---

“Now you get it?”

When I raised my head, it wasn’t the Sora from the lingering remnants of the past but the present Sora who was looking at me.

“It was your choice, Oppa.”

From the memories that unfolded before my eyes, I realized. Possessing Tristan, the worst villain, was ultimately my choice.

“…I wanted to understand.”

As memories started to return bit by bit, my mouth opened on its own.

“I wanted to understand the man Bella loved, the one everyone pointed fingers at as a villain…”

If I could become Tristan and understand him, maybe I could save this world, including Bella.

Even after escaping the memories Sora showed me, I stood there for a while, unable to shake off the lingering emotions. It still felt like Bella’s warmth was on my back, and a part of my heart ached.

I wanted to deny that what I experienced wasn’t real, but once the memories started surfacing, they created ripples like a stone thrown into a calm lake.

“Ugh…”

My head throbbed again.

Fragmented memories of what I experienced during the last possession started coming back.

Right… I remembered the day I became Peter and executed Tristan.

That day, it rained as if the sky had a hole in it.

Tristan collapsed, vomiting blood, and I watched him. The blood on the tip of the sword in my hand was washed away by the rain.

“Ah…”

Helga approached Tristan, who had fallen without the will to fight.

“Count…”

Holding his body, which was growing cold in the rain, she trembled.

“Hmph… This is the end of a villain.”

The one who aimed a bow at Helga was Cooper, Peter’s comrade and the future Divine Archer. In the original story, he killed Helga, and this time, he pulled the bowstring to end her life.

“Wait, Cooper.”

“Peter?”

I stopped Cooper and spoke to Helga.

“It’s over now, Helga. Surrender.”

Knowing the original story, I personally held Helga’s character in high regard. If I could persuade her, who had abilities far too great for Tristan, she would surely be a great help.

However, if she were to fight us in her grief over losing her master and die in anger, that would be problematic.

“That’s right. It’s over now…”

Finally accepting Tristan’s death, Helga let out a resigned sigh. The hostility and killing intent she had shown earlier seemed to have been washed away by the rain. Seeing her reaction, it seemed the worst-case scenario I feared wouldn’t happen.

“I promised to be the Count’s umbrella no matter what… I’m sorry.”

No response came.

Helga looked at Tristan’s body, drenched in the rain, with a hollow expression.

“I guess I was too small an umbrella to cover the Count.”

But the next moment, I was startled.

In her uncovered eye, I saw despair.

“I guess this is it for me too…”

By the time I realized she was reaching for something in her pocket, it was too late.

“Now… I’ll follow you, Count.”

“Wait?!”

Without a chance to stop her, Helga slashed her own neck without hesitation with a dagger she pulled from her pocket.

Blood spurted through the rain.

A large amount of blood poured onto the wet ground.

“I’ll… cover… you…”

Helga staggered and lay down on Tristan’s body. Like an umbrella.

“Eternally…”

With those words, Helga closed her eyes and smiled like a girl dreaming a happy dream. And she never opened her eyes again.

“Tsk… Pathetic till the end.”

Cooper muttered and turned away.

On the other hand, I froze in place.

Although she was on the side of the villain, I knew how loyal Helga’s character was. Seeing her choose death to follow Tristan, I felt guilty.

But on the other hand, I thought it was inevitable.

After all, Tristan deserved to die.

The head of the ruthless and cruel Ruelberta Family, a villain who sold out this world by siding with the players. I thought killing him early would make the later stages easier for the players.

But even after killing Tristan, I kept failing.

I fell into deep thought.

What was the reason for my repeated failures?

Was it lack of preparation? Insufficient strength? The players acting as variables? Or were the players just too strong?

At the time, I couldn’t figure it out no matter how much I thought about it.

It wasn’t until much later that I realized there was a problem with my approach… That is, the moment Bella died.

No, to be precise, I felt something was off when I proposed to Bella.

In the original story, Bella, tired of her life under Tristan’s control, runs away with Hwulong Blanshe. While wandering in hiding, she meets the hero Peter, and her life takes a turn.

Peter is the one who changes Bella’s life, a true benefactor. Eventually, Bella falls for him and accepts his proposal.

But Bella didn’t accept my proposal. Even in the same situation as the original, she refused with a bitter expression.

I later realized the reason was Tristan. He still remained in her heart.

“Oppa, are you okay?”

“Ah… Yeah…”

When I opened my eyes, Sora was looking up at me with concern.

“You might have a headache because of the influence of my memories.”

“Yeah.”

“Anyway, what I showed you earlier was the memory of the last time you possessed Peter.”

“Right… I remember vaguely.”

Lost in thoughts of the past for a moment, I wiped my face with my palm.

I felt drained. Though not as vivid as with Bella, recalling the memories of the previous possession that led Helga to her death was extremely painful.

“Since you forgot everything, I had to show you what happened through my memories. If it gets too painful, let me know.”

“I’m fine. More importantly, how long has it been? No… How many times have I repeated the possession?”

“I told you. Countless times. And you failed countless times too. That’s why Michaela didn’t actively help you; she had seen you fail too many times.”

Come to think of it, Michaela, the god of this world called Paradise, had been hostile to me from the start. I thought it was just her terrible personality, but it seems it was more about distrust than hostility.

The gods of this world, including Michaela, seem to return to the moment of my possession every time I possess someone. Like a time loop.

And that fact made me question something.

“Sora, let me ask you one thing. Answer me honestly.”

“Okay.”

About the discomfort I’ve been feeling all along.

“Where exactly is ‘here’?”

“……”

Sora’s eyes widened in surprise. Seeing that, I became more certain of my suspicion.

“Something felt off. If this were truly a game world reflecting the original story, it would be impossible for me to fail. Even if I don’t remember, I would have tried to follow the original story faithfully.”

Even as Tristan, I relied solely on the ‘original story’ to move forward.

“Of course, there could be variables. The existence of players or me could be variables. But before she died, Bella told me she couldn’t forget Tristan.”

If it followed the original story, that couldn’t have happened. And that fact naturally led to a certain conclusion.

“This world wouldn’t have followed the original story even without my or the players’ intervention, right?”

“…I didn’t think you’d figure that out.”

Sora gave a bitter smile. Her expression showed a sense of desolation and bitterness.

“Why did you hide that fact from me?”

“I didn’t hide it. You already knew it when you first possessed someone.”

“What?”

I knew it…?

“So, I forgot?”

“Yeah. It was so long ago. You forgot while possessing. As you said, this world isn’t a perfect reflection of the original story. Moreover, it’s not a world that strictly follows the scenarios I created for the game.”

“So, it’s not a game? Then is this another world?”

“Maybe both are correct…”

“??”

The more I asked, the more confused I got. I was starting to get annoyed.

“Stop dragging it out and tell me. What exactly is this world?”

“……”

Sora bit her lower lip and closed her mouth. I remembered that was her habit when she didn’t want to say something.

“…Do you really want to know? Oppa.”

Normally, I would have waited until she spoke on her own. But I didn’t have the patience for that now.

“I need to know.”

I stared straight into Sora’s eyes.

“I became Tristan, went through hell, and came this far. I even lost my memories. At this rate, I might forget why I came here. So, I need to know. What exactly is this world?”

“…You know, there are memories people can’t handle. There are people who suffer because they can’t forget memories they want to forget. Some even die because of them…”

Tears started welling up in Sora’s eyes.

“Now that I think about it… I think you’re happier not knowing. So, I wish you could just let it go…”

Seeing my sister speak with such a trembling voice, I felt an inexplicable fear.

“Do you still really want to know?”

Faced with such a heavy question, I couldn’t answer easily. As Sora said, there are painful truths. But even so, I thought not knowing would be more painful.

“……”

I nodded with difficulty. Sora’s face twisted in sadness.

“Sob…”

“Sora… I…”

“It’s okay…”

Finally, Sora burst into tears. I tried to comfort her by placing a hand on her shoulder, but she shook her head.

“…Whatever happens from now on, it’s absolutely not your fault.”

“What?”

A tear fell from Sora’s eye.

The moment her tear, transparent and sparkling like a gem, hit the ground…

The world stopped.

 

---