One could call it a human-shaped, self-propelled lie detector and cheating detector. Moreover, the bravado Shiayar had displayed back in the Valley of the End had only been realized through Ennie's liberation of the Sacred Spear. Heaven knew if that weapon would report across time and space to its current master.

As for Silvia, it went without saying. She herself was a direct experiencer of the Echo of History and also the first victim of Shiayar's trans-temporal philandering; she knew his tricks inside out. As a Throne, she had long possessed the ability to make initial interventions in history. While she might not see all of Shiayar's actions, she could at least guess fifty to sixty percent of them.

Therefore, Shiayar chose to proactively confess part of the truth. Of course, it was a tactfully edited version, omitting details like his undying body, the system, and similar information... Instead, he roughly mentioned his story of playing the role of Cain and working with the Daybreak Organization to save the world at the end of the Ancient Era, a thousand years ago. Truth be told, there wasn't much to hide. Bragging to his wife and concubine about the impressive feats he'd accomplished a thousand years ago was quite enjoyable.

Listening to Shiayar's narrative, a flicker of light danced in Silvia's Cangyin eyes. The blonde girl beside her also hugged her pillow, pricking up her ears to listen in silently.

Regarding the Echo of History, Enola wouldn't ask if Shiayar didn't bring it up; this was an understanding between them. Yet, this didn't mean she was indifferent to the things Shiayar had experienced in another time and space. Given the precedent with the White Tower Master, Enola would be truly at her wit's end if Shiayar attracted another unfamiliar woman. The saying that a childhood sweetheart can't compete with a fated newcomer had left a very deep impression on her recently.

Originally, Enola had wanted to throw a small tantrum over Shiayar mistakenly embracing the wrong person. However, when she saw his pale, bloodless face, that petulance melted into heartache. So, despite some initial reluctance on her part, Shiayar still successfully enjoyed using Ennie's long legs as a pillow.

...

"If it were just that... I fear it wouldn't be possible to disturb the course of history to such a great extent," Silvia's exquisite eyebrows furrowed slightly.

Following that, pale golden text began to appear in The Void, bit by bit.

"The Power of Historical Correction exerted by the stream of time against historical inertia is extremely potent."

"Ordinary Thrones and Demigods, even if capable of backtracking to past temporal nodes to some extent, are severely limited by the constraints of the overarching historical trend. They can only influence minor events irrelevant to the grand course of history."

"Moreover, even so, once they exit the stream of time, that influence will also fade under the scouring of the Power of Historical Correction, eventually weakening the interference to an insignificant level."

"But... this time is different."

"The past course of history was forcefully twisted."

Shiayar nodded in agreement, having indeed noticed something unusual about this journey through the Echo of History. He knew that when he had previously entered the Echo of History of the Ancient Dukedom Azure Garden, both entering and exiting had been smooth; he had never encountered terrifying spatial turbulence like this time. Only this time, upon his return, the violent temporal ripples almost made him think he wouldn't make it back.

If I were truly lost in the chaos of space and time, it would be akin to being exiled to the end of the Dimensional Abyss. My so-called undying body would be useless, only prolonging my suffering in the lonely Darkness.

So, was there some anomaly when I entered the Echo of History this time? he wondered. Yet, if what Silvia says is correct, even Demigods have extremely limited abilities to interfere with time and space... Then I, a mere 5-Ring, even if my methods were somewhat extraordinary, shouldn't have been able to cause such a commotion by my own power alone.

Shiayar pondered while murmuring to himself, Could it be that my actions triggered some kind of butterfly effect? A butterfly flapping its wings on one shore, its breeze amplified through disturbances, can indeed unleash a storm on the other side of the sea. So... the key issue now is to first figure out exactly what happened a thousand years ago that led to the birth of this butterfly effect.

Almost as soon as Shiayar spoke, the blonde girl quickly got to her feet. Then, she disappeared beyond the door of the hotel room. This was their unspoken understanding; without needing words, Enola knew what Shiayar wanted to do and set out to accomplish it. As for Shiayar's safety, although the girl was somewhat reluctant to admit it, with Silvia present, it was undoubtedly assured.

「Some fifteen minutes later.」

CLICK.

The door opened.

Enola re-entered, pushing the door open. She walked over holding an ordinary-looking book, her gaze towards Shiayar distant, profound, and exceedingly meaningful.

She placed the book on the wooden table. "Take a look for yourself, Student Shiayar."

That inexplicably significant gaze and the sudden use of "Student Shiayar" filled Shiayar with a sense of foreboding.

He picked up the book. Its title read: *A Brief History of the Human States on the Western Continent*.

Could this kind of introductory popular history book truly contain any tangible historical secrets? Shiayar was puzzled. He was, after all, something of an archaeologist. He had investigated various secrets buried in the dust of history, typically found by perusing the secret Great Libraries of major powers, and he wouldn't even hesitate to personally conduct field excavations. Gleaning knowledge from a history primer intended for the general public was, by contrast, a very novel experience.

However, out of trust for Ennie, Shiayar still opened *A Brief History of the Human States on the Western Continent* and quickly turned to the page Enola had dog-eared.

'The Scarlet Empire—Fresta Chapter'

The Scarlet Empire? Since when did the Fresta Empire acquire such a nickname? A hint of confusion arose in Shiayar's mind, and he quickly read the description below.

But the next moment, his pupils slightly contracted.

'The Scarlet Empire, Fresta, was founded by the Knight King in the second year of the Holy Calendar.'

Up to this point, there was nothing amiss.

However, the next line:

'The Knight King—full name Isadella von Freysberg, formerly known as Artorigus.'

'At the end of the Ancient Era, she purged the entirety of Escarnia, vanquished the Despicable King Vortigern, established the Scarlet Empire, and as a human, ascended to immortality, ruling over the Scarlet Empire to this day.'

'In the year 302 of the Holy Calendar, the Sacred Court of the Holy Creed Kingdom declared that the Knight King, in pursuit of immortality, had consorted with an Ancient God of the Abyss, the Crimson Moon, and even plotted to desecrate the souls of the dead with forbidden magic...'

'From then on, the Scarlet Empire erupted into a sacred war with the Holy Creed Kingdom. Chaos erupted within the Order Faction, causing widespread devastation and suffering, historically known as the Hundred-Year Bloody War.'

'Professor Adams, head of the history department at the Floren Institute and an authority in the field of lost history, spent over a decade conducting in-depth investigations within the Scarlet Empire, tracing its origins back to the very beginning.'

'Ultimately, after arduous and life-threatening investigations, he proposed a startling hypothesis.'

'The actions of the Knight King, and thus the birth of the Scarlet Empire... were all because of an old acquaintance of hers in Escarnia at the end of the Ancient Era.'

'For this discovery, Professor Adams was granted the title "Sage" by the Arcane Arts Capital.'

'And that ancient figure from the Ancient Era who determined the fate of a nation is widely referred to in academic circles today as:'

'[Kingdom's Bane]—Cain.'

...