In the original game's lore, this seemingly flawless Princess's attitude toward Greg, her former fiancé, had always been unreserved disgust and indifference, regarding him as the shame of the nobility.
Yet Greg's current impression of his former fiancée wasn't particularly bad.
The reason was simple: within the narrative structure of the original game, Vivian Kahn held a role similar to his own—a villain.
Indeed, this beautiful, powerful, and high-status First Princess was neither a romanceable heroine nor an important supporting character who offered aid; she was a female villain destined to fall into darkness in the middle stage of the story and stand against the protagonist group.
In any storyline of the original game, as the plot progressed, Vivian would endure ever-increasing psychological pressure from the growing radiance of her younger sister Lilith's talent.
When this pressure reached its peak at a critical turning point, she would completely break down. Succumbing to temptation or coercion, she would choose to cast herself into the darkness, join the Demon King Cult, and even fuse with Demon blood at all costs to obtain power, ultimately becoming a fearsome enemy locked in a mortal feud with the heroines.
Yet the difference between her and himself was:
What Greg Sass bore was mostly the malice of the game developers, where various nonsensical deaths often drew loud laughter from players, who viewed him as a clown character meant to lighten the mood.
Vivian Kahn was different.
Her corruption and downfall were accompanied by complete psychological characterization and tragic setup.
Especially in Lilith's route, when the player controlled Victoria joining forces with Lilith to finally defeat her after a hard-fought battle, the dying Vivian would welcome a confession and monologue that served as a magnificent character elevation in her sister's arms.
Greg still remembered that CG animation:
The ice-and-snow beautiful princess lay in her sister's arms, her body gradually growing cold from the backlash of her demonic transformation and fatal wounds.
Her ice-blue eyes looked at Lilith, her past severity and coldness melting away like snow under sunlight, leaving only deep exhaustion and relief.
She intermittently recalled warm memories of the two of them playing together as children and her teaching Lilith magic, before speaking in a faint breath:
"Feeling pressured by your talent was just an excuse. I... perhaps was simply jealous of your fierce, pure spark, something I could never possess."
Finally, using her remaining strength, she gently wiped away the tears on her sister's face and uttered those words:
"I'm sorry, Lilith... I actually... just wanted to make you proud of me too..."
As soon as the words left her mouth, she completely dissipated in Lilith's arms like shattered ice crystals.
It was precisely this deathbed monologue, full of tragic beauty and complex emotion, that caused countless players during Lilith's route to develop intense sympathy and even affection for Vivian the villain. They subsequently tried every possible method in an attempt to save her during gameplay and prevent her from reaching that doomed, destructive end.
Yet the result was despairing.
No matter how players tried—boosting affection early on, triggering hidden events... Vivian Kahn would ultimately slide toward corruption and be slain in the final battle with the protagonist group.
She was a character who, like Greg Sass, was nailed to a doomed ending by the original script.
This was something that had also made Greg sigh with regret back when he was a player in his past life.
However, all of that belonged to the middle stage of the original game onward.
At least at the current moment, the blue-haired girl in front of him remained that aloof, serious, and exceptionally capable Student Council President who earned the deep respect and awe of the academy's faculty and students—the pride of the kingdom, First Princess Vivian Kahn.
"Regardless of what specifically occurred back then, the entity capable of slaying Lady Eight-Legs is without a doubt a powerful individual. Furthermore, according to the professors' confirmation of the dungeon restriction, this person must be an enrolled student of our academy."
Vivian's clear, cold voice echoed through the cavern, breaking the whispers of the Student Council members and cutting off Greg's train of thought.
Her gaze swept across every corner of the lair, as though reconstructing the scene in her mind.
"A-A student?!"
"How is that possible!"
"President, that's a LV35 Lord! And it had the Divine Protection of the dungeon!"
Upon hearing this, the Student Council members' faces collectively showed expressions of unbelievable shock.
To them, simply being able to safely explore the deep area already required considerable courage and teamwork.
Subjugating the First Layer Lord alone?
That was purely a fantasy!
In the shadows, Greg silently withdrew his gaze.
Nightmare's playful voice chimed in right on cue:
"Oh? Your taste seems to have changed again? Taking an interest in a serious, iceberg-type girl this time? But I must remind you, she looks like the type with a very strong desire for control. I'm really worried whether that small body of yours will be able to handle her in the future~"
Greg rolled his eyes in his heart. "You improper Hajimi...! How can you spot something like that so directly?!"
"I am the Goddess of Night."
Nightmare spoke with complete confidence. "Seeing through mortals' secret preferences and desires that they wouldn't share with outsiders at a single glance—isn't that only natural?"
"...I always feel there's a fundamental disconnect between your understanding of a goddess and mine," Greg complained helplessly.
He carefully wound the last few strands of Golden Glow Spider Silk and tucked them into his inner pocket.
Having completed his harvesting, he didn't immediately saunter off, but continued lurking in the shadows, waiting for an appropriate moment.
Just as he prepared to retreat silently along the hidden path he had come by, his gaze casually drifted once more to the upright blue figure standing in the center of the cavern.
Vivian still stood there, her ice-blue eyes gazing into the depths of the nest, her profile looking calm and focused under the faint light, as though deep in thought.
Greg's movements paused slightly.
"Fellow villains written to death by the script..."
A thought flashed through his mind.
Although the time wasn't right yet and the plot was still early... considering her final monologue was quite touching, well...
He let out a soft breath, took one last look at Vivian, and made a vague decision in his heart.
If there was an opportunity in the future and conditions permitted... for the sake of a kindred spirit, if he could lend a hand in passing, he would.
Consider it... a compensation for the regret of his past life.
With his mind made up, Greg lingered no longer. His form, like water merging into darkness, silently glided along the shadow of the rock wall toward the narrow fissure on the other side of the nest that was half-concealed by tattered cobwebs. Soon, he disappeared into the deep darkness without leaving a trace.
In the very next second after Greg's figure fully vanished into the fissure—
Vivian, who had been gazing into the depths of the nest, suddenly shifted her ice-blue eyes slightly, as if sensing something, and abruptly turned toward the shadowed section of the rock wall where Greg had just hidden and departed.
Her gaze was sharp as a blade, lingering on the shadow and the mouth of the fissure for several seconds as her brow creased almost imperceptibly.
Yet there was nothing there now—only the rough texture of the rock wall and the tattered webs hanging silently in the dim light, with Greg long gone.
Vivian stared for a moment before finally withdrawing her gaze. A faint trace of doubt flickered in her ice-blue eyes, but she did not press further.
She shook her head softly.
"An illusion...?"
Immediately after, she refocused her full attention on the Student Council task before her, her face returning to its customary calm and seriousness, as if that fleeting moment of hesitation had never occurred.
Rate on N.U.
