly matched, Fenrir using a spear and Jusen using a curved sword. The design of the sword seemed somewhat like the katana that Sera had once described, and Jusen¡¯s use of the blade was rather proficient. Every time a stray skill struck the barrier, the impact sent a pulse of light through the barrier, which was then absorbed by the runes. Yerin watched, her mind completely occupied; half in chaos about how Fenrir had grabbed her hand earlier, and the other half worrying about Fenrir getting hurt. There was no room for reason, and as such she temporarily forgot that Fenrir was far more proficient in the spear than even her father, who was the best spearman in the whole kingdom.


    Within the barrier, Jusen and Fenrir faced each other.


    ¡°This is a warning: you are about to experience extreme pain.¡± Fenrir¡¯s voice was cold, and yet it still retained its Fae beauty.


    Jusen grinned. From the voice of the examinee, he could tell that she was likely a beautiful girl. In this situation, he already knew what was going to happen next: he would completely destroy her in the duel, and her crushed pride would lead to her acknowledging him as the only person worthy of being her husband. Perhaps she would be surprisingly strong, and he would have some difficulty at first; but then he would make use of the ¡°Hollow World¡±, and defeat her with overwhelming power.


    Jusen grinned.


    He couldn¡¯t wait for the beatdown to begin.

 A Beatdown, and a Misunderstanding

    The two opponents stood before one another, Jusen in a casual stance, while Fenrir stood with his spear ready. For a moment, he hesitated. To Fenrir, what constituted a fight was that at least one side must intend to cause the other serious harm, and as such his sparring with Yerin and her father did not count. Nor did the capture of the bandits in the forest; they hadn¡¯t even been aware of his existence. This would be his first time in combat since that day five years ago¡­


    The day the Demon King ¡°died¡±.


    The day he attained his freedom.


    The day the war with the races finally ended.


    His tenth birthday.


    The day his parents died by his hand.


    Closing his eyes, Fenrir took a deep breath. When he opened them, his irises flared with a brilliant light, like the glow of molten gold. His left pupil changed to resemble that of a cat, except rather than a single, vertical slit, there were two; one horizontal, and one vertical. Shifting his center of gravity downwards, he leaned slightly forwards, his stance somewhat resembling that of a sprinter moments before the gunshot. He began to move¡­


    And then he disappeared.


    Suddenly, Fenrir was in front of Jusen. His spear extended through a gaping hole in his opponent¡¯s stomach, caused purely by the force of his movement, rather than the sharp tip of the spear. Beyond the hole, the blood, flesh, bone, and organs that had once filled the now empty space had been transformed into a bloody mist by the sheer power of the impact.


    ¡°...Eh?¡± A sound of incomprehension escaped Jusen¡¯s lips.


    ¡°Ah¡­ AHHHHHHH!!!!¡± After a moment, the transmigrator finally registered the mind-numbing pain of the wound. After all, the death of his original body had been almost instant, and before that he had lived a rather comfortable life, growing up in a middle-class family in a first-world country. Obviously, he had never experienced such pain before.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    ¡°AGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!¡± Though he had materialized some of the energy of the hollow world to boost his level in swordsmanship, it all became useless as he collapsed to the ground and writhed in pain. Or at least, his upper body did; his spinal cord had been severed by the attack, and his lower body was paralyzed, in the sense that it could not move; [Av¨©ci: Immortal¡¯s Hell] made it so that he could still feel one sensation from his bottom half: namely, pain.


    [Av¨©ci: Immortal¡¯s Hell] kept the target alive by not forcefully keeping the soul within the body, using discomfort as a medium. As such, even if the body was torn into two separate pieces, the soul would still feel the pain from both pieces, but any other sensation would only be felt if it could be communicated to the brain through the nervous system.


    The moment Jusen collapsed, Fenrir had moved the spear out of the way. As the examiner screamed in pain, Fenrir cocked his head. Perhaps he had gotten lucky. As an examiner of the Imperial Academy, the man before him should have enough pain endurance to at least partially bear the pain of the wound. At the very least, he wouldn¡¯t be in the state that he was. Demons, who placed high value in strength, be it strength in combat or strength in intelligence, very rarely came into contact with nepotism or bribery; it was simply against their instinct. Even those carrying the sin of Greed couldn¡¯t be bribed; rather, they would just forcefully take what they wanted from those who were weaker than themselves. As such, the idea of Jusen having gotten into his position through money or connections simply did not occur to Fenrir, and the boy correctly thought that this abnormality was probably caused by the Void Soul tampering with the cycle of reincarnation. This would be useful because that a soul from another world would not be under Fenrir¡¯s jurisdiction; while he could still examine the soul, he would not be able to detect the energy of the Hollow World if it was embedded in the core. At least, without destroying the soul in the process. Of course, Fenrir only held suspicions; with only this as evidence, it was quite possible that it was merely a coincidence. To break a soul over mere suspicions was something he would not do. Deciding to try and confirm his idea, Fenrir blinked and began a close examination of the man¡¯s soul. However, the soul was practically the same as those of the humans in Avalon. There were small variations from the average soul, but that was within the margin of error; every soul was slightly different, just as every body is, even if the difference is only the fingerprint. It didn¡¯t seem like the soul from a different world; just as people from different areas had different traits, souls from different worlds have different traits as well.


    It seemed that it was a misunderstanding, after all.


    Fenrir shrugged. He had never expected it to be easy to find the culprit, after all. And, this still did not change the primary motivation for the beating in the first place: the examiner had pissed him off.


    With a sigh, Fenrir raised his spear over the barely-conscious Jusen.


    Time to continue.

 The Beatdown Ends

    [Warning~ Gore~]


    Pain.


    Takumi Kodagachi had never felt such pain before. In his previous life, the worst pain that he had suffered had been fracturing his arm as a child, when he had fallen from a tree.


    The pain that he was currently experiencing was far worse. His ribcage had been crushed, and at some places the fragmented bones pierced through his chest. His body had been completely separated into three sections: his head, his legs, and his torso. His genitals had been crushed, and his legs smashed to a bloody pulp. Organs littered the arena like some gruesome display of art. Takumi¡¯s arms had been burned off, and his beating heart lay in a puddle of blood beside his head. One of his eyes lay a few feet away. It had been frozen before it was torn out of his skull.


    Thrice he had tried to access the power of the Hollow World during the fight- no, during the one-sided beatdown. Each time, the power had come slowly, reluctantly; almost as if it were afraid of coming to his aid. And then, his channeling would be interrupted as his tormentor began another round of brutal thrashing. He was completely unable to retaliate. His katana, which he had been so proud of, lay shattered into a thousand pieces on the ground. His scalp had been torn off, and his ears severed from his head. His nose was just a pile of minced meat, along with his tongue.The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    *crack*


    And now, his teeth had been smashed in.


    Takumi¡¯s head wasn¡¯t connected to his lungs anymore, but even if it had been his throat would be too sore for him to scream. However, his eyes rolled in his head; the pain would have rendered him unconscious long ago if not for the skill.


    And then, his torturer spoke.


    ¡°Next time you look at Yerin with such disgusting eyes, you will suffer pain a thousand times worse. Am I understood?¡±


    The voice seemed to completely dispel the fog of fear and pain that clouded Takumi¡¯s mind. He hurriedly nodded his head- at least, he tried to. With his head completely separated from his body, he obviously found the feat rather difficult to accomplish, to say the least. However, it seemed that his tormentor sensed his acknowledgement, and nodded in return.


    Then, a golden glow surrounded Takumi¡¯s various scattered parts and his body reformed from the pieces.


    Then he collapsed, gasping for breath. Then, the ¡®girl¡¯ leaned over and whispered into his ear.


    ¡°Don¡¯t tell anyone what occured here. It wouldn¡¯t be convenient for either of us.¡±


    Takumi caught a glimpse of the face under the hood, and he froze, as if stunned by its beauty.

 Confusion

    Fenrir passed the test with flying colors, defeating the upperclassman after a short fight, lasting only 3 minutes, which was surprising given he was fighting one of the Academy''s elites. As the fight ended, the boy walked out of the arena with his spear slung over his shoulder. He approached Yerin as if he had not just defeated one of the most skilled members of the Imperial Academy, and in doing so proved himself to be among humanity¡¯s strongest.


    ~~~~~~~


    Fenrir dispelled the illusion, along with the time distortion magic he had cast alongside it. While the battle seemed to be only three minutes long to others, he had actually tor- er, conversed with Jusen for three hours within the spell. As he stopped one meter from Yerin, she ran to him and¡­ punched him in the face. Or at least, tried to. At the last moment, Fenrir cocked his head to the side, avoiding her fist by mere micrometers.


    Yerin paused for a moment, and retracted her hand.Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    Then she punched again.


    And again, Fenrir dodged.


    Frowning, Yerin tried a kick this time. In response, Fenrir dodged in the same manner, with the same graceful ease. He was rather confused as to why she was doing this. Perhaps some form of human custom? Or had she gotten angry somehow? But her soul seemed to indicate that she was more relieved than distressed¡­


    Humans were so complicated.


    ¡°Stop-¡± Yerin threw another futile punch ¡°-Dodging!¡± This time, she threw a roundhouse punch rather than the sharp jabs she had used before.


    Fenrir did as she said, and received a fist to his face. Of course, he took no damage of any form. With her knuckles still pushing against his face, he cocked his head. Was this procedure some sort of common sense? If so, he shouldn¡¯t ask her or his identity may come under suspicion¡­


    As Fenrir debated his choices, Yerin spoke without retracting her hand. ¡°Why¡¯d you play around with him so much!? I was almost worried you¡¯d lose! Idiot!!!¡±


    Then, she moved her arm to grab Fenrir¡¯s hand and dragged him off to get his room assigned.

 A Scene from the Past

    [Akashic Records: Section: Origin [Alternate Name: Earth]


    Fragment: Avalon


    Power Sources: Yang 9 (90%), Yin 9 (90%)


    Date: 7,000,000 After Creation, Calun (Local time)


    Subject: Primordial Chaos, first incarnation


    Occupation: Demon King


    Status: Weakened, Enraged, Fatigued, Effect 13: Mind Control]


    [Processing request¡­]


    [Commencing detailed analysis of status effect: Mind Control]


    [Self-sealed power. Point of Mind Control: Gleipnir Controller: Entity 1325 (assigned world 1364, power source extinguished) Alternate names: Apophis, Void Soul, Tartarus{8 more, expand? Y/N}]


    [Resume? Y/N]


    [Resuming¡­]


    [Beginning perspective shift]


    [Perspective: Subject 23498 Occupation: None (Former Bard) Status: Ghost Alignment: Neutral]


    [Loading...]


    [Command: ¡°Hurry up¡± not recognized]


    In the pass of Helrend, the last line of defense possessed by the Demon Capital, stood a child. This child held a captivating beauty, with hair that glowed under the gentle light of the nine moons, and eyes that seemed to devour the brightness of the stars. He wore black armor, forged from an unknown material, darker than the night sky, edged with crimson orichalcum. In his left hand was a jet-black blade larger than he was, of the same material as his attire, and engraved with glowing, blood-red runes. He stood with the blade slung over his shoulder and his head bowed, staring at the ground with unfocused eyes.


    Arrayed before him was the full might of the races, tens of thousands of elites who had endured hell-like training for this very night, this very battle. Any one of them could slay a thousand ordinary soldiers. Heroes, each and every one of them.


    The moonlight glinted off of the mithril armor of knights, enchanted with ancient magics and engraved with runes of power. Their spear tips shone like quicksilver, seeming almost liquid under the moons. Horses white as snow served as their steeds, standing imposingly under the stars.


    And behind them came the rest of the army.


    Soldiers who bore spears tipped with adamantite, marching forward on boots of blessed steel and shields woven with formidable magicks.


    Archers stood with enchanted arrows strung, each of their bows been crafted from the core of a sacred tree and strung with the sinews of legendary beasts.


    This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.


    And lastly came mages, cloaked and cowled, wearing robes woven from golden thread and embroidered with mithril runes. Ancient spells of fearsome power were engraved in their silver staffs.


    Upon sighting the boy, the army paused for a moment, as if afraid. The mages and archers stopped, with mages beginning to chant and archers drawing their bows. Meanwhile, the soldiers increased their pace to a slow jog, while the knights lowered their spears and urged their steeds to a canter, building up speed as they charged at the forward. By the time they reached him, they were in an all-out gallop.


    At that moment, the boy raised his head. Seven slender horns pierced through his skin, with two along each side of his head, two on either side of his forehead, and one in the center of his forehead, slightly longer than the others. The central horn was twenty centimeters long; the others were only around ten. The horns extended upwards like a crown, obsidian black with rivulets of blood running down their glassy surfaces.


    And then, he shouted. His voice contained unstoppable power, and the knights were sent flying back, the runes on their armor glowing. Their horses were not so fortunate, and were turned to bloody mist by the sheer force of the warcry. The knights landed, shaken and disoriented but more or less unhurt. Drawing their swords, they attempted to regroup, but then¡­


    The boy swung his sword. Though it seemed to be a mere waste of energy, as the sword did not extend far enough to reach even the nearest knight, over a hundred of the knights were torn asunder by the blow, which cut through their armor like a hot knife through butter. Fear glinted in the eyes of the remaining knights, but they raised their shields and pushed onward, powered by their determination. The support mages cast reinforcement magic on the knights as they charged. And so the battle began.


    Despite the size of the sword, the boy wielded it as if it weighed nothing more than a feather, swinging it effortlessly and with lightning speed. He cast powerful spells, each with a mere thought, and did not move a single step from his position. By the time that the soldiers reached the battle, almost five hundred the knights had been slain, and the knights had only advanced a short distance, now about five meters from the white-haired boy. Meanwhile, the pile of corpses extended twenty meters ahead of him. Unlike the knights, who had been disrupted by the boy¡¯s warcry, the soldiers were able to form a shield wall; however, they were barely able to keep it up under the force of his blows. Their shields pulsed with light as defensive enchantments struggled to keep the soldiers from being torn to pieces by the demon¡¯s greatsword.


    The archers had been shooting since the beginning of the fight, and the mages had been casting destructive spells; however, a barrier had surrounded the demon¡¯s location, and the dome of crimson magic kept the ranged attacks at bay.


    Half an hour passed. The boy stood on a mountain of corpses, and the remaining knights and soldiers were forced to climb over the bodies of their comrades as they moved towards him. Rivers of blood flowed, and through sheer numbers they were able to approach within two meters of the Demon King, paying in blood for every step of distance. The barrier maintained by the demon still stood, but was faint and riddled with cracks after thirty minutes of bombardment from fearsome magic and powerful, enchanted arrows.


    One minute later, the barrier finally collapsed. The exhausted army gave a cheer, but soon realized there was almost no difference. The gale produced from each swing of the Demon King¡¯s sword was akin to the strongest wind magicks, many times more powerful than a hurricane. This was enough to blow away most of the arrows, even if they were launched from legendary artifacts and enchanted with various attack spells. As for the few that did make it through the gale, along with the magic that was unaffected, they simply bounced off of the Demon King¡¯s armor, or were cut apart by his sword.


    Another twenty minutes passed. The battle had continued for almost an hour; the Demon King¡¯s armor was slightly damaged, but he now stood alone atop a pile of corpses. His unfocused gaze turned to the mages and the archers, who trembled in fear. However, they were the finest combatants of the races, and began an organized retreat firing spells and arrows as they backed away in an orderly manner.


    The Demon King took a step forward, then another. Rapidly accelerating, he covered the half-mile distance between them in the span of a couple seconds.


    He raised his sword.


    Suddenly, two beings teleported between him and the enemy. One was a beautiful woman with pointed ears and no pupils, while the other was a muscular, handsome man with horns that showed him to be a demon. Both seemed to be around thirty years of age.


    ¡°Lhetan!¡± cried the woman-¡°Son!¡± the man shouted- ¡°Don¡¯t do this! They¡¯re already defeated! Any more, and you¡¯ll just be the monster they all think you are!¡±


    They returned his empty, unfocused gaze with the eyes of parents, determined to save their beloved child.


    ¡°Even if you¡¯re bound by the void soul, that doesn¡¯t mean you can¡¯t fight it!¡±


    The woman''s voice carried the power of the ancient Fae, cutting at the chains that bound him.


    ¡°Go back to being yourself! Go back to being Lhetan! Go back to being our kind, innocent child!¡±


    The man''s words held the love of a father who refused to lose his son.


    The blade fell.


    The black greatsword tore into the couple that dared to stand in the path of the Demon King. Blood splattered onto the demon¡¯s face...


    The boy¡¯s eyes came into focus, and he saw the faces of his parents, smiling sadly as they beheld his freedom.


    Before him, the couple lay side by side, blood already pooling under their still-warm bodies.


    Dropping his blade, his pupils dilated in disbelief, and he spoke in a quavering voice.


    ¡°Mom¡­ Dad¡­?¡±


    [Disconnecting from soul¡­]


    [Processing Request¡­]


    [Subject: Primordial Chaos, first incarnation


    Occupation: None


    Status: Weakened, Enraged, Fatigued, Confused, Traumatized]

 The Plans of a Certain Young Master

    ¡°Seven million years after the Fall, humanity¡¯s elites joined with those of the other races, marching into Demon Territory. After a string of victorious reports, they were never heard from again. Nor were the legions of the Demon King.¡± -- Diary of Serghan Merack,


    ~~~~~~~


    Within the Imperial Academy¡¯s male dormitories was a certain room. The living quarters of the Academy, constructed with the intention of housing humanity¡¯s best talents, were already considered to be lavishly decorated, with plenty of expensive furniture, paintings, and other luxuries. However, this room was even more decadent than the others.


    Inside the room sat a young man who would be considered quite handsome by most standards. Surrounded by servants, he was eating his evening meal alone at a large table. Before him were far too many dishes for one person to consume: a whole roast chicken, a salad, a large bowl of quinoa, a lobster, and a potato stuffed with cheese and tuna. Just as he was raising a forkful of salad to his mouth, the sound of knocking interrupted him. A man dressed in a butler uniform walked to the door and opened it. After a hushed discussion with the visitor outside, he escorted a shifty man to the noble.


    ¡°Heir Fars, Sean is here to see you,¡± the butler announced.


    Elegantly wiping his mouth with a napkin, Vagrand Fars turned his gaze to Sean. Without looking, he dismissively gestured towards the food remaining on the table. At his command, the servants cleared the table and exited the room to throw away the food, leaving only the butler guarding the door from the outside.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.


    ¡°Report.¡± Vagrand¡¯s voice was cold, and his expression frozen.


    ¡°I¡¯ll give you the information, but first¡­¡± The shifty man¡¯s gaze was filled with greed. The disdain in Vagrand¡¯s gaze intensified, and he tossed a small bag to his informant. Sean did not hesitate to empty the bag into his palm. With a jingle of metal, several gold coins spilled out, and the man grinned.


    After confirming the amount, Sean spoke. ¡°Yerin-¡± Vagrand¡¯s gaze turned angry as he glared at the man. ¡°Errr, Grand Duke Heiress Aelis arrived at the Golden Apple Inn two days ago. Her group consisted of her father, some merchants from the Aelis domain, a group of guards, and a traveler who the caravan encountered on the way here. The traveller separated from the group upon their arrival at the inn. Yesterday, they met up again. Grand Duke Heiress Aelis brought her to the Imperial Academy to take the entrance exam, which she passed with flying colors and where it was revealed that she is female. If her appearance is anything like her voice, then she is likely very beautiful, possibly even more so than the Grand Duke Heiress.¡±


    Vagrand nodded, and seemed to stop acknowledging Sean¡¯s existence. The man was already used to this treatment, and left; he wasn¡¯t the type to argue with his employer. At least, as long as their relationship remained profitable.


    Neither Heir Fars nor Sean even considered that the traveller could be of Fae blood; the other races all had their own academies, after all. While there were no rules against it, there was no particular reason for a person to travel far from their homeland to attend when there was a school that was almost exactly the same in their own country.


    Gazing blankly into the distance, Vagrand mentally smiled. A crafty glint shone in his eyes. As for his thoughts¡­ Polygamy was not abnormal in a noble family. And he could always use more pretty ornaments¡­ Now, his eyes shone with lust and greed.

 Excuses and notifications

    -Friends who drag me outside(ugh) to do actual social things(why)


    -SAT practice


    -Distractions (games, novels, etc., used to run away from reality because of below reasons)


    -AP scores coming soon (arrived today. I didn''t do well... APEH 4, Physics 4, APHG 2... A TWO!!! *sigh*) and as such my dad will likely be angry (crucifixion?)You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.


    -general lack of motivation for several reasons (mainly AP scores...)


    -Actually thinking about the future (why is reality so scary... two years until I''m screwed over by life)


    -lack of inspiration due to above reasons


    *sigh*


    Next chapter probably won''t come in a while... until I get my life figured out...


    sorry...

 Interlude: Three Siblings

    Once upon a time, there were three children: a feathered serpent hatchling, a draconic wolf pup, and a phoenixchick.Out of the three, the phoenix was the only one who preferred her human form over herbeast form. For hundreds of years, they played under the ten suns during the day and slept under the ten moons at night. One day, the snake heard a human say that phoenixes could not cry. Curious, he asked her, and she said ¡°I do not know, for I have never been sad enough to cry.¡± The next year, a human, greedy for the power of the sun¡¯s, shot down nine of the fiery orbs. He absorbed their power and cast the empty husks aside, and with his newfound power became the hero of humanity. The snake was unable to handle the change in temperature and was forced into hibernation. His friends brought him to the core of the earth so that he would be warm enough to wake up. The wolf, furious at humanity for harming his friend, and enraged at the gods for protecting the humans, left one day. Upon his departure, he told the phoenix ¡°I will make them return the suns to the sky, so that when Jor wakes up, he can play wherever he wants. If they refuse, I will fight them until they agree.¡±Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.


    Thousands of years later, the serpent, Jormungandr, awoke. The phoenix had obtained authority over the cycle of reincarnation, worshipped by the humans as the god of death. He asked her, ¡°Where is Fenrir?¡±


    ¡°I do not know,¡± she answered, her face downcast. After a moment of silence, she spoke again.


    ¡°I have learned that phoenixes can cry. However, the tears evaporate the moment they leave our eyes¡­¡±

 Two Gods, Pondering

    Odin watched Earth from his seat in Valhalla. The nine fallen suns were finally almost recovered, after millions of years in Avalon¡¯s time. However, Avalon itself was not burned out of existence as he had expected; as the temperature and brightness of the suns had been recovered, they had already begun to transfer their energy back to the main body of Earth. Though there was no noticeable difference for Avalon, this did not go unnoticed by the mortals on earth, who referred to the increasing temperature as ¡°global warming.¡±


    Sighing, he completed his daily ritual of checking on Fenrir¡¯s soul. Despite his best efforts and profound knowledge, he was unable to pinpoint its location - after all, that being¡¯s very existence rejected the concepts of space and time. To be honest, even if all the gods had rallied against that wolf, they would have been annihilated. Luckily, they had been able to negotiate, and it had been surprisingly reasonable, even sealing itself with those fearsome chains. After that was done, Tyr had dared to taunt it, in his arrogance¡­ and paid the price. The other gods did not hold the wisdom that he had traded his eye for, except for a select few; they had no clue about the origins of that wolf.


    If they had, they wouldn¡¯t have been able to do anything other than to cower in fear, let alone negotiate with such a being.


    ~~~~~~~


    After some consideration, Fenrir had decided to place Kijiro, Jon, and Tam in charge of his future information network. Kijiro¡¯s talent for stealth gave her great potential as a spy, Jon had a talent for business, and Tam had a good sense for decision making. However, none of them were suitable for the darker side needed to reinforce their positions, so Fenrir made it very clear to the former guilds that they were under his protection, and began tutoring the three in the subjects needed for each respective role.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    With that dealt with, the sun was beginning to rise, so Fenrir tore open a space gate back to the female dormitories. The Academy treated its students well, and so there was no need to share accommodations.


    Fenrir had decided to avoid sleeping after it lead to the embarrassing situation with Yerin. Although it seemed to have strengthened their friendship, he felt rather uncomfortable with what had happened. He had tried to evaluate why this was so, but could not seem to identify any logical reason. Perhaps he was uncomfortable about Yerin knowing of his vulnerability, but he somehow felt that that wasn¡¯t the problem.


    In the end, he had thought back to his mother¡¯s advice from when he was a child: ¡°Just do whatever feels fun, and avoid anything that makes you uncomfortable. Of course, you could destroy it too, if avoiding is troublesome.¡±


    How long had it been since then? He didn¡¯t remember. He remembered his age at Helrend, but after that¡­ How long had he spent with Sera? Months? Years? Decades? Probably not centuries...


    He was slightly confused whenever he thought back to this point. Somehow, it felt right that he had lost track of time, even though he knew it should be strange...


    When he was asked his age at the Academy¡¯s registration, he had simply responded with Yerin¡¯s age: fifteen. He had always had trouble differentiating ages of other races; to him, Yerin¡¯s father looked at least a few hundred years old, but apparently not. As such, he used Yerin¡¯s appearance as a template; they both seemed about the same age, so he assumed that he looked fifteen.


    Well, thought Fenrir, At least I¡¯m not lying. Technically. I might actually be fifteen...

 Life at the Imperial Academy

    "The others say that one should never show pain. It hurts one''s friends and brings joy to one''s enemies. However, always remember: there are reasons that people are able to express their pain. When your friends see you in pain, they will do their utmost to help you. Perhaps there will be a cost for them to do so, but it is their choice to pay it, not yours. Perhaps you believe that the price is not worth it, but it is their choice to decide, not yours. Perhaps helping you is beyond their capabilities, but it is their choice to try, not yours. To hide your pain from those dear to you is to look down upon them, to take away their choices. Never look down on your friends, Lhetan"


    ~~~~~~~


    Fenrir¡¯s school life was¡­ rather uneventful. He made sure to always restrain his combat abilities to the level he had shown in the entrance exams, making minor increases to imitate growth. As such, he was viewed as a prodigy by many, and all manner of people tried to form connections with this ¡°prodigious girl¡±. However, his soul vision notified him that each and every one of these people had ulterior motives, so he coldly rejected them all.


    Personally, he felt rather annoyed by this fact, as there was a chance, though miniscule, of it affecting which form he differentiated into. Now that he thought of it, he was definitely not yet eighteen, as that hadn¡¯t happened yet. Well, at least he had a general estimate of his age now¡­


    The Academy¡¯s graduation was not based entirely on time spent studying there; instead, it was based on the strength of the individual. Every year, the Imperial Academy hosted a huge tournament, the Grand Tournament, and participation was mandatory for all students of the institution. The Grand Tournament was in a round robin format, where students got 2 points for a victory, 1 for a tie, and 0 for a loss. The students were then ranked based on the number of their points.The top ten students were allowed to graduate, regardless of what year they were. Meanwhile, places 11 through 50 were allowed to skip two years, and places 51 through 100 were allowed to skip one. The bottom fifty were each evaluated by teachers, who decided whether or not each of them would be allowed to continue studying at the Academy. Those above the bottom 50 but still within the bottom hundred were held back a year, and those between the bottom hundred and top hundred just advanced regularly. With approximately three thousand students in total, all of the students coveted the higher positions and were desperate to avoid the bottom hundred.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    It had been a week since he had taken the examination, and he had already established a routine of working on his spy network at night and attending the Academy during the day. The Imperial Academy didn¡¯t have many strict rules; attendance was only optional, and courses were chosen by the students. Grades were only given so that the students had an idea of what place they¡¯d get in the tournaments. Teachers were alumni who decided to work at the Academy; after all, a position as staff at the Imperial Academy, which raised a huge portion of humanity¡¯s strength, held prestige on the level of a high noble rank. Students technically didn¡¯t have to attend any classes at the academy, but that would impact their ranking, and no absentee student had ever placed high enough in the tournament to avoid expulsion.


    Fenrir honestly didn¡¯t need to take any classes, but he decided they had three merits: Firstly, they served as a good cover for him while he built his spy network. Secondly, he could learn something about humanity¡¯s culture through observing the students. And finally, he could spend time with Yerin. After the dream, he had found that talking with Yerin seemed to help help him ignore a feeling of confinement that had been steadily growing within him.


    Apparently, he had had to complete more exams, spanning the course of the whole week, apparently to help him determine which classes he should enter. During this time, he hadn¡¯t been able to contact Yerin; during the day, she was taking exams in a different location, so she was busy, and he refused to trouble her at night as he knew that mortals needed sleep. And so the stifling feeling grew gradually, to the point where a mortal mind would be on the brink of insanity.


    Such was his condition when he attended his first class.

 Update: Rewrite

    *Ahem*


    ...


    So...


    Um...


    Basically, starting now, I''ll be rewriting this story.


    I can''t promise regular updates, because the delusion that I could maintain them went away a looong time ago.


    Maybe as long ago as the last actual chapter.


    ...


    haha.


    ...


    So, I''ll probably just be deleting this story (and my other one) and creating a new one with the same title (I might name it Aelin, I might use Chaos, I dunno)If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.


    I''ll leave this story up for a while for people to find this update, I guess.


    As for why I''m doing this... I read the stories over again and realized that they really, really aren''t good as they are. I was writing with only a very vague overall plan, little to no foreshadowing, etc.


    So the new version will be rather different from the current one, hopefully in a good way. On the other hand, it''s going to take a while longer to start, since I''ll be laying out an actually detailed plan for it (hopefully) rather than a half-baked "this is what I want to happen" plan. So it will definitely take some time until the first chapter comes out. Something about quality over quantity, and all that.


    Sorry for disappearing like I did, and thanks for sticking around as long as you did (if you did)


    and, well, the new story will have major differences, but it will still use the basic plan that I had for this story overall. It''ll just involve improving the plan so that there''s an actually coherent storyline leading up to the finale, rather than just having the finale more or less planned out while coming up with the rest as I go along.


    So, yeah, if you''re interested then check it out. It should still be named Chaos, and the latest that the first chapter will come out will be... probably a couple of days? Let''s say two days. Might be sooner. I don''t trust myself with deadlines so it also might be later.


    See you there (-_-)

 Update: New version up

    So, basically...


    The new version''s up.


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