Mash Burnedead has watched his friends die more times than he can count. Finn, betrayed. Lance, broken. Dot, gone. And Lemon—he can't even finish the thought.
The world isn't rewinding time. It's rewriting cause and effect itself, dragging everything toward despair again and again. Every morning, Mash wakes in the Noir Forest with his adoptive father Regro, bakes cream puffs, and walks the same road to Granverdo Magic Academy. Every morning, he straps on a fake birthmark to hide the truth: he's
Mashle Rewrite: Smashing Fate with Muscle - Resurgence Before Dawn — Muscle and Bonds Shatter Despair
Before dawn. The sky was still dark, like spilled ink.
Mash Burnedead stood alone in the shadow of the academy building. His black mushroom-cut hair hung heavy, soaking up the damp night air. His deep brown eyes were half-open, fixed on a single point on the ground.
Something deep in his chest stayed cold.
Rain had fallen. Finn's brother. Under that red light, covered in blood.
He'd survived. But he hadn't woken up.
Domina's words echoed in the back of his ears.
"*The more you try to protect your friends, the more of them die.*"
Mash let out a slow breath. It clouded white, then vanished.
(She said protect. But I couldn't.)
He clenched his fist. His knuckles cracked.
Then, out of nowhere, a sweet taste spread across his tongue.
Grandpa's cream puffs.
Knead the flour, mix the eggs, pour in the milk, add the sugar. Bake it in the oven. That moment when it puffs up soft and light. Stuffed full of custard cream — Grandpa's handmade cream puffs.
The one warm memory Mash had in this world.
"...I want one."
He'd said it out loud. No one was there.
His only family was Grandpa.
That's what he'd always said. What he'd always believed.
But now.
Finn was here. Lance was here. Dot was here. Lemon was here.
Those four faces surfaced in his mind.
Finn's face, crying but swearing to fight for his brother too.
Lance's expressionless mask, cracking only when he thought of his sister.
Dot's stupidly straight-ahead shout.
Lemon's big red eyes, looking right at him.
(I have friends.)
Something deep in his chest stirred. Just a little.
The cold place began, slowly, to warm.
"Mash."
A voice.
He turned. Finn Ames stood there. Black hair, blond on the left side only. Freckles. A straight mark under his right eye. Nervous — but not now. His expression was different.
His eyes were red. He'd been crying.
"...You haven't slept?"
"Can't. I can't get my brother out of my head."
Finn stood beside Mash. His shoulders trembled, just slightly.
The night wind blew. From the direction of the Noir Forest, leaves rustled.
"I've been crying this whole time. By my brother's bed. ...And then I thought—"
Finn lifted his face.
Tears still clung to his cheeks.
"What my brother tried to protect. I'll protect it. I'll fight for him too. I will defeat Innocent Zero."
His voice shook.
But his eyes were straight ahead.
Mash looked into Finn's eyes.
(This guy is strong.)
In the last loop, Finn had been torn apart by the rift with his brother. He couldn't find the strength to fight. But not now.
"Yeah."
Mash gave a short nod.
"We fight together."
Tears spilled from Finn's eyes again.
"...Thank you, Mash."
Finn wiped his tears on his sleeve.
Mash looked up at the sky.
Through a gap in the clouds, a few stars showed.
(I was powerless.)
(Domina stopped time. I couldn't move a finger.)
(But next time.)
(Next time, I won't fail.)
"Finn."
"W-what?"
"Gather everyone."
"...Huh?"
"Lance, Dot, Lemon. All of them. I have something to say."
Mash clapped Finn on the shoulder.
"I'll figure it out with muscle."
Finn smiled, just a little.
"...You really are that kind of guy."
The two of them set off through the pre-dawn academy.
First floor of the West Dorm. The common room.
The fireplace flickered, flames swaying.
Four of them sat on worn sofas and chairs.
Mash, Finn, Dot, Lemon.
Only Lance stood, leaning against the wall. Pale silver-blue hair. Blue eyes. A pendant with his sister's photo around his neck. The usual blank expression. But something lurked behind those blue eyes.
"Oi, Mash! Calling me out at this hour — what the hell do you want! Do you know how much sleep the protagonist of this world needs!?"
The boy with spiky red hair and a bandana barked.
"We need to talk."
Mash spoke quietly.
"Rain is down. Innocent Zero is on the move."
"...Yes. I heard about it too. Finn's brother, in such terrible shape."
Blond hair in a shoulder-length cut, a red ribbon. Her big red eyes wavered with worry. Lemon clutched the notebook in her hands tight.
"But that's not all."
Mash looked at Lance.
"Lance. Tell them about your sister."
Lance's brow twitched.
"...Why should I?"
"Anna's illness. An incurable disease that drains her magic. The reason you're aiming to become a Divine Visionary. Am I wrong?"
Silence.
A log in the fireplace popped.
Lance glared at Mash for a while.
"...Where did you hear that?"
"I know. That's all."
Mash said nothing more.
Lance let out a deep breath.
"...I see. Secrets are wasted on you."
Lance touched the pendant.
He gently opened the silver lid.
Inside was a photo of a little girl.
"Anna Crown. My little sister. The disease is called magic depletion. The magic inside her body is fading, bit by bit. Healing magic doesn't work. Medicine doesn't work. At this rate, Anna will—"
Lance's voice trembled, just slightly.
"In this world, those who can't use magic are culled. Branded as Blank Marks, cast to the bottom of society. Anna is only seven. She took the magic-mark test. Her mark density gets thinner every year. At this rate, she'll be marked for disposal."
"That's horrible...!"
Lemon covered her mouth.
"That's why I'll become a Divine Visionary. As a Divine Visionary, I can rise to the noble class. Get into the heart of the Bureau of Magic. Change the system. Build a world where children like Anna aren't culled anymore."
Lance's voice grew stronger.
"This is my fight. It has nothing to do with any of you."
"It does."
Mash answered instantly.
"Innocent Zero is after Anna."
The air froze.
Lance's blue eyes narrowed sharply.
"...What did you say?"
"The sixth heart. They're collecting the hearts of six blood relatives to gain immortality. After Rain, the next target is Anna."
"Don't screw with me! Anna is just a child! I'll never hand her heart to them!"
Lance punched the wall.
A heavy thud.
"So we protect her. All of us."
Mash looked straight at Lance.
"This isn't revenge for Rain. We're going into Innocent Zero's base to protect Anna."
"Their base...!? Are you insane!? Delisaster and Epidem are there!"
Finn shot to his feet.
"I'm sane. We go. To protect Anna, we have to move first."
"Whoa whoa whoa, hold on! Now this is getting interesting! The protagonist of this world is gonna storm Innocent Zero's base! Perfect scenario!"
Dot clenched his fist and stood.
"Dot. Can you control your self-restraint power?"
"Yeah! I'll show you! I finally figured out how to focus the surge of emotion into one point instead of blowing up! Now I can fight without dragging my friends into it!"
Dot opened his right hand.
A tiny explosion popped on his palm.
Sparks scattered.
"Amazing...! Dot, you're completely different from back then!"
"Right!? I'm a guy who can do it when he tries!"
"...Mash. You're really going to fight to protect Anna?"
Lance looked at Mash.
"Yeah. Your sister is my friend's sister. I'll protect her."
Mash's voice was flat.
But the words carried real weight.
Lance was silent for a while.
"...Ridiculous."
Lance muttered.
"But that idiot honesty of yours has saved me more times than I can count. ...Fine. I'm in."
Lance held out his hand to Mash.
Mash took it.
"Yeah."
"Alright! Let's crush Innocent Zero, all four of us!"
"W-wait a moment! I'm coming too! I'm coming with you!"
Lemon scrambled to her feet.
"Lemon, stay at the academy."
"What...!? Why!? I want to help you too, Mash!"
Lemon's big red eyes began to well with tears.
"I need you to guard Anna. Stay at the academy and protect her. Your binding magic is suited for defense."
"But...!"
"Please."
Mash looked straight into Lemon's eyes.
Lemon saw the seriousness in them and swallowed her words.
"...Understood. If you put it that way, Mash. I'll protect Anna. I won't let anyone lay a finger on her."
Lemon hugged her notebook to her chest and nodded firmly.
"Here's the plan. Beneath the academy, there's a passage leading to Innocent Zero's base. From what I know, there should be a hidden door under the old storehouse, on the west side of the underground tunnel."
Mash spread a map on the table.
"You even know that...?"
"Yeah."
Mash traced the underground route with his finger, relying on memories from the last loop.
The four of them headed into the academy's underground, in the darkness before dawn.
The entrance to the underground was an old stone staircase behind the main building.
Normally, a No Entry sign hung there.
Mash took the sign off.
"Watch your step."
The four descended the narrow stairs.
Cool, musty air.
Torches on the walls flickered.
The stone walls were damp, cold to the touch.
"...This is creepy."
Finn muttered.
"So this is the academy's underground. First time down here."
Lance stared at the torch flames with his blue eyes.
"The old storehouse is ahead, then left at the dead end."
Mash walked in front.
Gripping his iron staff tight.
After a while, an old wooden door stood at the dead end.
"Here."
Mash pushed the door.
It creaked open.
Inside was a dark storehouse.
Old desks and chairs, broken magic tools — all stacked and covered in dust.
"The hidden door is under the floor."
Mash tapped part of the floor with his iron staff.
Thunk, thunk.
"Around here. The sound's different."
Mash tried to pry up the floorboard.
Then.
"Wait, Mash. ...Something's wrong."
Lance stopped Mash's hand.
"What?"
"The structure of this storehouse is strange. The walls are off. I can sense the airflow with gravity magic... this doesn't match the original design."
Lance put his hand on the wall.
"What do you mean?"
"The academy's structure has shifted, subtly. ...Mash, the passage you know is probably sealed."
Mash pulled up the floorboard.
Below was a dark hole.
But.
"...It's blocked."
Beyond the hole was a massive boulder, completely sealing it.
"Damn it! What the hell!?"
"The enemy got ahead of us. The structure's different from the last loop."
Mash clenched his fist.
(Memories of the future don't work.)
(The enemy is reading my moves.)
"...We find another route. Lance, use your analysis to search for spatial distortions or hidden rooms around this storehouse."
"Leave it to me."
Lance spread both hands.
Gravity magic.
The air warped, faintly.
"...There's a hollow beyond the east wall. Narrow, but wide enough for a person to pass."
"Finn, can you use position-shift magic to check if anyone's beyond that wall?"
"I'll try. ...Not Secondth — just an application of position shift, sensing the space. Yeah, it's fine. No living presence beyond the wall."
Finn put his hand on the wall and concentrated.
"Good. We break the wall. Dot, blow a hole in it with an explosion. But controlled. Small."
"Leave it to me! I'll show you my new power!"
Dot stood in front of the wall.
Deep breath.
Right hand on the wall.
"...Focus. Emotions into one point. Control the explosion."
A cross-shaped mark surfaced on Dot's forehead.
But it didn't run wild like before.
Tiny explosions went off in succession beneath his palm.
Pop, pop, pop.
Fine cracks spread across the wall.
"Now!"
Dot pulled his hand back.
The wall crumbled, soundlessly.
Beyond it, a narrow passage.
"Amazing...! Dot, you really can control it!"
"Of course! Don't underestimate the protagonist of this world!"
The four passed through the hole and into the new passage.
The passage was old stonework.
Water dripped from the ceiling here and there.
"No telling what's ahead. Stay sharp."
Mash readied his iron staff.
After a while, the passage opened into a wide space.
An underground cavern.
The ceiling was high. Pale blue glowing moss grew on the walls.
And then.
"W-what the hell is this...!?"
Finn stopped in his tracks.
The ground was shaking.
No — the shadows on the ground were writhing.
"Shadow Eaters...!"
Lance shouted.
Black beasts emerged from the shadows, one after another.
Body length: five feet. Monsters that lurk in shadows. Danger level C. Weakness: light.
One, two, three...
More than ten in
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