NOVEL NEXT
Chapter 2
[Translator – Kie]
[Proofreader – Demon God’s male Disciple]
[Quality Checker – Kawaii]
Chapter 2: Came Back for Revenge (1)
“What happened to me?”
Lying in the field, Damien murmured to himself.
He killed the Archlich Dorugo and then committed suicide. He intended to go to the afterlife to apologise to his family.
But when he came to his senses, he found himself regressed into the past.
“Could this be a dream?”
They say when people die, their whole life flashes before their eyes like a lantern.
Perhaps he didn’t know he was dying after succeeding in suicide and was currently seeing that flash of life.
“Or… on the contrary, was all of that just a dream?”
Being expelled from the family, becoming a mercenary, meeting the Archlich, becoming a Death Knight, and ultimately causing the destruction of all of humanity.
Maybe none of those events actually happened and was just a bad dream
“…I’ll know once I check.”
In his past life, Damien fought numerous strong opponents, adopting their techniques and reaching their levels.
If it were a dream, all that knowledge would be nothing but an illusion. But if it wasn’t a dream…
Damien picked up a fallen tree branch from the ground.
Then he approached the rock lying on the field. The rock seemed extremely sturdy.
“This should be just right.”
Among the many opponents that he had faced was a knight known as the ‘Wall Breaker.’
He was a master who had reached the state of ‘Crushing Waves.’
Crushing Waves amplified the impact transmitted through strikes several times over.
Thanks to reaching this state, the Wall Breaker could shatter walls like glass with a single swing of his warhammer.
Damien had absorbed all his techniques and skills after a 20-minute struggle with the Wall Breaker, securing victory.
“If this is reality, then a rock like this should easily break under Crushing Waves.”
Damien aimed at the tree branch at the rock.
Leaning forward, he thrust his arm out. The tip of the branch struck the centre of the rock.
But unable to withstand the impact, the branch snapped.
Staring at the broken branch with dismay, Damien muttered under his breath.
“…I must be losing my mind.”
Cracks began spreading from the centre of the rock.
The cracks covered the entire rock like spider webs.
Eventually, the rock shattered into pieces like glass, collapsing.
“…It wasn’t a dream.”
It became certain.
The memories and knowledge in his mind weren’t illusions.
Damien had truly travelled back in the past.
To a time when his family was still alive, to a time when he could make things right.
“…Haha.”
For the first time in many years, Damien laughed.
His laughter soon turned into tears.
He clenched his chest with his hands, unable to contain his emotions.
Damien crouched on the ground, shedding tears for a long while.
“How did I come back to the past?”
As his tears subsided, questions started to arise in his mind.
But no matter how much he pondered, there seemed to be no answer.
To regress into the past. It could only be described as a miracle of the God.
“I did think about wanting to apologise to my family, but…”
“I never imagined I’d find myself offering apologies in the afterlife, especially for something in the distant past.
“In my previous life, I was a selfish bastard who was oblivious to anyone but myself.”
“I failed to recognize my family’s love and dedication and acted recklessly.”
“I caused harm to them and ultimately committed a terrible crime by killing them with my own two hands”
“But this time, it will be different.”
“I will live for my family.”
“I must live only thinking about their happiness and future.”
“It’s not going to be a difficult goal.”
Damien possessed a talent.
A talent that had caused the downfall of entire kingdoms and even the mighty empire without an end in sight.
With this talent, he could achieve anything.
It was when Damien made up his mind.
“Oh! Young master Damien!”
A male servant rushed to him urgently from the mansion.
Seeming not in good physical condition, he gasped for breath upon reaching Damien.
“Lady Louise has been waiting for you to come in. Why haven’t you come until now? Lord Haksen is furious!”
Damien stared intently at the servant’s face.
It seemed familiar, but his memory was not clear.
“…Victor.”
Suddenly, the name of this male servant came to mind.
“Yes? Why are you suddenly calling my name?”
“It’s nothing.”
Victor had been responsible for cleaning up Damien’s messes during his days of being a troublemaker.
“Lord Haksen demands to bring you to him no matter what!”
“It seems father is very angry. What did I do to upset him so much?”
Victor wore an incredulous expression at Damien’s words.
But it was unavoidable for Damien.
He had no idea about the exact period of time he had returned to.
“A few days ago, you caused a scene at the tavern and got thrashed by the staff there. That’s why he’s mad.”
Fragments of forgotten memories revived in his mind.
Yet, why he went to the tavern remained blank in his memory.
Only one thing stood out – causing a ruckus at the tavern, getting thrashed like a dog, and fleeing.
“So, your father is very angry.”
“Not just angry. The rumor about you being beaten has spread everywhere, tarnishing the reputation of the House of Haksen. He’s fuming because of that.”
Although their estate was small, the Haksen House was of noble status.
But the eldest son had been beaten by commoners and chased out from a tavern.
This disgrace was beyond compare.
“I must go and see Father.”
“What do you plan to do there?”
“You were asked to bring me, right?”
“Yes, but… wouldn’t it be better to hide and wait until Lord Haksen’s anger calms down?”
At that, Damien shook his head.
“I can’t do that.”
“What?”
“In this life, I’ve decided not to bring shame to my family.”
For a moment, Victor looked perplexed.
It seemed incredibly unfamiliar for Damien to say such words.
“Then I will go see Father.”
Damien patted Victor’s shoulder and headed towards the mansion.
“Enter!”
As Damien entered the Viscount’s chamber, a sword flew towards him.
His father swung a longsword at him.
But Damien didn’t evade.
Judging by the trajectory of the blade, it seemed his father didn’t intend to kill him.
Sure enough, the longsword grazed Damien’s head and embedded itself in the door.
“Honey! Please calm down!”
“Father! Please stop!”
His mother and sister rushed in and held onto his father’s arms desperately.
But his father’s rage showed no signs of abating.
“You must be crazy! Causing a scene at the tavern and getting thrown out? And on top of that, tarnishing our family name by getting beaten up? Do you realize how much our family’s honor has been tarnished because of you?”
[Translator – Kie]
[Proofreader – Demon God’s male Disciple]
[Quality Checker – Kawaii]
His father tried to pull out the lodged longsword with determination.
His mother and sister tried their best to stop him.
“Put that down! You’re going to hurt him for real this time!”
“No! I must bash this scoundrel’s skull today!”
“Father! Please think rationally! This will only cause trouble!”
The three of them began a heated argument.
But the true culprit of the incident, Damien, was lost in reflection.
“How many times have I faced my father’s wrath?”
In the past, he despised his father so much.
He believed his father was tedious and closed-minded.
But now, looking back, his father had always been concerned about Damien.
Whenever an incident occurred, Damien quickly noticed the evidence.
“Damn it! I understand, so let go now!”
Eventually, the victors of the scuffle were his mother and sister.
His father let go of the longsword embedded in the wall.
Then, he slumped down onto a nearby chair.
“Why are you silent? At least try to explain!”
However, his father’s anger hadn’t completely subsided.
In response to his father’s outburst, Damien promptly replied.
“There’s nothing to say.”
“That’s right! Of course there isn’t! If you had a mouth… What? Nothing?”
His father, taken aback, retorted.
It was a natural response.
The Damien of the past was always a pathetic person who engaged in excuses and self-defence.
“I made a mistake that sullied the honour of the Haksen House. It’s entirely my fault, with no room for excuses.”
But the present Damien was different.
He had vowed not to commit shameful acts in front of his family.
“…R-Right, you do understand.”
His father wore a bewildered expression.
Damien admitting his mistake immediately left his father too flustered to vent his anger.
“Look, dear. The child is admitting his mistake. Please forgive him.”
“Father, I’ll take his responsibility and be punished. I’ll make sure he doesn’t do such things ever again…”
His mother and sister began to placate his father.
Damien gazed at them with a face full of longing.
It had always been like this.
Whenever he made a mistake and his father got angry, his mother and sister defended him.
At that time, he felt that their actions were bothersome.
He felt coddled, though in reality, it wasn’t that way at all.
“No, there’s no need for forgiveness.”
However, now was not the time to rely on those two.
“I have committed a sin and will accept punishment.”
At Damien’s sudden declaration, his mother and sister’s eyes widened.
“You..!”
The fading anger of his father surged again.
“You still haven’t learned your lesson! Instead of begging for forgiveness, you dare to assert your pride?”
From his father’s perspective, it seemed that Damien standing up was accepted.
This was also Damien’s fault.
In his troublemaker days, he often tried to challenge and argue with his father.
“This guy still hasn’t learned his lesson! Hey! Give him the punishment he deserves! I will never let this slide…”
“But before that, I will rectify the mistake I made.”
“Wh-What?”
His father’s eyes widened.
The troublemaker Damien had never once taken responsibility for his actions.
For such words as ‘rectify’ to come out of that child’s mouth was nothing short of shocking.
“I will properly accept the consequences for my actions.”
After a polite farewell, Damien left the lord’s chamber.
“…”
His father slowly turned his head to his wife and daughter, asking,
“Could it be that he got hit too much that day, and his head got hurt?”
As Damien left the Viscount’s chamber,
He came face to face with a young boy standing in the corridor.
The two of them stood silently, gazing at each other for a while.
Damien felt moved, while the younger boy…
“Elder brother, until when will you continue to bring disgrace upon our family?”
It was contempt that the younger boy and his brother, Abel Haksen, held towards him.
“Our father, mother, and sister, do you have any idea how much they suffer because of you? If you did, you wouldn’t act this way.”
Unlike Damien, his younger brother Abel was sharp, capable, and overflowing with talent.
He was considered the pride and hope of the Haksen family.
Shamefully, Damien was jealous of such a brother.
“Abel.”
“Why? Are you going to make more excuses? I’m tired of hearing your excuses…”
“I’ve been sorry all this time.”
Abel Haksen’s pupils widened.
He was so astonished that he didn’t even blink.
“I will take responsibility and resolve this matter.”
Damien took a step forward.
After patting his brother’s shoulder once, he left.
As he stepped outside, Victor, looking surprised, asked Damien,
“Sir? Why are you unharmed? I was certain you’d be reprimanded by the lord.”
“Stop with the nonsense and bring the carriage.”
“What? Why the carriage?” Unconcerned, Damien replied to the question.
“We have to go and repay what we received.”
[Translator – Kie]
[Proofreader – Demon God’s male Disciple]
[Quality Checker – Kawaii]