Avoid Yandere Constellation

Chapter 2

Just my luck, a chance to earn points comes up now.

But it doesn't matter. I can't collect any right now.

Even if that quest rewards me with points, it's not like I can get them right away.

Tsk! In the end, I'm left with the original plan. I pray it works.

It's essentially a gamble.

I have to trust that the developers didn't mess with anything.

With that thought, I push all the items in the room to one corner.

The room suddenly feels larger.

-Slam!

The woman who earlier gave her life for me enters the room. She walks towards me in desperation and speaks with the same tearful voice as before.

"Sir Cain, the intruder has nearly gotten through all of our hideout's traps."

...She doesn't seem to remember her death.

That's good. I was afraid the others might remember as well, but it seems they don't.

"...Okay. Before we escape, could you tell me your name?"

"My name is Meyrin, Sir Cain."

At my question, she stammers her reply, seeming taken aback.

Why did she react like that?

The Cain I know wouldn't bother remembering the names of underlings or servants.

Maybe he would remember the names of personal maids or butlers, but it's doubtful he would know the name of someone suspect.

...Just what kind of jerk was this Cain?

Such a stunned reaction from a simple question. No wonder he was cast as a lowly, villainous extra.

Honestly, my personality before being possessed wasn't exactly stellar either, but next to Cain, I feel like a saint.

Yet why is she risking her life to save me?

Most people would put others in danger to save themselves, but she gave up her life to protect mine.

... Anyway, I don't have time for this. The priority is survival.

"Pay attention, Meyrin."

"Yes."

At my stern tone, she listens carefully. I glance around.

Alright, this should be good.

"If you roll backwards from where I stand, a special space will appear. We'll hide there until the intruder is gone."

"..."

Meyrin looks at me, her face full of sadness.

I get it!! I know it's strange!! But do you have to look at me like that?!

Truthfully, when this glitch was found in the game, most players, myself included, didn't believe it.

But eventually, the person who discovered it proved its existence by showing it off during a live broadcast.

I'm counting on the developers not having patched it.

"Meyrin, you go first."

"Uh... Okay."

Despite the pressing situation, the idea of rolling backward out of nowhere seems ridiculous to her. She tries to hide her face, but her reluctance is clear. She kneels, her bottom nearly touching the floor.

I looked at her intently.

Why does she follow my orders so willingly?

Something about it bothered me, and I clicked my tongue without meaning to.

"Tsk!"

"?! I-I'll do it now."

Startled by my sudden noise, Meyrin misunderstands and rolls backward without a second thought.

One roll.

Two rolls.

Three rolls.

The room is not as big as I thought; one more roll, and she'll hit the wall.

Please. I'm begging you. Without this, I honestly don't know what else to do.

Expecting Meyrin to crash into the wall, I squeezed my eyes shut.

She rolled back one more time.

-Swish!

It worked!!

The glitch hasn't been patched. Those developers really left it as is.

-Crash!!

I hear a trap breaking outside. I can sense Kim Soo-yong coming closer.

Crap. I don't have time for this. I need to roll backward too.

I quickly moved to the center of the room.

Meyrin was still in her rolled-back position.

One roll.

Two rolls.

Three rolls.

The final fourth roll.

-Swish!

It felt like I was passing through something. I opened my eyes and looked around.

Everything was pure white. Except for Meyrin, the room was empty.

I turned my gaze to Meyrin. Her face was filled with shock and disbelief.

How about that, huh!! You would've died if not for me!!

I wanted to shout that out loud, but it seemed too cruel to tell a woman who tried to save me.

-Crash!

Oh, jeez, that scared me.

From the sound of it, Kim Soo-yong busted the door open. Even though he can't find us, we held our breath, just in case.

...That was close. We nearly had another hole in our bellies.

"I know you're hiding here. If you come out now, I won't kill you."

"?!"

Meyrin was startled at Kim Soo-yong's words.

Yeah, right. Stop lying.

This is a glitched space. Even for a main character, finding this spot is impossible.

Even the divine Constellation named 'God' couldn't locate this place.

Unlike me, Meyrin's eyes shook like there was an earthquake.

"Don't worry. He's just bluffing. If he knew where we were from the start, he would've come straight here."

"Ah. Yes!"

Hearing me, she stopped trying to leave and nodded.

Meanwhile, at the same time.

Kim Soo-Yong was pounding on the walls inside the room.

Boom!!

"Huh... Where the heck did those two go?"

No matter how much I ponder, it doesn't make sense. At first, I thought they might have fled through an exit from the room, so I used my sensing ability.

But.

Nothing was detected in the path leading outside. Clearly, the woman who ran didn't have the power to dodge or block my sensing.

...What just happened?

Could it be the guild master's power?

That could make sense, but only to a point.

If they had such power, why would they run away at all?

If they can block or evade my sensing, they're pretty skilled.

Honestly, if I teamed up with that woman, there's no guarantee I'd win.

So, it's unlikely they left through the passage.

"Goddess, what's your take?"

[The Goddess who sees fate can't make sense of the situation.]

Even the divine Constellation herself is puzzled.

For now, let's just pretend to wait while they make their escape.

-Thump. Thump. Thump.

The footsteps gradually fade. It doesn't take long for any signs of life in the room to vanish.

I wasn't the only one who noticed. Meyrin let out a deep sigh of relief.

"Mr. Cain. It seems the intruder has left. Just to be safe, I'll go out first."

"...Hold on."

I held out my hand to stop Meyrin from leaving.

Something doesn't feel right.

There's no sign of anyone in the room, and it wouldn't be odd if he left considering the situation.

That's how it should be, but it still feels off.

Come to think of it...

I haven't received a quest completion message.

Normally, as soon as Kim Soo-Yong leaves the building, a quest completion message should pop up.

Of course, reality and games are different, so it's not guaranteed, but if I logically avoided death, it wouldn't be strange for a quest completion message to automatically appear.

Even before, system messages automatically popped up.

In my opinion, that guy definitely didn't leave. I need to verify this.

Feeling a sense of unease, I opened the status window.

David Von Cain.

Age: 20 years old.

Trait: Game setting ability ☜ Death regression.

Talent: None.

Points: 0.

Without hesitation, I selected the game setting ability.

Game Setting Ability: Volume control, effect quality adjustment, color setting, map view, inventory, cash shop...

Hmm... Map view might be useful.

Even if the cash shop is available, it's useless without points. And other abilities don't seem more useful than map view right now.

As soon as I selected map view.

[Player David Von Cain can only use volume control. To unlock map view, 5,000 points will be consumed.]

Damn. This is really too much.

But maybe it's expected? If I could use all the abilities there, it would be no different from a cheat.

Right. There's always a price for such things. It's my fault for getting my hopes up. Damn it.

With regret, I looked at volume control.

At least there's a silver lining.

If it were another ability, I wouldn't have been able to confirm whether Kim Soo-Yong was still lurking in the room.

But with this one, by adjusting the sound, it's possible to detect him even if he's concealing his presence.

I chose volume control and slowly increased the volume so as not to hurt my ears.

55... 65... 75... 85... 95, 100.

"That damned psycho."

"?"

At my sudden curse, Meyrin, who was beside me, tilted her head.

Damn... This is creepy. It sent chills down my spine.

Once I maximized the volume, I could clearly pick up the presence in the room.

Initially, when I only cranked it up to 90, I barely sensed something and thought I might have been imagining things. But that wasn't the case.

When I ramped it up to 100, I could distinctly hear his breathing from inside the room.

Not just his breath, but even the sounds of his eyeballs moving, his swallowing... everything was magnified.

Damn, that guy was faking his departure but was actually waiting there.

At this point, I can't deny he's obsessively fixated on me.

I reduced the volume to its original level as my ears started to hurt.

"He hasn't left yet. We should keep waiting."

"Understood, Mr. Cain."

Alright, let's see who has the upper hand. I may not have a lot going for me, but I sure can be stubborn. Just you wait.

Patience is the key to victory!!

So, we waited. For five hours, in fact. The glitched space seemed infinite, but moving carelessly could get us lost, so Meyrin and I just sat still.

Damn... he still hasn't left. This guy is a real piece of work.

Even in the game, my friends called me stubborn, but this guy seems to be on another level. I was taken aback by his tenacity.

That's why, in the end, he ended up dying as a sacrificial lamb to the Yandere Holy Constellation.

Looking at Kim Soo-yong's behavior, the game's ending started to make more sense.

Those crafty creators really nailed the ending.

As I was quietly admiring the creators in my mind...

[You have completed the Continuous Quest - Avoid Death.]

[You are rewarded with 500 points.]

Finally, it seems he's left. Good riddance... He was a formidable enemy. Really.

Normally, I would check what cash items I could buy with the 500 points, but after being forced to stay motionless for five hours, all I wanted was to get out of this damned space as soon as possible.

As I stood up, Meyrin tilted her head.

"Mr. Cain?"

"We're leaving. The room is clear of intruders."

"I'll go first."

I nodded without hesitation.

Yeah, you must be tired too. You go ahead.

It's not because I was scared that Kim Soo-yong might still be lurking in the room.

I was just being considerate. That's all.

Yes, just that.

Meyrin stood up and made her way out of the glitched space.

"Mr. Cain, it's safe. There's no one here."

"Understood."