Chapter 50

Eight years had already slipped by since I came to this world and ended up inside Armienne’s body. A whole lot of things had happened during that time. As I wandered through a ruined city, I suddenly ran into a beggar who looked up and greeted me.

“Savior!”

Seeing the beggar shout while shedding tears of a magnitude you’d expect from a dramatic movie, a warm, benevolent smile naturally spread across my face.

“Let’s all keep working hard for peace today, too.”

It felt like just yesterday that I had first met Aria, but me—once the notorious villainess Armienne—had somehow ended up becoming the savior of the entire continent.

Back when I first transmigrated, I had been completely out of my depth, panicking and having no clue what to do, so I just let time flow and did whatever I wanted while trying to capture Miel’s heart. But the wall of the exact same gender turned out to be far higher than I ever imagined.

Miel hadn’t budged an inch for a full five years, and when I finally went ahead and confessed in a rush, I ended up getting hit with a declaration of a severed relationship. I still haven’t been able to contact Miel ever since that day. On top of that, I never even had the time to win back her affection.

That was because a massive chaos struck the continent by the time I turned twenty. And if anything, it felt like the whole mess had happened precisely because of me.

Over the course of those five years, I had altered the plot of [Harmiel] quite a bit, and the resulting distortions in the world—which had only been subtle at first—finally reared their ugly heads.

“We are the ones who correct fate. We are The Fate. This world is currently distorted far too severely. We shall turn back the destiny of this world.”

They were neither demons, nor celestials, nor even dragons—they were an entirely new kind of existence. None of the characters appearing in [Harmiel] could stand a chance against them with ordinary power. The only one capable of fighting back against them was me.

Realizing this, the continent poured all its might into supporting me. The dragons themselves dug up and handed over to me the Ancient-class dragon heart Aria had devoured eight years ago, teaching me the ancient Dragonic magic; the demons taught me the arts of war; and the celestial host bestowed upon me infinite blessings and boundless divine power.

Thanks to all that, I was able to stand and fight against the faction called The Fate, and I was still right in the middle of fighting for peace even now.

“Hah…”

Yet, even that was reaching its absolute limit.

I’ve been feeling sluggish lately. No, saying my energy was steadily draining away was probably more accurate.

“Is tomorrow the exact day Armienne was originally supposed to meet her doom?”

It was the day in the original work when Miel grew far too popular and successful with the male leads while things refused to go Armienne’s way, driving a jealous-blinded Armienne to attempt killing Harmiel directly—only to be countered and struck down by the male leads instead, ending her life with her own hands amidst tears of unjust grievance, jealousy, and boiling rage.

“Could it really be that I’m going to just head back like this?”

I hadn’t even managed to share a kiss with Miel, let alone progress to any further milestones, and on top of that, I hadn’t even broken free from that severed-ties declaration, yet the time for my departure was closing in. What was going to happen to the future where Miel and I lived happily ever after, raising a sweet child together(?)?

Besides, with entities like The Fate currently active, the continent was bound to collapse into ruin the very second I was gone. And if that happened, Miel would surely lose her life somewhere out there, too.

“Gasp! That’s not happening.”

The mere thought of Miel losing her life because of me was too horrible to imagine. Um, if there was some higher power trying to yank me back, it had to be a god. Was this the kind of situation where I had to grab a god by the collar and tell them absolutely not?

“Even so… am I really going back?”

I knew deep down that the thought I just had was impossible. I could feel it through every fiber of my being—a destiny that could not be defied. A protagonist who stirs up a colossal mess and then irresponsibly logs out and leaves. It was the worst.

“Well, even to me, I sound like an absolute piece of trash.”

How was this any different from a user in an online MMORPG who got all the guild’s funding funneled directly into their character for a guild war, only to casually log out out of nowhere by claiming their PC bang internet time had run out? It was practically on that exact same level.

“I’m gonna get cursed out so bad.”

I was about to transform from the villainess Armienne into the savior of the world, only to instantly become a grade-A bitch who abandons the continent and runs away. Still, it wouldn’t matter if they hurled enough curses at me to make my ears fall off. I’d be safely tucked back away in 21st-century Korea anyway.

Once I got back to Korea, I was definitely going to march right up to the author of [Harmiel] and demand a rewrite of the settings. Especially those partitioned individual stalls in the changing room of the hot spring inn—I was going to smash those to pieces with a sledgehammer myself.

“Ugh!”

Just as my thoughts reached that point, a sharp, splitting headache suddenly struck me. On top of that, my vision blurred so badly that holding myself upright became a struggle. All my strength drained out of my body in an instant, and I could feel the ground rushing up to meet me. If things kept going this way, I was about to share a direct kiss with the dirt. Damn it, having my very first kiss not even be with Miel, but instead with the filthy ground—what a tragedy.

“Mommy!”

Fortunately, though, before I could plant a kiss on the earth, my lovely daughter, Aria, came sprinting over and caught me. As Aria supported me while I continued to sway unsteadily, she spoke with tears pooling in her eyes.

“Are you okay, Mommy? You’ve been pushing yourself way too hard lately. Why are you in such a rush all the time?”

“Aria.”

Because my time to go was coming, and I couldn’t bear the thought of leaving those kids behind without a protector.

“Mommy’s doing a great job. You’re the only one in this whole world who can fight those bad guys, and you always work super hard without ever taking a break.”

“Sniff, Aria.”

When on earth did she grow up so proudly like this? Just eight years ago, the only thing this kid knew how to do was wail, [Waaaaah, Mommy, Aria is hungry! Aria wants to eat rice!]—and now she had grown up so much.

The year she turned 500, Aria absorbed the dragon heart she was supposed to hand over to me, and as if all that crazy amount of food she’d been shoving down her face until then had simply been preparation for this exact day, she bypassed the adult dragon stage entirely and evolved straight into an Ancient Dragon.

Aria—who used to be smaller than me and fit snuggly right inside my embrace—had now grown tall enough to support me by the elbow, leaving me with such a bittersweet, surreal feeling.

While I was glad, a part of me couldn’t help feeling a wave of disappointment, thinking that Aria’s cutest days back then were still the absolute best.

Would I ever be able to see that little Aria again?

“You don’t have much time left.”

“What kind of dog drool are you barking now, Mommy?”

Ah, right, she probably still needed a bit more parenting guidance. To think she could call her own mom’s words dog drool. If my actual mom back in our world—who was probably busy boiling up some soybean paste stew right now—had heard that, my cheek would have immediately turned into a burning, puffy steamed bun.

Right at that moment, I heard the voice of the person I had wanted to hear from the most, the one whose face I pictured and thought of constantly.

“Not much time left… what is that supposed to mean, Armien?”

Miel, having matured greatly and transformed into a young lady who had completely shed her childish appearance, was shouting as tears streamed down her face.

Perhaps because time was running out, I found myself able to speak to her with unexpected calmness. But at the same time, my heart was hammering away like crazy.

“Just like that, Miel. I’m going to disappear soon.”

“Sob, no way. Armien is strong, so why!”

“Because that’s my destiny.”

At my words, Miel rushed toward me with tears scattering through the air. Summoning strength I didn’t even know I had, I stood up, broke free from Aria’s support, and pulled the running Miel into a tight embrace. She had grown terribly thin. She must have suffered no small amount of heartache because of my confession back then.

I had only ever thought of myself. I really was a fool.

“Armien, don’t disappear. I’ve finally made up my mind, you know.”

“Miel…”

As I mournfully called out her name with a bitter ache in my chest, Miel confessed to me.

“I don’t like that Carusien guy at all anymore. The only person I like is you! Armien!”

Gasp! To think I’d be on the receiving end of a confession like this.

Getting confessed to out of the blue by Miel filled me with a sudden surge of power. Was this the true power of love? I felt like I could take on the entirety of The Fate right now and wipe them out with a single finger.

“Miel, say it one more time. If you do, then I…”

“Yeah, I’ll tell you as many times as you want. Armien. I love you, too.”

“Miel!”

I pulled Miel tight against me for a moment before stepping back slightly, slowly drawing my face closer to her lips. Miel blushed furiously at the sight, but she quickly closed her eyes in anticipation and tilted her lips up toward mine.

If this was a dream, I prayed it would never end.

The distance between us was less than 10 centimeters away from reaching the relationship with Miel I had aimed for all this time. Since it wasn’t time for The Fate to show up yet, I figured there wouldn’t be anyone around to interrupt us, but an unexpected spoiler was right nearby.

“Mommy, you can’t do that. You’re an entity that’s supposed to disappear. Sorry, Hell Fire.”

“What?!”

Startled by the sudden surge of mana, I hastily cast Absolute Defense to protect Miel. Right on cue, a white flame tore through the blue fire and battered against my barrier.

Ghk! What monstrous power.

To think Aria had this kind of strength hidden away.

“Aria! Why on earth are you doing this?!”

That’s right. Why on earth was my cute, adorable daughter attacking me? Between the frustration and grievance of missing out on a kiss with Miel, and the profound sense of betrayal at being attacked by Aria, my blood suddenly rushed backward and my blood pressure spiked so high I felt like I was about to check into a hospital for hypertension.

“I made a trade with The Fate.”

Damn it, when on earth did they sink their claws into Aria? And just what kind of conditions could they have possibly dangled in front of her to make Aria—who loved me more than anyone else in the world—turn on me like this?

Did they promise her the seat of a god, or perhaps dimension-hopping to another world, or even turning back the wheels of time?

“A hundred years’ worth of Mosquito Baguette’s top-tier strawberry shortcakes!”

“H-Holy crap. W-What did you say?!”

I was so flabbergasted I blurted out a full “Holy crap” instead of just a gasp. My shock had evolved past a simple gasp. To be evolving right in the middle of a crisis like this—humanity really was something else. But to sell me out for some bakery cake—Aria, this kid still hadn’t managed to graduate from being a freeloading parasite!

Everything she showed me up until now must have been an act.

Still, I have Miel. I don’t know a traitor like you anymore.

Just as I was glaring daggers at Aria, burning with righteous fury, I heard Miel’s voice ring out beside me, freezing cold. It was so chilly I briefly wondered if frost might start forming on my eyelashes.

“Seriously, how starved did you keep the kid for her to fall for something like that!”

“M-Miel. It’s not like that.”

“Hmph, I’m disappointed in Armienne. Can I take back what I just said? Because I don’t like Armienne anymore.”

Seeing Miel call me by my full name instead of a term of endearment, my heart felt like it was tearing apart. Just moments before, I had felt like I might actually escape my doomed fate, but now it felt like the time of my departure was hurtling toward me even faster.

“Gasp! No. Miel. I was just—”

“Can you also stop calling me Miel? Because I happen to be Harmiel, you know?”

Paralyzed by her icy attitude, I stood rooted to the spot, completely unable to do a thing. I felt like tears would burst out the second I opened my mouth. Right then, a voice I had never heard before echoed directly in my ears.

[It is time to return.]

Gasp! To be yanked back in a situation like this? No way. God, please! I might finally get to have some sweet moments with Miel!

Yet, being a god, it gave me zero chance to refuse and promptly hoisted me straight up into the air. I let out a desperate, echoing shriek.

“Noooooooo!!!”

……………

Screaming out loud, I bolted upright and frantically looked around my surroundings. Recognizing the familiar scenery, I muttered before I even realized it.

“This is my house?”

Ah, it was just a ridiculous, bullcrap dream.

Wait, why on earth did I dream up such a twisted, nonsensical nightmare?

Right at that moment, feeling a heavy weight across my legs, I lifted the blanket and found Aria—who must have crawled over from somewhere in her sleep—dangling off my leg and muttering in the middle of a dream.

“Uhm, Mosquito Baguette’s top-tier strawberry shortcake…”

So it was all because of this kid.

Hah, it could have been a genuinely good dream, too.

Feeling a heavy wave of disappointment, I lay back down. This time, hoping for a proper, actual dream.