1 The End of the Beginning

'Am I finally free?'

This was the last thought Xavier had as he watched the only person he ever loved pull the dagger out of his chest.

Most people would've asked why but Xavier knew why. Because that's how it always has been.

Xavier's single mother passed away when giving birth, and with no immediate family members he was put into foster care. As long as he can remember he never felt anything other than sorrow. At best he was at a home that ignored his existence, at worst he would be beaten until he couldn't walk for a few days.

This was his life for 16 years until his sophomore year of high school when he met Annabelle.

Annabelle was also 16 and a normal high school girl, except for the fact that Annabelle was notorious for running with the wrong crowd.

Both being from the underbelly of society they immediately clicked, and started dating a couple months later. She was Xavier's savior, the one who dragged him from not just his surroundings but from himself too. After high school Xavier got a full time factory job, and got an apartment for the both of them to stay in.

For the first time in Xavier life, he felt warmth. He felt he was not fighting alone in this cold damned world. But things would soon change.

It started out with Xavier noticing small things, such as Annabelle coming home later with bloodshot eyes. And eventually reached the point where he would find syringes in the trash. That's when Xavier realized that he did not recognize the girl he once knew, and that he needed to reach out to her.

"Annabelle, you need to get help. I will be there to support you and we will figure this out together. But the stuff you're doing is crazy and destructive."

Annabelle looks up will glazed eyes. "I'm not crazy."

"That's not what I'm say-"

Xavier looks up to see Annabelle picking up a knife off the counter.

"I AM NOT CRAZY!" She shouts as she lunges towards Xavier.

By the time he realizes what was happening he already felt the cold steel sliding in between his ribs and lodge into his heart.

'Am I finally free?'

As he is blacking out he looks into Annabelle's eyes looking to see if there is even the slightest remorse.

Cold.

Detached.

He only finds those two emotions in the eyes of the only person he loved as she killed him.

'Congratulations on dying!'

'What the hell? Where am I?'

Xavier opens his eyes and sees that he is sitting in the middle of a white room, on a chair, facing a person draped in black.

"Who are you?" Xavier asked the peculiar looking man in black.

"Well I'm here to reaper your soul. So I guess you could call me by my many names; Hades, Anubis, Pluto. Or you could just call me death." He pulls back his hood, revealing a human skull. "Usually I send you to heaven or hell and you'd be none the wiser. But I like you kid, you faced trial after trial misery upon misery. Yet you never blamed anyone or cursed the heavens and God's for being unfair. You only longed for freedom. And freedom is what I've decided to give you."

Death creeps closer to Xavier. "Here's what I'm gonna do, I'll give you three choices. First choice, I will judge you and send you to heaven or hell depending on your karmic value. Second choice, I will send into the cycle of reincarnation and you will be born again without any memory. Third choice, I will send you to a place where only strength matters, with the third choice you will be given 4 advantages, you will choose a magic to be proficient in, you will be given a cultivation technique, you will retain all your memories, and you will be given a system to help guide you on your journey. Now choose wisely, you only get one chance."

"I'd like to choose the third option."

"Decisive, I like that. Very well." Death than snaps his fingers as he disappears.

Xavier feels a sharp pain in his head and flinches. When he opens his eyes he is alone again. Suddenly he hears a voice in his head.

'Hello Xavier. I am your leveling guide. My name is Archives. Would you like to start your character customization?'

[Y/N]

'Yes.'

'Please select a magic proficiency.'

'What do you mean a magic proficiency?'

'When being reborn you will live in a world of magic. You must choose a magic which you will focus on. For example there is; fire, water, lightning. Essentially elemental magic. But there is also summoning magic, dark and light magic, and a myriad of different types.'

'Might as well pick the most fitting one. I choose dark magic.'

'You will now be proficient in dark magic. Now choose a cultivation technique.'

'What is a cultivation technique?'

'These techniques will allow you to focus your magic onto a more specific type. You could think of it like a subclass. The dark magic cultivation techniques are.'

-Wanderer of the Void, this will allow you to gain access to void magic.

-Necrotic Soul, this will blur the line of life and death allowing you to learn necromancy.

-Pact of the Damned, this will allow you to summon a baby demon familiar and use it's magic. This pact is permanent and may only be done once, the demon will grow with you.

'How powerful is the demon that is summoned?'

'That will depend on how enticing your soul is.'

'Since I feel that even though it's a gamble but has the most potential, I will choose Pact of the Damned.'

'Creation complete. Are you ready to begin your next life?'

'Hell yeah, let's do this.'