"If you were the Demon King, wouldn't you feel wronged?"
In that moment, countless thoughts she had had flashed through her mind.
It meant the suspicions that the real male protagonist might be the Demon King.
...It has already been 999 years since Ateloia was founded. Since the Demon King is said to have existed long before Ateloia came into being, he must have lived for more than several thousand years.
What if he really is the Demon King, just as the male protagonist suspected, and what if he has been holding on without even being able to die, just as he said?
It wasn't even a time spent peacefully, constantly facing attacks and hatred from people, unable to fit in anywhere.
In that case, the Demon King had essentially lived for thousands of years without even knowing the reason for his existence, merely to become a target for Presepe.
It is simply because it is designed that way, and the settings are like that.
Of course, the Demon Lord probably doesn't know that he is the real male protagonist she is trying to win over, or that this place is a game rather than reality...
"Answer me."
The man spoke once again with emphasis.
"Wouldn't you feel wronged?"
"...Yes."
Presepe answered in a very low voice.
"I think... it would be unfair."
Actually, even before she started playing the game, and even now that she's gone so far as to get possessed, she had never thought about the characters' perspectives.
This was the case even though she succeeded in capturing Dietrich, Siegfried, Ivan, Attar, and Noah.
Besides, those damn five were people who were living satisfying lives in their own way, both before and after meeting Presepe. Completely unlike the Demon King.
However, if the Demon King had been spending his time like that simply because he had to meet Presepe, as the man said... it seemed like he might feel wronged.
"..."
Presepe spat out an answer, but the man showed no reaction. He simply stared down at her with a look that had changed slightly more subtly than before.
"But why are you asking me this?"
Presepe quietly looked at the man's face, then mustered the courage to ask.
"Well."
The man remained silent for a moment, then rubbed his dry lips in a low voice.
"I was curious what the half-monster might be thinking?"
"..."
"Still, since it's a monster, I was curious to see whose side it would take."
On the surface, it seemed like a reasonable answer, but for some reason, it felt unsatisfying. It was as if the man had lied.
"How do you know all this?"
Presepe asked again.
"It’s as if you’ve been watching the Demon King right by his side."
"That's right."
"Yes?"
"I watched him. From the side."
"..."
"How long he struggled, and how desperately he struggled."
The man chuckled.
"I am a monster that has existed for a very long time."
"Then what happened to the Demon King...?"
“It’s gone.”
Presepe's eyes wavered greatly at the man's completely unexpected words.
"B-but you said he came back to life even after being beheaded."
"Well, maybe he found a way to disappear. As far as I know, he put quite a bit of effort into it."
That makes no sense. Then what happens if the Demon King is the real male protagonist?
In the past, she might have just thought, 'Maybe he really wasn't the male lead,' and moved on, but the situation has changed so much now.
A bug occurred immediately, and Attar Hanan and Noah DeVern died. No matter how much he was the real male protagonist, one could not guarantee that the Demon King would not have been spared from a bug as well.
"When, when?"
"It happened recently."
"..."
"At most, I wonder if it has been a few years."
Presepe's small, tightly clenched fist trembled.
No, no. There hasn't been any concrete evidence yet that the Demon King is the real male protagonist...
And since it was a few years ago, likely, it wasn't related to bugs...
Even as he thought that, Presepe vividly recalled Vanessa's dying wish to go to the Forbidden Forest and the information windows that appeared when she faced the stone statue of the church.
Then I...
Is there absolutely no possibility of getting out of here now?
"You seem quite popular."
Regardless of what Presepe was thinking, the man stared intently at her and continued speaking.
"So you were interested in the Demon King even in the midst of that? You must have quite a twisted sense of humor."
"..."
"There are guys everywhere with bloodshot eyes trying to get close to you."
What does this mean?
Even if that were the case in the past, there isn't really anything entangled in this episode. She didn't even meet Siegfried, and what happened with Ivan wouldn't have leaked out either.
Besides, Attar Hanan and Noah DeVern were already dead, so there was nothing to say.
But that remark... it sounds like that person knows something...
"Even the Emperor locked you up in a tower the moment he ascended the throne."
What happened with Dietrich...
Yeah, maybe he knows.
The fact that he imprisoned Presepe in a tower as soon as he ascended the throne was a story known to every citizen of the Empire.
"I've heard rumors are going around again that Grand Duke Fenrir actually has ulterior motives for you."
...The Grand Duke?
Presepe hesitated.
"It’s not entirely baseless speculation. Otherwise, would he have dared to bring you here, even going against the Emperor’s will?"
"You say you're a monster, so how do you know all this?"
Presepe looked at the man with eyes full of wariness and asked.
"Unlike the Demon King, I learned how to blend in with humans."
"I spent a very long time on it," the man replied with a cold smile.
"It seemed like Siegfried, the Grand Master, was conscious of you, too."
"..."
“What do you think?”
“I’m not interested.”
Presepe answered firmly.
"Let's talk about whether you like it or not?"
“I don’t want to die.”
"Do you mean you hate it enough to die, or do you mean you hate it enough to kill?"
"I don't know. I guess it's both."
The man sighed.
"..."
Presepe wore a dejected expression for a moment, saying nothing.
She found out who Presepe's father was, and that he was dead. She also suspected that the real male protagonist might be the Demon King.
But what if it had really vanished? Even if it was only a few years ago at most, to go back to that time, she would have to start the game itself from the beginning.
"That's impossible. I can't do it," Presepe said, biting her lip and clenching her hands tightly.
"Did the Demon King really perish?"
Looking at the man again, she asked in a trembling voice.
He disappeared, but there is no evidence anywhere that he figured out a way to vanish. It’s not like you saw the Demon King vanish with your own eyes...”
"..."
"Yeah. He might still be alive somewhere, you know?"
“Are you that curious about that?”
Then do I look like I wouldn't be curious? Presepe stared at the man with a desperate look.
"Maybe you'll know if you go there once."
“Where?”
"The monster's umbilical cord north of the Forbidden Forest, where I last saw the Demon King."
"What's in there?"
"You'll know when you get there."
It was a truly unfriendly answer.
Besides, Siegfried and the Knights must be in the middle of an exciting investigation with the Grand Duke, so how could he... Presepe wore a look of despair.
"I'll show you a shortcut. One that no one else knows."
And as if he already knew that feeling, the man continued speaking.
"You'll be able to get there without encountering a single monster or human. It's a path known only to me."
It was a do-or-die situation now. Besides, while he might take her to the entrance of the Forbidden Forest, it didn't seem likely that Fenrir would take her north even if she begged him. Even though the number of monsters had decreased, it would still be extremely dangerous.
However, since he said he would even show her a safe route, she had no choice but to go. Of course, she wasn't entirely convinced that she could trust that man, though.
So Presepe asked the man.
"What's your name?"
"Why are you asking that?"
"I can't just blindly trust the words of someone—no, a monster—who won't even tell you their name."
"That's an annoying way of speaking."
The man frowned slightly and seemed to hesitate for a moment, but eventually told her his name.
“Vidar”
"..."
"And I swear on my name that the safety of the shortcut is guaranteed."
In the end, the answer Presepe would give was already decided.
She took a few deep breaths and looked at Vidar again. Then, she asked one last thing.
"If you know Nidhogg, does my mother know it too?"
Since he was a Demon King who might have been annihilated, she hoped he wasn't the real male protagonist, but she couldn't be certain in any way.
In any case, since it is important to uncover as many clues as possible, providing information about Vanessa, just as he had told her about Nidhogg, would certainly be helpful.
“I’ve seen her.”
“Yes? Really?”
"By this lake."
"When? What were you doing by the lake?"
Presepe asked urgently.
“Well maybe..."
"Maybe?"
"I think she was crying."
...Was it because he had to leave Nidhogg alone while he went into hibernation after being seriously injured?
Presepe struggled to recall Vanessa's face, which she could barely remember anymore, but she couldn't find the answer.
"Since you asked one more question, I will ask one more."
And Vidar looked down at Presepe and parted his lips again.
"If you are the Demon King, and if you feel wronged just like you told me earlier..."
"..."
"If you were to meet the being who designed your life that way, would you try to take revenge?"
Although I wondered if such a way even existed... Presepe answered with all her heart.
"Probably... if possible."
Since it seemed likely even when putting myself in their shoes.
"Then."
And Vidar, having heard Presepe's answer, spoke with his eyes shining.
"Yes?"
“Yeah, well..."
"You'd better leave now. It won't be to your advantage once it starts getting dark."
Presepe nodded a few times as if she understood the meaning, then stood up from her seat. She then started walking in the direction Vidar was pointing.
"..."
Left alone in front of the lake, Vidar stared intently at the receding figure of Presepe.
And she looked down at the lakeside, glowing red in the sunset.
Then she remembered.
[H-h-h-h...]
Sit in the exact same spot where Presepe was sitting. Vanessa, the woman who was crying endlessly
[Ah...]
Also, the first words Vanessa spat out with a terrified look on her face when she saw me.
[Demon King...]
"I should have killed that bitch back then."
If that had happened, you would have died too.
Vidar muttered in the cold daylight.
But that was long ago. No matter how much one regrets it, it cannot be turned back even a little.
So, even now. Even at this moment.
"Yeah, you're right."
I have no choice but to take revenge.
Do you even think that way?
"..."
Vidar stood there motionless, glaring silently at the path Presepe had walked. Even though her figure had long since vanished, he stared for a very long time with his blue eyes, clearly filled with resentment and anger.
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