[A subscenario has arrived!]

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[Subscenario #1: A Costume Party]

Difficulty: D

Clear Conditions: Pretend to be Constantine Cassatra.

Reward: 300 Points

Failure: Death

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At the edge of my vision, a transparent screen appeared.

Immediately, I caught my breath and lowered my head, quickly scanning the words.

There's no time to adjust myself to this unfamiliar setting or ask any questions. Panicking and rationalizing can come later.

Right now, if the words on the screen are to be believed, I must put up an act as "Constantine".

If I falter here, I will most probably die.

Tilting my head slightly to the right, I shifted my eyes and examined the two other kneeling figures next to me.

The one closest to me was a boy, his red eyes seemed to burn with passion as he gazed upon the demon sitting on the throne. He was also a demon too, evident by the two horns protruding from his forehead.

The other was a girl, but something was strange about her. She had large doe-like eyes, and the entirety of her white skin was covered in black patterns, her face included. Additionally, instead of protruding from her forehead, two long, black horns sprouted on each side of her head.

If she wasn't an outlier, that must mean there are different types of demons. I'll store that information for later.

Thankfully, because of these two other demons, the attention of the demon on the throne and the demon servant in front of him was not solely on me.

However, their existence was also troublesome for many reasons.

They could be my colleagues, or they might be my competitors. There's also the fact that they might have known "Constantine" before I took over.

But those are problems for the future, right now I must focus on surviving.

The demon servant opened his mouth again.

"The entrance ceremony will be in seven days, and the semester will officially start one day after," the demon held up seven, clawed fingers in the air, "Therefore, you all must enter the human realm in three days."

With that, the demon servant walked into the hallway on the right.

Human realm?

Then we must be in...

the demon realm.

"All hail the Demon King."

"All hail the Demon King!"

Two voices rang through the hall: one trembling with excitement, the other monotone.

The demon on the throne is the king, it seems.

"All hail the Demon King."

As the words left my mouth, the throne room began to empty. Shortly after, I rose from my kneeling position, my mind racing with thoughts about the actions I needed to take to guarantee my safety.

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

After some consideration, I deduced that it was more likely that the two demons next to me are my allies, rather than my rivals.

But it doesn't hurt to stay wary.

The boy with red eyes and the girl with black patterns were already moving towards the exit, so I decided to follow at a distance, around seven steps behind them.

But as I walked past the throne, the demon king's face was briefly illuminated by the flickering torchlight.

The left side of his face was ... warped.

[A new plot has been discovered!]

I put my head down and ignored the ominous message.

...

We entered a corridor, the walls lined with decaying banners and tapestries. As we walked, the boy became increasingly excited, his eyes scanning the drawings on said banners. His quick pace began to slow, likely to better absorb the details.

I turned my eyes and examined the drawings too, feeling a little curious.

A hideous demon, its face twisted into a snarl, with a half-eaten corpse gripped tightly in one of its many hands.

Huh...

I guess that’s his idol.

I turned my head and examined the girl, who in contrast, was much more reserved. Her timid nature was palpable, evident by the way she dragged her feet on the ground and her slightly hunched posture. She trailed behind the boy, her gaze drifting on the floor.

Suddenly, the boy turned towards me, his fiery eyes lighting up. “You’re Constantine, right?”

A confirmation of my name, that must mean we’re not on familiar terms.

A wide grin split my face, a sudden rush of elation hitting my brain.

“That’s right, I’m Constantine.”

[Scenario Complete!]

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With one hand rubbing the bridge of my nose, I got up and started to pace around the room I had been allocated to.

This was a lot to take in, to say the least.

It had been around an hour since I had talked to the red-eyed boy, whose name was Faris. Other than the confirmation that he was relatively unfamiliar with “Constantine”, the conversation had been unhelpful. Nothing more than pleasantries had been exchanged.

However, the confirmation alone was more than enough to satisfy me. That meant in the future, no suspicions would be aroused if I happened to do anything out of character.

The room was dark; the walls were draped with heavy curtains, absorbing almost all of the dim light that managed to pass through the grimy windows. There were a few pieces of rickety furniture here and there, looking as if they had been salvaged from a warzone.

Somehow, cold air was seeping in, but it didn’t bother me.

Perhaps it’s due to my new … condition.

I raised my arms, feeling around until I felt two thick, curved horns protruding from my skull.

I have become a demon.

With a weak smile forming on my face, a silly thought crossed my mind.

It seems that I will have to go through a reinvention of self.

Someone I used to know had always pestered me about that.

Letting out a deep sigh, I walked towards the middle of the room. An ornately carved dark wood table sat in the center, its surface cluttered with old parchment and a book opened to its first page. I had been putting off reading it until now.

Pulling the chair, I sat down and began to read, though it took a few moments for my eyes to adjust to the dim lighting.

Dear Outsider,

If you are reading this, you have successfully reincarnated as me.

Congratulations.

A wave of nausea passed through me, sending shivers down my spine. My eyes turned downwards as thoughts twisted inside my brain.

There’s no going back.

I raised my arms to pinch myself, but stopped since it was a silly idea.

I need to stay strong.

I wanted to burn everything.

I wanted to break everything.

I wanted to devour everything.

It was a grand dream, but I was too weak.

This world is twisted.

I'm sure you will understand that soon enough, Outsider.

So this is a contract, you will be making many of those soon.

As long as you complete my wish, I will grant your wish in return.

You must destroy everything.

As my shaking hands lowered, the sensation of flimsy paper met my fingertips.

The winds rustled suddenly, and almost instinctively, I felt a presence behind me.

“Contract formed.”

As a melancholy voice rushed past my ears, my vision faded to black.