Gilded Ashes: When Shadows Reign - Chapter 223: What Was Taken

...[Inside an underground basement]“You are going to die for nothing, hahahaha,” the old man's voice thundered through the room, sending chills down my spine.Step.With a swift and ruthless motion, he lunged forward, his sword slicing through the air and slashing my throat, crimson droplets staining the darkness.“We'll see,” I whispered defiantly, my final words escaping as a mere breath against the impending darkness.Slowly, inexorably, my consciousness slipped away, and I descended into a deep, unfathomable slumber.“Huh!?” My eyes fluttered open, and I found myself seated in a bustling tavern, the air thick with laughter and the clinking of glasses.In front of me stood a captivating lady, her beauty juxtaposed with an angry furrow upon her brow, threatening to shatter the harmony of the jovial scene.“Don't follow me around!” Her words pierced the air like shards of ice, the intensity of her emotions palpable as she cast a resentful glare in my direction, before swiftly departing from the tavern....Am I trapped within the confines of a game? The fragments of my shattered common sense scattered before me, leaving me to question the very fabric of my reality.

Kenichi Yamada was a 35-year-old salaryman. As a hardcore game enthusiast, he was saddened by the modern trend towards casual games.So, when a site claimed to be “for people who like to do things the hard way,” he just couldn’t resist. Thus, he was reincarnated into another world as Allen, playing on Hell Mode.This is fantasy light novel about Allen’s journey as a summoner.Reincarnated as a serf, he starts from nothing.His journey begins with absolutely no knowledge of the world around him, just like those games he played 10, 20 years ago.

What the hell? That menace who bullied me since I was six years old, actually became a pretty girl after three years of living apart? And she even ran to our agreed duel location to confess to me, hoping that I can become her boyfriend?!

This is a plot against me! There’s definitely an enormous conspiracy behind this! I won’t be fooled by you! Even if you tear up and act all pitiful, I will still disregard you and humiliate you, until you’ve have completely paid back all my childhood grievances!

What’cha lookin’at? There are very reasonable grounds for bullying a girl!

- Description from Novelupdates

In the year 54 of the Konoha Calendar, two super geniuses appeared in the Konoha. One is named Uchiha Itachi, and the other is named Akihara Kagura. One is a tool of the village, willing to sacrifice everything for Konoha, except for his brother Uchiha Sasuke; the other claims to be a tool of the village, also willing to sacrifice everything for Konoha, including Uchiha Itachi's brother, Uchiha Sasuke.