“Larisa woke up. She’s looking for you.”

Trembling, William went to find Larisa. Rediscovered, Larisa was lying inside the glass case, just like before.

As soon as Larisa saw William, she faintly smiled.

“Will.”

“La, Larisa. Are you okay?”

“I’m okay.”

There was no way she was okay. Larisa still had a pale face, and her lips were purple. Nevertheless, she was smiling.

“I missed you, William.”

“…”

“What’s wrong? Didn’t you miss me, William?”

Even her teasing voice seemed fragile, as if it would disappear. William, holding back tears, replied.

“I missed you.”

As if it were a curse, the moment the words left his mouth, his heart felt constricted.

“I love you, William.”

William couldn’t bring himself to answer, even to say he loved her. He was afraid that saying those words would make them real.

He was afraid this pain might become the pain of reality, and he was afraid of falling in love with Larisa.

Fortunately, Larisa fell asleep again. William couldn’t leave her side for a long time. Someone tapped his shoulder and said,

“William, now go and have a meal and get some rest.”

“Mother. What about Larisa?”

“She won’t die.”

“She looks in pain.”

Grenevier didn’t respond. He had only held onto the time of the day when she vomited blood, doing nothing else.

Naturally, it must be painful, but there was nothing William could do in the face of the possibility that she might die when the spell was released.
“William, listen well. We’ll find a way. A way to save Larisa. You, me, Hedel, and all the other wizards will put in our efforts. So, we’ll find a solution.”

William nodded his head at his mother’s consolation. Even if it was a futile comfort, he wanted to hear those words.

However, the nightmare showed no sign of ending. When he lost consciousness, it felt like several years passed each time.

“If I fall from here, will I wake up?”

William was desperate to wake up from the dream. Leaning against Larisa’s glass case, William jumped out of the laboratory window.

However, what he hoped for did not happen. Waking up in the familiar room, he unconsciously examined his hands. The thick fingers still left him in despair.

“Are you so eager to die, you lunatic?”

“Hedel.”

“Since your teacher isn’t around, I won’t stay quiet. If you pull another stunt like that, I won’t be easy on you.”

William smirked.

“What if you’re not easy on me?”

“If you touch Larisa again, there’s a way to send her away first.”

In a moment of rage, William grabbed Hedel by the collar. As he punched Hedel like a madman, blood and teeth were spat out.

“You crazy bastard.”

“Don’t mess with Larisa.”

“Next time, I’ll let you die and bury Larisa with you. Is that what you want?”

When William grabbed his collar again, this time Hedel threw a punch.

“You ungrateful brat.”
After saying that, Hedel disappeared through teleportation. William only wanted to wake up from the dream.

However, as time in the dream extended, it became challenging to distinguish what was the real reality and what was a dream.

Eventually, William once again immersed himself in healing magic and alchemy. And one day, his mother spoke to him.

“William, I have something to tell you.”

William, now ailing, lifted his head.

“I was able to use time-delaying magic thanks to you. To be precise, because you, rolled back time. I just happened to discover how to delay time while researching time regression magic following your lead.”

William listened silently without saying a word.

“I think it might be faster to study time magic than to find a way to save Larisa. So, how about researching time magic? I don’t know how you did it, but you have enough talent to roll back time twice.”

He recalled what his real mother had said. Three times, William had rolled back time. If so, this must be the memory of the previous life.

Genevera said that the dream he remembered was distorted. It was unclear if his real mother had actually said such words to him.

But somehow, William felt like he knew what answer he had given.

Although he didn’t intend to, a smile appeared on his face. His mouth started moving on its own.
“I’m sorry, Mother. I can’t let Lara suffer any longer.”

His hand moved involuntarily. William took out a dagger from his embrace. The William of the past life surely wouldn’t have known about the dragon’s lineage, so why was he so convinced?

William stabbed his own chest. The sensation of thrusting his hand through the ribs and seizing the pulsating heart between them was eerie. Sacrificing this could turn back time.

He couldn’t remember what incantation he recited. However, the face of Genevra he faced while losing consciousness was filled with despair.