T/N: Return Stone changed to Regression Stone (for clarity).
Tower of Time.
This was where they first met.
—Are you the fairy of regression?
That was the first thing the man said when I opened my eyes.
I remembered being unable to say a word, because I was too thrown off by the word ‘fairy’. After all, it was obvious to anyone looking that I wasn’t a fairy.
—Answer me. Are you the fairy of regression?
However, the man was persistent.
“Pft.”
Thanks to him, I couldn’t find the time to feel frustration or despair at having been reincarnated yet again. Of course, hearing my chuckle, the man frowned.
—…You think this is funny?
The sudden summoning surprised me, but I quickly understood the man’s circ.u.mstances. He must have climbed to the top of the Tower alone and found the ‘Regression Stone’. He must think it would let him go back in time, just like its name suggests.
—Who the h.e.l.l are you? Why did you pop out of the Regression Stone? I won’t ask a third time. Answer.
The man raised the spear in his hand. The killing intent emanating from him woke me up. I stopped daydreaming and surveyed the area. I was unfamiliar with the surrounding scenery. However, just like always, I a.s.sumed I was reincarnated inside the seed that Baal planted – the Tower.
—…I’ll ask a third time. Who are you?
Seeing that I wasn’t talking, the man kindly gave me another chance. I smiled without replying just like before. I didn’t mean to smile, but it came out naturally when I saw the man’s otherworldly appearance. I wandered across many worlds, and his physical appearance ranked among the top.
—I’ll count to three. One, two… two and a half….
I immediately noticed that he was quite strange.
—…Two and a half and a half… Two and a half and a half and a half….
Thanks to him, I was able to loosen up and raise my body. When I got up, the man flinched and took a few steps back.
“I’ll ask first.”
—N-No, I’ll be the one to ask…
“Where are we?”
I asked the man.
—…The Tower of Time.
The man muttered back.
“Oh.”
After destroying yet another world and aimlessly drifting through s.p.a.ce, I had once again been summoned to another world by the selfishness of a human. By now, I was all too familiar with the development
—It’s your turn to answer me. Are you the fairy of regression?
The man, s.h.i.+n Myungchul, asked me. I turned my head slightly and examined s.h.i.+n Myungchul closely.
His eyes shone like gems that fell underwater. Even his long, unkempt hair was unable to conceal his good looks.
“I’m not a fairy, but a devil.”
I answered honestly. However, s.h.i.+n Myungchul wasn’t taken aback in the slightest. His reaction surprised me.
—Fairies and devils are pretty much the same thing.
s.h.i.+n Myungchul was a man of strong character, both before and after he went back in time. But when I first met him, he was lost from the guilt and anger of being unable to protect his loved one.
—So, devil of regression, are you able to send me back in time?
s.h.i.+n Myungchul wished to go back in time to change his past.
“It’s possible.”
I nodded my head without much thought. In that instant, s.h.i.+n Myungchul smiled like a little kid and approached me as if to hold my hands in appreciation.
“But there’s a condition.”
—Condition? That’s fine. No matter what it is, I will…
“Once you go back in time, I will be beside you, annoying you the whole time.”
At the time, I took a more backhanded approach. I didn’t think to stop him or persuade him otherwise. I had given up before even trying, or perhaps I had resigned myself to this development. No matter the case, I knew humans weren’t capable of being persuaded by a stranger.
—You will be beside me?
“That’s right. If you don’t want that, then there’s nothing I can do.”
Humans who chose to borrow the power of a devil always came to regret it in the end. Watching their world being destroyed by their own hands, they hit their chests in mockery of their foolishness and cried out in sorrow and anger.
—I don’t care.
At that moment, I concluded s.h.i.+n Myungchul would end up the same way.
“Great. But before we go back in time, there are few things I need to warn you about.”
—Go ahead.
The young s.h.i.+n Myungchul was proud and arrogant. As I had experienced all sorts of people in the worlds I’ve been summoned to, I ignored s.h.i.+n Myungchul’s character flaws and began my explanation.
“The Regression Stone is the medium for the summoning of the devil Baal. It will transport him from the transcendental plane in which he lives into this plane. If you go back in time using the Regression Stone’s power, Baal will undoubtedly descend in your world. That is the price you have to pay to go back in time. What you experience will not be a miracle, but a calamity that can destroy your world….”
—Pft, it doesn’t matter.
As I expected, s.h.i.+n Myungchul was selfish, just like all the other Regressors who wished for the same thing.
“You will regret it.”
However, there was one thing that was different.
—I won’t regret it. If Baal descends on my world, I will just beat him up.
That was confidence.
s.h.i.+n Myungchul possessed confidence befitting his strength. With it, he grasped the Regression Stone without hesitation.
…Just like that, he went back to when he was 17, to the world where his lover and family were alive.
s.h.i.+n Myungchul cried tears of joy. With knowledge of the future, he grew rapidly. In just two years, he became a powerful Hero capable of protecting his loved ones.
Three years later, s.h.i.+n Myungchul married his lover. A year after that, he had a child he never did in his previous life.
But fate couldn’t be changed so easily, and his happiness didn’t last forever.
s.h.i.+n Myungchul’s wife died from an illness not long after giving birth. s.h.i.+n Myungchul cried until his tear glands dried up. The grief he felt was stronger because of how long he loved her.
However, s.h.i.+n Myungchul had a son who needed his father. His grief was quickly replaced by a desire to protect his son.
Just like that, 30 years went by.
s.h.i.+n Myungchul finally witnessed his son becoming a father. s.h.i.+n Myungchul named his grandson, ‘s.h.i.+n Jonghak’.
I watched over s.h.i.+n Myungchul the entire time.
Originally, I was supposed to make preparations for Baal’s descent. But unless it was absolutely necessary, I stayed by s.h.i.+n Myungchul’s side. Seeing the once self-centered man grow up to be a grandfather was both fascinating and beautiful.
Of course, it wasn’t that I didn’t do anything. I had no choice but to fulfill my duty as Baal’s host.
I met Yi Yeonjun, who caught Baal’s eyes, and formed the Chameleon Troupe. With him, I met kids like Yi Byul, Jain, and Kaita. I formed a family, just like s.h.i.+n Myungchul.
I liked Yi Yeonjun because he reminded me of the person I loved in the past; I liked Yi Byul simply because she was cute; I liked Jain because of her two-faced nature; and I liked Kaita because of his one-dimensional personality.
If possible, I wanted to stay with them for as long as possible.
But Baal didn’t let me.
The first seizure came abruptly. Baal rampaged inside my body. Knowing that I was getting attached to Earth, he sought to destroy it using my incarnation body without descending through the Demon Realm Gate.
Once enraged, Baal easily took over my body. However, his rampage ended in just a day. s.h.i.+n Myungchul had come to stop him.
Just like he swore before returning to the past, s.h.i.+n Myungchul beat up Baal.
But like a true villain, Baal chose to self-destruct. A third of the Korean Peninsula was at risk of total destruction. Meanwhile, I watched s.h.i.+n Myungchul’s decision inside Baal’s consciousness.
To my surprise, s.h.i.+n Myungchul did not hesitate in the slightest.
—If you can hear me, Bell, let me ask you for one last favor. Tell Jonghak my story. That way, he won’t become me. Help him achieve what I couldn’t. Jonghak is always saying he will become a great Hero… I believe him. He will become the greatest Hero of all time, even greater than me.
s.h.i.+n Myungchul left his will with me before forming a barrier with all his strength. He traded his life for the lives of millions. That was how the Hero s.h.i.+n Myungchul met his fate.
“…What do you think?”
I finished my quick story and turned to s.h.i.+n Jonghak. I had to summarize s.h.i.+n Myungchul’s tale more than I would have liked to because of my body’s condition. But since I pa.s.sed a part of my memories to s.h.i.+n Jonghak with my magic power, he should be able to understand.
“s.h.i.+n Myungchul’s act of sacrifice is lauded in textbooks as the epitome of heroism, but in truth, he was just taking responsibility for his past selfishness.”
s.h.i.+n Jonghak didn’t say anything. With a stiff expression, he slumped his head and looked down at the ground. I chuckled and placed my hand on his head.
“Myungchul left his inheritance in your body. You should know what to do.”
Looking at his face, I wasn’t sure if he was listening. There was one last shocking truth I had to say, but I chose to keep it to myself. When I found out about it, even I was shaken.
“Sahyuk.”
Jin Sahyuk turned to me. I could see myself through the reflection in her eyes. Demonic energy was swaying around me, and my eyes were dyed red.
I clearly didn’t have much time left.
“Are you ready?”
Jin Sahyuk nodded her head at my request.
I endured the piercing pain in my body and made a bitter smile.
“I’m sorry. I would explain more, but I don’t have time.”
The final truth… that this world is nothing more than a ‘novel’ written by a certain man would be buried with me. I only found out because I looked into Kim Hajin’s head. So I didn’t need to worry.
“…It’s fine.”
Jin Sahyuk got up with an expressionless face.
“Thanks.”
It had been far too long. It was frustrating to find out that the four, five hundred years I suffered weren’t even mentioned in the d.a.m.n novel, but that didn’t matter now.
I no longer cared.
“I want to rest.”
After all, death would relieve me of all emotions…
**
Chwaaaaa—!
Yi Yeonjun swung his magic power. Tentacle-shaped magic power melted the ground and evaporated it into the atmosphere.
Against him I used every single one of my Gifts and creations—[Extraction], [Complete Understanding of Spirit Power], [Random Consolidation System], [Desert Eagle], and more. I always preferred quant.i.ty over quality.
Even so, I couldn’t penetrate Yi Yeonjun’s defense.
The Desert Eagle rusted away. My armor broke. Aether shattered. All because the temperature continued to fluctuate between scorching heat and biting cold.
“…You have fascinating abilities.”
Amidst a piercing cold, Yi Yeonjun muttered nonchalantly. It was not a compliment, but a cynical expression of contempt.
“Yours is even more fascinating.”
The breath from my mouth froze white.
“…”
Yi Yeonjun twisted his lips.
“Huu….”
I was keeping my head above water thanks to the Orb of Regeneration. But I knew I couldn’t win against him. Rather, I purposely chose to use methods that couldn’t defeat him.
If I had attacked Yi Yeonjun from afar, my chances would have been much better. I might have killed him before he could react.
In fact, that was how I had planned to approach him up until 3 hours ago. However, in the end, I chose to face him head on. This decision was made on a whim.
“…I’m curious about something.”
Although moving my half-frozen lips hurt a lot, I managed to open my mouth. Sadly, Yi Yeonjun ignored me and shot his magic power. The heated beam of magic power pierced my shoulder.
I used my Gift [Constraints and Amplifications] to suppress my sensations. As a result, I didn’t feel any pain.
“I looked into your past.”
It was then that Yi Yeonjun finally showed a reaction. He glared at me with eyes full of hostility.
“What you did to bring Yi Byul into the Chameleon Troupe, what you did to Yi Byul’s parents to incite their fear for their daughter, how you turned Yi Byul’s life into a living h.e.l.l when she could have led an ordinary life….”
I continued to list everything that I had witnessed in the past. But my speech was not for Yi Yeonjun.
I had no intention of persuading him. This world was not a novel, and I knew that the cliché of persuading a villain with smooth talk didn’t apply to me. After all, humans didn’t change so easily.
“The reason Yi Byul’s parents had to kill their daughter… I saw it all.”
I was speaking to the person who I knew was watching me from somewhere.
I couldn’t sense her presence and it would be a b.u.mmer if she wasn’t here, but I believed in my luck.
“…It must have been fun.”
Yi Yeonjun smirked. This made me frown.
“Don’t you feel guilty for what you did?”
“Of course not. If it wasn’t for me, Byul would have lived among those trash forever.”
Yi Yeonjun answered with confidence.
I scoffed in disbelief.
“…Why did you do it?”
“I wanted to own her.”
His voice sunk to the ground. He sounded stiff like a block of wood.
“When people break, they become easier to own. That’s all.”
“…”
He was the perfect example of a two-dimensional villain I once read in a writing guidebook. A character who cannot and does not change no matter what, created for the sole purpose of becoming a villain.
I looked at Yi Yeonjun and forced a smile.
“It’s like you’re a character in a novel.”
Yi Yeonjun shrugged and said, “Now it’s my turn to ask. Why are you with Byul? What about Byul do you-”
“I love her.”
My answer was brief as well. I spoke with emotion and with confidence.
“…Love?”
Yi Yeonjun clenched his teeth.
“Yeah. You know what that means, right? Ah, but maybe someone like you can"t understand.”
The sound of teeth grinding rang out, and our conversation stopped there.
Yi Yeonjun gave off a much more powerful and violent magic power than before.
Chwaaa—!
His magic power turned into a bundle of tentacles. I didn’t dare to count how many there were. The grotesque strands either rose high in the sky or fell low to the ground before flying towards me.
Kwaaaa….
Countless tentacles blocked my view.
I knew couldn’t stop them.
I would probably die here, though I could still resurrect with my Unique Skill.
Then, I realized my luck had once again activated.
[Coincidentally, somebody listened to your true feelings and understood them.]
[Narrow Escape from Death (8/9) – Special stat, Acc.u.mulation of Luck, becomes partly unlocked!]
The flas.h.i.+ng alerts told me so.