A black cat sat atop a street lamp, its golden eyes fixed intently on an old building. Its tail, seemingly ablaze with black fire, swayed back and forth as if enjoying the sight.
Inside the old building, a group of people gathered, facing each other and holding a strangely patterned stone. These people wore black robes and faceless masks.
Moments later, they stepped back and placed the patterned stones on the floor, forming a circle.
A small laugh echoed from one of them, "Hehe, Praise eternity!"
...
Meanwhile, Ralph Hume sat by the window, watching the bustling streets of Aerdel. His daughter, Eloise, played quietly with her toys on the floor, her little giggles filling the room with warmth. It had been a year since Margaret's passing, and Ralph still felt the weight of her absence like a stone in his chest.
As he looked at Eloise, a wave of guilt washed over him.
The events of the past few years had become a blur. The illness that took his daughter Sarah from him, the explosion that claimed Margaret's life, and now, the responsibility of raising Eloise alone. It was enough to make anyone question their existence.
Suddenly, a knock on the door interrupted his thoughts. Gareth Linsite stood in the doorway, his golden hair gleaming in the late afternoon sun. His mature face, lined with wisdom, made him look elegant.
"Ralph," Gareth said seriously, "it's time."
Ralph nodded, his jaw clenched, and he turned to smile gently at his daughter. Eloise smiled back, lifting one of her toys as if inviting Ralph to join her.
Ralph felt a warmth in his heart, as if the madness in his mind had been swept away by a purifying light. He walked over to his daughter and said, "Alright, El, it's time for bed." He smiled, picking up Eloise.
Eloise had the same fine brown hair as Margaret, and she also had Ralph's blue eyes.
Ralph glanced at Gareth, who was still standing in the doorway, giving him a signal to wait.
Gareth, not bothered, looked at the father and daughter with a gentle and slightly concerned expression. A year ago, Gareth had found a man on the verge of burning down a church. At that time, Gareth had seen tension, anger, regret, and pain in the man's eyes, as if he was trying to curse or challenge a god. But now, the man had a calmer, more loving look, though there was still sadness in his eyes. That man was Ralph Hume.
"I'll wait," Gareth said, removing his top hat.
Ralph nodded and took Eloise to her bedroom.
A few minutes later, Ralph returned, dressed in a long brown coat and a matching half-top hat.
He hesitated slightly as he stepped out.
Gareth nodded understandingly, "Don't worry about Eloise. This house is hidden from the eyes of the wicked. No one will harm her."
"Even my fate?" Ralph muttered bitterly, laughing at himself as he said it.
Gareth was taken aback and didn't respond.
After that, Ralph took a deep breath. "Alright, I'm ready."
"Good." Gareth put his hat back on.
He walked to the sofa, reached into the air, and pulled out something—a small suitcase that he had "hidden" there. He placed it on the table and took out three glass bottles from it.
Gareth lined up the glass bottles. The one on the left contained a thick red liquid, the next held a dark green liquid, and the last one was filled with a pink liquid.
Ralph sat in the chair in front of him, looking at the three glass bottles on the table, waiting for Gareth to explain.
Gareth took a short breath and then grabbed the bottle with the dark red liquid. "I'll explain it once more, in case you forgot." He continued, "There are currently eight main paths of mystical power: Sorcerer, Knight, Assassin, Alchemist, Sealer, Imaginer, Mentalist, and Sinner."
He slid the glass bottle containing the thick red liquid and said, "This mystical virus will grant you the Decapitator's power, which belongs to the Assassin path. Its domain is crime... I wouldn't recommend it, but it's your choice."
He then slid the glass bottle containing the dark green liquid and explained, "This mystical virus will grant you the Clown's power, which belongs to the Imaginer path. Its specialty is deception. I think, among the three, this is the most reasonable choice."
He moved on to the last bottle, "This mystical power belongs to the Chef of the Alchemist path. It specializes in processing food—not ordinary food, but something mystical."
"Besides the Clown, the other two have side effects that reduce your humanity if you misunderstand the concept of your power. Meanwhile, the Clown's side effect is more acceptable—it just makes you easily laughed at, at least making you laughable."
Actually, there was nothing more to consider.
Since Margaret's death a year ago, Ralph had been overwhelmed by nearly uncontrollable despair. How could he not be, when his life seemed like a show, and everything he built ultimately crumbled? He deeply hated the gods and his fate.
Not without reason, but since he was born, everything that gave him warmth was destroyed. His very birth was a curse, never seeing or knowing his parents. He lived in an orphanage, trying to gain the love he had never felt before. But just as he began to receive love from those around him, fate took it all away.
The explosion that still echoed in his dreams, the explosion that destroyed the orphanage and killed everyone in it. It was a miracle Ralph survived, or perhaps it was proof that the gods weren't done watching his suffering—his mind always returned to this thought.
He forced himself to build a life from scratch, living independently. He found a good job and gradually began to sustain himself without having to live in a small rental. But when everything seemed to be going smoothly, fate played with him again—the hat factory where he had worked for the last six years went bankrupt. He had to find another way to earn a living.
Of course, it wasn't as difficult as starting from scratch. With his qualifications and skills in his field, Ralph found a job that allowed him to survive, though not in as high a position as before. At this point, he met a girl two years younger than him, the daughter of an up-and-coming merchant. Gradually, their relationship grew, eventually becoming husband and wife. Margaret was the ideal wife for him, allowing Ralph to forget all the events that had once tried to bring him down.
At twenty-five, Ralph became the father of twin daughters. This was the pinnacle of happiness, the relief in his heart swelling at that time. There were no more problems or games of fate—he finally felt he could live peacefully, building a harmonious family... or so he thought.
Two months after the birth of his twin daughters, Eloise and Sarah Hume, as if unsatisfied, fate played with him again. Sarah Hume, one of his twin daughters, died from a rare disease.
Doubt began to seed in his heart, disbelief, and pessimism attacked him daily. Thinking about what else fate would take from him next. This caused the previously harmonious family to change. A distance began to form, pushing the family to the brink of collapse.
Arguments ensued continuously, not because Ralph no longer loved his family, but quite the opposite. His love for his wife and daughter made him nearly lose his sanity, thinking about how fate would play with him.
It was answered six years later, when a fire engulfed their modest home, which had not yet fully returned to normal, still in the midst of arguments, still on the brink of collapse.
This was the moment when all his hatred, anger, and desire for revenge against the gods erupted.
Margaret, his wife, became a victim of the flames, burning her until her once beautiful face was unrecognizable. Though knowing that his daughter, Eloise, survived the incident didn't calm him. Anger consumed his mind.
If Gareth hadn't appeared that night, stopping his foolish actions, and telling him some truths about the world, the Church of the All-seeing Eye in downtown Aelder might now be ashes, and the term "Heretic" would always follow his name. Ralph would become a symbol of blasphemy and receive a punishment more painful than death.
Therefore, knowing his consciousness was still fully intact, he wanted to be as good a father as possible, to make up for his past mistakes. The unresolved arguments became his greatest regret now.
"I will choose Clown," Ralph said firmly.
Gareth smiled in relief, "A wise decision." He said, then put the other two bottles except for the green one back into the small black suitcase. Then, he touched the suitcase, and it instantly "disappeared."
After that, Gareth pushed the thumb-sized glass bottle towards Ralph, saying, "The process may be difficult and painful, but if you can endure it, the power will be yours." He reminded again.
Ralph nodded, understanding the risk of his actions.