Five Lifetimes of Twisted Love-Hate
Right now, standing before me was Yuria of the 5th iteration, possessing memories of all five lives from the 0th to the 4th.
She hated me. After being thoroughly used and betrayed across five lifetimes, that much was natural. But beneath that hatred lingered a warped, broken affection.
“…Your Grace?”
A voice as cold as ice, yet faintly trembling, reached my ears. I slowly raised my head, which I had been bowing, and looked at Yuria.
Her silver hair, like threads woven from moonlight, fluttered in the wind, revealing sky-blue eyes as clear and chilling as a winter lake.
Her deep gaze, hardened by repeated regressions, held resignation and resentment—and yet, a pathetic affection directed at me.
Yuria Crescent.
The woman who had driven me to pull all-nighters just to see her smile in the ending.
Even if she was now inhabiting the body of the “Kardel Harteon” she both loved and hated the most, I had finally come face-to-face with her.
Yuria's status has been locked as Love-Hate.
Difficulty (Hell) - Survive as Kardel Harteon of the 5th iteration.
As if to remind me of reality—or mock my current predicament—the status window from when I played the game appeared before my eyes.
Kardel Harteon of the 5th iteration, not even the 0th.
How many times had he used Yuria like a tool and thrown her into the fire across those five lives? I didn't need to search for the answer; her gaze and her gestures told me everything.
Ice magic leaked from Yuria's fingertips, but it wasn't aimed at me. It was more like a whip she used to suppress her own heart, which still yearned to run toward me.
“Why have you summoned me, Your Grace? Are you planning to carve out my family again to use as your stepping stone?”
Her voice brimmed with resentment.
I fell silent for a moment to gather my thoughts, then said what I'd wanted to tell her since first laying eyes on Tia.
“Yuria. From today, ignore the temple's summons to maintain the barrier.”
“…Pardon? What do you mean? If I don't maintain the barrier, neither Harteon nor Crescent will be able to hold back the monsters swarming in, will they?”
“No. I'm telling you to stop being a cog in the barrier maintenance machine. I've found a way to handle the North's barrier and will notify the temple. You no longer need to play the role of saintess for that.”
She must have never heard anything like this before. Yuria's shocked expression was quite the sight.
The old Kardel had been desperate to squeeze every last drop of holy power from her, even clashing with the temple directly and telling her to rest? It was unbelievable.
“Your Grace, what scheme are you plotting this time? Planning to sell me off somewhere? Or… are you pretending to be kind now to use me again?”
Her desperate love-hate tugged at a corner of my heart, but I didn't shy away.
Because the image of the dream Yuria, who had said she needed my warmth, overlapped with the current one.
And because I had to give her that kindness she'd so desperately craved in the dream—now, in reality.
I reached out carefully, brushing her hair aside and stroking her head as if handling something precious.
As my warmth touched her, Yuria's shoulders began to tremble visibly.
“You've done well. You've endured so much all alone until now, Yuria.”
“Ah… haa….”
I'd thought my warmth couldn't melt the wall of love-hate built over five lifetimes, but apparently, I was wrong.
Tears welled up in Yuria's glaring blue eyes, and she soon crumbled, clutching at my clothes as if they might shatter.
The warmth never once permitted in those five past lives. My tenderness, which she'd hated yet always longed for and craved.
In the end, she surrendered and leaned into me.
“Why… why did you abandon me so coldly all this time… why be so kind now…!”
Yuria sobbed, clutching my clothes. Her tear-soaked voice mixed with resentment, but her body burrowed deeper into my embrace, as if it couldn't bear to lose my warmth.
Just like the dream Yuria who had clung to me crying, I held her tightly.
Yuria wailed like a child. Forgetting all grudges and vengeance, she collapsed, craving only my kindness.
I continued stroking her hair gently, letting her cry her fill.
Yuria's Confusion level has reached its maximum.
The scale of love-hate is rapidly tipping toward Affection.
After a long bout of crying, Yuria's trembling body gradually calmed. As her sobs ceased and a quiet silence settled, she seemed to finally realize her situation.
The fact that she'd bawled like a child while the man she both resented and admired stroked her hair.
Her eyes, red from tears, and her messy face filled with embarrassment and shame.
“…Ah.”
Yuria hastily pulled away from me, hiding her flushed face, red all the way to her earlobes.
“I-I… what have I done… I'm sorry for this disgraceful display….”
“Yuria, are you okay?”
“…I-I'm fine! To show such a foolish sight before Your Grace….”
She mumbled in shame, wiping her tears with her sleeve.
“I-I need to freshen up before class… I'll see you later!”
Covering her face, she turned and ran off like she was fleeing. Gone was her usual saintess poise; now she looked like a girl embarrassed after showing a vulnerable side to her crush.
Yuria's Shame level has reached its maximum.
Yuria's Affection is highly likely to devolve into Obsession and Possessiveness.
Watching Yuria flee into the distance, I straightened my clothes.
I'd taken the first step in erasing the hatred from her love-hate, but to fend off the Demon God Cult and the Southern threats, I needed to win over the other heroines from the game too.
I packed my things from the dormitory and headed to the history classroom for my first lecture.
And there would be my first target: the lady of Baron Blandiche's house, and the second heroine, Seren Blandiche.
In the history classroom, a girl with light brown bobbed hair and a black beret clutched her small head, slamming it onto her desk as she muttered.
“Argh… I have no idea what any of this is saying. I always skipped all these minor details. The community said the lore was full of holes anyway, so why is it real life now?”
The other students would dismiss it as nonsense from a lowly baron's daughter, but her mumbling proved she was a bona fide possessor.
If Tia Everett was the classic sunny heroine and Yuria Crescent the pitiful one who regressed after being abandoned by her love, then Seren Blandiche was the bright, lively possessor in an extra role.
Depending on the player's choices, she could remain an extra or rise to protagonist—but now that she'd met me, she wouldn't stay a mere extra.
As a fellow possessor, I wouldn't let her.
As I sat in the seat next to her, Seren peeked up at the sound.
“Who… eek?! K-Ka… no, Your Grace?!”
Seren, who had been face-down on her desk, widened her eyes in shock at me—the infamous “trash” in-game and out—sitting beside her.
“The lore does have a lot of holes. Especially the Northeast Expedition; the community had a field day with that. Right?”
Terms the original Kardel Harteon wouldn't know. Seren's eyes, having intuited I was a possessor too, shook with bewilderment like an earthquake.
Seren's Fluster and Astoundment levels have reached their maximum.
Seren feels strong curiosity toward you.
“Let's talk after class, Seren. Seems like we've got a lot to discuss.”
As I smiled and spoke to her, Yuria—having wiped her tears—entered the classroom, froze at the sight of me with Seren, and stood stock-still.
“…Your Grace.”