"AHHHH! Stop it! Leave them alone! You only wanted me! Kill me and spare the others!" screamed Romian, lying powerless on the ground, forced to witness the cruel scene unfolding before him.
"Aaaah, please stop!" shrieked one of his comrades in despair.
"Damn it, just because I chose to go outside, this happens? No, I... I'm too weak to walk this path. Why is all this happening? Why me? He warned me, and I ignored him. Hah~ how foolish of me," Romian thought, his mind consumed by self-blame and the crushing realization of his weakness. But it changed nothing—the brutality continued mercilessly.
"Get them out of the game! The goddess said you should only stab them once or twice so they bleed out. We don't want trouble with the Fox Goddess," said the person sitting on Romian's back, desperation in his voice as his comrades failed to follow orders.
"Damn, I'd give my life to have fun with her, but if you say so..." replied a bald, one-eyed man with a scruffy beard.
As the horror persisted, the person pinning Romian down grabbed his hair, forcing him to watch. He whispered coldly into Romian's ear:
"See this? Everything you've done, everything you've cost me. Your parents' souls belong to me now. And trust me, this poison will kill you. But enjoy the view. You've made too many enemies—me and the goddess..."
–––––––
Beginning...
"WOOOOO WHERE AM IIIIIIIIII?"
My name is Kazuto Raijin. I was a 37-year-old office worker with a boring life. No friends, no girlfriend—still a virgin at 37... Whatever, let's skip that. Or not? Isn't that what an MC in a light novel has to say?
I was summoned by a goddess named Artemis to become a new hero. She said, "There are already four heroes, and you'll be the fifth."
Fifth my ass.
Somehow, she held a grudge and reincarnated me as a baby. No cheat powers, unlike every isekai novel or anime.
At least I got a decent family, despite the goddess hating me. Guess she couldn't control that, thankfully.
"Phew."
My parents here are Letizia and Paul. Oddly, I have a double name: Romian Raijin. Reusing my old surname, Raijin—something's fishy, but whatever.
"Romy-bunny, where are you? Come to Mama. Here? There? Gotcha!" his mother cooed, scooping him into her arms.
I'm an only child. My parents are in their early 20s, and I'm just 2 years old here.
In my past life, I was 11 when my parents died.
After that, my life spiraled.
Let's switch topics: I won't be ugly!
What do I mean?
My parents are stupidly hot. So I'll definitely be good-looking too, yay!
In my old life, I was fat, ugly, but tall. Still a virgin... Why do I keep mentioning that? Author, give me some originality!
NOPE.
We also have a maid—or "magd" here.
She's... interesting. Maybe I stare at her bust too much, but she's older, so it's fine, right?
Let's stop talking about boobs and focus on this rebirth mess. I'm 2 years old but didn't cry at birth. Not great, but what do you expect from a 37-year-old soul? They thought I was stillborn until I opened my eyes. Imagine if I hadn't... yikes.
Two years later...
Now I'm 4. I can talk and have been walking since last year.
In my free time, I study magic. It's complicated: mana flows through points in your body, but you need innate talent. No fire talent? No fire magic. But I'm sure there's a way to learn without talent—just weaker.
As Romian spotted the large magic book on the floor titled 'Fundamental Magic,' he opened it again and saw the seven main magic types.
,,Water, Darkness, Light, Fire, Lightning, Wind… yeah, like any other light novel'' said Romian, continuing to flip through the pages boredly.
Romian had looked through it many times before, but the final section annoyed him the most.
,,Then there's a 5-in-10-billion chance for "god magics": Thunder God, Magma God, Tsunami God, Wind Control, Mountain God. Lame names, right? The author really phoned it in.''
,,Only four people officially have these—meant to include me, but that bitch goddess screwed me. The four "gummy bear squad" heroes have two Magma, one Tsunami, and Wind Control. Who needs heroes anyway?''
After sword training with his Dad, Romian lazed around, realizing how pathetically weak he was for his age.
,,We can postpone training tomorrow," said his father Paul.
My dad here is like 24... Crazy young, but skilled. I should be too, yet I can't even hold a sword. Tried last time—couldn't grip it for more than two seconds.
,,Seriously, who makes a 4-year-old train with swords?! I'm not some OP MC with a harem of every race, even bread. I've got zero harem members—maybe 'cause I'm FOUR?!" Romian reeled from his own "brilliant" conclusion.
,,OK, got it, I'm dumb," Romian muttered, blushing.
It's the year 990, probably February since Dad's birthday was January 5th.
Here, adulthood starts at 15, and birthdays are celebrated every five years. So you get three birthdays: 5, 10, 15.
Now, where I live: middle of nowhere. Nearby is a dangerous forest, but whatever.
Our village is on a gentle hill, spacious but isolated. The nearest town, Puria, isn't poor or rich—just average, I guess. Never been there. Not 'cause I'm antisocial... I just hate people.
A few days later...
I still can't hold a sword—not even a wooden one. What's wrong with me? Sword skills and magic aren't the same. You need to understand the sword's philosophy, its infinite paths. Sword and magic can be worlds apart or intertwined. Depends on your perspective. Swordmastery is the hardest... or the easiest.
————————————
„While I was training and my father was briefly away, I spotted a man in the distance.
A man with long white hair, roughly 1.90 meters tall from my perspective.
I can't make out his face because he's far away, but I know he's watching me. He occasionally points at me and then toward the dangerous forest. Once, he demonstrated a swordsmanship technique with a greatsword. I could never see it fully because he was too fast, but he's a mystery to me. He radiates an aura of darkness, yet also something intimate, as if he's someone I know. But I can't think of who.
Not only are his sword skills unique, he also uses a magic technique that almost literally teleports him behind his opponent. A skill that gives me goosebumps. Everything about him gives me goosebumps. That gigantic, dangerous forest—why does he point there? Is something there? And why show off those greatsword skills? None of it makes sense.
From afar, his clothing reminds me of a hanfu. A completely black hanfu, adorned with red stripes that connect from the top. On his forehead is something blue, I think.
Let's set this mysterious man aside. I was born on May 17th and will have a birthday soon—in four months. But hey, as I once said, here you only celebrate your birthday every five years, and I'm already looking forward to that!"