The predicament I am in, at this moment, is something I never thought I would experience.

Let me fill you in about the craziest situations I've found myself in, so that you can compare them to meeting your fucking counterpart from an alternative world.

For starters, I woke up in my dead body and spent eight years trying to off myself in cycle 41. Only against the Green Eyes Red Dragon I was able to finally escape that shithole of cycle.

I took the pacifist route to the Apocalypse and met a crazed obaa-san that scolded me for not eating my breakfast and met my end by her hands when she pierced my skull with an ordinary wooden stick. Circa cycle 34.

In the cycle I married Soo-Yeun, taking the pacifist route once again, as I like to call my vacation cycles such, I made love to my newly-wed waifu for ten days, eventually my body gave up for about two weeks. Built a nice, cozy cottage for us in the Switz Alps, as it becomes a dead flat plateau in the second year of the Apocalypse thanks to the interference of Goliath Reimagined. Again, met my end at her hands, strangling me. Yet I didn't think much of it as I was trying to find the reason for those so-called variables.

Outright became a farmer that only cared about his crops when there were Resurrected Beasts everywhere. Took in about thirty-five people that escaped from Kyoto and tried to live my life as I pleased, another vacation cycle that I took to relieve myself off of the strain that comes with being the Regressor.

I made a lot of stupid shit, and I'm proud of most.

Every single one of those experiences made me who I am today.

Yet none of them could prepare me for this moment.

Can you imagine how fucked-up this is?

Now, everything I learned.

Everything I valued.

Had no point in them.

Because, Alternative Worlds on this scale exist.

Worlds that I'm not a regressor.

Worlds that I'm selected as a Child of God.

Worlds that I'm never going to experience because I'm confined within this version.

Which in turn means that I don't even need to save the world, as only my Kalpa as Eighth calls it, is affected.

This realization, means only one thing.

I have to ask this.

"Am I… the only one?"

"As in? Only one of what, exactly, Seventh."

His glare is fixated on me, he knows exactly what I'm talking about. Yet, it feels as if I'm not allowed to ever find the answer.

"Don't bullshit me, me."

"Call me Eighth, no need to complicate things."

"Tell me."

"Tell you what."

"You know what I'm talking about, prick."

"I do, actually."

The nerve of this motherfucker…

Thinking that he can show up and turn everything I have into meaningless pieces of shit, I didn't ask for anything like this.

I'd have managed to save the world eventually, without any help. I'm accustomed to it, I lived through everything I deemed unfavorable, I'd make it nevertheless.

I'd have made it, damn it.

Why did he have to show up?

Why?

Now, I don't even see the value of saving the world. Because my future counterpart actually did.

And he's nowhere to be seen.

If I were to realize my goal, Seventh wouldn't have approached the version of me that hasn't made it.

In the future, I save the world, according to him.

Yet, I'm unable to save myself from the looks of it.

"Am I the only one experiencing this hell?"

"Heh…"

With a light chuckle, he stares me down, almost pitiful.

"It really depends how much you gaze into the abyss, Seventh. Does it gaze right back at ya?"

"Stop the crap, I theorized it, yet I didn't want to believe it."

"I ain't telling you lies, though. The answer isn't as obvious as you think."

"What do you mean?"

"Simple, actually. You aren't a basic time-traveler like the everyday scientist, your technique is much more complex than you make it out to be. I take it that you know what I'm getting at."

"I don't, actually."

He, I mean, Eighth, face-palms as he throws a disappointed look at my direction. I always thought this whole regression stuff was as mundane as it could possibly be, just a simple consciousness transfer to my twenty-one-year-old self about three hours before the Kyoto Incident.

"Haah… I can't possibly fathom how you're both the eldest and the naivest one out of all of us, Seventh."

"Eldest? What you mean?"

"Dude, we usually die by the time we're twenty, you're actually the eldest without even considering your regression capabilities. I mean, Third manages to live until his late twenties but that's it. I, for example, died when I was twenty-one. Second died when he was nineteen. You're the only one that has seen what we become when we reach past the point of thirty. What I'm getting at is, shit's not fair to Hyoudou Issei no matter the Kalpa."

"I… see. Why me, though, that I don't understand."

"Well… your Kalpa is not exactly… how can I say this… dependent on you?"

"The Fuck? Without me, this world ceases to exist, literally. I fail to see your point, kid."

"Don't… just don't."

"Am I wrong, though?"

"You're… not exactly wrong, that I can admit at the very least. Without you, the stream of time doesn't move forward."

"Wait, are you implying what I'm thinking?"

I fucking knew it.

The most left out part of regression in all fiction is the fate of the world the regressor just abandons.

No matter how one looks at it, it doesn't make sense for the whole world to be erased when one time-traveler pulls his trick on the timeline.

Some people describe this phenomenon by exaggerating how important the regressor is to the World, some doesn't explain it at all. Up to this point, I've been team one when it came to questioning my regression, that the World just resets to the point when I come back.

Yet…

This motherfucker is about to destroy everything I believe about my specialty, that…

The Worlds I abandon are still, somewhere out there.

"You're as fucked up as the Leviathan, so I don't know what you have in that sick mind of yours."

"Alright, prick. Tell me, what happens to the World I just regressed out of?"

At last, I can get valuable information about things that made me wonder, that made me abandon myself and countless others just to learn why certain things happened, about the way people behave when I mess around with their origins and their relationships.

"Why would I do that?"

"What?"

"Why would I give you that much?"

The fuck is he on?

"Don't get me wrong, Seventh. I'm here to clarify something regarding your Regression, that you desperately need to advance to the next cycles. Yet, I can't give you anything more than that. I have limits I have to abide by."

"What about that abyss gazing shit then, jackass?"

"It's what you need to know, honestly, so that you don't overstep your boundaries and go insane. Regression is tough stuff."

"I'm the Regressor, I know that."

"Tell you what, I'mma make an offer for you, just because I think I'm capable of that."

An offer?

What's he planning?

First, he says that he has limits to abide by, then he confronts me with something like this.

I can't get a read on this madman.

Still, Eighth is the one that gave me Lost Legacy. I have faith in his capabilities to help me even when he's unpredictable.

"That is?"

"Stay in this Cycle forever, free of Trihexa and Evies. In exchange, I block out Regression indefinitely."

"?!"

What the actual fuck?

"What? You don't like it when there's an offer you can't refuse?"

"And this is still achievable within your limits? Telling me whether the worlds I regressed out of are intact isn't?"

"Yup."

"I don't believe it."

"You better believe it, because if you want, I can do it."

"How?"

"You don't need to know, just think about what you want to do"

"There must be some negative side effect to this."

"Depends, do you consider living in a peaceful world without any invaders a downside?"

"I don't…"

"Yeah, I don't either. I'd have taken that offer if Secondth wasn't such a bastard."

"You make a great point about hating his guts, even when we are practically all the same."

"Oh… the same?"

"Aren't we?"

"Nah… We're distinct because we're unique, if I had to compare, you would be closer to Secondth than I am, yet even you wouldn't believe what he has done up until this point to ensure that we never reach our true potential."

"I see… I don't know him, but I don't know you, either. I don't take sides blindly."

"You don't, I know. I've been observing you."

"That doesn't help it at all, Eighth."

"Enough about him, honestly. Now…"

The deal he proposed.

It indeed is too good to be true.

I don't believe he's lying, not just because he has no reason to.

But also, he's the only one that I've been able to talk like this since I became a regressor.

He understands, that I've been all alone in this journey.

Even when I have comrades, I can't have a conversation about the past cycles I've been in, apart from Soo-Yeun because I need to tell her about what she needs to do and how she needs to do it based on her previous experiences to master the Infernal Heaven's Grace.

Talking with Eighth made me realize that no matter the Kalpa, Hyoudou Issei is an unfortunate existence.

That we always end up in the crossfire.

We always try to protect what is dear to us, what we value in our lives.

In his case, it was Sona Sitri, whom he fell in love.

It was his friends, Vali Lucifer of his World.

His comrades.

In the end, even he was powerless against the force of nature that is Trihexa. His Kalpa fell.

He calls himself a paradox, I call him a wandering spirit.

His desire to help us, Hyoudou Issei of various Kalpa to not fall as he did.

That makes him a benefactor that I can rely on to.

His entire existence is a coin-flip as he describes it.

A coin-flip that always results in the most unexpected scenario.

The coin standing still every time.

"What do you think? Are you comfortable living in this Cycle until the end of your life?"

I know that he doesn't want me to go on any further, that's the reason he approached me in Cycle 119.

In the near future, I'll be able to save the world.

Yet, I won't be there to see the sun rise another time.

That's why Eighth proposes the deal.

To save me from myself.

That's why he's a Wandering Spirit.

That's why he's the Benefactor.

"As much as I want to say yes…"

"Then do it, you don't need to save this Kalpa."

The way he insists, means that my life will end in such way that there will be no going back, no more regression.

He called me desperate.

Yet he's the one wanting me to cling onto this fraction of hope.

It's hilarious, to think about.

Infinite Regression is undoubtably finite, as I can infer from his reaction.

Whether it's due to my actions, or the price I have to pay for saving the world, is unknown.

Yet…

"I have to know something first, about this world, before making my decision."

"I know what you're going to ask, don't bother."

"Show me, then."

We are Hyoudou Issei.

Our existence revolves around the people we cherish.

That's the primary reason both Eighth and I continue to offer our entire life to save them, even when we're already dead in the eyes of the World.

Even if our attempts are futile.

Even if it might cost us dearly.

Even if we can't see the sunset one more time.

We are Hyoudou Issei.

That's a burden we carry with pride.

No being other than us, could.

"He fell, victim to premature birth."

"I didn't know Supernatural creatures could be affected by it."

"They aren't, this is an exception."

"A Price to Save the World."

"Exactly."

If you take away the people we love, we will do everything to bring them back.

Even if we doom the whole world in the process.

You might call it selfish.

You wouldn't be far off from the point.

We are, selfish.

I threw away countless cycles to be with Soo-Yeun.

Even when I could save the World.

Eighth doomed his entire Kalpa just to be with his lover once again.

Tempering with the timeline to always manifest as a Paradox.

Infecting countless versions of him, making them fall victim to his fate regardless of how much they try to avoid.

"Baraya."

"Baraya."

"Oh Baraya."

"Baraya the Merciful."

"Baraya the Pitiful."

"Baraya the Weak."

"Baraya…Baraya…Oh Baraya."

"I guess it's bound to happen, no?"

"Yeah… It is."

The Heart of the World aches, with the ascension of another Heavenly Demon, weeping for mercy to the lost souls seeking guidance.

"You're weird, y'know. To fall in love with an actual ticking bomb."

"At least I didn't fall in love with someone I was making xenophobic jokes to unlike a certain Paradox."

"Hey! I had been influenced by- "

"Yada Yada, quit yapping."

"I swear I'm gonna- "

"Your inability to shut your mouth amazes me."

"Speaking of inability, weren't you a cripple in one cycle?"

"Yeah, made me feel sympathetic to those who are dealing with it every day."

"I see, do you wanna be more sympathetic?"

"No thanks, I learned my lesson. I love being able to walk without the help of someone."

"Buzzkill."

"Aren't you an ableist though?"

"Nah, I had my fair share of being a cripple. That makes me qualified to make jokes about em"

"What a surprise."

"Trust me, wielding Spears with one arm is something I wasn't used to in the slightest."

"Knowing you, you'd have found a way to get around."

"Well, not exactly but I ain't gonna delve deep into that."

"Now you're spoiling all the fun."

"Pfft."

I don't mean to be narcissistic but.

Speaking with myself, aka Eighth, is way, way more entertaining than I care to admit.

Our experiences vary, with him having everything in his disposal and making full use of them and I being able to reverse the clock watch whenever I please.

Yet the people we turn out to be are both unique and compatible, that we can understand each other's concerns and relate to them.

"Baek Soo-Yeun ascends as the Heavenly Demon, slaying her sister. I admit I didn't see that coming."

"What can I say, every Cycle has a downside. This one ain't different from the rest, Eighth."

"You call that a downside, I call it natural selection. We ain't the same."

"Hey! Even if I don't know Seo-Jae personally, I care about her."

"Yeah? What about Cycle 77th bastard? Weren't you the one that slayed her?"

"That's different! I had no other choice but to assassinate her if I wanted to become the successor to the Righteous Throne."

"Excuses excuses, Seventh."

"At the very least, I didn't attempt to kill my own teacher, punk."

"Oh? That's how we are gonna play now?"

"You started it, I'm just stating facts."

"For your own concern, I only tried to because I was already drowning in my own hatred."

"Now you're the one spewing excuses."

"Fuck it, let's duke it out."

"Hey! Hey! No! No! Stop."

"What? Are you gonna chicken out?"

"I am not even in my prime, jackass. Only thing I can do now is just throw one punch and get obliterated. It's gonna be a one-sided slaughter."

"Someone's all talk but no bite, I see."

"Just propose this to me when I'm well deep into Last Stand and we see how it turns out, fucker."

"I get that you turn out to be a powerhouse compared to now, but Seventh, even if you had accumulated all the experiences and kept your powers."

"You wouldn't be able to stand against me, don't forget that."

"You one-shot Trihexa, I fail to see how that corresponds with being able to gather the training and experience of several centuries. I would've been able to do that myself, y'know."

"You'll eventually learn, but the gap between me and you ain't not about the output or potential. It's something else."

"Hmph, show off."

"I get that a lot, thanks."

"So, what's your call?"

"You know it already."

"Haah… Why do we always go for the rocky road?"

"Because of what is at stake, Eighth."

"I know… I fucking know, Seventh. Just that… I know that you're going to regret your decision."

"I might, yet, I can't live in a World so far off from my own, I want to preserve what I have, what is dear to me."

"You're going to hate me for it."

"I will, I have no doubt. I'd even think about this moment when I finally pull the lever in the correct way."

"Sticking to the Trolley Paradox until the end?"

"Until the end, Eighth."

"Aight, I'm not going to try to convince you. That's basically what I've been doing so far."

"You wouldn't take the deal, either. Don't fool me."

"Haha… I wouldn't. You and I are more similar than you think, Seventh."

"I know."

"From now on, don't think about what you don't know, alright? It'll only make the matters worse, stick to your own beliefs."

"You know me, I ain't gonna fail just because I can't take it no more. Trial and Error all the way."

"Keep that positive attitude and you'll make it just fine."

"Even you don't believe it, Eighth."

"I do, I just know what's gonna happen at the end."

"I save the World, right?"

"Heh... That you do, Issei."

"That much is enough for me, I don't have any particular wish other than being able to see the sunset one more time after the Apocalypse."

"I'll do everything in my power to realize that, Seventh."

"We have a deal, then."

We shook on it, and I felt as if I was drowning.

I could feel the sorrow within him.

That he absolutely hated leaving me like this, knowing that I don't make it out in the end.

Every possible negative feeling I would even have towards Eighth just evaporated at that point.

That I felt he was genuine.

He is no different than I am.

Victim to his cruel destiny.

We march on, nevertheless.

Eighth needs to solve the Paradox he sees as his own existence.

I need to solve the Trolley Paradox.

I have no doubt we will meet again in the future, that is given.

"Just, I have one question."

"Hmm?"

"Am I… the only one?"

"…"

"Please."

"It's best for your own sake if you don't know it, Seventh."

"I have to know, Eighth."

He contemplates it.

I can see it in his eyes.

He knows both of the possible answers will devastate me.

Yet the negative one will only affect me for one cycle at most.

That's what I always believed, that I am a sole Regressor.

The opposite?

I would forsake everything.

Everything to find the other one.

"It's… complicated."

"It's either yes or no, that shit ain't complicated, Eighth."

"It really isn't, Seventh. Believe me, you don't need to know it."

"Either I do or I don't is my business, just tell me."

"Fiiine.

"I'm waitin'."

"Haah… What I'm about to say is really dangerous, Seventh. So, I'll only say it once and you can't ask about it, ever."

"Yeah? Do I have a partner in this shit, yes or no?"

"Both."

"Huh?"

"You heard it, both."

"How...?"

"I said it's complicated, it's not as easy as you think it is, Seventh."

"You ain't gonna leave me with such a cliffhanger, are you?"

"Let me break it down for you so that you won't spend another hundred cycles trying to find other regressors. I know for a fact that you indeed will."

"What can I say, I have unlimited time at my disposal."

"That's something I envy, y'know."

"I do, actually."

"Anyways, listen carefully. There aren't other regressors, that's a fact. You're the only regressor on this Kalpa."

"Then the answer should be yes, shouldn't it?

"In any other case, it should be. Yet, when it comes to you, there are a few anomalies, Seventh. Such as living in non-linear timeline."

"Non-linear… timeline?"

"Think about it, every time you regress, you end up in a slightly different version of your world. Why is that?"

"Because the events of the future affect the past?"

"Kind of… but not in the way you would expect. Here, let me demonstrate it."

In front of my eyes, he conjured a… rope?

Made out of pure light, he laid the rope on the table.

"Let's call this rope your timeline, as you can see, it's as straight as it can be and intact. The most important bit is that it's intact."

"Yeah?"

"Now, every time you regress. Timeline gets fucked up."

"How?"

In an attempt to further demonstrate it, Eighth cut the end of the rope, signifying that I regressed out of that timeline.

Then, he conjured another rope made out of pure light.

"Instead of regressing out of the Timeline, you regress into it again."

"What…?"

In front of me, are two ropes, one cut at the end, and one still intact.

Eighth takes the intact rope and points the head of it.

"Under normal circumstances, a Regressor should travel from Timeline A to Point in Time on B. Living in Linear-Time."

He takes the intact rope, cutting off it's ending point.

Now, in his hands, are two parts of the ropes, signifying my Regression date and my Death.

"You, take it into the next level. See these parts of the ropes?"

"Yeah..?"

"If you regressed normally, you'd just go back in time as normal, without any change in the timeline."

Tying the head of the second rope into the first rope, Eighth showcased me the basics of Time-Travel that I already knew.

"This would be the final product, your death and regression into the new timeline."

"You, however, are a bit different from normal, understandably as you're Hyoudou Issei of this Kalpa."

"What you do, instead, is…"

He conjures ten ropes, each with various parts of them missing. Some didn't have any starting point, signifying that my body had been dead before my Regression date. Some didn't have an ending, which I presume means that I haven't been able to defeat the Beast of Apocalypse. Some were very short, meaning that they were parts of another Rope, another timeline.

"You, live off the time you aren't supposed to, Seventh."

"What… does that even mean?"

The time… I'm not supposed to live?

What..?

"In each Cycle, there has been a Hyoudou Issei that tried to save the World, a Normal Regressor. His regression date surpasses yours, with him going back just a few weeks before the Kyoto Incident as you both call it."

"Rest assured, you're still Hyoudou Issei of this Kalpa, as your counterpart too, is."

Wh…

What…

The…

Fuck…?

"As a Normal Regressor, he goes on from the end of the timeline to the start. That's the intended way for Regressors. He's in a Linear-Timeline."

The various ropes begin to form another, long, circle.

No.

They form, an Ouroboros.

"You, an Irregular Regressor, experience the parts of the various timelines he's left. That's why you don't keep your powers, or able to know exactly what happens in the future, or the past."

"You and Him, share the title of Infinite Regressor."

Yeah, that's about it for the Ninth Chapter ecks dee dee.

Introduction of Seventh's counterpart, or rather, his past? Self wasn't planned to be this early, yet I wanted to complicate things further by revealing it now.

Next chap will be about the aftermath of this discovery and how our protag handles it.

R&R Boys and Grilles.

Shiwftie out.