A Fated Reunion
There are five great magic families on the continent.
The five pillars of the imperial magic community, recognized by the Imperial Magic Society. The territories they rule and the influence they wield surpass those of most city-states.
I didn't remember the intricate details of every single magic family. By the time I began working as a full-fledged mercenary, they had long since fallen into decline, as the Archduke of Demonic Magic—who instigated the war—had burned down their estates and plundered their unique magic formulas.
But I knew the history of House Benheim, the earldom Lunia hailed from, exceptionally well.
That was because Lunia had bragged about her family almost every single day.
I used to wonder what the point was when everything had already been ruined, but Lunia cherished her childhood in her family home as a deeply precious memory.
"Raygan, did you know? Our family was the leader among the five great magic families."
"Why?"
"Because historically, Benheim was the Emperor's loyal confidant. Besides, Benheim's unique magic formula is on a completely different level compared to the other four families. We restored the language of the gods to create a brand-new magic system. It's called Rune Magic! It's the magic I use. What do you think? Jealous? Do you want to try learning magic too, Raygan?"
"No thanks. Handling a single sword is hard enough. Why would I bother with magic?"
"Hmph."
From what I had heard from her, the reputation of House Benheim within the Empire was truly immense.
A house founded by the advisory mage to the Empire's first emperor. The progenitors of the magic beast hunters. They were the masters of Rune Magic, having reconstructed ancient characters and sublimated them into spells.
With their rich history, legitimacy, and the backing of the imperial court, House Benheim was arguably the most prestigious of the five great magic families.
...Or at least, it was supposed to be.
"The atmosphere seems a bit chaotic."
It had been two days since I started traveling by carriage. As I drew closer to Benheim County, I noticed an inexplicable tension lingering among the passersby.
"Did something happen?"
There was no way the war had already started. The Archduke of Demonic Magic wouldn't raise his army for another seven years. They were clearly on edge about something else.
It was better to ask than to ponder alone. I stopped the carriage, caught hold of a passing merchant, and asked what was going on.
"Excuse me. Has something happened in Benheim?"
"Hmm?"
"I'll compensate you handsomely for your time."
Money is an excellent solution in most situations. When I slipped a few copper coins into the merchant's hand, he swallowed hard and carefully opened his mouth.
"Well... word is that one of Benheim's treasures was stolen."
"...A treasure?"
"Yes. They say it's the symbol of the Benheim family head, or something like that."
"Do you know what this treasure looks like?"
"There's an official notice posted over there, so go take a look. I heard it looks like some kind of pendant..."
The merchant kept scanning his surroundings as he spoke, as if terrified of being overheard.
"Anyway, you'd better avoid looking suspicious. Apparently, the mages of Benheim are roaming around, and if they spot anyone acting strange, they drag them off for interrogation immediately. More than a few peddlers have already been locked up."
"...I understand."
"Take care of yourself, young man."
The merchant quickly pocketed the copper coins as if afraid someone might snatch them away, then scurried off.
"...Ha."
It felt like a heavy blow to the back of my head.
The treasure of Benheim had vanished.
And that treasure was a pendant that symbolized the family head.
There could only be one meaning behind this.
I reached inside my coat and gripped the pendant Lunia had given me.
This pendant in my breast pocket. The fact that it was in my hands meant, of course, that an identical pendant could not exist in this same era.
In an instant, I had unwittingly become the thief who stole Benheim's treasure.
"Lunia, you... you didn't plan this far ahead, did you?"
I muttered in a disgruntled voice toward the future Lunia, who was no longer here.
Sure enough, the poster the merchant had pointed out featured a drawing of a pendant that looked exactly like the one in my possession.
The cherished heirloom and symbol of the Benheim family head has been lost.
To anyone who recovers and safely returns this sacred treasure, House Benheim shall open its grand treasury and bestow a magnificent reward beyond measure.
"This is troublesome..."
Staring at the notice, I fell into deep thought.
The Benheim relic Lunia had entrusted to me. She had asked me to decipher these runes and spread their knowledge to the world.
In that case, wouldn't it be best to seek out the foremost experts in Rune Magic?
Having made my decision, I spoke to the coachman.
"Old man, take me to the Benheim Magic Tower."
"Are you sure? Didn't you hear what that merchant just said? The mages of Benheim are dragging people away..."
"Yes. That's exactly why I want to go."
"Listen to me, young man. I'm only saying this out of concern because you're around my son's age, but mages aren't a very kind sort. Sure, if you become a mage, you can live like a king. But how many people actually manage that? I hear it's not even one in ten."
The coachman pleaded with me earnestly, as if I were his own flesh and blood.
"The rumors out there are downright terrifying. They say some famous magic family built a secret underground laboratory to synthesize chimeras..."
"Do you actually believe that?"
"Why shouldn't I? Especially when another magic family is supposedly experimenting with turning actual humans into spirits..."
The coachman went on and on, completely lost in his own world of conspiracy theories.
Then again, this was how ordinary people viewed mages.
"It's fine."
"No, I'm telling you, it's really dangerous!"
"I have a plan."
When I insisted, the coachman clicked his tongue in defeat and turned the horses.
Before long, the estate of the earldom came into view.
Behind the manor, which looked more like a fortress, a colossal tower soared into the sky.
"So that's the Magic Tower..."
One of only seven great magic towers on the entire continent.
The Benheim Magic Tower, built in a major city, was massive and exuded an overwhelming majesty. Even for someone like me, who had once roamed the world as a wandering mercenary, the sheer scale of the tower was truly astonishing.
"Halt! This is Benheim territory!"
A guard patrolling the Magic Tower's gardens spotted the carriage and shouted.
I could sense a dense aura of mana radiating from the guard. It was strong enough that even my current body, which had yet to awaken to mana, could faintly perceive it.
His level was roughly the 4th Circle.
Considering that those who trained in magic their entire lives could barely knock on the door of the 5th Circle, it meant that even the gatekeepers of Benheim were veteran mages.
"Stop here, please."
I had the coachman halt the carriage and surveyed the surroundings through the window.
There were five guards stationed at the main gate.
Across from the gate, several merchants were practically begging.
"This is tyranny! Losing your family heirloom is your own business, so why are you holding innocent merchants back? Let us through! These goods must be delivered today!"
Despite the merchant's desperate pleas, the guard remained unyielding.
"It is the command of the Tower Master to inspect all goods passing through the county. There are no exceptions. If you do not step back immediately, you will be thrown into the dungeon."
He merely waved his hand dismissively.
"Tsk."
I clicked my tongue.
The atmosphere was incredibly tense.
Sure enough, the front gate of the Benheim estate was like a ticking time bomb.
If I pull out the pendant right now...
The outcome was obvious.
They wouldn't view me as a savior who had recovered their heirloom; they would see me as the prime suspect.
I would be locked in a dungeon and interrogated about where I got it.
I couldn't begin a negotiation without holding the upper hand.
That was my golden rule as a mercenary.
I need another way...
It was just as I was brainstorming an alternative plan.
"...Hm?"
I caught a familiar scent.
Pink pepper. Rose. Patchouli.
There was no way I could ever forget it. That scent belonged to the person I knew best in the world.
"...No way."
I whipped my head around.
Just then, a small figure slipped past the fence.
They hurried away, moving quickly as if terrified of being spotted.
Although a hood was pulled low over their head, obscuring their face, there was no way I could fail to recognize that scent and those movements.
"...Lunia?"
It was definitely her.
Lunia Erahan von Benheim.
The very woman I was looking for had just crossed right in front of me.
But my daze was short-lived. As I watched the direction she was heading, a seed of doubt sprouted in my mind.
This is strange.
There were too many questions.
In this timeline, Lunia was merely a teenage girl. How could the youngest daughter of House Benheim, treated like a precious jewel under the family's strict protection, slip outside the estate walls without a single guard?
As I pondered deeply, a sudden realization struck me.
I turned to the coachman and asked.
"Old man, what's today's date?"
"Huh...? Today is... let's see... Ah, yes. It's the Day of the Moon's Shift, isn't it?"
"Ha."
A hollow laugh escaped my lips.
What a perfect, absurd coincidence.
It seemed my employer had absolutely no intention of letting me rest.
On our final night before my regression, Lunia had shared many stories with me.
Her childhood in the Benheim estate had been the main topic of conversation.
"It happened when I was sixteen. It was exactly on the Day of the Moon's Shift."
"Exactly ten years ago, then."
"Yes. I was isolated and alone when dark mages ambushed me. That's how I got this scar. Honestly, if a family mage hadn't rescued me, I might not have made it."
Lunia had pulled back the blanket to show me her collarbone. A vivid, lightning-shaped scar ran across the space between her collarbone and shoulder.
Coincidentally, the point to which I had regressed was also exactly ten years ago.
Lunia's current age was sixteen.
This left only one possible conclusion.
The day Lunia gets ambushed is today.
There was no reason to hesitate any longer.
I set off to track her footsteps.
Stealth and tracking were basic skills for any mercenary.
More than anything, because Lunia was completely oblivious to the possibility of being followed, keeping her in my sights was incredibly easy.
Eventually, the hooded Lunia arrived at a quiet mountain ridge. A graveyard rested there. She stood quietly in a corner of the cemetery, staring down at a single tombstone.
Lillian Isilia von Benheim
Only then did I realize why Lunia had slipped away from her family estate.
This was where her biological mother was buried. Today was the anniversary of her death. Lunia had come to visit her unfortunate mother, who had been denied burial in the Benheim family mausoleum.
After spending some time brushing away the dust that had accumulated on the tombstone, Lunia slowly pulled back her hood.
What caught my eye next was a rich, brilliant gold.
"..."
I had fought alongside Lunia for years on a chaotic continent, sharing both joy and sorrow. Perhaps that was why, even now, I could picture her face the moment I closed my eyes.
Lunia's mana was a color close to pure gold, so whenever I thought of her, a golden light would always shimmer before my eyes.
That radiant hue remained unchanged, even now that I had returned to the past.
"Ha."
In my field of vision, Lunia's golden hair fluttered.
Reunited after traveling ten years back in time, Lunia—now in the form of a young girl—was suddenly right before my eyes.
Perhaps my focus had slipped for a split second out of sheer relief at seeing her again.
Snap.
I stepped on a dry branch, and sensing a presence, Lunia whipped her head around.
"Who's there?"
Our eyes met.
In that instant, I caught my breath. It felt as if my heart were being squeezed.
Blonde hair that looked like melted gold, amethyst eyes that shone as intensely as sunlit lavender, and skin so pale it resembled white jade.
Though she still possessed the soft features of youth, I could clearly see the woman she would become ten years later in her young face.
Our bond was the most persistent, yet the most precious.
"...Lunia."
When I called her name in a trembling voice, Lunia von Benheim blinked a few times.
The moment I saw her, the memory of the moments right before my regression surged to the surface of my consciousness.
Her face, growing cold as her chest was pierced by the Archduke of Demonic Magic's spell.
Just thinking about it made my chest ache.
"..."
But what about now?
The vitality that had been almost entirely drained from the Lunia of my memories was fully present on this youthful face.
She was alive.
Thank goodness.
For now, that alone was enough.
"Who are you? How do you know my name?"
Lunia, meanwhile, scowled and eyed me warily. It was only natural. A complete stranger had suddenly appeared and called her by name.
Above all, the Lunia standing before me now did not speak to me with her usual playful familiarity. Her tone was sharp and defensive, entirely different from before.
It felt incredibly jarring.
But perhaps that was only natural.
The age difference between Lunia and me was three years.
Before my regression, that gap hadn't felt very large. After all, the entire continent had been engulfed in war, and the Lunia of that era was relatively mature.
But age gaps are always far more pronounced during youth than in adulthood. Furthermore, with House Benheim still standing strong, this Lunia had not yet experienced the trials that would force her to grow up.
"Answer me. I asked who you are! Did my father send you?"
Her appearance still retained its childish softness, her speech was slightly unrefined, and her face was filled with wariness.
The Lunia of the present was not the formidable mage known on the battlefield by the awe-inspiring moniker of the 'Golden Archmage'—she was merely a young girl.
To me, who remembered the gentle, mature lady Lunia from before my regression, this was a rather refreshing shock.
I see.
The woman who had run across battlefields with me and promised me a future no longer existed in this era.
She remained only as a memory settled deep within my consciousness, shimmering like a mirage.
I had vaguely assumed our reunion would be something extraordinary.
But that was entirely my own delusion.
It might be incredibly special to me, but to Lunia, this was nothing more than a random encounter.
"Not bad."
But that was fine.
Had I not returned to the past with a chance to set everything right?
Just as I was steadily rebuilding my own strength, I could rebuild my relationship with Lunia from the ground up.
In fact, seeing this new side of Lunia left me feeling uncharacteristically excited.
Having gathered my thoughts, I offered a gentle smile and spoke.
"I'd love to catch up on old times, but it looks like we don't have the luxury."
I drew Gerkin's sword from my waist. At the sight of the blade, Lunia flinched.
"W-What are you doing?!"
Instead of answering, I thrust my sword toward her. Lunia scrambled backward and fell flat on her backside.
But what my blade sliced through was not her, but a dagger flying in from behind her.
Clang!
"And here I was, enjoying our reunion."
Scowling, I looked ahead. Faint silhouettes were drawing closer from beyond the thicket.
"W-What was that just now?"
Lunia's eyes went wide, clearly unable to comprehend what had just transpired.
"Stay sharp. We have company. They're after you."
"...M-Me?"
"Yes. So stay close to me."
With their surprise attack foiled, the assailants revealed themselves.
Five masked figures emerged. They tilted their heads in confusion upon seeing a young man holding a sword standing beside the Benheim lady, who was supposed to be entirely alone.
Three swordsmen and two mages.
I calmly assessed their strength.
Even if they were swordsmen, they were at most basic Aura Users who had just crossed the threshold. The mages were around the 2nd or 3rd Circle at best.
Before my regression, they would have been mere small fry I could have swept aside with a scoff.
But I had to keep in mind that my current body had only just regressed.
"Tsk."
Clicking my tongue, I raised my sword at an angle.
"You're a pain, so just come at me all at once."
Of course, I had no intention of losing.