* * *
At Ashard’s firm voice, the servants bowed their heads all at once.
Since nothing had been confirmed as fact yet, there was no harm in being careful.
Perhaps because the estate was so far away, the road to the temple felt short.
A few priests were waiting outside, as if they knew they would come straight away.
They could not hide their dismay upon seeing Ashard following behind, but they quickly composed their expressions and offered a greeting.
“Thank you for accepting the invitation, Count Nefendis.”
The smile that had lingered momentarily vanished when their eyes fell on Ashard.
It was clear from their expression that Ashard’s visit was not wanted.
“Count, you can go this way.”
The finger pointed toward the largest hall inside the temple.
The priest’s unflinching gaze indicated that this was the direction Eren should take.
“His Excellency Duke Fridit will wait here.”
The direction Ashard was guided toward was the exact opposite.
The priest’s expression was firm, as if he had read Eren’s unspoken question about whether they could go together and answered it definitively.
Eren briefly looked at Ashard’s face, then followed behind the priest who began to walk to guide him.
The vastness suggested that there was no living creature around.
Even aside from the priest guiding the way, there were no other priests walking freely.
It could only be interpreted as entry being deliberately forbidden, which made Eren feel uneasy, but he did not express his doubts and simply followed the priest.
As if they had reached their destination, the priest’s steps slowly came to a halt.
Stopping at the door of the hall, he simply turned his body and stretched out his hand, as if he could not enter any further.
“Please enter. He is waiting for you.”
As if confirming his words, the door slowly began to open, even though no one from the outside or the inside had opened it.
Eren pressed his lips into a tight line at the ominous energy he felt from within.
As he took a step inside, his breathing scattered heavily.
A feeling that all the air had disappeared, making it impossible to breathe properly, spread through his body.
Despite this, Eren did not stop walking.
Or more accurately, he could not stop. He was only able to move forward slowly, without his own will.
Walking down the long corridor, when he reached the far end of the hall, a figure that hadn’t been there moments ago began to appear faintly.
A beautiful, fair-skinned man with pink hair.
His gaze momentarily turned toward Eren, and he smiled shyly, covering his mouth with his sleeve.
[Welcome. I have been waiting for you.]
It was the same voice he had heard at the hunting competition.
A voice that echoed in his mind, not heard through his ears.
There was no doubt that it was the same.
[I have been looking forward to meeting you, Stranger of this world.]
Eren flinched at the title used to refer to him.
The meaning was instantly clear.
Himself, who did not originally belong to this world—the Possessor.
That was the ‘Stranger’ he was speaking of.
“Did you cause me to be possessed?”
He simply smiled without speaking, not answering the question.
But Eren instinctively knew that the smile was an affirmation of his question.
“Why did you call me here?”
[You are a clever child, so I believe you already know the reason.]
The man, sitting on the stairs with his legs crossed, rested his chin on his hand and narrowed his eyes.
His captivating appearance was as if he were casting a spell of seduction, but Eren’s expression slowly hardened.
A being that could stop the flow of time and etch messages into one’s mind.
How many beings could possess such supernatural power?
The complete difference from a human being was conveyed throughout his body.
It was impossible to deny.
The reason the unknown being in front of him had called him here was clear.
If this man was a god, this world of the novel was his creation.
The original story was a future that absolutely had to unfold.
However, the original story did not proceed as planned. Because of him.
“It must be because I changed the original story…”
[That is also true, but there is another reason.]
Another reason?
Eren’s fingertips began to tremble slightly.
Even though he realized the being in front of him was a god, he hadn’t felt any fear until now.
This was because the being’s evident favor toward him was clearly conveyed.
He had reacted nonchalantly, despite knowing that Eren had changed the original story.
However, he felt an ominous energy from the one who spoke of another reason.
It was the same energy he had felt just before entering this place.
“Another… reason…”
[A being who should not exist, but does.]
It was a paradoxical answer.
But there was no way he couldn’t know who was being referred to.
[A mere human who dared to escape My control.]
Eren became rigid, unable to even blink an eye, under a pressure that felt like a massive rock crushing his shoulders.
It did not take long to realize that the person he was talking about was Ashard, and that the pressure he was feeling was the God’s anger directed at Ashard.
[I will ask you one thing. Why did you not ask that person for help?]
“Because I hoped he wouldn’t get hurt.”
[A wise choice. Your decision saved that person.]
“Saved… him…?”
[That person is My error. A being who should not exist in this world. If you had asked him for help and defied the natural order one more time, he would have been annihilated according to his original fate. Well, he has not completely escaped his fate yet.]
…What?
He could not ask again, nor could he utter a single word.
He had decided to leave Ashard because he didn’t want him to get hurt.
He thought Ashard would be safe if the original story was restored.
But ‘annihilation.’
It wasn’t getting hurt, and it wasn’t dying and leaving a body behind.
It was annihilation—the complete disappearance of his very existence.
‘If I were to drag him in again to twist the original story…’
For a moment, his vision blurred.
His entire body was stiff like a wax doll, with only his eyes and jaw trembling faintly.
[Do not tremble so much. I merely called you to give you a fair chance as well.]
“…A chance?”
[Do not forget, Stranger. You are also a protagonist of this world.]
“Haha… A protagonist?”
At that one sentence, all fear vanished and was instantly replaced by rage.
A hollow laugh escaped him.
The protagonists of this world were only those three: Carlyle, Julius, and Helid. Every development unfolded for the sake of those three, and was carried out only for their happiness.
All that remained for him was the fear of when he might fall into their schemes.
He was only barely classified under the empty title, and could never be a true protagonist.
“What a comfortable thing to say. After using me however you wanted, now you’re talking nonsense.”
At Eren’s accusation, the man’s brows furrowed slightly.
“Tell me honestly. You need me, don’t you?”
He had vaguely felt it since before.
The energy that filled the hall was slowly weakening, as if leaking out like water.
Even the man’s clearly visible form was gradually fading.
It was as if there were restrictions on the power he could use in this place.
“The fact that you are trying to persuade me instead of threatening me must mean your power is limited and you can’t even threaten me. If so, you must be in a situation where you cannot directly interfere with this world.”
[……]
“I thought something was strange. At first, I wondered if you might have given Carlyle the ability to restore the original story. But since you don’t seem attached to the original story, that doesn’t seem to be it.”
As Eren’s words continued, the man’s face grew progressively fiercer.
And that meant his guess was close to the truth.
“You didn’t know either, did you? That Carlyle—that those guys—would gain such abilities.”
To use his own words, it was clear that they, too, had ‘escaped control’ just like Ashard.
This meant that those three people were also ‘errors’ of the God, and beings that should be disposed of.
However, since there were restrictions on directly disposing of them, the plan must be to eliminate those three through Eren.
When Eren finished speaking, as if reading his innermost thoughts, the man slowly descended the stairs.
Stepping onto the last stair, he looked down at Eren and grabbed his chin.
[You are a sassy child. You are indeed clever. Everything you said is correct.]
His fierce demeanor softened, and soon a smile appeared, as if he was amused.
Eren shook the man’s hand off and opened his mouth.
“Getting rid of those three is what I want too. I’ll help you as you wish. But, I have a condition.”
[A condition?]
“You said Ashard’s fate is annihilation. Tell me how to stop that.”
* * *
