The Northern Grand Duke’s Hamster – Chapter 115

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Nox revealed not only his own past but also the real names and histories of his comrades involved in the “Deviation.” That meant I had to disclose just as much about myself in return.

‘I don’t like this… but I don’t have a choice.’

As I hesitated, I could feel the noose tightening around me, little by little. By the time I stepped into the laboratory, the throbbing pain was so intense that my face twisted involuntarily.

I should have come separately from Kyle. It didn’t sit well with me to reveal things to Nox first—things I hadn’t even told him.

‘Not that he would’ve let me go alone anyway.’

He had caught me being strangled in this very lab just yesterday. Of course, he wouldn’t leave me by myself. I understood that.

“Shu.”

Noticing me rubbing my neck, Kyle wrapped an arm around my shoulders. I met his worried gaze with a small smile.

It’s fine. This much is nothing. It wasn’t even a huge secret, and I had always thought I would have to tell someone eventually.

“…Baek Soo-hyun. That’s my name.”

It was the first time I had spoken that name out loud since arriving in this world. For some reason, it felt strange on my tongue.

As I perched lightly on the steel workbench, I began to speak.

“In the world I came from, there was no such thing as magic. Science existed, sure, but nothing like mana beasts… I was just an ordinary office worker. I used to develop games.”

“Games? What’s that?”

Nox, who had been busy adding and mixing substances into a glass flask, asked curiously.

“You could think of it as a kind of simulated experience, like a novel or a movie. It’s a way for people to enjoy a fictional world that isn’t real. The system assisting me works similarly—I issue commands, it gives appropriate rewards, and it facilitates interactions with characters.”

The clinking sounds of his work came to a halt. Nox turned to me with an expression of genuine interest.

“Sounds a lot like a magician.”

“It’s different. Magic interferes with reality, but games don’t. There’s a clear boundary between illusion and reality. No matter how much someone loves a virtual space, it can never become real.”

Kyle seemed deep in thought, while Nox looked increasingly intrigued.

“Hmm. Alright, let’s say that’s enough for our little trade of secrets. But ‘Baek Soo-hyun,’ huh? Strange-sounding name.”

“Well, it’s from another world. Now, since we’re at it, let’s get today’s questions out of the way. Should I go first?”

“You don’t even need time to think?”

“I’ve already decided what to ask.”

Nox smirked meaningfully.

“You’re going to regret it, kid.”

“What do you mean?”

“…Never mind. Go ahead and ask.”

I immediately launched into my question.

“Did the Northern Mage Corps collaborate with the imperial capital to complete the ‘Heart of Winter’? And is that why they orchestrated the disappearances?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

Nox added, as if doing me a favor,

“‘Drowned Corpse’ thoroughly enjoyed negotiating with the new emperor. He was a convenient puppet—easy to manipulate. Not the brightest, you see.”

Lorentz was quite the schemer himself, but if these people were even worse… that was saying something.

I nodded and continued with my next question.

“The mages who attacked us in the imperial capital—Belial and me—were they also corpses, like the servants in this tower?”

“No, they were alive. Finding ‘useful’ people like that is another one of ‘Drowned Corpse’s little hobbies.”

Narrowing my eyes, I checked the Deviation Interference rate.

[Current Deviation Interference Rate: 36%]

The rate was climbing rapidly—probably because we were gathering some critical information. I was starting to feel slightly nauseous. As I bit my lip hard, Kyle gently cupped my cheeks with both hands.

“You don’t look well, Shu.”

“…It’s all because of that bastard. Get revenge for me later.”

“Of course.”

It was meant as a joke to reassure him, but he took it seriously. Well, that was fine. We’d have to fight him anyway.

I immediately moved on to my third question.

“The Heart of Winter. You said you’d present it to Lorentz once it was completed. That must have been the condition for your alliance.”

The Northern Mage Corps was certainly a menace, but in reality, they were only a problem for the people of Blake’s territory. The imperial capital likely didn’t care much about them.

No, in fact, Lorentz would probably welcome our conflict with them. If the mages dealt with Kyle, he wouldn’t have to dirty his own hands.

If Lorentz was offered the gift of an immortal heart in exchange for turning a blind eye to their rampage, he might have been willing to sacrifice a portion of his own people.

‘He might have even thought of it as a good deal.’

That’s what happens when you’re consumed by power. What a disgusting excuse for a human being.

But that wasn’t the most important part right now.

“But after going through all this trouble to complete the Heart, you’re not just going to hand it over, are you?”

“……”

Nox had mentioned before that he could control those who possessed the Heart.

“You’re only pretending to cooperate so you can manipulate Lorentz, aren’t you?”

I had already suspected they wouldn’t ally with Lorentz without some ulterior motive. But the real deciding factor was what Nox had told me about “The Drowned Corpse.”

He said she wanted to rule like a queen. And what could be more entertaining than turning a king into her puppet?

“Is that really the question you want to ask?”

“Yes.”

Nox smiled slowly.

“I’ll hold off on answering.”

“You’re exercising your right to remain silent?”

“Who knows? It’d be a waste to use my one refusal on something so trivial. It’s not a difficult question to answer, after all. Let’s just say I’m showing a bit of goodwill for when you find yourself in trouble later.”

…A situation where I’d be in trouble?

I looked up at Nox. He poured a shimmering blue liquid into a long glass and handed it to me.

“It’s not poison, so don’t worry. It might even help you.”

I didn’t drink it immediately. Instead, I met his blue eyes head-on.

When Nox first explained the rules, he mentioned that if he didn’t want to answer a question, he could remain silent as a form of fair play.

‘Is he implying that I’ll ask something later that I won’t want to answer? If I push him now, I might end up at a disadvantage.’

[You should think carefully! (＞︿＜);;;]

Even the system, which had been quiet in the corner, cautiously agreed with me.

Nox was still looking down at me with that same smile. Even without hearing his answer, I felt as though he had already given me one. That fierce grin—the one that always surfaced whenever I managed to dig into him—was plastered across his face again.

“Now, it’s my turn. Alright, first question. Kid, you previously said that you performed a miracle to repeatedly avoid death by possessing a hamster in this world. But in reality, you can’t freely transform—you can only summon your original body depending on the strength of your power, right?”

I stared at him, momentarily forgetting that I was supposed to respond.

We had talked about many things, but seeing it all laid out so clearly caught me off guard.

I thought he was just some lunatic. Turns out, he’s a smart lunatic.

“…Yes.”

“Then once you’ve gathered all your power, you’ll be able to return to your original world.”

Without hesitation, he went straight to his second question.

“Do you really want to go back, kid?”

Kyle and Nox’s gazes pinned me from both sides.

My throat tightened, and I bit my lower lip lightly.

“…I don’t know.”

A dull pain flared in my throat. It was a sign that what I had said wasn’t the complete truth.

I quickly changed my answer.

“I have to go back.”

The pain intensified. A rasping breath escaped my lips.

“I will.”

“…Shu.”

Breathing became difficult. The noose tightened around my neck, squeezing relentlessly. Cold sweat trickled down my skin.

Nox clicked his tongue as he examined my throat.

“I told you, you can’t lie.”

If I gathered enough miracle energy, I could return to my original world. That had been my goal all along—the reason I had struggled so many times in this unfamiliar world.

And now… I didn’t want to go back? Was that really how I felt?

Sweat dripped from my forehead. This was nothing like the unexpected pain I had felt last time.

I must have started struggling unconsciously, because Kyle suddenly pulled me into a tight embrace.

“Shu. You… don’t want to go back? But you saved me because you wanted to return to your world…”

“That’s right. I did. I saved Your Highness, gathered power, and planned to return—not as a hamster, but as a human… to the world I came from.”

I rasped out my next words in a hoarse voice.

“…But the truth is, I want to stay here.”

The moment I admitted it, the pain subsided. Not completely, but enough that I could endure it.

Maybe it was because my own heart was in turmoil.

“You lean more toward denial than affirmation. Understood.”

“…”

“Now, for my third question.”

Nox grasped my chin, tilting my face up. I jerked my head away. My throat felt dry and parched.

Either way, if I wanted to cooperate with today’s experiment, I’d have to drink the blue liquid he had given me. Since I had already signed the contract, it shouldn’t be poison…

Might as well use it to soothe my throat.

I downed the liquid in one gulp.

Despite its unnaturally bright blue shimmer, it had no taste at all.

“Kid, the place you want to return to is reality, right?”

“…”

There was a thump in my chest. At the same time, a cold sensation coiled in my gut, nausea rising with it.

I hunched over, head bowed. A terrible premonition swept over me, an instinctive certainty that something bad was about to happen.

Something was wrong.

My body. My mind. Everything felt… off. My vision spun dizzily, like I was drunk, yet Nox’s voice cut through the haze with unsettling clarity.

“Is this world just a fictional setting to you?”

“…”

“Baek Soo-hyun, that game you said you developed—like a novel, like a movie.”