Chapter 210
Chapter 210
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 210
Chapter Title: 61-1. Demon God Transformation
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The Helmet of Ideology didn't refer to one's beliefs, but to alien thoughts—intrusive ideas from elsewhere.
I was starting to understand why I'd worn that helmet all this time.
Just like when I'd lost all my memories and stared into the mirror, sensing I wasn't some possessed player.
...It messed with my thoughts.
The helmet had made me believe I was possessed into this game.
Maybe it was a safeguard to free me from the Demon Kings' influence.
Thinking back on what the Omniknowing Demon King had said...
Had I been chosen as a hero long ago and pulled into this game world?
Or if not, when did this world become my reality?
"....."
Without the helmet, the world around me felt vividly real.
It had been a gift from Pine, the Nameless Saintess, from the start, it seemed.
No matter how I puzzled over the inscription inside, that was the only conclusion.
The outside air felt fresh and crisp after so long. My hair had grown long enough to poke at my eyes.
"Licht... You look so much better without the helmet."
Pine gazed at my face, a soft smile curving her lips.
The mirror behind her no longer showed the saintess, but a princess in glass armor.
I could take that as the unhappy future being erased.
"...Thank you for the compliment, Pine."
"Still, I don't like you attracting other girls. Can't you put it back on?"
She pressed her lips to my face again.
From a relationship built on lies, we now expressed our true feelings without hiding a thing.
Her usual stiff expression and speech were gone, replaced by a completely relaxed face.
When she wagged her tail vigorously at the sight of me or flattened her ears back, her affection dripped from every gesture.
"It's been five years since I took it off. Give me a moment, Pine."
"You've known the saintess—or whatever—for fifteen years, though..."
"...My apologies. I'll put it back on."
There were still plenty of issues to sort out.
But it was karma for not recognizing her sooner.
"...Hehe, just kidding."
Pine Granasia covered her mouth with her wrist, laughing lightly.
She had clearly awakened as the Hero of Affection.
Kainel hadn't even congratulated me, but Pine really was the hero from the prophecy.
Ever since entering this temple, the status window had reacted strangely to me.
It wouldn't confirm the Saintess route. It warned me about drinking the Potion of Oblivion.
Just like how the Love Meter jumped from 0% to 50% out of nowhere—something I couldn't force.
A measure of the bond between two people.
Nothing more, nothing less.
Love reduced to mere numbers—what meaning could that hold, anyway?
...Is the creator of [Black Heart] really who they claim to be?
Hearing about the mirror maze from Pine felt uncanny.
They'd seen me playing [Knight Heart] in my school days and confronted her as the saintess in the study.
Could something that recreated my past and tampered with my memories truly be called a game?
What if this was reality, and the world I knew was the illusion...?
"Anyway, I know pretty much everything about you now, Soo-hyun."
No, that couldn't be. And even if it were, that pure smile couldn't be fake.
Maybe they tested whether I'd still love her even if I thought I was possessed into a game.
Both my old world and this game world had to be real.
The saintess in the mirror knew my name, after all. That was the only explanation.
Even that pillar husband guy who liked the Northern Archduchess was possessed, so...
There'd be no need to force the helmet on me or show Love Meters if it wasn't real.
...What a high-maintenance princess.
Pine rubbed her face against my chest until I stroked her hair.
"Can I call you Soo-hyun only when we're alone...? Knight?"
"...You're doing that polite tone on purpose, aren't you?"
"Hehe, you caught me."
Less wolf now, more seductive cat.
A beast that knew human hearts and toyed with them—like playing with a ball of yarn.
She clutched my heart tight, refusing to let go.
"But... you like it too, right, Soo-hyun?"
"...."
I bent down to match her eye level as she rose on tiptoe for a kiss.
Was she demanding the affection we'd missed before? She came at me boldly.
"...Ahem. You young folks. The trial's over."
Her hands undoing my tie and buttons stopped at the administrator's hint.
Our faces flushed bright red, we stepped out of the temple.
"So pretty..."
The salt flats had turned glassy after a rain, like a mirror to the world.
A stark contrast to when we'd first arrived. No wonder the Uyuni Salt Flats were famous.
"...Looks like it rained."
"Yeah. Maybe it reacted to your emotions?"
The landscape reflected the sky perfectly, breathtakingly beautiful.
Could my feelings really have influenced the desert, like she said?
"No way."
"Nope. Love is the strongest force in this world."
Pine cradled my helmet like a treasure as we walked.
She'd store it in her room or something. Only now did I realize how much more love I deserved than I thought.
Her room isn't decked out like mine with Licht stuff, is it?
I glanced at Pine, and she let out a tiny hiccup, like she'd been caught.
Nah, no way. I'd visited her chambers—no Licht memorabilia there.
A princess of a nation wouldn't do that. Right?
She had the Granasia name to uphold.
"Now I can complete the Licht collection."
"Uh... Pine? Isn't your love a bit heavy?"
Her wolfish eyes gleamed mischievously as her tail wrapped around my leg to keep me close.
Pine Granasia resuming our Northern escapades.
"But... love isn't something to be ashamed of, right, Knight?"
She leaned her head on my shoulder, repeating words she'd said before.
Sweet rose scent from her snowy hair numbed my reason.
No wonder—they were the same person. She toyed with me alternating between Nameless Saintess innocence and princess allure.
The key to攻略 is memorizing patterns...
I was completely figured out. They say you become like the one you love.
Pine was picking up my sly side now.
Beneath that innocent facade lurked intentions to bewitch me.
Her soft tail crept up my thigh, nearly making things awkward, when—
"Pine! You're back!"
"Licht! We were worried...!"
The hero couple ran up to us.
Pine must have told them inside that I'd lost my memories.
"You recovered them? We haven't heard from you since."
"...Ah. It took a bit longer than expected."
Pine brushed it off before I could speak.
Couldn't exactly say we were too busy kissing.
"So, what are you two up to? Why's her tail around your leg?"
At that moment, sharp-eyed Ariel noticed our changed dynamic first.
The mage covered her mouth with a gasp.
"That's what wolfkin do only with mates... You two don't mean...?"
Wolfkin did that? I'd never heard.
Pine as Nameless Saintess had been a blank slate, so I'd missed it.
Which meant, even back during the Northern trip...
...She'd liked me all along.
Pine's cheeks flushed. She turned away to hide it from me.
How long had she felt this way?
If she kissed me to restore my memories, it wasn't some fleeting crush.
She'd teared up watching me drink the potion.
How much had she suffered to cry like that?
We'd finally reunited—parting now would be a shame.
"...Licht. Are you two dating?"
"Yeah, we are. Today's day one."
I answered the blond hero's question straight.
Adding the line I'd always wanted to say, Kainel looked stunned.
"...What? Wait... You two were close, but... She's the princess!"
"Gotta catch all the Demon Kings and climb the ranks."
Locke the Emperor had already approved the marriage.
If the pillar hubby could marry the archduchess, this should be doable.
"But... won't your father object...?"
"I already got permission, Pine."
The title of world-saving hero weighed heavy, but for her, I could bear it.
"....Really?"
She cupped her mouth with both hands in disbelief.
The helmet slipped and clattered to the ground.
"Licht. You did tell her properly about your first love, right?"
Ugh, Kainel. Don't bring that up now when the mood's perfect.
The hero smirked, asking if I'd explained the Nameless Saintess to Pine.
Was this payback from the carriage?
"It's fine. My heart's big enough for that."
Pine suddenly yanked my arm toward her, flaunting her wifely softness.
No, I doubt there's anyone bigger than you.
"....."
Ariel's glare turned icy, her face full of contempt like she'd spotted a pervert.
Would she believe I wasn't smitten by Pine's looks?
As I fumbled for an excuse—
"Wang!!"
"Awooooo—!!"
Familiar cries echoed from behind us.
Two furballs of different colors charged in: Blackie and Whitey. Where'd they come from? Nex hadn't used spirit summons.
...Being honest with emotions is incredibly hard.
Spirits appear to those true to their feelings, or so they say.
Maybe because Pine and I confessed honestly in Pantos's temple.
"Hehe, Blackie. Missed your big sis...?"
She scooped up the black Pomeranian and played.
"Hek, hek."
Like its owner, Blackie licked Pine's face nonstop.
She stroked its fur wildly in return.
"Kyung..."
"Right, you're Pine's spirit too..."
Whitey rolled onto its back for belly rubs from me. Spirits embody human emotions.
She'd liked me from the start—that explained it.
So many clues I'd missed to notice her feelings sooner.
Curse my obliviousness from Dad.
As I rubbed Whitey's belly under Pine's sharp gaze—
A weird status popped up: Plinz♡Sophitia at -50%. Not plus, but minus.
"...Pine, heard anything from Archduchess Sophitia lately?"
Something had gone seriously wrong.