Chapter 5
The Flower That Bears a Sword - Chapter 5
Translation: godsn
Nine years after that resolution, in the spring of the 1644th year of the Divine Era.
Echinacea walked through the shattered remains of a temple. In her hand was the Great Temple that had once stood in the ruined city of Agenka.
The holy land of knights, Agenka, had now become an ominous land where no one lived. Almost nothing remained. But among the temple ruins, there was one thing left behind—something no human hand could have moved.
The Divine Sword Kairos Giosa. A blade said to have been forged by a god who tempered time itself.
Unlike its counterpart, the Divine Sword of Space, which had drifted through dimensions and gone missing before the legends of Giosa could even be properly known, the Divine Sword of Time had always remained on this land since ancient times. That was why the Azure Sky Knights had established their stronghold here, why the independent city of Agenka—belonging to no nation—had come into being.
Kairos Giosa stood embedded at the very heart of the ruins. A sleek and delicate sword whose blade shimmered with ever-shifting hues. The sculptures and altars that once adorned its surroundings lay shattered, but even without them, the divine blade radiated mystique. It was living proof that gods—beings beyond sight, sound, or touch—existed.
No human could wield that sword. No matter how far one reached, it remained untouchable, as if blocked by an invisible wall. Yet Eki had to grasp it.
Her hair was cropped short, her body clad in worn leather armor. Every inch of her bore the marks of long wandering. The hand she extended toward the divine sword was covered in scars. At best, she might be mistaken for a mercenary; at a glance, she looked no different from a vagabond. And yet, the divine sword allowed itself to be held by such a hand.
Nothing extraordinary happened. The blade that no one could wield simply rested in her grasp. At that moment, a voice echoed in her mind. Like the voice of a magic sword, its gender was indeterminable.
[Qualified human, what is it you desire?]
"...Kairos Giosa."
Eki licked her parched lips several times before answering in a hoarse voice.
"Send me back to the past—to a time when I hadn't killed anyone yet."
The divine sword fell silent for a moment, then asked slowly:
[Why do you wish to return to the past?]
"Because I want to save them."
[Who?]
"...The people I killed."
[You slew them with your own hands, and now you wish to bring them back?]
"I—I never wanted to kill them...!"
Her grip on the sword trembled violently. A few drops of blood fell from where she had clenched her teeth. The divine sword read through the times she had lived. And understood.
[Very well. Then what next?]
"Next...?"
[If time is reversed, all those you killed will be alive again. What will you do in that world where they live? For what purpose will you use the time you've regained?]
She was at a loss for words. Echinacea, now thirty-five years old, had run forward with only one goal in mind—to bring them all back to life. For the first time, she considered what would come after.
What was it I wanted? Why did I want to save them? Why did I want to change the past?
In a daze, she murmured:
"...I'll just live."
[Just live? Is that all? You are alive even now.]
"What I have now is no different from being dead."
[Why?]
"Because the me of now... can never, ever be happy. I can't even fall asleep with peace of mind..."
The words spilled out before she could think. Only after speaking did she realize.
She had wanted to be happy. Even if she didn't know exactly what that happiness would look like, it was impossible for her to find it now—not after slaughtering every last person she loved with her own hands.
So she had to change. To achieve that, she had frantically gathered Giosa. For the past nine years, she hadn't slept properly. She couldn't even remember the last time she had smiled.
The Divine Sword finally seemed satisfied with her answer. The blade emitted a soft glow.
[Good. I shall lend you my power, worthy human.]
A distant, dizzying sensation seeped through her entire body. Everything grew faint. The Divine Sword spoke one last time.
[There will be no second miracle. So do your best to find happiness.]
The sword moved.
Echinacea Roaz had succeeded in turning back time. Fifteen years into the past—to the very era when she was still just an ordinary noble daughter of the Count's family.
Act 1. What Changed and What Remained
A fresh, plush sensation brushed against her cheek. Without thinking, Eki nuzzled into it before suddenly jolting awake. Her body rose fluidly, her right hand dropping low as she shifted her center of gravity into a stance ready to react to anything.
Rustle.
Her long hair, lifted by her swift movement, settled belatedly. Eki stared blankly at it. Soft, cascading strands of pale pink—slightly tousled from sleep, yet clearly well-maintained with care and expense.
"Ah...."
Unconsciously, she clutched at those locks.
Keeping long hair was a hassle. After reclaiming her body from the Magic Sword, she had kept it cropped short. To have hair this long—and not even dyed black—was unthinkable.
The hand gripping her faintly colored hair was smooth and unblemished, her nails neatly trimmed. She looked down at herself. Her body, wrapped in silk sleepwear, was slender and soft. She swung her legs off the bed. Her bare feet bore no calluses.
Beneath the bed lay pink slippers adorned with lace—a faintly remembered relic of the past. Slipping them on, she raised her head. The fluttering canopy draped over the bed caught her eye. She quietly examined it before pushing it aside and stepping away from the bed.
"My... room...."
The familiar, delicately decorated scenery of her old room. Eki staggered toward the window. A breeze slipped through the slightly open pane, fluttering the white curtains. She pushed them aside and looked outside.
Spring. The garden was dotted with pale green buds and flower blossoms. A gardener crouched by the bushes, trimming branches. Beyond the garden, slightly further away, was the training ground. A boy with russet hair sprinted across it under the guidance of a knight.
"Lancelid... Reed."
Eki murmured the boy's name. It belonged to her younger brother, three years her junior.
"Sister, why in the world...."
Those had been his last words before he drowned in blood and drew his final breath. It was one of her most vivid nightmares. Her pupils trembled wildly.
Without hesitation, Eki threw open the window and leapt from her second-floor room. Her mind was as white as the fluttering curtains. Even without conscious effort, mana moved on its own. Though her body had yet to form a core and held no accumulated mana, that hardly mattered.
She landed like a cat. Her eyes remained fixed on the training ground. As she broke into a run, her slippers slipped off and tumbled away. She paid no mind. Barefoot, she flew across the ground and burst into the training grounds.
"Young Lady?!"
Ignoring the startled knight, she pulled Lancelid into a tight embrace. His violet eyes—so much like her own—widened in shock.
"Wha—?"
The boy couldn't withstand her sudden charge and tumbled onto his backside. Eki wrapped her arms around her brother's neck and pressed her ear against his chest. Thump-thump. His heart was beating. She felt her soul leave her body.
"Sister...?"
"Lancelid... Lancelid Roaz. You're alive."
"What are you talking about this early? Wait, there's no way you'd be awake at this hour!"
A flustered Lancelid tried to push her away, then froze in shock. Her nightgown left little to the imagination—the curves of her chest, her pale exposed legs, her slender shoulders. Echinacea was dressed in a state that left nowhere decent to look. Lancelid let out a strangled yell as he hastily stripped off his shirt.
"What in the world are you wearing?! Are you insane?!"
"I..."
"I know, I know you hate sweat smells. Just bear with it for a moment. Seriously, why did you come here looking like this at this hour?"
Without waiting for a response, he roughly pulled the shirt over her head. The knight who'd been instructing Lancelid couldn't bring himself to look directly at her and turned away with an awkward cough.
"Young master, perhaps we should first escort the lady—"
"Right, I need to get Sister back to the mansion. Can we call it a day for this morning's training?"
"We'll make up for it next time. You've worked hard."
"You too, Sir Knight. Sister, get up....And why are you barefoot?"
Lancelid muttered in exasperation as he helped Eki to her feet.
"Did you have a nightmare? You look like you just woke up."
"A nightmare..."
Eki's vacant eyes finally regained focus as she clutched Lancelid. Suddenly, she yanked him close with startling force.
By all accounts, her strength should have been that of a delicate noble lady. Yet somehow, Lancelid nearly lost his balance from her pull. He barely managed to plant his feet and steady himself when she seized his shoulders, forcing him to meet her gaze directly.
Echinacea's eyes were shining with unprecedented clarity. An odd, overwhelming pressure. Lancelid forgot what he'd been about to say.
"Lancelid."
"...Yes, Sister?"
"What's today's date?"
"Huh?"
"What year, month, and day is it?"
"...It's March 17, 1629. Sister, what's really going on? Did something happen?"
"1629..."
Eki released him. Her expression twisted into something between a laugh and a sob.
"I did it. I really did it..."
Her legs gave out, and she collapsed haphazardly onto the dirt of the training grounds. With trembling hands, she tried to rub her face—then froze when her right palm entered her field of vision. Against the pale skin, there was an incongruous black mark.
She knew exactly what that mark was. Her teeth ground together audibly. At the grating sound and the sudden surge of murderous intent, Lancelid's face turned ashen.
"S-Sister? You're acting really strange. Are you hurt somewhere?"
"It seems the lady is unwell. My lady, if I may— Gah!"
The knight who tried to lift her was flung backward. Eki had reflexively struck him away. She opened and closed her mouth several times before shaking her head violently.
"Lancelid, sorry, I'm fine!"
"Sister!"
Eki blurted the words and sprang up like a gust of wind, vanishing before either Lancelid or the knight could react. They stared dumbfounded at Lancelid's discarded shirt lying where she'd been, their faces blank with shock.