Chapter 301
Chapter 301
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 301
Chapter Title: Crimson Garden's Immortality
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After finishing his conversation with Arthur, Krash headed straight for the Lion Corps training grounds.
The entire way there, his face was lost in deep contemplation.
It was because the talk with Arthur kept swirling chaotically in his mind.
Maybe there had been a timeline where he and Arthur could have gotten along well.
That thought strangely set Krash's mind spinning in all directions.
What snapped him out of those thoughts was Crimson Garden.
Crimson Garden always reacted with weary indifference whenever regression came up.
Krash had no idea why she felt that way about it.
"Crimson Garden, have you ever met another regressor?"
Crimson Garden fell silent for a moment at his question.
And a profoundly meaningful reply came back.
"You mean you have."
Krash's steps came to an abrupt halt.
His gaze drifted to the window outside.
There sat a single black raven perched on a tree branch.
It was Crimson Garden's raven.
"You mean that regressor is gone now?"
Krash's face went blank.
A self-mocking chuckle emanated from Crimson Garden.
The regressor from Crimson Garden's world must have surely met her again upon returning.
But Crimson Garden, cast away into this world, could no longer see him.
No matter what trials they faced together here or how they grew side by side.
To a regressor, it was just a story from one single loop.
The regressor had left.
Crimson Garden's world had been destroyed.
All that remained before her was the empty husk of the regressor.
After the regressor departed, she had been left behind in that world of destruction.
All she could see was that one corpse.
She had no way of knowing if the regressor who left to regress had truly gone or not.
For Crimson Garden, to protect a world that had already perished...
The regressor lived on, trapped in a Mobius strip.
"......Crimson Garden, unlike the other Dragon Kings, is the reason you want to give up immortality also because of a regressor?"
The regressor had left promising they'd meet again, but Crimson Garden would never see him.
That reality might have affected her far more than she could imagine.
Crimson Garden still didn't know the reason.
Flutter—
The raven outside the window took to the skies with a rough flap of its wings.
Gliding leisurely across the blue sky, it almost looked free from all worries.
"I'll claim your immortality with these hands."
As he had promised from the start.
Krash declared he would surely deliver her immortality.
Crimson Garden merely tossed out the flat response.
Gazing at her, who seemed a touch more forlorn than usual today, Krash simply walked on in silence.
The Lion Corps training grounds.
Upon arriving there, Krash spotted a woman with sea-blue locks sitting off in a corner.
Standing beside her was her guard, Sera Betela.
She must have sensed his presence right then, as her amber eyes turned his way.
She flashed a mischievous smile at Krash, whom she hadn't seen in ages.
It was the Epania Empire's Fourth Princess, Sisley Epania.
"My lord, long time no see."
"How long do you plan on sticking with that nickname?"
She'd started calling him that as a joke the first few times.
Now it was stuck to her tongue like glue; she tossed it out at every turn.
"For as long as I want. It's an engagement recognized by both the Empire and Staron, isn't it?"
"That's old news already."
"Sadly, it's very much ongoing."
Sisley shrugged, as if there was no escaping it.
"Neither the Empire nor Staron seems keen on backing off this matter.
They're probably trying to smooth over relations between the two nations, which haven't exactly been friendly."
If Krash and Sisley got engaged and kept their relationship going, there'd be no war between the two nations anytime soon.
For Krash, it meant the Empire would never point its spears at Staron.
That alone was a massive advantage.
"Sorry to the Hardenharts girl. I ended up stealing her fiancé spot without meaning to."
Sisley didn't look too thrilled about that part either.
Even she didn't want to play the role of prying out a fixed stone.
"It's fine. I'm planning to marry this year anyway."
And with that casual bombshell aimed straight at Sisley, Krash pressed on.
She'd had a hunch, but hadn't expected him to say it outright. Sisley stared at him with a dumbfounded look.
"You can say stuff like that in front of me, but if you do it around the other girls, all hell breaks loose that day."
"I have enough sense not to."
"When it comes to romance, you're so dense you're basically blind. Where's this 'sense' of yours?"
Sisley shook her head pitifully.
"Just don't let the Empire catch wind of it. Once Empire affairs are sorted, I won't meddle."
"You can smooth over the engagement?"
"That's beyond my power. But I can probably swing something else."
Sisley spread two fingers wide.
As Krash eyed it quizzically, a playful grin spread across her lips.
"Permission for a second wife is fine by me."
Meaning she had no intention of stepping down from the wife spot.
Krash looked at her in bewilderment.
"Do you actually like me or something?"
Sera, her guard, shot Krash a weary glance.
You're really asking her that straight-up?
Sisley blinked her big eyes.
Then she rolled them around a bit.
And with faintly flushed cheeks, she gave a soft smile.
"A little?"
Whether it was sincere or not.
Krash had a hard time grasping her reaction right away.
Honestly, he couldn't easily imagine Sisley genuinely liking someone.
At that, Sisley started squirming a bit.
"Isn't that right? Saving me selflessly as a kid, and recently risking your life for me again—any girl would fall for a guy who puts his life on the line for her at least once."
"If that's enough to fall in love, paramedics would never run out of girls chasing them."
"I'm saying I get the common sentiment. Besides..."
Sisley hopped up from her chair with a bounce.
She stepped right up to Krash and playfully tugged at his necktie.
Caught off guard by the sudden pull, Krash leaned down a bit, bringing his face level with the petite Sisley's.
"Talking with you is fun. That's worth 67 Sisley points."
"That's suspiciously specific."
"For reference, collect 100 and I'll give you a cheek kiss. Work hard for it."
"How do I go into the negatives?"
"Just gained another point."
Krash decided he had to defend his cheeks at all costs.
"Anyway, let's get to the main topic."
Sisley had seen it coming.
"About my sister, right?"
Sigrin Epania, who had disbanded the White Yang Corps and returned to the Empire.
That was the conversation Krash wanted.
"Do you know what Sigrin's up to now?"
Sigrin was currently in a highly unstable mental state.
After losing Arthur and watching her own plans fail one after another.
And facing the possibility that the cursed one—who might have even regressed—was doing better than her. Her mind had crumbled.
With no telling what rash actions she might take next.
Krash had to proceed with utmost caution.
"Holed up in her room."
Sisley responded as if it were no big deal.
"Holed up in her room?"
"Yeah, locked away tight. She's shut out every ear in the world and just sits there doing nothing."
Krash narrowed his eyes slightly.
Even if Sigrin was mentally unstable, he doubted she'd really do absolutely nothing.
Does she have some scheme brewing?
He'd probably need to swing by the Empire again sometime soon.
Arthur himself said Sigrin was one of the causes of the destruction.
He couldn't just leave her be.
"Got it. Keep a close eye on her from now on. Tell me right away if anything happens."
"No problem at all."
With that, Krash turned to look at the training grounds.
There, unaware of him, people were deep in training.
Bianca was among them, of course.
Maturing day by day, with an air of adulthood about her now, she was utterly focused on her training.
Krash knew who that training was for, so he let a faint smile slip.
She'd surely be even stronger next time they met.
Looks like she's doing well. Good to see.
He'd seen her briefly after being carted to the infirmary.
But with recovery taking priority, they hadn't talked long.
"Why not say hi? She'd love it."
Sisley chimed in slyly.
But Krash shook his head.
"Got work to do. Might take a while."
If she weren't so immersed, he'd have called out.
But at that level of focus, he decided against disturbing her.
"You say you're marrying this year, then vanish for ages—what's your plan?"
"I'll make time somehow. So don't go saying I bailed."
"What a lame guy."
Krash waved once to Sisley and left the training grounds.
Next up: the dean's office.
'Spear Creation Martial God.'
To face the impending clash with Ixion, Krash had to master that power.
"Not even gonna say bye to Sis?"
Then, hearing the voice, Krash turned.
There stood a woman with dark blue hair identical to his own.
Charlotte Valheim.
His sister.
"Sis."
Charlotte walked over briskly and patted his shoulder.
"You look busy, so I won't hold you. But drop by sometime. Tea won't take long."
With that, Charlotte strolled into the training grounds at her leisure.
Classic her—marching to her own beat.
She's gotten even stronger.
Feeling how much stronger Charlotte was than last time, Krash smirked.
He realized everyone was in that prime phase of rapid growth.
The Generation of the Sky was sprouting up fiercely.
And thanks to Krash as the catalyst, faster than ever before—unmatched by the past.
As long as it prepares us for the destruction, anything goes.
Krash took a step forward.
If the Generation of the Sky grew stronger, he'd grow to stand ahead of them.
For that one sole goal, Krash pressed on today as always.