A dull longsword and a heartbroken villager

Bray was a little overwhelmed by his daughter's tears, so he made a promise with Nia.

Once she learns even one of his sword techniques, Bray will take her to the forest.

All you need to do is learn one sword technique from Brena's vast pool of swordsmanship.

"I miscalculated. I didn't expect her to be so serious." Bray tapped his forehead. It was all his fault for making Nia work so hard.

"Let's hide Nia's sword tomorrow and give her the camera to play with," Levy suggested to Bray =V=, since she wanted to teach Nia how to take pictures anyway.

Thinking this, Rebecca's tail started wagging rapidly, cracking the ground.

“Good idea.” Bray squeezed it down, finding Levy’s suggestion very constructive.

"But Levy is going to cheer for Nia today." After saying that, Levy jogged over to Nia, who was sweating profusely.

“Go ahead, tell her I’m going to cook her something delicious,” Bray said casually.

As soon as he finished speaking, a fallen petal drifted down to the front of Bray.

The petal froze incongruously, but only for less than a second.

Anyone would think that this is just some kind of hallucination.

But Bray knew it wasn't an illusion; the world had indeed been frozen for a second.

A strange bird landed on Bray's braided black hair and patted Bray's head with its tiny wings.

"Chirp!" The strange bird made a sound that seemed to be cheering on Bray.

“A lark.” Bray held out a finger and teased the bird.

After many years, this bird is surprisingly friendly today.

However, they are not the same entity, and ultimately they are not the same entity.

There are no true substitutes in the world, only substitutes of equal value, but no substitutes of equal meaning.

"Chirp! Chirp!" The lark flapped its wings on its chest to indicate, "That's right, it's me."

Then it flew off Bray's head and landed on another person's helmet.

"As expected of a safe zone, the concept is really difficult to implement." The swordsman, dressed in worn white armor, said as he stood on the path leading to the Bray hut.

Whiteface teased the lark more skillfully than Bray, as if he were just an ordinary passerby.

But he is undoubtedly a monster, a monster in every sense of the word.

Even though the concept is suppressed by both the magic circle and the sword, it can still freeze the world for a second or two.

“But if a monster like me can just come in like that, you’re being far too careless,” White Face said slowly.

"Long time no see," Bray greeted the other person casually.

"Long time... I haven't seen you in a long time. I haven't really counted the time, so let's just say it's been a long time," said Pai Mian.

"Uncle, are you Dad's friend?" Nia asked, putting down her wooden sword and looking on with wide, curious eyes when she saw a stranger.

“No, Uncle, you are your father’s enemy.” Bai Mian said slowly, as if “enemy” and “acquaintance” were the same word.

"..." Upon hearing this, Nia quickly hid behind Bray, only peeking out her head.

"But you don't look like it."

"Because I was wearing a helmet, taking it off would be like..."

"Can I pick them?"

"No, it will scare the children." The white-faced man's voice came through the helmet in a muffled tone.

"Levy, take Nia home. I need to talk to this old man."

"Oh!" Levy responded, holding Nia's hand.

"Bye-bye." But Levy didn't get angry in front of Whiteface; instead, she waved gently to him.

Because Bai Mian is not a bad person.

"Well...bye." Nia hesitated for a few seconds before saying goodbye to Bai Mian. "Do you even have the right to call me 'uncle'?" Bai Mian said quietly.

He didn't think that Bray, who was in his thirties, was qualified to call him "uncle".

“To me, you’re like an old man.” Bray casually found a place to sit down.

Bray, on the other hand, thought that with his age of hundreds or thousands of years, calling him an old man wouldn't be an exaggeration.

He sat on a rock, with flowering trees behind him.

The murderous aura emanating from Whiteface was so intimidating, but Bray didn't take it seriously.

He was already used to Bai's undisguised murderous intent.

From the very beginning, Whiteface wanted to kill Bray, and that goal has never changed.

He himself had almost died more than once from the casual sword strikes of the white-faced man.

“I told you long ago, the path you’re on is a tragedy.”

"Struggling to the end, you end up with nothing."

“You are like this, and you used to be like this too.” Whiteface walked up to Bray and looked down at him as he sat down.

The shadow of the white armor enveloped Bray.

The murderous aura materialized and pressed down on Bray without any mercy.

Bray had no doubt that his opponent would strike him with a sword at this moment.

But to avoid harming innocent people, Bai Mian is restraining himself at this moment.

Of course, there are other reasons as well.

“You’re right, this road is pretty rough,” Bray said, knowing full well the situation.

Bray now believed what Whiteface had said to him a long time ago.

Regardless of the choice made, the tragedy is already inevitable.

No matter how strong Bai Mian is, he still can't change the world.

Similarly, no matter how extraordinary Brady's abilities are, they will not affect the course of the world.

Individual strength seems so weak and useless.

I thought I would take a different path, but in the end...

Naive.

"So you came here today to kill me?" Bray didn't continue the conversation on the same topic, but went straight to the point.

He's always been like that; he often prefers to get straight to the point.

If Hakumian isn't bored enough to come and chat with me, then he must be here to kill me.

“I want to kill you, but your sword is too dull,” the white-faced man said.

"So I'm not here to swing my sword at you this time."

Admittedly, Whiteface wanted to kill Bray and end this timeline.

No, it should be said that he killed Bray, ended all timelines, let time flow on, and let the world perish.

Time in the world has been turned back time and time again; it's time to end this tedious cycle.

However, the white-faced man standing in front of him did not interest him.

Bray's sword has become too dull.

He seemed to have achieved his goal and gained motivation, but in reality, his sword was not as sharp as it used to be.

As for the reasons, Bai Mian naturally knows them.

"Is my sword too dull?" Bray murmured, drawing his longsword from its scabbard.

He examined the chipped longsword, its blade bearing the marks of time that could not be removed no matter how much maintenance was done.

I used to be able to wield a sword without thinking about anything, but now I don't know how to wield one.

Forgot how to wield a sword? Not at all. The act of wielding a sword is already ingrained in his soul; Bray can never forget it.

But this feeling of "not knowing how to wield the sword" is indescribable.

“The Prophet’s Tomb, I’ll be waiting for you there,” White Face said.

"If you don't want to swing your sword now—"

"Take a walk, feel the breeze, look at the scenery, and remember the original beauty of the world. Before long, you'll want to wield a sword."

“…” Bray stared directly at the white-faced helmet with his right eye.

What kind of expression is hidden under that sealed helmet?

"The Prophet's Tomb" is where Bray and Whiteface first met.

“That place is in the east,” Bray reminded Whiteface.

Traveling across continents in the wasteland is simply too difficult.

"Don't you also happen to want to go to the Eastern Continent? I'm just looking for a place that's on your way."

“…” Bray was silent for a few seconds.

Whiteface was right, Bray did indeed intend to go to the Eastern Continent.

He wanted to find Naruko's parents, whose fate he didn't know.

If he were still alive, Bray would have a responsibility to tell Naruko's parents that she had passed away, but without regrets.

Indeed, the person who knows you best is yourself.

"By then, even if your sword is still dull, I will not show any mercy."

“I never expected you to show mercy,” Bray said casually to Whiteface.

They spoke calmly and in an ordinary tone about the life and death of the two people.

This is something that cannot be avoided.

“Even though you felt utterly hopeless about the future, you still activated this last time reversal,” Bray suddenly said to Whiteface.

"Do you still have expectations for something?"

"Looking forward to it? Maybe, who knows?" Bai Mian turned around and answered in a deep voice.

If you were to ask what Hakumen might be hoping for, it would probably be that humans can defeat monsters.

If humans cannot defeat monsters, then it is only natural that the world ends like this.

"I've come this time to thank you," said the pale-faced man.

Then Bray was stunned for a long time. Whiteface should thank him?

"Although I want to kill you."

“But this time, I still need to thank you,” Whiteface said, his back to Bray.

Beneath the armor came an incredibly gentle voice.

This was the first time Bray had ever heard Whiteface speak in this tone.

Every time he spoke to someone, his tone was cold and flat.

This gentle tone was only spoken to the mischievous lark.

"Yunming, who is by your side, is very happy."

"This is happier than any other time I've experienced Yunming."

In every timeline, Bray has someone who is most important to him.

White flour is no different.

Even if you feel numb, it doesn't mean you don't have important people in your life.

Things that have happened will not be forgotten; it's just that we can't remember them or don't want to recall them.

Bai Mian once witnessed a shooting star carrying too many hopes, falling and burning its final beauty.

Then he remembered her eyes, the fearless yet transparent gaze he had when he met her at twenty.