Chapter 90
Chapter 90
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 90
Chapter Title: Luke and Luke
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A mirror.
In the empty darkness, a single full-length mirror stood alone.
"What is this?"
There was nothing in the script about a demon appearing in the one-on-one combat event.
Why? Because the combat event itself was already a major event.
Honestly, I never imagined this.
Well, I'd already given up on the idea that things would follow the original story.
How long has it been since the Behemoth event ended?
This space was a little different from what I'd seen in the novel, but this was probably that event.
"Mirror."
If the nightmare I'd had before was about killing the mind by triggering trauma, this was a method of killing someone physically by summoning another version of themself.
The other self that appears here looks like a well-crafted illusion, but it's a reality with tangible physical force.
That's why if you die here, you just die.
This was an event that even the original story's Arthur couldn't escape easily.
The moment Arthur brought out light, the other Arthur would bring out an equally strong darkness.
What's more, the opponent mimics your movements perfectly.
That's why this event, which was supposed to happen when Lucia wasn't around, was meaningless even though it was happening while she was here.
Lucia would be fighting someone identical to herself, too.
But...
"Why isn't anything coming out for me?"
I thought this might be a chance to get a new skill or something, but nothing's happening.
The explanation for this event was a real piece of work. It said they were identical, but in reality, the fake was stronger than the real one.
The fake attacks with techniques unknown even to the original. The only way to clear this event is to decipher those techniques and then create a new one—one the fake can't use—to defeat it.
That's why I was looking forward to getting a new skill myself.
In the pitch-black darkness, nothing happened except for the mirror in front of me.
Maybe there's something in the mirror.
I approached it, but of course, it only reflected myself.
'Hmm...'
I examined the reflection of Luke's body in the mirror.
It really is a fine body.
Except for right after I was isekai'd, I hadn't even gone near a mirror. The body couldn't have gotten worse, only better, so Luke's physique had become even more masculine than in the beginning.
It was good enough that I could be forgiven for smiling proudly while looking at my naked self in the mirror.
As I was admiring the reflection with satisfaction...
"What the."
The reflection in the mirror had, at some point, started moving differently from me.
The Luke in the mirror examined the frame, as if the mirror were a prison that had trapped him.
Then, the mirror's surface rippled, and a hand emerged.
The fake grabbed the edge of the mirror and pulled himself out of the mirror world.
As he came out, the color of his pupils changed, showing the opposite of the description I had read in the original novel.
The original said the whites of the eyes turned black and the irises turned purple, but this guy's whites turned red, and his irises were black.
The fake, having emerged from the mirror, spoke with a completely emotionless expression.
[What are you looking at?]
"You."
So this is my other self.
That's definitely something I would say.
It's a bit much to keep calling him 'the fake,' and calling him Luke would be confusing.
"From now on, your name is Luke Alter."
[Isn't that plagiarism?]
"Who cares? It's not like I'm the author."
[You've got a point.]
So, what should I do now?
There's no way out of here other than killing him.
"Do you give experience points?"
[You think?]
"Probably not, right?"
In the original story, it only said that Arthur gained a new skill; there was no mention of him growing in any other way.
If this guy in front of me gave experience, I would have captured the demon responsible for this incident, locked it up, and forced it to keep using its ability.
That would create the ultimate EXP farm.
"Sigh."
I flopped down on the spot.
No point in fighting if he doesn't give EXP.
And if he's me, he's probably thinking the same thing.
As proof, Alter lay down next to me, looking like he couldn't be bothered with anything.
I thought about getting some sleep until the event was over.
After all, the protagonist would take care of the event on his own even if I just sat around and did nothing.
And even if the protagonist got stuck, I still had Lucia as an insurance policy.
Just as my eyelids were slowly drooping shut...
[Hey, it's boring. Wanna go hang out somewhere else?]
"How?"
[We can use that mirror I came out of to go to where other people are.]
There was no mention of that in the original. The event was supposed to end with Arthur being the first to escape and kill the demon.
But that aside, this sounds fun as hell.
"I can't pass up watching a good fight."
[I'll decide where we go, okay?]
"I'm sure you'll figure it out."
If he thinks like me, he'll obviously pick somewhere interesting.
I followed Alter to the mirror, and he reached out a hand to it first.
A ripple spread across the mirror's surface, and he stepped back through it, just as he had come out.
Alter waved from inside the mirror, a clear gesture to follow, so I stepped in after him and found myself in a dreamlike place.
If the previous place was a bottomless abyss without a speck of light, this place was like a world made entirely of glass.
"Ugh, my eyes hurt."
[Same here. I got lost because of it.]
I wondered why he took so long to appear. It seems he was wandering around.
Then again, with everything looking like a mirror, it would be stranger not to get lost.
"So, where do we go?"
[The mirror right next to us.]
At Alter's words, I turned to the side and saw a mirror that hadn't been there a moment ago.
Well, that's neat. I wonder what the principle behind it is?
This new mirror was closer to me than to Alter, so I stepped through it first.
The place I emerged into was, at a glance, a luxurious room.
Looking around, I saw the full-length mirror I had just come out of behind me.
From the looks of the room, it seemed to be part of some lavish mansion.
"Whose place is this? Why is it so bright?"
Normally, everyone caught in this event should be shrouded in darkness, just like I was moments ago.
I was curious who was here to make it so bright.
[Liche.]
"Oh..."
He really did take us somewhere interesting.
The current event is being told not just from Arthur's perspective, but from each of the heroines' viewpoints as well.
Every main heroine has a backstory, so of course, there's a need to sprinkle in some foreshadowing.
That's why, having read the novel, I knew who Liche was currently facing.
"So she's somewhere in this mansion?"
[Probably.]
"She's not already dead, is she?"
[If she were, we wouldn't have been able to come here. When the target dies, their world disappears.]
So she's alive, then.
Not that she was supposed to die anyway.
But who knows? Now that things have deviated from the original, maybe a heroine or two will bite the dust.
Thinking I needed to find her before the movie ended, I quickly left the room.
What greeted me outside the room was a long corridor with a red carpet.
Just how rich do you have to be to have a red carpet not just in the main hall but in the hallways too?
"Is there a safe or something around here?"
[Even if you took anything, it would disappear when you leave.]
"Tch."
With this level of extravagance, I was indulging in the happy thought of robbing a safe and living a life of leisure, but sadly, that seemed impossible.
With no other choice, I headed toward the main hall.
-CRASH!!
Hearing the explosion from the hall, I realized I didn't even need to go looking.
I went straight to the hall and found myself on the second floor, looking down at Liche and Hex having a grand time below.
Seeing that they were both unharmed, it seemed the battle had just begun, so I quickly took a seat on the stairs.
I had taken my time, thinking the previews were still playing, but by the time I arrived, the movie had already started.
[Popcorn?]
"Nice service."
[Popcorn is a gentleman's essential.]
Alter waved his hand in the air and pulled out some popcorn.
So he really is exactly like me. He can even use an inventory.
I wonder if this is what it feels like for others when they see me.
Taking the popcorn from Alter, I looked back down at Liche on the stairs below.
She could see us if she just looked up a little, but she seemed too focused on the fight to notice us, even though we were right in front of her.
Then again, looking away while facing a stronger opponent is just asking for trouble.
"Is that Hex?"
[Who else would it be?]
That clown-like guy flitting around near Liche.
One of the good things about coming to this world was that I could see what characters without illustrations looked like, which made it more immersive.
No matter how popular a work is, no one's going to spend money on an illustration for a villain who appears a few times and then dies.
Especially if it's a male character.
The heroines bring in all the new readers. In a situation where even the protagonist only has one illustration, who would spend money on a drawing of a guy like that?
"Damn... this action scene is sick."
Since Liche was much stronger than in the original, her attacks were not monotonous and were powerful, making it a spectacular sight.
Liche, who would have been utterly defeated in the original, accomplished the feat of blowing off one of the demon's arms.
Normally, losing an arm would be a major injury, but as expected of a demon, his arm bubbled and boiled, and something like a tentacle grew out, restoring it to its original form.
"A guy pulls out a tentacle and just turns it back into a regular arm?"
[If you've got tentacles, isn't ravaging the next logical step?]
"The thrill is gone..."
This reader is greatly disappointed in the author.
[Still, the ending is already decided.]
"I suppose so."
After that, she seemed to be holding her own, but in the end, the outcome was set in stone.
As I've said before, if Liche could defeat Hex on her own, there would be nothing left for the protagonist to do.
"Guh... Aaargh...!"
While I was lost in thought for a moment, the fight concluded.
Liche's arm was bent backward.
The demon was laughing, enjoying the sight.
I told her she'd lose because I knew this would happen, but she followed him to the end anyway.
The end is tragic, as expected.
No matter how hard Liche tries, a world with a predetermined outcome mocks her efforts.
Trying hard is good, but not all efforts are always rewarded.
"Kyaaah!!"
Then, a gruesome sound came from Liche's arm.
"Hey, if you twist a bent arm back the other way, won't it go back to normal?"
[Oh. Are you a genius?]
As we were having that conversation, I suddenly felt a gaze directed at us.
Until now, they had been focused on their fight, but now that it was over, they had the leeway to pay attention to their surroundings.
"Oh, don't mind us. Just carry on with what you were doing."
What's an actor to do when the audience reacts?
A play loses its magic once the immersion is broken.
That's why I told him to continue, but...
He kept staring at us as if he'd never seen a person before.
"What's his problem?"
[Beats me.]
Seriously, they were at each other's throats just a moment ago, and now he's acting like this just because two spectators showed up?
"Hmm... How strange. No one should be able to enter this place. How did you get in?"
"He helped."
I pointed a finger at Alter.
In response, Alter gave him an ahegao face with two middle fingers up.
"Have you betrayed me?"
[I do not take orders from those weaker than me!]
"That's right."
"......"
Hey, smile. What's a clown doing with a straight face?
The mask was forced into a smile, but it was obvious the face behind it was dead serious.
"Well, it doesn't matter. The number of people I have to kill has just increased from one to three."
"He says he's going to kill us."
[Does he have the skills to back that up?]
A new kind of actor, making death threats to the audience during a performance.
As if to prove his words were no joke, Hex abandoned Liche and walked toward us.
"Looks like he's serious."
[Tsk... This is why I hate guys who don't know their place.]
"You and me both."
If he wants a fight that badly, then we'll have to show him.
The strongest attack the two of us can do together.
***
Betrayal or not, all he had to do was kill them.
Hex walked toward the man in front of him.
He thought it wouldn't even take a minute to kill a man with not an ounce of mana.
"My name is Luke."
[My name is Alter.]
We're manly men.
The two men in front of him clasped hands and struck a ridiculous pose as they spoke.
"......?"
Are they mocking me?
Even he, a clown, wouldn't do something like that.
There was no need to play along with such foolishness.
Hex closed the distance to Luke and threw a punch.
He prided himself on his speed, and it was indeed incredibly fast, but...
"A fiery, wild child like this isn't my type."
[Me neither. Great body, but I prefer a cooler guy.]
With a strange, fluid movement, he easily deflected the punch.
"......?!"
Then, they struck a pose that couldn't possibly be considered an attack.
Pirouette.
The two men who said this began to spin.
It looked like a blatant invitation to be hit, so Hex threw a punch.
Or rather, he tried to.
Before he could, a sudden kick slammed into his abdomen.
"Gak...?!"
After taking two kicks, Hex was sent flying.
The pain was quite intense, and by the time Hex managed to regain his footing, before his eyes...
Arabesque.
The two men, already in front of him, extended their arms and legs and kicked him once more.
"Keuk!!"
Grand fouetté en tournant.
Luke and Alter advanced while spinning.
With the two of them rushing forward, occasionally extending a leg, Hex was kicked countless times without a moment to recover.
"St... op...!"
Why can't I win against such a ridiculous fighting style...?!
Honestly, he was bewildered.
He himself employed movements similar to dancing, but at least not when his life was on the line.
Why was he losing, being beaten by moves that were nothing but openings?
"Curious why you're losing?"
The two clasped each other's hands and brought their faces close.
[It's because you're so fucking weak.]
Grand jeté.
"Kuh!"
The two leaped through the air and kicked Hex in the face.
As if it were the final blow, Hex was sent flying even farther than before.
Watching him, Alter opened his mouth.
[Now, shall we finish this? A game of cards to decide the fate of this world.]
Luke grinned, reached a hand into his crotch, and pulled out a thin, rectangular object with a spade on it.
"Drawing the Joker."
Seeing this, Hex desperately wanted to erase his memory.
***
Hex, of course, refused our offer. We tried our best to stick to the original story, but the other party did not consent.
So we just killed him, but he didn't give any experience points.
It was because, as Hex had told Liche before, this wasn't his real body.
Immediately after, the edge of the sky began to melt as if water had been poured on a painting.
With the death of the demon who created this space, the space itself began to collapse.
"That was kind of anticlimactic."
[Tell me about it. I thought he'd be some big shot since he was sealed away.]
After fighting him, it was clear we didn't even need to get serious.
I guess Liche's family was just ridiculously weak.
Speaking of which, I checked to see what Liche was doing and found her staring blankly at the spot where Hex had disappeared.
So I just ignored her and went about my business.
"What happens to you when I leave?"
[I'll die, probably?]
"Just die?"
It's weird for someone with the exact same personality as me to just accept death.
[I said I'd die if I stayed put. I never said I'd die quietly.]
"You have a way out, then?"
[Maybe?]
Alter walked confidently toward me.
He didn't stop even when our noses were almost touching, and he was absorbed directly into my body.
Then, a system window popped up in front of me.
◈ Skill Information
Name: Shadow Fight
Rank: A
Description: Summons a shadow clone that follows the user's commands. The shadow clone has half the user's power.
"Oh, holy shit, this is awesome."