Chapter 335
Chapter 335
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 335
Chapter Title: How to Survive as the Second Son of a Magical Noble House
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**Kwaaang—!**
What was the last timeline I remembered like, that first night?
“Leo.”
I remembered the door flying off its hinges from magic, even though I’d locked it properly. Calling out a three-letter name seemed too much for him, his voice cracking badly, echoing in my ears. That day had been peaceful, just one day before the strategy exam, and after our final goodnight, Lucas—who never came to my room—had burst in unannounced.
“Leo.”
Lucas stood gripping the door, repeating my name like I once did to him. I should’ve asked what brought him here at this hour, but one look at his face froze me solid. I turned my head stiffly, pulled out the handkerchief I always carried, and approached him. The moment I saw his eyes, fragments of what he’d been through flooded into me. Memories of a tomorrow that shouldn’t exist for me, information about an event that must never happen—it all crashed in like debris. Even though I was right here, I remembered sitting before him once, bleeding out. The only memory that felt truly real was the last moment we shared. The emotions I felt seeing Lucas come for me then surged through my body. What had already happened in another world was about to become my future. My mind went blank; I couldn’t speak. How much time passed? Something distant, like another person’s voice, slipped from my lips.
“You okay?”
No answer came. I waited, but Lucas just worked his mouth silently, staring into space. As if the answer were there—or like he’d left something behind somewhere—his eyes held no hope left, yet they clung stubbornly. He never met my gaze, speaking low in a hoarse whisper.
“I’m glad you’re alive.”
In his memories, I hadn’t died. But I’d lost consciousness and been sentenced to spend my life in Pleroma, and refusing that, I’d die soon enough—so it was natural he saw me as dead in that future. But hearing “I’m glad you’re alive” from him, when that someone was me... it chilled me to the bone without warning. It was absurd. In the memories I read, Lucas was the one dying. His failing senses had captured imperfect scenes proving it.
“That’s my line, Lucas.”
“Sorry I couldn’t come back with you. And from now on, it’ll only be me coming back—so I’m telling you ahead of time.”
“......”
I tried to continue, but he cut me off. His words—“only me coming back from now on”—sent a sharp stab through my heart. Right—if Lucas didn’t try his best, my fate was sealed: tortured to death by Pleroma’s hands. Even if I couldn’t save the me from that doomed timeline, if he hadn’t turned back time then, I wouldn’t exist in any other timeline. Lucas had said rewinding time would likely freeze the previous one. He never explained his basis, but if rewinding truly halted the prior timeline instantly, then yes, turning back time was the best choice here too. I knew that. He apologized of his own accord, but this was no fault of his— if anything, I owed him my future.
But aside from that harsh truth, it was unreasonable for Lucas to bear the entire burden.
“Why decide this alone? We can prepare thoroughly like always and think it over.”
“Your answer would always be the same.”
“......”
Finally observing my face, Lucas gave a faint smile, whispering in an exhausted voice.
“This time, I turned back with barely enough time to bring your memories. I couldn’t preserve everything after the kidnapping, but at least the time we spent together after arriving here... I had to save that for you. Next, since it hasn’t updated yet, I need to go further back while it’s still there. Only twenty-two times.”
What hadn’t updated? What was only twenty-two times? I wanted to ask, but he looked too frantic. Like he’d spilled words he hadn’t meant to share.
“First, I’ll cancel the exam. Nice seeing you again—details next time.”
“Lucas, wait!”
I stood to grab his arm, but he warped away. Warped—where to? It felt like a hammer blow to my head; I couldn’t believe what I’d seen.
“......”
Yeah. I understood. For him to walk here normally after seeing me like that and his dead senior with his own eyes was a miracle. I got that he was showing the utmost consideration possible in this mess. His mind was fixed on saving me, himself, and Albert Mecklenburg—he had no time to waste.
The next day I woke, our strategy exam was canceled. Hearing it was postponed indefinitely, we stopped by the dorms right before deployment. And fell into the middle realm.
Lucas had turned back time before everything played out. This time, not mid-exam, so with his artifact on, I was dragged off— even after the rewind, the kidnapping memories lingered. I remembered our brief talk just before starting the meeting with friends. Leaning against the conference room’s outer wall with a sound barrier up, he stared into space.
“Magicians are going missing today. If stopping the exam was wrong, let’s go back to the start.”
“......”
“For now, yeah. So, Senior Albertina Hohenzollern didn’t fall with you, Leo.”
“Yeah. You and Senior Mecklenburg interfered with the middle realm magic, so we ended up somewhere weird together. I dropped right into the enemy’s heart.”
“Memories?”
His focus was entirely on my memories. Looking down at his cold eyes, now visibly hostile overnight, I turned away.
“Of course, since you cut them, it didn’t go to the end. Fighting seven monsignors from Brandenburg, up to hearing them call for backup—then it cut off.”
“Impressive. Alone against seven monsignors?”
Well, because after your regression, I’d prepared thoroughly. Lucas smiled with crinkled eyes, though no laugh came. Even in this, he was gentle with me. Moments of such peace dotted afterward too. Like the last drops of whiskey in a flask, we were granted that much respite. Facing an imminent bomb, knowing we’d die and restart, we could only charge ahead. No—Lucas did; I could only watch. That helplessness haunted me.
Failure. The magician disappearances happened again; we couldn’t stop them. This time, we resolved to take the exam. Right before, Lucas held out his hand expressionlessly. I knew what he wanted. Silence as my answer, he met my eyes and spoke slowly.
“Yeah, we decided to do it together. But not like this.”
“......”
“If you’d died honorably in battle, I might not say this. But that’s not what happened. What I saw wasn’t that, Leo. I’m not saying you must always be healthy or that I’ll only be with that version of you, but...”
His precise voice trembled faintly at the end. Yet his eyes were utterly firm.
“You don’t need to suffer unnecessary pain.”
“What about you?”
“......”
“Pushing you to death over and over, senses failing, to the brink—because we can just rewind, it doesn’t matter?”
I knew it was unreasonable. I said it anyway. To my cold tone, Lucas smiled faintly.
“You know better than anyone it’s not that simple. Whatever I do, I have to rewind. Someone dies in days, and leaving this as Pleroma’s victory... unimaginable chaos follows. I can only choose: live in a world without Mecklenburg or you, everyone irreparably broken barely surviving, or die alone and rewind. In a shit situation with those options, I’ll always rewind, no matter what.”
“......”
“Hey, Leo. Rewinding to change the future is my most hopeful choice. But not for you. My best is your worst.”
Unexpectedly, his voice held laughter. Still, it cracked faintly as he continued.
“You have the right to not remember.”
“I won’t exercise that right. Leave you alone in that time? All this time...”
“Yeah. I need to see you tomorrow after the exam, looking at the world straight with eyes like today. That’s my happiness. Get it now?”
I didn’t answer. Lucas, who’d rapid-fired while staring straight at me, now looked down, mumbling.
“The end doesn’t come all at once.”
“......”
“It builds over time. From a trivial spark you didn’t know was the fuse, to unforgettable memories—all cornerstones leading to the end. It ends in some trivial moment too. Waiting to see the sun, but rain comes in the morning; a petty argument; a plan that meant nothing but everything goes awry; a sudden memory surfaces...”
My lips moved unconsciously. I sensed he meant something else. His unfinished ramble disconnected, fragments scattered. He wasn’t looking at me anymore.
“You might think it’s fine, but you won’t know till the road’s end. What you go through isn’t momentary pain—it wears down the soul. Why should you endure that?”
“......”
“If there’s a chance to not remember, I hoped you’d get it. I don’t think you’d want what I do, but I just don’t want you thinking like me. I want you less burdened.”
I stared silently at that Lucas. It felt like another’s story, or his own. Dazed like entranced, he snapped back at the five-minute exam warning, eyes normal again as he turned to me.
“I won’t respect your choice. Hand over the artifact. Or I’ll use divine power to knock you out.”
“...Ridiculous. You don’t mean that.”
Not respect it—from him, to me, it rang utterly false. More than anyone at the Imperial 2nd Education Corps, he respected me. Lucas stared silently for a while. Only after minutes did he speak.
“Yeah.”
Truth be told?
That word made me unable to face him. He wouldn’t hide sincerity behind jokes anymore. I wanted it, yet lacked courage. Still, as always, I didn’t avoid his eyes. For the first time, I saw despair soaked in them.
“I wish you wouldn’t remember. Please.”
* * *
Seeing my friend’s eyes like that, I couldn’t defy his will. Our ways differed now, but he was projecting himself onto me, fearing something, clearly caring for my well-being.
I was chosen again...
And yet, once more, not chosen.
After, Lucas acted like a madman. No time to see his face, he darted everywhere. With Albert Mecklenburg, he’d stare until the senior uncomfortably looked away first. He kept rewinding, rewinding, rewinding. On the fifth failure, reading his memories—arm lost, Brandenburg intel extracted—I decided I couldn’t leave him be. Ironically, from the moment I resolved not to give him the earring, he vanished from my sight. Right—he’d deliberately avoided me that last week. Lame excuses for leave, ditching deployments. Twenty-two times—I replayed his frantic slip in my head, blood draining each time.
Thud—
—Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.
Divine power eased the tension stiffening my body. A vague faith in impending rest dominated my mind. Haze receded; the scene sharpened.
“Hard to see these eyes.”
Nicolaus’s blue eyes gleamed, reflecting divine light from below. His lips curved softly in release and satisfaction. No desire left in those unusually bright irises. Seeing them, like film snapping shut, over a dozen loops he’d turned flashed by. Twenty-two, seventeen.... For some reason, my mind drifted as I let out a faint laugh. He’d spent days here. His chance to turn it around—gone now. Neck and shirt bloodied. Same in recent days; today too. No part unscathed. Why the ear blood? Could he hear? I wanted to ask. Lucas unbound the cloth tied behind my head. My numb tongue wouldn’t move. Or so I thought—my mouth moved on its own, spitting crooked words.
“Satisfied?”
“......”
Lucas’s mouth gaped silently in surprise. His gaze fixed on my eyes. Soon, a bitter smile.
“Why cry? Happy day.”
“Dunno. I’m pissed at myself.”
If I’d been stronger, this wouldn’t have happened. But against dozens, hundreds of Pleroma without divine power? Impossible. Without godlike magic, soul-mind interfering purification spells. To compensate mana and aggression, only skill and effort. Blaming myself for unchangeables—futile, irrational. I knew, yet watching my friend suffer was hell. My flaws only mattered to me now, no frustration left—but his endless pain from them tormented me alone.
Even if I’d taken the artifact and lived those times together, Lucas still would’ve looped this much, seen that many deaths. So, not about the artifact anymore. I itched to demand why, but that was secondary.
Lucas, looking down astonished, murmured low.
“Me too.”
“......”
“But they caused this mess—why guilt us? We succeeded in remaking this world eventually. That’s what matters now.”
Lucas smiled casually, pointing to my bound hands behind.
“Want these off?”
“You leaving them on?”
“Your wrists must still hurt from sleep—tough call.”
“......”
Nonsense. Mimetic attacks vanish. I narrowed my eyes meaningfully; he laughed knowingly, rummaged fallen Pleroma clothes. Something magnetic tossed lightly above as he approached.
“Other Pleromas kept these in jacket pockets too—same trick. You saved me then. Remember?”
“Last December?”
“Probably. Roles reversed this time.... Always hearing it, wanted to say it once.”
What? Eyes still narrowed, I looked up.
Clang—
Restraints fell. Clearing his throat, Lucas grinned playfully.
“Let’s go home.”
* * *
“Lucas present~!”
Lying in the hospital bed, blinking, Elias tore the newspaper in half and tossed it skyward. Gray sheets fluttered down to bed and floor. I bolted up, snatching paper from my face.
“What the hell?”
“Torn flies better.”
“Joking around...”
Post-procedure, I slept a full day, now twelve hours more. Everything wrapped up. Piecing newspaper together, I read.
[Pleroma Brandenburg Archdiocese Priests: 199 Captured Alive]
[Pleroma Brandenburg-Hamburg Archdioceses, Uelzen Diocese Bishops: 2 Killed, 13 Captured... Dispositions Pending]
[Imperial Special Operations Command Annihilates Brandenburg Archdiocese]
“Annihilates? That’s how they phrase it?”
“Hahaha!”
Elias crossed arms, laughing at my dismay. I read the overly grandiose front page—like we’d won a battle—then lay back.
Truly over. Time there felt like a lie now. Blood, everything distant. Friends except me roamed lively, no hospitalizations—Elias proved it. Narke got called for portal saint statue damage, not back.
Issue: Leo. After I woke, he glanced silently, left without greeting, hasn’t returned. I knew why. He’d read all my times the instant he saw me. No hiding from him. Plus... I avoided him this timeline; even with prior memories, fair to be mad. Throat tight, I asked.
“Eli. Where’s Leo?”
“You asking where Leo is—care for the one here~”
“Caring. Cleaning your mess.”
“Ah~ Wrong direction.”
Elias chuckled lightly, leaned close, serious.
“Lucas, listen. Leo’s pissed, won’t come.”
Creak—
“What?”
Not my words. Head to open door. Leo, who’d said it entering, met my eyes—no greeting. Odd short-sleeve shirt; bandaged forearm injury? He sat calmly, quieter than usual.
“How you feeling?”
“......”
I bit my lip slightly.
‘Already suffocating.’
Honestly, choked up. Couldn’t spill thoughts there, but now? Time to question everything. I opened my mouth, closed, opened again.
“Arm hurt?”
“Huh? Oh, yeah.”
Leo answered flatly, faint smile. Neither he nor Elias spoke more, so I nearly gave up— but feared freezing the mood irreparably, scanned him head to toe for neutral topic.
“Hm, where’s your ear artifact?”
“Which.”
“The one I gave.”
“...O~”
Elias admired with squinted eyes. Leo didn’t answer. Just shrugged, arms crossed, staring.
“......”
Instinctive unease crept. Knowing it mad, I reached slowly. Leo let me turn his head freely. Just piercing mark—no artifact. Grabbed collar, checked necklace. Nothing.
Thoughts veered. Leo in season-mismatched short sleeves—beyond that, jacket-always guy shirt-only here? Suspicious. No way, but...
Grip—
I seized his forearm bandage. Leo smirked.
“Hurts.”
No way hit. Stunned at his face, I shook my head.
“...You’re actually insane.”
“Crazier than you?”
“I...”
“How many times.”
Words stuck. Hollow laugh escaped. Elias finally looked puzzled at Leo. Then Leo’s signature smirk.
“No backing out now? Unless you slice my arm open.”