Shekina walked down the hallway, her footsteps echoing.
Ever since she started skipping, walking had become much easier. It felt like she could distribute her body weight more evenly. And yet, there was no sense of awkwardness, which meant that the skip function was indeed quite effective.
‘Hey, System.’
Shekina called out to the system in her mind.
‘There’s not much time left until the game starts, right? Is everything progressing as expected? Or is something else going to happen?’
Ring!
[SYSTEM]
Do you want to know the future?
[SYSTEM]
That’s not possible! You’re acting like a thief, you know!
“Seriously, have you lost it?”
Had the system learned how to be sarcastic while she wasn’t looking?
Feeling a tension in the back of her neck, Shekina stopped walking.
“It’s not that I want to know the future. I’m asking because it doesn’t make sense for Dehan to just grow up until the game starts. He hasn’t suffered any direct harm from the demons, so how is the game supposed to progress?”
Ring!
[SYSTEM]
Well… from now on, he might start suffering some damage.
“………”
Shekina’s face twisted in frustration.
The system’s words implied that Dehan could soon be harmed by the demons.
“Haven’t we already taken back the stolen scenario from Lucifer?”
Shekina clenched her fists tightly.
“If that’s the case, shouldn’t you be able to change the scenario? Like stopping the game from starting?”
Ring!
[SYSTEM]
I haven’t fully retrieved that part yet. But I’m working hard on it!
“If you’re going to work hard, then show me results. Effort without results is meaningless.”
Ring!
[SYSTEM]
You’re really pushing it…
Shekina thought again.
If the system had a physical form, it would probably be lying on the ground, beaten to a pulp by now… Ugh, how frustrating.
[SYSTEM]
I do want to do something. But there are too many uncertainties to say anything for sure. I’ll let you know once things become clearer.
Shekina took a deep breath.
“The villains of the game right now are the demons, right?”
Then, her eyes sparkled.
“Can’t we make Lucifer the villain instead?”
Ring!
[SYSTEM]
You say that as if overturning the laws of the world is easy. But… I am considering that direction as well.
[SYSTEM]
If Lucifer were to do something, it would certainly make things change quickly.
‘Do something…’ Shekina muttered, still frowning.
“Lucifer is targeting Dehan right now, so maybe that could be the turning point… But since it’s tied to the laws of the world, it might not be that easy to change…”
As she pondered, a sudden realization hit her, and her eyes widened.
“I can’t even be sure that I won’t die this time.”
Every time she regressed, she died on her 15th birthday. There was no guarantee that she would survive this time either.
“…Then, am I going to die at Lucifer’s hands?”
A chill ran down her spine as the color drained from her face.
She wanted to deny it, but the more she thought about it, the more the pieces fit together.
Right now, Dehan is on friendly terms with the demons, which completely contradicts the game scenario. There’s no way they could suddenly make him turn against them and start killing demons.
That means her role has become crucial. The demons have favored her so far, so they likely won’t kill her. Probably.
Then that leaves only one other possibility—shifting the scenario so that Lucifer becomes the game’s final boss. But to set that up, a sacrifice would be necessary.
‘And that sacrifice… might be me.’
Lucifer kills Shekina.
Dehan, who cares deeply for Shekina, is enraged.
Thus, the scenario unfolds with Dehan seeking revenge against Lucifer…
“Wow… that gave me chills.”
Shekina rubbed her arms to smooth down the goosebumps and shook her head.
“No matter how things play out, I’m always on the brink of death. That’s just messed up.”
But she couldn’t give up here.
“Dying eight times or nine times—what’s the difference?”
So…
“This time, I’ll make sure I survive until the end.”
Shekina smirked.
To do that, she had a few things to prepare. Without hesitation, she quickened her pace.
***
“Yaaawn.”
Sebastian, an unfortunate demon who had been caught creating dark magic artifacts and dragged to the Demon King’s castle by Shekina, stretched lazily over his desk, letting out a long yawn.
“Ah, the sun’s already up.”
Looking up at the bright sky, he yawned again.
“When was the last time I even got a good night’s sleep…?”
Ever since Shekina brought back the Black Spinel, Sebastian had been forced by Lyat to take on an absurd amount of work—creating magical artifacts using the Black Spinel.
The goal was to provide these artifacts to lower-tier demons who struggled to absorb the powerful demonic energy of the Demon Realm, allowing them to regain their strength more easily.
But while that sounded simple in theory, purifying demonic energy was an incredibly difficult task.
Sebastian had been pulling all-nighters every day.
“I just wanted to live a carefree life…”
Sniff. How did things end up like this? He was seriously about to cry.
Still, he had no desire to run away or refuse the task.
After all, if he did this job well, it could improve the lives of all demons. He had never done anything useful for others before, so despite the exhaustion, he actually found the work somewhat enjoyable. It gave him a sense of responsibility and pride.
“I’ll take a quick nap and then get back to work.”
Yawning again, Sebastian pulled the heavy curtains closed and made his way toward his bed.
Just then—
Knock, knock.
He blinked in surprise.
The only person who ever came looking for him was Lyat, but Lyat wasn’t the type to knock or act politely.
Who could it be?
Curious, Sebastian changed course and grabbed the doorknob.
“…Lady Shekina?”
The moment he opened the door and saw Shekina standing there, he froze in place.
He had never expected her to come looking for him!
“O-oh… it’s been a while…?”
Almost ten years, in fact.
All this time, Sebastian had assumed Shekina had completely forgotten about him. That thought had made him a little sad, but he had accepted it. After all, Shekina was someone extraordinary, while he was just a demon who dabbled in dark magic and tinkered with odds and ends.
But now… why had she come looking for him?
His eyes widened in shock.
“Oh. Has it been that long?”
Shekina scratched the back of her head.
“I guess I haven’t visited in a while.”
“Well, you’ve been busy.”
Sebastian said, stepping aside.
“Come in.”
After guiding Shekina into his room, he rummaged through his cluttered belongings and handed her a glass of water.
Somehow, this felt awkward. Was it because it had been so long? Or was it because Shekina seemed far more impressive than before? Whatever the reason, Sebastian felt like he was sitting on pins and needles.
“So, what brings you here?”
Shekina set the dirty glass aside and lifted her gaze.
“I heard from my uncle that you’ve been creating magic tools infused with demonic energy. Is that true?”
“I’m still in the process of making them, to be exact.”
“I want to place an order.”
“What?”
Shekina smiled brightly and continued.
“Make me a magic artifact that can protect me. It would be great if it also had tracking and attack functions.”
“……….”
Sebastian’s mouth opened slightly, but no words came out.
What was she even saying? It felt as absurd as someone handing over a magic spell and saying, ‘You know the words now, so you can cast it, right? Go ahead and make it go boom!’
Sebastian held his spinning head in his hands.
“I just told you that I’m still in the process of making them.”
“Can’t do it?”
Saying “I can’t” outright would hurt his pride.
But at the same time, he couldn’t just lie and say he could.
Sebastian let out a long sigh.
“I haven’t actually completed one yet. Unfortunately…”
“My uncle said you’re the most skilled at this.”
“…Excuse me?”
Shekina looked at him and spoke as if it were no big deal.
“Yeah, that’s what he told me. He said he’s never seen a demon as smart and capable as you. Thanks to you, the research is progressing well, and all that’s left is to wait. That’s why I came straight to you instead of going to my uncle.”
“……..….”
“But if you really can’t do it, then oh well. Since I can’t summon monsters in front of humans, I guess I’ll just be defenseless and end up dead. What else can I do?”
“…….….”
Sebastian eventually dropped his head in defeat.
“You really haven’t changed at all, Lady Shekina.”
Amazing? No way.
If anything, her ability to exploit people had only gotten stronger.
Nothing else, though!
Muttering under his breath, Sebastian cleared his throat.
“When are you leaving for the capital?”
“In three days.”
“That’s really tight.”
After a brief silence, his eyes suddenly gleamed with determination, and he lifted his head.
“Alright, I’ll give it a shot. But it’s not because the advisor praised me. Got it?”
“Anyone can see that’s exactly why, but I’ll pretend I don’t know.”
“Ugh, your personality is just… Whatever. Don’t get your hopes up too much. I might fail.”
“Nope. I’m already excited. I’m expecting great things from you.”
“Ugh, you’re so annoying….”
Sebastian grumbled as he looked at Shekina, who hadn’t changed a bit from ten years ago. Meanwhile, Shekina smirked as she watched him act just as he always had.
Then, as if suddenly remembering something, she clapped her hands.
“Oh, and could you make something for Dehan too?”
