"No!!!"
Upon gazing over the parapet, he caught a glimpse of Nathaniel extending his hand toward him in a desperate attempt to reach out.
But, it was too late.
He had already fallen too far away from his grasp.
"Ian!!!"
When Nathaniel was about to jump, the Knights quickly intervened and forcefully pulled him away from the parapet.
"What the fuck are you doing?! Let me go!! Let me go!! Ian!!!"
Nathaniel's voice faded away and somehow his eyelids felt so heavy—it looked like the bolt contained a lethal poison.
Suddenly, a figure in a flowing black robe appeared out of nowhere and caught him before Adrian hit the ground.
Soon, everything went dark.
.
.
.
"Hmm…"
The white-haired boy hummed, countless pieces of puzzles scattered in his mind.
While it was true that his gift name was 'the Foreseer', which granted him the ability to see into the future and avoid his demise.
However, after watching this scene, it seemed like… it was not the case.
Now that he knew about Aerilyn's death, of course, he would do whatever it took to prevent it.
In other words, he would screw the novel's plot.
"To hell with the plot."
So, if this room was meant to show him a view of the future, then it should have shown how the future changed because of his actions.
Yet, the screen in front of him showed him the continuation of his previous dream.
As the protagonist turned back in time and this was the second timeline.
He concluded that this was not a vision of his future, but rather memories of Adrian's past life.
There was no doubt about it.
Still, there were other things bugging him, like...
If this sight thing was not related to his gift, then who had given him the recollection of Adrian's memories?
What for?
Why show it to him?
And—
"Haa…"
He ceased his thinking and massaged his wrinkled forehead.
"Just give me the next scene."
Following the order, the screen flashed with a blinding light.
He raised one of his eyebrows in wonder upon seeing the dimly lit interior of a cave.
A warm glow filled the space as candles were the only source of light.
The room was also furnished with a desk, several chairs, and a sturdy wooden bed.
It was as if someone had been living in that dungeon.
—Flip —Flip —Flip
The sound of flipping paper echoed through the quiet room.
Adrian's ears perked up at the sound of rustling pages.
He blinked several times to adjust his eyes before opening them fully.
Soon, an orange hue filled his sight and a rocky ceiling greeted him.
Adrian's hand shot up to clutch his head at the unbearable headache.
"Ugh, where is this…?"
"You're awake?"
Adrian turned to the voice and saw a woman with striking features.
Her long, fiery red hair flowed down her back in perfectly straight strands.
She was sitting on a chair next to his bed whilst reading a book with a purple cover—the Void History.
Raising her head, her ruby eyes locked with him and she offered him a kind smile.
Adrian tried to lift his body but immediately grabbed his bandaged left shoulder.
"Who are—urg!"
"Be careful."
She set the book aside and leaned forward to assist Adrian in sitting up.
However, the blonde-haired boy was startled by what he saw before him.
He quickly shut his eyes and turned his face away upon seeing her cleavage.
The white-haired boy facepalmed at the scene.
No.
Not because of the interaction between the two, but because he recognized the woman.
Her fiery red hair was long and straight, cascading down to her waist. Her eyes were a deep shade of red, reminiscent of rubies, and were framed by long, fluttering lashes.
She had a fair complexion and a slender frame, with high cheekbones and full lips. Her nose was petite and slightly upturned. She was dressed in a form-fitting suit that accentuated her curves. ?
That woman was none other than the strategist of the organization that Nathaniel fought in the novel.
No wonder they were inside a cave, it turned out that it was their hideout, huh?
But, why did she save that boy?
Weren't the secret organization and the Empire enemies?
It was a perplexing turn of events.
She filled a glass with water and gave it to Adrian.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome."
Settling back into the chair, she lifted her hand and a bracelet similar to Telesphere could be seen.
She pressed a button and a ringing sound could be heard; she was making a call.
Upon seeing it the white-haired boy scoffed wryly, as expected of a mysterious society, they were clever.
They even had their own communication devices so they couldn't be tracked.
Although he had only read half of the novel, he was already impressed by the organization's ingenuity.
He could say that that shitty society was slightly below the Tower.
"His Highness is awake."
After conveying that one line, she hung up and switched her attention to Adrian who was lying on the bed.
The moment their eyes linked, she smiled once again, and before she could speak, Adrian interrupted her.
"Just call me Adrian. I'm not a Prince anymore."
The woman looked surprised but nodded in agreement.
"My name is Annelise. You can call me Anne."
"Are you the one who saved me?"
Annelise nodded her head.
"Yes."
"I see. Thank you for saving my life."
"You're welcome."
Anne replied with a small smile.
Fixing his gaze on the purple book lying on the table, Adrian asked.
"Is that your book?"
"Hm?"
Annelise followed his line of sight and saw the book he was referring to.
"Ah, yes. We're collecting the item inside it."
Adrian's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
"Collecting? I've asked numerous Mercenary Agencies but they said it was fake."
Annelise chuckled softly.
"Well, it's just as the book title suggests: 'The Void History.' You can't find it anywhere because the Empire hid it hundreds of years ago."
"Hide what?"
Somehow he couldn't comprehend what she was talking about.
"Have you ever wondered why the Empire banned this book?"
"That's because it tries to spread new beliefs?"
Annelise shook her head.
"No. The Empire banned this book to keep the truth hidden and exploit those items for themselves."
"That's… the Empire is clean."
As his confidence began to falter, Annelise's smile grew wider.
"Yes, the Empire is clean—on the surface."
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