Darkness wasn't silent.
It breathed.
It pulsed.
It whispered a thousand regrets in a voice that sounded like his own.
Leo drifted in the void, a soul suspended between what was and what could be. No hunger. No pain. Just memory—and the echo of a name he once trusted, burned into the fabric of his death.
She betrayed me.
They both did.
He didn't scream. He had already done that. Instead, he simply… existed.
Until something called him forward.
A flicker. A ripple. A light too arrogant to be ignored.
"About time you woke up," came a voice, casual and oddly amused.
Leo blinked—or at least, the soul-version of blinking. A figure floated before him. Not a man. Not a god in the traditional sense. He looked… unfinished. Like a divine sketch.
"Who—?"
"Ah, introductions," the being said, stretching like he was late to his own meeting. "I'm a newly born god. Don't ask for my name; I haven't earned one yet. But you—"
He pointed. "You're Leo. Dead. Broken heart. Starved to death. Ring any bells?"
Leo scowled. "You're mocking me."
"Little bit." The god grinned. "But that's only because I need you. And you need me."
Leo raised an eyebrow. "Why would a god need someone like me?"
The divine shrugged. "Because I'm a rookie. To climb the celestial ladder, I need to guide souls to their destinies. Redemption. Salvation. Call it what you will."
"And you picked me?"
"Tragic death. Deep emotions. Potential for growth. You're textbook reincarnation material."
Leo looked away. "I don't want another life."
"You didn't want the last one either, but here we are."
Silence stretched between them like a wound that wouldn't close.
Then the god's voice softened.
"Leo, I'm not offering you a reset. I'm offering you a rebirth—with choice. Three skills. A new world. No promises. No plot armor. Just potential."
Leo didn't answer for a long time.
Then slowly, he nodded.
"What are my options?"
---
Time shifted. Reality cracked. A screen unfolded before Leo, glowing with choices.
---
After what felt like an eternity—and yet only seconds—Leo pointed to the final selection.
"I've chosen."
"Let's see… Emotional Echo. Echo Link. And Soulmark Assimilation..."
The god whistled. "You really like feeling things, huh?"
Leo smirked. "That's all I ever did."
The god extended a hand of pure light.
"Then it's done. The contract is sealed."
"Your skills are bound to your soul. They will awaken in the new world. Say the command "Status window" to reveal your system."
Leo took a breath. One last glance at the void he came from.
Then:
"Status window."
---
[Status Window: Activated]
[Name]: Leo
[Race]: Human (Reincarnated)
[Blessing]: Rookie God's Divine Contract
[Skills Acquired]:
* Emotional Echo
* Echo Link
* Soulmark Assimilation
---
The void shattered.
Light poured in.
And Leo fell—into his new life.
Into the beginning of everything.