"...So it really did turn out this way."
The last sliver of hope in Greg's heart shattered like fragile glass, mercilessly crushed by reality.
That absurd guess of his, that horrifying connection he had hoped was nothing but overthinking, had been confirmed by this face.
Melina Belladonna, the primary heroine whose identity had been a maddening tangle even in the original game.
The illegitimate daughter of the Demons' current Demon King, and the leader of the Demon King Cult lurking in the human world.
And she really was... involved with the Fallen Mother, one of the Outer Gods, too?
She had even tried to use an Outer God's power to corrupt Sylvia.
"This really is a garbage game...!"
Overwhelming exhaustion and helplessness swept through Greg, mingled with the dull mental agony of a thousand ants gnawing at his heart and the faint sensation of his soul tearing apart, both brought on by devouring an Outer God's power.
The relief that came with the hooded man's death snapped his taut will and the physical strength he had forced himself to maintain, like a bowstring stretched to its limit.
The Dark Erosion Armor rapidly receded from his limbs like an ebbing tide, revealing torn clothing and the fine cuts and bruises left on his skin by clashing powers and the blast.
His mana was completely depleted, his head felt heavy and throbbed, and his vision began to blur.
Yet at this moment, more suffocating and overwhelming to Greg than the pain in his body and mind was his worry about the future.
Melina... that walking disaster of a woman was supposed to enroll at Glory Kael Magic Academy as a transfer student at the start of the third chapter, according to the original plot.
Just thinking about it made Greg's vision darken.