Fragments of the Past – 3

Resistance Roll. That was the name of the rune Kaikilia said she would give me.

Just by its name, its effect seemed ambiguous, but simply put, it was an effect that allowed a character to revive if they died while wearing the rune.

Upon death, half of the current experience bar would vanish, and half of the character’s money would also be lost, so if one only considered the effect, it would be safe to say it was a rune that absolutely had to be equipped.

‘If only its effect wasn’t probability-based.’

The revival effect of the Resistance Roll rune was not a guaranteed activation but a probability-based one.

Even if it was probability-based, it might have been different if the value was quite high, but true to its name, revival only occurred if two dice were rolled and both landed on a 1. In other words, it was 1/36, meaning it wasn’t even 3%.

Honestly, if it had been 10% or even 20%, there might have been many concept-obsessed players who’d crazy enough to equip it, thinking, “Isn’t this better than gacha games?” But 2.78% was a number too ambiguous to be called generous.

Furthermore, when it transitioned to Dark Lord Mode-that is, when it came to reality-as if 1/36 wasn’t enough, they added another probability die.

‘Who on earth uses a rune with a 1/216 probability?’

Especially when there were only four rune slots to begin with.

It seemed like the probability was nerfed not because of the Resistance Roll’s effect itself, but because of another rune used in combination with it. However, the nerf was so severe that no one used it.

Even Eclipse wondered why they had created such a thing.

“Knight Commander of the Jet-Black Holy Night. You must have heard of the decree that obliges you to report to the Imperial Palace if you discover a rune monument.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“You must also know that it is currently a duty that exists only in name.”

“……That’s right.”

Because it was a duty that existed only in name, Cassandra must have tried to gobble up the rune in her territory, failed, and then called me. It was there that I also met that damned blue steam engine.

“The reason that decree was designated, and the reason it is now nominal, are all because of this rune.”

“……Was it a decree to obtain this rune?”

“You saw it accurately.”

Kaikilia stepped back from the monument. She seemed anxious that she might accidentally touch the rune. After all, ownership would be recognized the moment she laid a hand on it.

“If there is a rune that can revive a human who wears it from death, should it not rightfully belong to the Imperial Family?”

If one didn’t know the inside story, it was certainly an object worth coveting.

“The Livanus Imperial Dynasty has traditionally poured its heart and soul into finding the monument of this rune. The decree I mentioned was created in preparation for when it might fulfill its duty and circulate.”

“And once it’s found, there would be no need to apply it strictly, I suppose.”

Now I seemed to understand the situation.

If the Emperor who possessed the Resistance Roll were to die, the rune would begin to circulate, and it would have to be searched for across the entire continent and brought back to the treasury.

They must have done that to prevent someone from discovering it first and snatching it up during that process.

“Although the chance to revive from death is but once…… even that single chance must hold a value that ordinary people cannot even imagine.”

‘Huh? Once?’

In the game, even if one revived due to the Resistance Roll’s effect, they could use it again after dying, so I was confused for a moment, then realized that there was no ‘rest’ system here.

If that were the case, the rune’s cooldown wouldn’t reset, so it wasn’t strange at all to consider it a one-time use.

“Even informing someone not of imperial blood about this rune’s information is unprecedented in the history of the Aeternum Empire. How much more so to hand it over? However, I have already made my decision.”

“……Why are you giving this to me, Your Majesty?”

“Because I saw your form.”

Golden pupils stared clearly at me.

“Because I saw you wounded and fallen, I saw you unconscious, and I saw you close to death.”

One step. Kaikilia approached me.

“Also, because I knew my own feelings.”

And another step. Since the distance was not much to begin with, we quickly became close.

“Because I knew the emotion that surged when you were wounded and fell was sorrow, I knew the emotion I felt when I thought you had died was grief, and I knew the emotion that welled up when you opened your eyes was joy.”

Kaikilia stopped right in front of me. I could feel each other’s breath, and the tip of Kaikilia’s chest lightly brushed against my sternum.

“Because I feel such emotions for you, and because I do not wish for you to die, I am doing this. Do you need any further explanation?”

“……No, Your Majesty.”

I pushed the thought that it was useless anyway because it was probability-based to the back of my mind. If Kaikilia was saying all that, thinking it was useless would make me a madman.

I stretched out my arms and hugged Kaikilia. Kaikilia nestled into my embrace without the slightest resistance. Her slender hands slowly climbed up my back.

Compared to before, when she stubbornly maintained her pride, it was a tremendous improvement.

Naturally, my eyes met Aurora’s, who was behind Kaikilia. Aurora mouthed something silently, her lips flapping.

When I subtly nodded, indicating I understood, Aurora crossed her arms below her chest, as if to say she’d be watching.

“Knight Commander of the Jet-Black Holy Night. No, Delta.”

Kaikilia, who had been quietly held in my arms, murmured in a small voice.

“As long as I live, do not leave this world. This is a command as the Emperor of the Aeternum Empire, and a request as your woman.”

“I understand, Kaikilia.”

“Yes, that is enough.”

I released my arms and lightly kissed her lips. Kaikilia slowly closed her eyes. Behind us, Aurora was watching with a pleased smile.

I pulled my lips away. Kaikilia’s face had flushed quite red in that short time. Her breathing was also a little rough.

“Delta.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“What became of the matter you sought an answer from the Goddess about?”

Ah.

“……You’ve arrived, Captain-nim.”

“Why does your face look so drawn? Did something happen?”

After deflecting Kaikilia’s interrogation by saying I’d explain when everyone gathered later, I returned to the castle with Aurora after quite a long time. There, a gaunt-looking Laxia greeted me.

Kaikilia seemed to roughly guess the identity of what I meant by ‘when everyone gathered,’ and furrowed her brow slightly, but she let it go, saying she wouldn’t interfere with me anymore.

“……It’s nothing much. It’s just that I had a bit of a tough time.”

“It doesn’t seem like nothing. What happened?”

“……It’s because of you, Captain-nim.”

Blaming me out of nowhere, I asked back, bewildered.

“Me? What did I do?”

“I heard the news. To be precise, I couldn’t help but hear it. Congratulations on being enshrined as a living saint in the Raphaella Holy Nation.”

“…….”

First of all, her eyes definitely weren’t congratulatory.

Seeing that news had spread all the way here, I could roughly guess why.

“The Inquisitor and the Inquisitor-Interrogator came all the way here and are causing a fuss, saying they want to establish a cathedral here. The acting Lord and I are trying to buy time, but they don’t seem to be backing down at all. They’re insisting that they can even pay the entire annual budget of the Aeternum Empire if only we grant permission.”

It was exactly as I expected. I wondered why Floretta and Luna gave up so easily on following me; it must have all been part of a plan.

I inwardly offered my condolences to Laxia and Lana, who must have been tormented to death by those fanatics. I never imagined they would act so quickly.

“You said the Inquisitor and the Inquisitor-Interrogator, right? Where are they now?”

“They are in the mountains outside the territory. They are said to be praying all day long towards the room where Captain-nim was sleeping.”

Stella and Selene came running as soon as I called them, and without a moment’s hesitation, they did as I told them, which was to go back instead of staying there.

I also didn’t forget to tell the Popes to do their jobs, as I would be visiting the Holy Nation soon. I couldn’t keep Floretta and Luna with me all the time, but I couldn’t neglect them too much either.

Seeing the situation resolved so cleanly with just a few words from me, Laxia and Lana wore expressions of profound disillusionment. Aurora chuckled beside them, teasing Lana.

“……This is cheating.”

“If you could have solved it like that, why didn’t you come earlier?”

Listening to their complaints, I immediately headed to Nyx. The reason I came here was to take Nyx with me.

Nyx was fast asleep in her room. Seeing her face, sound asleep while half-hugging a body pillow as tall as herself, was quite cute.

Of course, her outfit and chest were not cute at all.

“Uhhng……”

As if sensing my presence, Nyx rubbed her eyes groggily and sat up. Then she grinned when she saw me near the bed.

“Did you have a good meeting with the Goddess-nim, Delta?”

It was the informal address.

“Yes. I heard all the explanations about what I was.”

“I roughly figured it out. The restriction on me disappeared. It seems the Goddess-nim told you everything from beginning to end.”

Judging by the absence of her usual strange giggling, it seemed the Soul Guardianess’s personality was manifesting more strongly.

Since the restriction was lifted, there would be no need for Nyx to act out her other personality.

“Why did you come looking for me? Do you have something to say?”

“I do have something to say, and I need to retrieve my memories more quickly.”

The World Eater would surely return. And they would be furious.

They were so steeped in arrogance that they didn’t kill us immediately, instead pulling all sorts of foolish stunts before disgracefully fleeing. Given their personality, it would be stranger if they weren’t angry.

Moreover, this time, they wouldn’t be careless like before. So, I needed to retrieve my memories as quickly as possible.

And there were things I needed to talk about with Nyx.

“Alright. Where should we go?”

Nyx got out of bed and adjusted her clothes. Her chest, wrapped in a thin white shirt, heaved significantly.

“First, we need to defeat all the bosses and then think.”