NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 142
With both hands tangled in my hair, I squatted on the floor.
I just couldn’t handle this chaos any other way.
It was like instinctively curling up when hit with cold water.
I tried to sort through the memories that flickered past my mind.
The people of Lintpia who called me Muji Absoluta.
The restaurant owner who talked to me like he had known me forever, saying I was like his son.
And now, the massive statue in front of me that looked like a copy of myself.
“Ugh… ugh.”
Why can’t humans just open their skulls?
I had the sudden urge to scratch my brain with my fingers.
All of this was completely new to me.
Yet my body accepted it all as though it had been familiar for a long time.
Could this be remnants of ‘Leydan Tanton’s’ memories?
No way.
Memories are traditionally rooted in the soul or the mind.
Having swapped souls, I shouldn’t be feeling this familiar with it.
I looked back at the statue.
The first time I saw it, all I felt was pain, like getting hit on the head.
But now, looking at it again, I realized it wasn’t pain but comfort.
I approached the statue aimlessly, like a dazed person without a purpose.
It just felt like something I had to do.
Like I was being led to do so.
As I did, I naturally noticed the unusually uneven floor.
There was writing there.
The writing was exactly the same as the inscriptions made by the Record Keeper.
– The one who has died shall cross to another world.
What a bizarre phrase.
The one who has died shall cross to another world.
At least in the world of Snow Castle, such a statement did not exist.
But why was that?
Just a moment ago, my brain was hurting as if it were being twisted, yet strangely, just looking at this phrase cleared my mind slightly.
Though the improvement was minimal, I felt desperate to see another phrase, as if I had found an oasis after two days without water.
I lifted my head.
There were stairs leading up behind the statue, and numerous phrases were carved into it.
Damn it.
It looked just like cheese sprinkled to attract a rat.
Right now, my instincts couldn’t resist it.
I felt like I was going crazy wanting to see that.
I had no idea how ugly I looked.
But I just ran toward the phrases.
Rushing almost to the point of colliding with the wall, I trembled my hands as I read the next phrase.
– To return that which has crossed over, one must pay a worthy price.
As I climbed the stairs and saw the phrases, my unstable mind began to clear and solidify.
– Even so, if it must be returned.
The stairs extended endlessly.
I secretly wished I would not reach the end of these stairs.
– Take away all the experiences of the one to be returned and bestow but the mission.
Unfamiliar memories began flooding in all at once.
But now, it was not painful at all.
I started to feel excited, like I was reclaiming a lost part of myself.
– That is the only way to save the world.
My clumsy movements began returning to normal, and I began to walk with my own will.
– Muji Absoluta, Leydan Tanton.
Who am I?
– What was your purpose?
What was I trying to do?
– Where was your original position?
Who was I?
– It is time to regain the truths you have forgotten.
Ah, so that’s how it was.
I thought I was just living through a series of unfair days.
But that wasn’t it.
– Accept, and the pain shall vanish.
Finally, I could see the end of the statue.
– Prosh, Muji Absoluta!
Prosh, Muji Absoluta!
Prosh, Muji Absoluta!
Now I recognized that the burdensome prayers directed at me were what I truly deserved.
– Be in awe, for it is the re-ascension of the one who shall lead the world’s equality.
No.
There’s no need to be in awe.
We are, in and of ourselves, equal beings.
I hereby declare.
I will realign the twisted rules of this world.
#
“…Haha, I’ve finally reached the truth.”
A being that had been observing all this from afar existed.
That being watched with a wistful expression, hands clasped over its chest.
“…I really didn’t have to help at all. Do you know how hard it was to lead you here?”
The being made a mock frown as if to show off, then relaxed its expression and smiled naturally.
It felt refreshing not to have to think too complicatedly anymore.
The being snorted and reflected on the things it had done.
From the very beginning.
No, even before that.
It recalled all the struggles it had gone through for this.
“Well, it was my job after all.”
The being with the rattling prosthetic slowly unfurled its unidentified tentacles from around its waist and grabbed a pen.
And in that moment, it disappeared from the spot.
#
After Tanton suddenly left the restaurant, the Hunter wandered around looking for places to gather information.
The owner said he wouldn’t charge for the food.
His claim was that he had owed Tanton too much for too long.
At first, he had tried to search for Tanton.
But it was better not to risk running into some unsavory group while wandering carelessly in a domain he had never visited.
All he could do was wait for Tanton to return to their lodgings.
Upon returning home, the Hunter changed clothes and wandered around the streets.
He paid a money for information, but the informant merely returned it while saying.
“What? Why are you trying to pay for something so obvious? Go ask that librarian over there for a history book or something.”
The Hunter couldn’t forget the informant’s disdainful expression aimed at him.
Not because it made him feel bad.
But because he was confused by the keyword ‘obvious fact’ that was said.
Why is information about the Hunter an obvious fact?
Everything seemed strange.
Why does the Hunter exist in every domain?
“Oh, there’s a Hunter in this domain too. Just by name, though.”
Why is it that, unlike other domains, the Hunter in Lintpia does nothing but exists by name?
Why does that Hunter have followers?
To find out, the Hunter suddenly found himself at the library.
He entered.
With limited time, he quickly asked the librarian to recommend an easily readable history book.
The librarian handed him a thin book from her drawer.
“You came from Rondan? Then I guess this will be treated like a fairy tale.”
“Fairy tale…?”
“Go ahead and read it. The author couldn’t help but water it down to avoid information leaks.”
The Hunter accepted the book the librarian offered him and cautiously began to read.
The content of the book was very simple.
It was easy to read.
However, because of that advantage, the Hunter found that the information was literally drilled into his head.
His hands went limp.
The book fell, and the sound of paper rustling filled the space.
The librarian didn’t complain to the Hunter at all.
She simply observed his complexion calmly and pointed somewhere with her finger.
“The restroom is over there. Don’t mess it up.”
She had no idea how she knew what the Hunter wanted.
But he was just grateful for the guidance.
Because it was just the space he desperately needed right now.
Clattering.
The Hunter quickly made his way into the restroom, bowing his head toward the neatly cleaned toilet.
His churning stomach moved on its own to make him comfortable.
“Ugh.”
Fortunately, it wasn’t severe enough to see the contents.
But the content of the fairy tale was shocking enough that he thought it would be better if he could just throw it up.
All this time, he had avoided the library thinking it was full of books by Outsiders.
Because of that, he had to go through so many twists and turns just to find out information he could have easily learned.
The ironclad rule of Rondan?
He had been the one who hated the Knights and only dealt with Outsiders, but maybe he had been brainwashed more deeply than anyone else.
And the moment the Hunter uncovered all of this, a change in perception occurred.
“…Those rotten heads.”
It was a perfectly obvious procedure.
Anyone who read that fairy tale would inevitably change their thoughts like the Hunter did.
Of course, only those who were ready to accept that it was true.
Taking a deep breath and calming his stomach, the Hunter finally became horrified and straightened up.
Even he, who had only understood fragments of history, was reacting this way.
But Leydan Tanton, who had supposedly lost his memories, must be enduring all the memories flooding in right now.
“Damn it!”
This was no time to be dawdling.
The Hunter hurriedly left the library to search for Leydan Tanton.
He could only hope he was not having extreme thoughts.