Chapter 81
“What are you doing? Hurry up and go see.”
“Am I still pretty to you, Master? Your most treasured possession?”
At 17, she was slightly younger compared to other male leads, but there was a weight to her presence that was impossible to ignore.
“…Of course. Naturally.”
“Then I still don’t understand. You got what you desired, yet why did you try to take your own life?”
Karl spoke in a flat, emotionless tone as he knelt before me. Then, with one hand, he brushed my hair behind my ear.
“You misunderstand, Karl.”
“This is not a misunderstanding. You are 165 Pesetas tall, correct? The pond is about 30 Pesetas deeper. Releasing your body like that can only be interpreted as suicidal intent.”
Karl’s voice was void of warmth or emotion. The gentle intimidation he usually maintained seemed gone, replaced by a sharp, piercing aura.
‘Could it be that the trembling in my body earlier wasn’t from the cold… but because of him?’
Moreover, the word he used for me had shifted from “Master” to “you.” His cold, calculating gaze reminded me of our first meeting.
“I wasn’t planning to die. I was just drunk and my limbs wouldn’t obey me.”
“Is that so?”
“I live a life without want. Holding such a beautiful slave in my hands, commanding her as my own, why would I have reason to die?”
I lightly tapped Karl’s cheek as I spoke.
“If I died, you’d die too. I understand why you were angry today. But don’t worry. I don’t have a hobby of ruining my treasured possessions.”
“My own death is of little concern. If you wish, I would gladly die for you. But if you have a plan to die yourself, that is a matter of importance to me.”
“Karl.”
“Then I can save my time as well.”
His red eyes glanced at my neck, as if strangling me was his goal.
[Decrease in Disgust Detected (-10)]
At that moment, a red status window appeared. I felt like I had been doused in cold water.
‘-10?’
I remembered all the red disgust notifications Karl had triggered since our first meeting.
‘At the first meeting, the imprint increased it by 40, bringing it close to 100, yet no warning appeared. So the maximum initial disgust should have been 60. Adding up everything afterward, even assuming he maximized it every time…’
‘The maximum remaining disgust should have been 3.’
Yet now… -10?
Disgust doesn’t even go negative, so this makes no sense.
‘…No, it’s strange if I think about it. Why was only Karl’s disgust notification red?’
As if it were a warning.
‘Could it be that the red status windows were all lies…?’
At that thought, another status window appeared.
[“Owner of the Necklace” Odette has discovered “Karl’s Abnormal Status.”]
[Abnormal Status Details: “Affection/Disgust Deception”]
[Reward: Karl’s “Affection/Disgust Deception” Status Removed]
[Karl’s “False Disgust” is no longer displayed.]
A faint pale pink status window appeared. I stared at it in disbelief.
This is insane. Does this mean all of Karl’s disgust notifications were lies?
‘If… other male leads had similar deception or abnormal statuses…’
In response to my uneasy thought, the status window alerted me:
[The only abnormal status that can deceive a status window is “Karl’s Affection/Disgust Deception.”]
‘Why only Karl, unlike the other male leads?’
[The Fenrir Clan is born with a “shield that confuses the Affection/Disgust of all status windows.”]
I frowned. All status windows? Could it be…
‘Does this mean the affection shown on the <Danguwon> Charlotte’s status window was also a lie?’
This explained why raising Karl’s affection in his route was unusually easy. Simply giving him Fenrir items increased affection—but the affection was false?
‘So… during <Danguwon> Charlotte’s route, there might not have been a single real change in affection?’
At that moment, Karl lightly grasped both my wrists.
“Look here, Master. You need to focus.”
…Now that I knew all those affection windows were lies, I could finally see Karl’s true nature: a cold, killing machine.
‘Then… why did he pretend to be gentle only with Charlotte and me? Was it for some utilitarian purpose?’
“Master, I truly harbor no regret toward you. I have never felt hatred or resentment.”
“…”
“But if you intend to commit suicide, my duty becomes much easier.”
An indifferent expression and suffocating pressure.
“So, if you need help, just say the word. I will assist you directly.”
I thought hard. This killing machine had only pledged loyalty to Charlotte and me.
From Karl’s perspective, the utilitarian value of the two of us—why would he bother wearing a mask with us?
Then realization struck me.
‘…Charlotte and I were both the Empire’s only Purifiers.’
Then, Karl’s goal was…
‘The Empire’s destruction.’
More precisely, the elimination of all enemies persecuting the Fenrir Clan, taking revenge on the Empire that ignored them during the Fenrir disaster.
This interpretation aligned perfectly.
‘Karl never had any real affection for me or Charlotte.’
The reason he was gentle in the game with Charlotte… was to seduce the Empire’s only Purifier and drive the Empire into chaos.
But plans went awry—Karl became a Transcendent, unable to kill Charlotte, so abducting her from the Empire was the next best option.
‘That’s why <Karl Route> ended with them hiding after fleeing the Empire…’
Although the Empire wasn’t mentioned in that ending, it presumably fell to ruin.
‘That bit about him loving her so much that he didn’t want her to fulfill her Purifier duty was a blatant lie.’
I kept thinking.
‘Karl isn’t a Transcendent yet. If he wanted revenge on the Empire, it would have been easier for him to kill me outright.’
But this time, the Fenrir children were at stake. If he killed the Purifier, they would be hunted by the Empire’s Transcendent.
If it were only Karl, he could have accepted it, but he wouldn’t want the Fenrir children to live that way.
So, like with Charlotte, he had to seduce me. Take me away to lead the Empire to its ruin.
[Karl’s “Truth” has been discovered.]
A status window appeared again, confirming my reasoning.
“Tell me. Do you plan to die, Master? Shall I help you?”
As Karl tried to tighten his grip on my wrists, another status window popped up.
[As a reward for discovering the truth, you can check Karl’s “Disgust.”]
[Do you wish to check it? YES / NO]
Perfect timing.
‘Alright. Let’s see how much disgust this bastard has.’
[Warning! Status window incomplete.]
[To check Karl’s disgust, the status window must be completed.]
[However, if you vow to complete the status window, you can check Karl’s disgust.]
[Do you swear?]
It was sudden, but I had no other choice.
‘I swear.’
After being blocked and deceived, I had to check Karl’s disgust.
Then it happened—a confusing status window appeared:
[Finally. At last, you.]
A deeper pink status window flashed annoyingly bright.
Blink, blink, blink, blink.
‘What… what is this? My eyes hurt.’
Suddenly, everything went pitch black, and the scenery changed.
