episode_0000

“What… What is this all about? What on earth is this!”

A twisted expression of annoyance that didn’t quite match her pure white hair.

However, her charm was soaring to the skies due to her eyes, as red as if soaked in blood.

This charming woman, with a crumpled letter she seemed to have forced herself to pin, was thrusting it towards me, demanding an explanation with her eyes as if shouting.

The woman’s name was Ayla.

She was one of the key figures in the world of Karla, the protagonist who had been blessed in this realm. Despite being often criticized for her lack of character, she was popular due to her dedicated nature.

As I, a South Korean, stared back at Ayla with a clueless expression, having just woken up in this world after falling asleep in bed while preparing for work the day before, I realized I had become a character in the novel I had been reading until then.

The character I had become was Siyeon. She was the protagonist’s rival and childhood friend.

But as they grew older, their differences in beliefs and thoughts tore them apart like paper, especially when Ayla, the girl Siyeon liked, fell deeply in love with the protagonist. Their relationship was irreparably shattered, torn to pieces beyond repair.

Well, the character with such a setup was the one I had now embodied.

The reason I was receiving Ayla’s cold treatment was all according to my plan.

Her disdain might seem like an act of anger, but it was not. It was the expression of someone confronting me because something had gone wrong.

“This… Oh, did you… hear?”

Disappointed, I put on a regretful expression and awkwardly smiled at Ayla with watery eyes.

All of this was my act, a kind act to make Ayla feel guilty.

Ayla had fallen into my trap.

Trap.

A term used to describe a combination of regret, filth, and obsession genres that existed in the present world. It was a genre that, although divisive in various media, guaranteed entertainment if one’s tastes aligned with it.

Being a huge fan of traps, I had planned to witness Ayla, one of the heroines in this world who had not fallen into a trap, succumb to it ever since I became Siyeon. It was my trap plan.

And now, caught in Ayla’s bait, I was merely a fish.

The letter Ayla handed me was from her mother, thanking Siyeon for various acts of kindness towards her. It detailed how Siyeon had donated the little money she earned while with Ayla, supported Ayla’s mother’s flower shop, gifted medicine for an incurable illness, and wrote praises for Ayla, all done selflessly.

Ayla’s mother was extremely grateful and eventually sent a letter to Ayla, as I had anticipated. Ayla was very pleased by it.

Ayla’s family was poor.

So, despite Ayla’s talents, she had to earn money to support her family. However, due to her romantic involvement with the protagonist, she had neglected her family for a whopping ten months.

For those ten months, Ayla’s mother survived, thanks entirely to me.

Yet, the usual Ayla treated me with disdain.

Since I’ve been at odds with the protagonist I possessed, whom Ayla likes, ever since the possession, I just let it be because the strained relationship couldn’t be repaired. However, it unexpectedly fit well into my scamming plan.

Ayla despised me and subjected me to many humiliating acts and violence.

Well, it’s only natural considering what I did to the protagonist first. I’ll do anything to carry out the scam. Even if it means committing a crime.

After that, even without hitting the protagonist, at the mere thought of me, biases like ‘Ah! This guy is trash, so it’s okay to beat him!’ would pop into my head, prompting me to shout, hit, not distribute money properly, and act like a complete villainous boss.

It worked out well for me. As a result, I could scam Ayla. Although scamming Ayla wasn’t part of my original plan, her tormenting me actually helped end the scam early. It could have overlapped with the Red Moon phase if I had made a mistake.

“What, what is this all about? What have you been doing for the past 10 months while I forgot about home?”

I saved your parents.

“You sent 100 gold coins over 10 months! That’s sending 10 gold coins per month!”

Yes, that expression.

“And… And that’s the money I gave you! Why is it with our parents? You’re poor! You don’t have money! Why did you send money to our parents?”

Just to see that expression.

Emotions escalate and intensify.

Ayla couldn’t believe this fact, contorting her face, which even an ordinary person would find hard to possess, lowering her head shakily, trembling, and starting to question me in confusion.

Ayla must be very confused right now.

Having tormented, hit, deliberately given less money, and shouted at a man who was actually saving her parents, she must be struggling with the fact that her tormentor was an unexpected benefactor.

Due to Ayla’s nature of repaying kindness no matter what, just by bestowing favor upon her parents, the first part of the scam plan will be complete.

Next comes being resented. The one who hit and tormented her, in reality, secretly helped her forgotten parents.

Given Ayla’s personality, she would find it hard to believe and be perplexed.

-Snap!

“Oh my.”

Ayla, who snatched the letter I was holding, forcibly and stiffly pinned down, began to read the crumpled letter line by line.

“Supporting a flower shop…!! Giving a cure for an incurable disease…!! The cure for an incurable disease is a major discovery…! If used on someone other than my parents, you could have enjoyed immense wealth and honor?! And… What’s this praise…! Kind… Well-raised… Caring… Angel… It’s all lies…! What on earth is this?!”

As if unable to believe the contents of the letter, Ayla continued to tremble and question me.

Ayla, who usually doesn’t stutter, is stumbling over her words.

That’s how agitated she is.

But rather than asking, it’s likely more about why I did this secretly without informing her.

If Ayla had known from the beginning that I was saving her parents, she wouldn’t have tormented me.

However, doing so would prevent me from completing the scam I desired.

Ayla’s only flaw is family. And the most precious thing to her is family. So, I had to use family to carry out the scam.

To scam effectively, secrecy is key. Starting with kind words, everything must be handled carefully to successfully execute the scam.

In a typical harem novel, the heroine often mistreats the protagonist, who then witnesses the protagonist’s hidden kindness and decides to engage in a harem, or the protagonist faces despair due to their own mistakes and seeks solace in a harem. Subsequently, rejecting the protagonist is considered quite common.

However, I am not the protagonist. I am neither loved by heroines nor do I believe it would be easy to steal the hearts of heroines from Carla.

It may not be achievable through conventional means. Yet, it is not impossible either.

Exploiting their flaws might make it easier for them to turn their love towards me.

Nevertheless, I deliberately proceeded with the harem. Performing acts of kindness behind the scenes while enduring torment upfront. After ten months of this cycle, the harem was finally complete.

With a heart filled with excitement, barely managing to suppress my rising excitement, I took a step forward towards Ayla, boldly meeting her gaze as she looked down at me, gently touching her face while speaking.

“I told you. Ayla, I love you. More than anyone else. Even if you love Carla, I love only you. Wholeheartedly. I love only you.”

Sporting a kinder smile than usual, I finished speaking and flashed a sly grin.

Well, it’s all a facade.

Hearing sweet yet deceitful words akin to whispers from the devil, Ayla seemed moved, tears streaming down her face as she began to sob.

“W-what… What are you saying…? I… I hit you… I even hit Carla because of you… I tormented you… I cursed at you… I stole your money, didn’t give you proper mission rewards… You only gave me 10 gold coins instead of the original 100… But why are you treating me so well…? What have I done to you…?”

Struggling to speak, Ayla continued without pushing away my hand caressing her face, her voice trembling.

From her hesitant body language and tearful eyes, it was evident how much tension and confusion she was experiencing.

Yes… This is it. This is when the harem begins.

Excitement enveloped my entire being.

Endure, hold back. Not yet. It’s not over yet. The decisive blow has not been struck yet.

If I were to tell Ayla that I love her here and gently embrace her slender back, she would come to like me instead of the protagonist. But that’s not the salvation harem, not the harem I desire.

To conduct a harem… this is what needs to be done.

-Swish.

“Ahh… Syrian…?”

I gently embraced Ayla’s warm, slender back with both hands to comfort her.

Then, I whispered sweet words into her ear.

“Even if you torment me… hit me… do bad things to me… I love only you… solely, only you… So please don’t cry. I love only you.”

Facing Ayla, I displayed a sincere yet heavily embellished ‘false’ smile.

“……..”

Upon hearing my heartfelt but heavily acted ‘false’ words, Ayla, who had been holding back her tears, burst into uncontrollable sobs.

“S-sorry… I’m sorry, Syrian… Ahh… Ahh…!”

Placing her hands on my back just like I did, Ayla held me tightly, unwilling to let go.

My false feelings, whether they were conveyed to Ayla as ‘love’ or mixed with the genre of delusion, embraced me.

Then, I patted Ayla’s back, meaning for her tears to stop.

Ayla’s heart now fully belongs to me, not the protagonist.

If I were to say once again that I love her and smile brightly, spending a married life with such a beautiful lady wouldn’t be just a dream.

But there’s a catch.

-Chuckle.

Is this a farce?

With a wicked grin, I quietly say to Ayla,

“But… I can’t love you anymore.”

“Eh…?”

Ayla’s shocked expression returns upon hearing my startling statement.

Seeing Ayla’s expression, I almost couldn’t contain my excitement, but thanks to my poker face, I managed to hide it.

Suppressing my excitement, I spoke without missing the opportunity.

“I’m tired too… Supporting your parents… Enduring your torment…”

Ayla’s face contorts instantly. The shocked expression vanishes, replaced by a sense that something is wrong, calling my name repeatedly and reaching out endlessly.

I pushed away her hand and continued speaking.

“So, I was planning to send money to your mother only until this week and take a break, but… I got caught… Anyway, one thing is certain, Ayla.”

-Pop!

Pushing Ayla away.

“I don’t love you anymore.”

I make a highly shocking declaration to Ayla.

After conveying words akin to a breakup to Ayla, I pushed her away from my embrace, summoned an ice magic spell, an ice wall, in front of her, then turned around and fled.

Seeing the ice wall appear, Ayla immediately drew a bright white sword from her sheath, seemingly ready to shatter the ice wall, but I was already far away.

“Sh-Shiirain…!”

-Thud!

As I suddenly distanced myself, Ayla, bewildered, ran after me, throwing even her cherished attachment sword, desperately chasing me.

Tears streaming down, looking desperate, sweating profusely.

The tendencies of obsession and exhaustion are abundantly evident.

Excitement rises.

The farce begins…

Oh, dear…!

I’m going crazy…! Insanely…! Excitement rises…!

My body shivers with excitement. I immediately shook off the shiver and focused on running ahead.

“Shiirain! Wait…! I’ve only realized your kindness now…! I haven’t repaid you yet…! If you leave like this…! What should I do…!!! I’m sorry…!! I was wrong…!! So please come back…!!”

Ayla’s figure, calling me desperately with a poignant voice, vividly appears in my mind.

I’ll see her again at the academy anyway, so I don’t understand why she’s acting like this… It must be the influence of the farce.

Due to the farce, Ayla, becoming desperate and frantic, will seem like I’m disappearing forever.

One who showed true love suddenly distances themselves, claiming not to love themselves.

It’s truly maddening.

And I’m going mad too.

Because of the excitement…!!

-Thump!

“Ugh…!”

Suddenly, a sound of something falling behind me.

Turning around, I saw Ayla stumbling as if tripping over something.

Her leg is bleeding, covered in mud all over her body.

Most women tend to stop following in that state.

But…

-Pop!

“W-Wait… Shiirain…!”

It’s not Ayla.

Just now, limping towards me, Ayla approached.

As mentioned earlier, Ayla is devoted to her loved one.

Therefore, if her beloved is in danger, she rushes over without caring whether she gets hurt or not.

Even now, Ayla endures pain and comes running because she doesn’t want to lose me.

She may not be running, but according to Ayla’s standards, she is. So let’s say she’s running.

“Well then… shall we try this now?”

Now is the time to execute the final plan.

Ayla falling was within my calculated range.

Ayla tends to easily fall when she fails to maintain balance due to rushing.

Although this tendency has been corrected later on, we are still in the very early stages. It was too early to assume that this tendency had been fixed.

As expected, to exploit this trait, I needed to intensify tension and urgency. Plan 1 was to set up an ice wall, turn around, and run away.

Next, Plan 2 involved legs and feet faster than Ayla’s, trained to amplify fear and anxiety.

The narrowing distance brought increasing urgency, tension, fear, and anxiety towards Ayla. With all these emotions intensifying, Ayla had no choice but to fall. Following that, the final Plan 3 was implemented.

-Swish.

Arms wide open.

One could call this a strange method.

But all of this was just one method for the aftermath.

Turning back, I opened my arms towards Ayla.

Seeing my gesture, Ayla seemed to misunderstand it as an invitation to embrace, showing a happy smile as she staggered towards me.

If I don’t embrace her here, it will be a pure love ending.

Yes, a pure love ending sounds nice. Living a newlywed life with such a beautiful woman is truly the best.

But what I desire is the aftermath. It’s not a genre like pure love.

The aftermath ending is like this…

-Thud!

-Plop!

“Uh…?”

Rather than embracing, it’s a push.

As Ayla tried to come into my arms with a radiant smile, I closed my arms abruptly, pushing her away.

Unaware that I would push her, Ayla, caught off guard, ended up sitting weakly on the ground, showing a shocked expression.

“Oh…?”

A sigh of disbelief escaped Ayla’s lips.

Seeing her face, I almost felt excitement again, but I suppressed it with a poker face.

Then, as the final blow, abandoning the bright smile from before, I spoke to Ayla in a neutral tone.

“Leave, Ayla. I no longer love you.”

“Wait–!”

Before Ayla could finish speaking, I pulled out a small teleportation scroll from my pocket and tore it apart before she could get up.

-Shoosh!

“It’s done…! Success…!”

Celebrating the successful activation of the teleportation scroll, I rejoiced once more at the success of the aftermath.

My recent actions were the final device to amplify Ayla’s anxiety once again.

If the anxiety reaches its peak, people like Ayla might enter a state of panic, biting their nails and becoming agitated.

However, since I didn’t completely disappear, the Academy will send someone, and when they do, emitting a cold gaze, I will look at Ayla…!!

“Oh…! Thrilling…!”

As I imagine Ayla’s face filled with despair, excitement surges within me.

But it’s too early to be satisfied with this.

“Now… Rachel and Lulu…?”

There are still two main characters left.

Lulu and Rachel.

After Ayla, it’s your turn. The two of you will provide a different kind of aftermath compared to Ayla.

With Lulu’s escape plan already fully devised, all that was left was to wrap up Lulu’s escape and start planning Rachel’s.

Upon realizing this fact, as the emotion of excitement surged once again, I couldn’t contain a wicked grin any longer.

“Ahahaha!”

Laughing heartily, clutching my stomach.

I laughed so much that tears welled up in my eyes.

Or rather, it wasn’t so much laughter out of amusement, but a laugh borne from the exhilaration of finally completing the first of my long-awaited desires.

And it was truly wicked.

Wicked, like a devil, like a devil seeking to dominate this world.