PROLOGUE: THE SHADOW OF A GREAT MAN

***Cherflammen***

Amidst the swirling sands and the aimless winds that blew all over the dead world that was once home to the demon people, a dark figure stood. On his hand was a gladius, and his body wrapped in a set of broken lorica segmentata armor, barely clinging on its last strings. He never breathe, for gods didn’t even need air. And on his head was a prominent bullet hole, inflicted on him by his unlikely enemy, now resting, buried under the desert sands of the old demon realm.

“…”

Anger never left Gaius’ heart, even after he had shed his mortality. Those people who had wronged him still linger in his restless mind; those who betrayed him, those who worked to frustrate his plans, and those who gleefully watched him suffer. Now that he was immortal once again, he swore to his heart that he would repay the traitors in full.

Starting with that otherworlder…

Never letting go of his gladius, Gaius dug into the surrounding sands. Although his god-powers had left him long ago, his newfound immortality allowed him to bide his time. Even if it took him forever to search for Kuro’s body, it won’t matter.

They are forever trapped in this realm, anyway.

Gaius, fueled by his rage and misery, moved mountains of sand, armed only with his gladius and scooping it away with his broken armor. It was a long, arduous task, and soon, his surroundings changed as he overturned every nook and cranny of that region in the cold desert. Nevertheless, the former god of Chersea didn’t stop to rest, and kept on digging.

And then…

“!!!”

When his gladius hit something hard under the sand, Gaius knew he had found what he was searching for. Although it was dark, having consumed Cherflammen’s light long ago, the former deity’s eyes had adjusted to this limitation. He only had to feel his way through the loose soil to confirm his hunches if his sight failed him. Removing the sand seemed to take forever, but it wasn’t long before the frozen body of the otherworlder came to his view.

Greg ‘Kuro’ Santos. The Hero of Arles. The Rock of Chersea. The King of Cherwind. The Special Scholar of Cherflammen.

For someone who harbored no ambitions, this man sure attained more than what others desired, Gaius thought to himself. And this was his end…a frozen corpse in the land that wasn’t even his own, abandoned by those people who professed their love for him.

Gaius couldn’t help but smirk. The similarity between them was uncanny, yet he was still alive and the otherworlder, dead.

“This makes us different, Kuro,” the former god muttered. “Ambition is what keeps me alive. Now, where has your love and loyalty taken you? Having fun in your sandy, freezing grave?”

Gaius let out a laugh, though it was out of spite. But of course, even with all the insults he hurled at the dead man, the corpse would never respond, making his efforts to taunt and ridicule Kuro a futile—if not foolish—act.

And honestly, holding himself triumphant over a dead body, and being a prisoner in this dark, desolate world, hurt Gaius the more he thinks about it.

“…”

So he stopped at his gleeful celebration. In this non-escapable prison he was in, his life as a mortal, or immortal, was meaningless. No matter how far he traveled, or dig down, the truth would remain that he was already at the end of his luck.

He may have escaped eternal condemnation to hell by becoming Chersea’s god after his assassination. He may have averted being relegated to Chersea’s history by choosing a mortal life, after his downfall by Cassandra’s David hand…

“…”

…but he knows he can’t do something about his current situation. After all, the Saints cut him off from the rest of the other worlds.

“…”

“Such a poor, pathetic existence!”

The Roman was taken aback when a voice spoke close to his ears. He pointed his gladius towards where he heard its speaker. “Who goes there?”

“I love watching you suffer!” In the middle of the darkness, the image of his former wife, the Lady Arame emerged.

“Y-You! You are dead!”

“And you’re just clinging to your miserable life! Look at you! Desperate. Desecrating an enemy’s corpse out of spite!”

“Silence!” Gaius waved his sword at her, and the apparition of the Seductress faded, along with a laugh insulting him.

However, his suffering isn’t over just yet…

The former god looked around his dark surroundings. From a distance, he could see the figure of his old enemies…especially that traitor, Marcus Junius Brutus, still clutching the dagger that was used to murder him. Brutus stared at Gaius; a smirk formed on the apparition’s lips, mocking the Roman. (1)

“Curse you! Brutus! I’m a god, and you’re nothing! How dare you insult me!”

Gaius attacked the apparition, despite knowing that his eyes were playing tricks on him. In his mind, Gaius wanted to destroy his enemies, even if it’s just a dream. So, the form of Brutus and the other senators from that fateful day in March disappeared. However…

“How does it feel to be betrayed, Gaius Julius Caesar?”

“!!!”

The former god turned and was horrified to see an even older enemy, the Gaul king, Vercingetorix, standing behind him. The marks of how the barbarian ruler died could still be seen on his twisted neck, but his eyes—as fierce as the day he surrendered to him—glared at the Roman. (2)

“Y-You…” Gaius fell to his feet from terror.

“You’re not to be trusted. You’re a failure of a man, driven blind by his narcissism and ambition! You deserve your miserable fate, trapped in this accursed land forever!”

“N-No…” the Roman covered his ears and repeatedly shouted ‘no’ to drown his enemy’s words. But Vercingetorix’ voice went past his hands, echoing in his head. When everything was too much to bear, he grabbed his sword and threw it on the apparition.

At once, the barbarian king vanished.

“…”

Yet, bitterness and anger remained in Gaius’ heart. He could only curse himself, as there was no one else to blame for his failures. Gaius may had been the god of Chersea before, but he was now a shadow of his great self, cursed to suffer in the darkness, and to lord over the dead realm.

“…”

And so, without other ways to lash out his frustrations, Gaius picked up his gladius once again and dragged himself over Kuro’s corpse. A few moments passed with him staring at his dead enemy, whose eyes looked up to the dark Cherflammen skies, and the former god raised his weapon…

“!!!”

…then swung it down, slicing through Kuro’s neck.

Author's Note:  1)  Marcus Junius Brutus is a Roman politician and one of Julius Caesar's closest friends, as well as his most famous assassin.  It is said that this is because, Brutus' motivation in killing Caesar lies in his belief in the Roman Republic's ideals, in contrast to his other co-conspirators, who wanted the Roman hero dead out of hatred and envy for his achievements.

2)  Vercingetorix is a Gaul tribal chieftain and king, famous for being Julius Caesar's nemesis during his Gallic campaigns.  He is the leader of the Gauls who resisted him during the Battle of Alesia, where he eventually surrendered to the Roman willingly.  However, after six years, Caesar had him executed through the garotte.