Ryota was a good kid.
In the eyes of his neighbors, Ryota was sensible, obedient, and filial. Despite his young age, he was an excellent cook and proactively took on household chores. One had to wonder what virtues his parents had accumulated over generations to be blessed with such a son from the heavens.
In the eyes of his teachers, Ryota was clever, hardworking, academically outstanding, and got along well with all his classmates.
Sure, he'd teased a few female classmates and gotten into fights with some troublemakers, but when a bad student did those things, they were damned. A good student? Well… boys will be boys during puberty. Normal, just normal youthful impulses.
Touma, who had been a homeroom teacher for twenty years, rarely encountered a student who gave him so little cause for concern. Yet, over twenty days after the college entrance exams, he called Ryota—who had already graduated and returned to school to collect his personal files—into his office, slammed his hand on the desk, his face a mask of bitter disappointment.
"Ryota! What have you done? If I hadn't found it strange that I hadn't received the good news of your acceptance to the National University of Defense Technology and went to ask about it, I wouldn't have known you secretly signed up as a volunteer for Secret Realm exploration! What are you trying to do? Do you want to give me a heart attack… cough… a heart attack?! Cough…"
"Sir, sir, take it easy, don't be angry, don't be angry. Here, have some tea…"
"Don't you give me that cheeky grin!"
Touma blew on the tea in his mug, took a loud slurp, then spat out a tea leaf. He took a deep breath, forcing his tone to soften slightly. "Tell me, what were you actually thinking?"
"Serving the nation, upholding honor, contributing to the cause of Secret Realm exploration, and doing my part to eradicate the Demon Clan are the duty and principle every citizen should uphold!" Ryota declared with righteous conviction.
"Get out!"
"Right away, sir. Goodbye."
"...Get back here!"
Touma was so angry he seemed to snort tea through his nostrils.
He slammed his mug down hard on the desk.
He wanted to yell, but a wave of helplessness washed over him.
"The National University of Defense Technology is one of the top five universities in the country! Secret Realm Management and Ecology is the top-ranked major within it. Your scores made it a near certainty. I know you young people idolize martial prowess, you want to fly through the skies and move through the earth, capable of anything. But why throw away a bright future for this risk?"
"Ah, forget it. What's done is done. The Military Department has already registered your name; no one can change it now. Otherwise, it would be treated as desertion. You're entering the Secret Realm tomorrow… You're a smart kid. I hope to hear good news from you." He waved a hand dismissively, his enthusiasm gone. "At least come back alive."
Ryota gave a slight bow. "Sir, I'm sorry for disappointing you."
Seeing Ryota drop the flippant act, Touma felt both gratified and deeply saddened. As Ryota reached the door, he remembered another question. "Wait, how did your parents agree to this? They…"
Ryota quickened his pace.
"...Huh? Get back here!"
"Ryota! You get back here this instant!"
Ryota broke into a jog.
---
After fleeing the teachers' office and exiting the school grounds, he found two people waiting for him at the gate.
A lanky teenager who resembled a gangly monkey came over, grinning. "So, Ryota, get an earful from Old Man Touma? Serves you right! Never thought I'd see the day!"
"Mr. Touma must be furious. He liked you the most, Ryota," said a delicate-featured girl as she walked over. "Even I don't get it. Why would you give up a perfectly good university spot?"
Ryota sighed dramatically, his gaze drifting into the distance. "For ideals and distant horizons."
"Take your meds, you idiot," the girl retorted, pursing her lips.
"Hahaha! That's how a real man should be!" the gangly boy, Ryuu, laughed. "If you'd told me sooner, Ryota, I'd have gone with you! Don't worry, if anything happens to you in there, I'll sweep through that Secret Realm myself one day!"
"Ryuu, what kind of crap are you spewing now?!" the girl, Aiko, exploded, throwing a punch at him.
"Ow, Aiko! That hurts! Are you trying to kill me?!"
The three friends bantered and laughed together as they headed into the subway station. Ryota could tell both of his childhood friends were worried about him, and it touched him.
It had been a full 18 years since he'd crossed over—or been reborn—into this world. He was long accustomed to life here; he had a new life.
This world was vastly different from his previous one. The planet beneath his feet was called Mist Star, with only two major continents: Eastern and Western. But humanity wasn't the only intelligent race here; there was also the 'Demon Clan.'
Legends said the Demon Clan were adept at disguise, capable of taking human form, but were actually cruel,murderer, and even cannibalistic. They possessed immense innate power but were utterly evil.
Over the last millennium, there had been six large-scale wars between the races, with countless smaller clashes happening in the shadows.
As an ordinary person, Ryota hadn't had the chance to encounter a Demon yet. The last inter-species war had been a hundred years ago, back in his teacher Touma's grandfather's time.
The Demon Clan usually resided on the Western Continent, while humans lived on the Eastern Continent. Vast areas of both continents were perpetually shrouded in thick mist, filled with mysterious and ferocious strange beasts, making them uninhabitable—likely the source of the planet's name.
Within these mists also existed Secret Realms.
These Secret Realms could essentially be called other worlds. Different realms contained different civilizations—technology, magic, aura, fantasy…
Humanity had learned much advanced technology from them and, more importantly, gained powerful strength—after exploring a Secret Realm, explorers received blessings based on their degree of exploration and gains within the realm, obtaining something called a 'Secret Pattern.'
Secret Patterns could help people break the limits of the human body, granting them the power to shatter stone tablets, even fly through the skies and move through the earth, becoming Secret Pattern Martial Artists.
To Ryota, exploring Secret Realms seemed a lot like running dungeon instances in a game—clearing them yielded rewards. The catch was, everyone only had one life, and each time you entered a new Secret Realm, you had to 'start a new character.'
No matter how many Secret Realms you'd explored, no matter what power you possessed in reality, upon entering a new Secret Realm, you had to start from scratch. The only thing you could bring with you was your accumulated experience from previous explorations.
Even a Martial God capable of flight and earth-walking had to start over in a new Secret Realm, slowly learning and mastering the unique power systems found within.
This was also why the initial discovery and first few rounds of exploration of a new Secret Realm were extremely dangerous, where even Martial Gods could easily meet a sudden death.
Hence, the need for exploration volunteers.
Unsatisfied with your current life? Yearn for the martial path of flight and earth-walking? Dream of expanding our territories and eradicating the Demon Clan?
As long as you are at least 18 years old, no older than 50, healthy and without disability, you are welcome to join the ranks of Secret Realm exploration volunteers! Unknown worlds await your exploration and development!
It might seem like an outrageous policy conscripting cannon fodder, but it was actually a cornerstone for maintaining social stability.
Given the vast differences in individual power, even in the very level of life itself, a natural stratification had occurred between ordinary people and Secret Pattern Martial Artists.
The fact that anyone could become a Secret Realm exploration volunteer gave ordinary people a chance to gamble with their lives, offering a broad channel for upward mobility as a form of appeasement.
More crucially, the compensation for death was truly substantial—enough for a family to live comfortably for a lifetime!
"Ryota, you… or maybe Uncle and Auntie… are you in some kind of trouble?" Aiko had been quietly observing Ryota the whole way. As the train approached their stop, she finally couldn't hold back. "If someone is giving your family trouble, remember to tell me! My dad might be able to help figure something out!"
"Yeah, Ryota," Ryuu chimed in. "If you're in trouble, tell us. We'll help you figure it out."
Ryota sighed. "Your brains… I'm really worried about you guys. Will you even keep up in university? I'm the top student who got into the National University of Defense Technology. I could have even ended up managing Secret Pattern Martial Artists in the future. How could anyone possibly dare to bully my family?"
Aiko raised her fist. "Your mom—!"
"We're worried about you, and you call us stupid? Ryota, doesn't your conscience hurt?!"
Ryota laughed. "Alright, alright, the train's stopping. I need to get home. Next time we meet, I'll be a high-flying Secret Pattern Martial Artist. You two weaklings just wait for my good news."
"...Ryota, be careful!"
"Yeah, don't die! Even if you come out disabled, we can take care of you for the rest of your life!"
"Ryuu, are you spewing crap again?!"
Ryota, already off the train, gave a carefree wave behind his back without even looking, melting into the crowd.
He maintained that carefree air all the way to his front door. Facing the door, Ryota hesitated for a long moment before finally pulling out his key and opening it.
The unique, savory aroma of stewed fish washed over him. His mother, Sakura, busy in the kitchen, heard the door and came out, her expression slightly unhappy.
Ryota's heart jumped. All the composure he'd shown his teacher vanished. He braced himself for the storm.
Then he heard Ms. Sakura say: "The notification from the National University of Defense Technology is so sudden. Who announces that military training starts tomorrow and only notifies us this evening? It's over a month earlier than other universities! We don't even have time to buy your daily necessities! Dinner is almost ready. After we eat, I'll help you pack quickly."
Ryota froze. Military training? What admission notice? The volunteer order from the Military Department should've arrived by now.
His father, Haruto, hearing the commotion, came out of the study. "It's a military academy, of course the management is different. And they probably provide all the daily necessities, so no need to worry. You should be more concerned about what we're going to do, eating your cooking every day for months without seeing our son."
"Haruto, if you don't like it, you don't have to eat!"
Sakura shot him a glare, turned, and went back into the kitchen to tend to her grape-stewed fish.
Haruto came over to Ryota and clapped a hand on his shoulder, his tone grave. "Good kid, you've gotten so strong without me noticing. Don't worry, I lied to your mom. Otherwise, she wouldn't sleep tonight. We'll take it one day at a time. I won't ask too much about why you'd give up a famous university to sign up as a Secret Realm volunteer. You've always been sensible and had your own ideas since you were little. Your dad believes in you! Just remember one thing: be careful in everything. Before you take any risk, think of your mother and me."
"Dad…" Understanding dawned on Ryota.
So the Military Department's notice had arrived. His father had hidden it, playing along to keep his mother calm.
A father's love is like a mountain, heavy and hard to articulate.
Knowing he had abandoned his studies, abandoned a bright and smooth future, chosen to risk the Secret Realms—his teacher was heartbroken, his friends suspected he was being bullied—only his father asked nothing, silently supporting him from behind the scenes!
Ryota's feelings were terribly mixed, even feeling a flicker of regret for the first time. This peaceful life, this happy family, this wonderful future… why hadn't he cherished it?
If only he hadn't found that secret letter his father was exchanging with the Demon Clan that day.