ALL NOVEL Chapter 20 - How to Distinguish Between Fortune-Telling and Fraud (1)
Chapter 20
How to Distinguish Between Fortune-Telling and Fraud (1)
『 Translator – Divinity 』
Charles Teddybear.
His job was
With his outstanding skills and achievements to back him up, he was tasked with rescuing the president from the Pentagon, which was completely overrun by gates, but…
‘He failed.’
I didn’t know the details of his failure. The game didn’t go into that much detail.
But what was certain was that the process of that failure was so terrible that it changed the originally cheerful soldier’s personality by 180 degrees–and because of that, he felt indebted to
Also, after returning from the disaster, he lost his wife to illness and raised his daughter alone, and in the process, he received an offer from Romance Academy and became an instructor.
Later, as his daughter’s condition worsened, he tried to resign from his position as an instructor, but seeing the completely broken Abel Legion, he decided to return him to his original state out of guilt before retiring.
And the serious discord with Abel Legion that resulted from that.
I wrote down the story of Charles Teddybear, as I knew it, in my notebook.
“Huu…”
Although I played this crappy game 25 times, most of it was speedrunning while ignoring the story, and I only focused on the story and background in the early stages, so it was a bit difficult to remember.
After filling several pages of the notebook with writing, I rotated my stiff wrist and leaned back comfortably in my chair.
Swooooooosh—
“…It’s raining.”
Looking outside the window of my base, heavy rain was pouring down.
…I liked watching the rain fall like this without any thoughts.
Because at times like this, I could forget about part-time jobs, studying, my parents, that cult bastard, everything, and just be quiet.
“…Can I do it?”
Charles Teddybear’s daughter, Eileen Teddybear.
A girl who loved teddy bears so much that Charles Teddybear even changed his surname. A pure and cheerful girl, a girl at that age who would make anyone smile.
But at the same time, she was… the starting point that let you know what kind of game Romance Academy was.
“……….”
Romance Academy wasn’t a place where major accidents occurred, like villain attacks, demon terrorism, or sudden gate openings.
However, ‘small’ incidents and accidents occurred frequently.
‘Charles Teddybear is… the first one.’
Perhaps it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call it Charles Teddybear’s character event.
The player successfully heals Eileen Teddybear, Charles Teddybear’s favorability reaches its maximum, and he becomes a reliable ally.
…But if they fail, the character Charles Teddybear disappears from the game entirely.
That’s the kind of game Romance Academy was.
It created the most important event for each individual, and if you couldn’t resolve it, that character would disappear from Romance Academy forever.
Expulsion, dropping out, resignation, exile, disappearance, and so on.
It was a game that focused on the microcosm of individuals rather than macroscopic events.
“…Why did Jisu make something like this?”
Namgung Jisu was rude, an idiot, lazy, and complained about everything, but she wasn’t the type to make this kind of game.
If she were to make a game, I thought she would just make a cheesy female-oriented dating sim, so why did she make a game with unnecessarily dark elements?
‘Will I know when I go back?’
Only the first day of the entrance ceremony had passed. There was still a long way to go until the ending.
But even so, I didn’t think I couldn’t reach the ending.
If I couldn’t see the ending, no one could see the ending of this game.
Only 10 people bought the game, and I was the only one who even saw the ending once, does that make sense, you bitch?
“…Pfft.”
I remembered my little sister, who whined about the game not selling and, despite having left home, would frequently visit, eat, and then run away again.
Yes, for the sake of my little sister’s future,
“Let’s definitely put her in a mental hospital.”
I should do my duty as an older brother.
I checked my suit and shirt, which were always kept clean thanks to the
“…Let’s go.”
And I touched the necklace with
It was time to do my job as a
***
Eileen Teddybear suddenly opened her eyes.
“…Ah.”
And immediately regretted it.
Her throat was dry, her stomach was empty, her limbs were numb, and a headache was setting in. The price for briefly waking up from sleep was cruel.
The bed was instantly soaked with sweat, and Eileen, with a groan mixed with pain, hugged the teddy bear next to her pillow.
Teddy bear. The doll the girl loved the most, the doll that had now become her surname.
“Ugh… sob…”
Tears welled up, and her arms, hugging the teddy bear, trembled.
Is Daddy still not home yet?
With teary eyes, she barely managed to see the clock, which was still pointing to 5 PM.
“D-daddy…”
There was still an hour left until her father came home from work.
And an hour was an excruciatingly long time for the girl.
“Ugh… ugh…”
So, as always, the girl prayed.
For this pain to go away, for someone to save her.
Because whenever she prayed, someone always came.
“…Don’t worry.”
“Ah…”
See, he’s stroking her warmly again today.
Normally, she would have surrendered to this warmth and fallen asleep, but…
Unlike usual, Eileen murmured with her eyes open, barely visible through her tears,
“Who… are you…?”
“…A sinner.”
“What’s… a sinner…?”
“A very bad person. A truly bad person.”
“You’re not… a bad person…”
“…No, I am a bad person. So…”
It’s time to sleep.
“Ah…”
Eileen, who was blinking her small eyes and trying to close them,
Finally fell into a peaceful sleep.
“………….”
Swooooooosh—
Only the sound of rain echoed in the dark room without a single light.
The rain poured down as if trying to wash everything away.
Someone gently stroked Eileen, who had fallen asleep after suffering and sweating profusely, and looked at the girl with guilt-filled eyes.
At the truly kind and innocent girl.
“Do you know?”
“I hate the rain.”
Swooooooosh—
He quietly closed his eyes and murmured as if praying.
As if that was all he could do.
“Because it was a rainy day when I met this child. I committed an unforgivable sin that day.”
“Back then, it wasn’t this bad. She could get up and walk, she could laugh brightly, and she could speak in a lovely voice.”
“But not anymore.”
Someone whispered, keeping their voice low so as not to wake the girl.
While stroking the girl with one hand,
“So, please leave.”
—With the other hand, he held a mace.
“This is not a place for a Fortune Teller to enter.”
“……….”
Rumble…
With a flash of lightning, the room was briefly illuminated.
The girl lying in bed, someone standing as if to protect her, and the Fortune Teller looking at them.
In the room that soon darkened again, the Fortune Teller was smiling.
“This is an unexpected visit, Saint.”
“………….”
“I heard you examined the instructor’s daughter once before.”
“I won’t say it twice.”
Whoosh!
A pure white light emanated from the Saint’s feet. It covered his feet, his legs, his body, his arms, and even his head, sparkling brilliantly.
But the Saint’s figure wasn’t obscured by the light.
It was as if he was only visible in outline. As if the light enveloped the Saint but didn’t stain him.
The Saint, who looked as if he had a halo around his entire body, glared at the Fortune Teller.
“Leave, Fortune Teller.”
“You’re quite talkative for an intruder.”
“……….”
“Saint, I am a guest permitted by Instructor Teddybear. I might leave if it were the homeowner, but even if you threaten me like that, Saint, I will not back down.”
The Fortune Teller smiled. The Saint narrowed his eyes, thinking it was an unpleasant smile, as always.
It would be easy to drive him out by force here, but that would wake Eileen up.
Just as he was about to scare him off to stop his talking,
“
“…!!”
At the tarot card that appeared in the air, the Saint hurriedly swung his mace. The tarot card, struck by the solid steel mace, scattered in the air.
But the Fortune Teller was already holding another card.
“Major Arcana number 12,
“…Saint, you are well-versed in tarot, are you not? You must be familiar with heresy to strike it down.”
“…Needless sacrifice and devotion, indecisiveness.”
“Why are you acting like this when you know that so well?”
“…That is a foolish question.”
The Fortune Teller’s pointed remark using tarot.
But such things meant nothing to the Saint.
“If someone is suffering, it is only right that they receive the Lord’s mercy.”
“Haven’t you already failed, Saint?”
“I have not failed. I have only been frustrated… I have heard that you are skilled. Unfortunately, it seems to be true.”
If he weren’t a Fortune Teller, he would have been purely happy for the help.
The Saint, swallowing his words, raised his mace once again.
“I have spoken at length, but this is my final warning. Leave.”
“It is you who should leave, Saint. Trespassing is a crime, Saint.”
“Such impertinent preaching. What will you do if the Lord forgives me?”
“…Has He forgiven you?”
“Certainly not.”
Whoosh.
“…!”
Before he could even blink,
The Saint approached the Fortune Teller at a speed almost like teleportation, despite the short distance, and stopped his mace right in front of his face.
A faint wind blew from the impact, and the Fortune Teller’s slightly distorted smile was reflected in the steel mace.
…The
“Next is your head.”
“…Hello, are you Eileen?”
“…!! Eileen, if you talk to this person–”
General Skill
“—you cannot… speak?”
All the Saint could see when he hurriedly turned around were flickering candles and blackout curtains.
Even the Saint was taken aback by the sudden change.
“What do you think? Quite mystical, isn’t it?”
“…Fortune Teller.”
“This is my fortune-telling shop where I can forcibly invite anyone nearby. Once you enter, you can’t leave until you have your fortune told, so don’t waste your energy.”
“You deceived me.”
“Indeed. Eileen is sleeping soundly, so don’t worry.”
Grabbing the Fortune Teller by the collar, the Saint glared at him.
…The Fortune Teller wasn’t smiling.
“You guys are always like this. You’re swindlers who always take advantage of the desperate.”
“I agree.”
“Yes, you’re that shameless… huh?”
Agree?
At the unexpected answer, the Saint blinked. He seemed confused, wondering if he had heard correctly.
The Fortune Teller, looking at the Saint, opened his mouth.
Without a trace of a smile.
“All you can do is read the hearts of the desperate and deceive them. You suck their blood, skin them, and take everything they have for your own benefit. If they are anxious, you make them worry more, if they are angry, you make them even angrier, and if they try to find reason, you confuse them. You spout all sorts of nonsense and claim a fate that doesn’t even exist, you frauds.”
“…Hmm.”
“That’s what Fortune Tellers are, that’s what evil is… and you, Saint, are no different.”
“…What?”
“Why do you secretly visit her?”
At the Fortune Teller’s words, the Saint, who had been gripping his mace tightly, froze.
Because even the Saint couldn’t completely ignore the Fortune Teller’s words.
“Every day since you failed to heal her.”
“…How?”
“I’m a Fortune Teller, aren’t I? I must have used fortune-telling.”
“Fortune-telling?”
The Saint scoffed. He ridiculed himself for being momentarily mesmerized by the Fortune Teller in front of him.
And then, the Fortune Teller, sitting in the purple chair, also scoffed.
“You seem to dislike fortune-telling.”
“………….”
“And yet, your job is
“…Which do you think it is?”
“Are you asking because you don’t know?”
He raised his mace.
“Naturally, it’s the latter.”
Crack!
He struck down.
That was all.