My name is Wally Amporean, and I’ve lost my future.

Once, I was a proud student of the prestigious Anubis Academy.

I pushed myself to the limit, dedicating endless hours to training both mind and body, just for the chance to attend the academy of my dreams. All that effort paid off when I was accepted.

Anubis Academy wasn't just any school—it was the best adventure academy in the nation, known worldwide. Its graduates were welcomed into any guild across the Kingdom.

Even after getting in, I had to fight to keep up. My classmates were prodigies, with unbelievable backgrounds and talents. But I did my best.

Then came the Training Trip Disaster. That day on the island, I lost my left arm to an Oni, a B-rank Dungeon Monster. That event still haunts me.

Now, I sit alone in a dark room, curled up in a corner. My black hair hangs over my face, my brown eyes empty. I can’t bear to face the harsh truth.

Nick, my closest friend, who stood by my side at the bottom of the academy's social ladder—Nick, who shared laughs, dreams, and countless days with me. He sacrificed himself to save someone as worthless as me.

"I'm pathetic, aren't I?" I whisper, covering my face with my remaining hand.

Even six months later, the pain hasn’t faded. Not in the slightest.

After the accident, Anubis Academy expelled me. They had no place for a cripple.

I exhale slowly and pull out my Super Watch, its holographic screen flickering to life.

The display shows the time: 8:05 AM, August 5th, 2202.

With a single thought I went to the holographic screen and looked at the news. There was an article that Tavel City was mostly rebuilt from the android rampage and Anubis Academy will open its door this Fall.

They can rebuild a city, yet they can’t replace the people who died. I chuckled darkly.

When I looked at my past self, all I could feel was disappointment. It left a bitter taste in my mouth to curse my classmates.

Now they were all dead.

I knew it was foolish to think that way, but emotions don’t always follow reason.

I spent a long time staring at the screen before switching to another site—a marketplace for Magic Items.

I started searching for Bent Spoons, magical tools that could move objects using telekinesis.

My heart skipped a beat when I found a Silver Bent Spoon for sale.

The Silver Bent Spoon was a major upgrade from the Bronze one I’d been using.

The price, however, was staggering—equivalent to the cost of a house.

When I was a broke student, I couldn’t have even dreamed of affording something like this.

But after the accident, Anubis Academy compensated me for the loss of my arm—and my future.

It was a lot of money, enough to live on comfortably for the rest of my life if I was careful.

And yet... I still dreamed of being an adventurer.

It was hard to explain, like a moth drawn to a flame.

I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the Silver Bent Spoon. I needed it.

I bookmarked the directions to the store that sold it.

For the first time in months, I stepped out of my room.

----

I stood by the curb, waiting for the Air Taxi to arrive.

Dressed in a hoodie and jeans, I hadn’t been outside in months. I felt self-conscious about my missing arm.

There were ways to replace it. Super rare potions could regrow my arm, but they’d cost more than a medium-sized guild could afford. Grafting someone else’s arm was another option, and the cheapest fix was a robotic prosthetic.

But I chose to live with the injury. What was the point of getting a new arm when my life as an adventurer was already over?

I glanced at the holographic map, tracking the red dot that represented the approaching Air Taxi.

Soon, it descended from the sky and landed in front of me.

It was an Air Motorcycle, an older, bulkier model compared to the newer sleek ones. The Ford logo was emblazoned on the front, and it stood on four jet legs. The front seats were for the driver, and the wide backseat could fit four passengers.

The driver, wearing a motorcycle helmet, turned to me. “You Wally?”

“Yeah,” I replied, eyeing the vehicle and wondering if this old model would make for a smooth trip to New Boston.

I decided to chance it and climbed into the backseat.

The driver started up the jet turbines, which were eerily silent. I couldn’t even feel the Air Motorcycle move. Despite its outdated appearance, the machine seemed to be in good shape.

As we ascended, I caught a bird’s-eye view of my neighborhood. Military drones and package drones zipped through the air, alongside other Air Motorcycles and Air Buses.

As we flew forward, my neighborhood faded from sight. I watched the landscape blur past with disinterest.

----

The Air Taxi dropped me off in New Boston.

I stood in front of a rundown shop with its windows plastered in old, faded advertisement posters. The sign above read "I_t_r Bazaar," missing a few letters as if time had worn them away.

As I took in the dilapidated store, I knew coming here in person to buy the Silver Bent Spoon was the right call. Buying it online could’ve easily led to me being scammed.

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Scams were at an all-time high, especially when it came to Magic Items. Some people would paint over a Bronze Bent Spoon and pass it off as something more valuable.

For an item as expensive as a house, I wasn’t taking any chances. I had to make sure it was the real deal.

I pulled out my own Bronze Bent Spoon from my pocket. It was a simple, bronze-colored spoon with a 90-degree bend in the neck. Normally, it could only lift about 10 pounds, but with my skill and focus, I could push it to lift 110.

With a flick of my wrist, the spoon's telekinetic energy activated, and the store door swung open. I stepped inside.

The interior was just as rundown as the outside—dim, cluttered, and worn down.

The shelves were crammed with various Magic Items, but everything was disorganized. There were swords, daggers, shields, armor, mirrors, cups, bows, and staffs, all stacked carelessly. Most of the items looked either too common or had unclear effects.

I made my way to the register, where a bored-looking shop girl sat behind the counter.

"Can I help you with something?" she asked lazily.

“Yeah, I’m here to buy the Silver Bent Spoon,” I replied, glancing around the messy shop. “But I don’t see it anywhere.”

“We keep the rare stuff in the back,” she said, standing up. “Stay here, I’ll go grab it.”

As she disappeared through a door into the backroom, I wandered over to one of the cluttered shelves to pass the time.

The first item that caught my eye was a dagger with a foot-long blade. Out of curiosity, I poured a bit of mana into it, and an electric current buzzed along the blade’s edge.

Nearby, I spotted a pair of gauntlets that looked interesting. But after inspecting them, I realized their only enchantment was an increase in the metal’s hardness. Not very exciting.

Then I found a small Sundial, decorated with a golden fin and intricate sun patterns on its disk.

I tried pouring mana into the Sundial, but nothing happened. I tilted my head, wondering if it needed a specific condition to activate. Some Magic Items required something special, like a Harp that only revealed its powers when played.

I figured the Sundial might need sunlight to work, given its design. As I examined the fin more closely, my finger accidentally brushed against its edge, and I felt a sharp sting. A thin cut appeared on my finger, and blood dripped onto the Sundial and the metal shelf.

I winced at the sight of my bleeding finger.

Then, all of a sudden, a bright golden light flashed before my eyes, blinding my vision.

----

I sat shirtless on a quilted blanket under the blazing sun, feeling its heat sear into my bare back.

“What the hell is going on?” I muttered, my eyes darting around in panic.

All I saw was a forest.

My heart raced as I glanced down, only to find my left arm—fully intact. The same arm I lost in the Training Trip Disaster.

I raised my hand, staring in disbelief as I rotated it, checking the front and back.

"Am I hallucinating? Is this some kind of dream?"

A flood of questions swirled in my mind. How was my arm back? How did I end up here? And where exactly *was* I?

As I scanned the surroundings more closely, I recognized the trees. This was the spot where I used to train, practicing my Mana Development Technique.

Back then, my technique worked best when the sun was high in the sky—between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., it was the prime time to grow my Mana Core.

I quickly checked my Super Watch, but something was off. It was the older model I used to own. When I activated it, the familiar blue holographic screen appeared, showing the time and date: 11:33 a.m., August 5th, 2201.

“August 5th, 2201?” I read it aloud, stunned.

That couldn’t be right—the year was supposed to be 2202.

To confirm, I searched the web for the latest episode of *Battle of the Heroes*—only to find an old episode, one I’d watched years ago.

“Wally... you’ve traveled back in time.”

It took a while for the reality of it to sink in.

Finally, I grabbed my two Bronze Bent Spoons and gripped them tightly in both hands. Focusing my mana, I concentrated with all my might.

Slowly, I began to lift myself off the ground.

Higher and higher I floated, the sun still blazing down, its warmth a constant reminder that I was back—back in a time I never thought I’d see again.

----

Flying from the woods where I trained back to my neighborhood felt like stepping into the past. Everything looked exactly the same—the houses, the street signs, even the neighbors going about their lives. It was as if time hadn’t touched this place at all. Then again, I hadn’t left the house much over the past year to notice any changes.

I landed on the front steps of my home, opened the door, and entered the familiar living room. My mom, Claire, was sitting on the couch, sipping white wine from one of her fancy glasses while watching her favorite game show.

She glanced at me and smiled. "You're home early. Want an early lunch?"

"I'm not hungry," I replied.

In the future, after the Training Trip Disaster, Mom would always give me these looks of concern, her smiles feeling forced and pained. It was hard seeing the pity in her eyes back then, so I often avoided my parents. But now, things were different.

Mom got up slowly and walked to the kitchen. "I’ve got some fresh diced melons and dragon fruit if you want a snack."

She busied herself at the fridge while I took a seat at the kitchen table. We hadn’t eaten together as a family in ages—most of the time, we’d sit in front of the TV, back when we were all younger.

"Hey, Mom. How’s Dad doing?" I asked.

"Same as always," she called back. "Still sorting monster cores at the guild."

I nodded. Dad had always been deep into his work. "And Walson? How’s he?"

She placed a bowl of fruit in front of me and sighed. "That boy? He hasn’t called or visited in ages. You’d know better than me—last I heard, he’s still with that Sormrest girl."

"Jessica?" I asked, slowly. "He’s still with her?"

Jessica Sormrest—she was from a Duke’s family, practically royalty. In the future, their relationship would fall apart, thanks to her family's interference. I was already thinking of ways to stop that from happening. I might not get along with Walson, but he was still my brother.

Mom interrupted my thoughts. "You want a haircut before school starts? And maybe some new clothes?"

"School? You mean Anubis Academy? I'm going there?"

"Yeah, but seriously—get a haircut. You’re starting to look like a hobo."

I froze. "Oh no... I’m going to need grenades."

Mom chuckled. "Sweetie, you're not going to war."

"Worse. I’m going to school with nobles whose tempers are shorter than the Planck length."

Mom laughed, then tried to make her point. "If you're that worried, why not just stay local? There are plenty of good colleges around here. Think of your poor mother—both my boys leaving me all alone. How cruel!" She feigned tears for effect.

I rolled my eyes and headed toward my room, ignoring her dramatics.

"Don't forget the fruit bowl!" she called after me. "I made it just for you!"

"I’m not hungry!" I shouted back.

"You will be! Take the fruit!"

Sighing, I turned back, grabbed the bowl of fruit, and made my way to my room, thinking about the mess of a future I had to deal with all over again.

----

In my room, I sat down at my desk and powered on the Inteli Quantum Computer, the latest model, complete with a sleek mouse and console. Just by touching the mouse, I could control the cursor and have my thoughts instantly transcribed onto the holographic display.

The hologram projected my homescreen, featuring a swordfish wallpaper, and I quickly opened the calendar app, which brought up a blank slate. As memories from my grim future began to surface, I started inputting key events—important moments I couldn’t afford to forget.

I methodically navigated to the exact dates, writing down what happened on each day. After the Training Trip Disaster, I had become obsessed with the strange deaths of my classmates. I needed to know why they were dropping like flies.

Was it the work of a supervillain? A plot orchestrated by the Nobles?

Or could it really all just be random chance?

These questions swirled in my head as I detailed everything I could recall. When I was done, I stared at the list, overwhelmed by the sheer amount of information.

"This is... a lot," I muttered to myself, tapping absently on my desk as I scanned the timeline of future events.

Given all I knew, the smart choice would be to avoid Anubis Academy altogether and transfer to another school far from Tavel City. It was the logical move. But logic wasn’t driving me. I couldn’t just abandon my classmates to their fate. I wanted to change what was coming.

"Alright, what’s my first priority?" I asked aloud, scanning the September section of the calendar. My eyes landed on a critical entry: **Anubis Academy Entrance Exam**.

"The first time around, I barely survived," I mused, thinking about how much luck had been involved. "I’ll need to study hard for the written test... and maybe get a flamethrower for the practical."

Satisfied, I saved the calendar with the newly added future timeline. Now came the hard part: preparing. Less than a month remained before the exam.

I opened the Notepad app and started listing what I would need: - Pepper Spray - Grenades - Daggers - Heat Warmer - Sleeping Bag - Tent - Camping Gear - A Magic Item that could generate fire

And, of course, **Unicorn Mana Cores**—they would be crucial in enhancing my Mana Core's development. I figured I could ask my older brother, Walson, for help with that. Maybe, just maybe, he’d come through if he was feeling generous.

I glanced at the clock—past midnight already. I sighed, shaking my head. There was still so much left to do. I needed to craft a revised training plan to get used to my restored body, and a study regimen for the entrance exam.

Stretching my limbs, I thought about the long road ahead. "Looks like I’m going to be a busy bee for a while."