“There are coincidences in this world, and there are things that only look like coincidences. You can tell the difference if you observe and analyze carefully.”

“So how exactly?”

“It’s simple.”

Aiden began his explanation.

1. The odds of a Dwarf visiting the town of Centum.

2. The odds of that Dwarf visiting Carl’s Tavern.

3. The odds of a Dwarf, a race not exactly fond of humans, starting a conversation with Aiden.

4. The odds of that same Dwarf ordering beer and drinking it despite believing human beer tastes like horse piss.

That wasn’t all.

Aiden happened to be waiting for contact from the Abaris Company.

He needed to purchase a top-grade Restraint Device, and that was not something easily obtained.

You had to be at least a company master to get involved in that kind of trade.

When you put together all the probabilities, circumstances, and conditions, they all pointed to one thing.

That was…

The conclusion that the Dwarf was the master of the Abaris Company.

“I heard from Bellato that you weren’t an ordinary fellow, but I didn’t think it’d be to this extent.”

The Dwarf shook his head as if admitting defeat.

“You’re right, just as you said. I’m the master of the Abaris Company, Norcan. Nice to meet you.”

Norcan extended his thick hand.

Aiden nodded and shook it.

“I don’t quite get it. Why would someone strong enough to slay a Blazing Dragon be working as a mere employee in some backwater town?”

Aiden’s eyes narrowed faintly.

That was a top-secret matter.

Only the slain Blazing Dragon and the Master had known it.

How did he find out?

“That statement requires an explanation.”

“An explanation? Why would I bother giving you one?”

“Because you know something you shouldn’t.”

“There are two ways to go about this.”

Norcan raised his index and middle fingers.

“One is to threaten me for the answer. But that won’t work, will it? Without me, you can’t get your Restraint Device.”

“……”

“The second is simple. Pay me. Give me a gold bar, and I’ll tell you the secret.”

“You only care about money, I see.”

“What else should a merchant care about if not money?”

Norcan replied coldly.

A heavy silence fell between them, tension coiling tightly in the air.

Their gazes collided like duelists meeting on a narrow bridge. Neither side looked willing to back down.

Aiden slowly tried to read Norcan’s intentions.

Why bother revealing such high-level information at their first meeting?

Was it a warning not to underestimate him?

Or was he simply reckless by nature?

Or perhaps there was a deeper strategy Aiden had yet to grasp.

He couldn’t tell just yet.

Tap.

Aiden reached into the dimensional pocket sewn inside his robe and placed a gold bar on the table.

Norcan grinned brightly and pocketed it without shame.

“I could tell when you ordered the prosthetic arm. You’re a generous spender.”

“So tell me. How did you know I assassinated the Blazing Dragon?”

“When I touch an item, I can read memories related to it. It’s not that great of an ability.”

“……”

“I can’t read full memories, only fragments. Just bits and pieces, really.”

“I see.”

Aiden nodded.

One of the reasons Aiden was a wealthy man was because he had assassinated the Blazing Dragon and absorbed the treasures hidden in its lair.

The gold bars had come from that hoard.

Apparently, Norcan had read the memory embedded in one of the gold bars used to pay for the prosthetic arm.

The gold once belonged to the Blazing Dragon.

And the Blazing Dragon had long been dead.

That meant the person holding the gold must have been the one who killed it.

The deduction wasn’t difficult.

“That’s an interesting ability. I might need your help one day.”

“Anytime, as long as you have enough money.”

“Let’s get to the main topic.”

Aiden shifted the conversation.

“Can you make the Restraint Device?”

“Of course I can. If I couldn’t, I would’ve rejected your request from the start. I wouldn’t have come all this way.”

Thud.

Norcan placed a bracelet-shaped Restraint Device on the table.

The one Aiden had been wearing was cracked.

Apparently, Bellato had sent it back to Norcan.

“This bracelet was crafted using high-level spell formulas by a mage of at least the Seventh Class.”

“That’s right. Can you recreate it perfectly?”

“Impossible.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’ll recreate it at one hundred and fifty percent.”

Norcan burst into hearty laughter.

Perhaps it was because he was a seasoned merchant, but he was good at controlling the flow of a conversation.

He casually took a sip of beer, then grimaced.

“You’re not a mage. Can you really improve its efficiency?”

“Pfah. Of course I can. Spell formulas are important, but so is the carving work that channels them.”

“……”

“Whoever the original crafter was, their engraving skills were terrible. The mana flow was unnatural.”

Aiden nodded in agreement.

When he wore the old Restraint Device, the Death Qi inside him sometimes went wild.

Seeing how Norcan not only noticed but pointed that out meant his skills were beyond doubt.

“There’s only one problem.”

“What is it?”

“The metal used to make the bracelet is hard to find. Do you know its name?”

“No.”

“It’s called Dihol. A metal that existed only in the ancient, now-extinct Age of Egre.”

“Can’t we melt this one down and reuse it?”

“Dihol is a tricky metal that remembers its shape. You need fresh, unworked Dihol.”

Norcan went on to explain.

He surprisingly knew someone who owned Dihol.

The problem was…

That person was an executive of Bahamut.

He must have found that out through the memory-reading ability again.

“I’ll get straight to the point. To obtain Dihol, I need your help. But if you take this job, there’s a chance you might die.”

“……”

“Do you still want to continue this request?”

“Of course.”

Aiden’s reply came without hesitation.

He didn’t know how powerful this Bahamut organization was, but he was certain they weren’t beyond his reach.

Aiden was one who killed.

He was not one who died, nor could he be one.

“Don’t blame me if things go wrong. I didn’t push you into this.”

“Understood.”

“Then shall we leave right away?”

“That won’t do. We’ll delay departure for two or three days.”

“Why?”

“I have to take care of the tavern’s kitchen work.”

At that, Norcan’s expression froze.

What kind of reason was that?

* * *

The next day.

Night duty had ended, and it was still morning before business hours began.

Aiden was in his room, speaking with the Master through a magical crystal.

They exchanged small talk for about five minutes.

Now that Aiden lived as an ordinary man, he had become rather skilled at casual conversation.

“So you called because you have something to ask?”

The Master folded his arms inside the crystal.

“Yes. I want to learn about Bahamut.”

“How did you even hear about Bahamut?”

“It came up when I got involved in making the Restraint Device.”

“You really can’t stay out of trouble, can you?”

The Master chuckled softly.

Then he explained.

Bahamut was a mysterious organization so obscure that even the Master, the Coordinator himself, hadn’t fully grasped who they were.

They were one of the top ten mercenary groups on the continent.

He added that the Ferox Mercenary Corps was presumed to have been destroyed by Bahamut recently.

“These bastards are related to the prophecy.”

The Master’s expression hardened as he spoke.

“Prophecy? You mean Cassandra’s prophecy?”

“That’s right. They’re one of the three pillars of evil that will plunge the continent into chaos.”

Cassandra was the ancient goddess of prophecy.

One of the Master’s duties was to interpret her prophecies and maintain the world’s balance.

“Bahamut follows the Law of Contradiction.”

“The Law of Contradiction?”

“I’m not certain yet, but it may be a principle that denies the very existence of the continent.”

“Then why didn’t you order their assassination before?”

“Because we don’t know who belongs to Bahamut. And they hadn’t taken any overt action until now.”

“That’s convenient. I’ll use this opportunity to see them for myself.”

Aiden’s tone remained indifferent.

Bahamut might have been an entity that alarmed the Master, but it wasn’t something that alarmed Aiden.

Lately, what truly concerned him was playing the lute.

He wanted to perform March of La Mancha as cheerfully as Victor did.

If lute playing occupied ten parts of his mind, Bahamut barely claimed even one.

“I suppose I don’t have to worry about you, huh?”

“Of course not.”

“Good. That’s reassuring.”

“I’ll report back once it’s done.”

Aiden was about to end the communication when he spoke again.

“About Cassandra’s prophecy.”

“Yeah? What about it?”

“Has the part related to me still not been deciphered?”

Cassandra’s prophecy had been discovered in the form of stone tablets within ancient ruins.

Because the ancient language had not survived, progress in deciphering it was painfully slow.

“Not yet. Out of a hundred tablets, we’ve only translated five so far.”

“……”

“Just be patient. The goddess of prophecy wouldn’t ignore someone as extraordinary as you.”

“Understood.”

Aiden swallowed his disappointment.

If they had decoded the prophecy, he could have known why he possessed the ability to absorb Death Qi.

And what kind of influence that ability would eventually have on the world.

What he wondered most, above all else, was whether the prophecy foresaw his becoming ordinary.

After ending the call, Aiden left the inn using Dimension Walking.

The clear sun rose as the streets grew lively. Merchants bustled about, arranging their goods and sweeping their storefronts.

Summer was giving way to autumn.

The morning breeze was cool.

Aiden reached the plaza and in an instant ascended to the top of the spire. Leaning against a pillar, he took in the entire view of Centum.

Looking down from high places had been the Master’s habit.

It had become Aiden’s as well.

‘A wall may look like an obstacle when you face it, but from high above, it looks like a path.’

As he looked over the waking city, Aiden recalled those words.

Words he once would’ve dismissed now sounded wise.

He must have changed that much to find meaning in them now.

People often said humans never truly change.

But that wasn’t always true. Rarely, some did.

Then, just as he drifted into reflection…

‘……!’

Aiden’s peaceful expression stiffened.

A familiar yet ominous sensation seized him.

When he blinked once, the scenery around him changed completely.

He now stood in a graveyard.

The sky was blood-red, and the air reeked faintly of iron.

Heh heh heh heh.

An eerie wind howled, whipping the hem of his robe.

Aiden calmly looked around.

Graves stretched endlessly in every direction.

There was no end in sight.

It was truly an infinite horizon of death.

He knew exactly why this was happening.

It had been some time since he last wore the Restraint Device.

The suppressed Death Qi and that one had surely called him here.

In truth, this wasn’t his first visit to this place.

Step. Step.

Something approached from beyond the horizon of death.

The figure was none other than Aiden himself at about seven years old.

The young Aiden stopped before him, an unsettling, adult-like smirk curling at his lips.

“Long time no see. You could’ve at least said hello once in a while, don’t you think?”