The portal pulsed like molten glass, its swirling core straining at my senses as if it would tear my very soul apart. I walked through nonetheless, The sensation was always the same. Light tearing, sound distorting, gravity reversing and then… quiet.
A breath later, my boots crashed onto stone. Solid, cold, real.
I looked up.
The Haven Cluster.
The air was pure here, almost painfully so after the miasma-filled skies of my home world. The streets were lined with pale stone buildings, banners streaming with the crest of a human empire called the Sun Empire.
I glanced back over my shoulder. The portal sizzled and vanished, shutting off my route back. It was typical, naturally, that the thing had decided on my arrival point according to my current rank. No control and choice. If I was going to be traveling from world to world, I'd be battling against that limitation every time. Convenient, isn't it?
At least the other-worlder here would be mostly from my home world's region where I live . That gave us… communication. No longer solitude because of poisonous skies. The Haven Cluster made it possible for our people to meet, trade, and share information at least on paper.
My daydream ended when the air trembled.
There was a silent tension that washed over the city, as though the heavens themselves held their breath in anticipation. The very next moment, words seared themselves across my vision in blazing gold.
[An Unregistered Being entered the Haven Cluster]
[A Fallen Deity has entered]
[All Rules and Regulations couldn't be imposed upon him]
[The Haven Cluster has decided to bless you, the fallen deity]
And just like that… I knew.
Everyone knew.
This was not a local transmission. This was not a city-wide alert. The idiot system had bellowed it out to the entire damn world. Somewhere, people in distant mountains, dark woods, frozen wastelands. They all just stopped whatever they were doing and looked up, wondering what the hell had just fallen from the sky.
The good news? They didn't know who.
The bad news? They didn't know who.
Which meant rumors. And rumors have a way of sniffing out the truth if you're not careful.
The golden letters faded, replaced by a smooth, crisp chime. A tug at my consciousness, like invisible fingers rifling through my soul. Then,
[World System of Haven Cluster has integrated with your Soul Page]
I hadn't even had the chance to assent. Classic, My vision blurred again, and I saw the updated Soul Page in my mind's eye.
...…..
SOUL PAGE Holder: Lucifer Ashenford
Race: ??? (Masked: Half-Elf Registered)
Age: Classified
Rank: Initiate
Path: Magus
Combat Affinity: Necromancy
Combat Class Skills:
[Soul Grasp] (lv.2)— Drain soul fragments from the recently dead.
[Bone Stitch] (lv.2)— Infuse life into low-quality skeletal objects.
[Grave Whisper] (lv.2)— Speak to lost souls in proximity.
Passive Ability:
[Undead Reservoir] (lv.2)— Stores 50 undead in per level
Undead Controlled: 700/1000
Magical Core: Stable — Mid Initiate
Energy Mastery: High-Initiate
Scan: Available with Condition [Updated (Can identify anything known to the world consciousness)
[Communicate]
[Messages]
Title: Fallen Deity, Sainik of the Western Field Army
.....
I stared at the title for a long time.
[Fallen Deity].
That kind of title… I didn't know whether to laugh or sharpen my sword. Titles meant something here; real, metaphysical meaning. They dictated how the rules of the world behaved around you, how monsters reacted, how humans felt in your presence. An average man with this title could scare a veteran knight just by walking past him. But for me… it was a shield and a target.
I could already imagine the rumors starting in taverns:
"Did you hear? A Fallen Deity just fell."
"They say he's exempt from the laws."
"What kind of monster would that be?"
The problem was, I am that monster. And they don't know it yet.
Good, let's keep it that way.
I stepped into the crowd. People glanced my way, but their eyes slid off as if I was any other traveler from the portal. Nobody here could connect the proclamation with the man in an anonymous dark jacket and a sword at his hip. The system could be powerful, but it wasn't in the habit of reporting names.
However, the Soul Page's new features were… interesting. The Elysium Cluster didn't just log stats and abilities; it connected people's Soul Pages to each other. Friends lists. Private messages. Trade channels. It was like somebody had taken the concept of a grimoire and merged it with a global network.
That meant I could find people instantly, even across cities. I could coordinate with allies. Or… I could be found.
I'd have to be careful with that one.
My boots rang out on the cobblestones as I continued into the city. The air here was alive. Street merchants shouting over each other, guards in silver-plated armor marching in sharp formation, magus apprentices dashing between shops with glowing scrolls.
Yet beneath the noise, I could feel it—the murmur of unease the announcement had caused. It was there in the way a guard's eyes kept darting towards the portal plaza, the manner traders stopped mid-transaction to glance upwards. They would not know it was me, but they knew something dangerous had come into their world.
I smiled to myself slightly.
The Fallen Deity had arrived. And if I played my cards right, they'd never see me coming until it was too late.