Guild "Blazing Lion" – City of Pyron

  The heavy oak doors of the guild creaked, letting in another group of adventurers—noisy, reeking of gunpowder, blood, and road dust. The air was thick with a mixture of scents—roasted meat, hops, sweat, and metal. Somewhere in a corner, someone was loudly arguing about a reward, behind the bar the bartender was wiping glasses, and new notes kept appearing on the job board.

  But Hiro didn’t notice any of that.

  He sat in the farthest corner, at a table with a nearly empty wine mug. His fingers slowly traced the rim of the cup. The wine—tart, with a slight bitterness—helped him concentrate.

  "If you learn to control chaos, you can do almost anything..."

  The words of the God of the Void echoed in his mind, like a voice from another world.

  Chaos.

  Not just magic, not just spells. Something greater. Something that permeated the world itself but remained unseen by most. Curses, auras, the very fabric of reality.

  "You can alter curses... cast spells above the seventh tier... even after death..."

  He gripped the mug tighter.

  "Hey, mind if I sit?"

  A voice pulled him out of his thoughts.

  A man stood in front of him—tall, well-built, with chestnut hair tied in a messy ponytail. His green eyes held a faint smirk, and a scar ran from his brow to his cheek. A long sword hung at his side, housed in simple but clearly high-quality scabbards.

  He held two mugs.

  "Please," Hiro nodded.

  The man sat down across from him, sliding one of the mugs toward Hiro. Wine. The swordsman’s mug held beer.

  "Figured you’re a wine lover. So I got you this, enjoy."

  "Thanks."

  "My name's Katsu. And you?"

  "Hiro."

  "Hiro, huh." Katsu took a sip, studying him. "What do you do?"

  "Adventurer. A-rank."

  "Got a nickname?"

  Hiro glanced at the mug, then looked up.

  "The God of the Void."

  Katsu froze, then burst out laughing.

  "No way! That’s you?!" He slammed his fist on the table, causing nearby adventurers to glance over. "Rumor has it you soloed the Black Blades gang! And a year ago, entered one of the hardest dungeons. And you're so young! You're like twelve?"

  Hiro shrugged.

  "Thanks. Yeah, I’m twelve. And you, sir?"

  "A-rank too." Katsu leaned back in his chair. "I’m a swordsman and a student of one of the strongest."

  He didn’t say who exactly, but from the way he said it, the name meant something.

  "I'm assembling a team," Katsu continued, lowering his voice. "After that cursed 'Teleportation Calamity', thousands went missing. They could be anywhere—lost in forests, dungeons, maybe even with bandits. We need strong adventurers to find and save them."

  The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  Hiro listened, slowly sipping his wine.

  And then—he saw Him.

  The God of the Void in the Guild

  Moving between the tables, as if slipping through the crowd like a ghost, the God of the Void walked.

  His body—transparent, like glass distorting light—was unseen by anyone but Hiro.

  They’d discussed his nature before.

  "Can you pick things up?" Hiro once asked.

  In response, the God of the Void reached for Hiro’s mug—and copied it.

  One remained on the table.

  The other—phantom, translucent—was now in his hand.

  And now...

  The God of the Void approached a mage girl sitting about five meters away, animatedly talking to her companions.

  He paused.

  Then—suddenly swiped his hand across her chest.

  And...

  Pulled out a ghostly bra.

  Hiro choked.

  Wine went down the wrong pipe, and he started coughing.

  Katsu frowned.

  "Understand, these people are in danger," he said seriously, apparently thinking Hiro’s reaction was about his proposal. "We, the strong, must help them."

  Hiro, coughing, waved him off.

  "O-of course, I’ll help," he croaked, still coughing. "But I doubt I can save anyone directly. Though I can gather intel, rescue someone from bandits—that I can do."

  Katsu smiled.

  "That’s enough."

  He stood up, extended his hand.

  "All the info will be sent to your guild room. Agreed?"

  Hiro nodded, shaking his hand.

  Katsu turned and disappeared into the guild’s noisy crowd.

  Hiro looked again toward the God of the Void.

  He now stood by the wall, twirling the ethereal bra between his fingers, then tossed it into the air, where it turned to mist.

  And he smirked.

  Hiro sighed.

  "What is he doing..."

  "I need more wine."

  The Story of Katsu: From Street Rat to Hero

  Childhood in the Alleys of Pyron

  The city of Pyron didn’t spare the poor. In the slums, where roofs barely held back the rain and the air reeked of rot, lived a boy with chestnut hair and overly lively green eyes.

  "Empty-handed again?" his father rasped, gripping an empty bottle.

  "No, Dad. Got lucky today," Katsu smirked, pulling out a hunk of bread and a stinky piece of cheese from under his shirt.

  He was ten, and he already knew—honesty doesn’t feed a family.

  Caught Red-Handed

  At fourteen, he was finally caught.

  "You again, you rat?" a guard growled, grabbing his throat.

  "I didn’t steal anything!" Katsu lied, though a merchant’s coin pouch was in his pocket.

  Then the captain of the guard appeared—an old warrior with a scarred face.

  "You caught him?"

  "Yeah, sir. Slippery and strong—took effort."

  "I’ll take him. He’s a born swordsman. We’re short on those."

  Katsu wasn’t thrown in jail. Instead, he was given a choice: rot in a cell, or go to the Lands of the Sword—a harsh warrior training ground.

  Lands of the Sword

  Cold. Stone. Endless drills.

  "You hold a sword like an old lady with a broom!" the trainer yelled, knocking Katsu down.

  "And you yell like my grandma!" Katsu snapped, wiping blood from his lip.

  Nearby, a tall boy with dark hair and cold gray eyes laughed.

  "You're either brave or an idiot."

  "Who are you?"

  "Raiden. And if you keep mouthing off—you won’t survive."

  Katsu smirked. "We’ll see."

  How Katsu Got His Scar

  One day during a sparring session, Raiden misjudged a blow.

  "Damn!" Raiden rushed over, seeing the blood.

  "It’s just a scratch!" Katsu scoffed, though his sleeve was soaked red.

  The scar remained for life—from brow to cheek.

  "Now you look like a real bandit," Raiden joked.

  "Chicks dig it," Katsu shot back.

  Raiden was the serious one. Katsu—the joker.

  "Raiden, catch!" Katsu tossed him a ‘precious gem.’

  "This… is just a rock."

  "But you checked!" Katsu rolled on the ground laughing.

  Or:

  "Hey Raiden, if you're so smart, why are you still single?"

  "Because not everyone can handle idiots."

  "Oh, please! You’re just scared of girls!"

  Adventurers

  After graduation, Katsu and Raiden became adventurers.

  "We’ll be rich!" Raiden laughed, swinging his sword.

  "And famous!" Katsu echoed.

  They took quests, fought monsters, drank in taverns.

  Then… Katsu met her.

  Love

  "Who are you?!" shouted a mage girl when he accidentally bumped into her at the guild.

  "Katsu! You?"

  "Lina."

  She was fiery, hot-headed, but when she laughed—the world warmed.

  "You’re in love," Raiden noted.

  "Shut up."

  A year later, they were married.

  "Dad!" little Mia ran to him, tripping over her feet.

  "Careful!" Katsu caught her in his arms.

  He started going on fewer dungeon runs. Instead, he worked with the guard or soloed safe missions.

  One day, the two old friends met again.

  "I can’t take dangerous jobs anymore. Thinking of quitting adventuring," Katsu said.

  "Why?"

  "I have a family. I don’t want to die to some random monster."

  Raiden was silent, then nodded.

  "I understand. Then goodbye, my friend."

  They parted ways. Raiden went to far lands seeking glory. Katsu stayed in Pyron.

  The Day of Calamity

  The sun stood at its peak when the sky tore open.

  A pillar of light struck from the west, blinding all. People screamed in terror, but the light quickly vanished.

  Guild Notices

  A week later, the guild was covered in posters:

  "Missing husband…"

  "Looking for son…"

  "Where is my sister?"

  Katsu silently stared at them, fists clenched.

  Then…

  A girl in a torn dress sobbed at the counter:

  "I somehow ended up here… but my daughter… she was there… or gone… I don’t know, please help!"

  Katsu couldn’t bear it anymore and walked up to her.

  "I’ll find her."

  A New Path

  From then on, he started helping.

  He built teams, searched for the missing, smashed slavers.

  Temple of Oblivion: Zodrik Appears

  Shadows from the tall temple columns fell across the heads of the rushing messengers. The air buzzed with anxiety—people ran between stelae, shouting, some frantically flipping through old scrolls.

  Zodrik entered without a sound, yet his presence was felt immediately—heavy as a thundercloud. His red eyes drifted over the main stone slab, where the names of the Strongest burned.

  11th name.

  "God of the Void."

  "Interesting..." he whispered, as a hooded messenger nervously rushed up to him.

  "D-demon King…" the man stammered, instinctively stepping back.

  "What’s going on here?" Zodrik asked, ignoring the fear.

  "We’re searching for the eleventh! For thousands of years, the slab hasn’t shown a new name. He must receive the title and S-rank, meet the other Strongest, but… he’s nowhere to be found!"

  "What do you mean?"

  "We checked every guild! No one knows the 'God of the Void'!"

  Zodrik smirked to himself.

  "Of course they don’t. Hiro’s not even registered yet."

  But aloud, he only said:

  "I need the Book of the World."

  The messenger hesitated, then nodded.

  "Alright… Here’s a copy."

  He handed over a thick tome in a dark cover. Zodrik tucked it under his arm and turned toward the exit.

  Road to the Demon Continent

  Dark clouds swirled overhead as Zodrik walked the barren road. The Book of the World weighed on his thoughts.

  "So I was right..." he murmured, flipping through its pages.

  Among the legends, prophecies, and disasters, there had to be something about the Strongest, and about a man made of chaos. He’d read it before bed.

  "Muahahahaha!" Zodrik suddenly laughed.