HKRH 4

chapter 4

The unpleasant rumors within the mansion spread even into high society, and once it became clear that her personality was indeed bad, Natalie couldn’t make a single friend.

‘So what if I’m alone? It’s comfortable and nice.’

She forced herself to act confident.

To ensure no one would look down on her, she flaunted the wealth of the Ailsden ducal house, buying expensive dresses and jewelry without restraint.

As a result, rumors spread that Natalie was both ill-tempered and wastefully extravagant.

To make matters worse, she was constantly compared to Sharon—who was humble, sociable, frugal, and had many friends—causing Natalie’s standing to plummet.

Even so, deep within her twisted and wounded heart, she couldn’t let go of her desire to be loved like Sharon.

So Natalie began wearing an expensive black wig.

She thought that perhaps, if she did, people might treat her kindly the way they treated Sharon.

But her pink eyes and pale complexion didn’t suit the dark hair at all—it only made her look strange.

—“Oh my, look at that black wig. Is she trying to copy Lady Sharon?”
—“Pfft. Instead of pretty, she looks like a gloomy crow.”

Eventually, rumors spread that the ill-tempered Lady Natalie was also ugly, and people even joked that she might not be the real daughter.

—“I heard everyone in the Ailsden family is beautiful. Could it be that Lady Natalie, not Lady Sharon, was the one adopted?”
—“Oh my, but Lady Sharon has the same green eyes as the late duchess, doesn’t she?”
—“What an amusing coincidence. And doesn’t the Duke and the young lord both wield light aura, chosen by the god of light? Yet Lady Natalie has no such ability… haha, just joking!”

The more this happened, the more Natalie tried to prove she wasn’t in the wrong.

She became even prouder and more sensitive, and spent money even more recklessly.

People would flatter her to her face because she was rich, but behind her back, they compared her to Sharon and mocked her, saying she must have been chosen by the god of wealth instead.

That was Natalie’s life—before the “lightning luck” came to her.

Thanks to her recent streak of fortune, things had changed, and she secretly hoped everything would turn around from now on…

But in the end, the tangled situation only worsened, reaching its lowest point now that she was twenty.

“…I don’t want to live.”

After crying for a long time, Natalie muttered hoarsely.

The black wig she had worn in hopes of being loved like Sharon now bore cruel footprints on it.

Yes—this was all she amounted to. In Ailsden. To her family.

Staggering, Natalie opened the large window and stepped out onto the balcony.

The mansion, deep in the late night, was so quiet that even the sound of a needle dropping would echo.

Even something much larger falling might go unnoticed.

‘Will it hurt?’

Standing barefoot, she gripped the railing. Her room was on the third floor—the very top of the mansion—so it was quite high.

She suppressed the strong urge to flee the mansion that still lingered within her.

‘It’s not like anyone loves me anyway.’

Whether she remained trapped in her room and died in a sea of flames from monsters, or ended it now—it would be the same.

She had tried to tell Anatole, but he only lashed out in anger.

Her father wouldn’t believe her either—that the dream of monsters attacking would become real.

Because she was the unloved daughter.

Natalie climbed over the railing.

The empty space beneath her feet stretched endlessly.

She whispered a farewell she could not give to anyone.

“Goodbye.”

Just as she was about to let go—

“—Hah!”

Dozens, hundreds of memories flooded into her mind like a waterfall.

Gasping, Natalie clutched the railing tightly. Among them, one memory stood out most clearly:

『Who Is My Male Lead?! Complete Edition Ver.』

“…A game?”

Only then did Natalie realize—

She was a player who had transmigrated into a reverse harem game.

“…Ha.”

Those strange impulses—

The three instincts that had made her the heroine of “lightning luck” weren’t luck at all.

They were events she had experienced while playing the game.

“So that’s why… I knew the answers…”

They weren’t impulses or intuition—they were déjà vu, guiding her toward the correct choices.

Dazed, Natalie stumbled back into her room. Her mind was spinning.

She lay down on the bed and took deep breaths.

“Why did I forget all of this?”

She began to organize her thoughts.

She had been the very first player of 『Who Is My Male Lead?! Complete Edition Ver.』, often shortened to “WhoMale?”.

It was an all-ages reverse harem dating simulation game that had achieved overwhelming popularity.

The player became the heroine and simultaneously pursued three male leads.

It was the debut title of a small indie game company, but the story was as captivating as a bestselling romance novel.

The background music rivaled that of major game studios, and most importantly—the male leads’ illustrations were unbelievably handsome.

If there was a flaw, it was that the player character—the heroine—had no visible face.

But that actually enhanced immersion, earning it the top download ranking continuously after release.

‘The gameplay conditions were pretty interesting too.’

As expected of a reverse harem game, you had to raise all three male leads’ affection levels to at least 70% to proceed.

The first one to reach 100% would determine the final ending.

A game where you could freely build relationships with stunningly handsome characters—it was bound to be popular.

Another key factor was the ranking system, which made players compete.

‘I was obsessed… I held rank #1 for three years.’

The scoring worked like this:

There were three endings in total. Once an ending was completed, your score for that playthrough was calculated.

First, the shorter the time taken to reach the ending, the higher the score.

Second, that score was combined with the total affection points of all three male leads.

In short, you needed to max one male lead quickly while raising the others’ affection as high as possible.

The game—and climbing the rankings—was incredibly fun. Even after completing all three endings, she replayed it endlessly.

As a result, she memorized every episode and choice—and held the number one ranking for three years.

But then, one day—

She was pushed down to second place.

Because of that person.

“….”

Losing even in the game to someone who always took everything from her felt utterly miserable.

That night, restless and unable to sleep—

A sudden announcement appeared:

『Exclusive to the 19+ Complete Edition!
A special “live together” ending with all three male leads, plus limited illustrations revealed!』

—“A live-together ending? That exists?”

In the original version, the game ended with a smiling illustration of the chosen male lead.

Some found it underwhelming for a reverse harem.

So it seemed the developers had gone all out for the complete edition.

—“No time. I have to take first place here at least!”

Driven by curiosity—and desperation to reclaim the top ranking before that person could take it again—

she downloaded it immediately.

『Visitors Total: 1
Welcome to the 19+ Complete Edition of Who Is My Male Lead?!
Warning: Logging out before achieving the objective…』

A notification appeared—but she didn’t read it properly and repeatedly clicked the login button.

She skimmed only two lines of the tutorial before skipping everything.

The new conditions were harder: 90% affection for all three, and 100% each for the special ending.

—“Hurry… hurry…!”

She had memorized everything anyway—episodes, choices—so minor differences wouldn’t matter.

Without hesitation, she entered the completed game—

—“Waaah!”

And absurdly—

she transmigrated into the body of a baby inside the game.

—“Wait, the complete version means entering the game world?! What kind of ridiculous game is this?!”

Panicked, she searched for the logout button.

But it was nowhere to be found.

Only then did she recall the warning:

『Logging out is impossible before achieving the objective.
Attempting forced termination may result in permanent inability to log out.』

—“Does that mean… I can’t leave until I reach an ending?”

Worse, inside the game, there were no status windows or choices.

She wasn’t playing the character—

she was the character.

“…This is insane.”