Authors note: There is a Prologue before chapter 1 I advise reading that if you want some more information.
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Just as he was about to get some relief on the road, he heard the words of one of the men in black.
"Oh, we found the old man first...!"
His steps slowed, his eyes narrowing in silence. After a few more steps, he turned to face the two who had arrived first.
"You're still alive...? Where is my father? What have you done to him?" The full moon illuminated his face, revealing a young man in his early twenties. His medium-length and raven-black hair, tied in a bun, seemed to swallow the moonlight. He rolled up his sleeves, displaying his slightly tanned forearms, marred with scars.
"Speak." His voice was calm, devoid of anger or concern, as he assumed a martial arts stance, showcasing his muscular build.
"Oh, don't worry, you'll see The South Immortal in the afterlife, child!" One of the men charged at him.
'Afterlife... My dad? Hah...' The young man's mind raced. 'Are they from that army?'
'Anyway, let's beat them first, I talk later...' He pushed aside his thoughts, focusing on the fight. As the man approached preparing a right punch, the young man observed him closely.
'Is he too tired? So slow... and they would come for me...?'
'He can't even dodge...' The attacker smirked, confident in his perceived advantage.
"So slow..." The young man intercepted the punch, throwing him over his shoulder effortlessly.
The man's expression shifted to shock as he flew through the air, landing hard on the asphalt a moment later. "Kaha," he tried to scream, but the impact had knocked the air out of his lungs. He gasped desperatey as the young man turned to face the other attacker.
With sea-blue eyes locked onto his new opponent, the young man stepped back. "Careful, your...!" The second man tried to warn his friend, but it was too late. The young man kicked his head, knocking him out cold. The man abruptly stopped when he saw his friend flying, but now seeing this, he started to run toward the young man again.
'Fuck, he's a monster, he can even use Mana... wasn't it stated that he lost his power!?' Fear crept into the remaining man's thoughts. In reality, the young man only relies on the skills honed from surviving in hell.
"You!" The man threw a punch, but the young man dodged it easily. As another punch followed, he remarked, "Weak..." He grabbed the man's hand, pulling him forward.
"Eat this...!" the man attempted a desperate attack to the stomach. 'Hmh?' Feeling the hit, the boy quickly adjusted his plan. 'They seem sloppy, but they do have strength... is it Mana?' Swiftly, he tripped the man and kneed him in the stomach.
*Uhag...* The foe doubled over in pain and fell. The young man grabbed his hair, slamming his head to the ground. Blood splattered.
"Huh?" The young man kicked the man's side. "Hey, are you dead?" When there was no response, he muttered, 'Ugh, Dad... I will get beaten for this...'
"...?" Hearing the sound of footsteps, he turned to see three more men running towards him. He took a few steps back, assessing the situation. 'Let's use this...' He reached into his pocket and threw his keys at the face of the big man in the middle, momentarily slowing them down.
'Now!' The young man took advantage, rushing at the middle man with his shoulder. *UH...* The impact shoved the man, and also using the big man to push himself off, he landed a punch on the man to the right, blood splattering from the broken nose.
The leader retaliated with a powerful kick to the back. "Hmh...?" The young man hummed in surprise at the strength. He quickly turned and hit the leader with a backhand.
'Ugh... strong...' The one man he punched quickly recovered, delivering a good blow to his left side.
"..." He was surrounded from the front and back, glancing to his right to look at the man he just pushed.
'Good...' The man lying there was bleeding from the head.
"..." The man holding his face and nose grasped at the boy, but he wobbled, and using this, the boy jumped to the side, getting out of the encirclement.
"Fuck! Are you okay?" The other guy called out to his friend on the ground.
"Shit! Why must you be so persistent!?"
"Then why come after me..." ,The young man responded nonchalantly further angering them. The leader hesitated, then nodded to the other man.
'Hmh... how are they so strong...?' The young man hunched slightly, touching his left side. 'But it has been some time...' A feeling emerged within him... drawing a small smile on his face.
The men drew knives from their backs. The boy raised an eyebrow, puzzled. "You should know I can't be harmed..."
"Shut up! We've been hunting you for years; we know no weapon will harm monsters like you!" One of them shouted.
'Then why...' His confusion deepened as red veils appeared in his vision, resting atop two of the fallen men.
'What!?' An unsettling feeling made his eyes shake.
"...!!" The two standing men threw their knives, precisely piercing the throats of their downed comrades.
"Why?" The young man asked, his voice steady b,ut tinged with disbelief.
"I'm sure you monsters look down on all of us humans... but you see... we... Humanity is advancing..." the leader-like man said, a grim satisfaction in his tone.
'Advancing...?' The young man noted a faint red aura forming around the two. 'What is this? It feels like... murderous intent...?' The realization struck as the men attacked.
"...!!" The man's punch was unexpectedly strong, but the next moment the young man could even catch the leader's leg mid-kick. "Fuck...!" the leader cursed, grabbing its leg for balance.
"Uh..." The young man let the other attacker hit his open abdomen, ignoring the pain. He reached out and grabbed the man's face, smashing them both into the asphalt. Blood flowed from the man's nose and mouth as he screamed in pain.
He released his hands and raised his right while curling it into a fist, "Ugh...?" the bleeding man couldn't even notice the release since he was already dizzy, and just as he raised his head he was sent back to the ground for a complete KO.
The young man stood up, observing the leader trying to rise. "It's been a long time since I had to fight so many at once... And you lot are strangely strong too... even still, I'm his son. What did you expect? There were times I fought dozens of your kind." He kicked the leader's side, then his face, sending him back to the ground. Blood slowly filled the road staining it red.
"Now, I ask you, where is my father? What have you done to him? Which organization is it this time?" He lifted the supposed leader by the collar, his voice calm but firm.
"Fuck... you..." The leader spat, defiant even in defeat. Blood flowed from the deformed head, the kick was so strong the man's nose became crushed and even some of his teeth fell out.
"Hm... No, this isn't the answer." The young man twisted one of his fingers.
*AHHHH* The man screamed, his face contorting in pain. "Now?" The young man's voice remained delicate, almost gentle.
"Go... and fucking die... Monster!" The leader cursed again, and another finger broke. *AHhHH...*
"If you don't want more broken, tell me where my father is."
"It's... it's..."
"Hm?"
"Ah... ahaha... probably the black market..."
"Yeah, but where?"
"..."
"I'm patient," The young man said, though his actions spoke otherwise.
*Crack*
*Aghah...* "In... In pieces... you trash!" The leader grinned, blood staining his remaining teeth.
"What?"
"The money on his head is a Billion... what do you think an Immortal heart is worth?"
"..." From birth, he could tell lies and truth apart, it was hard to understand why thou... and this... it was no lie.
*Ahchg...* The young man's grip changed, tightening around the man's throat.
"..." As he squeezed, the persona his father had worked hard to create started to crack.
{All beings have a purpose...}
'Kill them, eat them, carve out their hearts!' Voices clamored in his head.
'Son...'
'Kill them!'
*Ahchg...*
"Shut up!" He shouted, shaking his head, but his grip only tightened.
'Don't be a monster...'
'Disembowel their very dreams!'
*Ahchg...*
"Shut up!!"
'I'll always be there for you... after all...'
"..."
'I'm Immortal...'
"Father..."
"..."
"You..." His eyes cleared, but his hands didn't release the man's throat.
*Ahchg...*
"You lied too..." His thoughts were cold and clear. At this moment, the red veils moved above his head, stretching closer.
"..."
*Ahchg...* His hand still slowly crushing the man's throat.
{Even if they don't know what their purpose is, every being is trying to find or create one... this is true for humans, gods, and any concept that was ever born.}
"Why?" At this moment he glimpsed the red, not the one on his hands, but the one... the one above him.
"Why must you steal the last of my family!?" He lifted his head towards the sky and shouted. "Was my mother not enough!?" His eyes locked onto the descending red veil.
{As a young being is stripped of his purpose, his very existence is questioned.}
"You took my sister, you took my love, and now my father!?"
"What is it that you want!?" His eyes blazed red, matching the veil above. *Ahchg...* The man in his clutches, it happened as his neck split from the strength...
*Puff*
"Cough...?" The young man wobbled.
*PuffPuff*
*Cough* Red gushed from his mouth. "This... How is that thing still standing? These were holy... and the new generations... how..." Words from behind him were barely heard.
"I..." The young man's thoughts were clouded. No, he was already...
"...!?" Green flames erupted around him.
"How!? What is this shit!?"
"I... I DENY IT!!!" His words carried a weight that seemed to shake the very air. The world around him plunged into darkness.
...
When the young being opened his eyes, the world he saw was drenched in an eerie, suffocating red.
*Badum... Badum...* The strange rhythmic beat echoed through the silence, like a drum marking the passage of time.
*Badum... Badum...*
'The scent of iron...? No... is this...?' The young man thought, struggling to comprehend the scene. As questions began to flood his mind, but before he was swallowed by guilt, something diverted his attention, among the rhythmic beats... a sound unheard.
*Badum... Badum...*
{Is there anything left to do if he has no purpose?}
'Who...?' The beat grew louder, more insistent as if trying to communicate something. He felt a dull, throbbing pain, and his body felt heavy, almost numb. The strength he had moments ago seemed to be slipping away.
*Badum...Badum...*
'The moon... it's still... the same...' The moon, still shining brightly, was a stark contrast to the darkened world he was in.
"The world... didn't drown... I... I didn't fail... right...?" His voice was barely a whisper, lost in the oppressive silence.
"Father?" The word left his lips, carrying the weight of a child seeking comfort in a world turned upside down.
"Father....?" Questions that had long lost their meaning, yet these were the last words of a child who just wanted one thing and even that was taken from him.
*Badum... Badum...*
The strange beat continued, but now, its accompanying voice—a faint, distant sound that became clearer with each beat.
The young one closed its eyes for the last time, listening to the pounding, 'A heartbeat...? No... it isn't just a heartbeat, it is mine... But... What is this...?'
*Badum...*
[Ho... is dec...]
*Badum...*
'A voice? Who...?' Hearing the strange sound, the young creature tried to open his eyes, but he couldn't do so anymore, so instead, he waited and listened.
*Badum...*
[The Host's HP is decreasing...! ] As his heartbeat slowed, he heard more and more of the voice.
*Badum...*
[Warning: The Host's HP is decreasing dangerously fast!]
*Badum...*
[Warning: The Host's HP is dangerously low! The Host will die in 3...2...]
'Wait...!' The boy's mind screamed, panic and confusion gripping him.
[Notice: Acquired Legendary Skill!]
[Legendary Skill Reincarnation has activated!]
In that instant, the oppressive red hue around him began to shift. The suffocating darkness gave way to a blinding light, and the rhythmic beat ceased, replaced by an overwhelming silence.
As his consciousness faded, a thought lingered, echoing in the void: 'Is this... the end?'
But even in the depths of despair, there was a faint glimmer of hope—a promise of something beyond... A new beginning, perhaps, or an answer to the question that had haunted him... 'Why... me? Why...'
And as the light enveloped him, the world seemed to hold its breath, waiting for the next chapter in his journey to unfold.