Chapter 315 - Self-Reflection

That evening.

I arrived at a large mansion.

"Oppa, this is our home!"

Seo-eun explained to me.

Looking at the large wooden mansion built deep in the mountains, I nodded.

...Yeah. Seeing that the house is exactly my style, I must have built it myself. I've always wanted this kind of atmosphere.

So I walked through the lush green garden toward the house.

...And around me, those who called themselves my comrades were walking in formation. It's not like we're going to war...

On the way to the house, I was introduced to my supposed comrades inside a large airship.

"Oppa, did you have a girlfriend?"

The white-haired woman with medium-length hair asking me such a casual question with a bright smile was Seo-eun. The White Witch from the original work.

"...Seo-eun, it's rude to ask such questions to Da-in oppa when he's confused after losing his memories."

The black-haired woman in white priestess clothes scolding her was Eun-wol. She was the Moon Priestess.

Both of them felt familiar, so we must have been quite close.

And for some reason, despite them being grown adults, I felt like I needed to take care of them.

There were various others as well.

[Haha! Da-in, you lost your memory? These things happen. Isn't that just part of a man's life, losing memories and such!]

The man in black armor from head to toe who was patting my back was Death Knight.

"Hmm... if I play a prank on him now, will he remember it later..?"

The woman with purple bobbed hair wearing a hood and purple eyes like reincarnation glasses was Seo Ja-young. The Dark Spirit from the original work, Mist in this world.

"You really, sigh..."

The woman with a yellow ponytail shaking her head was probably Electra I saw earlier.

"...Da-in's energy is very weak right now. He probably needs to rest."

The woman in white clothes with long black hair, a hairpin, and small dragon horns on her head was Divine Spirit.

"Oppa, are you okay?"

The blue-haired girl clinging to my arm and whimpering was Ariel, a character who only existed in concept in the original work. And the kind-looking woman next to her was the villains' Saintess, Lee Ha-yul.

And then.

"Da-in, this way."

The brown-haired person smiling and leading me from the front was Lee Su-bin. A character I'd never seen in the original work... and for some reason, someone I trusted.

Anyway, that's how I was able to enter the mansion.

This warm wooden building with many windows letting in sunlight had a cozy atmosphere.

'...But is this really a villain hideout?'

It seemed too comfortable to be where evil S-class villains lived, so I relaxed my body.

"First, let me show you to your room, Da-in."

I nodded gratefully at Ms. Su-bin's words as she smiled warmly at me.

...From what I'd observed so far, she seemed like a very kind person. Her gentle speech naturally conveyed consideration for others. I could understand why I might have recruited her, even though she never appeared in the original work.

So after arriving at my room, I said I would change clothes and was left alone.

"Phew..."

Only then did I sigh.

I took off my coat, changed into clothes I pulled from the closet.

And I placed something resembling a voice recorder from my coat pocket onto the desk.

My memories...

[Oh, and your memories will magically come flooding back when you open the diary I left with Seo-eun. She'll probably give it to you, so check that.]

...According to what I apparently said before losing my memories, that's what I should do.

The problem is that Seo-eun seems to avoid eye contact with me and runs away awkwardly, so it doesn't look like she's planning to give me the diary right away...

'Well, that's not so bad.'

That was my conclusion.

I wasn't planning to recover my memories right away anyway. Because...

This is also an opportunity for me to reflect on myself.

"..."

Yes. I'm currently in a state where I've lost my memories related to this world. As such, looking back at the situation until now and the current circumstances from my present perspective might lead to new insights. Isn't this true self-objectification?

In other words, I'm going to use this opportunity to check on what I've been doing in this world.

...Although I was actually confused from just being transported here, I was able to make this cold-headed judgment because I valued rationality. There was no point in whining about the situation, and I would regain my memories anyway, so this was the most beneficial decision.

About a week should be enough.

With that thought, I went to the bathroom, took off my mask, washed my face to clear my mind, and examined my face in the mirror.

"..."

Strangely, although I'd apparently spent several years in this world, my face looked no different from yesterday.

...Whether I came to this world already younger, or I just happened to have a youthful face, or there was some other reason, I didn't know... but that's how it was.

"...Sigh, what is all this."

I muttered as I shook the water off my hands.

...Being transported into a hero comic overnight, ha.

To be honest, it still felt like a dream. A really absurd dream. It honestly felt unreal.

...That's why I could maintain my mental stability.

Especially with the thought that everything would end once I recovered my memories, having comrades taking care of me, and instructions left by my future self.

However.

'.....'

Still, something was terrifying.

The thought of never seeing everything I'd built up, my friends, my parents—it was suffocating.

I could bear it for the reasons I mentioned earlier and with the thought that I only needed to endure for a week...

'When I first arrived in this world, how did I manage to endure?'

Now I could cope because I seemed to have built up a lot and had comrades my body remembered.

But when I fell into this world with its shattered power balance as an ordinary person, having lost everything. When I came to this world with nothing accomplished, no friends, and no guidebook—how did I endure? That's what I wondered.

'...Well, I'll find out gradually.'

With that thought, I wiped my face, opened the door, and went to the living room.

Let's try talking with these people who call themselves my comrades.

***

[The prison destruction terror led by Egostic at Carceris, known as the Great Prison Break, has finally been resolved. Most of the villains who attempted to escape have been captured... but five villains including Egostic, Crocodileman, and Dungeon Maker are still at large. The Association authorities say they are tracking them and advise citizens to go about their business without worry...]

Quite some time had passed since I woke up after losing my memories.

During that time, I learned several things.

[Meanwhile, those who were protesting for Egostic's release seem satisfied and have disbanded since his escape. Notably, the membership of Egostic's fan cafe, which led the protests, grew by tens of thousands daily during the protest period...]

Specifically, that my popularity in this world was beyond imagination.

No joke, it seemed that I, a villain, was more popular than the hero Stardust. It was truly absurd to see that I even had a fan cafe despite being a villain.

Especially the popular posts from my fan cafe that Seo-eun showed me earlier...

*

[Egostic obviously got caught on purpose, anyone who doubts that is stupid lmaooo]

[Pure Team Mango trait: Actually knew Ego would break out...]

[Seriously lol when Mango got caught, there was a reason his Ego-stream members and allies didn't step in]

[[FACT] Why Team Mango protesters have nothing to be ashamed of... royalty]

[Fan favorite Cheol-woo's recent news... touching Mango bread donation]

[Honestly Team Mango just happy to watch Mango's broadcasts again lolololol]

[Upvote if you're a Mango fan who doesn't care whether villains escape or not lol who cares if they escape? Ego-star will just catch them all again lol]

[Conspiracy theory) Egostic's one week in captivity. And Stardust's disappearance from public during that same week... what were they doing?]

*

"Haha..."

What kind of country has fan cafes for villains and celebrates when that villain escapes?

...Of course, I couldn't really blame them.

Looking at what I've done so far, it wouldn't be strange if I were called a hero.

*

[Egostic's Achievements]

.

.

*

'...I sure lived diligently.'

That's all I could think.

It seems the reason I lived as a villain was essentially to participate in Kathedal, which was basically a villain alliance, and to help Stardust grow. That was it. Even looking at my terror acts, I clearly followed a no-kill policy.

What was especially peculiar was my relationship with Stardust.

The media portrays us as arch-enemies, saying we're each other's greatest adversaries...

[Ms. Stardust. Shall we do this together?]

"..."

After watching some of my terror videos at 2x speed, I realized something.

Setting aside that cringeworthy speech pattern and strange concept...

'...Why am I flirting with Stardust?'

Only now, after losing my memories, did I finally realize this fact.

...Have I gone crazy?