Chapter 164 : Chapter 164

Chapter 164: Into the Void (2)

In an instant, my vision separated from my body.

It was moving away, as if my soul were pushing my flesh away.

My body remains in place, but my consciousness flows as if adrift in the void.

Far, very far away.

Distantly…….

The thin thread connecting my body and consciousness stretched further and further, until at some point, it snapped.

‘My name is Bihen Benkou. A swordsman living in atonement for my past life.’

...Yes, this is enough.

I’m still okay.

Where am I?

Now my body was no longer visible, and my surroundings were completely dark.

Let’s sort this out for a moment.

Judging by what the Steward bastard said at the end, it seems I’ve been hit by sorcery.

‘Phantom Demon.’

The true form hidden in the mist has been revealed.

It was that bastard who eliminated the Poison Demon at the Krause mansion last time and pulled this strange trick on me.

I swore I wouldn’t fall for the same trick twice, but I fell for it again, as if to mock me.

This is the second time.

But let’s not beat myself up too much.

My opponent is a fragment of a great being revered as an Oesin by the Imperial Family of the Empire.

In the first place, he is of a different class than a human like me.

“Your Holiness. How can a lowly person like myself handle such a momentous task...”

As a voice was heard, the darkness lifted in an instant.

Before my eyes stood an unfamiliar scene, with two unfamiliar faces.

I blinked.

No, it was only my consciousness that felt it had blinked.

This body that I consider myself is not mine.

Right now, I was seeing through someone else’s eyes, hearing with someone else’s ears.

“Why? I believe Priest Sirano can do it better than anyone.”

Just now, I spoke through someone’s mouth.

Of course, it was not my will.

It felt as if my consciousness was forcibly trapped inside this body.

“Sirano. The entire nation is suffering from the fear of war. In times like these, we of the Divine Church cannot cause a rift and add to the confusion.”

This time too, words flowed from this mouth. The aged voice held a strange power.

‘Sirano.’

I stared at the man called Sirano.

He was looking at me too.

What in the world is this situation?

“Sirano, Siran, Ran... Hmm, that’s good. Let’s go with Ran.”

This body took his hand. The warmth was transmitted to me as well.

He closes his eyes. My vision also turned dark.

“Oh Lord, look down upon your young son who has set foot on the path of this holy war. Grant him the serenity to accept the things he cannot change, the courage to change the things he can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”

When I opened my eyes again…….

Ran was smiling at me.

·

·

·

After that, it was like...

It was as if a book was unfolding in my mind.

But it was not my will that turned the pages.

The pages would flip rapidly, then in some parts, flow slowly as if reading carefully, then repeat by skipping ahead quickly again.

What I was observing was the life of the person named Ran.

I was always by his side.

To be precise, I existed as someone by his side.

I saw Ran through their eyes, heard Ran’s voice with their ears, and conversed with Ran through their mouths.

But unfortunately.

All the scenes and events evaporated before they could even remain in my mind as memories.

Even if some somehow managed to remain, they would eventually be buried far away by the other scenes and events that continuously piled up afterward.

It was like having a very long dream.

If not that…….

Could I be dead?

At some point, my sense of time disappeared.

It felt like a brief moment, and also like endless eons.

I didn’t know how much time had passed in the real world.

But one thing was clear: a fatigue as if I had experienced an eternity had settled deep within me.

Right now, Ran.

“Iel.”

Was calling me that.

“Ran.”

A clear, beautiful voice flowed from my throat.

It was a woman’s voice.

“Congratulations on becoming the Emperor of the Empire.”

Iel was indifferent.

Her gaze, which had slid down at some point, was unwavering.

“From now on, the history of the Empire will begin anew with the Igraine dynasty.”

Only when Ran said that did Iel finally raise her eyes.

I felt that I too would not be able to forget this moment.

The real name of the first Igraine Emperor was Iel.

“The history... of the Empire.”

Iel muttered. The trembling was transmitted to me as well.

“Ran, you’ll stay by my side, won’t you? You won’t leave this time, right?”

“……”

“That you came back, turning back time, was all for the Empire... please, please tell me it’s so.”

Ran’s gaze was of an unknown depth.

It was like an abyss that I did not dare to fathom.

“Iel, I can no longer stay in the Empire.”

“Ran—”

“Because I have something I must do.”

“What in the world is it... Is it more important than me and the Empire?”

I, Iel, gaze at Ran.

A forgotten memory, or perhaps an afterimage that had sunk into the deep, bottomless unconscious, began to surface.

And I realize. No, I remember.

Ran is a god.

A being who has watched over the trajectory of creation and destruction, crossing countless timelines.

This memory will also disappear soon…….

It’s vivid now, but when the next scene comes, it will be erased again as if it were a lie.

But the fragments pile up, layer by layer, and remain in the unconscious.

Scenes that constantly intersect and are forgotten,

The accumulation of countless afterimages,

Sedimentation into the unconscious,

And a perception hardened into a solid proposition, like a stone in the unconscious.

—He erased his own tracks and left not a single record of himself, so he is called only by that name. The origin of the Imperial ideology, said to be revered even within the Igraine Dynasty.

The ascetic who passed on that will to the first emperor of the Igraine Dynasty.

‘The Original Body of the Eight Demons.’

He is Ran.

I blinked. That was why Iel shed tears.

“Iel, there’s something I have to give you.”

Ran opened a book.

I looked inside it through Iel’s eyes.

“What is this?”

I caught a glimpse of the characters densely written inside the book.

Heaven, Martial Arts, Sword. And Chivalry.

I could read a few characters for a moment, but Iel did not know them at all.

“Language creates and dominates thought. As long as we write and read the characters left by the gods, we can never be free from them.”

Ran’s voice was firm.

“I chose these characters. The characters of a world I found at the end of my travels through countless worlds, where humans were able to pave their own path and exist. From now on, the Empire must think in these characters and record its history in these characters.”

I, and Iel, held our breath.

“It is not something that can be achieved by the power of one person.”

“Ran, how can I...”

“Only you and the Igraine Dynasty can do it, Iel.”

For a moment, I almost screamed.

My head throbbed as if it would split.

‘It’s not Iel who’s experiencing this.’

My vision flashed on and off like a flickering light.

When the pain subsided a little, my vision glowed unnaturally, as if coated with fluorescent paint.

The borders of my vision and objects wavered and appeared to overlap.

“Iel?”

Only when Ran looked at Iel with concern did my vision stabilize a little.

“N-No, it’s nothing.”

“……”

Ran flipped through the book and pointed to a few places with his hand.

Judging by the shape of his mouth, he seemed to be explaining something.

The shape of his mouth?

At some point, the sound faded away.

This had never happened before.

“This is history, Bihen Benkou.”

Ran said, staring at me.

The voice was not his.

A black mass bloomed and faded repeatedly over his moving mouth.

It was as if someone was trying to erase his traces.

“Your question was a very primal one, Bihen Benkou.”

Of course, I cannot give any answer. Because I exist in this world through Iel.

“I still have much to show you. Let’s continue to be together.”

Around this time, I remembered.

This voice, like a man’s and a woman’s merged into one, belonged to that bastard who eliminated the Poison Demon at the Krause mansion.

‘Phantom Demon.’

It was then.

Iel swept the book off the table and shot up from her seat.

Is she angry?

No sound can be heard. Iel was even shaking off Ran’s hand.

My vision was blurred and stained as if submerged in water.

It was the moment Iel opened the door of the secret chamber.

Through that gap, a familiar face was revealed.

“Young Master, come to your senses.”

It was Kuhn.

Her voice alone rang out clearly, as if cutting through the illusion.

In that instant, my vision wavered once more.

The stained film cracked as if it were breaking.

In the midst of this, no one paid her any mind.

Iel saw Ran, and I, through Iel, saw Kuhn standing next to Ran.

“I believe you can see me now.”

Just then, a thread-like string formed between her and me.

It was the same string that had suddenly disappeared when my consciousness first began to drift away.

I struggled to grab it.

“Trust me.”

With that one phrase, the curtain shattered into pieces.

The blurry illusion faded, I was pulled back into reality as if collapsing a white blinding light—

***

“Ah, I see. I didn’t want to reveal it like this, but...”

“Hey! L-Look over there!”

As one of the men pointed, everyone’s heads whipped in that direction.

Someone was walking toward them.

“Bihen...?”

Bolero muttered weakly.

Feeling a sense of puzzlement from him, Noser looked over, only to see Bolero himself looking baffled, not knowing the reason.

A vague sense of foreboding was pressing down on his chest.

“Hmm.”

Noser stood up. He was a knight who possessed both skill and experience.

He had his own intuition.

“Bihen. Can you hear me?”

It was around the time his features began to become vaguely visible.

Noser spoke in a warning tone.

“You seem to have gone through quite an ordeal. If you can hear me, stop for a moment.”

Bihen did not stop. His gait seemed slow and unsteady.

“Surely not. Please do not betray my trust.”

Everyone held their breath behind Noser and watched the situation unfold.

Just then, someone made a sound like, uh-oh.

“……”

Noser narrowed his eyes.

The color in Bihen’s pupils was faded. It was close to gray.

“Damn it. I never believed in the superstition that a hero’s end is always tragic.”

Noser sighed and drew his sword.

“...Don’t resent me too much, my friend.”

It was when the distance was just about ten steps.

The staggering Bihen collapsed on the spot.

In that moment, a collective gasp burst from the group.

From within the murmuring, a low, rough groan escaped.

Bihen’s body trembled violently. He struggled as if trying to get up again.

“Bihen!”

“Wait, Bolero! Don’t go near him! It might still be dangerous...!”

“Shut up!”

Noser blinked.

He had never been treated like this in his life, but lately, he found himself getting flustered like this more often.

“Bihen! Get a hold of yourself!”

Bolero pulled Bihen into his arms.

He slapped his cheeks hard.

“Ugh...”

Bihen’s trembling eyelids gradually began to calm down.

His pupils, which had been darting around trying to focus, slowly settled into place.

“Oh! Are you coming to Bihen?!”

“...Bolero?”

“Ha, haha, hahaha...! Oh, Elzerus!”

Bolero hugged Bihen tightly.

For an instant, Bihen’s gaze became clear.

Bolero’s body heat and breath, all sorts of sensations, came to him vividly.

The senses that had returned were exceptionally sharp.

At the same time, a few facts about Bolero that he had forgotten for a while, that he hadn’t paid much attention to, came to mind.

Something electrifying shot down his spine.

In that moment, his mind snapped wide awake.

Bihen abruptly stood up, swung his fist, and slammed it into Bolero’s jaw.

Ppa-ak!

Bolero’s eyes slowly went slack, and his large frame collapsed with a thud.

“...?”

Noser, who was watching from a distance, froze in bewilderment.

What in the world is this situation now?

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