episode_0203

The words that popped out of Gyeommyeojoshaegiwat’s mouth, “I’ve never cleared it before,” caused quite a bit of confusion.

You’ve never cleared ‘Luminor Academy’? But how did you manage to get here without making any mistakes?

“You’ve never done it?!”

“Lower your voice. If you’re not careful, it might reach the room.”

“Ah, anyway, if you’ve never cleared it, how did you get this far?”

“We agreed to take turns asking questions. You just answered, so it’s not my turn this time, right?”

“…Right. Ask your question quickly.”

In the midst of the confusion caused by the hero who had never cleared before, Gyeommyeojoshaegiwat handed me the first question.

“What happened with Edan that made him change like that? Did he switch places with someone else, or did he activate some kind of Edan modeling change mode?”

“I don’t really know. He just changed like that while trying not to get caught by him.”

“How do you know if you say it like that? There must have been something specific that happened.”

“…After cursing him a few times for his harassment and disgusting behavior, he changed like that. I don’t know exactly how he changed. I’m not the main character to begin with, and this is my first time exploring the game as a release, so how would I know.”

I didn’t bother mentioning the fact that it had almost come to the point of strangling him with a scarf. I had been making a fuss outside, and there was a possibility that I could have been strangled.

“Even so, Edan changes that easily? It doesn’t seem likely…”

“Enough, it’s my turn to ask the next question.”

“…Fine, go ahead.”

“If you’ve never cleared it until now, how did you manage to get this far? The Cerista fake saint and Sirena breadcrumbs are only revealed from the second round.”

“I only didn’t clear it, but I played ‘according to the walkthrough’ properly until then. I followed exactly what was posted as a 25th round playthrough for Lua Gal. I just didn’t see the ending, but I made it to just before the final battle with the Demon King.”

“Oh, you’re one of those who follow the walkthrough. I worried for nothing then.”

…From the first answer, it was clear that he would say something like that and confuse people.

It was a moment when a vague thought crossed my mind that I had wasted a question.

“…Can I ask a question this time?”

“Ah, sure.”

Before I could recall the question that popped into my head for a moment, Gyeommyeojoshaegiwat’s next question continued without a pause.

“Since you don’t know exactly how Edan changed, what do you think has happened to Edan himself right now?”

“Huh? What do you mean by ‘what do you think has happened’?”

“You’ve seen him the most up close. You should be able to anticipate to some extent whether he will become a villain or a hero in the future story.”

“Oh, that… But if he’s going to be a villain, what’s the point?”

“It might be uncomfortable to know someone personally, but if it’s necessary for clearing, as the main character, you should do what needs to be done.”

…Does that mean if he’s not a villain, there’s no need to wield a sword?

Although I didn’t like the tone that seemed to handle Edan’s life as a game clear matter in a bureaucratic manner, it also meant that he was sincere about clearing to that extent.

It was better to have a player who followed the conventional route rather than spouting off half-baked theories. If we had to compare, this side had fewer variables to consider.

“…I can’t guarantee he’ll become a hero, but he probably won’t become a villain for sure.”

“Can you guarantee that?”

“At first, the reason why I was the villain in the game as Edan… no, because I abused Relis. There was no reason for me to be the villain since I didn’t abuse anyone. There wasn’t even a story where Edan was involved with demons.”

“…Well, he doesn’t seem to have been abused at all. He seemed to cherish her a lot, actually.”

“Well, for now, we’re dating.”

“…What?!”

“You’re speaking loudly. It might be heard inside.”

The words that suddenly came out of my mouth seemed to surprise the warrior, who looked at me with a bewildered expression.

There was no need to keep it a secret, so it was a truth I revealed appropriately.

And by directly telling him about Edan and my relationship, it could help him trust me, and it was more convincing to say that he changed to protect his lover rather than just saying Edan’s personality had become kind.

In reality, Edan’s actions, which showed that he liked me, were enough to be understood without paying much attention, so it wasn’t difficult to make him believe.

“Wow… so you’re dating Edan by possessing Relis? Your ability is really good.”

“Just so you know, it’s not like Edan is my type or anything. I don’t really like guys.”

“…Huh?”

“Well, Edan really likes me, and we’re dating because he owes me a lot. Don’t misunderstand.”

“Huh? Misunderstand what? It’s a matter of a man and a woman, if you want to date, you date.”

“…Oh, well, yeah. Yeah, that’s true…”

…Come to think of it, he still doesn’t know that I was a man in my past life.

If he thinks that a woman possessed another woman and shows such a reaction, it would be natural to think so.

Objectively speaking, Edan was handsome, came from a good family, and was skilled in martial arts, so he was close to being a perfect man.

It was more comfortable to let him continue to misunderstand me as a woman. Even though we were temporary lovers, revealing that I was a man in my past life and now dating a man felt like something inside me was being chipped away.

“Anyway, it’s my turn now?”

“Yes.”

“As the protagonist, what is your goal? Is clearing the game itself the goal? Or is it to marry Seraphine and become the emperor after clearing it? Or maybe gather girls to create a harem? Or something else?”

At least this part had to be addressed clearly.

I had some idea that clearing the game was the goal, but what came after clearing it was something to be seen.

In the final episode after defeating the demon king in ‘Luminor Academy,’ you could make a final wish to the goddess and choose one of the endings.

Becoming a hero of the nation and gaining wealth and honor was possible, and if excessive attention was bothersome, living a quiet life with the harem member(s) in a secluded village was also a decent ending.

I’ll say it again, whether the warrior created a harem or chose a pure love ending, I didn’t really care. …As long as they didn’t include me in the demon king subjugation or try to recruit me as a harem member.

“Defeat the demon king and clear the game. …And return to Earth.”

“Huh?”

“I know in the original game, there wasn’t an option for returning, but since it was said that any wish would be granted, it might not be impossible.”

“Really? Seeing a return angle here? It would be much more fun to live here after defeating the demon king than returning to reality, right? Plus, there are already three girls who follow you because they like you…”

“…Some might think that way, but I’ve been strategizing with the sole intention of returning to my original world from the beginning. I never even properly cleared the game once and just read walkthroughs before possessing someone, so it’s not strange that I have no lingering attachment to this world, right?”

“…If you put it that way, I have nothing to say.”

Well, Gyetmyojoshegikwat’s words weren’t completely incomprehensible.

From the start, since this ‘Luminor Academy’ was a game of life for me, there was a time when I was excited just to have entered this world. I even thought that gender didn’t matter if I could live a second life in this world. …Although it was a bit unexpected to end up possessing Rilis.

And since I clearly died in my past life before possessing someone, I couldn’t afford to have any regrets. But maybe in this guy’s case, there was a possibility that a healthy body remained in reality.

If there were many things left behind in reality, then there would be lingering attachments as well, and his words about returning to the original world made sense.

“Well, whatever. If that’s your choice, I won’t say anything.”

“By the way you’re talking, it seems like you don’t have any lingering attachments to reality.”

“I’ve already died once in my past life, and besides, ‘Luminor Academy’ was my favorite game from my past life. To be honest, even if they offered to send me back for free, I wouldn’t want to go.”

“I’ll respect your choice. Everyone has different values.”

It was the moment when our values in this world clashed.

At the same time, I began to understand some of the actions of this guy that I couldn’t understand before.

He probably gave himself a rough nickname to clearly distinguish this world as a game world.

If he was thinking about returning to reality anyway, it would probably be better to draw a clear line rather than getting attached to this world for no reason.

And now I could understand his efforts to clear the game following the conventional playstyle. That’s how important the things he left behind in reality were to him.

It was truly a valuable conversation that allowed me to confirm the things I had only speculated about before, and to dispel any misunderstandings that had unknowingly accumulated.

I never thought I would spend almost a year and a half just to have this short conversation. It feels somewhat empty, yet at the same time, I feel fortunate.

In any case, thanks to his cunning, the possibility of a showdown between Edan, the hero, and me had practically disappeared.

As the 10 minutes of question and answer flew by in the blink of an eye, I quietly concluded in my mind that it would be safer to ask just one or two more questions and leave.

“It’s almost time, so let’s wrap up with your last question today.”

“…Sure. We’ll probably have to work together for a while until the MacHeart issue is resolved, so there will be more opportunities to talk later.”

“Don’t you have anything else you’re curious about? Even if I look like this, I played ‘Luminor Academy’ to the level of a ghost in my past life. I’ve cleared the ending 24 times and even serialized walkthroughs in the gallery, so I can tell you almost everything.”

“Well, I’ve read almost all the walkthroughs posted on LuaGall. By the way, clearing it 24 times, that’s almost on par with the top players, isn’t it?”

“….”

-Shudder.

“…Huh?”

At the moment when my body froze in surprise at the nickname from my community days that I hadn’t heard in a long time, the hero sent me a suspicious glance as he observed my awkward movement.

Could it be that the walkthrough he saw on LuaGall was the one I serialized…?

“Hey, you.”

“…What?”

“Could it be that you’re Rilgirlchang…?”