Chapter 93: 6th Regression First Day – Exploring The Dimensional Labyrinth [1]

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Louis’s Soul rapidly repaired as the power of Time flowed through every meridian. When he opened his Soul Eyes, he found himself floating once more in the limbo between the Eternal Brilliance of the Heavens above and the Abyssal Purgatory below. Millions of specters and grieving souls reached for him, their hands stretching desperately, yet he remained just beyond their grasp.

Memories flooded back. Clarity returned to his mind; it had nearly eroded completely, but he suddenly recalled fragments of what happened after slaying Verdant. Among them: the Gardener torturing his soul… and a giant multi-armed monster saving him, then burning his soul.

“Mirai…”

“Ah, what a tragic ending. Who would have thought you would die so suddenly? Fate is truly cruel, isn’t it? It really wants you dead no matter what. It’s almost as if you’re not supposed to live that long.”

Louis saw the Entity that always emerged from his soul whenever he regressed after death. This was the fifth time. Once again, he had a brief moment to speak with the creature.

“It doesn’t matter,” Louis said with a calm smile. “Everyone else was safe. If only I was the one to die… then I can die with peace of mind.”

“…Is that so? Since when have you been so selfless?”

“I have a question. When I return to the past, what was left behind is undone? Can I try until I get the future I want or…?”

“Hm? Time flows forward without end; it cannot go back.”

“…? Then why…”

“What you’re experiencing are different timelines. Each one you leave behind is a world you will never return to.”

“…! No, wait. You’re lying! You have to be lying!”

Louis grew desperate. He grabbed the Entity’s shoulders and shook it angrily, but the Entity laughed, mocking him.

“What?! Did you think you were going to eventually save everyone?! Hahaha! HAHAHAHAHA! YOU FOOL! YOU ABSOLUTE FOOL! EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM WILL REMAIN ETERNALLY DAMNED! YOU ARE ALONE, AND YOU WILL ALWAYS BE ALONE!”

Louis’s face twisted in despair, but then, slowly, he calmed. A part of him had already feared this truth. Though another part desperately wanted to believe the Entity was lying, most of him had already accepted it.

“I see… so those that died against the Abyssal Mother… Tisha, the four hundred soldiers…” Louis’s hand trembled as the River of Time began pulling him forward. “I really couldn’t save them…”

Regressing didn’t stop those tragedies; it simply opened a new timeline, giving him another chance to do everything right.

But all those he lost and left behind… he would never meet them again.

No.

“Huh?”

As he fell through the river, he felt something. A red thread within his soul blazed with demonic flames, carrying Mirai’s essence.

“What’s this?”

A glowing golden spear floated in his Soul as well, shining brightly as if greeting him.

“Gungnir…”

An azure sword of ice rested within his Fantasy Heart. Realization dawned.

“So this is what you meant…”

And…

“…Master!”

A small, adorable golden fairy greeted him, waving her tiny hands inside his Fantasy Heart.

“Belladine…”

He was not alone.

Louis was definitely not alone.

Handy emerged from his shoulder.

And something even stranger appeared.

A red rose with an eye in the center of its petals rested silently in his chest.

“What is this thing?!”

The Entity stared at all the creatures now existing within Louis’s Soul, unable to comprehend how they had followed him—something that should have been impossible.

Louis turned toward the Entity and smiled.

“I guess I am not alone anymore.”

“Well, let’s see how you’ll die this time. Try to live for at least a year. You’re truly pathetic for being his grandson.”

“This time… I will make sure all of those I lost will not die. I will make sure Anastasia doesn’t lose her smile, and I will make sure Fernand, Elises, Belladine, and Rashid won’t die.”

“Even if they’re all different people from the ones you knew? How foolish. You’re delusional.”

“Yes… maybe I am. But I have one last hope, and you will never take that away from me.”

“We’ll see about that, Prince Louis…”

Louis faced the blinding light leading him back to the beginning with eyes full of determination. He thought of everyone who had tried to ruin his life.

Soma, the Abyssal Mother, Verdant Bellflower, the Gardener…

“This time, I will make sure to stop you.”

♢♢♢♢

Forest of Hollow Salt, the First Layer of the Dimensional Labyrinth.

Louis opened his eyes, ignoring the sharp pain in his abdomen. He stood up swiftly. The two knights before him were stunned that he rose so suddenly, but they had no time to react. Louis yanked the knife from his stomach and hurled it at the knight on the left. It pierced his forehead, killing him instantly.

“W-Wha…!”

The other knight—Zorba—gasped in disbelief and stumbled backward, striking his head against a large rock. His helmet protected him, but dizziness overwhelmed him.

“Zorba.”

“Y-You know who I am—Ah!”

A purple thread connected to Zorba’s heart. His eyes widened as memories resembling dreams of another life and timeline flooded his mind.

No explanations were needed. As Louis had expected, Zorba received everything the other version of himself had lived.

“Prince Louis? What…! What are these dreams? Who… why? What…”

Zorba was confused. The memories arrived as dreams, so they didn’t overwrite his mind; they simply allowed him to glimpse another timeline—one where he had become Prince Louis’s loyal subordinate.

“Come on, take my hand. We have to go somewhere first.”

Louis extended his hand. Zorba hesitated briefly, but the dreams felt too real to deny. Louis was… someone he had trusted, admired, and loved from the bottom of his heart.

“Yes, Prince Louis… I am still confused about why… but I will follow you to the end of this world.”

The Prince nodded, patted his shoulders, and removed his helmet to see his face clearly. He looked the same as before.

“I always wondered how you fit all that hair inside the helmet.”

“Huh?”

Louis walked away without waiting for a response. He reached the Resonance Heart, claimed it, and stored it in his Shadow Storage.

Instead of heading straight home, he gazed into the distance—toward the depths of the First Layer.

He needed to become stronger.

His Spiral resonated more powerfully than ever. Whatever had happened in the previous regression had stimulated it, and it already seemed ready to ascend to the next Tier.

But he required compatible materials and several large Entity Cores—perhaps even a low-level Grievance Core if possible.

“From the First to the Third Layer… it should be doable if we work together,” Louis said.

“…? Are… are you trying to enter the Dimensional Labyrinth?!” Zorba asked. “But why? T-That’s so dangerous, Prince Louis!”

“In this world, one cannot grow stronger without risking their life,” Louis replied with a bitter smile. “That is a lesson I learned after enduring every ounce of strength I’ve cultivated.”

Zorba stood speechless at his master’s words. “I understand but… we need to prepare.”

“You have your zombies, right? It’s fine with what we have. You can pick up some new corpses down there to stitch into new creatures,” Louis said. “Come on, let’s go.”

“Huh?!” Zorba gasped as Louis grabbed his arm and pulled him along. “W-Wait! Prince Louis, wait! I am not ready—Aaagh!”

Zorba screamed as Louis summoned an Ashen Frost Blade and leaped onto it, flying forward with the Flying Sword Technique he had created. By infusing Sword Aura into the blade and directing it, he could ride it swiftly—far faster than walking or using Skeletal Wings.

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