“Uh, w-what should we do? We need to move quickly…!”
“Calm down, Sylvia. If it’s not possible, then let’s leave here for now.”
“Y-yes…!”
Sylvia, trembling with fear, seemed on the verge of tears.
This girl…
Ever since her appearance changed to that of a child, she’s been crying much more often.
Is it true that the mind follows the body?
‘This is bad. Sylvia is gradually becoming more like a child.’
If this continues, Sylvia might slowly revert to a childlike mentality without even realizing it.
Later, if I assign her a task, she might respond childishly with, “Why should I do that, huh?”
If she said that with her current appearance, it might be adorable, but if she said it as an adult…
“Urgh…”
“Why are you suddenly reacting like that!?”
“Oh, nothing. Just felt a bit nauseous…”
Before Sylvia’s mind completely synchronized with her childlike body, I had to find a way to restore her to her original state.
If it was too late, an immature adult acting like a child would be born.
The sense of urgency hit me hard, making me dizzy and nauseous.
There couldn’t be a stronger motivator than this.
“Let’s leave the Vermont territory for now. They might send someone to search the mansion.”
“Yes. If we inevitably have to interact with people, doing so far from Vermont territory would help minimize changes to the present.”
We decided to leave the Vermont territory first.
It wasn’t part of the plan to end up stranded like this, but fortunately, we had packed plenty of small currency that was valid even ten years ago.
To avoid drawing attention, we found a cart preparing to leave the Vermont territory.
After persuading the driver, we climbed into the back, leaving Vermont territory discreetly.
With a small bribe to the driver to keep quiet, the fact that two suspicious individuals had left Vermont would go nowhere.
We had successfully erased our tracks.
“Wh-what if… What if this doesn’t work anymore? Are we going to be trapped in the past forever? There are two of us here and in the future… Does that mean we have to hide until ten years pass?”
“…”
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ urges you to calm your knight down.]
Sylvia nervously fiddled with her sword, trembling all the while.
It seemed she couldn’t stay still due to her anxiety.
Seeing her pitiful state, I instinctively reached out, but then pulled back.
‘She’s acting more and more like a child because I keep pampering her.’
I needed to restrain myself.
Didn’t Sylvia herself ask me to treat her the same as when she was an adult?
I had to honor her request.
Her appearance was just a shell; in human relationships, it didn’t matter one bit—
“Sniff…”
“Come here.”
“I’m not crying. I’m fine…”
“It’s because you look cold. Come here already.”
“…”
After some excuses and hesitation, Sylvia finally shuffled closer and leaned against me.
I hugged her tightly and gently stroked her hair.
Only then did her trembling subside, and she loosened her grip on the sword she had been clutching.
Her breathing steadied, and she seemed to calm down significantly.
“Don’t worry too much. We’ll definitely return.”
“Do you think the same words you used to comfort young Irene will work on me? Irene knows the future, so she can say that with confidence. But we don’t know what’s ahead of us.”
“…”
At moments like this, she conveniently reverted to her adult intelligence and questioned me logically.
What an exhausting person.
“Fretting over it won’t help. Your sword is the only way to get us back. If you don’t believe in yourself, how can we possibly return?”
“Sniff… You’re right. I’ll try to have more confidence…”
She sniffled and nestled closer to me, eventually letting out soft breaths as she fell asleep.
She must have cried herself to sleep.
She’s really become like a child.
I couldn’t help but let out a dry chuckle.
***
The cart carrying Sylvia and me left the Vermont territory and circled around the mountain range.
If we had brought Charlotte along, she could have sliced through the mountain for a straight path.
But then, when we returned to the present, the Vermont highway might have become a two-lane road.
Our destination was a small village near the capital.
It was a chaotic place where nobles, beggars, foreigners, and illegal residents all mixed together.
No one would bat an eye at two unidentified individuals staying temporarily.
“From now on, we’ll pretend to be moderately wealthy tourists.”
“Wouldn’t that attract more thieves?”
“If that happens, you can just draw your sword from my side. No thief would dare stay after seeing that.”
“Ah, true… That would scare them off for sure.”
While I didn’t want to stay here long, I needed a backup plan in case Sylvia’s slump lasted.
We changed into simple yet decent-looking clothes and booked a room at a motel popular with outsiders.
Though it was rarely inspected by guards, it did have the downside of frequent robberies.
Still, with Sylvia by my side, I wasn’t concerned.
“Perhaps it’s hunger causing the problem. Let’s eat well, rest, and try again with renewed strength.”
“Yes, my Lord!”
Since we couldn’t identify the cause of her slump, we had to try everything.
It could be that opening the rift to the past drained her mental energy, making consecutive attempts impossible.
With that assumption, I decided to focus on feeding her and letting her rest.
“I’d like to eat at that restaurant over there…”
“That’s a place for couples to dine and drink. No matter how adult your mind is, I can’t let you drink in that body.”
“I know! I won’t drink, I promise. Just the food, please…”
A luxurious bar with a dimly lit interior, enhanced by the soft glow of candles to create an elegant atmosphere.
Something feels off.
Has Sylvia always been the type to enjoy such places?
She seems more like someone who’d prefer soju and grilled pork belly, so this was unexpected.
After fulfilling her desire for a meal at the restaurant, Sylvia pointed at another place, tugging insistently at my sleeve.
“Master, over there…”
“Use your words.”
“How about we enjoy some tea together at that café?”
“…?”
She’s someone who normally wouldn’t even touch tea.
What’s going on all of a sudden?
I wanted to ask her about it, but…
“I’ll have rosemary tea, please!”
Seeing Sylvia’s face light up with excitement, I couldn’t bring myself to question her.
For today, I decided to indulge her whims.
After some tea and light snacks, we exited the café.
“Whew… It’s been so long since I’ve spent time this leisurely.”
“This feels more than leisurely. I did tell you not to worry too much, but…”
“Oh, uh, yes. Right. We should be looking for a way to leave here as soon as possible. I haven’t forgotten. Definitely not.”
“By the way, Sylvia, I’ve come up with a hypothesis. Can you help me test it?”
“Of course. What is it?”
“When you cut through the temporal rift, did you wield your sword with a strong sense of determination or desire?”
“Ah! Yes, that’s right!”
“Maybe the rift responds to a powerful will or desire.”
“…!”
Sylvia flinched, visibly startled.
It seemed my guess was on point.
“That makes sense. At that time, I was inspired by your words, my Lord. I swung the sword impulsively, feeling like I’d regret it forever if I didn’t. The wish in my heart was definitely… I wanted to become a Sword Master and return to normal as soon as possible.”
“So it’s the strength of your will that determines whether the rift opens…”
“Ah? But earlier, when I swung the sword, I was also thinking about opening the rift.”
“Your will wasn’t strong enough, then. Subconsciously, you might’ve been content with our secluded life together in a world where no one knows us, and you might’ve even wished not to return.”
“Th-that’s ridiculous! What are you even talking about!?”
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ rebukes you harshly, insisting that your knight would never entertain such improper thoughts!]
Sylvia’s face turned bright red as she reacted violently to my words.
It was just a joke, but her exaggerated reaction made me suspicious.
I narrowed my eyes at her, and Sylvia, flustered, fanned her red face furiously and scoffed indignantly.
“Hah! Ridiculous! Can you prove your claim?”
“Then why don’t you try swinging the sword again and see if—”
“Fine! I’ll prove that it doesn’t work!”
“Wait. Before you swing it, listen carefully. If the rift doesn’t open this time, you’ll handle all the paperwork from now on.”
“Gasp!”
Hearing that, Sylvia gasped loudly, seemingly overwhelmed.
She lost strength in her arm, and the sword she had lifted fell limply, tracing an arc as it descended.
It wasn’t even a proper swing.
Her arm simply gave out, and the sword followed gravity.
Yet even in that powerless motion, strange phenomena began to unfold.
“…!?”
The same sight as before in the office.
The air itself split open, and a rift began to form.
Finally, success.
“See? If your will is strong enough, it opens.”
“…”
[The Evil God ‘Kali’ declares that they knew this would happen and expresses support for you.]
Sylvia was left speechless.
