It was suffocating, and lonesome— The place Byan felt he was drowning in for an unprecedented time.
At one time, he remembered himself. Remembered that he hailed from Earth, as no more than an average human man... Then he had died.
He had become trapped in this suffocating, lonesome darkness.
Time ticked, but it didn't tickle... It was forlorn.
He slowly forgot many things— his personality, his relationship. Then he had even forgotten his name.
All he remembered— he continued to experience— was fear.
"This is scary."
He muttered, and muttered, not even knowing that he could ask, "Save me."
He remained perpetually bound by unease and fear, shaking and convulsing, forgetting even to try and find light in the abyss, "This is scary."
Then one day, a voice called out to him. It was the first voice that he had heared in a long while, the only one he remembered.
It said that it wanted to save him. It said that it wanted to end his penance. It said that it would shoulder the weight of his mistakes for him.
So, it pleaded for him to stand. Though he may be dead, it still wanted him to stand.
The voice filled him with a strange feeling. It made him dwell on who he was after a long while.
A few foreign images flashes past his eyes, but that was all.
The darkness was his savior, his sanctuary. It comforted the momentary turmoil inside him silent. And made him once more curl together while muttering, "This is scary."
But the voice hadn't finished. It spoke out again, it beckoned to him. It unearthed the grave of his memories and slapped him awake.
"Byan!"
"Byan?" He repeated, "What is that... it seems like... a name?"
"Byan... Byan... it seems familiar."
The darkness began to shiver. His listless body began to flounder and struggle after a seeming infinity.
"Byan!" As he repeated, a strange little dot appeared somewhere in his sight.
He squinted his eyes, trying to focus upon it. But then it began to tear wider, stretching his eyes wide.
It bloted and swallowed him whole, driving away the darkness around him.
As it devoured him whole, he finally realised, "This is light."
His eyes widened. His hand subconsciously struggled forward.
It was always cold in the darkness. It had been for so long that he had forgotten any other sensation beside it. But now, right now, he felt a swelling sensation blooming out of his heart.
It was warmth. It was so hot that the moisture in his body began to leak out of his eyes.
Again, a voice beckoned him. But this time, it didn't call once or twice, but it boomed relentlessly all through the light. As if it wouldn't stop until he finally remembered.
"Who is... Byan?" His forehead stretched tight into numerous lines.
Slowly, the source of the light became clear to him.
It was standing right in front of him. It looked like light itself in flesh! It was a snow-white angle embraced by darkness. That was how he perceived her.
She was pretty, to the point of bring synonymous with a goddess. With black hair that looked like an infinite starless night sky. And thick black eyelashes that curtained her big, doll-like grey eyes.
She stretched her hand, flashing him a smile that enraptured his heart.
She was his saviors. His friend. His religion! His love!
"Come, Byan!" She nearly choked from her turbulent emotions.
'Oh, now I remember!' His heart stirred. His heart that had been cold for so long stirred, it fluttered, then it began to rage— like a train's engine.
"Byan is... me!"
His hand got wrapped by her's and she dragged him deep into the light.
He didn't look back, but in some corner where the darkness had nestled, a voice boomed out.
"DO YOU DARE BARE MY SINS?"
Byan heard the voice, it was the darkness beckoning him back. It was an attempt to deter his savior from her act. But... he didn't care.
The blinding light didn't allow him to care, then slowly it began to dimmer out, allowing for the scenery around him to collect its pieces.
The very first thing he noticed was a beautiful hand tightly gripping a pair of bones.
Then before he could even lift his head, a terrible pain assaulted him. Like a wedge get pushed into his skull and get beaten deeper inside by a sledgehammer.
It made him want to scream, but he realized he couldn't. His bony legs quacked and trembled. Making the beautiful hand pull back in fright, his body lost strength without her support and slammed back on the ground.
It felt like a dam had blasted apart— The surge of memories inside him did. It came so fast that he didn't have time to see what they were, but he already felt as though he knew them all.
He remembered his name, his dear ones, his hated ones. What kind of person he was, what kind of girls he liked... he remembered it all.
And as the surge of memories came to a halt, it left him blank and lost. Unknowing what to do.
'What happened? This- Is this what is left of me? A skeleton? Did I get isekaied into another world? As an undead?... this is insane!'
His eyes turned toward the girl. She was ogling at him with a droopy face. There seemed to be question marks all around her face.
"This— Is this?" The man muttered, before slowly bursting out into a crazed cackle, "PATHETIC! UTTERLY PATHETIC!!"
Spit hurled out his mouth as he raved on in disdain, "I had heard you had pathetic talent as a necromancer. But I never expected this! Look, your first undead! It's defected just like you! Hahahahaha!"
Myaz gnashed her teeth in shame. 'H-How can this be? Am I really this pathetic?'
"Well then, priestess!" He spat, before cockily striding ahead, "Are you coming with me or... do I break a limb or two?"
Byan's hand suddenly clenched tight. It was a sensation, a nostalgic sensation. His head slightly tilted to his bony fist, 'Is this... anger?'
As he was analysing his own sense of self. Myaz seemed to have made a decision.
"Fine, enough playing around. You want to take me? Then try!" Her shaky eyes turned firm, she had made a decision.
A ring on her finger, embedded with a odd, hollow grey sphere, brightened in a bright light.
And a beautiful scarlet bladed rapier materialised in her hand from thin air.
The man's face darkened, "I heard you had stolen a reservoir of treasures... nevertheless!" His voice boomed again, "I admit you had me, um, startled! Yes, startled earlier." He paused, before continuing, "But now it ends!"
He pulled out a blue sword of his own before stomping in her direction like a fierce bolt.
'Where did he—' The thought in her head couldn't even complete before he appeared in front of her and thrusted the rapier away from her hand.
It flipped elegantly in the air before falling through Byan's ribs and getting stuck.
"Hahahaha! Truly, I suppose all your training was to be a necromancer, but how pathetic, that you would even resort to lifting a sword when you lack even the basic etiquettes of wielding one."
A savage grin pulled over his lips, "Perhaps, I shall educate you a little in the ways of swordmanship?"
"Y-You!" Myaz trembled and retreated back. Her eyes quivering from the sight of his lecherous grin.
His sword slowly rose high, but his chin pulled up even higher to the point Myaz could see his two viscous eyes piercing into her body.
"First lesson," His cold voice prickled Myaz's pores, "NEVER ST–"
Before he could complete his words, a thin, small but sharp, scarlet blade poked into his neck from behind and effortlessly pierced out of his throat.
It was fast and effortless, such that he didn't even feel any pain.
All he felt was a sudden inability to speak.
As his eyes looked down, he saw a blade piercing out of his throat, and stopping an inch away from grazing Myaz's strained neck.
Myaz's neck was pulled back. She had seen it, seen the blade slowly puncture through and make way toward her. Like the helping hand of a devil, aiding her only to kill her personally.
Had she been stupefied by its abruptness, she would've been injured too.
And... a injury from this blade?
"The Forbidden Rapier, The Solace! One wound from it and... it befalls a curse so bad upon the wounded that he pleads his death to come sooner." She wailed, her legs unknowingly pushing her away.
A blood red glowing tattoo stretched from around the blade and spread all over the Venator's body.
Then the tattoo swelled, before it started to fester his body. A maggot popped out of his festering skin, then another, and another. Till all his body got consumed alive by bugs in a matter of seconds.
At the same instant, Byan heard a strange voice.
[You have dispatched a very strong adversary. You have levelled up.]
[Requirements met for evolution.]