[BL] I Will Be Your Number 1 Devotee!

In the blink of an eye, the mirror revealed his face. 

Clap, clap, clap.

The puppet clapped its hands, and a number appeared on the mirror, [Don't forget the number].

When he saw the number "1" on the mirror, his eyes twitched. The number displayed is the life of the participant.

As long as the liar was caught, the number would decrease, and even if the person was honest enough to increase the number, the reality was that the number would be the same, with no change whatsoever.

Only one? Seriously?

Isn't that the same as telling him to die right now?

[Let the first round start!]

The mirror in front of him instantly disappeared, and the black liquid on the table slowly rose, forming two large hammers above them.

While Eriu felt an overwhelming sense of terror, Amiley just took a quick glance at the hammers before ignoring them, as if she didn't care if her body was turned into a human dent.

[First question: Among a million lies, there is one truth. What do you think of yourself, are you a liar or an honest person?]

In the game, it is said that Death can never judge, so it will take the body of someone who will judge everything, which is why the protagonist was chosen.

Death wasn't supposed to judge, but why was it that Death was standing in front of him now, judging them?

Eriu pressed his fingers together in a gesture of reassurance, '... This trick will probably work.'

The method that the headmaster had used to survive.

Although the disadvantage of that method was that he was as stiff as glass.

For once in his life, he trusted someone who invited him to play the death game to save his life. If he died, his mother would be furious and wouldn't accept any of this, after all, there was no way that Amiley wouldn't know.

The little puppet took the gavel and struck the sound block three times.

Plak!

Plak!!!

Plak!!!

After the sound of the gavel stopped, Amiley calmly replied, "I am the liar." The puppet's head instantly turned to Eriu's direction when it heard Amiley's answer, and smiled wickedly.

"I don't know." The puppet's eyes widened, a dark black color radiating from it, and it laughed.

[Kikikii!]

Gulp.

He felt his hair stand up as the puppet walked over and looked at him closely before walking back to where it started. The mirror that had disappeared reappeared, reflecting a young, dark-haired face with the appearance of a normal-looking Asian.

His heart was pounding at the sight of the figure on the mirror. However, he was relieved to see that the numbers had not changed.

The Headmaster's method is quite simple, don't lie. If you don't know, say you don't know, but in the end, you'll end up as miserable as the three people who lied.

That's why this game makes no sense, even if you're honest, you'll turn to glass, and if you lie, you'll get killed.

So unjust.

The puppet hit the sound block again.

Plak!

[Congrats on your achievement, I'm pretty happy with your answers about lying and ignorance, let's start the second round!]

Shatter.

The hand moving the puppet grabbed the two hammers and squeezed them until they shattered. Looking up, Eriu was sure that each shard contained the reflection of a person, but since it was too dark and scary to look up, he decided to ignore it.

"..." That hammer doesn't look so bad...

Amiley's face was still the same, but now the mirrored reflected her smiling face eerily.

The puppet turned around to face the two participants before raising her head as she stared at the shards of glass with an eerie expression on her face that never left her.

[Now for the second question: Who suffers the most? Future, Past, or Present?]

Plak!

Plak!!!

The mirror didn't disappear as it had started, and in its reflection, a puppet peered over his shoulder. Although he had the urge to look at the puppet next to him, he held back for fear of being shocked and losing his calm expression.

Before the sound of the third gavel, Eriu's response was immediately, "The past." 

The puppet in the center of the table blinked its eyes a few times, and the puppet's smile disappeared. 

Immediately, the mirror in front of its face no longer reflected anyone except for the number '1', which was still there.

He has a couple of theories as to this answer.

First of all, if someone assumed that he was a 5-year-old child, then it means that he still has a happy life ahead of him. 

Of course, his answer could be considered a lie, but if it were the other way around, of course he would be considered right.

And secondly, this question was not meant for the participants, but for something else, as the puppet asked who had suffered the most from the time dimension. 

"...?" 

The instantaneous silence made him even more afraid before another voice finally rang out in the gloomy room, "The present."

The puppet in the middle of the table turned its head and looked at Eriu. It was as if it didn't even listen to the other's answer. In the blink of an eye, the puppet disappeared and was now actually holding Eriu's shoulders, the dark puppet's eyes widened, and a small whisper was heard as it turned its head to Eriu who was actually next to it.

[Next question: How did we become 'Death'?]

Cold sweat was soaking into his shoulders, and his body was so stiff that he couldn't even move a single finger. 

[Verse 1, We, 'Death', will never lie.]

His heart beat so fast he couldn't hear his own breathing, the only question he could think of being, 'How did I know!'

Drip...

Blood was dripping, and his head was in pain, as if a sharp object was piercing his brain. Slowly, the color of his eyes began to turn completely black.

[Verse 2, We pray every night to scorch-]

A very strong shove knocked the puppet off his seat before he could say the next verse.

Crash-!

The glass fragments scattered above fell all at once with unreasonable speed, Amiley, noticing the strangeness of this sudden silence, created a barrier behind her back before the glass fragments fell. She immediately stood up and rushed towards Eriu, who was silent with a blank stare, pushing him as the glass fragments fell.

"Ughh-" Amiley groaned weakly, lifting her head to look at him, the color of his eyes returning to normal, the dark red of blood slowly returning. A scratch could be seen on the top of his head, before it began to fade.

"Huftt... huft..."

With his breath coming in gasps and his entire vision blurred, Eriu, regaining consciousness, realized that something was in his grasp. The puppet and all of its nonsense was gone, along with the thin voice that was whispering to him once more.

[4 Lives- Until - Again].

He slowly lifted his hand to have a look at what was in it.

Fingers.

Realizing this, Eriu immediately looked at Amiley's hand. 3 fingers were missing. 

The scattered glass that almost hurt him was avoided thanks to Amiley's attempt to block it.

He was in a panic, but before Eriu could look for something to stop the flow of blood, he was immediately stopped: "Calm down first."

"Er... But your hand... How?" The nervousness was obvious, Amiley noticed it and immediately pointed to a neatly arranged shelf with various herbs, "Bring me a cloth and a green herb that smells like mint leaves."

Eriu nodded.

His guess was right. His mother's friend would never let him die.

Picking himself up, Eriu hurried to the shelf there. After he had found a clean white cloth, which was very clearly laid out, and thanks to its sharp smell, he was able to tell where the potion was.

Having found what he needed, he went back.

While Eriu was looking for the medicine, Amiley picked up her fallen fingers, lifted the chair she had been using and sat down in the same place as before. 

Tak.

"I can do it," Eriu said and put the things he had brought on the table. Amiley looked at him from the side, "First aid..." 

"Oh." Amiley replied briefly.

Without saying much, Amiley placed her hands on the table. Amiley realized something when he saw the 5-year-old's calm look in front of the blood and wounds.

To him, this was just a normal day.

Eriu poured the potion and bandaged Amiley's wound, tightening the bandage deliberately so that the blood would stop flowing.

Amiley's eyebrows furrowed in pain. She quickly took advantage of the opportunity before the atmosphere dissipated.

"Are you a slave in your 'memory'?" Eriu turned his head slightly at the question before he went back to treating Amiley's wound, "No."

Her goal must have been reached.

"I was just an ordinary student." 

"Really?"

"Um." The sight of those fingers was certainly a source of guilt for him, "I'll answer your three questions honestly."

"..."

Her eyes widened before a small laugh appeared, "Heh, is it because my 3 fingers are missing?" Eriu's gestures alone confirmed what she was asking, "Never mind."

"That leaves two, right?" She stared up and down at the person standing before her, a five-year-old acting strange. Ariadne said his hallucinations were getting worse, he was extremely paranoid and afraid of sharp objects, yet he was carrying sharp objects around with him.

"Human?" She asked again. Eriu nodded, "Yes, in my place there are no other races than human." Eyes reflect everything, maybe that is what the proverb means. The little boy's look was full of sadness.

"War." Amiley said it without a questioning tone. These words made Eriu feel strange. It felt strange when someone knew his secret.

Eriu nodded slowly.

"Probably, considering what happened before." His tone was low. The little boy didn't dare to raise his head, as if he was the culprit behind the incident.

"It's done." The bandages around her hands were neatly tied like a veteran. Eriu laughed quietly, "You made me play this game on purpose."

"This room smells strange, it must be potioned to make me happy."

"This game is also a way for me to be sad about my past."

Eriu repeated the original sentence he had said: "Death never lies, so death will never lie about who the person was in the past."

"You must be very curious about me and all the things I know about."

"My mother couldn't have told you trivial things, because I think you are a very inquisitive person."

"Mom must have told you something that made you finally accept me."

"No?"

"Half right, half wrong," Amiley said, closing her eyes and shaking her head. As if she were knowledge itself, her emerald green eyes glowed with the graceful aura that surrounded her.

"It's true that I tricked you, but not with the diffuse scent of medicine, but something else, I asked you to play this game of death just to prepare for the future."

"As I said before: No one knows the future except butterflies that attract someone with nectar."

"As for your mother, I'm helping her because I owe her."

The boy blinked his eyes a few times before a smile appeared on his face, "Since my guess was wrong, I am going to tell you one thing about the future."

"They say the 'Light' is sleeping now, which is why I am here. Those who have all the power have found out about this and are trying to find a loophole in it."

"In three years, they are going to squeeze out the 'Lost Paradise.'"

This sentence resembled the sound of the puppet's hammer. The nymph race was known as the lunatic race of the past, but since the phrase was twisted, the lunatic race had more knowledge of the world than anyone else.

Cradled in the warmth of their eggs, they hatch and try to break free of the shells that trap them.

Once free, a chain is attached to their necks.

There is a story that tells of their origin:

It begins with "they" having regrets.

In the middle of a sad story, they worship themselves (believe in themselves).

It ends with them dying worshipping and being worshipped for thousands of years, where the tongue is cut off to start repenting.

Once again, they live as a repentant.

While Amiley remained silent, absorbing the atmosphere of the room, Eriu left.

Eriu's gaze darkened with each step.

Unfortunately, the story was wrong.

They were all wrong!

From the beginning, they existed as a bitter sign to the world.

They only existed to be insulted!

Mocked!

And killed!

A man who made false wings to fly higher, higher than anyone else, but fell because the sun burned him.

That's who they are:

Starting with their miserable birth.

Halfway through their journey, they question the meaning of the chains that bind them.

They end up dying in purgatory.

Again they start all over again until they can squeeze out the sun.

Even after returning upstairs, this uneasiness did not disappear. If there was one thing he could conclude about this elegant woman, it was that she was an honest person.

Why did 'Death' not look at her at all? Why did the puppet say 'lie' before 'ignorance'? 

Because Amiley had been lying since the beginning of the game.

That was probably the reason why 'Death' didn't follow her, but followed him. 'Death' knew that he was a liar who lied to himself in order to become the truth.

That was why he was betting on her.

If he could not change the future himself, why not use someone else to change it?

No matter how bad it was, as long as it meant changing things, it would be different.

The sound of laughter could be heard, "Hahaha!" Amiley could not stop laughing happily, for her it was like finding a jewel that had never been polished.

What would the jewel become if the process of polishing it was done properly?

"... That those who stand in the present give birth to the future." 

That was the reason for the nymph girl's escape from her family, and the reason for their meeting in the first place. We have no knowledge of each other unless it is at the cost of one's life for the sake of another's future.

But have they ever destroyed the sun?

Sadly, no.

They are the lunatic of the past. 

The past is their mark and they can only stare at the sun.

***

An eye opened from the shadow that followed him before closing again to hide in the darkness. "Huft, all right, let's go back to the beginning," Eriu took a deep breath before exhaling.

The beginning of his arrival, the beginning of 001 telling him the secrets of the world, and the beginning of his recording of the events of the 'future'. 

When he left the room, Eriu walked with a normal expression on his face that even Noah, who still did not trust him, did not suspect: "Hey!" Eriu greeted when their eyes met. Noah herself was standing in front of the door they had entered.

Noah, who had been pensive while staring outside, noticed the sound of footsteps in the hallway where her mother worked.

"Hello..." Realizing that Noah was looking for the other person and did not want the innocent girl to know what was going on, Eriu explained the last part of their conversation, "Auntie said she wanted to be alone."

"Uh..."

"She also told you to take me to the room that has been prepared and don't forget to wake her up at 3 pm." Noah nodded, understanding Eriu's intentions. Seeing that his belongings were still in place, Eriu breathed a sigh of relief before picking them up. 

Two bags were carried, one with his belongings and the other with the essential items for his medicine. Ariadne's advice was never to open them without Amiley's permission.

Whatever it is, don't ever think of opening it if you don't want anything to happen.

In the past, when he was on a trip with Axel, someone had snuck into his room. At that time, Axel said that the inn he chose was very safe. But after that incident, he did not believe Axel's words and set many traps everywhere.

Once, when Axel tried to get into his room, he was almost stabbed with a knife.

At that time, Axel was disappointed in him and talked about it every time they were on a trip.

But back when the intruder was sneaking in, he saw that the forbidden bag was open...

... As long as nothing happened to him, everything would be safe, right?

The two of them walked side by side, noticing that Noah looked at him several times, he deliberately looked directly at Noah with a sweet smile, "Hm?"

"Ah!" Noah took a few steps back and shook her head, "No, it's nothing..."

"Really? I thought you were going to invite me to play with you." Eriu still remembered his invitation to this girl. Perhaps because of his real age, he himself did not know how to communicate with children, except for Eros.

Eros himself would approach him and often invite him first. To him, this girl was similar to himself in the past. It was just that he himself was unsure as to how to convince people who had traits similar to his own.

"!"

Without answering, Noah walked ahead of him, stopping at the door. Her flushed face alone revealed her true nature.

"...W-wait here for a moment!" Noah immediately blocked the door and immediately cast a spell with a very low voice, Eriu himself also felt that this was the right time to give her a gift, as the two people handed each other the items they wanted to give.

"Ah..." Eriu blinked his eyes.

"...Hm" While Noah averted her eyes.

One gave a headband and one gave a flower.

The hair band was a bright yellow color with daisy flowers decorating each band. Before he left, Eriu, knowing his mother's friend had a daughter, decided to make a headband, it looked modern, but it was the way he made that headband he remembered best.

He used to make them as gifts for his crushes.

The smiling Eriu looked very reassuring to Noah. That's why she tried to pick up the Rain Flower in the middle of the river. He was her first friend. And the meaning of this flower was very appropriate for Eriu.

Morning dew.

"Wow, it's so beautiful!" Eriu approached and looked at the flower with a happy tone, seeing that Eriu really appreciated what she'd done certainly made Noah very happy. Noah also immediately saw an object in Eriu's hand that confused Noah, resembling a hand decoration...

"It's a hairband."

"?"

Eriu chuckled at the confused face, "Turn around for a moment." After living with Eros, he was used to doing hair ties for others, he could even do hair ties for other people without them feeling any pain.

"Just the final touch..." Eriu brought his face closer to hers and smoothed the bangs, "It's done."

Noah still had the flower in her hands, but her face was so hot that even her heart was beating fast.

He was her first friend and he was also the one who had tied up her hair first. 

"Noah?" 

Before her face turned red, Noah took Eriu's hand and put down the flower before running away. 

Maybe this was her spring story.

Eriu turned back to the rainflower, confused that Noah had suddenly run away from him.

He was thoughtful for a moment, frowned, and realized it immediately.

"Don't tell me he often looks at me like that...?"

Eros' habit of keeping his face close to him had even affected him!

Eriu pursed his lips and just like Noah, his face immediately turned red like a stewed tomato.