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chapter 03
Became the Lord (2)
She didn’t need a sound effect or hologram window to know the skill had succeeded.
Because the beasts had already begun tearing themselves apart.
“Grrrraaah…!”
“Kyaaaaack!”
Even the demons standing in the rear ranks were no exception.
“Hik! Hiiik! Kyaak!”
The demon started whipping its own body like mad with the spike-covered lash in its hand.
The chained brainwashing combo had worked.
Fortunately, she still remembered the combat style and skill usage exactly as they had been in the game.
“…Wait.”
In front of this grotesque scene of blood and flesh flying everywhere, was her only thought really ‘Thank goodness it’s the same as the game’?
Come to think of it, it was strange that even after being transported into the game world, she had simply stopped at ‘So I got reincarnated into it.’
Her calmness was abnormal.
“…No way.”
She glanced at her trait window.
[Clear Mind]
(Passive)
Gain complete immunity to mental status abnormalities.
It was such an overpowered trait that drastically lowered the game’s difficulty, so she normally avoided picking it.
But she had chosen it this time just to play casually.
After all, nothing beat Clear Mind when it came to blocking every mental debuff—like the guilt debuff from dating multiple lovers or the death event caused by repeated heartbreaks.
And it didn’t merely skip events.
True to its broken reputation, Clear Mind also nullified all mental magic and status debuffs.
For an ordinary modern person who had only enjoyed games at home, emotions like confusion, fear, or rage could easily qualify as “status abnormalities.”
“It’s one thing for my speech patterns to change, but I never thought even my mental state would get kneaded around by a skill.”
It felt unsettling, but at the same time, she was grateful for it.
Without Clear Mind, she probably would’ve fainted, burst into tears, completely lost control of herself, gotten exposed as a fake lord, and ended up in a gruesome death ending.
“I refuse to die like that.”
She didn’t know how she ended up here, but she had no intention of dying.
Nor did she want to make one wrong move and trigger a bad ending.
The bad endings in Dark Tower went far beyond horrifying—they were outright nightmares.
“I need to stay sharp. Otherwise I’ll end up…”
Watching the blood-soaked monsters collapse one after another, she steeled herself and called out to the knight standing below.
“Rohengrin.”
“…Yes, my lord.”
Rohengrin answered a beat late and turned toward her with a stiff expression.
He wasn’t the type of character who’d get frightened over seeing a few monsters die, so why was he reacting like this?
Puzzled, she soon found the answer.
“Ah, right. Mental magic.”
Perhaps because it was used to control others, NPCs were terrified even by the sight of brainwashing magic.
If you used it on companion characters and got caught, your reputation and affection levels would plummet instantly. In severe cases, they would even attack you.
That was the reason the ridiculously powerful late-game class, Mind Sorcerer, was often called either a joke build or a doomed build.
“Every time you used the ability, your party members would all run away…”
When her goal was simply to enjoy the game casually, it hadn’t mattered.
If you weren’t caught, it was assassination. If you weren’t caught, it was romance. As long as the brainwashing remained undiscovered, there was no issue.
If the world got destroyed because you didn’t clear the Tower? Even better. Romance stories were best when they ended in ruin.
“…Or at least, that’s what I used to think.”
Even Rohengrin—whose loyalty and affection barely dropped under normal circumstances—was reacting like this.
There was no need to imagine how the other companion characters would behave.
The future looked hopeless, but the tutorial came first.
Now that all the monsters were dead, she was about to suggest leaving this place when a sudden red warning window appeared.
[You have spent a long time in the ‘Wet’ status condition…]
[Entering critical condition.]
[Status abnormality ‘Fainting’ has occurred.]
Resistance: 10
“…Huh?”
If a status condition lasted too long, it could indeed lead to fainting, critical condition, or death.
But this wasn’t blood loss or full-body fractures—it was just Wet.
“Oh, damn it. Vitality 6!”
The problem was the vitality stat she had recklessly lowered to maximize charm.
When a stat dropped below 8, debuffs were applied at double strength.
[Beginning judgment!]
Regardless of her shock, the dice rolled on their own.
[Dice: 10]
The roll had been decent, but her face twisted in despair.
Why?
Because now the consequences of her traits were about to hit her all at once…
Due to [Vitality 6]: -2
Due to [Sorcerer]: -1
Due to [Nephilim]: -2
Due to [Goddess’s Luck]: …
.
.
.
Result: 1/20
[Critical Failure!]
[Remarkable Achievement!]
“Goddammit, this trash build…!”
No matter how angrily she glared at the bright red hologram mocking her, it couldn’t stop her swaying body from collapsing.
Beyond her darkening vision, she could see Rohengrin rushing toward her while shouting:
“My lord!”
That was the last thing she remembered.
The world went black like a light being switched off.
When she opened her eyes again, the first thing she saw was an unfamiliar ceiling.
More precisely, it was a ceiling she had seen countless times in the game, but for the first time in reality.
“The lord’s bedroom…”
At least she had somehow escaped the ritual site of reincarnation.
But the thought of several events being skipped in succession made her stomach ache.
Wasn’t there a special event that triggered if you fainted or got a status abnormality during the tutorial…?
As she struggled through the pounding headache to recover her memories, a cold hand rested against her forehead.
A voice full of concern followed.
“Please don’t overexert yourself, my lord.”
Her gaze instinctively turned toward the source of the voice.
The speaker was a man wrapped in robes.
And an absurdly beautiful man at that.
His hair gleamed like raven feathers, while his eyes shone brighter than fine rubies.
The finishing touch was the red butterfly-shaped beauty mark beneath his long, slightly drooping eyes.
Every blink made it flutter subtly, creating an indescribably seductive charm.
“Wow… he’s ridiculously handsome.”
He had already looked incredible in videos, but in person he was honestly overwhelming.
This was another character she knew very well.
Jehar al Rashid
The number one mage pick.
Ranked first among companion characters.
Five consecutive years holding first place among romance characters.
A companion character who had achieved a triple crown.
His popularity transcended genres, and his fans were notoriously intense.
“Isn’t every romance besides Jehar basically cheating? I mean, that’s just facts.”
“Dark War – Jehar = 0. Want an intense romance with the black-haired guy from the cinematics? Totally worth buying at full price.”
Even male players said things like that.
“How could I fall for a male character? I just fell for Jehar…”
“Why is Jehar such a bastard? Why’s he turning my character gay without permission? Seriously, what the hell.”
(Edited) “Jehar did nothing wrong. I’m the trashy cheating gay bastard with a wife at home. Going to earn money for Jehar DLC outfits now. No questions.”
“Don’t abandon the main wife. Listen to your big bro.”
Performance, appearance, character story—there was absolutely nothing lacking.
He was the perfect character.
Even she, who had been too busy conquering the Tower to care much about NPC romance, had once become obsessed enough to collect every ending related to Jehar.
“To think I’d meet Jehar like this…”
“…My lord?”
“Ah.”
She must’ve stared too long.
Quickly regaining composure, she asked in a lordly tone,
“How much time has passed since I collapsed?”
“About half a day. Not very long.”
He gently removed the hand from her forehead before continuing.
“I heard from Sir Eshen. There were complications during the ritual.”
“…Yes.”
“So neither your body nor your abilities are as they once were?”
There was no point hiding it, so she answered honestly again.
“Yes.”
After hesitating slightly, Jehar cautiously asked,
“Has your memory been affected as well?”
“……”
Perhaps interpreting her silence in his own way, Jehar’s voice became incomparably gentle.
“You do not need to worry, my lord. No matter the circumstances, I will always remain on your side.”
His moist crimson eyes stared directly at her.
Joy. Affection. Sincerity.
All of it was visible in his gaze.
“Even if you lose your memories… even if you never recover them for all eternity… so long as your soul remains there…”
“I shall forever remain your mage.”
So you may trust at least me.
With those words, the mage carefully lifted her cold hand and pressed a kiss to the back of it.
And for the record, none of this was empty flattery.
Jehar was one of the very few companion characters who stayed loyal to the lord in every possible ending.
However, like every character in Dark Tower, he also had one major flaw.
Those beautiful hands of his had once been used to nail the previous lord to a monument.
What did that mean?
This bastard was the mastermind behind everything.
