Ch.201201. Red Night

I blinked dazedly as I stared at the Luminary.

It took quite a while to understand what he meant.

“…What?”

“Let’s kill what’s inside the Tristan Duchess’s body. That shouldn’t be bad news for you, right?”

“…”

Judging by how casually he said it, I hadn’t misheard.

“What are you thinking, saying something like that?”

“…”

If someone who knew nothing about demons said this, I could chalk it up to ignorance.

But this guy definitely knows about demons. That’s clear from everything he’s done so far.

“…”

In fact.

He often gives the impression that he knows far more about demons than I do with my game knowledge.

Almost as if he has direct ‘experience’ with them.

“Demons can be killed. You know that, right?”

“…”

Just the fact that he says things like this proves it.

He’s right, of course. As evidenced by the Grey Demon being the final boss in Serath, they are entities that can be ‘cleared.’

If the conditions are met, it’s possible to kill them…

As I silently glared at him, he shrugged and continued.

“What you’re trying to protect are the demon ‘Vessels’ around you, not the demons themselves, right?”

And then.

He casually touched on the most crucial point.

He knows exactly why I keep twisting my body to prepare for upcoming events, the core principle behind my actions.

“Don’t you think the demons themselves are just parasites clinging to them? Ultimately, they’ll only have negative effects on the material world.”

“…”

“Because of you… the Vessel, the hero, none of it is going according to your plan. I’m offering you a choice to steer the ‘development’ of the story in the direction you want. You should be grateful.”

I stared at him silently for a long time.

Then, with a sigh, I spoke again.

“…Why do you want to kill the Grey Demon?”

Come to think of it, this guy has always shown a strong obsession with Elnore.

In the Crucible of Struggle, he tried to use the entire chapter boss to divert my attention so he could kill Elnore.

“What good would knowing my reasons do you?”

He responded to my question with a voice tinged with laughter.

It was a sneer heavily mixed with ‘What could you possibly do in this situation anyway?’

“You can’t use the Holy Sword, the Demonic Vessels can’t fully help you, and you’re facing a Vessel with three fragments. Other than accepting the deal, what choice do you have—”

“I.”

I cut off his words with a flat voice.

“I asked ‘why’ you want to kill the demon.”

“…”

“It’s strange. For you of all people to say something like that.”

The Luminary closed his mouth at my words.

For the first time, a crack appeared in his consistently composed demeanor.

“You said the others changed because of me.”

This guy.

He said that because of the butterfly effect I caused, Elia, Elnore, and everyone else were all affected.

“But from what I can see, the same applies to you.”

“…”

I continued speaking to him as he remained silent.

Looking at this guy’s actions so far, there are quite a few strange points.

Starting with his name—he’s the leader of the Cultists of the Demon. In the original game, his actions were entirely focused on resurrecting them.

While his sneaky, scheming nature remains the same, the fact that he’s openly trying to persuade me to kill a demon shows how vastly different he is from the original Luminary.

And if my thinking is correct.

There’s a very simple and fundamental reason for this difference.

“You.”

I continued calmly.

“You weren’t originally the ‘Luminary,’ were you?”

I could feel his breath stop for a moment.

It was clear that my words had hit the mark.

“I don’t know how you ended up in that position—there are too many possible scenarios. But.”

I could imagine his eyes widening beneath his mask.

His shock was palpable in the atmosphere, in the air, through my skin.

“But you’re not the ‘original,’ are you?”

“…”

Somehow, this guy drove out the ‘original Luminary’ who existed in this world and took his place.

He’s not someone who existed in this world from the beginning, but one of the elements that changed when I was incarnated into this world.

“…”

And, with high probability.

This guy is someone I know.

I don’t know who exactly yet, but…

“…Getting back to the original topic.”

I sighed and said.

“I’m declining your offer to kill the demon.”

“…Why? Do you actually have a way to resolve the current situation?”

“Honestly, I don’t.”

I think I roughly understand why he’s making such a proposal.

Probably.

It’s certain that I’ll suffer terribly because of one of the demons in the future.

Both Sullivan and this guy have shown it.

They’ve repeatedly demonstrated a pathological wariness of ‘other demons.’

However.

“Earlier, you said what I want to protect are just the ‘Vessels,’ right? Not the demons themselves.”

You said they have a negative influence on the material world just by existing.

That’s true.

They’re beings so powerful that the world warps just from their appearance. There’s no statement more accurate if you recall what Elnore, with just two fragments, was capable of.

But.

“Demons have personalities too, right?”

“…What?”

To the Luminary who responded in bewilderment, I calmly continued.

“They think, have memories, feel emotions. They act like people, don’t they?”

“…”

“And every single one of them seems to like me.”

Then.

My response is already decided.

“That means they’re all my women too.”

“…”

I could feel the Luminary’s jaw dropping in disbelief.

I smiled at him and added.

“So, don’t touch them. Or I’ll kill you.”

Silence.

The silence stretched on.

The Luminary stared at me wordlessly. Not with indignation or anger, but with pure astonishment.

[Hey. Boy King. Old man. Wake up!]

[Wh-what, what is it?]

[It’s time to clap together! This bastard’s playboy level is hitting its peak!]

“…”

Calivan.

Please.

Shut up.

“…So.”

Ignoring the dumbfounded Luminary, I looked at the window appearing before me.

It’s about time.

< System Message >

[ Updating Main Quest! ]

[ Entering the final branch of the chapter! ]

< Quest Info >

[ Main Quest ]〖 Chapter 4 – Red Night 〗

[ Stop the rampage of the ‘Red Demon’! ]

“For now, I have to do something.”

If there’s no teeth, use the gums.

As always, it’s time to twist my body.

●

“…So.”

Elia awkwardly opened her mouth and looked around.

In fact, until just now, she had been quite dejected.

She had been cooped up in her dormitory room all day, wallowing in depression after not being chosen by the Holy Sword, but fortunately or unfortunately, she no longer had the luxury to do so.

Because.

“Why is everyone gathered here…?”

She asked with a trembling voice, but no one properly answered her question.

Elnore. Riru. Serath…

Each face seemed familiar from somewhere.

‘…All of them are Demonic Vessels…!’

With all these people gathered in the room with tense expressions and stiff faces, the atmosphere was extremely heavy.

“Can someone please explain—!”

“Well, I’m sure everyone’s preparing, so don’t press too much.”

Elnore, who was sitting on the sofa polishing her sword, threw those words at her.

She seemed relatively composed, but she too appeared somewhat rigid and tense.

“…Preparing? For what?”

“…Didn’t the ghost come to you?”

Ghost?

What nonsense is this?

As Elia thought with a bewildered expression, Elnore just shrugged and answered.

“Well, if you don’t know, that’s fine. It’s better to eliminate one competitor anyway.”

“…”

The other women nearby didn’t say anything, but they seemed to agree.

They all silently nodded with stiff expressions.

“But why did you all barge into my room…!”

“…I think it’s probably because you’re the only one everyone feels somewhat comfortable with. They must have thought this was the only place to kill time.”

“…What?”

“Look around. These are all people with catastrophically poor social skills who don’t have a single friend in the same grade.”

“…”

“You’re the only one they can approach somewhat comfortably.”

“…”

It’s true.

Is poor sociability a condition for being a Demonic Vessel?

“I really don’t understand what’s going on…”

Of course, it’s still incomprehensible why they’re doing this without any explanation.

Especially.

Among them, there’s someone who seems to be in a particularly serious state.

“…”

Elia looked with concerned eyes at Yuria, who was sitting quietly in a corner of the room.

It was essentially the first time they’d faced each other since Darwood got involved with them and lost consciousness.

Outwardly, she appeared normal. As always, quiet. Keeping to herself and just observing her surroundings.

But.

To her with the Eyes of Truth.

To her who could see through the ‘essence’ of her subject.

Yuria’s exact state was visible.

‘…She’s on the verge of suicide.’

She’s empty.

The girl who once lived her life properly, albeit timidly, now seemed as precarious as a candle in the wind.

“…”

And that made her even more curious.

Why is even a girl in this state out here ‘waiting’ for something?

“At least give me a hint—”

Elia tried to continue, but.

It seemed there was no need to hear the rest of her explanation.

Before she could finish her sentence.

-!!

-!!!!!!!!!!!!

-!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

With a massive flame.

A deafening sound that seemed to tear through the night echoed in all directions.

“It’s beginning.”

As Elnore said in a low voice.

Elia stared with trembling eyes at the pillar of fire rising outside the window.

Without a doubt.

It was a scene she remembered seeing before.

“…Red Night?”

The night sky.

Was being dyed red with flames.

●