I Was Summoned to Die, so I’m Climbing the Pantheon for Revenge!

Location: Gallowmere Nation - The Border City of Riverbend

The wind howling outside the rustic, timber-framed inn of Riverbend sounded like a dying beast. But for Tatsuya, the true terror was not outside the window. It was entirely inside his own mind.

“Why?” The voice echoed through the pitch-black void of his nightmare. It was soft, trembling, and choked with blood.

Tatsuya stood completely paralyzed in the dark. A few feet in front of him, kneeling in a pool of expanding crimson, was Daiki. His best friend. His gaming partner. The boy whose chest had been entirely caved in by Tatsuya’s own uncontrollable, berserk magic during their first desperate battle in this world.

“I thought we were a team, Tatsuya,” Daiki whispered, slowly lifting his head. His eyes were milky, completely devoid of life, yet tears of thick black blood streamed down his pale cheeks. “Why did you kill me? Why?”

“I… I didn’t mean to,” Tatsuya choked out, stepping backward, his hands trembling violently. “I lost control! I didn’t know the magic would—I’m sorry! Daiki, I’m so sorry!”

“Sorry doesn’t bring me back!” Daiki’s voice suddenly warped, deepening into a guttural, demonic roar.

His friend’s flesh began to bubble and tear. Jagged bones erupted from Daiki's spine, tearing through his clothes as his jaw unhinged, stretching into a horrifying, multi-toothed maw. The dark, terrifying monster that used to be his best friend lunged forward, giant claws aimed directly at Tatsuya’s throat.

“I’LL KILL YOU BACK!”

Tatsuya shot up in bed, a strangled, hoarse scream tearing from his lungs.

He was drenched in cold sweat, his chest heaving violently as his panicked eyes darted around the room. He wasn't in the void. He was in his rented room in Riverbend, the moonlight filtering through the wooden shutters, casting long, peaceful shadows across the floorboards.

He was completely alone.

Tatsuya slumped against the cold stone wall beside his bed, burying his head deeply into his hands as a suffocating wave of despair washed over him. His chest ached with a profound, hollow guilt.

Sometimes, Tatsuya thought bitterly, his fingers digging into his scalp, I play dumb. I act like the loud, arrogant idiot because if I stop talking, if I stop acting like everything is a game… the reality crushes me. I killed him. I killed my best friend.

In the periphery of his vision, a translucent blue screen quietly materialized.

[System Notification]

Status Update: Ultimate Skill [Unstoppable Frenzy] has remained dormant for an extended duration.

External Influence: Holy Sealing Magic (Caster: Rina) is actively suppressing abyssal corruption.

Result: The extreme Intelligence (INT) debuff penalty is slowly decreasing.

Current INT: currently increasing

Tatsuya completely ignored the floating text, too consumed by his own grief to even notice his cognitive faculties were slowly repairing themselves.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Tatsuya flinched. He quickly scrubbed the tears from his eyes and took a deep, shuddering breath, violently shoving his trauma back into its mental box.

"Who is it?" he called out, forcing his voice to sound groggy but normal.

"It’s Rina," a soft voice replied through the thick oak door. "I bought something from the local market. A perfect present for our resident glutton. May I come in?"

"Yeah, hold on," Tatsuya said, slapping his own cheeks to force some color into them. He threw off the blankets, quickly crossed the room, and unlatched the door.

He immediately plastered on his signature, wide, arrogant grin. "A present? For me? Is it food? Because I am starving, Rina. You wouldn't believe..."

Tatsuya’s voice trailed off.

Rina stood in the doorway, holding a small paper bag of roasted nuts, but she wasn't smiling. Her sharp, observant eyes scanned Tatsuya’s face—noticing the pale complexion, the dark bags under his eyes, and the slight tremor in his hands. As a high-tier Healer, she didn't just read physical wounds; she read auras, heart rates, and breathing patterns. She knew him incredibly well.

"You're pretending," Rina said flatly, stepping into the room and closing the door behind her.

"What? No, I'm not!" Tatsuya laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. "I’m just hungry, you know how my metabolism is..."

"Tatsuya-kun. Stop," Rina interrupted, her voice entirely devoid of its usual scolding tone. It was incredibly gentle, which somehow made it worse. "You are still escaping from it. From Daiki."

Tatsuya’s fake smile shattered completely. His shoulders dropped, and the arrogant, loudmouthed Vanguard Hero vanished, leaving only a terrified, grieving teenage boy. He walked back to his bed and sat down heavily, staring at the floor.

"I dreamed about him," Tatsuya finally whispered, his voice cracking. "He was covered in blood. He asked me why I killed him. And then… he turned into a monster and tried to tear me apart. He hates me, Rina. And he should."

Rina sighed softly. she pulled up a wooden chair and sat directly across from him.

"That was a nightmare, Tatsuya. It was a manifestation of your own guilt, not Daiki's spirit," Rina said firmly. "Look at me."

Reluctantly, Tatsuya looked up.

"We all knew Daiki," Rina continued, her eyes locked with his. "He was the kindest person in our class. He was a pure gamer. If someone accidentally team-killed him in a raid, he would just laugh it off and queue up for the next match. He was more cheerful than everyone. Do you honestly believe that boy would ever hold a grudge?"

Tatsuya swallowed hard, fresh tears threatening to spill. "No."

"He wouldn't even think about revenge. If the thing in your dream wanted to hurt you, then it wasn't Daiki," Rina stated with absolute conviction. "You carry the weight of his death, and you should never forget him. But you cannot let that guilt rot your mind. Accept what happened, forgive yourself, and walk forward with hope. Because if you let yourself break here... Daiki’s sacrifice, and everything we are fighting for, means nothing."

Tatsuya stared at her, the suffocating weight in his chest finally beginning to ease. The monster in his mind retreated, replaced by the memory of Daiki’s genuine, dorky smile.

"Yeah," Tatsuya murmured, wiping his eyes with his sleeve. He gave Rina a small, fragile, but completely real smile. "Yeah. You're right."

Location: Sunderland Nation - Port City Triton, The Government Guest Mansion

While Tatsuya fought battles in his mind, Cain Ashford was fighting a completely different war: a bureaucratic one.

The Sunderland Government had not simply let the survivors of the Lady Seraphina wander into the city. Instead, they had escorted them to a massive, luxurious, steam-heated mansion overlooking the harbor. It was opulent, incredibly comfortable, and entirely heavily guarded. A gilded cage.

They had assumed they could immediately board a train to the capital city to hunt for clues about the Goddess Kamiya. They were painfully wrong.

In the center of the grand parlor, Commander Vance and three high-ranking military intelligence officers sat across from Sofia Vileblood. Cain—currently existing as the female attendant "Ashford"—stood silently behind Sofia's plush armchair, hands clasped, head bowed in perfect, demure servitude. Sebastian stood at the door, the picture of an impassive butler.

"So, Lady Vileblood," Commander Vance said, tapping his pen against a leather-bound notebook. "You claim the Lady Seraphina was blown far south by the Equinox Storm. You crashed on an uncharted island—which you assert was not the Outland Dungeon—and survived there for three years?"

"That is correct, Commander," Sofia replied smoothly, sipping her Earl Grey tea. Her poise was flawless, her aristocratic aura radiating an entirely natural, unbothered grace. "The island was devoid of human life, but rich in natural springs and docile wildlife."

"And the steamship?" an intelligence officer narrowed his eyes. "How did three civilians repair a cast-iron boiler and navigate back without a certified engineer?"

"We did not repair it overnight, sir," Sebastian interjected smoothly from the door, his tone entirely respectful. "It took years of painstakingly salvaging parts from the wreck. And as for navigation, the stars guided us, alongside the sheer, merciful grace of the Goddess."

The officers exchanged glances. The story was wild, highly improbable, but utterly devoid of magical contradictions. Every time they probed for a lie, Sofia or Sebastian offered a perfectly logical, smooth deflection.

Commander Vance finally sighed, closing his notebook. "It seems your survival is nothing short of a divine miracle, Lady Vileblood. We have concluded our audit. The state will officially recognize your return, and your family's seized assets in the capital will be unfrozen pending a tribunal."

"You are too kind, Commander," Sofia smiled perfectly.

Vance stood up, bowing deeply. The officers followed suit, exiting the grand parlor. The heavy mahogany doors clicked shut, followed by the distinct sound of the outer locks engaging.

The moment the lock clicked, Cain instantly let out a long, exhausted groan.

He unclasped his collar. A faint ripple of dark, abyssal mana washed over him. The long, midnight-black hair retracted, his delicate features hardened, and the female form dissolved back into his original, sharp, male appearance. He threw himself onto a nearby velvet sofa, loosening his tie.

"I cannot do this anymore," Cain groaned, staring at the intricate chandelier. "My face hurts from pretending to look innocent."

Sofia set her teacup down, a deeply amused, wicked smile spreading across her face. "I don't know, Cain. I thought the dress suited you. You make a remarkably beautiful woman. Perhaps you should keep it."

"Not a chance," Cain scoffed, glaring at her. "How long am I going to have to use this ridiculous form?"

<Host,> Nova’s crisp, mechanical voice chimed directly into his auditory cortex. <According to current tactical projections and stealth requirements, you will need to utilize the [Morphological Template: Female] for an unlimited duration. At least until we secure a direct audience with the Goddess Kamiya and dismantle the Church's intelligence network.>

"I hate you, Nova," Cain muttered.

"Complaints aside, Captain, we have a strategic issue," Sebastian said, stepping away from the door. His demonic eyes briefly flashed purple. "We are currently under mild house arrest while the bureaucracy processes our arrival. We cannot travel to the capital immediately."

"Then we work locally," Cain said, sitting up, his golden-ringed eyes sharpening with cold logic. "Port Triton is a massive hub. There must be high-ranking nobles, Cardinals, or Church officials operating here. We need to investigate who knows about the Goddess's true history and the fragments hidden across the continent."

"A sound strategy," Sofia agreed, crossing her legs. "We establish a foothold here. We attend their galas, their church sermons, and their private auctions. We smile, we gather information, and we find the strings Vane spoke of."

Cain sighed heavily, looking down at his suit. He knew exactly what that meant. To blend in as the silent, unthreatening attendant to the beautiful Lady Vileblood, he couldn't walk into high society as a boy.

"Fine," Cain muttered, resigning himself to his fate. "But if one more noble tries to flirt with me, I am feeding them to Sebastian."

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