BraveâZichâs eyebrows twitched at the mention of his name. Perhaps he was used to it, however, since he didnât show any negative reaction beyond that.
âTo tell you the truth, when Zich Brave first appeared, I thought the heavens were working in my favor. I even thought that maybe Bellu really existed, and faith that I never once had began to sprout inside me.â Ultelâs eyes looked teary as he recalled the memory, and Zich felt a strong urge to pierce those eyes with his fork, but he repressed it.
âSerpinaâs abilities were truly fearsome. That was true for the army of monsters she led around, but above all, it was her personal abilities that were truly frightening. Although I was glad at first that my thoughts hadnât been wrong, I soon fell into despair at the thought that I must kill or restrain her to get what I wanted. Thus, when you and your companions appeared, it really felt like a blessing from the heavens.â
âThatâs not me but Brave. Donât mix that up.â
âIt appears that you dislike your past self.â
âPast or not, thatâs not me.â
âWell, if that is what you wish, I will abide by it.â It wasnât even a difficult request to fulfill. âAnyways, Brave splendidly led his companions to push back the Core, and the battle between the two forces became fiercer and fiercer!â
Zich already had knowledge about everything Ultel said. Yet, Ultel didnât stop there. His voice grew louder and faster. It seemed like he was becoming excited thinking of the time which he considered to be the turning point of his life.
âI immediately deployed all the forces I could muster to ambush them both at the right opportunity. Of course, my subordinates couldnât do anything against the two normally, but it was possible to do something if there was a momentary gap, since what I wanted wasnât their lives anyway!â
âYou wanted the Brushel System.â
âYes! The system that allowed regressions! If I had that, it didnât matter how strong Brave and Serpina were! I could just turn time back to the point before Brave grew to his potential and Serpina was still sleeping!â In front of the mighty power of regressions, individual strength was as completely meaningless as the life of a worm crawling underground.
âAfter taking them by surprise and encountering them, I was able to stand in front of the Brushel System. Of course, not anyone could control the Brushel System since Serpina was the only qualified one.â
âHowever, I had an item that could turn the situation around.â Ultel smiled cheerfully. He stroked the ring on his right index finger.
âNow that I think about it, I suppose this is the reason why Serpina suddenly popped out. I mean, there must have been a push for her to suddenly wake up while she was quietly part of the Brushel System as the core. Itâs not as if the system was broken or anything.â
The World Treeâs great mana perfectly protected the Brushel System for a very long time. Naturally, if there hadnât been intervention from the outside, Serpina wouldnât have been able to wake up as the Core. If she woke up by herself, it wouldâve been unnecessary for Zich to come all the way here to save Lyla.
âThe Emperorâs Ring,â Zich noted.
âItâs the item I discovered among all the resources the Bellids had accumulated through generations and with great effort. When I first found it, I wasnât certain what it was. I knew it was quite a rare item, but there was no way for me to be certain if it was an artifact belonging to the ancient empire, much less belonging to the emperor. After Serpina popped out, however, I became sure that the ring was the real thing. With it, I gained the power to meddle with the Brushel System.â
Ultel stretched out his fingers into the air and stared at the ring on his finger. âWhen I first used the power of regression, I thought I was dreaming. My wrinkled skin turned smooth and supple, and I regained all the vigor and stamina I had once lost. You must have also felt the awe and dreamlike feeling of regressing.â
Zich recalled the first day of his regression. âNope.â
âDonât lie. Thereâs no way you didnât feelâŠâ
âI was first stunned and confused, but some guys immediately crawled into the picture. Then, I immediately had to battle my arrogant younger brother and another guy after that. On second thought, it seems like I never took a moment to dwell on my emotions about my recovered youth. That is pretty regretful.â
Ultel was momentarily left speechless by this answer that went beyond his imagination.
ââŠAs expected of the regressed Zich Moore.â
âThatâs enough praise for me.â
âAll right.â Ultel had no intention to even deal with Zichâs nonsense anymore. It was much more difficult to deal with Zich who regressed once than Glen who regressed countless times.
âOkay, so thatâs how you regressed,â Zich said.
âYes. It was obvious what I needed to do next. I didnât have the ring or the Brushel System in my grasp because of the regression, but I could easily retrieve them since I had turned back time. Furthermore, I was able to get my hands on several artifacts belonging to the ancient empire, such as items that could create Demon People, fragmentary information about the empire, and so on. Thus, I began to make some moves toward my aspirations.â
âLike Glen Zenard, right?â
âHow offensive. Donât you also dislike being compared to him?â
âAh, thatâs right. I went too far just now. Let me sincerely apologize to you.â
To think that Zich would apologize so easilyâit seemed like Glen was truly unredeemable trash in Zichâs view.
âItâs understandable.â Ultel thought it wasnât strange, since he thought the same way.
âIn the end, you passed on the regression ability to that guy.â
âYes, it was too bothersome. Even if I could regress, it wasnât an easy task to amass power and authority in every timeline.â Although Ultel came closer to his aspirations every time he regressed, it was troublesome to prepare for it each time. âFurthermore, whenever I thought I took care of the guy between me and my goal, a new annoyance popped out to hinder me. Like Brave, there were guys who tried to hold me down in every timeline.â
Ultel glared at Zich with a look of annoyance mixed in. However, Zich didnât feel anything since he didnât identify as Brave. Instead, he glared back at Ultel just as menacingly.
Ultel continued, âI needed information. Of course, I was able to get more precise and detailed information as I regressed, but I told you, didnât I? It was a hassle to get there. Moreover, regression was not infinite.â Ultel was referring to the fear experienced by previous Clowon emperors after regressing too much. âAt that time, I came up with a brilliant idea. If regressing to get information was annoying and a hassle, I should leave it up to someone else.â
âSo thatâs why you chose Glen Zenard.â
âCorrect,â Ultel chuckled. âOur dear, pitiful and poor Sun Hero, Glen Zenard. All he had was a handsome face and delusions of grandeur.â
Ultel spoke with a very pitiful tone, but his words were terribly derogatory. âI was very lucky to meet him too because I had to choose the right person. First, they had to be ambitious. If I gave the regression ability to someone who wanted to live by making a lot of money or those with similar goals, I wouldnât be able to get the information I want. In addition, they couldnât be too smart, since I was giving them such a powerful ability.â
âAnd Glen Zenard was the one who fulfilled all the conditions?â
âA guy with the goal of becoming a righteous hero, yet he is someone with such an ugly heart that he canât be satisfied with solving existing problems. Instead, he creates more confusion and chaos to solve it. Isnât he perfect for the job?â
âWell, his goal wasnât to be a hero. Rather, he was obsessed with the by-products attached to the name of a hero.â
âYeah. I also needed an idiot like him whose abilities were so lacking that even if I gave them the regression ability, they wouldnât even question it.â
âAgreed.â Zich deeply agreed with Ultelâs assessment of Glen. âHe really has the talent of a perfect puppet. That hero idiot.â
âRight?â Ultel raised his glass toward Zich, and likewise, Zich raised his glass. As if they were toasting, the two tilted their glasses toward each other.
âFor Glen Zenard!â
âBlessings for the hero idiot!â
Had Glen witnessed this scene, he would have vomited blood and screamed his heart out. However, Glen Zenard wasnât present, and if he had been, he wouldnât have known what they were talking about because most of his organs that collected external information had been destroyed.
âAlso, doesnât that idiot have some ridiculous competitive spirit against you?â
âDidnât we agree to stop comparing ourselves with him? We both did it to each other and agreed with how disgusting it felt.â
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âThis is just the truth. If you want to blame someone, blame the idiot who insisted on standing on the same level as you.â
âIt wasnât me, but Brave.â
âTo him, itâs the same person. That guy who is incapable of knowing his place really helped me a lot. To fulfill his desireâto become the greatest hero in history by beating Zich Brave and winning all the wealth and gloryâhe began to regress.â
âAnd you pretended to be under his command to help him.â
âYeah. That way, I could collect information more quickly.â Ultel softly laughed once again. âIsnât this really hilarious? Thereâs not much I did. All I did was secretly spread a rumor before he regressed that the Bellid pope, Ultel, thought that the incarnation of Bellu would appear at a specific time and place. If someone arrived at that exact time and place, Ultel would believe them to be Belluâs incarnation and swear his loyalty.â
âSo Glen really believed that piece of information and ran to the place at that time and youâŠâ
âAnd I pretended to serve and extol Glen Zenard as the incarnation of Bellu.â
Zich and Ultel both burst out laughing. They laughed so hard that they stamped their feet and punched the table.
âHahahahhahaha! Just think about it! That idiot calmly saying, âIâm the one youâve been waiting for,â with a solemn expression on his face! Iâve lived quite a long time thanks to the power of regression, but I swear it was the hardest time in my life to suppress my laughter!â
âAhahhahaha! Ah, damn it! I shouldâve seen it myself!â They continued laughing for a long time.
âHaha! Anyway, he kept trying to regress to obtain his perfect life, and I was able to steadily gain more and more information. I donât have memories of when he regressed, but according to the information I saw through the Brushel System, my plan was going well. Moreover, his plans, which used to be full of variables and disorder, gradually turned more systematic. I thought his plan would be completed soon, and his existence would disappear at the same time, butâŠâ
âAll of a sudden, a lot of variables appeared in this timeline, right?â
âYeah, and the reason is your own regression.â
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