Chapter 43 — I'm an Infinite Regressor, But I've Got Stories to Tell

Chapter 43

The chapter opens in a frozen, snow-covered world where the Saintess has activated a Time Stop, causing incoming bullets to shatter against an invisible barrier. The protagonist, identified as the Undertaker, confronts her. Though the Saintess initially appears disconcerted, she reveals through her actions that she never intended to kill him, only to subdue him to prevent his interference with her self-appointed role as the 'Executioner' who punishes sinners. The Undertaker issues an ultimatum: release him from the Time Stop, or he will commit suicide immediately. The Saintess complies, dropping her axe into the snow, and the two engage in a tense dialogue. They establish terms: the Undertaker will not stop her executions, and she will not suppress his freedom. The Saintess admits her previous claims of summoning other awakeners were bluffs to induce anxiety in him. She expresses fear that in future regressions, her memories of their sixteen years together will be erased, but the Undertaker promises to remember her, assuring her of his loyalty regardless of the timeline. The conversation shifts to the nature of the Saintess's power. She explains that as awakeners approach their power's peak, they risk 'corruption,' becoming akin to anomalies. She describes experiencing a 'transparent aura' and a loss of self, where her perception shifted from first-person to a detached, third-person perspective, making her feel disconnected from her own body and humanity. She fears becoming a 'grotesquery' that merely watches the world without feeling. The Undertaker, realizing her desperation to halt the regression before she fully loses herself, embraces her, using his aura to shatter the glass-like barrier of her anomaly. This act warms her, and the Time Stop ends as she accepts his guidance to let go. In an epilogue set in a different cycle, the Saintess listens to the Undertaker recount these events. She critiques his analysis of corruption as merely psychological, pointing out that he has also regressed extensively without showing signs of corruption, suggesting the phenomenon may be specific to her or unique cases. She critiques his reclusive nature, arguing that his self-imposed isolation stems from a distrust of others rather than diligence. Despite his explanation that killing is a painful truth, she smiles faintly, calling her reasoning a 'secret' as she tends to her fish, maintaining her enigmatic and detached demeanor.

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aajp1ge4fg

Chapter number

43

Duration

15:40

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