Bam! Bam!
.
.
.
The ruined cathedral groaned as the night wind pushed through shattered windows. Every gust carried dust and whispers, as though the stones themselves remembered forgotten prayers. Liam leaned against a broken pillar, his armored body still foreign to him. Each breath echoed hollowly inside his helm, metallic and unnatural.
The voice still rang in his skull.
> [Unique Skill Acquired: SSS—Instant Death]
Warning: Excessive use will corrode the soul.
He clenched his fists. The crow he had erased minutes ago did not bleed, did not fall—it had simply ceased. No trace remained, not even feathers. The memory of that quiet annihilation clawed at him, both terrifying and intoxicating.
"Was that… me?" Liam whispered. His voice rasped through the helm, deeper than he remembered.
Before he could collect himself, the cathedral doors creaked open. Torches spilled light across the ruined floor, and hooded figures filed in, their robes marked with red sigils that pulsed faintly like veins.
They moved as one, kneeling, foreheads pressing to the cracked tiles. Their voices blended into a low chant.
"Behold, the Knight of Death has awakened…"
"The prophecy is fulfilled… Our lord has returned, clad in black steel…"
"All hail the end of the false gods…"
Liam stiffened. They think I'm their god?
One of them raised his hood, revealing an elderly man with sunken eyes glowing faintly crimson. His smile was reverent, almost broken with joy.
"My lord," he whispered, "we, the Children of the Abyss, have awaited you for centuries. The chains of the heavens will shatter by your hand. You are the shadow prophesied, the blade that will silence the Constellations."
Liam's gauntleted hand gripped his sword instinctively. "I'm not your lord."
The cultists did not flinch. Some even trembled in delight.
"Modesty, in the flesh of gods… even in rejection, your destiny is undeniable," the elder said, bowing deeper.
Liam's pulse hammered. He wanted answers, but every instinct told him these people were dangerous. Still, his curiosity gnawed at him. "…What do you mean, silence the Constellations?"
The elder's grin widened, cracked lips parting as if he had rehearsed this moment for years. "This world is ruled by false stars—Constellations, beings who play with mortals as pawns. They bless Apostles, heroes, tyrants, and kings. All dance in their light… except us. We who were abandoned, cursed, left in darkness."
His voice grew feverish, echoing against broken stone.
"But you—you are the one prophesied to devour the heavens themselves. Death incarnate, wrapped in armor forged from despair. Even the gods must bow before Instant Death."
The words made Liam's stomach twist. He had seen what the skill could do, but to these people it was salvation, prophecy.
"I'm just… a man," Liam muttered. His voice cracked against the weight of the armor. "Not a god. Not a prophecy."
The elder's eyes burned brighter. "Then why do you carry the authority to erase life with a thought?"
The question lodged deep in Liam's chest. He had no answer.
Silence fell, broken only by the hiss of torches. The cultists remained bowed, waiting for his command, their devotion absolute.
Liam's thoughts raced. If what they said was true, then these "Constellations" were real gods—or close to it—and they had chosen mortals to carry their will. Which meant if they learned of his existence, they would see him as a threat.
"Are they watching me now?" he asked quietly.
The elder tilted his head. "The moment you drew breath in this vessel, the stars shuddered. They will send their Apostles to test your strength. The world will hunt you, curse you, fear you. But we—" he touched his chest reverently, "—we will always kneel."
Liam's jaw tightened. Already hunted? Already cursed? He thought dying in his old world was cruel, but this felt worse. To be dragged into another existence only to be labeled an enemy of heaven.
He took a step forward, and the cultists shuddered as one, as though even the sound of his armored boots carried divine weight. Liam towered over them, his shadow stretching across their trembling forms.
"You said… soul corruption," Liam muttered. His gauntlet clenched. "What happens if I use this power too much?"
The elder's smile never faltered. "Then your humanity will wither. Your flesh, your name, your heart—all consumed until only death itself remains. You will no longer be man… but god."
The word dripped from his lips like poison and prayer at once.
Liam turned his gaze away. He didn't want to be a god. He didn't want to lose himself. He only wanted to understand why he was here.
"Listen carefully," he said, his voice low, steady. "I am Liam. Not a prophecy. Not your lord. If you follow me, you follow my name, not your scriptures."
A murmur passed through the cultists. Some looked shaken, others awed. But none resisted. They bowed lower, chanting his name now instead of titles.
"Liam… Liam… the shadow given form…"
It unsettled him, but it was better than "god."
Liam exhaled. The weight of this new world pressed harder with every breath. He could already feel the distance between himself and humanity widening. The crow he erased. The cult that knelt. The stars that watched.
And the whisper in his skull that warned:
> [Instant Death – Active Authority Detected]
[Soul Corruption: 1%]
His body froze. Only once, and already it had begun.
The cultists were still bowing, still whispering his name, but Liam barely heard them. His thoughts churned with dread. If one command could already corrode his soul, how long before he lost himself entirely?
The crimson sky above the cathedral pulsed faintly, like a heart. He wondered if it belonged to the world—or to him.
For the first time since awakening, Liam truly felt the weight of his curse.
And deep inside, he feared the cult was right.
.
.
As Liam was in deep thoughts suddenly-.....
"Tremble" "Tremble"
Liam's gauntlets trembled as he stared at the faint system window floating before him.
> [Instant Death – Active Authority Detected]
[Soul Corruption: 1%]
Bam! bam!
Just once. Just a crow. And already something inside him was cracking.
His breath quickened, but before panic could spread, another message flashed across his vision:
> [New Skill Generated: B-Rank – Emotion Suppression]
Description: Stabilizes user's mental state. Reduces emotional instability and prevents external interference from higher beings.]
Warning: Prolonged use erodes empathy and emotional resonance.]
The words burned into his mind. Emotion… Suppression?
Almost immediately, a cold calm washed over him. His heartbeat slowed. The crawling dread that had been gnawing at his chest vanished like mist in the morning sun. He exhaled, steady and measured, as though the system itself had pressed an invisible hand against his soul.
The cultists didn't notice the change, but Liam did. His panic, his humanity, his fear—they were muffled now, tucked away behind invisible walls.
He raised a hand to his chest. "So… the system wants me to be calm. Wants me to keep control."
Or perhaps, a darker thought whispered, it wanted him to stop feeling at all.
The elder lifted his head slightly, eyes narrowing. "Your aura… it has settled. As expected. Even the heavens cannot shackle your will. Truly, the prophesied Knight."
Liam said nothing. His calm was too complete, too unnatural. Even his anger felt distant, like he was watching himself from behind glass.
> [Emotion Suppression: Passive effect engaged.]
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