I’m Trapped in a Bloody Reverse Harem Game - Chapter 120

The original Orias had been a man kind to everyone. He had no sense of possession and did not obsess over people.

He loved everything that made up this world, accepting even the despair and hardship given to him with a gentle attitude.

Even if someone took what was his, he would not become angry.

***

“Your Holiness, it is time for the morning assembly.”

The Pope, who had been tossing and turning, opened his eyes. His golden irises gleamed with displeasure as they fixed on the priest who had awakened him. His gaze held nothing but ominous darkness.

The priest stammered as if he had intruded upon forbidden ground, his voice shaking under the Pope’s cold, piercing glare.

“I-I apologize, Your Holiness. I-it is the first time you have been late, so I was concerned that you might not have woken up…”

“Leave.”

“Yes, my apologies.”

Cutting off the stuttering priest, the Pope waved his hand roughly. The moment his words ended, the priest bowed deeply and hurriedly exited the room.

Once outside, the priest leaned against the closed door and exhaled, pressing a hand to his chest.

It was a mistake born from the Pope’s uncharacteristically mild demeanor while Saintess Haniel had been in the Holy Kingdom. Before she had stayed by his side, the Pope had often looked at others with such cold eyes.

He did not forgive those who coveted what was his.

Nor did he tolerate any blemish upon his authority.

The Pope was a man who imposed unwavering punishment upon all. His face had appeared gentle only in the presence of the Saintess, leading people to forget his true nature.

“Haa…”

Rubbing the goosebumps from his arms, the priest quickly fled from the Pope’s chambers.

The Pope, who had been keenly attuned to the presence outside, furrowed his brows.

As the priest had said, the morning assembly was approaching.

Pressing his temples against the throbbing pain in his head, the Pope recalled the nightmare that had tormented him the night before. It was the same nightmare that had haunted him for days.

As he recollected the unpleasant memory, he tidied his attire and left the room with a heavy heart.

Indeed, something about this situation was wrong.

He could not accept Haniel spending time with others.

The original him was not someone who shared what was his. If he wanted something, he had to make it his, no matter what it took.

He could not kill them for Haniel’s sake, but there was no rule saying he couldn’t stop sharing her with them.

“As long as they remain alive, it should be fine.”

All he needed to do was render them powerless, confining them and making them serve solely as a source of energy for Haniel.

A greedy smile twisted the Pope’s face.

For a brief moment, he felt that this thought was wrong. But as always, he ignored that feeling.

There was nothing wrong.

***

[SYSTEM] Abnormal status detected in [Orias]!

[SYSTEM] Automatic stabilization process for [Orias] initiated.

[SYSTEM] Stabilization in progress…

.

.

.

[SYSTEM] Stabilization failed!

[SYSTEM] Administrator (—-) modifying system permissions…

[SYSTEM] Administrator (—-) delegating authority…

[SYSTEM] Player [    ] authority elevated – [Administrator Mode] now available.

.

.

.

[SYSTEM] Player [    ] restarting system…

.

.

.

[SYSTEM] Orias single route access activated.

[SYSTEM] Orias [    ] route now accessible.

[SYSTEM] Temporary [Administrator Mode] access granted for route browsing.

***

<The system has restarted!>

“Hm?”

I had been rubbing rosin on my violin bow when I looked up at the sudden appearance of a translucent window.

The system window, which I hadn’t seen in a long time, was flashing wildly in midair.

“What the… It’s been a while. But I didn’t activate the system.”

The semi-transparent window flickered in bright red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple.

It seemed to believe I was going to use the system again.

A system shouldn’t have a will of its own, yet it appeared rather pleased to see me again. Watching it gleam with excitement, I averted my gaze and muttered indifferently.

“System, shut down.”

I had no reason to use it since I wasn’t experiencing any inconvenience.

The dazzling lights, still visible even after I looked away, gradually faded.

Just as I reached for my violin and started to rise from my chair, a sudden burst of light stabbed into my eyes.

“Ugh!”

<The system has restarted!!>

This time, the system window was even brighter, filling my entire field of vision.

What the hell? Has it lost its mind?

Dazzled by the system’s sudden assault, I stumbled back into my chair. The blinding light bursting in front of me made my head spin.

My bow clattered to the floor as I pressed my fingers firmly against my eyelids.

Ah, my eyes hurt.

“Lady Haniel.”

A voice called to me as I rubbed at my eyes irritably. Without looking, I knew who it was.

Ardal.

He must have heard the sound of the bow hitting the floor and come inside.

Normally, Ardal wouldn’t enter while I was practicing, believing it to be an interruption. But if he heard a loud noise, he would always come in.

As I struggled to open my eyes and groaned, his hand touched my face.

“What’s wrong?”

“My eyes hurt…”

“Don’t rub them like that. Let me take a look.”

Ardal gently removed my hand from my face and examined me. As his fingers pressed lightly against my eyelids, I managed to open my eyes slightly.

Through my blurry vision, I saw Ardal’s serious expression.

After blinking a few times, my dizziness gradually subsided.

“There’s no visible injury or foreign object… But just in case, we should see a physician. Shall we go now?”

Even as he asked, Ardal was already moving swiftly. Though he had phrased it as a question, he seemed to have decided on his own that we would go.

He checked my eyes once more, picked up my fallen bow, and quickly tidied up. Once he was done, he took the case in one hand and extended the other toward me.

“Shall we go?”

I shook my head reluctantly.

Ardal had been completely unconcerned when his own vision had been affected before, but now, just because I squinted a little, he wanted to rush to a physician.

It was just the light that had hurt my eyes, not an actual injury.

As I refused, Ardal’s face twisted with displeasure. He asked in a serious tone, “Are you unable to get up? Is it because you’re dizzy? Or…”

“It’s not like that. I was just startled because of the system.”

“The system…?”

Ardal repeated my words, and his firm expression suddenly turned pale.

“The system… if that’s what you mean…”

He muttered uneasily, as if he were thinking of something troubling.

His grip on the case loosened, and it fell from his hands. The dull thud as it hit the floor seemed to snap him out of his daze.

“I see. You were just startled by the system…”

Ardal tried to speak calmly. Though his tone was level, the faint tremor in his voice made it clear that he wasn’t at ease.

As I watched his large hands retrieve the case, I understood why he was so anxious.

The veins on the back of his hand stood out as he gripped the case tightly. Lowering his gaze, he let out a slow, unsteady breath.

“Ardal.”

I pulled the case from his hand and placed it on my lap. Naturally, his gaze shifted to me.

He bit his lip, unable to meet my eyes.

I cupped his cheeks with both hands, and only then did he finally look at me.

Ardal was not someone who would stop me from using the system.

But that didn’t mean he wouldn’t be shaken by it.

“I’m not planning to use the system, so don’t worry. I’ve already shut it down.”

Even as I spoke, the system window continued to flicker brightly beside his face.

I ignored it, pretending not to see.

Fortunately, Ardal couldn’t perceive the system.

“It looks like there’s some kind of system error. It just popped up suddenly and startled me. My eyes don’t even hurt, so there’s no need to visit the physician.”

“I see.”

Ardal sighed as he responded.

“Yes. Since I’m fine, I’ll just continue practicing.”

“Understood. I will wait.”

Ardal quickly returned to his usual rigid demeanor.

I observed him as he stepped back, wondering if he had calmed down.

“Ardal, are you just going to stay there?”

“Yes. If I am disturbing you, I can wait outside…”

“You’re not disturbing me, so you can stay.”

Ardal remained inside, standing near the door, silently watching me.

But the slight tremble in his fingers betrayed his lingering unease.

I sighed briefly, realizing that he wasn’t truly at ease.

“Ardal.”

“Yes, Lady Haniel.”

“I think it would be better to practice in the afternoon today. Shall we go for a walk instead?”

Upon hearing my suggestion, Ardal visibly relaxed, a faint smile forming on his lips.

In the end, I spent the entire morning calming Ardal.

Ardal was someone who never expressed anything to me except affection.

That meant I had to take the initiative to address the emotions he tried to suppress.

Unaware that I was the one taking care of him, Ardal always made sure not to leave me alone. Even on normal days, he would only go about his duties after confirming that Hella was with me.

Today, he was being even more persistent.

Even though he knew Hella would be arriving soon, he remained by my side.

I had told him multiple times that he could go about his work, but he refused to budge.

“Saintess! I’m here! Hello, Commander! You’re working hard as always!”

“Now that Hella’s here, you can go take care of your duties, Ardal.”

“Yes, Lady Haniel. If anything happens…”

“I’ll come straight to you and discuss it. So don’t worry and go already.”

Ardal gave a slight nod in response to Hella’s energetic greeting.

Even then, he hesitated before pressing a kiss to my forehead. His fingers lingered on my skin, unwilling to pull away.

After I urged him several times, Ardal hesitated before finally bending down.

Ardal normally refrained from physical displays of affection when we were outside. Yet now, even with Hella beside us, he anxiously pressed a kiss to my lips. His large hands carefully cradled my cheeks.

“…Even if it’s something small, please call for me if anything troubles you.”

“I will. Thank you for always worrying about me. Now, go for real this time.”

“Yes.”

He murmured another reminder as he rested his forehead against mine.

Only after making sure I understood did he straighten his posture and prepare to leave.

As Ardal pulled away, Hella, who had been looking elsewhere to avoid staring, suddenly raised her voice in an exaggerated manner.

“Take care, Commander!”

“…Yeah.”

His tone was flatter than usual. But Ardal didn’t bother reprimanding Hella for her cheeky attitude. Instead, he simply gave a brief response and finally departed.

Hella watched him go with a mischievous smirk before shaking her robes irritably. “Ugh, what’s the point of this useless collar? I feel like I’m going to faint from the heat.”

Orias had been the one who insisted she wear it if she wanted to enter the temple. He had never approved of Hella’s usual casual attire.

Seeing her fanning herself with her hand, I mimicked the gesture, making a breeze with my palm. Hella let out a dramatic sigh before laughing innocently.

“Where have you been? You’re sweating a lot. Were you training?”

“No, I wasn’t training today. I was just inspecting the temple! Oh, right! I meant to tell you—while I was looking around, I found something strange…”

Sweat beaded on Hella’s forehead as she answered quickly. Then, she lowered her voice, continuing her explanation in a whisper. But suddenly, she went silent, her eyes darting around cautiously.

“What’s wrong?”

“The Pope has arrived.”

The moment Hella’s words cut off, a familiar sound rang through my ears.

The chime of a system window.

Immediately after, a sharp warning alarm followed.

<The system has restarted!>

• The shutdown function has been temporarily disabled for player protection.

<Warning! [Orias] status unstable!>

<Player authority elevated.>

• [Administrator Mode] is now available.

<[Administrator Mode Delegation] Administrator suggestion generated.>

<Character [Orias] deletion suggested.>

<Would you like to delete character [Orias]?>

• If deleted, the character will die.

As I read through the series of system messages, my brow furrowed.

What? Delete him…?

Before I could even process my thoughts, the system windows flooded my vision urgently.

<Character [Orias] deletion recommended.>