My lips quivered as I stared at him, searching for belief in his stern expression. He let his hand loose, letting it drop towards his stomach, and he fell into a fit of laughter. Is he crazy? I thought.

“Alright, alright. I believe you,” he said with a voice completely different from before. Its grandness and mightiness had vanished. Instead, it’s more… normal.

“Huh? You do?” I asked in disbelief. I wished that that would work, but I didn’t really expect it to.

“Hahaha. Yeah. You see, vaccines don’t exist here. Plus, only in our own world are people dumb enough to associate vaccine with it. Anyway, my name is Adam, Adam Fray.” He removed his gauntlet and held out his hand. I put down Gale, but was still keeping an eye on him. I approached slowly and cautiously, hand at the ready to draw at a moment’s notice.

“Come on. Don’t be afraid now.” He strided forward without a single care and grabbed my hand, causing me to jolt back. “So, are you also summoned?”

He shook my hand, then let go. My gaze shifted to his hand, then to his face. His expression hinted to me that he was waiting for an answer. He didn’t seem eager to attack. Or at least, not yet.

“Y- yeah…” I replied, my voice croaking a bit.

His brows furrowed, and confusion became evident on his face. “But I was told you were helping demons. Why would you, a human, help demons and monsters?” he asked. Before I could reply, he continued, “Were you kidnapped? Brainwashed? Whatever the case, sounds tough.” His tone had completely changed. It was like he knew me for a long time. He was talking to me with familiarity that he somehow gained during our few exchanges.

Extroverted. I nodded at the realization. But somehow, he also felt familiar. Talking to him didn’t make me want to crawl into a corner and hide from people’s prying eyes. It seemed normal, natural. It was as if I was talking to Aya.

“No,” I replied both to him and to myself. He completely lowered his defenses and sat on the ground. My brows formed a frown. “You’re just going to sit there?”

“Yeah,” he replied, propping his hand behind him to support his weight. “You won’t attack me like this, will you?”

“No…” I whispered, wondering what could possibly be running through his head. Is he baiting me or is he just plain stupid? Lost without answers, I asked, “But what about your people? They’re fighting monsters.”

He shrugged. “Those NPCs? Eh, they’re dispensable. They’re just a fraction of adventurers in this world. More so, they’re basically cannon fodders.”

NPCs?! Dispensable?! A wave of heat rushed to my ears. Instinctively, my hand went to Gale, but I managed to stop myself halfway. His eyes, too, darted to follow my hand. That made me realize that no matter how lax he seemed, he wasn’t entirely defenseless, and I couldn’t afford to fight him head on. My only chance was for either Bria or Shiki to arrive.

The threat from his eyes vanished again like nothing happened, then he laughed. “Come on, now. Don’t be mad! We’re in a game! There’s no need to be serious now, right? Let’s take our heads off those nobodies. Plus, fighting for demons must be tough. How about you come with me. I’ll hit you up with someone in the capital, and you can also be a normal hero, a part of the royal knights! Doesn’t that sound great!” he cried, standing up in excitement.

“A game?” My voice cracked, not that I intended it to. “This isn’t real? This is just a game?” My voice trailed off. I never really considered that possibility, and it being brought up made me question my views of this whole ordeal.

“Hahaha. What are you thinking about? Are you doubting me?” His laughter rose atop the sounds of clashing metals and growls. “Come on! Everything is gamelike! There’s even a system! You know what, they abducted me while I was sleeping. It was a tiring day, so I hit the sack right after going home. The next thing I knew, I’m here. A human transported inside a game. Obviously, we’re the heroes! There’s no need to care about NPCs. We just need to kill monsters, grind, and enjoy!” He motioned his arms in a grand gesture.

In that moment, memories of how I arrived here flashed in my mind. The drowning, the Demon Lord’s chamber, and the soaked nakedness. No. This is real. This is not just some game. There are no NPCs. Everybody is alive.

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Subconsciously, I gritted my teeth and my face became stern. “Is that why you’ve eradicated those villages? Killed those young and helpless monsters?”

His smile turned to a frown. “No. That was me grinding, gaining experience. You have a problem with that?” The friendliness in his voice was gone. In its place was animosity. An Incredible amount of aura surged around him, lighting his silver armor gold.

I gulped. I’m no match to him. I took a deep breath, trying to calm my nerves. I replied in an attempt to peacefully hold a conversation, “These are lives. They aren’t NPCs, they are people. Even the monsters, those fighting your men, only want to live in peace!”

His laughter boomed, drowning my angered cry. “Are you stupid? If you want to play hero, then at least do it for humans. What do you get for helping demons anyway? Demon booty?” A devilish grin appeared on his lips.

“Nothing,” I said. This time, I was determined, adamant. “I do it because this is what’s right.”

He put his hands together, clapping mockingly. “Bravo, bravo. What a gallant speech. But there’s a problem. Killing monsters gives me experience, and you want me to stop?”

“Yes.” I nodded, not faltering.

“Then make me.” A bright light flashed, blinding me, and hot burning pain shot from my side.

“Ahhh!” I cried in pain, grasping for the burning part. Damn it!

Just as I was about to stand up, my stomach met a hard metallic shin, causing me to spew a mouthful of saliva.

“Ahhh!” I screamed. I’ve experienced pain from Shiki’s training, as well as our hunts, but those were the quick sharp pain. This, this was more of a beating. Another pool filled my mouth. This time, there was a hint of metallic taste. I spat it out. Red marbled the ground. But before I could even worry about myself, another kick came, but this time, on my face. Cold liquid traced down my cheek, but no pain registered. My entire body was hurting all over that my brain could no longer focus on the pain on my cheek.

The sound of footsteps slowly approached, and my sense of doom grew bigger with each step. This is it. My short lived life. I thought in all seriousness. I thought hard, wondering what it felt like when death was looming over.

My whole life should flash in front of my eyes, right? I wondered, trying to recall how I had spent a short while of living. But contrary to every book and movie I had read and watched, it wasn’t my entire life flashing in front of me. Rather, it was certain events. I saw my family’s travels, staying at the hotel. I saw Aya popping my lunch into her mouth. I saw Lureschka, Bria, Shiki, and Rihoku.

“Weak. You’re weak. Are you really a hero?” the Golden Sun’s garish voice was mocking. I could hear him lifting his sword. Suddenly, there was an itch on my nape.

I shut my eyes, waiting for the cold blade to cut through my neck and end my life. But instead of swish, there was an explosion. The impact pushed down my body, flattening me on the ground.

“Are you still alive, my liege?” Hearing Shiki’s husky, metallic voice lit a new ray of hope in me. My lips curled to a smile.

“Ugh…” I tried to assure him that I was, but all I managed was a grunt. Still, Shiki took that as a sign that my life hadn’t ended yet. His gauntlets grabbed me by the back of my armor, lifted me up, and helped me stand up.

“Shiki…” I managed after a few deep inhales. “His attack burns… It burns like acid…”

“Light aspect spells, my liege. Our race’s bane,” Shiki replied. His usual husky voice hung in the air, but this time, it was mixed with a subtle, yet recognizable sizzle.

I tried to open my eyes, but I could only manage to squint. Through a slitted view, I could see smoke rising from Shiki’s glove. My heart thumped inside my chest, making my head throb. I winced. Damn it!

“Huwew. Your bodyguard?” The mockery from his voice was very evident. “Good thing he blocked it. Got me worried there for a moment! I’m not really a big fan of PKs, and I don’t want human blood on my hands!”

My breaths quicken. The burning pain on my side still hadn’t subsided, and Shiki just stood like a statue. The Golden Sun didn’t seem to mind the lack of response, though. Instead, he continued, “You know what? Let me make it up to you. I’m sorry my anger rushed to my head. I’m human, and you’re human. Let’s let bygones be bygones. Plus, I’ll still take you back with me and put in a word for you. What do you say? Great deal, right?”

My eyelids gave out, shutting tightly. Hearing him explain was enough for me to visualize how he was looking down on me, on us. I wanted to respond, to refute, but the words got stuck in my throat. I coughed, splattering blood on the ground.

Shiki held me up. I could feel the hard metal under my armpits, and a light, gentle pressure on my head. A warm, buzzing feeling spread throughout my body. The warmth wasn’t similar to the Golden Sun’s burning light. Instead, it was calming and even making the pain subside, be it minimal.

“Oh ho, you still have-- ahh!” Golden Sun let out a sharp scream. It wasn’t of his previous mockery. It was of terror. A scream of pain and terror.

The warmth continued to spread, reaching my eyes. Slowly, I lifted my eyelids. What greeted me was a sprawled body. The Golden Sun, with his face planted on the ground, was unconscious. His eyes had rolled upwards, and his saliva dripped to the ground.