Ghislain was extremely confused.
Originally, he had planned to name his cosmetics line "Lovely Bling Bling." However, since everyone opposed it, he had no choice but to use the name he already knew.
The name that Delphine Duchy had given it in his past life.
But to think that it was the name of a saintess!
'Why... why did the Duchy name the cosmetics after the saintess?'
The cosmetics had become the most popular product on the continent, both in his past life and in the present. Everyone knew that name.
'Could it be... to find the adversary?'
The name, widely spread across the continent, coincidentally matched the name of the saintess from a thousand years ago. Anyone who recognized that name would undoubtedly be curious.
'Erenes didn't show much reaction.'
That was probably because she had met Ghislain and knew he made the product. She must have thought it was a coincidence.
But the adversary was different. They might seek out the duchy—or even Ghislain—to ask why the product had that name.
Could the Salvation Church behind the Duchy have planned this?
'If so... then they must not know the adversary's name.'
If they had known, they would have named the cosmetics after the adversary instead. Just as Erenes said, most of their records had likely been lost.
It seemed that only the name of their enemy, the saintess, had coincidentally survived. That made it plausible they used it without deeper knowledge.
Hearing Ghislain mumble to himself, Deneb tilted her head in confusion.
"Cosmetics? What cosmetics are you talking about?"
"No, never mind. I just got a little confused. Anyway, now I know the name. Let's get along well."
Ghislain's casual response made Deneb smirk.
Ghislain had always been an odd friend, but now he seemed like a completely different person.
Following Yulian into the building, they saw a large group of people locked inside.
"Please, save us!"
"Help us!"
"Get us out of here!"
Everyone was trapped behind iron bars. They appeared to have been captured by bandits.
Yulian released his mana and slashed through the iron bars. The prisoners poured out, thanking him profusely.
While helping them, Yulian kept shouting, "Kyle! Kyle, where are you?!"
"Here..."
A faint, dying voice responded. Following the sound to the most hidden corner, they found a blonde boy lying battered and bruised.
The boy, called Kyle, spoke with a swollen face, "Damn... I was planning to rest for a bit and then kill them all, but it's already over..."
Kyle's body was bound with chains and mana-restricting shackles. The bandits must have restrained him to prevent him from fighting back.
Yulian and Deneb quickly removed the restraints. Deneb scolded him, "Why did you go in alone?! I told you we should scout first while the soldiers waited below! You could've died!"
"A man... acts according to his heart... because that's what it means to be a man."
Hearing this, Ghislain chuckled. Even after being beaten to a pulp, he still had that kind of attitude—he was certainly tough.
'Hmm, who is this guy?'
He must be one of the hero's companions, but no one specific came to mind. Most of their faces had been obscured.
Judging by his tone, he might be that reckless guy from back then, but Ghislain couldn't be sure.
'Even if he is, he's probably not my ancestor.'
The name was different. The founder of Perdium wasn't named Kyle. Of course, the records were incomplete due to losses over time, but still...
'Hmm, maybe he taught swordsmanship to someone else? That seems more plausible.'
Ghislain nodded to himself. That possibility couldn't be ruled out.
After all, it had happened so long ago. More observation was needed to be sure.
For now, it seemed the hero's party had come to rescue people captured by bandits, and Kyle had ended up being captured himself.
Ghislain thought that, as a 5th-circle mage, he could've easily wiped out the bandit hideout alone.
After all, hadn't the three of them just defeated all those bandits?
'Still, the bandits were unusually skilled.'
While the others were prodigies for their age, the bandits were suspiciously strong.
Their leader, at least, had been knight-level. He had even used mana to escape.
Was the overall level higher in this era, or were these bandits just exceptional? Ghislain wasn't sure yet.
Glancing around, he saw Yulian calming the prisoners and guiding them.
"Just head down this path. There are soldiers stationed at the base of the mountain. They were preparing to clear out this hideout."
Hearing Yulian's reassuring tone and seeing his warm smile, the prisoners visibly relaxed.
His smile inspired trust and shone brighter than any other.
Perhaps that's why he could become the hero who saved the world.
"Thank you! Truly, thank you!"
"We owe you our lives!"
"We'll never forget this!"
The people bowed repeatedly before leaving the hideout.
Yulian watched them go with a satisfied smile. Ghislain found it oddly hard to get used to that expression and kept staring at him.
Once everything was settled, Yulian turned to Ghislain and asked, "Ugh, it's worse than usual today. So, who is it this time?"
Ghislain flinched, impressed by Yulian's insight. He had planned to hide the truth and look for an opportunity.
But Yulian had already figured it out!
"Oh... you already know I'm someone else?"
Ghislain asked curiously, to which Deneb shrugged and answered instead, "Why are you even pretending to be someone else today? Usually, you just space out or say someone took over your body."
"Hm..."
Ghislain stroked his chin thoughtfully.
'So this mage... has experienced this often... but this is the first time someone's fully taken over their body?'
Ghislain evaluated their conversation and situation. Judging by the atmosphere, his guess seemed correct.
That's probably why they were surprised but still accepting.
'Wait, now that I think about it...'
While talking about Erenes and the adversary, Jerome had also mentioned something about his Magic Tower.
He had casually brought up its founder back then.
Though he hadn't said the founder was a companion of the hero, Ghislain had pieced it together through his dreams.
— The founder of the Magic Tower was said to be a bit odd. They'd suddenly claim to have seen the future or say someone from the future had possessed them. They even talked about results changing causes.
'Wait... isn't that exactly what's happening right now?'
It was something Ghislain had brushed off before, thinking it was just an exaggerated or distorted legend.
But all those stories he had dismissed were now connecting. Even if they weren't entirely accurate, they seemed to have had some basis in reality.
The countless scattered fragments were, in fact, pieces of the truth.
Ghislain clapped his hands in amazement.
"Wow, this is incredible. It all makes sense now."
"..."
Yulian and Deneb stared at Ghislain in disbelief.
They had never seen Astion react so intensely to being "possessed."
Kyle, whose face was still swollen, asked, "What's with him? Did he finally lose it? Why is he acting like someone else today?"
Ghislain nodded. It was clear now—others besides him had occasionally possessed this body.
Whether it was true or not, everyone here seemed to accept it as fact.
'No wonder that mage has such dark circles under his eyes.'
He was probably treated like a lunatic, constantly stressed, and unable to sleep properly.
Ghislain pondered for a moment.
'Follow my heart, huh?'
The saintess had said that. There must be a reason behind it.
'This is practically a dream anyway, isn't it?'
While he had turned back time and altered the past and future, this situation felt different.
He had entered this place through a dream. He didn't even know what had happened here during this time. Acting recklessly now probably wouldn't drastically alter his confirmed reality.
'Maybe this is just a journey to reveal hidden truths—truths I need to see.'
He still didn't know why he was being shown all this, but it felt like there was something his real self needed to be asked to do.
Maybe that's why the saintess mentioned a "promise."
After all, the saintess he met in the future already knew who he was.
Feeling reassured, Ghislain confidently introduced himself.
"I am Ghislain Perdium."
"...Who's that?"
Yulian asked with a puzzled look, but Ghislain exaggerated his introduction even further.
"The Grand Duke of Lutania, Lord of Fenris, Ruler of the North, Undefeated Monarch, Commander of the Northern Army, Food King of North, Saint of the Capital, Master of Mobile Warfare, Mage Hunter, Savior of the Continent, Slayer of the Salvation Church, Protector of the Religious Orders, Commander of the Fenris Knights, Dragon Slayer, Conqueror of Seven Territories, Lutania's Finest Sword, Crown Prince of Lutainia, Mediator of the Magic Tower, Finest Soldier of the Royal Army, and... King of Mercenaries."
"..."
"..."
"..."
The three of them gawked at him, their mouths wide open.
They had never heard of someone with that many titles.
But Ghislain wasn't lying. All of those titles were his.
In fact, he had left out a few because he couldn't recall them all at the moment.
Since he was treating this like half a vacation, he decided to have a little fun with it.
Yulian, after letting out a few awkward laughs, finally spoke.
"Wow... we've really got someone important possessing Astion this time."
"Well, I wouldn't say I'm that important... but I'm not exactly unimportant either."
Feeling embarrassed after listing all his titles, Ghislain closed his eyes and simply nodded.
Yulian sighed and continued.
"Hah... this is serious today. So, where did Astion's consciousness go?"
"No idea."
Ghislain shrugged. He had no clue where the original owner of this body had gone.
Kyle rubbed his swollen eyes and asked, "So... what do we do now?"
"Why are you asking me?"
"You always gave us advice. Said some wise guys in your head told you what we needed to do to get stronger. I need to get stronger—fast."
Yulian and Deneb nodded in agreement.
"Ah."
Ghislain gained some insight. It seemed this mage acted as a guide for their journey.
Using the information from those who supposedly possessed him.
'Is that how he became a 5th-circle mage at this age?'
It was hard to fully believe, but since Ghislain was experiencing this himself, he couldn't deny it outright.
'Hmm... what should I do?'
The group still looked like kids.
Despite their talent making them strong for their age, they were far from what they would become in the future.
While Yulian was their leader, it seemed the mage served as the strategist.
In other words, the mage played an advisor role.
But now, Ghislain had taken over that mage's body.
'Does this mean I have to train them myself?'
He couldn't just stand by and watch while controlling this body.
Then, an idea struck him.
'Aha.'
He had already seen their abilities and techniques. He also knew how those skills should be used.
These people were destined to become the main force fighting against the Salvation Church. They had to save humanity.
So they had to get stronger—no matter what.
If he helped train them in the mage's stead, it might work out perfectly.
'This all makes sense now. My role is to make them stronger so they can save humanity.'
Since the mage had already been advising them, Ghislain just had to continue doing the same.
'Even if this is the past, the outcome is what matters.'
The saintess must have accounted for this when she told him to follow his heart... probably?
So, he decided to trust his instincts this time too.
Ghislain grinned and spoke.
"Do you all... want to get stronger?"
Yulian, Deneb, and Kyle all nodded.
Ghislain nodded back with a smile.
"Good. I'll make you stronger. Just trust me and follow my lead. If you need experiences to grow stronger, I'm an expert in that. Just listen to me—I'll make sure you experience everything you need."
For a moment, the three of them felt a chill run down their spines.
Though Ghislain was smiling, he somehow looked a little... terrifying.
[T/L: I need your support, dear readers. I will give discount to all those who will buy the rest of the chapters all together, so please support me the reader on my webnovel platform and read ahead chapters on my ko-fi page "RevengerScans" : https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]