The Man’s 101st Bad Ending

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

“There’s no need to rush.”

“That’s true, but… I still believe there’s a problem.”

“A problem?”

Kaitel softly muttered, gazing intently at Cain, who sat across from him, sipping his tea, the surface rippling gently.

Subduing the North had been part of the plan from the beginning. It was just happening a little earlier than scheduled, but there would be no problem even if they executed the plan right away.

If he had to point out a problem, it would be the flimsy pretext for summoning Adele Igrit to the imperial capital. But there was no need to bring her to the capital in the first place.

The reason for summoning her had been to handle the matter quietly and swiftly, but the moment Robert Taylor became aware of the Minotaur’s existence, the word “quietly” became an impossible prefix.

Wouldn’t it be better to act more boldly than others expected?

Of course, he knew what Cain was worried about.

The fact that he had informed someone about his plan to kill Adele Igrit. And that the person he had informed was Robert, of all people.

He understood Cain’s doubts about the necessity of informing Robert, but Kaitel simply smiled and looked at him.

Cain didn’t know the full extent of his plans, or how much of the ‘recognized’ memories resided within him.

He couldn’t fully grasp it while it remained in his subconscious, but someday, when he took full control, he would be able to move more freely.

The red glint in his eyes faded, and Cain, who had been watching it intently, quietly swallowed and averted his gaze.

The Four Dragons’ thoughts were consuming the Crown Prince at an accelerated rate. The problem was that it was happening much faster than he had anticipated.

Originally, he had planned to use him and discard him, but even with royal blood, this speed was too fast.

He needed to come up with countermeasures.

To deal with this strangely rapid assimilation and somehow send the Four Dragons back…

“Cain.”

“…Yes.”

When Cain answered, barely concealing his surprise, he flinched and smiled awkwardly at the sharp gaze directed at him.

He was wearing a mask, so his expression shouldn’t be visible.

Why did Kaitel act as if he could see right through him?

The atmosphere was definitely different from before.

The Four Dragons’ thoughts were influencing Kaitel, and that influence… was greater than he had anticipated.

Cain took a breath and continued, choosing his words carefully.

“Did you think Robert Taylor would readily cooperate with killing Adele Igrit?”

“He has to cooperate. It’s obvious he’s trying to latch onto me, so I have to play along, don’t I?”

Kaitel had known Robert’s intentions for approaching him from the start.

He had been surprised that Robert actually became the head of the family, but… it was about time to discard him.

Kaitel frowned slightly at the throbbing headache and exhaled quietly.

“It’s dangerous to keep him around any longer. And I’m planning to drastically reduce the authority of the nobles, so it wouldn’t make sense to have Robert on our side.”

“Then are you planning to brand him a rebel?”

“There’s no justification for that either. But well, things don’t always need a justification.”

There wasn’t always a reason for an outcome. Sometimes, things were done simply because someone wanted to do them.

Was there a reason to kill Robert Taylor? Kaitel had thought about it seriously several times, but… he couldn’t find a reason for this unfounded hatred.

There was no cause.

He had never been interested in the black sheep of the Duke’s family. He just wanted to kill him, whenever their eyes met, whenever they spoke.

So, he was planning to finish things with him this time.

He would be part of the subjugation force against the Grand Duchess—no, the traitor Adele Igrit.

It would be perfectly plausible if he were to be struck by a stray arrow and die during the subjugation.

It was perfectly reasonable to use Taylor in the subjugation of a traitor like the Grand Duchess.

There was the fact that Robert was publicly known to be on his side, but since it was the Grand Duchess’s subjugation, it would look good for Taylor, the head of the nation’s nobles, to participate.

“…Are you planning to kill him?”

“Yes.”

“But how? He even fought against the Minotaur-”

“Is the Minotaur the only demon?”

Kaitel grinned, and Cain felt a chill run down his spine, his blood turning to ice. It was a thought that an ordinary person wouldn’t have.

Especially not someone from the moon-worshipping imperial family.

Saying that the Minotaur wasn’t the only demon was the same as saying he would mobilize other demons in the North.

For what purpose?

“From now on, the nobles are excluded. Everything will revolve around the imperial family. It has to be thorough.”

…His plan to use Kaitel was still valid. But was this rapid pace really right?

His mind was filled with swirling thoughts, but Kaitel didn’t give him time to think.

Before he could think of anything, Kaitel came up with something even more extreme.

He was thinking on a scale even grander than what the organization had planned.

Just where had things gone wrong? No, he couldn’t even be sure if things had gone wrong.

“Then, what you’re thinking of now is… besides Adele…”

“Yes.”

Kaitel smiled faintly, and a faint red glint appeared in his golden eyes.

“I will kill Robert Taylor. Along with Adele Igrit.”

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

“He’s probably planning to kill me.”

He knew what Kaitel was thinking.

Considering how much Kaitel had learned about him through the repeated regressions, it was obvious that Kaitel would know his purpose in approaching him this time.

That was why Kaitel had specifically told him about killing Adele.

Anyone would know what kind of relationship he had with Adele, and that he had fought the Minotaur… If Kaitel had intended to kill Adele regardless of him, he wouldn’t have said anything.

Then… there was only one possibility.

Kaitel was planning to kill him along with Adele.

“Does he not know that Robert fought the Minotaur?”

“He probably knows. He’ll plan accordingly.”

Adriana’s worried question was something he had already considered.

Kaitel was probably heavily influenced by the Four Dragons.

Based on his investigations and what Arwen had told him, it was safe to assume that Kaitel’s mind was already being consumed by the Four Dragons.

Even if their relationship appeared amicable on the surface, he couldn’t let his guard down. If he dismissed the possibility and got caught off guard, he would likely be struck down.

Considering all possibilities, Kaitel would try to kill him while understanding his strength.

“He’ll probably use something like a stray arrow as an excuse. The others don’t know about my strength yet.”

“Then will he use the Minotaur again this time?”

“Probably not.”

Kaitel wouldn’t be foolish enough to reuse something that had already failed once. The Minotaur had said it needed time to recover its strength.

It had been about a month since he encountered the Minotaur. It was hard to believe that it had fully recovered its strength.

Then, he had to assume that Kaitel would use other demons instead of the Minotaur, which had been his equal.

Adriana, her face pale, stared at him as if she had also considered the possibility of other demons. He knew.

If this possibility was true, he would be at a great disadvantage. It wasn’t a possibility of death, it was almost certain death.

“…You’re not planning to avoid it, are you?”

He chuckled at her hesitant voice, but the discomfort within it was clear. There was no way he would avoid it.

Even if all the demons gathered there, he would go. If he didn’t, his regression would be meaningless.

“Everything has to change. You know that, don’t you? What this regression means to me.”

🚨 Important Notice 🚨

---

); }

“I know. That’s why I’m not saying anything more. Normally, I would have tied you up here to prevent you from going.”

“That’s quite brutal.”

Adriana smiled faintly at his playful remark.

Yes, demons.

If several of them attacked him at once, he would surely die. But he had to go, so he couldn’t avoid this fight.

If things stayed as they were, he would surely die. If there was a way to overcome this possibility…

“There’s only one way, isn’t there?”

Instead of looking for other options, he gripped his sword.

Nothing would change even if he racked his brains here. He had three months and fifteen days left.

There was no way for him to overcome this situation other than to somehow reach the next level.

This time was different.

It had to be different.

Adriana’s gaze was darker than usual, but he didn’t show that he noticed.

He knew how she felt, and he knew that her feelings were mixed with a lot of personal desires. But he couldn’t abandon Adele.

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

[Translator Notes]

[Your Text Here]

---