I walked peacefully through the green prairie, approaching the column of smoke beyond a hill a few hundred meters away. The area was completely deserted, no fields or dwellings in sight, yet it felt oddly familiar.

Using this stroll to clear my thoughts, Arter had bombarded me with too much information, leaving me confused with many unanswered questions. One thing was clear – a large-scale war was about to erupt.

What bothered me was that this war wasn't initiated by humans; instead, the gods would unleash it for their own interests. We were mere pawns under their command, and that was infuriating. I couldn't let radiant individuals like Marsal be ruined by these arrogant deities. Moreover, being a mere pawn was not amusing – I wanted to be a king.

No matter how, no matter the cost, I vowed to kill every deity in this world with my own hands.

Climbing the hill, a swirling gust halted me. Clearly not a natural occurrence, it had to be someone's spell. Instinctively enhancing my body, I readied for a fight.

This was my chance to revel in my newfound powers. Stretching my arms towards the vortex walls, I released pure mana, countering the wind spell and dissolving the vortex.

Preparing two fire spheres for battle, expecting a peculiar beast or a bandit, I was surprised to find a familiar face – Mel. I withdrew the flames and approached him.

"I'm glad you're okay, Mel," I said. "You haven't aged a bit."

Silence from Mel as he kept his gaze low.

"Everything okay? Are you hurt?" I asked, reaching out my hand.

"Don't touch me!" Mel yelled, pushing me away with a gust of wind.

I fell backward onto the green prairie, confused, staring at Mel, who seemed both furious and in pain.

"I saw everything," he said quietly. "Your trial, the battle against Zephyr."

"Oh, I did well, didn't I?" I pretended not to understand, but I knew what troubled him.

"How dare you say that!" he shouted. "Did you see yourself? That girl begged for mercy, she was innocent, yet you killed her with a smile, as if she were a mere beast!" Mel clenched his fists, trying to contain himself. "I never thought you were that kind of person, Roseth. I want nothing to do with you."

I lowered my gaze, remorseful. "I had no other way to help the boy in the fight. I had no choice – either I killed the girl, or we would have died."

"Why? Couldn't you let that boy defeat Zephyr? Whom did you help by killing an innocent girl?" Mel looked at me with disdain.

"No, the death of that girl was necessary to enrage Zephyr, so he'd fight without reasoning," I explained, but Mel cut me off, landing a powerful punch on my face.

"What turned you into such a monster?" he asked. "Only a psychopath, someone with mental issues, could kill a child with a smile."

"Exactly, I'm nothing but a psychopath. For me, killing is just a source of entertainment."

Mel seemed even angrier at my words, then suddenly tears started flowing from his eyes.

"This world only turns people into beasts, and you've become its victim, Roseth. I wanted to change this world, make it a better place, but I'm too weak, I'm nobody, and I'll never accomplish anything. I couldn't even protect you from corruption. It's all my fault, Roseth.”

"You're too kind," I said, smiling again. "You're shouldering all my guilt, but it makes no sense. I'm the only one responsible for my actions."

"You're right," Mel affirmed, calming down. "But you were just a child. If I had stayed with you, maybe you wouldn't have turned out like this. You're the kind of person I hate the most, Roseth."

"So, should we fight now?" I asked, given the situation.

"I'll set you back on the right path," declared Mel. "I'll use force if necessary."

"Don't waste my time," I continued. "If you want to fight, let's fight; otherwise, I'm leaving. I don't want to hear your complaints."

"You're a threat now; I can't let you roam freely," he explained.

A gust of wind surrounded Mel as he raised his gaze, filled with determination. "I'm sorry, Roseth."

He hurled hundreds of high-speed wind blades at me. I didn't have time to dodge, so I created a shield to absorb the blows. The wind blades continued to clash powerfully against my defense, but it was just a diversion. Mel, using levitation, flew above me, forming an imposing wind lance in his right hand.

He threw it at me with great speed, confident that he had hit me. However, I grabbed the lance with my right hand before it could reach my face.

Mel seemed surprised. He landed a few meters in front of me and asked, "How did you do that? The wind lance should have cut your hand the moment you touched it."

"I can't reveal my secrets to opponents," I replied. "I'm sorry."

"It doesn't matter," he said. "I'll somehow defeat you. I can't let someone who doesn't even understand the value of life roam freely."

"Why are you so determined?" I asked.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

"It's my fault that you've ended up like this, so it's my duty to punish you," he replied.

"I don't understand you. First, you get angry, then you cry, and now you want to punish me. Make up your mind."

"I hate you." Mel pulled out a dagger and threw it at me, accelerating it with wind magic. I was ready to dodge, or so I thought. For some reason, at that moment, I hesitated, and the dagger pierced my shoulder.

I screamed in pain and fell to my knees, watching the blood flow down my arm.

"Why didn't you dodge?" Mel approached me and knelt down.

"Why did you let yourself get hit?" he asked, observing my wound.

"I don't even know," I raised my head and looked at my former companion. "Why are you so concerned about me? I'm your adversary; you shouldn't hesitate to kill me, or you'll be the one to regret it."

"Enough now!" he yelled. "A human will never get used to killing; they'll hesitate every time and suffer. Only monsters like you can remain indifferent to a life being snuffed out."

Mel placed his hand on my shoulder, and tears welled up again. "From the first time I saw you, I knew you weren't a normal child, Roseth. Watching you fight those beasts with that sincere smile frightened me. You resembled a demon, the incarnation of evil. I thought you would never escape from your small world where you had confined yourself. You didn't fight to protect others or yourself, but for pure enjoyment. You didn't care who would die and by whose hand. At that moment, I thought you were nothing but scum."

"But I was wrong!" Mel shouted, embracing me. "After watching you protect that girl, you inexplicably changed. You started caring about her life and protected her. In that moment, I realized that a human soul resides within you. You can have a heart, feel love, hate, and empathy. There's still hope. Please, Roseth, come with me and repent for your sins. Let's change this world together."

"A human soul?"

"Yes, Roseth, I know it's there. I know this isn't your true self. Please, be yourself."

"Myself? This is who I am, Mel."

"No, please, think about what you truly want, Roseth."

"I... want power. I hate looking up at people; I want to be recognized, loved, feared, and above all, strong. I want nothing but power," I explained.

"Yet, this isn't the desire of your soul but of your spirit molded by the corruption of this world. So, in the end, what do you want?"

"Enough now!" I pushed Mel away. "What you're doing is pointless."

"Then... do I have to kill you?"

"Why are you asking? It's a decision you have to make."

Mel was confused. Even though we had spent little time together, it was challenging for him to kill me without hesitation. He remained kneeling on the ground with his gaze lowered.

"I never cared about others; they could suffer, die, hate me, love me, but I would always see them as mere objects, placed in this world to be moved and entertained by me," I explained. "That's who I am."

"By thinking that way, you managed to kill without hesitation. But it's all false, Roseth, the impartial and corrupted part of you that doesn't care about others' lives, seeing them only as pawns, is just a character created by yourself."

"Why do you think you know so much about me, Mel?"

"I... in the dungeon, let's say I saw various things about you."

"Through the green crystal?"

"Exactly," he replied. "When I touched it, it started glowing, and from it emerged Arter, a God."

"You met Arter?!" I exclaimed, surprised.

"Yeah, so what?"

"No, it just surprised me that you've met a God," I replied. "Anyway, you said you saw something inside the crystal, so Arter must have shown it to you."

"Exactly, he showed me your battle against Zephyr and told me a lot about you. Finally, when he showed me something else, I understood who you really were, what your soul was like."

"And what's this 'something else'?" I asked, intrigued.

"I'm sorry; I can't talk about it," he said, standing up. "Now, we have to fight."

I don't know what Arter told him about me; he might know too much, perhaps even about my old life. So, what should I do? I believe... I have to kill him.

I stood up as well and enveloped my right fist in flames. "I'm sorry, Mel.”

"Are you sure about your decision?" he asked.

"I was-"

Wait, he's right. Right now, I know too little about Arter's true intentions. Maybe I should keep him alive to better understand what that god's objective is. It shouldn't be a problem; if I stay close to him, I can monitor his movements and prevent him from causing harm.

"No, I was mistaken," I withdrew the flames from my hand, and a fake cheerful smile returned to my face. "Mel, I think you're right. Every time I kill, I feel bad not for taking a life, but for not being true to myself. At first, I didn't understand, but now it's different. Thanks to you, I know now. I've always pretended to be someone I'm not, ignoring the desires of my soul."

Mel returned my smile. "So, will you come with me?"

"I've decided; I'll come with you," I affirmed. "Every person lives in their own world, shaped by their beliefs and ideas. We never observe the world impartially; we filter it through our beliefs. The same goes for me. I've always seen a corrupted world, and in the end, I became what I fed on. That's why I want to change, looking at the world in a new light, the light of my soul. It's only thanks to you that I've opened my eyes, Mel. Thank you."

"You don't have to thank me," he said. "You were on the edge, and it was only a matter of time before you realized it on your own."

"I believe you're right."

Mel

Is everything he's saying true? Is he really trying to change? He could be capable of lying, but... maybe I should trust him. But if the future I saw in the dungeon crystal becomes reality, then everything he said today will be a lie.

"Get up," I reached out to help Roseth. "We need to find someone to tend to your wound; you're losing too much blood."

"You're right." Roseth got up without my help. "We need to go."

"Oh, sure... let's go."

Roseth pointed to a column of smoke beyond the hill. "There, we might meet someone."

"Of course, so that's where you were heading before you attacked," I said.

"Yes," he replied. "Earlier, you mentioned the crystal, so you were also trapped in the dungeon, right?"

"Exactly, I was overwhelmed by debris, and when I regained consciousness, I found myself lying in a tunnel," I explained. "By the way, do you want me to cut your hair? It's grown quite a bit."

"Eh?!" He responded, surprised. "You can cut hair?"

"Of course, my father was a barber." I felt sad thinking about my father, but I hid it from Roseth.

"By the way, how did you recognize me?" Roseth asked.

"Well, let's say Arter informed me about your new appearance."

"At least he did something useful for once."

"You're right," I replied, laughing.

Of course, I knew his appearance because I had observed him in the future that Arter showed me. Still, I certainly can't tell him that.

When we reached the top of the hill, we started descending, getting closer to the column of smoke coming from inside a forest.

Roseth's wound continued to bleed, my dagger was still stuck in his shoulder, and he kept suffering from the pain.

After a few minutes, we entered the forest, and in the distance, we noticed several hidden carriages parked among the trees. We began to hear the murmur of voices as we approached the carriages; silence fell. They probably noticed us.

"Roseth, get ready; they might attack."

"I know; I've already reinforced my body."

A water jet pierced the carriage in front of us, and before it could hit us, Roseth created a shield of pure mana to protect us.

"T-thanks."

"You have to stay on guard."

Roseth pushed me, and a water projectile passed where I was just moments ago. He... saved me. That projectile would have killed me.

"Where are you?" he shouted. "Come out and fight fairly!"

"What do you think you're doing with that wound?" A voice echoed in the air, and a guy appeared behind Roseth.

"Wait-"

Roseth turned and hit the guy in the face with a powerful punch, but he didn't budge; he seemed to have hit a wall.

The guy cast another water vortex against Roseth, but he responded by creating another mana shield. He was thrown backward, falling to the ground with the dagger penetrating even deeper, and he screamed in pain. Still, he didn't give up.

He got up, gritting his teeth and enduring the pain, pulled the dagger from his shoulder, and blood began to flow even faster.

I can't let him fight in these conditions; I have to help him.

As soon as I stood up, I sensed a presence behind me, and turning around, I saw a wind blade approaching. Fortunately, I managed to move to the side and dodge it.

The wizard who had thrown it approached; he was a guy with enchanting white hair.

Him too, both of these guys... I've seen them in the future.

Roseth covered his fists in flames and approached his opponent at an astonishing speed; he was so fast that I struggled to observe his movements.

Roseth struck his opponent again in the face, but this time, he hurled him to the ground. He attempted another hit, but the boy enveloped his body in a vortex of water, and a frightened Roseth kept his distance.

The boy facing him was younger than my opponent, with light brown, almost blond hair, and large brown eyes.

The white-haired boy darted towards me; I leaped and levitated, distancing myself from the ground. He stopped to observe me, then mimicked a gun with his hands, aiming at me. A bullet of pure mana shot from his index finger, not blue like Roseth's but white.

The bullet pierced my leg, but undistracted, I unleashed a storm of wind blades against my opponent.

The storm raged for a while, raising dust and destroying trees beneath me. Confident I had defeated my adversary, I halted the storm and descended to the ground. A dense cloud of dust obscured my vision; suddenly, a powerful wind swept it away, revealing my bleeding but still alive opponent.

He doesn't seem to have mortal or deep wounds; he's strong, very strong.

Roseth Evertin

The water vortex surrounding my opponent dissipated, and he got up.

"Congratulations, you're fast," he said.

"Why did you attack us? We have nothing of value."

A tear rolled down my opponent's cheek.

"I just wanted to be sure... I wanted to be sure that it was really you."

"Huh? Do we know each other?" I asked, confused, scrutinizing the guy in front of me.

"It's been 9 years; it's normal that you struggle to recognize me," he said.

"I wasn't even born nine years ago," I

explained.

"Don't lie, Roseth," he replied, wiping away his tears. "You told me, didn't you? When you died, you were sixteen."

I was surprised to hear that statement, but then I understood, and a smile appeared on my face.

"Long time no see, Marsal."