Did I just see all of that? Or… was I actually there?
No, these weren't just visions. They were memories.My memories. Memories from when I was him.
If I followed that train of thought, then these System quests, this status window, it all made sense.
"Isn't it about time we spoke face to face? I've been waiting to meet you for a long time, Transmigrator."
I spoke aloud.
The scenery shifted.
I was back in the same room where I had first awakened.
A mirror stood before me.
And from it, I saw him.
A young man with black hair and black eyes, dressed in a school uniform. He wore glasses that reflected the dim light of the room.
Then he moved.
Slowly, he stepped out of the mirror.
If the lighting had been different and we added some eerie sound effects, this would have been the perfect setup for a horror movie.
He was almost as tall as me. As he emerged, he casually slipped his hands into his pockets, trying to give off a cool protagonist vibe.
Well… at least he was trying to.
"You're right. It's about time we met."
His voice was calm. Steady.
"My name is Adrian. Adrian Halloway. You don't have to introduce yourself, I'm sure you have a lot of questions."
I turned away from him, walking toward a portrait hanging on the wall. It was an article, one about an author who had won an award.
For some reason, she looked… familiar.
But what truly caught my attention was a single quote, highlighted in bold letters.
"Alas, the Demon King did not understand until the end, for ordinary people who seek to be extraordinary, true victory always demands sacrifice. Otherwise, it's nothing more than a fleeting illusion."
I stared at it, my mind turning.
I suppose it means that 'main characters' are inherently extraordinary, and the Demon King acknowledged that in the end.
But… something about it felt off. Like there was another way to interpret it.
A different truth hidden between the words.
" I figured out most of it, though it took almost an year" I said while looking at Adrian.
"Oh? Please, do enlighten me then."
Adrian's voice interrupted my thoughts.
I exhaled.
"According to that novel, I was just an extra. A stepping stone for her. Once I fulfilled that purpose, I was discarded."
"But then you came along."
His expression remained unreadable as I continued.
"With your knowledge of the novel's future, we became stronger than we were supposed to be. Even if I was just a placeholder for her, my existence grew to the point where I couldn't simply be cast aside.
Four Avatars were supposed to be chosen at midnight, when the Demon King was born. But because of my growth, by the time Thalia awakened as an Avatar, all of her preordained opportunities and power-ups were in jeopardy.
So, our patron god chose her early, to compensate.
I watched for his reaction, but Adrian remained silent.
"Even then… nothing changed.
That much was predictable.
But then, one day, they found out about you.
And Thalia got herself the perfect weapon to use against us.
A blade that could cut apart only what she desired."
I clenched my fists.
"She willed it to sever the foreign soul.
But by then, we were already one.
Even though she cut away the parts of the soul that contained you, a huge chunk of a single existence was torn apart.
And I was what remained."
The air between us felt heavy.
Adrian finally exhaled, his gaze unwavering.
"…And?"
I continued.
"She thought that by cutting you away, she could bring back the original me.
But since we had already merged, all that remained was a half, a broken existence.
I lost most of my strength. My memories. My instincts. Everything that made me who I was."
I looked at Adrian.
"And yet, you survived.
Somehow, with the help of the System, you clung to existence.
And then you engineered this entire situation.
You orchestrated it so that I would end up here, at this exact moment.
Did I get that right?"
Silence.
Then—
A small, knowing smirk appeared on Adrian's lips.