The World After the Bad Ending - Chapter 176

Having decided to consult Baek Mok-gong about the questions on my mind, I left the faculty office.

Perhaps because classes had ended, students were moving around for their after-school activities.

At a glance, this world seemed peaceful enough, but beneath the surface, a massive current had already begun to stir.

Before I knew it, autumn had passed, and winter arrived.

The fallen leaves had disappeared, leaving only the bare branches of trees.

‘This must be the second winter since I came here.’

The bleakness I felt when I first possessed this body—

Now, even that bleakness felt like a distant memory.

‘Come to think of it, it’s already been a year since I woke up here.’

Lost in thought, I continued walking when—

Tap, tap.

—the sound of footsteps approaching from afar reached my ears.

When I lifted my head, I saw a familiar face.

Moreover, it was someone whose name I had just heard from Aisha.

“Ah, Senior!”

The figure noticed me and beamed brightly.

Almost instinctively, I smiled back unaffectedly.

“Midra.”

The top-ranked first-year, Midra Penin.

A figure shrouded in many mysteries.

I didn’t expect to run into them so soon.

I had intended to ask Card about them, but things had taken an unexpected turn.

“You were summoned by Sir Baek Mok-gong, yet you’ve returned faster than expected?”

Midra grinned in their usual carefree manner.

I stared wordlessly at them.

Truth be told, I didn’t know much about Midra.

They hadn’t played any significant role in the scenarios I knew.

The Blazing Butterfly arc had focused mainly on Lucas and those around him.

Details about the younger students were scarce.

That made Midra a complete enigma.

Facing them directly, I spoke.

“Midra, I heard your name isn’t listed in House Penin’s records.”

With matters like this, directness is better than beating around the bush.

As soon as I relayed what Aisha had told me, Midra froze—

—then scratched their head with an awkward expression.

“Ah, haha, you heard about that? As you said, Senior, I’m not actually from House Penin.

It’s… a complicated situation and a bit difficult to explain.”

Their response was far more casual than anticipated.

Somehow, I’d ended up prying into their personal affairs.

“It’s embarrassing to have lied about my identity, but I really wanted to attend Jerion Academy.”

“Was there a reason you wanted to come that badly?”

At my follow-up question, Midra smiled faintly.

The setting sun spilled through the window, casting a warm glow.

Midra’s figure was bathed in that light as they grinned.

“Yes. There’s someone I absolutely wanted to watch over.”

What could that mean?

I couldn’t decipher their words, but Midra was undoubtedly looking straight at me.

“I’d appreciate it if you kept this to yourself. Surely, Senior, you must have a secret or two of your own?”

Their tone carried a sly implication—as if they knew something.

“Midra.”

But they had misjudged me.

Right now, I was acting with near-obsessive focus on the main scenario.

And now, a figure who might influence it had emerged.

Thud.

My fist clenched quietly.

At the same time, ember-like flames flickered sluggishly around me.

The surrounding temperature began to rise.

The flames stirred, reflecting my will.

“Sorry, but I’m not patient enough. You’ll have to tell me what your intentions are—and just who you intend to watch over.”

I made clear I had no intention of backing down.

Midra blinked, then slowly curled the corners of their lips into a smile.

“Wow, scary. Aren’t you being a bit harsh for a senior?”

“I’m being generous.”

At the very least, I was giving them a chance to talk.

“Hmm… If you’ll allow me, I’ll clear up one misunderstanding—and share something important.”

Midra raised a finger as if resigned.

“The Great Hero Olfram… is a Returnee.”

The moment those words registered, my body stiffened entirely.

I stared blankly at Midra, unable to process what I’d just heard.

Midra smiled the same way they had when we first met.

“What?”

“I said—the Great Hero Olfram is a Returnee.”

When I repeated my question, Midra kindly reiterated.

Returning.

Replaying the world over again.

Flashes of my past conversation with Musica ran through my mind.

Back then, I had wondered if Olfram might be a Possessor like me—

—a baseless assumption based on my own circumstances.

But after Midra’s words, another possibility emerged.

If Olfram is a Returnee… Musica’s remarks about him make sense.

Yet the problem remained—how did Midra know this?

Midra had no notable role in any scenario.

So how could they possibly know Olfram’s secret?

When I pressed for an answer, Midra only smiled.

As they said earlier, it seemed they only intended to share that one thing.

This guy’s worse than I thought.

“…Midra, are you Olfram’s reincarnation?”

So I asked the first question that came to mind.

If Midra was Olfram reborn, everything would make sense.

They’d naturally know about being a Returnee if that were the case.

“Huh? Ahahahaha!”

Midra burst into laughter, as though they couldn’t help it.

Still chuckling, they wiped their eyes.

“I’ll leave you to think really hard about that. But since you amuse me, here’s another tidbit—

Olfram was a Returnee, so even after saving the world, he couldn’t die.

In fact, dying would mean losing the world he saved.”

Midra turned away and walked past me—

—utterly unfazed by the ember flames flaring around me.

“So he entrusted his friend and comrade, Jerion, with a unique method… to sever his Regression.”

Olfram had asked Jerion to cut off his Regression?

The revelations just kept getting bigger.

“Ah, right—there are many misconceptions about Jerion. Being such ancient figures, records are… unreliable.

Midra added one more piece of information.

“Jerion wasn’t a man. She was a woman.”

Historical records had always depicted Jerion as male.

Naturally, I had assumed the same.

Still, knowing Jenia had actually been female, I’d wondered—

‘…She was really a woman?’

Midra strode past me casually, shattering common knowledge in an instant.

A faint scent of blackberries brushed past my nose.

“I’ve told you all I can. Since I’ve shared this much, let’s both keep our secrets, shall we?”

“Midra, wait—”

I turned to call them back—

—only to freeze in stunned silence.

The hallway was empty.

Midra, who had just been talking to me, had vanished without a trace.

Bewilderment spread across my face.

Even with my sharpened senses, I hadn’t detected any sign of their disappearance.

This—it felt almost like spatial teleportation.

‘What the…?’

Midra’s identity only grew more mysterious.

Who the hell is this kid?

At the very least, they didn’t seem outwardly hostile, but everything about them was unsettling.

Click-clack.

Then, the sound of another set of footsteps reached me.

Turning toward the familiar gait, something lunged at me.

“Hubbyyy.”

Sharine, her navy-blue hair fluttering, crashed chest-first into me.

I barely caught her in my arms, and she clung to me instantly.

“What if I hadn’t been able to catch you?”

“No way Hubby wouldn’t catch me!”

Her faith in me was unshakable.

“I missed you. Did you miss me too?”

“Yeah, I did.”

“Then you should’ve come to see me first!”

Giggling, she nuzzled her face against my chest.

Her warmth felt comforting.

Maybe because it had been a while.

Sharine was being even more affectionate than usual.

Ever since confessing to me, her playful sweetness had only grown.

It felt like the wary fox had finally dropped her guard completely.

Suddenly, Sharine peeked up from my embrace.

Her starlit eyes glittered like gemstones.

“Sharine?”

“Hubby? Was there a mage here just now?”

A mage.

The word made my eyelids twitch.

“No, a mage…?”

Before I could deny it—

—a certain boy I’d just been speaking to came to mind.

My head creaked as I turned to Sharine.

“Sharine, why do you ask?”

In response, she rolled her eyes around mischievously.

“There’s traces of mana here. And I’ve never seen this type of magic beforeee.”

A type of magic Sharine had never seen before?

She was the daughter of the Blue Magic Tower Lord.

She’d grown up witnessing every kind of magic.

“…Celestial-tier magic.”

Then, Sharine’s brows wrinkled slightly.

“This is Celestial-tier magic.”

“Celestial-tier?”

My eyes widened this time.

Celestial-tier magic.

In this world, only one person could wield it—

Jenia, the reincarnation of Jerion.

‘Then how did Midra just vanish…?’

Had they truly disappeared using Celestial-tier teleportation?

‘…How?’

Confusion clouded my face.

At the same time, countless theories raced through my mind.

“You’re sure?”

“I am Sharine.”

Sharine had likely met Jenia before.

Jenia had been able to wield Celestial-tier magic from a young age, making her a prodigy.

Given that the Blue Tower Lord had met Jenia, Sharine must have too.

That would explain why she recognized traces of Celestial magic here.

Sharine wriggled lightly out of my arms.

Her starlit eyes gleamed.

Each glow allowed her to gather faint traces of lingering magic in the hallway.

Soon, she turned back to me.

“Hubby. Who was here just now?”

“….”

I stared wordlessly at the empty hallway.

“…Good question.”

Midra Penin.

Who the hell are you?