Ever since he could remember and he could remember everything from the age of one until now—strange but true—he had been having dreams about a guy whose face he could not remember no matter how hard he tried.
In dreams, he saw the snapshots of his life and watched as the guy grew up, struggled and became strong enough to destroy planets and stars.
One would expect him to be in awe watching his mystical and out of the world journey but the more he dreamt and more he saw, the more he grew frustrated because the guy was utterly foolish.
He had been bullied since young and as he grew up and showed talent in cultivation, people grew envious and his whole family annihilated. Then when he wanted to become stronger to avenge his family, everyone he met tried to stop him as if the entire world was against him and loathed his existence. The number of times he almost died was uncountable.
Despite all that, when the world was invaded and everyone was selfishly trying to curry favour with the invaders instead of trying to save the world, he set himself and his small group of friends against the invaders.
Why? To save the world that wanted nothing more than him to die. What was the result? Most of his friends died and he once again almost died, not at invader's hands but at those he was trying to protect.
This was just one example. There were many more. Every time, he would become so irritated and furious that he would end up waking up cursing him just like today.
"Fool! All that strength was wasted on him." He couldn't help but curse once again.
Just then, a curious voice that felt both familiar and unfamiliar sounded in his ear.
"Oh? You think you would've acted any differently than him?"
Chills ran down Rowan's spine and he jumped off the bed, guardedly looking around.
When he saw no one, he furrowed his brows, 'Have I started hallucinating?'
"You are not." The voice sounded again, a little feebler this time, [Answer me. Do you think you would've acted any differently than him?]
Ba-Dum!
Rowan's heart thumped. This time he was sure he wasn't hallucinating and that there was no one else in the room other than him. He also realized whoever or whatever it was, it could read his mind.
After a momentary panic, he calmed down and confidently said, "Of course."
There was silence for a few moments before the voice sounded again, barely audible.
[We will see.]
While Rowan frowned at the response, thinking what this could mean, a panel opened in front of him with a line of words written on it.
[Kill devils and you'll gain strength.]
Rowan stared at the panel in silence for a few minutes before finally muttering incredulously, "Did I just get the system like those in web novels those nerds in school used to read?"
He was having a hard time believing this. While thanks to his dreams he believed supernatural things were possible, he hadn't seen anything of the sort until now, so he believed even if it was real, this world didn't have it.
Now, however, seeing the voice gave him this… panel or system and told him to kill devils to get stronger, he couldn't help but think that maybe supernatural things really existed here.
'But where am I supposed to find devils? Moreover, even if I do find them, can I kill them?' He frowned at the thought.
While he was quite a bit stronger than ordinary men of his age, he didn't believe he could kill devils because they were sure to be a lot more stronger than him.
'Shouldn't it have given me something to get stronger first… like a welcome gift or something?'
Thinking this, he became a little depressed. Walking over to the bed, he plopped into it and closed his eyes.
Seconds turned into minutes and minutes into an hour before he opened his eyes. Maybe it was because he was worried about his mother or excited about getting the system but he couldn't sleep.
Pulling out his phone from beneath the pillow, he checked time: 2:54 A.M,
'What do I do for four more hours?' He thought. He was going to leave for college at 8, so he was free until 7 A.M. With sleep not coming, he felt bored.
Thinking for a moment, he pulled out a four feet long and half a feet wide metal box from under his bed and opened it, revealing a 3-feet long flaming red sword.
Unlike the swords that can be bought in shops, this sword wasn't made just for decoration. Though he didn't know which metal it was made from, it was very durable and sharp.
The day he stole it from its previous owner's house, he had tested it and found that as long as he used his full strength, it could easily cut through half an inch thick iron bar with it barely losing its sharpness.
'After appreciating it for a while, he started swinging around. While it wouldn't make him the master of sword, he could get familiar with it and would have an easy time wielding it when time came.
Click!
A few minutes into his training, he suddenly stopped and strained his ear but didn't hear anything for several seconds which made him frown. He was sure he had heard a somewhat metallic sound.
He stood still in the moon illuminated room and kept his breathing in check so as to not make any sound.
Click!
After a few seconds passed, he heard another sound and his heart started racing because he realized it came from sometime hitting the outside concrete wall of his house, right beneath his room.
Unaware that his senses had unknowingly become a lot more sharper which allowed him to hear the very first sound, he slowly stalked toward the glass window but didn't look down immediately.
On the street across his window was a tall tree the branches of which would sway every time there was a slightly stronger breeze. When they swayed, they would block the moonlight falling on the window of his room, plunging it into darkness.
So, he waited and listened to the clacking sound. Half a minute later, his nerves had become taut from tension because he realized the source of the sound had come increasingly closer to the window.
Still, he didn't look down, not wanting to risk alerting whatever it was.
Then a few seconds later, a gust of wind came and the branches swayed, blocking the moonlight.
Immediately, he stuck his face closer to the window and looked down. What he saw made his pupils constrict.