"Although you probably already know, you are not subject to the regulations of the Seven Deadly Sins and Seven Virtues..."
Ah, that's right. I'm an exception.
I recalled the words he once said, that there was no need for me to hold back.
[‘The Scales that Judge Souls’ sends passionate encouragement, saying that there is no need to hold back on anything except gluttony.]
[‘The Eyes that Watch the Chaos of All Things’ chews on a floral embroidered handkerchief.]
When my gaze met his, who was trailing off, I couldn't help but feel a warmth rise in my face for some reason.
Why? I felt «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» somewhat embarrassed.
“Mmm.”
“Umm.”
We couldn't continue the conversation, and in an attempt to alleviate the awkward thirst, I simply brought the wine glass to my lips.
Although the wine had been long gone.
Drip. Drip. Tap. Tap...
It was a relief that it was raining. The sound that filled the silence between him and me was deeply appreciated.
Then, it suddenly dawned on me.
Until now, I had been tangled up in intense worries, and now I was dealing with an embarrassing one.
It must be a sign that I had found some space to breathe.
Perhaps it was because Tesilid’s conversion had swept away the biggest concern in my heart.
My mind had become as calm and peaceful as a world after Doomsday.
“This is nice.”
I muttered unconsciously.
Tesilid looked at me with a gaze that asked "What do you mean?"
“Both you and this world.”
“I see.”
His smile, as he responded, had a faint, sad undertone that couldn’t be hidden.
I understood the reason. Because I had just said that I liked this world.
To him, the world was nothing more than an army of countless enemies surrounding him.
The voice he whispered to me as I slept still lingered in my ears. - Don’t leave me alone in this world...
Perhaps, he was enduring and bearing with this world because of me.
But now, things were different.
He no longer needed to face the world alone, nor hide himself from me.
I wanted to make sure Tesilid knew that for sure.
To do that, I’d probably have to break the current calm peace for a while.
“Terry.”
The way I called him sounded different to my own ears.
It was clear that Tesilid noticed it too.
“Child?”
His calling me sounded like a question, asking what was going on.
He put his wine glass down and stood straight, facing me.
His posture, as straight as his character, and his direct gaze met mine.
I opened my mouth, hoping my gaze would resemble his.
“A god has appeared in this world.”
After completing the ‘Mission of the Seven Stages of the Apostle of the Command,’ the world had changed.
This world had now become a normal world where gods existed. The twisted laws were restored and functioning properly again.
As the gods were fulfilling their roles, heroes only needed to fulfill theirs. Therefore,
“If we handle the Chaos Evil in this timeline and save the world...”
Now, I could speak with conviction.
“We don’t need to regress anymore.”
“......”
“To preserve the world, you don’t have to forcibly become the axis of regression.”
“......”
“What we are saving this time is truly the last one.”
“......”
Having said that, I looked at Tesilid’s face. I could feel the tension clearly transmitted from his eyes, which had suddenly hardened.
It was a natural response.
The world’s existence.
The axis of regression.
Such information would surely be regarded as an ominous revelation by the 17th cycle.
“Child...?”
He awkwardly called my name as if he didn’t understand what I was saying.
That was his best performance. But unfortunately, I could no longer be deceived.
“You knew I was serving the Apostle of Command. Then, will you tell me your story now?”
“......”
“Tell me which cycle you’re from.”
“......”
“I know you’re not from the 17th cycle.”
“......”
At this moment, he gave me an honest answer.
His reaction was stiff, as if he had lost all his breath.
He was not trying to deceive me; he had been prepared, but not enough.
He had lived too long.
His awkwardness was not just a temporary thing. While I had been with him, far too much information had accumulated in my hands.
A personality far too worn for a 17th cycle.
Knowledge and information far too well-known for a 17th cycle.
A power far too strong for a 17th cycle.
All the evidence pointed to the fact that he was a being much older than the 17th cycle.
Tesilid Arzent.
The one in front of me, the one I loved—how many cycles had he gone through?
“......”
“......”
We remained silent for a while.
The time of silence was filled with exploration. He was trying to figure out how much I knew, and I was trying to find out how much he wanted to reveal.
“I...”
He bit his lip as if to harm himself.
The expression on his face seemed like the world might collapse with just a single word from him.
I realized then that my quest for an answer was torturing him.
I didn’t want him to be in pain. If that was the case, I would have to find out the answer myself.
“Terry.”
Actually, I had been thinking about something all along.
Originally, Seokwoo-hoe should have ended with the first part.
However, because of the 'strict order and righteousness,' the second part came into existence.
The first part, containing life up to the 85th cycle.
The second part, containing the abnormally branched timelines from the 86th to the 100th cycle.
When I recognized this fact, the possibility naturally arose.
If there is a second part in Seokwoo-hoe, then...
Could there be a third part?
Beyond the original.
Beyond the 100th cycle.
Could there be even more timelines?
“Child...?”
I rummaged through my inventory. I pulled out an artifact shaped like black sunglasses.
When I brought the artifact close to my face, its power absorbed into my eyes.
I opened my empty palm and wiped over my eyelids. Then, I opened my eyes.
The gaze I had lowered slowly rose, tracing Tesilid’s form.
Past his chest, past his chin, past his mouth and nose.
Eventually, inevitably, our gazes met as my eyes wavered, but I didn’t hold the gaze.
Instead, as I passed his forehead and reached above his head—
“......!”
What appeared before my eyes was an astronomical number.
The sin that even the current lead could not commit was laid bare in numbers.
It was a number that could only be possible at the end of the second part.
“Child...!”
Even though I had prepared myself, I felt a suffocating feeling. No, now I realized that it wasn’t just a feeling—it was truly suffocating.
A desperate voice struck my ears.
“Don’t look.”
“......”
“Please don’t look.”
“......”
“Please, child...”
I realized belatedly.
Tesilid was holding me tightly in his arms.
Swooosh...
The rain outside grew fiercer.
The sound of rain hitting our world filled the silence, bringing back a fragment of a memory.
It had rained when I entered the Inhuman Forest with the rosary ring in hand, heading into the demonic territory.
The rain from the demonic realm seeped into the earth, raising sinister, evil beings to the surface.
The countless undead spirits that had been avoiding Tesilid were now clear to me.
“You must not look...”
The strength of his arms around me grew tighter.
Pressed tightly against him, I couldn’t look up at his face.
But did he know?
That on the brass crucifix over his shoulder, a ten-digit number was reflected.
The sin that could only be accumulated after living through the 100th cycle, his true identity was clear.
The one who had seen the end of the world—Lead.
Then, his exact cycle must be...
I suppressed the feeling that something might overflow and barely managed to voice my question from my throat.
“Could it be...”
“......”
“117th cycle?”
✠ How? How is this possible?
His mind seemed to go blank. It felt like his thought process had been paralyzed.
The strength left his arms, and the desperate resistance he had shown in his embrace became instantly powerless.
“How...?”
The clumsy sinner unknowingly confessed to his sin. He shut his mouth too late, but the words were already out.
Before I knew it, I had broken free from the kind of embrace that had been like a prison and turned to look at him.
This was a moment that terrified him.
Confusion, turmoil, anxiety. His sea-colored eyes trembled with emotions.
But, contrary to the ominous imagination he had painted, the woman in front of him did not despise him.
Through the hand that was covering her mouth, I saw the faint, greenish eyes, wavering like they were on the verge of tears. It was a look I had never seen before.
“Ah...”
A clear sigh echoed in the humid air.
Even though everything was in disarray, her face was still beautiful and loving, as she tried to confirm her guess again.
“I hoped it wasn’t true, oh, I hoped it wasn’t.”
“......”
“Really... you?”
“......”
Was it his turmoil that spread to her?
As I watched Tesilid’s trembling, her own tremors stopped.
The quiet gaze, now like a mirror, reflected her.
He lifted his hand and slowly wiped his face.
Slowly, very slowly, he tried to calm his thoughts.
- The correct cycle.
How did she know?
Had Lead told her?
To hear the answer, he had to give it first.
“How did you know?”
“......”
This time, it was a confession he spoke by his own will.
Although it was only a re-confirmation, Ayleth had to take a deep breath, gathering it in her chest.
After she barely collected herself, she looked at him and met his blue eyes.
“I actually saw it.”
“......What?”
“When I was in the territory of Abixis, getting rained on by the undead illusions.”
“......”
Was she talking about the countless victims he killed?
...The guess was off.
“There was one ghost, the only one who wasn’t looking at you but at me. That one...”
“......”
“That was you.”
The one person she killed.
It had the face of Tesilid Arzent.
