Life After Death: The Strength Of Suffering

Life never worked out the way I wanted it to. That much became painfully obvious when I died.

I wasn't originally from this world filled with a different type of supernatural. No, the world I came from was vastly advanced in both magic and technology. 'Then again, I shouldn't compare two entirely different eras so much.'

All of my previous abilities weren't completely gone. Instead, they had somehow transformed into something called "Cursed Energy." It was eerily similar to the magic I once possessed, yet fundamentally different. From what I'd seen and sensed over the past two years, most people had cursed energy but couldn't use it. Those who could were either born into Sorcerer Clans and taught, or were cases where geniuses figured out how to use it. 'That or they just torture someone who knows how to use it.'

The people who could utilize cursed energy were called Sorcerers. Their primary job was to exorcise entities known as Cursed Spirits, or just Curses as Sorcerers called them.

I stopped walking as my senses flared. In a fraction of a second, I turned and blocked an attack from the same abnormal kid who had ambushed me not too long ago.

"Die!"

He screamed, raising his left arms, the ones I had healed after the sixth time he'd attacked me. I felt a shift in his cursed energy and raised my hand preemptively.

"Di—Agh!"

I cut him off with a swift karate chop to the head.

The boy collapsed to the ground groaning, but quickly got back up and started running after me.

"Kid, when are you going to give up?" I tilted my head slightly as one of his punches flew past me. He used the momentum to spin into a back kick aimed at my face.

I caught his ankle mid air without breaking stride, causing him to crash to the ground.

"You're strong!" he shouted, scrambling to his feet and launching another barrage of attacks, this time without using cursed energy.

I snorted, easily sidestepping his strikes. "I've killed countless second rate Sorcerers, so I know you're different!"

I sighed while bending slightly to pick up a rock. As I did, he tried to hit my head with another kick, missing entirely and flying over me. I straightened back up and watched as he gritted his teeth, his cursed energy surging around him.

"I don't know what you're talking about, kid." I said nonchalantly, deflecting a new flurry of punches.

"Bullshit! I saw what you did to that camp of soldiers, and to the returning ones too!"

I deadpanned at him. "Kid, any Sorcerer worth anything could do that." And it was true. The soldiers who had returned were barely thirty men strong.

"T-Then what about the fact you're the Leader of the Eastern Bandits?" he shouted, lunging at me again.

I grabbed his knee mid strike, halting his attack entirely. "Never heard of that title before."

He opened his mouth to argue, but we both froze at the sound of galloping hooves. Turning my head, I saw one of my men riding toward me on horseback.

"B-Boss! Bad news!"

I raised an eyebrow glancing down at the kid who now wore a smug expression. He didn't get to enjoy it for long as I yanked his leg, sending him crashing to the ground. 

The rider dismounted and bowed before me, sweat dripping from his brow from both the heat and my lingering aura.

"So." I said. "what's so bad that you had to come to me? You know I like being left alone."

The man bowed lower, his voice steady despite his trembling frame. "Seventeen Sorcerers are approaching the hideout. They're most likely hired by the clan that paid for your assistance."

I tilted my head at him. "Do we know their agenda? Are they a threat?"

He hesitated for a moment, then shook his head. I sighed, raising my hand.

"The thing I hate most is someone who doesn't do their job properly. You know the punishment for that, don't you?"

His eyes widened in fear but before he could respond, his head was severed cleanly from his shoulders.

I glanced down at the lifeless body before turning my attention to the horse. "Filthy monkey." I muttered.

Just as I climbed into the saddle I felt a tug on my foot. Looking down, I saw the kid grinning up at me.

"I'll prove it to you!" he declared, his voice filled with determination.

I tilted my head, curious. "Prove what?"

"That you're different! That you're stronger than those second rate Sorcerers, and that we should fight!"

I sighed, his smile faltering just slightly. After a moment of consideration, I gave a small nod.

He let go of my foot, climbed onto the horse behind me, and settled in.

"Kid." I said, kicking the horse into motion. "just make sure you're quiet while we ride."

I didn't get a response, which was good enough for me.

'They better have my money.'

~Scene Change~

There were two things I still liked after coming to this world.

One was money, I just loved the way it sounded.

The second was gambling. The risks, the stakes, the thrill! it was like a fight in itself.

But there were plenty of things I hated. Right now, I was dealing with one of them.

"The East's Bandit Leader! You have been charged with murder, thievery, arson—"

I sat on my chair head resting on my hand as the speaker rattled off a list of accusations. His voice droned on grating against my patience. The kid, who I still hadn't bothered to ask the name of had wandered off somewhere the moment he realized the sorcerers showing up weren't even worth his time.

I let out a loud exaggerated yawn, cutting the speaker off mid sentence. He shot me a glare, but I didn't care. I inspected my free hand idly as if his words were less interesting than the dirt under my nails.

"Do you actually think I'm going to receive any punishments?" I asked, voice laced with boredom. "That you lot can actually do anything to me?"

I leaned back, my eyes narrowing slightly. 'I wonder how much money that clan leader wasted hiring these guys.'

Standing up, I stretched feeling the satisfying pops in my joints. The shorter man before me looked furious, his face flushed with anger.

"H-how dare you?!" he sputtered. "Do you even know who we are?!"

I raised an eyebrow, amused. "Not a fucking clue."

The shift in their cursed energy was almost comical, an amateur attempt at intimidation. I released my own cursed energy in response, letting it pour over them like a crushing wave. They buckled immediately, dropping to their knees.

Off in the distance, I felt the kid's cursed energy stirring, responding to mine. He was making his way back toward the building. 'probably wanting to fight.'

I squatted in front of the speaker, placing a hand lightly on his head. His body tensed under my touch.

"Here's what's going to happen." I said, voice calm but carrying an edge. "You're going to leave everything you own, and I do mean everything." I pressed down slightly, just enough to make him groan in pain. "Then, you'll go back to that idiot who calls himself a clan leader and tell him to have the money he owes me ready."

I leaned closer, lowering my voice to a whisper.

"And if he doesn't…" My lips curled into a smirk. "I'll make him watch while I go at it with his wife, surrounded by the corpses of his clan. Got it?"

Retracting my cursed energy, I watched them scramble to agree, nodding frantically.

"U-understood!"

Satisfied, I straightened up and walked toward the door. Outside, the kid was just arriving his cursed energy a wild unrefined beacon.

'Now.' I thought, glancing at him as he approached. 'What to do with him? Should I kill him… or sell him?'