"All right," Belmuth said.
"The contract is sealed. Begin at once. Hyde, take him back and bring them here."
Hyde bowed to Belmuth, then turned toward Alastair.
"Touch my hand and focus on the world you wish to reach," Hyde said.
"Mm." Alastair nodded.
He clasped Hyde's hand and closed his eyes.
The world he had just left flooded back into his mind.
The world where Sybil, Charlotte—and Grace's body—were waiting.
---
Moments later, a spatial gate formed.
As always, it took the shape of a tall rectangular doorway.
Hyde released his hand and stepped through first.
Alastair followed.
...
They emerged from the gate.
Alastair scanned his surroundings—and froze.
They stood in the Fae Realm.
At Sybil and Cooper's wedding.
The scene looked exactly as it had yesterday.
Not similar. Not almost the same.
Exactly.
Sybil was radiant in her white wedding dress.
Cooper—the detestable groom—stood beside her, wearing that same irritating grin.
Charlotte, dressed as a bridesmaid, stood nearby.
So did Talis.
…That's not right.
A full day had already passed.
Why were they still here?
Had Hyde miscalculated the timing by a single day?
Alastair frowned in thought.
Those who mastered spatial travel inevitably brushed against time itself.
Spatial and temporal forces were intertwined.
Even skilled practitioners could miscalculate—sometimes by decades, even centuries.
For Hyde to be off by only one day, across worlds no less, marked him as precise beyond expectation.
A pity.
If it had been ten days earlier, he wouldn't have needed Vera at all.
"Alastair," Sybil said, smiling.
"Thank you for coming to celebrate our wedding."
Even Cooper smiled at him.
…Why is he smiling at me?
The sight irritated Alastair.
To him, Cooper's grin looked like mockery—triumph at having claimed Sybil.
"Who said I came to congratulate you?" Alastair replied, his smile devoid of warmth.
Sybil's face drained of color.
She staggered back, pulling Cooper with her.
"I came to take you," Alastair said.
In a blur of motion, he seized Sybil—then Charlotte.
At the same time, he extended his power, dragging Talis toward him as well.
…Then where is Grace's body?
If time had reversed by one day, the body he had placed here shouldn't exist yet.
Would it still be inside his storage ring?
Alastair narrowed his eyes and sent his consciousness into the ring.
A breath escaped him in relief.
Grace's body was still there.
…That shouldn't be possible.
By all logic, matter that did not exist in the traveler's original timeline should not persist after temporal displacement.
The more he thought about it, the more wrong it felt.
Alastair disliked unanswered questions.
Even trivial inconsistencies unsettled him.
He had survived this long because he never ignored such details.
But he had no time to dwell on it.
"Release them!" Cooper shouted as wedding guests rushed forward.
Alastair spun around.
"Hyde. Open the gate. Now."
Hyde complied at once.
He stepped through first.
Alastair followed, dragging Sybil, Charlotte, and Talis with him.
.........…..
"I've brought them," Alastair said, presenting the three before Belmuth.
"Why did you bring us here?" Charlotte struggled in his grip.
"Take us back! Today is Sybil's wedding!"
"Release us," Sybil said. The warmth in her expression was gone.
"Have you still not let go of our souls?"
"And I don't understand," she added.
"Why did you bring my master as well?"
"He intends to use my body," Talis said calmly.
"What—?" Sybil and Charlotte gasped.
Alastair froze, staring at the eyes hidden beneath Talis's white blindfold.
So this is why they call him the Great Seer of Heaven and Earth.
Impressive.
Those eyes were extraordinary.
If I take his body… will I inherit that power as well?
In truth, Alastair had chosen Talis for three reasons.
First—resentment.
Talis had prevented Sybil from devouring Charlotte's soul.
Second—power.
Talis possessed the highest cultivation Alastair had encountered across two worlds.
Third—those eyes, capable of perceiving fate itself.
In short, he was the optimal vessel.
"That's right," Alastair said.
Sybil cried out again.
"What do you mean?" Sybil demanded.
"Why must you take my master's body?"
"Because I need a replacement for him," Belmuth said pleasantly.
"Heh heh heh… Let us begin."
A chilling laugh echoed as shadows poured from Belmuth's form—reaching toward Charlotte in Alastair's arms.
"Eek! What is that? Get away from me!" Charlotte screamed, struggling in vain.
"Stop!" Sybil and Talis shouted, trying to break free.
The shadow seeped into Charlotte's body.
Moments later, she went limp.
"Now," Belmuth said,
"have the girl rewind the soul fragment and restore your beloved's memories."
Alastair nodded.
Vera and the others were still here.
Is time flowing differently between the worlds…?
Everything proceeded according to the contract—yet something felt off.
But Alastair pushed the thought aside.
"Vera," he said.
"Rewind her soul by ten days."
He placed Charlotte's body beside her.
"Don't touch her," Sybil warned.
"Be quiet," Alastair replied.
"You're next."
"You're really going to use their souls?" Vera shouted.
"I can't do that! It's wrong! And you're stealing his body too—you're a monster!"
"Yes," Alastair said, smiling faintly.
"I am a monster."
For Grace… I would do far worse.
"Do it," he said, his voice low as pressure crushed down on Vera.
"I won't!" she yelled back.
"This isn't just a soul—it's a person! And she doesn't consent!"
"Then you die," Alastair said calmly.
"So be it," Vera snapped, stepping forward.
"Then I'll take your friends with you," Alastair replied, his gaze shifting to Henry.
Vera stiffened, jaw clenched.
She looked from Henry to Charlotte—then back at Alastair.
"…Fine," she said at last.
"I'll do it. But you must promise to release us afterward."
She gestured to the others.
"Vera—" Carla began, but Vera shook her head.
"I don't want to do this either," she said quietly.
"But I won't let you all die."
...........
Vera stepped toward Charlotte's body.
"I'm sorry," she whispered.
"I really am."
"Alastair," Sybil pleaded, tears welling.
"Please let us go."
Alastair looked at her face—
so like Grace's, save for hair and eyes color.
Pain twisted in his chest.
He clenched his jaw, turned away—
—and forced Sybil and Talis into unconsciousness before Talis could invoke destiny law itself.
…I'm sorry.
But I have no choice.