325 Chapter 325

"Ugh~"

I let out a groan.

"Ughhhh~"

As I continued to groan and squirm, Evangeline, who was sitting with me in the Lord's mansion dining room for a late dinner, furrowed her brows.

"What's wrong, senior? Is your stomach hurting? Want to go to the restroom?"

"No, it's not that..."

"You don't have to be shy. You can go without worrying about me. We've known each other long enough, haven't we? Just go and take care of business."

"No, really, it's not that!"

Do I look like a school kid too embarrassed to use the restroom because he's afraid of getting teased by his friends?

Evangeline shrugged her shoulders as she took a bite of her pie.

"Then what's going on? Just spill the beans."

"Ah..."

I finally let it out. Evangeline was someone I could somewhat confide in, after all.

"I'm not sure about some things that happened between Lucas and me in the past..."

Just a while ago in the prison, I had interrogated Mason, who had been captured as a spy.

But I couldn't get anything substantial out of him.

All Mason did was repeat the same story, something like 'Sir Lucas has been serving you, Prince Ash, since he was seven-'

Then Evangeline tilted her head.

"If it's something between the two of you, why can't you remember it? Oh, is it one of those things? The one who delivers the blow doesn't remember? That kind of incident?"

"No, it's not like that... or is it?"

I couldn't say that I'm not actually Ash but a soul who has possessed him. It's a dilemma that could drive one mad.

So, I beat around the bush.

"I had a wild phase where I drank a lot, you know. So, my memory is... a bit fuzzy."

"You're twenty-three this year, right?"

"Yes, why?"

"So you're already getting dementia? Wow, being in your twenties is no joke, huh?"

Evangeline let out a scoffing sound.

This cheeky teenager! Mocking me again! I'm still in my prime, you know?!

"If you can't remember, isn't the fastest way to just ask Lucas?"

"..."

Evangeline suddenly made a solid point. I clamped my mouth shut.

"You did the same thing during your last fight, too. Trying to go around in circles. Why not just confront the issue head-on? I can officiate for you!"

"It's not about a fight this time..."

The issue was some unresolved debt between the original Ash and Lucas.

Lucas seemed remorseful about something, but I had no clue what it was.

He's down in the dumps over there, and I'm not even asking for an apology.

Maybe it would just pass if left alone for a few days, but...

'Lucas must be carrying a heavy emotional burden about this issue.'

If possible, I'd like to resolve it this time. Clearing up a subordinate's lingering doubts is also a part of a commander's job.

"...Fine."

Nodding my head, I declared resolutely.

"I'll just go ask him directly! Thanks, Evangeline! You're smarter than I thought!"

"Thank you for the compliment, senior! Sometimes even I surprise myself! Perhaps I learned it from you!"

"Hahaha! You sure know how to sweet-talk, my junior!"

"I learned that from you too! Hehehe!"

We burst into laughter and clinked our glasses.

I hope this sense that we're turning into a pair of fools is just in my head...

"You both look so happy laughing~ Would you like me to bring more food?"

Just then, Aider appeared, beaming as he offered to refill our plates.

Evangeline immediately raised her empty meat pie plate and yelled, 'Refill! Refill!'

Aren't you getting a bit rounder? Eat in moderation, will you?

Aider came over to me after placing sliced meat pie on Evangeline's plate. He gestured to me with a cup, and I poured him some fresh water.

"By the way, are you curious about your past with Lucas?"

"Yeah... I don't know much about that bastard Ash's past."

I scratched my chin and grunted. Aider seemed eager to talk, his face lighting up.

But I didn't pay much attention and continued my thought.

"However, third-party inquiries are done for now. I'd rather ask Lucas directly. It's a better path for mutual communication."

"Ah, I see..."

Somehow, Aider's shoulders slumped. But I had no reason to care about this director's mood.

"More importantly, Aider, there's something I need to discuss."

"Yes?"

To Aider, who opened his gray eyes wide behind his thick glasses, I spoke with a heavy sigh.

"It's about the Dark Event."

***

This defensive battle was Stage 14.

And once again, a message popped up in the system window.

[??? is passing their turn.]

[No Dark Event will be activated in this stage.]

From Stage 11 up to this Stage 14.

For a staggering four stages in a row, consecutive Dark Event skips had occurred.

"What the hell are they planning? Why would they voluntarily forgo using their own advantage?"

After dinner, in the Lord's office.

Once it was just Aider and me, I pressed him for answers.

It's certainly easier without Dark Events. Those bastards are basically doing nothing and letting us easily win the defensive battle. That's obviously a good thing.

But in this god-awful game, there's no way my enemies would kindly make it easy and fun for me, right?

Something fishy is going on.

It stinks. It smells of malevolent schemes...!

Sure enough, Aider slowly began to explain with a rather serious face.

"Dark Events can accumulate."

"Accumulate?"

"Should I say it's like accruing... If you don't use it in this stage, it can be carried over to the next stage."

"What the hell, why would they support such a feature, shit!"

I unwittingly stood up and grabbed Aider by the collar. Aider frantically flailed his arms.

"Whoa, whoa, calm down! They're also taking a huge risk to do this!"

"What do you mean, taking a risk?"

"What I mean is, let's say the Dark Event points for one stage are 100. If you skip it, you can only carry over 25 points as the maximum!"

I furrowed my brow and started doing the math.

"So you're saying..."

"Since they've carried over for 4 stages so far, adding up to 100 points... In Stage 15, they can use 200 points worth of Dark Events!"

The usual Dark Event would be 100 points.

So a Dark Event twice as powerful would come.

"For 4 stages with no Dark Events, you'll face a Dark Event twice as strong in one stage!"

"Hmm..."

"It's certainly risky on their part... but from a defensive battle perspective, it's not necessarily bad, is it?"

He was right.

To put it simply, the enemy gave up 300 out of 500 points for one 200-point hit. 

If you consider how much their Dark Events torment us in each stage, skipping four stages for free honestly isn't that bad.

But still.

'So what happens in Stage 15?'

That was the problem.

What form would the dark event, twice as powerful as before, take?

Moreover, Stage 15 was a multiple of 5, meaning it was a boss stage.

Up until now, the overpowering Nightmare Legion would swarm in, preventing the dark event from taking effect due to the highest level of difficulty.

To use a dark event, you would have to send a slightly weaker legion that doesn't hit the maximum difficulty level.

'What kind of monster legion will they send this time? And what kind of dark event will accompany them?'

I was certain my nemesis was preparing a calculated move.

So then, how should I counter it?

Aider surreptitiously withdrew from my contemplative grasp.

I blinked my eyes and tightened my grip on the Director's collar.

"Hey! The credit card company next door even carries over points! What benefits does our card have, huh?!"

"No-no! You have to understand! Over there, they've been excellent customers for centuries, filling up their achievements! They naturally get more benefits!"

"This punk, what about me? Am I not an excellent customer? I was the first in the world to clear Hell Ironman in this crappy game! Shouldn't I be showered with rewards? Be mindful! The one-year anniversary is coming up! Should I switch card companies?!"

Am I unhappy? You bet I'm leaving! Just you watch!

A perfect and beautiful counter to the dark event, voilà!

Aider, now looking pitiful, shouted.

"We're already working hard to introduce something opposite to the dark event... it's called [Goddess Blessing]!"

"Oh? What's that?"

I immediately loosened my grip on Aider's collar, well, by half at least.

"As the name suggests, it's a blessing from the goddess... You can buff an ally once per stage. You can use your achievement points to activate it."

"Finally, I can use these decorative achievement points."

"Additional features are also in the final stages of development, so you'll be able to use them soon..."

Not totally useless after all, Director!

I grinned happily.

"So, when's the patch date?"

"Ah... that would be, well, ideally around the start of the second year?"

Thud!

I grabbed Aider's collar fiercely once again and growled menacingly at the coughing director.

"Complete it before Stage 15 starts. Better yet, make it usable before this stage starts."

"Ahem, that's a bit, no, definitely impossible..."

"Then put it in as a beta feature! I'll test it and QA it for you! A free tester, it's a win-win!"

"This is not a game, it's reality, and things can't just be added on a whim..."

"Enough talk! Will you do it, or not?!"

In the end, Aider had to happily nod in agreement to my earnest and moderate suggestion (by pointing a gun at his head).

His eyes were even brimming with tears.

Ah, should have done this sooner! How wonderful for both of us!

"When I look at other games, they relaunch beautifully with a 2.0 title, so I have high hopes! Let's turn this into a legendary game!"

As I energetically shook Aider's arm up and down, he wiped his eyes and managed a strained smile.

"...Yes, I'll do my best."

It was a smile so fragile, like a sand sculpture, that it seemed it would fly away with the wind.

"With the mindset that this is the last challenge."

I blinked in confusion. Isn't life always uncertain?

You get one life. One life coin.

That's Ironman mode, and that's the essence of this world.

***

The next day.

I visited the forge in Crossroad.

I was planning to test my ultimate skill, "Imperial Edict," in a dungeon. To do that, I needed a special equipment called a 'flag.'

Kellibey was busy upgrading Lucas's exclusive equipment, so I thought I'd pick up a temporary flag at the Crossroad forge.

So, before lunch, I walked into the forge and found—

"Huh?"

There was already a customer.

A towering knight was receiving something from the master of the blacksmith guild.

The familiar black armor, the longsword at his waist...

"Lucas!"

They say you meet your enemies on a narrow path... Ah, no, that's not the right saying here.

Anyway, this was good timing. I greeted Lucas with a hearty slap on his back.

"Hey! How was your vacation? What did you do yesterday, huh?"

I tried to make the atmosphere as natural and light as possible to make it easy for Lucas to rejoin. That was my plan, but...

"...?"

Seeing Lucas's face as he slowly turned around, I was taken aback.

Lucas was... well, he was wearing what appeared to be a newly custom-made helmet.

A cylindrical helmet that completely covered his face, as if it were made of scrap metal...

"..."

"..."

A moment of silence passed.

It didn't suit him.

It really, really didn't suit him.

He was decked out in shining SSR-grade armor from the neck down, but had slapped a trash can lid that didn't even look N-grade on his head. The imbalance was ridiculous.

For a moment, I stared at Lucas, mouth agape. Then, trembling, I pointed at his head.

"What... why are you wearing that?"

Lucas tilted his head, or rather, his tin can, and replied in a low voice.

"...Because I don't have a face to show you."

"What?"

"I'm too ashamed to face you, my Lord..."

"..."

"So, um..."

Lucas tapped his tin can with his hand.

"I've decided to cover my face..."

"What the hell are you talking about, you idiot?!"

Unable to contain myself, I smacked the back of Lucas's tin-can-covered head.