"Lydia," Tugnier said, his voice steady as stone. "You heard what this human said, didn't you?"
"Yes, Commander," she replied, bowing with that same graceful precision. "Though we haven't found her traces near the valley yet… we will increase our scrutiny."
Tugnier gave a small nod. "Good. Also…" He paused, his eyes narrowing. "Keep an eye on our people too. Check for moles."
But before Lydia could even answer, Quinn snapped, "Commander Tugnier, do you really believe there is a mole? From our own people?" Her tone carried enough fire to scorch the walls.
Tugnier didn't flinch. He thought for a second, then said calmly, "It's better to be suspicious of a few to protect hundreds."
Hicckk…
Quinn turned that burning gaze on me, and I swear for a second I thought she'd leap across the table and strangle me with her bare hands.
It's for your own good, ma'am!
Then Tugnier's attention swung back to me. "You seem to know a lot about what is going to happen. I'm afraid I'll need you to tell us your source of information… if you want us to believe you."
I glanced at Sera beside me. She met my eyes and gave the smallest nod. Alright then… guess we're doing this.
But first, I looked at Grig, still trembling like a cornered rabbit. "I need him out. But safe."
"He is out," Tugnier said simply.
Before I could even wonder what he meant, Lydia pressed one of the slightly raised rocks in the wall.
Next thing I knew, the seat Grig was sitting on shrank like it had been waiting for this moment all along, and a hole opened right under him.
"Wha?!" was all Grig managed before he disappeared with a startled yelp, vanishing down the pit.
I blinked at the hole. "That's… pretty convenient," I muttered under my breath.
[There is a high chance you're sitting on one too.]
...Wait, what?!
I exhaled slowly.
Alright, here goes nothing.
"I regressed," I said.
Just like that. No buildup. No dramatic pause.
[For the fuck's sake! Give them a heads-up before you drop the weirdest shit imaginable like that!]
Huh? But it's the truth.
Beside me, Sera pressed her forehead into her palm again like she was regretting every life choice that led her to sit next to me right now.
Quinn and Tugnier just… stared. Like I'd turned into a clown juggling fireballs.
Even Lydia, who could probably out stone-face a stone face, looked a tiny bit weirded out.
"Good joke," Quinn muttered. "Not that you lightened the mood. Now get to the point." A vein throbbed on her forehead.
"I'm not playing. I really regressed!" I said again, this time a little desperate.
Quinn threw up her hands. "Okay! You need to learn some man—"
But Tugnier cut her off with a raised hand. "Continue."
Quinn blinked at him. "You really believe what he says!?"
"I don't," Tugnier said, calm as ever. "But I don't think he's lying either. One thing is for sure… he has aura control beyond even what I'm capable of. Too bad his output is just about novice level."
Quinn folded her arms, still glaring. "And that changes things?"
"Yes," Tugnier said. "How could a novice have a better understanding of aura principles than a master like me?"
Quinn frowned, her mind visibly racing.
"The only possible explanation is…" Tugnier trailed off, and I jumped in.
"I once possessed the Emperor's aura."
That got him. His eyes shot wide, then he laughed. Loud. Like really loud. The cave walls shook with it.
When he finally stopped, he leaned back and grinned. "I really hope that's true," he said, his eyes now completely clear of the suspicion they held before.
[Seriously? I thought he'd be more suspicious after you dumped the truth like that.]
No, I thought, half-smiling. That's just Tugnier. The more absurd it is, the easier he believes it.
Quinn groaned and rubbed her forehead like she was nursing the beginnings of a migraine.
"I don't even know anymore. Just… throw all those absurd things you plan to tell us at us." She sounded completely resigned.
Lydia, of course, just stood there, her stone face unshaken. But I'd bet my sword her brain was doing somersaults trying to process all the info I'd just dumped.
I kept going.
"Since I'm the regressor," I said, "I can tell you this: within two years there'll be an SBV raid in this valley. We all thought it was the usual annual thing. Clearing mana beasts so traders can use the shortcut instead of circling the forest. But…" I trailed off and let them chew on it.
Lydia finished for me. "The intel's been morphed by moles. What we thought was an annual beast raid is actually an extermination mission." She nodded at me. I gave a short, "Yes."
I kept my voice steady. "The extermination of orcs won't be handled by some branch lieutenant. It's led by Merin. One of the top brass from SBV's head branch in the capital."
Quinn actually swallowed. Dramatic effect: achieved.
"We have two years?" Quinn asked quickly. "Then we'll prepare in advance." Hope in her voice. Cute, but naïve.
"No." Tugnier's answer arrived like a stone. "Two years is not enough to fight Merin. Not even the three of us commanders can hold her off." Quinn's face schemed through a dozen plans in a second; none of them good.
"Then should we evacuate?" she blurted.
Tugnier looked at me. I shrugged and flashed my usual smirk. "I say we stay."
He reflected the smirk like a mirror. Then, almost casually: "Did we meet in a past life, in the same way?"
I blinked. "A bit different. You're the one who taught me how to awaken aura." I watched him process that.
For a second he was perfectly unreadable; then, like a man pleasantly surprised by a joke, he bristled mock-offended. "Hey, brat! shouldn't you call me Master then?"
"I offered," I said. "But you told me to call you Tugnier."
"No way. I am not the type to say that." He protested, but smiling.
"You're exactly the type to say that," Quinn supplied, rolling her eyes.
Tugnier waved it off. "So, you plan to help us?" he asked.
I nodded. "Yes. I have an unpaid debt to her." I didn't need to name names; he knew what I meant. His grin widened in understanding.
Then Sera's voice hit me. Trembling. "Hey Rune…" Her eyes were wide with anxiety.
Something felt wrong.
"What is it?" I asked.
"In your first walkthrough..," she said, words tumbling out, "you were caught by SBV and Merin came later to use her status and pin the blame on you.. because of Vorrak's father's request." She swallowed, sweat beading.
I nodded. "That's right."
"In your second walkthrough, you left the village before they caught you."
"Yeah..?" I said, where is she going with this?
[Oh shit.]
"What is it?" I asked, voice small.
Sera continued. "Merin didn't come to the village at this point in time in your second walkthrough like in your first walkthrough... but she came two years later and took the job of exterminating orcs near the valley."
Oh.. shit!
"Huh..?" Lydia said, sweat dripping from her forehead. Her stone face no more a competition to stone faces.
Tugnier pressed his fore head.
Quinn swallowed hard reading the room. "What.. is it?" She asked, looking at all of us.
Sera finished it. "Since you're alive now, and they think I killed Vorrak, won't the events repeat like your first walkthrough?" She asked. Anxious.
I let out a breath I didn't know I'd been holding. "Yes. Just like in my first walkthrough, there's a high chance Merin will be deployed to capture the target. Except this time, it could be you. And while she's here, she'll likely take the extermination task again. She loves thoses tasks and the SBV loves efficient cruelty."
Tugnier's face went flat with a mix of calculation and worry. "In other words, we don't have two years like in your past life," he said.
I nodded. "The moles have probably already sold the info. SBV is just waiting for someone capable enough to take on Tugnier." I didn't have to explain what that meant. Tugnier's jaw tightened.
Quinn's voice shook. "We have him, me, and Lydia. Won't that be enough?"
I shook my head. "Merin's aura mastery is on par with Tugnier's. Master(IV). But her skill lets her take on opponents twice as strong as herself or Tugnier. Trust me, fighting her is more annoying than fighting the demon lord." I shrugged. "The one good thing is we get to kill her when she was about this strong... before she got any stronger."
Quinn put her palm to her forehead like she was sourcing a headache. The room felt small and loud.
Sera trembled beside me. Probably because she didn't like the idea of Merin capturing me again. I didn't either.
Lydia's composure cracked just enough for me to see.
Tugnier sat still, probably plotting ten steps ahead.
I leaned back, met Sera's worried gaze, and said plainly:
"I killed her once, and I can kill her again."
Sera looked at me, her puppy-like eyes full of concern. She slipped her hand into mine and gave a small, firm nod.