7 Hunter has become Parker

(Current day)

Hunter was floating above the elf, and the young man was on the ground beside the elf. Both of their dressed barely covered anything other than their privates. Compared to the elf, the human's body was riddled with scars and burn marks. His leg was crooked as though someone had snapped it in half. Hunter was sure the human was long dead, judging by the paleness of the body. He wondered what might have killed this young man. But every time Hunter tried to focus on something, the fact he was floating in front of an elf broke his train of thought.

"Parker, don't leave me," The elf sobbed. It wouldn't take a genius to see the bond shared by the elf and the dead human.

Suddenly, Hunter felt being pulled by an invisible force.

[Transmigration Process Completed…]

Hunter heard the system's voice once again. Hunter always believed in an afterlife. Just like his father, Hunter also thought he was going straight to hell after death. A sudden flash of light and high-pitched whistling noise ached his whole body. He was no longer hovering in the air. Instead, he could feel sensations throughout his body.

Hunter felt pain in his chest and knees. He tasted blood in his mouth. He smelled the scent of sewer and garbage.

"Why did this happen? Parker, please wake up!" the thud of a fist hitting a body resounded. The scent of blood wafted through the air. Hunter heard the elf's voice closer and clearer than before.

"Tell me, how am I going to survive that hell hole? TELL ME!" The elf was filled with such vehement sorrow and rage that Hunter could feel his emotions pierce his very flesh. With everything he had seen and gone through, Hunter put the pieces together. A moment of silence followed. Soon, the dark clouds filled the sky, turning the dark alley darker. Streaks of lightning flashed across the sky. The wind sounded like wolves howling at the moon. Furthermore, thunderclaps rumbled in the sky louder than ever before. Hunter tried to open his eyes, but he couldn't.

The elf suddenly stopped sobbing. Hunter felt a soft hand around his neck. The elf was obviously checking for a pulse.

"Parker," A gleeful shout erupted from the elf. Without warning, cold water splashed on his face. The dark clouds brought the wrath of heavy downpour in full force. Hunter spat out the blood that clung to his throat. It took him some time to finally open his eyelids and adjust to the lightning. Then, he saw the elf staring at him without batting an eye. If the heavy droplets weren't enough, the elf's tear drops too joined the fun of hitting Hunter's face.

"Thank god, you are alive," Judging by the genuine delight and the sadness Hunter sensed in his voice earlier, it was evident this elf had a strong bond with the previous owner of his body. The taste of blood became increasingly familiar in Hunter's mouth. After coughing thrice, Hunter tried to get up.

"What is this place? What happened?" Numerous questions filled his mind. He almost failed to notice the pain permeating throughout his body due to the confusion and this new strange feeling. The elf stared at him and hugged him tighter. Although Hunter was a dictator who enjoyed every earthly pleasure there was, he was no stranger to pain. Before his father passed away when he was six, he used to train Hunter despite his age. When other children were building lego, Hunter was dismantling and assembling guns. Hunter still remembered him crying for breaks and wishing his father would get a heart attack. Never in a million years, Hunter expected that his father would really get a heart attack and pass away.

As much as Hunter hated his old man, he also loved him. After all, he was the only family Hunter had after his mother passed away giving him birth. His old man always told him to cherish the family. If he valued one thing over kingdom blade, it was family. But unfortunately, all of Hunter's uncles and aunts got assassinated when they tried to invade other kingdoms instead of ruling theirs as they should have. Hunter tried to stop them obviously but he could only persuade them for a time. It was really unfortunate. If they were alive, the United Nations couldn't have touched Hunter.

Hunter slowly squirmed himself out of the elf's hug and tried to get back to his feet. But due to the numerous questions he had in his mind, Hunter failed to recall his new body was a cripple. His legs were snapped in half. Hunter had never been this skinny or weak. Furthermore, the clothes he wore hardly covered anything except his privates. They also stank to high heaven as though the human had never washed them in years. Other than the raggedy piece of the garment around his waist, a bloody rag rolled around his right leg. He could feel a squishy paste underneath the cloth, probably some medicine for the wound.

"Parker," The elf said with eyes filled with concern for the only friend he had. He instinctively grabbed his friend by the shoulder when he was about to stumble down.

"Careful," The elf said, locking his gaze with Hunter. But the moment the elf looked into his friend's eyes, he felt a chill. The previously fearful and kindness in his eyes were no longer there. Instead, he saw the yes turning predatory. The same eyes of one who had taken numerous lives before.

The memories of the body's previous owner flooded Hunter's mind. Everything from Maria hugging him with motherly love to Walter spoon-feeding him to his brutal death flashed across Hunter's eyes. The pain, the rage, and the happiness, Hunter felt everything as though he himself had gone through them all. Hunter experienced Parker's sixteen years of life in a mere few seconds. However, those mere seconds were more than enough for Hunter to feel everything.

The sudden surge of memories churned his guts, making Hunter throw up. His soul and mind were still adjusting to their new body. Hunter felt the helplessness and grief in Parker's heart. Although Hunter knew he was not Parker, his mind was unable to clearly distinguish the two selves. As seconds passed, Hunter felt like he had gone through everything. Parker's grief, rage, and every feeling became his.

Hunter took a deep breath. Trying to calm his soul and mind. Following the destruction of the Phoenix Clan, the memories of Parker's last four years flashed across Hunter's eyes. The black-robed figure sold Parker to a slave merchant for one astral coin, which was the currency of this strange new world. He was brought to the Kingdom of Ceva from Midor, Parker's homeland, and sold to a merchant.

The merchant broke every single human right violation there was on earth. He used Parker as a human dummy for his children to slice and dice him. Those warrior children practiced every single sword slash, martial art technique, and fighting combo on Parker. Since his leg was broken, Parker stood no chance against them. In addition to serving as a test dummy, the second daughter of the merchant took a special interest in Parker. She had never missed a chance to beat Parker up. One time, she beat him to near death because Parker's finger touched her.

Those people didn't have a shred of mercy in their hearts. They worked the slaves to death, literally. If it wasn't for Kolvar, Parker's elven friend, and the desperation to find out what happened to his brothers and little sister, Parker would have died long ago. Only the bond he shared with his siblings kept him going.

Despite his broken leg, the merchant put Parker in the devil's button field. It was a kind of plant equal to the weed on earth. Only the devil's button is several times more potent, deadly, and poisonous. Hundreds of people die every year working in this field. According to Parker's memories, a special people called alchemists refined the devil's button with additional ingredients to brew a liquor called the devil's breath. It was famous in local taverns and a cheap alternative to wines. Except for two hours of sleep in a barn with cattle, Parker served as a human dummy and worked the fields under the scorching sun with Kolvar.

Hunter closed his eyes, trying to recall how did Parker die. A few hours ago, Parker and Kolvar came to the tavern the merchant's second daughter held a get-together with her friends to deliver a bottle of devil's breath. Those rich brats wanted to taste what a commoner drink tasted like. The elf made Parker a walking stick so Parker could walk instead of crawl. Everything that had transpired after they reached the tavern was like a dream to Hunter.

Simply put, they reached the tavern and handed over the devil's breath to the merchant's second daughter named Elisia. Unfortunately for Kolvar, elven slaves were very rare in Ceva. As a result, Elisia's friends took an interest in Kolvar. In this world, a wealthy noble taking an interest in a slave would only lead to the demise of the slave in one way or another. They wanted Kolvar to entertain them by dancing for them, naked. Even though Kolvar was a slave, he still had dignity. He refused, which made Elisia's friends feel offended. Since they were already drunk enough, they didn't show a shred of mercy as they began to beat Kolvar left and right. Poor Parker, who witnessed his friend's state went to save him. It was a good enough reason for Elisia to test her new martial art skill on Parker. This time, she went overboard and hit Parker's head against the wall hard enough to kill him. Afterward, she threw Kolvar out of the tavern along with Parker's dead body.

That's where Hunter came into the picture. When Parker's tragic life ended, Hunter's second life began. All the emotions Parker bottled up, the emotions he was afraid to display, came flooding into Hunter's heart. He looked at the sky and roared like a wounded lion.

"ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

But soon, his roar turned into a devilish laugh. Seeing Parker roar and laugh like a demon, Kolvar took a step back. His heart was clenched by a strange fear.

[Badass system is online]

[Congratulations to the host for receiving a legendary starter pack to help you start your new life]

The system's demonic voice resembling the voice of Venom sounded in his mind. A grin emerged on Parker's face. Except, Parker was no more. The one who took over Parker's life was the deadliest man ever to walk the earth, Hunter Blade.