"Political sabotage."
Seeing the scene before him, Azekiel realized what was happening. The only thing he still didn't understand was why he was here.
He still stood his ground, but the surroundings soon changed. He found himself in the middle of the road.
There was a carriage in the distance which appeared to be surrounded by some bandits.
"The same carriage? Am I supposed to help the boy?"
"Might as well."
Azekiel called forth his Gauntlet of Gluttony before dashing to the bandits. He didn't even waste a single second before attacking the leader of the bandits.
"Huh? I can't touch them?"
No matter how he tried, he couldn't touch the bandits. It was as if this was all an illusion and nothing more. He couldn't interfere with this illusion.
"So I was right. I didn't travel back in time. This is either an illusion or a dream."
He was sure that this place wasn't real when he failed to even touch the carriage. Moreover, even as he got close to these bandits, they didn't react like they couldn't see him.
The bandits killed the carriage driver, which was even easier since there weren't many guards accompanying the carriage. After killing every guard, the bandits opened the door and pulled out the chubby merchant.
The merchant was shocked to see the bandits. He soon realized why they were there. They weren't here for him. Instead, they were here for the young prince.
"They played me!" Those were the last words that came from the merchant's mouth before a Sword impaled him.
His dead body was tossed aside as the leader of the bandits shifted to the silver-haired Prince.
The young prince was barely ten years old. Despite being so young, he stood bravely before the bandits, not having a single shred of fear for his life.
"Kid, despite facing our sword, you still stand so bravely before us. Don't you worry for your life?" The leader of Bandits pointed his sword at the chest of the young child.
The young boy didn't answer at all, maintaining his complete silence.
"Fascinating, kid. Either you're too brave, or you're such a coward that you can't even react in the face of death."
"Did mother send you to kill me?" The young Prince asked.
"The queen? Since you're about to die, I don't want you to die with a misunderstanding. We weren't sent by the queen. Moreover, your mother won't be the queen for long. After you die, she will also be killed because the blame for your death will fall on her head."
The young boy's eyes widened as the leader of the bandits told him the entire scheme.
"Now that you know the truth, you can die in peace. Don't worry though. We will send your mother after you soon."
Thrust~
The blood-covered Sword entered the chest of the young boy.
Azekiel watched a young kid being killed, unable to do anything. It was as if he was just here as a witness.
"This isn't a dream."
He finally realized what he was witnessing since he heard the boy speak.
"This is a memory... I'm going through his memories... But why is he showing me these memories? Is that his answer to my question? Am I supposed to know what help he needs based on these memories?"
"I still don't understand what I can do. This was all in the past. I can't change the past."
As the body of the young boy was buried in snow, the memory stopped.
Everything turned dark once again. The world returned to silence once more.
Azekiel felt a little headache, feeling as if he was lying on the ground now. The floor didn't have snow this time, but it was even colder. It was the same old cold he had felt from the arrival of the spirits.
He opened his eyes, yet he couldn't see anything. The world was really dark.
"I'm back..."
Azekiel pushed his body up, realizing he was out of the vision and back to the real world.
"I know you're still here. Why did you show me your memories?" Azekiel asked. "What am I supposed to do from that? What do you need from me? Tell me directly!"
"I saw..." A weak voice fell in Azekiel's ears. The voice seemed exactly like the voice of the boy in the vision.
"I was right! You're that Prince! And you certainly can speak. So tell me? Why did you show me your memories? I can't change your past. I also can't help you take revenge. The people who hurt you are probably already dead."
"You... can help." The Spirit stated. "I saw..."
"What did you see?"
It was the second time the spirit had mentioned seeing something, which made Azekiel wonder what the Spirit was talking about.
"Your memories," the Spirit answered. "I saw..."
"You saw my memories?" Azekiel grimaced. "Did that mean the boy knew his soul had traveled back in the past?"
"Look, I came back. But even I don't know how. I can't control time, and I can't help you go back. That's impossible, so I'll make it clear right away. With that aside, what do you need?"
"Help... Me."
"That's exactly what I'm here for. But can you tell me what you need? How will I know how to help you if you don't tell me?" Azekiel sighed. "Tell me. I'll help you right away if I can."
"I want you... save mother..."
"Save your mother? You mean from that scheme you showed me? Didn't you hear what I said before? I can't go back in time." Azekiel shook his head. "That's impossible."
"You can... Time… Stone... Get..."
"What? I can't understand."
"I... Help..."
No matter how hard the spirit tried, it couldn't properly converse with Azekiel.
Even Azekiel didn't know what to do in this situation. With such fragmented words, it was impossible to understand what the Spirit was trying to say.
Fortunately, he wasn't alone in this situation. A notification appeared before him as a screen popped up.
[You have conversed with a Spirit]
[Skill Unlocked]
[Spirit Conversation]
[Passive Skill]
[Description: You can converse with spirits and understand them easily]
Even though Azekiel saw the notification, he still wasn't sure if this was going to help him understand the Spirit.
"I want you to save my mother. I want your help." The Spirit again spoke. This time, Azekiel understood everything clearly, making him realize that the skill was working.
