#205

‘Blessing of Records…’

Athanas didn’t know much about ‘Fabio’s left eye.’

To be precise, Fabio had not permitted him to look into it.

No matter what it said to him, Fabio had told him to ignore it because it wasn’t him.

‘And to never hand this over to him again…’

Athanas felt a momentary sensation of the blood draining from his face.

He didn’t particularly want to recall that moment.

Regardless, what Athanas knew about this ‘eye’ was that as long as one wore the reliquary, no one other than ‘oneself’ could influence Athanas’s mind, and if the holy water wasn’t replaced once a day, the letters surrounding it would begin to change.

‘Last time I forgot to replace the holy water, an entire book changed.’

He had never held a conversation with it, but he had speculated about its identity.

Order had handed over all the records of the Dark Realm to the ‘God of Records’ in order to read the ‘lost history.’

However, the Record had hidden the secrets it had uncovered.

‘Did it say it was for the sake of Order?’

The Record might have lied to Fabio, but it seemed more likely to be the truth.

Because Fabio, who possessed this ‘eye,’ was also aware of the lost time.

‘And it was broken.’

It didn’t hate him simply because Athanas had deceived it through Regression.

It seemed to believe that Athanas was the reason why nothing but ruin remained for ‘Fabio.’

Of course, since Athanas had disposed of the texts immediately upon confirming the letters had changed without reading them to the end, he didn’t know the reason why it thought so.

Nor did he want to know.

‘That thing’ had led Fabio to death several times.

By making him slam his head until blood splattered, or slit his own throat with a sword, or throw himself from a great height.

“…I promised Fabio that I wouldn’t show this to anyone.”

[A promise with a lover…! I understand.]

“And since you’re a distraction, I’d prefer it if you stayed quiet.”

[Yes, I shall only speak of the most important matters.]

However, the book began chatting again in less than five seconds.

[But why have you imprisoned it within the Power of Order?]

“…I have sealed it temporarily because it begins to change nearby letters at will.”

[Aha, I see…? But if it has something it wants to say that badly, shouldn’t you listen? You might not know because you belong to Order, but the Power of Order hurts terribly. Look at this scuffed leather! Every time I try to ask if anyone is there, it goes zap! It’s really no joke. But the thing inside is trying to convey its message even through this pain, right? Then it might be something incredibly important…]

“That is Fabio’s judgment.”

[Aha. Then there must be a justifiable reason! I am convinced. Now, it’s that way.]

“If it’s in this direction, it’s the Apostle’s Hall. Why did it go to the Apostle’s Hall?”

[It will take a bit more time to restore the conversation.]

“How long?”

[At least 10 minutes? Depending on the volume of the conversation, up to about 30 minutes. And you’ll have to stand still during that time.]

“I don’t have that kind of time.”

[Ah, if only you had a Sacred Relic containing a tremendous Blessing of Records, I could read it all within 10 seconds…]

‘In the end, the Blessing of Records was the goal.’

It seemed the claim that it had no intention of touching the Blessing was a lie.

Athanas lowered his trust in ‘Codex’ by about ten percent.

And upon arriving at the Apostle’s Hall…

“…What happened here?”

The Apostle’s Hall was thoroughly destroyed, like a heretical temple visited by the Holy Knights.

It was clearly intentional desecration.

Athanas examined the ceiling decorations fallen on the floor.

There were traces of them being pulled down with something like a string with a loop.

‘The work of Marcello Teres.’

If he accumulated sins in such a stupid manner, Athanas welcomed it.

The more he did, the sharper the Sword of Judgment would become.

Athanas scanned the surroundings while ‘Codex’ identified the most recent traces.

Among them, one door caught his eye.

‘He piled the debris outside the door.’

To ensure that whatever was inside could not easily come out.

What did he trap? A monster?

As he opened the door slightly, he saw five people.

They were the ones Athanas had pulled out of the monster’s entrails.

‘…Are they offering prayers right now?’

Their pronunciation was slurred, but they were calling out for ‘Fabio.’

It was an unpleasant and chilling sight.

Should he condemn them?

No, there might be a reason why they were kept locked up.

Athanas deferred his judgment.

He didn’t have time to verify what would happen if he killed them.

Variables must be minimized when gathering information.

‘Commander Casimir isn’t here.’

What happened to her?

But he couldn’t investigate right now. There was something more important.

[It’s that way!]

Athanas moved again in the direction Codex pointed.

Now, he could tell the direction without even looking at Codex’s bookmark.

In the distance, Halos were shining.

One was the spiderweb-like Halo characteristic of ‘Teres,’ and the other was…

‘…Whatever it is, it’s bizarre.’

Something translucent and jellyfish-like, with visible blood vessels, was pulsating.

It felt less like a Halo and more like a grotesque creature floating in the air.

Was Fabio there too?

The moment Athanas tried to take a step.

The translucent membrane swelled greatly and then ruptured.

A wind so powerful blew that it made Athanas, who was far away, stagger.

Reflexively, he raised his hand to cover his eyes.

An acrid smell that felt as if it were burning his mucous membranes.

A pain, as if struck by a hammer, slammed into his fingers.

A beat later, a lukewarm liquid drenched his entire body.

Codex screamed.

[No!! No!! No!!]

The hand he had pulled away was entirely red.

‘…Everything will be alright.’

Athanas recalled Fabio’s voice.

Athanas was calm. No, he tried to think calmly.

Because he had to.

Because Athanas had Regression.

He was not permitted to scream at the top of his lungs or waste time unable to accept reality.

As long as there was still a chance to turn it back.

He had only felt a very brief pain in his pinky finger.

So it was fine.

It was something that would disappear once he turned it back, and Fabio hadn’t suffered greatly.

No, far from just being fine, it was very good news.

Because he now knew that Fabio hadn’t died at a point where Athanas couldn’t save him.

So, in effect, Fabio was as good as safe.

Because Athanas would save him.

Because Athanas had Regression.

Athanas walked without stopping and arrived at the red place.

The ground was hollowed out as if someone had deliberately dug it.

That was all.

There was nothing there.

[I haven’t even finished the first chapter yet!]

‘It seems everything was destroyed at the moment of rupture.’

If there is a way to be revived, self-destruction is an excellent means of attack.

Athanas thought.

How much time was left?

Less than 10 minutes.

He had wasted too much time in the Main Hall.

‘I must Regress immediately…’

‘…Can you call that the best option?’

No.

Athanas thought again.

What action could he take at this moment?

Using Regression in 10 minutes wouldn’t make his Health deplete any less.

He had to utilize his time to the maximum.

Athanas commanded Codex.

“Read it. What happened here.”

[Aaaa… can something that hasn’t finished a single chapter even be called a book? I’m not a Codex. At most, I’m a booklet. A small book. A deficient book. A half-written book. An incomplete, inaccurate… Aaaa… Aaagh! Aaaaagh! It hurts! Aaaaagh!]

“Read.”

[…Ah. Did you give me a stinging punishment to wake me up? Or do you have sadistic tendencies?]

“Read. Or I’ll bury you along with the Sacred Relic.”

[No! I must record the Lord’s footsteps. Especially at a time like this! Because scriptures must spread more widely after death… Ah, so that’s why you commanded me to wake up! To carry out the mission given to me! Yes, I understand!]

“How many minutes will it take?”

[…There are too many filthy things mixed in here. This blood is full of unnecessary information originating from the Watched One called ‘Nyapoleon’ or ‘Bonaparte.’ It will take a very, very long time to find Fabio’s record among them.]

…Bonaparte.

The alias of the ‘Watched One’ that Fabio had warned him about.

Knowledge about the enemy was important, no matter how trivial.

Especially now, when there were no materials.

“I will judge whether the information is unnecessary. Speak.”

[Understood. Hmm… Do crabs? Are they born while eating their mothers? The sea? Do snails? Hermaphrodites? When mating, they pierce the other’s head with their reproductive organ? When semen touches the nerves…]

“It is indeed unnecessary information.”

It was certainly meaningless data filled in to protect a Sacred Relic like Codex.

Athanas gauged the remaining time.

Should he go back and find out why Fabio ended up fighting this thing?

No, if he returned to the Apostle’s Hall, there wouldn’t be enough time left to wait for this unpleasant and dim-witted book to finish the ‘Record.’

After some deliberation, Athanas opened the reliquary.

The holy water was half-stained black.

The eyeball rolled and turned its brown iris toward Athanas.

“…Will this shorten the time?”

[Of course it will!]

Codex inserted its bookmark inside and let out a small scream.

[It hurts! It’s agonizing! It hurts! It hurts! It hurts! No! It hurts! It hurts! Who is it? Save me…]

“If you hate it, I’ll stop. I have no intention of wasting time on something meaningless.”

[What? No. I didn’t just say that. I read what this thing is continuously writing.]

“…There is no need to listen to whatever it says.”

[Understood. Then…]

Codex fell silent.

[…Athanas. Is it true? That you possess ‘Regression’?]

“Yes.”

[I understand. I know what I must do. This ‘Blessing of Records’ came from a record further down than where I have been. The lost records also belong to him. Yes. I will hand over all the records I possess to this thing. Since I’m writing it lightly in a very wide space, it won’t be contaminated or altered. Because this thing… is currently recording nothing but the fact that it hurts. It won’t touch the information I’ve encrypted. And even if it does, I’ll be able to tell… Athanas. When you meet me again, if you let it touch this Blessing of Records slightly, you will understand everything immediately. Which means, you will meet exactly the ‘me’ of right now. It will surely be of help to you. I want to be of help. Athanas, Regression is…]

…Less than a minute remained.

In the end, no information was gained.

He wouldn’t need to visit the basement of the Main Hall again.

Athanas used ‘Regression.’

When he opened his eyes, he was atop the bell tower.

Athanas thought.

The first destination is the Apostle’s Hall.

To ensure they didn’t miss each other.

While Athanas was wandering in the Main Hall, ‘Fabio’ might have been in the Apostle’s Hall.

‘…No one is here.’

It seemed he had already moved before Athanas opened his eyes.

Next time, there would be no need to come to the Apostle’s Hall.

No, there wouldn’t be a ‘next time.’

Even if it was pain that would become something that never happened, he didn’t want him to experience it.

Athanas ran as fast as he could, following the exact path ‘Fabio’ had taken.

The Halos had not yet appeared.

‘I can save him.’

And when he reached the place where the battle had occurred…

“Huh? Athanas? Eh? Why are you here?”

There stood only a red-haired man, tilting his head in confusion.