In the heart of the forest, while the night was still young, the pounding of horses’ hooves echoed. Amidst the sounds of snapping twigs and branches were the erratic breaths of Aaron and his wife as they fled desperately in terror.

Clutched tightly in Aaron's arms as he ran was their only daughter. She kept her face buried in his chest, her body paralyzed from fear.

The four soldiers with their horses surrounded them. “We've been cornered” Aaron's wife heaved with exhaustion, pulling out a dagger from the hem of her dress. Her eyes were unyielding as she stood ready to attack.

The soldiers, smiling triumphantly, climbed down from their horses and drew their swords. “Well, well, well, seems like we've caught the runaway Embers,” one of them said.

Aaron gradually dropped his daughter and she cowered behind his legs. “After all we Embers have done for this kingdom, this is how you repay us!?” Aaron yelled angrily.

The man directly in front of him shrugged. “We're simply following orders.” The pleasure-filled look in his eyes betrayed his words. “Don't try to fight, just accept your fate”

Aaron planted himself in front of his wife and child, gritting angrily “Over my dead body” He charged at the man in front but was easily overpowered.

Aaron was brought to his knees after a series of hits, his vision blurring as he coughed up more blood.

“Kill the woman and the kid” he heard the man say. Aaron's eyes widened in terror, and he fell before the man's feet. “Please, please, I'm begging you, please don't hurt them, kill me and let them live, I beg you!” Tears streamed down his bloodied face as he cried out helplessly.

They paid no attention to him, ignoring his pleas as one of them effortlessly decapitated his wife while another stabbed his child.

Aaron's eyes widened in horror, his pupils dilated, and his breath caught in his throat. His insides twisting in rage, he shouted at the top of his lungs, snatching a nearby rock and launching himself forward.

A blade was plunged into him from behind, causing his movements to stop. His eyes, filled with agony and regret, turned bloodshot, his body falling with a sickening thud.

The last thing he heard was the victorious chants coming from his killers, before embracing death.

[...Vessel found, system binding…]

[Ding!! Vessel Reawakening, System binding complete!]

The ‘Ding’ sound forced Aaron's eyes open. He blinked rapidly, his gaze locking onto the green window floating before him.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

He sat up with a perplexed look. Disorientation set in, memories of his death flooding his head. ‘Wasn’t I just…killed?’

The message on the system's screen read:

[Vessel has gained the status: Rookie]

[Congrats! You have been awarded the Requiem: A Retribution System]

Aaron ignored the message and surveyed his surroundings. He was in what looked like a bear cave but he had no idea how he got in.

He searched himself for any injury but found none. ‘I survived? But how?’ He brought his attention back to the floating screen, he had never seen anything like it before.

He read through it, his mind centering on the word ‘Retribution’ The image of his wife and child flashed through his head and his face darkened.

‘Retribution? Wouldn't that mean I get to avenge my family?’ Suddenly, a smaller tab in a different shade of green appeared beside the first one. It read:

┏Name: Aaron Ember

Age: 30

Status: Rookie

Status Info: inexperienced Vessel, prone to danger consuming 70% HP. Retribution count: 0. Complete tasks and quests to gain experience points and level up

•Strength: 1000+

•Agility: 1000+

•HP: 80/80

•Intelligence: 2000+

•Endurance: 500+

•XP: ???

•Skill: ???

•Enhance Rate: 100% Highly probable success┛

Aaron's confusion grew with every word he took in. It said that to gain experience points and level up, he would need to complete tasks and quests… ’What task and quest?’ He asked inwardly and another message popped up:

[Beginner quest(Optional): Kill any life form]

((Reward)): 100XP

Duration: 1:00:00

Penalty: Paralysis for an hour

“Kill?” Aaron voiced barely above a whisper. The brutality of the task sent a shiver down his spine. He reached out to touch the glowing screen, but it glitched, and his hand went through. As it faded, Aaron recoiled, snatching his hand away as if burned.

‘A vessel for a retribution system,’ Aaron wanted to laugh at the possibility of being alive after he was just killed.

His face etched with skepticism, he gradually stood up. A dagger fell as he rose. He picked it up, scrutinizing it. It had the initials of his wife, Sarah Ember.

A pang of regret and guilt pierced his chest and he clutched onto the hilt tightly, muttering softly “I'm sorry I couldn't protect you,”

His eyes reached the entrance of the cave; the night was still young, and the moon shone brightly.

He walked out and took a deep breath. The gentle breeze that swept his silver hair, the smell of green pastures punctuated by sounds of the nocturnal creatures, the ethereal moonlight that illuminated the forest, it all felt real. ‘I really am alive’

Suddenly, he heard a low growl from behind. Aaron turned sharply to the mouth of the cave, his senses heightening.

Coming out slowly was a grotesque-looking grizzly bear, its red predatory stare locking onto Aaron. It snarled, towering over Aaron as it stood, its jaw dripping with drool.

Aaron stood with wide eyes, unable to make any immediate response. His gaze fixed on the bear, he was oblivious to the glowing words above the bear's head. It roared, snapping Aaron's mind back to reality. His instincts kicked in, and in an attempt to run away, the bear clawed his back, its razor-sharp claws biting deep into his flesh.

Aaron stumbled and the dagger fell from his grip. The bear snarled and lunged for the kill, its jaw wide open. Aaron quickly grasped a nearby branch and jammed the bear's maw, wedging it between the snarling beast's teeth.

The bear's hot breath washed over Aaron, drool streaming down from its maw. It gnawed down on the branch, trying to break through Aaron's only defense.

Aaron's mind raced, his muscles rippling as he wrestled the bear. He feared death and didn't want to lose his chance to avenge his family and clan.

If only he was better at Phantom conjuring.