Honest Grin bid farewell to Dolores and the others and returned to his resting room.
Just as he was about to reach his room, he remembered—Dolores could probably see his System tasks.
If she saw the content of that task…
He couldn’t imagine how Dolores would react.
The System’s made-up terms were such that he couldn’t extend and understand 【Unswerving】 as 【Until Death Do Us Part】 the way Dolores and the others could.
But he knew it was a level deeper than “like.”
Back in the guest room he had been assigned, Grin stared blankly for a while.
He now had to consider not only his awkward relationship with Dolores, but also the impending disaster about to befall the Land Kingdom.
He had already foreseen it, and Alberke’s words seemed to confirm his speculation.
In the previous life, the Capital wouldn’t have seen any new developments around this time. The Scarlet Sect that Alberke mentioned, and the Fourth, Ninth, and Fifteenth persons from the System tasks—they had never appeared.
Dolores’s special task had a fifteen-day limit. The Su Land Region main quest also had a fifteen-day limit. This meant that fifteen days was an important checkpoint, and many dangerous things would happen before then.
Organizations that had never shown themselves in the previous life were making moves in this life.
If there was any change in this life that might be related to this, then Grin’s involvement had caused only minor damage to the Royal Palace area and had stopped them from exploring the former Royal Palace area in time.
They hadn’t obtained what they needed at this time like they had in the previous life.
And those things were so important that they risked exposure to snatch them.
In the previous life, they had always hidden in the shadows. Even until Grin’s death, he never found their true traces.
In this life, Grin had finally caught the edge of this organization that had once caused heinous crimes in the Land Kingdom.
The dragon’s assault was not an accident or a disaster.
Behind those words lay the heavy weight of many lives that had been lost.
If this was what Dolores hoped for—to change the past—then Grin could now understand her actions. Heh.
In the previous life, he, the Land Kingdom, and the world itself had all fallen into ruin.
Going back to the past, having the chance to change everything and start over.
If he and Dolores had switched identities, he would have made the same choice.
In his memory, Dolores’s face gradually became clear.
But inopportunely, the System task’s 【Memory】 slice slipped into her mind.
“No! I can’t do that. Even if they are identical people, she is definitely not the Dolores in my memories.”
Bam!
Grin’s fist slammed into the wall beside him. He held back—at least he didn’t punch through—but there were a few cracks. He panted heavily, his body trembling slightly.
Alberke’s words of gratitude and her face flashed through his mind, gradually calming Grin down.
Grin told himself he still had fifteen days to think it over, and that finally brought his emotions to a complete rest.
Grin lay down on the bed, but he couldn’t fall asleep for hours.
Even though he could feel his body and mind were exhausted, every time he closed his eyes, countless pieces of information and images from this period flashed through his mind.
Finally, he opened the System.
“System, help me enter Dolores’s 【Retrospect】 memory.”
When entering a memory, fatigue wouldn’t accumulate from being awake, and when he came out, his body and spirit would recover.
This was the excuse Grin found for himself.
【Retrospect】 was the young, not-yet-grown Dolores.
【Confession】 was the Dolores after she had betrayed him.
At that moment, Grin desperately wanted to see Dolores again, but he knew that in his current state, it would be difficult to face the 【Confession】 Dolores.
He had a vague guess in his heart.
And 【Retrospect】—even if it was a Dolores with no memories at all, she would at least be an innocent child.
The System’s voice came. His consciousness gradually blurred, and his vision went dark. When he woke up, it was still the same room and ceiling where he had fallen asleep.
But when he looked at the wall, the fine cracks from his punch were gone.
And the room had changed, losing the traces of his brief stay.
[Since this memory’s scene does not contain the host, only Dolores can see the host in this memory.]
[The host will only be seen by Dolores when within five meters of her.]
The System’s prompt came late.
Grin walked out of the room and looked around.
The North Hall was as usual. Some of the damage he had seen before was now completely intact.
It was nighttime now, but the corridor had crystals as light sources. He was wondering where to find Dolores when—
Not far away, a male figure with golden hair and a girl with white hair walked by. Grin was stunned for a moment, then quickly followed.
That was Hagel and Dolores.
The first time Grin had seen Dolores was in the Royal Palace. Back then, Dolores was already seventeen, almost an adult, though she was only about four feet seven inches tall.
But now Dolores was noticeably shorter, barely three feet seven inches. She looked very young, a real child.
Just as he was about to approach Dolores, Grin remembered the System’s prompt and kept a distance of five meters.
He was curious what Dolores at this age would talk about with Hagel.
The child Dolores walked ahead with slow little steps. Hagel followed behind her, and Grin also kept his distance behind them.
As they walked, rain began to fall slowly around them. It picked up quickly, and white noise suddenly filled the surroundings.
Suddenly, Dolores stopped.
She turned around and looked at Hagel behind her, asking:
“Hagel, do you leave room for choice in the future you plan for yourself?”
Raindrops fell on Grin’s cheek, and then he found himself entirely in the rain. The surrounding scene was no longer the corridor but the Royal Palace’s flower garden.
The Palace had countless flower gardens. The sky was no longer night and stars but daytime and overcast.
Dolores’s voice came from behind Grin:
“Hagel, I need you to go to the neighboring city, Hegeholin. On Mugu Street, find a house with an iron piece stuck in the flowerpot at the door.”
“Then knock on her door with the code I’ve written on this note. Find a craftsman named Duradfi. Then give her this note.”
In an instant, the scene changed.
Grin turned his head at the sound of her voice. It was Dolores, protected by magic, talking with Hagel at a stone table in the center of the rainy garden.
Dolores pressed down two notes, which Hagel took.
There were also some sweets that children liked on the table. Hagel nodded and left the magic barrier.
The barrier’s radius was less than six and a half feet. If Grin wanted to enter to avoid the rain, he would inevitably be seen by Dolores.
After waiting a while with no further movement or change, Grin stepped into the barrier.
Seeing Grin, Dolores showed a startled expression. Panic, doubt, and contemplation flashed through her eyes in turn.
After a full ten seconds, Dolores asked uncertainly:
“Are you… Grin?”
“Sorry, I might have forgotten what you look like.”
After saying this, Dolores saw Grin nod in reply and sighed in relief. As he sat down, she said with a slightly helpless tone:
“I can’t quite guess how you got here, but… long time no see, dear.”