LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 32
I hesitated and stepped back.
“…Did you know I was trying to commit suicide? How?”
I remember being caught with the rope from the ceiling.
But there’s no way she could have known I was trying to end it today.
“It’s my ability.”
“Your ability is definitely… a lie? All of it?”
Sophie muttered softly.
“It’s not a lie. I just didn’t tell you everything.”
“What does that mean…?”
“My ability stabilizes the opponent’s mind, gradually making them rely on me. Once they’re perfectly dependent on my ability, I can read their thoughts.”
You read all my thoughts?
You made me dependent on your ability?
My legs buckled, and I staggered.
My head was spinning.
Is this… a dream?
Is this reality?
No, it can’t be.
It must be a dream.
This isn’t real.
Where am I? In a dream?
What am I doing? Who am I talking to?
Breathing slowly became difficult.
My vision started to fade to white.
“…I’m sorry for deceiving you. But right now, please trust me. You mustn’t commit suicide. Not now, at least.”
Suicide.
Yes. I remember now.
I was going to commit suicide.
I should hurry and do it.
I planned to commit suicide to gain abilities and return to the academy.
So, as I promised Sophie…
I was supposed to become a star.
“There’s no time. We have to escape quickly.”
“…Escape?”
“Hana. Please trust me.”
Sophie’s desperate plea.
I wanted to say something, but my mouth wouldn’t open.
My legs wouldn’t move at all.
Like I was sinking into a deep abyss.
Gradually, Sophie’s expression grew anxious.
She looked like she was being chased by something, filled with dread.
“If they find us, it’s over… So first, let’s hide nearby. Just wait a little, and Shinwoo will surely come to rescue us.”
“Shinwoo… is coming?”
Kim Shinwoo.
A name that always felt uncomfortable.
But for some reason, it didn’t feel that way now.
Instead, it brought a little hope.
The protagonist who overcomes any trial in the original story.
My childhood friend who always worked hard for me.
Wake me from this nightmare. Please.
But soon, despair washed over me again.
“It’s already been more than 10 minutes. The gate is closed.”
“…The gate is closed? The magic stone core hasn’t broken.”
“Uh?”
That can’t be.
The intruder must have smashed it.
Has this changed too? Why?
Everything was a jumbled confusion.
What if Sophie was lying?
Should I believe those words?
She deceived me once already.
“Ugh…!”
My head hurt so much.
It felt like bugs were gnawing at my brain.
I was being scorched by Hong Yeonhwa’s hot fire.
Han Si-hyun’s sword was stabbing me relentlessly.
Overwhelming pain forced me to my knees as I held my head.
In that moment.
Sophie’s frantic movements came to a complete halt.
Without making a single sound, she fixed her gaze on one point.
“You’re here.”
A shiver ran down my spine as all my senses screamed a warning.
Something was behind me.
Forgetting the pain, I slowly turned my head.
Someone was walking slowly down the dark forest path.
With each step he took, the trees all withered and died.
Life was draining from the closed space with every footfall.
“Ah…”
I gasped as soon as I saw him.
That appearance. That attire.
I couldn’t not recognize him.
I couldn’t see his face.
A bizarre animal mask took its place.
A goat mask with horns, draped in a black cloak.
I realized why the gate hadn’t closed.
It wasn’t the original demon; this one was the intruder.
But why?
Why?
The leader of the demon army.
The black goat, the final boss in the original story, was here…
The surroundings fell silent.
Only his leisurely footsteps could be heard.
Sophie began to walk slowly.
With a smile as if she was happy to see him.
“Sophie…?”
Ignoring my words, she passed by me.
Standing before the black goat, Sophie knelt down.
“Welcome, my lord.”
“…”
What in the world is happening?
“Indeed. It’s been a while, tamer.”
Tamer.
That was how he referred to Sophie.
“Did you enjoy your time at the academy?”
“No, it was boring.”
“I see. But you’ve trained the savior well. Good job.”
“Thank you.”
My brain refused to comprehend this situation.
Yet, memories from the night before surfaced.
Betrayer.
Why?
The pain is clearly coming from my head, yet why does my chest hurt so much?
“Things didn’t go as planned, but it should be fine. The savior is safely in hand. All thanks to you.”
“Thank you, my lord.”
Sophie slowly rose from her place.
And then she turned around and gazed directly into my eyes.
A cold sneer.
Sophie was mocking me.
“My lord.”
“Speak.”
“If it’s not too much trouble, I’d like to share the process of how I trained this foolish girl.”
“How interesting. Please, do tell.”
I didn’t want to hear any more.
It hurt too much, it was too hard.
This has to be a dream, right?
Sophie wouldn’t say something like this.
She’s such a good girl, a precious friend.
None of this is real.
It’s just pain-induced hallucination.
Delusions. It’s all just my delusions.
Go away.
Please, go away.
“Thanks to this girl causing an uproar, I was able to approach very easily. I disguised myself as an accident to move her. I even changed the dormitory to the same place.”
“Oh? And then?”
“From there on, everything went smoothly. Her mind collapsed and was in a completely weak state, making it easy to get closer. It was so funny watching her lower her guard and wag her tail.”
Sophie’s vile narration continued.
No, it wasn’t just vile; it was a curse.
A terrible curse that would forever remain in my memory and torment me for life.
How long did it last?
5 minutes?
10 minutes?
The details were so specific and cruel.
The hardest part was that every time I heard Sophie’s words, the happy memories from that time flooded back.
Cuddling up on a single bed, asking for sleep.
Dinner shared with Hong Yeonhwa and the three of us.
On the bus heading back to our hometown together.
The club activities we enjoyed in the infirmary.
And even the conversation we had on the rooftop last night.
When all the stories came to an end, Sophie was smiling as if relieved.
I lay there, powerless, crying miserably.
The black goat, who had been quietly listening to the lengthy tale, finally spoke.
“Is it all over?”
“Yes. Thank you for listening.”
“Good. It wasn’t bad. It was quite pathetic, to be honest.”
“Thank you for understanding my desperate effort. Still, being recognized by you, my lord…”
Sophie’s words trailed off.
“Is the time-wasting done?”
“Huh?”
“No need to deny it anymore.”
After a moment, Sophie weakly spoke.
“So you knew everything.”
“Why did you betray me?”
“…Because I became sincere.”
“A wistful love, huh?”
Sophie transformed in an instant.
From the treacherous and cruel villainess to a girl of pure innocence.
She returned to the Sophie I originally knew.
“…I’m sorry. I’m sorry, Hana… I’m so sorry…”
“Sophie. Why are you crying…?”
“Please don’t forgive me. It’s all my fault.”
Sophie cried.
Much more than I did.
She looked so sad.
“Did you start to feel compassion while reading my heart?”
“It’s not compassion… It’s because we’re friends…”
“Friends, indeed.”
The black goat nodded slowly as he approached Sophie.
“Are you ready to pay the price for your betrayal?”
Sophie didn’t answer the lord’s question.
He spoke directly to me, as if I didn’t exist.
“Hana. I know it’s shameless, but can I ask you for just one thing…?”
“…”
“Live. Live on. And forget about me…”
Boom!
A massive hole appeared in the girl’s chest.
A man’s arm protruded through that hole in front of my eyes.
Hot liquid splattered across my face.
Black blood.
In the hand piercing her chest.
A black heart.
Thump
Thump
“The price of betrayal is the heart.”
No.
No.
No.
No.
As his hand pulled away, the hole in her chest gaped wide.
Sophie’s body succumbed and collapsed helplessly.
Just like that, she fell against me.
“…”
Only a faint breath tickled my ear.
It was so weak, it felt like it could stop at any moment.
“Sophie.”
No answer.
The blood that touched my skin was extremely cold.
Sophie’s body gradually grew colder.
“Sophie.”
No answer.
“Sophie…”
Still.
Sophie wouldn’t respond.
Perhaps forever.
Sophie wouldn’t answer.
“Thanks to you, a quite bit of time was wasted. We need to leave before the intruders arrive.”
“Sophie. Please answer me. Sophie. Sophie. Hello?”
“Have you gone insane? I suppose it doesn’t matter. What’s important is the ability after all.”
“Sophie. I’m sorry. I won’t whine anymore. I won’t joke around. I won’t oversleep. And I won’t be picky about food. I’ll only drink a little milk. So, please…”
You haven’t even answered yet.
So please.
Thud.
Splat.
“It’d be easier to take her this way. I finally obtained the savior. Now then…”
“Where do you think you’re going without permission?”
“An intruder has appeared. Three of them, no less.”
“That girl. Put her down immediately.”