The sparks of the bonfire crackled and danced under the night sky.
The girl sitting by the bonfire, hugging her knees, tried to fight against drowsiness and cold.
But as her eyelids grew heavier and heavier...
Lonely darkness gradually enveloped Freya.
Just then...
A new faint light appeared in the distant night, accompanied by the sound of approaching footsteps, making the girl's sleepiness completely disappear.
Freya first showed a happy expression, but quickly became nervous and vigilant again. As the figure holding the torch came closer, Freya saw who it was and finally breathed a sigh of relief, her expression completely at ease.
"Sorry, I'm late."
Because Reji had temporarily changed his plans, he spent more time at Earl Nicholas's residence, so by the time he returned to the temporary camp he had agreed upon with Freya, it was already late at night.
Seeing the Saintess who hadn't slept yet and had been waiting for him to return, her face full of fatigue, Reji felt a pang of heartache and couldn't help but feel a warmth in his heart.
He immediately stepped forward, put down the torch, and draped his coat over Freya, who was still wearing casual clothes and was lightly dressed.
The coat still retained Reji's warmth, making Freya's cold body much warmer.
However, the Saintess then looked at Reji's empty back and seemed to understand something, her eyes dimming a little.
"I searched for a long time but still didn't see your two companions. I'm sorry for disappointing you."
"No, no, no, Lord Reji has already done his best. I am very grateful to you. I believe they, like me, are prepared to fight against the calamity and save the world."
Freya, who had lowered her head, quickly cheered up, her eyes even more determined and persistent, as if inheriting the will of her deceased companions, no matter what, she must help and assist Reji to become a true hero.
Compared to the original history, the real plot where Freya was nearly occupied by the companion she trusted the most, and then Reji, as the hero, killed Tabor and saved the Saintess...
Reji believed that this ending was undoubtedly better.
Whether it was for Freya or for that crazily infatuated Tabor.
At the same time, the Philosopher's Stone on Reji's right hand emitted a faint glow, reminding Reji that history had shifted, but the loss of energy inside was negligible, basically ignorable.
This once again confirmed the previous conclusion.
As long as the overall "ending" of the plot remained unchanged from history, the process in between could be freely modified as long as he became the only witness.
So, at the end in Earl Nicholas's residence, Reji used mind control instead of killing the family of three and let them continue to maintain their original state.
This meant that the wanted notice for Reji was still ongoing.
On the stone slab was a sword that looked ordinary.
Just as Freya was excitedly about to run over, Reji pulled her back first. And in that moment, the stone slab bearing the Holy Sword began to tremble. Sensing the two outsiders, it seemed to awaken the spirit sleeping within.
[Hehehe, it's been hundreds of years. Someone has finally come?]
An illusory sword spirit rose from the stone slab.
It was extremely tall, wearing armor, very majestic, like some general.
[Being able to come here proves that you should have already gained the trust of all the villagers, right? Otherwise, they wouldn't have told you such an important location.]
The sword spirit's attitude towards Reji and Freya was very friendly.
As it said, according to the normal historical process, he should have gone to the village to inquire with the blacksmith, then the blacksmith would have told him to find the village chief. The village chief would have been unwilling to tell him, an outsider, so in order to convince the village chief, he could only go and solve various villagers' requests and help them deal with troubles.
After doing this whole set of good deeds, he would be able to raise the village chief's favorability. Once he had a high reputation among the entire village, the villagers would be willing to tell him about the legend of the Sword in the Stone passed down from their ancestors.
As for the current Reji...
It was equivalent to speedrunning.
Thinking it would end like this?
Far from it.
In the first playthrough, the Holy Sword was a divine weapon. How could it let the player obtain it so easily? After passing the villagers' hurdle, one still had to pass the sword spirit's obstacle.
[Adventurer who has come to seek the treasure, I regret to inform you that this sword was once the accompanying sword of me, a general of a nation. It accompanied me in expanding territory and fighting on the battlefield. Now that I am dead, the sword has accumulated too much killing intent. It has long since fallen from the founding divine sword to a demonic sword.
Let alone pulling it out, just approaching it will affect and pollute your mind.]
[Therefore, you must first find the [Pure Water], [Boundless Grass], and [Primordial Dew], these three heaven and earth treasures, and bring them to me. Only then can I help you purify the demonic sword and eliminate the killing intent.]
[Secondly, to pull out this sword, you must possess the same talent as I did back then. With your current level, it's far from enough. But don't worry, you just need to go to my true burial place and retrieve my [bones]. That way, I can temporarily return to my remains and take out the Holy Sword in your stead.]
[Finally, to let the sword acknowledge its master, you also need to prepare offerings for the divine sword. There are a total of five items, namely [Flower of the Other Shore], [Resurrection Pill], [Sword Emblem], and...]
Reji closed his eyes.
He had been refraining from taking action just now to commemorate the hardworking first playthrough.
Now, as Reji who had returned from the "third playthrough," he calmly said to the sword spirit who was still issuing quests,
"Are you done talking?"
"If you are, then you can be on your way."