Chapter 1 - Origins Rewritten

(1st Saga - Greater Magius, The Balance | Hanakawa Arc)

To become a ‘hero of legend’, that is the dream that has at least once captivated the mind of every child in Hanakawa. At one time, I was no different.

Nearly eight centuries ago, The Great Uprising began, plunging all eight worlds of the World Chain into strife as the gods descended from the Divine Realm to wage war against all mortals, or so the story is told. The Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth realms had been completely annihilated despite humanity’s desperate struggles, until he turned the tides of battle. 

Out of every historical figure known to man, he was the only one unanimously agreed to be the hero of legend, The Unrivaled Sword That Parts The Battlefield, Hayato. Nobody could or needed to say for certain where he came from or what past he held, for all that mattered was that he was the figure to lead humanity to victory, or so the story is told. 

Stealing the Key of Creation from the Divine Realm itself, Hayato sparked conflict amidst the gods’ forces and turned them against each other, dividing the gods into factions of humanity’s Salvation and of humanity’s Collapse. However, for a single human to defeat the gods would be blasphemous to the divine itself in all senses. With nothing more than a single godsent soldier, humanity could never truly ‘win’ the war.

As the outcome began to favor the gods once more, Hayato understood the only remaining course of action that could be taken to keep humanity moving forward, or so the story is told. Laying down his life for the betterment of humanity, Hayato used the last of the Key’s power and his life to create the Divine Layer, a barrier that would prevent the gods from ever descending to the mortal realm again, and World Zero, the sealed away planet on which the last remnants of humanity could continue to thrive.

That was the heroism we all strived for, forgetting the pains and sufferings of every hero we’ve ever learned of.

Playing pretend, “This time, you’ll be the hero and I’ll be the evil god trying to kill you!”, treating the glory of heroism as if it were some kind of game.

Nobody stopped to consider the trials Hayato had to endure to become our hero of legend, to become an idol whose sacrifice would eventually lead to the next cycle of hubris-led downfall. Nobody questioned the life Hayato had lived beyond the battlefield. Was he sad to throw it all away? Was he regretful of the path he took up? Or was he glad to fade away in a conclusive peace?

Such questions could be asked of every being who has at least once been forced to make a decision, but to answer them is a completely different story.

So, what reason could possibly motivate one to become a hero of legend? 

- Excerpt from < Archives of Eternity > | Entry by The False / Final Hero Of Legend

World Zero, Hanakawa Village, The 768th year after The Great Uprising

In Hanakawa, the average child’s aura would be fully developed by the age of 13. As such, once one turns 13, they may officially attempt the initiation for Hankawa’s sentry, which by many was seen to be the ‘first step’ towards becoming a hero of legend. On my birthday in the year 768, I, Kaito of Hanakawa, will clear the initiation on my first attempt.

***

An omen of rippling tides grew across the lakefront. Accompanying them was a single message that entered the minds of all within Hanakawa as bolts of crimson energy descended into the forests.

[ The wave event has begun ]

I raced through the trees, my feet striking the ground with a steady tempo as I approached a clearing. Bursting through the brush, I caught sight of my targets.

There in the clearing stood three hulking figures of a crimson hue, their crystalline bodies reflecting the sunlight with a shimmer. Two entries from the Hanakawa Corruption Archives flashed through my mind. 

< Golem-type | Rank 2 Threat | Durable | Slow Regeneration | These beasts are about one story tall with large, durable bodies made of crystallized corrupted energy. They bear a single ‘eye’ embedded in their heads, within which their core is located. Their movements are sluggish, but pack a powerful punch capable of dealing fatal damage to an unguarded human. >

< Goliath-type | Rank 3 Threat | Durable | Slow Regeneration | Armed | Considered the upgraded version of golems, goliaths wield a large, rough club with the same durability as a golem’s body. These beasts are 1.5x the height of a golem, with a slimmer, yet still durable body. Their core bears the same features and placement as their weaker counterparts. While wielding a club, a goliath’s swing is capable of demolishing a fortified steel wall. >

I smiled with a knowing satisfaction. Being lucky enough to encounter slow corrupted beasts lacking intelligence, my initiation was certain to finish quickly. As the beasts caught sight of my presence and began lumbering in my direction, I channeled the energy around me into an aura into my legs, the azure mana rising like wisps from my skin.

Previously known as the heart of magecraft throughout the World Chain and now World Zero, a consumable, intangible, invisible energy that allows humans to tap into supernatural abilities through magic and is sourced from the manaflow that permeates from the Divine Realm, that is mana. Although all mana is readily available in the air, each individual bears a unique mana attribute that resonates with natural mana attributes, allowing for increased control and mastery over their respective specialty. 

Making the first move, I recklessly charged towards my opponents’ front line, made up of the two golems ahead of the goliath. Various scenarios and outcomes flashed through my mind. With my reaction and processing speed enhanced by my spirit aura, I quickly formulated a plan. Slightly diverting my trajectory, I set my sights on the leftmost golem, rapidly approaching and entering its range of attack. 

A raspy warbling sound emitted from behind the golem as the goliath reared its club, preparing to strike me down, tracking my every movement.

I had gotten too close. Perfect. I leaned my body backwards as I slid underneath the craggy legs of the golem, the goliath now unable to change the trajectory of its swing. 

Smash! The golem’s head shattered into pieces under the momentum of the club.

[ 1/3 of the wave event has been cleared ]

Now for the other two. As I turned around, the goliath who was earlier in the back row was now closest to me. I raced towards it once more, this time jumping back as it struck its club into the ground with full force. 

The goliath, now straining to remove the club from the divot in the earth, had created the perfect means of attack for me. 

Using the club as a ramp, I reached within striking distance of its core. 

[ Your mana attribute has temporarily shifted to Steel ]

It was a strange feature of my mana attribute. Since my birth, I never gained any remarkable traits from my mana nor aura usage. My father with the soul attribute was able to attune to living beings and read their thoughts and feelings, even being able to harness their energy. My mother with the earth attribute could detect presences through the vibrations they made on the ground and could channel an empowered defense. My brother with the steel attribute could armor his body with a condensation of mana as strong as steel, giving him an insanely powerful offense and defense. And me? At most, the spirit attribute on its own could slightly make me think faster and heal the most minor of wounds, usually small cuts. Although the minor healing was somewhat useful for inconveniences, the thought acceleration was essentially useless, as my months devoted to studying the archives made it so that I could formulate strategies regardless of what beast I encountered. However, at around 12, while sparring with my brother in preparation for my initiation the following year, I discovered a previously untouched aspect of my attribute: the ability to channel others’ attributes, albeit at a much weaker output. Since then, I had also started receiving these ‘attribute messages’, as I call them, which apparently nobody else in the village could see.

The wisps of my aura shifted to a silvery hue as I delivered a blow directly through the goliath’s head. Regardless of how powerful a corrupted beast was, in the end, they all crumbled the same once you struck the core. 

[ 2/3 of the wave event has been cleared ]

I watched as the goliath’s body shattered into miniscule fragments, its club falling to the ground with a thud as the golem continued to approach. I recalled another entry from the archives.

< Armed Corrupted Beasts | A term that refers to corrupted beasts who bear some form of armor or weapons separate from their actual bodies. They are almost always more powerful than their unarmed counterparts. After their core is shattered, there is an approximately three second delay between their actual body shattering and their gear shattering. >

In other words, I had a three second long opportunity. Dragging along the fallen club, I charged down the golem, no longer hesitating for any devised plans nor stratagems.

[ Your mana attribute has returned to Spirit ]

The duration for which I could channel other attributes was rather short, varying only within a few seconds each time. Luckily, I no longer needed the steel attribute to finish the job. Straining my muscles, I lifted the club off the ground before delivering a heavy swing towards the golem.

Crack! I wasn’t able to lift it high enough. The golem’s midsection had been shattered, but its upper half still remained functional. Yet, such an outcome was still satisfactory, as the golem wouldn’t be able to regenerate enough to move in time. 

Despite the club shattering, I now calmly approached the golem with a smug grin.

“Thanks for making this easy”

With a firm grip, I ripped the golem’s eye from its head and struck it against its own body until it shattered. It was a good thing that their cores are never perfectly at one with their bodies.

[ 3/3 of the wave event has been cleared. The wave event has been completed. “Kaito” has been initiated as a member of Hanakawa Village’s sentry ]

“YES! FIRST TRY!”

I triumphantly shouted into the sky.

***

The village appeared to already be midway celebrating by the time I returned. 

Approaching the gate, I could hear my father proudly bragging to the townsfolk. After all, with my father being the village elder and the leader of our entire sentry, I had done his name good in upholding the tradition of first-try clears.

“There you have it! That’s my son! First try, babyyy!”

As I came into view, I could see his large hand happily slapping the back of his friend, one of the chiefs in the village guard, who was awkwardly laughing between winces of pain. My father often forgot the fact nobody else in the village could hold a candle to his strength.

The first to greet me was my mom, who basically tackled me in an embracing hug. 

The next was my older brother, Kouki, who simply gave a nod and smile of approval.

The last was my dad, who by now, seemed to have run out of words to say. We looked each other in the eyes in silence for sometime, the both of us beaming with pride. 

Suddenly, he held out his arm, making a gesture as if awaiting a fist bump. I returned the motion, after which I immediately feigned walking away. 

“Oh, come over here! You know better than anyone that’s not all I’ve got for you! You two, get in here!”

“Who does he think he is… referring to his own wife by ‘you two’”

She jokingly rolled her eyes towards Kouki.

He embraced the three of us in a massive bear hug, easily scooping us up in his arms as we laughed with joy. With that, our entire family was now officially enlisted in the sentry.

As night trailed down behind the setting sun, the villagers raised their glasses and cheered.

My dad signaled something to someone off in the distance before turning back to address me.

“Of course, we couldn’t have started the festivities without you”

On cue, a series of fireworks rocketed into the night, illuminating the darkening sky with bursting shades of red, jade, silver, and azure, the colors of our family’s attributes.

The sight was something I could never forget.

Looking back on everything that had led me to this very moment, such pure bliss felt almost unreal.

As my mom rushed over to ask if I was okay, I realized tears had been streaming down my cheeks. I quickly wiped them away, assuring her it was just a rush of emotions from how far we've come.

I took in everything, my family cheerfully dancing around, the villagers chattering away, the children gleefully running along the shoreline. These were the lives we were fighting to protect, and just that fact alone made my family larger than life heroes in my eyes.

For that, I vowed to never let them down.

And my reason for wanting to become a hero of legend? To protect the lives of everyone here, all those I hold dear to me. That was my reason.