Vera/Chronology

Overview**Chronology**
## Pre-Regression

Vera was a boy living in the slums, struggling to live. However, one day, he awakened the Stigma of Oaths, a bestowment from the God of Oaths Lushan. Normally, he should have headed off to the Holy Kingdom in order to become a Holy Knight and officially become a God's Apostle. However, Vera did not want that. Instead, he used the Stigma of Oaths for evil. He rose in power, dominated the Continent's Underworld, becoming its King. He killed and conquered, becoming a powerful and evil man.

   When the war against the Demon King broke out, Vera decided to stay away from it. Unfortunately, his comfortable life did not last for long. This is because, after defeating the Demon King, the Heroes decided to fix all internal issues in the continent and eliminate all evil, which Vera was one of. As a result, the Heroes chased after him. Fortunately, Vera was strong. Strong enough that even the Heroes could not go against him in combat. They couldn't surpass him at all.

Therefore, they decided to curse Vera, resulting in Vera's body becoming a mess from the curse. He thought he would die after he was cursed, but when he opened his eyes, he found himself in the slums under the care of a woman. A woman Vera recognized as the Saint, Renee. She was supposed to be dead, but Vera learned she faked her death because her presence started wars. Everyone wanted her power, thus she faked her death and returned her Stigma to her God, The Lord.

Disfiguring her face to hide her identity, she hid in the slums and ended up saving Vera. Or at least, did her best. Due to the fact she had given up her power, all she could do at most was prolong Vera's life. Vera himself knew this, that his body was beyond saving. He criticized Renee for this, for saving him, for it was pointless. But the Saint was stubborn, and nursed him. She took care of him, fed him the food she obtained, and chatted with him while caressing his body to ease the pain he sometimes felt would drive him crazy.

   Vera called her a fool. In his eyes, no one would save him, someone who was dying, with so much care, but her reply was simple.

  ― Renee's reply,*Chapter 2*

   Thus, Vera continued to live for a little longer due to Renee's care. Nonetheless, his time was ticking down. He knew the curse wasn't something Renee who had given her power away could heal. Nonetheless, the Saint was persistent, nursing him to the best of her abilities. Days passed, weeks, passed. Renee nursed him, and this prolonged period of time made Vera changed inwardly. He was a monster, a scourge who had killed and did many bad things. But he was okay with it. He was willing to accept his sins. He would have no regrets...but that changed. Renee made Vera have regrets.

Unfortunately, his time wasn't exactly eternal. He was slowly dying. Despite this, Renee did not give up. She always said "You never know." That was her way of saying things. Vera could not understand why she went so far for him, an evil being. But because of her care, he was changing more than he thought possible.

But all things have an end. One day, before Renee left, Vera warned her. The necklace she had on her neck, a proof of her status in the Holy Kingdom, was something she shouldn't wear in the slums. Scavengers, who killed and robbed for a living, would kill her and take it from her. Renee refused, and true to herself, left that day to find some food. And that was the last time she ever return.

For some time, Vera remained alone, waiting for her, and his death. But upon realizing she wouldn't return,, he was curious if she had left. In his mind, it made sense. No matter how much she did, he was dying. However, for some reason, he moved. He crawled, ignoring the pain as he moved forward. He crawled until eventually, his worse nightmares came true. He found Renee's lifeless corpse amongst muddy water. He crawled towards her as he though a myriad of things.

    This was because Renee had made Vera break his bow to bear all of his sins and die alone. And seeing her lifeless corpse, he felt unknown feeling swelling up inside of him. As he neared her, he opened his mouth and revealed the fact that he had a Stigma, the Stigma of Oaths. That he too was someone like her. That this was the talent that had allowed him, a beggar, to become strong. He confessed how through it he became strong, how it gave his words weight, actual power. He revealed the stigma on his right forearm. Using the stigma, as he reached her, he made an Oath.

  ― Vera,*Chapter 4*

An oath to show what he felt. A promise to put her in the most honorable and noblest position. A promise to never allow her to end up like this. A promise to protect her.

  ― Vera's Oath to Renee,*Chapter 4*

As he closed his eyes, and the oath was made, Vera thought he was dying. But the last thing he heard before his "death" was the sound of a clock.

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We later learn that Vera's memories were, in fact, tampered with. It seems the old turn's Renee had tampered with Vera's perception of the events that happened. After all, many things did not make sense:
1. How could Renee give her Stigma back to the Lord?
2. Why would people start wars over Renee when Apostles in general were Demigods with great strength?
3. Why would the Holy Kingdom do nothing about Renee and the war?

Such things did not make sense. Through this, and the things **Time Walker** Orgus showed both Renee and Vera, we learned that Rohan and Renee of the old turn were secretly working on something. Specifically, Renee and Rohan met the old turn's Vera and struck a deal with him. In exchange for Vera lending his strength when Renee required it, she would keep his existence off the Holy Kingdom Elia's radar. Some time later, after Renee faked her death, we learn that Vera had actually died along the way somehow. And through the "Crown", Vera was temporarily resurrected. It was during this time that Vera was cared by the Saint and his memories were messed with in order to create false memories.

The original Renee seemed to have chosen Vera for something he did not know due to his skewed memories and perception. During the Dream Demon Arc, we learn about this more thoroughly.
## Post-Regression

The next thing Vera knew, he was woken up in the body of his fourteen-year-old self who was being beaten up. He thought this was well. That he was in the nether and that Renee was in the Lord's arms. However, he soon realized this wasn't hell, but that he had regressed.

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Chapter 4
2. ↑ Chapter 5