I Regressed and the Genre Changed

Chapter 29 – Pursuit (2)

As I stood in front of the mansion, the old gate began to creak open with a loud grating sound.

“You’ve come.”

“…Yeah.”

Passing through the gate and into the foyer, Diana was waiting for me as usual.

The only difference was that she was dressed in casual clothes rather than her usual knight attire.

At that moment, Merlin, who was following behind me, chuckled incredulously.

“You finally decided to open the door?”

“What brings you here?”

“Huh, do I need a reason to enter my own house?”

“I was simply following Master’s orders.”

Along with the command to guard the mansion, I also gave an instruction not to let anyone else enter.

But I hadn’t expected even the owner of the house, Merlin, to be turned away at the door.

Merlin glanced at Diana as if to say, “What is all this about?”

“Don’t you have any flexibility? If your master ordered you to die, would you just do it on the spot?”

“…? Is that not obvious?”

“…Let’s drop the subject.”

Well, that was Diana for you.

Looking at her consistently indifferent expression, the accumulated stress from the Imperial Palace felt trivial.

The conversation ended with Diana’s victory.

I directed the grumbling Merlin to a place with a suitable chair.

Since only the two of us lived in the mansion, there were naturally no maids or servants to attend to us.

Perhaps aware of this, Diana got up from her seat, saying she would brew some tea herself.

With Merlin finally at ease, she slowly brought up the matter at hand.

“What harvest did you bring back from the Imperial Palace?”

“Is that the business at hand?”

“Of course. I help you cross dimensions, and you take me to your world. That was the deal, wasn’t it?”

Merlin let out a playful laugh.

Well, that’s true. In the end, she and I have the same goal.

I opened my mouth slowly.

“There was a harvest. I met the Princess and confirmed the Rosary hanging around her neck with my own eyes.”

“And?”

I carefully took out the pendant handed to me by the Emperor.

It was a kind of identification as an alchemist affiliated with the Royal Family.

Along with the imperial crest, the name “Kyle Winfred” was engraved in cursive on the pendant.

With just this, entry to the Imperial Palace was a free pass.

“Where did you get this again?”

“You don’t need to know.”

“Well, fine. The process isn’t particularly important anyway.”

At those words, a sincere smile spread across Merlin’s lips.

“Well, that’s simple enough. When the opportunity arises, we just need to kidnap the Princess.”

If only it were that easy.

Rudine, who is already heavily guarded, already knows the fact that I’ve regressed.

To think I have to catch the cunning villainess off guard at the perfect timing, without revealing my intentions or strategies.

Even the worst games don’t have this kind of setup.

Merlin took out a bottle from her pocket.

Inside the bottle was a sparkling white powder densely packed.

“What’s this now?”

“Hypnotic incense. A specially made powder that induces powerful hallucinations and sleep upon inhalation. Even formidable monsters won’t be able to keep their wits about them after one whiff, right? Spray it in front of the Princess when the opportunity arises. You can even use it in a moment of crisis.”

Hypnotic incense.

The name was familiar.

It was one of the top-grade consumables that induce powerful status abnormalities.

With that amount, what would be the price?

I didn’t hesitate to grab the glass bottle containing the hypnotic incense.

Merlin spoke with a nonchalant voice, as if unimpressed.

“It’s not just a matter of obtaining the Relic. To cross dimensions, you ultimately have to maximize the potential of the Relic.”

“Potential?”

“Was that too difficult of a word? It simply means you have to activate the Relic you’ve obtained.”

“How do you do that?”

“Crossing dimensions ultimately means completely breaking the rules of the world, doesn’t it?”

Well, that’s true.

This is a world within a game where everyone’s destiny is predetermined.

The moment I cross dimensions, all scenarios will go awry, and at the same time, the world will plunge into a deep abyss.

“The moment you completely deviate from the flow of destiny determined by the world, causality will grab hold of your ankles. Crossing dimensions is essentially denying the causality of the world.”

“…”

“Don’t worry. The solution is simple.”

Merlin smirked.

After a moment, she spun an unbelievable tale.

“All you have to do is shatter destiny itself.”

“Shatter… destiny…?”

“That’s right.”

Merlin raised her finger quietly.

“The God who created this world.”

Her finger pointed towards the ceiling…

More precisely, towards the sky above.

“All you have to do is take out that damn bastard.”

A chilly sensation crept down my spine.

Simultaneously, a sinister chuckle escaped from Merlin’s lips.

Taking out a God? It couldn’t possibly be that simple.

However, Merlin’s expression remained remarkably nonchalant.

“Is that even possible?”

“No need to be startled. Even if it’s called a God, it’s just a conglomerate of causality, formed by the convergence of wandering beliefs and nonexistent egos.”

“…I see.”

The noon sunlight poured over Merlin.

Her thick, purple hair shimmered softly in the light.

I gazed blankly at Merlin.

She slowly rested her chin on her hand and fixed her gaze on me.

“It’s strange.”

Merlin shrugged casually as she murmured.

“Unidentified translucent letters floating in the air.”

“…?”

“It should be visible to you, an outsider.”

A gentle voice echoed softly.

“The truth of the one who kidnapped your soul.”

Her unyielding pupils flashed in my direction.

****

Ding—

The sound of bells announcing noon echoed through the air.

Isabel was passing through the corridors of the Imperial Palace.

Her steps seemed urgent, as if she were being chased by something.

Isabel stopped abruptly in front of a certain door after a moment.

Creak—

As she opened the door, the pouring sunlight pierced her eyes.

“Lady Isabel.”

A noble voice dispersed into Isabel’s ears.

Isabel turned her head in the direction of the voice.

Princess Rudine Eckhart.

She was sitting leisurely at the tea table, enjoying her tea time.

“…Greetings to the Sun of the Empire.”

“Please, have a seat. The tea tastes delightful.”

Isabel sat down with a troubled expression.

A displeased expression lingered on her face as she took her seat.

‘Why is this woman here again…’

Kyle lost consciousness.

When Isabel first heard the news, it felt as if her heart had shattered.

It was said that Kyle had collapsed, vomiting blood, and was in a state where all the blood in his body was twisted.

The imperial officials who were supposedly affiliated with the Imperial Palace said that Kyle’s condition had improved, but Isabel couldn’t feel relieved with just that.

That’s why she wanted to stay by Kyle’s side after he lost consciousness.

But…

— Won’t it go out now?

— Leave, if you don’t want to die.

Because of Luna’s stern warning while guarding Kyle’s side, even that was impossible.

At that time, Luna’s face was as lifeless as that of a half-dead person.

Isabel swallowed a sigh with a troubled heart.

As much as she wanted to leave immediately, she couldn’t refuse the tea time personally offered by the Princess of the Empire.

As she sipped her tea reluctantly.

“It seems like you’ve been through a lot mentally. Your complexion is unusually dark.”

Rudine expressed concern for Isabel’s well-being with a disdainful tone.

“Was Kyle’s collapse that shocking?”

Pfft.

A mocking laughter mixed with sarcasm burst from Rudine’s lips.

“Disgusting.”

“…I beg your pardon?”

“Disgusting. Lady Isabel, that’s you.”

Rudine poured out insults with a voice mixed with laughter as if she couldn’t resist the intrigue of the moment.

Isabel’s jaw trembled at the sudden turn of events.

“Are you worried about Kyle? Do you miss Kyle, who only had eyes for you blindly? Do you think you can eventually be forgiven if you persist a little longer?”

“You…”

“Lady Isabel, you killed him.”

Each word from Rudine exploded in Isabel’s ears.

“Without even attempting to have a proper conversation, exploiting Kyle until his innermost thoughts twisted and withered away due to him becoming accustomed to receiving your abuse. Caught up in your stubborn ego, convinced that only you yourself were right.”

“…!”

“You killed him.”

“Stop…”

“The only pillar of support for Kyle.”

“Please…”

“With your filthy hands, you directly killed Kyle.”

Stop—!

Isabel covered her ears with trembling hands.

Due to a mistake in controlling her strength, blood drops trickled down her tightly bitten lower lip, leaving traces.

“Oh, are you okay? Lady Isabel.”

Rudine’s lips were smiling.

However, Rudine’s eyes still shot daggers at Isabel.

“Do you regret it?”

“…”

“Do you want forgiveness? But it’s going to be tough. After today, the only thing connecting you and Kyle will be that ring you’re wearing.”

“…”

“If you were to die here, Kyle would think of you for a moment. But in the end, that’s it, isn’t it? Kyle will forget you. Be embraced by another woman. With new memories.”

Isabel breathed heavily.

Along with blood drops from her lips, tears trickled down from the corner of her eyes.

“But what about this?”

Rudine playfully brought her fingertip to her lips.

“A Divine Trial.”

“…”

“It was a one-sided annulment of the engagement, wasn’t it? Your intentions weren’t even reflected.”

“…!”

“If it hasn’t been a year since the annulment , we can hold a Divine Trial. Then, there will be more opportunities to connect with Kyle and convey your sincerity, right?”

“…Ah.”

“I’ll help you. Don’t you feel my heart aching when I see Lady Isabel’s sincerity?”

Isabel clutched her shattered sanity and barely lifted her head.

Under the bright lights, Rudine’s hair shimmered like melted gold.

After a moment, Isabel’s tightly closed lips parted.

“…You…”