In a world where the gods perished millennia ago during Ragnarök, their descendants survived and perpetuated their bloodlines through humans. These heirs, known as the Beyond, are those who have awakened the stigmata of the gods from their lineage, inheriting a fragment of their divine power.
Year 1280, Kingdom of Olympus...
The Kingdom of Olympus stretched over thousands of square kilometers, its borders protected by impassable mountains and turbulent seas. Its capital, Drakai, was an architectural marvel.
Marble buildings rose toward the sky, their columns adorned with sculptures representing the ancient gods. Hanging gardens, irrigated by magical canals, bloomed all year round, filling the air with intoxicating fragrances. The paved streets were bustling with a prosperous people, merchants and artisans hurrying under elegant arcades.
At the center of the city, the Royal Palace stood atop the highest hill... Displaying the power of the Drakaina family, whose lineage descended directly from the gods of Olympus.
In one of the luxurious bedrooms of this palace, maids were brushing the long purple hair of the third princess. The seventeen-year-old young woman had the face of a porcelain doll, her features perfectly symmetrical, her milky skin. Her eyes, a ruby red as cold as blood, remained closed as she calmly drank her tea.
"You are so beautiful, princess," murmured a maid while running the comb through the silky strands.
"No need to flatter me," replied the princess without opening her eyes. "I am not like my sisters."
Indeed, Avery Nael Drakaina had nothing in common with her elders. Unlike them, who had awakened the lineage of powerful gods, she had inherited the lineage of Hades. Although he was part of the same pantheon, this blood had earned her being relegated to the background, secluded within her family, without consideration or real power. Her sisters were celebrated and courted, while she was merely the shadow of the kingdom... Good only to be sold off in an arranged marriage.
[Ding! You have received your first quest.]
Avery blinked. This hologram, which only she could see, had been appearing before her for several months now. But for the first time, aside from displaying her status, it offered a new action.
She did not know where this mysterious system came from, but over time she had gotten used to it, almost considering it a companion.
She mentally clicked on the notification.
[Yandere System!]
[Your fiancé is known to be a womanizer. Prevent him from cheating on you (deadline: 1 year).]
[Reward: Information on the location of the Spear of Hades.]
Avery frowned, her curiosity awakened.
'An information on the Spear of Hades? That could help me obtain my second stigmata!'
But this fiancé... She already hated the idea, and she had never even met him...
"Have you heard any rumors about Kylian?" she asked in a detached voice.
The maid jumped, surprised that the princess was suddenly interested in gossip. She hesitated, glancing at her colleagues before answering.
"Uh... About Lord Kylian von Hansen?" she repeated cautiously.
"Well, princess, I don't want to gossip, but since you are asking..." she lowered her voice. "The young master of Hansen County is quite known for his very libertine habits at the noble court. They say he has mistresses in every region of the kingdom and organizes decadent parties in his manor."
Avery's ruby eyes slowly opened, their cold gleam fixing on the floating hologram in front of her.
'I don't know if this system is telling the truth, but a lead on the Spear of Hades is worth digging a little.'
Besides, she didn't even like this waste Kylian. How dare he humiliate her, a princess, by behaving like this even before their official engagement?
A glacial smile sketched itself on her lips, her fingers tightening around the teacup.
"Lord Kylian thinks that because his family is rich, he can do whatever he wants?" she murmured. "I should perhaps teach him his place..."
The air in the room seemed to drop several degrees. The maids exchanged worried glances, sensing an intangible danger hovering. Princess Avery slowly set down her cup, her smile widening.
"I am going to prepare a surprise for him..."
***
Kingdom of Olympus, Hansen County
In a vast bedroom of the family manor, a young man suddenly sat up in his bed.
His body, worryingly thin, trembled slightly from the abrupt awakening.
His long white hair formed a messy halo around his face, whose skin was not much different.
He could have passed for a ghost lost in a world of the living, were it not for his eyes, black abysses where a sharp gleam of intelligence reflected.
Despite this sickly appearance, his features were strikingly beautiful.
"But what the - Fuck!"
The words escaped his lips as the memories flooded into his skull with the violence of a torrent. Images, sensations, emotions... everything was jostling, mixing, clashing in his consciousness.
"And here I thought it was a dream..." he murmured. "I really am dead?"
He ran a trembling hand over his face, as if to verify that he was real, truly present.
"How am I even alive?" he continued.
His gaze swept across the room. The walls were covered with wallpaper with complex patterns, mixing golden arabesques with deep purple hues. The luxurious bedroom felt strangely familiar.
"What am I doing here?"
He leaped out of bed, his bare feet meeting the cold marble floor. He took a few uncertain steps toward the window, looked left, right. Then he approached the glass and contemplated the landscape stretching before him: meticulously maintained gardens, singing fountains, and in the distance, the slender towers of a castle that seemed straight out of a fairy tale.
"But who am I?" he whispered, and as if in response to his question, the information came to his mind.
"Kylian von Hansen?" He pronounced the name out loud. "Von Hansen? What kind of name is that, damn it?"
His gaze settled on the reflection the window gave him. A face he did not recognize. He moved closer, his fingers brushing the cold surface of the glass.
"But what the... This isn't me! Why am I so frail? Why am I so young?"
In his previous life as a life coach, he had always placed capital importance on his appearance. He had trained relentlessly to sculpt an athletic body, cared for every detail of his presentation. And now here he was in a frail body.
He then noticed the details that had escaped him in his first moment of panic. His ears were covered with piercings - at least five on each side, small silver jewels adorned with black stones. His nails, long and carefully maintained, were painted a deep black.
"I am a cringy goth teenager!?"