Union

My body was burning, it felt as if I were being burned alive. Every time I moved a muscle, I was flooded with a sensation so painful that I wished to be dead.

When I finally felt the pain fading away, I opened my eyes. I found myself in a kind of completely white space that conveyed a feeling of comfort and peace.

When I turned to look at my right arm, the one that had been torn off, to my surprise, instead of having an arm, I had a kind of transparent white cloak that simulated an arm.

I tried to move it, but nothing happened.

"Seems like you're awake now," a voice said.

When I turned to see where the voice was coming from, I was horrified by its source. In front of me stood a being that could only be described with one word:

Divine.

It was a huge white armor with 4 arms, adorned with beautiful angelic wings.

I didn't know how to react to the presence of this being, so I remained silent.

"You must be confused, kid," exclaimed the armor.

"What... what are you?" I asked fearfully.

I noticed two golden eyes, like the sun, peeking out from inside the helmet of the armor, and then it replied:

"What am I? Good question. Once, I was an existence that surpassed even the gods themselves, but now I am nothing more than a vestige of what I once was."

Not knowing how to react to such a statement, the being continued its discourse:

"Now, I have chosen you as my successor to continue my legacy, Seth Freeman."

Finally, I mentally collapsed.

If I was already confused about how I got here, having an existence claiming to be superior to the gods select me as its successor was the final straw.

"Wha... what do you mean? Why me?" I exclaimed.

The being looked at me and said:

"In that triangular rock, centuries ago, the swordsmen of your family used to sacrifice something precious to harness some of my powers. You are the suitable candidate since you sacrificed your right arm, the most precious possession of a swordsman."

"B... but I didn't sacrifice it, it was ripped off," I stammered.

"I know, child, I have seen it. But a sacrifice is still a sacrifice. It may have been a matter of luck that you are in my presence, but destiny is unpredictable, and this might be what it desires" the divine being exclaimed.

Suddenly, I watched as small black cracks expanded throughout the white space.

The mysterious deity seemed to notice this, so it quickly said:

"We don't have much time, so you, Seth Freeman, inherit the will of the Almighty Toth, the god of time and wisdom."

After the winged being uttered those words, a bright light flooded the space, and then, all I could see was complete darkness.

In that moment, not only the hero of humanity was born, but also a protagonist.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The rays of sunlight woke me up as a new day dawned. As I got out of bed, I felt a sensation of pain coming from my chest.

When I took off my shirt, I noticed some scratches.

"Damn rabbit, couldn't just stay still," I cursed.

I got dressed and went downstairs. I looked at the time and it was already 7:30 in the morning.

I turned on the television while frying some eggs.

"This generation looks really promising. Not only have over a thousand children been registered with high-level astral potential, but we also have the first divine rank registered in years. The boy who awakened it was none other than Samael Garza, the son of Thomas Garza, the highest representative of Lotus" said the reporter as she displayed a photo of a beautiful red-haired boy on the screen.

"Looks like they didn't exaggerate his appearance in the novel," I thought.

Samael Garza could be considered both a friend and rival to the protagonist. Although he initially appeared as the typical arrogant child, after meeting the protagonist, his arrogance subsided and he learned the value of humility. "Such a predictable story," I murmured.

"In other news, the Jin dynasty has agreed to sign a ceasefire agreement between our troops and theirs. According to Lotus, this temporary truce will be maintained for approximately 3 years" said the reporter.

"Ha!" I couldn't help but laugh.

Instead of saying that they agreed to a ceasefire, she should have said that Lotus begged for a ceasefire.

After all, at this point, the Eastern forces should have already developed an artifact to control high-ranking beasts.

When I finished breakfast, I turned off the television, I got dressed and left the house.

Since I lived near the Dark Forest, I always had to take a long walk to the village.

I grabbed a black coat and prepared to set off.

Just as I was leaving, I encountered an unexpected person.

The priest, who seemed to be coming out of the forest.

The priest always gave me an ominous feeling.

Every time I saw him, he maintained a strange smile that perfectly masked his emotions.

Over the years, he had become more gaunt and thin.

"Hello, Liam" he greeted me.

"Hello, Father Cesar. What were you doing in the forest?" I asked him.

"Oh, you know, blessing the land and doing priestly things, Liam" he replied.

I don't know why, but his answer didn't convince me, though I didn't pay much attention to it.

Since I didn't want to share the path with this weird creature, I decided to take an alternative route.

Just before I turned around, the priest said to me:

"May the gods be with you, and remember to send my regards to your parents."

I chose to ignore him and left without saying goodbye.

"Well, that was strange," I murmured to myself.

Anyway, I need to plan a farewell party for Anna with Peter.

I didn't see it at the time, but the priest's smile faded, and he uttered words that I couldn't hear in that moment:

"Above all, enjoy your friends, Liam. You never know when you might lose them."