Chapter 1: Welcome to Dominia
“Awww, who’s our cute little baby?”
I laughed at my wife as she teased our son.
“Phi, what are you doing? Our son is going to inherit our legend. He can’t afford to be cute.”
She laughed at me while I tried to frown, but I could feel the sides of my lips rising into a smirk, giving me away.
“Oh dear, don’t be silly. Everyone has their time to be cute. I’m sure you did, too.”
“Humph!”
I pouted and grinned at our little boy.
“Wha~ How’s little Coggy doing today, Mama?”
I looked down at our daughter as she came running up besides my wife.
“Amber, be careful. If you keep pinching his cheeks like that, he won’t grow to have the dignity of a soldier. I have lots of plans for Cogito. Now, shoo, it’s time for bed.”
“Aww, okay, Papa.”
---
“Father, are you still thinking?”
I grinned at my boy as he tapped on the table with his index finger, showing his impatience.
‘He’s grown so much.’
“I give up. You got me again. After three moves, you’re going to capture my king.”
Cogito laughed and nodded, “You’ve taught me well, Father.”
“Such modesty! I do not deserve your praise. You’ve only been playing for a couple of years, but you can already beat everyone in town,” I declared while laughing. “All right, get some rest, son. Tomorrow is the day of your practical. Don’t disappoint me!”
“Of course!” Cog said while standing to put all the pieces away.
I smiled at my son and waved him off to bed.
‘Soon, my son, you will inherit the Morionis will.’
---
“How’s my boy, Sella?” I asked while looking at the sprawling platform below.
Cogito was facing off against another one of his peers, easily wearing down his adversary’s strength by parrying each of his sword strikes and keeping him on the move.
“His defense is perfect,” she stated with a sigh, “But he lacks aggressiveness and likes to draw out the matches as long as possible. It’s like he’s playing a game.”
I frowned at her last statement, but I couldn’t help but nod in agreement. I had raised my son to be unmatched in tactics and strength. Among his peers, there was no one else who could match him. Even the instructors found him difficult to win in a one-on-one match. He was supposed to be the perfect solider, but somewhere along the way, I had spoiled him.
“I’m sorry, Sella. It’s my fault,” I apologized while gritting my teeth and clenching my fists.
“No. Dominia is no longer the unstable realm it was like in the past. There’s no need for warriors anymore.”
“You may be right, but instability still exists. Until Clautz can stabilize Dominia, we need to keep fighting.”
“Don’t worry. Cogito still has time to mature.”
I nodded in silence.
‘But I don’t have time…’
---
“Congratulations, Coggy!” Amber exclaimed while patting me on the head.
“Stop it!” I shouted while smacking away her hand, “I’m not a child anymore.”
“Yeah, you’ve become a fine young man,” she teased.
I turned to look at my mother who was smiling at me and getting ready to serve all the food she had made, my favorite chicken roast included.
“Mother, what has Amber been doing all this time while I’ve been training?” I asked in feigned ignorance, “She’s not one bit the fine lady I thought she would become.”
“Cog!” my sister exclaimed.
“Oh, hush you two. You know very well what your sister has been up to, and you better respect her.”
Agreeing with my mother, my father nodded, “That’s right. Your sister is now a Militis. If you insult her, you are insulting the kingdom, and she can imprison you for treason.”
“Humph!” I shrugged, “Who cares about what a Militis does anyway? I want to be like Father!”
My father seemed amused as he laughed, but I was serious.
“In due time, my son. In due time…”
---
“Wait! Stop! P-Please!”
“Cogito. Do it.”
I trembled at the sight of the half-beaten man in front of me. He was chained to the wall struggling to escape.
‘I can’t do it. I can’t do it,’ I stuttered in my mind.
“Do it. He’s a traitor anyway. He deserves to die.”
“I don’t want to kill him,” I cried.
My legs buckled under me, and I fell to the floor, letting the dagger I was holding onto fall to the ground besides me.
“You’re too soft, Cogito.”
The man who was egging me to kill the prisoner in front of me picked up my dagger and jammed it into the man’s head. I cried even louder, trying to block out the sight with my tears. When the man had stopped screaming, I knew he was dead.
“Look,” the man demanded.
I shook my head in defiance, but the man grabbed my head and forced me to look at the lifeless body in front of me.
“That’s a dead body. Get used to it. If you want to be like your father, then you have to be able to deal with people like this.”
I smacked the man’s hand away and ran up the stairs.
I was in the basement of my home. My father had ordered me to kill a man.
---
That night, I cried again. It wasn’t the first time my father had tried to force me to kill one of his prisoners. It started a week ago after I had pasted my practical exams with flying colors. I thought father would be proud, but I could tell that he wasn’t happy. He stopped playing games with me and had me come with him to the basement for some “private lessons.”
His first lesson was similar to my last, except he “helped” me kill his tortured victim by grabbing my hand and forcing me to stab into the man. I can still remember his screams, even in my dreams. They linger and cling onto me, begging me not to forget.
‘What changed? Before, father would never be so cruel. At least, not that I knew. Maybe I was just oblivious of his true nature all this long…’
---
When I had awaken, I was starving. I skipped dinner and had been eating less since my father’s “training” started. Getting out of my bed, I unlocked my door and crept down the stairs to the kitchen. My mother had left some food on the table as always. I loved her. She was the one who supported me while my father was trying to mold me into a “better man.”
‘I’m a friggin’ teenage still for crying out loud. Let me do what other normal kids do,’ I cursed in my mind while taking note of the letter my mother had left besides the food.
~~~~~
Cogito.
I know it’s been hard for you. It’s been hard for me too, but please bear with your father a little more. Your father expects much from you as one who will inherit the Morrionis legacy. If your father’s training every gets too difficult for you, please tell me. I’ll always be here for you.
Here, you must be starving. I made some food for you, so eat it before it gets too cold.
Love,
Mom
~~~~~
Tears dripped down my face as I read my mother’s letter. I was frustrated. I could feel how much she wished to support me, but I could not tell her what father had been putting me through.
‘If you tell your mother about what we’ve been doing here, I’ll kill her and your sister. And don’t think that after she dies, I’ll go any easier on you.’
Those were the words he etched into my head the first time I threatened to reveal what he had been doing in the basement of our home.
‘Fuck!’
I crumbled my mother’s letter and gulped down the food she had prepared for me.
*Whack*
---
The next thing I knew, I had awoken in chains, very familiar chains. When it dawned on me that I was in my father’s basement, I panicked in fear. My eyes darted around and stopped on a figure sitting cross-legged on a chair to my right. His face was hidden by the darkness of the room, but I knew who he was.
“Cogito, you’re finally awake.”
It was my father.
He shined a light on me and chuckled.
“I’m sorry, Cogito. I put you through a lot of meaningless suffering. It was painful for me too, you know? I reflected on why you were having such a hard time learning how to kill others, and I realized that it was my fault. My methods were wrong.”
He paused. Maybe he was expecting me to reply, but I was too scared to even mutter a sound.
“You know, Cogito, Dominia is such a great place, yeah? Ever since Clautz took over, it’s been a stable world. But since you’re my future successor and we’re going to be in the same line of business, I have to let you know that the stability you enjoy in Dominia comes at a price.”
My father’s voice was warm and gentle, but my heart was pounding. I leaned further towards the wall, scrunching as close as possible as my father stood and walked closer to me.
“Father,” I cried, “I’m sorry. Please let me go! It’s not your fault. I’ll do better.”
“Don’t worry, Cogito. I think you’ll enjoy what I have in store for you. It’s a game, a game,” he laughed while bringing out a pair of contacts from his pocket, “Here.”
I shut my eyes as tight as possible and turned my head away from him.
“Cogito. Look at me.”
I shook my head. My body trembled even more. I could feel my father’s breath on me.
“Look at me!”
I winced as he clutched onto my face with his hand and jerked my head forward. I opened my eyes and was met with two pieces of contacts entering into my eyes.
“There. That wasn’t hard was it?”
Taken aback, I looked around in confusion. It didn’t hurt at all. I expected there to be some sort of pain, some sort of torture, but I was wrong. My father just smiled at me and said, “Welcome to the world of Dominia.”
*Ding*
Welcome to the world of Dominia!
This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.
I saw a status screen pop into my field of vision.
“W-what’s this?” I asked my father, still a little scared of what he had in plan for me. I was still chained to the wall, and he didn’t seem to show any signs of letting me go any time soon.
“Like I said, Cogito. It’s just a game.”
I nodded.
“Good. It’s begun, right?”
I nodded again.
“Great. He clapped. From today forth, I bestow upon you our family legacy.”
“The game?” I asked in confusion.
“No,” he laughed while shaking his head. “This,” he said while bringing out a pair of identical daggers. “This, my son, is one of our family’s legacies, the Twin Recasus.”
I was baffled. “Why give this to me now?” I asked, “I know I haven’t lived up to your expectation, Father. I just can’t do the things you want me to do.”
“No worries, Cogito. Take it.” He extended one of the daggers towards me so I could take it from his hands. The chains were heavy, but they were long enough for me to grab the dagger.
*Ding*
You have received:
Item: Recasus
“Check it,” commanded my father.
“How?”
“It doesn’t matter. Just think about wanting to see its uses.”
I nodded and stared at the dagger in front of me. The strange flow of the atmosphere made me more curious than afraid of what my father was trying to achieve.
*Ding*
Item Check: Recasus
Durability: 100/100
Damage: 5-8
One of the Morrionis family heirlooms. It can be used once a day to create a [resurrection point]. Creating a new one will override the previous one. If wielder dies, then they will return to created resurrection point.
Requirements:
Morrionis family member
Equipped:
When equipped, wielder can choose to send target person to last resurrection point. Doing so will shatter the Recasus. Target person must be stabbed in the head.
Warning:
If used by a person who is not of the Morrionis bloodline, the Recasus will become a regular dagger.
After reading the item description, I looked up at my father and the status screen disappeared.
“Is this real?” I asked hesitantly.
My father nodded, “Why don’t you try it for yourself? Try creating a resurrection point.”
Excited, I shouted, “Create resurrection point.”
*Ding*
You have created a resurrection point.
The next time you die, you will be revived here.
My father smiled at me and tied the Recasus onto my left hand.
“What are you doing?” I asked in confusion.
But he didn’t respond and simply nodded and smiled again. I hated that smile. It was the smile he had when he was about to kill someone.
‘But why is he smiling like that?’
*Ding*
You have detected a murderous aura.
“Now, remember Cogito, this is just a game.”
Holding the other Recasus in his hands, my father looked at me and stabbed me to death.
*Ding*
You have died.
You will be revived in 3...2...1...
“Fuck!” I cried.
My father almost jumped back in surprise at my sudden cry. He was tying the Recasus onto my left hand again. It finally dawned on me what my father was trying to do.
‘No!’
My thoughts went into overdrive and I panicked, trying to free myself from my father, but he put his weight on me and finished tying down the Recasus onto my hand. When he was done, he smiled at me and took out his set of daggers.
“So I’ve already killed you?” he mused.
I screamed as he started slashing my body with his dagger.
“Does it hurt? Are you mad? Don’t worry. It’s just a game,” he mocked, “But I’m not going to let you die so easily this time. Now that I know you’ve resurrected at least once.”
At his endless onslaught of torture, my rage subsided and turned into hopelessness.
“Stop. Father! It hurts!” I cried, “I’m going to die.”
“You’ve already died,” he laughed, “All this pain you’re feeling, it’s nothing. With the Recasus, death means nothing, and pain… well, you’ll get used to it soon.”
His words were like needles to my heart. My mind and body were both being stabbed to death. I didn’t see him as my father anymore. He was just my nemesis, the last boss. I wanted to kill him.
‘I’m definitely going to kill him for this! Just wait until I resurrect again.’
…
*Ding*
You have died.
You will be revived in 3...2...1...
When I regained my consciousness, I screamed in rage at my father, shocking him once again. I took that chance to grab onto the dagger he was trying to tie onto my hand and stab him in the neck, but he deflected my arm and continued to stab me.
“So I’ve already killed you?” he mused.
‘Fuck!’
My thoughts raged.
‘He’s going to take his time killing me again.’
Not wanting to suffer through the horrendous pain of being stabbed to death, I bit down on my tongue until I bled to death.
*Ding*
You have died.
You will be revived in 3...2...1...
---
I looked proud at my son. He had killed me with our family heirloom, no hesitation, just anger and sheer determination.
‘How many times must that have taken him?’
I reminisced at the time I had to go through the Morionis baptism. The methods differed each generation, but the purpose was always the same—mold the next male heir into a monster capable of fighting against instability. I was worried about my son’s development and that I might have spoiled him too much, but he was able to overcome it.
‘He’s definitely my son.’
Screaming in rage, my son went for my neck again with the dagger I was tying in his hand.
‘So adorable.’
I deflected his hand and took the initiative to stab him back. He continued to scream and struggle, but I took my time, making sure not to hit any of his vitals.
‘I hope you don’t think any worse of me Cogito. I’ll let you die eventually.’
---
“Father, no fair…” muttered Cogito.
I stared at my son as he stared back at me with a strange calmness in his eyes. Last I remember was him killing me, but I’m sure I got him back after that.
‘Did he realize?’
“You don’t have to play dumb anymore. I know you have a Recasus as well.”
We both looked at the dagger in my hands.
“Well, it’s not like you would remember the things you did to me.”
There was no spite in his voice, no anger.
“Father, sorry for trying to kill you. I was angry and confused. I decided that a demon had possessed you and that you were no longer my father, but as you tortured me, I never stopped asking myself why. Why did you suddenly change? Why were you doing this to me? What did I do to deserve this? Then I noticed it, the look on your face, as you shredded my body to pieces. You weren’t happy at all. You weren’t enjoying the torture either… There was something you were trying to teach me.”
…
I broke the silence with a chuckle, “Impeccable insight. You are truly of the Morionis bloodline.”
“Have I satisfied you, Father?”
“Yes, very much.”
…
“Then, what’s next?”