Even a painless death still leaves pain behind.
Nigel cried until he physically collapsed from exhaustion.
Before, he’d held back his tears for the sake of his future as Duke—but now, there was no need to restrain himself.
In that moment, even guilt didn’t register. There was only grief. He thought of nothing else, felt nothing else. He was simply Ruder’s son, mourning his father.
All that crying left him utterly drained. He barely held it together until the funeral was over, and the moment it ended, he fell ill.
Ironically, being physically sick dulled the pain of loss. The grief was immense, but Nigel had long since prepared himself for Ruder’s death. Accepting it wasn’t hard.
Inas stayed by his side the entire time, diligently nursing him back to health.
Something about his unbothered face stirred Nigel’s irritation.
Once his fever dropped and he was back to normal, Nigel lashed out at the one still sitting beside him.
“So I guess you’re happy now that Father’s gone. Nothing left holding you back, huh?”
“Why would I have ever needed to watch my step around Lord Ruder?”
“You’re literally blocking Schumacher from seeing me right now.”
“……”
Schumacher had arrived three days after Nigel had returned to the estate upon hearing of his father’s condition.
At the time, he’d come in without a fuss and comforted Nigel. But now, he was nowhere to be seen.
It wasn’t hard to figure out what had happened.
“I’ll let you see him after you’ve eaten and regained your strength.”
“You didn’t do anything to him… right?”
“I didn’t lay a finger on him. I simply asked him to join today’s battle.”
Nigel’s eyes flared. He nearly snapped at Inas for doing something so reckless—but ultimately held back.
He trusted Schumacher’s skill.
Aside from the extraordinary anomaly that was Inas, Schumacher was the strongest swordsman alive.
As long as some freakish disaster didn’t occur, nothing bad would happen to him.
Even so, the fact that Inas had barred Schumacher’s entry while Nigel said nothing about it didn’t seem to sit well with him. His expression twisted.
“I thought you’d be demanding I let him in.”
“I’m not that petty.”
“You’ve got that ‘I trust someone else’ look on your face. It’s irritating. I’m the only knight you have.”
“You’re not my knight. You’re just a Duke.”
At that, Inas’s eyes darkened.
Sensing danger, Nigel instinctively pulled back, but Inas quickly reined it in. He lowered his head with a pitiful expression.
“You abandoned me, so I just found another way to stay close to you… Please don’t be angry.”
The most powerful man Nigel knew was suddenly speaking in the softest voice imaginable. It tugged at something inside him. But Nigel didn’t let himself be swayed completely.
He’d seen something like this in the 3000s loop.
Inas had once helped Schumacher go berserk—ten times worse than normal—and together they had turned the world into a living hell. Even then, Inas had begged in front of Nigel, pretending to be pitiful.
Falling for that face was just plain stupid.
Nigel swore to himself again and again.
“Cut the act. And stop blocking Schumacher. I don’t care what you say—you’re not my knight.”
“……”
Inas fell silent.
Nigel regretted provoking him—but after a moment, Inas quietly nodded.
“As you wish. Then do as you please, Nigel.”
“Good.”
He looked angry, but Nigel figured it didn’t matter as long as he got what he wanted.
Then he caught Inas’s glare—it was sharp and bitter.
“Fine. Do as you please. Abandon me. Drag around some other guy like he’s your knight. Learn spatial magic from someone else. Laugh with someone else. Think about someone else. Call me a pervert but let them touch you however they like. Keep insisting I’m not your knight. Just do whatever the hell you want.”
Without giving Nigel a chance to respond, Inas spun on his heel and stormed out of the room.
Left alone, Nigel blinked, stunned.
What the hell was that? Was he seriously… sulking? No way. He’s too old to be sulking, right?
But nothing else explained that behavior.
Nigel went over the rant in his head, piece by piece. Some of it made him feel a little guilty.
But hey, Inas wasn’t innocent either. He had plenty to apologize for.
Assuming Inas would reflect on his own, Nigel gave up on following after him and lay back down.
***
True to sulky form, Inas didn’t return.
Nigel heard that monsters were swarming again in Intusnica, so the knight order was stationed at the Pagan Mountains—and Inas was there with them.
But if he really wanted to come, he could’ve teleported in instantly.
Should I apologize first?
While he was still mulling over what to do, Schumacher returned—almost as if he were switching shifts with Inas—and took his place at Nigel’s side.
Schumacher was visibly concerned about how Nigel holed himself up in the manor.
Watching him quietly linger nearby made Inas’s worries seem even more absurd.
Schumacher’s demeanor was exactly what you’d expect from a caring uncle—nothing more, nothing less.
“You should go out, have some fun, maybe find someone to date.”
“Even my father didn’t nag me this much…”
As soon as Ruder was mentioned, Nigel teared up again.
Schumacher clicked his tongue and tossed him some outdoor clothes.
“You’re at the age where you should be out living. Moving around helps clear your head.”
“There’s a war going on. Isn’t this a bit too laid-back?”
“That Duke of yours is so competent, there’s not much left to worry about. So quit moping and go out.”
Nigel argued that staying still was his way of resting, that being idle helped him recover. But energetic Schumacher couldn’t relate to that kind of recovery at all.
Eventually, Nigel gave in and started getting ready to go out.
While Solne Academy was currently on break, he still had responsibilities with being Divine Messenger.
Inas’s Achievements weren’t fully completed yet.
Using the excuse of changing clothes, Nigel dismissed Schumacher and activated his skill—Foresight.
The frontline was holding well, and the estate was peaceful. He didn’t expect any significant visions…
“…Huh?”
What appeared surprised him.
There were more than expected—and one of them was something he had never seen before.
List of Possible Futures (Foresight)
• A thief sneaking into the estate
• Monster incursion
• ■■■ ■■ ■■
One of the entries was entirely redacted in garbled characters.
Sometimes he’d seen parts of visions blurred, but never the entire thing.
After some deliberation, Nigel decided to look into the Monster Incursion first. If a monster were to breach a residential area, it could lead to casualties. The potential thief at the estate also worried him—but checking all three visions within 24 hours would inflict a severe status penalty.
He could only pick two.
“Schumacher. A monster might show up in the city.”
“Let me guess—you had another vision instead of resting?”
“What choice do I have? If I can prevent a tragedy, it’s worth it.”
Though he looked displeased, Schumacher accepted it and nodded.
“Well, of course. Let’s notify the city guard right away.”
“Yeah. Tell them to prepare for anything.”
Most of the Duchy’s forces were concentrated at the Pagan Mountains, but the estate always kept a standing defense force.
Nigel notified them immediately, and then set out with Schumacher.
Montstein City looked completely peaceful.
Given how tense people usually got during large-scale battles, it was almost eerie how normal everything felt.
Black mourning flags for Ruder were displayed all over town.
Nigel clenched his fists at the sight of black drapes hung between golden arrow markers.
It had only been a few days since Ruder’s death. He couldn’t allow the city his father had protected all his life to fall into chaos. Even if he had relinquished the title of Duke, even if he was no longer obligated to defend it… he was still a Montstein.
This was still his duty.
Even with all his resolve, nothing seemed out of place as he followed the golden arrow.
The city remained calm.
“…Ah.”
He let out a quiet sigh.
He’d expected something, but the arrow just led to a sturdy section of the city wall. Nothing here looked vulnerable—no sign of monster activity.
Yet according to Foresight, this was where the monster would breach the city.
“This is weird.”
“What is?”
“A monster’s going to break into the city. Through here, I think…”
Nigel trailed off, and Schumacher’s face turned serious.
The arrow only pointed to where something would happen, not how.
If there were no current signs of intrusion, it meant the event would be caused by an external force. And if monsters were to appear in the center of a heavily defended city… there was only one possibility.
“Someone is letting them in deliberately?”
“Yeah. That’s what it looks like.”
Hard to believe—but the logic was airtight. Someone was planning to let monsters into the city on purpose.
“We should get troops stationed here immediately.”
Nigel agreed.
Now that the vision had locked in, they couldn’t afford to waste time. The only way to prevent casualties was to act fast.
Even after the troops were deployed, the golden arrow remained fixed on the same location. The probability hadn’t changed.
Nigel scanned the area with a heavy heart. All the elite guards had been summoned here. If it had been a normal monster, it should’ve already been resolved. Preventing the event was one of the best ways to counter Foresight.
So who the hell would still try to launch an attack? What method would they use to bypass such defenses?
For a brief moment, Nigel considered Glarus—then immediately dismissed it.
Glarus had been dormant for a long time, and even then, its nature wouldn’t allow something like this.
Then who was it?
Even combing through previous timelines didn’t give him a clue. If the event had shown up in Foresight, it meant something similar had happened in a past loop—just one Nigel wasn’t aware of.
“I’ll check the other one.”
Nigel selected the mysterious vision—<■■■ ■■ ■■>.
Another golden arrow appeared, this time pointing inward—toward the heart of the city.
Were the two visions connected somehow?
His gut said yes. There was no proof, but Nigel had learned to trust his instincts. After seven years of peace, something was beginning to stir.
“Let’s head that way.”
Worried that Nigel might suggest leaving the city altogether, Schumacher quickly nodded.
A few guards were assigned to accompany them, just in case. With a small entourage in tow, Nigel followed the golden arrow.
Passersby glanced at the unusually high number of soldiers with mild curiosity, but no one seemed alarmed.
For such a peaceful city, the idea of monster incursions or unreadable visions seemed impossible. Still, Nigel’s heart pounded with unease.
Should he call for Inas?
He hesitated. But if he waited, this vision might play out unchecked—and lead to catastrophe. He had to act.
“You’re really going in there?”
The guards hesitated as they opened the underground drainage tunnel.
The musty smell made him wrinkle his nose, but Nigel didn’t stop. He only came to a halt in front of a half-collapsed structure—one that seemed meaningless at a glance. But Nigel knew it was an entrance to Montstein’s hidden underground passageways.
He glanced behind at the guards. If he’d known, he would’ve brought fewer people. These secret paths were top-level classified information. He couldn’t afford to expose them.
“Is something wrong, Lord Nigel?”
“…No.”
Nigel frowned.
The golden arrow blinked, embedded in the wall—almost as if telling him to hurry up and follow.
And then, a stark white hand pierced through the wall.
Scarred and hardened from wielding weapons, it didn’t look like a hallucination.
The hand grabbed him. Cold, colorless skin clenched around his wrist with unshakable strength. Before he could scream or resist, darkness spilled out from the hand, engulfing everything.
The world turned blacker than night. Nigel fell into a void. No matter how many times he blinked, there was no light. He couldn’t even see the pale hand that had dragged him in.
“Schumacher?”
He called out, but no answer came. Only his voice echoed cleanly. Unlike the tunnel’s acoustics, this place was unnaturally still. He had no clue where he’d been taken.
“…Inas.”
He regretted not calling him.
Even after pushing Inas away, he wanted to see him now. But the man who always came running was nowhere to be found. Instead, a red arrow appeared.
The crimson arrow pointed at someone directly tied to this vision. Beneath it, a man emerged—soundless. Even in the overwhelming darkness, the man’s features were vividly clear.
A tall, broad-shouldered figure.
He must have been the one who dragged Nigel here.
The man raised the same white hand and slowly pulled back his hood. Crimson hair tumbled out—wild, unkempt. Sharp eyes glowed faintly blue in the dark. A completely unfamiliar face… yet strangely familiar.
Nigel tried to open the Character Info Window. But the screen, which should’ve popped up instantly, lagged.
“Been a while, Duke.”
The man greeted him casually.
“Ah, wait. You’re not the Duke this time, are you?”
He spoke words no one else should know in this timeline.
Nigel’s eyes widened as he scrutinized the man’s face—and finally remembered.
“…Kay?”
As soon as Nigel realized his identity, the screen finished loading.
Character Info Window
▷ Protagonist
Name: Kay
Class: ?
Level: ■■■■
HP: ■■■■■■ / ■■■■■■
MP: ■■■■■■ / ■■■■■■
< View Stats >
< View Skills >
Everything was glitched. No one else had ever caused this before.
As Nigel stared at the corrupted display, Kay grinned brightly from behind it.
