*
“Looks like the Magic Hat has become the Demon God and wants to hog you all to itself….”
Sounds like a familiar conversation I’ve heard before.
Just moments before the Magic Hat stormed into Grand Hertz Academy.
“Isn’t something weird about this? Su-hyun?”
Am I just seeing things?
I can see Giseok making moves on the white queen, delivering a check.
When I look beside me, Kainel and Ariel are discussing their plans with my childhood friend.
Drake, the sage, and even Dennis are all here.
“…….”
While observing the scene, I pressed my lips together tightly.
What should I even say about this feeling?
A mix of joy and dazedness has left me speechless.
All the comrades I thought were dead have returned.
People I thought I would never see again.
‘They’re back.’
I find myself back to that time playing chess with Giseok.
Was this what she meant when she said I could come back just before defeating the Magic Hat?
“Why the sudden change? Where did the chess player go…?”
Pina winks at me, slowly closing one eye.
It seems that everything we’ve done so far wasn’t just a dream after all.
The sacrifices made at Jisheer’s shrine, meeting Pina who had become the Demon God in another world line.
Meeting the Nameless Saintess, going back in time to save young Pina from the Magic Hat’s clutches.
As if all the world lines where I tried to save Pina were rewarding me in some way.
[Lee Soo-hyun ♡ Pina Grancia 100% ‘Ending Collection Complete’]
The affection level displayed in front of me is still at 100 percent.
No matter how much time passes or how the space changes into something else.
‘What remains unchanged is my love for Pina.’
The last 5 percent needed for the Grand Route was made possible by all the Pinas I had met on every route.
[Kainel ♡ Ariel 80%]
The affection level rose after meeting Kainel, who had transformed into the Demon King of Light.
Now that the Grand Route has been established, such a sad future will never repeat itself.
I had thought of a method beforehand.
[Drake ♡ Azmodius: 0%]
[Giseok ♡ Sophia: 50%]
The problem lies with these two couples.
No matter how I think about it, I just can’t see a resolution for these two.
One won’t resolve until the Demon King of All Knowledge is defeated, while the other has an unclear reason.
How can I swiftly raise their affection levels?
“Giseok, I’m curious about something.”
“What is it?”
I moved the pieces as I asked Giseok, unlike the last time we played chess.
Every hero has an epithet.
So what kind of hero was Giseok summoned as?
“What’s your epithet? You were summoned because of me and Pina, right?”
“…My epithet?”
Giseok’s gaze shifted, surprised by my words.
This fool might have realized that I’ve returned here through time.
Because just moments ago, the tides of our chess game had turned against him.
“Why does it even matter?”
“……What?”
Giseok seemed to contemplate for a moment before responding casually, as if it were nothing.
He even questioned why I was asking such a thing.
“Isn’t being a hero about the person you are rather than your name or abilities?”
“That’s probably true, but…”
Initially, the starter and reset made the mistake of selecting the strongest heroes.
The recklessness of not considering a person’s character has caused all this chaos.
“In truth, I don’t have an epithet because I was summoned to you guys. Why ask about it now?”
Giseok makes another check.
He looks at me with scrutinizing eyes.
If I responded with a lie, it would probably just raise suspicion. So it’s better to be honest here.
“I find it strange that your affection level with Sophia of the Duchess hasn’t progressed.”
I directly asked why their affection level hasn’t risen according to the Grand Route.
I thought there might be something related to an epithet that needed to happen for it to go up.
“…What percent is it?”
Giseok hesitated, then spoke softly so others wouldn’t hear.
Looks like he was curious, after all.
“It’s stuck at 50 percent.”
“Maybe it’s because you haven’t confessed yet…”
Giseok let out a long sigh and leaned back against his chair after hearing his level.
“Are you crazy? With how much you both like each other, you still haven’t confessed…”
“Shh, I used to be the vessel. I wasn’t really into dating using someone else’s body.”
So that’s why they hadn’t seen their ending.
The answer to my seemingly complicated question turned out to be surprisingly simple.
Friends really do start to resemble each other in situations like this.
“And… this isn’t a game, it’s real life.”
I’ve never seen him look so flustered before.
Maybe he’s trying to gauge Sophia’s reactions, glancing sideways repeatedly.
“What do you mean? Pina and I have already done our engagement meeting.”
“What…? You got engaged with Princess Grancia?”
I proudly showed him the ring on my left hand’s ring finger.
A symbol that exists here, just like Pina’s, defying time and space.
“That’s right, so you should gather some courage too, Giseok.”
Having returned to the past, I met the mother-in-law and received Emperor Rock’s approval for the engagement.
It’s somewhat like a betrothal ring for me now.
“Yeah, and it doesn’t seem like Sophia dislikes you or anything.”
Listening to our conversation, Pina wrapped her arm around my neck and leaned against me.
Unfazed by the surrounding gazes, she showcased her affection.
Having regained memories from her childhood and her time as a saintess, she now looks quite bold.
“Is that… really true?”
“Yeah, she’s also a benefactor who cured an illness passed down in our family, and you’re my muscle-bound type, right?”
The northern mountains are tall and rugged.
Just like the Vikings, those from the north had to be physically strong to adapt to those treacherous terrains.
“Sophia said that she prefers a man with a strong body over any other.”
Giseok must’ve started hitting the gym for that reason.
He must have been working hard to hone his body to match Sophia’s ideal type.
“Of course, my husband’s body is the best though.”
Right now, Pina was squeezing my bicep, savoring its firmness.
Days of not stopping my sword training to protect her.
Even though I shifted back to my original body and my magic circuits got tangled due to time and space travel,
‘I had wanted to grow stronger while thinking of Pina.’
I didn’t give up and kept training.
Now, my body has become a medal of honor.
Pina seemed to take delight as she gently poked and prodded my body one by one, eliciting a strangely ticklish feeling.
“Did you really do something with the princess…?”
Giseok asked, noticing the strange tension between Pina and me.
From his perspective, it might seem as if we had suddenly grown closer.
Such a reaction isn’t surprising.
“Think what you want. So are you gonna confess or not?”
I asked, moving the pieces one last time.
Why I moved the pieces one last time was that while my past self lost to Giseok with a checkmate, this time, the outcome would be different.
“…If you’re pushing me this much, I guess I have to try.”
Stalemate.
Stalemate.
A draw where neither player can move their pieces.
He returned the method he had used to tackle the Demon King of Innocence back at me.
It might not have been a coincidence that a stalemate showed up in the game.
[Giseok ♡ Sophia: 90%]
Then, before my eyes, the affection level display appeared.
The issue between these two was that they hadn’t clarified their mutual feelings.
Just like my past self and her.
No matter how much they liked each other, if they don’t express it, they’ll never know.
“Thanks for giving me the courage, Su-hyun.”
This time, my friend gave me his gratitude in return.
“Nothing special, that’s what friends are for.”
I subtly echoed back what I had said before as a dying wish.
This time, I won’t let anyone die.
*
Having left the place, Giseok called for Sophia and headed outside.
He had an expression that clearly showed his determination.
He must have called her out to confess his feelings.
[Giseok and Sophia achieved 100% affection level!]
Just as expected, a status window popped up before Lee Soo-hyun’s eyes right after.
The northern duchess had often said to Pina that she had someone in mind.
Looks like there wouldn’t be a chance for a failed confession.
[EVENT CG: “A frozen heart can melt into another heart.” has been collected!]
Pina, while looking at a transparent window sparkling like a gem, had a curious question.
“Su-hyun, did something like this pop up when we first met too?”
Jealousy, or was it curiosity mixed with excitement?
Did he always act while thinking about their relationship?
“No, this is all about completion. It’s not about the numbers.”
“Why? It looks like it should be super important…?!”
Didn’t it express the love between lovers in terms of numbers?
Whispering in voices others couldn’t hear, I gently patted Pina’s head.
“Even if we’re both at 100 percent, I love you more than anyone else, right?”
“…….”
Thump, thump.
A warm sensation pulsating in my chest, and the wolf ears slowly lowering.
“Fufu, I see…”
She didn’t want her racing heart to be noticed.
Yet, deep down, she wished the man before her would recognize it, which created a whirlwind of conflicting emotions.
Could this be why it felt so hard to get her out of my mind since the first time we met at the Academy?
‘I’ve liked Su-hyun ever since I was little…’
For Pina Grancia, a princess who could never forget her first love.
Even if she lost her memories and name, she fell for him and yearned for him her entire life.
“Can you… can you pet me a little more? This way… I can feel you more…”
“Of course.”
While Pina Grancia found comfort in the touch of her partner.
─Why isn’t Su-hyun making a move…?
─Shh. Quiet down, Black Rose. It’s been a long time since I received a pet from my knight…!
Voices of two others began to echo within her mind.
As if an angel and a devil were whispering in her heart.
─You were just trying to strip down his armor the moment you saw Su-hyun.
─W-Well, that was to confirm my knight’s safety! Since he turned from the Demon King of Innocence!
The Nameless Saintess and the Black Rose were sharing consciousness through Pina’s body.
Despite appearing as different people, they were truly all the same person.
A past filled with despair from losing everything, and a future that plunged into despair by losing only one person.
Whether clinging to the face of a saint or being honest about one’s desires as a demon god,
‘This place… has too many prying eyes.’
‘So many gazes, it’s bothersome.’
‘It doesn’t quite feel right here…’
The thoughts and feelings of Pina Grancia always remained the same.
