This Beast-Tamer is a Little Strange

Time blurred.

Kain had remained completely isolated in his room and was relieved of all duties by the order of the 'Vice City Lord' Nadia. This was so that he could focus on recovering his lost memories.

At first, Kain wasn't even sure how long it had been since the revelation in the strategy hall. The weight of Benji and Nadia's words had settled into his bones, gnawing at his thoughts even when he tried to push them away. But the moment he began actively questioning his memories—digging into every interaction, every familiar face—the cracks in his mind widened.

His supposed first childhood friend Klaus who lived next to his family? He could remember his name, face, voice, the scent of their home, but… he couldn't remember any specific interaction they had with one another.

Games they played? Secrets they shared?

Nothing.

The first time he held a weapon? He recalled the feel of the hilt in his hands, the rush of battle, but not where it happened or why he was fighting.

Slowly, the fractures in his mind deepened, and piece by piece, the memories that had once been sealed away came flooding back.

The Order. The Abyss. His contracts. The real world.

The realization hit him with the force of a collapsing mountain. He wasn't Kain, a disciple of the Vice City-Lord in Ishvaran. He was Kain of the Celestial Empire. A Pathfinder.

His life here had all been a lie.

And yet… it had felt so real.

Kain summoned all 4 of his contracts, when Kain's memories resurfaced, so did there's.

Queen and Aegis seemed to not care too much. The most important things to them (Kain, their allies) entered the relic with them and weren't forgotten. Therefore, forgetting their memories of the real world wasn't a particularly disturbing experience for them.

Vauleth on the other hand was absolutely horrified. He'd forgotten Galadriel! Completely forgotten her. Not to mention, due to the lack of past memories these past few days his relationship with Kain had softened. He'd willingly allowed that guy to use him as a mount frequently! Moreover, once when Kain wished to take a nap while on patrol, he'd allowed Kain to use himself as a bed.

This was a great loss to his dignity!

Vauleth wished he could scrub these embarrassing memories from his mind!

He looked at Kain with a dark look, contemplating knocking his head hard enough to damage all of his memories.

However, looking at the massive Golem, Vespid Guards, and knowing that Bea was also lurking around invisibly, he knew that his chances of hurting Kain would be slim.

Unlike the indifference of Queen and Aegis, and the horror of Vauleth, Bea was actually quite intrigued by her experience in this relic.

As a mental attribute spiritual creature who was also undetectable to the vast majority of creatures, she'd never actually been victim to any kind of mental manipulation before.

However, now, despite being a green-grade spiritual creature she had not been able to resist this mental erosion at all. Explore more stories with My Virtual Library Empire

Perhaps this relic could serve as an opportunity to take her mental-attribute skills one step further.

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By the time Kain made his way back to the Vice City-Lord's estate—or what his mind still stubbornly labeled as such—he found Nadia, Benji, Clara, and Claudia already waiting in a private chamber.

From the brief expressions that flickered across Clara and Claudia's faces, Kain could tell that they had remembered before him.

And that realization stung.

He wasn't arrogant enough to think he was the strongest among them. In fact, in terms of cultivation level he was by far the weakest among them. But his mental defenses should have been superior due to Bea's influence.

He had a mental-attribute contract, damn it! He should have been the first one to break free.

His frustration must have been obvious because Benji clapped a hand on his shoulder, offering a knowing smirk. "Don't look so disappointed. You actually did well, considering the circumstances."

Kain frowned. "How do you figure?"

Benji leaned back, crossing his arms. "Look at it this way—You're only a 4-star beast-tamer, while Clara, Claudia, and I are all 6-stars, and Nadia is a high-level 7-star beast-tamer. That kind of mental disparity matters when it comes to resisting external influences."

"Not to mention," Nadia added, "Clara and Claudia had been exposed to the Pathfinder's Badge for far longer than you. I had already been studying mine for days before I woke up, and Benji's Spirit Mouse has a unique sensitivity to foreign energies. Considering all that, the fact that you broke free only slightly slower than the two of them is actually impressive."

Kain nodded, but still wasn't completely sold.

Claudia, who had been silent until now, gave him a sideways glance. "What really matters is that we're all on the same page now."

Clara nodded. "And now that we remember, it's time we figure out our next steps."

Nadia exchanged a look with Benji before straightening. "We've been investigating since the moment we regained our awareness. There's a lot to go over, so listen carefully."

The room fell into silence as they all focused.

Nadia unrolled a parchment she had been keeping at her side, one that was filled with notes, observations, and hastily drawn symbols. She tapped a finger against the ink-stained page.

"The first thing we needed to determine was why this relic was so much more immersive than any historical echo we've encountered before."

Kain folded his arms. "And? What did you find?"

Benji was the one to answer. "We were right in assuming it had something to do with the Abyss. But what we didn't realize at first was that this relic wasn't just contaminated with some remnant energy from the Abyss—this relic actually serves as an active entrance to the Abyss and while the people of this world are just memory fragments, the Abyssal creatures are very much real. And they are looking for a way out, just like us."

"Moreover," Nadia added, tone suddenly dropping, "they appear to be much closer to accomplishing this goal than we are."