"Get out! You freeloader! Step into this house again, and I'll break your legs!"

"This is my grandpa's house, not yours. You have no right to kick me out!" the boy stubbornly retorted.

"Your dead grandpa's been gone for years. If we hadn't taken you in, you'd have died out there. This house is ours now."

A middle-aged woman in her forties, holding a hoe in one hand and resting the other on her wide hip, spat her words with venom. The cheap powder on her face flaked off with her vigorous shaking, like snow falling.

"You little bastard, you're not welcome here. Don't you love staying in that broken temple? Go! Shoo! crawl back there!"

Beside the woman stood a similarly plump boy, his face full of smugness as he pointed at Lucas, who was standing at the entrance of the courtyard. His beady eyes almost disappeared into his chubby face.

At the entrance, a boy about eighteen or nineteen was curled up on the ground. His tattered clothes were covered in crooked patches, his face pale, and his body thin and frail.

He had wounds on his shoulders and calves, with blood trickling down. Yet, despite his injuries, he showed no fear. He stood up, anger burning in his eyes.

"Michael, give me back my stuff." Lucas said gritting his teeth.

Though Lucas was thin, his eyes were clear and bright, like the stars in a cold winter sky.

Michael sneered, his beady eyes narrowing even further.

He waved a glass jar filled with paper cranes, mockingly

"You really think you're something, don't you? Why would someone like Lucy, with her well-off family, ever look at you? You're just a toad dreaming of eating swan meat."

"Give it back to me!" Lucas repeated mechanically.

"Fine, I'll give it back! Catch!" Michael laughed loudly and hurled the glass jar toward Lucas.

"Crash!" the jar shattered on impact, and the colorful paper cranes inside scattered all over the ground.

"Wow, you're really something. Couldn't even catch a lousy jar. How does it feel to have the gift from your loved one destroyed?" Michael taunted.

Lucas's face twitched, but he didn't respond. Instead, he silently crouched down and began picking up the paper cranes.

His movements were gentle, smoothing out the dirt-stained cranes with care.

Watching Lucas, Michael's smile widened, and he spat on the ground.

"Useless piece of trash."

"You filthy brat!" Mama Michael cursed harshly.

Once Lucas had collected all the cranes Lucy had given him, he stood up shakily. His eyes, fierce like a beast's, locked onto the mother and son. He spoke slowly and deliberately,

"Michael, you and your mother should remember this, and also mark this day for I will fulfill my promise. I will get this house back! and take revenge on both of you!" Lucas said angrily and with that, he limped away from the yard, his injured leg leaving a trail of blood.

Seeing this, Michael and his mother high-fived each other, laughing.

"Son, the house is finally ours."

"That brat, it'd be better if he just died in a ditch" her son replied. Michael, though young, had a cruel glint in his eyes, his face full of vengeful satisfaction.

Woof woof!

Lucas had only walked a few steps in a daze when suddenly he heard a call from behind him. He turned around to see a shadow darting towards him like the wind. The shadow circled his legs and affectionately nudged him.

"Rufus!"

A warm smile appeared on Lucas face as he crouched down to stroke Rufus's sleek fur. Rufus was his closest companion, always getting a bite to eat even when Lucas was hungry.

"Woof, woof..."

Shadow licked Lucas's palm, comforting him like a human would. Thinking about the mother and son who had wronged him, Lucas sighed.

"Even animals have a conscience, but some people don't deserve to be called human at all! Come on boy, that old temple may be small, but it's still a place to stay."

Together, Lucas and Rufus way to the dilapidated temple on the hill, east end of the town.

According to the elders, this temple was once the abode of the enlightened god, Ramas. It had been a thriving place of worship, but now it lay in ruins, with only the gilded letters of " Temple of Ramas" still visible.

Whenever Lucas faced mistreatment or beatings from that wicked woman and her son, he would come here to find solace. It was his secret place to heal.

Lucas carefully placed a paper crane into a broken wooden jar and then struggled to light a homemade oil lamp with a match.

In the dim light, a nearly destroyed statue of Ramas stood tall, with only the black and white trident symbol in its hands retaining its color.

This was the only thing left from the old days. Rumor had it that a thief tried every method, even using a steel saw, but couldn't damage the trident symbol. The next day, he was found dead in the wild.

This incident caused a stir in the town, with some elders claiming it was the spirit of Ramas delivering divine punishment to those who showed great disrespect.

This belief became so widespread that the Temple of Ramas turned into a taboo place, feared and avoided by everyone.

Lucas knelt before the statue of the revered sage, his hands clasped tightly together, his voice trembling with pain as he spoke

"Oh wise one, the books always say that good and evil will be repaid in time. But why do Michael and his mother, those wicked people, still roam free while my life remains so miserable?"

"Ever since my grandfather passed away, I've been alone and adrift. Michael's family, under the disguise of taking care of me, shamelessly took over my grandfather's old house. They speak to me with harsh words and resort to violence at the slightest disagreement."

"I've had enough of them over the years. There's no place for me in this town anymore; everyone calls me a bastard!"

"Is this what they mean by good and evil being repaid?"

"If there's no justice or karma, why have I been praying to you day after day?"

Lucas voice grew more agitated, and finally, he stood up abruptly, pointing at the statue, shouting

"I refuse to accept this! I won't stand for it!"

Crack!

Suddenly, a thunderclap echoed through the air. The once clear night sky over Greenwood was now shrouded in dark clouds, lightning snaking through them like restless serpents.

Boom...

A bolt of lightning tore through the sky, descending like a mighty dragon, striking the statue through the broken roof of the temple.

In that moment, Lucas felt a strange sensation, as if the statue of the god had opened its eyes and was staring straight at him.

Crack...

Crack...

More lightning bolts rained down, channeling their immense power onto the statue, which began to topple forward.

Lucas couldn't move in time and was struck hard by the falling statue.

Bang...

The trident in Ramas hand smashed against Lucas's forehead, causing blood to gush out. The blood was quickly absorbed by the trident.

A deep hum resonated as the statue emitted a dazzling golden light, like a rising sun that was impossible to look at directly.

Nearby, Rufus, the dog, barked frantically in fear at the sight happening in front of it.

Lucas collapsed, the trident imprinted on his forehead before vanishing. A barely visible electric current danced over his body, and his previously injured wounds began to heal miraculously.

At that moment, Lucas's body became almost transparent. The flesh and blood that once filled him had been incinerated by the powerful lightning, replaced by golden blood and bones as strong as steel.

That night, strange phenomena descended upon Greenwood town.

That night, Lucas met his end!

Yet, that night, Lucas was reborn, stepping forward with the power of Ramas.