Chương 1: Start Reading

Eldrathia kingdom, Mirevale town. As the sun's rays shone on the old stone path, the town of Mirevale woke up. Shopkeepers lifted their shutters, the scent of bread drifted from ovens, and the clang of a blacksmith's hammer echoed from afar. Pedestrians walked through the old streets, heading to their workplaces as the new day began. Adventurers with weapons slung on their backs headed towards the adventure guild, preparing to take on a new quest.

In the Hearth & Horn inn, inside a room on the second floor, a young man slowly woke up. He opened his eyes, confusion settling in as he took in his surroundings. The slightly worn wooden ceiling and furniture only deepened his confusion. He quickly scanned the room, looking for any trace of cameras or people, but he didn't find anything. It didn't look like a prank.

"This isn't my room… Where am I?" He stood up and scanned the room vigilantly, afraid that he had been kidnapped. He quickly patted his body and only heaved a sigh of relief upon realising that he didn't feel sore and that he wasn't missing a limb. However, his body felt different than usual. Looking at his unusually fair skin, Kyle headed towards the only light source, the window, to open it and let light in. However, the scene that came into his sight upon opening it caused his pupils to shrink.

Looking at the lively streets below, at the bustling crowd dressed in old medieval clothing, the burly individuals wearing armor and holding various weapons, and the occasional burly dwarves and beastkin, a realization dawned on him.

"I've transmigrated?" The young man whispered with a look of disbelief. He looked back at his room and searched for a mirror or anything that could reflect his current appearance. He located a small mirror by the desk and quickly picked it up. The young man's eyes widened upon seeing his appearance in the mirror. A youth with jet-black hair reflecting light like polished ink and clear blue eyes looked back at him; his bewildered expression couldn't cover his sharp eyes. He silently looked at his reflection.

This wasn't his face; he was an IT worker with a slightly fading hairline in his late twenties, not the handsome teenager he was currently looking at. It seemed to be a soul transmigration, or maybe reincarnation? He placed the mirror back on the desk and slowly lay back down on the bed, his face tinged with confusion.

"I don't remember being killed by a truck or meeting some kind of deity, so how come I transmigrated without any warning?" Holding his head, he tried to remember the last thing he did and what happened to him, but the only thing he could remember was drinking coffee and working overtime, trying hard to meet the deadlines. Anything beyond that was just a fog.

"Ding!" As he tried his best to recall what had last happened to him, a sound like a chain breaking rang in his mind. A clutter of memories rushed through his mind, and he experienced the life of a 16-year-old young man named Kyle. From his days as a toddler to following his father to learn swordsmanship and hunting and finally setting out on a new journey. In just a few seconds, these memories and the emotions associated with them flashed through his mind and were quickly organized, as if they had always been his.

A few seconds later, Kyle slowly straightened up, the confusion in his gaze gradually clearing.

"So it wasn't transmigration, but reincarnation," Kyle muttered. He had been reincarnated as Kyle Vaelthorn; he just regained his past life memories today. After sorting his memories, Kyle focused on his current situation. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. In this new life, he had been living as Kyle, the son of a crippled former adventurer in a small village.

He had grown up listening to stories of his dad's glory days as an adventurer and thus yearned to become one too. He had been trained in swordsmanship and hunting since childhood by his father. Unfortunately, his past self wasn't the hardworking type. He would train for one day, then rest for two.

"What a shame; if I had awakened my past life's memories earlier, I would have certainly trained much harder…" Kyle muttered absentmindedly. Delving deeper into his memories, he recalled last year's unfortunate event. His father had passed away. That was a great blow to the young Kyle. After all, his father was the one who raised him, and he had never seen his mother. After a year of mourning and mindlessly muddling through, he finally cheered up and decided to follow his father's path as an adventurer.

He had just left his village and reached Mirevale town. After settling down in the Hearth & Horn inn yesterday, he planned to go to the adventure guild today and register as a new adventurer.

"So, what should I do now? Follow my previous plan and register as an adventurer? Hmm… That seems to be the best option for now." Kyle leaned back on the bed and muttered. He quickly combed through his memories, but he found out that this was the most suitable path for him now.

"Adventure in another world, killing monsters, exploring dungeons, elves, beastkin, powerful techniques, magic… I'm so looking forward to it!" Kyle found himself trembling with excitement. It wasn't just his youthful side as Kyle that was seeking adventure; even back in his previous life, he was a fantasy-seeking youth with grand aspirations. It was the harsh reality that forced him to shed those emotions and return to work. Clenching his slightly trembling fists, Kyle tried his best to rein in his excitement.

"I can't let excitement and longing cloud my judgment. This world doesn't just have its bright aspects. On the contrary, the darkness hidden beneath is even greater than that of my previous world. Most importantly, due to the existence of extraordinary power, the law of the jungle reigns as a hidden rule. If I'm not careful, I might be killed by a random monster or a powerful individual." He took a deep breath as his rapidly thumping heart slowly calmed down. His memories from his past life weren't useless.

The knowledge and perspective he gained there made many things that once felt normal seem glaringly wrong now. One scene immediately came to his mind. A few years ago, while following his father for an errand in Mirevale, Kyle watched a 13-year-old get crushed by a noble carriage, simply because he didn't get away in time. He didn't think much of this at the time, but now the scene felt so jarring to him. Just thinking of it made his stomach churn slightly.

The way nobles treated commoners no longer felt normal to him. A peasant could be imprisoned or disappear entirely for offending the wrong person. Only those who held power and influence are exempt.

"So, the present me can be legally imprisoned or killed in broad daylight without any reason if I upset a noble in any way, huh… Well, as expected of a fantasy world in a medieval setting. Then again, things like classes have always run through history. It's nothing new," Kyle wryly said.

"The only thing that can guarantee my safety now is strength. Only by becoming a professional can I freely adventure in this world as I wish." Taking a deep breath, Kyle picked up the sword leaning on the bedframe before walking to the center of the room. This was his father's sword, "Valecguard", and it was currently his most prized possession. According to his father, this was a sword he commissioned a dwarf blacksmith to forge about twenty years ago, costing him 20 gold coins.

That's almost 100 times more expensive than the average steel longsword. It had accompanied him in his adventures for years, saving him countless times. His father greatly treasured it. He carefully maintained it, rushing to the blacksmith to repair it at the sign of the smallest scratch. Shortly before he passed away, he passed it to him. Thinking about it now, his father, Darius, must have sensed his time coming; that's why he passed his precious sword to him.

Holding the hilt, Kyle's gaze rested on the sword's silver-toned, sharp edge for a moment before closing his eyes. He recalled the swordsmanship that he had been learning since he was 6 years old and slowly assumed a guard stance. Placing one foot slightly ahead and bending his knees, he slightly angled his sword before making a diagonal slash. His sword quickly moved from hip to shoulder, leaving a sliver trail behind. Moving his feet, he executed one move after the other.

Vertical slash, horizontal slash, a thrust before quickly moving back to parry, deflect… As he executed one routine after the other, his movements became smoother and smoother. He quickly shuttled between the wooden furniture without damaging a single piece, his movements smooth and flowing, his feet stable, and the transitions between his moves held very little latency. After completing his routine, Kyle slowly stopped, sweat beading along his forehead. His eyes held a sharp edge to them.

However, he didn't keep his cold expression for long before a grin crept up his face. He was very proud of his swordsmanship, a skill that he honed through 10 years of hard, consistent training.

"Unfortunately, I didn't master the combat skills my father passed to me; otherwise, I would be a true rank 1 swordsman now." Kyle was a bit regretful now; he had to admit that he wasn't the diligent type before. Otherwise, he would have learned his two combat skills a long time ago. Especially last year. He had been depressed and had hardly trained. If it weren't for the self-discipline his father had ingrained in him since childhood, he wouldn't even have completed his daily sword training routine.

'However, there's still room for change. I can definitely learn [mana enhancement] and the two combat skills before the end of this year, thus becoming a swordsman.' Kyle thought confidently.

"Now then… Eh?" His expression froze. He felt a warm current flowing from his brain to the rest of his body; his physical strength, movement speed, muscle memory, and familiarity with the sword seemed to have been enhanced by a minuscule amount.

"Wait, what was that?!"