Chương 31: 1st Recursion: Conspirator (4)

Rather than addressing Halkias' accusation, Ilya kept her silence and just stared at the moon. She didn't even bat an eye at what was being thrown at her.

Halkias paid no heed to her silence. During the short time that he had known her, the man noticed that Ilya only talked when it suited her agenda.

'If my memory serves right, she's been like that ever since.' Halkias thought, a smile appearing on his face.

The man took a stand, putting his hands in his pockets thereafter. He let out a breath as he felt the coldness of the night breeze on his neck. While looking at the same view as Ilya, a smile appeared on his face.

"This past week was somehow more eventful than a year of warfare. Do you know why?"

Of course, his query was met with no response again. Halkias simply shrugged and continued.

"At first, I thought I was beginning to lose my mind. I've been remembering events… strange events that I've never encountered before. It's like-- It feels like someone else's memories have invaded my mind."

Halkias lowered his gaze. He then turned around and faced Ilya. To his surprise, he met Ilya's eyes -- eyes that were compelling him to speak. Halkias had no choice but to abide.

"The most reasonable response would be to look into what I've been experiencing, right? So, I wrote the details of these memories in a journal. Then I realized."

Halkias brought one of his hands out and placed it on his chest. He scoffed as he, once more, thought about the conclusion of his investigation.

"The people, the places, most of them were familiar to me. Even some of the contingency plans that the Knight Order created, I witnessed them in my visions. That's why it was easy for me to assume that these memories are truly mine. However…"

Before he resumed his talk, Halkias got down on one knee in front of Ilya. He then held one of her hands, rubbing her knuckle with his thumb.

"They're memories from a previous lifetime, Ilya. This is not entirely impossible, isn't it?"

Truth be told, Halkias couldn't believe what he had uncovered. Even though their world was brimming with Manna -- the element that made wielding magic possible -- retaining one's memories from another lifetime was an untouched subject.

In this world, a lifetime was defined as one complete cycle of life spent by a certain soul in a single world.

The reincarnation of a soul would not stay in the same world twice. They're sent off to a different world, bereft of memories of the lifetime they had previously undergone through.

Magic should not dare interfere with time nor the cycle of reincarnation.

That was the collective belief of all the scholars belonging to the Obelisk.

Time was an element that mortals should not attempt to manipulate. It was omniscient, evident in the fact that no one could control it. Although, that very restriction didn't apply to the Deities.

But according to the sanctified scriptures of the Temple of Harvonhal, for a Deity to be able to meddle in the matters involving the realms of the mortals, they would be dispossessed of their divinity and be refused to partake in the cycle of reincarnation.

Moreover, the world where the Deity interfered would be subjected to eternal darkness. And slowly, that darkness would swallow the sanity of every single living thing in the aforementioned world.

The consequences would deprive the world of any chances to bear life anew.

Nothing of the sort had happened. Yet Halkias didn't dismiss the possibility that a Deity was involved right away. The actions of the Deities were something that he couldn't predict, so making a conclusion would be a premature move on his part.

While Halkias was preoccupied, Ilya was doing her own thinking. A heavy sigh shortly escaped her lips, making Ilya close her eyes thereafter. Halkias felt her grip tighten, so he stood up and sat beside her without letting go of her hand.

Quietude became their companion for a while. They were two people whose circumstances had suddenly changed. It was a given that they had a lot of matters to contemplate before saying anything.

A lonely word might confuse their resolve.

A few words could make their tomorrow.

Soon enough, Ilya broke her silence.

"No lifetime is a duplicate of another. Different circumstances would bring about different choices. However, there's something that you're not telling me, Vatar Halkias."

Ilya looked at Halkias straight in the eye, tilting her head a bit to the side.

"The memories that you've gained, they already included the events from the past week. Am I not mistaken?"

She then removed Halkias' hand and straightened her posture. As Halkias was about to speak, Ilya raised her hand to stop him from doing so.

"You've seen the very same memories unveil afore your eyes. You've been investigating whether they're instruments that will help you dictate your future." A smile appeared on Ilya's placid countenance. "So, what have you discovered, Commander Vatar Halkias?"

Halkias didn't give a response that second. That was enough for Ilya to know that her statement was faultless. Still, a confirmation would be better heard than nothing at all.

Though she didn't need to wait any longer for his answer.

"Bear in mind that I can't provide any sort of evidence. I'm just relying on what I've concluded for myself."

"Do speak,"

"Time…" Halkias inhaled, "The time in this lifetime was reversed. We've already touched the future, but we went back in time for some miraculous reason sans losing our memories."

After hearing his answer, Ilya quickly took a stand. She opened her mouth and let out a soundless laugh. Her eyes had lost their lustre as she was confronted with the reality.

Without looking at Halkias, she uttered, "Excellent, that's very excellent of you, Commander Halkias. That's also the conclusion that I've come up with."

Halkias was promptly on his feet, joining Ilya in her fruitless stargazing.

"As expected, you've retained your memories, too. You knew that I was just testing you, right?"

"How could I not when your query had already exposed your intentions?"

"You never changed, Ilya. A question for a question."

Despite the gravity of their topic, there was strangely no tension between the two of them. It was like they were discussing what their next meal would be, or what they're planning to wear to bed.

Ilya briefly glanced at Halkias, giving him a small smile.

"Then I'll answer your question in return for answering mine."

She breathed softly and looked at the sky once more. Her smile was still there, but it had a different ambience than before.

"Yes, I burned down the entire Gertrude Dukedom."

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