My vision blurred from all the blood loss and I could barely walk.
The Gods were tormenting me with their fickle whims.
The exhaustion I felt was almost unbearable but I moved along anyway. I didn't know why but I would survive, I always did. That's a tenacity from the life I lived. It was the fear of death in my very core. Even to the brink of darkness, I trudged along.
The living can go on and bury the dead, I was getting tired of burying the dead. What could I do? I was the one alive and I could only pay respects to the dead. They weren't coming back, the dead stayed dead and I lived on. This was the cruel truth I learned in this world.
The streets were pitch black. The moon gave what little light it could as heavy clouds began to wander.
Old memories ebbed and flowed through my mind.
The Hero use to recite about adhering to truth and justice. It was like a never-ending mantra and I believed it for what it's worth. Now? I could only laugh. What truth? Everyone lies. Justice? There's no justice for the dead. I had become bitter and I realized that.
I was almost to Dante's mansion, I had nothing to heal myself. I trust that he could help me as long as I got there. He was a little boy and abnormal but he had no monster in his heart, not yet anyway. That title was reserved for the truly wicked. Dante definitely reminded me of the Hero, from his actions to his knowledge. The two images of their faces blended in my mind before I collapsed on the gate of the mansion.
As my consciousness faded, I remembered the Hero and the time we first met. It was in my youth nearly a decade ago, I had just left the Royal Capital. All of the things that tied me there were long gone. Some of my friends were executed for stealing while others were caught in the cesspool of the underworld. I decided to go my own way and live my own life.
I ended up joining an adventuring guild that was spread across the land. Adventure guilds were used by people to accomplish certain tasks. They ranged from bodyguards to monster hunting, people flocked to these guilds in the effort for money and fame. I joined for a different reason, I just didn't want to steal anymore.
Little did I know was that it wouldn't stop me from stealing. I was fast and agile with quick wits, this enticed many parties to enlist my aid. I traveled to dungeons, temples, lost cities, all to steal treasure and buried artifacts from people long dead. I'd see many amazing and horrifying things in my youth, they all didn't compare to when I met the Hero.
I had traveled to his hometown of Crestwood, there was a monster outbreak near the town. I sought to make a name for myself there, not because I wasn't getting work. It was because only the famous were able to dictate where they would go. I didn't want to wait to be chosen, I wanted to choose. Perhaps this was my fate that I could not get rid of. I added my name to the bulletin board of the Crestwood adventure guild.
The only thing I could do was wait and see who would join me in my task. Many people asked for me only to scoff and rebuke me when I came into their view. I wasn't particularly clean, I wasn't a strong man, my looks were average and I was far from a noble. That's when he came up to me.
"Are you Demitri?" A young man and woman came up to me and asked.
"Yes," I replied with a nod.
The guild was full of misfits, I glanced around to make sure nobody was listening in on us.
The first time I saw him, I knew he was a noble. Just the air around him and the way he dressed. He also had a beautiful girl at his side. She looked as if she didn't care about anything in the world but him. He looked at me from top to bottom but I didn't feel the judgment from his eyes.
"Can we join you for the monster subjugation task?" He asked me as the pair looked at each other.
I was looking for a party but he asked me if he could join me instead.
"Are you sure?" I said, almost dumbfounded that someone would invite me of their own fruition.
"Yes," he said with a smile.
"Then it's a deal," I said with a nod as I looked him over once again.
It was refreshing to be sought out and invited to a party. It was the first time it ever happened to me.
We quickly left and went straight into the area, hunting for treasures and monsters. I had found out that this was their first time out in the world away from the confines of their lavish homes. The young Hero and the beautiful girl named Cassandra moved perfectly with no wasted effort in killing monsters. I was amazed at how powerful and skillful they were. I couldn't keep up at all, I felt the clear difference between ourselves, not only in status but in strength.
"That's fifty goblins," the Hero said. "What else is on the list?"
"Wargs, they are terrorizing the farmlands," Cassandra replied brushing the dust from her clothes.
I knew that she didn't want to be there at all.
"Don't we have enough? Why are you guys so dedicated to hunting more monsters?" I said trying to give them a reprieve.
The Hero thought for a second and then looked at me with his clear jade eyes.
"They're monsters, the more we get rid of, the safer the people will be," the Hero replied with a smile.
I had taken his words to heart and they have stayed with me since.
I had believed I found my purpose in life. The purpose had its face replaced constantly from monsters to corrupt nobles, to the Demon Lord, to another kingdom and finally back to the Hero. I tried to think about my purpose now but it was lost, it was a dark blank. I thought my role was to save people, but when I look back, I have caused many deaths...of enemies and friends.
My memories faded and a blur came over my eyes.
"Demitri!...Demitri!..."
I was shaken awake and felt my body ache all over.
"Demitri! Are you okay?"
The voice penetrated my ears and my vision started to come back.
My eyes glanced around the room and I came to realize that I was back in the guest room that was given to me. Right next to me was Dante who had a worried look on his face. He told me he called over help when he found me at the front gate unconscious. Servants carried me over to the guest room and helped me. My wounds were cleaned and bandaged, light healing magic was used so that I wouldn't get any scars. I didn't care about that, frankly, I thought I needed the scars as a reminder.
When all the servants had left, Dante closed the door and spoke to me.
"Was it Helem who did this?" Dante said.
My eyes grew wide and I grabbed him by his shirt.
"How do you know that!?" I said as a sharp weariness came over me.
"Relax, I knew that he was a companion of the Hero," Dante replied.
My face twisted, this Young Lord knew things he shouldn't know.
"Hmm," I shrugged and loosened my grip on him.
Dante looked at me in contemplation for a while but decided to speak.
"I have.....I have a special gift, Demitri," he said with noble demeanor. "Something that...let's me understand things."
"Gift?" I said watching him closely. "Like magic?"
"Something beyond magic," he said.
"What?" I let out a laugh. "Are you one of the Gods?"
Magic itself wasn't rare but it was powerful. I had no aptitude for magic and I only knew a few people who wielded it, the Hero included. I almost died many times to a reckless companion who cast magic like she playing with water. But Dante was saying that his gift was something beyond magic. Was he a God? It could explain it but when I look at this little boy being a God. I can picture him saying with whimsical intentions.
Dante was straight-faced, he didn't laugh at my words at all.
"I....I can see things that tell me who people are," he said as he held his hands behind his back and walked around the room.
Dante glanced back at me and I stared back until I relaxed my gaze. His eyes told me he was telling the truth. How can there be so many abnormal people in this world? He has special gifts, I give him that.
So I played with his game.
"Did you use that gift on Helem?" I asked.
"Yes," Dante replied as he took a seat on a nearby chair.
I let out a breath of air.
"Then what did it tell you?" I said.
"It told me that he was a priest, that he was a former companion of the Hero, that he became ex-communicated from his faith and it told me that he had gone insane," Dante said looking towards an empty corner of the room.
Did he know all that from a glance? My mind tried to make sense of it. This was something more than a special gift. Dante looked like he could continue on but I stopped him.
"Why didn't you tell me earlier?" I said.
"Well….honestly? I thought you knew that already," Dante said with a shrug. "I thought both of you were working together."
He was right in a way, we used to work together. All that has already changed.
"Why?" I began to question. "That gift of yours doesn't tell you?"
"No," Dante replied with a finger wag. "I have to figure that out myself."
It was really inconceivable this power he had. I thought this young Lord was some kind of genius who could analyze his surroundings. Now I knew why Dante could know so much for being so young. I started thinking to myself and wondering if the Hero himself had these special gifts. I focus my attention back on Dante, I needed to know something.
"What does your gift say about me?"
Dante tilted his head before looking at me.
"Do you really want to know?"
Maybe I could find a new purpose using Dante's gifts.
"Yes," I replied without hesitation.
"My power tells me things in titles," Dante said. "You have about 10 titles that describe you."
Dante put up his hands and wiggled his fingers.
"Five are positive titles and effects, the other five are the opposite."
Titles? Effects? What is he going on about? It felt like he was spouting gibberish.
"These titles.....have some sort of effect on me?" I asked.
"Yes, for instance, the title "Hero Killer", it has a negative effect on your mind," Dante said pointing to his temple. "It's abnormal that you have so many titles but I think it's because of all your actions."
Dante watched me closely but I could tell that he wasn't really looking at me but at something else.
"I can see eight clearly but you do have two more," Dante said. "I can't see those."
"Why can't you?" I said.
"I think I'm under-leveled," Dante said. "It's all question marks."
"What?" I replied with confusion.
"Nothing," Dante said as he waved it off.
"So what are they?" I asked.
"Your positive titles are Savior of Children, True Hero, Kind Hearted, and The People's champion," Dante continued. "Your negative titles are Hero Killer, Killer of Reincarnators, Sinner, and Betrayer of friends."
I grimaced at those titles and his words. They seem to explain about me quite clearly. But why? But how? Are the Four Gods playing a game with me? Is Dante playing a joke on me? Am I not just mad? I just couldn't understand it all.
"You said..." I tried to gather my thoughts. "You thought Helem and I were working together after you saw his title."
"Yes," Dante nodded.
"Why was that?" I said.
"Both of you possess the Killer of Reincarnators title...."
--
Adventurers are fortune seekers and mercenaries consisting of naive youths and old veterans. Guilds were quickly established in order to use these people of particular skill sets. Grades given to those who excelled and with it came more prestige and wealth. Instead of wandering the land without order, they were utilized to clear ruins of the old world, subjugate monsters tormenting the lands, guard caravans, and at other times recruited in times of war. The Kingdom of Bareth first established them thousands of years ago when the Four Gods blessed the lands with their presence. Now, they are just another working piece of society. ~ The Guide Book: So you want to be an Adventurer?