As the stars shone brightly atop the now demolished planet, a muscular figure kneeled before a tattered corpse that was utterly unrecognizable.

The figure that was kneeling down was named Ace Ambrosia.

Ace slowly lifted his head up to gaze upon the netherworld that Earth had become and also wiped his bloodied face with his even bloodier hand.

He winced as the pain finally struck him and he fell out of his catatonic state. His previously black, wavy hair was now disheveled and burnt. His handsome face with not even a smidge of facial hair was now unrecognizable as it was covered in a crimson substance named blood.

In front of him lay the burnt corpse of his father. His body was scarlet red as it would disgust even the most indifferent of people.

'Why…?'

Ace thought as thick tears flowed down his eyes and onto his cheeks. He quickly tried to wipe them off but that caused an enormous amount of pain to his hand as well as his face.

Eventually, the man couldn't take it anymore as he was on the verge of insanity. Yesterday, he had been bounty hunting Iniquitous Rankers, but now…

No, the worst thing was that he couldn't find his mother and his sister's corpses. It was like they had vanished into thin air.

"Having fun crying over there?"

A childish voice entered Ace's ears as he didn't bother to check who it was. He assumed it was a child who didn't die in the apocalypse alongside him.

"Hey, I'm talking to you!"

No, the voice had a tinge of carefreeness and mockery. This, of course, struck a nerve as Ace violently turned around, his gaze piercing even the Heavens itself.

This carefree behavior was one that he just could not bear with. Couldn't the child see all the corpses lined up!?

"Now, are you going to talk?"

The boy tilted his head ever so slightly to the right while Ace's ears fumed with restrained anger.

Now that he finally turned to look at the boy, Ace scrutinized his appearance very carefully, causing an expression of disbelief to pop up on his bloodied face.

The boy wore denim jeans and a bright-yellow buttoned shirt. He wore a pink beanie that covered more than half of his perfectly combed dirty-blonde hair.

The boy's face was splotched with freckles and his face seemed excessively childish. His gaze was so cutesy that it caused Ace's heart to beat faster.

No, it wasn't because of the cuteness itself, but because of the anger and irritation Ace felt.

Where was he when the apocalypse struck? Even if he was hiding in a basement, it still wouldn't explain the perfect attire and combed hair he had.

Even breathing the nearby air would probably cause a regular human to collapse immediately, due to suffocation or due to the extremely squalid scent.

"Hey! I'm right here, you know!?"

The boy said again, this time in a tone filled to the brim with annoyance. His attire looked fancy and he seemed arrogant to Ace, who currently wasn't in his right state of mind.

Due to this, Ace ran at the boy, screaming his lungs out to at least get a hit in. Somewhat amused, the boy stepped back as he fluently avoided every blow.

Ace's face was filled with anger and hatred, while the boy's face was filled with amusement, albeit a tinge of annoyance nonetheless.

Ace felt that this felt like a game to the boy, while the latter felt that Ace had finally gone insane.

"Right, we can talk later if you want."

His expression turned into an indifferent one as his steps halted abruptly. He took one step forward and kicked the organs that Ace's pelvic area had been protecting.

Ace let out a small scream before falling down. Shocked at this revelation, the boy facepalmed while thinking, 'I don't have much time here, human'.

"I didn't expect him to faint after a kick to the balls, but I guess it's for the best."

The boy let out a small chuckle before turning it into a sad sigh.

Soon, a couple of hours passed. The boy was levitating in the air with his hand supporting his head as he looked at Ace's body with a bored expression.

"Shouldn't he be awake by now? I still feel his heartbeat so he can't be dead."

He let out another sad sigh as he kicked Ace's belly, causing the latter to let out a soft groan.

Another hour passed, and Ace finally showed signs of awakening. He tossed and tumbled around the floor after slowly opening his eyes.

The first thing he saw was the petrifying gaze of the boy who had just crossed the realm of insanity and was now in an intense rage due to waiting for so long.

"We don't have eternity here. Now, do you wanna talk?"

"I..I think so."

"Very well, then. Get up."

As he uttered those words, the boy kicked Ace's belly once again, causing the latter to wince in pain this time.

Ace slowly rose up and stood before the boy who only came up to his shoulders at best.

Soon, out of nowhere, a table and two chairs spawned right before Ace as his eyes widened.

'Is this the power of creation?'

He wondered as both the boy and Ace sat down.

The boy cracked his fingers before interlocking them and stretching his neck. Soon, every part of the boy's body had been stretched.

"Now, I'll get straight to the point. Have you heard of something called the 'Akashic Records'?"

Ace tilted his head ever so slightly before shaking it.

"The Akashic Records is a compendium of everything that has happened in the Universe, whether in the past or present. Basically, it's a book or records of omniscience up until the present timeline."

He paused for a bit as he let his words sink in. Having had his planet destroyed and family killed before his eyes, Ace didn't even bat an eye to the information presented to him. He simply gave a slight nod, much to the boy's amusement.

"Simply put, I am the Akashic Records, but in a human form. I know that some records on this planet may not mention it, but the Akashic Records is a sentient being, and that is me."

He paused again, waiting for Ace's reaction. This time, Ace let out a tiny gasp, fueling the boy's urge to continue.

"Now that the introductions are complete–"

"Wait, I haven't introduced myself yet."

"Do you think I care about some nobody on a tiny planet that I gave power to?"

Ace stayed silent this time, scrutinizing the boy. If what he said was true, then the system interface and the mana system was provided by this little boy. However, it also meant that the boy was immortal, considering that the Mana Incident happened 500 years ago.

Although he wanted to speak up, Ace stayed quiet once again.

"Now that the introductions are complete, I shall move onto the primary topic of this discussion. The bottomline is, you need to regress back to nine years ago."

Ace's eyes almost bulged out of his sockets as he tried to process the information uttered from the boy's tiny mouth.

'Does that mean I can go back to the past again? I can change things and make them right!'

"Shouldn't you know what happened already? I mean, considering it's nine years in the past we're talking about, you should know what happened to me even if it's in my future."

"Ah, so you accept the regression… Alright, then. And, no, I don't know what happened to you because there's only one cycle of time. Everyone in the entire cosmos will go nine years in the past. Some won't remember anything, but the beings who are expelled from the cycle of time will, such as the person who destroyed your planet, the Deity of Destruction."

The Deity of Destruction. Ace swore to torture that being until he begged to be forgiven, and even then, Ace wouldn't comply.

Also, he was fascinated by the concept of time described by the little boy with the beanie. Considering that Earthlings had been thinking about time travel all this time, beings higher than the time cycle can do this on a regular basis.

Wait, this also meant that Ace might forget everything. Also, the Deity of Destruction wouldn't forget everything since he was expelled from the cycle of time, which also meant that his plans to destroy Earth would progress faster.

"No, and yes. I'll make sure you don't forget anything, but I can't do anything about beings already expelled from the time cycle. Also, the reason I'm sending you to the past is to destroy the Deity of Destruction. Every time I do something for the good of the cosmos, that idiot destroys everything in his path, including my plans based on pure goodwill."

The boy, no, Akashic Records' tone was filled with annoyance and pure malice as he rambled on and on about the destruction of his plans and about his good intentions.

Soon, his rambling came to an abrupt halt as he stared at me.

"So, since you already have an idea of how the system I gave your planet works, I'll let you choose two skills from my enormous arsenal."

His lips curled into a slight smirk as he met Ace's eyes. Ace gave him a slight nod as a translucent blue screen appeared before my eyes.

Ace let out a gasp as he clutched his head using his hands. The amount of skills in front of him was both bizarre and utterly impossible.

"Can't you defeat that Deity of Destruction yourself if you have billions of skills piled up here… Wait, I see some EX Rank skills too!"

Akashic Records' just smiled brightly as he motioned for Ace to carry on.

The latter spent hours calculating his abilities and capabilities in his current life and thinking about what two skills would fit him best.

'I need something with low mana consumption along with a support skill. A manual skill and a skill purely based on keeping my body in check? Wait, maybe I could pick a skill that lets me control my emotions so that I don't make any mistakes while engaged in combat.'

Eventually, he concluded his train of thought as he selected two skills that met his criteria.

[Sword Saint - SS]

[Indifference - SS]

He decided to choose skills that consumed the lowest amount of mana along with a skill that he can train slowly and steadily along his progression along the ranks.

The best thing he got out of this encounter was the fact that he could regress now… It meant he would have the chance to save his family from the previously inevitable destruction that loomed upon them.

However, that threat could be resolved if I just get strong enough to face it.

"Trust me, the chances of you actually defeating him are smaller than an atom."

Akashic Records let out a small chuckle which earned him a look of disdain from Ace.

Finally readying himself and telling Akashic Records that he wanted to leave, Ace stood near a teleport crystal miraculously created by the former.

The teleporter crystal was carved in a unique manner which portrayed it as a poorly baked muffin. The crystal glowed in a deep shade of crimson as it illuminated an excessive amount of area around it.

Looking at the bright crystal, Ace brought his hands up to eyes to try to cover the bright light from permanently blinding him.

Akashic Records saw this and chuckled once more before making the light dimmer. He motioned for Ace to stand near it as he moved his fingers in odd patterns.

"You ready, Ace?"

"Wait, you knew my name?"

"Omniscience, remember? I know everything about you. Well, I can choose to not know since it's literally a record I can access at any time, but I can't have insufficient information on the person I'm making a deal with, can I?"

"Too much detail."

"Be quiet. Now, go!"

"It seems like a heavy weight has been lifted off my che–"

Before Ace could finish his sentence, a light more radiant than stars descended upon Earth as large pieces of rubble flew everywhere.

'I hope you can pull off the impossible, Ace Ambrosia. It was nice talking to you.'

Akashic Records smiled gently while tapping his fingers on his makeshift desk.

'I expect much from you.'

*

*

*

Ace's senses went blank as he floated around in a deep abyss. Ripples were caused due to the action committed by the Akashic Records.

Never had there been a case where a Deity chose to partially expel a mortal being from time to help them regress. Such a thing was only possible if a person like Akashic Records decided to do it, since his impulsive nature was known throughout the entire cosmos.

Even now, the reason that the boy sent Ace to the past was purely out of impulse even though he had all of the information he needed. Akashic Records could have calculated a possibility where he could choose to save a certain person who was compatible for the job, but his nature forced him to choose a random person, causing this phenomenon.

Many deities across the cosmos raised their eyebrows as they noticed the reversal of the time cycle. Some suspected it was the doing of the Deity of Time, while some knew it was the Akashic Records and his urge to destroy the Deity of Destruction.

As Ace floated throughout the abyss, he flew at tremendous speeds that would match those of Deities. Considering that the void was a vacuum, his body didn't burst since there was no air pressure present in the surrounding area.

Finally reaching a tiny portal in the middle of a vast expanse of nothingness, Ace's body flung inside the portal, causing the void behind him to shatter into more of nothingness.

The portal closed as Ace arrived in the past, nine years ago.

[September 6, 2543]

*

*

*

As Ace slowly opened his eyes, the sunlight bounced off of his eyes as he saw his previous room from when he was 14 years old.

As he looked around, he realized that he had truly returned to the past, and that the boy wasn't lying.

Ace clasped his hands together as he prayed. His gratefulness surpassed all bounds as he treated Akashic Records like a religious progenitor.

Tears welled up in his previously dry eyes as he covered his eyes using his hands. As humongous tears fell down his cheeks, the man, who was now a boy, sobbed lightly.

Getting himself together, Ace looked around the room as he scrutinized his surroundings.

What he saw was a table placed conveniently in the corner of the room, which he remembered to be his study desk.

On the side of his bed, he spotted a door which led to his bathroom, and on the left side of his bed, he spotted his drawer and everything else he owned.

Ace got up from his bed and hopped into the shower, cleaning every part of his body before turning to face the mirror to praise his breathtaking looks.

His black, wavy hair came down to his temples as he had a fade near his ears. His crimson eyes and decently long eyelashes complimented his hairstyle as they fit perfectly.

Along with his well toned body with a bit of muscle, he also boasted pointy ears that looked like something an elf would have.

Before he could enjoy narcissistic sight any more, a soft and gentle voice entered the room as Ace's ears perked up.

"Ace, are you up yet?"

Just hearing his mum's voice brought tears to his eyes as he replied immediately.'

"Yes, mum!"

He tried his best to hide his shaking voice, which caused his eyes to quiver uncontrollably. Eventually, he couldn't take it anymore as the boy started sobbing lightly once again.

Soon, Ace stepped out of his room as he quietly closed the door behind. It seemed that it wasn't necessary because as soon as he turned around, his eyes were bombarded by the three figures staring at him intently.

Amanda Ambrosia, Ace's mother.

Adam Ambrosia, Ace's father.

Alice Ambrosia, Ace's little sister.

His father soon turned his head towards the newspaper in his hands and started reading once again.

His mother beckoned for him to join them for breakfast, and his sister munched on her toast as crumbs fell on the table, her face, and her lap.

Ace scrutinized the three humans as he tried to make sure that it was really his parents.

His dad, a 43 year old man with a well-trimmed beard and extremely short black hair. He was a little overweight for his height, but he kept his calories on a low during this time period.

His mum, a 42 year old woman with blonde hair that came down to her shoulders. Her face was splotched with small freckles as they only complimented her overwhelming beauty. Her ears were just as pointy as Ace's.

His sister, a 12 year old girl with long black hair that came down to her elbows. Her face was also splotched with freckles, just like her mother, and her ears were pointy.

Ace's reverence for the Akashic Records increased even more as he realized that he had really come to the past.

He pinched his cheek for confirmation, and as expected, it hurt a lot.

"Ow!"

As Ace winced in pain, two stares were directed at him immediately. His mother and his sister beckoned for him to join them as they continued eating.

Ace smiled gently as he walked to the table calmly and sat down with a content expression.

Having had his planet destroyed a few hours ago, a nice breakfast was first on his to-do list.

"So, it's your first day at Academy 07… Are you excited?"

Amanda asked as she took a bite out of a boiled egg. Alice also turned her head to look at her brother, patiently waiting for his answer.

"Of course I am."

Amanda tilted her head and Alice's expression distorted upon hearing this response. They expected something more detailed, but Ace wasn't going to repeat the same mistake he made in his past life.

His goals were what kept him from interacting with his family in his past life. He barely met them once in two years, maybe even less.

Ace's response received an eyebrow raise from his father, Adam Ambrosia, as he looked at Ace in a new light. Just yesterday, Ace had been telling everyone about his sky-high ambitions about becoming the #1 Conscientious Ranker, but now…

Noticing their expressions, Ace couldn't help but smile on the inside. He swore to himself that in this life, Ace would be someone to look up to.

Soon, his breakfast was over. Since Ace still had to make preparations for school, he got up early and scurried back into his room.

He jumped on his comfy bed and layed down on his belly.

He got his phone out of his pocket and opened up the site named 'Conscientious Market'.

Since he had to go to school in a mere hour, he had to prepare everything he might need in order to excel.

He had recently thought of two such things…

[Ginseng of Heaven and Earth x1]

[Black Long-Sword x1]

The Ginseng of Heaven and Earth would help Ace break through to the F+ Rank, while the Black Long-Sword would help contain the powers of his new skill, [Sword Saint].

The only catch was, the two items each cost a tremendous amount, and could only be bought if he spent all of his saved money.

However, this meant that Ace would have to win the Dormitory War unless he wanted below-average living conditions while attending the Academy.

After thinking for a while, he decided to buy the items, considering they would also help him win the Dormitory War.

A smirk appeared on Ace's face as he started counting down in his head.

'3'

'2'

'1'

Ding!

'There we go!'

As the doorbell rang, Ace quickly got up and sprinted towards the door, hoping to reach it before anybody else did.

Unfortunately, he was met with defeat after he saw his father, Adam Ambrosia, grabbing the items carried by the black drone right outside their house.

Adam, perplexed by this, turned his head to look at Ace in confusion. The latter gulped as he slowly walked towards his father.

"Ace, what is this?"

"It's just some things that might help me at school."

"But, these are overly expensive…"

After a quick calculation, Adam's face was now filled with horror as he stared at his son.

Ace gulped once again, as he slowly took the items.

"You just spent all your money… How're you going to live at the Dormitory!?"

"Don't worry, dad. I'll win the Dormitory War."

Adam clicked his tongue as he shook his head in disapproval. For a second, he thought that his son was maturing, and that he wouldn't aim for such unrealistic goals, but alas…

Letting out a sad sigh, Ace lurked back to his room.

'I'm sorry, dad, but I need to bring my plan to fruition.'

Ace unwrapped the packaging and stared at the items with glittering eyes.

He took out the ginseng and observed its properties.

It looked like a regular ginseng that could be found everywhere, but there was one thing that made it different…

The tips were curved in an awkward position different to that of a regular ginseng.

The tips were laced with an enormous amount of mana which also helped build the foundation of a beginner as it strengthened the flesh too.

Of course, the only backlash was the unbearable pain caused to the consumer.

Ace slowly lifted the ginseng and placed it inside his mouth. He slowly chewed on it to try to relieve himself of a bit of pain, but of course, it was to no avail…

For the next twenty-five seconds, the entire house was filled with the screams of a fourteen year old boy starting his career.

His mother, father, and sister came running to check out what was happening, and only then did it click in Adam's mind…

'He absorbed the Heaven and Earth Ginseng…'

Previously, Adam hadn't noticed what was inside the packaging considering it wasn't his, and he didn't want to pry into his son's doings, but now…

Adam gulped at the thought of the excruciating pain that his son was feeling. Only he and a few others truly knew the pain one would feel after consuming the ginseng, considering it was him and his team that actually found the item.

Due to this, his father abandoned his previous thoughts of his son being immature, because if he was, he wouldn't dare to consume such a thing.

Of course, Adam couldn't imagine a situation where Ace didn't know of this consequence, therefore he concluded that his son was now truly determined.

He explained the situation to Amanda and Alice, alleviating their worries a little bit

Soon, the phenomenon ended, and Ace's body was drenched in cold sweat. The sheer thought of doing that again brought tears to Ace's eyes.

After explaining the situation to his family, Ace felt power surging from inside him.

He quickly opened up his system interface, the power supposedly given to him and all the Earthlings by the Akashic Records.

Soon, a translucent blue screen appeared before his eyes.

[Name - Ace Ambrosia]

[Age - 14 (23)]

[Species - Human]

[Biological Sex - Male]

[Rank - F+]

[Stats]

[Strength - F+]

[Agility - F+]

[Stamina - F+]

[Mana - E-]

[Dexterity - B+]

[Skills - ]

[Sword Saint - SS]

[Indifference - SS]

Staring at the blue screen, Ace couldn't help but gasp at his amazingly high stats. Not only was his mana at E- rank, which was totally unheard of at a lower overall rank, his dexterity was B+.

He suspected his dexterity would be high because of his previous life, but the others were purely dependent on his overall rank.

He shrugged after remembering he couldn't use his mana because he didn't have any skills to coordinate it with.

A sudden sense of regret filled his mind when he remembered he could have gotten a skill that specialized in mana to help, considering his abnormally high mana stat.

He took a deep breath, and began packing his stuff.

Soon, he was at the front door hugging his family while saying his goodbyes.

His father smiled, his mother scrunched her eyebrows, while his sister pouted.

Ace let out a faint smile as he left his home for the second time in his two lives.

As he looked at the radiant sun off in the distance, he promised himself…

'I will save my family this time.'