RETURN OF THE MORTAL MAN

Finally, the day ended. I had absorbed a significant amount of information, and my brain required time to process it. Even though I was not unintelligent, I was not particularly gifted either. In my previous life, I had nearly failed my theory classes.

I walked toward my room. The dorm and school were only five minutes apart. The dorm rooms were designed for student safety, with separate dorms for boys and girls. In two days, I'll be heading to the monster planet, and I need to bring a day's worth of supplies and equipment. I only had 10 elis. Elis are the currency used by humans. I plan to go on the first tour. Since I'm planning to proceed cautiously, I might not achieve the desired result in one go. I have to trade low-level fuel for points. Points can be used to level up and trade items. I think I have 5 points, and I earned 3 points today. That's a total of 8 points, so I can get what I want. I have to buy food and a dimensional bag from the market. Even if the school provides meals, taking two days' worth would raise suspicions. I won't be around for two days, so I have to come up with an excuse.

A brilliant idea came to mind. I had already returned to my room while thinking about it. I opened the door with the key and entered. The room wasn't very big. There was one bed, a desk, and some empty space for another table. I took off my clothes and headed toward the bathroom. The weather was hot, and I was sweating a lot, so I smelled bad.

Half an hour later, I came out of the bathroom and started warming up to exercise. I couldn't just rely on Yakut to get stronger. I needed to have a strong physique to use a sword. Even though Yakut provides physical strength and many other benefits, it can't perform sword movements. That depends on the person. The sword style I use consists of six movements, and I need to master all of them.

I put on my clothes, took my sword, and walked toward the open training area. I looked up at the moon. It was shattered. No one knew why, but it was still beautiful. It looked as if someone had punched it and broken it. I lowered my head and continued along the path. Time passed, and the students were staying in their dormitories. The school allowed night training. As I walked along the path, I saw many security guards. A few asked why I was outside, and I explained to them.

Finally, I arrived at the training area. The area was really large. I saw at least 15 fields. A few people were training on their own. I found a corner where I wouldn't disturb anyone. I took off my academy uniform and started swinging my sword. My body didn't have enough muscle yet. I needed to increase my endurance and build a foundation within two days.

'Hff!'

I raised my sword above my head and swung it in a straight line without bending my arm. Today, my goal was to make 10,000 straight cuts. Sleeping with superpowers wasn't a problem. It was just done to relax the mind. I didn't need that. Even if I didn't sleep for a week, it wouldn't be a problem.

I kept repeating the same movement.

'hff!'

****

The sun's rays touched my skin and I felt its warmth. The sun was rising above the horizon, heralding the beginning of a new day.

My arms were aching terribly. Every muscle was tearing apart and repairing itself. This cycle continued for hours.

'Huh... huh... hih!'

Finally, I finished. I was breathing with my eyes closed. This was very difficult. I had underestimated the training. My body is much less resilient than it was in my previous life. If I had done this before, I wouldn't have even gotten tired. I was drenched in sweat. The day had just begun, and I was already exhausted.

"You pushed yourself too hard."

I opened my eyes and looked toward the voice. The sun was in my eyes, so I shielded them with my hand and tried to focus on the figure. Her long white hair fell over her face. She looked at me with her yellow eyes. It was Ester. Her face and eyes are what make her popular among the girls. I smiled at her. I want to build a good relationship with an old friend.

"I wasn't struggling. I was just lying down because I was sleepy."

"Here? At the training site and in a dusty place. I think you have a strange habit."

"No, I was lying down because I was tired. I don't have a strange habit."

I shouted at her loudly.

"Alright, alright, I was just joking. Here's some advice: go to your room and take a shower. There's an hour left before class starts."

Ester left after hearing those words and went away. I took my uniform and walked quickly toward my room. I was wearing a shirt, and since it was wet, my body was visible. I put my foot down and sped up even more. I felt many eyes on me along the way. My hair was both wet and dusty. I entered my room in a very short time and closed the door firmly.

I was so focused on my training that I didn't even notice the time. As I headed toward the bathroom, I threw all my clothes onto the bed. Thanks to the magic, water was flowing from the ceiling, making the shower very easy. I turned on the hot water and washed my hair with soap using my hands. The sweat smell began to slowly leave my body.

I turned off the water and started drying myself with a towel. I looked at myself in the mirror. I had black hair and brown eyes. I wasn't particularly handsome. My hair and eyes had turned red because of the sword style I used in my previous life. Even if my hair didn't stand out, my red eyes made people look at me with fear. They were completely red. Every single part of them. I had learned this technique from a monster. That's why I didn't need to hunt the monster. Even though everyone was afraid of me, Amelia approached me and treated me kindly. Even as people grew accustomed to me over time, they still avoided me. I had thought of this as a curse, but it led me to meet Amelia. For that, I am grateful. Soon, after mastering my first form, many parts of me, including my eyes and hair, will change. That will be my problem in the future. My current goal is to prepare for tomorrow. I left my hair messy, put on my clothes, and set off for school.

****

I was walking down a crowded and busy street. After sleeping through all my theory classes and participating less in practical classes, I got permission from the school administration and was looking at stores for the necessary materials. After a 5-point exchange, I made 10 low-level Yakut exchanges. After the supplies, I needed a dimensional bag. I checked many stores, but the prices were very high. I could find a dimensional bag measuring 4 square meters for 8 Eli at a messy and neglected store.

Even if I ate Morvak meat, the place I was going to was somewhere I had never seen before, and starting a fire could lead to my death. Two eli were enough to buy ready-to-eat, filling food. I found a market and went inside. People were shopping. I took a basket and looked for filling vegetables and ready-to-eat meals. I went to the cash register to pay. At the cash register, I saw a familiar person with blonde hair and blue eyes. It was Emili. I greeted her.

"I didn't expect to see you here, Emily."

"Hello, Jin. I came here over the weekend to help my family. It was fate that we met here. Why are you buying so much food? They give free meals at school."

"I plan to sleep for two days. I'll only wake up to eat, and walking to the cafeteria is too much."

Emily laughed and looked at me with tears in her eyes.

"Isn't two days too long to sleep?"

"I'm very tired. I'll use the weekend for vacation. I'd like to talk to you more, but I have an important task to do."

I handed the money to Emily and put what I had bought into a dimensional bag.

"I understand. Good luck with your important work. Have a good vacation."

After saying goodbye to Emily, I left the store. All I needed to do was return to my room and wait for nightfall to teleport. I walked toward the academy through the crowded streets.

****

I closed all the windows and locked the door. I don't want to take any risks. I moved to the empty part of the room.

"Huh!"

Okay, I'm ready.

[PLANET ASTON PORTAL PREPARING]

The space in front of me seemed to begin separating from time and space. It was completely black. The inside was invisible. I think this is where I need to place the fuel. I took five low-level Yakuts from the dimensional bag. I threw them into the void and waited. I waited for five minutes, but nothing happened.

"Hey, it hasn't malfunctioned, has it?"

As I said this, the tear disappeared, and in its place, a round, two-meter-wide blue portal formed. I recognized it. It resembled the portals the Morvaks use to enter this world. There was no difference at all. What does this mean? Is the system creating the portals? I have no idea. For now, I'm putting this topic on hold to think about later.

I took my sword in hand and moved forward slowly. I didn't know where I would end up. All of this was a gamble, and the stakes were my life. I entered the portal, and my vision darkened. When my vision returned, I found myself in a cave. It was dark. I gripped my sword tightly and pulled a magical lantern from my dimensional bag. I sent the mana to the lantern, and the area began to light up. Even though my field of vision wasn't very wide, it was enough. I moved forward slowly. I had to be very careful. I had never been to this world before.

'Hrrrrrrr...'

I quickly turned toward the growling sound I heard. I recognized that sound. I looked at the source of the sound. It had black eyes, long fur, and sharp teeth. It resembled a wolf but looked more savage and terrifying. Its body was covered in wounds, making it look even more terrifying. The Fenharin wolf species was called Morvak. Fenharins usually traveled in packs and were difficult opponents to defeat. Pack... I began to look around anxiously, but I didn't see any other Fenharins. I hoped there weren't any others.

I gripped my sword and walked toward the fenharin, glancing sideways. Its eyes were fixed on me. It was ten paces away, standing on the rock. The advantage was entirely on its side. I needed to make it come to me. From the aura it was emitting, it seemed to possess a power equal to mine. I'll do it.

I started running backward. The fenharin growled and charged toward me. As its claw passed by my head, I quickly ducked. The claw missed, and I thrust my sword backward without looking back.

'CLICK'

My sword sank into Fenharin's flesh. I pulled the sword back and somersaulted forward, moving away from Fenharin. Fenharin let out a painful scream, and I laughed as I looked at him.

****

A girl with green hair was sitting on her luxurious bed. She was alone and looked pensive.

'SIGH'

She stood up and spoke to herself.

"Even if you don't remember me, my love, I will remember you. I will survive and protect you."

The girl with green eyes wiped her tears away and walked towards the door.