Chapter 1: Betrayal!
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The wind hummed a soft melody, carrying the gentle chirping of birds with it.
A smile formed on my lips as I quietly hummed along, my gaze drifting downward.
As my smile brightened, I turned to my wife, Elara Sai Vartis… or perhaps Elara Von Fai now.
Elara let out a small, annoyed huff.
"How can you hum better than me?"
I chuckled at her complaint, amused.
"Hahaha."
Stopping my tune, I turned to her with a teasing smile.
"How could I ever compare my humming to yours, dear?"
She wriggled closer into my embrace, pouting.
"How can you be so perfect? Kind, beautiful, skilled in cooking, cleaning, embroidery, and now even singing like an angel."
She traced a slow circle on my chest with her finger, sighing.
"Sigh."
"How unfair the world truly is."
I grinned, running my fingers gently through her hair.
"Are you that foolish? Thinking that I am perfect? When truly, you are the one and only person that I can define truly beautiful?"
Elara let out a soft chuckle, burying her face into my chest.
"Hmfp."
Her cheeks flushed pink.
"Don't say that, dear. You're embarrassing me."
Still smiling, I chuckled.
"What can I do? Your husband is truly ensnared by your beauty."
Elara huffed and silenced me with a finger against my lips.
"Stop teasing me."
But before I could respond, she leaned in, her lips pressing softly against mine.
A deeper smile tugged at my lips as I kissed her back, holding her closer.
Soon, after this subjugation… our dream will finally come true.
A secluded place, just the two of us.
A quiet, peaceful life.
But a loud, rowdy voice shattered the moment.
"Alister! Our last commission is finally here!"
Elara, startled, buried her face into my chest in embarrassment.
Chuckling, I sighed.
"Caesar, at least knock before barging in. Can't you see Elara's embarrassed?"
Caesar only grinned as he took in the sight of us curled up on the bed.
"Well, if it isn't the lovey-dovey couple!"
I shook my head with a small smile and sat up.
"So, what's the news? Any movement from the drake?"
Caesar handed me a cup of coffee before taking a sip of his own.
A familiar smirk tugged at his lips.
"We have good news and bad news."
Taking a sip, I returned his smile.
"Let's hear the bad news first."
Caesar's smirk widened.
"Well, the bad news is…"
My vision blurred.
The world around me twisted as I stumbled, my body sluggish and unresponsive.
A faint whisper slithered into my ear.
"The bad news is…that you're being betrayed."
Confused, I tried to speak, but the words caught in my throat.
"What do you mean?"
Through the haze, I saw Elara.
She was screaming, struggling against the men who once called me their brother.
The same men I had trusted.
The same men I had treated as family.
Then, pain.
"Stab"
A sharp, searing pain struck deep, and the world faded to black.
One final thought clawed at my mind as I fell into the abyss.
Why?
Why betray me, Caesar… when you were about to become the leader of this mercenary band after this mission?
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A splash of cold water jolted me awake.
Groggy, disoriented, I blinked through the dim light, my mind struggling to make sense of where I was.
Then, I saw her.
Elara.
A weak smile tugged at my lips at the sight of her, but something felt… wrong.
Then I heard it.
Moaning.
Familiar moaning.
"No…"
"Noooo!"
A scream escaped my lips, trembling with disbelief.
"It… it can't be…"
Caesar's voice cut through the air like a knife.
"Oh, but it is, my dear friend."
A hollow laugh tore from my throat—wild, and broken.
My gaze shifted to Elara, pinned beneath the very men I had called brothers.
The men I had entrusted my life to.
"Boss, this bitch is amazing."
One of them grabbed her face, forcing his lips onto hers.
Caesar smirked.
"See? That's why getting rid of Alister was the best option."
Tears streamed down Elara's beautiful face, her body trembling as she silently wept.
Rage.
A rage unlike anything I had ever felt surged through me, boiling in my veins.
My eyes locked onto Caesar, my voice cold and steady.
"Did it really have to come to this, Caesar?"
He laughed, stepping closer.
His fingers gripped my chin, forcing me to meet his gaze.
"What do you mean, 'Did it have to come to this?' Isn't this all your fault? That you dared to flee with a noble's daughter."
Realization struck like a blade to the gut.
"Did… Count Vartis order you?"
Caesar grinned.
"Hmm, you got me. He commissioned me to kill you. But you know what?"
He leaned in, whispering.
"I would've done it anyway."
Something inside me snapped.
I closed my eyes and sighed.
Caesar chuckled.
"Oh? Accepting your fate, Alis..."
His words cut off with a strangled gasp.
In the next heartbeat, my hand was wrapped around his throat.
His body lurched as I squeezed, his nails clawing at my forearms.
My other hand blurred, vanished, before reappearing in a crimson arc.
Squelch!
Caesar crumpled to the ground, groaning in agony.
I turned toward the men defiling Elara.
A deep inhale.
My body vanished, then reappeared before them.
My voice was a whisper, cold and final.
"Tiger Stance: Rend."
My hands flashed.
A blink later, blood sprayed across the tent.
Splurt!
Slash!
Shink!
Elara trembled, collapsing into my arms.
She clung to me, her entire body shaking.
"Alister… hic… they… how dare they... hic… I… I…"
I gently stroked her hair, pulling her close.
"Don't be angry. All of this happened because of me."
Elara sobbed.
"Please stop blaming yourself. Every... every time something bad happens, you always do this, you take all the weight on your shoulders."
Her voice trembled as she pleaded through her tears.
"So please, don't blame yourself. It's my fault... for my lack of oversight... for not seeing his betrayal coming."
I stayed silent, my face twisting with anger.
She sobbed harder, her cries muffled against my chest.
A sudden shout.
"Fire!"
Flaming arrows tore through the air, ripping through the tent's fabric.
My instincts screamed—I wrapped myself around Elara, shielding her.
Thud!
Thunk!
Thunk!
Pain.
The searing burn of arrows embedding deep into my back.
Elara's screams rang in my ears.
"Please, stop! Stop! I'd do anything, just please stop!"
I hushed her gently, pressing a weak smile to my lips.
"Calm down, Elara. This little pain is nothing."
"Stop lying, Alister! Please, don't sacrifice yourself for me!"
I laughed softly.
"Don't worry about me. I'm a Swordmaster. This is nothing at all."
Warm blood dripped onto her bare skin.
Her wails grew louder, but the arrows didn't stop.
More and more pierced my back, each one pushing me closer to darkness.
My vision blurred, the world spinning in and out of focus.
The tent crumbled, engulfed in flames.
Through the haze, I heard Caesar's voice.
"Bow!."
One of his men handed him a longbow.
He pulled back the string, taking careful aim.
"Alister, this is my farewell gift to you."
Thwip!
The arrow flew.
It struck Elara's head.
Everything stopped.
My face contorted like that of a demon.
No.
No, no, no.
"This can't be right… Elara… no…"
I gripped her lifeless body, shaking her.
"Speak. Please… let me know you're alive."
Nothing.
Only silence.
Rage.
Despair.
Grief.
They twisted into something monstrous inside me.
A scream ripped from my throat.
Then, pain.
A blunt force struck my head.
CRACK!
My vision flickered.
Voices echoed in the distance.
"Cut off his head."
"Boss, how about this bitch? It's still warm."
"You guys can have her."
Darkness swallowed me whole.
---
Warmth?
I felt warmth, soft, comforting, like a mother's embrace.
But… wasnt I dead?
Memories surged through my mind like a raging tide.
Elara.
Defiled.
Dying.
Even after death, they still desecrated her body.
A cold reality struck me.
Is kindness a sin?
I had suffered since childhood.
Even when I lived a kind life, fate repaid me with nothing but agony.
Why?
Why is heaven so unfair?
Do I need to change? Become something else to protect the things I hold dear?
But how?
Darkness crept in, my vision fading.
Then, a voice.
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[You have gained the qualifications to access the Dimensional Record.]
[You have been registered.]
[Say 'Status Window' to check your status.]
[You have been reborn.]
[Your race has been decided.]
[You are now a Whark.]
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Reborn?
What was this?
Some kind of afterlife joke?
Was this what happened when one dies?did a ghost came just to whisper some cryptic messages?
And what the hell is a Whark?
A food?
No… it says a race.
But I've never heard of such a thing.
Light.
A blinding light flooded my vision, growing brighter and brighter until it burned.
Instinctively, I thrashed, bashing my head against something hard.
Crack.
Crack…
Then, snap!
I burst free, cold water rushing over my skin.
Blinking, I glanced around. What… is this place?
Massive creatures surrounded me, burly, shark-like beings with spotted skin, their muscular bodies locked in fierce brawls.
Confused, I tried to make sense of it all.
Then, I remembered the voice.
Hesitating for a moment, I muttered,
"…Status?"
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