Chapter 1

In an obscure world somewhere in the middle of nowhere – stood a lone man-devil.

The man-devil, ironically, was one of the rare beings to have achieved an impossible feat—knowing the location of a dimension reserved for select, worthy entities. He was a tenacious and formidable creature, disliking any lack of control over his own fate.

It is ironic, I say.

The only key to bypassing the obscure dimension was to be an immortal being. Though the man-devil knew nothing of that fact – he entered it without a drop of worry in his mind. And the first thought that came across this simple creature's mind was that he needed to fill his belly immediately.

The mysterious world has many names to it – you can call it Heaven, Paradise, Syurga, and many, many, many more.

Yes, you heard it right. 

Heaven.

It is not all sunshine and rainbows after you die because there is the law here – such laws made by the Chief of Heaven – the Creator of the Universe. These laws – twenty of which I barely know - are beneficial to Heaven to maintain a balance between the three realms which are Heaven, Hell, and the Mortal Realm, the in-between, the bypass, and the nowhere.

Today is the thousandth-year ceremony – a highly regarded and important ceremony attended by all creatures. This is the one day that we accept potential candidates from the two realms to work at the Academy of Destiny. In other words, we are in charge of choosing immortals - an array of jobs left open by the previous batches. 

It is called the Changing of Guards.

I am overseeing the ceremony. 

My name is Athena.

The enormous hall with expansive walls and high ceilings has been separated into two sections. One group consisted of immortals who were Gods who thought coming here was their birthright. The other group is made up of divine mortals who had dedicated their lives to the Chief and were specially chosen to enter the realm.

All of them are here to become of service to the Chief.

The qualifying procedures were tedious, and they took years of dedication. The mere thought of dedicating a few hundred years of your unlimited lifespan to working and toiling for Heaven amazes me every time I watch the entrance ceremony.

I flipped through the thick pile of paperwork placed on my right - glancing at the long list of names printed by the Instrument of Destiny, and noticed that most of them were the spawns of the parents that used to work here. I knew most of them; they were arrogant, childish and horny bastards.

A sigh left my lips. 

This is boring.

One of the officials caught my wandering eye, and he gave a silent nod, to which I waved a lazy hand – knowing that he wanted to address the final batch of potential candidates.

"Attention to all, this is the thousand-year changing of the guard at the Destiny Council," he spoke, his voice easily carried throughout the hall. The chatter quietens. "The Academy is in charge of selecting succeeding immortals. You have all undergone rigorous selection and are among the wisest that will ascend to Heaven."

Chief of Heaven is an intelligent and calculative being, and I mulled as I watched the many eager yet snobbish faces below me. Young fodder is always best, I mused. Using them for their intellect and prowess will benefit this realm, especially when they're immortal. You know, because they don't die.

"You will now be separated into two sects in your spiritual journey here. The Heavenly Sect. Those selected from the descendants of the Gods. And the Earthly Sect, the most hardworking pupils, conducted their spiritual journey amongst men. The Chief of Heaven's daughter, our Crown Princess, Athena, is overseeing today's ceremony."

A pause.

"Let's begin!"

The Entrance Ceremony consisted of the officials talking about Heaven – going through the extensive twenty rules and what to expect while living in this realm. It was a formal presentation to familiarize the new occupants with how Heaven works and who was the boss in this realm. It was wholly uninteresting, as I've seen it a billion times.

About thirty minutes later, as per tradition, it was time to give them food and the special offering of the Peaches of Heaven. Consuming one will confirm their residency here.

The kitchen staff, both women and men dressed in their best uniform, started appearing from the side doors and thus began serving the food and the peaches to the candidates. I sat back and looked up at the ceiling – staring at the ridges – allowing the chatter of the candidates below to consume me.

Things were moving smoothly until raised voices reached my ears. There was always something, I mused. I looked down to see a group of candidates from the Heavenly Sect verbally abusing one of the kitchen staff. I dislike it when men misbehave and even more when they think they can abuse a woman.

I left my seat.

There seemed to be a dispute between the candidates over the peaches. It seemed that someone had consumed it and left the seed behind and the staff had unknowingly given a candidate a peach's seed. The candidate was angry about it, rightfully so, and demanded the kitchen staff to replace it. 

It ought to be over by then. 

However, he handled it in the flashiest way ever. 

"What are you trying to do? Are you trying to assassinate me?" he yelled as he shoved her aside and got up from the floor, his face red with anger. His gang of followers were crowded behind him, parroting his every word. "You are nothing but a wretched thing! How dare you!"

He went to slap her, and she immediately recoiled. I grabbed his arm before he could touch her, shielding her from his wrath. Upon seeing me appear before him, his eyes widened as he quickly snatched his arm back, and his face turned white in terror. I liked seeing that expression on a man who knew he had done wrong.

"My – my apologies, Y-your … Your h-highness! I d-"

Ignoring his stammer, I turned his hand around with the palm facing upward. I took a gold pen from within the folds of my robe and placed it on his palm before attending to my cowering staff behind me. Hearing a yelp and a loud thud behind me, I knew the candidate had dropped to the floor.

Ignoring the commotion behind me, I checked on her with a critical eye. She had a bruise forming on her temple, and she looked like she was about to burst into tears. The poor thing looked rattled. I assured her everything would be fine and touched the bruise gently – seeing it disappear. 

"Come, serve the peaches to the rest of the candidates. I'll handle this unruly guest," I said gently as I pulled her up to her feet, bowing and thanking me as she hurried away to join the others – resuming her work before I turned to face the group of men – feeling disdain at the sight of them. 

"Who is this candidate?" I asked.

Chief Royal Secretary appeared from nowhere – his robes swishing in his arrival as he unfurled a long roll of paper from within his robes. He was an ancient being, wise and brimming with a bright outlook in life. His name was Pluto. A look of concentration appeared on his face, and then he turned to relish when he found the information.

"They are from the Ikan Kering Sect, Your Highness," he answered and he paused at the leader of the posse. "He is the son of Morpheus."

A minor God. "His family would be pleased with what their son had done in the Entrance Ceremony," I said – eyeing the lot with disdain. "I know where to put you."

I recalled my pen and watched as he was finally able to lift his hand from the ground – surrounded by his loyal followers who were fussing over him. I sighed and looked away – watching my staff distributing the peaches to the other candidates peacefully. With no more incident, I began to walk away, to return to my seat.

However, other candidates began to voice out that their peaches had been eaten as well. There was someone who had eaten the peaches that were not meant for them. Their anger, their annoyance, and dismay began to rise up from the halls until the silence was drowned out by their infuriated voices.

I sighed again – the noise has gotten me displeased. Someone must've invited himself into the kitchen and eaten the fruits without permission. Someone hungry. Someone who disliked rules. Someone who's most likely still in the halls and watching us with glee. I could sense his presence hanging by the rafters of the hall.

I made a face.

"Your Highness, w-w-what should we do?" one of the numerous officials of the Royal Court came rushing by, terrified and anxious. 

Ignoring him, I took out the pen from my pocket and balanced it on my palm as it grew bigger into a decent-sized staff. This pen was able to change in size at will and was one of my favorite weapons to use. Pinpointing the intruder's location without making eye contact, I threw the staff over.

Hearing a deafening roar and a yelp, the red charm attached to the staff had turned itself into restraints that wrapped themselves around the body of the intruder and I watched as the intruder fell to the ground with a loud, ungraceful thump. I turned to the official. He looked pale from the stress. 

"Have them quieten down immediately," I ordered. "And get the kitchen staff to prepare more peaches. We have enough, we had prepared for this."

Honestly, fighting over a bunch of peaches like a bunch of children.

Approaching the intruder, the staff returned to its usual size when it sensed me near and floated to my pocket while the charm remained steadfast in its duties. The intruder was unkempt, disheveled, and looked like he has not bathed for months. His hair was a total mess, and he looked akin to a monkey.

A human, I mused. 

Oh?

I frowned as I detected a foreign power within his chest. What is that? It felt so familiar, but it tasted vile on my tongue. Such power is held inside a mortal body. I wonder how he managed to stay alive. I waved a hand, encased him in a bubble, and brought him out of the halls without more drama.