1 Chapter 1

"Where…am I?" A man asked as he looked around him.

He was laying down on the ground with his eyes facing the ceiling. He could hardly feel any discomfort in his body, but he felt as if his mind was still not functioning properly. He also couldn't move his body as he wanted.

'I can hardly do anything in this state. I need to calm down and think properly.' He thought. Even though he was in a not-so-favorable situation considering the lack of information about his surroundings, his eyes didn't waver and he didn't panic. He just calmly gazed at the top with an emotionless look.

This groggy state held on for an unknown amount of time as the man waited patiently for this sleep paralysis to disappear.

Eventually, his limbs and muscles started working again and he was finally able to move.

When he stood up, he was finally able to have a proper look at his surroundings. It was a white place, with no walls, no ceilings, and no trace of any human signs for that matter. It was as if he was floating in the nothingness.

"Did I die?" He muttered under his breath. The atmosphere that this place had was 'ethereal' for the lack of a better description.

Even with his horrible past, he felt as if he was pure in this place and he felt his whole being as clean as it had ever been. Such a feeling of purity made the possibility that this was heaven not so farfetched.

'In my case, it should be hell, though.' He thought with a cold gaze.

[You have indeed died, my child. And no, this is not heaven or hell.]

Suddenly, a gentle and sweet voice reached his ears. The feminine voice was calm and carried a sense of superiority that made the man feel as if he was hearing the voice of a Goddess.

[I am indeed a goddess, my child.] The voice answered in the same tone.

'And she can hear my thoughts, great.' The man didn't know whether he should cry or smile at such a complicated situation. No one would like the fact that someone could hear their thoughts.

"Could you at least show yourself, Goddess?" He said in a calm tone. Even hearing the voice of the goddess didn't make any fluctuations in his emotions. He was as calm as ever.

[I do not need to show myself.] The goddess answered with slight anger in her voice.

'You're a cocky one, aren't you?' He thought with an invisible smirk.

"Then, I have no reason to talk to you either. Goodbye." He answered with disdain.

The man then started walking in a random direction. He was not someone to be looked down upon, not even by gods.

[Wait.] The goddess called for him but he feigned ignorance as he inspected the place.

"I always hear about such places but I was always curious about whether it's an endless space or not. Also, what is this annoying buzzing in my ear?" He muttered with a deep look in his black irises.

[I said wait.] The goddess spoke again but this time with clear irritation. It seemed that the man was able to play on her nerves with his acting.

But, even with that, he kept looking around as he walked away. Her voice only fueled his desire to ignore her until she accepted his request.

After some silence, the goddess could only sigh in defeat. She tried to impose her authority and divinity on the man but her plan backlashed and now she had to follow his desire.

[Sigh, fine. I will show myself.]

As if her words were a trigger, the man halted his steps and turned around with a blank face. But, there was a small smile in the corner of his mouth that busted his facade. 'Rule number 1 when meeting a goddess: impose your presence.' He noted in his head.

"I can hear you properly now." He said. Then, a shiny light attacked his eyes that made him squint. The light was pure white and it carried a heavy aura that made him feel a tightness in his lungs.

From above, a silhouette of a woman appeared out of nowhere. He couldn't see her face properly from this far, but he was sure that she would be beautiful. Extremely beautiful.

The woman's body started descending slowly. All of her being oozed with holiness.

"Could you accelerate your magnificent descent? I'm starting to feel bored." The man spoke as he yawned loudly.

With just a few words, the showy scene the goddess created was totally destroyed. In all of her life from before time even existed, this was the first time she felt embarrassed. If she didn't need him, she would've probably erased him from existence the next moment.

[You're truly one of a kind, young man. But I will pay no heed to your words.] She coughed loudly as she immediately teleported from the sky and landed on the ground elegantly.

"Nice." He clapped his hands.

The woman looked to be in her 20s, with long and shiny golden hair that reached her waist, and a pair of deep blue eyes that could make anyone captivated with just a glance. A body that was sculpted out of perfection with excellent proportions that could make anyone drool in desire. She wore a white robe that stuck to her sinful body and enclosed her amazing curves. She was by far the most beautiful woman the man has ever seen.

"So, could you explain what is going on?" He asked seriously. He liked teasing this goddess but there were some important things he needed to do other than appreciating her beauty.

[As I said, you have died in your world and this place is a space I created to meet you personally.] The goddess answered as she sat down on a throne. The man didn't even see how she made it appear out of nowhere.

"I am going to assume from your words that this is a very unique case?"

[You are smart enough to catch on quickly, very good. Yes, in normal cases, your soul would've been purified and sent in the cycle of reincarnation. But, your case is quite special.]

"How so?" He asked.

[It's complicated to explain but simply, your soul was too strong to be sent in the cycle of reincarnation.]

[If I left your soul to continue the normal procedures for your reincarnation you would've suffered a hellish pain as your soul got shredded to pieces.]

The man nodded silently as he fell into deep thought. He didn't fully understand what she said since souls are a mysterious thing that humans could never comprehend and he was no exception.

"So, what is going to happen to me? You're not going to let me disappear, are you?" He spoke after some time.

He was already aware that this goddess had something in mind for him since she went out of her way to meet him.

[You have two choices.] She said as she made a 'V' sign with her hand. Then she continued.

[I could send you to a world of my choice and you would retain your memories. Or, I could manually continue the process of your reincarnation and erase your memories completely with no pain.]

The two individuals gazed silently at each other. Their cold eyes didn't falter under the pressure that exuded from their whole being.

"That first choice…it's not something you gave me out of goodwill, right?" He spoke with a grave tone. His wariness of the goddess grew.

Throughout his life, he was a distrustful person who didn't trust anyone easily. It wasn't his choice since the environment he grew up in and the line of work he followed needed him to be cunning and decisive.

The woman saw his reaction and an amused smile appeared on her stoic face. She liked his intelligence since it made their conversation even more interesting for her.

[Fufufu, you are right on the spot. Yes, I want one thing from you….I want you to entertain me.]

[I am fed up with the boring and repetitive things I see and the fact that I live for a very long time made it even more unbearable for me. That's why I want to see something interesting. I want to enjoy my time and you are the best candidate to fulfill my desire.]

'She's going to use me for her entertainment, huh.' He thought as he watched the seductive goddess smile excitedly.

"And what's in it for me to gain? Retaining my memories is simply not enough." The man responded with a cold voice.

[You are as greedy as I saw. Fine, I was already aware of this and so I have what you desire most.]

She clenched her fist as she smiled even more widely.

[Power! I could give you the means to gain a power you could never dream of. You could have limitless potential that ignores your human body. Anything you desire is only one grasp away from you and all you need to do is…]

She then extended her arm and continued.

[To grab it.]

Hearing her words, the man would be lying if he didn't feel tempted to accept but he also felt like there was something the goddess was hiding and he wasn't able to see what it was exactly.

[You don't have to be wary of me. If I wanted to harm you, I have millions of ways to do that and you could do nothing about it.]

'She does have a point. It's better than losing all of my memories anyway.' He sighed bitterly and looked at the goddess again.

"One question before I choose. What kind of entertainment do you want?"

The goddess bent over and rested her head on her hand then spoke seductively.

[Don't worry. Just do whatever you want. It will be interesting for sure.]

"Is that so? You have quite the weird tastes. But, I will accept your offer." The man chuckled as he nodded lightly.

[Very good. I shall now grant you your perks. I could explain them in detail, but I think discovering them on your own should make it more interesting. I have only one thing to tell you, as long as you have the ambition and tenacity, there is nothing that could stop your growth.]

Then, with a peculiar movement of her hand, a pillar of light appeared on top of the man and covered him completely.

"This is a weird feeling." He muttered as he looked at his shiny body.

[I forgot to introduce myself. I am Livia, the goddess of reincarnation. I expect a lot from you, 'King of Assassins'.]

Her words plastered a wide grin on the man's face as he chuckled loudly.

"HAHAHAHAHA! Very well, Livia. I shall grant you your desire. You better not regret it later on."

These were his last words before the light totally engulfed him and he disappeared completely.

[I can't wait to see his face when he discovers my small surprise that I gave him. fufufufu, this will be very interesting indeed.] A chuckle escaped Livia's beautiful lips as she gazed at the spot where the man previously stood.

Her eyes carried a deep hint of euphoria and ecstasy that contrasted her stoic demeanor. This look was seductive but also terrifying to look at as it showed a craziness that no one will want to deal with.

Then, as if she was nothing but an illusion, her body started disappearing slowly like mist leaving behind no trace of this fateful encounter.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A//N: (My newest book after a long hiatus from writing. I hope you could support me if you like the start. Have a good day!)