Ascension of the Dark Seraph

Rumble!

Just as the man was about to argue, the sky rumbled.

A flash of lightning crossed the skyline like roots from a tree before the sound of cracking thunder.

It was another sign of the incoming downpour that was going to be vicious.

Even though the night had already fallen, the darkness—felt deeper tonight, smothered beneath heavy clouds that swallowed the moonlight and stripped the world of its gentle glow. Along the winding road, a lone carriage creaked.

"Find somewhere for us to get away from the rain!" the middle-aged woman exclaimed.

"I'm searching, woman!" the man barked back, eyes darting around frantically.

Soon, the carriage came to a halt—to one side, a shallow slope veered off the main path, where what seemed to be a sprawling tree stood sentinel. Its branches are broad and thick enough to offer shelter, right on time as droplets began to fall.

Driving the carriage, a weary man clutching the reins, cast a quick glance skyward—before turning the horses toward the rise. Behind him, the open carriage—held his family: a woman bundled in a simple pale white cloak and three children pressed close together for warmth.

The eldest is a young woman of about twenty.

She kept an arm protectively around her younger brothers, boys no older than thirteen and eleven.

Both of their wide eyes reflected the cracking lightning above.

Since there was no more time, the man brought the carriage to climb the slope—the horses snorting in protest but obeying. Just as the first heavy drops began to fall, the family managed to slip beneath the tree's sheltering canopy.

A heartbeat later, the rain followed—sheets of silver hammering the earth.

"What did I tell you? Now look, it's raining!" the middle-aged woman pointed at the man.

Being scolded by his wife, the man could only smile sheepishly and took a seat near the tree, "Yes, yes, you're always right, honey. Now get away from the edge or you'll get wet. You too, kids. Get away or you'll get sick."

Grabbing the blanket from the carriage, the middle-aged woman handed it to the eldest.

"Snuggle with your brothers or they'll get cold,"

"Stop pampering them; they're not kids."

"Hush! As long as they're living with me, they're still kids! Including you."

"Fine…"

Lazily, the eldest took the blanket and turned to find her brothers.

But they were nowhere to be seen.

"Hmm? Where are they…?" She hissed and looked around. "Rory! Mory! Where are you?!"

Not caring about his surroundings at all, the man had already fallen asleep beside the tree, snoring.

Seeing this, the eldest smacked her lips and went around the big tree.

"Rory? Mory?" She called but stopped when she saw them squatting behind the trees. "What are you doing? Didn't mom always tell you not to wander alone at night? Come back or I will give you both a nice spank!"

"Big sister, what is this?" Mory pointed ahead of him.

Hearing this, the eldest looked at the block of stones before she realized what it was—graves.

"Get away from that!" She quickly grabbed Mory and Rory, pulling them away from the graves.

"Bit sister… what are those?"

"Yeah, why won't you let us go near them?"

"They're graves," the eldest explained, placing her hands on her waist. "Places where the dead are laid to rest. And if you touch them without permission… well, the spirit of the person buried there might grant you a curse. Do you want that?"

Mory's eyes widened, fear flickering across his face. "C-Cursed? I don't want to be cursed."

"Hah!" Rory scoffed dismissively, folding his arms with an exaggerated roll of his eyes. "You still fall for that old trick of scaring kids, Rory? We're not little kids anymore. Even if that were true, in the near future, we're going to become Hybrids! No silly curses could touch me."

"Stop gloating, you're not even a Hybrid yet." The eldest pushed Rory's head.

Rory tried to push her hand away, but failed miserably.

"But I will be a Hybrid!"

"Like hell. Even I can't become a Hybrid."

"Aren't you supposed to be hoping the best for us? You bad big sister! If I become a Hybrid, I can also protect you!"

"Okay, okay… I'll leave it up to you." The eldest bent forward and flicked Rory's chin with a finger.

It notably made Rory blush as he rubbed his nose.

Just as she did that, however, a faint frown crept to her face when she noticed a bead of sweat drizzling its way down Rory's cheek—a strange sight under such biting cold. She brushed it away with her own fingertip, then studied the dampness with quiet confusion, "Rory, are you sick? Why are you sweating in weather like this?"

"Sick? I'm not sick. It's hot right now," Rory replied, wiping his forehead of sweat.

At that moment, the eldest frowned as she too realized that somehow, the air was unnaturally hot.

It was pouring, so it should be cold, not hot.

Confused, the eldest looked out of the tree's shade and realized that the rain had already stopped.

No, not stopped.

On the main path, the rain was still pouring relentlessly, but somehow, the space around the tree was devoid of the rain. Like there was something else shielding the tree from the rain— Instinctively, she went to look at her parents and saw them both asleep.

Clearly, the journey had worn them down.

"Big sister, what's wrong?"

"Stay here. I'm going to check something."

Slowly, hesitantly, the eldest walked closer to the edge of the tree's shade and saw that it was wet. So, the downpour really happened earlier, but it has now suddenly stopped. Initially, she expected the clouds to be pushed away, but that doesn't explain the hotness in the air.

She walked out of the shade to take a look, and when she looked skyward, she paused.

As expected, the rain was still going on, but it was blocked by something.

"What is going on…?"

A translucent barrier that seemed to be made of heat, since the droplets that touched it turned into steam.

At first, it was barely perceptible—but under the relentless downpour that kept on clashing against it, the translucent barrier revealed itself to the naked eye. Rain hissed and rolled off its translucent curve, steaming and rising where the droplets met its surface.

Gradually, the air within the barrier began to rise notably.

Seeing this, the eldest unconsciously let go of the blanket in her hand—this hadn't been there when her mother handed her the blanket, as back then, the air was still cold. For a heartbeat, she wondered if the tree was some magical sentinel that reacted to the storm.

But that comforting notion shattered the moment sparks of emerald fire crackled along the barrier.

"Ouch…"

Before her very eyes, the sparks sizzled, scattering tiny green embers that stung her skin with their heat.

Panic clawed its way up her throat.

She turned around and rushed to her mother and father, "Mom! Dad! Wake up!"

Frantically, she called both of them while her arms wrapped protectively around her brothers.

Unlike earlier, Mory and Rory began to whimper in fear at the sight of the fire.

Once the parents woke up, they moved instinctively away from the tree upon seeing their daughter's panicked expression, right before the emerald flames surged and devoured its bark. In seconds, the massive tree that sheltered them from the rain was transformed into a blazing, living inferno.

It burned not like common fire, but as though the flames themselves were alive.

Imposingly, it writhed and danced in defiance of the driving rain.

Despite the merciless batter of the storm, the emerald blaze only roared louder.

It sizzles like the hiss of some breathing, restless creature.

Nearby, the horses screamed and reared, sensing the darkness that encased them. Then, from the core of the burning tree, the flames coiled and gathered, shaping themselves into a towering humanoid figure that looked like a God.

For a second, it stood there—looking down at them like insects.

But soon enough, the fire collapsed inward, sinking into the soil with a sound like a distant sigh.

A dazzling burst of sparks erupted outward, the heatwave slamming into the family and throwing them back against the mud. As the echo of the shockwave faded, the eldest's wide eyes followed the glowing embers sinking into the earth.

"No way…" She mumbled in shock.

Her breath was caught in her throat when she realized the flames went straight to the graves.

To the grave at the center, to be more precise.

"Big sister, is this my fault?" Rory, who was gloating earlier, sobbed. "I didn't ask permission from it."

"It's okay… It's okay…" the eldest rubbed his head. "It's not your fault."

Squinting their eyes, the man noticed the graves, "Wait, the tree is someone's resting place?"

"Honey, this is a taboo… We made a grave mistake by stopping here." The woman said urgently, fear could be seen evidently behind her eyes. "Did you forget what mother said? If we don't ask permission, the spirit would climb out from the dead and attack us!"

"Shush! The kids are listening." The man retorted, telling her to calm down with his eyes.

Splash!

"Waaaghh!!"

Hearing a sudden groan from the soil, the entire family yelped in unison and stuck close together.

All of them were rooted in their spots as they watched something clawed out of the grave.

A humanoid creature, from the looks of it.

"Phew~ Fucking hell… Even though dying was brutal, this…? Golden. Feels incredibly refreshing. It's like taking a shower after a year of dirt and mud."

"Hah! I always wondered how this ability would feel, but hey, not bad. Glad I took it from her."

Before the family's very eyes, a completely naked man dug himself out of the dry ground. Initially, the family thought that he was a living dead, but the way he moved didn't seem like the living dead, more like an actual person.

Nonchalantly, the man stretched as if he had only been taking a nap, not being buried.

Across his body, his veins were still burning with emerald flames.

Anyone could see them as they were see-through from the skin.

From below, moved by an unseen energy, the soil climbed the man's body like a serpent.

It swiftly turned into a black outer skin layer that also acted like clothes.

Once he was stretched and covered, he turned around—his eyes widened slightly upon seeing the family behind him. Upon seeing the man's face for the first time, the family immediately realized that he's no doubt a Hybrid.

Just the glowing golden eyes alone made it evident.

And not to mention, he came back from the dead!

People talked about how strong Hybrids really are, the high-rank ones, but none had ever said one who could come back from the dead. However, the family's hearts immediately skipped a beat when a cruel smirk crept onto the man's face.

"Coming back to life drained me from ether and God strands. How fortunate for me to find a meal so close by. Karma is pampering me…"