Elysia?

Kyle lay on his bed, his eyes lost to the white ceiling, reminiscing about the day's event.

"I killed someone," he muttered, his eyes filled with tears.

Ring, ring!

Kyle withdrew his hand from underneath his head, glancing at his wrist to see the caller once again— Riya.

This was the ninth time she had called him. At first, Orion called, but after he didn't pick up twice, he began seeing Riya's calls some moments later.

Kyle used his hands to wipe off his tears before prompting the comm to answer, it wasn't nice leaving someone worried.

"Hey," Riya's voice greeted from the comm immediately the it connected.

"Hey."

A long silence ensued for a while before Riya broke it.

"Orion told me what happened, are you alright?"

"Yes... I am," Kyle replied with suppressed tears.

"I just wanted to make sure everything was alright," Riya explained.

"Riya... I'm a monster!" Kyle wailed. "I killed her."

"Kyle,"

"..."

"Kyle, listen. Mistakes happen." Riya comforted Kyle in a low voice. "Don't dwell on the past, it won't change anything."

"Riya, she has no future, because - of - me." Kyle managed to say despite his tears, that he knew it wouldn't change anything, but the time had spent understanding his actions had left a void within him.

"Hold on," Riya called out. "Where went the jovial swordmaster I knew? You're acting like a wimp now, you know?

"..."

"Good night. Go to sleep, okay?" Riya reminded. "You bet I won't forget today."

Kyle nodded before muttering. "Thank you."

He stared at the disconnected comm for quite some time before eventually drifting off to sleep.

***

"Ah... !"

Kyle screamed while trying to cover his eyes from the golden blinding light before him.

It took a while, but his eyes eventually managed with the light... all be it barely.

'Where am I?' Kyle questioned himself as his eyes scoured through his surroundings.

He stood in the middle of a grand hall, too grand it would be passed off as a construction meant for giants. Tall golden pillars stretched upwards to the ever-high ceiling, being one of the only constructions within the hall.

Aside from pillars was a large regal throne, crafted from the finest of ores. The throne's golden hue gave off a feeling of majesty.

Though so regal, the throne couldn't suppress the aura of the one who sat on it. Green hair, Jade skin, unparalleled beauty and yet a face so pure.

Elysia sat on the throne, her legs crossed while the hands entertained herself with some fruits being held up in a tray by a strange green man.

'Is this a dream?' Kyle thought, simultaneously pinching himself to prove his thoughts. 'Okay, it's not,' Kyle confirmed, rubbing the part of his skin he pinched himself at.

"Kyle," Elysia called out with a smile.

'This... Isn't this my opponent… Elysia?'

"Yes, Kyle," Elysia confirmed his thoughts with a smile. "I'm Elysia"

"Wait!" Kyle couldn't help but blurt out. "Did you just read my mind?"

"Yes, I did."

"What? How?... No, where am I?" Kyle asked, confused about what questions to throw first.

"You seem to have forgotten our conversation, Kyle," Elysia said with a chuckle, snapping her fingers at him.

Memories began to flood into Kyle's mind, reminding him of the detail, the arena event.

"Ah, you... !" Kyle exclaimed as he processed his memories. "You brought me here, didn't you?"

"Nope," Elysia replied. "My dad... Pyrrhus did."

"Pyrrhus... Yes, I remember."

"I see..." Elysia whispered with her hands on her chin. "He didn't tell you anything, huh?"

"Nope," Kyle answered, his voice lacking the former sorrow he felt.

Elysia lightly face-palmed. "That man... So annoying. He only cares about himself... Can't even plan properly."

"Well," Elysia said after her rants. "That's why I called you here."

"Have you ever heard about the Celestial War, Kyle?"

"The Celestial War?"

"It is a war between gods and their domains, a conquest of power and domination." She paused to see if Kyle was grabbing before continuing.

"My dad needed a commander, someone he could communicate with... someone who would lead his forces. He chose you."

Kyle nodded, his mind racing with thoughts like, 'I didn't sign up for this', but he was going to go with the flow... For now.

"Kyle," Elysia called out with a face-palm. "This is serious... No one cares whether you signed up for it. Would you rather watch humanity perish?"

'Damn, she can read my mind,' Kyle thought. 'I need to find a way to suppress my thoughts...'

"..."

"Uhm..." Kyle said with a light chuckle. "It's kinda rude to read people's minds. How do you even do that?"

Elysia sighed. "That doesn't matter. All that matters now is that you need to get much stronger... Fast!"

"Tsk. Of course, I want to get stronger." Kyle said with a grin. "But... Why start a war at all? If you so much care about us humans."

"Well, Kyle, I care about the humans ... My dad doesn't. All he wants is power." Elysia explained. "Check out the blessing I gave you, Kyle."

"Blessing?"

[Elysia's blessing: The goddess, Elysia had chosen you as her vassal.

Your physical constitution will be improved!

You will access 1% of her mana reserves!

All your actions will be monitored by her.

Bond would dissolve if you become stronger]

[Do you accept?]

[Yes] or [No]

Kyle thought hard about the offer presented before him... It looked enticing, really enticing.

'1% of a goddess's mana. How much is that?' Despite not yet knowing the importance of mana, Kyle knew that having large reserves was a great plus.

Kyle knew that there were downsides too. He didn't know what the system meant by, "all your actions would be monitored by her" but of course knew that he would be below her if he accepted.

He directed his gaze briefly to the goddess, whose eyes seemed to beg him to accept, then the flickering system message in his mind, before selecting his choice. One that would be big enough to change everything.