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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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After lunch, it was time for the children’s training.
Minerva, seemingly in a hurry, summoned me.
…So she just wanted me there, regardless of how I got there.
‘Tsk, no choice for me then.’
What could be so urgent? This was troublesome.
I couldn’t ignore Minerva’s summons, so I headed towards the front door.
Just as I reached for the doorknob, Luna came running towards me, wooden sword in hand.
“Mister!! Where are you going?! It’s training time!”
“I’ll be back soon. Self-study today.”
“Huh?”
“Train with Hare.”
I patted Luna’s head and left. She looked at me with a crestfallen expression.
“T-Training… cancelled…? N-No way! This is a lie!”
Wail
Hero Luna wailed.
She seemed devastated that her training was cancelled.
‘What’s so fun about training that she’s crying like that…?’
I couldn’t understand Luna’s obsession with training.
I gave up trying to understand and headed towards the library, Luna’s cries of “Give me back my training!” echoing behind me.
‘…It’s a good thing we don’t have any neighbors.’
A very good thing.
Nothing happened on my way to the library.
I arrived safely and opened the door, walking towards Minerva’s desk.
She was reading a book with Mieng, a serious expression on her face.
“What are you doing, Minerva?”
“Jun-woo, you’re here! It’s a big problem! A huge problem!”
“Boo! Boo!”
…I wish she would explain what the problem was.
Just saying “big problem” wasn’t helpful.
Minerva, as if reading my mind, started explaining in an excited tone,
“It’s a disaster! A new book was printed today! And… and there’s a big problem!”
“So what’s the problem?”
“Read it yourself.”
Thud-!
Minerva handed me a book.
A freshly printed new edition of “Lee Jun-woo’s Future.”
“How many of these are there now…?”
“Over 30, I think. I have to organize them later, which is annoying… but just read it!”
“Alright, stop nagging.”
What kind of future could make her so agitated?
Whenever she reacted like this, it usually involved my death.
I opened the book, my eyes scanning the densely packed text.
I quickly skimmed through the unimportant parts.
Knowing the entire future would spoil the fun.
Hmm.
“…Minerva.”
“Yes, Jun-woo.”
“Black flames. A Demon Lord appears in the future.”
I had skipped the unimportant parts, but the important parts were scorched by black flames, leaving no useful information about the Demon Lord.
Minerva sighed.
“Ugh… that’s the problem. Something big happens on the last page, but I don’t know what, so I can’t figure out what to do… It’s so frustrating!”
The last page? I hadn’t reached it yet, but I flipped to the last page as Minerva suggested.
A shocking future was written there.
I didn’t know the details, but the ending indicated Luna’s and my death.
This was a terrible situation.
“…But Minerva.”
“Yes?”
“Luna can’t die.”
To be precise, she could die. But if Luna was deemed to have failed, Timeless would rewind time.
‘No matter what, she will defeat the Demon Lord.’
That was the power of the Holy Sword, only wielded by the Hero. The power to save the world.
So, perhaps this last sentence meant…
“For some reason, Luna and I die, and time rewinds…?”
“Correct, Jun-woo! But as you know, there’s a problem.”
“It doesn’t say what happens after time rewinds?”
“Exactly. In this scenario…”
…Luna fails to defeat the Demon Lord and is trapped in a time loop.
I closed the book.
My course of action was clear.
“Minerva.”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll leave the future to you.”
“…What are you talking about?! Hey! Where are you going?! You’re going to die! Where are you going?!”
“To the present.”
“W-What are you saying?! Jun-woo! Are you crazy!? You’re going to die!”
I ignored Minerva’s protests and left the library. Staying there wouldn’t change the future.
What I needed to do now…
“Special training.”
The Hero’s party needed special training to prepare for the upcoming Demon Lord. That was the best I could do right now.
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The courtyard, usually bustling with training, was shrouded in gloom.
“Sigh… my training…”
“N-No more time with Mister…”
Sigh…
Two fourteen-year-olds sighing like they had experienced all the hardships of life. They were devastated that their training was cancelled.
“I wanted to train…! Where did Mister go?!”
Wail-!
Luna wailed again.
Perhaps her cries were answered because the person they were waiting for appeared in the distance.
“Mister!”
“M-Mister…?”
Luna and Hare ran towards Lee Jun-woo.
“Training! Let’s start training now, Mister!”
“I-It’s okay if we don’t train, Mister…!”
They clung to him like baby birds begging for food.
Lee Jun-woo decided to grant their wish.
“You want to train?”
“Yes! Training!”
Nod, nod~
Luna nodded vigorously.
‘Cancelled training is back! Today’s my lucky day!’
Please let there be training today!
Training with Mister!
Lee Jun-woo, looking at Luna’s pleading eyes, replied calmly,
“Then we’ll train today.”
“Yay!”
“A joint training session. With all four of you.”
“Huh?”
“W-What…?”
Training with all four members of the Hero’s party. Special training to prepare for the Demon Lord.
‘Joint training isn’t ideal…’
But…
At least there’s training!
“I like training!”
Luna decided to be optimistic.
The Hero’s party was gathered in the dining room.
Not for a meal, but for a different purpose.
“Why did Mister gather us here?”
“I don’t know! He said it’s special training!”
“Special training? What’s that?”
“It’s… special training!”
“Hmm…”
Saten, who didn’t enjoy training, wasn’t thrilled. Her reaction contrasted sharply with Luna’s excitement.
Drag-
“Alright, today… you’ll be undergoing special training.”
Lee Jun-woo appeared, pulling a blackboard. But first…
“Hare, wake up Estia. She’s drooling in her sleep.”
“E-Estia, wake up…!!”
“H-Huh…?”
Estia startled awake, her eyes still sleepy. But time waited for no one.
Lee Jun-woo didn’t know when the Demon Lord would appear, so he had to make them stronger quickly.
‘There’s only one way to do that.’
Slap!
Lee Jun-woo slapped the blackboard and said,
“I have some bad news. You’ll be meeting a Demon Lord soon.”
“What?! What do you mean, Mister?! Weren’t we supposed to train today?!”
“…We’ll train later. Just listen.”
“Okay.”
Anyway…
“We’ll be encountering something similar to the Demon Lord we met in the dungeon.”
“Will you take care of it like last time, Mister?”
“I can’t, because of my eye.”
I would definitely lose this time.
Unless I sacrificed another body part… I wouldn’t be able to defeat the Demon Lord alone.
So…
“I need your help this time.”
Hero’s party.
I would lose.
‘But…’
If they could offer even a little help… the chances of victory would increase.
‘I can’t expect explosive growth in such a short time.’
However…
There was one way.
Lee Jun-woo slapped the blackboard again.
“The theme of this special training is cooperation. If you can trust each other and coordinate your actions, you can become stronger quickly.”
“So, Mister! What’s the special training today!”
“Teamwork. Until the Demon Lord arrives, you’ll sleep, train, and eat together. You’ll do everything together.”
Small forces combined could create a greater force.
If they could cooperate, they would create a powerful synergy. But despite this optimistic prediction, Lee Jun-woo was worried.
‘Can these four strong-willed individuals truly cooperate…?’
The future indicated their success, but… Lee Jun-woo wasn’t so sure.
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