Administrator

Has a new incarnation begun? It's time for that guy to appear then.

Critical vulnerability found! Cleaning initiated!

No matter how many times I've done it, it always feels a little weird to kill myself... It does cut deep as a memory.

...Okay, let me review it again. This illusion is a psychological event that is a result of an accident during the Dragon Orchid experiment.

To be trapped in the illusion you must first make a wish to the Dragon Orchid, and then fulfill your reality's wishes, guilt, and regrets within the illusion. Relatively speaking, the method of unraveling it...

Is to notice the falseness in the illusion world and stop yourself from indulging in the feeling of having your wishes fulfilled.

So far, all four people, including the world ruler, Her Majesty Raeon, have witnessed the falsity. If that's the case... We can proceed to that step.

Hello, how can I help you?

...

Hello, how can I help you?

When the world restarts, the Dragon Orchid will only reset the memories of the four people who made the wish, but the rest are just illusions created by it with no self-awareness at all.

I stored the memories of the four people who made the wish in an unrelated passerby, and managed to preserve the memories when the world rebooted.

Now it's time to take it out... Sorry, if I meet the prototype of this illusion in reality, I'll give him some small gift.

Zawa? Why are you here? Isn't this inside the venue of the physical tournament?

Sorry, this might be a little rough, but I don't have the time now to let you slowly calm down the chaotic feeling of memory synchronization, so...

, Just inject the memory of when you noticed the ''anomaly.''

, Hey! W-What are you doing?! You... I... This memory is...

Do you remember?

(Pan Pan is the shallowest and most rational person of these four who fell into the illusion. I just need her to find the corresponding bait.)

The result of another experimental accident? Hm, now that I'm remembering, everything around me looks unreal.

Since you already remember the truth, I can get you out of the illusion.

What's the method?

Tell me what you were thinking and hoping for when you entered the illusion, and then give it up.

...Just a feeling of hurt. I was so affected by the reports of human experiments in the Empire that I couldn't help but think of the experiments I had conducted.

By experiments, do you mean the genetic adjustment of Her Majesty?

That's right. Although the same research was done to subjects to optimize the body, Her Majesty Raeon's experiment was completely voluntary. After thinking about this, my so-called wish was just a whim.

So I gave up the wish to ''forget about the guilt towards the subject.'' That was not my problem in the first place. I'll see you in the real world.

Good, Pan Pan broke free from this world.

Huh... T-This memory... I...

Luckily, I returned this memory to you in time before you went to the competition area.

So, do you remember? About what happened when the mind you're proud of was blinded.

Tsk, I really lost it. Plus, the whole fuss was caused by the failed experiment that I caused...

Your weakness lies in believing too much in your own abilities, and expecting little from others as a result, while also wanting to gain someone's approval.

So what if that's true? This illusion just affected my ability to judge things. The only approval I need to get is from Your Majesty! That alone is enough!

How to clean up the consequences of this accident and gain the trust of Her Majesty Raeon again will be a matter left for after we get out. If you want to leave...

I don't want to give up my wish, but Her Majesty in this false world is not the one I pledged to anyway!

I'll give up my wish of ''gaining Her Majesty's complete trust''... Aah, I really don't know what I was thinking. False satisfaction is really stupid.

Shiyu wouldn't have fallen for the illusion if it weren't for that troublesome character of hers... I hope she can grow after this.

I've been waiting for you for a long time, Miss Zawa!

Oh? You've broken free from the illusion by your own power? It's not too late for you to say your wish right now...

, I know, I have to give up the wish I made in the illusion, right? My wish is ''to fight a strong person with all my heart.''

I thought I would be satisfied after fighting with my other self... It seems that I can't give up my wish after all, now that I know of another strong person that I've never fought before.

Ha, I knew it. The person you want to fight is me, right?

Heh... After finding out that Miss Zawa can fight me in an imitation of another person's fighting style, I'm looking forward to fighting you with your real power!

Your weaknesses and desires are simple enough... I don't mind, we can have a quick spar.

Hahaha! You really are a strong one with hidden depths! How thrilling! Well, I made the bet so I'll accept the result. Time for me to go back to reality and hone myself.

I'll give up my wish to ''fight a strong person with all my heart''... I can't break through my ceiling in this lousy illusion!

Simple mind and simple violence. If it wasn't for the spiritual power in this illusion, I might not have been able to defeat her so easily.

I can't believe wounds in this illusion are so real...

I'm better off patching myself up before looking for Her Majesty.

Your Majesty, as promised, I've come to help you leave.

Is it time...? I remember you said that it would be fine to leave everything to you.

Have you also relied on your own strength to retrieve your memories? That makes things easier then. As long as you personally give up the wish you made to the Dragon Orchid, this illusion will simply shatter.

Before I leave, I would like to consult the wisest person in all of Eastrise on a question.

I dare not claim such a lofty title. May I ask what your question is?

My wish to the Dragon Orchid was that I would be able to subdue the world to my will, and then... let the world no longer be ruled by conflict and survival.

This is a great wish.

But is it a foolish wish? Even the power of the Dragon Orchid can only simulate such a childish and error-ridden illusion, can reality really be what I dream of?

Or is even this wish an excuse for me? Am I really just tired of who I am and the path I have to take in the future... and I just want to escape from it all?

Your Majesty Raeon, you are not a coward. It's just that the future you want... can never be built by you alone.

Why?

Even with the power of the Dragon Orchid, you cannot control the thoughts and desires of others. As long as desires vary, there is no way for us to move in just one direction.

Unless, you are willing to share the vision of the future with us, so that these ideals will be not just your ideals, but also ours.

...I see. One day, I want to make the ''Sports Meet'' actually take place in reality. So, would you like to accompany me in perfecting this dream?

I promise I will witness your journey of making this dream come true.

Heh... I understand. As administrator of the Dragon Orchid, I give up my wish: ''To create a warm world that I desire.''

...Her growth rate seems to be more perfect after contact with that power. It seems I have to act as well.

However, before I do that, there is one last step to make this illusion world disappear completely.

This world is also going to disappear completely. There should be something else you want to say to me before that happens, illusion of the Dragon Orchid, the other me.

...You know that I still exist?

You have never been killed by me since the first reincarnation, because you are my other self, the existence that knows my mind.

That's right, as another existence that was resurrected by the power of the Dragon Orchid, I will not be affected by the reset of the world as long as you have not lost your memory.

Likewise, I know the wish you made when you entered this world, and I know the reason why you will not be affected by it.

Oh? Tell me about it.

Your wish was, a true death. The special ability of your optimizer gene converts memories into life force.

So you cannot die until your memories are all consumed, and once death is rewarded, you will surely die knowing nothing.

What you fear, what you seek, is this certain doom that will come.

...That is exactly right. I hate the way I feel about myself, and this is not the first time.

But in this illusion, you can still achieve this almost impossible wish.

, If you acknowledge my existence, I will become the ''you'' in reality instead of you, and you can disappear with this illusion.

...Sorry about that. I will not accept such an offer.

You... win. But... you will never... be able to... die normally... properly... anymore.

You are going to enter ''false death'' now. Goodbye, my other self that I denied.

...This is reality now, right? The others... they are still asleep and seem to have lost a lot of their mental energy.

Well, let me finish what needs to be done.

How rare... I never thought that the manager of the Great Library would use a hidden contact method to find us.

I have some connection with your chief, and there is a reason for this. I want you to cooperate with me for one thing.

Give these five record documents directly to Fenriru or the leader of her Operations Squad, and don't let anyone else have access to them.

Uh... It's not something dangerous, is it?

They'll understand when they get it.

Well, this is the last record, my memory. I'm sure the people of Teslovik will be able to make good use of it.

It seems all of you have been released from the effects of the experiment. How are you all? Do you feel any physical abnormalities?

Oooh... Your Majesty, I really didn't think this through...

This is not the time to argue this point, and you are not the one primarily responsible for this accident. Zawa?

Well, the power of the Dragon Orchid can only be used by Your Majesty. Even if it was a mistake during the experiment, it wouldn't cause it to go berserk.

The only thing I can think of is that an outside force affected the Dragon Orchid, causing it to instinctively resist the outside world.

Isn't the outside world... referring to just us? Could there be others? ...No, maybe that's really it.

Firentia, did you find anything?

Hm, I think... I may have seen ''others.'' Before entering the illusion, I detected the aura of an outsider...

Because I was concentrating, I am pretty sure that there was someone within the range of my perception.

Good. Zawa, I'll leave this person to you.

Then Firentia, work with me for a moment. I'm going to briefly check your memory from earlier.

Huh? Sure, but don't look at anything strange, okay?

(This loud person has such a side to her...)

Don't worry, I know my own limits.

...Found it.

, Don't hide, you've been exposed. You can avoid unnecessary attacks if you don't resist.

You still won't show yourself? That's fine, I don't have to waste time talking, There you are!

, Ugh! I can't believe I was exposed!

Firentia memory is very reliable... I'll ask her about the secret of her memory after I capture you.

Did I use too much force and knock him out? Oh well. Let me take a look at his memory...

Lord Zawa? Who do you have there?

The main culprit responsible for this accident, Rasparta's spy. Tie him up and hand him over to your superior. Put her in charge of handing this man over.

And tell her, you owe me another favor.

Yes, yes...

Oh yes, just a quick word to her again, don't give up on the experiment with the Dragon Orchid. This experiment failed, but being able to create an illusion that could trap us is already a great achievement.

(And... judging from how Rasparta has sent a spy, they have also become very interested in the Dragon Orchid... This makes things complicated.)

(Since the others have left, I'll use this opportunity to get the ''seeds'' that I planted earlier.)

Huh...? What's going on? Why do I feel like there are footsteps nearby...

(You've worked hard, please take a break for now.)

Okay, I'll approach the Dragon Orchid like this.

...I was right. The data fragments generated earlier are concentrated in this place. Begin extraction.

Who are you?! These are royal grounds! How did you get in here?!

(I can't let him know who I am. This must be kept secret from Raeon... I'll have to use different tactics.)

Extraction complete. There is enough data for me to analyze for a good while. Hopefully, I'll be able to find clues to uncover the secret of the Dragon Orchid in the library and my memory...

...And I hope the Premier will last longer and not get lost so quickly in the abnormal power given by the Dragon Orchid.