The Villain's Second Time

Chapter 31

About three days had passed since I killed Leonard and Retavis. On the first day, the family didn’t think much of their absence and dismissed it as unimportant, but from the second day onward, the atmosphere in the family began to change.

The reason was that Leonard and Retavis were scheduled to head to the Demon Beast Forest for training in a few days. Of course, Leonard and Retavis had already crossed the River of Three Crossings side by side.

By me, no less! A mere nine-year-old kid! Kekeke!

Phew, as expected of me. I handled things cleanly, and it’s quite impressive.

By the third day, the family was in a state akin to mourning. Being out of contact for three whole days was a problem, especially for the Lucifer Family, the most powerful family in the Demon Realm, whose eldest and second sons had gone missing simultaneously.

My aunt followed my orders and went to file a missing persons report today. Once the Demon Realm Police launch a full-scale search, Leonard’s body will be found soon enough.

There’s plenty of time. The mask I dropped there will take care of things, so I don’t have much to do.

In a good mood, I opened a drawer and pulled out an item. It was an old book that looked like it would release a cloud of dust if I shook it.

Flap—.

On the cover of the book was written .

The book of the time traveler Evans, which I received from the Southern Grand Duke’s mansion. I should read it whenever I have time.

With that mindset, I flipped to the first page of the book.

"......Hmm?"

Where a typical book would have or , there was instead a strange, out-of-place drawing.

A round, antique-looking clock occupied the entire first page of the book. Just a single drawing took up the whole page.

"Ha, this Evans guy. He sure knows how to waste money. Well, he’s a time traveler, so money probably isn’t an issue for him."

Flap—.

When I turned another page, another drawing appeared. This time, it was a sunflower with its bud wide open, seemingly trying to devour the clock from the previous page, facing left.

It was clearly a black-and-white drawing, but strangely, a peculiar floral scent wafted from the page. The sharp scent tickled my nose, and for some reason, I felt uneasy.

Huh? What is this rootless drawing trying to control me? Quite an insolent picture.

That’s why I like it. Controlling me? Artistically, it passes.

They say a good picture is one that moves the viewer’s heart. That’s something I discussed with the King in my past life about art, and this picture feels somewhat similar. It’s eerie and chilling. Sunflowers symbolize peace and unchanging love, but this one seems to show an unsettling obsession.

Flap—.

Another page, and finally, text appeared. It was the first time I saw text since the large title on the cover, and perhaps because the previous drawing had piqued my interest, I felt a sense of anticipation.

[The Flower that Eats Time blooms for a very long time. It monopolizes the time that billions of lives should share.]

[The Flower that Eats Time withers in an instant. It has overeaten endlessly for too long.]

[Did you notice? The flower here refers to the gods. Not the ‘Lord’ who created the world and leads the Holy Church, but the ‘gods’ as a species inhabiting the Heavenly Realm above. They live long lives by feeding on the faith of countless people, but they vanish helplessly the moment their faith collapses due to a single event.]

Wait, hold on.

Now that I think about it, this is a pretty blasphemous book. Is it okay to keep reading?

...Actually, I like it. A blasphemous book? It knows exactly how to hit my tastes.

[There are truly many gods in this world. The number and variety of their believers are overwhelming. Sometimes, I wonder if gods are just human businesses. Seeing the money temples and churches make in a year, it’s hard not to think that way.]

[Enough of this unrelated chatter. Let’s talk seriously about ‘time.’ Do you, the reader of this book, know about the god who controls time? Cronos, the God of Time. He governs, manipulates, and rules over the time of this world. If you have questions about the laws of time, go to his temple and ask for an oracle.]

[I did that. To be precise, I had doubts after meeting a hero who claimed to have ‘regressed.’ Until then, I thought I was a ‘regressor,’ but the hero told me I wasn’t.]

[I was curious about the basis of that statement. We both came back to the past, so why are you a regressor and I’m not? The hero said he didn’t know and told me to ask Cronos. So, I went to Cronos’s temple.]

[When I asked Cronos, he answered immediately, which was unusual for the lazy species of gods. He said that rewinding time and going back to the past with the world is regression, while moving back and forth between the past and future with one’s body, like me, is time travel. That’s when I realized I was a time traveler.]

[I want to share this knowledge. Rewinding time, regression. But no one except the regressor remembers it. Perhaps the world is still turning. We just don’t realize it.]

[The Empire’s Founding Emperor went to the past to prevent a future of destruction, met his younger self, saved the continent, and established the Empire. That’s an example of time travel. We must clearly distinguish between regression and time travel.]

[What’s the use of distinguishing this? I don’t know either. Ah, you can waste time. For those who waste their lives reading utterly useless books like mine, it’s a very frugal way to spend time.]

[Ah, but still. Who knows?]

[Maybe a regressor, someone for whom this distinction is crucial, is reading my book right now.]

Uh, that regressor is right here.

I knew the famous story of the Empire’s Founding Emperor meeting his future self and saving the continent... but a regressed hero? The Southern Duke King said something similar, didn’t he?

Could that regressed hero be the same person? If it’s the hero from two generations ago, he should already be dead, but hearing about another regressor like me piques my curiosity. I’m not sure if they’re the same person, though.

[By the way, there are no coincidences in regression. Everything in the world follows the law of causality. Therefore, rewinding time demands a price. Just as those who want to receive holy power healing must offer donations to priests.]

[What that price is differs from person to person. I’m not a regressor, so I don’t know, but one thing is certain: it must be something that can move the heart of Cronos, the God of Time.]

[If you are a regressor, or know a regressor, I urge you to ask them. What did they offer to Cronos to buy time? And for what purpose did they buy time? If they say they came to invest because they were short on money, there’s a 90% chance they’re a loser, so cut ties quickly. Don’t associate with someone who lost money investing in their past life and is trying to invest again.]

A price? I didn’t have anything like that. I just died and ended up like this.

I’ve never met Cronos, the God of Time. Why would such a high-ranking figure meet me? I’m not a godslayer like Theseus.

...When I was on the guillotine, the Saint seemed to know I would regress. Could the Saint be connected to Cronos?

A price, huh.

Flap—.

From a regressor’s perspective, the book’s content raises questions, but it’s not something I can dismiss as nonsense. After all, this is the book of a time traveler, no less.

Though the possibility that Evans wrote this as a joke can’t be ignored.

At that moment, someone banged on the door. Adela’s heavy voice seeped through the crack.

"Oscar, are you in your room?"

I was so engrossed in the book’s interesting content that I lost track of time. I quickly stuffed into the drawer and answered.

"Nuna, what’s the matter?"

"Hmm... I have some sad news."

"Sad news? What is it?"

"Before that, may I come in? It’s not a light matter..."

"Come in? Just a moment. I need to put something away."

I need to fix my expression.

If it’s something so grim that Adela is lowering her voice like this, it must be about Leonard’s body being found at Endros’ Cliff. But I can’t stop myself from smiling. It’s become a habit.

I raised my hand to my face and wiped it down. It’s a good method for changing expressions. After all, expressions are just masks made of muscles and flesh, so it’s easy to change them even with a makeshift dressing room.

"It’s done. Come in."

Clank— Creak—.

"But what’s the matter?"

I asked in an uncharacteristically serious tone, careful not to upset Adela.

"...Leonard has been found."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"A few hours ago, my aunt filed a missing persons report for Leonard... The Demon Realm Police found him at Endros’ Cliff."

"Huh? Really? But why would he go to such a dangerous cliff?"

I asked with genuine curiosity, pretending to know nothing, with an innocent expression.

Without a hint of suspicion, Adela bit her lower lip hard and then lightly moved her lips.

".........As a corpse."

"...What?"

"Literally. Leonard was found as a corpse. It seems he fell from the cliff. His body was shattered."

"...!"

"It doesn’t seem like an accident. There were signs of a struggle at the top of the cliff. Someone must have intentionally killed Leonard... Damn it!"

Crack—.

Adela stopped speaking. She bit her lip so hard that a bright red stream of blood began to flow from it.

Her trembling fist gave a glimpse of the volcanic anger she held within. She might be the only demon who would be so shaken by the death of a family member.

Well, that’s why she chose death in my stead to save me in my past life. That’s Adela’s charm. Her unwavering conviction and will, even in the face of death.

Though the desire to corrupt and break that conviction and will was bubbling up inside me, I decided to set it aside. No matter how much of a scoundrel I am, I wouldn’t go that far with my own sister, who gave her life for me.

The tiny grain of conscience left in a corner of my heart restrained my growing desire.

"Oscar, listen carefully to what I’m about to say."

Suppressing the cold, hardened heat within her, Adela lowered her gaze and grabbed both my shoulders. She didn’t grip hard enough to hurt, but the restraint made it difficult to break free.

What is it? What is this fool of a sister trying to say, setting the mood like this?

"I think this was Retavis’s doing."

"......??"

"Leonard and Retavis went missing together, and Leonard was found dead at the bottom of a cliff. Traces of a fierce battle were found at the top."

"Are you saying that Retavis, the elder brother, is the culprit who killed Leonard, the younger brother?"

"Yes. From what I can see, there must have been some friction between them, and in the heat of the argument, Retavis pushed Leonard off the cliff. Then, remembering that the Demon Realm strictly prohibits corpse killings, he chose to flee."

Oh, quite sharp reasoning. For a fool, she managed to deduce the situation and clues quite skillfully. She was surprisingly smart.

"But the younger brother had the ability to liquefy, didn’t he? How do you explain that? Someone with the unique ability to liquefy wouldn’t die from a mere physical impact like falling off a cliff."

Still, it’s lacking.

"Is, is that so? Then... could it be that he planned to kill him from the start and deliberately carried it out...?"

"Ah, that makes even less sense. Why would the elder brother do such a thing? There’s no reason for him to become a fugitive hunted by the Demon Realm Police."

"Ah... I see. No matter how much Retavis hated Leonard, there’s no reason for him to become a fugitive..."

"He was the closest to becoming the next family head. It’s unlikely he’d kick away a bread that was already rolling toward him."

It’s good that Adela is using her head. The more she exercises her brain, the smarter she becomes—it’s the natural order of things. Since Adela, who wouldn’t normally cross me, is becoming sharper, there’s no reason to interfere.

But not now. I’ve already burned Retavis’s body to ashes with a cross. Even if I wanted to create a culprit, I can’t. Unlike Leonard.

Thud thud thud—!

Just then, someone roughly knocked on the door. The urgency in the knocking made Adela release her grip on my shoulders and speak.

"What’s going on?"

"Ah, miss! T-the culprit has been caught! They’ve caught the culprit!"

"...What? What do you mean the culprit has been caught? Lea, Lea!"

A maid named Lea panted as she delivered the news.

The news I had planned, prepared, and arranged.

"They found it! Near Leonard’s body, they found a mask owned by King, the Southern Grand Duke!"

"...!"

Adela hurriedly opened the door and followed the maid out.

"Heh heh heh."

Left alone, I chuckled to myself.

This isn’t the time. I should head to the scene of the incident, which should be unfolding quite entertainingly by now. I don’t want to regret missing out on such a fun spectacle later.