Chapter 27
“Ha… ha….”
A dry laugh slipped out of me, born from fear.
The reality of being abandoned hit me painfully hard.
Everything I had done—every single action—was for the sake of survival.
Yes, I only wanted to live comfortably.
But I never imagined things would unfold like this.
How could I have thought that the so-called heroine’s party in this horror game would abandon me?
Affinity only rises if the other person likes you.
Yet here I was—trapped.
‘Why…? Just why?’
A low sigh leaked out between my lips.
The demon seemed to fully understand that I was now isolated here, left alone. It was calm, as if savoring the idea of how it would toy with its prey before devouring it.
It even wore an expression of enjoyment, like it was delighted by my despair after being cast aside.
This wasn’t a mindless beast—it was a creature with high intelligence.
An existence capable of grasping human emotions and circumstances.
And as death loomed before me, the only thing I wanted to know was their motive.
Why did they lock me in here?
At that moment, a sheet of paper fluttered through the air and landed near me.
I recognized it immediately by the color.
It was the paper Yeniel had shown to Sian, the Crown Prince, and Max.
I picked it up and read.
The front only mentioned how the internal switch could open the door.
But when I flipped it over and read about the external switch—
I finally understood why they had abandoned me.
<Sacrificial Dungeon>
In elegant cursive, the following words continued beneath:
At least one person must be left behind inside the dungeon as prey.
The demon cannot endure boredom more than hunger. It feeds on fear, despair, and suffering before consuming the flesh itself.
If you try to close the dungeon without leaving prey behind, this cunning and malicious creature will attempt to break free.
External Switch Mechanism: The dungeon cannot be locked without a sacrifice.
The dungeon can only be sealed shut from the outside switch. The internal switch is for opening; the external one is for complete closure.
The external switch activates only if at least one living being—other than the demon—remains inside.
Without a sacrifice, the dungeon cannot be sealed completely.
Sacrifice.
That was the requirement for closing the dungeon.
I understood now.
But I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t want to believe it.
That my role was to be the sacrifice to trap this demon inside?
A hollow laugh bubbled up.
So I was what people call… the throwaway.
“This is…!”
“…I agree.”
Yes. I was the sacrifice they chose to keep the demon sealed.
No further explanation was needed. The truth was plain.
Of course they were afraid of the demon escaping. I too feared it, so I could understand.
To prevent the possibility of it breaking free, they chose to sacrifice me.
I remembered the looks on their faces when they quickly reached their conclusion after reading that paper.
“This is…!”
“…I agree.”
Perhaps they could have chosen differently.
If every member of the party had been like the Crown Prince—someone they couldn’t easily abandon—would Yeniel and Sian have still chosen to leave someone behind?
I don’t think so.
But because I was the most useless one, someone whose death wouldn’t matter, they let go of me.
Because I was the foolish noble girl. Because I was April Sharon.
My life was worth trading for their safety.
“Ha… ha ha ha….”
Hadn’t I tried my best?
I had even raised their affinity.
I thought that because she was the heroine, because we were comrades, she would take me with her.
But now… I wanted to ask someone. Why was I dragged into this game world at all?
■■■■ Patching….
A status window appeared before my eyes.
The unreadable text I had seen before changed.
Player patching….
At that instant, the long-stalled awakening window began to move.
The numbers rose rapidly, and I could only stare blankly.
[April Sharon: Awakening in progress… (95/100)%]
[April Sharon: Awakening in progress… (97/100)%]
[April Sharon: Awakening in progress… (98/100)%]
[April Sharon: Awakening in progress…! (99/100)%]
The flood of numbers filled my vision, making me dizzy.
The demon approached slowly, as if preparing to end me. But my daze wasn’t from fear.
It was from something else entirely.
Ding!
[Awakening complete. (100/100)%]
A new window appeared, shifting my vision entirely.
Welcome to Hard Mode.
I froze, breathless.
[Player: April Sharon]
“Ha.”
I let out a cold laugh.
Now, at last, I understood everything.
“So this was Hard Mode all along.”
My brother had once bought me chicken just to make me finish The Archmage’s Mansion, a three-year-old game.
The reason was the upcoming release of Hard Mode.
And in that Hard Mode—the protagonist was April.
Windows flickered upward as the system updated.
Hard Mode restricts your status window! Only limited notifications can be viewed!
▶ Suspicion Gauge
▶ Total Health
▶ Affection (partial)
Detailed stats are hidden! Only Suspicion can be checked in detail. (Patch complete)
The overall difficulty has increased. Monsters not seen in Normal Mode will appear! They are stronger! Puzzles are more difficult! (Patch complete)
The strange difficulty… the unkind game system…
The sudden notifications for Affection and Suspicion.
Everything finally made sense.
The player’s goal is to escape this world using the ‘keys’ held by the heroine and the villainess!
Escape with the keyholder, or kill them to take the key!
▶ Trait: Berserker
The lower your health, the higher your attack and speed!
So April’s awakening trait was Berserker.
Death in the Shadow World means permanent death in reality!
Escape the Shadow World, then either leave this game world… or stay forever!
Good luck.
I was the player.
‘So if I clear this game, I can finally escape this world?’
I would go back.
Back to my family, waiting for me at home.
The demon’s black skin gleamed as it lunged, hand reaching to seize me.
But I twisted my body, dodging the dark claws.
I would survive.
