The battlefield was a graveyard before the war even ended.
Mud swallowed steel, corpses piled in heaps, and the sky wept ash-black rain. Crows circled overhead, eager for the feast.
Beneath the dead, half-buried in blood-soaked earth, Malric Ashen opened his eyes.
A corpse lay across his chest, armor cracked, skull split open. It took all his strength to shove it off. Pain flared from his side—shrapnel, probably. Or bone. Didn't matter. He was still breathing.
Which meant he had something left to lose.
He pulled himself free of the corpse pile, clutching a broken dagger in one hand. His sword was gone. His unit? Gone. Abandoned him the moment the enemy surged. Typical mercenary loyalty. Hire an orphan with no name, no kin, and less value than a horse. Send him in first, leave him behind.
Again.
He fell to his knees. Gritted his teeth.
And that's when the System woke.
> [Initializing…]
[Soul Signature Matched: Malric Ashen]
[Fragment of Chaos God Xal'Zeroth recognized]
[Devour System activated]
[Level 1 acquired | Devour Efficiency: 10% (Rank F)]
Time stopped. Or maybe it cracked.
The battlefield around him faded. A black void spread outward, swallowing the light. In its center, a massive eye opened—slit-pupiled, rimmed in stars and shadow. It gazed into him, and he felt a whisper in his bones.
> "Feed… Grow… Devour…"
Power surged like black fire through his veins. His wounds tingled, healing at the edges. His breath came easier.
> [Ability Unlocked: Devour Body (Rank F)]
Consume physical remnants of fallen beings. Absorb 10% of their traits. Rank will evolve with Devour Efficiency.
Malric looked down at the nearest corpse. A soldier. Sword still in hand. Eyes open in death.
He reached out. Black tendrils slipped from his palm, latching onto the body.
The man withered before him—flesh, muscle, and strength draining into Malric's limbs like liquid shadow.
> [Devour Successful]
[+2 STR | +1 VIT]
[EXP gained: 12]
His fingers flexed, stronger than before. Bones no longer ached. The system pulsed in his mind, mechanical and hungry.
---
[Status – Malric Ashen]
Level: 1
EXP: 12/100
Devour Efficiency: 10% (Rank F)
Next Tier: 20% (Rank E)
Strength: 7
Agility: 5
Vitality: 6
Perception: 4
Mind: 5
Devour: 1
Active Ability:
Devour Body (F) – Absorb 10% of physical traits from corpses.
System Hunger: 1%
Next Ability Unlock: Level 25 – Devour Mind
---
Malric stood, breath steady, strength renewed.
The power hummed beneath his skin—raw, unstable, ancient. But he didn't fear it. He welcomed it.
Then the world reacted.
The wind died.
The birds fell silent.
And the sky—turned black.
Not with clouds.
Not with smoke.
But with void.
A wave of shadow rolled across the sky like ink poured into glass. For exactly ten seconds, across every nation, every kingdom, the heavens dimmed. Suns faltered. Moons froze. Day and night bled into each other like broken oil paints.
---
In the Grand Temple of Aurelion, God of Light:
A priestess screamed.
Golden light bled from her eyes as she collapsed before the central altar. The other clergy rushed to her, but none dared touch her—her skin shimmered like molten glass, veins glowing with divine essence.
Then, her voice boomed—not her own, but something greater.
> "The Dark Star stirs. The Glutton rises. The God-Eater breathes again. Seek the Ashen one… or be devoured."
Silence.
Then, a shattering sound—every holy relic in the temple cracked at once. Statues wept gold. Candles sputtered out.
The High Prophet staggered back in horror.
"A chaos god's fragment… awakened in mortal flesh?"
He whispered a prayer—but it felt meaningless.
---
Back at the battlefield:
Malric looked up at the sky.
He didn't know what had happened. But he felt the pulse of it—like a gong struck in the bones of the world.
> "They know," the voice in his mind whispered.
"Let them come. Let them try."
He turned from the corpse piles and began to walk.
Toward the next life.
The next kill.
The next power to take.