Chapter 25. Absolute Defense

“……”

“……”

The two of us sat across from each other at the table.

An awkward silence filled the room.

Sip.

I silently drank my coffee and glanced sideways at her.

The woman who had just kissed the back of my hand and prayed was now sitting quietly, just blinking.

Her golden hair, as if spun from molten gold, swayed.

I saw complex emotions in her bright blue eyes—tension, excitement, elation… as if she had been waiting for this moment her entire life.

…What should I do now?

I had saved her before she was consumed by chaos, but I hadn’t thought much about what to do afterward.

Even in the original story, she was beyond redemption, and now that I had twisted her predetermined future, I couldn’t even use that as a reference.

The woman sitting in front of me was a monster possessing the most potent Divine Power on the continent.

Although I had changed her fate, I couldn’t erase her past, stained by the Holy Order’s betrayal.

‘She intensely loathed humans.’

She hated humans, despite being one herself.

The fact that her deepest desire was to burn the world showed the depth of her hatred.

It was still unclear what she thought of me.

I had saved her, but that didn't necessarily mean I had earned her trust.

However, I couldn’t let this heavy silence continue.

I carefully opened my mouth.

“Elfriede Trivia. Correct?”

Her name first.

I needed to verify, just in case.

“Yes.”

She readily nodded.

“What are you going to do now?”

“…What do you mean?”

A faint hint of bewilderment colored her voice.

She looked at me as if asking why I was asking such an obvious question.

“You came to Blackmore to die. Because you thought it was the only way.”

“…”

“I’m asking if you still feel that way.”

“Of course not. Life is a gift from God, and I intend to cherish it now.”

God, my ass.

I saved your life, not God.

Be grateful to *me*, got it? The words rose to my throat, but I decided to hold back, not wanting to ruin the mood.

“Do you have anywhere to go?”

“If it’s not too much of an imposition, I would like to serve you, Luke.”

“Me? Why?”

She couldn’t seem to take her eyes off me.

Her bright blue eyes were unfocused.

It wasn’t because I was handsome; it was a gaze that seemed to see through me, to something beyond.

“I can see the Form of the Soul.”

…I didn’t know she could see the Form of the Soul.

It was never mentioned in the original story, and she was just a villain, not a deeply explored character.

“And there’s no one in this world with a soul like yours.”

Well, that was to be expected.

I was the only one who had been isekai’d into this world.

There was no way my soul, from another world, would be the same as those who originally lived here.

However.

“A supreme soul reminiscent of Holy Light.”

“…?”

“The path of awakening intellect, the crown of creation, the light of unity, the one who gives form to faith.”

“…Cavilla?”

The phrases she uttered weren’t unfamiliar.

The gods of this world were called forgotten beings.

Among them was a god called "The Great Moon," Cavilla.

The things she just said were phrases from The Sacred Text describing Cavilla.

“I saw it. Just before I lost consciousness, I saw the source of the power you wield. It was definitely the Authority to control time.”

…Well, I *did* absorb the Rune of Time.

“An Authority granted only to Cavilla.”

This was also true.

Runes were fragments of the forgotten Primordial Language, containing the Authority of gods to twist Causality. The Rune of Time was a fragment containing a part of Cavilla's Authority.

‘Could it be…?’

It had been strange from the moment she offered to serve me.

But I understood now.

In her eyes, I was Cavilla, or something similar.

Her reasoning was quite logical.

The Form of the Soul that was different from the people of this world, and the power I wielded happened to be time, Cavilla's Authority.

“……”

This was driving me crazy.

How was I supposed to explain this?

Should I just come clean and tell her that I had been isekai’d?

But to explain isekai, I would have to reveal the truth that this was the world inside a novel, which was practically a red pill, like poison.

She would never believe it, and even if she did, I couldn’t predict what would happen afterward.

“…You asked if I had anywhere to go.”

I just blinked dumbly.

I couldn't think straight; I was just stunned, as if malfunctioning.

“It’s difficult to give you a definite answer. But…”

“…But?”

“I want to follow you.”

Elfriede smiled and looked at me.

“Because that is my rightful duty.”

It was such a tender smile, as if she would give me her heart.

****

Time passed, and the last day at Headquarters arrived.

Before returning to the office.

I sat on the floor of the vast training ground, reflecting on my current situation.

“I guess I’ve overcome the first hurdle.”

The ability to legally twist Causality.

That was the essence of Authority. And Runes were the form in which that Authority was manifested as the laws of this world.

The Authority gained through Runes went through four stages.

First, Embodiment, where the power of the Rune permeated the body.

Next, Blooming, where the Rune's Five Stars were engraved on the soul.

Then, Sublimation, where one touched the source of the world.

And finally, Unification, where one became one with the Rune.

The power one could wield differed at each stage.

I had reached the second stage, Blooming, by absorbing the chaos dwelling within Elfriede’s body. This was practically the same as overcoming a hurdle.

It was truly an opportunity.

I clenched and unclenched my right hand, checking my current state.

And I tossed three fountain pens I had prepared into the air.

Immediately after.

“Acceleration.”

The moment the familiar activation word left my mouth, the pressure of time, generated from my fingertips, brushed past the three fountain pens floating in mid-air.

“Reverse.”

With a humming sound, the three fountain pens stopped in mid-air.

I reached out and gently pushed a stationary pen, and it slid smoothly to the side.

Because I had only slowed down the flow of time, it was still affected by external forces.

Clack—!

I snapped my fingers.

“Reverse.”

The same activation word was stacked.

Immediately after.

I cautiously reached out to push the same pen.

But this time, no matter how much pressure I applied, the pen, frozen in mid-air, showed no sign of moving.

As if fixed in place.

“It really works.”

Stacking activation words.

It was one of the powers gained after Blooming the Rune’s Five Stars.

And the most useful among them was the stacking of “Reverse.”

It wasn’t just slowing down the flow of time like usual.

The moment the phrase "Reverse" was stacked twice, the target, although limited, was completely removed from the flow of time, entering a state of absolute invincibility, unaffected by any movement or external pressure.

Like the invincibility cheat commonly used in games.

It was no different from being in a state of absolute damage immunity.

Although there was the drawback of being unable to move while the ability was active, it was a minor penalty compared to its effectiveness.

“Adina.”

I called out to Adina, who had been secretly watching from the side of the training ground.

“Attack me.”

“…?”

She blinked at my sudden request.

“Attack you? Why?”

“I have something to test.”

“It’ll be dangerous.”

“It won’t be dangerous at all, so don’t worry.”

“…Ha.”

She scoffed as if she found it ridiculous.

“Fine.”

As Adina drew up her mana, the surrounding pressure rose sharply.

The emanating energy was quite overt, as if her pride had been scratched.

The mana that had been spreading around quickly converged into a single point, forming a ring.

The pure white mana ring pulsed, expanding and contracting, emitting its unique radiance.

A moment later, with a sharp whistling sound that pierced my ears, dozens of condensed white mana strands burst forth, streaking across the void.

A shockwave, expanding at supersonic speed, grazed the surroundings, and mana was converging into a single point at its center.

“……”

I calmly raised my head and stared at the mana rift spreading through the void.

Sparks exploded from the gap, poised to strike the ground in an instant.

It was powerful enough to kill me in one hit.

However.

“Acceleration.”

I generated the pressure of time.

The generated pressure enveloped me in a spherical shape.

“Reverse.”

The flow of air slowed infinitely, then…

“Reverse.”

…the phrase was stacked.

Space and time split, and the inside and outside of the pressure were completely separated, as if they were different worlds.

And.

Crash!

A massive bolt of lightning tore through the void and poured down.

It pulverized the surroundings with overwhelming destructive power.

And I, who had been struck by such an attack…

“!!!”

…was perfectly fine.

I hadn’t taken any damage.

It was the expected result, as the stacking of Reverse had been described as an absolute defense in the original story.

However.

‘I can’t maintain this for long.’

The problem was the significant consumption of Mind's Eye. I

t was also a shame that I couldn’t move while defending.

But even that was enough.

“!!!”

…to draw a gasp of astonishment from Adina.