The World After the Bad Ending

[Translator - Night]

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Chapter 176: A Person Full of Questions

I decided to consult Duke of Whitewood about the questions that had arisen and left the faculty office.

Since classes had ended, I could see students moving around for their after-school activities.

At a glance, it seemed like a peaceful world, but beneath the surface, a massive tide was beginning to rise.

Before I knew it, autumn had passed, and winter had arrived.

The fallen leaves had disappeared, leaving behind only bare branches.

‘Is this my second winter since coming here?’

I recalled the despair I had felt when I first possessed this body.

Now, even that despair felt like a distant memory.

‘It has already been a year since I possessed this body.’

As I walked with these thoughts in mind—

Step—

I heard the sound of footsteps approaching from a distance.

When I lifted my head, I saw a familiar face.

Moreover, it was a name I had just heard from Aisha moments ago.

"Oh, senior!"

The person spotted me and smiled brightly.

Seeing that, I naturally smiled back.

"Midra."

Midra Fenin.

The second-ranked first-year student.

A person full of mysteries.

I hadn’t expected to run into him so soon.

I had planned to ask Card about him, but things had taken an unexpected turn.

"I heard you went to see Duke of Whitewood, but you returned sooner than I expected?"

Midra grinned as he spoke in his usual casual tone.

I simply stared at him.

I knew nothing about Midra.

He wasn’t a character who played any significant role in the scenario.

The "Flame Butterfly" arc focused on Lucas and those around him.

Naturally, there wasn’t much information about the younger students.

That’s why Midra was an unknown character.

Facing him, I decided to speak.

"Midra, I heard that your name isn’t listed in the Fenin Baron family."

It was better to be direct about these things rather than beating around the bush.

As soon as I relayed what Aisha had told me, Midra paused for a moment.

Then, with a troubled look, he scratched his head.

"Ah, haha, so you heard? Well, to be honest, I’m not actually from the Fenin Baron family. There are some complicated circumstances, but it’s a bit difficult to explain."

Midra answered more nonchalantly than I expected.

I suddenly found myself prying into his family situation.

"I'm embarrassed about hiding my identity, but I really wanted to enter Zerion Academy."

"Did you have a specific reason for wanting to get in so badly?"

At my next question, Midra smiled.

The setting sun was seeping through the window.

In that golden light, Midra simply smiled.

"Yes, there’s someone I really wanted to keep an eye on."

What did he mean by that?

I couldn’t understand the meaning behind his words, but Midra was clearly looking straight at me.

"I’d appreciate it if you could keep this a secret. Surely, senior, you have a thing or two you’d prefer to keep hidden as well?"

His tone was oddly suggestive, as if he knew something.

"Midra."

But he had picked the wrong person.

I was obsessively devoted to maintaining the true course of events.

Now, someone who could potentially alter the course of events was standing before me.

Thud—

My fist clenched tightly.

At the same time, the flames of ash flickered softly.

The temperature around us gradually rose.

The flames, reflecting my will, began to stir.

"Sorry, but I don’t have the best personality. I need to know what your intentions are and who it is you’re watching."

I made it clear that I had no intention of backing down.

Midra blinked once, then smirked.

"Wow, so harsh. Senior, isn’t this a bit much?"

"I’m actually being quite polite."

At the very least, I was still giving him the chance to talk.

"Hmm, in that case, I suppose there’s a misunderstanding that I should clear up."

Midra sighed, as if he had no other choice, and extended a finger.

"The Great Hero Wolfram is a regressor."

The moment I heard those words, my entire body froze.

I stared at Midra, unable to comprehend what I had just heard.

Midra, however, was still smiling as if nothing had happened.

"What did you say?"

"I said, the Great Hero Wolfram is a regressor."

When I asked again, Midra kindly repeated himself.

Regression.

The act of restarting the world from a previous point.

A conversation I had once had with Musika flashed through my mind.

At the time, I had suspected that Wolfram might be a possessor like myself.

That was merely a hypothesis based on my own situation.

But after hearing Midra’s words, it made sense to consider this possibility.

If Wolfram was a regressor, then Musika’s words about him made sense.

The real issue, however, was that Midra knew about it.

"How do you know that?"

Midra was a character who had no significant role in the scenario.

How could he possibly know about Wolfram?

When I asked, Midra only smiled in response.

As he had said from the start, he seemed unwilling to reveal more than one thing.

This guy had a worse personality than I expected.

“...Midra, are you perhaps Wolfram’s reincarnation?”

So, I asked the first question that came to mind.

If Midra himself was Wolfram, everything would make sense.

If he was Wolfram’s reincarnation, then of course, he would know about being a regressor.

“Huh? Ahahahahaha!”

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

At that moment, Midra burst into laughter upon hearing my question.

As if he couldn’t hold it in, he laughed for a while before wiping the corners of his eyes.

“That’s something you should think about carefully. But since you made me laugh, I’ll tell you a bit more. Wolfram was a regressor, so even if he saved the world, he could not die. On the contrary, if he died, he would lose the world he had saved.”

Midra then turned around and walked past me.

Even though I was conjuring flames of ash, he showed no concern whatsoever.

“So, he asked his comrade and friend, Zerion, for a favor. A unique method to sever his regression.”

Asking Zerion for help to end his regression?

The story was turning out to be even more shocking than expected.

“Oh, and by the way, there are a lot of misconceptions about Zerion. Since he’s from such ancient times, the records are all over the place.”

He suddenly seemed to recall another fact.

“Zerion wasn’t a man, but a woman.”

Zerion had always been described as a man in various records.

So I had naturally assumed the same.

But since Xenia was also a woman, I had a small inkling of doubt.

‘…Was Zerion really a woman?’

Midra had just shattered common knowledge before disappearing past me.

A faint scent, like blackberries, brushed past my nose.

“I’ve told you everything worth telling. Since I’ve shared this much, let’s keep each other’s secrets.”

“Midra, wait a—”

I turned around to call out to him.

And then, I was left speechless.

The corridor was empty.

Midra, who had been speaking with me just moments ago, was nowhere to be found.

A look of bewilderment crossed my face.

I had trained myself to detect presences.

But to disappear without leaving a single trace—this didn’t make sense.

It felt almost as if he had vanished through spatial teleportation.

‘What the hell…?’

Midra’s identity became even more of a mystery.

Just who was that guy?

Though his actions suggested he wasn’t exactly hostile toward me, there were too many suspicious things about him.

Click—

At that moment, the sound of high heels echoed in my ears.

I turned my head toward the familiar footsteps, and something suddenly lunged at me.

“Husbandddd!”

Sharin came flying into my arms, her navy-blue hair trailing behind her.

I hurriedly extended my arms to catch her as she dove into my embrace.

“What if I couldn’t catch you?”

“There’s no way my husband wouldn’t catch me.”

Her faith in me was unwavering.

“You’re happy to see me after so long, right?”

“Yeah, I am.”

“If you were, you should’ve come to see me first.”

Even as she sulked, Sharin rubbed her face against my chest.

A soft sensation pressed against me.

Maybe because it had been a while since we last met, she seemed much more affectionate than usual.

Ever since she confessed to me, her displays of affection had only grown.

It felt like a wary fox had finally let down its guard completely.

As she nestled in my arms, Sharin suddenly peeked up at me.

Her eyes, shimmering like the Milky Way, sparkled like gemstones.

“Sharin?”

“Husbannddd, was there a mage here just now?”

A mage.

My eyes blinked at the word.

“No, a mage…?”

I was about to deny it—

But then, I remembered the boy I had just been speaking with.

My head slowly turned toward Sharin with a creak.

“Sharin, why do you think that?”

Instead of answering, she rolled her eyes around.

“There’s magic residue lingering here. And I don’t think I’ve ever seen this type of magic before.”

Was there any magic in this world that Sharin hadn’t seen?

She was the daughter of the Master of the Blue Magic Tower.

She had practically grown up surrounded by all kinds of magic.

“Celestial Magic.”

At that moment, Sharin’s eyebrows slightly furrowed.

“This… This is Celestial Magic.”

“Celestial Magic?”

My eyes widened in surprise.

Celestial Magic…

There was only one person in the world who could use it—Xenia, the reincarnation of Zerion.

‘Then that means… the way Midra disappeared just now…’

Did he really vanish using Celestial Magic’s spatial teleportation?

‘…How?’

A wave of confusion washed over my face.

At the same time, countless possibilities flashed through my mind.

“Are you sure?”

“I’m Sharin, you know?”

Sharin had probably seen Xenia before.

Xenia had been able to wield Celestial Magic early on, which had made her famous.

The Master of the Blue Magic Tower had met Xenia, so Sharin must have as well.

That was why she was able to recognize that Celestial Magic had been cast here.

Sharin gently stepped out of my arms.

Her Milky Way-like eyes shimmered.

Each time, she absorbed the remaining traces of information left in the corridor.

Then, she turned back to me.

“Husbannddd, who exactly was here?”

“…”

I stared blankly at the hallway where she stood.

“…Yeah, good question.”

Midra Fenin.

Who are you?

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]