The Academy’s Ankle Reaper

I quickly realized what this place, whether a fantasy or Other Space, was based upon.

The vividness felt like it was resurrecting the most horrific moment in my memory, but the difference is that my mind isn’t the same as it was back then.

My Physical Ability might not appear the same as it does now… But whether it’s a fantasy or Other Space, I am not the same person I was then.

Even if I were to confront the same situation, it doesn’t duplicate that time; at this point where I can move freely, it no longer becomes a dreadful moment.

It’s merely about that moment I so desperately wished for coming true.

“Ahh..!! Whatever it is, it’s great!!”

Seeing Kronos’s face, which was smashed into the ground, made me feel relieved.

It’s true; the most frustrating moment of this life was when I was beaten while training with Kronos.

But that doesn’t mean Kronos is the scariest thing for me anymore.

Ever since I decided to run away, after defeating Kronos, he’s just been an annoying old fogey to me.

It’s a past I have already overcome.

The wounds of the past remain as scars, but that’s all they are.

“… Should I cut it off?”

I’d tried cutting off Rex’s leg, who bore the same face, but I had never actually tried cutting Kronos’s leg.

Although I only have a wooden sword, I’m sure I could slice through a rock now if I wanted.

It shouldn’t be that hard.

Deciding to give it a shot, I lifted the wooden sword, only for Kronos’s fallen figure to start to fade into the scenery.

“Is this the end? It feels a bit anticlimactic.”

I surely grew grandiose about some plans and things, but was it really just this?

Starting from Kronos, the scenery began to melt away, turning the world into an nauseatingly swaying space.

It appears to be a remarkably simple Other Space where you summon the most terrible things and overcome them, then nothing more remains to manifest.

The problem is that even though it ended, it still maintains the sickening state of the space.

‘Are they planning to keep me locked here?’

Typically, such places allow for a natural escape once you overcome a nightmare, but it seems that’s not the case here.

Looking around to see if anything had changed, something I’d never seen before emerged in the spot where Kronos had vanished.

A swaying Shadow clad in the corpse of an animal grew in size as it appeared.

“I’ll become your new nightmare.”

Its appearance was worthy of being called a heretic’s deity; while it didn’t exude a sense of godliness like an elder, it was indeed a powerful monster.

Considering it doesn’t feel like Magic Energy, it seems it’s not a Demon but rather a long-lived lich.

If it were in its original form, I’d deal with it in no time, but sadly, my physical body looks just like when I was a child.

“No, no. This is all a trick. I am who I am. Unchanged.”

This space is all an illusion.

I have never changed.

I only thought the Necromancer deceived my physical senses into this state, while Kronos was also weaker than the real Kronos.

It was merely an illusion acting as the original Kronos.

There’s no way the Kronos, who belongs to the top tier of Experts, would fall so easily.

As I clearly recognized myself, the sensations of my body transformed.

Annoyingly, it seems there’s no notable change between then and now, but in my hand, I was no longer holding a wooden sword; I was wielding a Squirette.

“You’ve freed yourself from the nightmare? This is a space where one loses themselves… It’s impossible for a human.”

Seeing myself restoring to my original state, the Necromancer mumbled in disbelief.

For a regular human, it would have been hard to escape, but what can I say? I am a Master.

With an excessively strong ego, even if my bodily sensations differ, defining who I am remains a simple task.

[I tried to help you, but you unraveled it yourself.]

“Then why didn’t you do it sooner?”

As I got my wits back, I found a small wolf perched on my shoulder.

If you were going to help me, why not do it when waking me from the nightmare? Or did I just finish too quickly?

Okay, let’s think positively.

“Let’s quickly wrap this up and go help the others.”

I swiftly dealt with this nightmare, but I had no clue if others were doing well.

As for Gemma… if a Gold Dragon can’t handle such situations, she’s going to have to hear it from me.

I feel quite anxious about Amy—she probably is taken hostage.

So, I need to hurry, I cloaked the Squirette in a pale Aura and charged toward the Necromancer.

———————————

When I came to my senses, I found myself under a familiar Ceiling.

The ceiling of my own room, one that I could never forget. Was it morning now? As I stretched, memories struck me like lightning.

“That’s right..!!”

Realizing what situation I was in before losing consciousness, Amy quickly stood up and looked around.

She had clearly found a place presumed to be the den of the heretics, where a suspicious man had appeared, and Atlas had killed him, but then the darkness…

“Oh my, did you have a nightmare, my lady?”

As she was flustered recalling what had happened to her, a very refreshing voice came from behind.

A voice that used to be familiar but wasn’t anymore.

Startled, Amy turned her head.

“…Belma?”

“Yes, it’s Belma.”

Standing there was a woman with chestnut hair dressed neatly in maid attire.

She was over 10 cm taller than the current Amy, and her face, dotted with freckles, looked like the sunlight peering through sunflowers.

The eldest daughter of the blacksmith, three years older than Amy, she had worked at Parker’s Mansion since childhood, mostly handling Amy’s errands.

And she was one of the children who had become a sacrifice to the demons on the day the Demon Church attacked Parker.

“Really… is that you, Belma?”

Seeing the unbelievable sight, Amy hugged Belma.

Belma, who hugged Amy tightly, was taken aback but didn’t pull her away and gently patted her.

“I… I’m sorry, Belma….”

“Why are you acting like this today? Now, now, my lady, you need to wash up and get ready quickly.”

If Belma was alive, I had to check the most important thing first.

“…Belma, what’s today’s date?”

“Today? Hmm… It’s August 13th in the Imperial Calendar, 1879.”

August 13th, 1879… a day I couldn’t forget even if I tried.

Today is the day of the massive raid by the Demon Church, and Belma is going to die tonight.

.

.

.

August 13th was the most significant day in Amy’s life.

A shocking event that completely shattered her life ahead; the Demon Church attacked the territory and abducted all the children who had not yet reached adulthood, offering them as sacrifices to the demons.

As a result, Parker’s territory suffered severe damage and had yet to recover, remaining in turmoil.

And today is the day itself, August 13th.

When night falls completely, the Demon Church will attack the territory.

“Amy, since there are still no captors caught, avoid going out far today.”

“Yes.”

While having breakfast, Amy’s father, Vincent, warned her.

Children had already started to go missing one by one for over a week now.

At that time, it seemed inconsequential, but looking back now, it was clear the Demon Church’s people had been kidnapping children from then on.

“Belma, you also keep a close watch on Amy so she doesn’t go out.”

“Yes, my Lord.”

Belma nodded after hearing Vincent’s words.

The mansion now exuded a sense of leisure that was not visible before.

The number of workers had to have at least doubled.

This was the Parker household in times of plenty, living rather comfortably with almost no non-arable land in the territory.

‘… This part is just as I remember.’

Amy grasped the situation presented to her.

A reality that was too vivid to be called a dream.

But it couldn’t be time travel, could it? No way?

According to the words of the companion who wasn’t responding, it was theoretically possible, but there had never been a report of someone really doing it.

‘Even so, it can’t be real; it should just be the work of one heretic… Could it really be time reversal?’

The Artifact Amy possessed was related to time, but it didn’t transcend time. It merely remembered the place she had been in the past and returned there.

Even if she prevented tragedy here… nothing would change.

It must merely be an illusion.

Just a device to evoke a horrific feeling in her.

But despite that, Amy wanted to struggle.

“Can… I really do this?”

If Atlas were here, he would have said.

“Don’t doubt it. You can do it.”

That she should not question what was necessary to do.

Even if it was nothing but a false illusion with no meaning in the end, Amy resolved not to break.