Chapter 2

The shocked reaper collects his thoughts back and tries to concentrate towards the anomaly standing in front of him. “For a mortal to have this many points, even Lucifer would frown seeing this. Yet a mere mortal could achieve this?” The reaper mumbled.

“What NG+ are you?” The reaper asked in a shocked expression.

“NG+6” Sikandar replied while paying most of his attention on piecing together his body parts that were detached during explosion.

“haha haha, To think a mere human would achieve transcendence six times” The Reaper giggled.

“And still remain a human?” he added hesitatingly with a grim expression.

“Yeah, it’s all about points you earn throughout your life.” Sikandar shared this info assuming a reaper would obviously know about these stuffs. It wasn’t his first death and he had dealt with reapers in the past.

The only problem was, it was his first unnatural death. Sikandar had always allowed reapers to take his soul from his death bed. This time, a reaper had emerged out of thin air while he laid injured, bleeding on a sewer.

For a King for 2 lives and a dictator in current, this was unacceptable both to his honor and because there was a chance he would not get transcendence as a choice if he get killed due to explosion.

The biggest threat at the moment was the reaper who could shred his soul away from his body. So as of now he decided to ignore the humans that are still firing towards the building.

The explosion was caused because a rocket launcher was launched towards the building’s basement as soon as they found the three men in basement were dead.

Even in their death, they turn out to be useful for his enemies in spotting Sikandar. Just as he had trained them.

“It should take around 15 minutes for smoke to clear out and with my iron flesh still active, I doubt their heat sensor will capture me.” Sikandar said so to console himself.

With bring his body back to shape, he gently pushed his intestines back in and did the final healing to close all exterior wounds.

The reaper on the other hand trying to process the shocking stream of information, took a while before he was ready to proceed with the task at hand.

“It’s my first time, defying death, so go easy on me” Sikandar said to the reaper with a grin on his face.

The reaper only returned the grin before charging.

The scythe and Sikandar’s bare arm collided, with Iron flesh still active. One would confuse the sound generated with a collision of two metals. The reaper threw another hidden dagger towards the forehead. Sikandar immediately bent and rolled to the left.

The scythe now free was swinging from Sikandar’s back. Immediately sensing, he sidestepped and rolled grabbing the sleeve of reaper. The reaper then kicked the dying human on his guts. The fresh wounds were starting to open again.

With blood dripping and painting the floor red. For Sikandar that was however, his least of his worries. Not anymore that is. Taking a dive, he recalled he had a gun and started looking for it.

The gun was right near the manhole cover. Sikandar kept on dodging the fast attacks while trying to clear path towards his gun.

Even though reapers were spiritual creatures, Skinadar was able to parry attacks. He felt at the time of death, a human can come in contact with these beings. Only that would explain how a reaper could really claim a soul by severing the connection.

The gun was the best bet for the currently unarmed Sikandar. Finally, with another dodge, he was close enough and with a roll he lifted the gun. Still maintaining his iron flesh which did made his movement slower than usual but his strength as per character build and endurance were already maxed in these six lives he lived.

Still using his left arm as a shield, he continued to dodge the life-ending attacks on Sikandar. Picking up the gun was the easy part, but what remained was aiming and shooting. So what followed was obvious. In a frequent exchange of blows, Sikndar found an opening.

BANG

A small cavity was formed on the forehead of the reaper. Very light smoke was coming out of it. The reaper was frozen and Sikandar had no idea if the reaper was unaffected or will fall shortly.

“You’re against death and you think that will work?” The reaper tilted his skull in amusement and the bullet fell from his neck rolling out.

A frowned and shocked Sikandar would only raise his guard up as he tried to notice every details about the reaper, looking for weakness.

Title gained: Skill user: Microscopic Vision 50000 points

Title gained: Skill user: Weakness Spotter 50000 points

Title gained: Knowledge acquired: Reaper anatomy deferred

Title gained: Knowledge acquired: Reaper’s Weakness deferred

Title gained: founder of new knowledge deferred points

Title already owned: founder of new knowledge (2) deferred points

“Just like that?” Sikandar questioned the will of system. Were he to give up, it would be less likely he would get titles this easily. Being desperate was something Sikandar never had experienced. Even when he became a beggar in his fifth life.

Sikandar had never used these skills before and also had never faced a reaper either. The experience was very new and so the new knowledge acquired would only mean, he was the first one ever to stand and fight a reaper.

While Sikandar allowed himself to be a bit gloomy, occupied in thoughts. The reaper used this chance by swinging his scythe and severing Sikandar’s arm that was carrying the gun.

Bringing his attention back to the battle, Sikandar expressed a grim on his face hiding all the pain inflicted over him. He dodged and lift his arm and attached it back.

With a painful yell, Sikandar healed the arm instantly. Still rolling and creating more space between reaper and himself.

This time, with Reaper’s anatomy, Sikandar had a different idea. After explosion, there were a lot of rocks and he’d just have to aim.

It was one thing that you were a common mortal who transcended to extents. Raising difficulties of life in return and bringing agony and tragedy.

It was entirely another to go against the system’s moderators. This difficulty was not defined in a system that supported till NG+7.

The system did not predict a mortal would stand against mortality. A mere soul that was capable to resist the scythe of death. What type of title one shall achieve, were they to resist the will of system?

Perhaps, there was a learning curve for the system this time.

David was a moderator of such system. His job was to monitor souls and collect those souls when they were ended. As a reaper, who never had to fight to kill the situation was intense.

Mortals would usually freeze seeing his face of death. The poor souls are too scared. All they see is fear of being lost in memories of their loved ones. The fear only grows if someone lacks a loved one. To be lost and not even be remembered was the deepest fear among mortals.

To have an anomaly, standing against his aura of death, David only grimaced. He had never struggled collecting souls before. This was a challenge and he would accept it.

Stuck in a stalemate, the mortal started chanting. Knowing full well the system does not allow magic in this world; the reaper could only look more worried.

“How in the hell can you use magic?” the amazed reaper asked.

“Don’t know, I guess my past knowledge enabled me” the mortal claimed.

There was absolutely no possibility of someone just having knowledge was an excuse he could buy. If one knew how to drive a car, does that mean he can drive even if there was no car? The skeleton face dodged the Javelin of light the descended upon him from sky.

It’s not as if Sikandar could never use magic, it’s just that he didn’t need to. Also, with negligible mana recovery, it was stupidity to rely on such costly skill where you could just manipulate people with words.

Still the performance was far better than he would have imagined. It was as if, a void had opened allowing him extra mana.

Considering that if reaper brings death and a healer brings life, would healing magic damage death or otherwise. The javelin made of light magic was the answer.

However, in a spec of time reaper double jumped mid-air. Rolling to his left, the reaper noticed spikes of light coming out of the ground where he was to land.

After noticing why he rolled to his left and not right, the reaper could only be worried as the right also covered magic circles that would summon lightning.

The reaper understood that he was being led to a trap, instantly, he teleported behind Sikandar.

STAB

An evil smile was all over Sikandar’s face. With combat experience of five lives versus a reaper who never struggled, was an easy fight. The wisdom of six lives was also another attribute responsible of modeling his strategies. The Reaper did not have a face muscle, so the pain was not visible.

The quiet reaper stood stunned for a few seconds, allowing Sikandar to spam more light javelins through his body.

The skull’s eyes brightened. He looked straight into Sikandar’s eyes and said. “You may have won this, but the system will take revenge.” After saying so, the reaper got mixed up in the smoke of explosion that had occurred before.

With a grin, Sikandar collected his thoughts and focused on his departure.

The swat team by now was trying to get in the building, as noticed by Sikandar who now jumped inside the sewer. Partially healed, the dying dictator was running for his life.

“Must die naturally”

“Must not get killed”

Only these words were keeping a tired Sikandar from losing consciousness. Walking around, he found a way that would lead to an opening. Maintaining his stealth, Sikandar was approaching towards the open area. Hoping there was no one waiting to ambush.

This was his first time to kill a reaper; Sikandar could only guess how many title messages had appeared during his struggle against his death.

Title already earned: Defying death (2) [deferred]

Title already earned: Defying death (3) [deferred]

Title gained: Reaper’s reaper [deferred]

Title gained: Soul absorption 1000000 points

Title gained: Absorber of Divine creature [deferred]

Title gained: Enemy of Divine [deferred]

Title gained: Slayer of Death [deferred]

Title gained: Indicted by Death [deferred, deferred]

[System Error]: Anomaly detected

[System Error]: You’re achievements have broken the system

[System Error]: To maintain the system function, you must be removed

Sikandar could only be shocked as to what could be done now. Will the system choose to erase him?

Title gained: System Breaker, deferred

[System Alert: initiating forced removal]

with everything he had done so far, Sikandar could only frown at what was happening to him. Everything he had done to achieve NG+7 was about to go in vein. Disappointed, he chose to accept his fate as he kneeled.

[System Alert: removal process paused]

Title gained: Sued by Divinity, deferred

[System Alert: A case with system have been logged, you will now be teleported to the hearing]

Facing the ground, Sikandar noticed the after effects with his clash with death had left him old. He was almost looking like he had lost 30 years. Now with wrinkles across his body, Sikandar looked as if he was 82 year old.

He could already smell the rot from his dying body within. Immediately understanding, death of old age was upon him. This was going to be his sixth death from old age and he could only be satisfied with the kind of death he’d always prefer.

Peacefully lying on the ground where a sewer water was still coming out from. He closed his eyes as if he lay on a King’s bed.

Waiting patiently for another reaper to show up, claiming a natural death. He waited until the delay started to annoy him. But to his surprise, no one came. He could only conclude a court session of souls had initiated and he wasn’t allowed to die till it was over.

***

Elsewhere, in a white void was a court. A very fat figure sat with a Jury’s wig on him. “We shall proceed with the hearing about the anomaly” he declared after a few coughs.

“Subject is in process of system rejection and his body is about to die” a female figure spoke. While she spoke, her lips never moved a muscle. One would conclude she was speaking through telekinesis.

“Crime of defying death, defying reaper and even killing a reaper, we have never heard of such abnormality before” Another person who was standing on a circular rock spoke. He appeared to be participating remotely as there was only a hologram on the rock.

“Perhaps we have a word with the irregular ourselves, we may find a fitting environment for him?” The female figure’s voice echoed in an endless void. With everyone quietly nodding, the fat figure clicked his finger and he appeared.

The old and fragile Sikandar appeared before the unknown beings. With eyes widened and surprised look, Sikandar tried to memorize everything he was witnessing.

In all his previous five deaths, Sikandar’s consciousness would turn gloomy and he would regain all knowledge of his past lives when he’d regain consciousness in his transcended self. At the age of five years, Sikandar would know who he was. Understanding the system almost identically each time, he only thought it would be same again.

Unlucky for him, the system had changed.

“You are not dead, yet.” The lady spoke without moving her lips. She was coming near Sikandar but Sikandar could feel she wasn’t walking. It was as if the void was reducing the distance between them as per the lady’s will.

Taking a stance on his now shaking feet, Sikandar stood tall as he prepared for the worse.

“Awe, look at the mortal taking a defensive stance as if he would stand a chance against us” The male hologram figure mocked the efforts of the old king.

“It will take one finger snap to erase you from existence, speak in your defense mortal. Why did you defy system” the lady spoke directly to Sikandar in his mind.

***