“Thank you for the gift.” Ivo immediately took the sword and looked at it carefully.

“Glad to hear it. By the way… you seem more impressive than I thought. You might be able to enter the ranks of the stars of the current generation.”

“I am flattered by your praise. But it is too much to compare me to them.”

“No, I am not saying nonsense. Although he did not leave behind any knowledge of magic and the abilities he possessed, successfully completing the test he gave shows that you are more than enough to be praised like that.”

Veibel’s gaze fell on the dusty old book. It was a fairly thick book that the alchemist had written and asked to be placed beside the tomb where he would be buried. Ivo had taken it along with the other inheritances. The book was not actually meant to be taken by the person who completed the test he made.

Since Ivo took it, he did not comment much on this.

Whether Ivo would decide to continue the inheritance and research it in vain, or perhaps by some miracle, he would succeed in researching it, Veibel did not comment.

“Not only that, you decided to fight the mud monster without the authority token I gave you. It’s no exaggeration to say that you are a very talented person.”

“If that’s what you say, then I will gladly accept it.”

Ivo also saw his gaze and showed a faint smile. He handed back the token that Veibel had given him earlier and excused himself to go back to rest. Veibel had initially offered to stay here but Ivo had refused on the grounds of preparing to enter the White Snow Academy.

Veibel looked at Ivo with a warm gaze. The cold air that he always felt in this temple, the endless cries of those who mourned the death of their loved ones, he seemed to ignore all of that.

“May death greet us all at the end of this life.”

***

The night wind often felt so cold and uncomfortable, but right now, for some reason, he didn’t feel it at all.

The conversation and everything he did today was something he never did when playing the game. Whether it was a lucky streak that he finally obtained the Embodiment of self, what Veibel said at the end almost made him laugh.

And now, Ivo couldn’t hold back his laughter. It wasn’t a laugh of joy, but a strange laugh at Veibel’s words.

“A talented person… I heard that a lot in the past.”

If I recall, every time I created a new character after dying, many would call me a genius because of how impressive my abilities were. A 17 year old who could grasp such vast knowledge of magic, people would naturally call them a genius.

Even so, Ivo knew that all of that didn’t come from his talent. It was a natural essence that came from playing and experiencing various dangerous scenarios while playing the game.

Talented… wasn’t the right word.

“I really don’t fit that term. No, there are no players who fit that term. Talent doesn’t define us players, what we have is hard work and the principle of never giving up even in the worst situations.”

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While muttering, Ivo could remember the post that was still etched in his mind.

The post had been seen more than ten years ago.

'To those who were with me in playing this game, this might be the last post I have. I won't write as much as before or post various strategies that I've done before.

My message... might be a little strange for you to hear. A little cringe for those who read it.

To those who read this, we all feel how painful death is in this game.

One death in this game, you have to start over from the beginning. One death, and all the efforts we make seem meaningless.

I don't want to say much. I don't have much time either.

Even though this is just a game, do your best and every game session you do, whether you decide to be a villain, become a hero, or just enjoy it without any burden on your mind.

If you play a game, do it with your true feelings, never feel regret in playing the game.

Because once you do... once you think that starting over is okay. You will start to lose the essence of the game.

You will start to feel that everything you do is in vain. You will start to feel that as long as you fail and start over, you can definitely do it better.

Play with your true feelings, play without any burden on your mind. Never regret it because this game cannot be played with friends.

Even though this game has been said to be a Dead game with a very bad rating, I don't believe that. Because in this game, I can forget the pain of the disease I suffer from.

I can feel happiness when playing this game. Thank you, to those who made this game.

I am very grateful.’

Whoever posted this in the community, those who read it understood what the message was about. After 5 years, Destiny was no longer played by many people in the world. While many who played the game had already quit, there were still a handful of players who remained.

“If I’m not mistaken, He never posted anything else after that. He even never went online in the community again.” Ivo muttered silently and arrived at an inn.

Inside, a cute girl with long brown hair greeted him with a beautiful smile.

“Ah you… Welcome back.”

Ivo smiled and nodded.

This girl was the only caretaker of this inn. She could be said to be the owner of this place and no one dared to disturb her. The relatively quiet atmosphere with few people choosing to stay there added to the attraction of this Inn.

Most importantly, the food here was absolutely delicious.

“Can I have dinner? If possible, I would like something like Meatball.”

“Of course. Wait a moment and I’ll make it right away.” The girl smiled so brightly when she heard Ivo's order. Her eyes sparkled like the beautiful moon in the sky.

"Is there anything else you want?"

"5 servings. Is that possible?"

"Of course!!!"

"I'll be right back. Wait a moment." The girl immediately went to the back and the sound of fire and various cooking utensils could be heard.

Ivo sat at one of the tables while placing the book, mana crystal, money, and rusty sword beside him.

His body was not too tired but for some reason, he did not have much desire to think about complicated things.

The world that he had previously only seen as a game had now become a reality. The view of Ernest City that he had always admired, he could now see with his own eyes.

His eyes stared blankly at the sparkling lights on the streets of Ernest City. After quite a while, Ivo could only smile in satisfaction.

"This is just the beginning, everything will begin when I successfully enter White Snow Academy. I will live and survive… there are many problems that might happen, but the most important thing…” Ivo saw the girl carrying 5 bowls of meatballs covered in red sauce.

The aroma of the spices seemed to tempt him to continue to absorb the scent that he had never felt before even in the game. In front of him, a large portion of the food that he had been dreaming of when he was at Ernest’s Cemetery was now right in front of him.

“Enjoy your meal.”

Without hesitation, Ivo put one of the meatballs into his mouth. Tears of joy flowed as he ate it.

“Ah… this is it… This taste… I really missed it.”

I used to only taste it in the game, but now, this taste is completely different. Even the luxurious food that I used to eat can’t compare to this food.

“This is really the best!!!”

After finishing it, Ivo paid 8 gold coins for the food. The girl seemed quite happy when she saw Ivo who was greedily enjoying the food she served, so she gave a discount of 2 gold coins.

Honestly, he really wanted to pay more and eat more, but his stomach refused to accept any more food. Reluctantly, Ivo brought all his belongings and retired to his room.

After making sure that no one was here, Ivo took the rusty sword given by Veibel.

Embodiment of self.

The sword that Regressor Raven had always used even until his last moments.