The night over Black Hollow was thick with clouds, blanketing the town in an eerie silence, as if even the wind dared not whisper what was coming. Elias stood by the shattered remains of the alley wall, his fingers still pulsing from the power he had used against the mugger. The blood that stained his hoodie had dried, but the cold inside him hadn't lifted. Not yet.
The system's voice echoed faintly in his mind:
[Soul Absorbed: 1/100. Remaining: 99. New Ability Unlocked – Pain Channeling]
His eyes darkened as he read the glowing red notification that floated just beyond his sight, invisible to others but etched deeply into his reality. "Pain Channeling"—what did that mean? He clenched his fists as the whisper of power crackled in his veins. There was no instruction manual, no one to ask. Only trial. Only instinct.
Footsteps echoed in the distance.
Elias slipped away from the alley, hoodie pulled up, weaving through dimly lit streets toward the one place he knew he could think clearly—the church ruins. A sanctuary long forgotten by everyone but the shadows.
---
The old church stood crooked, its bell tower broken in half, covered in creeping ivy and scorched wood. Elias slipped inside, the charred pews groaning under his weight as he sat. The stained glass, shattered by a fire long ago, let in slivers of moonlight that painted his skin in fractured colors.
His mind returned to the moment of death—the way betrayal felt like drowning, not in water, but in trust. He didn't know how long he sat there until the voice returned.
[System Notification: New Target Marked – Name: Tobias Graves. Status: Living. Sin: Greed, Betrayal.]
His breath caught. Tobias. The man who had once called him brother.
"Greed?" Elias whispered. "You sold me out for a lab promotion?"
The system pulsed.
[Target's location available. Tracker engaged.]
No rest. No pause. This wasn't a second life. This was a debt collection.
---
The next evening, Elias waited outside an upscale apartment complex. The contrast between its pristine facade and the decaying world he came from made his jaw tighten. He remembered sleeping on creaky lab cots, meals paid for with months of research, all while Tobias schemed in shadows.
He watched as Tobias stepped out of a black car, laughing on a call. Elias' vision flickered. For a moment, Tobias had no face—just a void smeared with red.
"Let's try this Pain Channeling," Elias murmured.
As Tobias reached the front door, Elias stepped from the shadows. Tobias paused, frowned, then froze.
"Eli?"
Elias didn't respond. He raised a hand, and pain surged from his chest, shooting out like heat lightning. Tobias fell to his knees, clutching his side.
"What the hell—!"
Elias stepped closer. "You remember the fire? The night I 'died'? That was your signature on the evacuation lock."
"I—I didn't know—" Tobias gasped, eyes widening.
"I did. That's the difference." Elias grabbed Tobias by the collar, yanked him forward, and with a sudden motion, bit deep into his neck.
Blood rushed into Elias' mouth like fire.
[Soul Absorbed: 2/100. New Ability – Adaptive Regeneration (Level 1)]
Power flooded him. A high unlike anything he'd ever known. Tobias collapsed, a husk. Elias wiped his mouth with the back of his sleeve, trembling.
There was no guilt. Only hunger.
And he was still starving.
---
Back in the ruins of the church, Elias stared at his reflection in a broken mirror. His irises were darker now, nearly black with veins of crimson dancing around the edges.
His skin was cold, his heartbeat slow, but he was alive.
Something shifted in the pews behind him.
"You're not the only one hunting," a voice rasped.
Elias turned slowly.
A figure stepped from the shadows. Pale, with eyes like dead moons and a grin lined with sharp, hungry teeth. The man wore a long coat that looked stitched together from shadows themselves.
"You've drawn attention, Elias Black. The kind of attention that gets fledglings killed."
"Who are you?"
"They call me Lucien. I'm what comes after the first bite."
The system pulsed faintly:
[Warning: High-Level Entity Detected – Unknown Classification. Engage at your own risk.]
Lucien tilted his head. "The devil's system chose you? Odd. You don't seem ready."
Elias stood. "Then maybe you'll teach me."
Lucien laughed, and the sound echoed like chains rattling in an empty tomb.
"No," he said, eyes glowing red. "I'll test you."
He vanished in a blur. Elias braced himself, but the blow came from behind, throwing him through a pew and into the stone wall. Pain flared—but it was familiar now. Usable.
He roared, letting the pain bleed into his fists, into his bones. When Lucien lunged again, Elias met him halfway, fists crackling with something dark, something raw.
The church shook.
Fists collided. Blood sprayed. A fight between predator and prototype.
Lucien eventually backed off, laughing, licking blood from his lip.
"You might just survive, boy. But this world… it won't let you rest. And neither will I."
Then, he vanished.
Elias lay in the rubble, bleeding but grinning.
The system pinged again:
[Survival Acknowledged – Potential Unlocked. Title Gained: The Devil's Heir.]
The journey had begun.
And Elias was ready to walk through Hell barefoot.