The Villain's Ending is Only Death Chapter 31
I was startled, gasping for air and turning my body.
Then, I noticed something strange on the wall.
A square was drawn on the wallpaper.
Boom! In the meantime, a heavy noise echoed again.
This time, I was certain. The sound was coming from the wall where the line was drawn.
Reaching the wall in one leap, I ran my hand over the straight lines of the square.
Up close, I saw that it wasn't a line but a crack.
It was a door, likely leading to a secret passage.
"Wow, so you're a real magician after all?"
My heart raced at the sight of a secret passage, something you'd only see in novels or movies.
In the game, Butter would always appear like a ghost whenever the female protagonist was sad or upset, showing off flashy magic.
The creator's intention for the Butter character was obvious.
'A charming guy who appears out of nowhere whenever I'm sad and puts on a show just for me!'
Normal mode was generally easy, but Butter's route was even easier.
Unlike the other prickly characters, he almost showered affection on the real princess from the start.
So I didn't delete him. His default setting was affectionate, so I kept him just in case.
'But now, I need to make him a backup card quickly.'
I smiled wryly, then frowned and scrutinized the area where the line was drawn.
There was no doorknob, no groove like a sliding door.
Just a crack in the shape of a door.
"It's not part of the interior design, of course."
I stroked my chin, looking seriously at the door, and placed my hand on the wall again.
Maybe there was an invisible button nearby.
Just as I started feeling around, a white square window appeared before my eyes.
Hidden quest triggered! [Reveal the Wizard's Secret!]
You have discovered the wizard's secret chamber. Do you want to enter? (Reward: Something unknown.)
My eyes widened at the unexpected hidden quest.
This quest wasn't in the normal mode.
Quickly checking the reward, I frowned.
The hidden quest, being truly 'hidden,' didn't reveal what the reward was.
Just like the [Choice ON/OFF] feature from before.
"Do I really need to go in?"
I stared at the accept button, pondering.
Honestly, all that mattered to me was Butter's affection, and I wasn't particularly interested in his secrets.
People have their own privacy, so what would I do with his secrets?
'The reward doesn't guarantee increased affection, and I might face backlash if I mess with this. Damn!'
Just as I was about to press decline without a second thought, a loud boom echoed again.
The wall vibrated. This time, I saw it with my own eyes.
"…But if this is the wizard's suspicious chamber, Butter might be inside."
Come to think of it, he hadn't shown up despite the long wait.
I shouldn't think short-sightedly; this might be one of the hard mode routes I missed in the game.
I carefully read the text in the system window again.
Sure enough, only the reward was listed, with no penalty for failure.
So even if I failed the quest, nothing bad would happen. Probably.
"Right. I've come this far, so I should at least see what's inside."
I changed my mind and pressed accept.
The wall slid to the side with a rumble, revealing the secret passage.
I entered without hesitation.
On the other side, a long, dark, and wide corridor stretched out.
From the outside, the building didn't seem big enough to have such a space.
Stepping into this place made me feel like a movie protagonist, which was quite thrilling.
Suddenly, another loud noise accompanied by a slight tremor echoed.
I frowned and covered my ears with both hands.
'What the hell is going on?'
The source of the noise seemed to be from beyond the corridor, where bright light was flowing out.
I crossed the long corridor with my ears tightly covered.
Finally, I stopped at the end of the corridor.
A vast space, as large as the back garden of the duke's mansion, appeared.
Huge bookshelves lined the walls, filled with countless books.
The duke's mansion's library was already impressive, but this place was almost on the scale of a national library.
I was mesmerized by the magical space I had never seen in the game.
Besides the towering bookshelves, there were many other things to see in this vast space.
Large glass cases scattered on the floor contained unfamiliar jewels, accessories, and unknown minerals.
On the other side, there were taxidermied animals and giant bones that looked like reconstructed dinosaur fossils.
"This place is like… a museum?"
I muttered, looking around in a daze.
"Jackpot, this place is amazing."
To think there were even more secrets within this secret space!
I took my hands off my ears and decided to explore further.
Just as I took an excited step forward,
The loud noise I had momentarily forgotten pulled me back to reality.
"Ouch! Watch out for the fragments!"
I saw children scattering in one corner.
Sharp ice fragments were raining down behind them.
They all wore animal masks: lion, cat, squirrel, dog, pig…
"Damn! Be careful! If the box inside gets damaged, we'll be dead to our guild master!"
The child with the lion mask, who had narrowly avoided the ice fragments and rolled on the ground, stood up and shouted.
"Got it. This time, I'll gently chip away the surroundings…"
One of them muttered gloomily, holding something.
'A staff? Are they wizards?'
Another child, who had run away from the falling ice fragments and returned, also raised a staff.
"This time, you do the left side! I'll do the right!"
Five children surrounded a large block of ice much bigger than they were.
I observed the ice block closely. Something was frozen in the middle.
For some reason, this situation felt familiar.
If my memory served me right, that was…
'The ancient wizard's artifact!'
[Acquired ancient wizard's artifact!
This necklace is one of the artifacts used by ancient wizards, discovered by Butter in the northern ruins. It changes color when toxic substances are nearby…
…When excavated, all other artifacts were destroyed, leaving only this one. Its rarity is recognized upon acquisition, increasing Butter's affection…]
I couldn't remember exactly how much Butter's affection increased.
'There's a reason why only one artifact survived while the others were destroyed!'
"Nom Ferdagnon Ferro Ssu!"
A child with a pig mask chanted a strange spell.
At the same time, a white light shot out from the staff like a laser.
The light hit the ice block, causing an explosion.
"Aah! Get out of the way!"
The children scattered again.
Once the smoke cleared, a part of the box was deeply indented.
"Wow, kids! We finally got the corners to pop out! We did it!"
"Really? Let's do it one more time together!"
I was shocked to see the excited children jumping around.
'These brats! Artifacts should be handled as delicately as a baby!'
If they kept this up, they'd soon destroy not only the ice block but also the box inside.
I rushed to block the children who were about to chant another strange spell.
They were around ten or eleven years old, with bright eyes turning to me.
The child with the lion mask pointed at me with a small staff that had been pointing at the ice.
"But you're wearing a mask that looks like a noble lady's face!"
"Right, right! It's a scary noble lady's face!"
Only then did I realize I was wearing a mask.
Confused by the odd comparison, I quickly understood.
To the children, the smiling white mask must have reminded them of a noble lady with white makeup.
"I'm not a noble lady. I'm a guest."
I calmed myself and explained like an adult. Then I asked,
"We're the guild master's apprentices."
"Idiot! What if we get in trouble for telling her!"
"But guests aren't supposed to be here!"
"You can't come in here! How did you get in?"
The children started chattering all at once, making me lose my composure.
I was always weak for children in real life too.
Feeling helpless at the sight of the uncontrollable children, a nursery rhyme came to mind.
"Kids! Stop, stop! Let's play a game!"