Ch.32. New Beginning (2)

# 2. New Beginning (2)

On a cool, breezy autumn day.

A young man with jet-black hair stared intently at someone’s grave.

Though he appeared to be a 17-year-old boy, perhaps due to the power of mana, his essence seemed otherwise.

The young man gazed at the large grave with such a wistful look in his eyes that it was impossible to believe he was only 17.

He spoke incomprehensible words to the grave.

“The weather is really nice today. I wish the Empress could feel it too.”

His pitiful lips trembled as he addressed the grave.

“Are you eating well? I’m not eating well, but you must eat properly, Your Majesty.”

He seemed to be denying the reality of her death.

Yet it was somewhat puzzling that he would react this way, since he had witnessed the Empress’s death, attended her funeral, and even worked on her grave.

It was both strange and pitiful that despite having seen and felt her death more clearly than anyone, he refused to accept it.

Afterward, like a dog that had lost its master, he continued to stay by the grave, constantly speaking to it.

Though no one answered his words, he continued speaking as if it didn’t matter.

“The new Empress is really incompetent at her job.”

He spoke ill of the new Empress.

“But the new recruits are doing really well. I selected them myself, and I think I chose well.”

He praised his subordinates.

“I tried something called pizza the other day, and it was really delicious. Have you tried it, Your Majesty?”

He talked about the food he had eaten.

“Ah, it’s time now. I’ll come back later. Next time, I’ll bring that ice cream you liked, so look forward to it.”

Finally, as if his time was up, he bid farewell to the grave and left.

After that, though his visits became less frequent, he continued to visit the grave whether it rained or snowed.

That is, until the news of the Knight Commander’s death was announced.

***

“Ugh… that dream again.”

Lately, I’ve been dreaming about talking to myself at her grave.

I actually did that in real life, but having it happen in my dreams too made me feel strange.

It was as if all those past events were being recalled in my mind.

-Knock knock-

While I was rolling around in bed, half-asleep, someone knocked on the door.

It was probably the maid of our house.

‘She’s probably going to tell me breakfast is ready.’

“Young master, breakfast is ready.”

“Okay, I’ll be right there.”

After washing my face in the bathroom, I headed to the dining room on the first floor.

When I arrived, the table was set with many dishes, but there was no one else except me and the maids.

One of the maids, noticing my gaze, explained the situation.

“The others have already left.”

Surprised, I checked my phone and saw it was 11:20 AM.

‘I woke up really late.’

While eating the food laid out on the table, I browsed through today’s news articles on my phone.

[Massive Appearance of A+ Grade Dungeons]

[Heavy Rain Expected Nationwide Tomorrow]

There wasn’t anything particularly special, but one article caught my eye.

[October 15th Decided as Royal Academy Entrance Exam Date]

October 15th—since today was September 1st, that meant I had about a month and two weeks left.

Now that my body had recently returned to a normal weight, it was time to start leveling up.

‘But…’

I recently realized that I didn’t seem to have that much fat to begin with.

‘It’s coming off really quickly.’

I never thought it would be possible in just a month.

So I had been thinking, ‘Do I need to pass the entrance exam with just the written test?’

But now, I might be able to put that thought aside.

Still, it would be nearly impossible to raise my level to match my peers in just a month and a half.

The average level of those who would pass in the top ranks of this entrance exam would be around 90 to 100.

My current level is only 24…

It’s a pathetic level, but I have to try my best until the end.

Since I’m almost certain to get a perfect score on the written test, I might be able to secure a high ranking if I do well.

For that to happen, I need to level up like crazy from now until the exam day.

The most efficient way to level up is to clear dungeons, but in my current weakened state, even the lowest F-grade dungeon might be a close call.

‘But maybe I can clear it thanks to my skills?’

Even with a low rank, having many skills is a good thing.

Normally, kids my age—around 16—would be considered geniuses if they had one unique skill and two common skills.

But in my case, I have two unique skills, five common skills, and even three passive skills, which are supposedly hard to obtain. This will be a huge advantage in competition with my peers.

However, the lack of levels is a significant disadvantage that offsets these advantages.

That’s why, as soon as I finished eating, I grabbed only my phone and a dagger and headed to the Hunter’s Guild.

When I opened the door to the Hunter’s Guild and went inside, a very familiar scene entered my vision.

And as if it were natural, I looked for the dungeon request notice on the bulletin board.

I examined the remaining dungeons there.

There were still many ranked dungeons left, but I didn’t have much choice.

As planned, I chose the closest F-grade dungeon.

‘F-grade, huh…’

Originally, with Chris, we were veterans who could clear even S-rank dungeons with just two people, but now I was just a 16-year-old kid.

I sighed and headed toward that F-grade dungeon.

“It’s definitely small.”

When I arrived at the marked location on the map, a structure that was embarrassing to even call a dungeon greeted us.

Like a proper dungeon, magical energy was leaking through the cracks of the building, but the amount was pitifully small.

Having only seen dungeons of enormous size fit for a king of a country before, this one looked even smaller than its actual size.

“But I have no choice now…”

As I trudged into the dungeon, the interior, which had looked dark from outside, gradually brightened as candles began to light up one by one.

As it brightened, the monsters inside the dungeon came into view.

-Keeeeek!-

Various monsters from inside the dungeon greeted me.

They were adorably weak E-grade monsters.

Normally, they would be trembling in fear, but now I was just as weak and adorable a hunter.

Since I couldn’t let my guard down, I used a skill from the start.

-Swoosh-

A pitch-black sword formed rapidly in my hand.

My first unique skill.

[Sword of Darkness].

[The Sword of Darkness is summoned to your hand]

Right now, it has such a modest description, but the true value of this skill appears as its grade increases.

Looking at the sword in my hand, I carefully opened my mouth.

“It’s been a while.”

The cool sensation from the sword spread throughout my body.

It was a sensation I had felt countless times, thousands and tens of thousands of times, holding this sword throughout my life.

Yet it felt fresh, as if I were holding it for the first time.

“Well, it is the first time with this body.”

As memories of the first time I held this sword flashed by, I finally felt like I was making a new start in my second life.

“Ah… back then, I was with the Empress…”

Wondering what she might be doing now, I charged toward the monsters that were still emanating killing intent toward me.

***

“Hmm…”

An ordinary female student with light brown hair that suited her well was organizing books in the library.

As a member of the student council and a library assistant, she was having busy days.

Though she appeared to be an ordinary model student to anyone who saw her, she had a secret that no one else knew.

“Princess, you’re here again today.”

That’s right.

She, who lived under the name Diana at the academy, was actually Elizabeth Michael, the princess of the Kainis Empire.

“Riel, you shouldn’t call me that at the academy!”

She was someone who used formal speech even with her maid, Riel, the only person at the academy who knew she was a princess.

“There’s no one around.”

Despite their master-servant relationship, they seemed extremely close.

“By the way, we’ll be third-years next year, Riel!”

She seemed to have high expectations about becoming a third-year.

Riel, beside her, also seemed to have expectations, but appeared to be interested in something else.

“Next year, you absolutely must get a boyfriend. Otherwise, you might end up marrying someone you’ve never even seen!”

Riel seemed more interested in her romantic affairs.

However, contrary to Riel’s wishes, she didn’t seem to have anyone in mind.

“There are too many trash people who don’t even treat commoners as human beings.”

She stared into space with a somewhat angry expression.

Riel knew exactly who she was thinking of, so she couldn’t refute her words.

Still, Riel didn’t give up and tried to encourage her not to abandon thoughts of romance.

“Then what do you think about the first-years coming in this time?”