The Heart is a Void: Ashes to Ashes

Walking cautiously through the square door into the temple's underground passage, Crucis hid once more in the rocky left wall of the tunnel as he heard the door slam shut. Looking near the area where the Raptors had last attacked, he saw that the frustrated Garulus had already returned a couple of times to reclaim his corpse, but been killed each time by the Raptors. Since Garulus had already dropped a corpse here, his other deaths were marked with small gravestones. Crucis made sure that nobody was nearby, then walked up to Garulus' corpse and looted it.

Looking through his inventory, Crucis first checked on the [Silver Orb] artifact. The artifact's description stated that it allows you to transfer an ability from one low-level weapon to another low-level weapon, creating a hybrid weapon with the special abilities of both weapons. This was obviously important to archers, since it allowed them to combine different kinds of basic arrows, such as [Fire Arrow] and [Poison Arrow], to create powerful hybrids. While these arrows could be more difficult to aim, the effect could be highly powerful once the archers had enough skill to use them accurately. However, it was still powerful for most other classes early on, since it could give their low-level weapon powerful additional perks. Over time, this effectiveness would typically wane, because even combining low-level weapon effects would not make up for forgoing the power of a higher-level weapon. At Crucis' level, it could be very powerful, and he planned to use it as soon as he returned to Kruxol and could sort through the weapons he had in Storage.

From Garulus, Crucis didn't get many drops, since the Mage had just left town and wasn't carrying much. However, he did receive an [Uncut Amethyst] gem, that probably dropped from one of the Raptors, and a [Temple Amulet] which gave +20% INT when in the Temple. Seeing the amethyst, he remembered that his new [Silver Crucifix Dagger] had one gem slot within its hilt. He had gained a gem from the treasure in the labyrinth. He took the [Amethyst] from his inventory, and checking on its description saw that it was rated as of 'medium-high quality,' and hence would raise his weapon's attack speed by 30%. Carefully parting the small slot, he placed the gem inside his dagger's black hilt and then closed the opening. The gem was now hidden inside his dagger's hilt, and he felt that the dagger was lighter and easier to move, with its base weapon speed increased to 200%.

There was still almost an hour until his red name wore off, so Crucis decided to pass that time by reading a few of the items marked [Light Novel] in his inventory. He had picked them up while exploring and looting players in the labyrinth. The first one began like this:

"Hello," said the Reaper conversationally, "I was transmigrated as the Grim Reaper into a world of martial arts, but Satan is my master and I am forbidden from having a harem!"

The old man smiled, as if used to this sort of conversation. "If you can't even have a harem, then could I offer my protegée, a certain master called Yung, as the actual MC of this isekai? You are clearly not qualified."

"I am qualified, in this sense: I have a scythe, and I can kill you and your protegée with it. Then you can't be the MC any more. Well, unless this book turns out to be about your martyrdom, like Jesus in the New Testament... We'll see. I'm fine with either." The Reaper gestured to his scythe's dull silver blade, patches of deep-red blood still decorating its edge.

"Like Jesus, I am a shining great man!" screamed a muffled voice from beyond the door. The disciple, Yung, barged through.

The Reaper held out his scythe, and chanted a few words under his breath. Master Yung was thrown back through the door with great force. Chanting lyrics that he remembered from an old black metal song, the Reaper shut the door, trapping Yung in the hallway outside, and then summoned a mist of deadly sarin gas to fill that hallway. Yung's suffocated screams shook the old man into action, as the Reaper had expected.

"You didn't have the courage to take him on in a fair fight?" growled the old man.

"Taking him on in an even fight would be beneath my dignity," replied the Reaper, in a low-pitched drawl.

The old man leapt feet-first towards the Reaper, aiming a high kick at the creature. However, the Reaper faded into a mist before the man's eyes, and the man found that he had kicked thin air. The Reaper materialised behind him.

"You seem angry," said the Reaper.

He swept his scythe around the man's neck. He felt the old man aim a fierce elbow at him, but sidestepped it and used the handle of his scythe and the man's momentum to send the man tumbling backwards.

With his scythe still wrapped around the old man's neck, he stepped on the old man. The man was pinned to the ground.

"Any famous last words, old man?" said the Reaper.

"Whyyyyyy? Whyyyyyyyy?" replied the old man.

Smiling, the Reaper tore the man's neck apart slightly messily, as the old man screamed on the ground until death.

The Reaper walked out of the room, stepping over the corpse of Yung on his way out. It is clear now, the Reaper was the protagonist of this isekai light novel!

Crucis found the tone of this light novel slightly peculiar, but liked the protagonist. He made a note to read it further. Crucis had heard that the obscure Necromancer sub-class had the ability to transform into a Grim Reaper-like figure, and he thought that this would be more interesting if they also became servants of Satan who could not form harems. Leafing through his inventory again, he found another item marked as a [Light Novel]. This one displayed a message before opening:

[This text was not in your favoured language, so our systems have translated it automatically. The text you will read is machine translated.]

Winter sat quietly on the village.

"Greetings, do you have knowledge on that grand power sun?" asked the inquisitive Li Chen.

"Ah, that is very mysterious thing," replied the wise old Han Tian, "It is thus such power, even that of gods is pale, winter he thunders white whisper but of magic there is none. Grand power sun it is concentrated in palm, but needing tiger's eye gem. Then it is unleashed through power of Shalanyan when you make him invisible. Great power, indeed."

"Ah, great thanks. You are seeing this power?" said Li Chen, folding his hands behind his back like a student of obedience.

"Have seen before by powerful cultivators of magical kingdom prowess. The leader's daughter, Han Gu, he is even using it a year ago."

Li Chen revealed his right palm, glowing with concentrated bright light like the sun. His eye pupil became invisible as he grand power unleashing at wise man Han Tian. Large flood of power flies the wise man, and the wise man is extinguished and dead after.

Li Chen smiles at the power. "If this can kill strong wise man, who was once great cultivator, then it must be great power. Maybe even can kill Han Gu, leader's daughter, good way to destroy harmonious society!"

While Crucis enjoyed this story, he wasn't used to reading this kind of translation. He decided that he shouldn't read too much of it at once, as it might drive him insane. He looked through his inventory for another [Light Novel].

"To be a chicken or not to be a chicken? I am a transmigrating chicken who arrives in a world with a system! I must fight the farmer, but he is a powerful cultivator! However, I have great dual cultivation technique and chicken powers, shall I become a mighty god with a big harem? The quest to be the mightiest chicken!" pondered the Prince Hamlet.

The answer to the question 'to be or not to be,' if you were a chicken, would invariably be 'both.' If you were a river crab? Then you would not ask such impertinent questions!

Crucis sighed slightly on reading this passage by the Prince Hamlet, and decided to take a break from reading light novels.