The moment I returned, I doubted my eyes.
The pain I had felt in my stomach disappeared in an instant, signaling that time had reversed, but…
"Ah!"
"Oh, oh!"
"Catch him!"
I wasn't even given time to complete the warp spell.
Once again, a faintly glinting blade grazed past the letter.
Thwack—
"Urgh…!"
The tip of the blade tore through my glove and scratched my palm.
Perhaps because of the cold air, the sensation of my flesh splitting felt far more vivid than usual.
'This crazy….'
Bang—!
I grabbed the old man's forearm with my other hand and flung him far away.
"Aaargh!"
Screams erupted as the crowd hastily retreated.
Blood dripped from the tear in my glove, and now that I looked, I could feel pain radiating from above my left pelvic bone as well.
Still, compared to earlier—when I was certain my organs had been pierced—this minor scratch was a far more hopeful situation.
'So this is the last checkpoint.'
I had issued the same order during Elias's time.
Back then, enough time had been rewound.
While I still couldn't understand why I had to endure such events, it was clear these situations held something I needed to learn.
The investigators quickly subdued the old man. Unlike earlier, when I had sustained fatal injuries, they seemed less panicked this time.
"..."
I tried to ignore the pain as I chanted a divine power spell and pressed my hand to the old man's forehead.
"Who sent you?"
"..."
The old man stared blankly at the ground with unfocused eyes.
'…Of course, it's as I thought.'
His silence confirmed it: his memories had been entirely erased, leaving only the implanted orders.
Given that the strength he displayed wasn't natural for someone his age, an investigation would undoubtedly reveal traces of vitriol in his body.
In an instant, mages from the investigation bureau erected a barrier around the crowd.
A mage dashed up to me and asked, "Are you all right?! Let's get you to the hospital immediately."
Two mages flanked me, preparing a warp spell.
Just before we teleported, I caught a glimpse of the investigators warping away with the subdued old man.
***
"At least three days without using your hands. No strenuous activities either."
"Three days?"
The doctor nodded firmly.
"With my abilities, I can't shorten the recovery period any further. If we were relying on conventional medicine, this would take at least three weeks."
'This is a problem.'
When I first arrived in this place, I was treated by the king himself.
Even with the kingdom's most skilled healers, I still had to wait three days. There was no helping it.
"Understood. I'll rest."
"Good. See you tomorrow."
The doctor left the room.
I could feel Leo's sharp gaze boring into me, but I deliberately ignored it.
Leo sneered as he echoed my words. "Not happy with just three days?"
"No."
I removed my mask and leaned against the wall.
How could I not be satisfied?
Having experienced what it felt like to have a hole punched through my abdomen, I wasn't about to complain about a few days of recovery.
"If you're thinking of doing anything in the next three days, forget it. It's Christmas anyway. With luck, you won't even have to deal with the other teams."
"Yeah, that's a relief."
I did have something in mind.
But unlike Leo's concerns, it wouldn't involve moving around. All I needed to do was use my head.
"Pass me the newspaper, Leo."
"Hmph, your injured hands make this convenient for me."
Leo's tone was half-mocking.
It wasn't just because I was asking for something; I'd been exploiting my status to make him do all sorts of things without revealing my identity.
When I stretched my elbow out and reached for the side table, Leo snatched the newspaper.
"Don't read it."
"..."
"Later. Do you realize you're still running a fever?"
"I know."
"Then just sleep."
Given his stubbornness, any argument here would be pointless.
I took a deep breath and closed my eyes.
I had skimmed through the newspaper earlier this morning anyway.
'The magic inspections targeting commoners have been strengthened.'
That was the emperor's doing.
He was determined to locate someone from the Catacombs and penetrate the area. This had been confirmed in the letter I'd read earlier.
There was also news about the imperial mage team led by Adrian Askanian, the strengthening of city patrols before Christmas, and the results of the third-year potion-making competition….
'Hmm.'
I should have read it more thoroughly.
The most striking piece of news was the surprise inspections targeting commoners.
'Trying to raid the Catacombs amidst all this… Greed is one thing, but this is excessive.'
I couldn't fathom how many lives would have to be sacrificed to satisfy such ambitions.
The manpower used for inspections would be far better deployed to monitor Pleroma. It would be more economical and ethical.
It might even buy Elias more time to avoid being purged.
Just then, Leo's exasperated laugh broke my thoughts.
"Do I need to give you a sleeping pill?"
"No, that won't be necessary."
I opened my eyes and sat up.
How could anyone rest peacefully after nearly dying, even if they were running a fever?
More importantly, this wasn't the time to relax.
I had to identify the perpetrator. Who would commit such a bold act in the heart of Bavaria's capital?
'Could it be Traut?'
No.
That was too far-fetched.
If he had orchestrated this, he would have tied Nicolaus and Lucas together.
My brother might consider every possibility, but even he wouldn't outline such a scenario in Traut's letter.
Even if he had, this plan wouldn't work.
'If time hadn't been reversed, I'd be dead.'
My brother's concerned letters clearly showed his limits; he wouldn't have gone so far as to incite murder.
Adrian, playing the role of a doting older brother, wouldn't let Traut kill me. He might test my purity, but not aim to end my life.
This act wasn't a test—it was an assassination attempt.
'Good, that narrows it down.'
Lucas wasn't involved.
Who stands to gain the most if Nicolaus is killed?
That's the clue to uncovering the mastermind behind this plot.
Bang—!
The door slammed open with a deafening noise.
Leo didn't seem surprised, likely having been informed in advance.
Elias entered with a stern expression, his gaze fixed on my injured hand in disbelief.
"…The imperial paper wasn't lying?"
"..."
"To think something like this happened in the heart of the royal capital…. What about His Majesty the King?"
"The King stopped by briefly earlier."
He couldn't stay long at the hospital since he had to attend a strategy meeting.
Elias quickly nodded in understanding and glanced around as he asked, "Where's Narce? He took the exam with you guys, right?"
"As soon as the incident happened, he went to the Bureau to interrogate the culprit," Leo replied.
Now, surrounding the three of us, Leo cast a soundproofing spell and spoke.
"When you were receiving treatment earlier, we got some results from the investigation. No vitriol was found, but traces of corrupted magic were detected in the blood."
'Hmm….'
No vitriol?
That's the strongest and most definitive method they could have used.
Elias seemed to have the same thought, furrowing his brows. Then, as if he had grasped something, he murmured, "This was planned."
"Yeah. Speaking of which," Leo interjected, "Lucas, did you read the letter from Robert Müller?"
Elias raised an eyebrow. "Robert Müller?"
"He's a fan of Nicolaus. An incredible one at that. The kind of guy who stretches soul resonance nonsense into forty pages of cult-like babble."
Leo handed Elias the previous letter and then gave me a crisp, new letter, freshly arrived.
This time, it was only three pages long—likely due to time constraints.
[To the Honorable Nicolaus Ernst,]
[I heard the news. What on earth happened? It's unbelievable.]
'Not bad for someone I'm suspecting as the culprit,' I thought, flipping the pages past this trivial opening.
I reached the portion Leo had already read and folded.
[You were incredible.]
'…Hah.'
There it is. Gone is the shock, replaced with a bold compliment.
[If I were in the same situation, could I have acted like that? Honestly, I wanted to help you, but I didn't have the chance. If only I'd been a bit faster, I could've been of some use. But considering you and the criminal were only two steps apart, it seems it would've been difficult no matter how fast I was.]
"Only two steps apart?" I chuckled, shaking my head. "Sounds like he was watching the scene firsthand."
"Exactly," Leo said. "Warp magic and on-foot movement were restricted during the incident. Even the imperial newspapers only have headlines with no detailed coverage yet. But…"
Leo held up the envelope and the postmark in front of me.
"See this? It's a warp mail postmark from the Free City of Hamburg, sent just ten minutes ago."
The northern empire—essentially the opposite end of the map from here.
None of the witnesses on-site could have left the area, yet this letter originated from a distant postal office?
"This only makes sense if he knew the incident would happen in advance," Leo said grimly.
"Right. He probably wanted to highlight the premeditated nature of the crime by contradicting the letter's content with the postmark," I added.
"But why advertise that it's premeditated?" Elias questioned.
"To mask the real perpetrator," Leo concluded.
'Hmm.'
I nodded. Leo's reasoning aligned with my own thoughts.
All of Müller's chaotic ramblings in prior letters were a smokescreen. His slip-up here was likely deliberate, made to seem like an accidental leak of information.
Leo continued, "You've probably already guessed who the culprit is. But a hunch isn't enough. The Bureau can only act on evidence, and they'll conclude from this letter that Robert is the criminal."
"Go on," I urged.
"Think back to the initial moments of the incident. For something orchestrated by Pleroma, the execution felt sloppy. You noticed something was off, didn't you? That's probably what helped you avoid a fatal wound."
Despite coming close to death, it seems Leo also sensed the clumsiness of the attack.
I nodded, prompting him to continue.
"That sloppiness was likely intentional. If it were too clear that Pleroma orchestrated the attack, it'd backfire. After all, you're not the only one they need to deal with."
Elias, as if stating the obvious, added lightly, "They'd need to deal with both you and me."
"Exactly," Leo agreed.
However, I didn't entirely buy it. Taking out two royals would be too risky.
Seeing my doubt, Leo elaborated, "If they plan carefully, you alone are enough to eliminate Adrian Askanian. But why haven't they done it yet?"
"..."
"Same reason for them. Simply killing you would spark public outrage, creating a hero who died fighting against injustice."
"Right. Making the public distrust us is a more refined strategy," I concluded.
"Exactly. The real plan likely unfolds while Nicolaus is recovering. Otherwise, there'd be no reason for this diversionary crime."
"Fair point," I admitted.
As I rubbed my chin, Leo gave me a warning look. "If I know you, you're already thinking about taking action. Forget it. You're not going anywhere."
Elias, who had been lost in thought until now, interjected with mock amusement, "Oh~ the warp alarms went off earlier. I wondered why we were told to walk instead. Turns out this was your doing."
"…If you already knew, why tell me who the culprit is?" I asked.
"So you wouldn't get any bright ideas. I'm making it clear—you're not leaving."
Leo's grin grew as he crossed his arms.
"Fine. I'm not going," I replied, shrugging nonchalantly.
"…What?"
"I said, I'm not going."
Leo stared at me, dumbfounded. "What are you planning now?"
"…If you're going to question me after I already said I won't go, why bother asking?"
"No, it's just that your track record—"
"Shut up! If I say I'm not going, just cheer me on!"
Elias, sensing the humor in the situation, finally relaxed and tapped the bed with a playful grin.
Truthfully, I had no intention of going.
This entire setup was bait, meant to lure us out.
'Bait inspired by the Strauch incident, no less.'
Leo's reasoning was solid, but there was one thing he couldn't possibly know:
If time hadn't been rewound, I'd already be dead.
Leo's claim that this was merely a fan-driven attack would crumble if one considered the lengths they went to, even knowing the risks of suspicion falling on Pleroma.
This crime wasn't Pleroma's work but was designed to implicate them while benefitting someone else.
I reopened the letter I'd read earlier.
[I hope you maintain your resolve. Few are willing to give their lives to defeat Pleroma.]
[Our people must unite. We've grown weary and apathetic under Pleroma's reign, but you, Sir Nicolaus, have awakened this generation.]
The rest devolved into meaningless fluff, but this revealed enough of the writer's mindset.
'It's a convoluted plan, but the benefits are clear.'
First, they'd frame Pleroma for the murder, fueling anti-Pleroma sentiment.
Second, they'd elevate Nicolaus as a hero who died opposing Pleroma.
For a fanatical mind, it's a satisfactory outcome.
The strategy bent the assumption that "Pleroma would naturally act like Pleroma" while ensuring "only Pleroma would seem capable of attacking Nicolaus."
'Clever.'
It had been a while since I encountered an opponent who intrigued me.
"No vitriol at the scene, right?" I asked.
"Right."
"They weren't trying to deceive us—they genuinely lacked the ability to procure it. Instead, they exploited that absence to mimic Pleroma."
However, the spatial isolation magic at the scene was eerily similar to Pleroma's style.
At this point, only one group came to mind:
'The Catacombs.'
Elias had dealt with the Catacombs in the novel as well—or, more precisely, they had attempted to use him as a tool for their unity, much like they were now trying with me.
Though the details and sequence of events differed, the implications were the same.
If Robert Müller was connected to the Catacombs, the situation wasn't entirely unfavorable.
After all, I already had reasons to infiltrate the Catacombs.
Smiling faintly, I announced, "Let's move on to the next plan."
Leo, exasperated, grabbed his neck. "What now? Keep it simple!"
"It is simple," I replied calmly.
Elias, in contrast to Leo, leaned in seriously.
"All we have to do is stay put. At least Nicolaus Ernst does."