I hit a wall with my abilities.
But it’s not that they disappeared entirely, and it doesn’t seem like an additional penalty has kicked in either. After that, I tried using my abilities a few more times in the room, and they worked properly.
But I doubt I can return to the moment before I met that nameless one yesterday.
Since then, I haven’t tried to go back again. Because if I did, I would have to see the Emperor’s face. Even if I don’t say anything, he would jump to conclusions by himself, so what’s the point of trying to go back again?
Above all, I didn’t want to experience that pain again.
Lying on my bed, I stared at the ceiling and got lost in thought.
I had healed my bruises, and maybe it was because I had slept long, but I wasn’t tired at all. However, my mind was a complete mess.
I was thinking about that nameless being I encountered in the dungeon.
“……Am I that?”
I mumbled to myself, but it didn’t feel real.
If I were the protagonist in a isekai novel, it would be cliché that it’s my future self.
That being had disappeared with a glimpse. In that future, is the Emperor going to stir up some incident through that glimpse? So I was trying to stop it—
But even with that thought, there’s something strange.
Let’s say it really is me, for argument’s sake.
I was using time-related abilities, and it was clear that I used those abilities at that very moment. Watching that movement made my head spin. Past, present, and future were all mixed up.
My voice was like that as well. It sounded like a high-pitched noise, uncomfortable to hear. I doubt it was on purpose. Also, it wasn’t just due to my injuries that I sounded that way.
When I used my abilities to reverse that situation, the opponent probably used their powers at the same time. Then it smashed the space and grabbed me tight, and while I went back in time, I could only return shakily. That’s why my body state, which should have ‘returned together’ as usual, stayed the same.
Now, if I assume both of our abilities clashed. If that being remained in a future that shouldn’t exist because of that error, then I couldn’t have returned to that point before it.
Thinking that way still seems odd.
I had the gun I was using, but the opponent pointed it at Alice, not the Emperor.
You might think I was aimed at, but Alice was just in front of me… Well, even if my physical ability isn’t that remarkable, I’ve shot that gun plenty of times. In that range, it wouldn’t be easy to misfire. Especially if that was ‘future me’.
That person was trying to say something to me.
“Sylvia, absolutely—”
But I couldn’t catch the end.
Moreover, that intense aversion I felt when I aimed at them…
….. Oh, I really don’t get it.
I scratched my head and got up.
Thinking about it now won’t help me understand the situation. For now—
The moment I barely got out of bed and slipped on my slippers, I heard someone carefully tapping on the door.
“Yes, come in.”
Thank goodness my voice didn’t crack.
The door opened carefully, and the person who entered was Claire.
“Sister.”
When Claire called me like that, it usually sounded high-pitched, like she was excited.
But now, her eyes were filled with concern. Her voice calling me was gentle.
“Are you feeling a little better?”
She didn’t ask anything else.
“I’m fine.”
Since I had been healed with magic, there was no pain left. I hadn’t even been seriously injured to begin with.
Some drops of blood stained my clothes, but that was all. It wasn’t my blood. It was the blood that flowed from the arm that had grabbed me.
Of course, Claire’s worry isn’t only because of that reason.
“Um…”
Claire looked around nervously before meeting my eyes. There was an atmosphere around her like a younger sister visiting a sister who seemed really angry.
“Right now, the others are all gathered in the dining room. I thought it might be good for everyone to have a meal together.”
“Got it—”
But as I was answering, I remembered I hadn’t washed up yet. That must have been one of the reasons Claire asked so carefully.
“I’ll wash up quickly and come down.”
As I said that, Claire nodded.
“Okay. I’ll be waiting.”
*
When she said, “I’ll be waiting”, it didn’t mean she’d wait in the dining room. Claire was quietly sitting on one of the chairs in my room.
In a world without gadgets like smartphones, she must be getting very bored just sitting there.
I squeezed as much water as I could from my damp hair with a towel.
I tried drying it with a little fan that works like a winding toy, but I still felt dampness somewhere in my hair.
“Uh, are you going somewhere like that?”
As I finally gave up drying my hair and started putting on my uniform, Claire exclaimed in surprise.
If it were the usual me, I wouldn’t have had such a disheveled appearance at all.
What would the usual me have done?
I would have probably turned back time to before Claire arrived.
Then I’d quickly wash up and be waiting for Claire. Of course, my hair would be completely dry.
Anyway, I had thought about it all morning, so turning back time wouldn’t mean my memories would vanish.
“……”
Caught up in that thought for a moment, I considered doing that,
“Do I look strange?”
I asked Claire like that. Claire quickly shook her head left and right. The motion was so innocent, like a child being asked by their mother if they didn’t like broccoli, that I almost laughed.
It was oddly peaceful, as if yesterday’s bizarre events never happened.
It wouldn’t have hurt to ask her a word or two.
But I wouldn’t be able to get any answers.
“Well then, I’ll go down like this.”
“Okay.”
At my answer, Claire nodded quickly this time.
*
“What happened last night?”
That was what Charlotte said as soon as she saw my face.
Honestly, besides not preparing properly before coming down, the fact that I came down this late was probably surprising to Charlotte.
Up until now, I had been thorough in everything, calculating nearly prophetically what would happen next and solving it.
For me to sleep in late when everyone ate breakfast and show up still half-damp with hair…
……Does this mean I’m beyond even the standards of nobles or royalty?
But first, a delicious smell tickled my nose.
It was freshly baked bread. Even though a little time had passed by the time I came down, a silver cover was covering my portion of the meal. It was probably to conserve heat, even a little.
Not rushing, I walked over to the empty seat and sat down.
Alice looked at me with a worried expression. Did she read something from my face again?
Since it was Claire who came to get me, Alice must be the one who had to explain yesterday’s events at this table. After all, Alice was the one who asked Charlotte to go to another dungeon.
“Alice?”
Charlotte, realizing she didn’t get a response from me, looked back at Alice. Thankfully, it didn’t seem like she was angry at me. Rather, she seemed to realize I was really hungry.
“Last night…”
I could almost hear Alice’s wheels turning in her head.
“…I’m sorry. It’s hard to talk about it.”
“I see.”
But Charlotte didn’t pry into it either. In fact, her gaze was directed at me rather than Alice.
Feeling Charlotte’s curious gaze as I munched on my unbuttered roll, I turned my eyes to her.
“Looks like you were really hungry, huh?”
“……”
I looked at the bread in my hand. I wasn’t tearing it into smaller pieces; I was holding it whole.
Did it seem uncouth?
That being said, Charlotte didn’t seem to give me hint either, though.
At least she wasn’t making a face like she did when I ate the parfait.
“Yeah, a lot happened yesterday.”
At my words, Alice flinched slightly.
Charlotte was alternating her gaze between Alice and me. Her deep eyes glimmered with curiosity, but perhaps it was because she was someone who hears lots of unspoken information.
She didn’t pry further into us.
“What about the others?”
“Leo got dragged off by Jake. They probably went to the casino or something.”
In answer to my question, Charlotte spoke with a sigh.
“Mia still hasn’t woken up, and Rena went right back to her room to sharpen her weapons after breakfast.”
Alice filled in the details behind her.
“Sister, want more?”
Seeing my plate quickly emptying, Claire asked.
“……”
If it had been the usual me, I would have declined…
But honestly, I was just too hungry right now.
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