There is one rule about ‘isolation.’ One ally closest to the player will be dropped into the same space.
‘She didn’t know such minute details.’
Slowly, I gauged the level of the player, the possessor, who was wearing Rene’s shell.
“Holy… aah!”
“…What are you trying to do? Take your hand off the staff.”
At this point, Rene’s attack skills were inevitably limited. It must be to use ‘Holy Fire’ to burn me. Although its level is still low and it relies on incantations and weapons.
Whether it’s the mouth or the weapon. Neutralizing either one is as easy as eating soup.
“Ugh… why are you doing this to me?!”
“Why, you ask? It’s to expose your true face.”
Her face, pale at the tip of the dagger, looked quite satisfactory. Much better than the face she had flaunted in the library last time. At the moment I was confident of being overwhelmingly superior to the opponent, my lips naturally settled near my ears. Rene, trembling, pointed a finger at me.
“Y-you, could it be… are you the double agent planted by the Crown Prince?”
Oh ho. A completely unexpected identity.
“No way, was your loyalty to Lady Luciana Speda all a lie…?”
“Up to that point, that can’t be. Lady Luciana is someone I am wholly loyal to.”
After correcting her completely mistaken misunderstanding, I twisted my eyes.
“Personally, I didn’t want to clash with you.”
The right-hand man of the Third Prince, an unexpected adversary of the Crown Prince. She will undoubtedly become a strong ally of Luciana in the future.
‘And she’s a saintess.’ A position chosen by God directly, having a religious status with authority enough to rival the Pope, and her abilities were indispensable to me. What’s the point of freeing Luciana from the Crown Prince’s grasp if we can’t defeat the final boss aiming to destroy the world?
For dealing a decisive blow to the final boss, the blessing of the saintess is essential. Without her assistance, it would be quite a struggle.
Considering all the numerous connections and helpers related to the saintess, even more so.
“…If that’s the case, back off now. I’ll bury the crime of assault in my heart.”
Trying to step back from the dagger, Rene collapsed. Even while sitting on the ground, she crawled backward, dragging her buttocks, trying to get as far away from me as possible. I closed the distance by a few steps.
“Ridiculous. At this point, there’s no way to undo what I’ve done.”
“Surely there’s a reason for this! I don’t understand what you mean by true face!”
Her blue eyes searched me.
The cause.
She seemed to be seeking the reason for my assault.
“Do you know my past? Or are you seeing someone similar to me?”
‘Not bad.’
Even in this crisis, she sought to understand and deduce a solution. Perhaps she was similar to me in some ways. If this had quietly passed, we might have continued to maintain a good relationship.
‘But eventually, it has to be addressed. If Rene is really a possessor like me, would she honestly reveal her identity during regular conversations? Above all, will she properly share information ahead of many fateful events? …Doesn’t something come to mind when you see the chandelier? Hmm, well, I’m not sure. Oh, I’ll take the rear in this dungeon! …Oh, what’s this?’
It’s obvious. From the start, I would have asked the question indirectly. And the saintess who receives it wouldn’t answer honestly either. There’s no need to even mention a serendipitous event. In that case, just break the board. If she avoids the answer, create a situation where she has no choice but to answer.
A dark and quiet dungeon.
Completely sealed on all sides.
A man and a woman left alone.
I coldly directed my question at her.
“So, did your life get easier flirting with all the male lead candidates?”
When I mentioned the word she had carelessly let slip— the one that had perfectly revealed her identity to me—Rene’s face turned pale.
“W-what are you talking about…?”
Feigning ignorance, but her reaction was candid. Cold sweat trickled down her cheeks. Her breathing quickened. The ends of her words started to rise slightly. This emotion. The typical scent of a lie.
“Eek!”
“It would be wise to answer honestly. My dagger has already taken several lives.”
Next to her head, the dagger embedded in the cave wall exuded a black aura reminiscent of its blade’s light. The saintess’s eyes trembled at the sharp menace clearly visible.
I haven’t taken a human life, but I’ve killed plenty of monsters. Demons, too, are beings with intelligence, no different from humans. So, I wasn’t lying, not really.
And with her life threatened, the saintess, now on the verge of tears, clenched her teeth and opened her mouth.
“You… you can’t kill me.”
Eyes wide open, Rene screamed as if it was her last desperate struggle.
“You seem to know the word ‘flirting,’ so you must be a reincarnator like me. But do you know this?!”
Steadying herself and rising from the ground, the saintess placed her hand on her chest and uttered desperately.
“This world is very similar to a game called ‘Under the Chandelier.’”
“A… game?”
I let her steps towards the staff go unchecked. I could withstand the holy fire anyway. Right now, gathering information about her was more important. Crossing my arms, though gripping the dagger tightly, I quietly listened to her.
“If the protagonist from the original story, me, is absent, the world will be destroyed by a disaster! That precious mid-boss Luciana of yours! …And my lord, Leon Manhett too.”
Huffing and puffing. She glared at me with bloodshot eyes, having snatched up her staff. In her torn dress and shabby state, she looked more like a villainess than a protagonist.
“You look more suited to be a villainess than a heroine.”
“…Ugh.”
I had roughly figured her out. She wasn’t aware of the isolation event and calls Luciana a mid-boss, meaning she’s at least mid-tier or higher. However, she didn’t correctly name the disaster and didn’t understand the principle of isolation. Considering those aspects…
“Sacred flames…!”
“You, the player blocked by Luciana.”
She even forgot the incantation for the holy fire.
Completely frozen, Rene asked, “No way, are you…?”
“If it’s ‘Under the Chandelier,’ I’m probably higher up.”
How can we form an alliance while harboring mutual suspicions? To become closer allies, sharing a secret known only to the two of us wasn’t a choice but a necessity.
“Have you seen the ending?”
* * *
‘What kind of man is this?!’ Rene struggled to suppress the discontent boiling inside her.
“You’re right. I am also loyal to Lady Luciana.”
As if his hostility from moments ago had been entirely false, Hans Byron changed his attitude and extended his hand towards her. His previously narrowed eyes were now smiling. He even stopped using the polite speech he always maintained.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“A handshake of apology?” he replied.
“Would you accept it if you were me?”
She couldn’t immediately attack with holy fire. If she rejected his hand now, he would surely grab her by force. Having dealt with similar types up close, Rene couldn’t bring herself to strongly reject him.
“Why did you go this far? We could have resolved this through conversation.”
“I told you, to unmask you.”
Shrugging, he continued, “Even if I suddenly asked, ‘Are you a transmigrator?’ you wouldn’t answer honestly, right? You know best how important the information we hold is.”
“Ridiculous.”
She couldn’t help but criticize in frustration, but he was right. Information is most effective when hidden rather than revealed. Unless he disclosed being a transmigrator himself, she would have kept it hidden.
Rene scrutinized him anew. If he had the skills to see the ending, he would likely have more and better-quality information than she did. His status as the third son of a baron was of no concern. With information, he could become a key figure, enter royal administration based on reputation, or extend his influence in the underworld based on infamy.
“Why are you serving someone else’s household?”
He openly revealed his reasons.
“If you’ve played the game, you’d know.”
“?”
“Would you play such a wretched game without picking a favorite character? No way.”
“That mid-boss?”
He’s insane. Calling him crazy would be an understatement. Thousands of players had been killed by Luciana Spada! She wasn’t called the Wall of Lamentations, the Player Cutter, or the (True) Final Boss for nothing.
‘Phew, but I shouldn’t say that out loud.’
Rene maintained a calm facade. There was no need to provoke this madman who considered that monster his favorite. On the contrary, he seemed to believe he could conquer this dungeon alone based on his earlier boast.
Rene’s eyes began to sparkle. Truly, he was an expert.
Some people seem to have managed to grow on their own while being confined in the Holy See. Anyway, the power balance is clear, so there’s nothing to gain by openly resisting. It might be worth looking forward to a comfortable ride.
“…Crazy bastard.”
She failed. How was she supposed to stop the voice of her heart from ringing out through her vocal cords?
Hans Byron’s gaze towards her was, “Who’s calling who a crazy bastard?”
Looking in a mirror, perhaps? The contemptuous look in his eyes was mirrored in hers. Rene glared at him, incensed.
“Then by that logic, aren’t you a crazy bitch too?”
“C-crazy bitch? Did you just say that?”
“Yes. Knowing the strategy to some extent, abandoning the crown prince who has a strong claim to the throne, why did you choose the third prince?”
“T-that’s…”
That’s because mid-boss Luciana was too much of a wall, she tried to exclude her and see the ending…
But when she tried to make that excuse, the words wouldn’t come out.
“Well, it seems our situations are similar, so let’s leave it at that. It looks like it’ll make things easier for me too.”
“…Tch.”
She could guess what would become easier. A golden road for Luciana Speda, or something like that. Rene’s lips pouted. He looked decent on the outside, but inside, he was so black-hearted. What male lead candidate? She wanted to blame her eyes for briefly putting him on the same level as Ricky.
‘This is a balance breaker. Having a possessor under Luciana is cheating!’
She worked hard to calm the irrationality boiling in her gut.
Right. If she thought about it the other way, wasn’t it rather a good thing? She had a monstrous boss on her side in addition to mid-boss Luciana.
‘Yes! It’s for the third prince!’
Suddenly, the dress he had given her caught her eye. A moment ago, the dust from the cave had settled on it, and it was torn in places due to his violent threats.
‘It was quite pretty.’
Somehow, feeling regretful, she hesitated.
“What are you doing? Hurry up.”
“What?”
“If you’re a possessor, you should think about devouring all the serendipity. As you said, it’s impossible to defeat the disaster without your help, so I’ll spoon-feed it to you. Follow me.”
His confident steps and upright back were annoying. Did he even know the hidden elements of the mid-term exam locations?
He was definitely a better possessor than she was.
‘…Hmph. Do you think I’ll lose?’
Rene tightly gripped her tattered skirt. From the moment she decided to play this reality, she had already resolved to use all the strategy information she had, including exploiting other male lead candidates. It was the same now. There was no reason to reject the goodwill of a fellow possessor.
“Lead the way. I’ll support you with buffs.”
“If you grant me blessings, I’ll gladly accept them.”
She could mend her skirt with needle and thread later. Rene hurriedly chased after him, ready to pick up the crumbs that possessor dropped.
* * *
That was about 30 minutes ago.
“Graaaah! Human! How dare you brazenly appear before me again! Have you forgotten the humiliation of that time?!”
A clear scream filled with hostility. Running desperately, Rene glanced back, feeling chills down her spine for the second time today. Thorny ice spears sprouted all around. If even one of them pricked her, she would either die instantly or freeze on the spot.
[BOSS]
[Spirit of the Snowy Mountain Awaiting Resurrection]
Soon, Rene’s eyes flared with anger.
“What the hell did you do to make that boss so pissed at you?!”
She yelled at the person running alongside her, who was just as busy trying to escape.
“…DLC nightmare.”
“Don’t joke around! Do something to handle it! Aren’t you supposed to be a pro?!”
“Sorry, but I’m not well-suited to deal with monsters like that. If you don’t want to become a skewer, keep up your pace.”
“You scammer!!”
– Screeeech!
The monstrous spirit’s roar and the girl’s scream intertwined. It was quite a fitting symphony.
Cliche Novel 