Chapter 165
Chapter 165
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 165
Chapter Title: Primrose Path
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‘Hold on…!’
I couldn’t dodge it.
Who in their right mind would ever think they needed to avoid stepping on the floor just in case some crime might happen? Telling someone to walk on water would be more believable. At least that would give them time to prepare a spell.
The intermediate realm of pitch-black darkness lasted only a moment.
My thoughts cut off soon after.
* * *
A strange smell.
That was the first thing I sensed when I opened my eyes.
“Ugh…”
A sound slipped from my throat on its own.
I tried to get my bearings visually, but my field of view shifted with agonizing slowness.
I knew exactly when this kind of reaction kicked in.
Right now, I was teetering on the edge. This happened when shock set in or when drowsiness came from blood loss.
‘…No reason for it now. Did something happen to me?’
I’d clearly met with His Majesty the Emperor and used divine power on the people from the police bureau…
And after that?
“…….”
I knew damn well what I’d done, but a fog was erasing my thoughts.
I couldn’t let my consciousness slip. If I closed my eyes like this…
[Too much, maybe…]
[…ed?]
I forced my narrowing eyes open.
If I shut them now, I’d pass out.
[…Uh.]
[Something to wipe it…]
Someone pressed a rough towel against my mouth.
Biting my tongue had snapped me awake, if only for a moment. The sensory lag lingered, but my thinking started to clear up a bit.
[Water at least…]
[No. Just…]
With my mind sharpening, I gradually became aware of how my senses were processing the input.
Voices scattered at the fringes of my awareness.
A sickening discomfort spread from my skin all the way inward, like an inflammatory response. It was far too repulsive to endure in a clear-headed state.
‘…Retry. As fast as possible.’
Ding―!
Searching for Chapter 6 checkpoint… (0/?)
Even as my eyes drooped shut, blinding white text flashed across my vision.
‘No, you bastard…’
Never seen a window like this before.
At least it was a relief that no [Chapter 6 checkpoint has expired.] popped up. That one appeared when too much time had passed and it couldn’t revert to a story branch point.
Still, it was trying to find one this time, so that was something.
‘…Guess I have to tough it out, then.’
For one thing, I needed to figure out who the ballsy son of a bitch had slapped a warp spell on the Imperial Second Academy dorms—and what they wanted dragging me all the way here.
Enemy territory or not, this was my chance, bad vibes be damned.
Sure, my condition wasn’t exactly ideal for casual pondering… but I had to scope things out before I went.
I summoned strength into my lolling neck and slowly turned my head.
A few unmistakably Old Humanity types sat next to me.
‘Hm.’
My brain, increasingly pickled in New Humanity thought patterns, clocked them as Old Humanity first.
Back in my old world, I’d have registered them as girls right off the bat.
But…
‘…Fuck…’
My brain kept lagging, but I arrived at a crystal-clear conclusion.
This was Primrose Path.
No further investigation needed. Their getups weren’t the kind you’d see on streetwalkers.
I turned my head to face straight ahead, staring—or trying to, at least. God knows how it looked to anyone else.
One man who looked Old Humanity sat there too.
Old Humanity over 175 cm could pass for New Humanity, but this big-framed guy had the telltale signs of long-term hormone wear at the edges of his face—age.
‘Pimp.’
The Old Humans next to me looked like 3rd Academy grads at best; this guy was pushing late thirties, minimum.
He was eyeing me instead of them, camera artifact in hand.
Worst case, he managed the joint.
That checked out, so I let my head loll back against the sofa from sheer exhaustion.
“Ah…”
[…Give this guy something…]
[…Leave him be…]
Their Old Humanity chatter smeared into mush in my ears.
But my sigh wasn’t for the reason they probably thought.
‘Fuck…’
First off, what the hell was I looking at? My lifetime of built-up morals was straight-up rejecting the scene unfolding before me.
Second, I now knew exactly why they’d dragged me here.
‘Obvious.’
To blackmail Elias.
Wear down the people around him until he cracked. Keep the harassment up long enough, and he’d start thinking, “This is all Elias’s fault.”
But that kind of torment topped out at stuffing threat letters into a mailbox until it burst or camping out in front of someone’s house. It sure as hell didn’t extend to warping an investigator’s friend straight into a den of vice.
And why me, of all people?
Not that I wanted Elias or Narke going through the same shit. Better me—the guy who could rewind time—than a couple of high schoolers. Still.
To phrase the question right: what the fuck made them think they could pull this off?
Beep―
The sound came from the artifact in the Old Human’s hand.
I lifted my head again and looked at him.
He was pointing the artifact right at me.
“…….”
Guess he thought I was still out cold?
My eyes were wide open, and he was snapping photos like it was nothing.
Sure, the world was crawling along at a snail’s pace. To him, I probably still looked knocked out.
‘Got a few questions.’
Set aside the massive backer for a sec.
The real head-scratcher was why me, specifically.
Easiest mark? Doubt it. One reason Philip had bawled that day was “fear I’d tie him up at home.” That alone showed what being from a ruling house meant.
Their support had to be Ascanien-level at minimum—or higher.
‘No way… my brother’s work.’
Pleroma didn’t pan out, so off to the brothel? Plaster photos nationwide?
It’d work on paper, but picturing my brother issuing that kind of high-risk order straight from his mouth felt off.
And there was still one glaring issue.
‘What happens after I get out?’
Warp spell on the dorms, some mystery drug—I knew about all of it.
Especially since I could leverage it to back Elias up. Those photos would just prove I was a victim.
That was their critical screw-up.
Their weapon was about to become mine, and they’d moved ahead without a clue?
Better to assume a plan than idiocy.
‘So, what’s their angle?’
No solid answers yet, so I’d stick with the hypothesis: pin a Primrose Path customer label on me and torch Elias’s social circle in the process.
Plenty of time to gather evidence while I was here.
First things first…
‘Tough to tell in this state, but worth a shot.’
I ran my finger along the sofa.
Mana control was shot, so reading it was tricky, but I didn’t sense anything distinct. Nothing in my body either, aside from my own mana.
‘Air’s iffy.’
Mana mixed in, but not the kind that blocked everything but vitriol like Pleroma’s had.
Probably just ambient mana blended in for business purposes.
‘Hm.’
Good.
Bottom line: I could cast spells.
I considered reporting their asses without a retry, but no dice. I had to use it anyway.
No guarantee I was the only one getting hit right now. No need to hand trauma to my friends on a platter.
Plus, Nicolaus had warped straight from the inn to the academy.
The dorm spell suggested I was the real target, not him—but the timing between him stepping off the carriage and the warp was too close. Had to rewind.
Beeep―
Right then, an alert chimed from the artifact by my ear. Someone was trying to reach me.
‘Hm. Didn’t even take this off? Sloppy.’
An Old Human wouldn’t spot the stealth on it, but I appreciated the oversight.
Either way, before retrying, I needed to suss out why they’d hauled me here.
Best to drag it out as long as possible and snag some evidence.
“…Why.”
[…What the—already awake? How…? No, not now. Get the drugs.]
The voices sounded distant, like a phone call, but at least they weren’t cutting out anymore.
I opened my mouth once more.
“Why’d you bring me here?”
[Move it, fuck! You’re too damn slow…]
The manager bellowed, and one of the teen Old Humans shot up, scrambling through a drawer at the far end of the room.
‘If it’s that crucial, you’d keep it on you—not pawn it off on a middle-schooler…’
I clutched my ringing head and glared at the manager.
The Old Human snatched a vial and plunged it into a syringe rolling around on the sofa.
Fear started creeping into his watchful eyes. Not because of my glare. He knew what it meant that the drug’s effect was wearing off on me.
I glanced at my trembling hand, then snapped my fingers.
Light pink mana bloomed into the air before fading transparent. Soundproofed.
The manager hadn’t noticed and chucked the syringe at the kid.
[You do it!]
[…!? M-me? Y-yes?]
[Yeah, you. Buy some time. Fuck, he won’t die. I’ll go tell ’em to just sprinkle drugs in the room…!]
I gauged his position and snapped my fingers again. A burst of red light exploded into view.
Kwaaaang―! Crash!
[Aaack!]
“Won’t die? Then why not do it yourself?”
[Guh—urk…]
Thumping against the wall—he was choking.
I struggled to prop myself up, pressing one hand to my eyes.
The drug’s potency was insane if it was fading this fast. My focus wouldn’t lock like it should.
‘Effect’s no joke… external supplier, or in-house brew?’
If external, one place came to mind.
[Uwaaaah!]
[Hah—huff…!]
I heard the panicked yells and looked up belatedly.
He’d smacked his head on a decoration mid-toss—blood trickled down the wall.
Mana control slipped.
Blame the drug; unavoidable.
I gripped my head, now ringing even worse from the screams, and muttered.
—Yahweh guards not the city, the watchman’s vigil is in vain.
Thud―!
The teen Old Human was out cold, thankfully.
Looked like he’d faceplanted; sorry I couldn’t catch you. Rewind would wipe any concussion anyway.
I channeled mana into the floor and my legs, hauling myself upright.
Gestured at the manager across the way—his unconscious body dragged over easily.
Grabbed his shirt collar and slammed him onto the table.
Kwaang! Paak―!
“Wake up. You don’t get to sleep.”
I hammered his head with my fist while pumping in divine power.
[Eeok… guk.]
A foreign blood stench stabbed my nose.
I spat on the floor and spoke quietly.
“What gave you the confidence to half-ass the prep like this? This can’t be the end of it.”
[Huh—urk… I-I just followed orders…!]
“If you don’t know, who does?”
Straight to brainwashing spell?
Truth was, I kinda wanted to see what he’d spill pushed raw first…
‘Wasting time.’
Blood pooled on the table, dripping to the floor. Way too much from his cracked skull.
No meat left to tenderize.
I only needed one thing anyway.
—Enter by the narrow gate.
I pinned his head to the table and muttered. His pupils blew wide in an instant.
“Way too many holes for it to just be about threatening an investigator. Or did I overestimate you lot?”
He shook his head, desperate to prove his innocence.
“Didn’t think so. Means whoever’s backing you is Anhalt-tier at least—probably more.”
And that handed Elias’s hypothesis its first backing evidence.
If Primrose Path had messed with Adelbert’s and Elias’s rooms like he suspected, it meant their backers had the pull to touch the imperial family.
“You know where I’m headed next—or who’s coming. Right?”
Starting to get a feel for it.
I yanked him up by the collar.
“Who?”