Prologue

Crash!

A guy just took a grand tumble.

Underneath his snowy-white hair, there was a face that would make anyone shout “handsome!”

“Oh my, Bickamon!”

A woman who was following him rushed to help him up.

With her flashy outfit and looks, she reminded me of a hooker.

But the dude called Bickamon didn’t budge one bit.

No, to be precise, he couldn’t move at all.

He muttered with a stiff face.

“…Bickamon Niflheim.”

From the dot RPG game, Magung Academy Slayer. The third installment and the final series. The Flame Butterfly arc.

In the script, he failed to get revenge on the protagonist in Act 2, Scene 3.

Ultimately expelled from the academy and even kicked out of his own family as a low-tier villain.

After that, Bickamon used his good looks and past noble status to become a host in the underworld.

Living a parasite-like life off the money of street women.

And now.

In Bickamon’s body.

‘I’ve possessed him.’

A classic possession trope in games.

But right now, he had another problem.

Bickamon slowly unfolded the newspaper he was holding.

〔 Shocking News! The Tragic Incident at Jerion Academy 〕

A student team challenging Magung was slaughtered by a demon.

The prestigious academy, Jerion, faces suspicion from the royals, new religion, and the public alike, and the death list is as follows:

1. Jenia Piern

2. Ford Neumann

3. Saya Hasentain

4. Lucas Fernando

…

Lucas Fernando.

He is the protagonist of the Flame Butterfly arc.

And now, no longer.

He doesn’t exist in this world anymore.

Act 2, Chapter 8.

In ‘The Childhood Friend and Breaking Through Magung,’ the protagonist died.

We are currently in winter break, just before Act 3, Chapter 1.

In other words, this game is now.

‘Entering the Bad Ending.’

Bickamon let out a hollow laugh.

In the post-bad ending world, he’s a low-tier villain expelled from the academy and his family.

He’s possessed by Bickamon Niflheim.

Unlucky.

“…Unlucky.”

The guy emphasized it twice.

＊ ＊ ＊

Twenty-nine.

That’s how many times I’ve cleared the Flame Butterfly arc.

The Flame Butterfly arc has 12 main and hidden endings.

And behind that are 38 bad endings.

The protagonist Lucas has an unyielding ‘Flame of Will.’

No matter the trial, the stubborn protagonist keeps moving forward.

That’s the mindset befitting of a protagonist.

But the path the protagonist walks is littered with 38 bad endings.

How one navigates through these bad endings determines if the game can be cleared.

Act 2, Chapter 8.

The childhood friend and the Magung breakthrough arc.

This scenario sees beginners dying the most.

If you know the workaround, it ain’t that hard, but if you just headbutt the wall like a dinosaur, there’s a 90% chance you’ll die.

And Lucas was that headbutting dinosaur.

“Damn…!”

Curses escaped my lips as I grabbed my white hair in frustration.

A world where the protagonist dies and plunges into bad endings.

This world cannot move in the right direction without Lucas.

Lucas’s unique ability.

Flame of Will.

True to the name of the Flame Butterfly arc, the scenario is linked from start to finish by the Flame of Will.

Without the Flame of Will,

‘The main story is out of reach.’

A long sigh escaped.

On the day I possessed Bickamon, I shoved off the street woman hanging around and returned to the inn I was staying at.

I soon pondered endlessly about what to do in this situation.

‘I don’t know how I possessed him. So, obviously, I don’t know how to return.’

This isn’t a possession I wanted.

Suddenly waking up as someone else? Yeah, that’s a ride!

‘Could I return to reality if I clear the game?’

That’s also very uncertain.

Even if the game progresses straight and clears as it should, there’s no guarantee I’ll return to the real world.

In that case, the likelihood of having to live in this world is high.

‘Bickamon has nothing but his good looks and his insecurity about his sister.’

He seems to scrape by in the underworld using that appearance, but looks fade with time.

Can’t live like this forever.

And more importantly,

‘The clearing direction of the scenario is the world’s salvation.’

Meaning, if the scenario doesn’t move toward completion,

it leads to the opposite of salvation.

‘Destruction.’

I can see the snow falling outside the window.

It’s a freezing winter now.

But an even colder world will arrive in this realm.

I know the outcome that will come to this world.

I’ve seen the phrase pop up countless times when hitting a bad ending.

【 And thus, the world was destroyed. 】

A short phrase.

That little phrase swirled in my head.

Originally, all it took was to restart the game.

But now, I’m a resident of this world.

If the world is destroyed, I die too.

The Flame Butterfly arc risks 90% destruction if it doesn’t progress to the main story.

Not knowing a way back,

I had no desire to die.

My fist clenched tightly.

If there’s no teeth, then gums will do.

“…Without the protagonist.”

Somehow, I have to lead the world toward the main story.

But how, exactly?

There’s a sense of despair.

Bickamon Niflheim is expelled from both the scenario and the academy.

The center stage of the Flame Butterfly arc’s scenario is Jerion Academy.

If he isn’t affiliated with Jerion Academy, no scenario can progress.

Seriously, you can’t make this stuff up.

Even as a mere extra, a low-tier villain, he should at least be stuck at the academy.

There’s a limit to misfortune.

I briefly covered my face with my hands and fell silent.

Then suddenly, a thought flashed in my mind.

“…Could this be possible?”

One single idea popped up in my head.

‘Hidden character.’

Hanon Irey.

He’s the character transferring to Jerion Academy in 2nd year of the 1st semester of Act 3.

However, there’s a blind spot with this character.

The transfer process has already been completed, but unless certain conditions are met, Hanon won’t actually transfer.

If he doesn’t transfer, he’ll get lost in wandering and aimlessly roam the world.

In other words, he becomes a character completely outside the scenario.

“If I pretend to be Hanon.”

I could potentially enter Jerion Academy.

The issue is how to pretend to be Hanon.

The answer comes from a game攻略.

Originally, it’s an item the protagonist uses in a stealth mission in the latter half.

‘Shroud Bandages.’

They perfectly change your appearance into someone else, but prolonged use leads to one random emotional defect.

‘Types of emotional defects are three.’

Sadness, rage, love.

The protagonist loses the ‘love’ emotion due to overuse of the Shroud Bandages.

But later, with the help of the chosen main heroine, he retrieves love again.

There’s a way to resolve emotional defects.

The downside is that this can be accomplished almost right before the end of the scenario.

Also, unlike protagonist Lucas, I have no idea which emotion I’ll lose.

‘But that’s okay.’

Even if one of the three emotions disappears, it won’t be an issue leading to game clearance.

Fortunately, Bickamon loved to hoard money.

I can use that money to acquire the Shroud Bandages.

“Alright then. I…will.”

I will absolutely lead the world after the bad ending.

To the main story.