Prologue: Ouroboros

"Dammit! that bastard caught me off guard."

Exclaimed a middle aged looking man, clad in ragged chainmail armor. He was wounded badly, and dark crimson blood dripped down his slightly chipped iron sword. After dragging his sorry excuse of a body to a certain corner of the cavern he was in, he took out a potion from his bag and drank it in an instant.

"Ptui! Disgusting as always. At least I'm still alive. They got me once, but they won't get me twice."

The man cursed at the demon that had inflicted a ghastly wound on his chest and looked down to check his injury. Fortunately, the potion was very effective as no traces of the gash could be seen. He could finally heave a sigh of relief.

Now healed and ready to go, the man cautiously walked down the dark cave when suddenly, a sword came flying at him.

"Not this time, you foul demons!"

He shouted as he thrust his sword deep into the demon's chest, destroying its core and killing it instantly. As soon as the demon was disposed of, a noise rang in his head.

'Ding!'

"Another level up? That was quick." He muttered to himself as he looked at a semi-transparent screen in front of him. At the top of the interface was his name, Raydon.

Raydon thought of himself as a simple man, but those around him always defined him as a madman. Even his wife left him because of his strange shenanigans. Even so, he always ran away from his problems and blamed all his mistakes on the mysterious being who was supposedly controlling him.

The mad adventurer continued walking deeper into the cave, encountering and slaying more demons as the dings in his head made up for the dark and silent caverns. After an unknown amount of time had passed, he saw light coming from what seemed to be an entrance to somewhere.

Like a moth seeing a light bulb at night, he was allured by the mysterious light.

Even though he had been wandering around in pitch black for a long time, the light felt neither stinging nor blinding. In fact, it felt warm and calming as if it was welcoming him. However, he didn't pay it much attention because his mind was preoccupied with the possibly hidden treasures behind the curtain of light.

He did not know where it would lead him but he knew he had to go in. How could he call himself an adventurer if he was afraid of some meager risks? He stepped into the light and braced himself for whatever was waiting for him on the other side.

When he opened his eyes, he was inside a place that looked like a castle. The walls were made out of dark glossy blocks, and a magnificent chandelier hung from the ceiling. As soon as he saw the astounding sight, his lips curved into an unsightly smile.

"I hit the jackpot. A pure crystal chandelier and that metal… What was it called again? Obomium or Obamium or whatever. The important thing is that it's hella expensive. I'm rich! Hahaha." Raydon exclaimed aloud joyfully.

"I'm gonna enjoy the look on my ex-wife's face when I return with all of this. She can beg all she wants, but I ain't accepting her again. I'm gonna propose to that hot receptionist instead."

Raydon fantasized gleefully unaware of the lurking danger. Instead of the hot receptionist's ample bosom, what awaited him was the flat and bony chest of the grim reaper.

KRRRRRRRAHHH!!!

A loud roar reverberated inside the castle and Raydon's bones rattled due to the vibration. Blood dripped from his ears and his world was spinning. He cursed at himself for his carelessness and took a battle stance.

More like, he tried to take a battle stance. Stunned and confused, he could only stare at the terrible scene unfolding in front of his eyes.

He found out that a giant metal door which perfectly blended in with the dark background of the wall despite its sheer size was opened, and a beast of unknown origins stood in front of it. The beast was not only huge, but it also emitted a bone-chilling aura.

At this point, Raydon knew he was pretty much fucked.

'What the hell is that thing? There's no record of this thing in the bestiary. I ain't dealing with this shit.'

He thought as he tried to run away as soon as the stun effect disappeared. However, the exit was nowhere to be seen. His greed blinded him, and now, he was facing the consequences.

Since he had no way out of this deadly encounter, he readied his magic spells and took a battle stance. He threw every projectile and all the offensive spells he had at the beast. However, the beast was unscathed. It opened its terrifying maw and spewed a torrent of black flames at him.

Raydon tried his best to dodge, but a tiny bit of the flames hit his armor. He tried to put it out but to no avail. The only thing he could do was to quickly take off his armor and throw it away before the melting armor could burn his skin.

He was now naked and afraid.

"Fuck it."

Releasing a dictionary worth of curses, he ran straight at the beast with no hesitation. He channeled all his mana into his sword which made it shine brightly in a blue hue and he struck the beast with all his might.

'Did it work?'

Of course not. The beast was unscathed. Even without the death flags he raised, he stood no chance against it in the first place.

Raydon looked up at the beast and the beast looked down at him. Their eyes locked together for a brief moment. It was like that scene from Beauty and the Beast, except for the fact that there was no beauty and absolutely no romance involved.

The beast unleashed a blazing orb of darkness at Raydon and as soon as it touched him, it engulfed his whole body in black flames. His skin melted away almost instantly, and then his flesh followed suit.

The sturdy muscles that he prided on disappeared as the unending blaze of torment consumed them. His anguished cries reverberated through the air, a heart-wrenching symphony of suffering, until none was left of him.

The radiant glow from the magnificent chandelier extinguished, plunging the surroundings into impenetrable darkness. An eerie hush swiftly enshrouded the lightless world, and time itself seemed to freeze...

.

.

.

Suddenly in the silent void, a familiar noise was heard.

'Ding! Adventurer Raydon has perished. Please select your new character.'

"Huh? There is no character to select though."

A mysterious disembodied voice replied.

'Character unselected, initiating protocol… Ding! Protocol successful. New character has been created.'

"Wait, what the hell is going on? Somebody help me! MOM!"

The voice screamed for help, but alas, his pitiful plea fell on deaf ears.

'Character adjusting… Ding! Character has been adjusted. System will reboot in 3… 2… 1…'

The void once again fell silent after that strange commotion.