The Role of the Reaper

I can't pinpoint the exact moment it started, but I've always been obsessed with one thing: power. Not just any kind of power, though—the power to rule from the shadows.

While others dreamed of becoming heroes or villains, I was different. Heroes crave attention, bask in the limelight, and wear their hearts on their sleeves. Villains are dramatic, bold, and destined to be defeated. But the shadow dwellers—the enigmatic figures who operate unseen, pulling the strings of fate—those were the ones I admired. They were untouchable, invincible, and eternal.

It wasn't just admiration; it was a calling.

Where most children grew out of their fantasies of heroism or villainy, mine only grew stronger, fueling a desire to become someone like that—someone who thrived in secrecy and wielded unstoppable power.

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Youth in Training

I committed myself to the pursuit of strength with the fervor of a man possessed. While others were busy enjoying the fleeting frivolities of youth, I was preparing. Karate, boxing, kendo, mixed martial arts—I mastered them all.

But I hid it.

At school, I was a nobody—a background character, unnoticed and unimportant. The kind of guy whose name people struggled to remember.

But behind the scenes, I was someone else. My life outside school was an unending cycle of brutal training, all for the sake of achieving my goal.

Yet, as I grew older, cracks began to appear in my ambitions.

No matter how much I trained, how many martial arts I mastered, or how strong I became, there were limits to the human body. I could take down a gang of thugs or even an armed opponent with enough skill, but what about a tank? A missile? A Taepodong?

The shadows I idolized wouldn't flinch at such things. But as a human, I was powerless against them.

I needed something more—something beyond human comprehension.

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The Search for the Impossible

Magic. Mana. Qi. Aura.

These became my new goals. If brute force and training couldn't elevate me to the level of invulnerability I desired, then I would turn to the unknown.

I meditated under waterfalls, fasted for weeks, and immersed myself in ancient texts. I even practiced rituals that involved standing naked under the full moon or hanging upside down from a tree. If it sounded insane, I tried it. Because insanity, I reasoned, was the doorway to true power.

Months turned into years, and though I hadn't found magic, I felt... close. There were moments during my training when I sensed something—a flicker of light behind my eyes, a warmth in my chest, or a surge of energy in my limbs.

Surely, I was on the verge of a breakthrough.

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The Night It Happened

One late summer evening, I stood in the forest, my body drenched in sweat after an intense training session. My clothes lay discarded nearby as I pressed my forehead against a thick tree trunk, attempting to awaken whatever latent power lay dormant within me.

BANG!

I slammed my head against the bark again and again, each impact sending a jolt through my skull.

"Come on... awaken!"

The world around me seemed to blur. My vision swirled, colors blending together, and a strange buzzing filled my ears. Was this it? Was this the power I had been seeking all my life?

Suddenly, two lights appeared in the distance. They floated, swaying gently, as if beckoning me forward.

"Magic..." I whispered, my heart racing.

I stumbled toward the lights, tripping over roots and branches but never losing sight of them. My pulse thundered in my ears as I drew closer.

"Magic! Magic! Magic!" I shouted, my voice echoing through the trees.

Finally, I lunged toward the lights, my arms outstretched—

CRASH!

Blinding pain. A deafening screech. The world went white.

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A New Beginning

When I opened my eyes, everything had changed.

The first thing I noticed was the magic. It wasn't the lights I had seen before, but something far more profound—a shimmering energy that flowed through the air like a living thing.

The second thing I noticed was... I wasn't human anymore.

No, that wasn't quite right. I was In A different World, In A Game I Once Played. And Now I was the Abyss Reaper.