Chapter 2: Leslie Violet Rose

"I'm Arthur... A damn demon..."

My murmurs were faint, but it felt like they echoed throughout the entire apartment. My lips trembled, as did my hands. My head kept turning as I looked around the apartment again. Everything seemed strangely familiar—this entire damned place felt eerily familiar since I woke up... The woman from before also seemed familiar, the damn photo on the card, the folded uniform—everything was very familiar...

Bringing my hands to my head, my breathing became labored again...

"The woman with white hair," I muttered to myself. That woman with beautiful white hair, red eyes, and two pairs of horns on her head... she's a demon, the Duchess of the Demon Lands... Lilith Lust, one of the seven houses of the demonic world... a character from the game "Academy of Light," a very important female character... I can't be wrong. It's impossible. I can't fail; it's her, it's exactly her. I know all the characters from the game by heart...

My mind reeled again... Game... Looking at my hands, touching my body, pinching my cheeks, feeling pain—everything seems real. My situation is real...

"I'm inside the game," I muttered. My blood rushed to my head, and a mix of happiness and bitterness struck my heart. Looking at the identification card, I picked it up with my trembling hand... Taking a deep breath... my mind refused to accept that this was real, that what was happening to me was real...

[Name: Arthur]

[Identity: Student]

[Sacred Academy of Light]

Three simple phrases, yet they carried great weight for me. The name Arthur took me a moment to remember... The reason is quite simple: Arthur is a demon of the lowest social rank, a slave bought on a whim by Lilith, a demon who died and was discovered at the beginning of the game, right on the day of the academy's inauguration, by the original protagonist... He died like a dog without anyone knowing, in one of the academy's alleys...

A nobody, a simple slave that no one cares about, a damn extra in the game that everyone forgot... And that character is who I am right now, an extra...

Fear invaded my mind—the fear of how I ended up inside the game, the fear of my surroundings, and most importantly, the fear of death...

Leaving the card in its place, I looked at the academy uniform, and I also remembered... The Empire of Light, the greatest enemy of the demonic world, a vast land blessed by the magic of light, by the Goddess of Light. Everything in this land is sacred, and never, ever, is a demon allowed to walk its streets, let alone enter its premises—or, more specifically, the academy... A place where they primarily teach how to kill demons...

My complexion turned as pale as a sheet...

"You have only one mission," I recalled Lilith's curses, and the blood drained from my face... Clenching my eyes shut... The mission of the extra demon who dies at the beginning of the game is basically to serve as a spy, to report everything that happens at the academy—the movements of the main characters, especially the children of the renowned families who rule the entire Empire of Light... But he doesn't accomplish any of that because he dies at the beginning...

Feeling my throat dry, I reached for a glass of water. My mind felt as tired as my body... With trembling steps, I managed to sit on the bed... Feeling the utter absurdity of my situation, I let out a chuckle: "Hahaha, this is a damn joke," I thought, feeling death hovering around my neck, and the terror of my situation. The best option I have is to kill myself...

Falling silent, I tried to gather all the information I had about the character Arthur, whom I now embodied: "Arthur, a low-ranking demon, the worst of his kind. Little is known about him. The only thing known is that he was sold to Duchess Lilith as a slave. It's said she bought him on a whim because of his blue flame... An extremely rare flame, which this guy can use, but at the same time, it harms him... What a complete idiot. It's known that when he uses that blue flame, he feels like his body is burning alive..."

As stupid as it may seem, I felt curious. I was always fascinated by this world of magic, fantasy, and things like that. My heart raced with anticipation... Looking at my right hand... I tried to generate the blue flame... Focusing all my concentration on it, a small spark quickly ignited into a flame...

My eyes gleamed with joy: "I really did it," I thought, feeling proud for some reason... I figured that stuff about burning alive was a lie...

"Arrghhh..."

Letting out a scream from the depths of my soul, my mind suffered a massive collapse... Falling to the floor, I writhed in pain like a damn insect... Feeling my skin turn red-hot, the deadly tingling sensation blanked my mind... Clenching my teeth... I tried with all my might to stifle the grotesque screams rising from my throat...

"Haaa... Haaa... Haaa..." Cold sweat ran down my entire body as the sensation of burning alive faded away...

"Damn it," I muttered, wiping the sweat from my forehead. With difficulty, I got to my feet, hugging myself...

Bang!!!!

"What's happening?!" A sharp scream snapped me out of my tremors... Looking ahead, my eyes widened....

"Oh... Are you okay?" The young woman approached me with worried eyes... She knelt down and looked at me intently... "Hello?" She tilted her head...

The young woman in front of me had beautiful lavender hair with black streaks... Her stunning violet eyes sparkled as she wore the uniform, looking at me in silence... Leslie Violet Rose, one of the most important characters in the game, a uniquely beautiful young woman... Left breathless, I stared at one of my favorite characters in reality, unable to believe that she was actually in my room, asking me if I was okay... And on top of that, somehow, she was my neighbor, living right next to my room...