Chapter 1
Chaos. That is the only word that can describe this world… People’s dead bodies are spread across the street and horrific monsters are roaming the earth. We begin our tale inside of an underground bunker where a man named Kim Daehyun was hiding.
Kim Daehyun was your average guy. Before the world had descended into chaos he was your average minimum wage convenience store worker, He was 5’11 man with black hair, some people called him handsome, others were jealous of his looks. Some people awakened awesome powers and fought monsters, whilst others didn’t awaken awesome powers and instead died to monsters. Kim was one of the ‘Awakened’, however his skill can’t be called an “Awesome power”. In fact, it didn’t even give him any power. His skill was called {Returner}.
[Returner]
[You can Return]
The others who had awakened strong skills became broadcast to gods who were able to view their battles and donate them coins like how you might donate money to a streamer that you like. These people could then use those coins to buy items from a magical shop
His skill was simply unusable in combat or literally anything else because it was so vague that it might as well be a socialblade estimated earnings. so his only option for survival was simply to hide underground. However as he would soon find out, that was not the best option.
’S##t. The food supply has run out. If my 7th grade health teacher is correct then I can probably last another 3 weeks without eating but after that I’ll die of starvation. I need to find some food asap.’
He ran out from his base in search of some sort of food, he crept around and was nearing the supermarket when out of the corner of his eye he spotted a 4 legged green faced monster.
‘Of all the scavengers why did it have to be a Tracker.’
Scavengers are monsters who go out and find food for their entire race/species. They will find humans and bring them back to their tribe for the higher ranked species to eat. The Tracker variety of Scavengers are monsters who will find one person and hunt them down for the rest of their lives until they have caught that person. Once they have done that, they will find a new target. Unfortunately for our main character this means that he will spend the rest of his life trying to escape from this monster. Although in this case it wouldn’t last that long.
The monster charged at him and ripped his body apart and Kim died of blood loss.
[You have died…]
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[Skill: Returner has activated]
[You are returning t-]
[A constellation has interfered]
[You have been connected to constellation Extravagant Ruler Over All Existence]
{Hello, can you hear me?}
“Are you Extravagant Ruler Over All Existence?”
{Yes, I am. I see that you have the Returner skill. I set this up so that once a special user activates their skill like this then I get to talk to them and explain everything.}
“Go ahead.”
{Your skill will send you back in time to the start of the Awakening phase. You can gain a new skill once that happens, and you get to keep all your acquired items from this phase. This skill will cause you to suffer a penalty after each use. The more times the skill is activated, the harsher the penalty. To summarise it, whenever you die you will be brought back through time and gain a new skill.}
“So what if I were to just keep killing myself in order to gain hundreds of skills?”
{This skill isn’t ultimate. After it reaches a certain point it will stop working… You will be informed before it gets to that point, however if you use the skill too much it may come a lot faster. It’s like how if you use an iPhone for 8 hours straight as opposed to 8 1 hour segments over 48 total hours, it will last longer when you use it sparingly.}
“So I need to do the best I can in each life so that my skill doesn’t get ruined too early?”
{Yes. You also should try your best since you can gain new skills and improve the levels of those skills. If you were to have the choice between 100 level 1 skills or 1 level 100 skill, the 1 level 100 skill will always be the better choice.}
“I see. So is there any other information that I need to know?”
{The skill that you get will be decided by you. Simply, there will be hundreds of skills in-front of you and you get to choose one of them. Good luck and have fun.}
Kim was inside of a dark black room. He waited for 20 seconds when he received a system message.
[Return has been activated]
[You can choose a skill from the below list]
[Sprint, Lie Detector, Sword Song, Fireball, Poison resistance, Dance Mastery, Invisibility, Persuasion, Iron Shield, One Strike, Sword Mastery, Magic Missile, Magic Bullet, Zone Declaration, Animal Handling, Minor Heal, Flame Blast, Mana Wave, Kill, Training]
“Hmm… To narrow it down, the most useful skills would be Animal Handling, Minor Heal, Fireball, Sprint, Lie Detector and Persuasion… Lie Detector and Persuasion are skills for later on when I can actually survive so I can rule those out. Sprint is a pretty basic skill so it would be handy now, however it is a simple skill. That leaves Animal Handling, Minor Heal and Fireball.”
“If I choose animal handling then I could tame animals to help me fight but I still wouldn’t be able to defeat monsters…”
“If I choose minor heal then I could heal myself after I get injured in a fight, however I did just die to that monster almost instantly so it would be useless.”
“If I choose Fireball then I could deal lots of damage to monsters, however I don’t have mana yet so I can’t fully use it.”
He then re-looked over the available skills and saw one that he previously ignored.
[Training]
“If I had that skill then I could train a lot and grow stronger. If I remember correctly there was that one hunter with this skill who just trained 24/7 and became a top tier hunter…I choose Training”
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[Acquiring skill {Training}]
[Training Lv. 1]
[By doing training you can increase your power.
*You can increase your stats by training
*You will be able to view others stats and levels
*You will be able to view your stats and level]
‘Oh my god. Usually it takes someone reaching D rank in awakening power for them to be able to see their own stats. If I can see mine then I can use this as a guide for which monsters I can face.’
[Kim Daehyun Lv. 1]
[Strength- 2
Agility- 1
Endurance- 1
Intellegence- 3
Skills:
Training Lv. 1
Returner Lv. 2]
‘So right now I am literally below average in all of my stats except for Intellegence… Also it seems that upon each return I do, my returner skill will gain a level. For now I think that I need to do some training.’
Kim returned to the beginning of the awakening phase and went out to a gym. Since monster invasions hadn’t fully begun yet he was able to figure out how long he had until he would need to start hiding/fighting.
‘I have 14 days until the monster invasion starts. I need to get all of my stats to at-least 3 so that I am on par with a F rank hunter.’
200 squats, 200 situps, 200 pushups, 200 deadlifts, 20km run.
‘If that guy could get so strong just because of doing such weak training then if I do double his training then I will become even stronger than him.’
He trained for a while and on the 13th day he finally reached his goal.
[Strength has risen to 3]
[You are now a F-rank hunter]
[Kim Daehyun Lv. 1]
[Strength- 3
Agility- 3
Endurance- 3
Intellegence- 3
Skills:
Training Lv. 1
Returner Lv. 2]
‘So I now have one day left. The monster invasion part will begin in exactly 15 hours so I need to prepare. I will need rice, flour, water, seeds, dirt, training equipment… Actually this training centre that I’ve been using would be a perfect base. If I barricade up all of the exits then I could train every day and grow stronger. Plus the Extravagant Ruler Over All Existence said that I can keep {all your acquired items from this phase.} this means that if I could get this training centre then I could train throughout all of my returns.’
He then spent the next 3 hours forming a plan. He came up with a checklist of items that he would need to obtain.
-Atleast a years worth of non perishable food
-Enough dirt to create a sustainable farm
-Seeds for wheat, tomatoes, carrots, broccoli, literally any seeds
-Wood so that I can board up all entrances and build a farm
-Builder’s tools such as a screwdriver, hammer, nails, screws
-Chickens for eggs
-Enough chicken feed to last a long long time
-Kitchen appliances
-Cutlery/plates
-Books on engineering, construction, any that could help me get energy
‘This should be enough. I can use the tools, wood, dirt and seeds to start a farm so that I can live without having to go get supplies like last time. I can use the chickens for eggs which I can use to cook. I can use the books to convert this gym into an electricity generator and that should all allow for me to last here for many years. Now the total cost of all of this should be around… 30k.’
Kim went out a bought the items. He then asked the gym owner if he could ‘store’ some items here for a short time. The gym owner accepted and Kim used the back room to store all the mentioned items.
The apocalypse hit, people died, he trained and built and eventually 20 years passed.
[Your stats have all increased]
[Kim Daehyun Lv. 1 F]
[Strength- 10
Agility- 10
Endurance- 10
Intellegence- 6
Skills:
Training Lv. 17
Returner Lv. 2]
[3 of your stats have reached the maximum for your current level.]
[Your power is equivalent to that of an E ranked hunter]
[You are now an E ranked hunter]
‘Finally, these past 20 years were difficult… But now I am stronger.’
He left the gym for the first time in 20 years and looked out at what his city had become. There were monsters moving in organised groups as far as his eyes could see. They all seemed to be working together as scouts so they had gotten more and more advanced.
“Finally I can see how strong I’ve gotten.”
He leapt out of the gym directly at a scouting group. The group contained 4 green faced wolves and some goblins.
[Skill {Training} has activated its passive ability]
Above each of their heads a status box was shown.
[Direwolf Lv. 4 F]
[Direwolf Lv. 6 E]
[Direwolf Lv. 5 F]
[Direwolf Lv. 4 F]
[Goblin Lv. 6 E]
[Goblin Lv. 7 E]
[Goblin Lv. 6 E]
[Goblin Lv. 7 E]
[Goblin Lv. 6 E]
[Goblin Lv. 6 E]
[Hobgoblin Lv. 10 C]
[Hobgoblin Lv. 10 C]
[Strength- 12
Agility- 12
Endurance- 12
Intellegence- 15
Skills:
Leadership Lv. 13
Combat Mimicry Lv. 1
Bloodthirst Lv. 37
Sacrifice Lv. 7
Strategy Lv. 17
Controlled Lv. 50]
‘So that guy is ranked C because of those skills of his. I think that his combat rating of C means that his leadership and strategy skills are able to command this entire group to be strong enough to defeat a C ranked hunter. Also his power on it’s own is already really strong, if he uses Combat Mimicry then he can mimic someones combat style, if he does this against me then he can use his higher stats to defeat me… Well, if I manage to kill some of the Goblins and Direwolves then I can level up and grow stronger. This is really a gamble.’
Kim charged directly at the group but he was easily defeated. He charged directly at them, however the direwolves charged at him and deflected his charge, after that the goblins used their bows to fire poison laced arrows at him. Finally, the hobgoblin punched him in the head and broke his skull. He had died again.
[You have died…]
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[Skill: Returner has activated]
[You are returning t-]
[A constellation has interfered]
[You have been connected to constellation Extravagant Ruler Over All Existence]
{20 years this time. Good job}
“Yeah, but I wasn’t able to win that battle”
{The monster group you tried to fight against was ranked C. They could take out an entire squad of C ranked hunters… Why would you manage to win that fight?}
“I just thought my training would have made me stronger…”
{That’s your flaw. You keep thinking that you are defined by your stats and how much training you have done. In that battle if you had been your past self then you would be incomparable…}
“?”
{Past you would’ve died from the direwolf charge. The current you managed to survive until the hobgoblin attacked. If you were to fight that monster from the first return then you would’ve been able to defeat it.}
“Yeah… But what’s the point of that when I can’t save myself today?”
{Because the you of tomorrow can save the you of today}
“Alright. I want to do my next return now.”
{Sure. Here’s your ranking for this return}
[Return 2]
*Note that these stats are based on your maximum potential with your current skills and stats from this return
Combat: 30
Strategy: 70
Character: 80
Overall Rank: 60
Bonuses: No combat skills {+5} Lasted 20 years {+5}, Made a sustainable base {+10}
Final Score: 80
Rewards:
-Skill {Martial Arts Lv. 1} Fought barehanded
-Skill {Memory Lv. 1} Learned from your mistakes
-Skill {Construction Lv. 1}] Built stuff
[Martial Arts Lv. 1]
[Allows the user to learn martial arts styles]
[Memory Lv. 1]
[Your memory is boosted, you can remember information from books as though there is a library in your mind]
[Construction Lv. 1]
[When building something you will be able to do it twice as fast]
{Now you get to choose a skill. The first return you were able to choose from all of those skills due to your experiences from that return. You went to the hospital so minor heal, you visited a gym so training, you saw a swordsman so sword mastery, you saw a dancer so dance mastery, you saw a ninja so invisibility. This time it is dependant on what happened to you this reset.}
[Leadership, Bloodthirst, Poison resistance, Control]
“4 options?”
{With each reset you do the number will go up, you can also choose from past ones but not the first reset. So next reset you will also have these options to choose from.}
“So I have more choices the more resets I do?”
{Yep.}
“Alright. Leadership is useless to me. Bloodthirst has an element of crazy to it so no. Poison resistance is good but I can gain it as a passive skill. I choose Control.”
{Ok}
[Control Lv. 1]
[A skill given to Gods, Constellations and Demon Lords so that they can control their clans/servants.
*Allows for you to make beings your allies/servants/clan by a mutual agreement/contract
*Allows for you to take skills from your controlled being {Sealed}
*Allows for you to take over you controlled beings body {Sealed}
*Allows for you to micromanage every aspect of your controlled beings life {Sealed}
*Allows you to give controlled beings parts of your power {Sealed}]
“Hey so do you have a shorter name that I can call you?”
{Well I guess Extravagant Ruler Over All Existence is too difficult for a mortal to properly remember. You can call me by my mythological name Thanatos. In some myths you would remember me because when I was sealed in the pits of the abyss humans became unable to die. Due to that I was called the ruler of death or other things like that. So you can call me Thanatos.]
“So what’s the difference between constellations and gods?”
{Gods are a level below Constellations. Someone like me whose sheer existence determined whether humanity would live or die is what the level of a Constellation is.}
“Alright. So do you have any advice for me about this return?”
{Your training efficiency is lower than before. It would be better if you were to just improve your skill levels. I would recommend improving Control and Martial arts. Maybe later you might want to improve construction so that you could make a proper base to protect yourself from the monsters. Also once you manage to reach the rank of D or C then gods may want to watch your performance. Keep in mind that once you return that the gods will be aware of your return… Basically the gods will watch until the end of this attempt and then begin watching the next. In each of you returns things are different each time so the gods end up getting constant enjoyment.}
“Alright. Have there been other Returners before me?”
{Yes.}
“Are they still returning?”
{No}
“Why not?”
{They overestimated their strength and return power so they tried to pick fights with demon lords and minor gods. They ended up losing their return ability due to the control skill being forcefully applied}
“Oh damn… So if I try to fight with a demon lord then I can end up dying permanently?”
{Yes. Although the reason why they died was due to them being too weak. If you were to reach Memory level 40 then you would be able to resist a forced control skill from a minor god or demon lord.}
“Alright, is there any way for me to tell how much longer my return ability will last for?”
{At your current rate of death you would expect it to last for more than 100 returns. If your body were to keep getting stronger then it could last for up-to 1000 returns or maybe even more.}
“Are my questions getting annoying?”
{Not at all. You’re actually the first Returner who has tried talking to me and being friends, the others after learning that the skills they can get are based on their life tried to fight the strongest monsters they could find in order to learn their skills… They didn’t realise that their level 1 skills weren’t comparable to the monsters level 50 skills.}
“Alright. How can I unseal the powers in the control skill?”
{When you gain more power it can become unsealed. Demon lords are actually just equivalent to humans, they just have stronger stats and skills. If you were to be able to use the control skill fully then al you need to do is literally get stronger.}
“Sure… So would fighting monsters be a good idea?”
{Of course, if you raise your level then your stat and skill level gain is increased.}
“Ok… So people can make contracts with gods, demon lords and constellations right?”
{Of course.}
“And any god, demon lord or constellation can make a contract?”
{Yep}
“Can you make a contract with me?”
{What sort of contract?}
“Well, what do constellations get from contracts with humans?”
{We gain more power. The more supporters we have, the more power we gain.}
“So you don’t need anything from the contract?”
{Nope.}
“How about our contract is that I can ask you 3 questions per day in exchange for my unwavering loyalty. And either party can cancel the contract at any time.”
{Sounds fair to me. I sign a contract with Kim Daehyun}
[Do you accept the contract?]
“I accept Thanatos’s contract”
[You now are in a contract with Thanatos]
[Some skill levels have slightly risen]
Memory Lv. 1 -> Lv. 3
Construction Lv. 1 -> Lv. 3
Control Lv. 1 -> Lv. 3]
“Thank you.”
{No problem. Now that you’ve made a contract with me, It allows me to actually make impacts on the world. For example, if you were to gain more power then I could designate you as my apostle and you would be able to convert people to believing in me.}
“Wow… So do I need to do that?”
{No. Right now you need to get stronger.}
“Alright. Is there a timer for how long I can be here?”
{Nope.}
“Alright, I’m gonna spend some time strategising before I begin my 3rd return”
{Sure. Have fun}
End of Chapter 1