A rooster crowed, waking Brennus from his sleep. He slapped the alarm and rubbed his eyes. All of a sudden, thousands of images flooded his mind. Brennus Shaw, raised in an orphanage, full of ambitions for a better life. He strived in education and earned a scholarship. Nothing stopped the guy from entering the gates of Empire State University after that.

Brennus’s brain swiftly absorbed the memories. He frowned, noticing an incongruity. Hydra took him in 1986. Adding four and a half years to it, he got the current year, 1991. More ironic was the fact that he was raised in an orphanage in this life as well.

“This was the random background she chose for me.” Brennus grinned. “A former killer and now a quiet student. Such irony.”

He slithered out of his shirt and stopped at the dressing mirror — courtesy of his strange roommate Johnny — and took a moment to observe himself. Unlike before, his hazel eyes had a golden tinge to them.

“Alright. Let's have a shower and then grab some booze.”

Doc Ronald always refused to send some liquor. That guy had to be a devil spawn. Brennus clenched his fists, feeling the strength inside them.

“Hydra assholes, I’m gonna flatten your organization sooner or later.”

He couldn’t do anything before. But, he was ‘different’ now. He had the support of a mysterious goddess stalking him with seemingly good intentions.

[Optional Quest generated.]

[An Eye for an Eye, a Soul for a Soul: Hydra imprisoned, treated you like a lab rat, and slowly pumped life out of you. You can be a saint and forgive them for all their sins, or you can bring down the hammer of doom upon their organization. The choice is yours.]

[Difficulty: Better be prepared to die several times.]

[Rewards: Harbinger of Doom Class, 9 X Rank-C XP Potion, 25 Stat Points.]

[Failure: Hydra will eventually trace you and try to harm you.]

“Sooo, my life has become an RPG now with quests and stats. Good job, Lady.” Brennus’s lips raised in a smirk. “You know what, fuck that difficulty. I accept it.”

[Quest accepted.]

The lady chuckled. “That’s my boy. Go and wreck them.”

“You wish. A level one like me will get wrecked instead and become another lab rat.”

“Owww. I wanted to see some action… Then you’ll need this.”

[Daily Quest #1 generated.]

[Books and Wisdom: Attend a lecture at Empire State University and read a book from the university library.]

[Difficulty: A walk in the park.]

[Rewards: 1 X Rank-F XP Potion, 1 X Mystery Box, +2 points in Intelligence and Wisdom.]

[Failure: None.]

“Sooo XP potions have different ranks. This one is the lowest, I assume.”

“Yup. Rank F gives the exact XP to bring you to level 2. Every level increases the XP required by ten percent, so the potion won’t be that useful at higher levels.”

“What about class? How do I get one other than completing that suicidal quest?”

“You’ll get the chance to obtain one at level ten.”

“Pretty distant for now,” Brennus mumbled. “But I’ll get there. Accepted.”

[Quest Accepted.]

His booze could wait until nighttime. Now he wanted XP and level up. He spotted no traces of wings on his back.

‘This woman changed my wings into magic.’

He tried to summon his wings. Light burst from his back, and two pure white wings sprouted, bringing a surge of power throughout his body.

The massive wings had to fold under the low ceiling. He could easily count each feather in the mirror — his eyesight became a lot keener.

Just a slight movement of his shoulder flapped the wing. He had to take time to practice the movement. Humanity’s oldest dream was to fly freely like birds, and he was no exception.

[Skill acquired: Mystic Wings]

[Mystic Wings (Active) Lvl. 1: Summons a pair of wings made of magical energy. Increases the flow of Divine Essence by 25%.]

‘Fighting with wings has its advantages. What else do I have other than these wings?’

“You can make your weapons from pure energy,” the lady said in his mind. “Try it now.”

He concentrated the energy pulsing in his veins. Swoosh! A dagger flew out of each palm and clattered on the ground.

[Skill acquired: Divine Essence Manipulation]

[Divine Essence Manipulation Lvl. 1 (Active): Grants the power to control and shape your Divine Essence in a radius of 1 meter.]

Brennus opened his status to check the SP. It was reduced by 20 as expected.

“Not bad. Not bad at all. Is my Divine Essence equal to my SP?”

“It is, and it is not at the same time. The total energy in your body is linked to your Soul Power, shortened to SP. It’s essentially the limit of energy your current body and soul can handle, not just Divine Essence.”

“Every level up will increase this limit?”

“Aye, genius. You can raise it by increasing your Intelligence and Wisdom stats. SP is the average of two, multiplied by 10. You’ll unlock more and more angel powers at a higher skill level.”

“What’s the use of Divine Essence?”

“Raising your physical strength, casting spells, creating Celestial armors and weapons, reviving people by sacrificing a portion of your Divine Essence, detoxifying poison, healing yourself. Frankly, this is one of the most versatile energies of the universe.”

“I can be the jack of all trades and a master too if I put effort.”

“Aye.”

“This suits me.”

He never shied away from hard work. The people who adopted him from the orphanage killed any ‘useless’ child. He crawled out from that alive with his sheer effort. Another fucked up organization he dreaded from the bottom of his heart.

“And here’s my big task for you.”

[Endgame Quest generated.]

[The Real Angel of Death: There is an angel somewhere in the world going by the title ‘Angel of Death.’ As the one blessed by Death, it’s your task to find them and put an end to their life.]

[Difficulty: Give up.]

[Rewards: 5 X Rank A XP Potion, Angel of Death Trait, 1 X Ticket to meet the Mysterious Lady!]

[Failure: None.]

“Wow. You want me to die, don’t you?”

“I won’t deny that I love death. But believe me, it’s not that hard if you keep completing these quests. They will pop up now and then, or you can kill people to level up. The stronger their soul, the bigger your reward will be.”

“Why would you reward me for killing people?”

“Because, my dear friend, ‘death’ is the ultimate salvation. The peak freedom which everyone must embrace. It’s the end and beginning of everything.”

His lips curled up. Her fascinating thoughts could be the rambling of a suicidal maniac.

“You are a crazy woman with a hundred loose screws… but I like you. Accept the quest.”

He’d lose nothing even if he didn’t complete it.

The lady returned a cheerful giggle, seemingly pleased from the ‘praise.’

[Quest Accepted.]

Brennus got into the bathroom and took a long shower. The freedom to go anywhere made his feet as if they were on the cloud.

He wore a simple shirt and jeans and headed out of the dorms. People had their names floating above their heads along with their levels.

‘How game-ish.’

An overwhelming crowd gathered near the entrance drew his attention. The students protested with banners raised high. The word ‘Mutant’ was common in every banner.

“And I’m confused. Care to help me out here?”

“Sheesh, you don’t even know about the mutants,” the lady moaned. “They are test subjects of Celestials. Every mutant has an X-Gene inside them, which can awaken from birth or later in their life. Technically, you were also a mutant as your blood carried mystic powers.”

He shook his head with a sigh. Mutant or not, the old him was dead, and so were his powers. Not worth remembering now.

He squeezed through the crowd and entered the very first classroom he found, taking a seat in the very back. Most of the students talked about the mutants, how unfair their powers were, and how they were destroying the world’s peace.

“Grapes are sour, ain’t they?”

“True.” The lady chuckled along.

These people and the ones outside were just envious of the mutant’s superpowers. Since they couldn’t get it, they’d rather have that no one can have it by killing the mutants.

Their envy surpassed his, a flesh and blood envious demon.

‘Hey, at least tell me some other name I can call you with. It’s annoying to call you Lady all the time.’

“You may refer to me as ‘Lady Death.’”

‘Lady Death, that’s a name befitting the lady with a death fetish.’

“You think so?”

 He nodded before propping his chin in his hand. He closed his eyes, doing his best to filter the noise around him.

[Skill acquired: Ignore.]

The violet words filled his vision, and the noise around him reduced drastically.

[Ignore Lvl. 1 (Passive): Filters unnecessary sounds once you close your eyes. The effect is based on the level.]

As he immersed himself in the wonders of the new skill, the rest of the noise also died.

Curiously, Brennus turned his attention to the girl shuffling through the door, and his eyes widened. Not from her shiny blue eyes, certainly not because of her glamorous body, but because of the golden name letters floating above her pretty blonde head.

[Emma Frost (Lvl. 21 Mutant)]

[Main Skill: Telepathy]

He never thought of meeting a mutant this soon.

***

Name: Brennus

Level: 1 (0.00% to next level)

HP: 300/300

SP: 250/250

Current Race: Newborn Angel

Class: None

Title: None

Traits: Barbarian, Scholar, Cosmic Dweller, Aphrodite’s Child, Super Sense, Master Swordsman, Master Smith.

Strength: 25

Vitality: 30

Dexterity: 25

Intelligence: 25

Wisdom: 25

Luck: 25

Stat Points: 0

Skills:

[Death’s Blessing Lvl. Max (Passive)]

[Beyond Death Lvl. Max (Passive)]

[Mystic Wings (Active) Lvl. 1]

[Divine Essence Manipulation Lvl. 1 (Active)]

[Ignore Lvl. 1 (Passive)]

Current Quests:

[An Eye for an Eye, a Soul for a Soul]

[Books and Wisdom]

[The Real Angel of Death]

Current Equipment:

None