Chapter 731 – Those Who Believe (2)
Cursed flesh.
“…?”
They saw it. A reversal spanning immeasurable time. Something they had never witnessed, even within the endlessly repeating timelines.
The one who had lost something precious.
[The Source of All Evil, Grandfell Claudi Arpheus Romeo]
And the true form of Grandfell. Through that, they realized it. Ah… the reason we were alive was not our own will. It wasn’t because our determination was strong. He simply let us live. The cursed flesh, being mercilessly crushed to death, muttered:
“Please… save everyone from him.”
*
Ttak, kkak.
“Supreme Commander, I have something to report.”
“I was curious about that anyway.”
“Ah, were you? Then you could’ve contacted me anytime…!”
The Golden Palace of the Yusra Kingdom.
Hoyeol strode forward with long steps. Beside him was Nam Cheolmin, holding a tablet in one hand and clutching his bouncing glasses with the other as he struggled to keep up.
“There must be a problem in the Demon Realm.”
…The Demon Realm?
Twitching large ears. Beneath the wide-open palace window, the busy trowel suddenly stopped. It was Elsidor, tending the flowerbeds of the Golden Palace beyond the Garden of Elegance. The royal gardener flinched when Elsidor suddenly froze.
‘D-Did I do something wrong?’
Had he made a mistake while trimming branches?
Elsidor was an elf who could hear the voice of nature. In front of an elf, decades of gardening experience meant nothing. Seeing Elsidor’s expression grow serious, the gardener immediately bowed.
“I-I’m sorry, Sir Elsidor! I don’t know what I did wrong, but I must have done something! When I trimmed the branches earlier, I was thinking about something else. To be honest… I even thought maybe it’d be better to quit than work under you…!”
There was no need to confess such an uncomfortable truth. Fortunately for the gardener, Elsidor hadn’t heard him because he was focused on the conversation between the two men.
‘Has something gone wrong with the Demon Realm expedition?’
Elsidor felt oddly adrift. Kinver, who always brought troublesome matters, was no longer by his side. He could still hear that trash’s voice chattering in his ears.
—“Pointy ears, today’s headline is…”
Luckily, Elsidor was an elf. Having lived for centuries, he was used to farewells. Time heals all wounds. But—
‘The problem must be serious.’
Regardless of his own duties, Elsidor speculated. Now that Vassago, the last of the Ten Thrones, had unconditionally surrendered—
The Holy War Alliance no longer needed to split their troops. Worried about being stabbed in the back? Vassago’s incomplete state had already been revealed through his avatars.
‘Mother’s nemesis.’
The Primordial Evil still breathed somewhere on the Arcana Continent, but it could not show its power here. The Silver Evil Eye hung over the Arcana Continent.
Therefore, most of the Holy War Alliance should be focused on the Demon Realm. And yet a problem had occurred? Even knowing eavesdropping was improper, he couldn’t help but listen.
Soon, Elsidor was shocked by Hoyeol’s next words.
“The Silver Evil Eye must have begun to run wild.”
…Run wild?
The Silver Evil Eye—Elsidor believed it coexisted with Hoyeol. But Hoyeol’s reaction was unexpected. What does it mean to run wild? To head into a realm beyond one’s control.
‘You have shown such a side before as well.’
So it wasn’t surprising that the Silver Evil Eye had gone berserk. Considering the negative emotions it monopolized across reality, the Arcana Continent, and the Demon Realm, perhaps it couldn’t help but run wild.
The problem was Hoyeol’s reaction.
‘As if he had expected it.’
Nam Cheolmin’s voice was full of surprise.
“You anticipated this?”
“Of course.”
“Then I’ll report immediately. After scouting the Demon Realm outpost, the Holy War Alliance reconnaissance unit discovered numerous cursed flesh corpses!”
Cursed flesh.
Even without seeing them personally, their strength was undeniable for blocking the Alliance advance. Elsidor’s expression grew even more serious.
‘Indeed, the only one capable of killing so many cursed flesh…’
It had to be the Silver Evil Eye. But there was room for interpretation. Nam Cheolmin hurriedly added:
“Of course, cursed flesh originate from collapsed curses, so perhaps they simply returned to their original state. After all, the Silver Evil Eye manifested the curse. If I may compare it—like reversal magic…?”
A sharp perspective. Elsidor’s expression relaxed slightly. If Nam Cheolmin’s second hypothesis was correct—
‘The Silver Evil Eye may have simply done what it had to do.’
Not the worst case scenario of going berserk—
“No.”
“…?!!”
“Beings that flowed out from the curse cannot be reversed.”
.
.
.
“Th-That can’t be!”
Nam Cheolmin was trembling. Just how much did he know about me and Grandfell to react like that?
‘Well, it’s not like I plan to hide it.’
True growth begins with acknowledging one’s embarrassing past. Acceptance—that was the most important wall I, Lee Hoyeol, had to overcome in this timeline.
Of course, it wouldn’t be easy.
‘Hoyeol, don’t panic no matter how they react.’
After all, I had chosen an entirely new option.
‘No matter what happens.’
I might have to reveal everything Lee Hoyeol of the previous timeline had done. Just imagining saying it all out loud already gave me a headache.
‘Stay centered.’
I still had a lot to do. I kindly added an explanation for the stunned Nam Cheolmin. It required magical understanding, but he was smart enough.
“Reversal magic requires deep understanding of the target. Without sufficient understanding, the reversal becomes incomplete and the form destabilizes. The current Demon Realm that I reversed is in such a state.”
Grandfell, I admit a flaw you would never have allowed.
“If you want to ask why we can’t reverse the cursed flesh even imperfectly, I regret to say this: cursed flesh themselves are already incomplete beings.”
Wasn’t this truly nothing to be ashamed of? Nam Cheolmin raised his tablet. I nodded at his gaze. Words alone were complicated—especially with my way of speaking. He began scribbling notes.
“Then the cursed flesh didn’t return to their original state…?”
I nodded.
“They were hunted. By the Silver Evil Eye.”
“!”
Grandfell.
‘I thought it was simply the effect of blackening.’
Think back to when suitable mana ran wild and [Blackening] occurred. Grandfell showed no mercy to anyone. Some victims were hospitalized in the Magic Tower’s Healing Department.
‘I wondered if that might be your true intention.’
That you wanted to destroy everything. That the Great Sage’s prophecy might not be wrong. My certainty came after completing the highest-rank spacetime quest—memories of the previous timeline seen from Grandfell’s perspective.
‘You see me far too biasedly.’
I watched the previous timeline’s me and you as a third party. I once said that from my perspective, the previous Lee Hoyeol was nothing but a monster. But Grandfell watched him differently.
—“I will kill them all.”
You sought the reason I became a monster in the world itself.
—“If not in this life, then in the next.”
You bit your lips until blood ran down your pale skin and swore it—the previous you. To the world that made me a monster.
—“I will destroy everything you have.”
Even I think now—you were seriously twisted.
‘I became that way for you.’
And you became like that for me. That’s why we had no choice but to repeat endlessly. But now I could laugh it off. Even if I truly couldn’t, I had to keep a light heart.
“Are you worried?”
“…!!”
“Elsidor, you may answer.”
Did you think I didn’t know you were hiding there? No matter how much you conceal your presence, Elsidor. The moment Elsidor leapt over the window, Nam Cheolmin screamed louder than anyone.
“W-Waaah!”
“My apologies. I had no intention of eavesdropping…”
“It’s fine. I had no intention of hiding it either.”
“So I was the only one who didn’t know.”
“I’m sorry, Analyst.”
“No, please don’t say that.”
Apologizing to someone other than me—at least he had learned etiquette well, Elsidor. Or perhaps…
‘His state of mind has changed.’
Elsidor’s companion, Kinver, had been buried in Yusra. Only his equipment remained, but he was buried as a member of the Holy War Alliance, not a villain. It was the first time I had seen Elsidor mourn someone other than me—even in previous timelines.
A thought crossed my mind.
‘…Maybe every timeline was different after all.’
I had always been obsessed with ending everything. Perhaps I simply failed to notice the small changes. Then this time, I must not repeat the same mistake.
‘Grandfell’s rampage is only natural.’
As memories of me fade, Grandfell’s will—once suppressed because of me—grows stronger. His desire to destroy the world intensifies.
Is that narcissistic? In the past, I would’ve wondered why Grandfell would go that far for me. But after seeing it myself, it seemed entirely possible.
‘So what I must do in this timeline is decided.’
To say it shamelessly like Lee Hoyeol would—this timeline was a failure, promise with Grandfell or not. Yes, I had been thinking about reversing time since I first touched the spacetime quest.
‘Preparation for the next timeline.’
But the next timeline will be different.
It will be the first timeline where we switch roles and try again. That doesn’t mean I’ll live carelessly now. You know this—reversing time doesn’t erase things. Everything remains as memories in consciousness or as karma.
‘That’s why I want to change.’
Because of that change, perhaps for the first time in countless timelines, I began to look at those around me. Would Grandfell feel upset if he knew? No—the ones who should feel upset are the people around us.
I looked at Nam Cheolmin’s serious expression.
‘He seems more worried about you, Grandfell, than I am.’
*
“What is it? I’m busy, Cheolmin.”
Baek Yiseol was focused on conquering the Arcana Continent.
Though she claimed it was to expand the Sinhwa Group, in truth she was using the group’s support to spread the Holy War Alliance’ influence across the Arcana Continent. Nam Cheolmin knew this as well.
“I know you’re busy.”
“Then get to the point. Ever since my reputation maxed out, the Empire keeps calling for me. Every time I say it’s the Supreme Commander’s orders, but they never back off. My reputation must already be at its peak. My name value just keeps rising…”
“The Supreme Commander—Mr. Hoyeol—has really made his decision.”
His serious tone made Baek Yiseol respond seriously as well.
“About what?”
Instead of answering, Nam Cheolmin recalled Hoyeol’s words.
—“Suppressing a rampage is simple.”
—“Who do you think I am?”
—“As a demon hunter, I have an exorcism ritual.”
“Damn it.”
“Damn it? What is it? Tell me.”
“I don’t know. I really don’t know.”
“What could you possibly not know?”
Hoyeol and Grandfell—unable to side with either. Nam Cheolmin felt like he was going mad from frustration.
“Ugh… what am I supposed to do…!!”
He, too, was following Hoyeol’s plan.