Chapter 1

Prologue

The day the Gate of the Abyss opened.

The era of humans would come to an end.

A part of the prophecy passed down since ancient times.

However, few truly believed it. After all, for thousands of years, humanity had never faced a crisis of extinction.

But the prophecy was real.

On a night when the moon was unusually red.

The Gate of the Abyss opened.

And monsters poured out.

The Lord of the Immortals, the Howling Eyeball, the Frost Dragon, the Phantom Knights, the Giant King, the Swamp Ruler, and more.

Monsters that only existed in legends swept across the world, and the glory and civilization built by humanity crumbled into nothingness.

But humanity did not give up.

They desperately fought against the monsters to survive. And around this time, those called heroes or warriors began to appear.

Seven warriors who had passed through trials.

Among them was the Great Warrior ‘Ulan.’

The Clan Leader of the Barbarians, Ulan Bator.

A man with strength rivaling that of giants and the strongest force leading the vanguard of the hero party.

As if to prove this, Ulan stepped forward, boasting fearsome combat prowess, as if defeat was not an option on the path he walked.

But in the cave of the giants.

His advance came to a halt.

“Huff! Huff!”

Bright red blood dripped down his chin.

Dozens of arrows were embedded in his body.

Even arrows from the Giant Tribe. By human standards, they were almost like spears.

And that wasn’t all.

His abdomen was pierced, his organs turned to mush. His face was burned, and his left arm, poisoned by venom, had turned pitch black.

A state where death would not be surprising.

“Huff! Hoo!”

Breathing heavily.

Ulan recalled his past memories.

One of the Rulers of the Abyss.

Right after falling into the Giant King’s trap.

Three of his comrades were seriously injured.

To make matters worse, the Saintess, the only healer in the hero party, was also poisoned by venom.

The crisis of annihilation was right before their eyes.

But they could not die yet.

The heroes were humanity’s last hope.

So Ulan volunteered to stay behind.

To buy time for his comrades to retreat and to reduce the number of enemies, even by one.

And his mission was successfully completed.

The scene around him was proof.

Corpses, corpses, corpses!

The bodies of giants were piled up like mountains.

The blood flowing from the mountain formed a river, and beyond it, a monster several times larger than the other giants was dying.

The Giant King, Rargtan.

The king who fought Ulan to the end.

He, too, was nearing death.

「It was a splendid fight.」

Then, he suddenly spoke.

With a voice filled with admiration.

「Warrior. I ask for your name.」

There were many names to call him.

The Great Warrior of the Prairie.

Giant Slayer.

The Red-Eyed Barbarian Hero.

The Great Clan Leader, and more.

But all his achievements and glory were meaningless before death. So he calmly revealed his real name.

“······Ulan.”

After a short answer.

He spoke in a faint voice.

「Ulan, Ulan. I will remember.」

After muttering Ulan’s name several times.

Rargtan smiled with satisfaction.

「Let us meet and fight again in the Abyss, Ulan. At the bottom of the abyss, I will wait for you······.」

As his voice faded away.

His body turned to ashes. A unique end reserved only for the monsters of the Abyss.

After the death of the Giant King Rargtan.

Ulan also sensed it.

That his life, too, was nearing its end.

“Hoo.”

His vision blurred.

His faint breath scattered like broken pieces.

Then, the records of his life over the decades flashed through his mind like a kaleidoscope.

Born as a warrior of the prairie, challenging legends to become a hero, embracing the most beautiful woman of his tribe, and fighting for humanity.

In this flood of memories.

There were also moments of regret and longing.

Not reaching the realm beyond mastery.

Not being able to prevent his brother’s death.

Not being able to take full responsibility for his tribe, and more.

There were various regrets and longings, but the greatest of them all was meeting his end here.

‘······I lacked strength.’

If only I had been stronger.

If my body had been tougher.

If I had a stronger axe than the one that broke while fighting Rargtan, maybe I wouldn’t have died like this.

The endless chain of regrets.

At the end of his regrets, what Ulan realized was a longing. A longing for a new life and opportunity that would never come again.

‘If I could live again······.’

I would not repeat my regrets.

I would train my blessed body to its limits, and based on my seasoned experience and knowledge, challenge the realm beyond the Great Warrior.

I would obtain a weapon far stronger than now. I would stop the Lords of the Abyss and keep the promise to return safely with my comrades.

Ulan silently vowed.

Just as his consciousness was about to fade.

Suddenly, an anomaly occurred.

Flash!

A sudden burst of pure white light erupted from the shabby necklace around his neck. Ulan tilted his blurry eyes to look at it.

‘······The Token of the Hero.’

About 30 years ago.

When he was still a warrior of the prairie.

He had challenged the tribe’s legendary ‘Trial of the Hero’ and received this token as a reward. But why was it glowing now?

As his mind filled with questions.

Whoosh!

The light exploded, enveloping the cave.

And just then.

Ulan’s consciousness was cut off.

Chapter 1. Opportunity