“It’s mine.”
"..."
"It used to be mine."
What kind of crazy nonsense is he talking about? Is he acting like this because he's finally regained his memories from previous episodes?
"I can't understand a single word of what you're saying."
Presepe decided to pretend not to know for now.
Even if, by any chance, he really did remember everything, she had absolutely no intention of agreeing with him. He was spouting nonsense with such fierce intensity right now, and she didn't even want to imagine what might happen if she sided with him.
“It’s okay if you don’t know.”
"... What?"
"I already know it all. I know exactly how things are going."
What on earth are you talking about? What do you even know?
Presepe furrowed her brow.
"Do you know about the Book of Prophecy?'
I know. I stole it from your room.
However, unable to tell the truth, Presepe just stared at Ivan.
"There was something completely preposterous written there. At first, I wondered what it meant, but I found out later."
... What?
"I mean that you were in a very difficult situation."
At that moment, Presepe's face froze.
What did I just hear?
"You were simply repeating a predetermined life without any awareness. Of course, you wouldn't remember anything."
That can't be possible.
If she hadn't remembered that, she wouldn't have been so distressed.
It was absurd.
"And the one you chose in that was me."
"And it was always you that Presepe chose."
Ivan was a very suspicious person.
So, he didn't believe Vidar's words from the beginning.
"You must have found the Book of Prophecy."
That was the case until Vidar spoke the secret known only to Ivan.
"Using the information written inside, you must have been the first to figure out Presepe's bloodline and tried to use that as leverage to approach her. As far as I know, you've always been like that."
Of course, before Secret Mode was unlocked, this kind of thing did not happen in the normal route.
It’s all just a blatant lie made up by Vidar.
But Ivan couldn't possibly have known that fact.
"Presepe is simply repeating the same days over and over. Without remembering anything. Because you are the one who knows her secret, Presepe relied heavily on you, the only one who could help her. That is how she fell in love, and she chose you. She didn't even give a glance to the others."
"You were mine from the start."
"But why did things turn out this way this time, Ivan?"
“That bastard..."
"It’s precisely because of Grand Duke Fenrir."
"If it weren't for Fenrir, you would still be by my side."
"What kind of insane nonsense is this?" Presepe wore an expression of utter bewilderment.
What on earth are those ridiculous speculations, and how did he know that I am 'repeating a predetermined life'?
Of course, it seemed like he hadn't realized that this world itself was a fiction, but something was strange.
By what method on earth? Even the male characters with the bugs just had their settings broken and developed a sense of self; they didn't know about facts like that, did they?
'You... didn't have anyone tell you?'
So, could it be that a being who knows the truth of this world, just like me... leaked the information?
But where would such a being exist?
How can it be?
"You're utterly pitiful, Presepe."
Ivan suddenly wore a wistful expression and stroked Presepe's cheek with his hand.
It felt exactly like a pine caterpillar passing by. No, actually, a pine caterpillar might be better.
'No, wait a minute.'
The fact that he was the first to bring up the Book of Prophecy means that Ivan also still remembers its contents.
Of course, he probably didn't understand the part explaining the contents up to Secret Mode, but he must have known at least that 'he' mentioned in the Book of Prophecy is the Demon King.
But why are you suddenly claiming I'm yours? Why? On what grounds?
"Yes, what was written in the Book of Prophecy?"
Presepe asked in a trembling voice, as if testing the waters.
"..."
Ivan kept his mouth shut for a moment.
"Then do you also know what is written in the Book of Prophecy?"
Ivan also asked Vidar something similar.
As Presepe had predicted, he didn't understand the part explaining the progression up to Secret Mode, but he had already deduced that the 'he' mentioned in the Book of Prophecy refers to the Demon King.
"I know."
And Vidar answered.
"If Presepe meets the Demon King as written in the Book of Prophecy, she might be able to end the repetition, but what good would that do? As I said before, the Demon King has not the slightest interest in Presepe."
"But wouldn't that actually be better for you?" Vidar said with a smile
"Do you really think the Demon King's life is painful and miserable, just like in the Book of Prophecy? He must have had everything."
Ivan did not really disagree with Vidar's words.
Right. That can't be true. A being with such immense power would be obsessed with a single woman just to find peace?
"Who are you?"
Ivan asked the exact same question that Fenrir had once asked Vidar.
"Just a monster that has lived for a very long time."
However, at some point, Ivan began to sense it by intuition. That his words were a blatant lie.
"It's you, isn't it? The Demon King who lives in the Forbidden Forest."
"Whether I'm the Demon King or not, will anything change for you?"
However, Vidar was right. Whether he is the Demon King or not, nothing changes. Besides, if he really intended to covet Presepe to find peace, just as the Book of Prophecy stated, he wouldn't have told him this.
"It's just a useless story."
Ivan muttered as he ran his hand down Presepe's cheek.
"So you don't need to know."
"..."
"Because I'm the only one who matters to you."
No, that can't be. That was a foreshadowing for the real male protagonist... I mean, the Demon King. You must know.
However, Presepe's thoughts did not last long.
"What have you been doing with that guy all this time?"
It was because Ivan's large hand, which had been stroking her cheek, roughly grabbed Presepe's hair.
"Ah. It hurts...!"
"I'm asking you right now. What did you do?"
Ivan asked, his dark eyes flashing.
"Seeing as you went into the Forbidden Forest together, even ignoring Dietrich's orders, it must have been quite a fun time, wasn't it?"
What on earth is this crazy, perverted, delusional bastard babbling about?
Anger surged up along with disgust, but fear could not be ignored either.
After being possessed by the Game, if she recalled the order in which she pursued them, she saw the ending with Ivan somewhere in the middle.
If we consider it in chronological order, it wasn't that recent for Presepe.
However, now that she was in this situation, all the terrible things she had experienced on the Ivan Route were automatically replaying in her mind. So vividly, as if she had gone through them yesterday.
Incidents where the mind was gnawed away with suspicious magic whose principles were completely unknown, or where false memories that were never actually experienced were forcibly implanted to drive people insane.
And the ending, which repeated that terrible thing over and over again, eventually turning her into a doll-like figure unable to do anything without him, too...
"I told you clearly back then. That I'm good at it too. Whatever it is."
"..."
"So, do it with me too."
Presepe's hand, which was resting on the ground, trembled.
No
I don't like it.
How did I get out of here, how did I get this far, and how did I become this free...?
Even though she was well aware that she needed to stay focused, her mind went blank. Her body stiffened, and she began to gasp for breath.
As she always did whenever this happened, Presepe gasped for breath and reflexively clutched her left chest.
Ivan's large hand, his pale face, his dark eyes glowing ominously with madness, and the hot breath exhaled from his slightly parted lips were drawing closer and closer to her.
Panicked, Presepe stood frozen, unable to push Ivan away or avoid him.
Presepe rather squeezed her eyes shut. Since that was the only thing she could do right now.
And it was that moment.
From afar, the sound of someone running urgently was heard.
Previous Next
Support Novellate!
Comments
Post a Comment