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Chapter 222: A Wooden Pocket Watch (2)
On a late night in Reccordak, snowflakes fell from the distant sky, and the moonlit breeze swayed past.
ââŚI joined the Imperial Knights.â
Julie was in the northern coniferous forest, sitting on a rocking chair and looking at the bracelet on her wrist.
âAnd that was my first real mission.â
Epherene listened to her soft voice.
âTo protect the Professor in the Underground Passage and carrying dangerous weapons.â
âCarry?â
âYes.â
Julie let out a low breath, puffing white in the cold.
âThe head of Yukline back then, Decalane, was preparing an important study. I donât know exactly what kind. But, it is clear that the core was necessary for Yukline at that time.â
What Epherene didnât know about.
âMy fellow knights and I made it there with Deculein. However, we were ambushed.â
Julie still considered that day to be her fault. For any knight, it was right to consider the possibilities and prepare with the appropriate power. Allowing an ambush was unacceptable.
âWe failed, and many people died.â
ââŚDid you lose your bracelet then?â
âYes.â
Nodding, Epherene took out the steamed potatoes from the basket she held and took a bite.
âOkay. Oh, itâs hot. Foo. Foo. What about the professor, foo?â
She huffed and puffed, trying to cool down the food.
âThe profeshor. How did he find this brachlet?â
ââŚThe Underground Passage is open again.â
âAha.â
Julie thought that he took it on purpose when it re-opened, but she didnât know why. She had no idea. To him, it would be an ordinary bracelet.
âI see itâs something valuable to you.â
âYes.â
Julie answered right away.
âThis is the first and last gift I received from my father.â
Although now it was almost like coal, memories of that day were melted in this bracelet. Her heart was pounding as she looked at it. The tip of her nose became hot, and her eyelids grew heavy. All those things were still clear in here.
âThe gift of a lifetime.â
Proof that her father had thought of her at least once.
âIt is that precious.â
Julie looked back at Epherene, meeting her eyes.
ââŚEpherene. What is the content of that letter?â
She pointed to the letter on Ephereneâs lap from Deculein.
âOh, this? Nothing much. Would you like to read it?â
ââŚIs that okay?â
âYes.â
Epherene handed Julie the letter. Julie read them with a frown as Epherene had before.
[Epherene, I leave you this letter.
You will surely understand its meaning.]
ââŚWhat is this? Is this all?â
âThatâs what I mean. Only two lines. I was so perplexed when I first read it.â
âMagically-â
âNothing. It doesnât have any tricks. Thatâs all.â
ââŚâ
Julie nodded and returned the letter. Then she leaned back.
âEpherene.â
âYes?â
âIf what you said is true, we will return. With this bracelet on my hand and all my memories gone.â
âYes. Thatâs right. Definitely.â
âIf so, perhaps. Could you please explain? The reason you said that. Why doesnât Professor Deculein hate me?â
The bright snow fluttered between them.
ââŚHmm.â
Epherene lowered her head without a word. She reached down, making round marks beside her feet in the snow.
âYou know.â
She looked into the sky again.
âThe Professorâs remaining life isnât that long.â
ââŚ?â
âWhether we regress or not, the Professor wonât exist in the not-too-distant future. There is little time left. The Professor probably knows that too.â
Epherene spoke bluntly of the Deculein she met in the past.
âTherefore⌠itâs not that the Professor didnât like you, instead, wasnât it that he didnât want you to lose him?â
Julie was silent. She quietly closed her eyes.
âSo⌠someday when he goes on a long journey. You wonât be in pain. Rather, happyâŚâ
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ââŚâ
âOf course, thatâs my imagination.â
The wind blew through the forest, shaking the trees. Epherene looked to Julie.
ââŚItâs just my imagination. Iâm just imagining. Itâs okay, right?â
âNo.â
Julie shook her head.
âEven imagining it hurts.â
She put her hand above her heart. Somewhere, there was the sound of ice breaking.
âAs much as it hurts, itâs something I donât want to forget.â
âHey!
Just then, Delric appeared.
âItâs the meeting time!
Julie stood quickly. It was about to feel awkward, so he had nice timing.
âNow, letâs go, knight.â
âYes.â
Epherene also stood and was about to leave with them.
ââŚYou know.
At the sound of the whispering Voice, Epherene stiffened. She turned around with a flinch.
âThe Professorâs remaining life isnât that longâŚ
The conversation between Julie and her was caught up in the erosion of the Voice.
âI see that youâre diligent, huh?â
Epherene chuckled, astonished.
âEpherene! Come on!
Delric called again. Julie was already waiting in the distance.
âYes! Iâm coming!â
Epherene ran after them.
* * *
Whooshâ
Julieâs office. The group was seated around a large table.
âFirst of all, we selected only the most likely knights out of the thirty.â
There were a total of seven names on the list. Jailen, Youpley, andâŚ
âSyrio Sigrun.â
Julie took a deep breath as Sylvia listed them off.
âYes. He is also one of the suspects. Among the thirty invited knights, there was certainly Syrio.â
ââŚâ
Sylvia thought for a moment. As the deputy commander of Iliade, she was too familiar with Syrio. Delric nodded.
âThe rest of the knights all have an alibi. Of course, itâs not yet enough to put them off the suspectsâ board.â
âHow are you sure?â
Sylvia asked the question. Delric replied, fiddling with his mustache.
âThey are the worms who dared to attack Her Majesty. Many other people are chasing the criminal beside us. Maybe, if we just wait, we can find the culprit. However⌠Epherene.â
âYes.â
Delric wore his determination.
âOur purpose is not to simply catch the criminal.â
âOf course.â
âDid you find out the condition of regression?â
âNo. I donât know yet.â
For now, she was waiting until April 9th. Her first hypothesis, which was most likely true, was that she would return on April 9th.
âOkay. Until then, you canât die. Even if we donât catch the culprit, if you regress, everything will be stopped.â
âYes.â
âThenâŚâ
It was at that moment.
Boooooom-!
A great vibration shook Reccordak. The blizzard outside the window was cut off, and the whole world was colored in darkness from barrier magic. However, it was an expected attack.
Julie looked at Epherene.
âEpherene.â
âYes. Letâs run away together!â
âNo.â
She shook her head, then turned to Allen.
âWhat?â
Allen, who had been sitting still and listening to their conversation, tilted his head.
âAllen. How many people can you teleport?â
âUmmm~. Only one companion through a barrier.â
ââŚYeah.â
Epherene let out an exasperated sigh. Julie smiled brightly.
âYes. I thought so. I will stay here.â
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âYou donât have to.â
âI do. Someone has to face the one behind this and let you know.â
ââŚâ
Julie said so and stood. Delric clenched his teeth, and Sylvia looked at Julie.
âSo, Iâll try to give you as many solid clues as I can.â
Julie held out a crystal ball to Epherene.
âIt is a twin crystal ball for recording, not transmission. Everything I say will be recorded.â
Julie looked back at Delric and Sylvia.
âSir Delric, Sylvia. Please be careful too. For now, Epherene is the priority, but Sylvia, your magical talents are outstandingââ
âI can break through the barrier. I donât know if itâll collapse, though. We have to find the core.â
âYes, thatâs enough. Sir Delric, please cover Sylvia.â
ââŚâ
Delric looked angry but eventually nodded.
âI will. By all means, letâs meet again.â
âYes. I have no intention of dying either. Then-â
Claaank-!
The buildingâs window was shredded apart. A man in a robe rushed in, followed by creatures walking on four legs. Amid that chaos, Allen took Ephereneâs hand.
âGo.â
Allen smiled and took a step forward. From behind them, Julie was wielding her ice sword as Delric escaped with Sylvia. And-
ââŚUgh!â
Allen moved outside the barrier. Epherene looked around. The whole place was dark, and there was a strong stench filling the air.
âWeâreâŚâ
Allen answered, wiping his hands.
âIn a sewer.â
* * *
Drip- Drip-
âUghâŚâ
Drip- Drip-
A foul odor assailed them.
ââŚAh.â
Epherene looked around, scratching her head. Time had passed, but the scenery around them was still a sewage treatment plant. But she was so used to it that she couldnât even smell it anymore. It had also been a long time since she became friends with this mouse.
ââŚThis is boring.â
Of course, she didnât stay in the same sewer every day. Even if she moved from place to place, once she was chased, she would come back to a sewer somewhere in the city.
ââŚâ
Epherene sat alone, thinking. What day was it? April 4th or 5th?
âWhenâŚâ
She was hoping, wishing, for April 9th to come as soon as possible
ââŚI am too dirty.â
Stained with the stench of the sewer and was unable to clean herself out of fear of being detected through her mana. She rummaged through her pocket and pulled out Deculeinâs letter.
[Epherene, I leave you this letter.
You will surely understand its meaning.]
âGosh⌠I donât know.â
She had read the letter a thousand times while hiding. What the hell did this mean? She didnât know a single thing about it, this damn⌠damnâŚ
âFuck! Fuuuck-!â
After waving her fists and yelling, Epherene laid back down. Her whole body was wet and felt weak, and she muttered blankly.
âHow can I know the meaning of this letter⌠when I come back, Iâll askâŚâ
Epherene stopped.
âŚA month ago, Julie died. She didnât die at Reccordak, though. From what she heard, there were no serious injuries. Julie broke apart the mastermind with her power and support from Josephine and Zeit, but her heart was destroyed as a result, and she passed away shortly after. Her older sister, Josephine, committed suicide. But she found out one of the masterminds thanks to her: Jailen Bedasup.
âŚDelric had also disappeared. He left to seek clues separately, and at some point, lost contact with her. His last words were someoneâs name.
âYoupley von Sven.â
âŚSylvia was locked up. Idnik, Glitheon, and Gindalf worked together to seal her. They said Sylvia was going mad. In this way, what she feared now, after losing everything, would she return to after Deculein died?
âIf that happenedâŚâ
What should she do? Was that game over?
ââŚYou said you wouldnât dump it all on me.â
Epherene turned around and curled up on the floor.
âYou said you wouldnât make me carry it alone since Iâm youngâŚ.â
It was a pain that she couldnât even describe.
âBut thisâŚâ
Now that everyone was dead, she was living like a worm underground. What the hell was thisâŚ
ââŚSniff.â
Epherene suddenly jumped up, feeling a surge of anger. As if anger was the only fuel to overcome this sorrowâŚ
âI mean, but what the hell.â
Something hung from her waist, the wooden pocket watch handed to her by Murkan.
ââŚWhere am I supposed to use it?â
A wooden pocket watch. No matter how much mana she put in, nothing happened.
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âWhat are you?! Answer me! The letter, at least I can read it! But you!â
She gripped the pocket watch as if to strangle it and held her breath, but⌠there was no change.
ââŚEpherene?â
Suddenly, a low voice approached her. Epherene spun.
ââŚAllen.â
âYes. Are you okay?â
ââŚâ
Epherene shook her head.
âNo.â
âAre you having a hard time? Still, stay strong. Weâve found the culprit~.â
ââŚâ
As he said, they knew the culprit. It was all seven, including Syrio. Syrio was ambiguous, but Allen understood that it was he who immediately handed Sylvia over to Glitheon.
ââŚI think Iâm going crazy.â
Even knowing that she would return, this was too much stress. What if she was caught? Would she return even if she died, or would that be the end? What if Deculein wasnât even there if she did regress?
âItâs okay. Today is April 9th.â
ââŚEh?â
Ephereneâs eyes grew large.
âYou said yesterday was April 3rd!â
âOh~. Rather than turning April 9th from April 8th, it suddenly jumped from April 3rd-â
âHey-!â
Epherene ran over and grabbed Allen by the collar.
âDoes that make senseâŚ?â
The next moment, she gaped at Allen.
ââŚAllen? Why is your body⌠getting so cold?â
âOh~, thatâs because Iâm dying.â
ââŚâ
Epherene belatedly checked Allenâs body. He was bleeding profusely.
âWhy⌠how?â
âYes. I met the Altar. I, I mean, we were at the frontlines with the Altar. We often collide with each other.â
Allen said with a soft smile.
âWe did⌠but they had already noticed. That you would regress.â
ââŚâ
âHowever⌠they said this. Even if you regress, Professor Deculein wonât come back. Neither will the Emperor. That the standard of regression has already changed.â
ââŚWhat?â
âSo, thatâs why I said it was April 3rd. Iâm sorry. Because even if you regressâŚâ
Allen leaned on Ephereneâs shoulder. Ephereneâs mind was blank. She felt as if the strings holding him up had been cut off.
ââŚAllen?â
âYes. Still, itâs okay.â
Allen smiled a little. A single tear fell from the corner of his eyes.
âBecause you lived with hope for a month.â
Epherene looked at him. Her lips trembled. Despair dug into her heart.
âEpherene. If you return one more time⌠please inform me of this as late as possible.â
ââŚâ
âO⌠kay?â
Allen closed his eyes as he asked, still smiling. Before long, the world shook as if an earthquake had arrived, but Epherene continued to hug Allen. AndâŚ
âŚShe regressed.
âEpherene! Come on!
Delricâs cry echoed loudly around her.
Blink- Blink- Blink-
Snowflakes fell beyond her eyes, opening and closing.
âHuhâŚ?â
Epherene looked around her. The reflected scenery was of pointy pine trees and earth covered in snow. A cold wind rustled her clothes.
âEpherene! What are you doing? Itâs meeting time!
The point of return was the North, when she was about to start her meeting after telling Julie the truth about Deculein. In other words, Deculein was already dead.
ââŚAh.â
At that moment, Epherene accepted her despair as reality. Just like Allen said, the standard of regression had indeed changed.
âEpherene!
ââŚAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!â
Epherene let out a scream. Her legs collapsed, and her body flailed about.
âAaaahâ!â
âEpherene!â
âEpherene! Why, why are you doing this all of a sudden?!â
Julie and Delric ran to her side.
âNo, no, noooooooooooooâŚ!â
In the northern forest where a strong blizzard raged and the trees swayed, Epherene screamed until she fainted.
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