He was the only one in the alley. No matter how Noah adjusted the scene or the angle, the result remained the same.
Mokotoba was clutching the back of his head, looking up at the empty air before him, his expression shifting from terror to wariness. His lips moved continuously; he was clearly speaking to someone.
But that “person” was not in the image. Noah’s brow furrowed slightly as he continued to watch with an expression of disbelief.
Mokotoba’s expression gradually changed from doubt to shock, and then from shock to hesitation. At one point, he seemed to be under some kind of pressure, leaning against the wall, his face pale as he gasped for breath.
Yet the alley remained empty, as if Mokotoba were performing a one-man show all by himself.
Then, Mokotoba seemed to finally make up his mind and reached out toward the space in front of him.
His fingers curled as if he were grabbing something, but in the time projection, he was only grasping at thin air.
The boy then pulled that invisible “air” and ran quickly toward the depths of the alley. Because there was no one else in the scene, his movements looked exceptionally bizarre—his arm was extended forward as if pulling someone, yet his body seemed to be waiting for another person to keep up.
Noah watched until they disappeared at the end of the alley before finally withdrawing his ability.
As the golden light faded, a wave of exhaustion washed over him.
Leah stepped forward to support him and asked, “How was it?”
Noah remained silent for several seconds, his expression somewhat strange.
“I saw Mokotoba.”
“And then?”
“Nothing. Oh, he was performing a monologue... probably.”
Leah was stunned for a moment, tilting her head as she looked at her brother.
“What do you mean by ‘nothing’? And what do you mean by a monologue?”
Noah recalled the images from a moment ago, his brow furrowing deeper.
“From start to finish, I only saw Mokotoba. He was indeed hiding here, then he was startled by something, then he communicated with the air, and finally, he ran toward his house while pulling the air.”
Leah’s expression became peculiar, and the look she gave her brother was filled with skepticism—she suspected he was treating her like a fool.
“Are you sure you actually activated your talent?”
“I’m sure.” Noah shook his head. “Our talent doesn’t fail. If you don’t believe me, you can look for yourself. Also, we can rule out the possibility of magical concealment, because that wouldn’t work.”
The siblings had tracked assassins before and had seen high-level mages attempt to use cloaking magic to erase their traces. But Time Retrospection did not look at the current scene; it looked at what had happened in a specific area in the past.
As long as a person had been there, time would record their existence. No matter how sophisticated their concealment methods were, not even a powerhouse of the Heroic Spirit rank could hide from it.
Leah walked to where Noah had been standing and took a deep breath.
“Let me see.”
A silver light ignited in her eyes. The same alley, the same time, the same Mokotoba.
A few minutes later, she withdrew her ability, and her expression turned grim. Her gaze toward her brother had shifted from suspicion to solemnity.
“It’s just as you said. I didn’t see anyone else either.”
The two stood in silent eye contact. After a while, the state of exhaustion passed.
Leah said in a low voice, “I believe... Mokotoba wasn't lying.”
“Mhm.” Noah nodded, his expression serious. “He was indeed talking to someone; we just can't see that person.”
“Try again?”
Noah thought for a moment before finally nodding.
This time, the siblings activated Time Retrospection simultaneously, and the same images surfaced once more.
Mokotoba appeared at the corner of the alley again, repeating everything they had seen before. The result did not change; from beginning to end, they could only see him performing his “monologue.”
When Leah withdrew her ability, her mind felt somewhat overloaded.
“This isn’t right! Something must be wrong!”
Noah looked toward the depths of the alley, his expression uncharacteristically grave.
“It’s not that it’s wrong; it’s that we’ve never encountered this before.”
Since awakening this talent, this was the first time it had completely failed against someone. One had to understand that if they knew the exact time and location, their talent could even allow them to witness the descent of a god.
Their grandfather—Vanko Allen—had once used this talent to witness the God of War’s presence in person.
So this wasn't a failure of their talent; it was that the person simply hadn't been recorded by time. There was no projection of him in time at all.
He had appeared here, yet he hadn't been recorded by this world, almost like... a ghost.
Afterward, the siblings went to the Inquisition’s temporary warehouse.
This was the place where Vina and Baron had discussed the festival operation with Li Yuan. The warehouse was mostly empty now, but the tables and chairs remained, and the map of the City of Divine Grace on the wall had not yet been removed.
Noah followed the records, stood by the table, and activated his ability. Soon, the images of the past surfaced.
Vina and Baron stood by the table, with eight Adjudicators lined up on either side, while a seat at the table in front of them was empty.
Everyone’s gaze was focused on that empty space. Baron picked up a list and handed it over.
The list paused in mid-air for a moment, then tilted slightly as if it were being taken by an invisible hand.
Vina nodded, seemingly responding to someone’s arrangements. Baron spoke in a low, respectful tone.
The Adjudicators were also listening to orders... throughout the entire deployment meeting, the most important person never appeared.
After Leah finished watching, her face looked even worse than it had in the alley.
“Still nothing...”
They went to the edge of the plaza, to Mokotoba’s house, to the steps outside the temple, and even checked the side door where Ramina had been released.
Every single result was the same.
They could see Mokotoba bowing to the air.
They could see Vina and Baron saluting an empty space.
They could see Ramina, supported by her brother, thanking someone who didn't exist.
They could even see the temple guards and Adjudicators’ gazes falling simultaneously on a blank spot.
But no matter how many times they retrospected, no matter how many angles they tried—there was no sign of Li Yuan in the images. Not a single trace.
As night fell, the siblings stood at the edge of the Central Plaza.
The crowds in the plaza had mostly dispersed. A few lamps were lit at the entrance of the main temple, and the white stone pillars looked exceptionally quiet in the night.
Leah whispered, “Brother, should we continue investigating?”
Noah looked at the records in his hand and remained silent for a long time.
They had checked every location mentioned in the Inquisition’s records.
The result... there was no Li Yuan.
Only the people who had come into contact with him still retained their memories, and this was more unsettling than finding a dangerous individual.
A dangerous person can at least be observed, but this person couldn't even be recorded by time.
Noah closed the notebook, sighed, and said softly, “Let’s head back to the hotel first. We’ll compile everything we saw today and then think about how to report this to His Majesty... Just thinking about it gives me a headache.”
“Will His Majesty believe us?”
“...I’m not sure, but this is the truth.”
Leah nodded slightly, and the two turned to leave the plaza.
Rate on N.U.
