“Don’t go… please, don’t go…! Don’t go!!”
Raphne was in a panic.
“Ugh, please don’t leave! You’re still mad at me, right? That’s why! I’m sorry! I messed up…! I’ll apologize. I’ll do anything…!”
She clung to Ken’s clothes, pleading.
Her dead eyes grew darker, having lost all hope, and tears flowed endlessly.
The girl who had once been saved was terrified of falling back into despair.
She didn’t want to experience that loneliness again.
“N-No, Raphne…! I’ll definitely come back tomorrow! I said I’d have breakfast with you!”
Ken, who still didn’t fully grasp that loneliness, tried to convince her.
But she couldn’t believe him.
“Liar… liar, liar! You’re going to abandon me too…! You’ll leave me here and turn your back on me! Please don’t do that! If you, Ken, leave me here, I might really die! Are you trying to let me die? Are you going to kill me too? Please… please don’t abandon me… sob.”
She knelt and hugged Ken’s waist as if she would never let go.
She didn’t care how closely their bodies were pressed together.
Only Ken, with a normal mindset, cared about that.
“W-Wait, if you cling like this…!”
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry…! You’re really mad at me, aren’t you? I can’t believe I had the audacity to do that to you! I’m sorry, I’ll apologize! I’ll do anything! If you want me to lay down, I’ll lay down, if you want me to dance, I’ll dance! If you want me to take it all off, I’ll take it all off…!”
The dark eyes looking at Ken seemed like they would swallow him whole.
Her smiling face no longer felt joyful. It was a smile made up of despair and frustration.
With that smile, Raphne wept.
“Is there something else you want to eat? I-I can prepare anything! Lunch today, dinner, breakfast tomorrow, I’ll prepare whatever you want! Just tell me!”
She clung on, desperately grabbing onto a thin sliver of hope.
“O-Otherwise, should I entertain you? You’re really mad at me, aren’t you? If you could forgive me, I’d do anything! You can hit me until you feel better! Ah, no! Or you can do something naughty to me! You’re a guy, right? I-I’m attractive, aren’t I? It’s fine to do anything to me…!”
Please don’t leave me behind.
She continued to plead, not even realizing what she was saying.
And Ken, watching her, thought.
‘…She’s not in her right mind.’
Raphne Bell Martinez was more broken than he had anticipated.
In the end, Ken had no choice but to stay at the Tower until Raphne calmed down.
‘Looks like I unintentionally skipped the first class today.’
With a sigh, Ken found Raphne had calmed down a bit, wrapping her arms around his.
The feeling of something big and soft wrapping around him was quite exhilarating, but this wasn’t the affectionate intimacy of a couple.
It was a shackle.
She was just holding onto him so he couldn’t escape.
“I-I’m sorry… It’s my fault. …I’m sorry for skipping class.”
Now calmer, she realized her mistake and buried her face in his shoulder, apologizing repeatedly.
But even while apologizing, she refused to let go of him.
Raphne’s rationality couldn’t overcome her instincts yet.
He could feel her whole body trembling.
Ken sighed and opened the status menu.
‘System, open Raphne Bell Martinez’s status menu.’
In front of him appeared Raphne’s status.
[ Name: Raphne Bell Martinez.
Unique Skill: Neural Acceleration
Unique Trait: Curse of Fear – Inflicts extreme stress and fear on any living creature within a 50M radius.
Owned Traits: Despair – Current Value 121%, Dependence LV.5 ]
Raphne’s information was summarized primarily around her traits on the screen.
‘Level 5, huh…’
The brief details of the status showed something Ken had never seen outside of her unique skill.
He could easily recall the status of her character from the game he played before possession.
There wasn’t any information like this in that memory.
‘Raphne’s owned traits had always been either Rage or Excitement before.’
However, now the traits were Despair and Dependence.
These traits appeared in the game only when the main character Emily achieved a negative relationship status with all target characters early on.
But there was a huge difference in the numbers.
For the main character Emily, her Despair value topped out at 100%, and her Dependence level never rose beyond level 3.
Ken considered if it was just a difference in character personalities but figured that was irrelevant right now.
The problem was that even if she had calmed down a bit compared to earlier, her situation was still serious.
‘If I leave her like this, it might be irreversible.’
After all, once the main character Emily had those traits, she would face a bad ending after several turns.
The silhouette of her hanging in the dormitory room would play out, marking one of the most despairing endings of the game.
In some ways, it was incredible that Raphne was still alive.
That was how much she wanted to live.
Even in such desperate circumstances, she didn’t want to die.
The hope she had was Ken, and if he forced himself to leave, that would mean her death.
After much hesitation, Ken came to a resolution.
‘…Alright, let’s do this.’
He attempted to loosen Raphne’s grip on his arm.
“A-Ah, no…!”
Of course, she tightened her embrace around him even more. It was a desperate struggle, unwilling to let go and wanting to survive.
“That’s not it, Raphne. Trust me. I’m not trying to run away. If you’re worried I’ll escape, feel free to use your skill to hold me back.”
With her unique skill, Neural Acceleration, it would be as easy as a baby preventing a grown man from escaping.
Anyway, if he forcibly tried to run away right now, it was only natural she would use her skill without him saying anything.
“Okay… I see.”
With that suggestion, Raphne finally released his arm. Understanding that she could easily stop him if she wanted.
With his arms now free, Ken immediately grabbed Raphne by the shoulders.
“Raphne, I’ve made up my mind.”
He looked into her dead eyes and continued.
“I’ll help you break your curse.”
“…Huh?”
Her vacant eyes wavered slightly. She was surprised by Ken’s unexpected words.
“I have Item Crafting skills. I’ll make an item to stop your curse. So don’t worry about me leaving. I’ll visit you every day until we stop your curse.”
It wasn’t some sort of scheme to run away. Ken genuinely thought of a way to break her curse.
That item would appear in the later stages of the original story.
The Demon Lord General cast an instant death curse with his unique skill.
To face such a final boss, the Goddess’ Pendant was necessary.
Originally described as a defensive item against instant death curses in the original plans.
But the ability of that pendant was not just limited to instant death curse defense.
According to item lore, the Goddess’ Pendant holds the power to cleanse all kinds of curses in the world with the Goddess’s blessing.
He would create it at this early stage, but it’s possible.
In the game, item crafting required a blueprint, materials, and an NPC with crafting skills that only appeared in the later part.
But fortunately, Ken was a character with Item Crafting skills.
Considering he had the materials and knowledge from the original game, it should be possible.
That’s why Ken’s eyes were filled with determination. It was confidence born from assurance.
The assurance that he could save her.
“Wha… sob! No, that… that’s a lie… it’s a lieee….”
With Ken’s words, Raphne burst into tears.
Crying like a child, she claimed his words were false. But she also knew.
Ken’s words were sincere.
Raphne’s tears were a mix of complicated feelings.
She knew Ken’s words weren’t lies. That’s why she felt joy.
Because until now, her academy, her family, even her country had abandoned her.
His sincere vow to save her made her happy.
And it scared her.
Because if his words were true, she would have to let him go. She would be left alone here again.
Raphne feared that. That’s why she deceived herself by saying his words were lies.
But Raphne also understood.
If she continued to hold onto Ken like this, she would be hated and would be left behind by him.
She would be left alone here again.
With such mixed emotions, she burst into tears.
‘…Did it, work?’
While Raphne wept, Ken looked at the status menu.
[ Owned Trait: Despair – Current Value 98%, …97% …96% ]
Raphne’s despair value was decreasing.
Though she denied her words, Ken noticed from the status menu that she was starting to believe him.
“Well, I’m really going to go now.”
“sniff, sob.”
As Ken was about to step out of the room, Raphne couldn’t hold onto him anymore. She could only let the tears flow endlessly.
He felt sorry for her.
“Ah, was lunch today something I hate?”
“…sniff, y-yes?”
“So… is it okay if I come here for lunch too?”
Upon reflection, it wasn’t necessary to only come for breakfast. If she felt extreme loneliness, perhaps he could increase the frequency of his visits.
It was a simple thought.
But it was a definite light for Raphne.
With tear-filled eyes, she looked at Ken.
Then she burst into tears again.
“sniff, w-You have to… definitely come….”
“Y-Yeah, don’t worry.”
Ken worried that he might end up dehydrated like he did a moment ago.
