02. Can't I Go Home?
02. Can't I Go Home?
Hair as dark as pitch black.
A goddess—or rather, a male god who looked just like one—sat alone on a throne, gazing down with world-weary eyes... what was he?
In any case, the being who claimed to be 'Cronus' reached a hand toward me and spoke.
"You managed to win the decisive battle against Mars with such a frail body. No, it's only natural for an Apostle who holds my divine authority to seize victory."
He didn't need to praise me for something so obvious as if it were impressive.
His roundabout way of elevating himself made me feel a surge of irritation for a moment, but I kept my mouth shut.
'I need to stay low right now.'
I had so many things I wanted to ask, but in these situations, you had to hold back your words.
A wisdom learned in the military: if you had a lot to say, just shut up.
In most cases, the questions you asked wouldn't lead to anything good.
"However, sending my Apostle into the heart of enemy territory without granting anything would be unbecoming of a king's duty."
Take this.
Cronus stretched out his hand to me.
A black aura seeped from his fingertips and gradually took shape before my eyes, solidifying into a large scythe.
[Cronus's Scythe]
-A scythe containing the divinity of Cronus.
-Time is relative, but it never disappears.
-Trait: Indestructibility (Infinite Durability)
-Trait: Transformation (Can change shape)
"It is my scythe. To be precise, I detached a part of my scythe. Is this satisfactory?"
"Thank you, Cronus."
I bowed my head in thanks, and Cronus let out a small snort.
As if he were holding back a laugh, but it escaped anyway.
"You are indeed clever. You know when to bow, and you know how to show gratitude. You seem far better than those son-of-a-bitch children who forgot their own father and tried to stab him with a scythe."
"I am merely grateful for your kind assessment."
He looked quite pleased.
Cronus tapped the armrest of his throne with his fingers and continued.
"The child of Cyclops met his end before he could even begin, they say. Even now, my ears are ringing. In contrast, my child has already crushed Mars. If my father heard of this, he would tremble with jealousy, hands shaking."
So tell me, my child.
"What is it that you desire?"
Eternal life?
A beauty that could topple a nation?
Or perhaps the power to command the entire world?
Whatever you wish for, I shall grant it to you.
"..........."
I calculated inwardly.
Was he being sincere with that offer?
My deliberation was short, and my conclusion came quickly.
"It's all right. The honor I have already received from Cronus is more than I deserve."
"Ho-oh?"
I lowered my head.
I pressed my forehead to the ground.
The reason was simple.
"Those words you just spoke—are they true without a shred of falsehood?"
"Yes. And furthermore..."
On the surface, it sounded like a very nice offer.
But I must not forget.
No matter how luckily I managed to defeat Mars...
"The Apostle of Zeus still remains."
"......."
The scenario hadn't even properly begun yet.
And now he was suddenly approaching me, offering a reward?
No matter how I looked at it, it was a trap. It wasn't an event that would end well if I accepted.
I kept my head bowed, and Cronus began to step closer to me, one step at a time.
"You know your place well."
".......!"
Cronus's palm touched the top of my head, right on my crown.
He began to gently stroke my head, as if caressing a child.
"If you had wished for something, I would have seen you as a mere wretch who mocked the authority of a god."
".............."
Had he been testing me?
I silently exhaled, thinking it was a relief, when Cronus spoke again.
"And that scumbag I knew named 'Timeless'—because he was such a scumbag, I chose him as my Apostle."
"........!"
Tightly, he grasped a handful of my hair.
In an instant, a cold chill ran down my spine.
"He was a scumbag. Greedy, cowardly, and a mongrel who didn't know his place. That's why I saw potential in that child and gave him the seat of Apostle."
But you are different from that child.
No matter how I look at you, you are different.
"The bastard I knew, the one I observed—he was not the type to turn his back on the academy, and if told to raise his sword against Mars, he would flee like a weak little rat."
Yet you boldly raised your sword and fought back.
You even made Mars kneel beneath you.
"Agh... aaagh...!"
My hair was yanked upward.
My eyes were forced to meet Cronus's, and he asked me.
"Speak. Where has 'that scumbag' gone, and you are taking his place, aren't you?"
"Just... a moment, please let go of my hair...!"
"Is it a child of Cyclops? Or Uranus? Or some trash that crawled out of the Abyss?"
"Agh—aaagh! Aaaaagh!!"
It was being ripped out!
My hair was being ripped out!
I raised both hands to grab Cronus's hand and stop him.
"Arrgh.... ugh.... ugh....!"
".....Hmm."
But I didn't do it.
I couldn't.
Because if I grabbed his hand and resisted, telling him to let go, he would obviously go even crazier.
Ultimately, I moved my hands to clutch the hem of my pants and endured, and Cronus let go as if he had lost interest.
"You are a strange one."
"Huuuhhhh....!!"
I thought all my hair was going to fall out.
I rubbed my throbbing head with my hand, and Cronus snapped his fingers at me.
"...Huh?"
With a snap sound, my scalp began to tingle.
Then at some point, the pain vanished as if it had never existed.
"I reversed time."
"Ah....."
He had turned back time to before my hair was yanked.
Cronus looked down at me and questioned again.
"Who are you? Reveal your identity."
"......Well, that is..."
"No, in truth, I don't even need you to speak."
"Pardon?"
You bastard.
You are a being who crossed dimensions.
"........Yes."
I confirmed Cronus's words.
Cronus nodded as if he had expected it.
"I read the time of your soul. You entered that body without any connection and didn't know what to do. After that, I tried to read your past, but something blocked it, as if hidden—so I can only understand you as a drifter who crossed dimensions."
"....Have there been a few people like me?"
"Not none at all."
For example, the current Apostle of Zeus was a 'Regressor' who crossed the timeline.
...A situation where my idle suspicion had turned out to be exactly right.
Cronus continued.
"Considering that situation, your actions were truly wise."
Changing your name to avoid being noticed by the Regressor.
Changing your appearance as much as possible to avoid suspicion.
Deliberately hiding your time-related abilities to mislead your enemy.
"So I suspected. That you, too, might be a Regressor, like that 'scumbag child'."
But that was not the case.
Even if one regresses, the essence of the soul does not change.
In contrast, your very soul had changed completely.
And on top of that, if even the past of your soul was invisible—
"Possession? Or reincarnation? No, whatever it is, it's fine."
Whatever the reason, it was undeniable that you were a far more competent child than my previous child.
"If you are willing to remain as my child, as my Apostle, then I too shall accept you as my child, as my Apostle."
"....I will keep that in mind."
I bowed my head.
Cronus, looking satisfied, ascended to his throne once more.
'Phew...'
The air lightened considerably.
The pressure that had been weighing on my whole body just moments ago thinned, and at the same time, Cronus asked me.
"You bastard, what is it that you desire?"
"..........."
"This is the contract as Apostle. Since your soul has changed, we need to revise the contract."
The previous child kept repeating the vulgar words, 'Sex! Only sex!' I am curious to hear what kind of words you will utter.
"...Then—"
"—I cannot grant a condition to send you back to your original world."
".........."
"Matters of dimensions are not within my domain."
And think for yourself.
"By the time our contract is fulfilled and I grant your wish, do you truly think you could return to your original life?"
"That is...."
"It would likely be impossible. Even if you don't want to, you will shed blood, and there will be many things you have no choice but to do."
".........."
After experiencing many things from now on, when you returned to your original world,
Could you truly forget your past here and live on as you did before?
Cronus's words echoed in my ears.
'...Life, huh.'
Suddenly being possessed into a game was already dumbfounding.
You'd think they'd at least give me a way to return like in all those cliché novels, but they were telling me there wasn't even a method to go back.
Wasn't that too hardcore? Couldn't they at least give me a sliver of hope?
"Hope? Ridiculous. Often, certain despair is more beneficial than false hope."
"........Haaah."
I let out a light sigh.
I wasn't sure if those were meant to be comforting words, but what was done was done.
If I couldn't go back, and even if I did, I couldn't live as before—
"I have two things."
"Two things. Very well, speak."
I spoke to Cronus.
"What I desire is simply to live long, though modestly, in peace with a wife who loves me."
"A boring desire. And?"
"And..."
Could I even say this? I wondered, but—
"When I'm on the verge of collapsing, please support me from behind."
"....Your desire is truly strange."
Not riches beyond measure.
Not a beauty who could ruin a nation.
Not the power to command a continent.
"To ask me to support you from behind when you're about to fall... I suppose you mean you want my power?"
At Cronus's words, I shook my head.
"No. Even if I ask, I know you won't grant it if I'm not worthy."
"Then what is it you desire from me?"
"....I am indeed an adult, but I have become a person who lost their parents before their time, without any chance to prepare my heart."
And without even a chance to prepare my heart,
I lost my family, my friends, everything.
"On top of that, I've started a life in a foreign land where values, lifestyle, and even the history of the entire world are all different."
"Therefore, I ask of you."
I spoke to Cronus.
"Please take pity on me."
"..............."
Cronus silently looked down at me.
A long silence followed.
After some time had passed, Cronus spoke quietly.
"I do not wish to be betrayed again."
"I will not betray you."
"Of course not. The moment you betray me, I will withdraw your powers. Besides, would there be a ridiculous child who declares to my face that they will betray me?"
Probably the only son of a bitch foolish enough to do that was that scumbag Zeus.
Cronus let out a light sigh and nodded.
"I accept your desire."
"Ah———?"
In an instant, my vision swam.
As the strength drained from my body and I went limp,
Cronus calmly informed me.
"In exchange for granting your desire, you shall carry out my will."
Zeus.
A blood-soaked revenge against that bastard.
'...I can't help but think you're asking for a bit too much against a Regressor.'