Life didn’t come with room for error.
Once you died, you were dead—unless you happened to possess the same Return by Death ability as a certain anime protagonist.
And as luck would have it, Cael had exactly that kind of ability.
He was back.
A victorious grin spread across Cael’s face.
He still wasn’t entirely sure how this suspected Return by Death ability worked.
He had to admit that he’d taken a gamble.
But the result proved he’d won.
He had no idea whether returning from death came with some unknown price, but for now, whatever that price was, it seemed like something he could bear.
That was good news.
At this very moment, Cael had returned to the instant he’d first crossed into this world.
He stood in the middle of the street, watching the panicked crowd flee in every direction.
The plastic grocery bag containing crispy noodle snacks and ham sausages was still hanging from his hand.
Cael stuffed the bag into his pocket and looked around.
In the distance, the Hollow was expanding.
Among the fleeing crowd, he spotted the dark-skinned construction worker wearing a yellow hard hat.
“…”
The guy looked honest and harmless enough.
And yet, when his own life had been threatened, he’d shoved Cael straight toward an Ethereal to save himself.
Cold-blooded bastard…
Then again, this was a post-apocalyptic world where everyone had to look out for themselves.
Not everyone had the same moral standards Cael did.
For ordinary people living at the bottom of society, there was no telling what they might do to survive when death was right in front of them.
Cael certainly didn’t like the man, but he had no intention of doing anything to him either.
They were all just people running for their lives.
Besides, Cael had something much more important to do.
During his previous return, something seemed to have awakened at the final moment.
Was it a system?
It didn’t really feel like one.
And seriously, he’d already died twice before his cheat ability finally showed itself.
Wasn’t that a little late?
Whatever.
At least he’d obtained information on the high-risk Ethereal Dullahan.
That information was incredibly valuable.
Aberration Traits.
Cael’s expression grew serious.
They had never existed in the game.
Maybe they were the reason the Ethereals in this world had become so different from the ones he knew.
Evolution.
Gigantification.
Deathrattle.
Rebirth.
“Tch…”
Cael clicked his tongue.
How was that merely a high-risk Ethereal?
That thing was basically a boss.
Even if Miyabi hadn’t become a Void Hunter yet, there was no way someone of her strength should’ve lost to an ordinary Dullahan.
Clearly, she’d been caught off guard because she lacked information.
She hadn’t known Dullahan would trigger such a violent Ether explosion upon death.
Cael took a deep breath and started running in the same direction as the fleeing crowd.
Since he’d come back, there was no reason to let the same tragedy happen again.
This time, he was definitely going to save Miyabi.
After crossing several streets, Cael stopped in front of a broken mirror by the roadside.
He stared at the young man reflected within it.
Five seconds later, a set of information visible only to him appeared before his eyes.
[Name]: Cael Veyne
[Race]: Human
[Level]: 3
[Skills]: None
[Talent]: Replay (1/3)
Replay?
Cael stared at the name of his Talent in confusion.
So this ability that resembled Return by Death was called Replay?
What a strange name…
He felt like he’d seen it somewhere before.
And what did the 1/3 mean?
Did his Return by Death have a limited number of uses?
Could he only use it three times?
Cael’s expression grew heavier.
So even his resurrection ability had a usage limit.
That was bad.
Because of that middle-aged man, he’d already wasted one chance.
…
That meant he only had one more margin for error.
No.
Even knowing that he could return from death, he absolutely couldn’t become dependent on it.
If dying became normal to him, he’d eventually start treating his own life like a resource he could spend on trial and error.
That wasn’t what he wanted.
Replay it was, then.
As long as it worked the way he understood it, the name didn’t matter.
It should be about time.
Cael calmly looked away.
After dying twice, the confusion he’d felt when he first arrived was gone.
Everything unfolded exactly as before.
The crowd fled.
The Hollow swallowed the district.
Then the Tyrfing appeared.
Cael looked at the towering, two-meter-tall Ethereal.
[Name]: Tyrfing
[Race]: Ethereal
[Level]: 17
[Aberration Traits]: [Evolution] [Gigantification]
It had two Aberration Traits.
Dullahan had possessed those same two Traits as well.
And Miyabi had previously said this Tyrfing was a standard individual.
Did that mean Evolution and Gigantification were inherent Traits possessed by the Ethereals of this world?
The Tyrfing’s appearance immediately sent the crowd into a panic.
People scattered in every direction.
Cael ran with them.
Right now, he couldn’t do anything.
The only thing he could do was let events play out and make sure he encountered Miyabi at the right time.
Nothing before that mattered.
Which meant his timing had to be precise.
If he lured the Ethereal into the alley too early or too late and missed Miyabi, he’d be in serious trouble.
“Don’t be afraid, sweetheart…
Mommy…
Mommy will protect you…”
“Mommy…
sob…”
Sure enough, the mother and daughter were in danger again.
They’d tripped over a mess of electrical cables on the road and fallen, scraping their knees bloody.
Several young people among the fleeing crowd glanced back.
A trace of hesitation and sympathy flashed through their eyes, but they quickly turned away and continued running.
No one intended to help.
There was a dangerous Ethereal nearby.
Anyone who went back would practically be volunteering to die.
“I’m sorry…
sweetheart.
Mommy couldn’t protect you…”
Just as the mother fell into despair, a black-haired young man stepped forward, casually weighing half a brick in his hand.
“Hey, asshole!
Over here!”
Cael shouted and hurled the brick with all his strength.
There was definitely a little personal grudge behind that throw.
So you’re the bastard who cut me in half last time, huh?
Just wait until Miyabi gets here.
Let’s see how tough you act then.
The brick slammed directly into the Tyrfing’s core.
Its head tilted slightly.
The black core swelled violently as the creature released a piercing roar that made everyone’s ears ache.
Provoked, the Ethereal immediately abandoned the mother and daughter and charged straight toward Cael.
“Now!
Get out of here!”
Leaving those words behind, Cael followed his memories and sprinted into the alley beside him, glancing back at the towering Tyrfing as he ran.
…Miyabi should be getting close by now.
BAM!
Cael rounded a corner and rushed into the same alley where he’d been cornered during his previous life.
The moment he turned, he crashed straight into a petite figure.
He’d been running so fast that he knocked the person directly to the ground.
Cael focused his eyes.
The girl pinned beneath him was none other than Hoshimi Miyabi.
They were so close that Cael could even catch the faint fragrance surrounding her.
Sandalwood mixed with a subtle scent of tea and the fruity sweetness of honeydew.
Her fox ears twitched slightly.
A flicker of confusion appeared in her beautiful burgundy eyes.
“Miss Hoshimi?!”
“You…”
Cael froze.
Wait.
That wasn’t right.
Miyabi hadn’t arrived this early during the previous Replay.
Had the sequence of events changed?
ROAR!
The Tyrfing’s relentless roar thundered from behind him, startling Cael back to reality.
He immediately jumped to his feet, grabbed Miyabi’s hand, and pulled her up.
Then he promptly moved behind her.
“Miss Hoshimi!
Help!
There’s a Tyrfing chasing me!”
“All right.”
Miyabi’s expression sharpened.
Her right hand settled on the hilt of the Ethereal-Slaying Katana, Tailless.
Cold blue flames wrapped around the hilt.
The instant the Tyrfing entered the alley, Miyabi drew her blade.
With a single slash, both its body and core were severed apart.
Cold flames consumed the Tyrfing’s remains, turning them into motes of Ether light that scattered into the wind.
“Whew…
I’m saved.”
Cael’s legs felt weak.
He leaned against the wall and rested for a while before finally recovering.
During that time, Miyabi surveyed their surroundings.
Once she confirmed there was no further danger, she turned her attention back to Cael and looked him over from head to toe.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
“Thanks for stepping in when you did, Miss Hoshimi.
I’m fine.”
As Cael answered, he continued looking at Miyabi.
A few moments later, information belonging to her appeared before his eyes.
[Name]: Hoshimi Miyabi
[Race]: Fox Thiren
[Level]: 58
[Skills]: Hoshimi Breathing Technique (Advanced), Hoshimi Quickdraw Technique (Advanced), Flying Snow Draw, Nameless Lingering Snow, Cursed Blade Release (Sacrifice)…
[Talent]: None
[Factions]: Municipal Government H.A.N.D.
Defense Force, Hoshimi Family
It really helps the fic grow!