Max was disciplined since childhood, raised by a soldier father. Later, he joined the army, expecting to spend the rest of his life serving the king.
That was until the neighboring kingdom decided to wage war over a ridiculous marriage proposal or something similar.
Chaos engulfed the entire kingdom, and soldiers died in droves as a few magicians interfered with the war among mortals.
Max's family was among the casualties, killed in the clash between the Magi, which caused him to hate them and lose faith in the kingdom he defended.
But just as he deserted, a few soldiers caught up with him and tried to force him back.
Max struggled to fight and eventually managed to kill his pursuers, but unfortunately, he was branded a criminal as a result.
Hunted, he was forced to flee the kingdom and arrived at the pirate island two weeks ago after joining a crew that accepted him.
His intention was to lay low for a while before leaving the scum behind.
However, his plan was ruined by the monster.
Max clenched his bleeding arm and gazed at the chaos from his hiding spot.
The entire island was in ruins, flames consuming the buildings and pirate corpses scattered everywhere, painting the ground red.
A few pirates shrieked in fear and ran away before getting hit by a rain of black spears.
Max fearfully directed his eyes toward the devil with bat wings in the sky. It was him who had reduced the island to ruins, killing thousands of people in cold blood.
"Who provoked this monster?" Max cursed whoever was responsible and himself for delaying his departure.
Fortunately, the monster didn't seem completely heartless. Maybe he'd spare him if he explained that he wasn't a pirate.
Max glanced at the few black domes scattered around the island. He remembered that a few captured women and children were protected inside before the massacre started.
"I just need to clarify my identity... I'm not a pirate. There's no reason to be scared."
Just as he was chanting a mantra, a black spear pierced his shoulder and pinned him to the ground.
"Agh!" Max yelped as pain assaulted his senses. Before he could remove the spear, something landed beside him.
"You're the last one!" Those words sent shivers down Max's spine, and he quickly pleaded.
"Please, sir. I'm not a pirate... I was a soldier... I mean, I'm a soldier who escaped from war and just arrived on this island. Please, sir... I'm telling the truth. I was planning to leave soon. I swear that I never did any pirate thing in my life."
Max fumbled and spoke whatever words came to mind. He didn't have the luxury to think too deeply; he'd die if he delayed any longer.
"That might be true..."
Max waited for the devil's verdict with a pounding heart and paralyzing fear.
"...But I'm not interested in investigating. If you hate me, you can only blame your bad luck and weakness."
A shadowy spear materialized in the devil's hands. Max screamed and tried to retreat, but all his efforts were futile. The spear stabbed his heart, killing him on the spot.
His final thoughts weren't cursing the devil or blaming his luck but regret. He regretted abandoning his kingdom, thinking about freedom, but in the end, he ended up dying at the grim reaper's hands.
****
Adam watched the man who claimed to be a soldier die and sighed. He wasn't surprised that there might be some innocent or undercover spies among the pirates, but he didn't have the time nor the patience to investigate everyone.
Before starting his assault, he had scouted all the captured victims and conjured shadowy domes to protect them from the spears he rained.
As for the innocent people caught in the crossfire, he could only apologize without feeling much guilt.
"I think I got rid of most of them."
There might be a few lucky pirates hiding in the rubble, but he wasn't interested in looking for these rats.
"It's happening again!"
Adam watched the soul of the dead soldier drifting toward him and merge with his body. This began once he started killing the pirates. Hundreds of souls drifted toward him, frightening him, but he soon linked the weird phenomenal to his second Gift.
Even though he couldn't control it to create skills, it gave him the ability to perceive souls and absorb them. Though, he had yet to notice any immediate effect of the absorbed souls, which made him theories that his soul Gift needs souls to create skills.
He shook his head and put the matter behind. He would have plenty of time to study it in the future.
"Now comes the most troublesome part."
Adam replenished his Mana with essence and canceled the shadowy domes protecting the victims.
A mix of screams and prayers echoed as the curtains were removed, causing him to sigh in annoyance. As much as he wanted to turn and leave, he couldn't bring himself to abandon these people here. Since he had accidentally saved them, he should at least guide them to a safe island.
He went to meet them and explained the situation before ordering them to prepare to leave the island.
Fortunately, he had left a few pirate ships unharmed, and some men he saved were former sailors, capable of steering the ships.
It took him three days to send them to a safe island before leaving amid their reluctant goodbyes and blessings.
Adam didn't bother using a boat this time to travel and instead conjured bat wings and flew to his home island, guided by the compass he created before leaving.
The journey was troublesome, as he kept replenishing his Mana with essence and creating food whenever he got hungry.
The repeated use of his mana and Gift caused his spirit to digest the essence and rise by one point. Something that he found fascinating, and he wondered if he could accelerate his spirit growth if he kept using this method.
However, he quickly dismissed the idea. It wasn't worth wasting all that essence on something he would accomplish in less than a year.
After three days of nonstop flying, he finally saw the shadow of his island.
His heart pounded as painful memories surfaced in his mind. He knew that this place could never be called his home anymore, as it brought him memories he didn't want to remember.
Adam sped and flew straight to his mother's grave, without bothering to hide his tracks.
He landed in front of her grave and noticed a new tombstone that he didn't put.
[Here rests Sarah Winter, loving wife and mother of the Great Magus Adam Winter.]
"Did they think I was dead?" Adam was amused, and he could guess who wrote these cheeky words.
"Mom, I've brought the heads of the bastards who did this to you." Adam sat near the grave and took out the nasty heads of the Faraday twins from the inventory.
"I'm strong now, Mom. Enough to kill Magus. So, you don't have to worry about my safety too much... I'll dedicate my life to finding a way to resurrect you so that we can live together again. I promise!"
Adam paused and shifted his attention to the nearby grave. "Oh, you too, Dad. I'll try to revive you... probably?!"
"Adam!!"
Adam turned to see Mark and some of his classmates looking at him in surprise and wonder.
"How are you alive?!"