[I am not a great person. I don’t possess the courage to throw myself into the flames to save the world, nor do I have the strength to defeat the demons… I am just an ordinary man, getting by day to day.]
Ian Volkanov, or rather Lee Hyun-Woo.
The accident had jolted him into this world, Gaia, but he was far from extraordinary.
He wasn’t the genius who excelled in everything, like in novels or films, nor was he born with the traits to lead others.
All he could do was push his body to the limits and grind his way through life.
This new life was given to Lee Hyun-Woo, but calling it a blessing would be a stretch.
[The people I first encountered as parents felt awkward. Could they truly be my family?]
Ian Volkanov, who should have been stillborn and never existed in this world.
Eris and Belphegor had intervened, inserting a new soul into the empty vessel and successfully reviving it.
But anomalies like Ian were inevitably rejected by the world.
To Leticia and Killain, Ian was an unwelcome presence, someone who shouldn’t exist, and thus, no motherly or fatherly love could grow toward him.
[My parents often forgot not just my name but my entire existence. When they seemed to show affection, they would suddenly shudder like broken dolls before returning to their former selves.]
He craved warmth, yet realized his path would be paved only with coldness.
The despair was so deep that he sometimes locked himself in his room and screamed, wondering if this lonely existence was his fate.
But the scariest part was that no one cared about his outbursts.
Living as someone who shouldn’t exist… The day he realized this, his heart began to grow numb.
[As expected, this world was no blessing. But I refused to accept that. If I did, only a bitter winter awaited me. Wanting a spring, I decided to end this cold myself.]
He couldn’t deny it forever. He knew from his previous life that change wouldn’t come by doing nothing. So, he resolved to carve his own path.
If he could etch the name “Ian Volkanov” into everyone’s memory, perhaps the world itself would no longer deny him.
Yet, despite his resolution, the true challenge still lay ahead.
[Twisting fate was the first thing I aimed to learn—swordsmanship and mana control. I couldn’t use the jujitsu or boxing I had learned back then, but under these circumstances, this was my best option.]
Mana, a power bestowed upon this world by Eris, the Goddess of Peace. Mastering this mystic force of Gaia was essential.
If he couldn’t wield it, he would become useless. So he practiced, relentlessly.
Swordsmanship was no different.
Though he didn’t know if it was due to a lack of refinement, the locals here viewed brawling like that as unsophisticated.
If he wanted to leave his mark on this world, he had to be both noble and skilled. So he opted for a different path.
[The Goddess who had sent me here with her blessing of “regression” must have felt some pity, as I found my mana abilities decent. The real struggle was in learning the sword… so I decided to secretly observe my father.]
In a room converted from an attic storeroom, he would watch his father, known as the Empire’s greatest swordsman, practicing from the window and clumsily mimicking his moves.
It was humiliating, of course, but since everyone ignored him even when he cried and screamed, he didn’t care.
[Swordsmanship was hard to learn at first. Even when I wanted to check if my posture was correct, my aloof father would have already moved to the next stance. Sighing constantly, I resigned myself to trying again and again. After all, with regression, I had time to spare.]
This numbness took a toll on him, but it had its perks.
Unburdened by petty emotions, he could focus solely on his goal.
From then on, he practiced tirelessly, wielding a long branch in place of a sword, refining his mana in every moment outside of eating and bathing.
It was a life that would make others cringe, but it didn’t matter. If he could twist his fate, there was nothing he wouldn’t do.
In his rage-filled eyes, only the vision of reclaiming spring remained.
One day, after long hours of devoted training, something happened.
[One day, when I was focusing on my training and not caring about others, the door suddenly opened and a blue-haired girl came in.]
It was Celia Wignoron. She laughed when she saw Ian holding his makeshift sword.
[“So you’re Ian! Nice to meet you.” I can still recall that bright face and the hand she offered me.]
It was his first encounter with someone he could call a friend.
Yet Ian kept his distance.
Why? Wasn’t it obvious? He was someone who should never have existed—someone who would eventually be forgotten.
While it was surprising to see her brighten up with a radiant smile, Ian thought it must be some sort of glitch caused by an inexplicable reason, so he composed himself and responded calmly.
However, the moment he realized that Celia was different from the others, he could no longer ignore her.
[I still don’t understand. How is it that she treats me as if I were an ordinary person? I was sure she would forget me. I thought that after this night, she would see me as transparent, like I didn’t exist. Yet when I opened my eyes, she was already in the room, gazing at me while I slept.]
Celia thought Ian was keeping his distance because he was embarrassed about being caught mimicking swordsmanship with a branch.
But that wasn’t the case.
What was there to be embarrassed about? Fighting to survive was a noble thing.
The only reason Ian treated her with reluctance was that she didn’t exhibit the mechanical demeanor of others, and most importantly, she never forgot him, always greeting him with a bright smile.
Doubt lingered in his mind about when she might change like the others, but at least the time spent with her was incredibly precious.
[Just like me, Celia had lived a life of isolation, rejected by her family due to the curse of fire she inherited after her father killed the Red Dragon and her ominous Dark attribute.]
They began to bond over their shared loneliness, exploring the woods together, rolling around in a field of blooming hyacinths, making flower crowns, and awakening a feeling of happiness within Ian.
At the same time, those moments began to thaw the frozen future he had envisioned.
[In that moment… I thought to myself. If it’s with her… then I wouldn’t mind sharing my life with her. Originally, I planned to twist fate as quickly as possible, but if it meant seeing her smile just a little longer… wouldn’t it be worth repeating my life through regression a few more times?]
It was a turning point for Ian, who had been focused solely on his own path.
[Even with a future as perilous as walking on thin ice, Celia willingly chose to be my companion. Even within Ark Academy, aside from the platoon commanders, everyone ignored me, yet she surrounded me with her presence. She didn’t care about losing her dignity as a noble and dedicated herself to helping me, even willing to sacrifice for the sake of my sister, the Hero Ariel.]
The time spent with her was beyond bliss.
The first taste of love was incredibly warm, and he didn’t want to lose it.
At the same time, a desire began to grow in Ian’s heart.
[After graduating from the Academy and while combating the demons with Celia… there was a moment when I stroked her sleeping head and thought: If I were to regress… I might crumble.]
Regression, the divine power to rectify mistakes and start life anew, was a sweet concept.
But Ian was deeply afraid of the price that came with it.
If he failed, time would rewind, and he would find himself alone once again.
Of course, Celia would return to him unchanged, but the fear of having to rebuild the bonds he had forged so far haunted him.
[If I succeed this time, there would be no need for such struggles… But as I fought, I could foresee it to some extent. It was impossible to deal with the demons tainting the world on the first attempt…]
He had to succeed no matter what. The thought of seeing her lose her memories terrified him.
Driven by such thoughts, Ian swung his sword with all his might, but ultimately, he failed.
When Satan struck him, piercing his heart, the timeline began to reverse.
Ian could see it.
“So you’re Ian! Nice to meet you.”
“Ah… um…”
“Um… Why? What’s wrong? Is something the matter?”
He saw Celia tilting her head in confusion, having forgotten him.
The worst scenario he had imagined had become a reality, and he felt himself collapse from the sheer weight of despair.
[The price of failure was indeed bitter. But knowing that the opportunities given to me were countless, I had no choice but to rise again.]
It was agonizing, to the point where he wanted to tear his hair out. Yet knowing he couldn’t give up, Ian had to take up his sword once more.
To reclaim the scattered memories… he had to run again.
It didn’t matter if the path was thorny or as treacherous as walking on ice. To recover those precious memories, he had to endure.
Was it thanks to his relentless efforts? He succeeded in reviving the scattered memories of her, but… the road ahead was still fraught with trials.
[Building memories with Celia and losing my life to Satan… If I were to describe my life in a single line, it might go like this.]
He didn’t know how many times he had tried… he thought he had counted up to thirty… but after that, he had given up on counting.
Perhaps it was the fiftieth time? He wasn’t quite sure, but by the time he reached that point… Ian felt as though he were standing on the edge of a cliff.
[In that moment, I sobbed in Celia’s embrace, confessing everything. I am, in fact, a regressor… if I cannot defeat Satan and then Lucifer, I will lose the memories of you and Erzebeth and all the precious people again… I am so scared of that…]
He cried like a child, wrapped in the arms of his beloved. He felt embarrassed, fearing that the strong image he had built up until now might crumble.
No longer did he want to suffer alone, hiding the truth.
Perhaps sensing his feelings, Celia accepted Ian’s tears without a word.
[It’s okay… Ian…]
At that moment, as she embraced him tightly, everything felt like it would be alright.
[How long had it been? She made one proposal to me: she would pass on her attributes and take responsibility for making Ariel stronger.]
The moment when a way to break the regression began to emerge was when Ian devised a simple plan to do so.
His plan was to ensure that Ariel, the chosen one of the Holy Sword, could demonstrate her full capabilities in the battle against Lucifer, while he took care of the other demons, supporting her by using happiness as a medium for strength.
However, this plan had two serious issues.
First, Ian was not strong enough to wipe out all the demons on his own.
Second, due to the arguments between his parents, young Ariel had very few happy memories to hold onto.
[Her plan was straightforward. She would use the hidden pieces obtained from conquering dungeons to transfer her Dark attribute to me, then, using the Soul Branding Stone from the Miler family, she would take some distance from me to create happy memories with Ariel.]
Ian, who had not been born with the attributes, set out to find various hidden pieces to compensate for this, among which were items that could transfer attributes.
Celia promised that she would use one of those items to transfer her dark attribute to Ian.
At the same time, she would use the stigma stone to instill a sense of aversion toward Ian while cultivating fondness for Ariel, ultimately beginning a new life… so she said.
On one hand, it seemed like a plausible plan. No, it might actually be a very good one.
If he could obtain her attributes, Ian would become stronger, and having Celia, who had spent her childhood in Volkanov, alongside Ariel would help create happy memories.
This would resolve all the shortcomings of the original plan Ian had created.
However… Ian found himself hesitating.
[It was undoubtedly a good method… yet I couldn’t help but pause. If something went wrong… I might never be able to hold onto the distant relationship again.]
If he followed Celia’s proposed method and regressed, the chances of defeating Lucifer would likely increase.
But how could he mend the fractured relationship?
In the worst-case scenario, Ian and Celia might never be connected again.
That couldn’t happen. Not only for his companion Erzebeth, but Celia was far too important to Ian.
Was he really going to lose someone like her? The only person who understood him during his timid childhood?
Despite the rising fear that made him hesitate, Celia met his gaze with calmness.
“It’s okay. I’m fine. Don’t look at me like that, Ian…”
“Celia…”
“Then… promise me this. If your happy future unfolds… if you regain your memories…”
Taking a deep breath, she continued.
“Will you accept me as your friend again? That would be enough for me…”
In that moment, Celia was… blushing deeply, tears streaming down her face without restraint.
