Afterword (1)

"Nox von Reinhafer. What the hell is he?"

Luna asked out of the blue.

Theo was silent for a moment, for even he hadn't quite grasped the change in his youngest son.

Theo thought back to the past for a moment. He listed his son's changes in chronological order and began to recall what happened in between.

'The first was the fight with the twins.'

The fight with the twins.

There, Nox fought Allen and Hearts, proving his talent.

The Eldain Academy. Nox must have decided there was something to be gained there. Otherwise, he wouldn't have fought so desperately, in a cage, with his talent hidden.

'The most likely cause is the death of his mother… a trauma that stems from that. The youngest gained an unknown drive from it and headed for the Academy.'

It was the most likely hypothesis.

In the past, Nox had watched his mother die on the night of the slaughter with his own two eyes. Since then, he'd been half-crazed, rampaging, and unafraid of people.

Moreover, he was weak.

If he was gifted, I didn't know it at the time, but in hindsight he had the potential for genius. Otherwise, as weak as he was, he had the potential for genius.

I would not have been able to cut down Paimon with my own hands.

'You avenged your mother's death… with your own hands....'

Theo realized that the thought made a pit in his stomach, but then he was back to being the cold father and patriarch he had always been.

The dead don't come back, and he had a job to do, and he knew it would be the same for Nox, probably.

So Theo could only stammer an answer.

"I don't know."

Luna's brow furrowed at his answer. She thought Theo was hiding the answer.

She wondered if Nox was one of his secret weapons. Something to keep hidden from the prying eyes of the press and the outside world.

It occurred to her that he might have been born an unsung genius of House Reinhafer, but that he might have been deliberately bad-mouthing him to send him out on a limb, and then gradually awaken him.

The reason was simple.

'A power that can only be obtained through the bloodline of the Reinhafer family. A manifestation of darkness that can only be triggered when one is pushed to the limit.'

It was a short-lived power, like giving yourself over to a demon, but it also destroyed human bodies that couldn't handle it.

Luna had come to see Theo to find out for herself, not wanting her new recruit to be pushed to the limit and overwhelmed by the power.

Like… like Marin.

"I think you're lying to me."

"Parents don't know everything about their children."

"The name Dark Masters must make you cry. Since when have you been such a warm father to your sons? Your oldest is already in league with the Imperialists… the devil, to be exact."

Nox's problems aside, the conversation turned to more serious matters. Theo needed to get serious about this, too.

First son, Garen.

He'd finally gotten his hands on the devil.

"There will be blood on the continent."

Theo said, his voice a little shaky, and Luna nodded nonchalantly.

"Theo von Reinhafer. I hope you have not forgotten your promise."

She turned away, not breaking eye contact.

"If anyone stands in the way of our plans, even your son, we will kill them. That is the Lunatic way, your contract with us. So don't let your personal feelings get in the way."

"I understand. Everything… for the destruction of the Empire and the extermination of the 72 demons."

With that, Theo said, and Luna turned into a shadow and stalked out of the chamber.

It was then. A familiar voice came from outside.

"Hehehe… !! The Young Master didn't forget me… ! Are you finally coming to marry me? Are you sure that's the case, Mei?"

"Ah… why are you crying… it's not like you're going to die… Hey, you're getting it on your clothes, don't come! And I told you before, you can't marry Master because of your class difference with him...."

"Oh yea! Carl is finally back… Carl… my love Carl… !!" {1}

Rona aside, Elena and Mei.

Nox's two newest recruits were causing a stir in the halls. In fact, Theo was a little excited, too.

Finally, after ten days, my son is back in the family.

'I'll have quite a few questions this time.'

He had a lot of questions, starting with his engagement to the princess.

Theo coughed a little, trying not to show it, and sat back in his seat. It was his usual dignified posture, but Rodwell knew.

Theo was quite excited right now.

* * *

"So, to put it simply, I am interested in you. So please sign a contract with our Rivalin Merchant. I'll take care of the reward so you won't be disappointed."

District Four.

The very center of the commercial district, the very top.

I'm there now, having a leisurely teatime with Eleanor.

Actually, to be honest, my head is spinning just thinking about it.

Right now, I'm in the midst of an even bigger crisis.

The reason is none other than....

"What? Sean-ssi. Why don't you sign with us, you have nothing to lose?"

"I'm sorry… I have family business to attend to."

"Anyway, I've already heard from Nox that you're the hidden bastard of House Reinhafer, and that you did it for us, even if it was just to get in our way and play the bad guy. Don't worry, he's given you permission."

I didn't give him permission…?

The words lodged in my throat, but I managed to swallow them down.

This is a bit much.

Even though I'd beaten the boss beforehand and gained some stats. I can't believe I have to work at the top of Rivalin.

And with a second body…?

I barely suppressed a sigh as I felt a headache forming.

At least in front of her, I was going to be the innocent young man playing the villain. After all, the real villain is Nox, the main character, so I'm going to go easy on him.

Lies don't work against this fierce fox of gold anyway.

"That… Miss Eleanor?"

"Call me Eleanor, with my permission."

For some reason, Eleanor was being friendly to me. She may not have been blunt, but when it came to dealing with Nox, it was almost like dealing with asshole number one....

'This one just seems like a caring tsundere....'

Of course, I don't say this out loud.

The way I look right now is like a whimpering puppy.

Damn, I didn't want to look like this, but this is who I am. It's more like Yoochan.

I was nothing more than a gamer who had terrible social skills and never left the house.

I spent almost all of my time with my games, and I probably lived my life more like a character in a game than I did myself.

And when I realized that this is where the secrets were hidden. It was a bit of a relief.

I felt like I hadn't been completely robbed of the Inner Lunatic that had become my reason for living.

...It's a bit of a game breaker, but anyway, I said it as stubbornly as I could.

"I… I'm more comfortable calling you Miss Eleanor, but...."

"There's an uncanny resemblance between you and Nox-kun, isn't there? Haha... I don't want to bother you, but...."

Eleanor ran a hand through her auburn hair and glared at me.

Then she flashed me a fox-like, pure white smile. Of course, what she was about to tell me was not the kind of thing that made me smile at all.

"Does Dean Noah know who you are? And your relationship to Nox?"

"...I thought Miss Eleanor was a gentle person who didn't prey on others' weaknesses?"

"I'm a merchant, no reason to be a nice person."

Damn it.

For some reason, I feel like I'm more involved in various places when I'm an alt character than when I'm Nox. Why? Is it because I ate my stats for free?

Is that why, instead of going bald like Vernon, I'm being punished like this?

"What can I… do?"

I said, my tone hardening slightly. Eleanor relaxed her expression and tapped the contract on the tabletop.

"Sign it, it can't be a bad deal."

"...."

"Sign it. Aren't you going to do it?"

"I have to. I'll do it…."

I've been thinking about what I've done to other people. Especially the last few things I'd done to Zitri. I wondered if I was enjoying being an asshole too much.

I realized that maybe I was.

Now that I actually have an asshole in front of me, it's almost intimidating, to say the least. I'll have to get Zitri something later.

Otherwise, she's probably going to take me back to the family home right now and tell Theo to kick my ass.

Anyway,

I had no choice but to sign the paper Eleanor handed me.

The terms of the agreement were simple. Always be in Eleanor's neighborhood, protect her identity, and will be provide a substantial amount of artifacts along with gold coins when she asks for them.

I finally signed it and gave her a quick glance.

"Okay, so it's not a forgery."

"You saw me sign it in front of you, there's no way it's a forgery…."

"I'm kidding."

This is real.

I'm seething with anger, but I'm the timid one here.

I must control my anger.

Again, if you have three patience....

'If you kill one, you don't have to put up with three....'

The thought crossed my mind at the same time, but I pushed it aside.

I was about to head out the door when, out of nowhere, Eleanor came up to me with her back to me and grabbed my hand. My body instantly stiffened.

"For saving my life, this is my gift, my down payment."

Eleanor handed me a pendant. Something light and useful.

My eyes narrow.

'This is… [the Flame Spirit Pendant]? Why would Eleanor give me something so valuable, and at such an early stage...!!!'

I stared at her, more puzzled than pleased.

[Flame Spirit Pendant]. It's an artifact that has so many layers of high-level magic on it that you can't even look at it for a few gold coins.

It's one of the scam items in Inner Lunatic, and one of the items the heroines give each other at the end of the story as they profess their love.

In fact, it's the item that Eleanor gives to the protagonist when they finally get together.

'Actually, it's fine for Eleanor to have it, but....'

The real question is, why bring it up at this point?

We don't see it until right before the ending.

What the hell is going on....

"It's not a big deal. Don't worry, take it easy. I told you, it's a down payment. Oh, and don't tell Nox, he's going to covet it."

...How much of an asshole is Nox in Eleanor's mind?

At least he saved her life once, Sean.

That said, he's treated so differently than the villains....

I was a little disappointed, but I knew that being a villain didn't come with any advantages, so I gave him the benefit of the doubt. Of course, that didn't solve the problem.

Sigh.

(kkiig.)

After accepting the gift, I moved out of the range of the prying eyes. Then, looking at the pendant, I couldn't help but sigh.

"Yeah. I'll admit it, it works, and I like that it's a trick item, and that's all well and good, but… it's got a tracker on it...."

For some reason, Eleanor seems to have gotten right into my bullshit, and I don't know why.

That f*cked up. Really.