n.
[Are you for real! If that’s the case, then why do sages spend their time helping the helpless? Do you not see how ridiculous your words are?]
The young scholar confronted the voice. But also, Heaven’s net is sparse, so nothing is lost.
Even if I do not intervene, those who have committed evil deeds shall be judged according to the law of cause and effect (Karma).
[Karma, Karma?!]
The voice, repeating the word Karma, burst into madness.
Hearing the head-splitting laughter, the young scholar unconsciously forgot all the pain and covered his ears with his arms, which had lost their fingers and wrists.
Even his bones could feel the inked iron chains shaking at the sound of sinister laughing.
[You say Karma, so let me open your eyes; let me show you an old story.]
The young scholar’s face brightened.
Before him, an unfamiliar scene spread out.
Though blind, he was able to make out every detail the voice revealed.
***
In ancient times, in the era of legends, there were those who lost everything to humans.
Even in those days, humans were cruel and selfish.
Eventually, the few who turned their eyes away from the terrible world of humans devoted themselves to practicing again and over again.
They had long believed that there was a cause and effect that transcended space-time and that one day a great order would be established to make evildoers pay for their deeds.
But one day, after gaining enlightenment, they became immortals.
And they realized the truth of the world.
Karma,
The absolute order they had believed in,
It was just an illusion.
The souls and bodies of those that died, simply returned to nature.
There was no afterlife, no hell, no inevitable judgment.
The wicked committed evil, lived well, and ultimately perished.
Sometimes they died because of their misdeeds.
That, however, was not the whole truth.
The cruel part was that the vast majority of good people lived in unimaginable suffering and died without enjoying their natural lives.
And those who sucked their blood and caused them pain lived and died enjoying their share of happiness.
It was terribly unreasonable.
There was no Heaven to straighten the tipped scales.
There was no great Karma.
* * *
[Do you get it now?]
The voice asked again.
[Have you seen the truth?]
The young scholar remained silent.
The truth he had seen was so cold and cruel.
Heavenly Punishment and Judgment Day were merely ‘fiction’ made up by those who had lived without hope.
There was no Salvation for them.
It had never been.
It did not come to pass that all the wicked, each and every one of them, would pay for what they had done.
After all, if only people could save people,
Only people could punish people.
If so, if so……!
The voice asked.
[Want to have power? Want to wield the strength to judge them? Want to make them pay the actual price?]
Fuck yes.
[Want to get a second chance? A chance to change everything again? Want to save everyone?]
Fuck yes.
[Even if it means your soul will suffer eternally without a place to go?]
Fuck yes!
A roar came out of the young scholar’s throat along with blood.
‘I will have power! I’ll get that chance!’
As he struggled wildly, the inked iron chains creaked and screamed.
A growl erupted from his throat.
I will make the wicked tyrants who sway others by mere desire pay for it! I shall bring an iron rod to those who take pleasure in the suffering of others!
The cries of the young scholar did not know how to stop and only grew louder.
Using all the abilities that you will bestow on me, I will control their destiny!
And in proportion to the young scholar’s zeal, the presence of the voice grew even more.
[At long last, you’ve come to your senses! Now you can truly see yourself face-to-face! And now look at me!
The young scholar’s soul was rocked by the intensity of the voice.
He felt his soul sway like a leaf in a hurricane, yet he stared straight into the darkness, with eyes that contained nothing but holes.
[I can give you strength.
I can give you a chance.]
He was in the deepest darkness.
He was watching him from the far bottom of the deepest darkness that could only be described as the bottomless pit.
He was a book.
He was a book of Scriptures.
His cover was made of the skin of those who held a grudge against humans.
His words were written with the blood of those who held a grudge against Heaven.
His weave was created from the sinews of those who held a grudge against Earth.
[You and I have different goals, but our path is the same, so if you sign a contract with me, I will grant you a second chance!]
I’ll make the contract!
[You’ll never again be able to walk proudly in the light, nor will you be able to lift that face of yours up to heaven again.
Still willing to make a contract with me?]
The young scholar did not think of any other answer in the first place.
You got that.
Trust me — I will entrust my soul to you.
The scripture [Voice] burst into laughter as though satisfied with his response.
[Listen up, Chosen One.
The name of this scripture is The Ruler of Darkness.
A scripture opposed to Heaven.
A scripture who will devour all the darkness of the World on behalf of the uncaring and indolent Heaven!]
Darkness rose from the scripture.
And it swiftly engulfed and eroded the soul of the young scholar.
As his consciousness faded away, the mad voice of The Ruler of Darkness shook his ears.
[From now on, you will breathe in the darkness, strike down the sword of condemnation in the darkness, and become the reverend of darkness who punishes all the evil of the world!]
Kachti’s Notes:
This is not a Naruto-style plot in which the MC sets out to save the world.
Trust me, it’s not
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