"Zeke, why don't you apply for the successor exams?" a man with reddish-orange skin asked.

"Proaltiaz, I told you I don't want to be the next king," Zeke replied with annoyance.

Proaltiaz threw his hands up and looked at Zeke in disbelief. "I would apply even if I had half your talent. Why won't you tell me why you won't apply?"

Zeke took a moment of silent resignation. "It just feels like too much; how could I live up to that responsibility? All that pressure?"

Suddenly, a magic circle appeared under the man named Zeke, glowing with an ominous black shine.

"What? A magic circle!?"

Zeke put his hand on Proaltiaz’s chest and pushed, sending him flying out of the magic circle.

“Oof!”

"Arg!" Zeke cried as the chains exploded out of the magic circle and wrapped around him, just to slam him to his knees.

"Zeke! What's happening?"

"I don't know! Get back!"

Zeke's figure was enclosed in a shroud of flames as he tried to fight against the chains with his fire. The chain suppressed his magic, and his once whitish flames were reduced to a reddish-orange.

"Zeke!"

Zeke’s figure slowly lowered as the chains pulled his body through the magic circle. The more the chains pulled him through the magic circle, the less power Zeke could emit before his flames disappeared. Right before Zeke's head was pulled through the magic circle, he could feel his flames become sealed away.

Where am I?

Zeke suddenly found himself in a dark, enclosed area with little light from a few candles. The area was musty and cold, like a cave or underground area. A shadow suddenly stepped closer as the chains continued to tighten around him, barely discernible as a humanoid shape.

"@^#$^ ^&^#$%#^% )(#*$%&," the being said.

"Who are you? Release me!" Zeke screamed in anger.

"#$%#$& #$%#$^& Ezekial #$^$&!"

"How do you know my name!?"

A chain flew straight towards Zeke's head from the man's hand.

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"Wha?!" Zeke exclaimed in shock as the chain flew towards him and was absorbed into his head.

The whole world suddenly felt different, as if his senses were being dulled like wearing a glove over a hand. The chains that once bound Zeke suddenly disappeared, and Zeke felt like lashing out at the strange man. Not only did his body fail to respond, but to his shock, he watched his body kneel in servitude. “Master, I’m at your service.”

What the hell is happening?!

"Come, we have work to do." The man said in a language Zeke didn’t know but could somehow understand.

The man stepped closer, and Zeke could see some of his features. He was an older man with a frail figure, dark eyes, and a bald head underneath his hood, with a slight scar on his cheek. His eyes reflected madness, and his mouth twisted in excited bloodlust.

"Yes, Master," Zeke responded.

STOP IT! DON'T MAKE ME DO THIS!

Zeke looked down at a young mother's back as she protected her young daughter with her body before red flames erupted from Zeke and set them both on fire until just their charred bodies remained.

“Hahaha! Burn! Everything will burn!”

I'll FUCKING KILL YOU.

A group of well-armed soldiers, or most likely guards, showed up after Zeke already burned down half the buildings on the street and incinerated everyone he came across.

STOP ME, I BEG OF YOU.

Zeke’s thoughts were unheard as he waved his hand, and a wall of fire met the guards, burning them alive in their armor before turning them to dust.

“Yes! Yes! Burn! Burn it all! Hahaha!”

A mere three hours later, after being summoned, all that was left of the town was ruins and ashes as Zeke followed his master into the woods.

I'll FUCKING KILL YOU. I'll FUCKING KILL YOU. I'll FUCKING KILL YOU. I'll FUCKING KILL YOU. I'll FUCKING KILL YOU. I'll FUCKING KILL YOU.

Several weeks later, Zeke was forced to decimate several towns and torture many innocent people for the joy and discretion of his master.

In his madness, his master still knew he couldn’t go up against the proper knights of the empire, sticking to small towns in the outskirts and traveling through the forest; however, it was only a matter of time before the knights found them and found them they did.

The knights tracked them down after burning down another small town; before they knew it, they were already surrounded by dozens of knights.

“Black mage Nimtril! There is nowhere to run! Your atrocities end here once and for all!”

A grizzled knight captain stepped forward and unsheathed his sword, which soon began to glow.

“Ezekial! Kill them! Kill them all!”

KILL ME

The captain bent slightly and disappeared.

“Agh!” Zeke cried out as the captain appeared in front of him with a sword piercing entirely through the side of his stomach. The captain's mana infiltrated his body, preventing him from using fire magic.

FINISH IT!

“No! This isn’t right! This isn’t supposed to happen! This isn’t what they promised!” The black mage Nimtril scratched his face hard enough to draw blood and waved his rotting staff.

Before black mage Nimtril could cast a spell, the first arrow lodged in his throat before a dozen more arrows pierced his body.

As Nimtril died, the magic he cast on Zeke was disappearing, a black gas leaking out of the pores on his head.

“Kill me. I deserve to die.”

With a cold gaze, the captain met Zeke’s eyes and withdrew his sword. Zeke fell to his knees.

“Just go home, son. You shouldn’t have to bear the sins of a madman.”

Zeke vanished before the captain as the magic that kept Zeke attached to this world finally disappeared.