7 A New Mark

"What… do you mean?" asked Ash. He could not believe what he was hearing, and a part of him refused Zane's words. If this message had displayed itself for his parents as well… that meant that this was no hallucination.

He recalled the anguished screams of his parents as they were consumed by darkness. Their words as they pleaded for the only sane person in the room to take their life rang in Ash's ears. Was that going to happen to him too? Was he going to fall into madness and die?

"Ash."

The message began multiplying, feeling a sense of panic in its host. If it was trying to take over Ash's mind and body, igniting the flames of distress was an extremely powerful method.

"Ash!"

"!"

The boy snapped back to reality, seeing Zane leaning on the balustrade of the balcony.

"There's no point in panicking. If anything, that'll make the situation worse. See if you can interact with the message in any way. That should be our first step," explained Zane, his violet eyes piercing Ash's soul.

"R-Right…" muttered Ash, taking a deep breath before willing the message to reappear.

[The power of the Shadows now lives within you]

The cyan blue writing glowed with a misty aura, inviting the viewer to come closer. Instead of rejecting the message, Ash decided to accept it. He no longer classified it as a hallucination.

Ash understood the severity of the message, and he could now feel a dark sensation deep within him. It called him, constantly attempting to reach his mind and destroy the person known as Ash Moon.

The only thing this power sought from Ash was an obedient host.

Ash acknowledged the message, sparking a reaction from the dark screen:

[Do you wish to accept the gift of the Shadows?]

"Do I even have a choice?" muttered Ash, his eyes briefly glancing over at Zane. He gazed attentively at Ash, not making a sound.

"What is it saying?" he asked.

"It's asking me if I want to accept its power."

"Your parents refused. I'm afraid there's only one option that'll keep you alive, Ash."

"I know…"

Ash relaxed his body, allowing the obscure power to envelop him as he accepted the message.

[You have become one with the Shadow within you]

Both adventurers waited anxiously. Ash's eyes darted around the room in search of another screen, and finally, it appeared.

[Host: Ash Moon]

[Level: 1]

[0/100 Experience]

[Rank: Soldier]

[Health: 100/100]

[Strength: 2]

[Stamina: 2]

[Magical Power: 1]

[Essence: 10/10]

[Agility: 2]

[Perception: 1]

The giant panel quantitatively expressing all of Ash's capabilities took up the majority of Ash's field of vision. He was unable to keep back his surprise, letting out a small gasp.

"Ash? Are you alright?" asked Zane with a concerned voice. Even if he was able to maintain a calm demeanor, his emotions were being churned all over the place. The boy he saw as his son was being presented with a foreign power, one that had driven its last host into insanity.

"Yeah… I'm fine. I'm able to see my abilities expressed as numbers. Damn… I'm weak as fuck."

Zane couldn't help but laugh at the final remark, the humor easing his nerves.

Ash read each word carefully, analyzing what they meant. They were all relatively simple: strength defined his physical ability, stamina referred to his endurance, agility was his speed, and perception was his ability to sense things around him. The only thing that eluded him was why essence and magical power were separated.

"Zane, aren't magical power and essence the same thing? They're separated here," asked Ash. Zane was unable to see the table in front of Ash's eyes, but he could still distinguish the two concepts.

"Essence is the natural energy of this world. You expend the stored essence in your body to create a magical spell. My guess is that magical power is alluding to the power of your spells, while essence refers to how many spells you can manifest before you're exhausted of energy."

Ash was forcing himself to remain calm. He recalled how the power within him took advantage of his distress to attempt to take over. He had to process this overwhelming amount of information carefully.

"I've been given a rank… it says I'm a soldier."

"…"

"Zane… have I become a Shadow?" asked Ash, the anxiety rising in his voice. His efforts to remain calm were becoming obsolete as the boy began to realize he had become the very thing that plagued his parents.

He had become the enemy of the surface and an ally of the dungeon.

"Well, you tell me," said Zane, snapping Ash out of his hysteria.

"Huh?"

"Is Ash Moon a human or a Shadow?"

"I'm… a human."

"There's your answer. Trust yourself before all else."

Ash smiled and nodded, returning to his logical thoughts.

"So what should I be doing with all of this?" asked Ash. Just as the words escaped his mouth, the Shadow within him answered.

[Become powerful and serve your purpose as a host for the rebirth of the Emperor.]

"Did you get your answer?" asked Zane, seeing Ash's eyes scanning the invisible air in front of him.

"I did. It seems my destiny is to become a host for the Shadow Emperor."

Ash knew he couldn't go against the wishes of the system. It controlled his very life, and he had seen firsthand what occurred to those who defied it.

"Zane, what happened to me in the Dungeon? How did I receive this power?"

"It seems… you absorbed the soul of the Great King Draegan. He is most likely the one engineering everything in front of you."

[Zane Naso is correct.]

"!"

Ash stepped back at the sudden message. The monster living within him was fully conscious! Ash attempted to communicate with the Great King aloud.

"Draegan, answer me, are you able to kill me at any time?"

[I am.]

"What do you want me to do?"

A new panel opened up, revealing specific goals that Ash was meant to accomplish.

[New Daily Quest]

[Kill 5 Direwolves]

[Reward: 20 Experience]

Ash was able to comprehend the task due to the simplistic manner in which it was presented to him. If he needed 100 experience to ascend to the next level, it meant he would need to complete enough quests until he achieved the necessary amount of experience.

"It wants me to enter the Dungeon again," said Ash, seeking Zane's opinion on the matter.

"You're most likely safe from any Shadow attacks if the Great King Draegan lives within you. I think the Dungeon is where you'll find the majority of your answers to your current situation."

"Alright… I'll enter the Dungeon then," concluded Ash. Zane's argument made perfect sense, and even if both of them were skeptical of this new system, they had no other choice.

"Is there anything else you can bring up? You want to fully understand the Shadow power before you enter."

Ash asked the same question mentally, causing a reaction from the system.

[Spells]

[Shadow Punch | Level 1]

[Cost: 2 Essence]

[Channel the power of the Shadows into your fist to deliver an empowered magical blow.]

"I can cast magic?!" exclaimed Ash. He was unable to contain his disbelief, but after a few seconds, he realized what that meant. You could only cast magic with the mark of a god. His excitement faded instantly as it was replaced with despair.

Ash's eyes slowly turned towards the stinging sensation on his upper arm, the bandages still covering his skin. Zane said nothing, having already seen what lay beneath it.

Ash grabbed the cloth, slowly unwrapping it with trembling hands. He had always wanted to be recognized by a god, but this time, he prayed it wasn't the case.

The bandage finally fell, revealing the small black tattoo that was now ingrained in his skin. Zane spoke up, breaking the gloomy silence.

"The mark of Erebus, the primordial deity of Darkness…"