Chapter 03
This makes no sense.
The final villain of the novel almost died after getting shot by a maid working in his own house? That seriously ruins the dignity of the original story.
Even in the middle of all this, the safe I had opened was still left half ajar. It didn’t seem like Eden Croyden had any interest in the safe at all.
I glanced again at the scraps of paper inside it.
Right then, as if he had finally made up his mind, Eden Croyden stood up. I flinched and instinctively took a small step back as he approached me.
“…How did you fire a mana bullet inside the mansion?”
His first question was completely unexpected.
“I just… shot it.”
I answered timidly, doing my best.
“I’ve set up a barrier so that mana can’t be used inside the mansion.”
“Well….”
“You were tested for mana sensitivity during the hiring process. Mrs. Kelton is responsible for that, so there’s no way the result was wrong.”
“I developed it later….”
“I’ve never heard of someone acquiring mana sensitivity after the fact.”
Then why even ask if you’re not going to listen?
“What was your purpose for sneaking in here?”
“……”
Caught in the barrage of questions, I missed my chance to answer and shut my mouth tightly.
As if that didn’t matter, Croyden stood up again and began pacing around the room.
He seemed to be under a huge misunderstanding. Shouldn’t I explain things? It didn’t look like he had even recovered from the shock of dying and coming back.
“Um, Master….”
“……”
But he didn’t listen to me and spoke again.
“…Did Arthur Camelon send you?”
“…Excuse me?”
Why is he coming up here?
Arthur Camelon was a name even I knew. Of course I did—he was the protagonist of the original novel.
The Arthur Camelon he was referring to was the main character of the story, the one destined to defeat the hidden villain Eden Croyden and save the world from destruction.
A man seemingly blessed with mana from birth, able to control all the mana in the world and protected by the light.
The complete opposite of Eden Croyden, who couldn’t use mana and instead mastered the sword.
Did that Arthur Camelon send me?
Well… it was a misunderstanding he could reasonably make.
I should calmly explain.
“I’ve never even seen his face.”
“What did he ask for?”
“I—”
“Did he tell you to kill me?”
“No—”
“So you brought a mana bullet? To kill me?”
“Um….”
This is bad. Eden Croyden seemed to be in shock after dying and coming back to life.
“I wasn’t sent by anyone. I was just looking for something valuable to steal and sell.”
“Lies. What idiot would try to rob Eden Croyden’s safe?”
“……”
That would be me….
If I said any more, I’d officially become that idiot.
Desperate to change the subject, I hurriedly spoke.
“More importantly, I want to talk about what just happened. You definitely died… and then came back to life.”
He flinched.
“How did you do that?”
Another flinch.
“…I think you would know better than I do.”
“Huh?”
Croyden glared at me sharply.
“What did you do to me?”
“What do you mean—”
“Did you use some kind of vile sorcery on me? Kill me and bring me back to life so you can turn me into your puppet?”
No, wait….
Things were spiraling into a massive misunderstanding. What did I do to him?
If he asked like that, I was the one who felt wronged! The only thing I did was shoot him!
Ah… right, he got shot.
“I’m sorry for killing you just now….”
“……”
Was that the right thing to say?
“I’m not usually someone who goes around killing people… it was a mistake.”
“……”
Something feels off. Just apologize for now.
“I’m sorry.”
“……”
However, after staring at me silently for a long time, Eden Croyden ran a hand through his hair, looking confused.
Then he spoke.
“After I collapsed from your shot and got back up, I started seeing strange letters in front of me.”
I immediately lifted my head.
“What do they say?”
A brief hesitation crossed his face. Whether he should trust me enough to say this.
But it seemed he needed someone to share this unbelievable situation with.
Eden Croyden slowly opened his mouth, as if reluctant.
“Congratulations. You have….”
His gaze shifted away from me and into the empty air.
I realized instantly that what he was reading was the strange text floating before his eyes.
And the moment I understood the meaning of his first sentence, a chill ran from the top of my head to the tips of my toes. Goosebumps crawled all over my body.
Those words would overturn the rest of my life.
[System]
Congratulations.
You are the first person in this world to be killed by an outsider from another world.
It felt like I had been struck hard on the back of the head.
My mind rang.
His brows furrowed, and his gaze turned toward me—as if asking, Are you that outsider?
I couldn’t even think of answering. My body had gone stiff.
An outsider from another world.
The meaning was obvious.
Me—whose soul had been completely replaced.
The message didn’t end there. After glancing at me briefly, Eden looked back at the floating text.
[System]
As a token of congratulations, a special reward will be given.
Reward: Resurrection
Upon death, you will return to your state immediately before dying.
A reward.
Resurrection.
“…What does this even mean?”
I’d like to know that too.
Text appearing before your eyes… a quest window?
Is this world finally turning into a full-blown fantasy system?
It was already a novel world to begin with.
With nothing certain, I cautiously spoke while watching his reaction.
“Well… it definitely sounds like a reward. It means you come back to life even if you die.”
“……”
“If there’s a way to confirm it….”
Our gazes both turned toward the gun lying far away.
But the moment I saw it, my body trembled. The memory of just moments ago came rushing back—the recoil, the blood spurting out, the life fading from his eyes.
Do it again?
I can’t.
“Come on, no matter what, morally that’s a bit….”
I was about to brush it off—
But then Eden Croyden strode over, picked up the gun that had just killed him, and returned.
Before I could react, he placed it in my hands.
Not only that—he firmly wrapped his hand around mine and guided my finger onto the trigger.
“Try it.”
“W-What?”
My hand trembled slightly as I held the gun within his grasp.
“Kill me again.”
Eden Croyden raised the barrel and pressed it against his own forehead.
At point-blank range, our eyes met.
His gaze didn’t waver in the slightest—even though he was facing the weapon that had just killed him.
“If we want to be sure, we have to test it again.”
“There’s no need to test it right now—”
“No. We do it now.”
“…Why?”
Why on earth? Is he some kind of masochist?
“Why?”
Watching my shaking eyes, Eden Croyden smiled brightly.
“They said it’s a gift to celebrate, didn’t they?”
And then—
His hand, placed over mine on the trigger, tightened.
Bang!
