Chapter 16: The New Adventurer

The world felt hollow.

Kano stood alone in a clearing, helmet cradled in his hands.

His heart pounded — dull, heavy — like a hunted beast gasping for air.

Flickers of the past raced before his eyes: humiliation, fear, disappointment.

"All my life...

All my life, I've done nothing but fall..."

"Silent."

"Enduring."

"Hiding."

His shoulders gave a faint tremble. His fingers clenched around the metal so tightly, the knuckles whitened.

"Enough."

His lips barely moved, the word escaping in a breathless whisper.

"Enough of fearing.

Enough of enduring.

Enough of living like a shadow of myself."

The wind brushed his face — and somewhere deep within, something stirred in answer.

Kano lifted his head.

His eyes, burning with pain and defiance, stared into the colorless sky.

"I won't break anymore," he whispered.

His voice shook — not from fear, but from the force awakening inside him.

"I won't fear anymore!"

He took a step forward.

"I won't let this damned fate trample me again!"

His voice rose, gaining strength, carrying not just words but a vow to the heavens.

He felt it — himself — raw and undeniable.

Then, as if the weight of all his failures, all his pain, all his defeats swelled into a single, searing force in his chest, Kano threw his head back and screamed:

"I WILL NOT BREAK!!! DO YOU HEAR ME?! I WON'T BREAK!!! I WILL KEEP MOVING FORWARD, EVEN IF I FALL, EVEN IF I BLEED WITH EVERY STEP!!! I WILL BECOME STRONGER!!!"

His cry shattered the stillness, coursing through the forest, rippling across the trees and clouds — a challenge hurled at the world itself.

Then — silence.

Kano stood there, breathing hard, the tremors of his scream still lingering in the air.

Slowly, steadily, he bent down and picked up the helmet lying in the grass.

In the polished surface, he saw his reflection:

Dirty.

Exhausted.

But unbroken.

He tightened his grip around the helmet.

And with a gaze carved from steel, he moved forward.

Toward the city.

Toward the guild.

Toward the man he was meant to become.

The doors of the guild swung open with a sharp bang, turning every head inside.

Normally, this was nothing unusual — adventurers came and went all day, some swaggering in triumphantly, others dragging themselves in by sheer will.

But today... something was different.

Kano entered.

Not hunched over from exhaustion.

Not lost or hesitant.

He carried himself with a fierce, unwavering purpose.

His stride was firm.

His eyes — cold and clear.

He didn't so much as glance at the other adventurers staring after him in mute surprise.

This was not the boy they'd seen yesterday.

Behind the counter, Naira was finishing up a few contracts.

Hearing the doors, she instinctively looked up — and froze.

Kano stood before her.

No trembling hands.

No fear in his eyes.

No trace of the boy they'd once had to drag back from the brink.

"...You came back," she said.

Not a question. A simple statement of fact.

For the first time, Naira found herself at a loss for words.

He looked different.

His eyes...

She could see it.

Something new had been born within him — something that only awakens in those truly ready to fight.

And yet, she couldn't help herself.

The old habits flared.

"So, what now?" she said, letting the sarcasm slip into her voice.

"Back here to cry about how hard life is?"

But Kano's reaction left her stunned.

He didn't react.

No anger.

No offense.

He simply stood there, calm as stone.

Then he spoke:

"Register me as a full adventurer. I'm ready."

The guild fell silent.

A few adventurers glanced at each other, eyebrows raised.

Someone snorted:

"Is this a joke?"

Another scoffed:

"Oh, look, the great hero returns. A little late, isn't it?"

Someone even burst out laughing:

"Yeah, the same kid who nearly died in the forest? Sure, let's watch this."

But Kano didn't react.

Not a single flicker.

He just kept standing there, eyes locked onto Naira.

And Naira...

She held his gaze.

For the first time, she saw it — real determination, burning steady behind his eyes.

And so she didn't mock him.

She simply let out a slow breath, grabbed a feathered pen and a parchment from the counter.

"Alright, idiot…" she muttered, handing him the document.

"Fill it out. But know this — from now on, you're in this shit up to your ears."

Kano took the pen.

No trembling.

No hesitation.

With a sure hand, he signed his name.

Kano Rom.

Naira stared at that signature for a long moment.

He wasn't the boy who needed dragging anymore.

He was someone who had chosen to walk forward on his own.

"Well then," Naira said, with a hint of challenge creeping back into her voice, "since you're so smart and brave..."

She pulled a scroll from a stack and tossed it onto the counter in front of him.

"Here's your first mission."

Kano unrolled it.

His eyes swept quickly over the text.

Mission: eliminate a goblin band occupying the old ruins nearby.

Difficulty: beginner-level.

Reward: 50 silver coins.

Some of the adventurers who overheard were already leaning in, waiting for his reaction.

A few smirked skeptically.

Some expected him to start trembling again.

Others thought he'd silently grab the scroll, too proud to refuse and look weak.

But Kano did something none of them expected.

He calmly closed the scroll, placed it back on the counter, and looked Naira straight in the eye.

"I can't take this mission right now."

Silence.

Only the faint crackle of candles filled the hall.

Naira blinked at him, startled.

"What?"

"I'm not ready," he said.

No doubt. No fear in his voice.

Just a clear, solid statement.

A few adventurers exchanged bewildered looks.

"Wait... is he actually turning it down?"

"Why?!"

"Maybe he's not as stupid as he looks — that mission's suicide for someone like him."

Kano didn't offer explanations.

He didn't need to.

He knew exactly what he was doing.

And Naira...

She saw it too.

This wasn't fear.

It was sober judgment.

He wasn't afraid of goblins.

But he understood — right now, it wasn't a fight he could win.

For the first time, Naira saw not a hesitant boy, but someone who could weigh reality against pride and choose wisely.

She let out a slow breath, pulled the list of missions closer, and began flipping through the pages.

"Alright then... let's find something that is your size..."

A few minutes of searching.

And then — she found it.

She pulled out another scroll, glanced at it, and smiled to herself.

There it is.

She tossed it in front of Kano.

"Kill slimes and help repair the watermill.

Difficulty: beginner-level.

Reward: 2 silver coins."

The guild erupted with laughter.

"Slimes?! Seriously?!"

"Oh yeah, real heroic, ha-ha!"

"Why not just chase chickens around the yard while you're at it?!"

Naira didn't even bother to silence them.

She simply watched.

Watched as Kano calmly picked up the scroll.

Watched as he carefully folded it, ignoring the jeers and smirks around him.

Watched as he turned without a word and walked away.

The adventurers waited for something — anything.

Maybe he'd clench his fists?

Maybe he'd snap back, shout, throw something?

But no.

He just walked off in silence.

Naira followed him with her eyes.

Fools, she thought.

They laughed, but they didn't understand what they had just witnessed.

He had done something most of them never could.

He had faced his own weakness — and accepted it.

And more than that — he had chosen to fix it.

While the others chased after quick glory, Kano had chosen to build something real.

He wasn't looking for heroic victories.

He wanted to become stronger.

And he knew exactly how to get there.

That was his true strength.

And Kano never once looked back.

He didn't hear the laughter anymore.

He didn't need to.

He knew where he was going.

His journey had truly begun.