The Rebirth of Humanity

Many hours had passed since the restoration process began.

And yet...

The flow of cosmic energy had not stopped for even a single moment.

Deep within the Sovereign Palace, Fafnir remained seated upon the ancient black throne.

He did not move.

He did not speak.

He merely closed his eyes and allowed the cosmic energy to continuously flow into his body.

Outside the hall...

New batches of treasures continued to arrive one after another.

Enormous ships descended into the palace grounds.

Crates were carried inside.

Rare cosmic treasures.

Herbs that had existed for thousands of years.

Materials that could only be found in the most dangerous regions of Gandalia.

Even ancient weapons bearing the traces of distant eras were being sent to the palace.

All of them...

Were being transformed into pure cosmic energy.

And all of that energy...

Was entering Fafnir's body.

At first, the changes were not significant.

But as time passed...

The differences began to appear clearly.

His dry white hair, which had been falling like strands of the dead, gradually began turning black.

It was no longer a dull black.

It was a deep, dense black, resembling the darkness of space where no light could reach.

His skin also began to regain its vitality.

It was no longer stretched tightly over the bones of his face.

His features began to recover traces of their former appearance.

As for his body...

His emaciated muscles slowly began to regain their density.

The bones that had once protruded beneath his skin gradually disappeared.

And the vessels that had withered long ago began carrying energy once more.

The process was incredibly slow.

But...

It was happening.

Suddenly...

The system's light appeared before Fafnir.

[Restoration process continuing.]

[Available cosmic energy: Sufficient.]

[Restoration of physical damage ongoing.]

Fafnir remained silent.

But moments later...

Another notification appeared.

[Body Restoration: 5%.]

Then...

7%.

Then...

10%.

Then...

12%.

After a long period of absorbing cosmic energy...

One final notification appeared.

[Body Restoration: 15%.]

Fafnir opened his eyes.

For the first time since the restoration process had begun...

Something changed within his gaze.

Those weary eyes, belonging to a body that had endured five thousand years beneath the burden of its injuries, were no longer the same.

Something else had appeared within them.

Power.

He slowly raised his hand.

He examined his fingers.

The bones were no longer as visible as before.

His skin had regained its color.

And the hand that had once resembled the hand of an ancient corpse...

Was beginning to resemble the hand of a living human once more.

He moved his fingers.

Then slowly clenched his fist.

The instant he did...

Rumble...!

The air around him trembled.

The sound was faint.

Extremely faint.

Yet the ancient stone floor beneath his feet cracked slightly.

Fafnir stopped.

He stared at his clenched fist.

Then laughed softly.

"So..."

He spoke in a low voice.

"The power is beginning to return."

But the system appeared once more.

[Change in the condition of the body detected.]

[The host can now withstand a greater quantity of cosmic energy.]

[Partial restoration of previous power is now possible.]

Fafnir fell silent.

Then asked:

"How much can I recover?"

[The current percentage is limited.]

[The body remains in a damaged state.]

[Complete restoration of power is currently impossible.]

His expression did not change.

He already knew that.

This body had recovered only fifteen percent.

It was impossible for it to regain its former strength so quickly.

But...

Fifteen percent was enough to prove one thing.

The path existed.

The absorption process continued.

But this time...

Something different happened.

When the cosmic energy reached the depths of his body...

It suddenly stopped.

Then...

BOOM!

A strange force erupted from within his body.

Fafnir's eyes snapped open.

It was not cosmic energy.

It was something entirely different.

Cold.

Dark.

Strange.

It emerged from the depths of the ancient injury and spread throughout his body like something alive awakening from a long slumber.

His pupils contracted.

And in the next instant...

An immense wave of pain swept through his entire body.

A tremendous pain.

A pain far greater than anything he had experienced since the restoration began.

Fafnir gripped the arm of the throne.

Crack...!

A piece of stone shattered beneath his fingers.

But Fafnir did not scream.

He did not retreat.

He simply remained silent.

The strange force was resisting the cosmic energy.

And the cosmic energy was attempting to penetrate it.

It was as though two completely different forces were waging a battle within his body.

The system appeared.

[Warning.]

[The strange force within the body is reacting to the cosmic energy.]

[Danger level: High.]

Fafnir remained silent.

Then said:

"Continue."

[Are you certain?]

He answered without hesitation:

"Continue."

[Command confirmed.]

[Restoration process continuing.]

In the next instant...

The cosmic energy surged with even greater force.

It swept through his body.

Pierced through his tissues.

Reached the location of the injury.

And the strange force resisted it violently.

Fafnir's body trembled.

But this time...

He did not stop.

No matter how great the pain.

No matter how fierce the resistance.

He would not retreat.

He had waited for five thousand years.

And he would not allow something left behind by that ancient attack to stop him now.

A long period passed.

Then...

Everything became calm.

The strange force disappeared from the surface.

And the cosmic energy resumed its normal flow.

Fafnir was still seated upon the throne.

His breathing had become steadier.

He raised his hand once more.

This time...

He felt something different.

Warmth.

Vitality.

Power.

Things this body had not felt for an immeasurably long time.

Then...

Something else happened.

Rumble...

The hall trembled.

Fafnir raised his head.

A very faint pressure emanated from his body.

So weak that it could not even be compared to his former power.

But...

It existed.

The pressure spread throughout the hall.

The ancient pillars trembled.

The crimson flames flared for a moment.

Even the shadows upon the walls seemed to recoil.

Then the pressure vanished.

As though nothing had happened.

No one outside the hall was capable of sensing what had occurred.

The pressure had not even reached beyond the palace.

But Fafnir felt it.

He felt the return of something that had been absent for an immeasurably long time.

Power.

He looked at his hand.

Then slowly clenched it.

"Five thousand years..."

His voice was calm.

Yet it carried an emotion that words could not describe.

Then he raised his eyes toward the system screen.

"At last..."

He paused for a moment.

A faint smile appeared on his face.

"I have begun to recover what I need."

At that moment...

The final system notification appeared.

[Partial restoration of the body complete.]

[Partial restoration of power complete.]

[The host can now utilize a limited portion of his former power.]

Fafnir continued staring at the words.

Then he closed his eyes.

This was...

Only the beginning.

Fifteen percent.

That was all.

Yet the path that had remained sealed before him for five thousand years...

Had finally begun to open.

And deep within his body...

The strange force was still there.

Silent.

Hidden.

Waiting.

As for Fafnir...

He had truly begun to return.

Slowly.

Step by step.

But this time...

He would not stop.

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