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Mirror.

In the empty darkness, a solitary full-length mirror stood alone.

“What’s this?”

There was no mention of demons appearing in the PvP event. Why? The PvP itself was already a significant event.

Honestly, I never imagined it. Well, I didn’t think it would follow the original plot anyway.

How long has it been since the Behemoth event ended?

Though it looked a bit different from what I’d seen in the novel, it was probably that event.

“Mirror.”

If the nightmare I had before was a method to mentally obliterate me by touching on trauma, then this was another way of physically killing me by bringing forth another version of myself.

The other self that appears here looks like a well-crafted illusion but is, in fact, a reality with physical power.

If I die here, then I just die.

This event was not a place from which the original Arthur could easily escape. The moment Arthur summoned light, the other Arthur would bring forth just as strong a darkness.

What’s more, the opponent moves exactly like I do.

That’s why this event, which was originally supposed to proceed in Lucia’s absence, ended up meaningless when Lucia was present too. After all, Lucia would also be fighting her exact duplicate.

But…

“Why isn’t anything coming out for me?”

I thought it could be an opportunity to learn a new skill, but nothing was happening.

The event was quite literally a pain in the ass; it claims to be the same, but in reality, the fake is stronger than the real deal.

The fake pushes with techniques that the real one doesn’t even know, and the method to defeat the fake is to create a new technique that the fake can’t use.

So I was looking forward to gaining at least a new skill.

In the darkness where I couldn’t see anything, apart from the mirror in front of me, nothing was happening.

Is there something in the mirror?

I approached the mirror, but it only reflected my own self.

“Hmmm…”

I examined Luke’s physique reflected in the mirror.

It’s really a solid body, huh?

Excluding the time just after I possessed him, I hadn’t gotten close to the mirror, and it could only have improved, not worsened, so Luke’s body had transformed into a more manly figure than when I first took over.

At this point, I could probably enjoy a pleased smile while looking at myself naked in the mirror.

While I was admiring the mirror with pride…

“What’s going on?”

The figure in the mirror was suddenly moving differently than I was.

The Luke in the mirror seemed to look around the borders as if the mirror were a prison that had trapped him.

Then, suddenly, the mirror rippled, and a hand emerged.

The fake grabbed the edge of the mirror and stepped out from the mirrored world.

As he came out, the color of his pupils changed, showing an appearance opposite to what I had read in the original novel.

In the original, the sclera turned black, and the iris turned purple, but this guy had a red sclera and black iris.

The fake that came out of the mirror spoke with a blank expression, lacking any emotion.

[What are you looking at?]

“You.”

So this is what another version of myself looks like.

It was definitely something I would say.

It’d be odd to continue calling him fake, so I’ll just call him Luke to avoid confusion.

“From now on, your name is Luke Alter.”

[Isn’t that plagiarism?]

“Who cares? I’m not the author.”

[That’s true.]

So what do we do now?

There’s no way to escape other than killing each other.

“Do you give experience points?”

[Would I?]

“I guess not?”

Even in the original, there was only mention of Arthur obtaining new techniques; there was nothing saying he grew stronger in other areas.

If this guy in front of me gave experience points, I could have caught and kept the demon that is the root of this incident and kept using its powers nonstop.

Then I would have created the ultimate experience farming spot.

“Ugh.”

I flopped back down.

With no experience points to gain, there’s no need to bother and fight.

The other side would probably think the same if I were in their place.

As evidence, Alter flopped down next to me, looking utterly uninterested.

I thought about dozing off until the event ended, anyway.

After all, the event would end eventually without any effort since the ‘toilet’ would handle it.

Even if the toilet was clogged, I still had Lucia as insurance.

As I slowly lowered my eyelids…

[Hey, I’m bored. Want to go somewhere else?]

“How?”

[You can use the mirror I just came out of to move to a place where other people are.]

Wasn’t that mentioned in the original? In it, Arthur was the first to escape and killed the demon, and that’s how the event ended.

But that’s that, and this seems really interesting!

“I can’t resist watching a fight.”

[Should I decide where to go?]

“You’ll be able to figure it out, right?”

If he’s thinking the same as me, he’d surely take me somewhere entertaining.

I approached the mirror following Alter, who placed his hand on it just ahead of me.

Then a ripple appeared in the mirror, and we dove back inside, just like before.

Alter waved from inside the mirror, clearly gesturing for me to follow, so I slipped in after him, and a dreamy space came into view.

If the place we were just in resembled a bottomless pit with no light, then here looked like a world made entirely of glass.

“Ow, my eyes.”

[Same here. Thanks to that, I got lost.]

So that’s why he took so long to come out.

It would indeed be more strange not to get lost in a place that seemed to be made entirely of mirrors.

“So, where do we go from here?”

[To the mirror right next to us.]

When I turned to the side at Alter’s words, a mirror that hadn’t been there just moments ago appeared.

Oh, how fascinating. What kind of principle is at work here?

This newly appeared mirror was closer to me than Alter, so I stepped in first.

The place I came out to was a lavish-looking room at first glance.

As I looked around the space, I saw a full-length mirror behind me, and judging by the decor, it seemed to be some ultra-luxurious mansion.

“Who’s in this bright place?”

It’d be normal for anyone caught in this event to be surrounded by darkness like where I was just.

But I was curious who could possibly inhabit a place like this.

[Riche.]

“Oh…”

I really did end up in an exciting place.

The ongoing event is being unfolded not only from Arthur’s perspective but also from each heroine’s viewpoint.

Each main heroine has her own backstory, and of course, there’s a need to drop a certain number of hints.

So as someone who has read the novel, I know who Riche is likely facing right now.

“Then she must be somewhere in this mansion?”

[That would be my guess.]

“She’s not dead already, right?”

[If she were, she wouldn’t have been able to come here. If the subject dies, the world disappears.]

Then she must still be alive.

Though she was supposed to be unkillable anyway.

You never know; maybe she could die since we’ve deviated from the original plot.

Realizing I needed to find her before the movie ended, I quickly left the room.

Stepping out, I was greeted by a long hallway with a red carpet laid out.

How rich could a place be to have a red carpet not just in the hall but in the corridor too?

“Is there a safe or something here?”

[If you take it, it’ll just disappear when you leave.]

“Tsk.”

With that much money spent, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to think I could just rob a safe and live off the earnings. My mind was spinning with happy thoughts, but sadly, that seemed impossible.

With no other choice, I headed toward the hall.

-BAAAM!!

Hearing the explosion from the hall, I figured there was no need to go looking.

I rushed to the hall and found myself on the second floor, where Riche and Hex were having a fun time.

Judging by their unscathed conditions, it appeared the battle had just started, so I quickly settled myself on the staircase.

I thought it was still in advertising, so I took my time coming down, but to my surprise, the ad had ended, and the movie was already playing.

[Popcorn?]

“This service is top-notch here.”

[Popcorn is a gentleman’s basic courtesy.]

Alter waved his hand through the air and pulled out popcorn.

Must have the same inventory options, huh.

I wondered what it was like for others to be able to watch me like this.

Accepting the popcorn from Alter, I gazed back down at Riche on the stairs.

She could easily see us if she just lifted her head a little, but she seemed completely focused on the battle, even though we were just in front of her.

It’s simply absurd to take one’s eyes off a stronger opponent when you’re directly facing them.

“Is that Hex?”

[There’s no one else.]

The guy near Riche, bouncing around like a clown.

One of the good things about being in this world is that I can see the appearance of characters that didn’t have illustrations, so it enhances the immersion.

No matter how popular the work is, there’s no point in spending money on a villain who shows up a few times and dies.

Especially when he’s male.

While the heroine does all the heavy lifting, who’d spend money for a character that only has one illustration for the protagonist?

“Wow… this action scene is insane.”

With Riche having become much stronger than in the original, her attacks were both varied and strong, making it a very enjoyable sight.

Riche, who normally would have been thoroughly beaten, achieved the feat of severing one arm of the demon.

In normal circumstances, losing an arm would be a significant injury, but as expected of a demon, its arm bubbled and seethed before tentacle-like appendages sprouted, restoring it to its original state.

“A man brought out tentacles, and he just turned them back into an arm?”

[Shouldn’t it be the norm for that whenever a tentacle appears?]

“The excitement has disappeared…”

The readers are quite disappointed with the author.

[But still, the conclusion is already set.]

“I guess so.”

Even though she seemed to be holding her ground, ultimately the outcome was predetermined.

As I mentioned before, if Riche could defeat Hex using her own strength, there’d be no purpose left for the protagonist.

“Ugh… Aaaah!”

While I was lost in thought, the conclusion was rapidly approaching.

Riche’s arm twisted back.

The demon laughed, seemingly enjoying it.

I warned her this would happen, but she kept chasing until the very end.

Sure enough, the end was miserable.

No matter how much Riche tried, the world that claimed the outcome disdained her efforts.

While trying is good, not all efforts are guaranteed to be rewarded.

“Gyaaah!!”

A horrifying sound erupted from Riche’s arm.

“Hey, if you reverse a twisted arm back to the original position, wouldn’t she be okay again?”

[Oh. Are you perhaps a genius?]

As we chatted, I suddenly felt a gaze directed toward us.

Until just a moment ago, they had been focused on the fight, but now that the conclusion had been reached, they had the luxury to turn their attention elsewhere.

“Oh, please continue what you were doing. Don’t mind us.”

What kind of reaction does a performer have when prompted by an audience?

Once the immersion is broken during a play, the intrigue usually fades.

So I told them to keep going.

Yet, it was as if they saw us for the first time and continued staring.

“What’s up with that?”

[I don’t know.]

Is it normal that after fighting like they were trying to kill each other, they’d act like this just because two spectators increased in number?

“Hmm… Strange. No one should be able to enter this place. How did you get in?”

“He helped.”

I pointed at Alter with my finger.

In response, Alter displayed a double-Ahegao expression.

“Did you betray me?”

[I don’t take orders from those weaker than me!]

“That’s right.”

“………”

Hey, chuckle. What’s up with the clown making a serious face?

The mask must be forced to smile, but the serious expression behind it is so obvious.

“Well, it doesn’t matter. It just means the number of people I need to kill increased from one to three.”

“Is he serious about killing us?”

[Can he actually do it?]

A performer announcing their intent to murder the audience mid-performance is quite bold.

Hex approached us dismissively, as if what he said wasn’t a joke.

“Can he really be serious?”

[See? This is why I hate those who don’t know their place.]

“Tell me about it.”

If he wants to fight, then show me your strongest attack.

*

Whether it’s betrayal or not, killing him is enough.

Hex walked toward the man in front of him.

Thinking a man without any trace of magical power could easily die in less than a minute.

“My name is Luke.”

[And I’m Alter.]

We are manly men.

The two men in front of him clasped hands and struck a ridiculous pose.

“………?”

Are they messing with me?

Even if they are clowns, they wouldn’t do something so silly.

No need to indulge such foolishness.

Hex, who’d closed the distance to Luke, threw a punch.

No doubt his speed was something he took pride in, as it was impressive.

“Something like that, two wild and uncontrollable brats just isn’t my style.”

[Same here. The body is nice, but I prefer the cool type of boy.]

Moving awkwardly, they allowed a punch to slip by easily.

“………?!”

After that, they showcased a stance that couldn’t be considered an attack at all.

Pirouette.

The two who spoke did a spin in unison.

No matter how I looked at it, it was a display begging to be hit, so Hex threw a punch.

No, accurately, he meant to throw one.

Before he could land his punch, a sudden kick had struck his abdomen.

“Ugh…?!”

Having permitted two kicks, Hex was tossed backward.

Experiencing considerable pain, Hex struggled to regain his stance when…

Arabesque.

The two, now right in front of him, extended their arms and legs and kicked him once more.

“Ugh!!”

Grand fouetté en tournant.

Luke and Alter charged while spinning.

Dodging the kicks, Hex was bombarded repeatedly without having the time to recover.

“What… the… hell!”

Why is it that even with such absurdly comical fighting styles, they could win…?!

To be honest, I was baffled.

Although I was employing somewhat dance-like movements myself, I still couldn’t act like that when life and death were on the line.

Why is it that I can’t win and keep getting hit by such blatant openings?

“Do you want to know why you’re losing?”

The two clasped hands and leaned their faces toward each other.

[It’s because you’re simply that weak.]

Grand jeté.

“Ugh!”

Soaring into the air, the two struck Hex in the face with their feet.

Having flown further than what one might consider the final blow, Hex was sent crashing down.

Watching him fall, Alter began to speak.

[Now then, shall we wrap this up? A card game to decide the fate of this world.]

Luke let out a devilish grin, pulling something thin and rectangular with a spade symbol from between his legs.

“Time to draw a joker.”

Hex wished he could wipe that memory from his mind.

*

Hex, understandably, rejected our proposal. We were trying our best to follow the original plot, yet the other side had not agreed.

So we just killed him, but he didn’t give any experience points.

As Hex had mentioned to Riche before, he wasn’t the real deal, which was why it turned out that way.

Right after, the sky began to melt like water spilled on a painting.

As the demon that created this space perished, the scenery began to collapse.

“This is kind of lame.”

[Thought so. I thought he was going to be some big deal since it was sealed away.]

Facing against him, it became apparent that we didn’t need to fight seriously at all.

Was that family really just that weak?

I turned my thoughts to Riche to see what she was up to and found her blankly staring at the spot where Hex had vanished.

So I shrugged it off and went about my business.

“What happens to you when I leave?”

[You die, I guess?]

“You just die like that?”

Isn’t it weirder that a guy with the same personality as me simply dies?

[I said if you’re just sitting there, you die. I didn’t say you die peacefully.]

“Then there’s got to be a method to it, right?”

[Maybe?]

Alter boldly walked over to me.

He didn’t even stop even when our noses were barely touching, and simply absorbed into my body.

Suddenly, a system window popped up right in front of me.

◈ Skill Information

Name: Shadow Fight

Grade: A

Description: Summons a shadow clone that executes the user’s commands. The shadow clone exerts half of the user’s power.

“Oh, that’s insane!”

 

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