I finally made up my mind. No more hesitation, no more doubting myself. I had to get stronger—no matter what it took. Giving up was never an option, not anymore. Not when someone out there was waiting for me… counting on me.
But there was still a problem.
My skill tree was trash.
I was only decent in taijutsu, and overall, I had barely reached level 3 in my skill tree. That's nothing. In a world like this, that's basically being weak. And honestly… I could feel it. Even if no one said it directly, I knew people didn't really believe in me. Maybe they pretended, maybe they encouraged me—but deep down, they didn't expect much.
And I couldn't even blame them.
I overheard conversations at night sometimes. Not clearly, but enough to understand the tone. Doubt. Uncertainty.
Yeah… I wouldn't believe in myself either.
But what bothered me more was something else… Spider Boy.
Why was he in my dreams before I even met him?
That part made no sense. It kept eating at me. But I didn't have time to overthink everything.
Right now, only one thing mattered—
Getting stronger.
School wasn't enough.
That was the truth I slowly started to accept.
We had just started practical training, but it still felt… slow. Too slow. I didn't have years to grow. I had one month. That's it.
I wanted to reach the level I'd normally have after graduating… in just one month.
Impossible?
Yeah. Probably.
And honestly… I didn't even think I had talent. Maybe I just wasn't meant to become a summoner or anything special.
But none of that mattered.
I had to save her.
During our free days, I wandered around the city.
Not doing anything special—just walking, thinking… sometimes spending a little money. I wanted a new weapon. Something ranged. Like a gun.
But obviously… guns didn't exist here.
Still, in one strange shop, I found something interesting.
They called it a Wind Blaster.
It worked by gathering energy and shooting it out as compressed wind. And surprisingly… it was cheap.
I bought it.
At first, I didn't expect much. But after using it for a while… I realized something.
It had its own skill tree, just like our daggers.
And it was actually pretty cool.
First skill: Basic shot — I named it Wind Bullet. Second skill: Explosion — I didn't think much, just called it Wind Bomb. Third skill: Sticky shot that explodes after 5 seconds — I called it Slime. Fourth skill: This one was crazy… it shot an invisible string that stuck to anything, and I could pull myself toward it. I called it Hook.
There was a fifth skill too, but I hadn't unlocked it yet.
I trained with it every day. Slowly improving. Getting used to it.
But still…
It wasn't enough.
A week passed.
In this world, one week felt just like seven normal days. Time didn't slow down just because I needed it to.
And then… I met him.
An old man.
He had white hair, a long beard, and he was tall—way taller than a normal person. Maybe around 2 or even 3 meters.
He looked strange… but calm.
He asked me for water.
Said he couldn't walk well.
I didn't hesitate. I brought him water.
And in return… he said something that changed everything.
"There's a great power sleeping inside you.But you won't awaken it unless your body and energy become strong enough to handle it."
At first, I didn't fully understand.
But then…
I smiled.
Because for the first time—
I had hope.
From that day, I trained differently.
Not just skills… but my body and my energy.
Every single day.
No breaks.
No excuses.
That old man… he taught me the basics of controlling energy. He didn't explain everything, but he guided me. Corrected me.
Pushed me.
And in just one week…
I learned the foundation of magic control.
He kept repeating one thing:
"Control your inner energy."
25 days passed.
Only 4 days left.
And finally…
I awakened my power.
Time.
My power… was time itself.
At first, I couldn't believe it. It felt unreal.
But it was true.
My first ability depended on my energy.
Right now… my limit was only 2 seconds.
That's all.
But even that—
Was insane.
The next day, I tried to find the old man.
To thank him.
But…
He was gone.
And when I asked people about him—
They all said the same thing.
"We've never seen anyone like that."
I didn't even know his name.
And he never asked mine.
Still…
I was grateful.
Truly.
When I returned, Mirei told me to check my Soul again.
And when I did—
It had changed.
Before, it was unstable.
Now…
80% light. 20% dark.
Mirei's eyes filled with tears.
"I don't know what you did, Zeus… but I'm really happy."
I realized something.
I had never shown them my power.
So I called both Mirei and Lucas.
"Listen carefully."
I activated it.
"Stop."
Everything froze.
The world went silent.
Completely still.
I walked freely.
Moved next to Mirei.
Looked at her face.
Those 2 seconds…
Felt like minutes.
Maybe even hours.
For me, it was peaceful.
For them…
Nothing had changed.
Then I spoke.
"Mirei… look over here. I'm right here."
Time resumed.
They looked confused.
"Is that teleportation?" Mirei asked.
"Yeah, definitely teleport!" Lucas added.
I shook my head.
"No… it's not teleportation."
They stared at me.
Waiting.
I smiled.
For the first time in a while…
A real smile.
"My power isn't something I didn't have before…It's something everyone and everything needs."
I paused.
Then said it clearly.
"I control time."
Mirei froze.
"What…?! I'm proud of you, Zeus."
Lucas grinned.
"Finally, bro. Your dream came true."
"Of course it did," I said.
Only 4 days left until the tournament.
Only 4 days… until I face fate.
Only 4 days… to become strong enough—
To save her.
Will Zeus be able to save her?We'll find out in the next chapter…