Strange…
It was a strange place....
Rather than calling it a place, it was better to call it a graveyard as it looked like a land used for the disposal of bloody corpses.
Plains and meadows were drenched in blood. Ravens ploughed through the decaying lands gnawing their beaks upon the corpses covering the landmass.
Shipwrecks and dead bodies floated all across the oceans dying in red.
The white flakes of snow that one was familiar with had overlapped with the colour of blood forming a cemetery of frozen corpses with limbs that could be seen sticking out from the thick layer of ice.
After being engulfed by terrifying disasters, the weather remained the same regardless of the season.
There was no more warm sunshine for people to bask in leisurely nor was there any drizzle that made the parched earth regain its vitality.
The conditions of the entire world were terrible, it was a wintry hell where blizzards never stopped blowing, followed by showers of ashes instead of snowflakes.
A huge and endless crack extended throughout the sky around which fluctuations and ripples were spreading slowly.
If one looked at the world, he would have a feeling that the world was going to plunge into dust and debris at any moment.
Among the corpses, there were some battered bodies with dead and tired eyes staring towards a certain place with a hopeful gaze wishing for him to confirm whether they won or lost.
At the centre of the barren and desolate world, which was reminiscent of a scorched section of hell, stood a huge pillar that seemed to pierce through the sky.
Around the pillar, blood-stained ground corpses lay from which dark mist erupted.
The crows roared around it while feeding on the corpses and around the desolate barren place sat a man with bloodshot eyes leaning against the pillar.
The pillar on which he leaned seemed to be the symbol of strength and standing on something ominous that made one mind go numb in fear.
Cough...Cough...
The man heaved out a dry cough as he opened his eyes.
His vision was blurry and groggy. Witnessing the mass of destruction left behind, his expression crumpled and at the same time he felt pain oozing out from every part of his body.
His right earlobe was missing, a deep scar ran through his left eye over the face. Two toes on his left leg were missing and his body had been riddled with scars accumulated throughout the ages.
But, as if numb to the pain, he opened his tired eyes from which drops of water started to trickle down.
His throat was parched and it burned as if it was on fire. He could feel the expected gazes of dead bodies on him but he could only swallow his saliva while questioning himself with a hoarse voice.
"Am I the only one left alive?"
"Is this the end?"
"Is this the victory we sought?"
A quiet and sorrowful wind blew in response to his question.
He bit his lips and emotions welled in his chest wanting to tear his chest and burst out.
It was the emotion of emptiness that a person encounters when he spends his day and night achieving the desired goals but has never given a thought about what to do next.
The silence coupled with the inner emptiness started to haunt him in a vast desolate place filled with a putrid odour of rotten smell.
Unable to keep his eyes open, his eyelids close due to exhaustion.
Murmurs and hums echoed in his ears giving him a piercing headache that almost split his brain.
His mind which was clouded due to exhaustion was unable to discern whether this was real or an illusion.
[Just for how long can you trap me.]
[For a decade, for a century or for a millennium.No matter how long it takes, I will be freed one day after all your body is already on the verge of breaking down.]
A hoarse voice resounded in his ears.
[And once I am out, everything will be over.]
[Everything you have done to keep me caged will be for naught. All the sacrifices you have made are meaningless.]
[And you who are the only one to survive will be trapped in an endless cycle of worry and misery.]
[Cause I am the end.]
He was still sceptical and didn't know whether he heard the voice for real or if it was just a fleeting illusion but tears of blood started to burst from his eyes as all the memories of his suffering from his birth started to play in the loop before his eyes.
His heart seemed to be ignited with rage.
He clenched his fist to the point that his nails dug into his skin and blood oozed out from it.
Squeezing out his remaining strength, he opened his eyes.
His eyes became bloodshot and his breathing hastened as he tried to hold back his fading consciousness.
"We didn't do anything wrong, but somehow, we lost."
"If only we could had known about this."
"If only those bitches would had helped us instead of abandoning us."
"If only I had someone to rely on and who can guide us..."
"....Still.... it's not over."
"It's not over and will never be...."
"Not until I am dead. I will fix everything even if it takes aeons beyond aeons."
"As long as I am breathing nothing is over."
"I can't let their sacrifices be in vain."
"More than that I can't let that person down."
The man stood up with staggering steps and opened his parched lips.
"And for you who claims himself to be the end of this world."
"You who brought despair and misery to this beautiful world, I will stop you no matter what."
"Your greatest fear and taboo that will haunt you until the end of your existence."
"You may be the embodiment of Evil but I am the destroyer for you."
"Mark my words, I will Stop You..."
His voice reverberated throughout the world.
His screams and declaration were accompanied by showers of thunder and lightning, showing the wrath of the heavens, and the sky split apart to the mighty aura that burst from the body.
"I will set everything right."
That was the last thing he muttered before his image blurred accompanied by a blinding flash before everything in the world started to crumble apart.
....
As if being struck by a nightmare out of nowhere, the boy woke up gasping heavily.
Haaaa...
'My head hurts so much.'
'My throat feels dry and my body feels hot.
Pitch darkness enveloped him from all around.
A murky and dark world filled with murmurs was instantly shattered. The eyes of the sleepy Ritsuka opened up as he felt an abnormal throbbing pain in his head as if he had been bashed in his head with a club repeatedly.
In his stupor, he tried to move his head but he was unable to look around as if he had lost the power to move his head and limbs.
His eyes were hazy and everything around him seemed to be blurry and dark.
'What is going on? What is that dream? Someone calling me?'
'I feel as if I am in a half-asleep state. I can think however I am not able to perceive my surroundings.'
Still in his reverie, he attempted to focus his mind and found his thoughts were difficult to control.
His mind was unable to focus on things and started to fleet apart with random thoughts.
Why am I in this state and what is this pain?
The last thing I remember was holding Mashu hand before light falling over me, so what is happening now?
And what is this pain?
Aaaah... it is really painful…
Wait... Olga...Mashu...
I remember it. Everyone. Everything.
How?
Shouldn't I disappear along with Mashu.
Didn't?
Did we fail? No...
I'm sure we won... Definitely Won.
Am I now in Hell for my sins...?
While myriads of emotions flashed in his mind, unknowingly the pain in his mind started to subside.
And abruptly his mind felt cool and relaxed.
What the hell is going on?
Ritsuka, who could perceive the change in his mental state, finally broke out of his reverie.
His murky vision dispersed and a dark fabric greenish ceiling appeared in his vision.
Ritsuka, who was just trying to discern it, was suddenly startled by the appearance of a different place which shocked him greatly.
This should not happen in Frist place.
His eyes widened as he scanned the place again where he was in.
Ritsuka, who was taken by surprise, for a moment thought that maybe he was just dreaming or this might be his illusion before his death.
Ritsuka felt the feeling of being able to move his body once again and raised his hand and saw his command spell tattoo with three command spell on it.
Ritsuka remembered that he used two of them in final battle. But now he had all three of them full. How?
"What is going on?"
"…..where I'm?"
Ritsuka muttered faintly and got up to look around.
Everything around him was a bit dark and he found himself in a soft and comfortable sleeping bag.
There was a dimly lit lamp beside him and his eyes slowly adapted to the atmosphere.
Rustle...
His hands touched some kind of soft fabric sheets.
Silence!
For a moment except for the sound of his breath, other noises ceased to exist.
It took a moment to realize where he was.
"I am in a tent."
Flaps were sewn on the entrance acting as the door.
He looked around the space and the virtual followed his eyesight.
Through the shocking situation, he found a backpack beside the sleeping bag.
"Ahhhh….. Did I came to other place?."
"Is it someone's doing?"
Ritsuka muttered with a panicked tone.
He inhaled deeply to calm himself.
He closed his eyes and regained his composure.
He thought the everything once he opened his eyes... He knows this is not illusion.
The reality was before his eyes.
Ritsuka looked at his hands...
He accepted the situation cause of his experience. But now he has more questions.
But he put his mind calm dispute the situation.
"Grand order is over..."
As he muttered the name with Fullfill look, an excruciating pain assaulted his brain which caused him to hold his head and crouch down on the ground.
The throbbing pain seemed to split apart his head.
"Ahhhhhhhh!"
He groaned in pain and tried to get up but he stammered in his steps and fell back on his butt and screamed while his body wriggled like a maggot.
Mist...City…Mosvil...Ivane ….Horizon...Academy …...Three days.....
A series of broken murmurs leaked from his lips as Ritsuka wriggled in pain and lost his vision for a moment again.
After a series of outbursts, the pain resided and Ritsuka regained his consciousness.
His eyes opened wide and his body jolted in shock.
Cold sweat covered his forehead and he covered his face with a stunned expression.
"This is really ."
"I really transmigrated to different world this time."
He remembered the backpack he saw just a minute ago.
Ritsuka muttered and his body lunged towards the backpack, he opened the chain and started to draw out the things in it.
The first thing he noticed was a dagger and a small vial of healing potion.
He put it aside and looked for other things.
A packet of food, a steel water bottle, a few sets of clothes out of which two seemed to be some kind of uniform, a flashlight, and a smartphone, and then he found a watch.
He clicked the side dial and the display screen opened asking for the password.
"Password...Password."
"My memories of this world Ritsuka are still blurry. I can't remember the password."
"There might be another way."
Ritsuka muttered and then slid the screen and the lock screen changed from password to finger scan.
He presses his thumb on it hoping for the watch to open.
With the soft ring, the watch opened.
The screen finally confirmed Ritsuka's suspicion.
================
User ID: Ritsuka Fujimaru
Status:First Year
Age:17
Class:??
1st Year
Rank:2209
[Horizon]
===============
"It's real."
Ritsuka slumped back on the ground with a hollow look still finding it hard to believe.
From the bits of memories and seeing the name of the academy he inferred that he somehow ended up in the world of magic world or like wizard World.
A world filled with myths and legends in modern era.
You can find all types of fantasy settings and creatures here.
In a way, you can say that the fights happens between the world and Demon is common in this world.
Thousands of years ago a catastrophic war broke out due to the invasion of Demons.
All the species allied to form a united battlefront against the Demons and countless world-shattering battles took place to repel the demons.
During the last battle, Demon King fought with everything and the devastation of such a battle caused the world to undergo many changes.
At the end of the battle The Demon King and Martial Saint were gravely injured.
Demon King, seeing himself losing the fight against the Martial Saint who was designated as the head of Allied Forces, used some of his power to separate the Demon continent into a separate realm moving it to a new plane below the world.
In the end, the Demon realm was separated and the demons hid in the dark space while peace and serenity returned.
The Martial Saint was gravely injured and was in the last thread of his life so he gave up on pursuing Demon King and decided to dedicate his life to the betterment of the next generation.
Meanwhile, Demon King used some forbidden arts to seal his life while passing his will and a way to resurrect him.
It was common kids stories in this world and many knew about all of this but don't know if it was true.
However, this was not the end. When demons retreated, the Demonkins such as beast man, vampires, and various monster races form a coalition engaging in constant war against humans.
Ritsuka who was thinking about all of this suddenly shook his head to stop his thoughts from running all over.
"Hmmm, seem this guy loves stories. instead of thinking about all kids stories, I should solve the primary problems first."
As far as he remembered, in this world everyone could check their stats with the help of the Divine mirror in the temple.
There was a person who wanted to measure all his stats however he was unable to do so.
With eyes and senses, you can discern a person's strength but you can not figure out all his particular stats.
Naturally, you can undergo tests to estimate all this however it would be cumbersome to test out all this.
The problem was solved by Goddess.
He got a revelation according to which a certain kind of mirror made of some special materials after being blessed by Goddess Rebecca would reflect a person's characteristics.
You just need to stand before the mirror which will reflect the status similar to the screen along with your image.
"What will happen if i take such test under the goddess?"Ritsuka muttered. Will it show his true identity of past life or this world self.
He wants to live normal life...
Normal life...huh...
"Do I deserve it? After everything we went through?"
when he heard a loud crackling noise of thunder causing him to tremble in fear.
Ritsuka walked outside and the scene that unfolded before he startled him.
Red clouds covered the sky.
Thunders were roaring.
An endless wilderness greeted his sight which horrified him.
Unknown fears started to creep into his mind suddenly.
It was only then that he felt that something was wrong.
He had been too calm.
Someone like him who had died and come to this new world, his mind had been surprisingly stable.
Maybe it was because his mind was preoccupied with the memeroies of past.
Or maybe his mind was influenced by the previous owner for whom this might be natural.
But now that the realization struck him, his eyes started to tear up.
"Mother..."
"Father.."
"My friends.."
"My servants"
"Olga.."
The scene of Olga last memory appeared in his eyes.
Various scenes of Olga in his journey appeared before his eyes.
Her frist death left deep hole in his heart.
Even after reaching his prime level, he couldn't able to save the only one who he always wanted to save.
And in the end he failed again to save her one last time.
The more he thought about it, the more empty his heart became.
His heart felt suffocated and even though strong gales were surging, the air felt stagnant.
The tiny bit of reason and calmness he had, disappeared instantly.
Instead of being transmigrated, he felt as Olga died leaving him alone again. He will live with that memory again.
He alone survived again and again.
Guilt started to well up inside him as he thought about Olga last farewell when he had not even properly talked long with her in last and she left him with a stuffy feeling.
It was a scene that he knew would haunt him.
DRIP!DRIP!DRIP!DRIP!
With the sound of thunder, the rain started to pour soaking Ritsuka's clothes.
Ritsuka stood there with a blank expression and did not know whether his cheeks were wet due to the rain or due to tears that were forced out of his eyes filled with sadness and regret.
No... If he regretted for surving then he is insulting everyone and Olga.
He will carry all of his memeroies with him.