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“Hero Zion Laurel. You need to return to your former self. Until the gate opens again in two years.”

Two years… That part was carefully chosen when I was crafting this lie.

If it’s too close, rehabilitation of the hero becomes impossible, rendering the treatment meaningless and making my words lose credibility.

If it’s too far, it might not feel like a real threat.

Anyway, I needed to create a somewhat urgent situation to push for rehabilitation treatment, so I settled on two years as the middle ground.

And with this amount of time, it should be enough to think about what to do when the actual two years roll around.

“……”

Still staring at me with those hollow crimson eyes, Zion remained silent and cautious.

It felt as if the air had frozen.

According to the novel’s description, people facing those eyes felt as if they were basking in warm sunlight.

If I had ever truly experienced that feeling, perhaps receiving this gaze would have been even more thrilling.

“How can I believe that?”

“I can prove it. That I’m a regressor.”

“You know everything about the past, present, and future?”

“Yes. I can prove it right now.”

Right now. That was a crucial point. Because I don’t know the future.

Zion had already told his closest companion, Now, that he wouldn’t show up anymore. Someone like me wouldn’t be worth spending time on, nor would he want to meet me again later.

So, it’s better to align with that mentality and say I’ll prove it right now.

I should not let it flow toward a method of proving it by predicting future events.

“I can’t see this life, but I can tell you what you’ve experienced.”

I could easily recount past events. I knew everything about the adventures Zion had and the things he went through.

Would it really work? Would Hero Zion Laurel believe my words?

“I want to turn around, calling it nonsense, but it’s hard to ignore. However, it’s also hard to believe, so… let me ask you one thing.”

“Yes, ask away.”

“After hearing what you just said, I became curious. I’ll decide whether or not to hear more based on your answer.”

One thing… I was expecting to get more questions, but it seems that’s not the case.

“You said you’re a regressor.”

“Yes.”

“Someone who has lived in this world once or more. That’s all there is to being a regressor?”

“That’s correct.”

“But just now, you said, ‘I can’t see this life, but I can say one thing about what I experienced.'”

“That’s right.”

Until now, it felt like a verification process. Is what you’re about to say the real question?

Zion raised his head. His demeanor shifted from lacking energy and just staring at me to facing me directly.

“As a regressor, if you can talk about what you’ve experienced… Hop Harvey, you traveled with me in the previous world, didn’t you?”

‘!’

The ‘events Zion experienced’ that I would use to prove my words are things I read in a book. It’s information that a regressor living in the book’s world wouldn’t normally know since it was observed from the world outside the book.

In Zion’s perspective, what I said must have been interpreted that way. For a regressor to say such things, they must have been his companion in the past life. A reasonable and natural deduction. So of course my answer has to be…

“…That’s right.”

I feigned being a companion.

As I realized how much I could go to this extent, it became hard to meet his gaze any longer, and I turned away. Luckily, I couldn’t see what kind of expression he had. Would this work…?

“……”

An ensuing silence. After a while, Zion quietly opened his mouth.

“Follow me.”

A clear and concise voice. With that, Zion turned and headed somewhere.

‘That direct gaze earlier, and just now, that follow-me command…’

That command felt like it had a strong will behind it, unlike the soulless words I had uttered before.

Perhaps some will has returned? Since willpower is essential for rehabilitation, it was a positive sign, but just because we could start rehab doesn’t mean it was guaranteed treatment.

Now, I had to make Zion trust me and persuade him to undergo rehabilitation.

“Come in.”

The place she headed to was a small mansion on the outskirts of the imperial capital. Not far from the imperial national cemetery.

As the mansion door opened, a modest woman who seemed to be a servant greeted Zion with a blank expression.

“You’ve come quite early, Miss Zion.”

“What do you mean, Serin? I’m later than usual.”

“I received word that you were going to have dinner with the princess.”

“I turned that down.”

When Zion firmly stated that she had declined, the woman named Serin showed a look of confusion.

“Is that so? Dinner isn’t ready yet… Could you wait a moment?”

“No. I’m done for today, so please return to the annex.”

“Yes?”

Though the mansion was relatively small, it was still a mansion. It seemed that there was a separate annex where the servant lived.

Only after being told to return to the annex did she seem to notice I was there and raised her head.

“By the way, who is this…”

“Don’t be curious, just go inside.”

“Oh, yes…”

With her head bowed low, the servant hurriedly left, passing by us to head to the annex, and we went inside the mansion.

Since it was a Western-style manor, we entered without removing shoes or using a wheelchair, and Zion led me into the living room, guiding me to the sofa before continuing the conversation.

“Former… No, my companion from my previous life… I still can’t believe it.”

“Honestly, I didn’t plan to say that much.”

“Isn’t it strange for a companion not to speak casually?”

“Because it might be hard for Zion to accept… concerning the capital.”

I was utilizing all my imagination to piece together the dialogue with each word I said.

How would a real regressor speak?

“If that’s acting, maybe an actor would suit you better than a doctor.”

“Maybe I should try it next time? If you recognize that talent, it must be legit.”

“Should we test it right away, then?”

“That means…”

“I could kill you, Hop Harvey, right here and now.”

What? Did she just say… she’d kill me? The hero is saying this to me?

“You look surprised. Did you think I, as a hero, couldn’t do it? No. Because I was once a hero, you think I wouldn’t?”

This was an unforeseen situation. I had intended to convince Hero Zion to undergo rehabilitation, yet here she was, threatening to kill me while still able to wield power.

Had I been too complacent against the hero? No, the Zion Laurel I know wouldn’t simply kill someone without a thought…

“Hop Harvey. You said you’re a doctor. I believe you’re a good person, but if what you’ve said up till now is a lie, then you’ve crossed a line. So from now on, please speak as if your life depends on it.”

The pressure emanating from her was definitely not an act.

Until just a moment ago, she was a body devoid of energy, totally lacking will and functionality, akin to a corpse. But was she really planning to kill me?

“Tell me. What it is you say you haven’t seen… No, what I mean by that is what I’ve experienced in this life. Prove that you’re a regressor, and that you traveled with me in the previous life.”

“…….”

If I mess up my answer here and end up dead, how ridiculous would that be?

But it wouldn’t happen.

What I needed most now was the most certain proof. There was something I knew that only Zion and the others from the hero party would understand, something unattainable outside this world.

“What I’m about to say is…”

That is…

“It’s the last words left by Iris.”

“Yes?”

Iris, the former thief of the hero party. The very Iris Harmony who, instead of Hero Zion, received a fatal blow just before she died and spoke her last words. This was something only Zion, Now, and Hanamana— the hero party— would know in this world.

“Iris Harmony. Her last words were…”

“Wait a moment!”

“Zion. Do you remember the day we first met?”

“Ah, ahh…!”

“You were like the sun even then.”

“Stop…”

“To shine upon me, born and raised in darkness, this world prepared…”

“GIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

A voice that pierced like a scream. As I began to act out Iris’s words, Zion clutched her head and screamed, filling the entire mansion.

“Iris… Iris… Ah, Iris!!”

Eventually, she trembled, curled up, and finally fell out of her wheelchair, covering her face as she began to sob.

“I’m sorry… I’m sorry, Iris… I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you. Iris… Iris….”

Watching this scene, I couldn’t utter a single word. All I could think was,

‘Ah, Zion… Even Hero Zion Laurel has descended into such despair…!’

I felt an undeniable excitement brewing within me, threatening to burst.

I… was suggesting rehabilitation to Zion just to see more of this kind of scene.

But at the same time, I was to be the one to save Zion from these types of symptoms.

 

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