A fierce autumn rain poured down.
Cold droplets brushed against my shoulders, and each breath came out with a foggy puff.
‘Just like that day.’
The day I first met Pina after entering this game.
She had handed me an umbrella while I was getting drenched in the downpour. Later, when I asked her why, she said I looked pitiful, shivering like a puppy.
Since then, on the condition that we exchange swordsmanship, I promised Pina to teach her magic.
Would I have ever met Pina if it weren’t for this coincidence?
A body that couldn’t use magic due to a tangled magic circuit.
Seeing the dude next to me using magic normally, it seemed like there had to be some reason.
‘It’s because the hero couple isn’t supposed to learn magic.’
There was a reason why I deliberately sought out Dennis to join the magic club instead of trying to learn magic from Pina.
Kainel and Ariel would learn their ultimate moves named after each other.
The one Ariel used while fighting the Demon King of Might was “Solaris Kainel.” And the other one was this.
“Celestia Ariel.”
The ultimate move created by the shining hero Kainel, named after her.
In the game, just using it would wipe out all the surrounding mobs with its overpowered skill.
Like a meteor shower, colorful shooting stars fell from the sky.
Wait, they’re the colors of Kainel and Ariel!
KA-BOOM─!!
A fiery ball crashed down with an astounding bang, burning away the spot where the Demon God had stood.
“..How did you know such a technique?”
Through the billowing smoke, I could hear the voice of Magic Hat.
So this won’t kill her, huh?
Considering she even pierced through the cradle of the phoenix, maybe becoming a demon god made her immune to ultimate moves.
“That’s amazing! This is a technique I’ve never seen before…!”
“Of course not.”
Originally, in the sequel [Black Heart], Kainel had run away with Ariel, so she couldn’t use this technique against him.
‘This means the future where the hero and magician run away in battle has been erased.’
The plan I devised while playing chess with the dude next to me. The hero couple would be the first to flee, and I had to prevent everyone from being annihilated.
‘..The reason it said their love was insufficient might be because I wasn’t there.’
Now, Kainel and Ariel had resolved their trauma regarding the Demon King.
There’s still hope.
‘What’s needed to change the route is a condition.’
Even when I asked the status window, it said the Grand Route couldn’t be activated due to conditional issues.
Friendliness, reputation, flags—if even slightly different conditions were met, entirely different routes would emerge in the game.
Originally, this world was a copy, so it made sense that the technological power was too advanced for the era.
‘I need to make choices that differ as much from the latter half of [Black Heart] as possible.’
To go against fate, even a tiny butterfly effect was necessary.
In the end, I didn’t want to see another tragic ending where everyone died.
“It’s hot. I didn’t expect you to express your affection for me so passionately….”
Magic Hat laughed while recovering her burnt body.
I tried to kill her, and instead, she looks pleased—I can’t even.
Like shadows, black cloths stuck to her, and the Demon God’s face started to return to its original state.
“So, now you’re pretending to be a woman while stealing the bodies of innocent people?”
“I was originally a woman….”
“Don’t lie. You were originally a man.”
All the demon lords in the [Night Heart Trilogy] were male.
A magician with pitch-black shadows from head to toe, only a gash-like mouth visible.
“..I’ve been found out. I suppose my powers don’t work on you, my lord.”
She was the one who resembled the image of a Demon King the most in my opinion.
Now, trying to resemble Pina while even stealing Silver’s body looked quite strange.
She’d had silver hair before, but this time she had no wolf ears or tail, making it easy to recognize.
“Hehe, I also wanted to experience love from my lord, like the Nameless Saintess…!”
“..Do you know the Saintess?”
Hearing the words spill from Magic Hat’s mouth, I questioned my ears. How do you even know that?
“Yes! My lord and I are ‘heirs’! Have you finally regained your memory…?”
Not possession or transference, but heirs?
I only knew a similar term, [Heir System].
Could it be that everything that happened in the game was reality?
Now, Magic Hat seemed to mistake me for the Magic Swordsman and was talking to me as if I were Licht.
“…..”
No. There would be parts that couldn’t be explained if that were the case. The Nameless Saintess appeared to know my real name.
“Sorry, but you seem to be mistaking me for someone else.”
“No! Nobody else in this world wears the helmet of conviction except you, Licht!”
The helmet I wore in the game didn’t even have that name.
Dream within a dream.
There’s likely something I don’t know.
“What’s an heir anyway?”
Hehehe, I won’t tell you unless you join your body with mine, my lord…♡”
Swallowing saliva and licking her lips, the demon god. Laughing in delight, she writhed as I tried to pry out more information.
..You crazy bastard.
Does she think I’ll fall for that?
No matter how seductive her expression, I felt only profound disgust.
“You clearly don’t know me well.”
“No! I know you better than anyone! You killed me with the Magic Sword Horizon!”
Watching the demon lord bouncing up and down in place, I was astounded. Mixing the version of Licht from the game with my current self.
“..Well, maybe that’s not needed after all.”
I smiled bitterly while looking at Magic Hat.
The Magic Sword provided no information no matter how much I searched. Ultimately, using Mind Sword was probably the best option to deal with her.
Even borrowing Kainel’s Holy Sword, this method seemed superior against the unpredictable opponent.
“Remember (留念). Contradiction (矛盾).”
The moment I chanted the name of Mind Sword, a huge shield emerged from my arm.
An armor engraved with the patterns of the sword as if proving its name.
Keeping in mind that if I failed, Pina would die, I had to create as much possibility as I could to change the future.
*
The metallic sound of clink-clank rang out.
I drew the sword attached to the shield and aimed it at Magic Hat.
“..A shield? The Licht I know doesn’t use weapons like that…?”
“I’m not your Licht.”
I dashed straight toward Magic Hat. In response, the demon god hurled cards shaped like hearts at me. So far, everything was just as I remembered.
Cutting through the cards with my sword, I moved forward. Closing the distance was crucial.
CLANG─!
When sword and card clashed, sparks flew. Though it may look that way, it’s still a Holy Sword, I guess.
“I can also use the power of the Demon King now, so I’m not at a disadvantage in strength, my lord!”
I felt strength draining from my body.
Magic Hat was grinning as she blocked my sword with one hand.
‘Did she mimic the powers of the other demon kings with her power of deceit?’
Just like before when she mimicked Pina’s duplication ability. I didn’t know she could even use the powers of other demon lords.
This was an unknown variable I had never experienced in the game.
“This was supposed to be done after all the demon lords died, but… well, doesn’t matter anymore!”
Clenching my teeth, I exerted all my might into my legs. Thankfully, it was a weaker state than the true power of the Demon King.
To resolve this, I needed to extract the concept, but I couldn’t bring my hand to my chest. What to do…
“Licht. I’m joining!”
“Hey, Helmet! We’re here!”
At that moment, a massive fireball flew in from the side, hitting Magic Hat square in the face, causing the demon god to stagger.
Seizing the opportunity, someone struck the cards with a sword.
“…Thank you, Ariel. Kainel.”
The shining hero and the blazing magician.
They had appeared out of nowhere to help me in this battle against the demon god.
I had told them to stay out of the way just in case an annihilation event popped up, but…
“What? It’s only natural to help friends!”
“If anything happens to Helmet, Pina will be sad!”
On the contrary, Kainel and Ariel scolded me. Right, they used to be just like this.
The reason I loved the hero couple in the original [Night Heart].
They were the kind of people who wouldn’t ignore those suffering under the demon king.
“Are you the hero.. and the magician?”
Magic Hat, facing the hero couple, recited a familiar line.
“How pitiful. You must have barely managed to survive until now.”
Before the mandatory event triggered, Magic Hat delivered a line.
“But I’m on a different level. A demon god combined with the powers of all demon lords….”
“So what?”
I interrupted the demon lord’s words and stepped forward.
Taking advantage of the time Kainel and Ariel bought, I had the concept for copying abilities ready.
“Even if you’re a demon god, you can still be taken down.”
A demon god isn’t invincible.
Emperor Rock had ended the demon god’s life, and now I could neutralize her abilities with my Mind Sword.
I unleashed a Void Slash at Magic Hat. The air blade I created with my hand barely grazed her hat.
“Hahaha..! Hahaha!!”
Magic Hat, hit by that attack, stared at me for a moment with a dumbfounded face before bursting into mad laughter.
“Alright then! Let’s see if you can withstand this attack after all!”
She began conjuring something in her hand, holding onto her cards. Something was being formed within her hands.
Is that omnipotence? The same thing Drake had described.
“Ta-da! It’s the divine bow Ionoht! Isn’t it pretty?!”
The bow known to create tsunamis with just a single shot. That blue weapon was now gripped by the demon god.
“..You really haven’t changed your overconfidence, huh? Good to know.”
I had Kainel and Ariel stand behind me and raised the shield I had prepared.
The problem was I didn’t know what abilities the demon god had after becoming Magic Hat and what attacks she would launch.
Just like in the game, she could suddenly unleash a powerful attack, annihilating my party.
Before Magic Hat came to the academy, I’d discussed with Pina how to counter her.
The one brilliant thought that arose from that.
If that’s the case, what if I turned her attack against her?
