Chapter 112

“What?”

Upon hearing the words of the Sorceress of the End, Lynn stood frozen in place.

The future has changed, so he must return to Ivyst’s side. What kind of logic is that?

He was left a bit dumbfounded.

At the same time, an ominous feeling crept into his heart.

Even though he hadn’t chosen the future the Witch Miss had arranged for him, according to Lynn’s own plans, this incident with the Sealed Item was a perfect chance to escape.

After that, he could change his name and completely break free from that woman’s grasp; the world would be his oyster.

After all, Lynn believed he had done everything a subordinate should do.

He really didn’t owe Ivyst anything; he just wanted to get back to his carefree life.

Perhaps once he became stronger, he might go back to help Ivyst out.

But definitely not now.

Recalling the bite mark Ivyst left on his shoulder during their last meeting and her sickly yet fiery gaze, Lynn felt a chill run down his spine.

Thank goodness the Witch Miss healed him; otherwise, it would have been an indelible mark.

Speaking of which, wasn’t this wound caused by the Witch Miss herself?

Why did she heal it?

Lynn was feeling utterly baffled.

But thinking of that cool Witch Miss gently leaning down and leaving a shallow bite mark on his shoulder made him feel awkward.

No way.

He was getting sidetracked again.

Isn’t the discussion supposed to be about whether or not to return to Ivyst’s side?

Lynn discreetly slapped himself in the face.

Regardless, if he went back to that woman now, certain things he didn’t want to see would definitely happen.

Noticing Lynn’s confusion and hesitation, the Witch Miss’s expression remained cold: “You should realize that this time I transported your soul along with your body to the Temple of the Gods.”

Lynn nodded.

This was indeed what had puzzled him before.

According to the original setting, the past and the future shouldn’t be able to interfere with reality.

If it were that easy to jump between timelines, wouldn’t that be a huge problem?

Even the male protagonist from the original story couldn’t do that.

“About this, I have two theories.” The Witch Miss spoke calmly, “First, perhaps it’s because you’re my follower, having received the blessing of the End.”

Upon hearing this, Lynn suddenly recalled a skill the Witch Miss had granted him called the Sorceress of the End.

He had thought it was useless, but now it seemed to be some sort of transport anchor?

No wonder he could communicate so easily with the Witch Miss, and even without a complete ritual, she could just pull him to the Temple of the Gods.

“Second, your uniqueness.” The Witch Miss continued. “Although I don’t know what secrets you hold, to me, you seem to be an ‘impurity’ incompatible with this world.”

“You lack a past and a future, only existing in the present.”

“Just like how you exist in the Temple of the Gods right now, as far as reality is concerned, after disappearing in the Soren Mountain Range, there are no traces of ‘Lynn Bartleon’ ever existing.”

“This has led to everything that happened afterwards.”

As she said this, the Witch Miss seemed to recall something and furrowed her brow slightly.

“So, what exactly happened after I ‘died’?”

Lynn’s expression turned serious.

The Witch Miss hesitated.

After pondering for a moment, she gently shook her head.

“You should see for yourself.”

With that, she raised her hand gently, sending a memory into Lynn’s mind.

A crumbling empire, countless dead and injured civilians, raging battles, a weeping saintess, and an angry hero.

Countless scenes gradually unfolded before Lynn’s eyes.

Until the final scene.

It was a dark, terrifying underground prison where a white-haired woman in a red dress was locked deep inside. A sharp, sacred sword pierced through her chest, mercilessly pinning her to the wall.

Her blood flowed incessantly, yet her expression was as hollow as someone who had lost their will to live.

Is this her Highness the Princess?!

In an instant, Lynn recognized the true identity of this prisoner.

Moreover, he had a suspicion about her location.

According to the original plot, the Third Princess Ivyst was supposed to fall into a deep slumber for over a year after consuming the Wishing Jar and then make her grand entrance in the climax of the royal selection plot.

Unable to control the curse spreading within her, and influenced by the Creation Demon and the core traits, she almost brought irreparable disaster to the Imperial Capital.

Ultimately, she was stopped by Princess Shirina and the original male protagonist Xia, locked away in the Dead Water Prison.

This scene before his eyes was clearly that of the eighteenth level of the Dead Water Prison underground.

According to this memory, after he disappeared from the world, Ivyst seemed to fall into a state of despair and madness, her hatred for Sixth Saint Roland and this country reaching a boiling point.

Eventually, without the Level 0 Sealed Item’s core and the Creation Demon dragging her down, she awakened powerful strength within a short time.

She then unleashed a bloody revenge on this empire.

She was nearly successful, sacrificing nearly half the country to ascend to godhood.

However, she ultimately fell to the fate of being defeated by the hero Xia, pinned within the Dead Water Prison by the holy sword, until hundreds of years later when she finally escaped.

The ending was unchanged.

Though the process veered off the path, Ivyst still ended up sealed in the Dead Water Prison.

And those around her repeated the cycle of death.

Is this the corrective power of the world’s will?

Lynn felt a surge of fear.

Even after pushing Ivyst’s plot deviation to over ten percent, merely a few years later, everything returned to the original trajectory.

He finally understood why the Witch Miss’s plot deviation only increased by one percent after this event.

One hundred thousand years.

On the scale of one hundred thousand years, everything he did was utterly insignificant.

Perhaps the degree of plot deviation needed to improve wasn’t only related to Ivyst herself but many other existences.

After all, this world couldn’t possibly have only one S-rank plot character.

Seeing Lynn’s expression darken, the Witch Miss fell silent for a moment, then spoke: “Don’t be discouraged.”

“Everything you’ve done has not been in vain; at the very least, you saved her from the past.”

She had initially wanted to say “me.”

But for some reason, she ended up changing her words. Even she didn’t know why.

Lynn took a deep breath: “So, to prevent the past you from repeating the mistakes of the future, I have to return to your side?”

If he doesn’t return to the original trajectory of the world, preventing Ivyst’s mental breakdown, then it would lead to the subsequent destruction of the empire.

What the heck? Why didn’t I know I had a suppressor function?

He felt a bit gloomy.

It’s not that he actually hated Ivyst that much.

If he really hated her, he wouldn’t risk his life just to show off and run back to suffer so much.

On the contrary, Lynn felt he probably had some feelings for her.

At least that night, seeing Ivyst silently crying had touched his heart a little.

It was as if he just didn’t want to see her sad.

Though those feelings were minimal.

However, that crazy woman’s pathological possessiveness was too intense for him to bear.

After all, Lynn still held traditional values, leaning towards the male chauvinist side. He preferred to play the role of a knight rather than be treated as a mount.

Seemingly sensing his conflict, something unusual flickered in the Witch Miss’s heart.

She thought for a bit, then spoke softly: “I know what you’re thinking, but this time, maybe the situation will be a bit different.”

Lynn looked up in surprise.