The Regressed Mercenary’s Machinations

Chapter 645

Even in the moment when everyone was frozen in shock, one person moved swiftly.

“Ghislain!”

Julien swung his sword toward the black tendrils.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Dozens of black tendrils were severed, but it wasn’t enough to fully repel them.

The situation unfolded too quickly, and with Ghislain already ensnared, Julien couldn’t use his full power.

In the blink of an eye, Ghislain’s body was pulled into the black shroud.

“Young Master!”

“Your Highness!”

Belinda and Gillian charged toward the shroud, their attacks driven by rage.

Boom! Boom! BOOM!

They unleashed their most powerful strikes, desperate to save Ghislain.

But the shroud merely quivered slightly, standing firm against their assault.

Unable to hold back any longer, Parniel intervened. She shouted loudly.

“Saint! Grant me your strength!”

Piote immediately closed his eyes, his silver hair shimmering.

In his urgency, he gathered all his divine power and transferred it to Parniel.

Whoosh!

Parniel’s mace shone brighter than ever. Without hesitation, she swung it toward the black shroud.

BOOM!

The shroud shook violently, but it still didn’t break.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

No matter how hard they struck, the black shroud refused to open. With no way of knowing Ghislain’s condition inside, the urgency among the group only grew.

“Move aside!”

Jerome shouted, gathering his magical energy. He was prepared to unleash his most powerful attack, putting everything he had into a single strike. Magic, with its immense destructive power, was the only option.

Vanessa placed her hand on Jerome’s back, transferring all her mana to him.

Rumble!

The combined mana of the two mages resonated, shaking the ground. Jerome thrust his hands forward.

BOOOOM!

A surge of raw, unrefined magic erupted from his hands, focused solely on obliterating the target.

Whoooosh!

The collision of pure magic against the shroud caused it to tremble more violently than before, but that was all.

“Damn it!”

Jerome gritted his teeth and gathered his energy again. Having expended so much power in one burst, blood dripped steadily from his nose.

Vanessa staggered as her mana reserves depleted almost instantly.

Despite their efforts, the black shroud remained unbroken. It was as if they were facing a wall of despair.

“I’ll handle it.”

At that moment, Julien stepped forward.

As he approached, the others moved aside, their desperate eyes fixed on him.

Julien slowly raised his sword and closed his eyes.

“...Hah...”

Unlike usual, he was cautious. This attack would have to be his strongest yet.

Julien focused his will. His power was one that defied the natural order.

The black shroud was a manifestation of this world, and he would have to shake its very foundation.

Whoosh...

A heavy silence fell around Julien. It was as if the sky, the earth, and all existence were holding their breath.

Reaching the peak of his concentration, he swung his sword through the air.

Sraaak.

A faint ripple, like a butterfly’s wingbeat, spread outward.

And then—

CRAAAAACK!

The earth split apart. The world, unable to withstand the force of Julien’s will, tore and crumbled.

That power reached the black shroud.

BOOOOOM!

The shroud split open. Everyone scanned the inside of the shroud with haste.

But Ghislain was nowhere to be seen. The interior was still shrouded in darkness.

Without hesitation, Belinda and Gillian dashed into the shroud.

Thud!

They were instantly repelled as though hitting an invisible wall, sent tumbling back.

The black shroud quickly reformed, its strands intertwining as if it had never been opened.

“Ah…”

Belinda’s face twisted with despair. It felt impossible to break through that shroud.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Gillian gritted his teeth and continued hammering at the shroud, determined to shatter it.

Parniel, bolstered by Piote’s divine energy, also kept attacking relentlessly.

But the shroud only wavered, never yielding.

Finally, after a long while, Julien spoke.

“Stop.”

Bang! Bang! BOOM!

No one seemed to hear his command. The attacks continued unabated.

Belinda stabbed the shroud repeatedly with her dagger. Jerome and Vanessa, though almost completely drained, poured out what little mana they had left.

Piote, too, kept channeling his divine energy to aid them.

Julien raised his voice again.

“Stop.”

This time, his words carried the weight of his will. At last, everyone turned to look at him.

Their expressions were a mix of despair, frustration, sadness, urgency, and fury.

Julien gazed back at them with calm, detached eyes. Slowly, he spoke.

“Let’s wait.”

“...”

“He’s not someone who’ll go down easily.”

“But—!”

Before Belinda could protest, Julien continued.

“There must be a reason it only reacted to Ghislain. For now, we have no way to act. Let’s wait.”

Julien’s voice was calm yet firm. Strangely, his words seemed to calm the group’s agitation.

This was another reason why Julien had been able to lead humanity’s alliance in his previous life.

Beyond sheer strength, he possessed a mysterious charisma that could unify others.

“Let’s wait a little longer,” Jerome sighed, collapsing to the ground. Despite his vast knowledge, he couldn’t devise a solution in this situation.

Vanessa asked anxiously, “What if nothing changes? What then?”

All eyes turned to Julien. With Ghislain gone, he had naturally become their leader.

After a brief pause, Julien spoke.

“Then we’ll gather every mage and priest across the continent... and force it open.”

If it refused to yield, they would break it, no matter the cost.

Julien’s cold gaze made it clear he meant every word.

Oddly enough, his determination brought them some relief. They believed in his ability to achieve what he said.

The group stepped back, silently staring at the black shroud that had swallowed Ghislain whole, hoping for even the slightest sign of change.

***

“Oh?”

Contrary to the worries of those outside, Ghislain was completely unharmed. With a curious expression, he surveyed his surroundings.

It was dark. The space around him was filled with nothing but shadows.

Even in such an unfamiliar place, Ghislain showed no fear. He calmly tried to analyze where he was and what was happening.

“Dark.”

Fwoosh!

Dark appeared, taking the form of a raven. Unlike usual, his body glowed faintly with a reddish hue, enveloped in mana.

? “This body has arrived.”

“What do you think? Can you figure out what kind of place this is?”

? “Hmm, something… something feels different.”

“What?”

? “It’s not a bad feeling.”

“That’s all?”

? “That’s all. What more were you expecting?”

Ghislain cast a look of contempt. As always, this creature was useless in moments like these.

“Let’s at least explore the surroundings.”

Ghislain created several duplicates of Dark and sent them scattering in every direction. The crimson-glowing forms spread out through the darkness.

? “There’s nothing here.”

? “I don’t see anything either.”

? “It’s just darkness.”

“Hmm…”

? “Oh no! Are we trapped here? I’m so scared!”

As time passed, Dark began to panic. Understandable—anyone stuck in such a dark, oppressive void for too long would start to feel fear.

Yet Ghislain remained composed. He stomped his foot, trying to discern the nature of the ground beneath him.

“Why… isn’t there any sound?”

He was clearly standing, yet even as he stomped hard, there was no sensation, no noise.

He knelt down and reached out to touch the ground.

“What the…?”

His hand, which should have encountered a solid surface, passed right through as though there was nothing there. His senses told him the ground existed, but his touch betrayed that notion.

Ghislain confirmed that this space did not adhere to the normal physical laws.

This wasn’t some form of mind control. If it had been, Dark would have detected it.

‘Unless it’s so powerful even Dark can’t react to it.’

He took a deep breath and waited. He’d been pulled into this place right after hearing the voice of the Saintess. There had to be a reason for such phenomena.

Whoosh…

Sure enough, after a moment, faint lines of light appeared on the floor, as if forming a path to guide him.

Ghislain began to walk slowly, following the illuminated markings.

Before long, something appeared in his field of vision.

“A light?”

A very small, faint light hovered in the air.

From that light, a voice emerged.

“…You’ve come. I knew you’d keep your promise. You’re that kind of person.”

Ghislain let out a dry laugh. A talking light? And it was acting like it knew him intimately.

Regaining his composure, he asked, “Who are you?”

“We already know each other well.”

“…”

Could this really be the Saintess he had seen in his dreams? Even if it was, there were still too many unanswered questions.

? “I don’t know you, but my mage friend has told me a lot about you.”

? “Our friend from the future.”

When Ghislain had first started dreaming, the Saintess had said she didn’t know him. She’d mentioned something about a “friend from the future,” which had baffled him at the time.

Still, Ghislain tried to make sense of the information he had. He had indeed glimpsed the past through his dreams.

But now she claimed they knew each other well?

It didn’t seem like she was simply referring to the brief encounters they’d had in his dreams.

There was no way she would bring up something as significant as a “promise” so lightly.

He pressed further.

“You said you didn’t know me.”

“I know you now.”

“How?”

“Because we’ve met and shared time together.”

“What are you talking about? I’ve never met you. I don’t know your face, your name, or anything about you.”

In his dreams, he had seen the Saintess’s face. He had also seen the faces of the hero and some of the other figures, though some were obscured.

But could those visions be trusted? Were they just illusions conjured by his mind?

He had never actually met or interacted with any of them. He’d never even had a proper conversation.

That’s why Ghislain couldn’t confidently say he truly knew them.

The light flickered for a moment, almost as if it were laughing.

“I understand your confusion. But soon, you will meet them.”

“What?”

“Through countless attempts and coincidences, the present and the future have changed… and so has the past.”

“What are you talking about?”

“The past, the present, and the future move together.”

“What nonsense is this? Where are we? What do you want? Speak clearly.”

“This is as far as I can intervene. This is the final arrangement I’ve left behind.”

“Hey.”

“Don’t be impatient. Soon, you’ll know everything. And the choice will be yours.”

“Choice? What choice are you talking about?”

Ghislain asked urgently. The light was beginning to flicker and shrink, as if it were struggling to stay intact.

The light spoke slowly, as though pouring its remaining energy into delivering an important message.

“Don’t forget… do whatever you want… I’ll respect your choice… and it will be the right path…”

“…”

After a brief pause, the light spoke one last time, its tone soft and final.

“Now… it’s time for us to ‘meet’ again.”

FLASH!

The light scattered, spreading across the space. The once-dark void was now filled with an overwhelming brilliance.

Ghislain instinctively shut his eyes. When he opened them again, he was standing outside the shroud.

The Saintess’s final words still echoed faintly in his mind.

? “My dear friend, Ghislain Ferdium.”