Today was absolutelyWaver Velvet's day of suffering.
He would stake all his knowledge on it—never in his life had he experienced a moment this unlucky.
Inside the Clock Tower, in Lord El-Melloi Archibald's office, the air seemed to have congealed into solid ice.
And yet, Kayneth's face was unnervingly calm—an emptiness without a single ripple. Nothing had happened… but it was precisely that calm that made cold fear crawl up Waver's spine. It was more terrifying than any furious scolding.
Kayneth merely swept his eyes over the paper—a trashy thesis whose contents looked as though he'd already read them countless times.
He didn't mock it.
He didn't tear it up and throw it away like rubbish, destroying the text that challenged the Clock Tower's doctrine and his authority.
But he didn't praise it either. He didn't acknowledge Waver's nerve in speaking up.
Instead, he sat in his broad mahogany chair, covering his face with both hands.
A broken laugh leaked out of his throat—intermittent, uneven—yet wrapped around it was a sorrow that wouldn't dissolve. His expression twisted back and forth between two emotions. No one could read what was in his heart.
To Waver, the scene was outright horrific.
Because in his wildest dreams he would never have imagined it—the prodigy worshipped by the Clock Tower, the greatest genius, the noble scion he idolized…
Kayneth had become this.
Half-delighted, half-miserable. Laughing one moment, near tears the next.
What was the difference between this and some lunatic who'd escaped an asylum?
All at once, Waver forgot how much he cared about the thesis outcome.
Recognition didn't matter anymore.
There was only one thought in his head—
Get out of this suffocatingly strange room. Now.
He'd originally come in with a grudge still burning: some time ago he'd run into a bizarre person and gotten soundly humiliated, and he'd wanted to prove himself by publishing a thesis.
He'd finally gotten his chance—Kayneth had returned—so he forced himself to be brave and handed it over, hoping to earn the prodigy's approval and turn his fortunes around.
And then this happened.
From the moment he submitted it, Kayneth had looked like he'd been possessed.
For a terrifying instant, Waver even wondered if someone had cursed the paper.
How else could it turn Kayneth into… this?
He could already imagine rival factions bursting in, seizing him on the spot.
Would he end up accused of something he didn't understand—dragged to the Department of Law and interrogated until he broke?
Please, not that…
Waver's heart wailed.
He'd just received a love letter—he hadn't even had time to write a proper reply.
If his life ended over something like this, wouldn't it be the most pathetic failure imaginable?!
The thought turned his face ghastly pale.
He was already picturing which patch of wasteland around the Clock Tower he'd be buried in.
And then—
"BANG!"
Another dull, heavy impact exploded through the room.
A fist slammed down on the desk.
The manic, half-laughing half-crying expression on Kayneth's face slowly drained away into something colder.
He tossed the thesis aside, narrowed his eyes, and finally looked directly at Waver.
"Waver Velvet!!"
"Y-Yes! Lord Kayneth!"
Hearing his name shouted like that, Waver—already on the verge of collapsing—jerked as if struck by lightning. Reflexively, he snapped upright, rigid as a frightened cat with all its fur standing on end.
"Relax. I've read your thesis. Leaving the content aside for now—your smug self-satisfaction, your complete ignorance of what this all means… that alone makes my anger hard to contain!"
Bang!
As he spoke, Kayneth surged to his feet, grabbed a thick stack of papers from the desk—nearly as heavy as a dictionary—and smashed it down in fury.
The impact made Waver's skull feel like it was about to split. He trembled uncontrollably.
"I can almost forgive my own student writing something so delusional."
"But there's another matter."
"How do you intend to explain it to me—"
His eyes sharpened like blades.
"—the honorable Lord El-Melloi II—sir?"
"…Huh?"
That single sentence made Waver's brain visibly short-circuit.
He froze, completely blank.
"L-Lord El-Melloi II…?"
Waver stared at Kayneth, then slowly raised a finger to point at his own nose. His voice shook.
"Who? Don't tell me… m-me?"
"Yes. You."
"N-No way… How could I—"
"Silence!"
Before he could finish, Kayneth slammed his fist down onto the thesis again. Veins stood out at his temples.
Then he drew a heavy breath, forcing himself to calm down. Eyes closed, he pinched the bridge of his nose with a gloved hand.
"Lord Kayneth, you must see reason! I'm just a third-generation magus—how could I possibly be Lord El-Melloi II?! Someone's spreading rumors—someone's framing me!"
Waver looked like he was about to cry.
He'd only come to submit a paper. How had it turned into this?
Lord El-Melloi II?
What kind of insane rumor even was that?
A nobody like him couldn't dare dream of such a thing.
Obviously someone had fabricated it just to torment him.
This wasn't even the first time he'd been bullied like that, but this time it was beyond cruel—this was trying to ruin him completely.
"Enough! Whether you deny it doesn't matter."
"I saw it with my own eyes."
"And if you want to know who confirmed the rumor for me—fine."
Kayneth's voice dropped into something sharp and absolute.
"I heard it from the Second Magician himself—Zelretch, the old jewel man."
"So, Waver Velvet—there is no doubt."
"You are Lord El-Melloi II."
Kayneth grew more agitated as he spoke.
"So it really was you… the man I dreamed of."
"I thought his face looked strangely familiar back then."
"So it was you."
"I never imagined you'd achieve that kind of greatness in the future."
"Waver… I have to admit it."
"I underestimated you."
"…What are you even talking about?"
Waver's small eyes were filled with pure confusion.
But Kayneth had no interest in explaining.
Because a cruel truth had already been verified by everything piling up around him.
Which meant—
"…So it's all real…"
"…So I already died once…"
Bang!
His fist hammered the expensive desk again, nearly flipping it.
"Eek—!"
Waver snapped into a stiff military stance, hands pressed against his trouser seams, teeth clenched as he leaned back in fear.
Normally, if a student behaved this disgracefully, Kayneth would have ripped him apart.
But now he didn't even spare Waver a glance.
All his thoughts had sunk into a memory—one he still didn't fully understand.
But he was certain of this:
He had already participated in this Holy Grail War once.
Only… that attempt had ended halfway.
Midway through the war, a tall black-haired man appeared before him.
The man claimed he was Lord El-Melloi II, a traveler from the future.
And with him came a group of strange people, claiming to be from something called "Chaldea," joining the Grail War as well.
The man said he knew Kayneth's niece, Reines, and that he served as acting head of the El-Melloi faction.
Then he tried to trick Kayneth with a story:
That "Chaldea" was an organization Kayneth himself founded after winning the Grail War—an institution dedicated to protecting human order and the planet.
A joke.
"Chaldea"? A protective organization?
Why would a genius like him waste precious time and talent on such tedious nonsense?
Protect human order?
Absurd. The Lord of El-Melloi had never been so bored as to care about that.
Kayneth assumed it was some idiot's con—someone trying to use him.
He didn't expose it, because it was mutually beneficial.
Fine.
They could cooperate, eliminate the other contestants, and then settle the final outcome between themselves.
But then—
The moment that "Lord El-Melloi II" recited Kayneth's own love letter aloud…
Kayneth's mind went dead.
That was practically a direct statement:
He had not survived the Holy Grail War.
Kayneth knew his own habits too well.
No one could enter his office but him. If someone had invaded, he would have noticed—unless…
Unless he was dead.
Once he understood that, once the brutal truth sank in, Kayneth scrapped all his plans and calculations.
Driven by sheer survival instinct, he chose to believe the man's warning.
He took his lover and obediently boarded a flight out of Fuyuki, transferring back to London and the Clock Tower.
And then—
Before the plane even crossed the sea, it was struck by a missile from nowhere.
Kayneth and his lover, Sola-Ui, were buried together in the ocean.
A death so ridiculous. So absurd.
In his final moments, he thought bitterly that he would have preferred to die in the Grail War itself.
Hearing his lover's agonized cries, her desperate pleas before death—
Kayneth's heart tore apart.
Never in his life had he hated himself more.
Why did he lack power?
Why couldn't he protect her?
Why, at the critical moment, was he able to do nothing?
Drowning in endless regret and despair, he closed his eyes in the black sea.
But that wasn't the end.
When he opened them again, he wasn't in the ocean.
He was back in his familiar office.
Pen in hand.
Carefully writing the love letter he was meant to send to her.
Staring at those familiar lines, remembering the "dream," Kayneth felt cold sweat soak his body.
His broad hand trembled uncontrollably.
Even his expensive fountain pen snapped in two as it slipped from his grasp.
That day, for the first time, he canceled his lectures.
He went mad trying to verify the truth.
He sought out an expert in such matters:
The legendary grand marshal of magecraft—
Zelretch, the old jewel man.
He needed to know what those visions were.
A prophetic dream?
Or the fabled Fifth Magic?
After a long wait, Kayneth sent his questions by letter across time and distance.
And Zelretch's reply crushed the last of his hope.
It was not a nightmare, but the future.
You truly died in the Holy Grail War.
Your student, Waver Velvet, will certainly become Lord El-Melloi II.
All of this is predetermined… fate.
As for why you dreamed it—or why the timeline was crossed—this old man doesn't know.
Your timeline is already completely broken.
Even if it's destroyed one day, I wouldn't be surprised.
So… do your best to live, Lemonhead.
After receiving that unbearable mountain of information, Kayneth went numb.
He'd expected something like it.
But expecting and hearing it from Zelretch were two different worlds.
So he canceled his courses, prepared to shut himself away, and decided to abandon the Grail War entirely.
If he couldn't win against fate… could he at least avoid it?
But sometimes, the harder you try to flee destiny—
the more precisely you collide with it on the road backward.
Even though he tried to withdraw, as the Grail War drew near, Kayneth saw it:
Three crimson Command Seals on the back of his hand.
And somewhere in the depths of his mind, a voice told him—
Participating in the Holy Grail War might get him killed.
But if he didn't participate…
He would die anyway.
And right at that moment, the fool who arrived later than expected—
the future Lord El-Melloi II—
came to him.
Submitting that same stupid thesis.
At that instant, the worldline closed.
Fate completed the loop.
Everything returned to the beginning once more.
Watching himself get wrapped up in destiny, shoved forward step by step until he had no choice but to advance—
Kayneth felt a bleak chill.
That was why he'd called Waver here.
To sit with the future Lord El-Melloi II—if only to steady his own mind.
If things follow my memories… what comes next?
He looked at Waver and thought.
Right.
He confiscates this suicidal, heretical thesis and scolds him harshly—
and then Waver steals his relic and enters the war.
…Good. Very good.
Kayneth could hardly imagine this seemingly obedient student would have the nerve.
But then again—
mages were creatures of extreme self-interest.
In the past, he would have punished Waver without mercy.
But now, having learned the "fate" that bound them both, Kayneth didn't say much.
He didn't even have the energy to care about such trifles anymore.
He let out a long sigh and lowered his head, as if weighing an important decision.
Time ticked by, second after second.
Teacher and student stared at each other, silent for a long while.
The office atmosphere grew heavier and heavier.
Even Waver had no idea what Kayneth was thinking.
Perhaps Kayneth himself didn't know.
Until at last—
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Crisp footsteps approached from far away, coming straight to Kayneth's door.
In the Clock Tower, there were only a few people who could enter Kayneth's office so unrestrained.
Aside from giants like Barthomeloi and Zelretch…
there was only one.
"Kayneth. I could hear your angry shouting from far away."
"What on earth happened?"
"To make even you lose your composure like this."
A capable woman with short red hair stepped in.
She blinked curiously as she looked at the trashed office, then at Waver and Kayneth—both wearing strange expressions.
"Sola…"
Kayneth's gaze shifted instantly.
To Waver's shock, the rage in Kayneth's eyes softened into something almost tender.
It vanished just as quickly, returning to normal—
but the terrifying edge was gone.
He rubbed his head and forced the corner of his mouth into a "nothing happened" smile.
"It's nothing."
"Just guiding a student… and making a decision."
"Guiding a student? Making a decision?" Sola raised an eyebrow. "Does it have something to do with the 'Lord El-Melloi II' in front of you?"
Clearly, she'd heard his earlier scolding.
"Yes," Kayneth said. "That magecraft competition in Fuyuki I mentioned—I'm taking this boy with me."
"As an assistant."
"After all… this was always his fate."
"And what about me?" Sola's eyebrow lifted.
"It's only a magecraft competition," Kayneth said smoothly. "You should stay in London and wait for my triumphant return."
"Traveling that far is exhausting for you."
"And during the competition, you won't enjoy yourself anyway."
"If you want to tour, we can do it after I'm finished, can't we?"
"…Mm. That does make some sense," Sola admitted.
"Then it's settled. Look forward to it."
Kayneth sighed again, then glanced sideways at Waver.
"And you too, Waver Velvet."
"I want to know something even more."
"How, exactly, does the future you—just a third-generation magus—earn the right to inherit the name El-Melloi?"
"I-I really don't—"
Waver was numb inside.
He didn't even know how to argue anymore.
He truly didn't know anything.
"Save your excuses," Kayneth said flatly.
"This Grail War isn't just a trial for me—it's a trial for you as well."
"If you can't demonstrate the value and resolve worthy of Lord El-Melloi II…"
"…then your life may very well be buried in that city."
"It's decided."
"Now go back and dispose of this damned thesis properly."
"I don't want to see it ever again."
"…Yes," Waver answered weakly, nodding.
"Oh, and Sola."
Kayneth turned to his fiancée again—his manner completely different from how he treated Waver.
"What is it?" Sola looked at him.
"A week ago, didn't you mention you wanted to dine at that luxury restaurant on the outskirts of London?"
"…You actually remembered?" Sola froze for a moment. "But didn't we skip it because you were busy with the thesis?"
"Then let's go tonight." Kayneth smiled—gently, almost impossibly so for a magus.
"You're not busy with the competition anymore?"
"It's only a magecraft competition."
His smile deepened; his tone was serious.
"Nothing matters more than you being happy."
"…Alright," Sola nodded. "Then tonight it is. I'll go change first."
"Perfect. I'll come pick you up."
Kayneth watched her leave, smiling, eyes fixed on her back until she disappeared from view.
Only then did he remember someone else was still in the room.
He turned and shot Waver a vicious glare.
"Once you leave, don't talk nonsense. Understood?"
"Y-Yes!!"
Waver nodded frantically, then bolted for the door at the fastest speed of his life, desperate to escape.
But just as he was about to take the final step out—
"Waver Velvet."
Kayneth's voice came from behind him—cold, undeniable… and carrying the weight of a decision.
Waver stiffened, whirled around, and spoke with trembling anxiety.
"Yes! Lord Kayneth! Is there something else?"
"…"
Kayneth glanced at him, voice even, but unmistakably commanding.
"Leave your thesis here."
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 80)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 80)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League (Chapter 80)
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter50)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter50)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter50)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter50)
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