I Will Crush You

'What?' James stood in a daze. The system's notification went off like an alarm in his mind and he could feel a strange compulsion overwhelming his body. Despite the system's warnings, a voice constantly seduced him to accept the challenge.

"Do you accept?" The brawny man repeated. His voice sharp. His eagle like eyes met James's trembling eyes. His grip tightened on James's shoulders. His actions screamed he wouldn't take no for an answer.

Emergency Transformation Initiated (Previous User's Settings)!

Estimated Time Until Grim Reaper Transformation: 10 seconds... 9 seconds... 8 seconds...

'No! System, stop it!'

Request Denied!

Estimated Time Until Grim Reaper Transformation: 7 seconds... 6 seconds... 5 seconds...

James panicked. He couldn't afford to transform into his Grim Reaper form. Once exposed, it would definitely catch the attention of Kynar's upper echelon, and inadvertently The Order.

'I can't let this happen. I have to do something...' James glared at the armored brute, unable to hide his fiery anger. All he wanted was to accumulate as many skills as possible. He had no intentions of fighting anyone, especially someone the system recommended he flee from.

"Go fuc—"

"Enough!" The executioner snapped her eyes opened, and a gust blew across the area. At that same moment, James could no longer feel the strange compulsion.

"Zakaria, leave him be." The old lady walked towards the armored giant. She then turned towards James, "Enter."

"Much thanks for your help." James bowed slightly. Before leaving, however, he turned towards Zakaria. They shared no words, neither did they glare at each other. Wordlessly, James turned around before walking away. The executioner and Zakaria watched in silence as the shadows gradually consumed James's figure.

The moment James was completely out of view, the old lady turned towards Zakaria. "Why did you do that? Didn't I tell you not to cause any trouble here? Is there something special about him?" Fury distorted the executioner's face. Only she and a few knew of Zakaria's status. She couldn't believe he would pick a fight with a random kid. However, knowing Zakaria's personality, she was certain he wouldn't have acted the way he did if he hadn't noticed something special about James.

Zakaria still stared at the empty hallway. He raised his right hand while saying, "I'm sorry, Grandmo—"

"I don't need your apologies. Just tell me what you saw. And while we are here, don't call me by that. Call me Afer."

Zakaria nodded. He knew his Grandmother's personality well. Pointing towards the hallway, he continued, "I saw death."

Afer's brows creased. 'Death? What is he talking about?' She expected a clearer answer than Zakaria's vague words.

"What do you mean? Do you think he'll die soon?" Afer echoed her thoughts.

Zakaria slowly shook his head. "That's not what I meant. That kid is death incarnate." Zakaria explained.

Afer's eyes quivered slightly as she unconsciously stared at the hallway. 'Him?' Although she had her reservations, she knew the veracity of Zakaria's words.

"Is he strong enough to threaten Lord Cassius?"

Zakaria shuddered. He could sense the chill in his grandmother's voice.

"Never in a million years. He's too weak. I doubt he can best that mad Demon." Zakaria paused. For the first time, he turned towards Afer. "If he lives long enough, he might get to my level. He has that potential." Zakaria added.

"Zakaria, are you certain?" Afer asked anxiously. Her mouth opened slightly, revealing her blackened tongue. Her eyes gleamed as she stared at Zakaria.

"Don't get excited. I already checked. He doesn't have a bloodline..." midway, Afer's glistening eyes had dimmed, before returning to nonchalance. "Disappointed already?" Zakaria quipped.

"He would have some use if he had one. There's no point thinking about him now. Everyone has potential. To actualize it, however, is another thing." Afer retorted.

She could only blame herself for getting excited prematurely.

"When do we depart for The Order?" Zakaria changed the topic.

"Tomorrow. Since you're done with your mission, there's no point hanging around here." Afer turned to leave. With Zakaria mimicking her actions.

"By the way, did you use the Alon gaze on him?" Afer asked offhandedly. At that moment, Zakaria paused in his step. "What's the matter? Why did—?"

"It didn't work on him." Zakaria interjected. His voice solemn.

"What?!" Afer blurted out. Her sudden scream caught the attention of a few caretakers approaching the building. Unperturbed, she continued, "Tell me what you saw. Hurry." Afer latched on to Zakaria's wrist. She had a special method of detecting whether what he said was true or false.

"A golden eye at the center of his forehead. Brilliant white wings on his ankles and back. Bones protruded from every part of his body while bluish flames danced across his body." Zakaria said in one breath.

Unbeknownst to James, Zakaria had seen all his passive skills. The Golden Eye of Orodin. The flames of the burning world. Bone valley. And the wings of Hermes.

'Is that all you saw?' Afer asked.

Zakaria hesitated slightly before nodding.

At that moment, a loud chime echoed in Afer's mind. 'He's not lying. But why did he hesitate? Could he have seen something he wasn't certain of?' Afer's ability worked by monitoring the Mana fluctuations in her target. As long as she held on, she could manipulate the Mana in bodies of others to check if they were lying or not. She would know in an instant if someone withheld information from her. However, there was a drawback. If the person she interrogated didn't understand the information they had, she wouldn't know if they lied or not. If Zakaria had seen something else but wasn't able to comprehend it, then she wouldn't know if he lied.

"No wonder you challenged him. He might have some use." Afer slowly released Zakaria's hand. She had no intentions of apologizing for her actions. Neither did Zakaria seek an apology. It was the norm in their world.

"I'll speak with the principal on his behalf. We need many outstanding soldiers for our Lord's conquest. Let's return."

Zakaria nodded. He agreed with his grandmother's evaluation.

'That kid is destined for something far greater than being a mere soldier.' Zakaria smirked inwardly. 'I can't wait to crush him when he becomes stronger. Even with that thing inside you, I will still crush you!' He glanced over his shoulders towards the building's entrance.

Saying nothing further, the duo walked towards an unknown location in the settlement.

***

Rage distorted James's face as he walked along the lonely hallway. 'That bastard!' James slammed his fist on the walls. He hated being powerless in front of others more than anything. 'I don't know who you are, but I will make sure I crush you.' James vowed. If Afer hadn't interfered, he would have reverted to his Grim Reaper form. He would be lucky if they didn't package him to The Order as an experimental subject.

'I need to calm down. I can't let that bastard mess with my head.' James took two deep breaths. His eyes shifted between the yellow illumination crystals on the walls and the large wooden door at the end of the hallway.

Gathering his thoughts, James hurried towards the door. He wanted to get stronger fast. No one would save him the next time someone strong came calling. With a gentle push, James opened the door. A creaking echo filled his ears. A grand library many times bigger than the Dumin household came into view. The dazzling lights from dozens of chandeliers bounced off the marbled chessboard floor. Hundreds of wooden shelves lined in parallel rows covered two-thirds of the library. Each shelf had a faint glow around it, while emitting a soothing aura. He could not see a single speck of dust or cobwebs.

'Not even a single chair and table...' James chuckled. The caretakers didn't want them to hang around in the library.

"Please come this way!"

James turned towards his right. At the far end of the hall, he could see a middle-aged man standing behind the receptionist counter.

"Name?" The receptionist called out.

"Kaleb." James replied without pause.

The middle-aged man flipped through a slightly worn book before saying, "You are eligible to borrow two tomes or scriptures. You must return them within a month. Understood?"

James nodded. Afer already mentioned that.

"Is there anything else I should know?" James asked. There were no free meals. Never in a million years would he believe Kynar would grant them free skills without expecting something in return.

The middle-aged receptionist smiled slightly. His fingers drummed on the counter as he said, "There's a price if you desire any of the spells. It's a small price compared to the spells gathered here."

"What is it?" James expected that much. He had no time to listen to the receptionist wax lyrical.

The receptionist's smile brightened. "A part of your soul."