I Became A Collaborative Character In The Game

Chapter 28 – Dragon Heart 3

[So, to summarize what you’re saying, Master:]

[1. This world is the same as the game ‘Dragon Hunter Origin.’]

[2. However, you and I are characters from the game ‘Star Savior,’ not ‘Dragon Hunter Origin.’]

[3. This world is destined for destruction.]

“That’s right. Just as you summarized.”

As Luther nodded, his face slightly tense, Integra suddenly furrowed her brow, stood on tiptoe, placed her hand on Luther’s forehead, and said,

[No fever… Master, may I conduct a brief mental evaluation?]

“I’m perfectly fine.”

When Luther narrowed his eyes and retorted, Integra smiled brightly, shrugged, and said,

[I’m joking.  Because it’s you who’s saying this, Master.]

[Anyway, so that was it? That’s why you possessed knowledge I didn’t have.]

Unlike Integra, who used the term ‘native life forms of the planet’ whenever they encountered lesser dragons, Luther had always accurately stated the names of the lesser dragons.

And now, Hecatoncheires as well.

Seeing Integra nod as if finally understanding, Luther replied in a low voice,

“It’s just as I said. It was a game I enjoyed… so I knew.”

If it had been a game other than Dragon Hunter or Star Savior, he wouldn’t have remembered all the names of the monsters that appeared.

But with the Dragon Hunter series and Star Savior, it was a different story. They were literally his favorite games.

[Then, Master, are Karen and Max also game characters? What about Lilia?]

“No, Karen and Max aren’t. I’ve never seen them in the game. Lilia was a character who only existed in the setting.”

[Only in the setting?]

“Well… it was mentioned that ‘there was once a person like this.’”

Luther went on to explain a little more about Lilia.  A genius enchanter who died prematurely, with the cause of death unknown.

[Wait, then does that mean you and I changed Lilia’s fate?]

“…Probably, yes.”

At Luther’s answer, Integra’s expression turned serious for a moment, but then she relaxed and said,

[Come to think of it… just the fact that you and I, who didn’t exist in the ‘original,’ are walking around in this world is already changing the fates of countless people.]

[Karen and Max too.]

If the meteor hadn’t fallen, Karen and Max wouldn’t have visited the Forest of Primordial Beasts.  If that had been the case, they wouldn’t have encountered Lilia, let alone Kapu and his bandits who attacked the pioneer village.

[Thinking about it, at least in the short term, most of the changes seem positive.]

[Thanks to you, Master, many people, including the village girl Roxanna, were saved.]

Integra was right. If Luther hadn’t been there, not only Lilia but also Roxanna wouldn’t have escaped their tragic fates, and the pioneer village would have been devastated by Kapu’s bandits.

[That’s praiseworthy.]

[But since no one else knows, I’ll praise you.]

“Huh?”

Luther asked back involuntarily, but Integra stood on tiptoe again, pretended to pat Luther’s head, and said,

[Thanks to you, Master, many lives were saved.]

[I’ll praise you on behalf of everyone.]

[Thank you for saving everyone.]

His face flushed involuntarily, but a part of his chest felt ticklish.

So, Luther stood still and accepted Integra’s praise, and Integra, staring intently at his face, smiled brightly.

[How cute.]

“Hey!”

[Hehehe. Anyway, I see. Then, what about Aru? Was she a character?]

It was an obvious change of subject, but it was too embarrassing to delve further, so Luther went along with Integra’s words.

“Aru is similar to Lilia. She’s already deceased in the setting, so she doesn’t appear in the main story.”

[I see. Aru’s fate was also changed by your intervention, Master.]

[An interesting story.]

Crossing her arms again, Integra looked thoughtful, as if reviewing the story so far.

Luther, watching her quietly, asked cautiously,

“Um, Integra.”

[Yes, Master. What is it?]

As Integra blinked her golden eyes and asked back, Luther paused for a moment, then after several attempts to speak, finally managed to voice his question.

“Do you… believe me?”

[Didn’t you tell me to believe you?]

“Well… that’s true, but…”

How should he put it?

Should he say she believed him too easily?

If she had gotten angry, saying it was impossible, or doubted Luther’s mental state, it would have been troublesome in its own way, but he hadn’t expected her to believe him immediately without any doubt like this.

I’ve entered the game.

This world is the same as the game.

This meant that Integra, along with everything else in this world, could be part of the game.

Even ignoring everything else, it would be normal to react negatively to being told, ‘You’re a game character.’

But Integra, in response to Luther’s words, smiled brightly and, meeting his purple eyes, said,

[As I said before, it’s because you’re the one saying it, Master.]

[I already know what kind of person you are.]

Having said that, Integra suddenly clapped her hands and said with a look of realization,

[Are you worried about something like an identity crisis?]

That was correct.

As Luther’s face showed that he was, Integra smiled softly and said,

[Master, I was a created being from the start.]

[Moreover, it’s only been a few days since I opened my eyes.]

[And even if you, the Master before me right now, are a human named ‘Lee Yun-ho’ who has possessed the body of ‘Luther Lightsicker,’ I don’t mind.]

[After all, since I opened my eyes, it’s been you, Master, and no one else that I’ve interacted with.]

[You are my one and only Master, and I am your one and only Support AI.]

[Even if this world really is inside a game, that fact won’t change.]

Speaking firmly, Integra gave a gentle smile as if asking, “Isn’t that right?”

“Integra…”

Luther unconsciously uttered Integra’s name.

Support AI.

As Integra said, she was the partner who had been with him through everything since he opened his eyes in this world.

Looking back, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that he had been able to come this far thanks to her.  Aside from combat assistance, she had been a considerable mental support as well.

As Luther’s eyes grew moist, Integra, instead of lifting her chin and demanding more gratitude, suddenly looked away.

[O-Of course, the possibility that this really is inside a game is unlikely. Whether by coincidence or some necessity, it’s more plausible to consider this another world with the same worldview as the game.]

After speaking rapidly, Integra slightly twisted her body and then vanished.

“Integra?”

[Let’s continue our conversation.]

Her form was gone, but her voice could be heard.  It seemed she had hidden herself out of embarrassment.

‘That’s really cute.’

But Luther’s thoughts were cut short as Integra immediately changed the subject.

[Hecatoncheires.]

[A group of dragonkin who inherit the blood of the dragon god Helkanes.]

[They eventually lead this planet to destruction.]

[You intend to stop Hecatoncheires and prevent the destruction, right, Master?]

“Just as I said.”

The best goal Luther could currently set for himself.  For now, prevent the destruction of this world.

At Luther’s words, Integra made a humming sound, as if thinking for a moment, then spoke.

[Master, then let’s think about it backwards. How does Hecatoncheires destroy this planet?]

Knowing the cause of the destruction would make it much easier to set a goal.  All he had to do was eliminate the cause of the destruction.

But instead of answering, Luther’s face became slightly troubled.

[Master?]

“Well…”

[Well?]

“Actually, I don’t know.”

[…What?]

Integra reappeared before Luther’s eyes.

At her expression, a mixture of surprise and disbelief, Luther furrowed his brow and continued,

“It’s certain that it will be destroyed, but I don’t know how.”

[What? You don’t know? Why not?]

It’s going to be destroyed, but he doesn’t know the cause?

Did he see some prophecy, or did he actually play the game himself?  How could he not know?

But Luther had an excuse.

“The game wasn’t released up to that point.”

[What? No, well… are you saying you didn’t finish it?]

“No, the game wasn’t released up to that point. Dragon Hunter Origin was an RPG sold in parts as DLC. Like Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and so on.”

At Luther’s explanation, Integra’s voice was filled with disbelief rather than gentleness.

[It’s strange to sell an incomplete game in parts, but it’s also incomprehensible that you would buy such a thing, Master.]

“I guess so.”

Why did I do that?

If I hadn’t played Dragon Hunter Origin, would I not have entered Dragon Hunter 3?

[Sigh, anyway, you know at least more than half of it, right?]

“I know roughly up to the 3/4 point. However… just like with Aru, I intend to shake the main scenario from its foundation.”

At Luther’s words, Integra nodded in agreement.

[That’s not a bad idea.]

[As you said, Master, this is a world destined for destruction, and since the game’s story is heading towards destruction anyway, it’s better to shake it up from the beginning.]

[Even if the story differs completely from the game, we still have a lot of information we can utilize.]

[Information about the characters, items, geography, and so on.]

“Right, that’s it.”

No matter how the story is twisted, the established settings cannot be changed. Like where someone is, what kind of past they have, and what abilities they will gain in the future.

It was especially important to know about the dragonkin of Hecatoncheires.

[Then let’s think about our immediate goal again.]

[According to the original story, you’re saying an incident occurs in Venus City, right?]

“Yes, Balboa launches a large-scale attack to steal the ‘Spirit Jewel’ held by the Count of Glasston’s family.”

A tragedy where everyone in the Count’s family, down to the last child, was massacred.  The story of Annerose, the protagonist of the Western Arc, began when she was caught up in the tragedy of the Count of Glasston’s family.

[You defeated Balboa, Master.]

[But since Hecatoncheires is still intact, the incident in Venus City is likely to occur in some form.]

“That’s likely.”

Balboa wasn’t the only dragonkin belonging to Hecatoncheires.  Since the Spirit Jewel was one of the ingredients needed to trigger the ‘Demon Beast Descent’ incident that marked the climax of the Western Arc, Hecatoncheires would send another dragonkin to cause the incident at the Count of Glasston’s family.

[Then, our primary goal is to prevent the incident at the Count of Glasston’s family.]

“Right, we must prevent the Spirit Jewel from falling into the hands of Hecatoncheires.”

[Understood.]

[Then I have a good idea.]

“What is it?”

At Luther’s question, Integra grinned, tapped her chest, and said,

[You and I will steal the Spirit Jewel first.]

“What?”

[Hecatoncheires wants the Spirit Jewel.]

[Even if you stop them this time, Master, there’s a high chance they’ll attack again someday.]

[So, you and I will secure the Spirit Jewel.]

[There’s no reason for Hecatoncheires to attack the Count’s family if they don’t have the Spirit Jewel, so the family will be safe, and since Hecatoncheires won’t be able to obtain the Spirit Jewel, we can disrupt the original story.]

[As a bonus, you can use that Spirit Jewel as an energy source, Master.]

Luther was momentarily taken aback by Integra’s explanation, but then he nodded.  It was exactly as she said.

“You’re a genius!”

[Ufufu.]

Of course, the problem of how to infiltrate the Count’s family and steal the Spirit Jewel still remained, but they could worry about that on the way.

[I believe we can do it, Master.]

[You are the Star Savior—literally the savior of the stars.]

As Integra placed her hand on her chest and smiled refreshingly, a smile spread across Luther’s face.

“Right, as expected of Integra. I’m glad I confided in you.”

[Hmph, of course.]

Integra shrugged and put on a smug expression, but her cheeks were flushed again.

[But Master, I have one question.]

“What is it?”

When Luther asked, Integra cleared her throat and asked gently with a calm expression,

[Didn’t you say ‘Luther Lightsicker’ was one of the many protagonists of Star Savior?]

“I did.”

[Then can we call him the male protagonist?]

“I guess so? There was actually an ending where Luther saved the stars.”

[Hmm, hmm, I see. Then…]

“Yeah.”

[Well… I…]

“You?”

[Was I… the female protagonist?]

Fidgeting with her fingers, Integra shyly raised her head and asked.

Her face flushed red, her golden eyes filled with anticipation, and her silver hair shimmering in the sunlight.

Luther momentarily held his breath, then looked away and needlessly scratched his chin.

[Master?]

“Well…”

[Well?]

“Um… it’s a secret.”

[Master?]

“It’s a secret for now.”

He couldn’t bring himself to tell the current Integra that she was a skill or a simple NPC.

No, he didn’t *want* to tell her.

[Master?]

“Let’s go back. Karen, Max, and Lilia must be worried.”

[Tsk, I’m assigning you 1 penalty point, Master.]

“That’s quite sad.”

Speaking playfully, Luther turned around, and Integra, staring intently at him, suddenly pursed her lips and smiled before whispering in his ear,

[Master.]

“What?”

[I’m assigning you 1 bonus point, Master.]

“Why suddenly?”

[It’s a secret.]

“Integra?”

Integra simply smiled softly instead of answering, and Luther tilted his head once before taking a step towards Anus Village.

—–CROW—–