1 Prologue - Deal with the Evil God

Dan looked at the markings he had left on the solid marble floor.

Made of a mixture of his own dried blood, sap from a willow tree and the crushed up bones of a squirrel, there was a large circle drawn, with intricate markings inside it. If one were to look closely, they'd realise the patterns were actually a maze.

"Looks like it matches the reference..." Dan muttered to himself.

He stared at the markings once more, with a somber feeling.

"Guess all that's left is that, then?"

He stepped away from the markings, and drew something from his pocket.

A small glass marble.

"Then, here goes nothing!" Dan grinned and pegged the marble at the center of the markings.

Although he wasn't expecting any real outcome from this particular endeavour, he was still amused by the concept.

According to an old, decrepit book he found in a second hand store, it was possible to summon a god! Wow!

Of course, Dan didn't believe in Gods. Or magic...

So, he was doing this out of a sense of morbid curiosity. Or so he thought.

As he was reminiscing about his decisions, Dan saw the markings light up and change.

"Huh?" he exclaimed.

(MORTAL! YOU HAVE SUMMONED RO'QI,THE GOD OF BARGAINS! WHAT DO YOU SEEK?)

Dan, bemused, didn't seem to have the capability of thinking. It was as though something compelled him to speak out the first thing that came to his head.

"Immortality."

(I CAN GRANT SUCH A THING. HOWEVER THE COST WILL BE STEEP. STEP INTO THE CIRCLE. YOU WILL GAIN WHAT YOU SEEK. YET, YOU WILL OWE ME A FAVOUR, WHICH I WILL COLLECT AT A TIME OF MY CHOOSING).

Once again, feeling compelled to act without thought, Dan stepped straight into the circle. Once he did, he felt the presence of a dark, creepy being which almost caused him to faint.

Then, he felt as his body was pushed and pulled, contorting him in ways that shouldn't be humanly possible, the agony causing him to overload and feel nothing. This continued for what felt like hours.

Then, silence.

A few seconds passed, and a man ran into the room, holding a handgun with both hands.

"... ? What's going on ?" A dazed Dan asked.

With no explanation, the man shot directly at him.

"...how did you miss from so close?" Dan queried quizzically.

The other man, rather than answering, pointed at Dan, his finger quivering...

"M-M-Monster!" He screamed, and ran out the door from which he came.

Dan, growing increasingly confused by the situation, took out his phone from his pants pocket.

As he did so, he saw his reflection in the black, dark screen.

In the center of his forehead, a clear hole could be observed. The man hadn't missed.

No. Dan had been shot, hit directly in the brain, which no human should be able to survive.

Yet, here was, standing, with no repercussions.

"Immortality, huh? That doesn't mean invulnerability..."

Realising something, Dan became horrified.

"What happens if my entire body is destroyed? Will I be a ghost? I don't know the limitations..."

Although Dan had wanted to ask these questions, RO'QI, as he had called himself, was long since gone. He would have to work out the rules for himself, while trying his hardest to cover up his new "talent".