THGA 12

Chapter 12

“P-Please…! D-Don’t… don’t do it, Sren!”

Sren looked at me with an expression I couldn’t understand, as if he felt no pain at all, and murmured,

“Why are you crying? You were the one who wanted to kill me, weren’t you?”
“…Please… s-stop.”
“You can’t do it, so I’m doing it for you instead. Why do you hate that?”

I couldn’t bear to watch him anymore. In the end, I lowered my head and grabbed the hand holding the sword—Sren’s hand. My heart was pounding violently.

“…Hah. This isn’t what I wanted.”
“You’re soft, Rachel. With that, do you really think you can ever escape me?”

Only then did Sren put the sword away. Blood slowly soaked into his shirt.

Yes, I lost. This was a complete defeat. I would never be able to win against Sren.

He always did things far beyond my imagination. Maybe… I would never escape from him. Ever.

At that moment, Sren straightened his upper body, wrapped one hand around the back of my neck, and whispered,

“You’re mine. Forever.”

Then he pressed his lips directly onto mine.

Swept away by him, I let go of everything.

I felt the warmth and softness of his lips, and then he bit down hard on my lower lip. I felt blood well up. At the same time, a metallic taste filled my mouth, and a sharp pain surged through me.

Licking my wounded lips sweetly, he continued the deep, lingering kiss.

Only after savoring my lips for a long while did he slowly pull away and whisper,

“My lovely Rachel.”
“……”
“Yes, just stay obedient like this. Then I’ll never hurt you.”

I didn’t trust his words. I couldn’t believe them.

My heart was utterly rotten with pain, yet I could do nothing. Like a shipwreck shattered by a storm against its will, all I could do was resent him as he continued to break me down.

Satisfied with my silent response, Sren stood up.

“I’ll be back in a little while.”

I stared intently at his retreating figure. Only after he completely disappeared from sight did the room finally grow quiet again.

“Aaaah!”

I threw everything I could see around me. The floor was soon a mess of shattered glass. But no matter how much I vented, I didn’t feel relieved at all. It only made my state more miserable. After screaming until my anger burned out, my strength gave way and I collapsed onto the floor.

Tears poured endlessly from my swollen, raw eyes. Then I saw the sword Sren had dropped. As if drawn by instinct, I grasped it. Staring blankly, I muttered,

“Maybe I can’t go back anyway. Maybe I’ll have to see… that horrible scene over and over again.”

I had no confidence left. If that was the case, then maybe…!

Without hesitation, I drove the sword deep into my chest.

“Ghk!”

It was strange. Dying now felt more peaceful than painful. And so, I took my own life.

[THE END]
[SAD ENDING – Abyss]
[You have died.]
[Find a way to escape. If you die five more times, you will be trapped in this game forever.]

I didn’t know how many times I had already died. With no motivation left, not wanting to do anything anymore… whenever I found a chance, I ended my own life in various ways.

Even if I were trapped in this world, I just wanted everything to end like this. I prayed that my life would end here.

“Hah… which number is this now?”

I stared blankly at my wrist. On my left wrist, the barcode that represented my remaining lives now had only one mark left.

Ah… this is the last one.

If I die this time, it’s really over. Wouldn’t that be better? Instead of tormenting Adenhar over and over again, maybe it would be better if I just died. After all, escaping this place was practically impossible.

With no will left, I lay face-down on the bed. Then—creeeak—the sound of the door opening echoed. I turned my gaze toward it and saw Sren.

When I didn’t react at all even after seeing him, he tapped the door lightly with his finger. Only then did I reluctantly sit up. Sren slowly approached me and spoke.

“How long are you planning to just lie there?”
“……”
“You know this is the last one, right?”

At those words, my body flinched.

What did he mean? There was no way Sren could know how many times I had died.

At that moment, something flashed through my mind. Phantom had said this: once you experience ten deaths, Sren would realize that you were rewinding time. So maybe this was the last one, and that was why Sren knew. That must be how it was programmed.

Or… had Sren known everything from the very beginning? Was this a system error? Or was he, like Phantom, an administrator? It was only one of my hypotheses. If so, what was it that he wanted from me, to the point of giving me ten chances? Not that it mattered anymore—it was just meaningless curiosity now.

If I died like this, would a new Rachel appear?

“When you experience ten deaths, Lord Sren will realize that you are rewinding time. And you, like many other players who never reached an ending, will be displayed as a corpse in this mansion.”

I recalled Phantom’s explanation. Being hung up and displayed… At least the one consolation was that it would be after death, so I wouldn’t feel any pain.

That was when it happened. Sren, who had already come close to me, whispered with dull, clouded eyes,

“Rachel.”
“…!”
“You’re not thinking that dying like this will end everything, are you?”

Startled by his unexpected rebuttal, I flinched.

What—can he read minds or something? How did he know what I was thinking?

Seeing my reaction, Sren let out a soft chuckle. In an instant, he shoved me against the wall and whispered,

“You didn’t really think I’d let you go that easily, did you?”

He wore a twisted smile. Seeing his eyes soaked in mad desire, I felt as if my heart were being squeezed tight. With a regretful expression, Sren murmured,

“Do you know how hard it was for me to obtain you? Do you think I’d just lose you again so emptily, now of all times?”

He didn’t say the subject, but there was no doubt he meant me. In that moment, his long, large hand clamped tightly around my jaw. As he tightened his grip, a numbing pain shot through me and tears welled up in my eyes. When I looked at him in fear, he let out a low groan and whispered with an enraptured expression,

“Good. That look on your face.”
“…!”
“You’re aware of no one but me. From now on, keep looking only at me. Don’t let your eyes wander elsewhere.”

Then Sren’s lips quickly buried themselves in my neck. The ticklish sensation of his tongue licking my skin made my body tremble. I knew what he was about to do next. Realizing it, my body stiffened in tension.

Soon, I felt the sharp sensation of his fangs piercing my neck. It felt as though all the blood was draining from my body. My strength gradually faded until I could no longer think. By my ear, the obsessive, grotesque sound of Sren sucking my blood echoed.

“Ah…!”

Pain mixed with a shuddering pleasure surged through me, and I squeezed my eyes shut. I only wished for this situation to end as quickly as possible. After a long while of mercilessly drinking my blood, Sren finally pulled away.

His lips, when he looked back at me, were smeared with blood. Wiping his mouth with one hand, he then smeared the blood onto my cheek and whispered with a bewitching smile,

“You’re so beautiful, Rachel.”

The ominous killing intent in his gaze was chilling. He terrified me—the man who wanted to kill me more than anyone else, yet claimed to love me.

A dreadful thought crossed my mind. What if dying didn’t end this life? That fear made it impossible for me to even take my own life anymore. If I did, it felt like everything would truly end—like I would be trapped by his side for my entire existence.

Inside the banquet hall of the Helion Empire. The hall was filled with invited guests, but the twin emperors, Resmei and Luisis, the hosts of the banquet, looked anything but pleased. The guest they had most been anticipating—Sren—had once again failed to attend.

A gentle ensemble echoed through the hall, as if trying to lift their spirits, but it only grated on their nerves further.

The only thing worth watching was the humans dancing in pairs at the center of the floor. Not a single one missed a beat as they moved in time with the music. The nobles’ attire, matched to today’s dress code of white, was adorned with white roses. Their flawless group dance made them look like fluttering paper dolls. Yet every face was pale with anxiety, for none of them knew who would be today’s target.

Surrounding them were vampires dressed in garnet-colored attire, watching the white figures as though enjoying a puppet show. Nearby stood tables laden with refreshments. Macarons, tarts, biscuits, fruits, and candies were artfully arranged as desserts for the humans. Beside them flowed a fountain—but its water was red, with the scent of real blood.

Seated on the golden throne to the left, Resmei wore a neat black uniform with a black cloak, a cravat set with garnet at its center. Beside him sat Luisis, his disheveled appearance contrasting sharply, dressed in white with a garnet brooch.

Swirling the wine glass in his hand, Resmei spoke in disappointment,

“It’s just not fun without Sren.”

As if in agreement, Luisis replied,

“I know. But we’re in front of everyone. You should at least try to smile.”

Luisis, of the two, was more conscious of his role as emperor. Even so, Resmei couldn’t easily agree. Instead, he simply pictured Sren’s beautiful features in his mind.