The Midnight Awakening
Late in the evening, with exactly one hour left before the rune's effect would expire, I gazed up at the two moons floating in the night sky, once again reminding myself that this was a fantasy world.
"Today... is the perfect day to confess."
Logically, I knew. I knew that the feelings in my heart right now were a fake love, forcibly manufactured by the rune. Yet, no matter how much I thought about it, I couldn't imagine this burning passion suddenly vanishing. The rune had merely been the catalyst; I had truly fallen in love with them. Even when today passed, this heart of mine would surely remain unchanged.
And so, tonight, I intended to formally confess. To the women I loved.
"Sigh... Fuck."
On this cold, windy night, Cara was sighing, a gesture that didn't suit her at all. Around her, her friends were offering words of comfort, their eyes filled with pity.
Lora, the Saintess, spoke up with a tearful face, as if it were her own problem. "Are you okay, Cara? You said Kim Youngho called you out because he had something important to say?"
"Yeah... His expression was dead serious."
"Then... isn't it that? A... confession."
"I think so."
"That day has finally come, then."
Stella, the elf, pinched her nose shut and fumed as if Kim Youngho were standing right next to them.
"Why don't the three of us just go together and kill that smelly bastard?"
"No... I don't want to kill him. No matter how much... sigh... I hate to say this, but... he is still our comrade."
"Comrade, my foot... Good grief, how did we ever end up in the same party as a guy like that?"
"Exactly. Honestly, we don't even need him, do we? Even when we fight the demons, he just cowers in the back and does absolutely nothing. Why don't we just kick him out?"
"I want to, too, but the Hero, Kim Hyungkeun, keeps coddling him because they're friends."
"Sigh... The Hero is just too nice for his own good. I heard the two of them were friends back home?"
"An impurity that rots the organization from within must be excised. I believe the Hero's judgment is flawed in this matter."
The three of them grumbled back and forth, but in the end, they couldn't stop Cara from heading over to Kim Youngho. The proud Cara considered the very act of running away from something to be a disgrace. Ultimately, she set off down the forest path toward where Kim Youngho was waiting.
Kim Youngho welcomed Cara with a face full of resolve. "O-Oh, you're here, Cara."
"Sigh... Why did you call me? Just get to the point and make it quick."
Cara sighed, openly displaying her disgust right from the start.
Kim Youngho, undeterred, let his passion burn. "Alright. I don't plan on dragging this out either. I love you, Cara."
"..."
Cara felt a cold shiver run down her spine, goosebumps breaking out all over her body. It was bizarre. Why did she hate this man so intensely? She didn't know. All she knew was that the moment Kim Youngho opened his mouth, she felt an overwhelming surge of anger. Even hearing him say he liked her brought absolutely no joy or excitement. She was simply dumbfounded and utterly appalled. Just what did he take her for?
"I knew it. I could tell you were going to confess just by looking at your face."
"Please... give me your answer."
"I'll answer in three words. Not. A. Chance."
"...You... reject me?"
"Yeah, obviously."
Cara felt a strange sense of pleasure watching Kim Youngho's face crumple, and she sneered with blatant contempt.
"Your face, your voice, your values... I hate everything about you. I'd rather bite my tongue and commit suicide than date you."
"Sigh... Do you really have to go that far?"
"Yes. I hate you that much. Didn't you know? Didn't you know I despise you?"
"You know how much I love you. Do you really have to put it so harshly?"
"Yes."
Her reply came without a single shred of hesitation. Kim Youngho clenched his fists tightly and spoke.
"Actually... I wasn't going to say this. But... tomorrow, I might not love you anymore."
"Wow! Really? Then tomorrow will be the absolute best day of my life."
"I'm not joking."
"Neither am I."
"...You're really cruel."
"What's cruel about it? What's cruel is you, following me around like a stalker every single day and clinging to me like a creep."
"Cara! I love you! Please, just accept my feelings!"
"No. I already gave you my answer. I said no. I already told you I'd rather die than date you."
"...Ugh... huff... sob..."
Cruelly rejected, Kim Youngho finally broke down. However, the hot tears streaming from his eyes failed to touch anyone's heart.
Cara found the weeping Kim Youngho even more repulsive. How could a man cry so easily? He truly wasn't her type.
"If you're done talking, I'm leaving. Don't ever call me out for something like this again."
"W-Wait, Cara..."
"What is it now?"
"If it's not too much trouble... hic... could you call Lora? Ask her to come here."
"...Why Lora?"
"That's... a secret."
Secret, my ass. Cara could immediately guess the reason.
'Since I rejected him, he's going to hit on Lora next. What a piece of trash.'
Cara simply felt grateful to escape the area and returned to where her friends were waiting.
"Lora, I'm really sorry, but Kim Youngho wants you to go over there."
"Huh? W-Why?"
"It's obvious. I think he's going to confess to you too."
"Blegh!"
"Don't throw up just yet."
Even Lora, who as a Saintess was supposed to be kind to everyone, could not muster a shred of benevolence for Kim Youngho. She felt that surrendering to the demon race would be preferable to being friendly with him. Trembling, Lora walked into the forest where Kim Youngho was weeping.
"Y-You called for me?"
"Sob... sniff... You came, Lora. You're always by my side."
"Eek!"
When Kim Youngho reached out to grab her hand, Lora recoiled in horror and took a hasty step back.
"D-Don't touch me! Just speak from there! What do you want to say?!"
"Lora... you know how I feel, right? I love you. I love you. I love you. Please accept my heart."
"Bleeegh!!!"
Lora actually threw up. The vomit soiled Kim Youngho's clothes. Panicking, Kim Youngho let out a low groan.
"Ugh... W-Why are you doing this, Lora? Is your stomach upset?"
"Is my stomach upset? Of course it is! Any woman would feel nauseous after getting a confession from someone like you!"
"Why are you being like this... when I'm confessing my sincere feelings?"
"Sincere? You! You just confessed to Cara a moment ago, didn't you?!"
"O-Oh, you knew?"
"Then how is that sincere?! What kind of crazy bastard confesses to two different people on the exact same day?!"
"But I truly love all of you! Do you have any idea how insanely passionate my heart is?!"
"Of course I know! How could I not, with how much you've been pestering me for the past year?! Seriously... since we're on the subject, just stop already! Don't you get it? I don't like you! No, actually, I despise you!"
"You despise me? Why on earth?"
"Because you're not my type from head to toe, that's why!"
"...Is there really... absolutely no chance?"
"Yes! Not a chance!"
"Ugh..."
The pain of a second heartbreak washed over Kim Youngho. His chest ached as if his heart were being torn to shreds. Because his love had been genuine, the agony of being rejected by the one he loved made him feel as though dying would be preferable.
"Ugh... Ahhh..."
Yet, the sight of Kim Youngho writhing in pain only made Lora's skin crawl even more.
"Sigh... You're seriously creepy. Just stop already. I'm leaving. Don't you ever confess to me again. Please realize that you liking someone can actually be a source of trauma for them!"
"Ughhh... It hurts so much..."
"What do you want me to do about it?!"
"Stella... Please call Stella... Please..."
"Ugh, seriously! What an absolute nuisance!"
Lora practically ran away in a panic.
A short while later, Stella appeared, her face deeply contorted in a scowl. Upon seeing her, Kim Youngho's expression lit up with awe, as if an angel had descended from the heavens.
"Oh... Stella. My elf..."
"My elf? Have you lost your mind?"
"Argh!!"
The moment she showed her face, Stella began to stomp on the collapsed Kim Youngho's head. Her boot heel slammed into the back of his skull.
"Aaargh! Why, why are you doing this, Stella?!"
"Are you seriously trying to confess to me too?"
"I love you! I love you, Stella!"
"You lunatic! You're probably the only unprincipled bastard in the entire world who would confess to three different women on the same day."
"No, I truly love all of you."
"And I truly despise you."
"Why on earth do you hate me so much?!"
That was, of course, due to the side effects of the Rune of Sacrifice. Even though he should have known better logically, the forced love clouded Kim Youngho's mind. Stella, the elf, glared down at him with cold eyes, pressing a finger beneath her nose.
"You're physically repulsive. You smell absolutely disgusting."
"Sob... sniff... So... you're rejecting me too."
"Obviously."
"Aaaaaaaaargh!!! Aaaaaaaaargh!!!!"
On this night of the waning moons, a man screamed in a forest where the wind rustled the leaves. The elf who had stood beside him cast one last look of utter disdain before vanishing into the darkness, leaving the man to weep entirely alone.
"Sob... Ah... Why do I have to hurt like this? Why does it pain me so much... Ugh... I want to die. I never knew being rejected by the ones you love could hurt this much... Ugh... Let's just die. Let's fucking die! What's the point of living? I need to die... It hurts too much... I can't live like this..."
He began to wander, searching for a place to end his life. A cliff? Or perhaps a tree sturdy enough to hang himself? Anything was fine. Just let him throw his life away. Driven by a single, desperate desire, the man roamed the forest like a madman.
The moons had reached their zenith and were now tilting toward the western mountains.
"Pant... pant... It hurts too much. It hurts too much."
The ache in his chest showed no signs of healing as time ticked away, and to the heartbroken man, death felt like the only salvation. Then, a large boulder caught his eye. A massive, solid rock. He stared at it with grim resolve.
"I'll... smash my head against that and die. Die. Just die already!!"
The man fell to his knees. After a brief hesitation, he steeled his resolve and slammed his head violently against the boulder. A sickening crack echoed as the bone of his forehead fractured. Skin tore against the rough, hard surface of the rock, and blood began to pour down. Yet, the real pain wasn't in his forehead; it was in his heart.
"Cara!!!! Lora!!! Stella!!! Why won't you accept my feelings?! Whyyyyyy!!!!"
Cara's haughty eyes. Lora's ample chest. Stella's beautiful skin. All of it hovered before his eyes. The realization that he could never have any of it brought a suffocating despair. He had no hope left, no reason to go on living. Squeezing out every last drop of his strength, the man continued to smash his head against the rock.
"Aaargh!!! Aaargh!! Aaargh!!!!"
Meanwhile, the moons continued their steady descent, and before long, the clock struck midnight.
"...Ah..."
His screams subsided, and the pain in his forehead grew sharp and clear. The man stopped slamming his head against the boulder. Though his expression seemed blank, his eyes were clearer than they had been at any point over the past year.
"...What the hell was I doing?"
The rune's effect had expired. Kim Youngho no longer loved his party members.