The Villain Of The Horror Game Dreams Of The Heroine Every Night

Leonhard gazed anxiously at Celine, who suddenly turned pale.

“Cel—”

Calling her, he tried to pat her as if to check if she was alright but withdrew his hand.

‘…What kind of qualification do I have?’

He remembered that whenever Rose looked at him… she cowered like a frightened beast. Even though Celine seemed unconcerned, inside, she would not be different from Rose.

‘No, it must be worse…’

His chest tightened.

HIs memories of killing her were hazy, as if it had happened a long time ago though it was enough to drive him mad. It was because he became aware every moment that the red blood that covered his body belonged to Celine.

At the same time as the realization, the memories followed.

The blue-gray eyes full of tears, the terror and pain, the attempts to drag time by twisting her body while tormented by the phantom pain, and himself mercilessly cutting her. If it wasn’t for the drive to move to break her curse, he would have collapsed long ago.

‘…She said it’s not long.’

Leonhard closed his eyes and opened them.

He could see a wasteland, devoid of life, despite the lushness of trees, bushes and thorn bushes. Celine must be the one in the most difficult place right now.

He had to act even more casually.

It took Celine a few minutes before she could barely get herself together.

‘Wake up.’

She scolded herself.

This should come as no great surprise since, so far, she had passed all stages except the second stage. She should have expected that the second stage was not skipped, but the order of the stages was changed.

Celine bit her lip.

‘It’s not like I’m alone here.’

She looked up at Leonhard, who was still unable to make proper eye contact with her.

“Leonhard.”

“I’m fi—”

Celine immediately cut off his words. What mattered to her now was not her own well-being.

“I have no idea what will happen from here.”

“…I don’t care.”

She explained bitterly.

“I can’t help but care, just know that. I won’t be as helpful as you thought.”

“Celine.”

Leonhard gently touched the space around her shoulder, not directly on her shoulder, as if there was an invisible shield around her body.

“Just…”

Even though he obviously had something to say, as soon as he opened his mouth, he immediately closed it as if he had forgotten. Celine could guess what Leonhard was trying to say.

‘I’m sure he wants to ask me not to die.’

However, it would be something that the present Leonhard could never utter.

Her head was dizzy.

The stages so far were immediately clear, at least in the direction. But now, what could she say about the second stage, which appeared completely unexpectedly? Although Celine tried desperately to recall the contents of the second stage, she couldn’t quite remember.

‘It seems that monsters appeared…’

She couldn’t clear the stage just by remembering what the enemies were like. She didn’t even know what to do right now.

“First of all, it would be better to get out of here.”

Celine looked at Leonhard.

‘….?’

Leonhard was smiling lightly.

If it weren’t for the awkwardly firm mouth, she would have been unable to notice his complicated intentions for a moment and move on.

‘Leonhard wants to reassure me.’

She bit her lip.

There was no way that Leonhard would notice that she was confused. That was why he gave a suggestion… to alleviate her distress.

‘….’

Celine hesitated for a moment.

She might have to tell him that it was dangerous to move recklessly. There was no way he would be in danger, but if she died again… no, more precisely, if Leonhard was brainwashed into the stage one more time…

‘…Can Leonhard endure that?’

Her stomach burned.

Leonhard was trying hard to pretend to be calm in front of her, but his insides must be no different from a powder keg on the verge of exploding.

‘No. In the second stage, Leonhard didn’t come after me.’

While she managed to calm her beating chest, her breath was choked at the sudden thought that came to her mind.

‘But, this is the true ending route… it must have completely changed from the second stage I already played.’

Celine, at a loss of what to do, let a few minutes pass by, engulfed in troubles… until Leonhard hurriedly stood in her way.

‘Monster!’

She blinked her eyes. While she was immersed in her thoughts, it seemed that she was surrounded by monsters. It wasn’t much of a threat, but the numbers were growing.

Celine immediately prepared to use offensive magic.

‘….!’

Her eyes widened on their own. It took only a few seconds for her to gather her magic. She hadn’t even unleashed them yet, but the monsters nearby were scattered on the floor in pieces.

Leonhard said quietly.

“…Refrain from magic.”

“Why, why?”

“I don’t have a good feeling.”

Leonhard replied briefly.

‘…Is there something I don’t know?’

Celine remembered Agathirsus. There must be a good reason for Leonhard to have her refrain from doing magic.

“Alright.”

Although Leonhard didn’t answer, he looked more relieved. Then, he stared up at the sky, and as if he had chosen one direction, he strode toward it.

Celine didn’t ask where he was going.

His first priority must be to get out of here. It wasn’t that different from her, whose purpose was to clear this stage.

‘And, because Leonhard is the cheat key.’

Of course, it was true that she was still anxious. She had personally experienced Leonhard, who became brainwashed by the stage. However, in the end, he managed to get away with it. If she only stayed still and didn’t know where to go, she would only end up in the same situation as before.

Celine paid attention to her surroundings as she walked with Leonhard.

‘There’s no way those are all the monsters.’

Surely, a trap or formidable enemy would appear somewhere.

After a while, she started to shiver.

‘…It’s cold.’

When Leonhard killed the warlock, he didn’t leave a useless stab wound. Nonetheless, the repeated deaths were enough to make Celine’s clothes tattered, and the cold winter wind persistently dug into the gaps on her clothes. Just as she was going to use magic, his words stopped her.

In the end, Celine unconsciously clung to him and started walking.

Leonhard tried not to be conscious of Celine coming close to him.

‘How could this be?’

He killed her over and over again… her tattered clothes proved that. He wanted to take off the coat he was wearing. However, his outerwear was also covered with Celine’s blood and it was devastated by the stab marks from Ringzor.

‘…Concentrate, Leonhard.’

He sighed softly.

It wasn’t a time to be like this. It didn’t matter that Celine could no longer prophesize, except for the ominous aura he felt everywhere.

‘She’s not a warlock.’

Leonhard continued to test himself to see if he was being tricked by something else. Still, the conclusions were all the same.

…There was a powerful wizard who was aiming for them in the dim starlight.

He no longer had the confidence to kill who he felt was a warlock. In that sense, it felt fortunate that the one who was targeting them in the dark was a wizard. It was his principle to subdue non-warlocks rather than kill them.

Leonhard cleared his throat.

Until Celine used magic, the odds that the other person would notice their location first were slim. In fact, he wouldn’t be worried even if they were ambushed though her condition was bad. She could collapse anytime.

Looking down at Celine, he made a promise.

He’d protect her till the end.

He’d get rid of whatever threatened her…

…Even if that was himself.

Celine gradually calmed down by Leonhard’s side. His warmth soothed the cold, and his silent caring warmed her heart.

‘Yes, just a little more…’

She had never heard that the true ending route was longer than the normal route. It was rather the opposite.

‘This will really be the last.’

Celine gathered herself together.

‘Let’s see the end and… prevent Leonhard’s blackening.’

Suddenly, Leonhard stopped.

Celine tried to open her mouth and shut it. It was because he gently pulled her towards him, cautiously but with enough force to convey his will.

‘There’s something…’

Although she didn’t feel anything, she trusted him more than herself.

“Come out.”

Leonhard’s cold voice echoed through the chilly winter air.

“If you don’t come out, I will cut you.”

Celine took a breath.

When Leonhard was talking like this, it meant it was a warlock. However, she could not feel the warlock’s unique evil energy.

‘No way…’

Celine’s body stiffened.

She thought that he might have been brainwashed into the stage again, like in the maze. Just as she stopped him by pulling his arm, who was ready to grab Rashir…

“No, there are no warlocks.”

“You are correct.”

A figure appeared with a familiar voice. The moment she saw it, the blue-gray eyes began to shake uncontrollably.

It was someone she knew very well.

“…What, was it you?”

Leonhard’s voice became less nervous.

“What are you doing here, Lute Carl?”

Lute Carl looked more neat than ever. His short-cut silver hair and soft green eyes still seemed far from the waves of time, and the ornate robes around his body glittered in the starlight. It was a stark contrast to Leonhard and her, who were covered in hardened blood.

Celine’s heart pounded so hard she couldn’t even stand upright. On the contrary, Leonhard didn’t seem to be nervous at all.

Nonetheless, this was the stage after all. It couldn’t have been a coincidence that Lute Carl was here.

‘If it happened by chance… he must have shown himself long ago.’

She remembered that Leonhard had told her not to use magic. Lute Carl followed them closely enough that Leonhard was aware of his presence but did not reveal himself until he was threatened.

‘…It’s dangerous.’

The moment Celine leaned against Leonhard, trying to calm her throbbing head, Lute Carl’s mouth opened.

“I was waiting for Lute Celine.”