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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 47
Chapter Title: A Twisted Fairy Tale
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…What kind of absurd trial is this?
After observing for a few more minutes and hearing no more of the fairy tale, it seemed I was, in fact, the prince.
I figured this floor would probably end once I saw the fairy tale’s ending.
‘In that case, I guess it’ll be over once I find the Snow White who ate the poisoned apple.’
The boss isn’t Snow White, is she? I hope a childhood-ruining ending like that isn’t waiting for me.
To assess the situation, I approached a nearby castle, and before long, I ran into Seth, who was standing guard at the gate.
“Why are you just standing there?”
“Uwaah, I don’t know. My body won’t move… Ah? It’s working!”
Is he being dramatic? I gave Seth a light push.
“…”
“Wow, my body moved when you touched me. That’s amazing.”
“It’s probably because of the way this floor is set up.”
“Huh?”
“It’s about who the main character is. Anyway, do you know where the others are?”
“Ah! I know where Haira is.”
Seth explained that Haira had sent him a telepathic message using her Kia.
“She’s inside the castle?”
Not long after entering the castle, I found Haira.
“Oh. Am I allowed to laugh?”
“…You don’t look like you want to laugh at all.”
“Seth said he’d laugh for me.”
Just as Seth had said, Haira was inside the castle.
The problem was…
‘She’s turned into a mirror.’
Haira had become ‘the new queen’s mirror.’
Haira muttered with a deadpan expression.
“…Laugh all you want, but could you please tell me how to get out of this?”
A short while later, we were walking toward the forest.
This was thanks to Haira using her Kia to locate the rest of our party.
“He said this is a world from a fairy tale he knows. Isn’t that amazing?”
“A fairy tale?”
Haira was able to move after I touched her.
Recalling the sight of her trapped in the mirror, it was still quite a strange thing to think about.
‘What’s the queen to do, having lost her mirror?’
“That’s unexpected. Are you scared of fairy tales?”
“I’m not scared of them.”
“Huh? But you said this place is a fairy tale, didn’t you?”
“I did. But it seems it’s not something I’m scared of, but something I dislike.”
“Is that possible?”
“I guess it’s broken.”
Haira looked bewildered but didn’t press the matter further.
“Well… still, this peaceful atmosphere isn’t so bad.”
It seemed Haira liked this place, too. It was a place where nothing happened, not a crime scene, and not a horror story.
Before long, we came across Brett.
He had become ‘the Huntsman.’
‘Looks like everyone’s being given a role.’
Our companions were trapped in spaces fitting their given roles, and they were able to move just by my touch.
“Haha, I’m saved. My body was moving on its own until I met you, Big Bro, so I got separated from Ged and Helios. It just kept trying to hunt on its own, you know?”
“And I kept being forced to tell the queen she was beautiful.”
“I-I couldn’t say a single word. I couldn’t even move from my spot in front of the castle.”
Not long after meeting Brett, we were reunited with Ged.
Ged was…
“Bwahahahaha! Ahahahaha! What happened to you?”
“I don’t know! Why am I the only one like this?! Stop laughing, Brett! Dammit, this is a disgrace to my manhood! Big Brooo!”
He had become a dwarf.
Unfortunately, although meeting me allowed him to leave the dwarf’s cottage, he didn’t return to his original body.
“Pfft, it seems you’ll only go back to normal after the trial is over.”
At that, even Haira and Seth couldn’t hold back their laughter and burst out.
‘This is the first time I’ve seen them laugh so hard.’
“Where’s Helios?”
“Ah, the Captain is straight down that path! But, Big Bro…”
“Yeah?”
“…Please don’t be surprised.”
Ged’s reaction wasn’t particularly puzzling.
‘Considering the remaining roles, did Helios become one of the other dwarfs along with Ged?’
Wouldn’t Helios look good even in a tiny form?
That face of his would look good even if you stuck it on a wild boar.
We reached the end of the path.
“Huh? We can’t go any further…!”
“Same here.”
“Haha, me too.”
Ged’s group was blocked by an invisible wall. When I focused my eyes, I could see a wall made of Kia.
Among the group, I was the only one unaffected.
“I’ll go get Helios, then. You guys hang out here.”
“Yes, Big Bro! Uh, but… Ah, Big Bro! Big Bro! Wait a minute…!”
Annoyed, I ignored Ged’s desperate calls and walked on.
And then I finally understood why he had told me not to be surprised.
“What are you doing over there?”
At the end of the path, a beautiful, wide-open field spread out before me.
Under a massive poplar tree in the center, I could see a glass coffin.
And inside the coffin…
Helios, his hair now pitch-black, was lying peacefully.
He was even wearing the trademark yellow dress I remembered from Snow White.
“Wow, they had a dress in your size?”
“…Shut up.”
Lying still, Helios’s face turned bright red. It was clear he was unable to move from his position in the coffin.
Honestly, when Haira became a mirror, I was only briefly fascinated.
And Ged’s appearance wasn’t all that surprising either.
‘But this is quite a sight.’
I circled the coffin, admiring the view. I had to get a good look.
“What are you doing? Where are the others? And what’s with that outfit?”
“The dress suits you.”
“…”
Is it because of his face that it suits him so well?
Now I went closer to the coffin and crouched down to get a better look.
“Don’t worry, everyone’s safe. So I’m just going to enjoy the view for a bit.”
“Fuck you!”
“There, there. You’re so pretty, sweetie.”
“I’ll kill you. I’m really going to kill you!”
“It’s been a while, so it’s nice to even hear you curse.”
Only after I had my fill of admiring him did I give Helios a light push.
‘Hm?’
Something was wrong.
“Helios, can you get up?”
Even though I had approached and touched him, the only part of Helios that could move was his hand.
He couldn’t get out of the coffin.
“…What on earth did you do? Don’t tell me you know how I can get out of here, Master?”
“Um, I thought I did, but I guess not.”
I briefly explained the situation.
That this was a fairy tale I knew, and that Ged and the others were able to move once I appeared.
“Why doesn’t it work for me?”
“I know… wait.”
It suddenly occurred to me. This was a fairy tale, and Helios, Ged’s group, and I had all been given roles.
If we had become characters in the story, then ending this situation meant seeing the fairy tale to its conclusion.
‘The end of the Snow White fairy tale is a kiss.’
There was a problem.
‘What am I supposed to do when both the prince and Snow White are men?’
It had become a very open-minded fairy tale.
Of course, I was a woman, but Helios didn’t know that, and besides…
“My eyes are sharp. Someone like me must be popular with people like you.”
Hadn’t he been utterly disgusted by the idea of a man showing interest in him during our first meeting?
“Helios, I figured out how to end this floor. But there’s a problem.”
“What problem? If you know the way, then hurry up and solve it.”
“You and I have to kiss.”
“…Right. Hurry up and, what?”
Helios froze solid.
“Hm, I guess you’re not into it with a guy, right?”
“Wait, why, why would you think that?!”
“Because you really hated it when I said someone like me must be popular with people like you.”
“…”
“Wait here. I’ll go get Haira as a backup plan.”
“St… Stop!”
A large hand grabbed my wrist.
I could see his reddened face.
“Y-You do it, Master.”
“But you said that kind of attention was disgusting, didn’t you?”
“You’re quite shy. Did you like the compliment that much?”
“Shut up! Just shut up! You, you disgusting…!”
“What? When did I ever say that?!”
“When we first met. Don’t you remember?”
Helios, who at first seemed bewildered, stiffened for a moment before covering his face with his hand.
“That was…!”
Looks like he remembers.
“The situation is different now. Isn’t this… n-necessary?”
“It is, I guess?”
I thought for a moment, then glanced back toward the path.
“But if the condition to clear this is just to wake up the sleeping princess, it might work even if Haira does it.”
“And if it doesn’t?”
If that happened, Helios would have to endure two unwanted kisses.
Come to think of it, that wouldn’t be good either.
‘Well, I could try, and if it doesn’t work, I can go get Haira.’
Besides, there was a small chance that this wasn’t the clear condition at all.
“Alright, I’ll take care of it quickly, then. So it’s not unpleasant.”
“…”
Helios, looking up at me, briefly lowered his gaze.
“It’s… not unpleasant. Just get it over with.”
