I opened my eyes, wincing at the pain that throbbed through my body.

“Wh-Where…”

My shoulder twitched.

Astonishingly, I was back in the prison cell with Fron and the children.

I had hoped that by rewinding time with chaos, I could witness another past, or perhaps even a time before the past, a glimpse of the ancient world beyond the scope of the story I, the author, had written.

Had I failed?

I sighed.

Well, Rome wasn't built in a day.

There was something more pressing.

‘The penalty for chaos.’

I had forced myself to use chaos again.

There had to be consequences, but I had no idea what form they would take.

It was likely to be the most severe penalty I had ever experienced.

The problem was, I felt no change in my body whatsoever.

Sigh.

Had I wasted my chaos for nothing?

Well, it wasn't entirely accurate to say there were no gains.

After all, I had potentially glimpsed the truth of this world.

And perhaps by delving deeper into this experience, I could unravel the very fabric of reality.

With a bit of luck, I might uncover something beyond the secrets the Six Clans were hiding.

A powerful conviction bloomed within me.

But then I realized how pointless those thoughts were at this moment.

What was I supposed to do?

I was clueless.

I let out another deep sigh.

First things first, I needed to assess the situation.

I glanced around.

This was definitely the cell where Fron and Rem had been.

But for some reason, they were nowhere to be seen.

Where were they?

And it wasn't just Fron and Rem; the other children were gone as well.

“This…”

My shoulders slumped at the sight before me.

Bodies.

There were bodies in the cell.

Although my time here had been short, I had at least memorized their faces.

And these lifeless bodies belonged to…

The children from Fron's cell.

I remembered how they used to stare at me with wide, curious eyes, fascinated by my presence.

Why?

Why were they dead?

The time I spent trying to glimpse the ancient past had been brief.

Could this have happened in such a short span?

I shook my head.

No, that couldn't be right.

It might have felt like an instant, but a considerable amount of time must have passed.

I crouched down, silently observing the deceased children.

Their bodies were emaciated.

They had likely died of malnutrition.

Their faces and bone structures, though retaining their original forms, had undergone subtle changes.

They had matured.

Their aged appearances indicated the passage of time.

Judging by their current state, approximately five years had passed.

While I struggled to peer into the ancient past, five years had gone by in this place.

…Would anything have been different if I had stayed here instead of pursuing the ancient secrets?

I dismissed the thought.

My presence wouldn't have changed anything.

The children's deaths meant one of two things:

Either the children in the adjacent cell had monopolized all the food in the baskets,

Or the supply of food had dwindled, leaving some children to starve.

I didn't possess the ability to conjure bread out of thin air. Either way, the situation had been dire.

‘I need to talk to Fron.’

It was just a guess, but five years had passed, and I was completely in the dark about what had transpired in this place.

I had to piece together the events that had unfolded within this prison.

And to do that, I needed to find Fron or Rem. But of course, they were nowhere to be found.

Just then,

Thud—

The sound of someone dropping to their knees reached my ears.

“Y-You…”

A young girl stared at me with trembling pupils.

It was Rem, her youthful features slightly more mature, her mouth opening and closing soundlessly.

Bonus chapter on reaching milestones. Choose your tier by clicking the 'Support me' button!

Rate and review this novel on NU to help people find this novel.