Chapter 1

This is a fantasy novel.

After Roy died honorably in the great demon angel war, he was reborn with a human body system.

In the human body, he was now 16 years old. People in this world had special abilities.

They could cast spells using the surrounding mana. There were also many other types of magic.

Roy was from another world and didn't know much about it at all, but he did have some idea about what it was like. He knew that there were people who could use magic.

But...I can't do anything. I don't have any power.

The person who told him about this new world was the same person who killed his own parents. It was the same person who used him as a tool to get revenge on humanity.

The man said, "You'll be useful." But Roy's only role seemed to be to follow orders. The man told him that if he obeyed, he would become stronger. If he disobeyed, he would die.

Roy thought, I'm just going to go along with it for a while. That way, maybe one day I'll be able to escape.

He lived out his life, following those orders, until one day when he woke up. Then he saw a beautiful girl sleeping next to him. She had long hair and looked so innocent that she made him want to protect her.

She was wearing an expensive-looking dress. It was the kind of thing that wouldn't be sold in a normal town.

"Who are you?" Roy asked.

"My name is Selena," she answered. "I'm here because I want to be your wife."

Roy couldn't believe it. He'd never met anyone like her before. When he found out that she was a noblewoman, he figured that there must be something wrong with her.

If this girl really wanted to marry me, then why hasn't someone else done it?

Roy wondered.

In his head, he heard the voice of the man who had saved him from death. "We're going to make you strong enough to do anything."

So this girl was supposed to be the key to that.

What should I do? Should I accept her or not?

Roy thought about it for a bit. The girl next to him was so precious to him. She had nothing to do with his past life. If he didn't marry her, it wouldn't bring back his parents. So he decided to give it a try.

Roy wasn't sure how he felt about that decision, but he went through with it anyway.

***

Roy was a good husband.

He took care of Selena and treated her like a queen.

They lived in the capital city of New Britannia, where they had a nice house and servants. Their lives were pretty comfortable.

Roy worked as a clerk in a bank. He dealt with money.

Selena was a noblewoman. Her family owned land and businesses in the country.

Roy and Selena had four children together: two girls and two boys.

One day, their oldest daughter was married to a lord's son. Soon after, the couple gave birth to a baby boy.

The firstborn child was a girl. She grew up healthy and happy.

The second born was a boy. He was quiet and well-behaved.

Their third child was a girl. She grew up pretty, but not beautiful.

The fourth child was a boy. His father called him "little Roy."

The little prince was a cheerful, mischievous young boy. He got into fights a lot and liked to play pranks.

His mother put him down a few times, but every time she did, he came home crying.

"Why won't you listen to me?!" she yelled.

Her husband didn't seem to mind.

After a while, Roy grew big. He'd always been small, but now he was bigger than ever.

It was hard for him to control his anger. One day he punched a kid who was bullying one of his friends, and the bully got mad. Roy got sent to school right away.

There, the teachers told him that he couldn't fight anymore.

He was upset about that. The reason he fought was because the bullies bullied his friends.

But then he realized that being a fighter wouldn't help his friends.

He stopped fighting and focused instead on studying.

Roy worked harder than anyone else.

When he graduated from high school, he majored in law enforcement.

"I want to be a police officer," he explained to his parents.

His father smiled. "That sounds great, Roy!"

Roy's mother hugged him tight. He was so tall now that he almost reached her shoulders.

"I love you, Roy," she whispered.

He was still just 15 years old at the time.

A few days later, Roy left home with a backpack and a letter of resignation.

He planned to join the military.

***

Roy became a soldier, serving under Captain Gerald.

Gerald was a former knight. Now he served as captain of the royal guard.

He was a gruff, old man, but he was fair and honest.

Roy respected him a lot.

One day, the captain told Roy, "Hey, Roy! We're going to invade the Demon Lord's castle."

Roy was glad that he could finally participate in an important mission.

They headed toward the desert.

On their way, they faced several strong enemies.

"Hmph. What a bunch of weaklings. I don't need to worry about them," the captain muttered.

Roy listened to him, but deep down, he was scared.

"Are we going to win?" he asked.

Gerald nodded. "Yeah, we will definitely win. No one has ever lost against the Demon King."

Roy didn't think so. A lot of people had tried to defeat the Demon King, but none of them had succeeded.

Roy was worried about the outcome, but he kept his mouth shut.

The army marched across the desert.

Eventually, they reached the edge of the desert.

"Here we are," the captain said.

They stood on a cliff overlooking a vast expanse of sand.

"That's the Demon Lord's castle," Roy noted.

"Yep. It's built on a mountain. Let's go!" the captain said.

Roy followed him.

They crossed a bridge over a ravine. Then they continued walking.

At last, they arrived at a large building. Its walls were covered in carved dragons.

"Wow, that's cool," Roy said.

"Yeah, it's pretty impressive," Gerald agreed. "It looks like something out of a storybook."

The captain knocked on the door.

"Who is it?!" a woman's voice demanded.

"Captain Gerald! I've brought the king's army!"

"Oh, thank goodness. Come inside!"

"Yes, ma'am!"

The captain led the soldiers through the entrance.

Inside, they came face to face with a beautiful woman with long black hair.

She wore a red dress and had piercing eyes that shone brightly.

"Princess Selena..." the captain murmured.

...