<CHAPTER04>
I leaned forward slightly, narrowing the distance between us.
“At least tell me your name so I can beg properly.
I must not have noticed you all night, because I can’t remember it at all.”
It was a question thrown out in hopes of gathering some character information.
However, the man who had mocked me relentlessly until now closed his mouth in uncharacteristic silence.
For some reason, I felt taken aback.
There it was again.
That germ.
That man wounded and battered beyond recognition.
Seeing that kind of expression on him felt strange.
So strange it almost felt wrong.
Meanwhile, the hand gripping my wrist slowly moved upward, trailing along my arm until it reached my face.
Just as I felt the rough tips of his fingers brush my cheek, he spoke quietly.
“Roakin.”
He carefully stroked my cheek with his thumb and repeated it as if urging me.
“Roakin.
From now on, don’t forget.”
The moment I heard that name, the strength drained from my hand.
Like a doll whose strings had been cut, my arm dropped limply.
The shattered wine bottle rolled pitifully across the floor.
“That’s impossible!”
If I were Lamia, there was no way I could know him like this.
That could never be.
Because he was—
He’s the final quest of <Ending World>!
The embodiment of evil itself.
The final boss destined to die at the hands of the world’s beloved protagonists.
The ruler of the eastern Demon Realm.
The “Heart of the Abyss,” Roakin.
When I came back to my senses, I was outside.
He did not try to stop me as I ran out of the room.
After rushing down the winding corridor for some time, a strange swaying rose from beneath my feet, something that could never be felt on land.
At first, I thought my body was simply staggering from shock.
But that wasn’t it.
No way.
I finally found a window and froze in place.
The crashing sound of waves battered my ears.
Grabbing onto the frame and leaning out, I saw white foam surging upward.
No matter where I looked, all I saw was dark blue, murky blackish hues, and stained shades of blue.
Only then did I understand why he hadn’t bothered to stop me.
He knew I couldn’t escape, you bastard.
I was on a ship floating in the middle of the vast ocean.
“Mother of—”
My legs gave out, and I collapsed onto the spot.
Ding.
A status window appeared before my eyes, displaying Lamia’s basic information.
[Name: Lamia
Traits: (Former) F-rank Saintess of Yggdrasil, Hesen Kingdom.
Title: Useless Healer.
Skill: (This section is locked.)]
I had expected it, but it was truly pathetic.
Still, one thing bothered me.
Lamia should be an orphan.
That’s why there isn’t even a surname listed.
Could it be that she actually had hidden parents?
I stared intently at the four black squares following her name.
No matter how long I looked, I couldn’t discern what lay behind them.
Drawn as if by their cold mystery, I reached out.
With a soft touch sound, the window vanished.
Thankfully, the system didn’t seem to force choices upon me unilaterally.
The interface operated much like a game and was fairly intuitive, so I quickly grew accustomed to it.
After tapping around, I discovered the Quest tab and pressed it.
A new window appeared.
[All quests have been completed.]
What?
Completed?
I hadn’t even started anything.
Unable to believe it, I hurriedly scrolled down.
A long list streamed past my eyes.
But every word was the same.
Complete.
Complete.
Complete.
[01-7327 88.03.15. Quest Complete.]
No matter how much I scrolled further, there was nothing beyond it.
I returned to the top.
[01-7327 89.05.23. Quest Complete.]
Below it was a small note indicating the completion date.
1,835 days ago.
At least five years had passed since the ending.
A hollow laugh escaped me.
None of this made sense.
Don’t be ridiculous.
Then why are Lamia and the Demon King both alive and well?
The ending only triggers when those two die!
After a brief consideration, I arrived at a conclusion.
The previous owner of this body must have done it.
Brazenly altering the ending itself.
Then was the previous owner the original Lamia, or another transmigrator?
If it was another transmigrator, had that person returned to their original world when I arrived?
But why did I wake up in the Demon Realm of all places?
Was I taken hostage?
The flower garden I had carefully cultivated in my mind since realizing I had transmigrated was now in ruins.
I had imagined the typical route.
An apparent villainess who, through changed behavior, gradually builds affection with her companions and becomes the true heroine.
But this is after the ending, when even bones should have long turned to dust!
Even when I pressed the <Characters> tab, it was no different.
[<IERROR!> You do not have permission to view this category.]
In the end, all I knew was the game’s storyline.
And even that was only the bare skeleton.
I know when the main incidents happened, what the level-specific quests were, and even whether the Hero was the male lead.
So why can’t I remember their names or faces?!
In my memories, they existed only as Companion 1, 2, 3, or by roles like mage, knight, scholar.
The rest of their appearances were blurred like lumps of clay.
I glared at the floating window hanging in the air as if it were mocking me.
[<SYSTEM> New Quest Generated!]
[<Sub> Find the Key—Diary and unlock the incinerator.
Reward: Memory Restoration]
Either way, it means that diary is supposed to act as a tutorial for my current situation.
The problem was how on earth I was supposed to find it, especially while trapped aboard the Demon King’s ship.
“Ugh.
You can’t smash a rock without at least an egg in your hand.”
As I clutched my pounding head, something long and black tapped against my foot and swiftly slithered past.
Huh?
A hissing sound stopped about a step ahead of me.
It raised its head stiffly and met my gaze.
A small snake, black as a shadow, about the length of my forearm.
Startled, I barely managed to stifle the scream rising to my lips.
I sensed someone approaching from afar.
The footsteps suggested two people.
Among them was a voice I had heard earlier.
It seemed to be the goat-like demon who had left me in the Demon King’s room, along with another demon.
“Honestly, every time we pass through the Middle Realm, he just has to bring a woman all the way into his bedroom.”
“Don’t tell me it’s another human saintess with white hair?”
“At this point it’d be stranger if it weren’t.
Even a phoenix tree would wither in land this barren, but our Demon King is as rigid as bamboo.”
Though I had only seen him briefly, I could easily picture the goat demon’s grumbling expression.
Despite his complaints, he seemed close to the Demon King.
As the footsteps drew nearer, their voices became clearer.
“Well, it could be.
Maybe he has a tightly sealed first love buried in his heart.”
“That’s exactly what I refuse to believe.
A guy who snaps necks the moment he’s displeased?
Love?
The contradiction of holding someone in your heart while committing murder shouldn’t exist in this world.”
“You never know.
Maybe back then he liked someone.
After all, we only know him from the Holy-Demon War onward.”
The Holy-Demon War?
So there was a great war between the Human Realm and the Demon Realm?
In the original setting, the Demon Realm was always subjugated.
It had never taken the initiative.
Evil existed in the world only to be punished and eradicated.
So the idea that the Demon Realm had fought back in a full-scale war was shocking.
If the ending has already passed, does that mean the narrative constraints no longer apply to this world?
Is that why the Demon Realm rose up?
I hid in the corner, waiting for more information.
But luck never favored me.
“Lamia.”
The Demon King appeared without a sound and addressed the horned demon.
The horned demon jumped, letting out a strange squawk.
“Gah!”
I had been startled even while hiding.
I could only imagine how he felt.
“Please, I beg you.
Don’t just appear out of nowhere like that.”
He pleaded in a dying voice before regaining his usual tone.
“But more importantly, why are you asking me?
You were the one hugging her so tightly earlier.
You even glared at me like you’d kill me if I didn’t leave immediately.”
The Demon King did not answer.
Sensing something amiss, the horned demon sniffed once and then exclaimed.
“Wait… don’t tell me she ran away?”
“There’s a woman who would run away from the Demon King?
That’s one bold heart.
To see that face and feel neither love nor fear.”
“Do you feel love because you can’t feel fear?”
“Ah, why would you say something so terrifying?
Anyway, don’t worry.
I’ll bring Miss Lamia back as soon as I find her.”
Whatever expression crossed the Demon King’s face, it seemed ominous.
It looked as though he intended to demonstrate the contradiction of holding someone in his heart while committing murder.
The horned demon bowed and hurried away.
Meanwhile, the Demon King was approaching the very corridor where I was hiding.
This time, he didn’t even bother concealing his footsteps.
Like a hunter arrogantly confident with prey right before him.
He must think that even if I run, how far could I possibly go on the open sea.
