Yeshwanth felt it before he saw anything.
That irritating pressure.
Not pain.
Not fear.
A disturbance.
It was the kind of sensation that didn't belong to the body, but to something deeper — like the air itself had shifted a fraction too far to the left, like reality had taken a misstep and hadn't corrected itself yet.
He stopped walking.
The street around him looked ordinary.
Streetlights hummed softly.
A stray dog slept near a closed shop.
The faint smell of dust and petrol lingered in the night air.
Too ordinary.
That was the problem.
His instincts, sharpened by blood, mana, and near-death experiences in another world, screamed at him.
Something was wrong.
Then—
Something crashed into him.
Hard.
His body reacted before his mind could. He staggered back, boots scraping harshly against the road as momentum slammed into his chest. The impact forced the air from his lungs in a sharp gasp.
Dust exploded upward.
A figure landed in front of him, knees bent, one hand pressed against the ground as if she had fallen straight from the sky itself. The cracks beneath her palm spiderwebbed outward.
She rose slowly.
Silver eyes caught the streetlight.
Short dark hair swayed slightly in the breeze.
Her expression held a smile — but it was empty, detached, like someone watching an insect struggle in water.
"You're slow," she said calmly. Her voice was smooth, almost bored. "If this were a real fight, you'd already be dead."
Yeshwanth straightened, eyes narrowing.
His hand instinctively twitched toward where his weapon should have been.
"Who are you?" he asked.
The girl tilted her head, studying him openly now — not with curiosity, but with assessment. As if measuring how much effort he would require to kill.
"You'll know soon enough," she replied. "We're going to fight."
Yeshwanth's muscles tightened.
"Now?" he asked.
She smiled faintly.
"Not now. But very soon."
Before he could move—
She vanished.
Not ran.
Not teleported.
She simply… ceased to exist.
No distortion.
No sound.
The pressure vanished with her, like a weight suddenly lifted from his soul.
Yeshwanth exhaled slowly, fists clenched tight enough for his knuckles to pale.
"…Troublesome," he muttered.
But deep down, he knew.
This wasn't a random encounter.
This was a warning.
The Gods Move
Far above mortal planes, beyond concepts of sky and space, the Headquarters of the Gods hovered in fractured splendor.
Floating platforms of gold and crystal rotated slowly around a central spire. Light refracted endlessly, bending into colors no mortal eye could fully comprehend.
A bell echoed.
Once.
Twice.
Every god present turned toward the sound.
The God of Spy knelt at the center of the council chamber, his form shifting constantly — faces, silhouettes, shadows overlapping as if his existence refused to settle into one truth.
"The information is confirmed," he said. "A large-scale war is approaching."
Murmurs spread.
"And this time—" he continued.
The chamber darkened, light dimming instinctively.
"—the target is not territory."
The gods leaned forward.
"Their heirs are being hunted."
Silence fell like a blade.
The God of Realms rose abruptly from his throne, his presence alone warping the space around him.
"Impossible," he said coldly. "No being dares touch god-blood."
The God of Spy lifted his head.
"They already have," he replied. "One heir narrowly escaped. Others are under observation."
A ripple of tension spread.
The God of Light closed his eyes.
He felt it.
That same disturbance Yeshwanth had sensed moments earlier.
A presence that didn't belong.
"…So it has begun," he murmured.
Summoning the Human
"Then I will summon him," the God of Light said.
The God of Realms turned sharply.
"You would summon that human again?" His voice carried disdain. "For this?"
"Yes."
"For what reason?" the God of Realms demanded. "How could he possibly protect a god's daughter?"
The God of Light opened his eyes.
Calm.
Unyielding.
"Because," he said quietly, "he would give everything for her."
The room stilled.
"Even," the God of Light added, "what I should never ask him to lose."
The system responded instantly.
Light twisted.
Space folded inward.
And Yeshwanth was ripped from his world like a loose thread being yanked violently from fabric.
Reunion
He landed on marble.
Hard.
His boots skidded slightly as he caught himself, muscles coiling, breath steadying. Divine energy pressed against his skin like static.
"…You really need to work on your summoning manners," he muttered, eyes scanning the vast hall.
Before anyone could respond—
Someone collided with him again.
This time, soft.
Arms wrapped tightly around his chest, fingers clutching his clothes as if letting go meant losing him forever.
"Nila—?"
She buried her face against him, holding him with quiet desperation.
"I felt you," she whispered. "The moment you were summoned."
Yeshwanth stiffened.
Then slowly relaxed.
His hand hovered awkwardly before settling gently on her back.
"…You're safe," he said quietly.
That was all she needed.
Across the hall, Lucia froze.
"…Yeshwanth?"
Tim's eyes widened.
"You're kidding me."
Yeshwanth blinked, confusion flickering across his face.
"…Why are you both here?"
Tim let out a sharp laugh.
"Looks like we're guardians now, my friend."
Lucia smiled faintly — then stopped as Nila finally turned toward her.
Their eyes met.
Nila's green dress shimmered softly under divine light.
Lucia inhaled sharply.
"…Hi."
Nila smiled gently.
"Hello."
Lucia felt it instantly.
The weight.
The presence.
Not oppressive — but undeniable.
"…Who are you?" Lucia asked carefully.
Nila stepped closer.
"Someone important to him."
Her gaze sharpened just slightly.
"And please… don't tell him about my previous visit."
Lucia hesitated.
Then nodded.
"…Alright."
Contempt of a Goddess
Footsteps echoed across the hall.
A young woman approached, posture flawless, eyes sharp with practiced superiority.
Aishu.
The daughter of the God of Light.
She looked at Yeshwanth like grime on sacred ground.
"This is him?" she asked flatly. "This human?"
"Yes," her father replied.
Aishu scoffed.
"You're entrusting our lives to someone like this?" She turned to Yeshwanth, eyes cold. "You're weak. Emotional. Temporary."
She looked back at her father.
"Why would you leave our safety in such useless hands?"
The God of Realms laughed openly.
Beside him, his son Arkan crossed his arms.
"Humans break easily," Arkan said. "This one especially."
Yeshwanth said nothing.
He'd learned.
Words wasted energy.
The God of Light raised a hand.
"Enough."
He turned.
A towering figure approached — a cheetah-bodied humanoid, muscles coiled with lethal grace. His eyes were sharp, seasoned by countless battles.
"Take him," the God of Light said.
"To where?" Yeshwanth asked.
The God of Light met his gaze.
"To a place where humans stop being human."
The Portal
The cheetah mount gripped Yeshwanth's shoulder.
The world bent.
Before the portal swallowed him, Yeshwanth looked back.
Nila met his eyes.
She didn't cry.
She didn't beg.
She only nodded.
Like she already understood the price.
The portal closed.
The Domain of Severance
Silence.
Yeshwanth stood alone.
A vast void stretched endlessly — fragments of memory floating like broken glass.
His childhood home.
An empty college classroom.
His parents' disappointed faces.
Nila's smile.
A voice echoed from nowhere.
"Abandon attachment, or be rejected."
A memory formed.
His mother calling his name.
He stepped forward instinctively—
Pain tore through him.
His body slammed back violently.
The domain rejected him.
He gasped, collapsing to one knee.
"…So that's how it works."
He stood again.
Another memory formed.
Nila reached out.
His hand trembled.
Slowly… painfully… he lowered it.
The memory shattered.
Power surged.
Not warmth.
Not joy.
Control.
The domain accepted him.
Far away, Aishu watched through divine sight.
Her jaw tightened.
"…So he chose."
She turned away.
Because she remembered choosing once too.
And losing everything that followed.
Elsewhere — The Shadow Smiles
In a place without light or time, something watched.
No form.
No name.
Just intent.
"Good," it whispered.
"Let the gods sharpen him for me."
The war had not begun.
But the pieces were moving.
And Yeshwanth had taken his first step away from the world that made him human.