That day, I had a strange dream.
Even though I was a mediocre villager, I somehow remembered the life of a swordsman in my dream.
It was a strange dream indeed, I experienced the life of a man who lived and died for the sword, all in the hope of slashing the stars someday.
"Ow..."
My head throbbed as a dull pain slowly penetrated from the skin to the insides of my head.
A strong headache and a sudden torrent of memories that flowed through me woke me up from my reverie.
The swordsman that I saw in my dream had an intense longing for strength.
Even though the swordsman was overly straightforward he had set up an illusory goal for himself to prove his strength; he wished to slash the stars that twinkled in the night sky!
With this thought, it was a goal that the person in my dreams had fail to achieve until the end! I looked up at the vast night sky shrouded in darkness.
The dazzling stars that were scattered across the boundless sky were reflected beautifully in my eyes, as if they were shiny pearls. I couldn't help but want to store the pearls in a treasure chest and keep them all for myself.
But I was well aware of the futility of such a desire. After all, the stars were too far away, far out of the reach of any living being.
I sighed.
The swordsman in my dream however, had thought differently.
He had believed that someday he would be able to cut down the stars that were scattered throughout the sky proving once and for all, that he had mastered the Way of the Sword.
Thus began his journey of swinging his sword under the pale blue sky. His sword that was itching to swallow a star hungered for blood as well prompting its master to look for opponents that could offered as a feast for its ravenous appetite.
"Slashing Star…." (TL note: Hoshi kiri meaning Star and Slash are the words here)
These words could be said to be the basis of the life of the swordsman that I had dreamt of.
Somehow I couldn't forget these words. It was as if they were stuck deep within my heart. (e/n: chest)
These two words generated a strange desire within me, a longing that I had never known, and a raging fire that sought control of my entire being.
I was but a humble villager and had held no expectations of living an extraordinary life. But these words had ignited sparks in some part of me that I had never known had existed. I was no longer content with being an ordinary villager who could be found anywhere and wanted to live a life of my own, a life that transcended the ordinary!
"Huh"
My throat trembled and I tried to speak but nothing came out.
There was a sense of discomfort due to the headache, but the more I focused on the idea of "Star Slashing", the less the pain I felt, and the more my aspirations grew.
"Unbelievable," I let out a gasp out of excitement.
Slowly as my consciousness caught up with reality, I couldn't stop myself from praising the bright eyed figure of the man whose silhouette as he wielded the sword with unparalleled conviction had imprinted itself deep into the recess of my mind.
Even though that person had ultimately failed in his efforts, it was undoubtable that his life had shined just as brightly as the stars that he aimed to slash.
His life was so dazzling that it had entranced my soul.
His life gave me a new hope, a hope that a mediocre being leading a mediocre life like me, could also one day leave behind traces of my existence in this world.
"To slash a star! "
It was a goal that the person in my dreams had failed to achieve until the end!
Was it truly something that a plain character could aim for? (TL note: He uses the words jimi murabito chara or plain villager character here)
"No!"
I shook my head firmly, shaking off those negative train of thoughts that caused me anxiety.
Regardless of how far I could go along this journey, it was imperative that I hold the self-belief that I would achieve my objective!
Still, determination aside, there were several practical difficulties that I had to encounter if I were to accomplish my goal.
First and foremost was the fact that I had no idea on how to wield a sword. Being a humble villager all I had been taught was how to wield a hoe and help in the harvest of the fields, where would I have learnt the skills for wielding a sword?
Perhaps if my life were to go along the same trajectory that it has so far, I would have never wielded a sword throughout my life, however thanks to the dream that I had, my life wasn't going to be the same ever again….
The memories of the man who was known and feared as the "Sword Demon" in another world held a sea of knowledge regarding Sword Skills, enough for even a novice like me to acquire skills fast.
My eyes hardened in determination.
"Regardless of what happens in the future I never wish to regret!"
The reason for my uncanny determination could be partly attributed to the raw scenery that I saw in my dreams. A number of terrible fights that took place until the death toll turned into millions. A number of rivals who worked hard in order to one up each other. After seeing that dream, I was embarrassed that I was wasting my life in vain in a village. I felt that I was stupid.
"When life burns, the world shines." I understood the meaning of these words by seeing that scene in my dream. And I wanted my life to burn just like his had.
But I knew, once I stepped on this path, there was no going back.
There was only one way and that was to go forward.
If so, that meant that I had to acquire the same level of skills as the man in my dream and even go beyond! Physical techniques, experience, and intuition all these have to be cultivated over the course of many years, if I wished to wield a sword at the level of the Sword Demon and if I were to accomplish the inhuman goal of Slashing the Stars then God knows how many years I had to immerse myself in acquiring them!
So, in the end what would I need to Slash the Stars?
Unfortunately I had no answer.
I could only fumble for now, strengthen myself as I go along with the hope that one day I would find what was necessary.
Even so, just this alone was to make a marked change in my monotonous life.
Till now all that I had done was sleep, eat, and plow the fields.
It was more fun to live as a Swordsman who dreamed of Slashing a Star rather than leading such a boring, repetitive life.
"So I'll do it."
As if taking an oath to someone.
I conjured out my feelings that were full of hope and anticipation and spat them out.
"I'm going to try no matter what!"
While joyfully smiling with an expression which belied my youthful age, I spoke these words with a cheerful face.
"The stars floating in the sky, one day,"
I arrogantly proclaimed to the stars that I could not reach no matter how much I try to.
"I will slash you"
The night of my 8th birthday.
I found a dream worth living for.
I found a goal that existed at a distance that it might as well have been infinitely distant.
For some reason, after that day, I felt as if the world reflected in my eyes had started glowing.