Chapter 122: Unwanted Ending
[Hero’s Legacy]
A romance fantasy game that, on the surface, seemed indistinguishable from the countless others in the genre.
An underground title, it struggled with limited publicity and a niche audience, yet it possessed a charm that resonated deeply with me.
For most players, it was just another game—an opportunity to indulge in a story of romance and adventure set within the confines of an academy.
Its mechanics and narrative felt cliché and overused, with familiar character archetypes and predictable plot twists.
Yet, despite its conventionality, it held a special place in my heart.
I took immense pride in my ability to conquer this game through sheer determination and intense willpower.
It was a gem, hidden away from the mainstream, but it was more than just a game to me.
It served as a momentary escape from the shadows of my past, a brief respite from the burdens of my guilt and the sins that weighed heavily upon me.
The game was a sanctuary, a reprieve from a reality that was too dark to confront.
If it hadn’t been for the old man’s suggestion to purchase it, I might have remained trapped in my own despair, locked away in my room, the rope hanging ominously from the ceiling.
Instead, I found solace in the game’s world.
The UI, character dialogues, designs, CGs, overarching arcs, plot twists, and gameplay—everything about it felt familiar and well-trodden.
A ‘cliche’ it was like a game that was designed to tread through another repetitive trope.
But, I embraced it all.
The adventure and romance, the opportunity to engage with beautiful characters and explore a fantastical academy setting, captivated me.
It was an out-of-character choice for me, one that contradicted my usual preferences. But I completed it with enthusiasm, finding joy in every aspect.
Despite its flaws and predictability, it was a game that brought me comfort and distraction
Beating all the world-ending bosses and unlocking the coveted secret harem ending in Hero’s Legacy was undoubtedly one of the happiest moments of my life.
The game had led me through countless trials and tribulations, and to finally see it all culminate in such a triumphant and fulfilling way was deeply gratifying.
Seeing all the heroines—each with their unique stories and struggles—smiling and thriving by my side in that perfect ending was a sight I had longed for.
Each heroine’s happiness felt like a personal victory, a testament to the effort and dedication I had poured into the game.
Their joyous expressions, their fulfilled dreams, and the way they celebrated together was a dream come true.
It wasn’t just about the game itself, though.
The happiness of these characters reflected something I yearned for deeply. Happy endings, after all, weren’t just limited to the virtual world.
They represented a kind of ideal I wished to achieve in my own life whether it was for this world or in the past.
In Hero’s Legacy, I could create perfect outcomes, ensure that every heroine found her joy, and experience a sense of accomplishment and contentment.
‘A way to escape it all….’
But now in reality, I faced a different, darker narrative.
My existence was bound by the constraints of a world fraught with impending doom and the inevitability of a tragic end.
The desire to see a happy ending was not just a whimsical fantasy but was something I greatly needed.
It was a reflection of my hope to rewrite my own destiny, to escape the grim fate foretold by the world-ending scenarios that hovered over me.
‘A reflection to deny my fate…. To deny my death.’
I was determined to change that reality—
Drip! Drop!
The cold, relentless drops of water fell steadily, each one piercing through the oppressive darkness around me.
My eyes fluttered open, but the world beyond them was a disorienting blur.
My entire body groaned in protest, a chorus of aches and pains that seemed to come from every fiber of my being.
Instinctively, my mouth opened, and my tongue reached out, desperate to catch the precious droplets of water that dripped from above.
‘What’s going on?’
The searing thirst overwhelmed me.
Even the tiny droplets of water, barely enough to wet my lips, intensified my desperate need.
The heat was unbearable, and I felt like I was suffocating under its relentless assault.
Hunger gnawed at me with an intensity that made me question how I was still alive.
Every sensation, every ache, and every pang of hunger seemed magnified by the relentless pressure that bore down on me like a storm.
My body, weak and unresponsive, struggled against the restraints that bound me.
Chains rattled with each futile attempt to move, the clinking sound echoing through the cold, damp space.
The sensation of being shackled only added to the growing sense of despair. My limbs felt leaden, as if they were weighed down by some unseen force.
‘It hurts… My whole-body hurts!’
The pain was so intense that it was hard to focus on anything else.
My mind, clouded and sluggish, struggled to piece together fragments of consciousness.
I could barely see the contours of my surroundings; they remained shrouded in a foggy haze. The unfamiliar environment did nothing to alleviate my confusion.
‘Where am I?’
I tried to clear my mind, to regain some semblance of control over my physical and mental faculties.
I attempted to call upon my mana, to draw upon its power to alleviate my suffering, but the attempt was futile.
No matter how hard I tried, there was no response.
My heart and mind felt as though they were ensnared by an inescapable, dark fog, leaving me powerless and disoriented.
The more I tried to focus, the more elusive my thoughts became, as if they were slipping through my fingers like grains of sand.
The dark, damp space around me seemed to close in, and the only sound was the continuous drip of water and the clanking of chains.
With my vision still clouded by the suffocating darkness, I strained to push through the haze.
Despite my efforts, the relentless pain, unyielding hunger, and unquenched thirst continued to assault me. Each sensation was magnified by the grimy, oppressive environment around me.
‘This is worse than the goblin dungeon….’
The air was thick with a musty, nauseating odor, far worse than anything a goblin’s cave could exude.
The stench was so overpowering that it triggered a wave of nausea, but my empty stomach rebelled against the idea of expelling anything.
The weakness that gripped me was compounded by the unsettling realization that some of my teeth were missing, adding to the already unbearable discomfort.
My mind was desperately trying to numb itself to the suffering, but nothing seemed effective.
Just as I was on the brink of succumbing to the darkness, the echoing footsteps pierced through the fog of my thoughts.
The rhythmic sound grew louder, cutting through the murky silence and pulling me back to a semblance of awareness.
Fear crept into my heart as the footsteps drew nearer.
The eerie, echoing sounds seemed to awaken a part of my psyche that had been dormant, rekindling unwanted memories of things that felt both foreign and familiar.
The fear was palpable, twisting in my chest, and making every nerve in my body tingle with dread.
‘Why am i acting this way?’
A muffled, unrecognizable voice drifted from the distance.
The words were incoherent at first, but the tone was unmistakably menacing.
“Y…aw…”
The voice was distorted, making it difficult to discern any meaning, but it carried an edge that sent chills down my spine.
“…d…d…i…punish…bit…ha…?”
The voice grew clearer, but the chilling cold that accompanied it only intensified the fear.
The increasing clarity of the voice made it harder to ignore, and my instinct to flee became overwhelming.
My heart pounded in my chest, each beat echoing with the rhythm of the footsteps drawing closer.
‘D-Don’t come any closer!’
The desperate plea was a silent scream within me, my body tensing as I struggled against the restraints.
The cold dread that enveloped me seemed to close in, amplifying every sound, every sensation.
As the footsteps approached, the sense of impending doom grew stronger, pressing down on me like a suffocating weight.
Finally, the footsteps ceased, and an unsettling silence filled the air.
A chilling sensation touched my right cheek, a contrast to the oppressive cold that had surrounded me.
The touch was soft and tender, like a caress meant to soothe, but it only heightened my anxiety.
Gradually, my senses began to return to normal.
My hearing sharpened, and my vision cleared, allowing me to make out the contours of the dimly lit space around me.
A voice, smooth and melodious, cut through the darkness. “It seems you’re finally up now, my dear~”
My eyes widened in a mixture of fear and disbelief as I recognized the speaker.
The voice, so tender and deceptively kind, belonged to none other than Liyana Heavens.
Her appearance, though disconcertingly calm and composed, was more terrifying than any nightmare I could have imagined.
Her red eyes, filled with a haunting blend of warmth and malevolence, seemed to pierce through me, rendering me paralyzed.
“I’m sorry for being a bit harsh last time,” she continued, her tone laced with a sickly sweet remorse. “If you had been just a bit more compliant, I wouldn’t have resorted to this, you know~”
Her words were like poison seeping into my mind, each syllable carrying a weight of dread.
Her gentle smile, juxtaposed with the grim situation, only deepened my sense of despair.
“Liyana….?”
Liyana, my fiancé and a figure linked to the world’s potential end, was smiling at me with a disquieting satisfaction.
“But anyways,” she continued, her voice carrying an unsettling cheerfulness, “it’s a relief that you’re awake. I was just making breakfast, you see. Since I know you’re very hungry right now, how about you join me?”
The invitation, though wrapped in a facade of domesticity, felt like an alluring trap.
The mention of food stirred a primal urge within me.
The gnawing hunger inside me was overwhelming.
I desperately needed to eat, and although I hadn’t vocalized my need, Liyana seemed to have anticipated it.
With a snap of her fingers, the chains that bound me to the wall began to dissolve, unraveling into wisps of black smoke. The sudden release was disorienting, but relief came swiftly.
Liyana’s eyes glinted with a strange satisfaction as she used her telekinesis to lift me gently, setting me down into a wooden wheelchair.
“Sit tight, okay? The ride might be a bit bumpy~” she said with an unnerving cheerfulness.
As she pushed the wheelchair forward, the rattling and jostling of the chair jolted me back to reality.
The momentary seduction of the food was replaced by a stark awareness of my surroundings.
The chair’s rough movement shook me from my stupor, and I took a moment to gather my thoughts and assess the situation.
The area around me was enveloped in darkness, with only the faint illumination of glowing crystals casting eerie shadows.
The walls were rough and cylindrical, and the entire space had a grim, cavernous feel.
Dripping stalactites were scattered throughout, their cold, wet tips glistening with each drop of water that fell.
The oppressive darkness was punctuated only by these sporadic glows, which offered little comfort.
‘Is this a cave?’ I wondered, trying to make sense of my environment.
The cavernous nature of the space, combined with the drips of water and the cold, damp air, suggested that I was deep underground.
The atmosphere was thick with an unsettling mix of moisture and decay.
As the wheelchair moved, I tried to focus on the path ahead, hoping that wherever Liyana was taking me, I could find some path of escape, but none of that seemed to exist wherever I looked.
Rattle~ Rattle~
The wheelchair rattled incessantly as Liyana guided me through the dimly lit corridors.
Each jolt and clatter of the wheels echoed through the cavernous space, heightening my sense of disorientation.
Her smile remained eerily constant, a serene and unsettling contrast to the grim surroundings.
She pushed the chair with a deliberate pace, her gaze fixed ahead, never once faltering or shifting.
The entire situation felt surreal and disjointed.
I struggled to reconcile the current reality with my last clear memory: falling asleep after a long and exhausting day at the festival.
I had been so wrapped up in the day’s events, trying to make sense of the complicated web of relationships and impending threats.
How had I ended up in this nightmarish place, bound and helpless?
Memories of the festival and the activities I had engaged in began to surface.
The exhaustion I had felt, the conversations with Seo, the unexpected interventions and encounters—all of it seemed so distant now.
The transition from that world of colorful lights and bustling festivities to this oppressive darkness was jarring.
My mind raced with questions that only seemed to spiral deeper into confusion. How had I ended up here?
What had happened between the festival and now?
Why was Liyana—who should have been busy with her duties or engaged elsewhere—standing in front of me, her demeanor so disturbingly calm?
Liyana’s cheerful voice pierced through the haze of my thoughts as she announced, “We’re here~” Her tone was disturbingly bright, a stark contrast to the grim reality of the cave we had just traversed.
The large wooden door in front of us seemed to glow with a strange, ethereal light.
With a casual flick of her finger, Liyana opened it, revealing a scene so incongruous with the darkness we had just left behind that it almost felt like stepping into another world entirely.
The door creaked open, and a burst of sunlight poured through, illuminating a breathtaking meadow.
The sky above was a clear blue, with the sun casting a warm, golden hue over the lush green grass that gently swayed in the breeze.
It was a picturesque landscape, serene and inviting, a far cry from the oppressive gloom of the cave.
“This place is really beautiful, right, my dear~?” Liyana’s voice was laced with a sweetness that only intensified the surreal quality of the scene. She smiled warmly at me, her expression a mask of innocent delight.
I was too stunned to respond.
My eyes were fixated on the figure standing just behind Liyana.
The sight of her sent a jolt of shock through me.
It was a dead person, their appearance a grotesque mockery of life.
The uniform she wore was tattered and stained, hanging from her emaciated frame like a rag. Her skin was a ghastly, mottled black, decomposing and barely clinging to her bones.
The once-beautiful face was now marred by burns and decay, yet her striking blue eyes shone with a haunting clarity that was impossible to ignore.
“Snow….”
As her lifeless gaze settled in front of me a flood of unknown memories, began to resurface. As tears started to well up before I knew it.
