#204

Athanas tried his best to remain calm.

He couldn’t afford to spend too much time grappling with his confusion.

Fabio must be alive.

If so, how should he find him?

‘I need to search for traces.’

The strap of the reliquary appeared to have been snapped by a powerful pull.

If a sharp object had been used with force, the cut surface would have been much cleaner.

‘My guess is…’

Marcello Teres.

One of the Watched Ones.

Athanas drew his sword and examined the blade.

The edge was damaged by a thickness of about one finger joint.

‘…A Psychokinetic Tether cannot be cut by strength alone.’

It was a mark left by force concentrated into a single point.

His brow furrowed instinctively at the thought of that man flirting with Fabio, but his heartbeat actually slowed down.

‘If he is with that man, Fabio is even more likely to be alive.’

He might have ridden away to his own territory or to a place where no one could find them, but he wouldn’t have killed Fabio.

Of course, there was a possibility that he had flown into a rage because Fabio rejected him, unable to overcome the madness flowing in his blood, and followed in his sister’s footsteps…

‘No, if it’s Fabio, he surely would have handled himself well.’

Athanas sheathed his sword and scanned the surroundings again.

He had to find other clues.

However, there were no footprints nearby.

Did they move using telekinesis?

Up? Or down?

‘…More importantly, where did all this ink spill from?’

Rather than having spilled, it felt as if it had crawled upward, defying gravity.

Looking closely downward, he discovered something emitting a faint divine power two floors below.

Descending quickly to check, he found a familiar object.

‘He lost the Saintess’s Sacred Relic too?’

The thought that Fabio was completely defenseless made Athanas’s blood run cold.

Had he discarded all the Sacred Relics to shake off the Order’s pursuit?

Or…

‘…To do whatever he wanted with Fabio?’

Athanas had unintentionally confirmed how much of an attack the Saintess’s Sacred Relic could block.

It didn’t activate for things like shortness of breath caused by fear or strong restraint, but the moment a shoulder was dislocated causing great pain or an arm was broken, a defensive barrier would immediately form and repel Athanas.

If Marcello had launched an attack strong enough to make that ‘Sacred Relic’ a nuisance…

‘Should I have just killed him then?’

When he had challenged Marcello Teres to a duel.

Since others had clearly witnessed that man using heretical power, killing him would have been regarded as a justified condemnation.

The Teres family would have turned the entire Dark Realm upside down once again, but that was none of Athanas’s concern.

Then why did he turn back time?

Because he didn’t want to see Fabio look afraid.

‘…What would have been the best choice then?’

The best.

Athanas was constantly striving so that he could say he had done his ‘best.’

Challenging Marcello and finding a way to defeat him was also part of that effort.

What if he had done nothing and waited, knowing full well that Marcello Teres was one of the Watched Ones?

That would be the same as someone who fails to inspect the levees while expecting heavy rain.

To be able to do something and not do it is a great sin.

Those who realize their lack of preparation only after the event occurs do not even deserve to regret it.

Athanas, in particular, had to work harder than anyone else.

Because Athanas could turn back time.

Those with more power must bear more responsibility.

Just as Fabio had said…

‘It was the same when I first met Reyes Floren.’

The result of encountering a ‘Watched One’ without any preparation was gruesome.

The sight of a man who could twist space and distort perception at will running wild was like a nightmare.

Those unlucky enough to be caught up in it strangled one another.

When ‘Reyes’ smiled, everyone laughed; when he looked miserable, everyone sobbed.

Reyes Floren said: Kill me. Then everything will end.

Elamin had been knocked unconscious after discovering that one is not affected by the Distortion while unconscious, but there were more who could not be saved.

The sounds of laughter and crying gradually diminished.

The moment Athanas could no longer endure it and drew his sword, his entire body froze.

He couldn’t even blink.

However, his senses remained intact, and he clearly heard the words Reyes whispered while hugging Fabio from behind.

‘Fabio, please walk over and give Athanas a tight hug.’

Reyes aligned the tip of Athanas’s sword with Fabio’s stomach.

As if he had decided something, Fabio gripped the sword with both hands, and…

‘…At that moment, I used Regression to make it as if it never happened.’

Athanas felt it poignantly then.

To face a ‘Watched One’ who has revealed their madness, mere thorough preparation is not enough.

They do not fear the situation of committing sins and falling into hell.

The destruction of the physical body is merely a minor inconvenience.

‘Rather, they said that being captured by Order while alive is the thing they fear most.’

It was said that the moment the Watched Ones lose their qualification to participate in the game, they forget who they are and go mad.

But currently, the Order is at a standstill.

Since the threat they fear most has vanished, it is certain they will now use heretical power without hesitation.

‘Can I win against a Marcello Teres who is not letting his guard down?’

It wasn’t entirely impossible, but…

Athanas judged coldly.

He could not gamble his fate on a stroke of luck.

Athanas needed another power.

‘…What is the Saintess doing right now?’

If it were a prayer connected to a Sacred Relic she had personally consecrated, she might listen even amidst her busyness.

Just as he thought that and picked up the Saintess’s Sacred Relic, the book beneath it flipped open with a flutter.

[Finally! Thank you for saving me! I am called Codex. I am ‘Fabio’s’ scripture!]

‘…Fabio’s scripture?’

Codex—a name he had never heard before.

Was it an avatar created by the God of Records?

[If it’s not too rude, could you tell me your name? Or you may stain me with your blood.]

Athanas pondered for a moment and concluded that in this cycle, gathering information should be the priority.

Finding Fabio was the first priority.

“I am Athanas.”

[Ah! You are the owner of the reliquary! ‘Fabio’s’ lover! It is an honor to meet you in person. By any chance, may I record the first meeting of you two in the scripture?]

“…Where is Fabio now?”

[Oh dear. I have made a grave mistake. The most important thing is to write down the present!]

“I asked where Fabio is now.”

[Unfortunately, it has not been recorded in me yet. However, I can recognize the traces of the Lord! The Lord’s footsteps, spilled blood, the droplets expelled when speaking… I can collect all of that and convert it into a biography.]

“…Through what process is the collection carried out?”

[Just by carrying me around, it will be written automatically. Because I am a living book!]

‘Just by carrying it, I can determine Fabio’s movements and location…’

It was the exact ability Athanas desperately needed right now.

That was why he was suspicious.

To smash Valentine’s reliquary to avoid being tracked, yet leave behind a scripture that records one’s movements?

Wasn’t that strange?

‘Why does such a book exist in the first place?’

A booklet that records only information about Fabio.

Who would create such a thing?

‘He’s even referring to Fabio as a god.’

That only makes Fabio’s sins heavier.

Athanas suddenly recalled the words the apostle Sextus had said to Fabio.

‘He said the Watched Ones are nothing more than the Othergod’s toys.’

The Being Beyond the Starry Sky is doing all of this just to see Fabio despair several times.

Was this book prepared by that wicked Evil God?

The probability was high.

Given that it considered the act of separating the ‘Sacred Relic’ as ‘saving’ it, this object was far removed from the Order.

However, despite all these rational suspicions, Athanas did not throw the book away.

‘Rather than wandering in a meaningless place, falling into a trap might actually yield more information.’

And he couldn’t shake this thought.

What if this was a distress signal left by Fabio?

Fabio might have dropped the Saintess’s Sacred Relic on top of it, believing that Athanas would find it.

And if he misunderstood and burned this book…

‘…It’s a relief that I have Regression.’

Athanas didn’t need to agonize over a binary choice.

He could just pick one, and if it was the wrong answer, he could turn back and choose differently.

[Fabio’s traces lead upward.]

Athanas asked Codex as he moved.

“…Does Marcello Teres know of your existence?”

[Marcello… Ah, you mean that disgusting, nauseating being. Of course, he knows me and hates me very much. He kept trying to burn me.]

“Then why did that man leave you alone?”

[That’s because I am Fabio’s Vassal! There is no way the Lord would allow me to be destroyed.]

Stop.

The foot climbing the stairs halted.

“What did you say?”

[We still have to go up further. Up! Up! One-two, one-two!]

“Say it again. Marcello Teres, what?”

[…That he is also Fabio’s Vassal?]

He knew that Fabio had unintentionally entered into a contract making ‘Callister’ his Vassal.

But Marcello Teres had also become Fabio’s Vassal?

Why?

‘…What is he trying to do in Fabio’s name?’

Actions performed in the name of a god affect the god.

If honorable and glorious achievements are accumulated, the god’s influence grows stronger; if terrible and cruel deeds are committed, the god’s name is also smeared with disgrace.

‘Is he planning to defile his body and soul so that Fabio can never return to the Order?’

Athanas grit his teeth.

He had to find him as quickly as possible.

Athanas moved his feet again.

It seemed Fabio had headed toward the research director’s office.

The office was a mess.

Sacred Relics that had lost their light were scattered across the floor, and there were so many ‘Fabio’s’ arms that he almost tripped over them.

Following Codex’s instructions, Athanas checked every room in the office.

[Then he went back down the stairs! Did he go outside the Main Hall?]

“…Did you not see the traces of him going down earlier?”

[Because it is important to record the traces in chronological order!]

Athanas frowned.

He had to follow Fabio’s traces exactly as they happened?

At this rate, no matter how many times he repeated time, he wouldn’t be able to find Fabio’s current location.

“Ignore the past and search only for the most recent traces.”

[If we do that, the missing pages will… ]

“Fill those in later. I need to meet Fabio right now.”

[Understood. A reunion with the lover! I cannot miss that scene.]

‘I should have done this from the start.’

[More importantly, I feel the Blessing of Records from you; may I check it for a moment?]

Codex pointed to Athanas’s reliquary with its bookmark.

[I have no intention of tampering with the Blessing. I’ll just copy the contents inside slightly, so please let me touch it for a moment!]