CHAPTER NINE: REALITY AND FALSEHOOD (3)

Allen keeps staring at the portrait. Someone suddenly enters the room. Unfortunately, Allen is unable to sense him. The sense of familiarity with the woman somehow shakes his heart. No, Allen finds out it's not Allen but him. Liam Ascente had met this person before. The same white hair and deep blue eyes. 

"Miraila..."

A name comes out of nowhere as he stares at the portrait. Who is Miraila?

"I see. That's why you're alive." A man wearing a black trench coat is looking at him, standing near the door. As if knowing he is not Allen, the man walks away. Allen tries to reach the man, but a strong gust of wind hits him. Allen is stunned and looks towards the closed door.

Another figure hurriedly enters the room. Klein is looking at his stunned master and chooses to keep his mouth shut. "Marquis Terraine has arrived, sir."

Allen just nods and fixes his clothes. This room should be the former duchess's room. The weirdest thing is the fact that Allen preserves this room. Not the type of preservation as in cleaning and taking care of it, but because the time in the room has been stopped.

"Sir?" Klein looks towards Allen, who he finds sitting in an empty room. Not to mention, it is the room of the deceased first lady. This is not normal. Allen Raphaelis, whom Klein knew, used to be an average man who fought the monsters daily. A kind and understanding man that his father told him about in his childhood memories. Now, he is just a drunkard who likes to harass women in the middle of the day.

Allen walks out and goes to the carriage. He looks towards Klein and asks, "Did you meet someone on your way to the room?"

Klein shakes his head. He seems worried that the current Allen is harder to predict compared to his former self. The current Allen looks calmer and more silent after the assassination attempt by his daughter. He must be in shock.

Allen sits down and starts to think. 'The man was well aware of the fact that I was not Allen.' Liam took out his small notebook from the breast pocket and read the story plot once again. Someone tried to change fate by killing Allen before the upcoming date. Unfortunately, Allen was not supposed to die, so time itself became twisted. The most important thing now is not why but how. The fact is, why does Luminaria want him to become Allen? She should know how much he loathed humanity.

Allen knows he shouldn't think about something that is not his concern. At least, not right now. The problem he is going to face is larger than that. The problem is called 'demon worshippers.' Yes, demon kin doesn't exist in this world but Demon Lord does. He rather destroys the world. One of their high-ranking followers is going to meet him soon. The man who led the Empire into the era of chaos. The carriage arrives at the grand entrance of the restaurant.

Allen walks down and looks towards the purple-haired middle-aged man. "I sincerely greet you, Your Grace. Thank you for coming today."

Alphonse Terraine is the future king of calamity and the current fifteenth-rank demon worshipper.

Sitting in a large dining restaurant, Allen is unable to concentrate on his meal. His sight has been taken by a weird notification that keeps appearing right in front of his eyes. His so-called golden finger, a privilege of every transmigrator and reincarnation he read in novels during his lifetime, has somehow appeared.

[Confrontation with the first plot choice is a success!]

[You managed to resist mind manipulation magic cast by one of the greatest villains of the novel.]

[Rewards: Light Magic (Healing Lv1)(Blessing Lv1)(Purification Lv1)]

"Your Grace, is everything alright?" The creepy smile somehow stuck on his face sends chills down Allen's spine. there's one person who has the same ability and it brings him back to his memory lane. Theoris. One of his former mentors.

Mind manipulation? Since when? Glancing towards the man who is still smiling gently, Allen keeps his composure and smiles gently. This person is not Theoris so why, did his heartache? He reminded himself. This is not his reality. He is not Liam Ascente nor Liam Alistair Diarca. He is Allen Raphaelis.

Thinking of the situation, he takes a deep breath. He is still a Duke, meaning that his authority is still the highest. There is no reason for him to back down.

"I just had an unpleasant meeting with some dogs of that woman. I can't believe she tried to interfere with my judgment and let a bunch of leeches into my land. How disgusting." The current Alphonse tries to curry favor with Duke Raphaelis. However, something like mind manipulation magic is something different. He tries to control the Duke. It's better if he can dig something from the man in front of him.

Knowing well the fact of the nature of this greedy man, Allen is unable to drop his vigilance. "I see, the Empress is trying to forge a path for the first prince after all."

Putting down his cup, Alphonse smirks and looks again toward the Duke. "That's why some of us have been thinking to support the Queen's son instead."

The man has fallen into his trap. Allen knows that Alphonse will ask for some information from him. He can easily reveal what happened in the meeting so the man can keep assurance for himself. He silently stands up and glances toward the high hills. "It's about the maternal family of the first prince, huh?"

"Indeed, Your Grace. Both of the Empress's parents' families were Marquises, after all. They have the full support of the conservative faction." Of course, the demonic worshippers are planning to use the second prince as a puppet to control the empire.

The current Emperor, Claude D. Reiner, is the twelfth Emperor of the Valencia Empire. The Empire's history can be traced back one thousand and two hundred years. At that time, Valencia was a small kingdom located in the central continent. Its location in the middle made it vulnerable to attacks from the neighboring kingdoms in all directions.

Then, the Great Continental War occurred. Valencia, led by the King of Valencia, managed to expand its territory and devour 70% of the continent's land. It was then, eight hundred years ago, that Valencia became an empire. Claude currently has four official partners and three unofficial partners.

The four official partners were led by the Empress, who bore the oldest son of the Emperor, the third princess, and the fourth princess. Next was the Queen, who gave birth to the second prince and the eldest princess. The other two official concubines do not have any children with the Emperor. They were simply political hostages used to strengthen the Empire's influence on the neighboring kingdoms.

The three unofficial partners started with the daughter of Mauris Claire, the descendant of a swordmaster. She is the mother of the second princess and the fourth prince. The other one is Roscente, a commoner who managed to climb onto the Emperor's bed with the help of the nobles. Unfortunately, even though she spent the longest time with the Emperor, she is the mother of the fifth princess and the sixth prince.

Considering the position and their children, the Queen and Empress can overlook their existence, knowing well the fact that their children are not threats. Unfortunately, the same thing can be said in opposition to the mother of the protagonist. The protagonist's mother used to be a princess of the neighboring kingdom, Leticia Carnaine. She fell in love with the Emperor and disguised herself as a palace maid.

Claude fell in love with her at first sight. Time continued to pass, but the love that bloomed between them only grew stronger.

Then, the child was born. Claude loved him as he did his lover. Leticia forgot her life as a princess and raised the third prince. Unfortunately, not all love stories have a happy ending. A conflict on the border occurred and led to the fall of the Hestia kingdom.

After receiving the news, Leticia could no longer live in her fantasy story. Her kingdom had fallen. All because her brother thought that she was kidnapped by the Emperor. Claude, who felt betrayed, started to abandon both her and their son. On his fifteenth birthday, the prince will regain his memory and start his heroic journey.

Allen took a deep breath. He looked towards the man and steeled his gut. The prince's birthday is three months away. He plans to live according to the plot. Unfortunately, the blinking holographic screen appears again. This time he curses his luck. He didn't even know where the system came from. He didn't even realize it was bound to him in the first place.

[You encounter the first choice that can lead to humanity's glory or destruction. Make your choice.]

[First choice: Support the 2nd prince.]

[Rewards: Trust of the demonic worshippers +10%, Mind manipulation (Lv1), Humanity extinction: +20%]

[Second choice: Support the 1st prince.]

[Rewards: +1000 Gold coins, Trust of the demonic worshippers -15%, Humanity extinction: +5%]

[Third choice: Support the 3rd prince.]

[Rewards: Trust of demonic worshippers +3%, Light mana manipulation (Lv1), Humanity extinction: -10%]

[State your choice]

Besides, something is bothering him about the reward. Light magic. Only clerics and associates of the temple can use light magic. Is god trying to make him some sort of saint? Light magic? Seriously? He's a demon king. If he's currently not being sealed, he's already burned everything with darkness.

While waiting for his answer, all his surroundings turn gray. Time somehow stops ticking, awaiting him to start the clock. Allen chooses the safest answer that anyone would choose.

"The 3rd. I will support the 3rd."

Alphonse looks stunned as he gazes towards the Duke. Is he insane? The 3rd prince is an invisible existence. The fact that the Duke chose the 3rd prince is the same as making a foolish decision. There is no way the Emperor will choose that child. It has been ten years since the Emperor abandoned the child.

"I'm not sure about choosing the queen. The larger the force behind the 2nd prince, the larger the resistance that will be given by the Empress. I just pissed her off. I will remain neutral for the time being." Hearing Allen's words, Alphonse frowns but simply nods. Allen walks and smirks at Alphonse.

"As long as the Empress believes I am from the neutral faction, I can simply choose who will give me the best dishes, right?" Allen and Alphonse share a handshake. Alphonse's smile deepens. As expected, the Duke does not have any sense of loyalty.

Allen returns to the carriage and looks at the violet-haired man. He simply smiles and bows slightly. Closing the curtain, Allen once again looks towards the blue screen right in front of him. This is getting messier.

[Name: Alphonse Terraine (Hayden)]

[Age: 52 (143)]

[Abilities: Dark magic Lv15, Mind manipulation Lv20, Tongue of snakes Lv12]

[Character's Identity: Hayden, who hates the Royal family, lives in the name of Alphonse to get revenge. He makes a contract with the corrupt demon, Benz, to kill the Emperor. He and the Duke will become the greatest supporters of the demonic cult expansion... {Locked}]

[Favorability: 30%]

Allen reads the details seriously. The words "character's identity" make him realize that this world is the world of the book that he read before, it's just... why him? No matter how much he thinks, Luminaria might choose the wrong person to be a savior. He manages to see Alphonse's status window after touching the man. Not to mention the three choices as well. Allen once again remembers the sight of a man looking at him, asking why he was still alive.

Some of the information is inaccessible to him. Allen just looks towards the favorability section. He is tempted to test it on both of his children. For some reason, he believes that the value will be negative infinity. Liam Ascente will not act like a father. He will watch the children grow up and die silently. It sounds a little sad. But he has a world to return to. A world where people waiting for him.

[You managed to resist the temptation and chose to fight for humanity.]

[Welcome to the world of The Tale of the Blue Rose. Please protect the continent and guide the sword of Light.]

[Player username: Liam Ascente]

[May the blessing of the light be with you.]