'Is this what death feels like?'
"Strange... comfortable even."
"Is this the first thing I've done right?" he rasped, yet his voice was swallowed whole.
The pain he'd felt, the screams of rage and agony that once filled him, and the envying thoughts that plagued his mind.
The weight of it had all vanished.
He couldn't see anything–only feeling himself drifting through blackness.
All he felt was a soft pull, guiding him to what he thought was his final destination.
If he had ever felt his mother's embrace,
perhaps it would feel like this.
Warm, endless, yet cruelly late.
His body, or what remained of it, felt as if it had dissolved into a vast ocean, moving with the flow.
Yet an uneasy sensation lingered, a cold reminder that something was amiss throughout this false peace.
It felt borrowed, and as it continued, his memories sank like stones in water, as if he were becoming one with blackness.
"Do you have any regrets?"
The voice was gentle and unknown to him. It was neither male nor female.
'Regrets?' The question echoed throughout his mind. He could not give an answer. He couldn't remember what regrets he had.
"Who's there?" He tried to speak, but his voice scattered like dust in the vastness around him.
"You carry many... don't you?" The presence stirred again, closer this time. Its tone was soft, making him want to answer.
Vergil couldn't tell what the voice wanted from him. His memories were disappearing slowly.
"Think carefully."
And then–realisation hit him.
A longing buried deep in what he had forgotten.
"I... wanted another chance."
'If I gave you another chance, would you make the most of it?'
The word tasted bittersweet, yet his pulse quickened. He had wasted his previous life.
Struggling to only die miserable, yet his desire to live overtook.
"Yes… Give it to me," he whispered.
The void around him shuddered as it spoke once more. Light and darkness collided, and his senses fractured into chaos.
"Very well. As you wish." The voice grew vast–almost tender.
And everything shattered.
-----------
"Finally awake." A casual voice said.
Vergil squinted and saw a figure standing before him, tall, with an uneasy calmness, that put him on guard.
The man's short white hair stuck out in a way that made his face look almost too perfect.
His skin glowed faintly, and the smile masked on his face felt like a mirror, his gut tightening. He felt the man knew more about him than he knew himself.
"Where am I–no, the better question is, who are you?" Vergil's head throbbed as he spoke.
Each step the man took sent a ripple through the clear white beneath him.
"Weaver," he said with a smile.
The sky stretched endlessly around them. There was no wind, just stillness.
A hoarse, hollow laugh slipped out, before he had even realised. "What a dream this is," Vergil whispered, pressing his forehead to the cold ground.
Thud.
Pain shot through him, reminding him that this was real, and that he was still… here. Alive.
"Are you some kind of god?" Vergil rasped.
"Something along those lines." His grin slanted. "You're quite calm, if I must say so," Weaver stated.
"To your first question, this is the land beyond heaven and earth," he said, waving vaguely upward. "But that's none of your concern just yet."
He stepped forward, arms spreading like a performer on stage, entertaining his guests.
"You wished for another chance and I will give–along with one gift. Choose wisely, for the world you will enter is full of monsters, angels, and demons."
Vergil's knees wobbled as he stood. Was he calm or just too empty to care at this point? It felt like exhaling the last of his humanity, but he had to make a choice.
The idea of another chance still felt like a dream. 'Like I hadn't wasted the first one.' He thought to himself.
'What ability would be most useful to me?' Vergil questioned himself.
Something began to whisper inside his soul as he began thinking.
Predation. The word surfaced into his mind, and he felt it smiling back at him.
Yet doubt creeped in. 'Was this truly the right choice.' Vergil had a feeling that it was an incredible ability. 'I'll trust in my gut.'
Meeting Weaver's eyes once more, he spoke.
"I've decided. Predation."
Once more, he widened his smile in delight.
"Ah, an interesting choice."
"Can you make it grow?" Vergil asked, curious.
"It can," he said, eyes unreadable. "But not without a cost. One day, you'll understand."
He chuckled pleasantly, but it felt off.
He lifted a hand. "When you arrive, speak: Status window."
Light surged, swallowing Vergil's body.
Vergil glanced back, hesitant as to whether this was true, was he really getting a second chance? Yet Weaver only smiled.
Then there was nothing but blinding white.
Weaver's lips moved as the light consumed him. Vergil couldn't hear what he said. Maybe he was never meant to.
Then Weaver turned away, already done with him.
The pull dragged him from darkness, as lightning filled his eyes.
The world was revealed. Crooked houses came into view. The air smelled strange but clean as he took a deep, unsteady breath.
He stared at his hands, feeling the wind. He was alive, and that was all that mattered to him as he glanced at the sky.
"…Status window," Vergil whispered. A panel blinked into existence, cold and impersonal. Each number weighed on him like a reminder that he was still nothing.
Name: Vergil
Spouses-none
Race:Human
Tier: 0
Level: 1
Title: Commoner
Lifespan: 65 years
Race: Human
Equipment: Basic Clothing (+2 Defence)
Active Skill: Authority of Predation (???)
Confidants: None
[Welcome, user. I am the system sent to guide you.]
Vergil blinked in disbelief of the suprise that Weever had given him. 'I never thought I would see the day, I would get a system."
His stats blinked in: Strength 6, Constitution 8, Dexterity 7, Intuition 6, Magic Power 3.
'So that guy really wasn't lying huh. I have a system now.' Vergil laughed inside.
'But it seems the world hasn't changed at all... Measuring people by their worth.'
[Other energy types exist–Yuan Qi, Demonic Energy, Divine Energy. Obtain them yourself.]
The information from the system kept pouring in.
"Slow down," Vergil muttered, trying to keep up with all the information as he rubbed his head.
[You have one active skill. No passives. Confidants unlock effects, skills, and more. False relationships give nothing.]
The system showed that his lifespan was 65 years. 'Could I increase it?'
[Yes. Cultivation extends life via Yuan Qi or rare treasures.]
"Then how do I get those things?" Vergil asked.
[Two ways: diligent cultivation, or consuming Yuan Qi via Predation–the latter is painful. With progression, your lifespan can reach hundreds or even thousands of years.]
Vergil swallowed. He could even live for centuries if he cultivated enough.
[Skills are ranked from F to EX. Your Authority exceeds normal standards. It can evolve under special conditions.]
"And what are these conditions?" he asked.
[Unknown. You will be notified when eligible.]
'There's so much to remember.' Vergil thought to himself.
[Arts define technique and your mastery determines effectiveness.
[Additionally, when you eat another lifeform]
[The absorbed stats depend on the target when using predation.]
"Makes sense… no weaklings," Vergil muttered. He would never feel powerless again.
[To analyse others, say "Analysis."]
[Good luck. May the blessing of Eternia, the most loved world, be with you.]
"The most loved world, huh? I wonder what that really means."