Kay, who had been leading the way, came to a sudden halt.
“So, which way do we go from here?”
His tone was so cheerful, it was hard to believe he was the same person who’d been spewing cruel words just moments ago.
“This way.”
Nigel snapped out of it and quickly moved ahead to take the lead. He clearly didn’t know the route in detail.
Well, it made sense. The path near the cemetery led to the Pagan Mountains, and if escape was the goal, Kay probably wouldn’t have revealed it. Even though monsters didn’t invade that area, Nigel hesitated for a moment—was it really okay to show Kay this path now? But in the end, it didn’t matter. Even if he tried to exploit it, nothing major would happen in this endless Time Loop. Whether monsters or people came through, it wouldn’t make much of a difference.
The road from the outskirts of the city into its inner depths was long. Having to walk it in silence only made it feel even longer.
At last, they arrived and emerged from the passage to find themselves facing the cemetery. It was the burial ground for direct descendants of the Magnus family line. While guards were always stationed there, they only kept watch near the lone entrance—meaning the two, already inside, went unnoticed.
Etna’s grave, relatively new, wasn’t far and was easy to find. Nigel had come here regularly. He passed his father’s grave, which tugged at his heart, and stood before Etna’s.
His brother’s grave.
Beneath the pristine white headstone lay a bouquet of flowers. Though he’d died long ago, time had softened everything into quiet stillness. It was a deeply strange feeling—he was here to dig up the grave of his one and only, irreplaceable brother.
Nigel hesitated. He wanted to confirm his brother’s death, yet didn’t want to. The dead deserved their rest… but more than anything, he wanted to see him. His brother. A name he hadn’t spoken in so long. The most precious member of Nigel’s family.
If he could just see his brother again, he felt like everything could be solved. He wanted to believe in him, to lean on him without question. Shameless, really—Etna had been dead for so long that Nigel hadn’t even thought of him much lately.
“Shall we start digging?”
After glancing around once, Kay stepped right up to the grave and began shoveling. He’d brought the shovel with him from the previous village, and it didn’t take long before the coffin came into view. Watching as Kay cleared the last of the dirt from the lid, Nigel’s throat grew painfully dry with anxiety and dread.
Finally, the coffin was fully exposed. Nigel’s eyes went straight to its edges. It should’ve been nailed shut—but there were no traces of nails at all.
“See? It’s already been opened.”
“Urgh…”
Nigel staggered, quickly covering his mouth. The nausea surged up violently, and he felt like he’d vomit everything then and there. But even though it was empty, he couldn’t bear to defile his brother’s grave, so he held it back and straightened up with effort.
Just as he feared—the coffin was empty.
Assuming Inas was telling the truth, the point at which he reset time was when he first met Nigel—in the year 272 of the Kingdom calendar. But Etna had died in 271.
Inas was brought in after Etna’s death because Nigel couldn’t manage the duties of Duke alone. So, Inas couldn’t have been involved in Etna’s death. That realization brought Nigel a strange sense of both relief and regret. Even if time reset to 272, there was no way to prevent his brother’s death.
A wave of rage surged toward Odelrat, the evil god Nigel had never once blamed until now. The fury of knowing someone dared touch his precious brother made his blood boil. Ignoring the hand Kay offered him, Nigel stepped forward on his own.
“You okay?”
Nigel didn’t answer, too furious to speak. Kay just shook his head and followed silently. The two of them walked a long way through the hidden passage, heading for the mountains.
Once they reached the base, Kay took the lead again. The steep, unmarked terrain was brutal, but Nigel didn’t complain. After ten days of leveling up, he still had the stamina to climb. He slipped and stumbled several times, but luckily avoided serious injury—and at last, they arrived at the temple.
“This is… the Temple of Eternity?”
“Yeah.”
The Temple of Eternity looked nothing like what Nigel had imagined. Despite the grandeur of its name, the entrance was pitiful. What was once a pristine white structure had faded to a dingy yellow from years of neglect. The entryway, already crumbling and dangerously unstable, was buried under twisted, overgrown trees.
“Let’s go in.”
“…Alright.”
It looked like it might collapse at any moment, but Kay and his team had made it out after fighting here, so it probably wouldn’t fall right now. Still, the place felt so unstable that Nigel hesitated as he entered. A damp, moldy stench hit him immediately, and the inside was dark and wet. Holding Kay’s hand tightly, he walked, anxiety building as the passage narrowed more and more.
How much longer did they have to walk this way? The path branched into dozens of tunnels, and in this pitch-black space, Nigel couldn’t help but wonder if Kay really knew where he was going.
“We’re almost there.”
Kay had sensed Nigel’s anxiety.
“Don’t worry—you’ll be surprised soon…”
His words trailed off into a strange, echoing murmur, like they were being spoken through a long wooden tube. At the same time, a strange sensation brushed against Nigel’s body.
And then—everything lit up in an instant.
Nigel looked around, stunned. The damp, mold-ridden corridor had vanished. In its place stood a vast, brilliantly white interior.
The space was so massive it felt impossible. The architecture, ancient in style, glittered with gold and gems, carved in stunning detail. Not just one or two jewels—hundreds, maybe thousands—covered the surfaces, reflecting dazzling light everywhere. Even Nigel, who had experienced all manner of worldly luxury, felt overwhelmed.
“What is this place…?”
“Cool, huh? You have to come in through the correct path to break the barrier.”
“It’s impressive, sure… but don’t you think it’s a bit much? Why go this far?”
“I think it was originally commissioned by Edelta. He was an evil god who tormented humanity, so restraint wasn’t really his thing.”
That made sense. Before Edelta was sealed, he had made extreme demands of his followers. Though really, they weren’t followers—they were more like humans being exploited and dominated by a god.
Whoever built this temple had done so under Edelta’s command. The ancestors of those living in Montstein today must have been among them. Nigel’s own ancestors had eventually risen up in rebellion. Hearing Kay explain all this, Nigel found himself sighing more than marveling.
“Alright, let’s keep mov—”
BOOM!
A deafening blast rocked the temple. The massive stone-and-metal structure trembled like paper, and an ear-splitting roar tore through the air.
At the same time, the pure white walls of the temple began to turn pitch black, as if corrupted by some monstrous evil. The dazzling gems bled crimson, their glow now somber and sickly.
The violent shaking didn’t stop for a long while.
“Looks like Schumacher successfully gathered the Relic Fragments.”
Kay spoke nonchalantly, and Nigel scowled.
“Is that… safe? You said he’d lose his sanity.”
“He did. He’s completely out of his mind right now—he probably can’t even walk straight. But he’ll adapt fast. That’s why we need to move. Come on.”
Kay urged him, and Nigel rose with difficulty. After the mountain climb and the quake, he was completely drained—his body looked fine on the outside, but he was a wreck inside. Still, as Kay said, now wasn’t the time to rest. Even if Schumacher had likely lost his sense of self by now…
Nigel leaned on Kay for support and stood. The air inside the temple grew heavier with an ominous tension. He couldn’t explain it, but his instincts screamed at him. It felt like the calm before the storm. With no one left to stop him, Schumacher would soon begin his rampage to conquer the world and awaken Edelta.
“We’re almost there.”
Kay’s upbeat voice felt utterly out of place. In the middle of this suffocating foreboding, he alone seemed excited. At the end of the narrowing path stood a massive black door that reached the ceiling.
“Why did you help me?”
Nigel finally asked, just before they reached the door. He figured Kay might give a real answer now. Kay turned to him with a broad grin.
“Why do you think?”
“To drive a wedge between me and Inas?”
“Hmm. Not wrong, but not quite right either.”
Kay’s smile twisted ominously as his eyes flashed with something dark.
“Did you know? Lana was threatened a lot. I liked her—most of the time, anyway—and that became my weakness. I don’t really know what liking someone feels like anymore, though…”
“Why not?”
“Good question. I don’t remember. Everything just feels… hollow now.”
He scratched his cheek awkwardly.
“Anyway. Villains never go after the protagonist—they go for the protagonist’s lover. I get why now. No power, more efficient.”
“…”
“Of course, I’m not the protagonist or anything. If Inas Idenbach is the protagonist, I’m just some extra waiting to get crushed.”
“No, you’re—”
Nigel started to argue, then fell silent. He understood too well why Kay thought that way.
A world where only Inas remembers everything.
Kay had manipulated even a final boss like Schumacher using only memories, but Inas had amassed both memory and power, reigning like an absolute being. Even Nigel couldn’t help but feel like Inas was the protagonist of this world.
“There might not be a second chance. Hurting you is the most effective way.”
“Kay…”
“Sorry about this. You’ve mostly been good to me. I liked you too, honestly. But I hated him more.”
Kay’s expression was unreadable—not relieved, not regretful. Just… strange.
“But everything I said is true. Don’t trust Inas Idenbach.”
If betrayal had been his plan all along, he should’ve played the villain to the end. But Kay’s words carried a trace of genuine concern, only adding to Nigel’s confusion.
Then Kay yanked Nigel’s wrist up. At some point, he’d drawn a silver dagger and slashed Nigel’s palm.
“Urgh…”
Nigel’s blood hit the floor and began to writhe, seeping downward like it had a will of its own. It slithered up the black door, forming a tangled web of glowing red veins.
The door responded to the blood—slowly, it began to open. Kay gave Nigel a hard shove inside.
“Sorry in advance. I know exactly what that guy’s gonna do…”
“Kay—”
“It’s going to hurt. A lot, Nigel.”
With those ominous words and a smile, Kay shut the door.
