Chapter 1

Allen Roadle. Fifteen years old.

I... didn't have any talent for swordsmanship. I felt so pathetic about it.

But I swung my sword every day, every day.

More than anyone else, for longer hours, I just kept swinging my sword tirelessly.

"Effort always bears fruit" — that's what Mother always used to say.

Mother raised me on her own.

Father died of an epidemic when I was still a baby. I heard he was a sincere and honest man, but I don't remember his face or any time we spent together, so it didn't really resonate with me. I was told that my sharp eyes were like Mother's, and my jet-black hair was like Father's.

I don't have many memories from when I was very young, but I clearly remember how Mother worked tirelessly every day for me.

The tuition and fees for the Grand Swordsmanship Academy I attend now were also saved up by Mother over many years from her meager salary.

That's why, even when I was called a "failing swordsman" and bullied by my classmates, and treated as a troublemaker by the teachers — no matter how hard my days were, I kept swinging my sword tirelessly.

I would work ten or even a hundred times harder than others to become a great swordsman.

And then I would give Mother, who had worked so hard for me, a comfortable life.

— That's what I thought and kept working hard at the swordsmanship academy.

But all that effort would come to nothing tomorrow.

It all started... in the evening today.

As I was swinging my sword alone on the school grounds as usual, Dordiel Burton appeared with two of his female followers.

Dordiel Burton.

The eldest son of the Burton baron family, with his striking blue hair tied back.

I hated him.

Because he always called me a "failing swordsman" and bullied me.

Usually, I would pretend not to hear his insults and let them slide.

But today, he said something I couldn't forgive.

"Take it back... what you just said...!"

"Hey, hey... Don't get so worked up just because you're told the truth, Allen? If the child is trash, the parent is trash too... I'm not saying anything strange, am I?"

"Dordiel, you...!"

In a fit of anger, I grabbed the front of his shirt.

"Tch... Don't touch me with your dirty hands! A failing swordsman like you!"

He kicked my stomach.

I was sent flying by the force of his kick, which was far beyond that of a child.

I fell on my butt, but I quickly stood up and glared at him.

"Sure, I might be a talentless piece of trash... But I won't let you call my mother trash!"

Dordiel shrugged and sighed.

His followers were laughing at me, their faces red with anger.

"Ha... They say a frog's child is a frog. It's a well-known fact that the parent of a piece of trash like you is also trash."

Dordiel said this with a mocking tone, as if he genuinely pitied me.

"You...!"

Blood rushed to my head, and I drew my sword from my waist in a fit of emotion.

"Hey, hey, is that okay? Going any further is against the school rules, you know?"

"Gr...!"

Private duels using swords among students are strictly prohibited by the school rules.

Breaking this rule can result in suspension or even expulsion.

If I, the bottom of the barrel at the academy, did something like this... I would definitely be expelled.

"...Then! Dordiel Burton... I challenge you to a duel!"

"Hmm... You, the perennial failing swordsman, challenging me, the academy's top genius swordsman...?"

"That's right! If I win, you have to take back what you said!"

"Ahaha! Interesting... Very interesting, Allen! If you win, I'll take back my words and even bow to you! — But if you lose..."

He paused and curled his lips in a lecherous smile.

"...If I lose?"

"Let's see... How about you quit this academy right here and now?"

"What!?"

The condition Dordiel presented was outrageous.

"Of course! In a duel, both parties must face each other on equal terms — don't you know that?"

"I know! But this is completely unbalanced, right!?"

On one side, retracting a statement. On the other, expulsion from the academy.

This can't be called an equal condition.

"Hey, hey, don't get the wrong idea, failing swordsman? Quitting the academy has no value for you. In fact, you yourself have no value at all."

"..."

It was painful, but... he was right.

My grades at the swordsmanship academy were rock-bottom.

I could be expelled at any time due to poor performance.

"Fine... I challenge you to a duel under those conditions."

"Ah, I accept! How about 9:00 AM tomorrow — in the gym?"

I nodded.

"I'll handle the formalities for the duel. Allen, at least try your hardest to make it a proper duel. Well, I know it will be a futile effort, but ahahaha!"

And so, I ended up challenging the genius swordsman Dordiel to a duel tomorrow.

Now, thinking back, I wonder how foolish I was.

(No... but if I were to hear the same thing again, I would probably challenge him to a duel again.)

I'm not that rotten to ignore insults to my mother.

(But... Dordiel is strong.)

He is the complete opposite of me — a genius.

He can absorb any technique or swordsmanship like a sponge without much practice.

I heard he has been offered a recommendation to a prestigious school in the capital...

(Still... I can't afford to lose...)

This duel is about my expulsion from the academy.

Most importantly, I have to make him retract his insults against my mother.

After that, I returned to the dormitory and headed to the forest with my sword in hand.

When I arrived at the place where I usually practice, I swung my sword relentlessly.

"Huff, huff, huff...!"

I swung my sword tirelessly, recklessly, and without restraint.

It wasn't that I had given up.

This is the only thing I can do.

When I first entered the academy, I bowed to various teachers and begged to be accepted into their schools.

However...

"Unfortunately, you have no talent. I can't let you join my school."

"Hey, hey, hey! With such a lousy sword, you actually asked to be a disciple!"

"Do you know the word 'know your place'?"

All of them firmly rejected me.

There was no way in.

So I don't know any sword techniques or styles.

The only things I learned in the academy's classes were how to practice and how to train my body.

In other words, the only 'training' I can do is to swing my sword tirelessly like this.

Finally, when the sun set and the moonlight illuminated me, I stopped swinging my sword.

"Haha, hahaha...!"

Laughter escaped from my lips involuntarily.

"What a fool I am... Even if I do this, there's no way I can win..."

Swinging my sword recklessly won't change anything.

I will definitely lose to that genius tomorrow, and it will be a miserable defeat.

The gap between me and him can't be bridged in just one day.

Even if I had a few years, I probably couldn't catch up.

(Frustrating... So frustrating, frustrating, frustrating... Grrr!)

It's frustrating, but no matter how many times I simulate it in my head, I can't see a way to beat that genius.

"What should I do...?"

I was so frustrated that tears welled up in my eyes.

I want power.

The power to defeat Dordiel.

But I lack everything.

Power, talent — and most importantly, time...

"Damn it!"

Just as I punched the ground, a hoarse voice came from above.

"Hehehe... You seem to be quite troubled, young swordsman."

"Who's there!?"

I quickly looked up to see a short old man standing there.

His hair, eyebrows, and beard were all white.

His back was clearly bent, and he was leaning on a cane.

What was most unsettling was that I hadn't sensed his presence at all.

"Me? I'm a sage of time, you might say."

The mysterious old man, who called himself a sage of time, rubbed his long, impressive beard that almost touched the ground.

"Well, young swordsman. If you have any troubles, why don't you tell them to this old man?"

"...Telling you won't change anything."

"Mmm... But isn't it just painful to keep it all to yourself? Just talking to someone can make you feel better. Don't be shy. After all, I'm an old man with one foot in the grave."

He laughed heartily, "Hehehe!"

"...Maybe."

Half in despair, I started to talk about my current desperate situation.

How I have no talent for swords.

How I'm bullied at the swordsmanship academy.

About my mother who stayed behind in my hometown.

About tomorrow's duel.

After pouring out everything I had been holding in, I did feel a little better.

"I see... So that's why you were so down..."

The sage of time listened to my story seriously without mocking me.

He might be a surprisingly good listener.

"If that's the case... I might be able to help you a little."

"...How?"

To turn around such a desperate situation — if there was a magic that could do that, I would really like to know.

The sage of time smiled slyly.

"Hehe, that's by using this."

He took out a red button the size of a fist from his pocket.

"...What is that?"

"A billion-year button — a rare magical item."

"A billion-year button...?"

"Yes. Pressing this button gives you the same effect as a billion years of training! It's a very precious item!"

"...Sounds suspicious."

That was my honest reaction.

"Come on, at least hear me out. It's a request from an old man with one foot in the grave... okay?"

He rubbed his hands together.

Since he had just listened to my story, it would be rude to turn him down... and I was a little curious.

"...Make it quick."

"Ooh! You'll listen! Thank you, thank you!"

Then he cleared his throat loudly.

"Pressing this billion-year button will transport you to another world where you will spend a billion years. You are free there. You can just daydream, meditate, or train tirelessly. After all, you have a billion years of time."

"...I can train for a billion years?"

It sounds like a dream come true for me.

"Yes! Furthermore, there are houses and beds — even a large bath! You don't have to worry about food either! There's a magical food storage that provides an endless supply of food! And since it's another world, you don't have to worry about aging!"

"...!"

My mouth watered at the thought of such an ideal environment where my basic needs are met, time is abundant, and I don't even age.

"And the best part of this billion-year button is that the billion years you spend there will feel like just a moment to you here!"

"...What do you mean?"

I didn't quite understand.

A billion years is a billion years. It can't pass in a moment.

"Actually... When you return from the other world to the real world, all the memories of the billion years will be erased! In other words, to you, the moment you press the button, you will —"

"—be in the state of having trained for a billion years!"

"Exactly! I'm glad you understand so well!"

After explaining, the sage of time said, "How about it? Isn't it amazing?" and thrust the billion-year button at me.

I stared at the red button intently.

(If... if I can really train for a billion years...)

I might be able to beat Dordiel...

A few years or so wouldn't be enough to catch up to Dordiel.

But with a billion years... even a talentless swordsman like me could catch up to — no, surpass that genius.

Just as I thought that, I was pulled back to reality.

I realized how foolish I was being.

(What am I taking seriously...?)

It's too good to be true...

This isn't a fairy tale. Such a dream-like thing... can't possibly exist.

"Ha... Is that the end of the story? I don't have time to waste on such nonsense."

"Oh...? It didn't meet your expectations?"

"I think it's amazing. ...If it's true."

"It's not a lie! I have never lied in my life!"

"That's good to know."

With that, I picked up my sword and started practicing again.

I knew I couldn't win, but I wanted to do everything I could.

"Mmm... Just once, just once, will you press it? It's a request from an old man with one foot in the grave..."

He pleaded, rubbing his hands together.

I didn't expect him to beg so desperately.

"Alright, alright."

Pressing it once would satisfy him.

As I reached for the button, the sage of time suddenly became serious and spoke.

"Young swordsman. Let me give you one piece of advice."

"Hmm... Is there something else?"

"Never — never commit suicide. Even though it's another world, your body is the only one you have. If you die, it's over."

"Okay, okay, I got it."

With that, I pressed the button the sage held.

But, as expected or not, nothing happened.

"Hehe, how about it? What do you think after training tirelessly for a billion years?"

The sage of time asked with genuine excitement.

"Nothing changed. It's a lie."

I wasn't disappointed.

There's no way such a good deal as a billion-year button could exist.

"Hehehe! The change is too great for you to notice! Seeing is believing — why don't you swing your sword once?"

He's so persistent...

With a slight irritation, I lightly swung my sword once.

"Phew!"

At that moment, a fierce wind blew.

"......Huh?"

If my eyes weren't deceiving me, my sword had just split into three.

The speed was so fast that it seemed to bend space.

"Hehehe! Amazing, isn't it? You look completely different, young swordsman!"

The sage of time clapped his hands and laughed.

(For real...?)

I tried a horizontal slash this time.

"Ha!"

Three seconds after I swung my sword horizontally — a 'Zan!' sound of cutting through the air was heard.

My sword had left the sound behind.

"What... is this...?"

The sword felt so natural in my hand.

I was enveloped by an incredible sense of omnipotence, as if I and the sword had become one.

"How about it? It must feel like you've been reborn, right?"

The sage of time laughed happily as I looked at my hands in wonder.

"Ah, yeah! It really feels like I've been reborn..."

I looked down and saw the billion-year button in the sage's hand.

"Once more... Can I press it again...!?"

I had definitely become stronger.

Stronger, but I still didn't know if I could beat Dordiel.

The gap between us was so large that I couldn't even gauge the difference in our strength.

"Of course, of course! Press it as many times as you like until you're satisfied!"

"Really!? Thank you, thank you...!"

After that, I pressed the button many times.

No — I kept pressing it.

This cursed billion-year button...

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