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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Cyno
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Yu So-eun remembered the day the journal spoke of.
It was a memory she couldn’t forget, no matter how hard she tried.
*‘Was… was this the hidden truth behind it all…?’*
It was around five years after the start of the *Great Blood War*.
She hadn’t wanted to believe that Namgung Cheol-bin’s love had faded, but she couldn’t ignore it forever.
She still vividly remembered vowing to love him even harder, to make up for his waning affection.
But what was *this* supposed to mean?
*‘What kind of torment was he writing this in……?’*
Beyond the words themselves, the torn pages and chaotic handwriting laid bare Namgung Cheol-bin’s state of mind at the time.
*“Hngk…….”*
A faint, trembling sigh escaped her as she turned to the next page.
*****
Flowing effortlessly, like the currents of the Yangtze River.
Time.
Time must flow.
That is the way of the world, the law of heaven and earth.
But… what am I doing now?
Am I not holding back time—something that should flow according to nature’s will—for nothing but my own selfishness?
For the sake of *my* desires alone.
Is this… truly right?
Everyone dies eventually. Even if I spend over ten thousand years saving people, they’ll still meet their end sooner or later.
Is it truly righteous to struggle pointlessly for those doomed to perish?
To defy the natural order, to disrupt the harmony of heaven and earth?
Hmm…….
What a foolish question.
Wasn’t it *heaven itself* that granted me this power of regression?
This life of mine is nothing less than fate ordained by the heavens.
A fact so obvious it shouldn’t even need thinking about…….
I must have grown dull in will and resolve. To entertain such meaningless delusions.
Today, my wife asked me to hold her for the first time in a long while.
Of course, I had to refuse. The suppressed desires of the flesh might surge forth like a bursting dam.
Still, lust is manageable.
Humans are creatures of reason. Suppressing base desires isn’t difficult.
At least I no longer feel the need to sever my own genitals like I once did.
Even knowing this world is doomed… I mustn’t recklessly spill life in such an irresponsible manner.
*****
*“……Ah?”*
Yu So-eun’s pupils dilated, her hands trembling uncontrollably.
Her heart was crumbling—in stark contrast to the neat handwriting on the page.
*“That… was the reason…?”*
She recalled how Namgung Cheol-bin would flinch and pull away whenever she touched him.
She had always assumed it was because his love for her had faded.
*“He refused to conceive a child in a world destined for ruin……”*
She remembered their conversation at *Chilhwajeon* not long ago.
—*“To recklessly bring forth a life you cannot take responsibility for is a sin.”*
At the time, she hadn’t understood.
*Responsibility?* What responsibility was he talking about? She had thought it was just an excuse to avoid intimacy.
She had been so sure of it, but……
*“Hah, hah……”*
Yu So-eun remembered Namgung Cheol-bin before he changed—or rather, before the regression began, as the journal claimed.
The man who, even when his reputation and standing were at stake, refused to use the *Imperial Sword Judgment* to uphold the Namgung family’s laws—choosing instead to lose to her.
The man who would only laugh it off, never once resentful.
The man who was foolishly kind, yet strict with the laws and principles he set for himself.
There was no definitive proof that the journal’s absurd, fantastical claims were true.
She didn’t know who the red-haired woman was or why she had asked her to read this.
But in what she had just read, Yu So-eun sensed an undeniable *inevitability*.
If the power to rewind time—something so unbelievable—had fallen into someone else’s hands…
Would that person have lived with the same self-restraint as her husband?
According to the journal, Namgung Cheol-bin believed *“this loop, too, is doomed to fail.”*
Meaning, no matter what he did, once time rewound, no one would remember his actions.
What would an ordinary person do with such power?
Even Yu So-eun, known for her kindness, couldn’t imagine a clean outcome.
Humans are a species that burns morality for kindling the moment the constraints of law disappear—let alone when *no one* would remember.
And yet, the journal’s records spoke of a man who refused to recklessly conceive a child, clinging to morality.
Because it was the most *Namgung Cheol-bin* thing to do.
*“Cheol-bin… Cheol-bin… Cheol-bin……!”*
So lost in her thoughts, she didn’t even realize she was desperately whispering his name as she turned to the next page.
*****
Today, I met Tang Sobaek, the daughter of the Tang family.
It was an impulsive decision.
Tang Sobaek, the *Jade Leaf of Solitude*.
Though few in the world know it, she is one of the greatest strategists alive.
She once defeated the *Fate Sovereign* of the Zhuge family in a secret game of Go.
Yet, in every loop, she has never revealed herself to the world. She remains secluded in the Tang family’s library, reading books.
*“A life doomed to die isn’t worth the effort,”* or so she says.
I sought her out for answers.
To know if the path I’m walking is truly the right one.
I couldn’t find certainty on my own.
Though young, she is far wiser than I.
Of course, I didn’t confess the truth of my regression. No need to drag an innocent girl into this.
Below is our conversation.
*“I have something to ask.”*
*“Oh? The Sword Saint himself graces me with a visit?”*
*“There is a path I must take, but it is long and treacherous.”*
*“And?”*
*“It is so dark that I fear I may stray at any moment.”*
*“An interesting path.”*
*“On such a path… what should I do?”*
Tang Sobaek, sharp as ever, straightened my wavering resolve with a single sentence.
Even if I won’t remember this in the next loop.
*“Remember why you started walking it in the first place.”*
*“…….”*
*“One’s *original resolve* fades with time. The key is whether you can reignite it.”*
*“…….”*
*“I don’t know enough about you, Sword Saint, to judge.”*
Yes. As she said, I must remember the moment I first began regressing.
The moment I lay trapped in a pit dug by Blood Cultists, helpless as I watched Yu So-eun torn apart before my eyes.
The logic is simple. The Blood Cultist became Hyolma, and Hyolma became Cheonma.
Only *I* and Cheonma are trapped in stagnant time.
For everyone else, time flows as usual. What feels like ten thousand years to me is merely ten for them.
Yes. So, it’s fine. I can do this.
Nothing has changed. I need only move forward with the singular goal of saving them all.
If I’m the only one who breaks… so be it.
.
.
.
This life, too, is nearing its end.
By the time the red sun rises, I’ll be fighting Hyolma.
No, *fighting* is too generous. It’s just a warm-up.
A *preparation* to face Cheonma in peak condition.
If only I didn’t know Hyolma’s techniques, I could’ve trained more effectively.
A pity. Knowing all her moves in advance is a disadvantage.
This time, too, her first strike will be *Crimson Green Hand*, followed by *Heaven-Blood Annihilation*. No need to consider the third move.
I’ve even memorized her subtle habits. Like how her sword trembles three inches before she strikes.
……An unpleasant reality. The fact that I know Hyolma *this* well means I still haven’t reached Cheonma.
.
.
.
Hyolma is dead. The war is over.
The world rejoices. My daughter leaps for joy, and my wife thanks me for my efforts.
Smiles abound.
But I cannot smile.
In three days, Cheonma will descend.
Leading an army of a hundred thousand demonic cultivators. Why do they keep coming when I’ll slaughter them all alone?
A mystery.
Of course, I don’t recklessly speak of the future.
Not because of backlash from *divining the heavens’ secrets*. My regression is the *heaven’s secret*, not the future I might casually reveal.
That would be *revealing celestial fate*, a separate restriction.
……Now that I think about it, it’s contradictory.
What’s the difference between *heaven’s secrets* and *heaven’s records*? The meanings barely differ.
Sometimes, I wonder if this world is a novel. Like the ones sold in marketplaces.
The power of regression—something so fantastical—only strengthens this delusion.
Of course, it can’t be. If this world were fiction, it wouldn’t be so bleak.
A world this absurd, devoid of dreams or hope, couldn’t possibly be a story.
Truly… a ridiculous world.
.
.
.
Something unbelievable has happened.
No—something *impossible* has happened.
Cheonma has retreated.
The long, long regression has finally ended.
Even now, as I write this, it doesn’t feel real.
Am I dreaming?
Is this a world conjured by my futile hopes?
My hands won’t stop shaking.
And yet, I reached the realm of the *Unshaken Heart* so long ago.
Ah…… What a day of unparalleled joy.
…Or is it? Honestly, I don’t feel much. More bewildered than happy.
It doesn’t feel real.
But now, there’s nothing left to worry about.
The light I longed for has finally arrived.
My duty is done.
The Martial Alliance wants me as their new leader… The imperial family plans a grand banquet to celebrate the hero of the martial world.
But all I need now is rest. A moment’s peace for my exhausted mind.
Can I finally… be at ease……?
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