30 people wearing black robes stood in a dimly lit room. The room's floor, walls and ceiling were made of stones. Two people stood further from the rest. They were the only ones who didn't have their heads covered with a hood.
"It's finally the time." said a man with a beard.
"I'm very interested in the chosen one." a young man with black hair said.
"Is everything prepared, Zephyr?"
"Yes, Abras. We've prepared for the worst." Zephyr said with a smirk.
A summoning circle appeared in the middle of the room. The summoning circle shone, lighting up the room, and a person appeared.
A boy with black hair stood there watching the surroundings with his abyss-black eyes. Placing his eyes on the cultists surrounding him, Zephyr and Abras approached the boy, while other cultists kneeled with their heads down.
"Zephyr."
"I understand." Zephyr nodded, then clapped his hands.
A small, dark ominous box appeared in Zephyr's hands, he placed the box in the hands of the boy. Just looking at the box was enough to tell the boy that opening it would be irreversible and would have huge consequences. Despite that...
'I refuse to accept my death.' the boy opened the box.
The box contained a dagger and a book. The dagger had a sharp black blade and a white shining gem in the grip. It was the most beautiful dagger he has ever seen. The boy picked up the dagger. It was surprisingly light.
He looked up at Zephyr and Abras. They looked at each other and said some words in a language the boy couldn't recognise.
Two cultists came to the room holding an old man with fingers twisted in unnatural directions, teeth pulled out, many burns and cuts. The old man looked at the boy with eyes full of hatred. The boy stood still, not moving. He knew what he had to do.
He looked at the dagger in his hand and then looked at the old man. The old man tried saying some words but could not due to his pulled out teeth and cut out tongue. If he could talk, he would probably curse the boy.
The boy slowly approached the old man. Each step felt heavier.
"Rest in peace." the boy said as he plunged the dagger into the old man's eye.
The old man didn't even have a chance to scream. He was dead in the instant.
The boy closed his eyes.
Memories, knowledge, magic, abilities, secrets, monsters, dungeons, heroes, gods, kingdoms, empires, languages. All of it was poured into the boy's head.
'Old man, thank you for your sacrifice.' the boy thought with a smile.
He looked at the dagger. The shining white gem dimmed and became black. He turned around and looked at the cultists again.
"We greet our lord!" all the cultists said at once.
"What is your name, my lord?" asked Abras.
"My name's Adrian. I hope you will help me reach my goal." the boy said with a smile.
"Yes, lord Adrian!"
Adrian looked at the book in the box. The moment he touched it, both the box and the book turned into black smoke. The smoke surrounded his index finger and formed a silver ring with a small black gem.
'Interesting.' Adrian thought while looking at the ring.
Adrian looked at the two cultists again.
"The two of you look different from the rest."
Both their behavior and appearance were distinctive from the rest.
"Yes, lord Adrian. My name is Abras and I'm the first-in-command. I specialise in leading the cult and strategy."
"And my name's Zephyr, and I'm the second-in-command. I specialise in combat and raising the strength of our cult."
Adrian yawned. Realizing he probably disrespected them, he had a nervous face.
"Lord Adrian, it's late and you are most likely tired from the summoning. Let me show you your personal room." said Zephyr.
"Yes, a few hours of sleep would be great." said Adrian with dark circles under his eyes.
"Are you hungry, lord Adrian?"
"…Yes."
"I will get you some tasty food from our best chef." Zephyr said as he turned around to look at the closest cultist.
"Understood." said the cultist as he ran off looking for the chef.
"Now, let's head to your room." Zephyr said as he started walking, Adrian following after him.
Walking past many guards, they finally reached a wooden door.
'The area seems to be heavily guarded.'
"Ah, you must wonder why there are so many guards. It's because leaders, high-ranking members, and important people live in this area."
"My room is right next to yours, so in case anything happens or you need anything, just call me." said Zephyr while pointing at the door right next to Adrian's.
Adrian opened the door and looked into his new room. The room had a bed, a table with a chair, a closet, a carpet, and a mirror. The room had no windows nor torches, despite that the room wasn't dark. He noticed a stone that was emitting light.
'This truly is a fantasy world, but it still feels like a dream... Using magic instead of electricity, huh? I wonder if they can use magic to communicate instead of phones.'
"I'll be in my room, the food will arrive after a while." Zephyr said while leaving.
Adrian closed the door behind him and sat down on a bed, looking at the ceiling.
'...'
'...'
'My head is full. I can't even think right now. I should leave it for tomorrow.'
Knock. Knock.
Adrian stood up and opened the door.
A man in white clothes stood behind the door holding a plate of food.
"I'm honoured to be your chef, lord Adrian." the chef said with a smile.
"Yes..."
Adrian took the plate from the chef's hands.
"Thank you."
Then he closed the door with his leg and sat at the table.
He looked at the plate.
'Meat, bread, vegetables, and a soup. Simple, but I don't mind.'
Adrian ate the food. The taste differed from the junk food he was used to. The flavours were unique. He wasn't used to them, but he liked it regardless. Overall, the food was a fresh experience for him. His parents weren't home very often, he pretty much lived alone. Due to that, he frequently received money for food and other necessities. The money was more than enough, but it would be a little too much to expect a teenage boy to cook healthy food for himself.
'The food was delicious. I wonder what the meat was from...'
'I wonder if cannibalism is normal here... I hope not.'
Adrian opened the closet and checked what was inside.
'Black cloak, some casual clothes, shoes, and a mask.'
'So that's all the room has. I should go to sleep now.' Adrian said as he lay on the bed and closed his eyes.
...
"Zephyr, some unknown knight is causing us some major trouble. He already got a few of our branches annihilated. I'm sure you are aware already. " Abras said with his hands placed on his temples.
"No matter how much I think about it, it just doesn't make sense. Did a rat get into our cult? The locations of our branches aren't easy to get. Well, it doesn't matter, leave it to me. I'll send our elites to assassinate him." said Zephyr.
"This is the most crucial time of our lives. The chosen one has finally arrived, so make sure not to fail."
"Got it. Consider the knight dead." Zephyr said with a smirk.
...
Adrian opened his eyes. He slept for many hours, so he was refreshed and full of energy.
Adrian got up and opened the closet. He changed into the casual clothes. It was a gray t-shirt, and black pants. He ignored the shoes, because the ones he currently had were much more comfortable and didn't stand out that much. After getting dressed up, he donned a black cloak on top of the clothes. He looked into the mirror placed on the wall.
'Looks pretty good. It would be bad if I stood out too much because of my modern clothes.'
'Now, let's get some information from the cult leaders.'
Adrian left his room and knocked on Zephyr's door.
Knock. Knock.
Seconds later, Zephyr opened the door.
"Good morning, lord Adrian."
"Good morning, Zephyr. I came here to ask some questions regarding the cult."
"Of course. Let's go meet Abras." Zephyr said, with Adrian following behind him.
Zephyr stopped in front of a big metal door.
"Welcome to our meeting room." Zephyr said as the door opened.
'Magic?'
"The door reacts to mana of high-ranking members. It prevents unwanted people from entering this room." Zephyr said.
The room had an enormous table in the middle. Around the table were many well-crafted seats made of rare metals. Above the table was a chandelier that provided light to the whole room.
A single person was sitting at the table. It was Abras.
"Welcome, lord Adrian." Abras said.
"I came here to ask some questions."
"Of course. Ask me anything."
Adrian and Zephyr sat at the table.
"What is the name of the cult?"
"Inanis."
"What is the goal of the cult?"
"The goal of the cult, huh? Since we are a big organization, we have many goals. But the primary goal is to liberate us from the gods who control and rule the world. Other goals include gaining power, immortality, and other stuff."
"How many members does the cult have?"
"The cult has around 5000 members. They have infiltrated many kingdoms and organizations all around the world."
"I see..." Adrian nodded.
"Zephyr, you specialize in combat, correct?"
"Yes, lord Adrian." Zephyr said.
"Can you teach me swordsmanship and magic?"
"Hmm... I can certainly teach you swordsmanship and combat, but Abras is way better than me at magic."
"In that case, I can teach him magic instead." Abras said as he stood up.
"Adrian, try to recall the memories of the man you killed. He was a powerful magician and scholar who researched magic. He was slightly more powerful than me. Not that he could do anything against numbers." Abras said with a small smile as he approached Adrian.
'Focus… Magic. Mana core. Elements. Affinity. Mana circuits.' Adrian concentrated with closed eyes.
'All living beings in this world have some amount of mana. The world is filled with mana. It's not any more uncommon than air. Feel the surrounding mana. Focus. Collect the surrounding mana to a single point in the body, called the mana core. Focus more. It's as simple as breathing in air, but... Why… Why doesn't it work? Am I doing it wrong? I should try again. I have memories of a powerful magician. This should be easy for me.'
Small beads of sweat formed on Adrian's face.
'I can't feel it… Why can't I feel it? This is very important. Without mana I'll die here!'
"…Lord Adrian, is there perhaps a problem?"
'Damn it! If they find out I can't sense mana, they will get rid of me. They don't need a useless weakling.' Adrian started nervously tapping the table with his index finger.
"Lord Adrian!" Abras shouted.
Adrian quickly opened his eyes and looked at Abras.
"Lord Adrian, calm down." Abras said.
"Alright…"
"Now tell me what's troubling you."
"…I can't sense mana. No matter how hard I try, I can't sense it."
Abras frowned.
Zephyr and Abras looked at each other, then they looked at Adrian.
"Hmm…" Abras closed his eyes for a while and thought hard.
Abras reopened his eyes and intently looked Adrian in the eyes.
"I'm certain He makes no mistakes so we shouldn't doubt Him." Abras said.
"Surely this is a trial from Him, for us to overcome." Zephyr said.
"Well, this isn't the end of the world. There are other ways to become powerful, although they are way more difficult." Zephyr said.
"You're certainly right." Abras said.
"Some magic equipment and contract spirits don't require mana." Zephyr said as he stood up.
"Lord Adrian, follow us." Abras said as he stood up and followed Zephyr.
They walked through many hallways and stopped in front of a huge golden gate.
"What is this…?" Adrian asked.
The golden gate slowly opened and golden light shone blindingly from the room.
"This? This is our most valuable room containing the most important and rarest items of our cult. The treasury room." Zephyr said with a bright smile.