If most people would close the windows of their carriage when a horse-drawn carriage is moving in a snowstorm, Lev was different from them.
He opened the window of the carriage and leaned his head against the window frame, allowing some of his white hair to catch the outside air, blown by the wind, swaying beautifully.
If the carriage he was riding in was an old, rusty one, the vibrations from the ride would have made his head shake repeatedly. However, the carriage he was in was quite advanced, equipped with state-of-the-art suspension.
Although some aspects of this world resemble the medieval period on Earth, some things are still quite modern thanks to the implementation of magic tools.
One by one, snowflakes fell on Lev's hair and face. The cold air slowly sobered him up. His blurry eyes began to return to normal, and his vision gradually stabilized. He regained full control of his body.
Although he wasn't completely sober yet, he had recovered enough to sort through the tangled thoughts in his mind.
'Let's think this through one step at a time.'
He looked up at the sky.
It was true that the moon was hidden behind thick clouds due to the snowstorm, but there was still another moon shining in a different part of the sky. In other words, the natural satellites of this continent—or perhaps this planet—numbered more than one.
There was no mistake; this was still the same world he had been living in.
As if to confirm something, Lev pulled out a pocket watch. It wasn't an ordinary pocket watch. It didn't just tell the time; it also displayed the date, month, and year.
00:05 O'Clock.
'It seems it's already past midnight.'
- Date 15, Month 1, Year 1418 A.N -
In this world, the division of time was the same as on Earth: 24 hours in a day, 30 days in a month, and 360 days in a year.
However, that wasn't what Lev was thinking about.
'If this is still the year 1418 A.N...'
'Twelve years ago!?'
It turned out he came back twelve years ago.
If this was twelve years ago, it meant that the main character, Hansen, hadn't yet embarked on many of his heroic deeds.
In the novel Hero's Destiny, the first month of the year 1418 A.N was the time when Hansen was still living as an ordinary village boy. For now, he was still training in his village.
'Thankfully, Hansen doesn't live in this kingdom.'
At this time, Hansen was still living in the Kingdom of Marcia, located in the center of the Avalon continent. The Kingdom of Marcia was also the setting for the main plot of Hansen's heroic journey.
According to the timeline, the year 1418 A.N was when the story of Hero's Destiny began.
Why did Lev feel relieved knowing that Hansen didn't live in the same kingdom?
If you think logically, the best way to deal with a main character who would eventually betray humanity would be to kill him.
Lev had briefly entertained that thought. But he shook his head to dismiss such an impossible idea.
Like most protagonists, Hansen possessed unreasonable strength from the very beginning.
On the Avalon continent, people focused on developing their swordsmanship and magical skills from a young age. However, there was a limit to how far one could develop their abilities.
They could keep training, and their skills would continue to improve, but their progress would be very slow. Only after creating a mana pool could they exponentially increase their abilities.
The problem was, only those who had reached the age of eighteen years could create a mana pool. The process of forming a mana pool upon turning eighteen was known as the Coming of Age Ceremony.
However, this rule didn't apply to Hansen. While everyone else in the world had to wait until they were eighteen to create a mana pool, Hansen had possessed one since he was a toddler.
How unfair such a setting was? Don't you think so?
'I'll gain enough power first so that I won't be afraid when the time comes to face him.'
Since the story had just begun, many of the items Hansen was supposed to obtain hadn't been discovered yet. Some hidden skills scattered across the continent also remained untouched.
There was still plenty of time to change things.
But first, he had to change the unfortunate fate that awaited him soon. That's why he was grateful not to be in the same kingdom as Hansen. For now, he had to deal with his personal affairs before getting involved in the main plot of the novel.
In this world, the fate awaiting him was to become an extra villain. His name, Lev Razanov, was never mentioned in the novel Hero's Destiny, but he would eventually meet the real villain and become a puppet.
He would only be freed from the real villain's control after the villain was defeated by Hansen.
'I'll think about that later.'
He was more curious about the quest he had just received from the Hero's System.
'Did the Hero's System appear because of my final wish when I was on Earth? Or was it born out of my guilt toward humanity for becoming a mass-destruction machine?'
[Quest: Foil your sibling's plan.
Reward: Black Magic Authority.]
'If I can obtain Black Magic Authority...'
The hellish life he had lived before would become much easier. Moreover, his first goal aligned with the mission given by the Hero's System.
Even if he failed to obtain Black Magic Authority, he could still piece together information from Hero's Destiny and his previous life to gain an ability to foresee the future... Well, it might be an exaggeration to call it an ability to foresee the future.
In essence, he would use the knowledge in his mind for his own benefit.
'I don't care if this world is a novel world governed by some god. I will change the unfortunate fate that awaits me.'
'I refuse to live miserably over and over again.'
As Lev thought this, his fists clenched tightly. His eyes grew sharp, and he unconsciously bit his lip. Thankfully, his lip and hands didn't bleed. It would have been dangerous if he started bleeding while the snowstorm was still raging outside.
"Young Master, if you keep the carriage window open, we'll freeze. Could you close it?"
The voice of his servant making a request snapped him out of his deep thoughts.
Inside the carriage, Lev wasn't alone. His servant had been sitting across from him the entire time. The snowflakes that entered the carriage had been hitting his servant.
But it wasn't the shivering that Lev noticed from his servant—it was his appearance. Unlike his usual neat attire, shiny face, and spotless skin, his servant's face was now bruised. His clothes were also disheveled.
Following Lev's earlier order, his servant had indeed gone back into the bar to inform all the nobles inside that Lev wouldn't be treating them. Naturally, all the low-ranking nobles had erupted in anger and beaten his servant.
"Did it feel good?"
"What do you mean, Young Master? If you're asking whether being the target of those nobles' anger felt good, of course it didn't."
"That's not what I meant. Well, it doesn't matter if you don't intend to speak up."
Lev glanced at the sword lying beside him. It was a double-edged sword. He picked it up and drew the blade slightly, revealing its gleaming edge. Then, he casually placed the blade near his servant's neck.
Throughout this, Lev maintained an expressionless face.
Meanwhile, his servant could only widen his eyes in shock.
"W-What are you doing, Young Master?"