This wasn’t the reaction Nigel was used to from Inas, who always used to worry whenever he was in pain. Instead, the response was purely focused on Inas’s own joy, and it made Nigel’s face contort in anger.
“Do you think I’m an idiot?”
“But until now, you haven’t understood me.”
Inas muttered, voice tinged with gloom.
“Not once—not even once have you understood me.”
The edge in his tone made Nigel’s body tense up. But what came next was far worse.
“I told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you, and told you…”
The words came in a flat, emotionless monotone, repeated over and over like a broken machine at a mechanical pace. The eerie cadence crawled up Nigel’s spine, sending a shiver through him. Those vacant eyes—stripped of all emotion—were more terrifying than any manic glint of madness. Spooked, Nigel grabbed Inas in a panic.
“Okay, okay, I get it…”
The moment Nigel’s hand touched him, Inas turned his head and gave a radiant smile. The sudden shift in mood was unnerving, but Nigel didn’t let it show and forced a smile in return. Inas, overwhelmed with joy, pulled Nigel into a tight embrace.
“You finally understand. That I, that I… have been doing this wretched thing over and over again.”
…Though, to be honest, he didn’t actually understand anything. But Inas’s voice was so saturated with joy that Nigel couldn’t bring himself to say it. Even Nigel, who didn’t feel particularly close to him and couldn’t relate to any of this, felt his chest twist faintly. He didn’t know what exactly, but… he didn’t want to ruin Inas’s moment, so he kept his mouth shut.
Inas stared at Nigel’s stiff face and then gently tugged at both his cheeks. As their faces drew close, Nigel flinched reflexively. Leaning in as if to whisper directly into his ear, Inas murmured low and close.
“You never understood what I was saying, Nigel.”
“I—I probably did. It’s not like it was anything complicated…”
When Nigel tried to step back, Inas caught him. Those thick, tree-like arms wrapped around him, and he couldn’t budge an inch. Not that he could have, anyway…
Status
Strength: 98,546,545
Magic: 78,564,687
Technique: 94,104,318
Speed: 97,611,645
Defense: 85,144,324
Magic Def: 80,310,263
Luck: 84,143,168
…
Looking at Inas’s other combat stats made resisting feel utterly pointless. For reference, Nigel’s strength stat was… ‘5’.
He wasn’t the type to envy others, but it felt strange—like comparing a human to an ant. Sinking into that bizarre mood, Nigel was gently soothed by Inas.
“It’s not that you’re foolish, Nigel. It’s just… a system setting issue. This game must’ve been built like that from the beginning.”
A system setting issue… Clinging to Inas, Nigel looked past his shoulder toward a glowing screen. The Level 40 information window for Inas Idenbach was still shimmering behind him.
He was about to ask what this so-called ‘game’ even was when Inas’s lips twisted.
“Next, you’ll probably ask what a game is. Think of us as standing on top of a board.”
What Inas pointed at was a trace of Aldet left behind last night—more precisely, April 13. It was the game board where Aldet, symbolizing the king, and Det, symbolizing the king’s consort, along with pieces for generals, knights, and soldiers, were used to defeat the opponent’s Aldet.
“A game that just swaps the terms in real-world chess. There’s even a dungeon based on Aldet that pops up later—it must’ve been separately coded in.”
A voice without a source echoed in Nigel’s head like a hallucination. He didn’t remember hearing it before, yet it slipped into his memory as naturally as if it had always been there. Confused, he turned to Inas. Unaware of what had just occurred in Nigel’s mind, Inas continued calmly.
“Unlike Aldet’s pieces, which can only move a fixed number of spaces, characters in the game grow. They level up, raise their stats and skills, equip gear, defeat enemies, uncover the story, defeat more enemies… That’s how this world works. We may not be protagonists—we’re merely supporting roles. At best, NPCs who guide the protagonist’s party along the proper path.”
A deep, instinctual rejection welled up in Nigel. It felt similar to when he saw the word <Protagonist> in Kay’s Character Info Window. His expression twisted, and Inas gently patted his shoulder.
“You don’t believe me, do you? If you’re curious, see for yourself, Nigel. Kay, Lana, and Axel will soon resolve a crisis at the Selden Mines. They’ll fight hordes of monsters, and get along well with a hired mage named Primel, eventually adding her to their party. Then they’ll head to Rangini to solve a missing persons case, and recruit Jen, who helps them. The five of them will travel through Orta, Visrald, and Hilmer, and finally arrive at the Magnus Duchy.”
“Are you reading from something?”
The way Inas rattled it off made it sound like he was reciting from a book. But his eyes, briefly flicking to Nigel, didn’t waver. Their gazes met—and Inas smiled.
“No. I’ve lived through it too many times to forget. If I hadn’t interfered, they would’ve just followed the story as written.”
Though he didn’t say it outright, Nigel felt the sheer weight of time in Inas’s words and demeanor. Could it be that Inas had lived through what Nigel experienced—countless times over? If so, then maybe he had gone mad. Overwhelmed by the situation and the sheer gravity of it all, Nigel pressed his lips together in silence.
Inas slowly let go of him.
“Nigel. Around that time, you’ll also head toward the Magnus Duchy to investigate strange occurrences happening near the territory. You’ll see Kay’s party solving the incident and eventually show them the path to the final enemy. There, they’ll defeat the last boss and reach the ending in spring. The story will end. And the world will reset. Back to April 14, all over again.”
“That’s insane.”
“You still don’t believe me?”
Inas’s voice turned icy. Nigel felt like Inas could slit his throat at any moment, but still, he nodded.
“Would you believe it? That the perfectly normal world I live in is some… game or whatever?”
It was absurd—too ridiculous to just accept. Not without seeing it for himself.
“Well, I suppose I can’t blame you. You’re always suspicious, after all…”
Even half-crazed, Inas still had his sharp reason intact. He spoke slowly, deliberately.
“Then go verify it yourself, Nigel.”
***
After saying his piece, Inas vanished on his own, saying he should return to where he came from. Left alone, Nigel felt rather lost—but decided to observe things for himself, just as Inas suggested.
The first thing he did was seek out the boy named Kay. Though he was labeled <Protagonist> in this world, he was still a commoner. So it wasn’t hard for Nigel, a duke, to arrange a meeting. If anything, he could have done far more if he felt like it. But Nigel stifled the urge to take a more violent approach and simply waited for Kay’s group to arrive in the capital.
Ordinarily, their scheduled meeting in the capital was with Count Ludio. But Nigel intercepted the encounter by contacting the count directly. Ludio, who prioritized the Duke of Magnus over some lowly adventurers, handed over the appointment without much thought.
He set the meeting for the afternoon.
Unable to focus all day, Nigel finally rose from his desk, took a long bath, and prepared himself. They were just commoners, so casual attire would’ve sufficed—but for some reason, he ended up putting on his finest clothes and even added some light accessories.
“You’re especially radiant today, Lord Nigel. If you step out now, you’ll bewitch everyone in sight. Going somewhere special?”
“No.”
Ignoring his aide’s teasing, Nigel composed himself and welcomed Kay’s group as guests.
Kay, Lana, and Axel entered the room one by one. Since it was an unplanned invitation from a high-ranking noble they had no ties with, all three looked visibly tense.
It wasn’t Kay who spoke first, but the other man.
“Good day, Duke Magnus. Thank you for summoning us—it’s an honor. I’m Axel. This is Kay, and that’s Lana.”
“I see. Welcome to my estate. There’s no grand purpose behind this meeting, so don’t worry—please, make yourselves comfortable.”
As a servant poured tea, Nigel discreetly studied the three of them.
Kay was seventeen, Lana sixteen. They were childhood friends on a pilgrimage. Axel, whom they met by chance in another village, got dragged into their affairs and joined them. He was twenty-one, the oldest of the group, and likely the one who stepped forward because of that.
Pretending to sip his tea, Nigel checked their Character Info Windows.
Character Info Window
▷ Protagonist’s Companion
Name: Lana
Class: Healer
Level: 22
HP: 96/96
MP: 55/55
<View Stats>
<View Skills>
Character Info Window
▷ Protagonist’s Companion
Name: Axel
Class: Warrior
Level: 24
HP: 117/117
MP: 40/40
<View Stats>
<View Skills>
Kay was the Protagonist. The others were clearly marked as his companions. The glowing text on their info windows set them apart, confirming their unique roles.
If Inas was telling the truth, Kay and his companions would continue their journey. Selden, Rangini, Orta, Visrald, Hilmer… and finally, they’d arrive at the Magnus Duchy and reach the ending. Then the world would reset.
Nigel had always considered things like prophecies nothing more than absurd cons. But he couldn’t ignore the Protagonist’s Companion label clearly stamped in the windows.
He wanted to dismiss it all as nonsense. He really did. But deep down, Nigel was already halfway to believing it.
