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[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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Chapter 2
“Ugh…”
A familiar ceiling and walls came into view.
The savory smell of soup tickled my nose.
“What the… why am I at home…?”
“You awake?”
I lifted myself up and turned my head.
Leaning against the wall was Zenon, brushing his flowing golden hair back as he looked at me.
He was my only friend and currently a squire of the Brillant Kingdom.
“How hard were you working to just pass out like that in the Decaine cemetery?”
“You brought me back?”
“Yeah! You wouldn’t wake up no matter what I did. Carrying you back nearly killed me.”
At his words, I fell into thought, recalling the events of the previous night.
I had returned to the past.
Strange text appeared in midair, and I had gained powers I’d never seen before.
I became a Gravekeeper—and later, a hero of future generations.
‘Anyone hearing this would think I’ve gone mad.’
By using something called Descent, my body moved on its own and unleashed energy, allowing me to defeat a grave robber.
Descent…
[Descent]
#A spirit descends and possesses your body.
Information about the Descent floated in the air.
It really wasn’t a dream.
“Was there anyone else there besides me?”
“Anyone else? No, no one.”
I was certain that Havenberg Arzen had performed the Descent.
His tomb was there, and I heard someone’s voice.
He had clearly called me his descendant.
‘Could it really have been… Havenberg Arzen?’
My ancestor—and the strongest swordsman who once ruled over the entire continent.
That was Havenberg Arzen.
I defeated a grave robber, who could poorly project energy outside his sword, with just a shovel.
If it was really my ancestor who possessed me through Descent, then even something that unbelievable made sense.
Was it truly him who entered my body…?
“Ugh…!”
“You okay?”
“Yeah… I’m fine.”
My head felt like it was splitting open.
Why is this happening…?
[A powerful spirit entered a body with no spiritual energy.]
[Your body is experiencing backlash.]
“Argh!”
“Ren!”
“I-I'm okay…”
I forced myself to speak calmly, pushing through the pain.
Zenon looked at me suspiciously, but since I kept insisting I was fine, he could only nod reluctantly.
“Anyway… your mom made some food. Get up and come eat.”
“My mom… made food?”
The words slipped out instinctively.
Realizing that I’d returned to the past, my heart began to pound.
‘My mother… she’s alive?’
My mother, little sister, and I had fled the family like exiles, and later… I lost her so easily.
I had bitterly regretted not standing my ground, not learning swordsmanship properly.
‘So it’s true… I really came back.’
My eyes widened and started to redden as tears threatened to well up, so I quickly lowered my head.
“Go ahead. I’ll be out soon.”
“Alright. Don’t take too long.”
Zenon left the room.
I sat on the bed, took a deep breath, and calmed my racing heart.
If I let these overwhelming emotions show now, both my mother and sister would surely find it strange.
And then, they’d just end up worrying about me again.
“…Hoo.”
I waited for the backlash to fade, and when it did—
I stepped out of the room, trying my best to look normal.
“You’re up?”
Hearing her voice and seeing my mother’s face made my heart start pounding all over again.
But I was doing better than before.
At least I didn’t break down in tears from the surge of emotion.
“Yes, Mother.”
“Something’s off about you today, big bro.”
My younger sister, Resia, tilted her head as she looked at me.
Only then did Mother seem to notice something was strange too, staring at me intently.
I forced a chuckle and sat down at the table.
“What’s off?”
“I don’t know, it just felt weird for a second. Maybe not. Right, Zenon?”
Resia turned to Zenon, but he was too busy stuffing his face to care.
‘Yeah, better that way.’
I picked up my spoon and took a bite of soup.
How long had it been since I last had my mother’s soup?
I almost let out a sound of admiration but held it back with sheer willpower and kept eating.
“Ren, why don’t you take today off? You look exhausted.”
My mother looked at me with concern in her eyes.
In the past, I would have agreed without hesitation, but I couldn’t do that now.
“No, I’m fine. It rained yesterday, so I need to check the graves again.”
“Zenon, you help him out.”
“Huh? Me?”
He looked flustered, darting his eyes around before finally looking at me.
This guy usually didn’t help others—but he couldn’t say no to Resia or my mother.
Seeing the obvious plea in his eyes, I let out a small laugh and said,
“I have to do it. Zenon doesn’t know much about the tombs anyway, and I don’t really have much to do today.”
“Are you sure you’ll be okay?”
“Yes, I’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”
After barely putting their concerns to rest, I left the house.
Blinding white sunlight poured down from the sky.
As I looked around, the familiar sights of the city came into view.
“Phew!”
Taking a deep breath, I headed straight for Decaine.
Decaine was nestled in a massive mountain outside the city.
The mountain, called ‘Kinish Bluff,’ got its name due to its treacherous terrain and the difficulty of passing through it.
At the entrance to Kinish Bluff, a few laid-back soldiers stood guard.
“Sigh…”
A sigh escaped me.
No one understood the importance of Decaine.
‘The continent exists today only because of them…’
Decaine.
The name of the tomb where the 17 heroes who once saved the continent lie.
These heroes once defeated the demons that invaded the continent and saved it.
Their sacrifice should be remembered with gratitude, yet now the people of the continent go as far as to deny their achievements.
They say it’s just glorified history, exaggerated lies…
‘A nation that forgets its past has no future.’
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[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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And so, the continent is once again being invaded by demons, and the Kingdom of Brillant has fallen.
‘The Hero of the Future…’
[You are the “Hero of the Future.” Stop the invasion of the demons and prevent the kingdom’s fall.]
Being chosen as the Hero of the Future—was it a message telling me to stop the demons and protect the kingdom like the heroes of the past?
Then who sent this message?
How?
And why me?
I had a mountain of questions, but not a single one could be answered.
“Tsk…”
Still, even if I hadn’t been chosen as the Hero of the Future, I would have tried to prevent the kingdom’s fall.
Knowing the future, how could I just stand by?
Especially… that demon who killed me.
The way he laughed at me, mocking me until the end—his face still haunted me.
If I meet him again, it won’t be the same as last time.
Next time, I’ll be the one to tear open his gut.
“Haa…”
I took a deep, ragged breath.
Lost in thought as I climbed the mountain, before I knew it, I’d arrived at Decaine.
Seventeen graves came into view.
Nothing seemed different from last night. It didn’t look like the grave robber had returned after I fainted.
‘Why in the world are they trying to rob this worthless place?’
Many countries had already tested the remains.
The conclusion was clear: they were useless.
Even if they were once heroes, their remains were no different from ordinary corpses.
All their legacy items had already been taken by other countries.
That’s why the place was left neglected.
The soldiers originally stationed to honor the site had gradually dwindled, and now only a few guards remained at the entrance of Kinish Bluff.
“Tch.”
I passed by the tombstones and approached the one at the very center, the innermost grave.
“Are you the ancestor? The one who spoke to me yesterday?”
And I spoke to the air.
“Please answer me. Just like you did yesterday!”
— You’re so noisy, I can’t even sleep.
A gruff voice echoed from within the tomb.
I had expected some sort of response, but hearing an actual voice from inside the grave felt… surreal.
“Huh…?”
From within the tomb, a translucent figure began to rise.
He had a fairly handsome face, with streaks of gray hinting at the years he’d lived.
If not for the weight of his presence and the seriousness in his expression, I might’ve thought he was only a few years older than me.
“…Havenberg Arzen?”
— Insolent brat. You dare call your ancestor’s name so casually?
He spoke with clear disapproval.
Realizing that he truly was my ancestor, I immediately dropped to my knees and bowed my head to the ground.
“I greet you, Ancestor! I am of the Arzen family—”
— That’s enough. Get up. No need for all that noisy introduction.
“But…”
— Just tell me your name.
“Ren Arzen.”
Conversing with Havenberg Arzen, the legendary figure himself—it was surreal.
What should I ask him…?
On the way here, countless thoughts had run through my mind.
The Hero of the Future, the bloodline of Arzen, the demon invasion, the kingdom on the brink of collapse…
There were so many things I needed to ask.
And so, I decided to lay it all out before him.
“Ancestor, I am a regressor.”
— Regression? You mean you returned from the future to the past?
“Yes.”
— Hmm… I see.
His reaction was odd.
“What do you mean, ‘I see’? Aren’t you surprised at all?”
— In my time, we had all sorts of folks. Time travelers from the future? Sure, why not.
His absurd answer made my head spin.
“That was a common thing in your time?”
— Never saw one myself. But it wouldn’t be too surprising. Could’ve been one of the guys I killed, for all I know.
What kind of era must it have been for someone to say, “That actually makes sense”?
“I see strange words floating in front of my eyes. Just… hanging in the air…”
I explained the strange phenomenon happening to me.
Wouldn't my ancestor know something about this?
— Hm…
His expression changed.
Is this more surprising than returning to the past?
— My memory… it’s not quite right.
“What do you mean?”
— It feels like there are holes in my memory. But I’ve heard of phenomena like that from my comrades before.
“Please, tell me!”
— Well… I think I studied something like that once… it was called a ‘System’ or something.
“System?”
— Yeah, that’s what it was called.
“Could you tell me a bit mo—”
— Don’t be a nuisance. I told you I don’t remember.
Annoyance and irritation were written all over his face.
If I asked anything more, I felt he’d genuinely get angry, so I stopped.
‘Grave Eye.’
[Grave Eye]
The eye of the gravekeeper.
Allows you to see spirits bound to graves.
Cannot see spirits that are dormant.
‘Grave Eye… so that’s how I can see my ancestor?’
What exactly is this power? How did I come to possess such a unique ability?
What is my current state, really…?
[Ren Arzen]
-Trait: Grave Eye
-Skill: Spirit Summoning
-Strength: 7.1
-Agility: 6.8
-Stamina: 7.5
-Sense: 6.6
-Energy: 0.3
-Spirit Power: 1.0
As I thought about my current state, a new screen suddenly popped into my head.
“What… what is this?”
— What’s the matter?
“Something just appeared in midair…”
I told my ancestor about the phenomenon appearing before me.
— That’s a Status Window.
“A status window?”
— Just like it sounds. It’s a window that shows one’s current condition. It was a special ability possessed by only a rare few in the past.
What kind of world was the continent in the past?
— If you have that ability, you can objectively view yourself. Others too, potentially.
“What? You mean I can see other people’s status windows as well?”
— Yes. Though whether you can or not is another matter.
My jaw dropped.
If I could see others’ abilities too, then I wouldn’t even need to fight to know their strength at a glance.
‘Could it be…?’
Just to try, I attempted to open my ancestor’s status window—but nothing appeared.
‘So it doesn’t work on spirits?’
That was the one I was most curious about, which made it a bit disappointing.
“But why is this appearing to me?”
— And you think I’d know that?
“…Fair point.”
— Either way, it’s clear you’re not just some ordinary fellow.
I nodded in agreement to his words.
A “System” and a “Status Window.”
The more I thought about them, the more ridiculous it all felt.
And even when I asked my ancestor, all he said was “That’s how things used to be…”
“Ancestor.”
— What is it?
“That sword technique you showed me yesterday when you possessed me… was that the Havenberg Swordsmanship?”
— …Are you saying my own descendant doesn’t recognize our family’s swordsmanship?
“That’s not a family technique.”
— What nonsense are you spouting?
His face twisted with anger.
It was understandable, since I had just denied that his swordsmanship belonged to our family.
“Your swordsmanship… didn’t get passed down through the generations.”
— What?
“Havenberg Swordsmanship has disappeared from the continent.”
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[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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