Jangre wore a long, dark overcoat. Beneath the overcoat, he wore a dark, formal suit. He stood before a grave, looking at it without showing much emotion or grief.
'I don't know how to feel about his death or the grief toward him.'
***
He moved toward a man with bright blue hair and hazel eyes, dressed similarly to himself. As he stepped away from the grave of Nolan Borough—the father of the previous Jangre, whom he had deeply cared for and worked hard to educate—Jangre felt guilty, Realizing the man was not his biological father at all, but merely the father of the body he now possessed.
"Jangre, are you feeling okay?" Vale asked sympathetically.
"I don't know much about my feelings either," Vale studied him, confused.
"They said it was an accident, right?" Vale asked about his father's death.
"Yes, an accident, but they didn't give many details," Jangre replied.
"Well, using my connections, I discovered that your father died from a heavenly tribulation during someone's advancement to Level 1 echelon," Vale said calmly, his face turning sad.
"Wha—" Before Jangre could interrupt, Vale continued, "It's his fate, Jangre. He was near the area of the heavenly tribulation for the Level 1 advancement."
"Fate is cruel and can't be changed," Vale added with displeasure.
"You're wrong. If one can't change his fate, it only means he isn't strong enough. Even if I'm a dullard, I'll train until my hands can't work, and I'll get stronger to defy fate," Jangre declared in a solemn tone.
"A man can't defy fate; even for a god, it's difficult," Vale responded.
"Well, as long as my sword rises in the morning and never dies in the evening, I'll defy fate and become strong."
Jangre distanced himself from Vale and walked away from the cemetery. Vale watched with a sad expression, muttering, "Tsk, persistent fellow. Even after six years, still at Level 14 and still refusing to give up."
I walked to the farm where my flock of sheep grazed, guarded by my dog. The dog wagged its tail when I tossed it a biscuit, then gave water and grass to the sheep. After feeding them, I changed into comfortable clothes—a white shirt and cotton pants. I led the sheep to their pen with the dog's help, then headed to the mountain east of the farm to train my swordsmanship.
During my first four years at the academy, I trained nonstop, creating a sword style called Broken Blade Perseverance. I completed its first form—a brute‑force technique—while knowing more forms remained to be developed. Though everyone else advanced, I stayed at Level 14. In the second‑year tournament, I lost to a girl named Emma Robert, who ranked third and defeated me in three moves without allowing me to land a single attack. Professor Ken helped me cultivate and compress mana throughout my body, yet I still lingered at the peak of Level 14, unable to grasp the next echelon.
Vale, now at Level 7, had graduated and began hunting monsters—known as Nimrods were once humans—corrupted by ancient, unknown knowledge. Most academy students either joined clans or hunted independently.
Even on the day of my father's death, I practiced Broken Blade Perseverance. Nolan was the only family Jangre remembered, his mother was absent. Though Nolan had been a good, hardworking father, I felt no emotion toward him, sensing something blocked inside me.
I continued training until my palm was covered in blood, my dog barking for me to stop. Smiling, I persisted until I lost consciousness. I awoke to my dog pulling at my collar, dragging me into the shed. Grateful, I whispered, "Thanks, Leo." The dog licked me, climbed onto me, and we fell asleep together.
***
Thud! Boom! Karkkk! I awoke to the sounds of my sheep bleating, dog barking, and something exploding. Outside, a monstrous being—large as a bear, with a grotesque human head, covered in blood vessels and fresh blood—stood amid the farm.
"Nimrod," I whispered, my body trembling. Instinctively, I unsheathed my sword and assumed my stance. The monster lunged, and I dodged at the last second. I launched a strike using Broken Blade Perseverance, slashing the monster's abdomen, causing black blood to gush out.
"Aaaarghhhhhh," the Nimrod screamed. While holding its massive, grotesque hands in the air, flames began to accumulate in the monster's palm. I realized this monster was a Level 13 echelon—mid‑stage—and I was at peak Level 14, having still not reached Level 13. The monster released a massive flame toward me, and I dodged at the last second, even though my left leg was mostly covered in flame.
"Aargh!" A groan finally escaped my lips, and the burning sensation in my leg is painful. Still, I lunged toward the monster, which was preparing another flame spell. I tried to slash its arm, but the monster canceled the spell, struck me with its other hand, and sent my body slamming into the sheep pen. I watched the monster approach, unable even to lift my own body.
When I thought my life was about to end—without ever reaching my goal of returning to my world and reuniting with my family—my real father's face flashed before my eyes. He spoke in a solemn tone:
"When storm clouds gather and your might seems a whisper, let the fire of unwavering resolve blaze within you. Even if every breath is borrowed, stand tall—because the heart that refuses to surrender is the very crown you wear for your sheep, your dog who call you king."
His face vanished, then smiled at me with pride. As the monster's footsteps echoed, I suddenly saw a thin red line of light connecting me to it. I followed the line with my sword, even though my body was a mass of broken ribs and arms. I lunged again, the monster hurled a massive flame that engulfed me, covering me in fire. Still, I pressed forward, sword tracking the red line. When I closed the distance, I swung, following the line to the monster's neck, and beheaded the Nimrod. Its headless body crashed to the ground with a deafening thud that reverberated across the farm.
My own body was reduced to dark ash—no face, no clothes, no skin—just a black, ashen form.
Thud
Another thud sounded as blood gushed from my mouth, evidence of internal bleeding. I collapsed, looking up at the sky with one leg torn apart by flames. My dog rushed to my side, whining, and I realized my time was ending. I heard the dog's voice, too, as the flock of sheep gathered behind it, all staring at me lying on the ground.
I turned to my dog and the sheep, smiling joyfully, and said, "I advanced to Level 13, Leo." I understood that the red line was my anger directed at the monster, and I also saw a line from my dog to the monster—the line of anger. Before I could close my eyes and accept death, I saw many colorless lines from my dog and the flock connecting to me.
"What's that lin—" I began, but before I could finish, darkness enveloped me. I realized I had died.
Suddenly, I heard someone calling my name—a familiar voice: "Jangre! Jangre!" When I opened my eyes, I could not believe what I saw: Professor Ken was calling my name in the academy's lecture hall, just like on my first day in this world.
'I'm not dead; I felt everything.'
'Did I regress to the first day?'
'What the fuck', A curse silently escaped my lips.