Power

Still sitting on the grass field, Eve was startled by the voice that suddenly spoke to him. He had never heard such a voice before; it was smooth and unnatural.

"Who- Who are you?" Eve called out to the voice.

"Let's say that I am your guardian angel. You may call me Antares. I'll be assisting you in your endeavors from now on."

"Can you help me get into that city?" Eve pointed his finger off into the distance at heavily fortified iron gates. Eve could see dozens of guards patrolling on just one section of the walls, with archer towers stationed periodically between the walls.

"Yes, I can help you get in," Antares replied flatly, pausing for a moment before continuing.

"But it will cost you."

"Really? But I don't have anything in my possession. I left it all behind..." Looking back at his decisions, Eve realized that he should have brought some of the valuable jewelry he had before running away. Eve grimaced at the wasted opportunity.

"I'm not talking about those useless human trinkets. Rather, the method I speak of will cost you tokens."

"Tokens? What are those?"

"The coin you just picked up is what the humans of this world call the "token." I have to give it to them; they actually managed to harvest the essence of this world."

"The essence of this world? Hold on; I don't understand."

"That's okay; you will learn as you grow. For now, I can teleport you within the city walls using the power of this token. Prepare yourself."

The ground around Eve started to shift as the surroundings around him started to dissipate. The uneven dirt ground beneath him changed into solid cobblestone bricks, the grass around him turned into two long stone walls flanking his sides. The coin Eve was holding onto disappeared into thin air, and Eve was left in the middle of a dark alleyway.

Above Eve, there was a balcony with a young girl staring right at him. With a nervous smile, Eve waved at her.

"MONSTER! A MONSTER WHO CAN TELEPORT IS HERE!" the young girl started screaming at the top of her lungs and ran inside the building.

"Ah crap," Eve mumbled under his breath and ran out of the alleyway. On the main street, Eve saw a plaza of shops and restaurants with crowds of people cheering. Eve was amazed at the bustling activity of the plaza and noticed the cheering was directed towards a line of teens. The line of teens was walking towards a grand ziggurat shimmering with a translucent veil that gave off an impression of power.

"You're welcome, by the way. I teleported you right into the heart of the city. Getting into that pyramid shouldn't be too hard from here. If you wish to receive my guidance again, you must gain more tokens."

"Thanks," Eve whispered and hurriedly went to join the back of the line. He could blend in perfectly with his uniform matching everyone else's and pretended to start chatting with himself. Still, he was worried because he didn't have an identification tag. In front of him was a boy and a girl talking with each other.

"Hey, Marina, what are you going to do once you go down?"

The girl pondered the question for a bit before letting out a sigh.

"Hmmm, I don't know. I might join the Queen of Blade's army to the west. Rumors are that she managed to defeat one of the senior Overlords decisively! She's so inspirational."

"Hah, the Queen of Blades might be powerful, but she's too inexperienced! I'm going to join the Beast Overlord and conquer the jungles of the south with him."

"With your power, Kariv? I doubt you would last a single day in their arenas. You would probably die from shock before you even encountered a monster."

They both started laughing out, excited for the future waiting for them in the Underworld. Eve listened attentively, noting down any tips he would need to survive there. Kariv and Marina talked for a while about every one of the 12 Overlords and the benefits or detriments of joining their cause. Right before the line arrived at the entrance of the ziggurat, the line came to a halt. From the front of the line, there came a deafening roar from one of the teenagers.

"No, it can't be. The Overlord of Frost absolutely cannot be dead!" yelled out a boy. The boy was built with incredibly toned muscles, a deeply furrowed brow, natural dark tan skin, and emerald eyes. He was in a fighting posture directed towards a tall, blonde girl standing confidently with a smirk.

"Use what little brain cells you have and prostrate yourself. Why would I lie about this to you?" calmly responded the girl. She had ice-blue eyes, pale skin, a high nose bridge, and sharp facial features. Like the boy, she emanated a mighty fighting spirit and had trained her muscles to the finest. She firmly grasped the sword hooked onto a belt on her waist, preparing to draw it at a moment's notice. The nurses accompanying the line stood helplessly to the side, knowing they would die when they entered the crossfire of the high-level magic users. The two children stood intensely looking each other down, and a fight was about to erupt before a young man no more than 30 years of age came out from the entrance of the ziggurat, accompanied by armored guards.

"Stop!" commanded the young man dressed in a dark officer uniform with a dark red badge, indicating that he was a commander of high standing within the Imperial army. His voice alone caused the kids to come to a stop and even tremble in fear.

<<Spirit Magic!>> Eve read about this type of magic in his books. It was an extremely high-level form of magic where one exerts the pressure of their soul upon others, effectively allowing the user to control the victim to some extent. The Overlords used spirit Magic to control their armies and boost morale, and only experienced practitioners could use spirit magic.

"So-Sorry sir, I got too agitated" the boy started stammering and look downwards, ashamed of his immature actions.

The girl, obviously flustered, said, "He started it! I didn't do anything- "

Whoosh!

The air seemed to fold upon itself, and the next thing anyone knew, the officer had the girl's neck in his hand, holding her up to the air.

"Ah-" the girl turned pale from the chokehold while the officer had the most devilish smile on his face.

"Should I kill you here for your insolence?" The group of students that had started to bunch up around the commotion went completely silent. From his sheer presence alone, the officer had managed to freeze everyone around the pyramid as the girl's life started to slip from her grasp.

"Marina, I feel like I will die the moment I move a muscle," whispered Kariv, who had a terrified expression on his previously joyous face.

"I couldn't even move if I wanted to. Kariv, I think that's the Commander of Blood, Maxim! What is he doing here in Stellar City? I thought he was fighting the frontlines of the Imperial Army against the monsters to the East." Marina whispered back.

"What are you guys whispering about?"

Kariv and Marina whirled around to see a curious Eve looking over their shoulder, moving around without a care in the world.

"YOU IDIOT. STAY STILL, OR YOU'LL DIE," Kariv furiously whispered to the clueless boy, but it was too late. Like a well-oiled machine, the commander turned his head around and looked directly at Eve.

<<Someone who managed to move while under the presence of my spirit magic? This might be interesting>> Still clutching the girl in his hands, he moved at lighting speed towards Eve.

"What's your name, boy?" boomed out the commander's heavy voice as he approached the oblivious boy.

"And who gave you the right to know my name?" Eve responded. After the last incident with the wagons, he would not lose his pride and dignity again, no matter if his opponent could use spirit magic or not. The crowd around them collectively gasped at the same time. Some people started sighing, knowing that the foolish child's life was not for long.

"Ple-Please save me.." the girl in the commander's clutches started gasping out for air, struggling to live. Not caring at all for the girl, the commander started laughing out loud.

"Tough talk for trash who can't even use magic." With his god's eye ability, the commander instantly ascertained that the boy had zero magic affinity and was all bark, no bite. It was still surprising that the boy could move so well under the influence of his spirit magic, but it was probably a fluke. The crowd around seemed to give out another collective gasp, now certain that the boy was going to die. How could a magicless child go against the great Commander of Blood?

Eve flashed a bright smile at the general and confidently walked towards the commander. Slowly, he lifted both hands and opened them wide.

"10 tokens. If you give me 10 tokens, I'll show you what I can do."

The commander once again started bursting out in laughter, fully entertained by the situation. Tokens could be used to level up one's power to their full potential, but 10 tokens could hardly do anything for anyone. Perhaps they would be able to run for a minute longer than they could before, but even that was far-fetched. He took 10 tokens out of his pocket and dropped them in the boy's hands, going along with the act. In the next few moments, something that defied all logic happened. As soon as the coins touched the boy's fingertips, they disappeared into dust.

Then, came the softest whisper from the boy's mouth.

"Die."