Ch.31I Want to Hear Your Story (5)

“Why?”

Kiel spoke with a trembling voice, unable to control his surging emotions.

“Couldn’t there be a way for both of us to survive? Do you always have to be so self-sacrificing to feel satisfied?”

Olivia looked at Kiel quietly before speaking.

“You seem to misunderstand something. This isn’t about self-sacrifice.”

“…Then what is it?”

“It’s more like passing the burden to someone else.”

Olivia was sincere.

If she remained in the memory, she would have no choice but to proceed with the extermination route.

‘Am I crazy enough to do that again?’

She could probably handle killing one or two people easily. A Grandmaster’s mind wouldn’t break from just that much.

A hundred? A thousand? Ten thousand? Perhaps she could maintain composure even on battlefields where tens of thousands of lives perished.

But the extermination route wasn’t just about tens of thousands.

Ten million, a hundred million, perhaps even more.

And it wasn’t simply killing them.

She would gather people fleeing their homes under the pretense of protection, then wipe them all out.

This inhumane process would need to be repeated dozens of times.

The desperate cries of humans betrayed after placing their trust was so vivid that she could feel it even through the monitor.

Of course, if the reward for extermination was returning home, she might have gritted her teeth and tried it once.

But this was inside a memory. Doing such things here would be meaningless.

And she didn’t have it in her anyway.

Kiel muttered.

“…Life isn’t something you can pass on to others.”

He was right.

People say they donate organs, not pass them on.

Who would dare describe it as passing on a burden? Only the person involved.

But that didn’t apply to Olivia, at least.

“Then I must be the only exception. Because I really am planning to pass it on.”

“…”

Kiel let out a deep sigh.

‘Really…’

Only after repeating this several times could he finally shake off his frustration.

“Olivia. I can support you in any way. With His Majesty’s approval, even access to the imperial archives is possible. If you want, I could immediately seek help from your master, the Master of Golden Tower, to find a solution as soon as possible…”

“Kiel.”

Olivia cut him off.

“I really appreciate it, but I don’t need help. This is my problem.”

Olivia was sincere.

‘Not helping me is actually helping me!’

But she couldn’t say that, which was maddening.

In truth, Kiel’s eagerness to help was a very positive sign. It meant his affection had increased that much.

But…

[Time remaining: 2 minutes 16 seconds]

Drawing the line now was the right choice.

If she asked for help and Kiel actually discovered a way to ‘save a separated consciousness,’ it would become very troublesome.

There was no separated consciousness to begin with.

She had merely entered past memories temporarily.

So.

“Just leave me be.”

“…Leave you be?”

“Then everything will resolve itself.”

“Resolve? Did you just say resolve?”

Kiel wore an incredulous expression. At some point, that emotion turned to anger.

Finally, unable to contain himself, Kiel exploded.

Bang! Crash! CRASH!

Kiel slammed his fist on the desk. With each strike, wooden splinters dug deeper into his fist. Drip, drip, blood flowed down.

Kiel looked down at Olivia with bloodshot eyes.

The air in the room grew heavy.

“…”

Kiel spoke.

“If you disappear, is that what you call a resolution?”

Olivia secretly wanted to agree.

But she couldn’t.

Kiel’s presence was that overwhelming.

“Half a year ago, you saved me. I made a promise then. If your life was ever in danger, I would save you by any means necessary. But now, you’re asking me to watch you die.”

Both of Kiel’s fists trembled.

“…Is that truly what you want?”

A moment of silence passed.

Olivia quietly nodded.

“…”

At Olivia’s response, Kiel’s mouth moved wordlessly like someone who had lost the ability to speak. He touched his forehead, his eyes, his mouth in succession.

First disbelief, then lamentation, then despair.

Then very slowly, as if squeezing his heart, he asked again.

“…Is that really true?”

“Yes.”

“…Really? Are you sure?”

Kiel asked over and over.

But the answer didn’t change.

“That’s right.”

Kiel collapsed into his seat with a defeated expression. As Olivia watched him, a message window appeared before her eyes.

[Time remaining: 45 seconds]

It was time to wrap things up. If she ended things this ambiguously, there was no telling what might happen next time…

Rumble.

The door, sealed with locking magic, rattled. Someone was trying to force their way in.

‘Who could it be?’

Olivia frowned. As far as she knew, there was no one who could undo the sevenfold lock at this point…

Wait.

This was the Golden Tower, wasn’t it?

At that moment.

Her head felt like it was about to split open. It was the kind of pain that couldn’t be endured without clutching her head.

[Warning! Warning! Warning!]

[You can only contact ONE regressor within a clue!]

[Your session will be forcibly terminated soon!]

‘What the hell is this…’

Olivia’s thoughts went no further. The moment she comprehended the message, her consciousness flickered.

The next moment, Olivia’s body slowly slumped down.

*****

Clang!

The magicians threw down their tools carelessly.

Whatever magic had been cast, the door simply wouldn’t open.

“This seems impossible.”

“Can’t we use an unsealing spell?”

“That’s not so simple. The formula is no ordinary difficulty.”

The gathered magicians clicked their tongues.

At that moment.

“The Tower Master is coming!”

The bustling corridor immediately fell silent. The magicians parted like waves as Melina appeared.

Melina, who had come down to check on the commotion, clicked her tongue. The sight of magicians sprawled out sweating profusely was quite a spectacle.

“Tsk. Hammers, crowbars, axes… Anyone seeing this would mistake you for a band of thieves. What on earth are you making such a fuss about?”

Melina gestured to her secretary holding a hammer to explain.

“Duke Kiel dragged Olivia into a sealed room.”

“And what of i— What did you say?”

“He’s currently barricaded inside the laboratory.”

“Then you should have called me sooner, you fools!”

Melina strode toward Olivia’s room. She pounded on the door furiously.

“Kiel! If you don’t open this door right now, your family will be exterminated today!”

“It seems a soundproofing spell has been cast.”

“S-soundproofing spell? Is our Livga in on this?”

Melina bit her lip.

‘No, not him! Not that Kiel brat!’

Kiel, who had been demoted from Duke to mere brat in Melina’s mind.

The level of the locking spell was by no means low. Not a triple or quadruple lock, but a sevenfold locking spell. It was an advanced magic that even most elder magicians couldn’t undo.

At this level, at least the masters of the upper towers would need to be called.

‘Our Olivia has grown so much alrea— No, that’s not the point.’

“How long have they been in there?”

“About thirty minutes now.”

“T-thirty minutes? That damn sword-wielding bastard! I respected him as a Duke, and he dares to make advances on our Livga?”

Golden magical energy fluctuated around Melina’s body. Reading the killing intent within, the magicians slowly backed away.

“Get back!”

“Deploy barriers!”

A small black hole-like object appeared in front of Melina’s hand. The surrounding air began to be sucked into it.

Rumble.

Magic that devours magic.

With the sound of chains breaking in succession, the laboratory door disintegrated into dust.

CRASH!

“Kiel! What on earth were you thinking…”

Melina burst through the doorway and entered.

And Melina saw it.

Olivia collapsing like a kite with its string cut.

Olivia’s pupils were dead black. Her lips were blue like a corpse.

As if her soul had been extracted.

The last thing Melina saw was the shattered desk and Kiel staring at her with blood dripping from his fist.

“KIEEEEEL!”

A roar erupted from Melina’s mouth.

Rage distorted the space around them. The ceiling inverted, and the walls began to fragment.

Slash! SLASH! SLAAASH!

Blade winds flew, tearing apart everything in their path.

But they never reached Kiel.

Melina had stopped her casting when she realized Kiel had no intention of dodging.

“You…!”

A grinding sound came from Melina’s mouth. She glared at Kiel for a long time, suppressing her deep anger.

“I, I didn’t do anything…”

“Silence!”

Melina’s hands trembled as she cradled Olivia.

“I don’t want to hear your excuses.”

Melina gently lifted Olivia. Her body was cold as ice.

“Get out now.”

“Melina…”

“Duke Kiel!”

Melina’s body shook with rage.

“Get out now. Before I kill you.”