She walked down the stairs with her slow steps.
Every eye in the hall turned, as her black dress slowed behind her.
Dark as the black night, her silver white hairs shimmered with the chandeliers' warm light.
It was like watching the moon fall from heaven, wrapped in the shadows.
Despite not having a single jewel on her body, she looked more regal than anyone else.
There was no mistaking it.
'This is…'
Princess Rinna Lunovar of the Liora Kingdom.
Leon held his breath, his eyes fixed on her as she approached the main hall.
While his own hair was jet black, hers was the color of moonlight, and her eyes were a deep ocean blue, enchanting enough to steal a man's words.
Just behind Rinna, a couple entered arm in arm, walking in perfect harmony.
The man, likely in his forties, wore an immaculate white suit. His blonde hair was neatly combed, his mustache trimmed with care, and his ocean-blue eyes bore the calm authority of a ruler.
At his side, a woman in her thirties wore a flowing white gown. Her long white hair draped softly over her shoulders, and her warm brown eyes brought a quiet gentleness to the cold marble hall.
Leon didn't need to guess who they were.
Before the couple reached the final step, the guards raised their swords in perfect sync.
"Long live the King!"
"Long live the Queen!"
Moments later, the entire banquet hall echoed with cheers as nobles rose from their seats and bowed.
King Aster Lunovar and Queen Jenna Lunovar were the 46th monarchs of the Liora Kingdom.
Along with Princess Rinna, they had two other children.
Their eldest son, Julius Lunovar—the first in line to the throne—and their younger daughter, the second princess...
Leon glanced around, searching the room for either of them.
'Where are they?'
Just as he thought that, his gaze suddenly fell towards the balcony situated just a floor above.
Standing there was a young girl with ocean-blue eyes and white hair, wearing a black gown and black leather gloves, staring at the banquet with an indifferent look.
She looked like an exact copy of her younger sister.
Eula Lunovar — second in line to the throne, and one of the main villains of Rebirth of the Fivefold Calamity.
Grinning, he murmured,
"Found you."
Ranked fifth among the overall characters in the game, she won the hearts of every player.
(A/N: Check the Auxiliary Chapter for a better explanation of Ranks, Mana Cores, and Stars.)
At the mere age of three, she achieved the 'Crimson Core ' and was called the youngest 'Awakened' in history.
By the age of ten, she broke through the fifth star of the Crimson Core and entered the first star of the 'Bright Red Core', earning the title 'Ignite'.
It was rumored that she even reached the fifth star of the 'Bright Red Core' when she was just fifteen years old.
Right now, Eula was nineteen, and had entered the fourth star of the 'Orange Core', rank 'Spellweaver'.
Praised for both her looks and power, she was titled the prodigious princess of the Liora Kingdom.
But beneath the mask of a princess, she was the one who commanded the greatest secret organization the world had ever known. Comprised of skilled knights and magicians bound by her will, they lurked in the shadows, awaiting Eula's order…
The Twilight Order.
The organization was founded by Princess Eula herself when she was seventeen, through her influence over some of the biggest names in the underworld.
Leon was sure that some of her comrades were lurking even in this banquet.
At the beginning of the game, the Twilight Order's main objective was to bring down the unlawful and unjust.
But later in the game, that changed. When her entire organization was butchered by high-ranking nobles.
Drenched in the blood of her comrades to take revenge, she gave herself to evil, turning her into the game's most loved female villain.
Just recalling all the achievements of the Twilight Order made Leon shiver.
In fact, it was Eula herself who took down Lucian, that Primordial-ranked demon, in Arc 1 of the game.
'Is she keeping tabs on Lucian?'
Leon wondered, following Eula's gaze.
It was fixated on a single person, and that was... Leon's elder brother, Rowan.
"...?"
At first, Leon was confused.
'Why is she staring at that bastard?' he thought, until it clicked.
'...Oh right, she still doesn't know Lucian was a demon.'
So then, why Rowan of all people?
Several thoughts stormed through his mind.
'Did Rowan have some beef with her?'
Then, suddenly, a memory resurfaced.
"Keuk...!"
He bit down hard to avoid making any sound.
A sharp pain lanced through his skull as a distorted, yet fresh memory played itself out.
It belonged to the old Leon.
He remembered an off-screen event, one that had never shown up in the main plot, where he secretly saw Rowan get brutally rejected by none other than Princess Eula, in the backyard of the royal palace.
It was pathetic.
As the pain faded, Leon slowly relaxed.
'And that walking abortion called me a princess proposer…'
Either way, seeing Eula now gave him an amazing idea.
'What if I told Princess Eula about Lucian being a Primordial demon…'
That would make her job easier, and Arc 1 of the game wouldn't even happen.
His heart was pounding faster than ever.
'That would be a massive shift in the storyline.'
And surely, that would reward him with [Fate Points].
As he thought all that, a familiar transparent blue window appeared in front of his eyes.
——————「Quest #1」—————
◆ Title: Truth of the Devil
◆ Objective: Inform Princess Eula about Lucian's true identity.
◆ Condition: Must be completed before the banquet ends.
◆ Penalty: You'll stub your toe every morning for a month.
◆ Reward: +2 Fate Points
By revealing the truth to Eula, you may alter the course of history.
…
Will you interfere… or let the story play out?
—————————————————
▷ Accept
▶ Decline
—————————————————
"..."
He blinked at the screen.
He couldn't believe what he was reading.
'The hell it means, I'll stub my toe every morning?!'
That would be painful.
"No no…" Murmuring, he shook his head.
He can't bear to let this happen.
Without a single thought, he clicked on Accept.
—————————————————
▶ Accepted
「Time Remaining: 3 hours 12 minutes」
—————————————————
"Sigh…"
For this quest, he needs solid planning.
Closing his eyes, Leon ran his fingers over his head.
'I'll regret doing this…'
He had already formed a plan, which would let him achieve the outcome he desired.
Opening his eyes, he stared at the subject he needed to interact with to make his plan work.
Right at the center of the banquet, standing there receiving wishes from her guests, Princess Rinna was chatting with her friends.
Reaching his hand into his coat pocket, he took out a small box wrapped in white paper, with a pink ribbon tied neatly on top.
'...I hope Eula witnessed this.'
Holding it firmly, he walked toward the group of ladies.