“To make someone unhappy, happy.”
“Oh my, could that someone be me? How touching.”
“…”
She approached, her footsteps echoing in the quiet. Her golden eyes were locked onto mine, the distance between us growing shorter and shorter.
“Knight, have you perhaps been chosen as a hero?”
“No, just a Dark Knight. Didn’t you mention something like that before, Sister?”
The wolf ears atop her head twitched slightly, something I had seen in the game, but never so real as now. It was fascinating how things from a game felt so vivid in reality.
“Yes, I did,” she chuckled softly, her voice gentle. “You hold so many memories of me… treasured me every day, thinking of me constantly.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because I’m the Nameless Saintess.”
Her tail swayed gently behind her, its fur gleaming and soft, a picture of perfection.
“Your precious person,” she whispered with a smile, standing so close now that only a small gap remained between us.
“Let’s talk about our unfinished love, Knight.”
Her breath brushed my skin as she leaned closer. The strange disconnect in her expression became clearer now.
“Would you… kiss me?”
I’d sensed it from the start, but now it was undeniable—this was going too far.
I had stayed still, pretending to fall for it, but I couldn’t hold back any longer.
“Screw off, you bitch.”
I grabbed her wrist tightly, the hand that was reaching for my cheek twisted painfully in my grasp.
“H-huh? Knight?! That hurts! Why…?”
“You shouldn’t know me, ‘so-called’ Nameless Saintess.”
This was something that even a little thought could unravel. Sure, I knew her from the game, but…
“Begging for a kiss from someone you’ve never met? My saintess would never do something like that.”
This was the past. The Nameless Saintess wouldn’t know me at all.
‘That’s why I made the decision to let her be with the one she loved, to connect her love line with someone else.’
The thought weighed heavily on my heart. In the end, her happiness was my happiness. I had to resist getting tangled in my own regrets.
The fake struggled, trying to free herself from my grip as I glared at her.
“No, you love me! You saved my life…!”
“Don’t use her face to spout such crap.”
“…Huh?”
A succubus could gather fragmented information, but they always twisted it to fit their own ends.
Frustration surged within me. The taste of bitterness filled my mouth.
“Falling in love just because you saved someone’s life? What a joke. Who even thinks that way anymore?”
“Then why…”
“Character is what matters. That’s what you lack.”
If I had possessed Licht’s body from <Knight Heart> or <Black Heart>, maybe she’d have fallen for me instead. But even if she had, it wouldn’t have been genuine—just an imposter mimicking something good.
That’s not love. That’s disgusting hypocrisy.
“Why does it matter? I’m offering you my love, and you’re just going to throw it away? You’d enjoy it, too!”
“Height’s different. By about five centimeters.”
“Are you insane? People can grow, you know!”
If this body had truly been hers, I’d have found a way to return it to the real owner. Instead, I was grateful to be in the past, where I wouldn’t accidentally steal someone else’s love line.
“Impossible.”
I let my anger slip, spitting the words out. I was in the past, not the future—how could anyone grow here?
“Want me to tell you more? Your laugh’s off, and your voice is too high-pitched.”
“Hahaha…”
As my words trailed off, the imposter gave up arguing and lowered her head. Then—
“Kyaahahahaha!!!”
Her hair shifted from white to pink, her form morphing back into that of a succubus.
“Kyaah… You figured it out, huh? But what will you do? You’re stuck here unless you become my prisoner.”
“If you’re going to imitate someone, do it right.”
“I fooled that saintess, Charitines, didn’t I? Such a shame.”
I was almost amused. The first NTR event in <Black Heart> was caused by the Apostle of Lust, Servi. How could I not see through this?
“I thought men turned into mindless beasts at the sight of a pretty woman. You’re… unusual.”
“I’m a little too crazy for that.”
The more I thought about it, the angrier I got. In the original, there was nothing like this. It reminded me of an interview where they said they’d adapted the game to reflect more diverse kinds of love, in tune with the times.
“Both Nex Aureus and the other intruder—one’s a vampire saintess, the other, a wolf-eared saintess…”
“Honestly, they’re both prettier than a succubus.”
“…This is getting interesting, truly.”
If I had fallen under her enchantment, I would have ended up alongside Nex, becoming a member of the Heroic Cult, fighting against Kainel.
I recalled Nex’s betrayal route. This was where he had been caught.
“I expected you to succumb to the enchantment. What a pity. Still, I know what you are now.”
“Do you really think so?”
Her words were coming faster now. I didn’t want to keep talking.
“Yes! Your weak spot is that so-called Nameless Saintess, right?”
“Shut up.”
My irritation spiked. That wasn’t a name to be thrown around lightly.
The succubus multiplied, surrounding me. They were preparing to attack now.
“Once I tell the Omniscient Hero, he’ll be overjoyed!”
“Messing with the Book of Life and Death? You’ve got to be kidding me.”
As worry for the saintess’s safety gnawed at me, I felt impatience creep in. It was a bad habit. I should never give them an opening.
The pink-haired demons circled around me, each taking their turn to speak.
“That’s what ‘omniscience’ is for. You’ll have no choice but to join us when your loved one’s life is held in our hands.”
“…Damn it.”
I had hoped to hold out longer until Nex woke up, but now that they were threatening the one person I couldn’t allow to be harmed, I couldn’t stand it any longer. I let out a long, frustrated sigh.
Multiple shadows appeared beneath my feet. Good. I could work with this.
I bit down hard on my tongue, the sharp pain cutting through my haze. Blood dripped from my mouth, and with it, came a brief return of my senses.
Servi’s expression faltered as she saw the blood on the ground.
“Wait, are you trying to wake yourself up? That’s not possible without my permission.”
I know that.
The heat of the liquid, the searing pain—it was excruciating, even though this was supposed to be a dream.
The coppery taste of blood filled my mouth.
This had to work. I focused on the throbbing pain in my brain as I drew my sword from my waist.
‘If I believe this is real, it’ll be real.’
It felt like I had actually severed my tongue. I surrendered myself to that sensation, believing it to be the truth. The enemies before me weren’t illusions—they were real.
“What are you doing with that sword? Magic doesn’t work in here, you know.”
I assumed Drake’s sword stance.
I stomped the ground with all my strength, focusing every sensation into my right hand. I had to combine two techniques. So long as I had the will to cut, swordsmanship could cleave through anything.
Whether it was a dream or reality didn’t matter.
Focus.
For a happy ending, I’d give it everything I had.
I tightened my grip on the sword. The air pressure from my swing caused the blade to tremble.
First Style and Fourth Style.
A technique that strikes at a connected form, and a technique that focuses on slicing power. I combined Vacuum Slash with Shadow Strike.
─Thukakakak!!
A massive sword wind roared through the air, tearing through the group of succubi. One of them had to be connected to the original.
“Kyahahah… No matter what you do, it’s pointless! It was funny when you mimicked the cardinal, but this is even better.”
The storm crashed into the front, slicing several doppelgangers apart. Blood continued to drip from my mouth as I advanced.
“It’s useless. This isn’t reality; it’s a dream.”
Even as they disappeared, the succubi sneered at me, their expressions calm and unconcerned.
The shadows in front of me thinned. Hadn’t they realized yet? My helmet had fallen off, revealing my face, but I had no time to bother with that.
And then—
─Schk.
“W-what?! Kyaaaaah!!!”
The succubus furthest away was sliced, and Servi’s scream echoed through the chamber. She had taken damage. It seemed like the number of doppelgangers had cushioned the blow, but she hadn’t escaped unscathed.
“Huff… huff…”
Barely clinging to life with divine power, Servi’s pink-haired form trembled as she looked at me with wide, frightened eyes.
She continued pouring divine power into her body, desperate to heal herself.
A demon using divine power. I guess divine power really is the manifestation of will.
“How… How did you…?”
I’m just a bit of a hopeless romantic.
I smiled coldly at Servi, raising my middle finger. Thinking she could beat me by imitating our saintess had been her biggest mistake.
The reason was simple.
By creating shadows even in dreams to ground it in reality, she had sealed her own fate.