How a Villain Defies Destiny

Author: Nikss

Perhaps, just, perhaps…

An amazing hypothesis came to mind: she might be the game itself.

‘No. But how did the stream of consciousness get here, because the premise that the game’s story is based on Selene’s life doesn’t solve the problems I just thought of.’

But how on earth would my mind get to this point in the flow of consciousness?

It started with the question, ‘Does Selene still love Endymion?’

And actually, I had already decided that the answer was yes.

Recalling the favorability system and Selene’s strange demeanor was just to make sure my argument was valid.

However, while these are good reasons to support the conclusion that ‘Selene still likes Endymion’, they also leave me with another question.

Why does Selene in the game have a favorable view of Endymion even before she meets him, and why does she act like she cares for him?

Even though she seems to be missing a screw in her head through repeated regressions?

It was a small question, one that could be dismissed as insignificant, but for some reason, it kept nagging at me.

‘But then I realized that if I hypothesize that Selene’s life is the entire game, everything fits together perfectly.’

It explains the question that had arisen earlier, Endymion’s question, and the biggest difference between the Selene of this world and the Selene of the game.

I was just thinking that what happened to Selene through the infinite regression was just one of the many endings of the game, and that the game and reality are two different things.

The biggest difference between the original and the present was whether Selene regresses.

In the game, Selene, the Heroine, didn’t even have the option of returning.

But the game as a whole is a different story.

‘The act of replaying is regression.’

If you restart the game after watching one ending, you’ll be taken back to the first episode.

As if time had been turned back.

The game wasn’t completely reset, though.

Just as Selene in the real world has memories from before her regression, the game automatically saved all the endings and illustrations she’d seen once.

Just like human memory.

‘If the Selene of this world seems strange, it’s because it’s based on the false premise that she’s simply one of the characters in the game.’

Whereas in the game, Selene was an innocent, righteous character who would do anything in her power to help others, in this world, she would throw out questionable statements or use ridiculous force to get her way.

So I thought it was because she was becoming less and less human as she regressed.

But maybe it felt that way because I was playing from Laura’s perspective, not the player’s, where I could see the whole picture.

Having taken over Laura’s body and not being able to see the entire picture, I didn’t fully understand her actions.

‘All I could think about was the here and now.’

If everything Selene said was true, then she did have her special reason for putting me on the guillotine, and if she meant it when she said she had to save me…

‘Even in this situation, from the player’s perspective, Selene would be someone who would do everything in her power to help others.’

Of course, that’s a what-if.

Unfortunately, we couldn’t confirm it right away.

However, if this hypothesis were true, it would explain the favorability system and Endymion’s higher number of endings than other targets.

‘There’s no way someone can just forget about someone they really loved and then regress.’

It’s possible that the real-life Selene hasn’t forgotten Endymion and has made more attempts to do so despite repeated regressions.

‘But even if this theory is right, it’s still so sad.’

That means Selene still loves Endymion, but she’s married to someone else and has a child with him.

While she was lost in her thoughts, a voice interrupted her.

“That’s enough.”

It was Yves who had suddenly appeared. He had already moved toward us and was pulling Endymion’s hand away.

‘Isn’t it time for evening prayers?’

He was acting protective of me, but I was dumbfounded.

“’Yves, what’s wrong with you all of a sudden?”

“You don’t have to force Miss Laura to do this.”

“What? Like what?”

“If she doesn’t want to talk to you, that’s fine.”

The more I listened to him, the more question marks grew in my head.

“I don’t think I particularly hate it.”

“It shows on your face, so there’s no point in hiding it.”

“What? Did I look like I didn’t want to talk to Endymion?”

That’s weird, ‘Well, what started as a lighthearted idea for a relationship counseling session turned out to be surprisingly exhausting and serious, but I didn’t think I looked like I didn’t want to answer Endymion’s questions.’

At my repeated question, Yves hesitated for a moment, then spoke slowly.

“…You did look distressed, didn’t you?”

“Oh, not because of what was happening with Endymion, but because of something else.”

Then Endymion, who had been silent, interrupted.

“So you’ve been thinking about something else all this time?”

“No. It’s indeed about you, Endymion, but…”

This time Yves cut me off, saying, “After all, if it was something you didn’t want to talk about, there’s no need to force it.”

“I’m not willing to be forced either, but was that really such a hard question to answer?”

“Brother, that might sound like a threat, too.”

“I was just asking for an opinion.”

Watching the two of them continue their conversation without me even opening my mouth, I let out a deep sigh.

“I need you both to calm down.

“Miss Laura…”

“I…”

“Let me speak first.”

Feeling that the argument would never end if I allowed it to, I interrupted them with a firm tone.

They both shut up and looked at me.

‘Ah, but since Yves’s here, I’m going to have to turn it around.’

There was a lot I wanted to tell Endymion, but I couldn’t tell him everything, and to be honest, I didn’t know everything about Selene.

Playing the game was the only way I understood the whole picture.

‘There’s a chance that what I just came up with is wrong.’

Pausing for a moment to collect my thoughts, I carefully rattled off the words.

“For now, my answer is, it hasn’t changed.”

“…!”

Endymion’s face instantly lit up. It was the brightest I had seen him in recent memory.

Turning to Endymion, I added one last word, “That’s just my guess, though, because people can change their minds.”

It was a cold shoulder, I realized, but I wanted to minimize the chances that my interference would make things worse.

“So whatever Selene does, don’t get in her way.”

“That’s…”

“If you want to do something, just ask her outright.”

“You mean ask permission?”

“Yes. I was suggesting earlier that you could sneak around without being caught, but I don’t think that’s a good idea either.”

“But what if we do, and things get worse, and no one can handle it?”

“Even that could be Selene’s choice.”

“…I’ll keep that in mind.”

“And don’t forget, this is my highly subjective opinion.”

“I see. Thank you.”

“I hope you find it helpful.”

To be honest, at first, I wondered if I should be listening to Endymion’s problems.

After all, it was essentially relationship counseling, albeit with multiple issues intertwined.

But then I realized that I had been exposed to a lot of romance in my previous life, so I thought better of it and answered carefully.

“Now, if you’ll excuse me while I say one last thing to Laura.

Endymion, who looked like he was going to turn around at any moment, suddenly turned to Yves and asked.

“…”

“I’ll make it quick.”

“…I see.”

Yves’s face hardened even more, but to my relief, the hand wrapped around my shoulder slowly dropped.

“Once again, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I can tell that you’ve given your decision a lot of thought.”

I must have looked very serious indeed. Even Endymion could tell it was genuine.

“Actually, in all my dreams, you’ve been dead, so I wasn’t expecting much.”

“Ah…”

It dawned on me that Laura hadn’t died in any of them.

‘Surely there’s no ulterior motive for this one?’

My guard was raised. Endymion seemed to notice and hastily added an afterthought.

“I’m not trying to be insinuating, I’m being sincere. I’m just considering the possibility that something might have happened between you and Selene that I haven’t dreamed up yet.”

It was a subtle misunderstanding.

Perhaps it’s my overthinking nature, my inability to accept things as they are.

‘I’m glad they misunderstood me.’

No need to make up a good excuse.

“I see.”

Endymion’s voice softened as I nodded in relief.

“And thanks to you, I’ve also realized the importance of being sincere when talking to people.”