Chapter 111: Record of Regression (4) (2/2)
A professor who never disappears, standing as an illusion in the mirror. When she didn’t even move, the professor sighed.
─I exist. If it’s that hard to believe, bring a tight-lipped, trustworthy person. I’ll let him see me too-
“No, this is enough.”
Sophien shook her head firmly.
“I believe you, Professor. You are the only one who is connected to my last life…”
* * *
…For the next two months, I spent time with Sophien in episode two. The quest goal was vague, so I had no choice but to stay. Simply put, it was an exploration. Of course, there weren’t many things to do with Sophien in the past. She couldn’t leave because she was sickly, and most of the time, she was confined to the garden or the Imperial Palace.
In this mirror, my only role was to act like someone she could talk to. In the meantime, Sophien revealed many things to me. Her life was a history of surgery and healing, in a series of vain wishes and hopes tortured. She was only nine years old, but the weight of those years was heavier than anything.
Sophien revealed it all calmly.
—It’s wild.
Time passed like that… and today.
—I am still dying.
Sophien said her death in bed was not far off.
─I even went through the miracle of regression… Professor.
“Yes.”
Sophien paused for a moment and gritted her teeth.
─If I… come back to life again… ugh.
The pain was assailing every inch of her body.
─Can I still see you then…?
“Of course.”
I answered immediately, causing Sophien to smile bitterly.
─I’m glad…
“What are you glad for?”
-You are handsome. If you looked like the many eunuchs here… I would’ve broken the mirror when we first met.
It was a very real reason, but no laughter came out.
…For two months, I witnessed this child’s slow and winding path to death. Of course, that kind of pity did not bother me, but not smiling was the politest dignity I’ve learned.
—Professor. I’m not afraid of death, but of pain…
It was at that was moment, next to her, the Nescĭus appeared. The one I saw was an ordinary skeleton with a scythe. The Reaper.
“No worries, your highness.”
It was proof that I had no fear, but Sophien was going to die soon.
“Next time, I will be by your side again.”
─…Yes. I’m relieved…
I couldn’t kill those demons. Inside this mirror, I couldn’t offer any helping hand to Sophien on the other side.
─I hope… to see you again…
Sophien quietly closed her eyes. The Nescĭus stretched out its hand to her sleeping form and gathered the essence of her regression. It truly was like a bee.
“Episode 2”
After that, the system message floated before my eyes.
Chichiink—
The number ‘two’ shook, and the newly engraved number was…
「Episode 7 」
At that moment, I opened my eyes to hear Keiron’s voice.
“Deculein.”
“….”
I looked toward him, raising my eyes. I was once more surrounded by the scenery of the Imperial Palace. The two months spent with Sophien dispersed like a dream, and I returned to reality.
“Deculein?”
Now my mind was full of questions. Why did it jump straight from the second to the seventh? If the regression episode did not continue linearly, I wouldn’t be able to keep my promise.
“Deculein. Are you okay?”
Blood vessels swelled in my temples, perhaps due to his obsession. I was furious as I looked back at Keiron.
“…I’m fine. How many days have passed?”
“Not even a day has passed. Did you find out anything?”
I shook my head.
“I don’t even know the purpose of it yet.”
Knock, knock—
I knocked on the wooden door. There was, of course, no reply.
“You don’t even know the purpose?”
“…In this world, there are demons that exist, there are demons that are phenomena, and there are demons that are concepts. The Nescĭus is a third-class demon that exists. On the other hand-“
“Is this underground demon a phenomenon?”
“Yes. It is a phenomenon and a concept.”
…This underground past was Sophien’s world. The world left before the regression; that was when Sophien died. The Devil’s Mirror was not a reproduction of her past. Sophien regressed and stored the abandoned worlds. Therefore, this underworld was real.
It was still a hypothesis, but it would probably continue with the memory of the current Sophien.
“Deculein. I am following Nescĭus now.”
“I’m glad.”
The Keiron standing here and the Keiron following Nescĭus had the same soul but different bodies. That was Keiron’s magical talent.
“Let me know when he gets to his destination.”
I walked through the corridors of the Imperial Palace. But stopping at a point, I looked back to Keiron.
“Nescĭus must have kept Her Majesty’s Spirit somewhere… but Keiron.”
Keiron looked at me without a word.
“How much can you sacrifice for your Majesty?”
“Everything.”
His answer was immediate.
* * *
“…”
Sophien opened her eyes slowly, feeling pressed down by a feeling of sorrow she had rarely felt in this life. From somewhere, she could hear Keiron.
“Are you awake?”
Sophien glanced to her side. Like a metronome, the knight stood there as if announcing reality.
“Can’t you see it?”
“How are you feeling?”
“…What happened with Deculein’s class?”
She listened for a couple of hours and then fell asleep.
“The class was over, but the cat touched the barrier on the 80th floor, and their writing was blown away.”
“…Is the cat okay?”
“Yes. Some wizards lost their temper, but the chairman stopped them. And now-“
Meow~
The red-haired Munchkin, who sat atop Keiron’s head, cried.
“Right.”
Nodding, Sophien pushed her body up and leaned against the window. The gardens of the Imperial Palace could be seen in full bloom right outside.
“…Keiron.”
“Yes.”
“When I was young…”
Sophien carefully recounted the events and vague memories of days that had already disappeared.
“Yes.”
“…No, it’s nothing.”
A sadly sunken past. Her faint voice barely reached her ears.
─Next time, I will be there.
Then the next time, he did not come. He broke his promise. However…
Who was he?
“I had a bizarre dream.”
Sophien sat back against the bedframe. Her hair was fluttering in the gentle breeze coming in from the open window. The fragrant petals clung to her pure white face.
“I see.”
Sophien looked at him.
“…Keiron, was it you?”
“I need a more detailed explanation.”
“No. Forget it.”
Returning to reality, the Emperor yawned, those unfamiliar memories buried deep within her.
“Haaah… do I have anything else to do today?”
“There is a trial by the upper ranks who have been given mana stones from the Altar.”
“Ah, shall I cut those assholes throats myself?”
“It is forbidden. The trial is not over yet.”
“Anyway. Let me do something before I fall asleep again. Today I am physically fine…”
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… As she eagerly rolled up her sleeves, she stretched again.
“…”
Deculein watched her from afar.