Chapter 155 - Realm Beyond Human

"Earlier today, at around noon," the radio and television played," Star tower was assaulted by hoodlums whose identities have yet to be revealed." The news broadcasted itself across the capital, the attack had made huge headlines; the first-ever large-scale act of violence. The reporter, a young girl who wore glass sat in a studio. "Not many details of the nature of the assault has been made public. However, what is known is that many people were injured. Six guards died and five people were critically wounded. Their identities have been kept hidden; more details can be given by Sarah who was on the field earlier." The camera changed scenery, the now fully-alert Star building came onto the screen.

"As you can see," the girl wore a raincoat and spoke loudly for wind caused interference. "-the emergency services have been called already." It displayed images of bodies being taken inside the vehicles. "The visiting singer from Hidros was caught up in the attack," the camera panned over to where she stood. It was there that the guard approached Staxius, the crew filmed it all. Word by word, the argument was caught and broadcasted to everyone. Despite the wind, the sound was audible, thanks to the young girl who walked closer. "-We uphold one thing, and that is justice – not some glorified thing call law," that line was yelled, the trio walked away.

"As you can see, one of the people who were essential in limiting the damage is infuriated," the scene jumped to interviews with the many victims. People described Staxius as a hero, the one who saved Star Tower - Aceline's bodyguard.

A high-pitched sound later, the television turned off. The time now was night; a few hours had gone by since the incident. The trio all sat inside Aceline's room. Various television shows called for an interview. "Thanks, Staxius," the voice tired, Scott facepalmed. It grew overwhelming, that publicity stunt Staxius pulled made Aceline the talk of the city.

"No need to be sarcastic. The more people who are aware of Aceline's visit, the more spectator we'll have. Isn't your job to make her shine?" a point well made, he won over the tired manager.

"Still, I can't believe what I saw," the images from before continued to be played without end. "With a single snap," she heard the incantation as well,"-all the people were killed. How is that even possible?" the face turned to the one responsible.

"You hail from a place where monsters and supernatural beings exist. You find me killing a few people with a snap that interesting, come on," the tone unimpressed, she could not but give up the inquiry.

'What is happening,' just as when Aceline gave up the pointless question, the vision got blurry. 'Everything is going around in circles,' the right eye began to lit up, it burnt; excruciating pain shot throughout the body. "Please excuse me," teleportation was used, Staxius now sat inside the other room.

"What's wrong with him?" the singer asked, "probably just tired," Scott replied. The news came on television yet again. It distracted them from the fact that teleportation was used.

'Is it the curses?' the arms and legs shook without control, the heart raced, the breathing erratic. It felt as if his mind was going to explode, "IT HURTS," the eyes squinted hard. "Your teeth," Adete flew, she hovered above his face. "-the upper two canines are growing in length," she spoke without restraint.

"W-what do you mean growing in length," the eyes barely opened, the face tensed up from the overflowing pain. "I think that Lord Balthazar's blood has begun to activate," the voice she spoke in felt monotonous. "Aren't you the materialization of said power?" he asked, the speech slow and steady.

"You are right," it became robotic, "-I, Adete from the Nox's curse, am the apparition of the noble vampiric blood. Your body has grown accustomed to us foreigners. The reason for such pain is due to the initiation, the one left uncompleted days ago. It came as a shock when we entered your body, from curses to curses, it was hard to find a place to settle. However, that is now over, we've merged with the Death Element. The guardian, Lord Death, has given permission. Our goal is one of the same, to make the host Staxius Haggard, an individual capable of defeating a low-tier god. A task that is still unachievable at your current level. The God-slayer is growing more powerful each day. The rank assign is Mid-tier god," her mind went into trance. "-day by day, gods and legendary creatures are being absorbed, with each kill, the strength is magnified. Host Staxius, heir to the god of death, you need to grow stronger. Mastery of the Symbol of power will be necessary, tis your only hope. The fate of Hidros is in thy hands; another world awaits – Draebala. A quest that only the strongest can attain. Champion from Lord Death, or Champion from Kronos; who shall become the chosen one. A Rogue hero or Death himself," she stopped, the eyes blank.

"Who is this?" trying to fight the pain, Staxius managed to speak,"-I'm Hermes, a messenger from the Olympian gods, entities that rule over another dominion. Lord Death asked us for a favor, current, he fights with an entity even stronger than the God-slayer. The real threat, the titans, fallen gods who've only half-awaken. I shall quote the exact words: what's up my heir. If Hermes is giving you this message then there's nothing to worry about. Tis quite interesting here, the fallen gods are reawakening. For the most part, all is in check, Zeus and the others have managed to seal them again. There's a task you need to complete: either defeat Scifer, the champion of Kronos, or find another way. Draebala is the real goal, only there that the dormant powers of a god can be unleashed. Gather strength in any way possible, time is on your side. No need to rush, but focus on getting stronger," the quote ended.

"Is there something else?" the words felt soothing, the intolerable pained subsided a little. "Nothing much I'm afraid, I'll leave it all in the hands of Adete," she who hovered fell onto the chest. "Glad to see things haven't changed with Lord Death," at that precise moment, no longer could it be contained. The mind went numb, the body fell unconscious.

"Lord Death," somewhere in another realm, another dimension; another dominion. A few high-ranking gods hovered above an abyss. "-the message has been delivered to your prodigy," Hermes materialized.

"The battle of champions, that shall be quite a treat to watch," Zeus spoke, the hand holding a lightning bolt.

"Indeed, will time overpower death or will it be vice-versa. How cruel must creation be, I, the God of Death must send my heir to fight against my companions Kronos's heir."

"Rogue Hero versus Tactus Interitus," a lady spoke, tis was Gophy, the goddess of Chaos. A high-tier god, one of the great four.

"We should not waste any more time," Zeus ordered to which the fight continued.

Back in Vlaiwia, a few hours went by. News about the attack reached every possible corner. The speech given by Staxius had made the public a little doubtful about their protectors. The Guards had to come up with a plan to restore order. The General had no clue, even the emperor was notified. The scale of those very well-spoken words had many scared beyond belief.

"You there," Paradus pointed at a butler, "-inform Prince Ernis about this quandary. Tell him to sort out this disturbance and regain the faith of the people. I care not about the method; anything is fair." Not wanting to get involved, the responsibility fell into the prince's hands.

*Knock, knock,* the door opened, dinner time had come. Scott and Aceline waited patiently for Staxius. The wait went on for too long, to which both decided to enter the room. "Staxius, are you ok?" the voice crawled from underneath the door and into the bedchambers.

The pain now grew tamer, the consciousness regained. "I'm fine," he answered, the voice sick and tired. "Are you sure, we can order food if needed, over-exhaustion might be the worst thing for us to do," Scott tried to dissuade him.

"I said, I'm fine," the door opened violently, Staxius stood; the posture normal. "Shall we go get dinner?" before an awkward silence set in, Aceline spoke, both nodded.

The same restaurant, the same atmosphere. Dinner went by without hassle. People took more time to admire Aceline, her popularity grew due to the incident.

'What was that all about,' he spaced out, the message delivered got repeated over and over again. 'Grow stronger by any means, the God-Slayer is mid-god-tier rank. I haven't a single clue to how powerful that is.' In an effort to answer some questions, Staxius used telepathy to get a hold of Undrar who slept peacefully.

"Undrar, are you there?"

"What is it?" contact was made. "Can you give me an explanation about how a mid-god-tier stands in our world?" an unconventional question. From laying down, Undrar sat on the bed and thought.

"I'll explain it as simply as I can. You know the A-B-C-D-E ranking system, it goes on that same principle. However, the standards for that particular ranking is different. The reference point is far higher than what this realm has set. For example, SSS-rank, also known as Platinum means E-rank in the realm ruled by Kronos. From there on, you have D-C-B-A-S-SS-SSS. Those ranks aren't to be trifled with, normal humans can barely reach C. After that barrier, one enters into the realm of inhuman. After surpassing A-rank, one can be called a demi-god ranging from S to SSS. If by chance, you manage to break the SSS level and get into the realm of gods. It then starts from low-tier to high-tier. A special ranking is given to the supreme god, the most powerful entity. To give a reference, a low-tier god could kill off a dozen SSS-ranked demi-gods. The difference in power is on an astronomical scale. All that applies to a completely different world which is governed by another set of rules," the explanation ended.

"I see, the god-slayer sure is powerful. I'm Silver-ranked and he's Mid-god tier." Whilst he spoke with Undrar, Scott waved to get a reaction. "I don't know why you would ask such a thing. Therefore, I'll say this; don't try to do anything stupid. The symbol of power is the thing that separates you from other people." The conversation ended.

"Staxius," a warm voice called out from behind. "I apologize," he came back to reality. Scott used a glance to tell him to look backward.

"Sugar and his friend, what a lovely surprise," the duo stood completely silent.

"Here we thought we were being sneaky," he spoke in jest. "Why don't you guys join us," Aceline offered to which they accepted.

"We've seen the news, must have been quite a scare," the male singer spoke. The voice felt sincerely worried. "Not really, I've got faith in my bodyguard," Aceline added with pride and confidence, Staxius could not but smile.

'I was living in a world filled with lies. All that training and work. In comparison, I don't even have the right to say I have the power to protect something. God-slayer, mid-tier god or no. Sooner or later we'll meet, and I promise when that day comes - I'll slay you without skipping a beat,' rather than get discouraged, Staxius had a firm goal to work towards. To become as strong if not stronger than Scifer.

Immortality, vampiric power, the control over death, symbol of power from Lord Death himself. The mastery of the fabled Death Element, the All-seeing eyes, the ability to see auras with eyes closed. Inhuman speed, Daemonum Gladio, excellent swordsmanship. Conduit to an angel, and countless curses. Staxius Haggard, all those skills may well be yours. However, the inability to control anyone of them, the lack of mastery over some of the crucial parts – those are your faults and flaws. Quality over Quantity, be smart and use them all. Combination, innovation, and ingenuity, brains over brawls; my dearest Heir. You needn't doubt thyself. The path to being the one who can protect isn't carved in one day. Our curse always looms overhead – lose everything to become stronger; that is the god of Death's eternal quest.

In that moment of doubt, a voice spoke. Someone hid deep inside. The fragmented part of Lord Death's soul; the one that caused the nightmares, the memories from the predecessors, the ones who always watched. The thin thread inside Clarity. A long journey laid ahead, with newfound vigor, the eyes stared outside and into the stars.