Theo looked at Hilda, recalling their conversation from the nomination ceremony.

- "You're a regressor, aren’t you?"

- "Of course. I’m a regressor too."

Back then, she’d dropped a statement Theo couldn’t ignore:

- "Though all the cycles allotted to me are now over."

The word “cycle” implied that regression could occur multiple times.

Even the visions he had seen earlier showed a pattern of reliving life, with each incarnation seemingly aware of past lives.

“How many times can regression repeat?”

It was the most logical question for Theo to ask first. There was a significant difference between a single regression and multiple cycles.

Hilda’s lips curled into a smile.

“Is that the first thing you want to know? Just like Kyle’s son, always straight to the point. Come in, and we can discuss it over a meal.”

Hilda turned and walked into the castle, and the gates slowly creaked open.

The space beyond was filled with an almost impenetrable darkness.

Theo stepped inside.

---

Inside the castle, everything was surprisingly elegant and opulent, contrasting sharply with the crumbling exterior. It didn’t feel abandoned at all; clearly, Hilda had taken residence here.

Hilda led him to the dining room, where a long table over three meters in length was set with steaming, sumptuous dishes.

“Sit wherever you like.”

Hilda took a seat at the head of the table and poured red wine into her glass. Theo cautiously chose a seat opposite her, his gaze drifting around the room—until he noticed the chef serving a main dish in front of him.

A familiar face.

“Eungnyong… sir?”

“Hoho, how have you been? Didn’t expect to see me here, did you?”

“Why are you here, sir?”

“Why else? A sword’s place is by its master’s side.”

“...!”

“I hope the food suits your taste; I haven’t cooked like this in a while. Please enjoy as much as you like.”

Eungnyong gave Theo a wink, filled his wine glass, and quietly left.

“So, that’s why he suddenly reappeared as an arbiter… because of this.”

It was only a moment of surprise, but Theo had a feeling that his ties with Hilda and Eungnyong would only grow closer in the future.

“Eungnyong may look like a grouchy old man, but his cooking skills are good enough that I, after twenty-one lives, keep him by my side. So enjoy.”

Hilda chuckled as she tore into a piece of meat. It might have seemed crude, yet it suited her perfectly.

But Theo was fixated on something else she had said.

“Twenty-one lives…”

“So regression can indeed repeat itself.”

Theo commented as he cut into the steak that Eungnyong had served. Although he wasn’t used to having late-night meals, it would have been rude to reject his host’s hospitality.

“Well, that I don’t know,” Hilda replied, dismissive.

“What do you mean?” Theo asked, wanting clarity.

“Why should I explain? I don’t owe you an answer,” Hilda replied, her smile twisting as she wiped her hands with a napkin and lifted her wine glass.

“After all, it’s you who needs information, not me. I’m simply here out of ‘kindness,’ not because I have any obligation to answer your questions.”

The wine swirled in her glass, and Theo could feel that Hilda was testing him.

‘The gaze of a ruler…’

The kind of look only someone who has ruled from the top their entire life could have.

“Yes, I am reliant on your kindness at this moment, so if you don’t wish to answer, I can’t force you to,” Theo replied.

“Hmm?”

Hilda raised an eyebrow, surprised, and then smirked as Theo continued.

“But you won’t gain anything either. You won’t know what the ‘previous’ world was like or what the future holds.”

“Pahaha! You think I’d be interested in the future? I’ve lived over a century, and if you count my regressions, several centuries more. I don’t need to know anything else…”

“No, you’re curious,” Theo countered. “Because you’re a regressor.”

Hilda’s smirk deepened, and Theo knew he had struck a chord.

“A regressor holds knowledge of the future, an asset that shapes their life and plans. They are more attuned to the importance and utility of time than anyone.”

Hilda’s smile grew wider as Theo continued.

“The more regressions one experiences, the more they come to depend on future knowledge. But if you’ve used up all your cycles, you’re now cut off from that future knowledge. While it may not matter in terms of your attachment to life, the frustration would still linger.”

“What if I’ve already lived through this exact time period in a past life? I wouldn’t need your information.”

Theo shook his head. “On the contrary, you’d need it more. The ‘butterfly effect’ has undoubtedly altered the flow of history.”

Theo’s ten-year leap into the past had already caused significant changes, like Wellington and Erika choosing to stay in Ragnar instead of returning to their family.

Even if Theo did nothing else, history had already veered off course and would continue evolving in unforeseen ways. In ten or twenty years, history would be unrecognizable.

Hilda had regressed over a century ago, so even if she’d lived through this period before, history would now be entirely different.

To a regressor, especially one who’s cycled through multiple lives, future knowledge is an addictive drug—one that’s impossible to quit.

By offering future knowledge as bait, Theo was negotiating with Hilda.

“Hahaha!”

Hilda laughed heartily, clearly pleased.

“This era’s regressor is certainly a sharp one. Judging by your tone, it’s your first cycle, isn’t it? I didn’t grasp that until after my second life.”

Hilda took a long drink from her wine glass, then slammed it down on the table.

**Crash!**

The glass shattered, and each shard reflected the sharp glint in Hilda’s eyes.

“Now I understand why Kyle is just sitting back and watching you.”

Theo’s eyes narrowed. This was the second time someone had mentioned his father in this context, after Lordbrok.

What was Kyle’s secret?

“What exactly is the connection between my father and regressors?”

“Oh, it’s significant. No one in this world hates… no, despises regressors as much as he does.”

Theo’s face stiffened.

“Do you know how your father claimed his current position?”

“I’ve heard he took the throne from the previous clan head.”

There was only a five-year gap between the abdication of the former clan head and Kyle’s rise to power. Kyle had launched a coup to dethrone his predecessor, who had been none other than his own father.

It was considered a heinous act, but in Ragnar, where only the strong survived, it was expected.

“Right. And did you know that the dethroned head was a regressor?”

“…!”

Theo’s eyes widened as Hilda continued with a wry smile, blood or wine dripping from her hand.

“My nephew, the previous head, was a madman, even by tyrant standards.”

Theo nodded.

- **The Mad Dragon Emperor**.

That was the moniker given to the previous clan head, now a dark figure in Ragnar’s history.

His five-year rule was one of the worst periods in Ragnar’s thousand-year history, marked by constant purges and wars that decimated the ranks of loyal followers.

Many vassal families, once known as the Nine Fiefs, were reduced to six during this period.

The problem was that no one had been able to challenge the Mad Dragon Emperor, as he was simply too powerful.

“If his strength came from regression, then it all makes sense…”

But that raised another question.

“Then what exactly is my father…?”

“Eventually, Kyle couldn’t tolerate it and led a coup with his loyal siblings. His hatred for regressors stems from that incident.”

“Then, my father…?”

“Is not a regressor.”

Theo nodded heavily.

“That’s why he’s a monster. He isn’t a regressor. He didn’t gain strength from Lordbrok’s gift or the Ancient Dragon’s relics. Yet he defeated someone who grew stronger through multiple regressions.”

Theo remembered Kyle’s display of power—a miracle on the level of the divine.

“Kyle’s disdain for regressors didn’t stop there. He also struck down a sibling who was a regressor.”

Theo had a good guess who it was.

“Wind Lord!”

- **Kyle! Kyle! Kyyyyyle! Robert! Robeeert! I hate you! I despise you both!**

Wind Lord had been left for dead after Kyle and the Black Dragon had cast him out, driven to madness.

His journal had been filled with hatred and resentment.

That explained Kyle’s words at the Blossom Ceremony.

- "Yes, the place I sit was gained by vanquishing foes, by defeating the challengers, by overcoming those who sought to unseat me. The head of Ragnar is a lonely position, one that’s constantly threatened."

- "From this moment, I will see you as a challenger, not a son."

Kyle had clearly known Theo had visited Lordbrok’s lair. Kyle had even read Theo’s mind with his Sword’s Eye.

If Theo had failed to withstand that blow, he would have died—no regression possible, as his soul would have been severed.

After Theo had recovered, Kyle had simply acknowledged his passing, a barely veiled statement that he’d be watching him closely.

“I was curious why your father tolerated a regressor as his own son. That’s why

 I wanted this conversation with you.”

Hilda’s revelation left Theo speechless.

He had learned so much about the family’s secrets that he didn’t even know where to start processing it all.

Then he remembered something.

“You said you’re also a regressor, didn’t you? Then why…”

“Why did Kyle spare me?”

“...Yes.”

“I told you. I used up all my cycles.”

“Oh.”

“To Kyle, I’m no longer a regressor. Of course, I’m not easily crushed, either. You should know that Kyle’s disdain for regressors isn’t just emotional; he believes they obstruct Ragnar’s prosperity.”

Hilda waved her hand, and another wine glass floated from the shelf to her.

“As you know, your father is insane about Ragnar.”

“Which makes it even stranger. Wouldn’t future knowledge help him guide Ragnar?”

Hilda poured wine into her new glass.

“Regressors are always self-centered. To them, the world revolves around them like a puppet show they can manipulate at will.”

Theo recalled the visions of Hilda’s past lives in the forest, each more detached and crazed.

Maybe the Mad Dragon Emperor’s madness had a similar origin.

No matter how often he repeated his life, the results never changed; they only grew more twisted and painful.

Perhaps this was what Theo’s father feared.

Regressors, focused solely on their own gain, could never align with Kyle’s vision for the clan.

That might be why Kyle had seized Lordbrok’s Heartstone—to prevent others from wielding it.

Theo clenched and unclenched his fist as he pieced it all together.

Kyle’s sword could turn on him at any time.

A chilling thought crept into Theo’s mind:

- If the Mad Dragon Emperor and the Wind Lord were regressors, why didn’t they ever overthrow Kyle?

The thought lingered in his mind as he looked down at the steak in front of him, a reflection of his own gaze staring back at him.

“What exactly is a regressor?”

Theo realized he needed to circle back to the beginning.

He needed to understand the true nature of the clan’s secrets to plot his next steps.

“A chosen one.”

Hilda raised her glass.

“And also a relic of the Ancient Dragon.”