Three years had passed since the mysterious incident in Silverleaf Forest.
Three years filled with discoveries and progress no one could have imagined before.
After making contact with the golden crystal in the forest, something within Shinichi changed fundamentally.
It turned out the crystal was a collection of Mana that had accumulated and frozen into crystalline form.
That frozen mana would choose those with the intention of becoming incredibly strong so they could prove themselves.
Now...
His mana, which once felt like drops of water in an empty bucket, now flowed like a calm yet limitless river.
No, not just that.
Shinichi discovered that his light magic had properties vastly different from what the world had understood until now.
"Father, look at this!" called Shinichi, now ten years old, standing in their backyard.
Ryose, who had been sitting under the oak tree reading a book, lifted his head.
Over these three years, he had witnessed his son's extraordinary transformation.
Shinichi raised his hand forward. Golden light began to gather in his palm, but this time it was different.
The light didn't just shine, it began to crystallize, forming a small solid sword.
"Solid light..." Ryose whispered in awe.
"How can you..."
"I'm not entirely sure myself," Shinichi answered while swinging the light sword through the air.
"But after what happened in the forest back then, I could sense that my light wasn't just ordinary light."
"It's like... I can control the light particles themselves, solidify them, and shape them according to my will."
The light sword in his hand transformed into a shield, then into a bow, then back into ordinary light that disappeared.
Ryose stood up and approached his son. His eyes were filled with mixed pride and concern.
"Shinichi, you must be careful with this ability. Don't let others know about it yet."
"Why, Father?"
"Because..." Ryose let out a long sigh.
"An ability like this is extremely rare."
"Even I've never heard of a light mage who could solidify their light like this."
"That crystal... I couldn't find any information about what's inside it, so you should use your light magic wisely from now on until I knows about it."
"If the wrong person finds out, especially your grandfather..."
Shinichi nodded in understanding. He was mature enough to grasp the power that stood out too much could attract unwanted attention.
"I understand, Father."
"But... I feel so strong now. I want to test my abilities against real monsters."
Ryose's expression turned serious. "It's not the time yet, Shinichi."
"You've become much stronger, but fighting monsters is very different from training."
"But Father also started hunting monsters at the age of ten, right?"
"That was different. I wasn't alone back then. I was with an experienced adventurer guild team to guide me."
Shinichi fell silent. In his heart, he felt ready. His abilities now far exceeded what he had dreamed of three years ago.
He could create weapons from light, protective shields, even projectiles that could pierce stone.
But he also respected his father's concerns.
"Alright, Father. I'll be more patient."
However, Shinichi's patience didn't last long.
Two weeks later, when Ryose went to town on business and Stelle was visiting an old friend in the neighboring village, Shinichi decided to venture out alone.
Not far. Just to the small forest on the edge of Alveron to look for low-level monsters.
Just Goblins or Slimes, he thought.
Monsters that even children could easily handle.
Shinichi wore a brown cloak with a hood to hide his identity, then walked out of town through the quiet back gate.
The afternoon air felt fresh. The sun shone brightly, and birds chirped cheerfully in the trees.
He didn't realize someone was following him from a distance.
An old figure in a dark robe with a long carved staff, his sharp eyes never left Shinichi's movements.
...
...
The forest on the edge of Alveron wasn't too dense. The trees weren't as tall as those in Silverleaf Forest, and sunlight could still easily penetrate the gaps in the foliage.
Shinichi walked carefully among the trees, all his senses alert.
He had learned much about monster hunting from books in the town library and his father's stories.
Before long, he heard movement in the bushes not far from him.
A small Goblin emerged from behind a tree.
The green creature, about the height of a five-year-old child, held a wooden stick with a sharpened end.
Its glowing red eyes stared at Shinichi with a hungry gaze.
"Just one Goblin," Shinichi whispered to himself.
"This is easy."
He raised his right hand. Golden light began to gather, forming a gleaming short sword.
The Goblin shrieked and ran toward him with its stick raised.
Shinichi swung his light sword with a movement he had practiced thousands of times.
The sword cut the Goblin's stick in two, then continued its arc and wounded the creature's arm.
The Goblin fell with a cry of pain, then fled scrambling into the bushes.
"I did it!" Shinichi exclaimed with sparkling eyes.
Adrenaline coursed through his body. This was his first real fight, and he had won easily.
But that joy didn't last long.
A rumbling sound thundered from the opposite direction. Trees began to shake, and the ground beneath his feet trembled.
Shinichi turned with an uneasy feeling.
From behind the trees, a giant Ogre emerged with heavy steps.
The creature stood three meters tall, heavily muscled, and its skin was blackish-gray.
Its red eyes burned with terrifying savagery.
"Impossible..." Shinichi whispered with a trembling voice.
"Ogres shouldn't be in this forest..."
The Ogre lifted a large club made from a tree trunk, then hurled it toward Shinichi.
Shinichi jumped sideways quickly, avoiding the club that struck the ground with enough force to create a small crater.
This isn't a low-level monster.
Panic began to creep into his thoughts. He raised both hands and created a light shield to protect himself.
The Ogre rushed toward him with surprising speed for its size. Its massive hand swung toward Shinichi.
The light shield cracked upon receiving the blow, and Shinichi was thrown several meters backward. His body slammed into a hard tree trunk.
Excruciating pain spread throughout his body. He felt his ribs crack.
I have to escape.
But as he tried to stand, the Ogre was already in front of him. The creature lifted its huge foot, preparing to stomp on Shinichi.
"Light... large sword..." Shinichi muttered desperately.
With his remaining strength, he created a light sword as large as his body and swung it upward, striking the Ogre's leg.
The sword managed to wound the monster's leg, but not deeply enough.
The Ogre only stepped back slightly while roaring in pain, then attacked again more brutally.
Shinichi kept retreating while creating various light weapons like swords, spears, arrows, but none were enough to defeat the giant Ogre.
His body grew more injured. Blood flowed from wounds on his forehead, arms, and legs.
"I'm going to die here..."
The Ogre lifted a large boulder and threw it toward Shinichi. The boy was too weak to dodge.
The boulder would hit his head.
"SHINICHI!"
A familiar shout rang out from behind.
WHOOSH!
An ice spear cut through the air and struck the boulder, shattering it into fragments.
Ryose emerged from behind the trees with a face full of rage and worry.
A thick blue aura enveloped his body, a sign he had unleashed all his power.
"Get away from my son!" he roared while creating dozens of ice spears in the air.
All the spears were fired simultaneously at the Ogre, striking the monster's body from various directions.
But the Ogre didn't retreat. Instead, its red eyes glowed even brighter. A dark aura began to envelop its body.
And Shinichi, lying weakly on the ground, saw a familiar figure emerge from behind a tree.
Moro Sunvolt.
His grandfather stood with his carved staff raised high, and from that staff flowed a dark aura entering the Ogre's body.
"G-Grandfather...?" Shinichi whispered in disbelief.
Moro gazed at him with a cold look. "You should have died as a weak child, Shinichi."
"But since you're stubborn about becoming strong, I'll make sure you die as the strong."
"Father...?!" Ryose screamed with wide eyes when he notices Moro's presences
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"
"What I should have done long ago," Moro answered in a calm tone.
"Ending this family's disgrace."
The Ogre, now enhanced by Moro's dark magic, became twice as large and powerful.
Its red eyes turned to glowing purple, and from its mouth came breath containing poison.
Ryose ran to Shinichi and helped his son stand.
"Can you still move?"
"A little... Father, I'm so sorry..."
"Save the chit-chat later. We have to run."
"Now!"
But the enhanced Ogre wouldn't let them escape. The creature jumped high and landed in front of them, blocking the way out.
Ryose pushed Shinichi behind him. "No matter what happens, don't look back. Run with all your might toward town."
"Father, what do you mean—"
"RUN NOW, DAMMIT!"
But it was too late. The Ogre swung its massive hand toward them both.
Ryose shoved Shinichi away while he himself took the blow with his entire body.
CRACK!
The sound of breaking bones rang out sharply.
Ryose was thrown dozens of meters, his body crashing through several trees before finally falling motionless.
"FATHER!" Shinichi screamed hysterically.
He ran toward his father, not caring about the Ogre that still threatened.
Fresh blood flowed from Ryose's mouth, and his eyes were already losing focus.
"Shinichi..." Ryose's voice was very weak.
"Forgive... me..."
"I... couldn't... protect you properly..."
"Don't talk like that! My father will be fine! We'll go home together!"
Ryose lifted his trembling hand and touched Shinichi's tear-soaked cheek.
"You... you've become a strong child, Shinichi... I'm so proud of you..."
"Take care... take care of your mother... be a good man..."
"Don't let... those mockery go into your head..."
"FATHER!"
But Ryose's eyes had already closed. His hand fell limply to the ground.
Ryose Sunvolt, the best father Shinichi ever had in his second life, was gone.
The enhanced Ogre still stood behind them, ready to attack again. But this time, something different happened to Shinichi.
Overwhelming grief mixed with rage that burned through his entire soul.
Golden light began to radiate from his body, but this time different from usual.
The light was brighter, more intense, and contained a terrifying power.
"You..." Shinichi whispered while slowly standing up, his eyes staring at Moro with pure hatred.
"You killed Father..."
"As it should be," Moro answered without emotion.
"And now it's your turn."
But when Moro commanded the Ogre to attack, something unexpected happened.
Shinichi raised both hands, and from his palms, an extremely bright light radiated outward.
The light wasn't just blinding, but also contained very pure energy.
The Ogre hit by that light began to scream in pain. The dark magic enhanced by Moro began to burn away and disappear from the monster's body.
"Hohhh..." Moro murmured.
"Pure light? Interesting..."
Shinichi didn't respond. He continued radiating that pure light until the now-unenhanced Ogre retreated in fear and fled into the forest.
Then he directed his gaze toward Moro.
His golden eyes no longer looked like those of a ten-year-old child. What existed there was hatred and determination for revenge.
"I will kill you," he whispered in a cold voice.
Moro snapped his fingers, and Shinichi received the influence of magic that directly attacked his mind.
His body immediately convulsed until his vision was shrouded by darkness, and he fell unconscious with memories that slowly faded.
Moro approached them. "This is indeed how it should have gone..."
"From now on, Sunvolt will be known as the strongest."