Chapter Text
Where was he?
That was the question the little skeleton soldier asked himself as he looked at the place where he was.
He remembers
He remembers being in that fight
Choi Lee Kyung, his master and the other servants fighting against that saint, Ryu Hyerin
He felt helpless
He felt useless
She, out of a sick obsession, attacked her master and demanded the presence of Seo Dawon.
She didn't care about hurting her master and that made him angry
They were fighting against two angels, Kim Olim could against one, but he could barely stop him.
He remembers
He remembers how the angel crushed his head and attacked him mercilessly, as if he were nothing more than a mere insect.
He remembers
He remembers being in the fight, about to faint and see how the angel approached his master, with a flaming sword towards him to finish him off.
He remembers
He doesn't remember why all of this feels so familiar
He remembers
He remembers feeling helpless, feeling angry at himself for being so weak despite evolving
He remembers....
He doesn't remember why all of this feels like Deja Vú
Now Lackey looked at the place where he was
He remembers....
He remembers that something in the brightness
The world around him stopped, as if they paused an internet video
Now he looked at the place where he was
Everything was black, as if it were emptiness, illuminated by a beautiful starry sky.
Despite how cold it should feel because of the environment, it felt quite warm, it was comfortable
-It also seems unfair to you, doesn't it?- asked a deep and powerful voice, making echoes resonate in that place
Lackey turned around, he saw a huge shadow sitting on a stone throne, the only thing that could be distinguished were two quite bright golden lights
The entity looked at the small skeleton soldier calmly, there was no look of contempt, nor a hard or severe look, just a calm look from those two golden orbs similar to suns
-It's unfair to see him like that, don't you think, little one?- asked the entity, his voice resonated, distorting in space-
The entity created some figures made with star dust in his hand, Lackey recognized them and felt a familiar displeasure, one was a figure of Moon Isak, another was the figure of Bae Jaemin, another of an unknown red-haired woman with a horrible dress (in his opinion) and finally a figure of Ryu Hyerin, the little skeleton clenched his fists in anger at seeing her
-Several of them proclaim themselves the absolute good, obtaining the power of a bastard deity that claims to be the absolute good, when unreality does not hesitate for a second to look down on those who use powers opposite to it, judges as absolute evil those who despite using a dark power, are genuinely good people, like your master- the shadow moved his hand making the figures made with star dust disappear, with great indifference, then looked back at Lackey- don't you think it's unfair, seeing how they get all the resources and powers to harm them while you have to be resourceful?
The little skeleton soldier clenched his fists helplessly, listening to the words that, unfortunately for him, had a lot of truth in them
Don't you think it's unfair that despite you and your master trying so hard, you're still the weak ones of the group? - asked the shadow looking at the skeleton
It was painful not to be able to deny it, and he felt really useless compared to the other servants, useless that despite his most recent evolution he couldn't defend Choi LeeKyung from those who wanted to hurt him, he was grateful that the other servants like Seo Dawon, Jung Garam or Kim Olim were helping them, even though he didn't really have a good opinion of Seo Dawon, he also had to admit it, he was the most useful and the one who could defend his master
Lackey felt useless, he wanted to help and protect his master, his friend, even if that made him disappear, he just wanted to keep LeeKyung safe from those who wanted to hurt him. He was not oblivious to the mockery given to his master, nor to the negative feelings towards him or the feeling of inferiority that he felt, Lackey felt guilty that all this torment started because of him, when his master wanted to help him evolve and he could do nothing to help
If there was a way to save him, would you take that opportunity? - the voice of the shadow made him look- What is it or what do you feel when you see that you can't do anything because you are weak? - said the shadow looking at him, the two suns lowered their intensity, as if he were squinting- Show me, little skeleton- the hand of the shadow took Lackey, raising him towards what should be the face of that entity, at the height of his eyes- Show me how strong your desire is to want to protect him
A notification emerged towards him, the blue screen, as familiar as it was new to him
Multiserver has been activated
What Lackey experienced next was an experience he would never forget
As fascinating as it was chilling
He saw and remembered
Memories that belonged to him but at the same time were not his
Events that did not happen and events that happened, both in the same way as those he had experienced, and in a very different way.
But something was the same
Something that scared him
Seeing him, Choi LeeKyung dying
Again
And again
And again
And again
In each of those visions, of those versions, I could see him too
The other Lackeys watching helplessly as their master died and was then used and turned into a monster
How the other Lackeys who saw Choi Leekyung die were helpless to see all this
He also saw and felt what they felt.
That genuine affection, that pure and innocent love, like that of a loved one, a family member that you want to protect and care for.
The same feelings were transformed into a prayer, a supplicating prayer to any being who would listen
That once, even if only once, one of them could save their master.
-So that's your wish..- the entity's voice made him wake up- a wish made not based on the search for power or greed, revenge or anger, but a wish made based on genuine love
Lackey looked at the entity, honestly, he didn't expect anything, he didn't know what to expect, he didn't have any expectations, he never had them before, but he expected something, something and not just another disappointment
He heard a snap of fingers, he could see a hand of a shiny black tone like the night illuminated by the moonlight, in one of the fingers of that shadow, there was a small star shining
I will grant your wish, little skeleton- said the entity, Lackey looked at the entity, feeling a mix of emotions within himself- not because I really feel any animosity, pity or genuine appreciation for any of you- said the entity with a tone of boredom in his voice, monotonous- I do it because I'm sick of seeing the same ending created by those tragedy-hungry bastards- the hatred in the voice of The entity was evident, the starry sky changed to a deep reddish one for a moment until it returned to normal- they are the ones who started this war, so they better be prepared to suffer the consequences- the star on the entity's fingers shone brightly- make them pay, little skeleton
The entity lowered its finger with the shining star up to Lackey's height, the skeleton soldier slowly approached, extending his small, bony fingers to touch the star
Notification:
You are about to get a new set of skills and powers
You are about to receive an exponential stat boost
Your current skills will undergo a transformation
I warn you though, the shadowy entity said, stopping Lackey, accepting this power will have certain consequences.
Before Lackey could say anything, a red screen appeared towards him.
Warning:
The power and skill package you are about to receive is incompatible with your attribute tree
The power and skill package is forcing its way into your body
Lackey looked at the red screen, a little worried by what he saw, another red screen appeared again
Warning:
The moment you receive this package and accept it, you will receive a permanent penalty
The permanent penalty will erase and remove all evolutions and possible evolutions from your necromancy branch
The permanent penalty will prevent you from being able to develop and obtain skills from your current necromancy branch
Lackey looked even more serious, hesitating to accept at that moment
The little skeleton soldier's hopes were fading, until a new screen appeared, this time a curious black tone with small bright stars, he had never seen anything like it before
Notice:
Due to the influence of an unknown force that exceeds the capabilities of the system, your necromancy branch will evolve
Due to the influence of the unknown force, you will obtain a new evolution in exchange for erasing the other ones
The system will not be able to influence or limit the power you will obtain due to the influence of the unknown force
Lackey looked at the pop-up notification, thinking about what he should do, hesitating and taking in what would happen next, they had been through so much for him to evolve for the first time, that he felt bad about doing this, however, if this could help him, he would do it
A new notification appeared the moment Lackey touched the star with his fingers
Notification:
Congratulations on accepting the package
Become the one who will protect the one you love
Ascend
Ascend and protect those you love
Fight to the end and protect those you love
Lackey felt an electric shock in his body
His eyes glowed in a bright gold and red color
The memories and recollections of the other Lackeys filtered into his mind
So many memories
So many beautiful moments between the two of them
So many bad times they lived
All that was combined with the great love and appreciation he felt for his master
His body shone with great intensity, illuminating that void and the silhouette in the light changed shape, no longer being a small skeleton
The figure changed to a more humanoid and corpulent one, shining when surrounded by an unknown metal
Even in that beam of light, a pair of reddish orbs could be seen shining brightly, looking at the shadowy entity with a determined expression
The shadowy entity seemed to find this interesting, as it spoke
-Well done, little skeleton- said the entity watching Lackey disappear in a black and gold glow
A black screen with stars appeared before the entity's sight, who looked at what was passing in the battle, time was running slowly again
Your servant is gaining a new power
A new form
A power not generated by hatred and revenge
A power created from love and affection that transcends the laws of space and time
The time of the bastards of the apocrypha is coming to an end
Reborn from hell to punish good and extinguish evil
Reborn and ascend, Soldier of the black glow, soldier of chaos