Left all alone, Nigel was overwhelmed by unbearable anxiety. No matter how hard he pounded on the door, it refused to open. In the end, he had no choice but to turn and face the room beyond.
Despite the enormous size of the door, the interior was surprisingly small. The ceiling soared—three or four stories high—but the room itself was only about the size of Nigel’s bedroom. And that small space was crammed with unfamiliar contraptions, leaving almost no room to move. At the far end of the room, something pitch-black was placed—something that looked eerily like a coffin.
Most likely, the coffin containing Etna.
Nigel clasped his trembling hands together to calm himself.
He wanted to run. He’d come all this way to confirm the truth—but now, face-to-face with it, he had no courage left. The room itself radiated fear. His body, worn down from days of grueling travel, screamed with fatigue. Everything—his mind, his body, his will—was at the breaking point.
Normally, Inas would be the one to help calm him… Shameless as it was after running away from him, Nigel found himself longing to see Inas again. But it was Inas who had tried to keep Etna hidden. If he were here now, Nigel might never have had the chance to see his brother. And he might have been furious with Nigel for coming here in the first place.
Still, even with Inas gone, just thinking rationally helped slow his trembling. He squeezed his eyes shut and slapped his own cheeks, then took a deep breath and walked forward until he stood before the coffin.
The pitch-black coffin lay wide open, as if determined not to give him time to hesitate. Slowly, Nigel leaned in to look inside.
Etna was lying there, peacefully asleep.
Exactly as he appeared in his portrait. He didn’t resemble Nigel much at a glance, but if you looked closely, the familial resemblance was there—the same handsome features, and the same sturdy frame befitting the once-renowned prodigy swordsman. He looked just like he had in life… save for his skin, which was unnaturally pale, drained of all color.
Nigel instinctively took a step back.
The moment he saw his brother’s face, a chill rippled from the top of his head down to his toes. It was definitely Etna. The brother he loved more than anything… and yet something felt off. As if he were staring at something that should never exist. Was it because he was looking at a corpse?
“Etna…”
Unable to believe what he was seeing, Nigel called out his name before he realized it.
And in response, Etna slowly opened his eyes.
“…”
Etna’s eyes were strange. Unlike in life, they now glowed a deep, blood-red hue. That sickly color—like something soaked in death—flickered in the darkness before settling on Nigel. His eyes widened in surprise, then narrowed slightly.
“Nigel?”
With a bright smile, Etna called out to him. Nigel instinctively took another step back. Something was wrong. The man in front of him—his brother, his beloved family—was not like this.
“You… is it really you?”
“Yeah, Nigel. It’s me.”
Etna responded with a warm smile. Nigel stood frozen, lips trembling.
There was an ominous energy coursing through Etna’s body. His shadow twisted and writhed beneath him, and his eyes gleamed in the darkness like sulfurous fire—unnatural, inhuman.
Everything about him reeked of dread.
“My sweet little brother. Of course you’re confused. I don’t blame you if you don’t trust me…”
But his voice—gentle, loving—soothed Nigel, as if it broke his heart to see his younger brother scared.
That darkness clouded Nigel’s vision… and yet, as he continued to watch, he became certain. No matter how ominous, no matter how twisted, this was his brother. Etna was truly here.
“Brother…”
Nigel murmured, his eyes flicking to the Character Info Window that had appeared beside Etna.
Character Info Window
Name: Etna Roth Montstein
Class: (Former) Heir to the Magnus Duchy
Ghost Knight
Level: 97
HP: 16,553 / 16,553
MP: 5,428 / 5,428
< View Stats >
< View Skills >
The Info Window never lied. Not even Inas, powerful beyond anyone else in this world, could conceal the truth from it. It exposed every detail.
This was truth. Which meant the man before him—without a doubt—was Etna Roth Montstein. His brother. Even if he was now a Ghost Knight.
Etna had been Nigel’s only family.
“Brother!”
Grief and yearning overwhelmed him in a flood, crashing over him like centuries’ worth of longing. He was overcome—sorrow and joy colliding in his chest.
His brother… it was really him. The one he had missed so dearly. The family he’d lost to time.
Nigel threw himself into Etna’s arms. Surprised at first, Etna soon smiled brightly and embraced him tightly.
“You’ve grown so much, Nigel. You’ve gotten heavy.”
“Brother, I…”
“I know. It’s been hard, hasn’t it?”
“Mm…” Nigel nodded and buried his face into Etna’s chest like a child. Cold as a corpse, yet to Nigel, it felt warmer than anything else in the world.
“It’s okay now.”
“…Yeah.”
“I’ll help you. Don’t worry, Nigel.”
His voice was full of affection and tenderness. It was everything Nigel had yearned for. He clung even tighter to Etna. This was warmth. This was comfort. He wanted to collapse into it completely…
“Watch out, Nigel!”
Etna shouted as he yanked Nigel around, shielding him with his body. In the fraction of a second Nigel had failed to notice, Etna had thrown himself in the way—and Nigel was flung to the floor.
“…Ah.”
Nigel didn’t even realize what had happened until a moment later. Still dazed, he raised his head in confusion.
Etna’s body now had a massive hole through it.
It was large enough to see straight through him. But strangely, there was no blood or flesh visible—only a swirling black mist. He no longer looked human. Of course not. Etna was no longer human; he was a Ghost Knight. Still, the grotesque sight was enough to make any living person recoil. And yet—
“Nigel… run…”
Even as he died, even as that grotesque body unraveled, he still worried for Nigel.
HP: 0 / 16,553
The Info Window instantly dropped to zero. And before Nigel could even respond, Etna’s body began to crumble like dust.
“Brother…!”
Etna tried to speak, lips moving as if to say something final—but no sound came. Without ever getting to say goodbye, his body vanished without a trace.
Nigel collapsed to his knees where Etna had just stood, trembling as he glared at the one who had attacked his brother.
There was no need to ask who it was. Only one person possessed the kind of attack power that could wipe out 15,000 HP in a single blow.
“Inas…”
After days of absence, Inas Idenbach had finally appeared.
He looked utterly unfazed, as if he hadn’t just murdered Nigel’s brother. Calm, composed—just like the last time Nigel saw him at the manor. But his appearance was anything but ordinary.
His black uniform was drenched in blood. With every step he took, fresh drops fell to the floor.
Whose blood was it?
Nigel didn’t want to guess—but he already knew. Only two people remained in this temple now: Nigel and Inas.
But knowing and accepting were two different things. As shock gripped him, Nigel’s breath turned ragged. Inas approached with a slight frown.
“Nigel. Breathe—”
“This is your fault!”
Nigel couldn’t hold it in anymore. He shouted at the top of his lungs. Tears, which had briefly stopped in his shock, began to pour down again—soaking his cheeks, heavier with every drop of despair.
The shameless murderer tilted his head, as if confused.
“What’s the problem, Nigel?”
“You… how can you be so calm… You killed him!”
“Killed?”
Inas’s voice took on an openly mocking tone. He reached out and cupped Nigel’s cheeks with both hands. Held fast, Nigel was forced to meet his eyes—burning with a wild, devouring intensity.
“That was a corpse from the start, Nigel.”
“He was still my brother!”
“And so what? That doesn’t mean anything.”
Inas whispered and pulled Nigel into his arms. Nigel, powerless, was dragged close like a ragdoll. He tried to push him away, but Inas’s strength was overwhelming.
His body was warm—so warm it soothed Nigel’s exhausted frame. But unlike Etna’s cold yet gentle embrace, Inas’s warmth filled him with a sickening chill.
“That thing was nothing. Just a walking corpse. And it always reverts to a corpse again, every time. Unless you wake it up. But even then… it’s still just a corpse.”
“Are you saying that wasn’t the real Etna?”
Nigel’s voice was sharp with accusation. For a moment, Inas didn’t reply.
“…He’s a threat to you.”
“I asked if that was Etna or not.”
Inas fell silent.
He had promised never to lie to Nigel. And now, by not answering, he’d given his answer. That Ghost Knight—whatever he was—had truly been Etna.
As Nigel stood frozen with rage and shock, Inas gently patted his back.
“Don’t worry about that thing.”
“Inas…”
“I’m the only reality you have. Don’t you see that?”
Nigel couldn’t say a word. He had no strength, no reason left to reply. A better lie—he would’ve accepted that. But Inas didn’t even bother to offer one. He simply presented the truth, without apology.
Like a puppet with its strings cut, Nigel stood motionless. Inas lifted him in his arms and carried him over to the coffin—sat him right at the edge, where Etna had lain moments before. The cold detachment of the gesture made Nigel shudder.
“Nigel.”
Kneeling formally before him, Inas offered Nigel a sword.
It was jet-black, so dark it seemed to absorb the light. Faint wisps of malice rose from its blade like steam, and embedded in the seamless hilt was a grotesque gem that resembled an eyeball. Nigel had never seen it before, and yet… it felt familiar. As he stared, Inas smiled.
“You said you wanted it, didn’t you?”
Only then did Nigel focus on the weapon. A window appeared as he concentrated.
Cursed Sword – Berta
Crafted from the bones of Glarus, a Relic forged to be awakened by Edelta’s successor. Contains part of Edelta’s consciousness and power. Possesses strength enough to cut down anything in its path. Also serves as a key to resurrect the evil god Edelta.
ATK: 11,323 + 30% of wielder’s STR
Effect 1: Against divine beings, inflicts damage equal to 10% of target’s HP.
Effect 2: First strike against creatures reduces target HP to 1 and always hits.
“A gift,” Inas said.
Nigel took the sword like a man possessed. He hadn’t noticed at first, but the blade was soaked in blood. Schumacher’s, perhaps. Maybe Kay’s. Maybe… even Etna’s.
And now Inas dared to call this thing a gift?
Rage flooded Nigel’s mind like a white-hot wave. Reset or no reset, to murder his brother so casually and offer a cursed sword as some sort of present?
That shameless face, smiling with pure joy, made Nigel nauseous. He clenched the sword tight. It shimmered darkly, soaked in countless deaths.
“Nigel.”
Inas was a brilliant swordsman, even without his stats. He could read a novice’s movements instantly. Maybe he already knew what Nigel was about to do.
But he did nothing to stop it.
So Nigel drove the sword into him.
“…”
Infused with divine power, the blade sliced effortlessly through flesh and bone. The sensation was terrifyingly vivid—Nigel trembled at how clearly he felt it, even though he was the one who had attacked.
And yet, Inas remained just as calm as before. Were it not for the faint grimace and the absence of blood, Nigel might have thought the sword had missed.
HP: 1 / 91,420,291
The HP bar had plummeted. Down to one. A pitiful, almost laughable number.
“Did you want to kill me that badly?”
Inas asked, sounding more disappointed than upset. As if Nigel had wasted his time. That tone—that patronizing tone—made Nigel grit his teeth.
“You killed me too.”
“So you think it’s fair to kill me back?”
Inas’s calm retort made Nigel’s hands tremble on the hilt. Nothing this man said ever sat right.
“Yeah. Is that unfair to you?”
“No.”
“Then what? You scared to die?”
“No. Not at all, Nigel…”
His voice was gentle again—soothing, like trying to comfort a sulking child. Nigel couldn’t stand it. He yanked the sword free.
With 90 million HP still remaining, Inas had once seemed like a monster, towering above him. But now, he staggered, clearly in pain.
Inas was right. Etna was just a corpse, from a certain perspective. Even if he were revived, he’d become a corpse again in the next loop. And he had called him a threat—reviving him couldn’t possibly end well.
But none of that justified Inas killing him like trash.
Not this time. Not this loop.
He wouldn’t die anyway. He’d come back. Inas had killed Nigel many times already.
Nigel had more than enough reason to kill him.
“Then just die.”
He plunged the sword back in.
HP: 0 / 91,420,291
The moment of Inas’s death unfolded with cold precision. And through the numbers, through the kill, Nigel saw nothing but love and tenderness in Inas’s face—right up until the end.
“I… Inas…”
Inas’s lips moved, but only a hollow breath escaped. Then his body collapsed. The whole scene replayed in slow motion in Nigel’s eyes.
A chapter of contradiction had closed. And once again, the world went dark.
***
“Haaah…!”
Nigel woke with a gasp, wracked by pain. It felt like waking from a dream—but he knew all too well. He had come back. From the future to the past.
It would’ve been easier if he’d forgotten everything.
With a sigh, he shoved his messy hair back, irritated. If only it had all been a dream—but no. This was real. Around him was the familiar interior of his room—
“…”
No. Not familiar.
Panicked, Nigel tried to sit up, but dizziness overtook him and he collapsed back into the soft bed. Even through the nausea and the blurred vision, he scanned the room frantically.
It was familiar—but not. A place he had once known… but no longer did.
“…”
He looked down at his hand. Small, pale, and delicate—peeking out from the lace-trimmed pajamas he hadn’t worn in years.
Trembling, Nigel got out of bed and staggered to the mirror.
A small child stared back at him. Golden-blonde hair with the faintest tint of red, deathly pale skin, a frail, thin frame that looked like it would collapse from a single touch.
The reflection staring back at him was unmistakable.
It was Nigel—twelve years old.
