Chapter 87

Chapter 87

“Come closer.”

Leonhard flinched.

Seemingly, Celine had told him never to help her. Besides, since she was not one to easily reverse her decisions, the upset soon left him.

“Are you okay?”

“….”

His heart tightened in an instant.

Celine wasn’t okay at all. Her back trembled as she sat halfway down on the floor, and in front of her…

“…What?”

A dazed word came out of Leonhard’s mouth.

‘It can’t be.’

He immediately sat down next to Celine and examined the condition of the fallen person.

‘He lost consciousness.’

Even though his pulse was still beating, his breathing was heavy, like that of a dying man and there was only one cause he could think of.

…This green smoke, which Celine claimed to be poisonous.

‘….’

Guilt and shock crawled up him. Frankly, he didn’t believe it when Celine claimed the green smoke was poison.

‘I thought it was a big mistake…’

Although he was the only magic swordsman in the empire, his body itself was not very different from that of an ordinary human. Not only had he never heard of such poisonous smoke, but if it were, his body would have already reacted.

However, this fallen person was obviously poisoned…

The first thing that came to Leonhardt’s mind was the Imperial Family.

‘…They must have evacuated.’

Fortunately, the imperial family always had a wizard belonging to the Imperial Family by their side. It was mainly to prevent assassination threats. The fact that Celine’s shields were effective meant that the shields of other wizards were the same, so they would all be safe.

Leonhard opened his mouth slowly after organizing his thoughts.

“…Sorry.”

“What?”

“I didn’t think… it’s really poisonous.”

“….”

In an instant, for the first time in her life, Celine felt like blaming him. If he had believed her words, he would have immediately remembered the possibility that the people of Libron Castle were in danger.

‘…No.’

Celine bit her lip. She felt sorry for herself for unconsciously blaming someone else, no matter how careless it was.

Leonhard followed her words entirely.

Even though he didn’t believe her words properly, he followed her request without saying anything. Celine clenched her fists tightly. It was because even if she found out a little earlier anyway, nothing would change.

“Leonhardt. Is there any way to evacuate people?”

She knew well enough that neither she nor Leonhardt could save everyone. Still, as she couldn’t think of a way to save this many people, Celine hoped Leonhard would. Unfortunately, he also didn’t come up with any sharp plan.

“…Looks like we’ll have to call in the wizards. They are the only ones who can create a barrier.”

“How to call…”

“No. That… wasn’t the lab also closed? It will take a long time.”

“No, won’t they already know?”

When Celine asked in a hopeful voice, Leonhard shook his head.

“The man was poisoned not long ago. It feels as if someone waited for us to arrive and then spread the poison.”

“….!”

Celine’s eyes widened.

It was because Leonhard’s words gave her a shining clue. While it wasn’t official, it was actually a stage with a time limit. Healing potions could replenish their ever-decreasing stamina, but there was a limit.

‘It was about fifteen minutes in real time.’

If they head to their destination while not avoiding Leonhard, who chased the player, the time would be even shorter.

‘…Come to think of it.’

Celine blinked.

Now that the background of the stage had already changed, there was a possibility that the clearing method had also changed. Nonetheless, assuming they were the same…

She shook her head. It wasn’t something she thought about right now.

Thinking so, she gazed straight at Leonhardt.

“Leonhard. I think I can stop this smoke. Can you help me?”

“…You ask when you know the answer.”

Celine laughed.

“Then, let’s go.”

There was no more time to delay.

Celine ran, drawing on all her remaining strength. Although it looked like she was going to die, she didn’t care. After her, an enemy more terrifying than Leonhard in the game was pursuing closely.

The enemy called time.

In her mind, the same dead ending she had seen three times came to mind.

‘The annihilation ending…’

It was an ending in which the main character dies along with everyone in the mansion. Fortunately, the time seemed to be shortened considerably compared to the actual gameplay.

In the meantime, various obstacles attacked, but it was also thanks to Leonhard cutting them off in one blow. He seemed to find the slimes swaying like a cloud of green smoke strange, but just like the situation, he didn’t say anything.

When he sliced the sixth slime into pieces with a single blow, Celine decided to let go of her lingering feelings about not having his help.

‘If it weren’t for Leonhard, the people here would have died long ago.’

She ran for a while.

A spiral staircase had appeared that led to the tallest spire in all of Libron Castle. Celine started to run up, leaving the door half open.

Her heart raced. It might be different, she thought, but her intuition was screaming that exactly what she had seen in the game was waiting for her. When she finally reached the top of the tower, a foreground was revealed where the green smoke had completely cleared.

“….!”

Leonhard trembled beside her, but he had no time to care. Celine seemed bewitched as she stepped into the top floor of the tower.

‘As expected…’

Her intuition was right. The condition for clearing this stage was a rhythm game.

…In the game, the main character ran, and now she would run too.

“Celine.”

Leonhardt nervously called Celine.

He had already been here once before. This massive tower, which he used to use as a watchtower in times of war or rebellion, was supposed to be empty. However, the scene he saw now was quite different from what he remembered.

This place was more than a tower… it felt like a colossal square though all sides were open.

“Celine!”

He called Celine anxiously as the floor on which she stood looked like empty space where nothing existed.

Leonhard wanted to get close to her or pull her towards him.

Still, his instinct was screaming that he, too, would be in danger. His stubbornness hadn’t thwarted his instincts, but each time, the results were never good, and now it was a situation where he couldn’t take a chance.

Fortunately, this time Celine turned her head to look at him.

“Leonhard.”

Goosebumps stood up, and he looked at Celine anxiously. There was an indefinable quirk in her voice just now.

“Thank you so far.”

“…Celine.”

“Now, hold this for me. Whatever you see here, I want you to stay there.”

“….”

Powerful ominous power overtook him. This wasn’t the first time Celine had said something similar. However, Celine now was like…

‘She looks like a soldier who knows she will die.’

Leonhard moved his hardened mouth.

“Except for situations where you might die.”

“…Leonhard. I’m running out of time, so I’ll ask you one thing.”

Celine’s face, like his, was hardened.

“Leonhard, one death and a thousand living… while thousands die, one lives. What do you think is better? There are no other options.”

“….”

If he had known her a little less, he would have said without hesitation about the former because that was the way he lived. However, he knew Celine as he knew her now, and it was clear what she meant.

“The latter is… better.”

He didn’t bother to say whom the one meant.

“Even if a thousand die?”

“….”

As she looked at his distorted face, she felt guilty.

She didn’t like this kind of dilemma.

She didn’t even like being on the dying side herself.

Still, if she didn’t go this far, Leonhard would surely try to stop her. Until she cleared this stage, she remembered the dead endings she had seen.

Rhythm games were very difficult for her, and Celine, who usually did not like rhythm games, always failed. Whenever that happened, there was an option that the player discovered while falling endlessly, waiting only for intense pain and death.

— ‘Giant gears, moving continuously and making green smoke rise… it’s killing people.’

— ‘If only I could put in a little bit of strength to get in between them… I should be able to stop the gears.’

Celine has tried both.

If she chose [ Yes ], the player’s body was literally ground to the gears. They would save everyone in the mansion through that sacrifice, but what was the use? The main character of [ Celine’s Nightmare ] had already died, and they had to go back to the beginning of the stage again.

While if they chose [ No ], the main character died. Pointless, like over a hundred other dead endings in [ Celine’s Nightmare ].

This time, it was clear what she had to choose.

‘….’

Celine gulped.

She wouldn’t have bluffed Leonhard if she was confident that she would survive the rhythm game of death. If she cleared the rhythm game to the end, all the smoke would disappear and the mansion would return to normal.

However, she really wasn’t confident.

Even a rhythm game played on a computer was difficult, but a rhythm game in which she had to run while moving her body. Moreover, if she failed even a little bit, she would fall and die.

Celine opened her mouth to make sure Leonhardt didn’t follow her in any case.

“Leonhard, no matter what… stand there. Got it? Whatever happens, I’m fine.”

She couldn’t bear to say, ‘because she’ll live.’

“….”

There was silence again.

Inside, she begged and prayed that he would follow her words.

‘Please, Leonhard. I don’t want you dead!’

Even though she wanted to give him time to answer, she was in a hurry every minute and every second. Soon, she hurriedly turned her body to look at the vast expanse in front of her eyes. When she started running, the rhythm game would begin.

Just then, Leonhard’s solemn voice resonated throughout the tower.

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