Annette’s name and our surname was written right there. I didn’t know where Salvesteer was since I had never heard of it before.

I couldn’t worry about such trivial things right now.

The entire banquet hall was silent when everyone sensed the atmosphere. I turned my gaze at Artoria.

She had a guilty expression on her face.

‘Ah...I see now...’

She knew but she purposely didn’t tell me. Maybe it would’ve been weird to tell someone something that directly. I knew why but for some reason I felt mad at her. I wanted to shout at her and curse at the gods.

Why did she get to know so much? I was the one suffering mentally. I was basically told that I might die before I turn 22 years old. With the way things had been going so far, you wouldn’t expect that a disaster was lurking close in the near future.

But lucky for her. She was a regressor.

I didn’t know what kind of face I made when I silently looked at Artoria. She couldn’t bear it to maintain eye contact with me. Whatever expression I made wasn’t a good one. I could see her getting teary and turning herself around.

“What’s wrong?” Mason asked a little hesitant.

My father put the letter in his back pocket. He smiled wryly.

“Isn’t it better to discuss this when we are alone? I feel like the setting isn’t good right now.” I could tell that he was holding back his emotions as well.

Mason nodded his head and addressed everyone.

“It’s nothing too serious, everyone. Just a bit of trouble from the surrounding villages. I can sort it out later.”

The crowd sighed in relief. It seemed they were worried that the night would be cut short.

I felt someone’s hand on mine while I was looking at the floor. It was the hand of a woman. It was delicate and soft.

“....”

It was Diane. She was squeezing my hand while looking away. After she let go of my hand, she whispered into my ear.

“As your wife, I will gladly listen to them if need be. But, only if we are alone. I can see that what you’re shaken up about is personal.”

“....”

I nodded slowly. The weight of the bag in my hands was still there. Annette really did send something to me.

I put the bag onto the table and stood up. I tried my best to smile.

“Now then. Where is my little sisters’ presents~?”

◇

The people were still chatting and being lively inside the banquet hall. The loud music and chatter could even be heard from where I stood.

I was standing at a pond after excusing myself from the hall. The night sky was cool and refreshing on my skin.

“Future Clyde.” I tried to call out to him, hoping I would get an answer.

....

“Hey, you old fart!” Still nothing. Only the chirrs of grasshoppers echoed in the silent field behind the manor. The blue light coming from the moon illuminated the surface of the pond.

Every now and then a frog would croak and leap.

...

“Fuck...!”

A massive purple fireball appeared in my hand. It was so powerful that the entire pond’s surface was disturbed. The trees rattled as they were pushed by the force of the shockwaves. The fish got agitated and started swimming away. I didn’t notice that the entire property was shaking. The knights ran along the grounds and eventually ended up in the backyard, where I was.

But I didn’t care about them. I wanted to let my rage out. I wanted to destroy something to get it under control. Anything was fine as long as it was a living thing.

A lone tree caught my eye. I threw it at the tree. The resounding boom made the birds fly away. Maybe because it was an high rank spell, it caused the air to vibrate from the shockwave.

“You fucker...answer me....”

My hand which threw the spell was trembling. It was burning that much because I literally held that hot ball of compressed fire in my hands.

Funnily enough, it was like I was holding my emotions in my hand. How I felt was the perfect metaphor for that raging ball of fire.

“I-Is everything alright, s-sir?”

A knight came up to me and asked. The others seemed to be too scared to approach. So much for being the protectors of this manor.

I answered without turning to them.

“Yeah...I thought it was a thief or something.”

“I-I see. We’ll search around the area to double check. Come on, guys.”

I put my hands in my pockets and walked away. “Whatever.”

After getting out of everyone’s sight, I chanted 『Flight』and flew high into the air. The cold air blew past my face. I took off the ribbon that held my hair together. My bangs fluttered in the wind.

After reaching a high enough altitude to see the entire kingdom, I stopped. This spell took a large amount of mana to cast but it didn’t bother me that much. If need be, I could stay in the sky for hours.

I looked down on the nation. This must’ve been the sight Zero saw when he appeared that day.

“It’s funny how small and insignificant we all are, huh?” I said to myself as I looked at the people on the ground. They were like tiny ants.

“I wonder what would happen if I---”

I lifted my hand and gathered mana at the centre of it. Blue mana formed a giant sphere. It grew to about ten meters in diameter.

“--dropped this without warning...”

“Clyde. Stop that.”

A stern voice interrupted my monologue.

“What do you want, Artoria?” I already sensed her coming but I didn’t react.

“What are you trying to do with that?”

“I wanted to see how many bugs get squashed if I throw the current amount of Supernova I can manage....At my level, I think ten shouldn’t be too hard.” I extinguished the spell and turned to face her. She was standing on a thin white film that kept her floating above ground.

Judging by the fact that I sensed no mana, that thing was a magic item. How convenient. I’d never heard of such a thing before. Maybe no one knew for that matter.

“Bugs..? Clyde, are you feeling alright?”

“....Artoria, how much knowledge into the future do you currently possess at the moment?” I didn’t answer her question. Instead, I asked my own.

“Seven years like I told you...Certain things are censored out as a downside of my regressions so maybe even less than that.”

She answered without hesitation.

“I want to know something...Does the second disaster happen during that time?”

She nodded. “That is highly possible.”

“Will Sol descend? No, will any god descend?”

“Why are you—”

“Because I want to know why I was brought to this damned world!” I clenched my fists hard. “Why the fuck was I chosen when I serve no purpose!? There’s no way future me was the one who reincarnated me. Since that’s the case, who else is there!?”

“....”

Artoria silently looked at me.

“I can finally contact my sister. Now I know she’ll welcome me in her home. However, what if I’m not alive tomorrow to see that day? What if I suddenly die because some stupid god decided things will be convenient that way!?”

“....”

“Say something! How can someone live like this when they know their death can happen sooner or later!?”

“Clyde...” Artoria pulled me onto the thin film. It felt like I was standing on solid ice.

“Everyone knows they’ll die someday.”

“That’s not the same...You said it yourself: you don’t remember anything past 22 years.”

“But Clyde...No one expects you to be the one taking part in preventing these disasters. No one else even knows they will happen. You could leave this kingdom and become a free adventurer while living with miss Eleanor and the others on a faraway land.”

“....”

“You’re not selfish, are you? You want to protect those close to you. The friends you made along the way and the ones you love. How do you think they’ll feel if you suddenly left? You probably had these thoughts, didn’t you?”

“Ha...”

I did.

“I could just start over anytime I want. But do you know why I don’t?”

“...Why?”

She pointed at me.

“Because every single Clyde I came to love has been the same. There was a time when things were so tough that you died multiple times. I couldn’t take it. I didn’t want to see you die again. On my eighth time, I finally reached the life that was exactly the same as my first. No ongoing wars, racial discrimination, and no disasters left and right. I could say I’m happy to be here.”

“....”

“But, do you know what, Clyde? Who I just saw wasn’t the Clyde I fell in love with. He wasn’t the kind of person who was emotionally weak. He was a brave, courageous man who wasn’t just known for his magic.”

“What the hell did you expect? I was born as a normal person on Earth. I attended high school, lost my virginity to some skank at college over a bet, studied a degree in one of the hardest majors, dropped out of college because of peer pressure and became a sack of shit. But, to be honest...I’ll choose such a boring life over having to fear for my life here any day—”

SLAP

“...!”

I was suddenly slapped across the face by Artoria. When I saw her face, I couldn’t help but shudder.

Hollowed eyes, a twisted mouth and a dark shadow over her face. Her face was looking at me in disgust.

However, after a few seconds her face returned to normal. I had never seen such an expression on her face before. It was like she was looking at a pitiful dog or something. I got that type of feeling.

“I’m sorry I slapped you. But, please stop whining.”

“H-Hey! I’m not whining!” I retreated a little backwards when she came closer. That said, there wasn’t much room to move around.

“Why can’t you just accept that this is your life now? It doesn’t matter how many times you brood over being killed by Sol, you can’t go back.”

“I-I know that.”

“If you truly know that then grow up.”

“....”

It was a hard blow coming from my childhood friend. She had always been the reserved type who followed me. Never once had she spoken up against me. No matter what I complained about or said.

“This isn’t the kind of man your future self wanted you to be.”

“...But...”

“No buts! If you truly want to meet the one that reincarnated you, shouldn’t you stay alive until then?”

“Ah....”

“Do you understand? Your purpose for coming here, having those two cores and meeting your future self will never be answered if you give up. I know that he knows who reincarnated you. However, he wants you to find the answer yourself.”

Those were words that I never knew I wanted to hear. Now that I thought about it, wasn’t Artoria the one suffering the most? She had to relive so many lives and see her loved ones die so many times. She also knew the future but couldn’t tell everyone because there was no telling what might happen if she did.

A regressor was like an outsider even if they were born as a normal person. They had knowledge that transcended those of others. This could be beneficial to them, however, it could also be a weapon and a curse to society.

“Artoria.”

“...?”

“When your trial is over...How about we go on a date?”

“...!”

Her eyes widened. A few moments later her entire face flushed.

“Don’t change the subject! W-We’re discussing something serious here!”

The person I saw after that slap looked completely different from the one blushing right now. She looked as adorable as a small animal.

Despite complaining that I changed the subject, she lowered her head and spoke again.

“Does that mean...you accept me?”

I smiled silently. Her eyes widened again before they became moist.

“Rather than accept, I want to make this work. That is, if you’re fine with my answer...” I scratched my cheek.

It wasn’t a second later that she threw herself at me and hugged me.

◇◆◇

After our little talk, the two of us headed back to the venue. My head—which was filled with negative thoughts before—had finally cooled down. I finally felt that there was light at the end of my tunnel. What was important right now wasn’t worrying about when the next disaster would occur. Rather, I needed to prepare for it.

I got my revenge against Zelda. If I could do that then maybe surviving the disaster wasn’t a dream after all...