Chapter 06: Deadman Tells No Tales

Kendrick recalled everything that had happened since his death 30 years ago. From what he had learned, the hero and his party emerged victorious and became the pride of humanity, just as he had expected. They were each given honors and wastelands to rule as rewards. Some decided to create their own kingdoms, while others chose to remain low-profile.

More surprisingly, the hero, who had even eliminated Kendrick for the sake of his own greed, decided to stay silent for the past 30 years and accepted the title of a duke instead of acquiring his own wasteland like his companions.

"If it's him, there's no way he's not plotting anything..." Kendrick thought to himself. "When the time comes, I'll stop him and exact my revenge. For that..."

Kendrick was determined to stop the hero and his plans at all costs. To do that, he needed to become stronger. The hero's power remained unrivaled, even in his prime.

"I need to hurry and become strong," Kendrick resolved.

Without wasting time, Kendrick lifted his body up and sat on his bed in a cross-legged position. He placed his tiny hands on the tops of his legs and started gathering all the mana floating around him, making it his own.

With his current strength, it was impossible for him to win against a master swordsman, let alone the other members of the hero's party.

"It's not enough," Kendrick muttered to himself.

Kendrick had started gathering mana since he was just one year old. Although his body didn't have a good affinity with mana, he pushed through its limits and created magic circuits on his own, ensuring the mana flowed continuously through his fragile body.

But even with the mana he had gathered since infancy, it wasn't enough to reach or surpass his prime.

"If things go well, I might have a chance in 20-30 years or so, but... There's no way I can wait that long," he thought.

A long time had already passed, and if he took longer to improve, he might never have the chance to get his vengeance. If that happened, then everything, including his second chance at life, would be for naught.

Furthermore, from the tales he had heard and read, the hero and his party portrayed Kendrick as the villain at every turn. In the beginning of the story, Ryan, the assassin of the hero's party, was portrayed as a scum who loved women and alcohol, a stark contrast to his true character.

In the story passed down through generations, Ryan ended up siding with the dragon lord at the end before losing his life at the hands of the hero and his party. But it was all a fabricated lie. In reality, they had betrayed him for their own gains and greed. They not only treated him as an outcast but also stripped away his pride and honors, portraying him as a traitor.

Kendrick gritted his teeth in frustration as he shifted his gaze and stared outside the window.

"I will never forgive them, no matter what," Kendrick vowed.

With that in mind, Kendrick stepped down from his bed and closed all the curtains of his room, locking the door.

"Silence," Kendrick cast a spell to prevent any noise from escaping his room.

Now it was time for him to begin his training.

For the past 10 years, Kendrick hadn't been idling away. He had been reading and honing his strength and techniques with mana and shadow fighting, all while avoiding the surveillance of the hero and the main family. With his lifetime of experience, he was far more superior than anyone his age, but his body needed to catch up. Kendrick stripped off his upper clothes and began doing push-ups, sit-ups, and a bit of shadow fighting.

When he was finally exhausted, he stopped and went for a bath while continuing to gather mana.

And when midnight came, Kendrick embarked on his nightly hunt. Surveillance at night wasn't as strict, especially around the branch households, and fortunately, near their locations were dungeons specially prepared by the main household to train their offspring.

Outside the manor, there was a stone staircase leading to the entrance of the village governed by the hero's household. To the left was the path to the main household manor, and to the right was another stone staircase leading to the dungeon. Kendrick took the right path, moving with ease as if he had traveled the route for many years.

Kendrick walked through the stone staircase for almost half an hour until he reached the entrance of the dungeon. Similar to the dungeon from his past life, this dungeon had a peculiar structure, almost like a dimensional gate close to his magical understanding. Although he never bothered to think about its origin, Kendrick assumed it was probably created by a high-dimensional being beyond his comprehension.

For now, he needed to focus on his current main goal. Kendrick discarded the useless theories from his mind and looked ahead.

At the dungeon's entrance, a lone knight seemed to be guarding it, snoring without a care in the world.

The guard appeared to be in deep slumber, as usual. Kendrick smiled and wasted no time sneaking past the guard with ease. With his tiny hand, Kendrick reached towards the gate, and like a shadow slowly dispersing, the gate sucked him inside the dungeon.