Is It Bad That the Main Character’s a Roleplayer? - Chapter 85: I Want to Talk (1)

「…Can you hear my voice?」

「If you can…」

「Forget everything.」

* * *

Shouldn’t I at least get to shout out stuff like ‘An unfamiliar ceiling!’ or ‘So bright’ after waking from unconsciousness?

I lamented that my eyes were covered, preventing me from even doing something like that. Though, now that I thought about it, it was a pretty useless regret.

I probably wouldn’t be in any position to make such comments to begin with.

Anyway, thanks to its presence, I came to my senses a little. I first tried to figure out my situation.

Even if I didn’t know what it was, something was obviously covering my eyes. I didn’t sense anything wrong with my body. My limbs seemed to be attached, too, but I couldn’t really move them.

I even felt some pressure around my mouth. I tried moving my lips a little as a test and found it difficult, so something was also blocking them.

They’d apparently blocked my ears, as I couldn’t hear any sound around me.

I had a strong feeling that something had gone wrong.

Considering that my eyes and mouth were blocked, there was a high chance my body was also bound. But why?

I quickly tried to remember what had happened before I collapsed.

So… I clearly remembered falling into a trap and pretending to be the Demon, and in that state, I dealt with some guys calling themselves the 72 Knights or something. I also took care of Vipurit, who’d turned into a monster. Then…

What happened afterward?

Erm… I think I went to clear out the remaining Demon Worshippers because I was uncomfortable leaving them in the castle. I also vaguely recalled saving the people they’d planned to use as sacrifices.

But I had no idea why my memory of that time was so hazy. It’s as if a filter had been put over it. I had a lot of spaces in my memories, like frames missing in a movie… I couldn’t remember my thoughts and feelings from that time, either… Oh?

For a second, I felt like I wanted to blink. A memory came to me, albeit a bit belated.

I believe the last thing I saw was the kimchi dumpling swinging her mace at me after my madness gauge had filled up a lot…? Erm, I also vaguely remembered the meat dumpling looking at me, as well?

…What were those memories?

At that moment, I felt a cold sweat running down my back. Though that was all I could remember, it made me feel like those omitted scenes weren’t anything good.

Maybe that’s why I got arrested.

I couldn’t be too sure because I didn’t remember, but… maybe I went on a rampage, unable to differentiate between friend and foe after my madness gauge filled up completely. If that’s what happened, my arrest would have been inevitable.

I was somewhat depressed about how high those chances were. In that case, what should I do? How much time had passed since then?

When trying to check the time, I remembered the System didn’t have a watch function. So, how was I supposed to find out how much time passed?

Ruuumble.

At that moment, my stomach started to rumble as if laughing at my serious situation. What was even more intense was the hunger that came with it.

I groaned through my teeth, feeling hunger that bordered on pain. It hurt more than when I got cut by a sword.

“Uuh.”

I finally let out a groan. “Huh?” Then, I heard a sound from somewhere close: a person’s voice.

However, when I felt someone nearby, I couldn’t bring myself to let out another sound. I should let them know I was awake, but since I wasn’t fully aware of the situation yet, maybe I shouldn’t.

Even more so since I didn’t know precisely why I’d been detained like this. If I pretended to have just woken up now, something bad might happen.

“Was it just me…”

So I patiently waited, holding my breath, until that person close to me finally relaxed. Relief filled my heart.

I’d bought myself some more time.

However, the problem was that despite having plenty of time to think now, I didn’t have any means to find out what was happening. I didn’t even know how long it had been, you know…?

Ah, wait a minute. If I was that hungry, didn’t that mean my satiety had decreased?

I briefly opened my Status Window to get a clearer picture. Fortunately, I could still see the Status Window even with my eyes covered.

「HP: 2,457 / 2,457

MP: 2,785 / 2,785

Fatigue: 51

Satiety: 0」

I looked over the Status Window, which I’d never properly reviewed due to lack of interest, before checking the information I was looking for. The first thing I noticed was how strange it had become.

My fatigue and satiety aside, what was strange was my MP. It was 1,500 before, right? Why did it become so high?

I kept looking at my MP, feeling rather strange. Considering my satiety had bottomed out, it seemed at least three days had passed… No, seriously, why did my MP increase? It was almost twice as much. Why?

However, that wasn’t the only surprise.

「[Rage] │ Rage can either become strength or poison.

Effect: Nullifies all status conditions except Rage and ignores any further status conditions placed on you.

When used, a madness gauge will be created. The more you perform certain actions, the more your madness gauge will fill up.

※The skill may be activated automatically in certain situations.」

「[Arcane Spear] │ Creates a spear of Arcane Power in the air and sends it toward a desired location.

Effect: Consumes 20 MP. Penetrating attack causing 200% damage to enemies.」

「[Bombard] │ Ejects a mass of Arcane Power twisted into a spiral.

Effect: Consumes 100 MP. Attacks all enemies within range with 600% damage.」

「[Triple Claw Strike] │ Adds two more trajectories to attacks.

Effect: When activated, two more trajectories are added to all attacks. Triples the MP consumption of skills.」

「[Arcane Power Control] │ You can now finely control your Arcane Power.」

There was nothing I could do now anyway, so I confirmed that my level had increased and I’d somehow gained some points.

Crucially, when trying to see whether a new skill had caused my MP to explode so much, I discovered that there really were some new skills.

What?

Furthermore, the first skill was the same as that status condition I’d had before.

It was no longer just a status condition but had become a fixed passive skill I could also activate myself.

The second and third could be summarized as long-distance attack skills.

The fourth was… I think I could understand the gist of it, but I wasn’t entirely sure. I had to test it out later.

Lastly, the fifth skill… I didn’t really know anything more about it. I wondered whether it was that thing’s fault my MP had increased, but there was no mention of such in its description, right?

Furthermore, just looking at the description made me wonder what it actually did.

I seriously didn’t get it.

“Just what are you trying to show us…?”

At that moment, I heard a familiar voice along with something opening. Could that be Windhand?… It was him, right?

“…Is that… the Demon Knight?”

“Yes.”

“Wh-Why is he…!”

I eavesdropped on their conversation without showing it. I nearly became agitated for a moment when I heard I’d actually been sealed, but I immediately calmed down since it didn’t particularly matter whether I was being restrained or sealed.

Rather, the most important thing I heard was that I actually went crazy…

Wow, that madness gauge sure is scary. Although I couldn’t believe it, it seemed I actually went berserk and couldn’t differentiate friend from foe. They’d even suppressed the player’s consciousness.

Well, it was a fitting skill for the Demon Knight job. Of course, it’s not like I wanted it! If possible, I would like to delete it right away! Shit!

“Didn’t you notice that most of the castle is gone?”

“What?”

“Mister Knight did that.”

I did what now?

I couldn’t hold back anymore and started shaking a little.

Well, I couldn’t really feel my body, so I wasn’t even aware it was moving. I just heard the faint sound of the chains rattling, which made me think, ‘Huh? Did I just move?’

“…Wait a second.”

However, it was apparently quite visible to the others. A voice I was pretty sure belonged to the Inquisitor cut through their conversation, followed by fast-approaching footsteps.

“Demon Knight, are you awake?”

At that moment, I decided it was time for me to wake up.

Clatter.

I shook the chains—maybe?—restraining my body.

“Then… Can you make out what I’m saying? If you can, please move your head.”

Ah, damn it, how was I supposed to look into the kids’ faces? They probably had a hard time subduing me. Of course, the one who had the advantage over me was obviously the Inquisitor.

“Are you really the Demon Knight? If you are, please nod your head.”

…No. This wasn’t something I had to worry about right now.

“You’re really awake!”

Wow, did she really just brush off the Demon Knight running wild?

“Please wait a bit. I’ll release you.”

It wasn’t even like last time—when we were moving from Somon to Tatara—a short attack. I ran so wild this time that there was a need to seal me, you know?

Of course, the reason I went on a rampage wasn’t because I was overtaken by a Demon or something, but just because of a skill penalty. But to others, it would definitely seem like the former. Honestly, I could only explain it to them like that.

Moreover, I even acted like the Demon possessed me in front of Lukkwan so she could survive! It was just an act, but the other kids would never believe that!

Urgh, uuurgh.

Wh-What should I do now…? Going by my setting, I would never allow myself to cause such a big incident, right?

Swish.

Meanwhile, the thing that had been blocking my vision disappeared. It was pretty fortunate the surroundings weren’t overly bright.

I got used to the incoming light after just a few blinks.

“I’ll free your mouth now, as well.”

As my eyes adjusted to the light, the person before me came into view. The Inquisitor was kneeling before me and brought her hand up to my face.

Thanks to that, I could clearly see the kimchi dumpling’s face. White and chubby cheeks, green eyes that sparkled as brightly as ever, and hair shaved off on one side…?

Wait, why did she shave her hair like that?

I barely stopped my pupils from shaking. In my hazy memory, which wasn’t much help, the scene of ‘red hair’ rising into the air coincidentally remained. After that, the kimchi dumpling swung her mace at me.

In other words, it seemed I was the true culprit.

* * *

* * *

Rustle.

“There we go.”

The cloth sealing my mouth finally came off, but my mouth refused to open. It was only natural. I would never be so shameless as to open my mouth and speak my mind voluntarily!

Moreover, due to the setting of the Demon Knight, what I could say was heavily limited.

“Demon Knight?”

I… I guess… the only thing I could ask was for her to kill me, right?

“How many… died?”

Uuugh. Please, anything but that!

I asked whatever came to mind to buy as much time as possible. Of course, I also chose that question after long, intense deliberation.

There were only a few things I could say according to my setting before asking her to kill me.

“None.”

No matter how much I thought it over in the time I’d barely bought for myself, however, there was no way to overcome this situation with my character setting, even more so because I didn’t know the extent of the damage I’d caused during this incident.

“You don’t need to mince your words.”

During that time, the shackles around my neck fell off with a crash. I hadn’t even realized they’d suspended me midair.

My throat felt itchy, and I couldn’t breathe for a moment. Then, the first thing I did right before losing consciousness came to mind.

“I’m telling the truth.”

Ah, my back felt weak.

Thud.

In addition to the Inquisitor, other wizards broke the chains fastened around my waist.

As a result, it automatically bent. Urgh, I’d probably starved for longer than three days, so I didn’t have the power to stand. The chains were both my restraint and my support.

I felt my body falling forward. I couldn’t even support myself with my hands because they were restrained separately.

“I’m…”

My head… Forehead? The area between my brow and forehead hit the ground first. I somehow put some strength into my waist to prevent myself from completely collapsing.

However, just because I avoided falling over didn’t mean I could do something to appear cool or anything.

“I’m…”

I thought about it repeatedly but couldn’t come up with anything to say instead.

“I’m not worthy of living. Kill me.”

…It seemed like I really couldn’t avoid death.

I wanted to cry.

“Demon Knight!”

“I… told you to kill me.”

Of course, I didn’t really want to redo all of this. As I’d said so many times, it would be extremely difficult to live through all that again.

But what could I do when this damn character setting absolutely forbade me from surviving this situation?

In the end, I asked for death despite not wishing for it, as I’d always done ever since I started playing this game. If I didn’t, I figured she would say something like, “Sir, you would never say something like that. Die.’ or similar.

“Kill me right now…!”

Hah, was there some way I could be saved, though?

“What are you talking about, Mister?!”

Deb supported me as I fell forward. As my upper body straightened, I felt something lukewarm flow down from the bridge of my nose.

My eyes widened.

“I can’t do that!”

“No, you have to.”

No, no. I also didn’t want them to do that, if possible.

If I retried, I could definitely create a better outcome. I could reduce the damage caused and resolve this incident a lot faster without falling into their trap, and I wouldn’t be stuck with that damn passive skill, but still…

Well, now that I think about it, wouldn’t it be much better if I just restarted?

“You absolutely have to.”

No, wait, that was wrong. I didn’t know where the restart point would be.

This damn game didn’t have a manual save function, so I couldn’t even try reloading using a previous save file, and restarting using an auto-save file wasn’t possible.

Of course, there were several reasons for that.

Firstly, any time I tried directly inducing a restart, the only thing that System Window hit me with was, “This command cannot be carried out.” Secondly, about restarting through a GAME OVER…..

Regardless of whether I could do something like that, my current situation would pose quite the problem.

Because the last auto-save definitely happened after this fight!

Well, wasn’t it called ‘auto’ save because it saved automatically every time after a major event happened?

Going by my experience with this buggy game, I was sure that even if I hit the restart-from-last-savepoint button somehow, it would bring me after the point I wanted to retry, right?

“Kill me… right now.”

Ah, wait a second. Looking at it that way, whether I could retry or not, wasn’t I just screwed? If the auto-save happened after the city was recaptured, I would still be in this mess, wouldn’t I?

Shit. Shit. Shit!

“…”

Admin, Status Window, System. Whoever you are. Please give this poor guy a reset button. I’m begging you.

Even if you asked me to do everything all over again, I wouldn’t complain. No, it would be even better if you did that. I could take that opportunity to get rid of this character setting.

So, please, let me reseeeet!!

“Why are you hesitating?!”

I rushed those two who were just standing there in silence. Of course, my intentions were still the exact opposite.

Anyway, if I wasn’t given a complete reset button, I could only move on to the future through their mercy.

However, all I could do was whine for them to kill me.

Shit. How did things get so twisted? My heart was about to burst from all these mixed emotions…

“Your duty isn’t to keep Demons alive, right?!”

Please, just let this slide. Let it slide. Just ignore my words this time! Please!!

I was desperately crying for help on the inside while desperately asking for my death with my own mouth. It seemed like death was just around the corner.

My neck felt stiff.

“Hey, what are you saying?”

“Mister…”

And right when they got completely overwhelmed by my shouts—no, you guys shouldn’t get overwhelmed by just that! Try to convince me! Or, even better, ignore my words completely! You hear?!—the Inquisitor chewed her lip.

Did I overdo it? Regrets were slowly appearing in my head.

“I-I don’t think you’re a Demon, though.”

…However, the kimchi dumpling ultimately didn’t disappoint my expectations.

“If you really were a Demon, there’s no way you’d ask to be killed.”

Our kimchi dumpling looked like God to me now!

* * *

“Hah!”

A sharp laugh echoed through the hall. His voice, dry and raspy, cut through the air like sharp wind over some ancient ruins.

“Then tell me, why did you bind me like this? Can you tell me to my face that I didn’t succumb to that thing? That there is any other reason aside from that evil within me that made me go berserk?!”

It showed both his pride and decline. As if the only thing he could hope for was his demise and annihilation. That was the only future he could see for himself.

“…Let me say it again: your duty is to kill Demons, as is mine.”

Was that why his figure, standing upright as ever even after he shook off the thief’s support, looked so small?

Although he resembled his usual steely self, she could hear an ever-present resignation in his voice.

“So… Fulfill your duty.”

For that reason.

For that very reason.

She didn’t dare open her mouth. Some said silence was the easiest way to determine whether someone agreed to a statement and felt the same way.

“…My duty.”

However, she couldn’t remain silent forever. So finally, after a long silence, the Inquisitor spoke up again.

“My duty is to save people from Demons, not to kill the innocent. And you… you aren’t someone I have to kill.”

Was that the right decision? She wasn’t sure. She would just have to continue moving forward. As she always did.

“How can I kill you, who resisted even while possessed by that Demon and even stopped yourself before you could kill a single innocent person?”

Because that was the path she had chosen to take.

“…Nonsense. Just because no one died this time, do you think it won’t happen next time?”

What came back was an argument that was very hard to refute. His words were painful. She couldn’t deny them hastily, either.

“If you want to let your guard down and rely on a moment’s luck, fine. Release the shackles. If you won’t do it, I will.”

However, she couldn’t accept this. She didn’t want to accept this.

“If what you experienced this time is luck…”

Why would the Demon Knight talk about the Demon like that? He never lost. Didn’t he also win over it this time in the end?

“Then next time, it will be inevitable.”

So, she was begging him not to say these things.

She wanted him to be filled with pride again and so sure of his victory as always. Confidently moving forward, calmly making something seemingly impossible into reality.

“I will make it happen. I will never let that evil you bear within you run rampant and hurt anyone. Never.”

If he could do that, she would be able to move forward as well.

“So, please, place your trust in me once again.”

The Inquisitor finished what she wanted to say. She didn’t know if her words worked or not. All she could do was her best.

“…Why?”

And then, after a long, drawn-out silence.

“Why are you so sure that I can suppress the Demon?”

The Demon Knight quietly asked her a question. One she could easily answer.

“Because that’s the kind of person I see you as.”

She could hear a grinding sound.

“…There will never be another fool like you in this world.”

That was clearly a white flag fluttering in the wind.

A heartwarming ending.

However, what she didn’t know was that during that conversation, things like ‘Would it be considered out of character if I accepted this?’ or ‘Would she cover me even if I add a few more lines here?’ were going through his head.