- - -

Name: Lionel Silvestre Exelio

Age: 14

Mana: E

Swordsmanship: B (S+)

Archery: D+ (S+)

Horseback Riding: C- (S+)

Hunting: D (S+)

- - -

"System, how many skill points do I have?"

[Current Available Skill Points: 2]

Lionel glanced at his stats after that. It had been so long since he last updated it. However, after remembering his talk with the system, he immediately knew where to use the first one.

"I’ll use my first one on my Mana." He muttered.

[Ding!]

[Congratulations, Host. Your Mana has increased.]

[Mana: E → E+]

The moment the notification appeared, Lionel immediately felt a strange warmth spread throughout his body.

"Ohhh, that was a good feeling." Lionel slowly flexed his fingers.

[Ding!]

A new notification suddenly appeared before him.

[Requirement fulfilled.]

[The Host has now unlocked the truth behind the Stopwatch.]

"I have been waiting for that," Lionel’s eyes narrowed instantly.

His gaze immediately glanced toward the small golden stopwatch resting on his desk nearby. It was the reward he had received weeks ago from the system.

Up until now, Lionel still had no idea what it actually did. No matter how much he inspected it before, it always looked like an ordinary stopwatch.

Lionel quickly stood up and grabbed it from the desk. Then suddenly, with his touch, the stopwatch glowed.

"What the..." Lionel’s eyes widened slightly.

*Tick

*Tick

*Tick

Suddenly, the stopwatch made a sound.

[Ding!]

[The Host has also gained a unique power.]

[Unique Ability Unlocked: <Time Reversal>]

"Time Reversal?"

Lionel froze at the words.

[The <Time Reversal> ability allows the Host to reverse time within a limited range.]

[When enough mana is accumulated, the Host may turn back time to a previous point.]

"Wait... reverse time?" Lionel’s eyes widened. "You mean..."

[Yes, Host.]

For the first time in a while, Lionel genuinely looked stunned. Turn back time? That kind of ability should not even exist.

[However, this ability has severe limitations.]

Lionel quickly focused on the next lines.

[At the Host’s current mana level, you may only reverse time for 15 seconds.]

"So... I can actually rewind time," Lionel murmured under his breath. His gaze glanced at the screen of the stopwatch and remembered that when he pressed its side, it counted to exactly 15 seconds.

"This is insane." He stared at the stopwatch in his hand.

Even if it was only fifteen seconds...

Do you know how absurd that still was?

In battle alone, fifteen seconds could completely change everything. May it be a fatal attack, a wrong decision, or a sudden death, all of those could potentially be avoided.

[Warning.]

[Overuse of the <Time Reversal> ability may result in severe physical and mental strain.]

[The System advises the Host to improve mana control and upgrade mana before repeated usage.]

Lionel remained silent for a moment after reading the warning.

Then suddenly...

"Hahahahahaha!" He laughed out loud, not because it was funny, but because even he could not fully believe this was real.

A power that could reverse time?

Even in his previous life, he had never once heard of something so absurd.

Lionel looked back at the stopwatch in his hand, and his heart continued racing from excitement.

"This is completely broken," he muttered under his breath. Then another thought suddenly hit him.

"Wait." Lionel immediately raised a brow. "How do I even use this thing?"

[Ding!]

[The Host only needs to press the button located on the side of the stopwatch.]

Lionel immediately looked toward the tiny golden button attached near the side.

"That’s it?"

[Yes, Host.]

Lionel quickly nodded at it. In the end, curiosity won over him.

Without wasting another second, Lionel quickly rushed out of his room while holding the stopwatch tightly in his hand. The hallway outside was empty since most of the servants were already busy elsewhere in the estate.

Good. Lionel immediately started running fast. His footsteps echoed throughout the corridor as he sprinted through the estate grounds.

The cold wind brushed against his face.

"This feels ridiculous," he laughed under his breath while running. He felt so free all of a sudden.

Then, Lionel pressed the button.

*Click.

The moment he did, the world froze around him.

"...!" Lionel’s eyes widened.

Everything around him suddenly became colorless for a split second.

*Tick.

*Tick.

The stopwatch in his hand started moving backward.

Lionel suddenly felt a strange pulling sensation throughout his entire body. Before he could even react, the scenery around him rapidly reversed.

Lionel watched in disbelief as his body itself started retracing its previous movements.

"What the hell—"

In less than a second, everything snapped back.

"...!" Lionel stumbled slightly. His eyes widened when he realized where he was standing now. He was back right at the entrance of his room, the exact place where he was 15 seconds earlier.

"No way."

Lionel quickly looked around. Everything had truly reversed.

"It actually worked..."

His gaze immediately dropped toward the stopwatch.

The hand on it stopped at zero before slowly resetting itself.

However, just as the system had warned him earlier, Lionel felt the effects afterward.

"Ugh..." He grabbed the nearby wall. A wave of dizziness struck him lightly. It felt as if part of his energy had suddenly been drained.

"So this is the strain..." Even with the dizziness, Lionel’s eyes remained bright. He slowly looked back at the stopwatch in his hand.

Then, a grin slowly spread across his face. For a moment, he completely ignored what he was feeling.

"This is completely insane." Lionel stared at the golden stopwatch in his hand with undisguised excitement.

Even now, his heart was still racing from what had just happened.

"But I still feel incredibly tired after 1 use," he muttered quietly.

Lionel pressed his lips together.

"That means there’s only one solution." His eyes sharpened.

"I need more mana." The moment those words left his mouth, Lionel immediately opened his status screen again.

[Current Available Skill Points: 1]

Lionel did not hesitate anymore.

"I’ll use the last one too."

[Ding!]

[Are you sure you want to allocate 1 Skill Point to Mana?]

"Yes."

[Ding!]

[Congratulations, Host.]

[Mana has increased.]

[Mana: E+ → D-]