With our objective set, I decided to split off from the swordsman Noc for the time being.
My plan was to head to the room where the Bugbears spawned. I needed to secure the Agility Enhancement skill, then use Skill Synthesis to acquire the Thief skill. Given the uncertainty of the battles ahead, I had no intention of slacking off when it came to my own growth.
『Hey, Ageha.』
『What is it?』
Ageha’s voice echoed inside my mind. Even now, she continued to speak to me through our remote connection.
『Is it really necessary to kill Hero Eligion?』
I had managed to get Sage Nyau removed from her hit list, but I hadn't been able to talk her out of targeting Hero Eligion yet. Personally, I didn't have any particular attachment to the man, but if there was a way for him to survive, that felt like the better path to take.
Besides...
『Hero Eligion is powerful. It seems to me we’d be better off making him an ally.』
I had witnessed his strength with my own eyes many times before.
『Making him an ally would be difficult,』 Ageha replied. 『If we kill Holy Knight Kanaria, Hero Eligion will immediately view us as enemies.』
『We could explain the situation and somehow persuade him—』
『I’m afraid persuading that man is impossible.』
Ageha spoke with a tone of total resignation.
『I’ve succeeded in persuading him before.』
『............』
I heard Ageha’s sharp intake of breath.
『I’ve already looped through this timeline countless times. In those iterations, I have successfully persuaded Hero Eligion.』
Indeed, back when I realized I couldn't defeat Warrior Golgano and Holy Knight Kanaria on my own, I had explored every possible path to winning Hero Eligion over as an ally. I failed at first, but after repeating the loops over and over, I eventually figured out exactly how to reach him.
『You persuaded him... and then what happened?』
『Hero Eligion was assassinated by Holy Knight Kanaria.』
I gave her the blunt truth. Then, I suddenly recalled how the future had shifted drastically once Nyau intervened.
『I see.』
Ageha gave a mental nod, then fell silent, seemingly lost in thought.
『Well, if that’s the case, perhaps there is room for persuasion. However, I’m hesitant to change a method that has already succeeded once. You should know from experience, Kiska—altering a single event can cause the future to spiral in a completely different direction.』
『I mean, I understand that, but...』
I had experienced firsthand how a slight change in approach could lead to a massive difference in the outcome.
『But if it fails, we can just do it over again.』
I had already died more times than I could count. At this stage, adding one or two more deaths to the tally meant nothing to me.
"Kiska."
The sound of my name startled me. Ageha was standing right in front of me.
She had previously claimed that maintaining a clone of her physical body was too taxing and that she would stick to remote communication. And yet, she had gone out of her way to manifest before me.
"Is Kiska dissatisfied with my way of doing things?" she asked, her eyes searching mine with a look of profound anxiety.
"No, it’s not that—"
"Liar!"
She screamed the word, cutting me off instantly.
"I’ve known something was wrong for a while now. Why? Do you hate me? Is that it? No, no, no! If Kiska hates me, I won't be able to keep living!"
Ageha collapsed onto the floor, curling into a ball.
"I'm sorry, Ageha. There's no way I could ever hate you."
I immediately knelt beside her.
"Really?"
"Yes, really."
"...Prove it. Prove to me right now that you don't hate me."
Ageha looked up at me, her eyes pleading. I understood exactly what she was asking for. Reaching out, I took her by the shoulders and kissed her.
Perhaps it was because of her tears, but the kiss tasted saltier than usual.
"Mnn... I really do love you, Kiska."
She spoke softly as our lips parted. It seemed she had finally calmed down.
"The truth is... I should be honest with you."
I realized I should have spoken from the heart from the start. My reason for opposing Hero Eligion's death wasn't born from simple pity.
"I mentioned before that I was bullied back in my village, right?"
"Because of your silver hair, wasn't it?"
"I'm certain that the reason the bullying started was because Noc betrayed the Hero’s party."
Deep down, I must have been looking for a way to spare Hero Eligion because I believed that by persuading him, I could somehow erase the image of the silver-haired Alcusian as a traitor.
I went on to tell Ageha everything about my past. I told her exactly what I had endured in that village. Since being exiled to the dungeon depths, I had met many people, but I had never shared my history with anyone. I suppose I had always felt a deep-seated resistance to exposing such a miserable, pathetic past.
"Hey, are you okay?"
I realized Ageha was staring at me, sobbing uncontrollably.
"I... I had no idea Kiska went through all that. I’m so sorry. I’ve been so selfish, only thinking about myself. I never even considered what you were carrying."
"There's no need for you to apologize, Ageha."
"But there is! I’m the reason Kiska was bullied in the first place. It only happened because I gave those orders to Noc."
"It’s okay. You and Noc might have been the trigger, but you aren't the ones to blame for how those people chose to act. So... thank you. Just seeing you cry for me makes me happy."
Every word I spoke was the absolute truth. I knew Noc was the root cause of my suffering, but resenting him for it felt fundamentally wrong.
Ageha wiped her eyes and stood up, her gaze hardening with a sudden, fierce resolve.
"Kiska, I’m going to change your past. I’ll wipe away the stigma of the Alcusians as if it never existed in the first place."
"...Is that even possible?"
"Leave it to me."
Ageha flashed a fearless, confident smile.