RE:START
The sky bled.
Not metaphorically—Ren gazed upward and watched dark crimson streaks crawl across the horizon like veins ruptured through heaven's skin. Smoke from the village behind him curled upward, whispering curses into the clouds. Ash rained from the heavens. It looked like snow, but each flake held the memory of a scream.
Ren stood at the edge of a blackened field littered with scorched corpses, their skin burned so deep they no longer resembled anything human. His blade—no, the iron shard he had sharpened into a weapon—dripped blood from both ends. His clothes, torn and charred, clung to him like funeral rags.
"This is what it takes," he muttered. "This is what strength costs."
Behind him, Lyra limped forward. Her furred ears flattened against her head, and blood painted her cheek like war paint. "They were children too," she said, voice trembling. "You didn't have to—"
"I had to," Ren cut in. His eyes were hollow. "The skill wouldn't activate until they feared me. Not enough fear, no effect."
Lyra recoiled. Not from the blood. Not from the corpses. From him.
[Skill Acquired: Howl of Dread] — Unlocked through the Divine Learner. The user's presence exudes madness to weak-hearted enemies, paralyzing them briefly and increasing Yatsu output by 10% in combat where user is feared.
---
They buried the remains—at least what they could identify. The villagers, having tried to execute Ren out of fear when his Celestial mark was exposed, had refused to listen. He warned them, begged them to let Lyra go. They tried to burn her alive.
He saved her. But he paid in humanity.
Later that night, the fire crackled in silence. Neither of them spoke. Until Lyra finally broke the quiet.
"Why can't you use magic?" she asked.
Ren took a while before answering. "The summoning corrupted me. I wasn't supposed to come here. I can't even feel mana. But I can feel Yatsu. It's... different. Like a beast inside me waiting to devour something."
Lyra blinked. "Then you'll keep learning skills?"
"If I kill," Ren replied. "If I learn from their pain. Their fear. Their soul. That's the price."
Her eyes didn't leave his. "And how long until there's nothing left of you but the price?"
He had no answer.
---
Chapter: The Sword That Screams
The two reached the edges of Liaster Territory—ruled by Mage Lord Carith, infamous for experimentation on summoned beings. Slaves with strange sigils embedded into their necks worked the fields. Mutated trees grew upside-down, and twisted beasts watched from their perches.
Ren's next target waited here.
A summoned girl—Mika—was rumored to be held in Carith's manor. Her screams echoed through the cursed orchard at night. They said her soul had begun to fracture.
"I'm going to free her," Ren said.
Lyra gripped his sleeve. "And what if she's beyond saving?"
"I won't know until I try."
Under the cover of night, Ren infiltrated the manor. Carith's guards were skilled—many of them mages wielding third-tier elemental spells. But spells bounced off Ren's absurd endurance and unpredictable savagery.
Carith awaited at the top of the tower, cloaked in ceremonial robes. "Another broken thing sent through the Veil. I should've known you'd come eventually."
"You're using her like a lab rat."
"She was dying anyway. This way, her suffering feeds the future."
Ren's blade clashed against chains of pure mana. Carith launched a barrage of flaming spears, lightning curses, and illusions that screamed. But Ren adapted fast—letting his fear surge, drawing on Divine Wrath.
[Divine Wrath — Level 1 Triggered] — Based on user's pride and perceived threat. Amplifies physical strength by 40% and suppresses lower-morale enemies.
Ren struck through three layers of defense, breaking Carith's hand. He grabbed the mage's face and stared into his widening eyes.
"Fear me."
Carith's final scream echoed into the abyss as Ren plunged his weapon through his chest.
[Skill Acquired: Soul Shatter] — Your strikes now have a 5% chance to destabilize enemy spellcasting focus. Increases in likelihood when enemy is afraid.
---
Mika was chained in a runic cage. Her eyes were no longer sane.
"I... I saw them. The ones who brought you here," she whispered.
Ren knelt. "Who?"
"They don't wear masks. They wear your face."
Before he could ask more, her body began to disintegrate—excessive mana conversion had eaten away her soul. She smiled through the ash.
"Don't become a god. Gods are just monsters with prettier names."
Ren tried to hold her hand.
But it crumbled in his grip.
---
Back at the campsite.
Ren sat in silence. Lyra brought food but said nothing. The only thing filling the air was the sound of the wind whispering through the trees.
Then she asked, "Do you regret killing him?"
"No. I regret not killing him sooner."
Lyra's hand brushed his. "I'm still here. That has to mean something."
Ren looked at their intertwined fingers.
"…You're all I have left that makes me human."
From the darkness, a voice responded.
"No, boy. You're already less than that."