The morning was quiet in the Province of Vina.
Sunlight slipped through the small window, falling across the face of Kid, who was fast asleep. For the first time since arriving in this world, there were no monsters chasing him and no strange noises disturbing the silence of the night.
But that did not last long.
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
"Wake up, new recruit!"
Kid slowly opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling for a few moments before remembering where he was.
"Ah... right. I've joined the guards."
He muttered those words before sitting on the edge of the bed and rubbing his tired eyes.
His sleep had not been as peaceful as he had expected. Every time he closed his eyes, memories of the rocky valley returned to him: the demonic dogs that had nearly devoured him alive, and the moment when he had felt that his body was already beyond saving.
Then he remembered something else.
The book.
He quickly reached beside the bed, but found nothing.
His movements froze.
"...Where is it?"
He searched under the pillow, then turned over the blanket, and finally bent down to inspect the floor.
Nothing.
A chill ran down his spine.
Did I lose it? No, impossible. I had it with me when I arrived here... or did I leave it in the valley?
Possibilities raced through his mind, but before he could think any further, the guard's voice rang out from behind the door once more.
"Are you planning to sleep all day? You have ten minutes to get out here!"
"All right! I'm coming!"
Kid answered hastily, then suddenly stopped.
Something was strange.
He couldn't remember putting the book anywhere, but he couldn't remember seeing it after arriving at the mansion, either.
He sighed slowly.
Not now. I need to act as though everything is normal. The last thing I need is for someone here to become suspicious of me on my first day.
He put on his simple clothes and left the room.
The military barracks were busier than he had expected.
Men carrying swords moved about, others trained in the courtyard, and the sounds of metal clashing against metal echoed through the area. Everyone seemed occupied with their own tasks, as though Kid's former life had been nothing more than a distant dream.
A tall, broad-shouldered man approached him. He wore leather armor and carried a sword at his waist. A scar stretched across his face, from his left eyebrow to the middle of his cheek.
The man examined Kid from head to toe.
"You're the boy Lady Mira brought here, aren't you?"
"Yes. My name is Kid."
"I'm Garrick, one of the instructors responsible for the new recruits."
Garrick pointed toward a group of boys standing at the edge of the courtyard.
"Go join them. Today, we'll see whether you deserve to wear the guards' uniform."
Kid disliked his tone, but he didn't argue.
Well, I expected something like this. No one is going to give me a place here for free.
He walked toward the group, and several of the recruits turned to look at him.
Some were around his age, while others appeared a few years older. Their builds ranged from thin to athletic, but they all shared the same curious expressions.
A boy with short brown hair spoke up.
"You're the one who came from the valley, right?"
Kid hesitated briefly before answering.
"I suppose so."
"I heard you killed ten demonic dogs all by yourself!"
Kid's eyes widened.
For a moment, silence fell over the group.
Then another boy burst out laughing.
"Ten? Maybe twenty! Don't you know nobles love exaggerating their stories?"
"I never said I killed them."
The laughter subsided.
The brown-haired boy stared at him, seemingly trying to determine whether he was being sarcastic.
"When I woke up, the monsters were already dead. I don't know what happened there."
It wasn't entirely a lie, but it wasn't the whole truth, either.
The boy studied him strangely.
"That's weird..."
Before he could say anything more, Garrick clapped his hands loudly.
"Enough chatter! Line up!"
Everyone moved quickly.
Kid took his place at the back of the line, trying to imitate the others' posture.
Garrick raised a wooden sword.
"We won't be using swords today. First, I want to assess your physical fitness. Ten laps around the courtyard, followed by fifty push-ups. After that, we'll move on to the endurance test."
Kid's eyes widened.
Ten laps? Fifty push-ups? Is this military training or an attempt to get rid of me?
Garrick blew his whistle.
The recruits took off running.
Kid followed, trying to convince himself that the task wasn't impossible.
The first lap was difficult.
The second made his breathing quicken.
By the third, his lungs felt as though they were burning.
He had never been particularly athletic, and his weak body did little to help him keep up with the others. Soon, the entire group had passed him, leaving him running alone at the back.
Wonderful... I came to another world only to discover that I'm still the same person.
He gritted his teeth and continued running.
He didn't want to become the strongest person in a single day. All he wanted was to avoid being completely helpless the next time he faced danger.
Unfortunately, his body had other plans.
After the sixth lap, his foot caught on the ground, and he nearly fell. He braced himself against his knees, gasping for breath.
Garrick approached him.
"Get up."
Kid raised his head with difficulty.
"I just need... a moment."
"The monsters won't give you a moment when they come for you."
Those words silenced Kid.
Monsters.
Right. This wasn't a world where he could hide in a school bathroom and wait for his problems to disappear.
If he failed here, he wouldn't merely lose his dignity.
He might lose his life.
He slowly stood up and resumed running.
He wasn't fast, and he wasn't strong, but he finally completed all ten laps.
When he finished, he collapsed onto the ground, gasping for air.
Garrick studied him for a moment before speaking.
"At least you didn't give up."
It wasn't much of a compliment, but it was the first positive thing Kid had heard since arriving in this place.
For some reason, he felt a little relieved.
After the morning training session, the recruits were allowed to rest.
Kid sat beneath the shade of a tree near the courtyard, holding a cup of water. His muscles ached, and every small movement reminded him that he hadn't been prepared for this life.
He closed his eyes for a moment.
I need three things: information about this world, a weapon I can actually use, and a way to understand that demonic energy.
He paused.
And I also need to recover the book.
Suddenly, a faint light appeared before his eyes.
Kid jolted, nearly spilling his water.
No one around him seemed to notice anything.
Tiny points of light gathered in the air, forming a transparent window in front of him.
SYSTEM MESSAGE
Host Identified
Current Status
Name: Kid
Level: Beginner
Demonic Energy: Unstable
Combat Ability: Extremely Low
Program Status: Initializing
Warning: Advancement requirements have not been met.
Kid froze.
What is this now?
He tried to touch the window, but his fingers passed straight through it.
Can I control it?
"Close."
Nothing happened.
"Disappear."
The window remained in place.
"Please, just disappear!"
A recruit nearby glanced at him.
"Are you talking to yourself?"
"No! I was... practicing my breathing."
The boy stared at him suspiciously before returning to his friends.
Kid let out a long sigh.
Excellent. If I start talking to the air, I won't need any enemies to lose my mind.
He turned his attention back to the window.
This time, new words appeared.
"Host's desire to access information detected."
Another line appeared beneath it.
"Would you like to retrieve the records of previous events?"
Kid's eyes widened.
The records of previous events?
Did the system know what had happened in the valley? Could it tell him what had occurred during the reset?
He answered in a quiet voice.
"Yes."
The window disappeared for a moment before new words appeared.
"Access denied."
Kid felt a wave of disappointment, but the next message made him momentarily forget to breathe.
"Reason: The original story path has not been identified."
The original story path...
He remembered the message that had appeared before, the one that spoke of failing to create the perfect story.
So it hadn't been a coincidence.
Something connected these messages, something that went beyond simply gaining power.
Before he could think any further, one final line appeared.
"Warning: External interference detected."
The window vanished immediately.
Kid stood up.
A strange sensation washed over him, as though someone were watching him from a distant place.
He turned toward the military building, then toward the stone towers surrounding the courtyard.
He saw no one staring at him.
Even so, he couldn't shake the feeling.
Is there someone else who can see these messages?
"Kid."
A feminine voice came from behind him.
He turned quickly.
Mira stood a few steps away, dressed in elegant clothes befitting her noble status. Sunlight reflected off her silver hair, while her crimson eyes seemed calmer than he remembered.
She smiled at him.
"How is your first training session going?"
He didn't answer immediately.
Her smile looked natural, but Kid was no longer willing to trust appearances so easily.
"It's... exhausting."
Mira gave a light laugh.
"That's normal. Garrick has no mercy when it comes to new recruits."
Then she glanced at the cup in his hand.
"By the way, have you fully recovered from your injuries?"
"Yes, more or less."
"Good."
A brief silence followed.
Then Mira asked, as though bringing up something unimportant,
"Incidentally, have you remembered anything new about the valley?"
Kid's body stiffened.
So it had begun.
"Nothing important."
"Really?"
She took a step closer.
"Strange. You were surrounded by the corpses of demonic dogs, yet you weren't carrying a weapon. Then the scouting party found you without understanding how you had survived."
Mira smiled, but her eyes remained fixed on him.
"Don't you think that deserves an explanation?"
Kid tried to remain calm.
"I agree, but I can't clearly remember what happened."
Mira studied him for several moments.
Then she said,
"All right. I won't pressure you for now."
She turned to leave, but stopped after taking two steps.
"Oh, I almost forgot."
She looked back at him.
"If you come across anything strange in the valley, it's best to tell me. There are things that shouldn't fall into the wrong hands."
Kid felt that her words carried another meaning.
He watched her walk away until she disappeared behind the building.
Then he lowered his gaze to his hands.
She knows something.
He didn't know what it was or how much she knew, but he realized that remaining under her watch wouldn't be easy.
And yet, Mira wasn't his biggest problem anymore.
At the very moment she turned away, a single line appeared before his eyes.
"New main character detected."
Beneath it was a name he had never expected to see.
"Jade."
Kid felt the blood drain from his face.
Jade?
That name he had tried to bury in the deepest corner of his memory.
The person who had turned his school days into a living hell.
He slowly raised his head and stared into the distance.
No... that's impossible.
A second message appeared.
"The next chapter of the story will begin at sunset."
Then the words vanished.
Kid stood in the middle of the courtyard, surrounded by the voices and laughter of the other recruits, but he could no longer hear any of them.
There was only one question occupying his mind.
How could someone from his old world appear in this one?
And why had the system chosen him to become the next main character?