“Death has remained constant even after the advent of Mana. Gods are all powerful, but they too must die. Mana has not granted us eternal life. But it has granted us a second life, a paradise after Death, for those worthy of it.” - The First Preacher, teaching his disciples, in the year 05 A.C.

I couldn’t move. Couldn’t think. Every thought was consumed by sheer terror. The air around us was silently screaming, beckoning us to our doom. My

heartbeats sounded like church bells, ringing out a eulogy for my short life. Louder than that though was a single dreadful sound. A footstep. ‘He’s

coming closer.’ I thought with growing horror. Another footstep rang out on the stone floors. I felt nauseous. My guts were churning. I felt like puking, but

I couldn’t move. And then, even more dreadful than the footsteps, was a voice. “How interesting.” Death spoke in an amused tone. “Most people, like

your two friends here, bow their heads in my presence. But you didn’t. You’re looking straight at me.” I didn’t know what he was talking about. Who

would dare to look their Death straight in the face? It took every last drop of courage I had ever had. Every instinct I possessed screamed at me not to

move. My body refused to move. But I moved it anyway. It was harder than anything I had ever done, anything I had ever accomplished. But in the end,

I did it. Without moving my head, I glanced to my left. It took every fiber of my being just to move my eyes. Had I not been standing in front of a God,

suffering under his mere presence, I would have laughed in despair at the sheer hopelessness of it all. For what I saw horrified me even more than I

already was. Reina wasn’t bowing her head. She was staring the God of Death straight in the face. Pale faced, lips trembling, eyes filled with fear. She

was terrified, just like I was. But there was something else in her eyes. Hidden deep by the smothering terror was a small spark of hatred. ‘No.’ I already

knew that we were going to die here. ‘No.’ But was I really going to have to watch one of my loved ones die in front of me again? ‘It should have been

you.’ My fathers voice echoed in my head, shattering the chains that bound me. I was going to die. Reina was going to die. Makus was going to die. All

of us were already dead. But I wasn’t going to spend my last moments cowering in fear. In front of a God, mortals like us were powerless. But that didn’t

mean that we couldn’t defy them, even if that defiance was only in the way we died. ‘It should have been you.’ Those cold words that had broken me

before, now granted me the courage to move. ‘I’ll see you soon, Tyrin.’ With that thought in mind, I fought against the suffocating pressure and stepped

Stolen novel; please report.

forwards, taking a stand between Reina and a God.

Cin stared at the girl in front of him with mild curiosity. She was terrified, he could see that. Yet she wasn’t bowing her head. She was staring directly at

him, hatred visible in her eyes, no matter how faint. ‘A fanatic.’ Cin thought. They were always the ones who stared at him with such eyes. Cin sighed,

and reached for his sword. Before he could though, something grabbed his attention. The boy in the middle, the weakest of the three, had actually

moved. Stepping in front of the girl, shielding her from Cin’s gaze. A pair of silver eyes met blue ones, the former filled with mild curiosity, the latter filled

with terror, determination, and defiance. ‘How peculiar.’ Cin thought, before drawing his sword and stepping forwards. Before any of them could react,

Cin swung his sword horizontally and then sheathed it. Dazed, the three of them then fell forwards, unconscious. Stepping over their still breathing

bodies, Cin continued deeper into the cathedral.

I woke up with a splitting headache. A kind old face gazed down at me. “Morning son.” He said with a smile. Struggling to sit up, I looked around in

confusion. I was in the academy's clinic, a place I had been many times previously. ‘I..survived?’ “Are Reina and Makus alright?” I asked Vitar Lusem,

the God of Healing. He nodded. “The two of them are over there. You’re the first one to wake up. Don’t worry, all three of you are fine.” He said in a

soothing voice. “H-how? Shouldn’t we be dead? He-he swung his sword at us. How are we still alive?” After experiencing that dreadful horror, I couldn’t

believe that I was still alive. I knew I was going to die then. I knew it. So why didn’t I? Why didn’t the God of Death kill us? “Cin Coperus is an…

interesting character. We don’t know much about his motivations or goals. All we know is that on this particular visit, he didn’t kill anyone.” Lord Vitar

answered. I looked at him in shock. The God of Healing smiled at me. His smile calmed me down. I could feel the air grow warmer, the light brighter, the

world more peaceful. This was the presence of the God of Healing. “I know that it might be difficult for you, but can you tell me what happened?” I

nodded, and then began explaining the strange course of events that had led me here to this bed in the clinic. After I finished recounting events, Lord

Vitar looked up at the ceiling while stroking his chin in thought. “Why didn’t he kill you? Well,” He looked back down at me. “I think it's simple, Corin. It’s

because of you.” “M-me?” I stammered. The God of Healing nodded. “Your courage in shielding your friend from him must have impressed him. That is

why he spared you.” Lord Vitar said with a warm smile. “Of course, I’m only guessing here. No one knows why the God of Death acts as he does. But

regardless, you should take pride in what you did. Very few can act as you did in the face of a wrathful God, especially one as terrible as he.” The God

of Healing stood up, and then began to draw the curtains around my bed closed. “I will give you time to rest now. Once the three of you have woken up,

I’ll discharge you.” I nodded, and then slumped back onto the pillows. Alone now, with no one to see me, I stopped holding back the tears that had been

building up this whole time. Tears of fear, of hopelessness, of relief, of disgust. I was disgusted with myself. With my weakness. One year. I had spent a

year here at the academy, and in that time I had not grown stronger at all. I had not won even a single time. And now, I was told to take pride simply

because I decided to choose how I died? I was told to take pride because I didn’t want to die cowering in fear? What bullshit was that? If I had been

stronger, there would have been no need for me to choose my death! Reina and Makus would have never been at risk. Tyrin never would have died for

me. My father would have never said those words. ‘If only. If only. If only.’ Quietly, I cried, mourning my own lack of strength. ‘If only.’