Chapter 116

The Forgotten Social Gathering (1)

The court social gathering had spanned several days. Every memory of it had been erased wholesale.

And it wasn't just my memories.

"Brother...?"

Seraphia tilted her head in front of me. Her memories had been erased too. As a result, she was acting exactly as she had before, thinking exactly the same thoughts, and repeating the same things.

'How is this even possible?'

... I simply couldn't believe it. How could something like this be possible?

Not even Ian... could do this.

The Sovereign of Darkness's Authority of Oblivion.

'It was this powerful...?'

At last, I understood why that information had been imprinted on me.

The strongest Sovereign. A class beyond a class of its own, surpassing even the Sovereign of Bitter Cold.

And now, I still felt that vivid sense of familiarity. It was far too unreal to call déjà vu.

'Stay calm.'

I steadied my breathing and collected myself. I couldn't let the situation overwhelm me. I had to assess it dispassionately and figure out what was happening.

'Since when... No, how far back do the erased memories go?'

I searched my memories to establish the present point in time. That told me it was before the social gathering, after I had been released from the dungeon and discovered Queen Marceline's plans.

The day before the tea party, to be precise. In other words, my memories of the entire court social gathering had been erased.

Then—

'Have my memories only been erased once?'

Until just moments ago, I hadn't even known my memories had been erased. I had been acting exactly as before, thinking exactly the same thoughts, and repeating the same things.

That meant this might not have been the first time. It was possible my memories had already been erased several times, and this had kept repeating—but—

'... No, that's not it.'

Thanks to Successor's Will[EX], I was now free of the Authority of Oblivion. Judging by the memories that had been restored...

'The gathering only happened once.'

Which meant the Authority of Oblivion had only been activated once as well.

But even if my memories had been erased, it was hard to accept that I would act and think exactly as before, repeating the same things.

In other words...

'Could time itself have gone backward?'

What if my memories hadn't been erased, but time itself had returned to the past? To before the social gathering began.

Then we would have no choice but to act and think exactly as before, repeating the same things.

Reversing time into the past.

... It sounded absurd. It was an absurd feat, too. According to Iliana, the allied army's Archmage, reversing time into the past was impossible by any means.

But I had experienced it. I had gone back a full fifteen years—not merely reversing time, but "returning to the past."

Would it be impossible for the Sovereign of Darkness? The strongest Sovereign, a class beyond a class of its own, surpassing even the Sovereign of Bitter Cold?

'It's possible.'

Once the impossible had been eliminated, whatever remained, however unbelievable, had to be the truth. For now, I needed to keep every possibility open and calmly assess the situation.

Was it simply the erasure of memories? Or had time gone backward?

The way to check was—

'... The experience from the Connection Quest.'

The levels I'd gained from it. Checking those would tell me.

I immediately opened 「Player Information」.

==「Player Information」==

[Name] = Adrian Whitewolf

[Title] = Master of the Snowy Mountains

[Level] = Level 83

[HP] = 10,300

[MP] = 0

[Sanity] = 572/ℵ0

[Stats] = Strength:85(+5) Agility:115.4(+19.4) Stamina:99.3(+19.3) Mana:11(+5)

[Experience] = 33.12%

<Additional Stat Points +4>

The four levels I'd gained were still there.

'I haven't gone back to the past.'

Time hadn't reversed. But it was too early to conclude that only my memories had been erased. All I knew was that my own state hadn't reverted.

What if the situation itself had reset? What if the court social gathering was starting over from the beginning?

Or... what if the gathering I had experienced had never happened? What if it had all been a dream?

Luseria, the Enchantress of Lust. A cambion, the bastard offspring of a human and a nightmare.

What if it had been an illusion created by her Mind Penetration[E]—literally a "dream"?

What if I had actually been discovered during my initial infiltration? What if Luseria had captured me then, and I was dreaming the same dream over and over?

I had to keep every possibility open and test them. And the way to test those possibilities was—

"Brother! Are you all right? Are you hurt?! Did they torture you?!"

Seraphia's voice suddenly reached me. Her face was full of concern.

An idea flashed through my mind.

"Bring me your dress."

Seraphia's dress. The dress I had altered for her.

If the situation had reset, it would have reverted to its original state.

The same would hold if the court social gathering had restarted from the beginning, if the gathering I'd experienced had never happened.

If it had all been a dream—her dress would be back the way it had been.

But if only our memories had been erased? The dress would still be just as I'd altered it.

"... Pardon? My dress?"

"The dress for the ball. Didn't you bring one?"

"Oh, yes. I did bring one, but..."

"Go and fetch it."

"Now? Why so suddenly—"

"Hurry!"

Seraphia gave a frightened squeak and flinched at my shout. Then she hurried into her room.

I heard rustling inside for a moment, followed by—

"Huh...?"

Seraphia's bewildered voice.

"What's wrong?"

"Oh, well..."

She cautiously opened the door and stepped out.

"My dress has changed."

"Your dress has changed?"

"Yes."

She gave a small nod and showed me the dress. It was the one I'd altered for her, still exactly as I'd left it.

"That's strange. I don't remember packing a dress like this..."

Now I could be certain.

'Only our memories were erased.'

The social gathering had taken place. The preceding events had definitely happened too. But every memory and all awareness of those facts had been "erased."

'What the hell...?'

It was hard to believe. But the situation before me was an undeniable fact.

As I tried to regain my composure, Seraphia tilted her head.

"... Where did this dress come from?"

Her face showed utter bafflement. Naturally, since her memories had been erased wholesale—

"Oh...! Brother, you...!"

She suddenly cried out as though remembering something. But confusion quickly returned to her face as she continued.

"... Huh? Did you buy this for me?"

She examined the dress from every angle, then blinked.

"... No, Brother would never be that thoughtful—Eek!!"

Startled, she clapped a hand over her mouth. Even as she floundered helplessly, she kept tilting her head from side to side, as though her memories were muddled.

'Is she resisting it to some extent?'

The Authority of Bitter Cold and the Authority of Oblivion.

Even if the Sovereign of Darkness was the strongest Sovereign, it seemed unable to suppress the Sovereign of Bitter Cold completely.

'In that case...'

I thought I might be able to restore Seraphia's memories.

The Bond Skill, Mental Empathy[E]. Since only my memories had been erased, I should still possess that skill.

◆Mental Empathy[E]

: When this skill is used, the player connects mentally and emotionally with a person in the 「Bond Tier」. This allows the player to intuitively understand and discern that person's thoughts and intentions.

As the bond grows stronger, Mental Empathy becomes more effective, making it possible to detect the person's past memories and repressed emotions.

However, connecting with excessively intense emotions and mental states may increase the player's mental fortitude consumption.

Sure enough, the skill was there. Its rank was [E], for Epic—a considerably high rank.

Judging by Dragon Rage Explosion[E], Epic[E] meant a rank capable of harming even a Sovereign.

If she connected to me mentally, Successor's Will[EX] would affect her too. On top of that, she was already resisting the Authority of Oblivion to some extent.

There was a good chance I could restore her memories.

◆Activating Bond Skill, Mental Empathy[E]!

The message appeared before my eyes. Seraphia flinched.

"Ah? Aah...? Aaaaaah?!?!"

Her expression shifted strangely, as though memories were being forced into her.

"This dress... This... This is...!"

Stumbling over her words, she raised both hands to her head. Her face was a picture of confusion.

But only for a moment.

"What is going on here?!"

Seraphia cried out, seemingly having recovered all her memories.

* * *

Soft morning sunlight poured over the royal garden. The tea party was filled with understated elegance.

Every guest was splendidly dressed. The women wore elaborate gowns and luxurious jewelry, while the men added a touch of formality with their neat attire and uniforms.

Each brought their own charm and fragrance to the lively tea party.

"Have you heard about Count Emberlyn's mining contract this month?"

"Of course. But I hear he holds exclusive mining rights... Is there any room to negotiate?"

"It won't be easy... But as it happens, I hear House Emberlyn's daughter is attending this gathering."

"I'll have to approach her."

The nobles were absorbed in calculations, each pursuing their own goals.

"Everyone is talking about how popular Belgard's local specialties are."

"We couldn't be more pleased, but transportation is a problem. With the recent ogre sightings, the roads in the central region are in a terrible state..."

"Then why not work with our house?"

"With House Grayburn?"

"Our head of house has been investing in new transport routes lately. Why don't you meet with him?"

"Hmm. Perhaps we should discuss it, then."

They explored one another's advantages and weaknesses, along with the resources they could exchange, as discreet conversations and deals passed between them—

"It's... the same."

It was the same.

"Everything they're doing and saying... It's exactly the same as before."

Everything was exactly as Seraphia remembered from the tea party.

Adrian asked her, "You remembered it in that much detail?"

"Pardon? Oh, well..."

She scratched her cheek and continued.

"Listening to the nobles' conversations helps me understand the state of the kingdom. Sometimes there's important information in them, too."

"Hmm."

"More than anything, I wanted to be of help..."

"Help?"

"Well... I-it's nothing!"

Seraphia waved her hands dismissively.

Just then, a sudden silence fell. Every sound at the bustling tea party vanished in an instant.

When had it begun? Every noble attending the tea party was staring at Seraphia in unison.

They grinned. Their eyes gleamed pitch-black. And their mouths slowly opened.

"""The same??"""

The nobles began to transform into hideous shapes. Their bodies twisted, their limbs stretching longer.

Then—

SKREEEEEECH!!!

They charged, shrieking. They tangled together, stumbled, and fell, but never stopped. Scraping along the ground, they reached for Seraphia.

Their movements were swift and sharp, as though slicing through the air.

"Aaaaaah!!"

Seraphia screamed and backed away. But the grotesque things were too fast.

Their grasping hands drew closer and closer. Sharp scraping sounds rose from the ground. A hand shot out toward Seraphia.

And then—

CRUNCH!

A sickening sound of flesh being crushed rang out. Seraphia's vision shook for an instant.

Then what appeared before her eyes was—

"Get a grip."

An immensely broad back.

* * *

A noble had suddenly lunged at Seraphia.

... No, not a noble. Some grotesque thing that couldn't even be called human.

When I used Predatory Instincts[S], information about those grotesque things appeared before my eyes.

==<Entity Information>==

Entity : Gremlin

Classification : Kingdom Demon, Class Apparition, Order Illusion, Family Specter

Sex : Nonbinary

Age : None

Characteristics : Formless

◆Formless

: This entity has no set form or shape. It possesses no fixed form and can transform into various shapes.

Gremlin. A demon that caused fear and confusion.

When I confirmed that—

'So that's what this is.'

I realized the truth behind this social gathering.