Chapter 116: Revival (2)
LAMPAS was a ga created with distinctly comrcial intentions.
It was born from the fervent demand of ga users and the aligned intentions of the ga company, GamChro.
Ironically, however, its primary purpose wasn’t to enjoy LAMPAS itself but to revisit characters who had died in another ga… SoriHeon.
This might be a rare, peculiar case in gaming history.
Nevertheless, a ga is a ga. It must have a protagonist and a grand narrative.
“What do we do about this?”
The GamChro developnt team, tasked with creating LAMPAS, was at a loss.
“The existing SoriHeon fandom is so strong that LAMPAS’s new characters will get buried. They’re not drawing much attention either.”
“Yeah. The dead characters from SoriHeon all have such strong presence and personality… This is putting the cart before the horse. A ga for the sake of a ga? That’s absurd.”
“…”
“Let’s issue a statent retracting it as soon as possible. That’s the better option.”
Rather than sticking to the setting of a world where SoriHeon’s dead characters had dinsion-shifted, creating an entirely new ga seed far easier.
“Senior, if we retract that statent, furious users will probably storm in to burn us alive. It’ll spark a riot.”
“No way. Don’t joke.”
“Burning at the stake is said to be the most horrific pain a human can feel. A group beating would hurt a lot too, right?”
“…Seriously?”
Not wanting to die—or rather, unable to betray the trust of their users—GamChro made a montous decision after much deliberation.
“Let’s do what we do best.”
GamChro’s greatest strength?
Erasing dreams and hope.
“The mont you think, ‘This character’s kinda pitiful,’ it’s over. That’s how favorites and second-favorites multiply like bamboo shoots!”
They imbued every main and supporting character in LAMPAS, even the villains, with rich backstories.
From their past to the ending.
Heart-wrenching and tragic, impossible to ignore.
“And leave blanks, gaps! So users can let their imaginations soar!”
The protagonist of LAMPAS.
‘Gale Garav’ was born this way.
In a world where monsters devour humans, he loves people and gets along well with them, with an easygoing personality.
Though his usual behavior is unimpressive, he rises to the occasion with unexpected resolve, tenacity, relatable goals, and a hint of mysterious backstory.
To establish himself as a ‘protagonist’ who could appeal to both SoriHeon fans and new users.
“A twist here would be nice.”
To reiterate, every protagonist in any content must be special.
They need sothing that sets them apart from other characters.
With this motto, GamChro naturally bestowed ‘specialness’ upon their protagonist.
Quite willingly.
“Hm. How?”
“There’s our world’s biggest twist, right? Let’s weave one into it.”
This was the origin of all tragedies in LAMPAS.
“Becoming a hero is only natural for a protagonist. Everyone admires heroes and loves their journey to heroism. But… they’re just as eager to see a hero’s downfall.”
It’s a dark fantasy, right? Let’s break him miserably.
“After enduring countless hardships and trials, at the mont he’s recognized as a hero by all, at the happiest point in his wretched life… if he falls uncontrollably, wouldn’t that be fun?”
The fall of a hero.
Perfect for a new Chapter title.
“And for reasons he was completely unaware of? Oh, the one who betrays him should be a trusted ally.”
“…Wow, junior, you’re practically Satan. No, worse than Satan.”
“What? Are you against it, senior?”
“No? Who said that? Sounds fun! I’m all in.”
That’s why he had to beco ‘Gale Garav’ with lost mories.
The reason he suffered from inexplicable madness without ever imagining ‘sothing’ was sealed within him…
Was for such a trivial reason.
“A nad rcenary with a Demon King sealed inside him. But he’s lost his mories, unaware of the reason.”
“Perfect. That’s the one!”
Even now, as others forcibly uncover his secret, Gale likely still doesn’t know who he truly is.
---
Before the bulging, about-to-burst jar, Floetta knelt, hands clasped, praying fervently.
“Awaken. Please, awaken.”
The Gnaude tribe, the Deadman’s Flower collection she’d gathered one by one since arriving in this world.
She offered them all.
Carefully selected, only the finest sacrifices.
“Cruel One, it’s ti to open your eyes from your deep slumber.”
Loosening the tightly woven seal, slipping sacrifices through the gaps to bolster His strength.
He was swallowing them greedily, preparing to erge into the world.
“How stifled you must have been? It’s ti to step into the world!”
Why such a great being was sealed and trapped within a re human’s body, what had happened in places she didn’t know—Floetta, in her ignorance, couldn’t fathom.
But.
“You needn’t worry anymore. I’m here now! Your sixteenth servant, Floetta…!!”
For Him, Floetta could do anything. What couldn’t she do?
“I’ll protect you. With my life, I’ll protect you!”
Indeed. He had breathed life into Floetta’s chaotic existence.
He had anointed her, saving her.
Uuuuung—!
“My Demon King!”
As Floetta’s desperate voice echoed, the jar shattered.
The mana within… the Beastkin King’s malevolent soul, guided by Floetta, poured entirely into the unconscious Gale.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
In the silent space, a heartbeat resounded loudly.
The chains binding Gale’s limbs broke, and his body floated in the air.
The Gnaude tribe, Floetta’s Deadman’s Flowers, the Beastkin King’s soul…
All the offered sacrifices converged on Gale. Their disparate effects and mana gradually lded, becoming one.
When the unified sacrifices were fully absorbed by Gale—
Flash!
“Grrrr…”
In that mont, Gale—or rather, ‘sothing’ within him—awakened. A low, beastly growl rumbled.
His revealed eyes were blood-red.
Though still in human form, an ominous, inhuman malice emanated from him.
“Ah!”
Floetta rejoiced. It was an emotion she’d forgotten for so long.
‘He’s finally awakened!’
Her spiderweb-like green pupils shone vividly. Tears glistened in her eyes.
‘Finally… I’m not alone!’
Floetta had died in her original world, pierced by countless spears, brutally defeated.
She felt wronged. Just when life seed worth living, why did she have to die?
—What did I do wrong! It’s unfair! Unfair! I’m so unfair!
A hunter bearing a lofty cross looked down at her.
With a gaze cold enough to freeze her.
—You are a blight on this world.
The hunter said.
—Your ability is extrely dangerous. The power to drain life from anything you touch and turn it into ‘Deadman’s Flowers.’ A Class-S ability suited for mass slaughter. You’ve already destroyed an entire city-state overnight.
—…Ugh, sob.
—Speak, Floetta la Russel. How many people have you killed so far? …No, let rephrase. Do you rember the nas of those you’ve killed?
What had she answered?
…Ah, she rembered.
—I don’t know! That kind of thing! Do you rember how many loaves of bread you’ve eaten?
—I see. You truly are an irredeemable villain.
The hunter raised a long spear and pierced Floetta’s heart.
—Die. Atone to your victims in hell.
That’s what she thought… she had died.
But no, Floetta opened her eyes again.
—Huh? Where am I?
In a completely different world! At least not the hell the hunter ntioned! Floetta was satisfied.
But only briefly. There was no one here. Not her revered Demon King, nor her cherished comrades…
She was lonely. Achingly lonely. Ti crawled so slowly.
—If this is how it’s going to be, why am I alive?
But now, things were different! She had a reason to live!
“Hahat! Demon King! It’s ! Floetta!”
Unable to contain her surging emotions, Floetta rushed toward her beloved Demon King.
The kind One would stroke her hair whenever she acted spoiled.
‘Stroke my hair again!’
I was so lonely all this ti…
Floetta bead with a smile, anticipating the warm touch she’d soon feel.
But His malice-filled, irrational eyes glead like glass marbles.
‘It’ seed to smile, forming a bizarre expression.
“…Ah?”
She sensed sothing was wrong when she got right up to ‘It.’
‘This isn’t my Demon King!’
It wasn’t the One she knew!
The mont Floetta tried to turn back—
“Graaah!”
‘It’ moved at terrifying speed, swinging its arm down.
The hand, still human-shaped, suddenly grew massive.
CRUNCH—!
Floetta’s head was crushed, and she died instantly.
---
It was a misunderstanding.
For so reason, Floetta was clearly mistaken.
‘She must’ve sensed the ‘Demon King’ sealed within Gale and orchestrated this.’
Probably… during the LAMPAS Hunter Exam?
Anticipating that Gale, now a hunter, would approach Depicio, she planned to kidnap him instead.
Floetta was an apostle who followed a demon.
At the cost of her Deadman’s Flowers, she could swap places with beings possessing demonic power nearby.
‘That’s probably why Nero and Gale were switched.’
Unfortunately for Floetta, the thing inside Gale wasn’t the Demon King from her world.
‘A Demon King from LAMPAS’s distant past, before the mythical era.’
A completely unrelated entity.
Moreover, unlike in LAMPAS, the Demon King in SoriHeon was the final boss.
aning… he wasn’t supposed to die until the protagonist killed him in the end.
Thus, he was never randomly selected for dinsion-shifting.
What ga would kill its final boss without narrative reason?
‘She just misunderstood.’
There are no living demons in LAMPAS. Only sealed or dead ones.
What abounds in this world aren’t demons but Geoma.
So, Floetta likely mistook the presence of the Demon King trapped in Gale for her own, devising this sche.
“Or maybe…”
In her overwhelming loneliness, she might’ve deluded herself into believing the Demon King sealed in Gale was hers.
Since Floetta, upon arriving in LAMPAS, was set to suffer from intense loneliness.
“Damn original story.”
Just because he altered the flow slightly, the plot twisted like a rollercoaster.
WHOOSH—!
Gritting his teeth, Elwin unleashed golden mana from his body, accelerating.
His form shot forward like a beam of light.
A long golden contrail ford and vanished with Elwin’s movents.
Five minutes until Elwin’s arrival…
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