Page 1

Thud!

A man fell spectacularly.

Underneath his snowy white hair was a face that could only be described as handsome.

"Oh my, Lord Vikamon!"

A woman who was walking alongside him hurriedly tried to help him up.

With her flashy clothes, striking appearance, and accessories, she resembled a courtesan.

But the man called Vikamon did not move at all.

Or rather, he couldn’t move.

With a stiff expression, he muttered:

"…Vikamon Niflheim."

The scene was from a dot RPG game called Demon Dungeon Academy Slayer.

The third and final installment of the series.

The Flame Butterfly arc.

In the storyline, in Act 2, Scene 3, he fails to get revenge against the protagonist.

In the end, he gets expelled from the academy and even disowned by his own noble family.

Afterward, Vikamon uses his handsome looks and former noble status to become a host in the underworld.

He lives like a parasite, leeching money off women of the night.

And now.

In the body of such a man,

‘I've transmigrated.’

Transmigration into a game.

A common story trope.

But at this moment, there was another problem for him.

Vikamon slowly opened up the newspaper he was holding once again.

〔Breaking News! Tragic Incident at Zerion Academy〕

An Apostle massacred a team of students who challenged the Demon Dungeon.

The renowned academy, Zerion, is under scrutiny from the royal family, the church, and the public. The list of the deceased is as follows:

1. Xenia Pierre

2. Ford Neumann

3. Saia Hassentein

4. Lucas Fernando

...

Lucas Fernando.

He is the protagonist of the Flame Butterfly arc.

And now, he no longer exists in this world.

Act 2, Scene 8.

In the chapter titled Childhood Friend's Demon Dungeon Breakthrough, the protagonist has died.

Currently, it's the winter break before Act 3, Scene 1.

In other words, this game has now entered the "Bad Ending" route.

Vikamon let out a hollow laugh.

In a world set after a Bad Ending.

Not only was he expelled from the academy and his family, but even in the storyline, he was nothing more than a third-rate villain who got cast aside.

And now, he transmigrated into Vikamon Niflheim.

How unfortunate.

"…So unfortunate."

The man emphasised it twice.

* * *

Twenty-nine.

That's the number of times I’ve cleared the Flame Butterfly arc.

The Flame Butterfly arc has 12 canonical endings and hidden endings.

And beyond that, there are 38 Bad Endings.

The protagonist, Lucas, possesses an unyielding "Flame of Resolve."

No matter what trials come his way, he pushes forward — a straightforward hero fit for a protagonist.

However, in the path that Lucas treads, there are 38 Bad Endings.

The way you navigate these Bad Endings determines whether you can clear the game.

Act 2, Scene 8.

Childhood Friend's Demon Dungeon Breakthrough.

This is the scenario where beginners most often die.

If you’re well-acquainted with the strategy, it’s not particularly difficult.

But if you charge in blindly, nine times out of ten, you die.

And Lucas was one of those charging blindly.

"Goddamn it…"

A curse slipped out involuntarily.

I grabbed my white hair as if pulling it out.

A world plunged into a Bad Ending where the protagonist has died.

Without Lucas, this world can never head in the right direction.

Lucas's unique ability.

The Flame of Resolve.

True to the name of the Flame Butterfly arc, the storyline is tied to the Flame of Resolve from beginning to end.

Without the Flame of Resolve,

‘the canonical ending is out of reach.’

A long sigh escaped me.

On the day I transmigrated,

I shook off the courtesan who had been clinging to me and returned to the inn where I was staying.

Since then, I've been endlessly pondering what to do in this situation.

‘I don’t know how I ended up possessing this body. So, naturally, I don’t know how to return either.’

This wasn’t a possession I wanted.

I suddenly opened my eyes and found myself in this situation.

‘Would clearing the game allow me to return to the real world?’

This is highly uncertain.

Even if the game progresses as per the main storyline and is cleared, there is no guarantee that I would return to the real world.

In that case, it’s more likely that I’ll have to live in this world from now on.

‘Vikamon doesn’t have much going for him aside from his good looks and an inferiority complex toward his younger sister.’

He seems to be surviving in the underworld somehow by relying on his looks.

But looks eventually fade with time.

He can't live like this forever.

And above all...

‘The goal of clearing the scenario is the salvation of the world.’

In other words, if the scenario fails to progress towards its end, it will lead to the opposite of salvation.

‘Destruction.’

I see snow falling outside the window.

It is the cold winter now.

But an even colder world will arrive soon.

I know the outcome that will befall this world.

If it meets a bad ending,

I’ve seen the text that appears on the screen countless times:

【And so, the world was destroyed.】

Just one short sentence.

But that single line of text scrambled my thoughts.

Before, it was simply a matter of restarting the game.

But now, I am one of the residents living in this world.

If the world is destroyed, I will die too.

If the Flame Butterfly arc doesn’t progress as per the main storyline, it will almost certainly end in destruction.

w

Not knowing how to return,

I had no desire to die.

I clenched my fist tightly.

If there are no teeth, then use your gums.

“...If the protagonist isn’t here,”

Then I have to lead the world along the main storyline.

But how?

It felt overwhelming.

Vikamon Niflheim isn’t just off the main scenario;

He’s already been expelled from the academy.

The main stage for the Flame Butterfly arc is the Zerion Academy.

If I am not affiliated with Zerion Academy, no scenario can proceed.

No matter how unlucky things get, this is just unfair.

Even an extra, even a third-rate villain, should have at least been enrolled in the academy.

This is a misfortune beyond reason.

I briefly covered my face with my hand in silence.

Then a sudden thought struck me.

"...Is it really impossible?"

At this moment, only one thing came to mind.

A "hidden character."

Hanon Irey.

A character who transfers to Zerion Academy in Act 3, during the first semester of the second year.

However, there is one flaw with this character.

While all the transfer procedures are already completed,

Hanon doesn’t actually transfer unless certain conditions are met.

Hanon becomes a wanderer and roams the world aimlessly if he does not transfer.

In other words, he becomes a character entirely outside the main storyline.

"If I pretend to be Hanon,"

I could gain entry into Zerion Academy.

The problem is how to impersonate Hanon.

The answer lies in the game guide.

It’s an item that the protagonist would normally use during an infiltration mission in the later part of the game:

‘Veil Bandage.’

It can perfectly alter one's appearance to that of another person.

However, prolonged use results in the random loss of one emotion.

‘There are three types of emotions that can become impaired.’

Sorrow, anger, and love.

The protagonist loses "love" as a result of overusing the Veil Bandage.

But later, with the help of the main heroine he chooses, he regains the ability to love.

The emotional defects have ways to be resolved.

The downside is that this is only possible near the end of the scenario.

Additionally, unlike the protagonist, Lucas, I won’t know which emotion I might lose.

‘But it’s okay.’

Regardless of which of the three emotions disappears,

It won’t be a problem in leading the game to a successful conclusion.

Fortunately, Vikamon loved hoarding money.

I can use this money to obtain the Veil Bandage.

"Stay strong, me..."

I will definitely steer this world away from its bad ending

And lead it to its proper storyline.

w