The man stared at Charon wordlessly for a few seconds, clearly not expecting his reaction.
"Most people usually feel more dread at going to an active battlefield."
Charon just shrugged.
"Sure, but most people aren't orphans. As far as I can tell, this is my best chance to make a better life for myself. As an officer, my odds are better than most, so I will make the best of it. Maybe I'll get lucky and earn a good ability at the same time."
The priest gave a single breathy laugh.
"Well, the Death Sect will certainly find your battle spirit attractive. They will be pleased to know your reaction."
"Who are you, anyway?"
"Ah, my apologies. I am High Priest of Death Evandor Liandus. I lead the Church of Death for this sector, and commune directly with the Archcleric back on Earth."
Charon raised an eyebrow, thinking the man might be a little more crazy than he initially assumed.
"We are on Earth, so you just commune with someone near the capital?"
Silence reigned after Charon's question, ending only when Evander took a deep breath, placing his hands on his hips.
"Oh boy, they didn't tell you?"
Charon cocked his head to the side.
"Tell me what?"
"You aren't on Earth anymore. While you were in the trial, your body was moved via a teleporter to Avar, the planet where Creed is located."
Charon's head snapped back, color leaving his face.
"Avar's on Earth though, right? I always thought it was on Earth!"
The look of desperation on his face was enough to cause the High Priest to shiver.
"No, it's not. It was one of the first human cities on Avar, and lived in relative peace until the Elvish Realms broke our treaty and invaded it. Losing Creed means losing a key bastion to access the resources on Avar, a loss we can't afford."
Charon lost the ability to speak as he coped with the new information.
He knew humanity had multiple colonies across the stars, connected by the teleportation gates the Church of Space maintained, but he had never considered visiting them.
Creed was supposed to be a local city attacked by some random army, whether it be other humans or one of the myriad other races that inhabited the stars.
Learning the war was actually on another planet was more than a little jarring.
'I've actually left Earth. My home is not miles away, but light years!'
He took a few calming breaths, hoping to think it over while the High Priest looked on.
'Does it really change anything? I can always return after the war. It's just a teleportation away, after all. It's not like the orphanage was much of a home anyway.'
Remembering how often he got punished, Charon warmed up the idea of leaving it all behind.
'This is another step in the right direction. I'll have the chance to make a new life for myself, meet new people, and grow in a way the orphanage wouldn't let me.'
Much like being Trial-Born, he quickly came to the conclusion it didn't change things to any meaningful extent.
What did it matter if he was fighting on another planet? It was still for humanity, and he could still go back to Earth.
'Now I can add Avar to my list of travel destinations. And I'm fighting elves, that has to be pretty cool, right?'
Charon knew of the elves, they were one of the most populous races after all.
Humanity had made contact with them millennia ago, and they had often varied between enemies and allies.
Almost every book he read mentioned them in some regard. Elves had aided human research, taught them new ways of mastering magic, and even helped train many great heroes.
Although they were physically weaker than humans, they were more agile, and held a stronger connection with the God of Life and the God of Weather.
They were also ferocious in war, wielding strange mixtures of magic and technology to devastating effectiveness.
'I've always wanted to meet one. This counts, kind of!'
It was a bit of a morbid thought, but Charon would take his humor wherever he could find it.
"You really do take life-changing news well. I'll keep that in mind for the future, you like the band-aid ripped off fast."
Realizing he had been smiling his a fool, Charon sheepishly scratched the back of his head.
"You learn to take things as they come when you don't know if you'll be eating every night."
"I suppose that's true. Now, back to business. You will be shipped out of here starting tomorrow morning. Once you've arrived at the main army camp, you'll be debriefed and assigned to a unit. You'll then train with them until your first mission. This pattern will repeat till Creed falls."
The man paused for dramatic effect.
"Or until you die. Either way, your focus should be on learning your abilities and trying to earn new ones."
The man leaned forward, resting his gloved hands on the bedframe.
"I will warn you now, Creed is a dangerous city. We have already sent millions in to fight for it, and are still forced to conscript more. If not for the strategic value it holds, we would've been looking at a planetary revolt. Do not waste anything there. Not food, not weapons, and certainly not men."
A chill crept up his spine, and the room cooled by a few degrees.
"You will be an officer. Despite your age, you will have soldiers depending on you. If you fail them, you will quickly be replaced, and your new position will be less accommodating."
The High Priest stood back up, the room heating back up with the motion.
"During your combat engagements, take the chance to earn a relic. Having one could be beneficial for you, and your men, which I'm sure they will appreciate."
Charon suddenly felt Evander's eyes roaming his thin figure.
"A few relics, actually. A suit of armor, a few weapons, and some charms will make your life easier, but that's up to Death to grant you."
Unlike the many other things he didn't know, Charon knew all about relics.
The Mistress had a book on them, and in his spare time, he had read it, bored half to death by the lack of entertainment.
What he remembered was that when you did something of importance, a god could grant you an ability, which was the most sought-after. However, if you did something interesting but not quite as impressive, they would give you a relic, which could take a variety of forms.
Generally, they were items with special effects. Some were useful, others less so, but everyone considered them a necessity as a mage. He knew they came in ranks, but didn't know what those were, only that mythic had to be one as his artifact was that rank.
One of the more interesting things about relics was that any god could grant one, even if they were not connected to your element.
'I already have one artifact, and it's of the mythic rank. If I manage to figure out what it does, earning more should be a breeze!'
His thoughts turned greedy as he envisioned himself earning a mountain of relics, having the best items at his disposal to solve any problem.
'I certainly wouldn't mind having options!'
Evander Liandus watched him quizically, unaware of the thoughts inside Charon's head.
"If your first few missions go well, I recommend you apply for a promotion. As a lieutenant, you will be limited in your level of command, so rising a few pegs should be one of your objectives. It would also be a good look in the eyes of the church."
Charon leveled his gaze at the man, honing in on a point he kept making.
"Why do you keep mentioning the church? What if I go my own way and ignore it? You weren't there when I was younger, why should you be there now?"
The chill returned, this time far more potent. Goosebumps ran up Charon's skin as his breath turned visible. The fluorescent lights dimmed, fleeing the release of magical potency.
"You may not realize it yet, but you are being watched by the God of Death. That means you represent him whether you want to or not. That impacts the church, and out of the two of us, only one has the power to enforce its will on the other.
With a stiff gesture, Evander withdrew a black envelope from his robe, taking care not to damage the seal as he passed it to Charon, the youth frozen in place.
"It's your official orders to be given to the general of the camp. It will tell him who you are, what rank you were granted, and your purpose there. He will then pick what unit you should join and relay future orders through the other officers there. Take care to keep the seal intact. If it's damaged, you may be questioned."
Charon took it and studied it, learning nothing from its exterior.
'I wonder what else it says, beyond I'm now a servant to the Church of Death?'
Although Evander had just explained it, Charon didn't believe for a minute there wasn't more involved, especially after that grim warning.
'There's always other stuff involved when it comes to politics.'
"Now for the fun part. While you were asleep, we decided to undergo the System Surgery, implanting the item just above your heart. Please activate it."
Surprised, Charon shot him a dirty look.
"You operated on me when I was asleep?"
No response came, but Charon thought he saw a smirk within the impenetrable darkness.
'Yeah, all priests are pricks.'