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“……”

Isabel was speechless.

She couldn’t offer any response to Merlin, who stared at her silently.

“Am I not a victim?”

Those words stirred something hot in Isabel’s chest.

She wasn’t even sure what she was feeling.

Having confirmed all the truths, she thought there was nothing left that could surprise her.

But Merlin’s past surpassed all her expectations.

A world repeating itself for the completion of the story.

Merlin had endured that terrible hell alone.

With all her memories intact.

For an eternity.

“Isabel Yustia.”

Her heart trembled.

Her mouth went dry from the overwhelming confusion.

Isabel clenched her fists tightly to hold onto her reason.

Then, after a moment, Merlin grabbed Isabel’s shoulder.

“You said my method was wrong?”

Merlin’s eyes burned intensely.

She was already a warrior who had walked the path of hell.

“Because it’s someone else’s problem, because it’s not your concern, because you don’t remember your past lives.”

Each word was laced with fierce resentment.

“That’s why you can have such an attitude. Am I wrong?”

“……”

“If you were me, would you have made a different choice?”

Isabel was at a loss for words and stared blankly at Merlin’s face.

She couldn’t bear the weight of the truth in Merlin’s empty question.

If she were Merlin.

If she repeated endless cycles with all her memories intact.

Would she…

Make a different choice…?

‘…Could I?’

She couldn’t be sure.

The pain Merlin endured couldn’t be overcome by simply toughening one’s mind.

For a moment, a faint sense of sympathy arose.

But Isabel quickly shook her head.

‘No.’

She couldn’t be swayed by empty words.

No, even if those words were sincere, the conclusion remained the same.

Merlin’s circumstances were irrelevant.

What mattered to her was Kyle’s safety.

There was no choice.

As Merlin had just said.

The pain she experienced was not her concern.

She was an outsider.

“Hah.”

Had Merlin read her resolve?

She let out a bitter laugh.

“So, you’re saying it’s because you’re an outsider…”

Merlin looked at Isabel with pity.

And muttered as if to herself.

“You’re completely mistaken, you know?”

“Mistaken?”

“Yes, you’re no longer an outsider.”

No longer an outsider?

What on earth does that mean…

“On that distant day when you poisoned Kyle and were writhing in guilt.”

Merlin slowly raised her finger to point at the air.

“You must have seen them. Those strange, translucent letters floating in the air.”

Strange, translucent letters.

She remembered them vividly.

There’s no way she could forget.

They had granted her the miracle of returning to the past at the cost of losing something precious.

But.

How did Merlin know about them?

“Curious? How I know?”

She was curious.

So she nodded.

“Because I saw them too.”

“Saw them? What exactly…”

“Hm? You should know, shouldn’t you?”

With that, Isabel realized.

— You may lose what is most precious to you.

— Do you wish to start over from the beginning?

The identity of the letters Merlin had seen.

“No way.”

Merlin let out a sly smile.

And asked back.

“So, did you really think that the precious thing you lost was Kyle’s affection for you?”

The air froze sharply.

Merlin’s green eyes gleamed menacingly as she approached.

“That’s impossible.”

It was incomprehensible.

Then what was the precious thing she lost…

“Think about it. Isn’t something strange? Putting aside the fact that you returned to the past, how is it that you retained all your past memories?”

It was strange.

She didn’t know what was strange, but something definitely was.

What could it be?

No matter how much she thought, she couldn’t grasp it.

Perhaps feeling sorry for her, Merlin clicked her tongue and continued explaining.

“It’s started for you too.”

Started?

“The cycle.”

She paused.

That alone made the words to follow terrifying.

“A life repeated endlessly, with all memories intact.”

Ah.

No way.

“That’s what you’re going to experience as well.”

Isabel’s mind momentarily stopped.

What did that woman just say?

“I told you.”

She leaned forward.

Scrutinizing Isabel’s face as if to devour it, she smirked.

“You’re no longer an outsider.”

Isabel swallowed deeply.

Her throat felt burning hot.

“Did you think you would find peace after sending Kyle away, forgetting everything?”

Merlin’s cold voice pierced her mind like a stake.

“No, that’s just the beginning.”

Isabel collapsed, covering her face with her hands.

The unbelievable reality shook her sanity.

“So, don’t argue and help me.”

But.

If she did that, then Kyle…

“If you don’t want to suffer for an eternity like I did.”

Isabel blinked blankly.

She was in a daze, like a person out of their mind.

Merlin leisurely sat and sipped her tea.

After saying this much, she was confident that Isabel wouldn’t oppose her, no matter how foolish she was.

Isabel slowly raised her head.

And spoke.

Of course, the answer was…

“No.”

What?

“As I thought, I can’t let you go.”

Merlin’s eyes filled with shock.

After hearing all she’d been through, she would choose to repeat that?

“Are you crazy?”

Merlin frowned.

Isabel, calmly observing her astonishment, gathered her divine power.

Then she smiled, a smile Merlin had never seen before.

“Did you just realize that?”

****

I left Asven.

There was neither time nor leisure to bid farewell to anyone.

The previous evening, we packed only the bare essentials.

At dawn, we boarded the prepared carriage with Diana and Luna.

Originally, we planned to observe the situation leisurely.

But now that the Empire had declared war on the Eastern Continent, we could no longer afford to watch idly.

Our destination was the Imperial Capital.

Specifically, the Imperial Palace.

There was only one reason I had to go there.

The Holy Relic Rosary.

The last piece of the puzzle for returning home hung around Princess Rudine’s neck.

“……”

Due to the unstable terrain, the carriage shook irregularly.

As I gazed absentmindedly out the window, I suddenly turned to Diana and asked.

“How do you feel?”

“The same as usual.”

“The same? That’s unlikely.”

“I mean it.”

Her calm voice spread like a ripple in my ears.

Even in this situation, she remained composed, making me sometimes wonder if she was even human.

It was then.

“Hah.”

Luna, who had been silent, let out a dry laugh while looking at us.

“How ridiculous. Do you feel reassured with such weak physical abilities?”

She was openly picking a fight.

But Diana just glanced at Luna and chuckled.

“Don’t worry.”

And muttered softly.

“You’re always on guard.”

Ha—!

Luna let out an incredulous laugh.

‘Here they go again.’

Since traveling with Luna, she and Diana clashed at every opportunity.

It was always just light verbal spats, so I didn’t pay much attention, but it was honestly annoying.

“Luna.”

“Yes? Did you call me, brother?”

“Be quiet.”

“……”

Luna bit her lower lip and turned her head sharply.

She muttered under her breath.

“Unbelievable… What’s so great about that weakling…”

I let her muttering slide out the other ear.

Leaning back, I closed my eyes along with the carriage’s swaying.

‘Rudine… Do I have to kill her…?’

Yes, to steal the Holy Relic, the wearer must be killed.

That’s the principle.

But I still felt reluctant.

An odd sense of guilt clouded my thoughts.

‘If I kill her and get the relic…’

I would initiate it and tear through dimensions.

However, there was a problem.

‘Merlin Trivia.’

That damn woman.

I had no idea what her intentions were or where she was now.

The only thing I knew for certain was that I could no longer blindly trust her.

But it was fine.

The reason was.

‘It’s enough if I cross over alone.’

I wasn’t obligated to cross dimensions with her.

I just needed to ‘allow’ her to cross with me.

If she never showed up?

The chance to cross dimensions with me would vanish.

So there was no need to worry for now.

First, the Holy Relic was the priority.

All other concerns could wait until after that.

Calm down.

We’re almost there.

I steadied my breath as it grew rough.

At that moment.

Creak—!

With a lurch, the carriage came to an abrupt stop.

I quickly turned my head to look out the window.

What was this?

We hadn’t even left the Eastern Continent yet.

A strange sense of unease crept up my neck.

And then, the door rattled open.

“S-Something terrible has happened! Please come out for a moment!”

The coachman, pale-faced, urgently requested me to step out.

I blinked stupidly and then got off the carriage.

And I saw them.

Knights intentionally blocking the road.

I slowly examined the knights standing in our way.

The emblem on their chests.

A very familiar emblem.

‘Winfred…’

Knights of the Winfred family, who should be in the Northern Territory, were here in the Eastern Continent…

No way…!

“It’s been a while.”

Clack, clack.

Footsteps approached.

“Kyle Winfred.”

A man started walking towards us.

A very familiar man.

“I heard you were dead.”

Velzer Winfred.

The head of the Duke Winfred family, said to bring down even flying birds.

“But you’re alive and well.”

Holding up his sword, he approached with murderous intent.

“This is perfect.”

His purpose for coming here was… probably…

“The Holy Blood you stole.”

Ah, damn it.

“If you don’t want to die, hand it over now.”

…I already consumed it.