Suppose you have a friend who borrows your money and never pays you back. What’s the best revenge? There are many options, but I know which one I’d choose. “Ngh… ahn…! Stop, get away! I want something bigger than my husband’s…!” Recommend an NTR game. What happens when you trick someone who lives and breathes the gospel of pure harem love into playing an NTR game? Won’t he weep tears of blood? The thought alone made the corners of my lips twitch. Fucking son of a bitch. You swore you’d pay it back in a jiffy, but when I ask for it, you curse me to my face? Now I’m completely broke. How am I supposed to eat? Fine, just fine! Keep the damn money. I don’t want your dirty cash anyway. Consider that three million Sols the price for your shattered heart. I chuckled to myself, watching the monitor as a beautiful married woman rocked her hips on the cock of a beer-bellied old man. I kept playing. Two hours must have passed. The game ended and the credits began to roll. “…Shorter than I thought.” It wasn’t a bad game, certainly faithful to the NTR genre… but it wasn’t enough. I didn’t want to just make the bastard feel dirty for a little while; I wanted to carve a permanent scar on that crybaby’s heart. I bought and played a few more NTR games. Dozens of hours passed in a blur. At one point, Leah came into my room to ask what the hell I was doing, only to leave with a look of utter contempt. But this was more important! After all that effort, I had finally narrowed it down to a few candidates. “Okay, not this one. This one’s too short… hm, no, the art in this one looks like it was drawn by a goblin. So, if I get rid of this and that… I’m left with these two.” Surprisingly, the last two were made by the same company. They were companion games, set in the same world but with different protagonists. I stared at the two titles, weighing my options, and finally chose—‘The Hero’s Party’. Brutal. The sequel to this one was absolutely brutal. My first foray into the world of NTR was the sequel to ‘The Hero’s Party’, an experience so scarring it left my psyche in tatters for weeks. I can’t even remember how many keyboards I smashed. On the bright side, it made other NTR games feel tame by comparison, but… ‘If I recommend that one, it Sols’t just upset him. It’ll destroy our friendship.’ He’s the only friend I have left, and it would suck to lose him over this. So, I’ll be merciful this time. And even if it’s less vicious than its sequel, ‘The Hero’s Party’ is still a masterclass in misery. The Hero’s Party. As the title suggests, it’s about a hero’s party on a journey to defeat the Demon King. The only problem is that the journey is anything but smooth for the main character. And, for your information— This game— —has four Heroes. Three of them, including the protagonist, are men. At first, the other two male heroes seem like standard-issue rivals or minor villains. The kind of supporting characters you’re meant to overcome, giving you that sweet satisfaction of victory after a long struggle. It puts the player at ease, letting them focus on the story and the protagonist’s growth. So what’s the twist? By the time you realize something is wrong, it’s already too late. The heroines are already under the sway of the other heroes, snatched away in the blink of an eye. Of course, even then, you can struggle to win them back. The developers clearly intended for that, and they give you plenty of options. “No matter how you look at it, the people who made this are real bastards.” I tried everything to avoid the NTR. I grinded for hours to make my character stronger. I spent all my time with the heroines. I paid for every special event. I tried every possible dialogue choice. And the result of all that effort? The fucking same. Get stronger? Too bad, your character is pathetically weak. His growth rate is garbage compared to the other heroes. Raise your affection with the heroines? That’s cute. They’ll just be taken by force anyway. By the time you see them again, they’ll be completely obsessed with another hero’s ‘magic’. The game gives you a glimmer of hope, then snatches it away with interest. You have to hand it to the developers; they really knew how to cultivate despair. So, may that damn brat who Sols’t pay me back experience that despair for himself. ‘Is this really what people think Heroes are like these days?’ I mused, staring at the title screen for ‘The Hero’s Party’. As the intro cinematic began, the three heroines and the main character walked smiling down a street. The scenery around them was beautiful. Streams flowed through lush green fields under a brightly shining sun. “A trip to subjugate the Demon King… haa, what a joke.” When my journey started, I was thrown onto a battlefield before I knew my left from my right. It was useless, I know, but I’d craved a journey like this, only to get a year of hellish training instead. Pretty heroines? Touching moments? Love scenes? None of that matters on a real battlefield. Look closely, and you’re more likely to find a pretty girl’s severed head. But these bastards get to travel in comfort, goofing off here and there, and in the end, the NTR happens and it all goes to shit. In this game, you never know when the next gut punch is coming. I know because I’ve played this damn thing. Say you meet a woman you think is pretty; the next day she’s screwing some other guy. Who gets a happy erection from that? If there’s a person who can, I’d worship them as a god— —and a moron. ‘…Am I being an asshole?’ It’s been years since I last played it, but my heart still pounds just seeing these characters. I sighed and pressed the start button. I figured I’d check it one last time, just in case. A fool’s hope for a pure love ending on my nth playthrough? There was no way. Still, while the odds were zero, I couldn’t leave even the slimmest chance unexplored. -click. The moment I pressed start, a flash of light as bright as the sun erupted from the monitor, accompanied by the game’s cheerful startup jingle. “Ah shit, my eyes!” I squeezed my eyes shut and threw my arms up to block the light. After a moment, the glare faded. What the hell was that? Did the monitor break? Oh no… I don’t have the money to fix it! With that dreadful thought, I lowered my arms and opened my eyes. A wooden wall came into view. On the floor, a mysterious magic circle was greedily drinking the blood that dripped from my palm. I rubbed my eyes. The wooden walls and the glowing magic circle didn’t change. I staggered to my feet, touching the wall. —The rough feeling of unpolished wood. I was aware of my body, but it wasn’t my own. Slowly. My gaze drifted downwards. Thin and small. “Uh… um… what… is… this…?” After stuttering for a few moments, I took a deep breath and slipped a hand into my back pocket. Of course, the cigarettes that should have been there were gone. “Haha! Oh my god! WHY MEEEEEE!” Do you know the five stages of accepting the truth? I read about it on some website. Something a famous American psychologist wrote in a book, I think. Why am I thinking about this now? Because my current situation felt eerily similar. “This is a dream. Yeah, I must have fallen asleep. I’ve been playing games for too long, pulled too many all-nighters.” Stage one: denial. “No, why the fuck me?! Of all the people in all the worlds, why am I the one who gets this?! I’ve already been through this! I’ve suffered enough! Why torment this poor soul again?!” Stage two: anger. “Aaaah, God… please… I’d rather go back to the army. I’ll do two tours. That hell already wrung me dry once, but I swear, I’ll do my best.” Stage three: bargaining. “Ah… hah… for real.” Stage four: depression. “Yeah, fine, whatever. I guess I was meant for another world. Just wasn’t destined to live on Earth. Bye-bye, my beautiful planet…” Stage five, the final stage: acceptance. My emotions numb, I stared blankly at the wall. A crappy fantasy-world wooden wall. I never thought I’d see one of you again. Turning my head, I spotted a small notebook on a nearby table. I picked it up and started reading. It was a rough summary of the situation so far, some apologies, a list of things to do, and— Oh, there it is. So, I’m inside a game now. Wow, seriously… I’m Leon, the protagonist of ‘The Hero’s Party’. There were rumors his pepper was notoriously small. Should I take a look? “…” Damn, it really is that small?! Haha! I’ve never seen one the size of a pinky finger in my entire life! And now… it’s mine! “Fuck this shit!” I hurled the notebook across the room. Son of a bitch. If you’re going to die, die alone. Why did you have to drag me into this? I groaned and stepped outside. The place I’d been in was a hut on the outskirts of the village. ‘After leaving the hut, turn right and then go straight, right?’ Following the directions from the notebook, I soon saw a building with a sign that read— “Wanderer's Rest.” The fifth room on the second floor, right as you enter. As I walked into the inn, the group of villagers drinking at the tables and the innkeeper all turned to look at me. “Oh, Hero! Where have you been so late? Have you eaten? I’ve got some chicken stew left, should I bring you a bowl?” “No.” I answered curtly and headed straight for the second floor. The expressions on their faces were a little strange, probably because I wasn’t acting as friendly as the original Leon. Well, whatever. They’ll just think I’m in a bad mood. I found the fifth room, opened the door, and threw myself onto the bed. I fell asleep praying that when I woke up, this would all have been nothing but a dream. The next morning, staring up at the unfamiliar ceiling, I was forced to realize once again that this was my harsh new reality. “I need a smoke.” -knock, knock! A rapping sound came from the door. “Leon, are you still in there sleeping?” -knock, knock! “Leon?” -knock, knock! -knock, knock! -bang, bang! “Hey, Leon! Answer me! Are you still sleeping… What? The door’s not locked…?” Ugh, so noisy. I pulled a pillow over my ears. It didn’t block the thumping footsteps that grew closer, or the hard object that suddenly struck me in the back. It hurt. I rolled over, a clear sign that I wanted more sleep. But the person apparently didn’t get the message, because they hit me in the back again with the same hard thing. “Leon! Wake up! How late are you going to sleep?!” Right. If I don’t respond, this is never going to stop. I pushed the pillow off my head and turned to look. I saw a cute girl with long, smooth hair tied into two ponytails. She was on the shorter side and was holding a long wooden staff in her right hand. ‘Wow, a heroine.’ A tsundere, one who was secretly charmed by the Hero’s good looks. The only tsundere in my party. Her name was… Elara, was it? “Oh, Elara. Why are you waking me up so early?” “Why am I waking you up? Because everyone else is already awake, that’s why!” “So?” “So?! What do you mean, ‘so’?! Get up! Everyone’s waiting for you.” “Why?” “Why?! We’re only supposed to stay here for one day before moving on! Now hurry up, wash your face and get out here.” After gesturing to a gourd of water, Elara turned to leave the room. “No. It’s too much trouble.” “What?” She spun back around, her eyes wide with disbelief. She had to be. Because I had already flopped back onto the bed. “What are you doing now?” “I already told you. I’m tired… I want to… sleep…” I don’t want to be a hero… I don’t…

Chapter 2: Corrupted by My Own Revenge