Chapter 1: The Timeless

Chapter 1: Chapter 1: The Timeless

From the day he was born, Kronor began experiencing strange dreams.

They always featured the same man.

A man drowning in despair.

Sometimes Krono’r saw him sitting alone in a dark room, his shoulders trembling as he struggled to hold himself together. Other times, he watched him collapse beneath an invisible weight, clutching his head as tears streamed down his face.

Except they weren’t tears of water.

They were blood.

Krono’r didn’t know who the man was or what had driven him to such a miserable state, but one thing was unmistakable.

His sorrow seemed bottomless.

Solitude. Loneliness. Self-loathing. A crippling fear of the people around him.

Those were merely the visible scars. Beneath them lay years of pain, loss, betrayal, and helplessness.

The man had endured more than Krono’r could comprehend. Eventually, whatever remained of his will had shattered, driving him toward an irreversible decision.

Not everyone would have sympathized with him.

But Kronor did.

Because whenever he looked at that man, he felt as though he were staring into a mirror.

A distorted reflection of himself.

But why?

His name was Krono’r De Volcan, the third son of Priest Elmond. He had been born into this world with no connection to some broken stranger from another existence.

At least, that was what he believed.

His dreams left him confused and increasingly desperate for answers. Eventually, he turned to the ancient religious texts stored in his father’s library.

That was where he discovered two concepts that changed everything.

Reincarnation.

Second Lives.

The truth slowly came together.

Those weren’t dreams. They were memories.

Memories from a life that had ended before this one began.

A life belonging to a pathetic, broken man who had ultimately taken his own life.

And if those memories belonged to him...

Then that pathetic man had been him.

Krono’r didn’t feel anger.

He felt disgust. Not toward the man himself, but toward the life he had once allowed himself to live.

That was the moment he made a decision.

Never again.

He possessed the soul of an adult. Letting his mind decay inside a child’s body would be nothing short of wasting a second chance granted by fate.

So he began learning.

He learned to read at two. By three, he could already write. Books became his closest companions.

Through them, Krono’r gradually discovered just how different this world was from the one he remembered.

The world was called Elphina.

It was divided into three great partitions.

The Human Partition, Greto.

The Demon Partition, Nozax.

And the Dragon Partition, Dragonia.

Three races. Three territories.

Three civilizations locked in an uneasy stalemate, each regarding the others as mortal enemies.

Humans.

Demons.

Dragons.

Whenever Krono’r encountered those words, strange fragments from his former life surfaced in his mind.

He saw cities engulfed in dragonfire.

People screaming as dark powers twisted their bodies.

Armies disappearing beneath monstrous shadows.

But the memories were incomplete.

He couldn’t tell where those scenes had happened, nor why they existed inside his mind.

Rather than obsess over mysteries he couldn’t yet solve, Krono’r focused on something more practical.

His future.

He became fascinated by two professions.

Demon Hunters.

Dragon Hunters.

Both were considered prestigious careers throughout human civilization. Those who survived long enough could accumulate immense power, wealth, fame, and status.

But the rewards came at an obvious cost.

Death.

A hunter willingly stepped onto battlefields where a single mistake could end their life.

Krono’r wasn’t afraid of that.

Not anymore. He had already died once.

The only thing he feared was returning to the pathetic existence he remembered.

So he chose his path. He would become a Dragon Hunter. Not merely an ordinary one.

He would become the greatest Dragon Hunter to ever live.

That ambition filled him with excitement.

Unfortunately, someone else had a different interpretation of his behavior.

One afternoon, while Krono’r was buried in his father’s library, he heard whispering from outside the doorway.

"Did you see that, Madam?"

"Yes..."

"The third son is possessed. We must inform the Priest immediately. He needs an exorcism before that demonic nature grows stronger."

Kronor’s expression went blank.

That was how his peaceful childhood ended.

When Priest Elmond returned from his duties, he was immediately informed of his son’s supposed abnormalities.

What followed was an ordeal Krono’r would never forget.

He was subjected to a harsh baptism involving freezing holy water, endless chanting, and enough religious scripture to make even the most devout believer question his life choices.

Kronor had never been particularly interested in religion.

Unfortunately, being the youngest son of a priest left him little choice.

His father was an extremely strict and disciplined man. He expected Kronor to memorize enormous volumes of holy scripture so that, one day, he could follow in his footsteps.

Kronor becoming a priest?

The thought alone was absurd.

But at three years old, there was little he could do about it.

Thankfully, his mother was different.

Lady Katherine was a gentle and virtuous woman who loved all three of her sons equally. Since Kronor was the youngest, however, she occasionally gave him a little extra attention.

He later learned that she had chosen his name herself.

Krono’r.

It meant Timeless.

A name born from a mother’s simple wish that her son would remain eternal.

Kronor could only shake his head regarding that.

One evening, she held him tightly against her chest outside their modest, single-story wooden home.

The sunset painted the sky orange as she gazed into his innocent eyes with unmistakable pride.

"You know, Kronor, you three brothers are the greatest blessings the gods have ever given me. I love all of you equally."

She gently stroked his hair.

"People may call you strange. They may say you’re abnormal. But I believe you’re destined to become the brightest star among them all."

Krono’r couldn’t answer.

He was only a child, after all.

But somewhere deep within his heart, those words took root.

His mother believed in him.

That was enough.

Years passed.

Before he realized it, Krono’r had reached seven.

His appearance had changed considerably. He inherited his mother’s pale skin and his father’s sharp, handsome jawline. If Elmond hadn’t chosen the path of a priest, Krono’r suspected his father could have made a living as a super model.

His childhood passed relatively peacefully.

Then came the night everything changed.

His father summoned him to their bedroom.

Elmond was still dressed in his familiar green-and-white priestly robes, but his expression was unusually stern.

Katherine wasn’t there.

For the first time, Krono’r had to face his father alone.

Yet his adult soul allowed him to meet Elmond’s gaze without flinching.

His father seemed mildly surprised by his composure, but his stern demeanor remained unchanged.

"Krono’r, you’re seven years old now."

"I know, Father," Krono’r replied, pursing his lips.

Elmond continued,

"Then you should understand that the time has come for you to devote your life to the Almighty. You will go to the Great Church of Elongate, where you will seek His wisdom and deepen your knowledge."

"After seven years of devoted study, you may become a priest, just as I did, and carry our faith across the nine continents."

He paused before continuing.

"Or, if you choose, you may remain here and teach the children of our local church in my place."

His expression became solemn.

"I am growing old, and your two brothers have already been distracted by the mundane world. That leaves you as the only one who can continue my mandate and carry on the work entrusted to our family."

Kronor involuntarily yawned.

Elmond’s eyes narrowed.

"Are you listening, Krono’r?"

His voice rose slightly.

"Yes, Father."

Krono’r straightened immediately.

Seeing this, his father’s expression softened.

Then Krono’r spoke, "But I’m not going to become a priest, Father."

Rumble!

It felt as though thunder had suddenly erupted above the house.

Elmond’s expression froze.

The warmth disappeared from his eyes, replaced by an icy glare.

"Why not?"

His voice became dangerously calm.

"Do you also think it is a boring occupation? Have you, too, succumbed to worldly pleasures?"

He stepped closer.

"Answer me, Kronor."

Krono’r didn’t flinch.

"No, Father. I think you’re doing a great job."

He paused.

"But I want to follow my own path. I want to become a Dragon Hunter."

"Nonsense!"

Elmond’s voice thundered through the room.

"Do you think becoming a Dragon Hunter is easy?"

"Nothing worthwhile is easy, Father."

Kronor took a breath.

"But whenever I imagine myself living the life you’ve chosen for me, I feel nothing but dread."

His voice remained calm.

"That fear would eventually turn my life into a living hell. So forgive me for going against your wishes."

He lowered his gaze for a moment.

"I am eternally grateful to you for bringing me into this world. But I cannot let you dictate my future."

He looked his father directly in the eyes.

"I have my own life. My own aspirations."

With those words, Krono’r turned around and walked away.

Elmond remained standing in silence. He had clearly expected resistance.He hadn’t expected such mature words from a seven-year-old.

Krono’r returned to his room and closed the door behind him.

His room was modest and somewhat shabby, but books covered nearly every available surface.

He had purchased them from the local market with whatever money he managed to save.

He leaned against his headboard, picked up a book, and began reading.

His father’s anger was already forgotten.

Why worry?

His path had already been chosen.

And Krono’r intended to walk it.

As he turned the pages, knowledge flowed into his mind with astonishing speed.

His ability to learn had become far greater than it had ever been in his previous life.

Over the past four years, he had read more than a thousand books.

History.

Geography.

Magic.

Religion.

Combat.

Civilization.

His greatest focus, however, remained history and geography.

He learned that the Human Partition contained nine continents and that countless heroes had sacrificed their lives for the survival and prosperity of humanity.

Tonight, however, he was reading about one particular hero.

A figure whose very existence seemed almost mythical.

The Godless Hero.

Strangely, nobody knew his real name.

History remembered only his deeds.

A century ago, he had stopped the Great Demonic Invasion.

He had forged a peace treaty with the Dragon Race.

He had halted the Sea Titans’ siege through sheer force.

And according to the records, he had slain the Dragon Emperor Bahamuth with a single strike.

The list continued.

Yet the most astonishing part wasn’t what he had accomplished.

It was how quickly he had done it.

The Godless Hero had achieved all of those legendary feats within just 25 years of his life.

How he had grown so powerful in such a short period remained a mystery.

But there was no denying the conclusion.

He was a legend.

Krono’r slowly reached the final page. His eyes moved across the last few lines.

Then his vision suddenly turned white.

[Ding!]

Krono’r froze as the mechanical voice echoed inside his consciousness.

[The "Ancient One" has chosen you as his successor.]

His pupils contracted. Another notification appeared.

[You have received the Ultimate Devourer System.]

Then came the final message.

[Synchronizing...]

Krono’r’s consciousness abruptly plunged into darkness.

He couldn’t remember what happened afterward.

But somewhere deep within his fading awareness, an instinctive warning emerged.

Something was coming.

Something enormous.

Something that would change his life forever.