As I traveled further into the light, it grew increasingly bright until I saw blackish shadows. But amidst this, I could hear someone calling my name. "Jay, are you okay?" I slightly opened my eyes to see a woman with other humans running toward me, hovering over me. I looked down at my hands to see them covered in bruises and blisters, some of which had begun to bleed. All I saw before I passed out was the woman figure coming to my aid, hugging me tightly. The next thing I knew, I must have passed out. How do I know I passed out? When I opened my eyes again, I found myself in my old room, in the top "basement" of my old house, with my maid, a doctor, and my mother.

"So you decided to wake up, huh," I heard Mother say condescendingly. All I could do was open my eyes and close them again. I attempted to get up from the bed to greet her, but the doctor stopped me, shaking his head.

"Listen well, son. This better not happen again. You hurt my poor baby Mark. How dare you?" As she said that, she stormed off, banging the door behind her, making my small room shake.

The room was tense after Mother left, yet it was somewhat breathable. The doctor spoke, "Young man, you took a heavy blow, which messed up your magic circle, meaning you won't be able to use magic for a few years, okay?" He looked at me with concern.

As he was explaining why that was bad, I remembered the accident. I was so angry afterward that I almost killed myself and everyone around me. But now I know what to do. Now I know how to fix my magic circle and wield a sword. Back in the room, the doctor asked me if I understood and I said yes.

‘Um, can you please leave, my head is killing me? I want to rest a bit.

The doctor agreed, he packed his stuff and left the room, now the only one left in the room was the maid, ahh the maid who made my life hell.

‘You devil child, How dare you a child of wedlock tell me and make my drop difficult the mate said in an unpleasant tone then she grabbed my hand pull me out of bed it made me stand in front of the mirror until told me but lift your gown now she took out a stick which had been broken down and I was in my lives and she started hitting me and she told me to count and I-I tried and as soon as I open my mouth mother walked in she saw that a man has been hitting me, and here I thought she would stop the man from this act but no. The person I hold dear as 'mother' began hitting me, then started saying things like: 'Why have I given birth to such a weak and useless child like you? I am embarrassed for you.'

Mother stared at me with disgust and then left after a few minutes, followed by the maids, the knights, and everyone else. Once the room felt cold and empty, it made me feel so small that I cried myself to sleep after applying medicine to my legs. As I was applying the medicine, I shed some tears—both of happiness and sadness. The sting from the hit and the touch of my fingers with the medicine was bitter, but unlike the pain I've felt my whole life, this was nothing. I smiled to myself, telling myself that this was the start of a new chapter in my life. Since I know what will happen, I will create a new timeline, one where I will be recognized and not treated like trash. Then I tucked myself into bed and quietly fell asleep, while the wind was rattling the branches near my window and whistling through the night. Cats and other animals were getting wild in the night, but I found comfort in closing my eyes and dreaming like never before without any regret.

Morning hit early as the Blue Robin started to sing, I was up and ready to begin my day. After I woke up, I made my bed, washed my face, and ate bread. I got to my desk and took out my journal that I remembered I kept. From then on, I took a piece of paper and started to write down all the important things that would happen each day or soon. I wrote them down and then made a plan to leave Kangbook since they wouldn't need me anymore. I mean, I will stay here until I am of age 18, but then I will leave. I told myself that no one would miss me, and then I felt water down my cheek. I was crying. I laughed since I normally don't do that, but I could not stop after that one tear. I wiped away the tears, feeling a mix of sadness and determination stirring within me. Despite the doubt and loneliness, I knew deep down that leaving was the right decision. With newfound resolve, I turned back to my journal, ready to map out the path to my future. After I had that done, I kissed the paper, danced around, and then I wanted to go out to the knight's yard to practice swordsmanship. In my previous life, I was bad at it as I did not want to excel, but now it's different. "I will change my destiny." With that conviction, I got dressed in the appropriate attire and left my room. As expected, there were no guards or maids in sight. Quietly, I made my way down the empty halls of the castle, descended the stairs of the main hall, and stepped into the knight's yard. As I looked around, it was bustling with activity, but the corner I usually went to was surprisingly quiet. I picked up a wooden sword and approached a wooden dummy. After stretching, I could feel cold eyes on me, observing every move I made. They were watching, waiting for any mistake so they could laugh at it. "But from my previous life, I knew very well that I wouldn't make the same mistake because today was the day my 'Father,' the Emperor, was coming to these grounds to promote knights to higher grounds. After I took a deep breath, I grasped the sword in my hands and focused my mana within me, channeling it into my sword. I opened my eyes and began to practice some movements that I had seen my father demonstrate to my brothers. I was hitting the wooden dummy so hard that at one point, the tip of my sword flew across the yard and right into the path of the Emperor, who had just arrived. I hadn't noticed him since I was so focused on the training at hand. The Emperor smiled and approached me. 'So, boy, is this yours?' With a flick of magic, the Emperor threw the tip of my sword, and I caught it, crushing it with my hands. 'Yes, Your Highness.

Stolen novel; please report.

I lowered my head to show respect, and so did the rest of the knights around me. Yet I could feel the Emperor giggling at me, sensing that what I was doing was wrong in some way. Disregarding it, I said to him straight up, 'I am going to get a metal sword since this one broke.' I looked at the Emperor dead on, acting a bit like an asshole, oh well. But as soon as I said this, the Emperor seemed intrigued—I could see it in the expression he made...

Almost as if this was the most amusing thing he had seen all day.

Well, we cannot have you fighting this dummy here," His Majesty said. He gestured, and one of his guards stepped forward. "You will be fighting him, one of my guards, Sir Michel II. If you defeat him, I will give you a title and privileges to whatever you want. He said that in a bit of a condescending tone, yet I gladly accepted it. I could hear laughter and mocking all around the arena, yet that didn't bother me. 'Father, what are the rules?' I asked as if I didn't know the answer. He looked at me in dismay and said, 'Well since you can use mana, He said that while smiling as if he didn't believe me) I will allow it, and you fight until one of you sheds blood or is unconscious. Is that okay, son? And you, Michel?' We both nodded in agreement.

I grabbed a sword from the wall, as did the knight. However, I also retrieved a small knife and tucked it into my boot for safety. He noticed and said, in a rough yet soft-spoken voice, 'Well now, that is smart, a bit cheeky but smart.' I couldn't tell if he was making fun of me or admiring my boldness or my courage.

I ignored it. Both of us turned towards the arena and started walking towards it. I could feel each of my steps getting heavier and heavier as everyone's eyes were on me. The air in the arena was thick with anticipation, and the tension seemed to grow with each step. My heart raced with a mixture of nerves and excitement, knowing that this battle would determine so much of my future. Despite the weight of everyone's gaze upon me, I didn't let it bother me. As soon as I reached one side of the arena, I closed my eyes, took a deep breath in, and then opened my eyes, standing in my stance, ready for battle.

So, Sir Michel charged first at me, and I dodged most of the time. I didn't want to show my true strength yet. As Sir Michel charged, I focused on evading his strikes rather than launching my own. I could sense the anticipation of the spectators, their murmurs growing as they watched the duel unfold. With each dodge, I carefully assessed his movements, waiting for the opportune moment to strike back. Meanwhile, I kept my true strength concealed, biding my time for the right moment to reveal it. I did land a few hits on him, and I could tell that he was surprised. During a brief moment when Sir Michel was not attacking, I caught a glimpse, out of the corner of my eye, of the Emperor, who seemed amused. It was as if he was on the edge of his seat, watching this game unfold. I too, at one point, started to enjoy the battle, and I could see in Sir Michel's eyes that he too was having fun. But as much as I wanted to continue this enjoyable time, I needed to win. So, as soon as our swords clashed, I backflipped and concentrated mana in my sword. Then, with half of my power, I ran towards him. A huge blue light shined from the clash of both of our manas. We were both taken aback, and both of us were on one knee far away from each other; however, Sir Michel was injured. Everyone gasped as soon as they saw that I had injured the knight; he was stabbed in the stomach, The wound wasn't deep; it was shallow but enough to cause pain. I hurried over to him and called for the medic. ‘Medic, healers please come and treat sir Michel.

I shouted and then they hurried. Before he was taken away, he looked at me with a smile and said, "That was the best match of my life. Thank you, kid." And then he fainted.

After he was taken to the infirmary, Father came down to congratulate me. To be honest, I was a bit out of breath. Okay, that was a lie; I could barely stand on my feet. The pain I felt after I used my mana, I had forgotten. The stings of all my muscles were excruciating, like no pain before. It felt as if my muscles were being twisted. As soon as Father came close to me, he patted my shoulder, and then, blank—I must have passed out because I vaguely remember him shouting for the healers to come to my aid.