I Got Reincarnated Into a Game I Was a Top-Ranker in and I Became the Leader of a Villain Group That Will Destroy This Shitty Country - 3

Chapter 3: I Will Live For You

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“You don’t have a name?”

“Yeah, I’m an orphan after all.”

After that, I somehow became friends with this black-haired girl. I had been spending most of my time with this girl for the past week or so. The other orphans, including the guards, they all still avoided her. They were clearly hostile of her while still keeping a safe distance away. And yet, she acted as if this kind of thing was normal to her. Seeing her like that made me feel sorry for her. Somehow, the more time I spent with her, the more I started getting attached to her. By the time I realized it, talking with this girl had become part of my daily routine. 

I mean, this girl… She looks similar to the final boss, the Witch of Tears. But… No way. I must be mistaken. After all, the witch has silver hair. 

Of course, the baseless speculations wouldn’t stop popping in my head. But, I decided to ignore them for now. I continued talking with the girl who was sitting cross-legged on the bed. 

“But even orphans have names, right?”

“My name is Number 5014. That’s enough for me. I don’t need anything else… But, more importantly…”

“Hm?”

“What’s your name?”

Ah, there it came. I paused for a moment, contemplating my answer. First of all, I knew nothing about the original owner of this body. On top of that, it felt strange to us ethe name I had in Japan, but of course, I also didn’t have any other name to use. 

“Well, in that case, I guess I will go with Number 5025 too.”

“….Now you’re teasing me.”

“No, really, I’m not~ I don’t know my name either. Actually, I don’t even know why I’m here.”

“Is it because of the drugs? Have the magicians experimented on you?”

“Hm? Experiment?”

“Yeah, the human experiments that they conducted here.”

The girl said as a matter of factly. 

“From what I’ve heard, they give orphans various drugs and cast black magic on them. That’s why everyone is doing their best not to collapse. Everyone is working hard just to survive in that noisy mine.”

After she finished talking, the girl looked around the room filled with rows of beds. There were dozens of children in the room. Among them, there were girls crying in despair and boys who seemed to be unconscious, only lying motionless on their beds. 

No matter what their condition looked like, there was no trace of hope in their eyes. Considering the significance of the numbers assigned to us, their reactions were understandable. My number was 5025. Which meant, over 5000 people were likely… Sacrificed for the experiments until now. This place was reeking with despair and a fog of death permeated the air. 

“……”

Clenching my fist, I began to come up with a plan. There was no such thing as a mine escape quest in the game since the player was born as a hero on the Empire’s side. However, seeing how horrible the situation in the mine was, I knew I had to act quickly. To do that, I needed to make use of the skills I had effectively. 

But the only magic I can use right now is ‘Purification’ and ‘One Who Stands at the Boundary’ skill is useless if I don’t have any magic to absorb…

While I was lost in thoughts, the girl stared at me intently. 

“Aren’t you afraid?”

“Huh?”

“It’s strange. I don’t see any fear of death in your eyes. They’re filled with the will to survive.”

“Well~ I think I can say the same about you, though?”

“Nope. I’m better off dead.”

My eyes widened, surprised at the girl’s calm words. On the other side, the girl remained in her seated position. She spoke nonchalantly, as if she was merely stating a fact. 

“I have a demon inside of me. It would be a disaster if this demon got unleashed to the world.”

“No, I mean… For you to die..”

“Nope, I was never meant to exist in the first place. I’ve been told that since I can remember. That’s why, I should just die here.”

“…….”

“This kind of ending suits me the best.”

I wondered how she could be this emotionally dead. I was flustered, almost into full blown panic. The girl wasn’t even the least flustered when she said she should die. There was not an ounce of hesitation in her voice. Just how much abuse she had endured to end up like this? Suddenly, a fog seemed to cloud my mind and by the time I realized it, I was already biting on my lower lip.

“Are you really planning on dying? No matter what?”

“Yeah. I came here to die. I have to die here, no matter what.”

How absurd. This was definitely weird. Indeed, there was a demon dwelling within this girl, but there was no need for her existence to be denied, for her to be ignored and broken to this extent. 

A sense of defiance began to surge within me, before I could even think about it, I had already voiced my mind out. 

“Hm?~ Then how about a bet?”

“A bet?’

“Yeah. You see, I’ve been thinking about destroying this shitty detention camp soon and save the children here.”

“….”

“So, here’s the best. If you manage to survive until then, I win. But if anything happens to you before that, I lose.”

“…The bet won’t work though. If you lose, I won’t be in this world anymore.”

“No. After all, I won’t lose.”

I said confidently, but half of it was just me acting tough. Of course, I didn’t have any skills I could use right now and my physical strength was basically zero. I was just a weak young boy. Still, I had to say it like that. Even though I knew that offering empty comfort like this was the same as giving cheap sympathy. 

“No matter what it takes, I will save you.”

Even just for a tiny little bit, I wanted to restore the humanity in this girl.

“……”

The girl’s eyes widened slightly. A hint of surprise. Finally, I could see a hint of humane expression on her usually expressionless face. However, she quickly returned to her usual cold demeanor. 

“So? What should I do if I lose?”

She said flatly.

“Huh?”

“It’s a bet, right? You can decide. What do you want me to do?”

No, I mean, it’s not like I want her to do anything. I just got a bit annoyed and feeling strangely stubborn so I just… Ah, this is bad. I don’t know the answer…

I was lost in my thoughts when she suddenly…

“If you’re not going to decide then I will. If I lose, I will live for you.”

“…….Pardon?”

“I will live for you. That’s what I will do.”

Hearing her words, that sounded somewhat crazy…

“Wha-Whaaaaaa-?!”

I couldn’t stop myself from letting out a funny sounding noise.

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