1 Death - edited

Darkness.

Darkness was familiar. He was born into darkness and would die in darkness.

"Cough! Cough!"

Aaron clenched his dagger with a tight grip as he continued to cough out crimson-red blood.

"Aren't so tough now are you? Dark Moon?" The man mocked not at all hiding his disdain.

As the man mocked him, Aaron's figure suddenly disappeared and the man felt thick killing intent behind his back, making all the hairs on his body stand and quiver with fear.

"W-what?! How!? No! Don't Kill m- Aaarrghhh…!"

Aaron decisively slashed the throat of the man killing him, and making him fall stiff with an expression of despair and regret.

However, there was no medicine for regret and even if there was, he would have to be alive to take it.

"At least I managed to finish my final assignment before I die… Ha ha..."

Aaron was not at all despairing or even feeling sorrow at his situation as many others would've. He felt that such emotions such as sorrow and despair were unnecessary as he had experienced that his entire life.

In fact, his whole life was a tragedy.

He was abandoned in the slums and with no parents, he was forced to learn the cruelty of the world and become a person who could only rely on himself which pushed him to maturity at an early age and a lack of development of character.

He saw many things.

Death was a common occurrence in the slums so Aaron was already immune to death.

Aaron had to live out his life scrounging around for food and money.

Eventually, this wasn't enough to allow him to survive so he was forced to turn to a life of crime and violence, where he gained his nickname Dark Moon in an assassination organisation where he had killed a lot of people. Regardless of their age, or gender. The only thing that mattered to him whether they were corrupt or evil because that was when he would accept a mission.

The reason he had gained the nickname 'Dark Moon' was because he always managed to kill his targets in darkness, where even moonlight couldn't reach.

Aaron who had always been nameless, had a certain amount of fondness for his nickname so he had named himself Aaron. Aaron Moon.

The Moon part came from his nickname and the name Aaron came from the only person who had ever treated him with kindness since he was born.

Uncle Aaron.

Uncle Aaron, or at least, that's the name he had shared with Aaron, had taken Aaron under his wing and had taught him many vital things that Aaron was grateful for.

He was a perverted old man, always doing and talking about perverted things, but he was also single-handedly the biggest influencer in his life, being a somewhat of a father-figure to Aaron.

He was quite old and scruffy but was also quite refined and surprisingly handsome and fit for his age.

He taught Aaron how to read and write, martial-arts and all sorts of miscellaneous and important random things (including *ahem*, you know what... ;) ), until one day, he had disappeared leaving nothing behind but a small farewell note. Even though he had disappeared, Aaron never forgot the kindness Uncle Aaron had showed him and decided to take the name Aaron and help other people in the slums, to in a way, thank uncle Aaron for, well, helping him.

Aaron gave out money and food to random people in the slums, only leaving a drawing of a moon.

This gave him a small amount of reputation among the people in the slums and made them view him in a favourable light as the unknown benevolent 'Dark Moon' vigilante.

"Ergh…!"

A sharp pain coursed through his body, interrupting his sudden memory recalling, making him let out a grunt and spit out blood.

Blood continued to pour out of his chest due to him overexerting his strength earlier to finish his assassin as he felt his life draining from him.

"Guess this is it for me…"

Aaron let out a sigh and lied down. He looked up to glance at the beautiful night sky.

'Was the sky always this beautiful?'

It was at that time that he felt truly at peace. He felt… content.

Staring at the crystal-like stars and that ever so bright full-moon, he could physically feel himself dying.

It was a terrifying experience but he was already expecting it so he didn't really care anymore.

Aaron felt as if he was being embraced by darkness as his vision slowly turned dark.

He closed his eyes to openly accept his death when he heard a cold, dark mechanical voice.

[Host Identified]

[Scanning for compatibility…]

[100% compatibility rate.]

[100% potential.]

[Your life has been an unfortunate one. Would you like a chance to start a new life?]

[Yes] [No]

Two icons appeared in his mind and whilst gritting his teeth with the last amount of energy he had left, Aaron let out a barely audible whisper.

"...yes…"

[Synchronisation sequence commencing…]

[19%...37%...67%...86%...100%]

[Congratulations for becoming the Host of The Freedom System]

[Consciousness transfer commencing…]

[Good luck Host…]

These were the last words he heard before his vision completely turned black.