Confrontation

Morning came to the hospital ward, and I was preparing to be discharged since there was nothing particularly wrong with my body. As if having heard the news, Roel came to the ward.

,I heard you collapsed? Rosalyn told me.”

Seeing Roel’s worried expression, I shrugged as if it were nothing.

,I was just a little tired from playing too much yesterday.”

,So there’s nothing wrong with your body?”

When I nodded at his words, Roel sighed in relief and smacked my arm with a *peok-* sound.

,This bastard, making his hyung worry. Let’s go grab some food.”

Following Roel, who wore a relieved smile, I left the ward and headed to the cafeteria.

Sitting down and spreading peanut butter on my toast, I casually asked.

,Anything going on these days?”

According to the original story, it should be a time for him to build up memories with the heroines and solidify his harem, so there shouldn’t be any particular incidents, but I asked just in case.

,Nothing much. Other than having more training and studying these days? You’ll realize how easy your first year was when you become a second-year too.”

As I chuckled at Roel’s words and ate my bread, I noticed Roel staring at me.

,What?”

As if he had been waiting for me to ask, Roel smirked, raised an eyebrow, and asked.

,Did anything happen with Ellie yesterday?”

I was so dumbfounded by Roel’s sly voice that a burst of laughter escaped me.

,What nonsense are you spouting?”

,Becoming dance partners with Ellie, who you have a crush on. You’re making faster progress than I expected?”

As I shook my head at Roel’s playful smile, as if he was enjoying teasing me, I felt a strange sense of incongruity.

,But… how did hyung know that?”

Roel, who was drinking milk, tilted his head with a blank expression at my question.

,Know what?”

,That I like Ellie.”

At my words, Roel made a dumbfounded expression and replied.

,Who was it that told me that countless times? You haven’t forgotten the advice I’ve given you all this time, have you?”

I hurriedly shook my head at Roel, who was looking at me with suspicion.

,I remember, of course.”

Roel, shrugging at my answer, started diligently piling ingredients onto his bread, as if planning to make a sandwich.

Watching him, I was overcome with a strange feeling.

The story involving Ross, Ellie, and Roel begins with Ross’s inferiority complex exploding after he mistakenly believes that Ellie and Roel kissed.

Thinking ‘Even Ellie was taken by Roel,’ he succumbs to the Demon King’s temptation and gains the power of darkness.

It was a plot where he tries to kill Roel, who is trying to clear up the misunderstanding, and make Ellie his own, only to be killed by Roel.

Of course, now I’ve found the corrupt artifact and handed it over to Professor Leora. His nervous breakdown is gone too, so it’s safe to say that Ross’s death flag has disappeared.

But one question bothered me like a thorn stuck in my finger.

Why would the original Ross, who didn’t have a good relationship with his hyung, tell Roel that he liked Ellie?

As I was feeling uneasy, a sandwich suddenly appeared in front of me.

,Finished! Roel’s special sandwich, only known to those in the academy! I wanted to make one for you. Try it!”

I was even more confused by Roel’s kind demeanor, handing me the sandwich he made himself with a bright smile.

Not just based on the novel’s setting, but even just looking at Roel in front of me, anyone could tell that he wasn’t the kind of trash who would steal his younger brother’s crush.

Taking the sandwich and taking a bite, I told Roel, who was looking at me with an expectant expression, that it was delicious. His bright smile filled my head with even more unease.

A feeling that I had missed something.

What could it be? As I pondered while eating the delicious sandwich, as Roel had asserted, a memory suddenly popped into my head.

,If I can give you one piece of advice, it’s that Ellie isn’t just trying to use you like you think she is.”

I felt like someone had hit me hard on the back of the head.

I hurriedly got up and said to Roel.

,Hyung, sorry, I have to go somewhere urgently. Can you clear my tray for me?”

,Huh? Okay! But at least finish your milk!”

At Roel’s request, I gulped down the glass of milk and left the cafeteria, heading to the Headmaster’s office.

Just as I was about to knock on the Headmaster’s office door, I heard Nelson’s voice from behind.

,Oh, Ross. Perfect timing. I received the message from Professor Leora. I heard you did it again this time?”

Nelson, wearing a gentle smile, approached and patted my shoulder, giving me a proud look.

,Ah, I just happened to find it while doing club activities.”

,Indeed, it was a good idea to create a club.”

I followed Nelson into the Headmaster’s office. I noticed the fairies that were flying around in the sky hurriedly hiding behind the bookshelf as they saw me.

Sitting across from Nelson, I remembered that I hadn’t thanked him for the gift yet, so I brought that up first.

,Thank you for telling us about the island in the closet. That island was truly too much of a gift for us.”

As I said that with sincerity, Nelson gave a warm smile and shook his head slightly.

,The gift isn’t the island, but the memories you’ll make with your club members.”

After saying that, Nelson tapped his head with his finger.

,Good memories stay in your mind for a very long time. Those things come together and give you the strength to find hope and rise again, even if you fall in the face of adversity.”

Since those weren’t words I could understand right away, I nodded with an awkward smile, then cautiously broached the main subject.

,Um, can I use what I used last time again?”

As I turned my head and looked at the place where the snow globes were displayed, I heard Nelson’s voice.

,Do you need to have a conversation with yourself?”

,Yes. It’s very important….”

Trailing off, I turned my head to look at Nelson. Nelson, smiling, took out his cane.

As he waved the cane, the snow globe flew into Nelson’s hand along with dust.

,Of course, you can. As a gift, I’ll treat your first period as a meeting with me.”

I bowed my head in gratitude to Nelson, who was winking.

,Then have a good time.”

Light emanated from the end of Nelson’s cane, and I briefly lost consciousness along with the feeling of my body being sucked somewhere, which I had experienced sometime before.

*

When I opened my eyes, I saw the world filled with black and white that I had seen sometime before.

In the middle of that world, I saw Ross sitting hunched over with his face buried between his knees, his back turned to me.

,Ross…?”

As I carefully called his name, Ross replied without raising his head.

,Hello, friend. Long time no see? But I thought it wasn’t time for you to come here yet.”

I don’t know why, but I felt like Ross’s voice was a little different.

I took a step closer to Ross and said.

,I asked the Headmaster because I wanted to ask you something.”

,A question. What is it?”

At Ross’s intriguing voice, I swallowed hard and said.

,Why did you tell Roel that you liked Ellie…?”

At my question, Ross’s shoulders shook as if he had heard a funny joke.

,Well? Why are you asking that?”

At his mocking voice, I felt a strange sensation as if my mouth was drying up.

Wiping my face once with my hand at that strange feeling, I sighed and said.

,Because there’s no way Roel would like a girl his younger brother likes…?”

At my uncertain words, Ross shook his shoulders greatly and laughed.

,That’s right, Roel is that kind of guy.”

At Ross’s answer, I clenched my fist and opened my mouth.

,You knew that Ellie was using you to approach Roel, didn’t you?”

,Of course, because I told her to do that in the first place.”

I bit my lip at Ross’s answer. If so….

,You used Roel’s personality, knowing that he wouldn’t accept the feelings of his younger brother’s crush. You kept Ellie by your side pretending to be used.”

I could understand the difference in emotions I felt from Luna and Ellie.

The reason why I felt raw desire from Ellie, unlike Luna, was because that was Ross’s real emotion.

Ross’s true intention was to comfort Ellie, who was suffering from unrequited love like him, and keep her by his side with an ugly greed.

This was something I had never written in the novel. Was it a content that was arbitrarily created for the sake of plausibility?

As my words ended, Ross’s shaking shoulders stopped.

,That’s right, the Roel you created isn’t the kind of trash who would steal his younger brother’s girl. He’s a righteous being who is kind to everyone and fights for the weak.”

Ross, who had been saying that in a mocking voice, let out a hollow laugh and muttered as if whispering.

,If he steals his younger brother’s childhood friend, it’s a protagonist’s setting collapse, NTR. You consumed Ross because you thought the readers would go wild, right?”

Ross, who had been burying his face between his knees, raised his head.

,You had Roel comfort Ellie, who was saddened by the death of her childhood friend, and naturally got them involved. The readers’ reactions were good too.”

Making a chilling laughter that sounded like scraping metal, Ross got up from his seat.

,The inferiority complex lump consumable perfectly fulfilled its role.”

From Ross’s back, I felt an indescribable sense of oppression, and I unknowingly took a step back.

Instinctively realizing that something was wrong, I looked at Ross and asked.

,You… are you really Ross?”

At that question, Ross slowly turned only his head and looked back at me.

,Of course. Of course, it’s ‘us’.”

On Ross’s face as he said that, there was a strangely shaped mask that I had worn sometime before.