The magnificent stranger stood anchored in the center of the cracked floor, prompting Koma to stand up as a wave of unease washed over him. He stared directly at her, evaluating her presence before breaking the silence.
"Who are you and where did you come from?" Koma demanded.
The woman didn't answer him with words. Instead, she simply raised a single hand, unleashing a crushing pressure that instantly forced Koma to his knees as the stone floor cracked violently beneath his heavy weight.
"Show respect, human," the woman said, her voice echoing through the space. "You are in the presence of a celestial god."
Koma spat a glob of blood onto the floor, forcing a smirk onto his face even as his bones groaned under the immense strain.
"How are you a god when I'm a god?" Koma asked.
The woman laughed, and the sound was like glass breaking in a cathedral.
"Boy, you're not even close to becoming a god," she countered. "Now be quiet and let Queen Solari speak."
Koma narrowed his eyes, his mind racing as he evaluated her power and tried to calculate his chances.
"So you are a god named Solari. Interesting," Koma muttered.
"Don't speak internally either," she snapped, stepping closer to him. "I can hear your thoughts, boy. I originally had interest in your brother, the brute who wields the Eye of Storms. But this interaction is intriguing to me. You will do."
"Eye of storms?" Koma questioned.
Her expression became stern as she looked down at him.
"Why are you evil and what do you want?" Solari asked.
"I am not evil," Koma replied, his voice strained heavily under her pressure. "I just have certain ideologies. I want to be a god this whole world fears. Someone people pray to for forgiveness and plead for me to not strike them down. I believe I am the strongest being on this earth."
Solari shook her head with pity.
"No, you are not," Solari stated. "I count merely twelve other beings on par with your strength or more powerful than you."
She took a brief pause to look over Koma's lean but muscular frame, her eyes cutting through his aura before asking her next question.
"You killed your father, no?" Solari asked.
Koma's eyes went cold.
"So what if I did?" Koma stated. "He was weak and useless to my cause."
"Intriguing," Solari murmured. "I'll grant you three wishes now tell me what you want and I'll personally see to it."
"Three wishes?" Koma countered. "I'm not weak. I don't need your wishes."
"I did not ask if you were weak, boy," Solari stated firmly. "Now tell me what you want, and I will handle it."
Koma growled as his Yen began to flicker angrily against the constraints of the room.
"Fine," Koma spat. "My first wish. Engrave rankings on me and all my siblings from weakest to strongest."
"That is a weird wish," Solari said. "But it is done."
The change was instantaneous. Across the world, the Speedhardt siblings felt a searing agony rip through their skin. At the estate ruins, Kota suddenly gasped, his posture collapsing by the campfire. He wore no shirt beneath his loose cape, which caused the fabric to slip past his shoulders as a brutal heat erupted on his chest.
The flesh on his chest began to smoke, blistering and blackening as invisible celestial lines carved deep into his skin. He gripped his ribs, his teeth grinding together in pure agony as the numbers forced their way into his anatomy.
Leiya immediately rushed forward, her eyes wide with panic.
"Kota, what's wrong?" Leiya asked.
Mira scrambled over right behind her, leaning in close to look at his exposed skin.
"Something's being drawn on him!" Mira shouted.
The smoke finally cleared to reveal a permanent, glowing brand etched right onto his chest. It was the number four.
Back in Koma's chambers, Koma clutched his throat as the burning sensation settled.
"Where did you place mine?" Koma gasped.
"On your neck below your ear," Solari replied smoothly. "It is the number one."
"And what about my brat sibling?" Koma asked, his jaw tightening. "The youngest sibling named Kota?"
"He has four on his chest," Solari answered.
Koma froze, his blood running cold at her words."Four?" Koma asked. "There is no way that boy's strength is fourth."
"Kana is eight," Solari spoke the names like a death toll. "Kaola is seven. Koa is six. Lokee is five. Kota is four. Hykee is three only because he wields the Eye. Kova is two, and you are one. Now make your second wish."
"Tell me who the strongest people in this world are," Koma commanded.
"I will only tell you a few things," Solari countered. "Two of your siblings have the potential to overpower you at any moment given opportunities and there is a god made by my colleagues named Vesperos in a place called the Onyx District. He is a twin, meaning his power is absolute."
"A twin?" Koma asked. "Where is his twin?"
"Dead," Solari said. "He is a three eyed horseman."
"Horseman?" Koma spat. "That thing has a twin?"
Solari tilted her head and mocked him with a look.
"Was that all your second wish consisted of?" Solari asked. "Asking who is stronger than you?"
"Yes," Koma growled.
"My last wish is for you to make me immortal." Solari's smile vanished instantly.
"I cannot do that," Solari stated. "I cannot give you something you essentially already have."
Koma's heart skipped a beat, the heavy silence of the room becoming completely deafening.
"I already have it?" Koma asked.
"I cannot give more information regarding that," Solari stated, her eyes gleaming.
"Very well," Koma growled, his aura flaring angrily as he pushed against her atmospheric weight.
"My final wish is simple. Make it so my strength never stops growing. I want to adapt to any threat and grow stronger through every battle I fight. Amplify everything I am right now and set me on the path to becoming a celestial god. Also tell me where to find those twelve beings."
Solari reached out and touched his forehead with a finger that felt like a branding iron.
"You want a path to the heavens built on the corpses of your enemies," Solari said. "Very well. I will grant this. You will only adapt and ascend through the fires of conflict. Every blow you survive and every life you take will fuel your evolution. As for the twelve, I will only give you four."
The light around her began to pulse with a violent rhythm as her physical form started to fade from the realm.
"Vesperos is in the Onyx District," Solari's voice echoed through the expanding glare. "The second is a monk in the Whispering Canyons. The third sleeps beneath the Frozen Tundra of the North. The fourth is closer than you think, hiding in the capital of this very kingdom. Never forget this day, boy. You will owe me."
The light swallowed her whole, and she was gone. Koma stood completely alone in the dark room, his fists clenched tightly as his Yen vibrated with a new, terrifying potential.