I thought something a bit more impactful would happen, but when I reached the other side of the portal, the ambient music that has played and still is right now, portray the solemness sorrow that exists in this room.

Pink but dark.

The candles have melted, unable to lit up the place. Odd flowers that eerily look like roses. The skeleton has brought me to a bedroom that I am sure, not his.

“Y-Your Majesty, I assure you, I’m not a spy. Miss Replica was the one who told me to retrieve the artifact. She was correct when she said that I met a traveler and all that, but it’s not really... like that.”

A cracking sound as the skeleton opens his mouth, “I know.”

‘What…’

“She has never been… a bright one, but her intention and action… have always been for the betterment of the rest of us”

“Um, huh?”

“You are no Wonderer, but a Traveler.”

My eyes widened.

“A wonderer would never survive the endless wave of skeletons that are continuously reviving on the inner circle of the Prison’s layer.”

‘This, Ludtleth said that I was one. Not that I really understand it but I suppose it is true since players usually being referred to as Travelers by the people in this game world, but it seems that Wonderer is something of a weaker kind.’

“It seems that you have already known the cause of your… abnormality. However, try to keep it hidden from the rest. Wouldn’t want to have anyone misunderstood your intention… which you have not stated.”

“Um, are you not going to kill me? I get the feeling you were angry at me because I took this book. As for my intentions, I don’t really have one, your Majesty.”

“Is that the case?”

Nodding.

“Hmm…” when he’s slowly approaching me, I quickly took out the book and presented it to him.

Tapping on its center before grabbing it, “This book is a remnant of the Black Old King, a dominant ruler back in the Era of Transcendental Beings.”

“Then, um…” I keep wondering if I actually did something bad or not, isn’t obtaining something awesome like this is beneficial for them?

“Him along with many others that are like him have gone missing. Their remnants are being sought after by all those above us. That includes the Purgatory Realm. Their ruler, Lehdrith, holds ours in his grasp. You’ve done well for retrieving it, but… since it is something that you own, why don’t you tell me what you want to do with it?”

“Huh?”

“Will you be giving it to me and receive a tremendous reward for your contribution… or would you like to keep it for yourself?”

‘What?’ the shocking option made my eyes flicker, “W-Wait! Isn’t this thing like... very important? Why even give me the option? A-And what would happen if I chose to keep it for myself? You’re not going to kill me, are you?”

“Too many questions. You’ve already been betrayed, are you not? The contract that has been made stated…” pointing his bony finger at me, “That you are free now.”

"Mmph?!!"

*Cough *Cough

Black foam coming out of my mouth.

! {Blessing of the Purgatory has been removed}

! {The Unending Contract of the Abyss has been removed}

~ {Blessing of the Abyss has been added}

~ {Experience gain reduction has been changed from 95% to 80%}

~ {Innate Ability: Immortality – has advanced to Rank 3 / Defy death upon reaching 0% Health, Negate any fatal wound and increased Pain Resistance to Maximum, Revival will occur every hour if death persist}

~ {Skill: Abyssal Touch – has advanced to Potency 2}

! {You have been banned from the Purgatory Faction}

“Now, make your choice.”

I noticed all these notifications, yet I still don’t know what the hell is going on, but since he offered me the choice, why do I even have to think much into it, and besides— wait, is this to test my loyalty?

Even if it is so, I’m not gonna lick his feet for it.

“I’d like to keep it.”

His eyes turning back to white, “You sure?”

Nervous, my hands are shaking, “Yes.”

*Step *Step *Step

My eyes shut quickly when he approaches, and then suddenly, I felt coldness at the top of my head. When I open my eyes, I saw the magnificence of the skeleton’s face that I was never able to which I’ve killed in my previous life.

“Here.”

The book, I took from his cold hands, but for some reason, I feel warm inside.

“You are free to leave. Avarice will lead you back to where you were and you can safely head to the surface then.”

“W-Wait! I didn’t say that I want to leave.”

“Oh? Then why do you want to stay then? Are you a spy sent by the gods after all?”

“No, but… Can we talk for a bit? There’s been something on my mind lately that I just can’t get rid of ever since… um…”

Surely, I can’t tell him that I reincarnated back to the past. After I killed the skeleton, I can still vividly remember what he said to me back then.

“Have we met?”

My eyes widened as I looked up at him.

“You seem to be oddly familiar of me even though, I have never shown my face to a Traveler before, and even then, Malice would erase their memories.”

My face hardened as I bit my lips in nervousness.

“Ludwig.”

As soon as I said that name, a burst of powerful weight came down onto my shoulders and pinned my body to the ground in a still position as I was.

It’s obvious where it came from.

“How…”

My palms sweating.

“I’ve killed you before.”

*Choke*

Pulling me up to the point where my feet no longer touch the ground.

“Look me in the eye when you are talking to me.”

“Nngh…” I feel cold, “I-In the future… inside the Crystal Palace of the Demon King’s castle, I and two other comrades of mine fought you and your dragon.”

*Thud*

When he let me go, I fell on my knees.

“The Demon King… I see, but to think that you came from the future while being this weak of a being, it doesn’t seem to be—”

“I didn’t come from the future, I returned back to the past.”

Him looking sternly at me - eye to eye - but before he even says anything, he went out to the balcony behind the curtain hiding a broken glass.

*Cough *Cough

The pain is still there in my throat.

I followed him there and after I went past the curtain, the view of the outside entranced me in a twisted way. A dying forest as far as the eye can see. It’s all bleak in tone, but when I look up in the sky, the scenery of the blue moon…

‘It’s beautiful.’

The shape is just like the sphere of the chronomancy spell that I used to kill him.

“You…”

"..."

“Is there a reason why you and your comrades decided to kill me?”

“You were there with a giant black dragon and certainly, you were not one of us Travelers while also being inside the Crystal Palace, specifically, the throne room.”

“So, you thought of me as a monster or the demon king itself and decided to kill me there and then?”

“Is there a reason for me not to? Even if you weren’t…”

“No, you did the right thing.”

Silence emerged alongside the ambient music getting stronger. I clenched my fist as flashes of memories at the time I killed him showed up.

The weight started pinning down my shoulders and this time, I don’t know where it came from. I chuckled for no reason as I turned around looking up at the moon again.

“Heh, this is funny.”

“What is?”

“I’ve been here for a long time and yet, I have never seen this scenery before. Used to be my favorite place, this realm. I get to beat a lot of those skeletons that look like you… I think nothing of them then, and still is.”

Looking at the sky makes my mind feels like I'm in the clouds.

Gesturing as I said, “Just a mindless bunch of undead to get you started on the real deal that is Ekolia, as my friend said.”

“…”

“I just went past those bony guys with my staff on hand and I just breeze through them as their bones scattered around…”

“… It was the time where I finally thought that I have regained all the fun and flowers just like I once have back then when I was a kid.”

Odd, I feel like I just said something unnecessary.

“Haha, it’s funny really…”

Weird, why did I say it’s funny?

“I have never thought a single thing when I killed thousands upon thousands of your kind before, and as a matter of fact, I really enjoyed it.”

No wait, that wasn’t what I wanted to say.

“It was a thrilling experience…”

Why am I keep running my mouth like this?

My hands trembling, “… and yet when I killed you, I feel nothing but regret.”

*Sob*

Tears suddenly flow out of my eyes, “I have dreams, you know. A goal, and to achieve that, I needed to get stronger and sit at the top of this world.”

*Hic *Sob *Sob

“You were supposed to be… *hic*… just a mere stepping stone for me but…” why am I saying all of this, just what am I trying to accomplish here, why…

*Hic*

“WHY DID YOU HAVE TO SAY THAT?!!”

It feels as though my mind is like a string being endlessly tied, resulting in a jumbled mess that I even hid my eyes on my forearms.

*Sob *Sob

I don’t know why I said all that, but my chest feels so tight right now. It’s suffocating to even breathe remembering how I spilled all of my life secrets away.

At that moment, I thought of ending it all again so I can just rest and never have to think about anything ever again, but then… I feel that coldness at the top of my head again.

With my face full of tears, “Don’t… touch me.”

Yet he kept ongoing. I can’t make anything out of the look of that skeleton, nor do I know what the hell is he doing. But whenever he caresses my head and stroke the top of my hair with his cold bony fingers, I feel warmth inside me.

The never-ending night continues on with me letting out more tears onto my arms, whimpering like a lost child.