A few moments later, the group gathered once again in the mansion's imposing meeting hall.
Arata and Emma were seated side by side at the large fine-wood table, while Joseph occupied the center seat at the head of the table.
To his right, Loiry stood with her impeccable posture, while Sumire did the same on his left.
With precise movements, Loiry served full plates of an extremely aromatic meal to Joseph, Emma, and finally, the young man.
"Thank you very much!" Arata thanked her, already picking up his utensils.
Joseph raised his textured wine glass, took a slow sip, and savored the flavor before breaking the silence with his gentle voice.
"Splendid. Did you know, Arata Ryusei, that my wines are considered the finest in the entire region?"
"No, I didn't!" Arata replied, chewing a portion of his food. "But changing the subject... Which state of Karakiri is this mansion located in?!"
"It's located within a state of our infamous nation of Kakariki called Karramagi," Joseph explained politely, interlocking his fingers on the table.
"From here to the capital of Karakiri, it's approximately a ten-hour journey."
"I see! That's pretty cool," Arata commented, pretending to be experiencing this for the first time and acting impressed by the scale of the map.
He put another generous forkful into his mouth and, speaking a little louder because his mouth was full, pointed at the plate.
"Who made this wonderful food?! It's divine!" he said, trying to copy the previous loops.
"Loiry's cooking is magnificent, isn't it?" Joseph commented with a slight smile.
Loiry took a step forward, maintaining her serious expression.
"I did. I am the official person in charge of the mansion's kitchen."
"Wow, woman, your food is way too good!" Arata praised, pointing his fork at her.
"I think I finally understand the dynamic between you two! You're great in the kitchen and must be terrible at household chores, while your sister is good at cleaning, right?!"
Loiry slightly furrowed her brow, maintaining her firm tone.
"My sister is good at household chores, indeed. But I am not bad at them.
"I am excellent at cooking, cleaning the house, arranging the rooms, and performing any task given to me."
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
Arata swallowed his food and looked at the other twin with a completely confused and shameless expression.
"Then... what the hell is your sister even here for?!"
Joseph cleared his throat loudly, cutting off the provocation before Sumire could lose her patience, and shifted the focus of the conversation.
"Well... I heard that you helped Emma recover her necklace..."
"That's right! I gave my blood for it!" Arata puffed out his chest.
"That necklace is extremely important, as it is the last memento she has of her parents, who were high-ranking nobles within Karakiri," Joseph continued, his expression becoming serious.
"You recovered it and even saved her from Yumi. We rarely hear of people surviving after crossing paths with the Ripper Assassin... Therefore, we are deeply grateful to you."
"It was nothing, hehe!" Arata scratched the back of his head, boasting.
"Thank you so much, Arata-kun..." Emma added, looking at him sweetly.
Arata rested his elbows on the table and flashed a huge ear-to-ear grin, seeing the perfect opportunity to drastically change his fate in this new loop.
"I definitely deserve a reward worthy of all that, don't you think?!"
"And what would you like?" Joseph asked, extending his hands. "We can give you practically anything you desire."
Arata pointed his finger toward the ceiling and declared with all the grandeur in the world:
"I want... to be a permanent guest and be treated like a king in his own castle!"
The absolute shock and surprise that settled over the meeting hall lasted for several seconds, clearly interrupted by the sound of an uninterested yawn from Sumire.
A few moments later, during the quiet of the first day's night, Arata walked slowly through the silent corridors.
He followed the route from memory until he stopped in front of a familiar door and pushed it open without hesitation.
Upon entering the grand Library of Knowledge, he spotted Lia.
The little spirit girl was sitting on her usual wooden stool, her long golden twin tails falling over her shoulders and her aqua-green eyes focused on the pages of an ancient tome.
As soon as she noticed the young man's presence, she shut the book with a dry snap and let out a heavy sigh of pure irritation.
Turning toward him, she threatened him without ceremony:
"You again? Do you want me to hit you with another spiritual blast and throw you out the window, you insolent brat?"
"Of course not!" Arata raised his hands in a gesture of peace, laughing. "I just came to chat with you for a little while, cutie!"
Lia massaged her temples, huffing.
"Just tell me what you want and make sure to get out of here as soon as possible, I would say."
Arata approached the table, adopting a quieter and more investigative tone.
"I want to know... Is there a silver-haired witch in this world? A witch who has the ability to manipulate her own shadows?.."
Lia narrowed her eyes, staring at him as though he had just asked the most obvious question in the world.
"Are you ignorant, by any chance? She is the most famous, feared, and hated witch by all peoples, I would say. Not that the others aren't hated as well."
"Her name is..."
"Marina, the Traitor Witch," Lia revealed, her voice dropping a tone. "She possesses the ability to manipulate shadows and is the only witch who currently remains alive among the four conceptual witches."
Arata's heart jumped in his chest, and his eyes widened slightly as he processed the information.
So... that woman I encountered in limbo, in the middle of that darkness, the person who looked me straight in the face and said that she loves me... is Marina?!
But why the hell would she love me if I've never seen her in my entire life?!
She's the one who granted me this power to turn back time... I'm absolutely certain.
Even though she never explicitly said it, all the clues point to it.
But the biggest question of all is: why me? Why did she give me this power?
"What is it, you idiot?" Lia's voice broke his trance. "Did you happen to get lost in your own stupid thoughts?"
"Nothing..." Arata quickly brushed it off, shaking his head.
"I have another question, Lia-chan."
"Then ask already, insolent brat."
"Why would someone use her name as a fake name?"
"Normally, someone would use it to scare and distance other people, using a horrible name like that."
"I see..."
So... that's why Emma lied about her name being Marina that time...
After satisfying his curiosity, he began walking between the rows of shelves, running his fingers along the spines of the ancient books.
Lia went back to pretending to read.
However, her eyes escaped the pages from time to time.
They always ended up finding the small white strand among the young man's dark hair.
...Still strange.
...
But pretty.
She closed the book with more force than she intended.
"Stop messing with my bookshelves, insolent brat."
Arata's attention was drawn to a thick, timeworn cover bearing a single name carved in enormous letters:
Hakudon the White Serpent
Curious, Arata pulled out the volume, opened it randomly to one of the pages, and began scanning the ancient text.
His jaw dropped instantly.
"Damn!... A wild spirit that's one hundred and twenty meters tall?!" he exclaimed, wide-eyed.
Lia let out a nasal laugh filled with contempt from her stool.
"Don't you dare compare an abomination like that to a real spirit."
"I am deeply ashamed that a being of that kind is even associated with our race, I would say."
"Then what would be the correct term for me to use?" Arata asked, turning the page and looking at a frightening illustration of the monster.
"Everyone in the world calls them Kaijus," Lia explained, crossing her arms with a stern expression.
"These three immense, wild, and destructive spirits appeared suddenly four hundred years ago."
End of Chapter 31...
To be continued in Chapter 32...