Going somewhere

I collected everything I wished to be prepared. I walk back to the village, with the day slowly brightening. My mind was empty, recent events didn't allow me to think critically.

I looked up through the leaves, the shining sun was basking me in its warm rays.

'...'

[The Cosmic Star, Jesiah Femnir, is closely observing you]

I was still under the scrutinizing gaze of the Cosmic Star, Jesiah Femnir. A female name. I squinted my eyes, and in the bright sun-lit sky was a small white star that was competing to stay in the blue sky. This was a violation, if I'm correct.

'Stars are representations of Mages who've reached Transcendence, along with small and young Divine Beings. But, they only show up at night because during the day, only the Sun and its associated Divine Being is allowed to show itself.'

But, the fact that this Jesiah Femnir is still visible and shining faintly in the blue sky shows how powerful it is in order to compete with the Sun.

'It's probably worth it to show off, just so that this Star will have a long interest in me.'

Having a Star's interest isn't a bad thing, just that I need to keep my identity intact. Don't want to start an unnecessary massacre to prove a point.

'It's so easy… but let's not be the villain this early into the story.'

I was restraining myself so that when the day finally comes, when this journey of mine is finished, I would have a satisfying story to tell and remember. Another in my collection of tales, conquest, decimation, love maybe.

'...'

I walked back to the village, and it was almost midday with the sun almost at the top of the sky. I walked through the merchant street and arrived at the stall I was looking for.

"Uhmmm…"

"Excuse me?"

"Hwah? Ah, you're back? Almost midday, where were you?"

"I was hung up on something, nothing too important."

"Hmm, alright then. Don't have any customers, so I was waiting for you. Took about a quarter of the day for you to get back."

"I didn't know I was that late, apologies."

"It's fine, now, have you gotten anything delicious?"

"I gathered some berries, various vegetables and some sort of spice."

I gave the basket to the man who was standing in his stall. He took it and looked over the ingredients, and then looked up at me with a disappointed look.

"You're a vegetarian or something? Why is it all greens?"

"Oh, and a boar as well."

I dragged out a fresh carcase of a brown fur boar that I killed instantly with a Mind Spell. Squashed its mind and it became brain dead the next second.

"Owoohhh."

The man's face brightened noticeably as he looked over the boar's dead fresh body.

"How did you kill it without any injuries? I heard Mages are pretty powerful, so I would've expected some marks."

"It's nothing too hard."

I didn't explain, but the man didn't seem all too keen on listening to my explanation even if I were to say anything.

"So, I'll be able to make a spicy dish for you, or maybe something lightly seasoned with a salad as a refreshing side?"

"Anything's fine, I just have one order."

"Speak away, I aim to please."

"Make it so that the meat's tender and juicy. It's all I ask."

"Oh, that's easy then. Wait somewhere nearby while I prepare, it'll take about half an hour."

I turned around and went off, now looking for a familiar face.

'Where is… ah, there she is!'

In the distance, I spotted the person I was looking for. The woman was unaware as I approached her from behind, and when my hand touched her shoulder she reacted quite quickly.

"?!!"

A hand went and slash across the air, but with a Stat difference the movement was slow in my perception. I backstepped a little and moved my head back, avoiding the attack completely.

"Ah! Y-You're-"

"Reacted quite well there, were you accustomed to doing it?"

"Wha-?!"

She was visibly shaken, but nothing out of the ordinary I suppose. Her response on the other hand was quite extreme, and fast so it must've been instinctive to her.

'Signs of past transgressions, maybe?'

"Y-You, why are-"

"Have you forgotten about our deal? The capital, when will we head off?"

"O-Oh, right, you did ask me that when we first met... I'm planning to leave in three days, but I'm not doing it for free. You'll have to pay if you want to ride along with me."

"It's fine, I can walk if you'd just ride slowly."

"..."

'Trying to get a few coins in exchange for some relaxation? Peh, typical of merchants.'

Silver tongued arses, but this one is bearable enough. Her attempt failed, but it was a good attempt.

"Anyway, call me when you're about to embark. I don't want to have to use my Mana uselessly."

"Tsk, whatever."

She looked disgruntled, but I shouldn't pry into her business. Merchants usually don't like it when you dig into their personal life.

''I'll be going now, take care, fair lady."

"...Yeah."

She squinted her eyes at my comment, but I didn't care. I read her mind though, just to know what she's thinking.

'H-He called me a f-fair lady?! T-That's… quite nice, of him.'

'Ah, she's one of those types of women.'

I turned around after I had my answer, and was on my way to explore some wares up for sale. I have quite an earning from my performance yesterday, so I was looking to buy something to satiate material needs.

'It's strange, I have no need for these, yet I find myself some comfort in buying and being wasteful.'

I'm a hoarder, most of the time. My endless Inventory is stock full of whatever essentials I might need for a slim possibility of a situation that needs it. Inventory isn't something a Player needs to supervise all of the time. It's endless, so to say. Just that you need a lot of Intelligence in order to not let the Item stocked inside despawn.

It comes when you forget something, that is the Inventory's true form, a memory vault of sorts. I have high Intelligence, that is why I'm a hoarder. I could remember each of the Items inside my Inventory, down to the last number of Health Potions I wouldn't even need as an Undead back then.

'Well, who knows, maybe someone's in need of one and I just have some stockpiled up… thousands of stockpiled potions…'

Yeah, it's an unhealthy habit of mine. But, I have the mental capacity for it so why not. And so, as I was wandering the merchant stall street, something amongst the commodities caught my eyes. A strange gem, that has a glint as the sun reflects on its jagged surface, was burning with a faint, almost indiscernible black Aura.

'...Demonic Energy.'

A Cursed Item, and this piqued my interest.

'Are there those from the Chaos Alignment?'

Getting your hands on a Cursed Item isn't an easy task. Cursed Items, in exchange for a great edge in combat, offer some Debuffs or permanent Curses to the user. If one misuses the Cursed Item without proper preparation and carefulness, then death is most likely guaranteed.

'If so, then this will be interesting.'

If you were to use the Saint, Lawful, Chaos Scale on me, I would align with the Chaos Lawful middle ground. I am a murderer of the highest order, but due to my purpose being to enact what I am, Death incarnated, I am counted as a Lawful being.

'And, with that alignment, I naturally have more favorability when making contact with them.'

I approached the stall that was selling the peculiar stone. My approach alerted the merchant, who took up a smile underneath his hood.

"Welcome, anything you fancy, Mage?"

"..."

I didn't say a word to create an atmosphere of tension. The merchant noticed my silence, and his facial expression visibly tensed up.

"...Say, where did you get this peculiar stone?''

I picked up the Cursed Item, and a notification popped up in front of me.

[You've been affected by the Curse of Maddening Dread]

[The Constellation Chaotic Carnage has noticed your presence]

'Ah, shit.'

I dropped the stone hurriedly. It was prying into my Status, I could feel it. The eye of a Divine Being, almost nothing can deceive it unless one is also of similar Status.

"Ah, that trinket? Saw it on the road, picked it up and decided to sell it since it looks nice. 4 copper is all I ask, cheap right?"

"Yes… would you, mind coming a little closer?"

"Excuse me?"

"Now, if you tell me the truth, then I'll spare you the accusations I'm about to say to you, but lies and reality turn into a nightmare. Understand?"

''I… don't think I do? What are you-"

"Tell me the truth, the previous statement was a lie."

"..."

The merchant's face got noticeably darker, and his eyes glowed a faint red. His voice, when he spoke, was a deep growl like an animal's.

"Do you know who you're dealing with, outsider?"

"Hoh, finally speaking with your real voice, Daemon?"

The signs of a Daemon are, as shown, glowing red eyes and altered voice. They will try to blend in to the best of their abilities, but their way of speaking is almost a dead give-away if one deals with them many times.

The first is that they always address the person with humble words, masking their utmost disgust. Daemons, much like the other Races, regard their species as the highest and most revered. But, this gets into their speech by using unnecessary words. Experienced Daemons might not have this habit, but it's the most common trait to identify one. Second and probably the hardest to notice is.

'The Aura.'

An Aura master will have an easy time detecting a Daemon, as they have a unique Aura coated in Demonic Energy. It's a black red Aura that leaks particles.

'And since I have the Title, Pinnacle of Evil, I can clearly see the sinfuls, Daemons, and most likely Angelic beings.'

Pinnacle of Evil, it brings back memories that're rather unpleasant. It was acquired through reaching the highest negative number of Karma. Karma is an ever changing value that's based on your choices and intentions behind them. If they're pure, wholeheartedly for the betterment of something or someone, then Karma increases. If they're corrupted, of ill intent, and most of the times include the murder or destruction of something important, then Karma decreases.

'So many deaths, so many Souls…'

And, along with Pinnacle of Evil, I also have the Title Soul Beacon, which enables me to see into Souls as a Passive effect. It can be turned on and off when I need it. Like right now for instance.

"So, Daemon, answer my questions that I'm about to ask you truthfully and I shall let you run off with your cover intact. Blow it away, then consider your life ended."

"...You, who are you?"

The Daemon's eyes returned to the dark brown color of their Human disguise. Then, a notification popped up that somewhat alarmed me.

[The Cosmic Star, Jesiah Femnir, is wondering why you're taking so long]

'Right, almost slipped my mind.'

I didn't pay attention to the notification, but it served as a warning that I'm now on a stage with a performance to play for an audience.

''I would like to inquire about the whereabouts in which you got this stone from."

"...Got it from the western borders, an associate of mine visited and gave it to me as a gift to use. I'm here just by coincidence.''

"And what if someone were to pick up this peculiar stone? What would it do, or rather, you do?"

"...I would just laugh, their unfortunate eyes landed on the stone. It's funny, and I might stay over for a while."

"Good good… very good."

With that, I nodded my head slowly a few times. The Daemon was visibly shaken, and it probably doesn't know why.

"Well, I'll be on my way now, I have a show to perform. If you'd like to watch, head over to the intersection."

"...Yeah, I'll consider that.''

The likelihood of the Daemon leaving town is high, but that didn't matter much. I got some important information for future actions, now I just need to carry on with today's task.

'Yes, let's go and put on a grand show like last time.'

I plan to take it a little longer than last time, for the finale that I have planned. Dusk should be the time to do it, the lighting should be a little lower then.

'Now, let's set up the stage after I get something to eat.'

I didn't forget about my breakfast, or rather lunch since it's midday now. I went back to the stall and a very refreshing and delicious smell was spreading from the inside.

'Damn…'

My stomach growled, hungry for something to fill itself with no doubt. I approached the stall and knocked on the table, the aroma unbearably good.

"Ah, you're back? Sit around somewhere, it'll be prepared piping hot in about 3 minutes."

"..."

I stood to the side, back against the stall's wall and waited like he'd said.

............

'...Ugh.'

A boy awakens to an unfamiliar, and quite frankly alien view. His eyes adjusted to the sunlight that threatens to blind him, and what arrived as a welcome is a floating book.

"Hello, boy."

"..."

The little child had no words, or rather, he had nothing to say in mind. His eyes closed once more, his sanity slowly gripping away by the second.

"Wake up, don't close your eyes on me, young man.''

"...So, where am I? A dream? Hell? No, this place is too colorful. Heaven?"

"None of the options you mentioned. You are in the Mortal Realm, a Human that's transmigrated to this World. My name, or rather my former consciousness's name, is Mijiru Shujiro. I was once like you. Though I go by the name of Chiban Servertor nowadays."

"..."

The boy's closed eyes opened, and his body pushed upward to a sitting posture.

"Where am I? Didn't I just jump from the school's rooftop?"

"Ah, so you're only, what, middle school? That's quite young."

"..."

The boy reached out to pick the book out of the air. He didn't act up as he's grabbed, and just let the boy look at the contents of his pages. Naturally, the book was reconfigured to Japanese, the boy's native language.

'This is… Spell Formation? Blessing Rituals? Exorcist Techniques?'

The boy flipped through the book filled with the knowledge of the former user, the Saint Apostle of Goddess Angelise, Righteous Arch-Priest of Wisdom and Miracle.

And so, the boy's curious mind started working to figure out the book's many mysteries. Spells, Miracles, and Blessings were accessible through the Tome of Servertor acting as a medium. His Mana was, surprisingly, bountiful for someone from another World that has lower Magic values than this one.

A journey has started for an unfortunate Soul, lost in the path of Life, in another World that isn't too far off from his own.