Farewell to Origin Town
Wrapping up my conversation with Luna, whose presence was overwhelming, I headed to Alvin's house. It held no memories or connections for me, but I wanted to check it out anyway. Once I left the empire, I doubted I'd ever return.
"Not a speck of dust, considering how long it's been abandoned."
Alvin's parents had passed away early on at the hands of the demon race. No one lived here, so it should have been neglected and filthy. Yet the place was spotless and well-kept. I didn't need to guess who was responsible.
How serious are you about Alvin...?
I could really feel how important Alvin was to Luna. Memories with her that the game never showed. Unless I could regress into Alvin's body fully, I'd never uncover them. Her love ran deep, but I couldn't reciprocate, leaving me with nothing but regret.
Coming to Alvin's house was partly to learn about their past. I was searching for any notes or journals the original Alvin might have left behind. It wouldn't create new memories, but at least it would fill in the gaps. Unfortunately, there was no diary or anything like that.
Is this the only thing tied to the past?
A pair of rings sitting in front of a flower vase. He must have decided he couldn't carry them around, so he left them here. What had Alvin felt seeing his parents' keepsakes?
I wasn't the man himself, but I could infer. Stroking the rings with my fingertips stirred up inexplicable emotions. Even though my soul had changed, the memories etched into the flesh evoked feelings. It felt nostalgically familiar, like coming home to a place I'd never been.
These emotions are a nuisance to me now, though.
If gazing at his parents' relics had ignited rage and vengeance toward the demons, I could have empathized. But all I sensed was Alvin's selflessness, hoping no one else would suffer like him. I fully understood why he never hesitated, even left alone in that situation.
Just a good guy at heart.
Alvin didn't know how to act selfishly. Always doing good for others—that's why he got NTR'd. Worst as a man, but admirable as a human. The kind you want to root for and help.
...Where was that inn where I snapped out of it?
I rummaged through the house and found a map, spreading it out. The empire map I'd seen dozens of times in the game. Tracing back the carriage routes, I could pinpoint it roughly.
Somewhere around here? Close to Gabrallin Fortress.
In the story, a fortress in the empire overtaken by demons. Recapturing Gabrallin Fortress was a key mid-game objective. Delay it too long, and the demons would invade—that was the gimmick.
Those bitches probably shoved the fortress assault aside, claiming they'd come find me.
I wanted the empire to crumble, but imagining innocent people dying turned my stomach. Some lingering sense of justice made me reluctant to just leave. I was in control, so I could ignore the emotions and go. But I'd carry that filthy, unresolved feeling forever—like playing an NTR game without the creampie scenes.
"...On second thought, helping out now might not be so bad?"
While Alvin's sacrificial spirit shone, no one spoke up against his unfair treatment. No one knew about his sacrifices and hardships. The people closest to him should have spread the word, but his companions were all sluts.
No one appreciated Alvin's efforts. Well, maybe Luna did. But what power did a village girl have? No one would listen to his childhood friend's voice.
This is my chance to show them properly.
To the empire—and the world. How much Alvin had done for the empire.
The next day, Alvin and Luna left their hometown but didn't head straight to Yudika Kingdom. There is no warp portal in Origin Town, so they came to a nearby village. After setting the coordinates, Alvin stood before the portal. Luna watched him with worried eyes.
"Don't worry. I'll wrap it up quick and come back."
"You sure you're okay? You said you didn't want to live crushed by a sense of duty."
"True, but I want to leave my spot clean."
"Can't you just leave?"
"If I act as dirty as the empire just because it is, I'd be no better. Don't want to be lumped in with them. Besides, tying up loose ends will let me leave with a clear conscience, right?"
If the demons from the fortress wiped out villages, the empire would demand accountability. Alvin was certain the original heroines would pin it all on him. The empress's execution order was just a matter of time. He was confident he could beat anyone who came, but he wanted to avoid innocent bystanders getting hurt.
Plant the seeds of doubt.
Make people question why Alvin left the empire. Hint that he had no choice but to abandon his duties. Then, when the fall came, the people's resentment would turn to the empire and empress who drove away the hero.
The other sluts won't escape the backlash either.
So no need to regret helping the empire. Alvin stepped into the portal beyond with a relieved expression. It swallowed his body, leaping him to another space.
"...Even if you've lost your memories, you're still the same."
Luna murmured quietly at the spot Alvin had vanished from. At the same time, the warp portal shook violently, cracks forming. A sign someone was coming through from another portal.
"Hurry!"
"I know, don't push!"
"Wrong way! For Origin Town, go this path!"
Lillia, Celestia, and Claret emerged from the portal. Dazzlingly glamorous for a remote village, they drew stares. Unaware they'd just missed Alvin, they hurried on.
This smell...?
As they brushed past Luna, she caught a scent and furrowed her brow. Faintly, Alvin's smell clung to them.
...Doesn't matter.
After glaring for a while, Luna calmly turned away. They might have some connection to Alvin. Mentioning Origin Town suggested they were looking for him.
Alvin came back to me.
In the past, she'd let him go, suppressing her desires in hopes he'd achieve his dreams. But no more holding back.
Luna pulled a pitch-black diary from her bundle. Ash scattered from its cover—it was burned. The contents were charred beyond reading. Only one intact line remained at the very end.
[Childhood Friend is Scary]
Riiip—! She tore even that away. No longer bound by those words.
"You forgot everything except our promise..."
Luna's lips stretched into a long grin. A smile of ecstasy. Sticky, transparent fluid dripped down her thighs.
"Hold the line! If this place falls, our families behind us are in danger!"
At Tarken Outpost, near Gabrallin Fortress. Captain Gerard, in command, bellowed at the top of his lungs. He and his soldiers panted, barely holding against the demons' assault.
"Captain!"
"Yes! Finally! What about reinforcements?"
"Th-that's...!"
The messenger reported requesting aid, but the original heroines had fled via portal. Gerard, who had held the line waiting for them, wore a hollow expression. But a subordinate's dying scream nearby snapped him back. No reinforcements? He couldn't just give up.
"Listen up! Reinforcements are coming soon—just hold till then!"
"C-Captain?"
"Even if death stares us down, my men and I will take at least one more with us. Talk that kills morale isn't worth the breath."
"But...!"
"The front line is our grave. Nowhere else."
Gerard swung his sword, slicing a gargoyle's shoulder wing mid-dive. He stepped forward personally, taking the vanguard's most dangerous role. His resolve to die gloriously in battle shone through.
"All troops!!"
Boom—! Just before his charge order, a black streak of lightning plunged from the vast sky. A dark shadow amid the dust grabbed a fallen sword from the ground. As the dust settled, the shadow's identity emerged.
A knight gripping a sword swirling with pitch-black Void Aura. Gerard had heard rumors of a knight manifesting such a unique aura color. His eyes widened.
Contrasting light, yet warming allies and terrifying foes. The knight channeled the energy from his fingertips into the sword, swinging wide at the front. A solid line traced the blade's path, space seeming to split in two for an instant.
Just an illusion—no actual rift. But three-tenths of the charging demons were bisected, tumbling to the ground.
"Y-You're...!"
"Here for support. I'll handle those bastards— just hold the line."
Stating his business curtly, the knight advanced slowly. Facing an army alone seemed reckless, but to Gerard, he looked like a blazing inferno—with demons as moths diving into the flames.