Lazorie sighed as he realized what was happening. He approached Elurian who was standing still in front of the cup-shaped fountain.
"You need to explain this to Master Rex, Elurian," he said in a cold tone. His previous concern disappeared, replaced by a firm guide attitude towards violators.
"Ugh!" Elurian suddenly bent down while covering his bleeding mouth. Of course, the color is gray because in this 'gray world' there are no other colors besides gray.
Lazorie moved subconsciously, grabbed Elurian and immediately took him out of the 'gray world'. Only those permitted by Rex Violet can have the key to exit the 'gray world', while the rest who enter carelessly will not be able to return.
Lazorie felt that it was no coincidence that Elurian asked him for a walk today and suddenly entered the 'gray world'. However, he kept those thoughts in mind, for him Elurian's condition was more important.
"Master Rex Violet's will wants us to return, reverse flow of the river of time, provide a way out for us." Lazorie chanted the wish spell while hugging Elurian, helping to stop the blood flowing from his mouth.
After his chanting, bluish energy again emerged from the depths of the fountain pool and coated them, absorbing them to break through the illusory barrier and return to reality.
The entire process only lasted a few seconds, until all the colors began to appear again in their view. The people around them move and the nuances of life bring relief.
Elurian's eyes, which looked glazed, stared at the scene of life blankly. The bleeding disappeared as if it had never happened, but the consequences of the bleeding still affected him in reality. The consequences of entering the 'gray world' without direct permission from Rex Violet.
Elurian didn't regret it, he was panic-stricken as things kept going very differently than they were supposed to. The accelerated pace of events and the perceived inconsistency throughout forced him to take this step to be sure.
"Let's go back to the manor." Lazorie carried him while thinking of a way to report him to Master Rex. He was worried that Master Rex might kill the child.
---
[Hey, are you okay?]
Elurian, who was brought back to the manor and confined to his room, was curled up on his bed, looking depressed.
His violet eyes were covered in shadow as he stared blankly at the floor. Things were completely unexpected and everything happened so quickly as if it was going to end.
The plot, as he knew it, was no longer relevant. Now is the second timeline, the final volume of the novel. Where the last chapter he read was that this world would be swallowed by the Tower of Desire in the near future.
[Sorry, I couldn't tell you beforehand. Since the time the novel was written, this world has existed. Then, because the final volume will not be able to be continued, the only option left was to attract souls that can fill the plot gaps towards the ending.]
"I see..." Elurian finally replied in a low voice like a whisper.
He then turned his head to the window, staring at the outside view that was brightness with complicated expression.
[I didn't deceive you about the contract. Turning back your world's time wasn't impossible. At least as long as you have the golden ticket.]
Elurian blinked in confusion. "Golden ticket?"
[That's all I can say, many restrictions cannot be violated.]
Hyung has never written a setting about golden tickets. That means the golden ticket only appeared in the last volume, to be precise in the second timeline. What does the golden ticket represent? Why is it possible to turn back time? Where can I get it?
Elurian regained his spirits from his despair over the chaos of the plot. He almost thought about giving up and letting his Master kill him for doing something he shouldn't.
However, knowing the possibility of a golden ticket gave him hope. He should at least beg his Master for forgiveness, no matter how harsh the punishment he would receive, he felt staying alive was best.
Elurian got up from his position and opened his drawer to look for something.
[What are you looking for?]
The entity became increasingly chatty and meddlesome, Elurian felt a bit disturbed.
"Be quiet."
He didn't find the thing he wanted in the drawer. His brows furrowed as he tried to guess where it might be. There was a wardrobe on the other side of the bed, at the bottom of the wardrobe was a box of items that were stored separately.
Elurian pulled out the box with his weak strength, he could only pull it a few inches before finally giving up in frustration.
Glancing at his thin arms and small body, Elurian's expression darkened.
[....] The entity was increasingly curious about what he was going to do, seeing Elurian's behavior which was quite funny.
Elurian compromised with his weakness and decided to climb into the wardrobe, opening the box inside. His small figure was quite fit like a rabbit hopping into its nest.
At that moment, a knock on the door was heard accompanied by someone's familiar voice.
Knock! Knock! Knock!
"Young Master, I brought you lunch."
Elurian quickly opened the box with difficulty, then rummaged through the contents and finally found what he was looking for. It was a compact mirror that resembled the shape of a pocket watch.
Before Elurian could jump down and get out of the cupboard, the door to his room was opened and Finnian entered, followed by servants carrying cart of food.
"Young master?" Finnian was stunned to see the small silver-haired figure hiding in the wardrobe.
"Uh, yeah." Elurian felt a little embarrassed as he came out of the wardrobe and secretly hid the compact mirror near the item box.
He faced Finnian's amused expression, then the servants' silent smiles.
When the servants put the dishes on the table, Finnian approached him and lowered his body then whispered, "I wasn't like Lazorie who will strictly punish you, before Master Rex returned, you were still his disciple and will get the same treatment as before. Don't worry about being locked up here."
That meant he had heard about what Elurian did, but he seemed too relaxed as if he was sure that Master Rex would not punish Elurian.
Why? Why does Finnian have such great attention to him?
Elurian's violet eyes met Finnian's gentle gaze. A strange emotion filled his heart, as if his confusion and panic over the changes had subsided a little. He missed that kind of attention a little to keep him sane.
Finnian raised the corners of his mouth as he patted Elurian's little head, then instructed the servants to leave after setting the lunch dishes on the table. He would accompany little Elurian until Master Rex returned.
The little figure looked gloomy and afraid, making Finnian worried. He was indeed surprised to find that the boy in front of him took such a risky step, ignoring the possibility of his own safety. Regarding how the silver-haired boy knew the right spell and how he knew about the 'gray world', Finnian wasn't too curious.
As a guide, who serves the highest entity and was a subordinate of Rex Violet, Finnian was no longer surprised at things like rebirth, reincarnation, and dimension travel. He had seen quite a lot of similar things.
To be honest, those who knew about the existence of the 'gray world' were the remaining people who likely survived the rippling of the river of time. Elurian may be one of those anomalies who managed to survive, knowing the appropriate future due to having interacted with the river of time.
Finnian was sure Master Rex would think the same thing and wouldn't kill him. However, it seemed that Master Rex had affection for his disciple, which was something unexpected for Finnian.
...
Elurian climbed onto a chair at the dining table and stared at the appetizing dishes. He smelled the sweet and savory aroma of bean soup, the refreshing aroma of fruit salad, the unique aroma of meat steak seasoned with red sauce, and some cakes for dessert.
Elurian was grateful that he was staying here and being Rex Violet's apprentice, obviously he wouldn't starve.Thinking about the world outside, to be exact apart from this Sanctuary, he would most likely not feel this comfortable. Only Master Rex is quite kind with his treatment of those he cares about.
Elurian felt Finnian's gaze, but he no longer cared about it and chose to fill his stomach which had been hungry for a long time.
***