Prologue
I gazed at my reflection in the transparent mirror. From head to toe, it was armor shrouded in darkness, as if hauled up from the depths of the abyss. The plate mail interlocked with flawless precision—forged from corrupted dragon scales tempered in hellfire. The two pairs of razor-sharp horns protruding from the helmet evoked the great demon that had once devoured the continent. Simply standing there, the demonic aura coursing through my entire body... It was the epitome of the Demon King: lord of ten thousand fiends, humanity's nightmare, the ultimate final boss without equal.
...That was me. But when I peered inside, the notion dissolved like melting snow. The armor was empty. Removing the helmet that blazed with fierce crimson light revealed not the sovereign eyes of the master who ruled one of the continent's six great labyrinths, but merely a hollow void.
Yet my arms and legs moved freely all the same. The truth of my situation was unmistakable.
"Ah..."
It wasn't the final boss I'd played in the game. I'd possessed the armor I'd worn.