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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“Wow, it’s snowing…!”
“Undecided.”
“Hmm?”
“Do you remember? We passed through here before, riding that.”
“When are you talking about? We’ve passed through here so many times, I don’t remember.”
A deep valley, covered in snow.
The continental train was crossing a bridge over a strait connecting the Northern and Southern Continents.
Undecided pressed her face against the window, marveling at the scenery, then turned to me with a smile. It was a new expression for her.
She used to just sit quietly and stare out the window. Now, she seemed genuinely excited, like a child.
“I thought it was the first time you’d reacted like this.”
“But it’s beautiful, even after seeing it many times. And it’s the first time we’ve been here when it’s snowing!”
“Huh…”
I wondered why she always stared so intently at the scenery whenever we crossed the strait. It seemed she had been enjoying it all along.
I felt a pang of regret for not noticing her joy before.
I closed my eyes for a moment, then brought up the status window. But, as expected, the Guardian Knight trait was still inactive.
“Undecided.”
“What is it?”
“Do you… want to get your memories back?”
“Me? Hmm. I wonder if I do. I’m really happy right now, but if I got them back… hmm…”
She giggled and took my hand. She seemed genuinely happy. She closed her eyes and leaned against me.
“But if that’s what you need… then you can have them back. I’m happiest when you need me.”
“If you say it like that, I can’t do it.”
“Oh, is that so? Hee hee. I’m sorry, Yoo-jin. I’m making you feel guilty. It’s strange, isn’t it? Memories are just a collection of information. And it’s not even recent memories, just old ones that have been erased. But losing them has changed me so much…”
Undecided’s fingers intertwined with mine.
She sniffled and looked up at me with clear, red eyes.
“Give them back, Yoo-jin. The old me would want that, too.”
“What about you? What do you want?”
“That doesn’t matter, does it?”
Undecided smiled, as if to say it didn’t matter. And it was true. Her opinion didn’t matter, not when she was about to disappear.
It was true… but…
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“This is where we’ll do it. Here, we can use magic to access the memories stored in the brain.”
“This… huge machine is necessary for that?”
“A blood ghoul’s brain requires a more delicate and complex procedure than a human’s.”
“Wow…”
In the underground of the White Tower.
They passed through a long corridor and entered a circular room with white tiles covering every surface.
Undecided’s mouth hung open in awe.
“Let me introduce you to ‘Alma.’ It was originally designed to observe a person’s soul, but with some adjustments, it can also be used to observe the brain. This facility was built to materialize the memories we observe. Once we find the memories you want to recover, I’ll restore them.”
“Do we… have to materialize them?”
“It’s a necessary step.”
Yoo-jin’s expression darkened.
Temulen smiled inwardly.
Of course, it was a lie. Restoring memories was a relatively simple procedure that didn’t require materialization.
‘What will you do?’
Materializing memories meant that the erased memories would play out vividly, as if they were happening in real-time.
Could he proudly reveal this blood ghoul’s past? If he was an Archdemon, he would be afraid of revealing his identity and refuse to use ‘Alma.’
If he wasn’t, he would proceed.
“Don’t worry. Anything seen here won’t be leaked. It’s a basic principle, of course.”
“I’m a little uncomfortable with this, but if I’m asking for a favor, I have no choice.”
Surprisingly, Yoo-jin agreed without much resistance.
Was he really not hiding anything? Or perhaps the blood ghoul’s memories didn’t contain any crucial information?
He couldn’t let his guard down.
The schemes of intelligent monsters from another world were truly beyond imagination.
The spider monster had tried to take over the World Tree, and the necromancer had impersonated a cardinal and almost destroyed the former capital of the Holy Empire.
He couldn’t predict what new methods they might employ.
“You can lie down here and connect to Alma. I’ll quickly scroll through your memories, starting from the present and going backwards. You might experience some discomfort, so be prepared.”
“Ugh… Yoo-jin, I’m scared…”
“It’ll be okay. It’ll be over quickly.”
“Can you hold my hand?”
“Sure…”
“You can both connect. If one person’s mental strength is weak, it’s very difficult to increase the speed when rewinding through the past. Having someone there to reassure her will make it easier.”
“Then I’ll join her.”
He had fallen for it.
Temulen secretly rejoiced.
If they connected together, their shared memories would be materialized more easily and in greater detail.
He was observing the blood ghoul’s memories, but he would be able to gather detailed information about this man’s past.
“Then, let’s begin.”
The two held hands and lay down.
Wires sprouted from the floor and attached electrodes to their heads. Their eyes slowly closed.
Alma’s panel lit up, and their past memories began to ‘materialize.’
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Materializing memories… I had imagined something like a hologram or a screen, but what unfolded before us was completely different.
“What…?”
The white panels surrounding us changed.
A lush forest. The sound of birds chirping and the wind rustling through the leaves. Sunlight filtered through the dense canopy.
I moved slowly, and my body moved naturally.
I looked down and saw ‘myself,’ lying on the ground. It felt like an out-of-body experience.
So, I was the main body, lying down, and this was a phantom created by magic…? It was unbelievable how realistic the sensations were.
‘Not just the five senses, but the sixth sense, too…’
Not just sight and sound, but every sensation on my skin felt real. I could even sense the flow of magical power and demonic energy.
If I hadn’t known better, I would have mistaken this for reality.
“Yoo-jin…!”
I heard a crisp voice from beyond the bushes, and Undecided ran towards me, embracing me.
Her body trembled. It seemed she was also shocked by the realistic ‘materialization.’
[This is where you can adjust the sensitivity. Does it feel different from reality?]
“Not at all. I can’t tell the difference. If I got trapped here, I might not even think to escape.”
[Ha ha ha. That’s to be expected.]
The old man’s voice came from the sky.
No, more accurately, it came from everywhere. I couldn’t pinpoint the source. It felt like his voice was coming from inside me.
[Now, let’s rewind the memories. Hold hands.]
“Bite.”
“Yes…!”
[No, I meant hold hands… but that’s fine.]
Undecided bit my arm.
As the pain subsided, her trembling stopped. Now we were ready.
I stroked her hair with my other hand. Soon, the scenery around us began to change.
‘This is…’
Time was rewinding.
‘I’ stood up, walked backwards out of ‘Alma,’ rode the elevator up and down, and walked backwards out of the White Tower.
The rewinding sped up, and soon, the scenes were flashing by too quickly to follow. But in between, for a brief moment, I could see glimpses of my memories with Undecided.
‘This is why I hated this…’
It was an unpleasant feeling, seeing myself from someone else’s perspective.
I realized that I had already cherished Undecided, even when I was telling myself not to get attached. I had never treated her like an object, not even when we first met.
The rewinding continued, and more and more scenes flashed by – Undecided illuminating a dark dungeon with magic, Undecided drinking my blood, our everyday moments, Undecided diligently practicing her formations, Undecided crying in my arms after escaping from Kali’s Heavenly Armor Plate, our first meeting.
Those moments, those memories, formed a single picture.
There was no trace of sadness in it.
“Why are these strange scenes appearing as we rewind? What are they?”
[Don’t worry about it. It’s usually just one or two, it’s a natural phenomenon, so don’t worry.]
“There are already hundreds of them. What is this?”
[Huh? That’s… strange… The scenes that appear as residue during the rewinding process are memories the subject holds particularly dear.]
I finally understood why Undecided’s personality had become so cheerful after losing her memories. Because ever since she met me, she had cherished every single day.
Then, the flashing images stopped.
The rewinding had ended.
A village, with still grass, still birds, and still people. Time had stopped in this unfamiliar village.
[From here on, these are memories erased from her consciousness and buried deep within her subconscious. If we look beyond this point, her memories will be restored and return to her conscious mind. The memories she had naturally forgotten over time, and the memories she refused to acknowledge because they were too painful, will all be revived, and she will never be able to erase them again. What will you do?]
I felt a slight increase in the force of the hand holding mine.
I looked to the side and saw Undecided, her eyes tightly closed, slowly opening them. Her pale face was now flushed, and her red eyes had turned black.
She was her human self, before becoming a blood ghoul.
Undecided, holding my hand, whispered.
“Let’s go, Yoo-jin.”
If we went beyond this point, her cheerful personality would disappear.
Knowing this, she smiled unnaturally.
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[Your Text Here]
It feels like author is struggling with main plot so he constantly throws sidequests like this one but they are only hurting novels pace and main story.
Some people plan what to write in detail, some people invent the story as they go. I’m happy with either, as long as the story remains interesting and without major internal inconsistencies.