Many people consider love or hope to be the strongest emotion.
Love brings a sense of protectiveness normally kept hidden, and with it the strength to shield the source of their affection against harm. It brings people together and helps them get through the hardest and coldest times, despite the challenges that threaten to snuff out the fire in their hearts.
Hope is what drives people to keep trying, believing that even though there are seemingly impossible trails ahead, they can conquer them. It gives people the motivation to never give up and always strive toward their dreams.
Other emotions, however, can be just as strong, and even more deadly.
At least, this is what Magnus Vermillion believes.
In his eyes, envy, the fourth of the seven deadly sins, is the most deplorable and destructive emotion.
After all, jealousy got him betrayed and murdered. After that, why wouldn't he think that?
****
In a vast void, a lone light pierced through the ever-consuming darkness. The small luminescent flame burned with a blinding golden light, and as time passed, it only grew brighter.
Eventually, after an unknown amount of time, the blaze's shine stopped increasing. Instead, the strange light seemed to pulse, sending out aureate ripples in the dark prison it was trapped within.
A moment later, strings started appearing out of the light, following the golden waves. The threads traveled an inconceivable distance all around the glowing figure before suddenly stopping.
From the center of the brilliant twine, the flame slowly began rising above its creation, filling the area it encompassed a moment before.
When it reached the peak of its ascent, the figure halted and began expanding.
From the golden light, a form swiftly started growing. The light seemed to elongate, forming into a torso. From it, five limbs emerged. On the crown of the new figure, a slender neck sprouted. Once it reached the appropriate height, it branched out and created an oval, molding into a head. Soon enough, features began to become discernible.
From just below the base of the neck, two shoulders came into existence. After fully forming, the joints elongated, becoming arms, and eventually hands. At the end of each, the nails slowly became long claws, sharp enough to cut through anything.
At the bottom of the light's new form, a pair of legs shaped themselves, the toes sporting similar talons as its hands.
In mere seconds, the transformation of the golden flame was completed, bringing forth a humanoid shape clad in a veil of ethereal light.
The being, still floating above the valley of strings it manifested, slowly lowered itself. As its feet touched the ground, the shining shroud around it dispersed, revealing the creature's features.
It widely resembled a human male, except for a few key differences. Curving up and lining his head were golden-colored horns, with a single line of white twisting around them.
The man had unusual long yellow hair, although the tips were the same white as his horns, tied back with a thin string. If one were to peer into his eyes, they would see an ever-changing swirl of rainbow staring back.
His skin looked to be made from a grey marble-like substance that glowed with faint golden wisps. Seemingly carved into the stone-like cutis of the being's arms and forehead were intricate white runes.
He wore red and black garments that deeply resembled a kimono made from masterfully-woven silk, and medieval trousers of the same material.
His build was thin and lean, but looked to be well-suited for combat.
After the man touched down on the golden threads he weaved together to make a floor, he began walking with calm, measured steps.
Perhaps hours later, he finally reached his destination.
In front of him stood a magnificent palace crafted from the same grey material of his skin. It had four large spires, one in each of the castle's corners, that reached far into the black void.
The front of the building had dozens of windows littering its walls, hinting at the multitude of floors. The front gate was large enough for an elephant to fit through it, with engravings on it making the symbol of a web of strings surrounding a needle.
Looking up at the castle before him, he sighed heavily and said, "I'm really going to miss this place…but leaving you behind is worth it. As long as I escape from this infernal prison and fulfill the will of Destiny."
A moment later, the being raised his hand, and snapped his fingers.
The palace shuddered, and with a second of hesitation, began to change before his eyes. Its once grey surface slowly turned gold, and with it, started unraveling. The mighty castle that had stood strong, shifted and fell apart, its sturdy walls turning into radiant threads.
Along with it, the plain that the man previously laid out started to return to him like a flood of melted gold. Once all of his strings came back to him, he did not fall into the abyss beneath his feet. Instead, he just floated there, as if he were still standing on his weave.
The being craned his head, looking up into the black sky above him. Far into the distance, a wide crack was resting, as if waiting to be exploited. Through it, he could see an array of colors.
Smiling slightly, he began to float toward the fissure, approaching it at a rapid pace. Not long after, he reached it.
Raising his hand once more, golden strings manifested in front of him before changing. The threads began to morph and shape themselves into a giant silver lance, far bigger than even the man's palace.
He slightly turned his wrist, causing the gargantuan lance hovering in the air above him to spin. He waited for a moment, allowing his weapon to gather an immense amount of energy.
Grinning to himself, the being brought his hand down, and the lance lurched forwards with unimaginable speed and power.
It hit the crack in space, and stopped. The man's body tensed in both anticipation and struggle, until the lance broke free and soared into the distant lands.
His shoulders slumped and he sighed in relief. The man knew that he probably didn't need to, but he imbued the attack with almost all of his mana, praying that the weakened prison would break.
Luckily for him, it did.
Suffering from mana exhaustion, the being slowly rose higher into the air, to the gap the barrier, muttering softly.
"Step one, done. Now for the hard part…time to go steal myself a soul. Don't worry, Destiny, you'll get your prey soon."
****
"That is all, class. I hope you have a great summer break. See you all next year for another 180 days of hell!" Happily reminding his students that after the long break lies more torture, Magnus's college professor left his classroom for the last time in a while.
'Dammit, why did I ever agree to go to college? I'm already successful in music, what's the point of learning parabolas and the components of blood?' Sulking, Magnus Vermillion rested his head against his desk, once again contemplating why he needs to learn a bunch of useless knowledge he will never use.
Sighing, he got up and slung his backpack over his shoulder, grunting slightly from the sudden weight.
"Yo, Mags! Wanna come to the party tonight? There are gonna be tons of chicks there, you might meet someone!" Running over to Magnus, his best friend Ron slung his arm over his friend's shoulder and grinned.
Looking down at Ron, Magnus pushed him off and took a step back, causing him to frown.
"Sorry, Ron, but I'll pass. You should know by now that that's not really my thing."
Sighing in disappointment, Ron said with a frown, "Boring, you gotta live a little, you know? Say, how about we go over to Imori's house on Sunday? You can't stay cooped up alone practicing all day every day."
Magnus looked over his shoulder toward the person Ron mentioned. "Haaah…fine. You won't leave me be unless I accept anyway. At Least it's a friend, and not a stranger this time."
His friend looked at him confused for a second before a look of realization appeared on his face. "Ah! Sorry about that, I sorta forgot you didn't know him and ran off before you could tell me."
Of course, he was talking about the last time he had invited Magnus to a hang-out. Ron had accidentally made him come to one of his friends from middle school's house to play some video games, not realizing that Magnus had not actually gone to the same school as them.
"No worries, just try to remember from now on, please. You know I'm not a fan of strangers. Anyway, I gotta head home now. Can't let Whiskers starve, now can I?"
Seeing that Magnus had begun to walk away, Ron said, "Aren't your parents home? Can't they feed him?"
"Nah, they're outta town right now. Trying to find some more stages for me to perform at, I think." Stopping at the doorway, he glanced back at his friend and replied.
Ron, who was walking toward him to leave as well, froze for a moment at the mention of Magnus's career. The strange action did not go unseen by Magnus's eyes, however. Then, Ron smiled and said with a teasing tone, "It's funny that you dislike talking to strangers, and yet you're perfectly willing to sing and play on stage in front of thousands."
In response, he just shrugged his shoulders and continued walking, with Ron keeping pace with him. "Yeah, it's pretty weird. I don't even know the answer myself. Could just be because I like music."
Ron just laughed, his voice echoing across the halls filled with students. Some turned to look at the duo, but most just continued their conversations.
"So, why exactly are you following me?" Looking at his friend curiously, Magnus asked him.
"I have nothing to do until tonight, and everyone else is busy with their own thing. Figured I'd just hang with you, my gloomy brother from another mother!"
All Magnus did was sigh and continue walking. Eventually, they exited the campus while making idle chit-chat. The two decided to stop at a convenience store to buy a couple of drinks, as well as some cat food for Whiskers.
After about 20 minutes of walking and talking about life, Magnus and Ron reached the former's house.
It was a commonly-sized home in an urban area, with a small garden out front and a little yard in the back. Despite the Vermillion's fame and wealth, they preferred to live where they grew up–among the people of their city–instead of some mansion on private grounds.
Unlocking the door to his home, Magnus opened it and let Ron inside. After entering himself and shutting the door, he took off his shoes and put them on the floor mat, noticing that his friend already did. Seeing it, a faint smile appeared on his lips.
By now, Ron had been over to his house multiple times. They had known each other for years, after all. Seeing him respect his family's customs–no matter how common they were–made him happy.
The two had met in their sophomore year of high school, when they were both 16. They were both in band, as well as took a guitar course together. It didn't take them long to become friends, mainly because of their shared love of music and Ron's heavy insistence.
In their junior year, the duo were mostly in the same classes. They were both pretty smart, so the only classes they had were AP and honors. Although the electives they took besides music were quite different, they had all of their mandatory classes together.
For his remaining two electives, Magnus had decided to take archery–which his school surprisingly had–and cooking. Ron, on the other hand, took woodworking and agriculture.
These schedules remained until they graduated from high school. Later, Ron had managed to convince Magnus to attend college with him and now they were in their sophomore year once again.
Magnus still regrets agreeing to his friend's request.
Hanging his house key on the wall, he headed deeper into his home and entered the kitchen. The first thing he saw when he entered was Ron spinning happily on one of the swirly chairs by the table.
Shaking his head, he once again reminded himself why they are friends.
"Have you seen Whiskers?"
Slowing down, Ron looked at him and said, "Yeah, he was in here but he pranced into the living room."
Grabbing the cat food from the closet, Magnus poured some into the cat bowl and went to the living room, returning a few moments later.
Leaning back on the wall, he faced Ron and asked, "What now? Wanna play some video games or something?"
Ron, with his eyes twinkling like stars, said overly excited, "Sure, but can we eat first?! Or are you not worried about me starving like you are your cat?"
Magnus just looked at him for a few seconds and looked down, letting out a defeated sigh. "Like always, you won't take no for an answer. So, what do you feel like? I have–"
"Omelets with sausage!"
"...Damn. You could have let me finish my sentence, you know?"
Chuckling, Ron rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Sorry about that, Mags. Anywho…the food?"
Shaking his head, Magnus pushed himself off the wall and washed his hands before he lit the stove, grabbed his pans, and prepared the ingredients. After setting everything up, he got to work.
During the process, Ron wandered off to go watch some television in the living room.
After a while, Magnus brought out two plates filled to the brim. Each held two omelettes filled with cheese stacked on top of each other, with ten sausages resting on the sides. On the top of the chef's egg dish, ketchup was drizzled, adding some extra flavour.
Ron looked over at it, disgusted. "I can't even begin to fathom how your taste buds work. How in the name of Tartarus can ketchup on omelets be good?"
"You can't, nor do you need to. Do not question the chef's ways. Now eat and be quiet."
Not having to be told twice, he started devouring his food.
Magnus had been taught by his mother the art of cooking from a young age, and the classes he took in high school only amplified his skill.
His friend, as well as his parents, loved his cooking. It was still not at the level of his loving parent, but in time he would even surpass her.
Soon after he was served, Ron was already done, shouting, "Thank you for the food! It was as delicious as it always is!"
Not long after, Magnus too finished his meal. Taking a few minutes to wash the plates, as well as the pans he had used while cooking, he sent up his friend to go boot up the gaming consoles.
Once they were both there, they played one of their favorites, Dark Souls Three. Despite it being a single player game, one of Ron's friends had managed to mod it to make it multiplayer.
They gamed for a couple of hours, died a lot, and progressed a fair bit.
"Hey, bro, I'ma be right back. Gonna grab a soda. You want anything?"
Setting down his controller, Ron got up and started walking toward the door. Glancing over to him, Magnus thought for a second before replying. "Could you grab me some water?"
Giving him a thumbs up, Ron said, "Sure."
"Thanks."
Not caring that his partner just left, he continued playing. A few moments later, however, Ron came back.
Magnus briefly looked at him before turning back to the game, focusing on the fight he was in. A second later, he realized what he saw.
His friend had not come into the bedroom holding drinks, but instead something much more deadly.
Whipping his head back, Magnus jumped up, dropping the controller in the process.
Unfortunately for him, he was half a second too late. The blade that his supposed friend was holding entered his stomach, his constant smile gone from his face.
His best friend had betrayed him.
(A/N: First chapter done! Please tell me how it is and feel free to leave criticism.)