Godseed Ascension System

“I won’t kill,” Kael said, his voice steady despite the fear racing through him. “I won’t stoop so low as to become a murderer…” He locked eyes with his younger brother. “Like you.”

The punch came faster than Kael could inhale. Jericho growled in his face, his fists trembling with rage. He was tempted to mount Kael and pummel him until his vision blurred. 

“You think you’re better than us, huh?” Jericho sneered, shoving the barely recovered Kael to the ground. He crouched to Kael's level, a low chuckle rumbling in his throat. “The reason you’re nothing but a bottom feeder in the strongest family in Galancia is simple: you’re weak. Pathetic. Useless. It’s not because of your so-called morals—you just don’t have the power to kill, even if it were handed to you on a platter.”

Kael wiped the blood trickling from the corner of his mouth with his sleeve and slowly stood. “You’re right. I am weak,” he said quietly. “But I’m happy.”

He turned to leave, but Jericho lashed out, kicking Kael’s legs from beneath him. Kael crumpled to the ground once more, his knees scraping the dirt.

“Well, happy man,” Jericho taunted, his voice dripping with venom, “enjoy your happiness while it lasts.  Grandfather is coming to the meet. Guess who won’t have enough Vitalis to impress him?”

Kael remained calm, refusing to rise to Jericho’s bait. He didn’t need to outshine his brothers—he just needed enough to please the old general. Unlike his brothers, Kael refused to kill for Vitalis. He worked like a dog, exchanging his pure energy for small amounts from willing donors, scraping by without bloodshed. He unfortunately met his brother on his way out of their father’s office where he submitted his weekly fetch of Vitalis.

Galancia was a land of the gifted. Everyone possessed some power—most with abilities tied to force manipulation. But the truly powerful consumed the Vitalis of others, (their life force)growing stronger with every kill. That was the way of the Magnar family.

Except for Kael.

He was the eldest son, yet he was born without a gift. His body rejected Vitalis, rendering him an outcast even among his own kin. His brothers called him a failure, his parents’ disappointment was palpable, and his family’s power felt like a distant dream. But Kael’s energy was unique. Unlike others without gifts, his pure energy never seemed to run out, making it a rare and coveted commodity.

Today had been no different. He emerged from a shadowy alley, frustrated after a client cheated him out of a fair trade. His phone buzzed in his pocket, and his face softened when he saw the caller: Selene.

“Honey, don’t forget to pick up the cake,” Selene reminded him gently. “Remember, it’s the twins’ birthday.”

“I haven’t forgotten,” Kael replied, his voice softening with warmth.

There was a pause, then Selene added, “Don’t overwork yourself. I made your favorite. Come home soon—we miss you.”

“I’ll be home soon,” Kael promised, the call ending with a soft smile on his lips. Despite the cruelty of the world, Kael knew he had the best gift: a loving wife and children. Selene, a dormant gifted from an influential family, had chosen him over a life of power and wealth, staying devoted for eight years.

Although Kael was not the richest, he did his best to provide for his family. A day never went by that he didn’t perform his duties as the family head and husband. His small life was not outstanding but it was perfect for him.

He hailed a cab, eager to return home after weeks in the city. But just as he opened the door, a sleek black car pulled up. Men in familiar uniforms emerged and surrounded him, their expressions cold and unreadable.

“Come with us,” one ordered.

Kael didn’t resist. He knew these men worked for his family, but confusion gnawed at him. “Why?” he asked, but silence was the only answer.

Kael's heart sank with dread as the car door closed behind him. He was led into the Magnar estate, then into the large hall. The room was filled with his family members, all staring at him with sheer disgust. His eyes scanned the room, and there, at the center of the dark marble floor, was Selene. Her hands were bound in thick chains, and her head was bowed in forced submission.

Kael’s heart pounded in his chest, panic rising in his throat. “Selene!” Kael surged forward, but the guards held him fast. She was a broken version of herself, blood pooling around her.

The temperature in the room seemed to drop as a cold, menacing voice rose from the shadows. “So, you finally decided to join us, Kael.”

It was his grandfather, Magnar—the matriarch of this ruthless family, one of the strongest force and energy wielders in the continent, rarely seen and even more rarely heard from. He was muscular and in better shape than most men half his age. Beside him stood Kael’s father, Roku, his face twisted in disgust.

“You’ve been stealing Vitalis, Kael,” Magnar spat, his voice venomous. “And selling it to the rival family, filling your treacherous pockets. Is that how low you’ve sunk?”

“I didn’t—”

“You didn’t?” Magnar’s hand snapped around Karl’s throat, silencing him. “You’ve been stealing for months. Your brothers, your uncles, everyone knew. And your wife… that pathetic hag aided you.”

“You were nothing but a failure in our eyes. A bastard,”Roku sneered, his hands twitching as though ready to strike. “I should’ve never picked you from the gutters that day. You are nothing but a disgrace.”

Kael’s mind raced. He struggled to make sense of it all. His father had just confessed to not being his real parent? His entire family believed he had been stealing Vitalis? And Selene was implicated too?

“I never wanted a bastard, but I gave you a chance, and you failed.” Magnar’s glassy green eyes flicked to Selene. “Heard she’s your weakness. Magnars should never have any..”

Kael’s heart thudded painfully in his chest, but he couldn’t move under Magnar’s grip. He could only beg. “No…” he whispered. “Please, don’t hurt her.”

“You want to save her?” Magnar’s voice turned cold, calculating. “Then you must do what you must to redeem her. You must kill to save her. You have no power, but you have a choice. A life to replace the Vitalis you stole.”

At that moment, a woman was dragged into the hall—someone Kael was supposed to kill to replace his wife.Someone familiar .A knife was thrown at him, meant to impale the helpless woman, but once again, Kael’s body went numb. He turned to Magnar and knelt. “Please… I cannot take a life.Take mine instead.”

Magnar’s eyes darkened with fury. “You will never be my family,” he spat. “You will die a failure.”

The room closed in on Kael.He could feel that something bad was about to happen “Please… Have mercy,” his voice trembled.

But the decision had already been made.

With a speed Kael didn’t expect, Magnar drew a blade from the dark matter in the air. In a flash, it was at Selene’s throat. With a sickening slither of the glowing dark blade, Magnar slit her throat in a single, fluid motion. Her body slumped, and a quick flow of light hit Kael so fast he barely registered it before her blood spilled onto the floor like a crimson river.

“NO!” Kael screamed, breaking free from the guards holding him back. He rushed to Selene’s side, but it was too late. She was gone.

[Ding..Godseed ascension .system initialization.]

A voice, monotone and mechanical, echoed in his mind.