Omniscient First-Person’s Viewpoint

Rash the Undying. A native I met when I was dropped into Tantalus. At first, we only found his right arm, and he was passed around and used like a tool. Later, he resurrected and ended up spending a few months with us. He stayed in that prison with me for quite a while, and when I finally escaped Tantalus, he managed to tag along and come out too.

The land his people—called the barbarian tribes—live in is the All Nations. We parted ways when I headed for the Military State... but to run into him here?

Wait a second. This is too much of a coincidence. Don’t tell me this is the Saintess’s blessing? At this rate, even I might start believing in her!

Surprisingly, the regressor greeted Rash warmly.

“What a strange coincidence. I never thought we’d run into each other here.”

“Oh, boy! Looks like you’ve changed a lot! Going through puberty, are you?”

“Don’t flatter yourself. I already finished growing, thanks.”

“Boy, a man can keep growing well into his twenties! Eat up and bulk up—how long are you planning to live with that scrawny little body?”

“I eat plenty. Thanks for the unnecessary concern.”

“Still as prickly as ever, I see!”

Of course, the warm greeting was entirely from the regressor’s side. Rash nodded at the sharp-tongued reply, then turned to me with a hearty laugh.

“Teacher! Long time no see! Hmm. Judging from your qi, you’ve been through a lot of changes!”

“Means even a teacher can learn something new. But you, Rash... you haven’t changed at all.”

“Well, I’ve already finished growing! And with the kind of body I was born with, there wasn’t much left to change in the first place!”

Still as straightforward as ever. Not a single thing’s changed. Then again, for an undying immortal, there’s probably no reason to change at all.

“Anyway, when you said ‘marriage sacrament’... Rash, you’re getting married?”

At my question, Rash laughed loudly and replied.

“Ha ha! It’s a little embarrassing, but yes, that’s right!”

“With Callis?”

“Ha ha ha! She’s the greatest treasure I brought back from my time studying in the Military State! I had many good encounters, like with you and the boy here, but bringing back a bride? That’s a blessing beyond compare!”

I had a feeling it might go that way—so it worked out after all. Good for you, Callis. Sure, you ran away from the Military State, but being Rash the Undying’s wife might be a better life than being a lieutenant colonel in that place. At least you won’t be used and discarded on a whim.

The regressor, who had completely forgotten about Callis, tilted his head and asked:

“Callis?”

“That lieutenant colonel. She used to work under Lieutenant General Ebon.”

“Oh, her? Wondered where she went.”

“I spent a few days with her in the Abyss... please try to remember.”

“...Do I have to?”

‘Ugh, annoying. In the last round, she wasn’t even on the radar. If I bother remembering her face and name and then have to kill her in a future round... wouldn’t that just feel unpleasant?’

So he really has no intention of remembering her.

Well, I guess the regressor can’t help it. Even he doesn’t have infinite memory. There’s no point clogging his brain with someone as ordinary as Callis. His mental storage is already limited enough.

“Honestly, I was wondering if two people that different could ever really grow close. But I’m glad it turned out well.”

“Ha ha! My partner is a much better person than I am. Smart, well-educated, kind, and gentle.”

“...What? Kind and gentle?”

I mean, smart and well-educated, sure. She climbed the ranks, after all. Callis was a military mage officer—she was force-fed how to master magic and weaponize knowledge.

But kind and gentle? The kind of person who’d join a secret organization if it helped her career?

Hmm... Has Rash been love-blinded? Or is Callis just really good at wearing masks?

Rash waved off my doubtful look and boasted:

“When would a barbarian like me ever meet such a well-mannered and devoted woman? Ha ha ha! A woman who can count and read—she’s more than I could ask for! Even back in my tribe, plenty of men are jealous of me!”

“When you put it that way, she really does sound charming.”

A tribe where counting and reading are considered charms. Honestly, that place might be way happier than the harsh world of the Military State.

“Callis told me she had nowhere else to go, so she wanted to come with me. But I’m not exactly someone special either. If I can make her happy for the rest of our lives, that would be enough. That’s the resolve I came here with!”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

“That's a nice resolve. Congratulations. But...”

Something suddenly crossed my mind, and I asked,

“At the Monastery of Blood... are you seriously going to have your marriage officiated by the Fallen Nun Yeghceria?”

“That’s right! We may not believe in the Celestials, but we trust in her strength and authority. Besides, isn’t she close to the Grand Witch? With her endorsement, Callis will feel reassured too!”

“...Why, though? Callis is from the Military State. She doesn’t need a sacrament to get married.”

Of course, in the Military State, there were cases where people went to a temple to receive a priest’s blessing—or even got fully married through religious rites. Countries may change, but people don’t, and among them are plenty of believers who think you can’t be truly wed without a proper ceremony.

The Military State didn’t care whether you got married at a temple or had a priest officiate—as long as you properly registered your marriage, that was enough. Not many people know this, but the Military State wasn’t an anti-religious nation—it was an ultra-efficient one. They wouldn’t bother with the inefficient labor of forcibly changing or correcting traditions that had been passed down since the days of the monarchy.

But because they imposed taxes on religious institutions, the temples pushed back and left the Military State. And as the people’s lives grew harsher, they lost their sense of ceremony, and lavish weddings naturally disappeared. Maybe that too was part of the plan.

Either way, Callis was a Military Mage Officer to her core. There’s no way she would come all the way out to this remote monastery, across the vast wilderness, just to hold a wedding ceremony. That’s an inefficient move if I’ve ever seen one.

“Ah... you’re sharp as ever, Teacher. That’s right. My partner said there was no need for it and tried to talk me out of it. But this was my insistence. I left Callis behind and came here alone.”

Rash, cornered by my words, gave a bitter smile and confessed the truth.

“If we’re not going to hold a wedding in my tribe’s tradition, then we have to do it according to the bride’s customs. And if we’re going to go through with it, it’s best to borrow the name of someone powerful and fearsome like that nun.”

“What’s wrong with your tribe’s wedding custom?”

“I won’t go into detail. It wouldn’t be right to speak poorly of my own people to an outsider. But... just remember that I’m an Undying.”

Rash was an Undying. He could be stabbed, burned, or torn apart—and as long as he had access to the earth’s energy, he would regenerate.

He was fairly easygoing, probably because death wasn’t much of a threat to him. But perhaps because of that, he also didn’t hesitate to harm others. If someone provoked him, he might rip them to shreds without a second thought—yet among his kind, he was considered polite and gentle.

And the marriage customs of those Undying...

To lie together buried beneath the earth, in a place where not a single beam of light reached, until the moon waned.

For their kind, that might be romantic. For someone like ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) Callis, though, she’d likely die from exhaustion.

I mean, sure, people say marriage is the grave of life—but you’re not supposed to literally bury the bride.

“No matter how stubborn they are, even the most traditional tribesmen would have to acknowledge a wedding held at the Monastery of Blood. The nun’s name is widely known. The only problem is... whether they’ll believe me or not.”

Muttering to himself, Rash suddenly spotted Azzy and Lemme off in the distance. His eyes lit up when he recognized the King of Beasts, and as if a great idea had just struck him, he turned to me.

“Teacher. Would you be willing to help me?”

“How?”

“If the King of Beasts is with us, persuading the elders of the tribe will be much easier. After all, we also form pacts with beasts. And if someone like you or the boy explained what life outside the plains is like, my tribesmen might stop being so stubborn.”

“If we’re headed the same way, I might consider it...”

I wasn’t sure if the regressor would agree, so I glanced at him. He shrugged and answered without hesitation.

“Sure. I’ll help.”

“What? Shei, are you sure? Weren’t you saying we have to defeat some ancient evil or something?”

“Well, the ancient evil might be related to the Undying. Maybe this is all part of the flow. Let’s just see where it goes.”

The Undying fused with corpses beneath the Abyss and became a monster. That grotesque thing instilled more fear than it ever did actual harm. That could very well be a clue pointing to the ancient evil.

You weren’t this kind before.

It all feels just a little too convenient. Natural on the surface, but oddly orchestrated. I can feel a faint unease creeping in—but the regressor seems aware of it, and still chooses to go with the flow.

So he’s following the Saintess’s blessing, huh. Well, can’t be helped. It’s not like we have any other leads right now, and it’s been a while since we’ve seen Rash anyway.

I suppose I’m curious about the Undying Tribe too.

“All right. Shei has agreed. I usually only meddle in other people’s love lives when I’m trying to steal them away, but I’ll make a special exception this time and help out properly.”

“Thank you!”

More than anything, this might finally reveal whether this is truly the power of the blessing.

Our next destination is decided:

The Tribe of the Undying.