I browsed through online communities to check how players were reacting to my game.
As always, anonymous forums were filled with crude discussions.
...Or maybe not.
It felt like things had gotten even worse.
I didn’t remember it being this bad before.
Could this be my fault? Did Akashic Archive somehow make them like this?
A pang of guilt hit me, but I quickly ignored it.
A certain degree of vulgarity was only natural, wasn’t it?
I vaguely recalled some famous scholar on Earth claiming that sexual desire played a crucial role in human progress.
So... maybe this was a positive development?
I continued scrolling through my magic terminal, skimming through the other posts.
These players were piecing together the overarching narrative of Beidos as the central antagonist, just as I had intended.
Some had even begun piecing together the hints scattered throughout the game, connecting them to Queen of the Night and unearthing details about Thystina's past—long before her in-game debut in the final chapter.
The players' deductive skills were exceeding my expectations.
And I didn’t mind.
If anything, it meant they were deeply immersed in the game.
And the more immersed they were, the more beautifully this story would conclude.
However, there was still one part of the narrative that troubled me.
The [Lady of the Night] had become a Constellation after death, and the "organization" that had exploited her since childhood had been dismantled.
Everyone who had known her before she ascended was long dead.
Except for one person.
One person who absolutely should not learn the truth about [Lady of the Night].
...It would be a disaster if she saw the story once it went live.
But then again, she didn't seem like the type to play Akashic Archive.
It should be fine... right?
Maybe I should double-check.
***
"Congratulations, Number Eleven. You have been chosen as my successor."
Beydia had risen through the ranks with astonishing speed.
She had walked this path before, after all. And the talent slumbering within her body—her sister’s gift—was not something that could be concealed.
By obediently following the organization’s orders and gathering intelligence, she had ascended to the rank of Number Eleven, just one step away from the coveted Single Number status.
"It is an honor," Beydia replied with precise formality.
Tractus, the Number Four and a high-ranking executive within the organization, observed her reaction with a smirk.
"When I sent you to the Chamber of Atonement that day, I never expected you'd make it this far."
Sitting back in his plush chair, he crossed his legs and took a leisurely drag from his pipe.
"Hah... The great one must have taken a liking to you."
Beydia knew exactly who he was referring to.
The entity imprisoned since the age of myth—the Dark Dragon Beidos.
The malevolent god who sought to use the organization to break his seal.
"I suppose it’s only natural, given how flawlessly you've handled your recent assignments. You should look forward to what comes next. Once you receive his blessing, you’ll be able to see the world through my eyes."
Beydia bowed her head in silent acknowledgment and left the room.
"Your world is not the one I want to see, Tractus."
The Single Number seats represented the pinnacle of the organization’s hierarchy.
She had come this far, yet she still didn’t understand why the Constellation of Wisdom had sent her here.
What truth remained hidden from her?
And would she see the world her sister had seen... once she claimed a Single Number for herself?
"Oh! Sis!"
As Beydia walked, lost in thought, a small girl suddenly stopped her in her tracks.
"Sis!"
The child ran up to her, throwing herself at Beydia’s leg in a tight hug.
A younger Beydia.
Her past self.
"Beydia. You shouldn’t call me ‘Sis’ so loudly."
"I already checked! There's no one around! I have that much common sense!"
The little girl pouted, her round cheeks puffing up in [N O V E L I G H T] protest.
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Looking at her, Beydia saw exactly how immature she must have seemed to her own sister.
"But, Sis! Everyone’s talking about how you're going to be a Single Number! Does this mean you’ll be one of the big shots?"
The child flapped her arms excitedly.
Beydia let out a soft chuckle.
"That’s what they say. But you know how it works. To inherit a number, the current holder has to die first."
Executives of the Single Number ranks rarely left their seats.
It was almost unheard of for them to die.
Even Beydia herself had never witnessed a change in those positions.
"But that still means you’re next in line!"
"That’s true."
Beydia gently ruffled her younger self’s hair.
"That much was always part of my plan."
A week later.
The storm raged over the outskirts of the city.
Rain poured in relentless sheets, drenching the empty streets.
A carriage sped across a bridge spanning the river, its wheels skidding on the slick surface.
THUD! THUD!
The carriage lost control, tumbling down the slope in a violent cascade.
Then—
BOOOOOM!
It struck the water’s surface and erupted into flames.
The explosion sent the carriage’s magic cores flying, triggering a deadly chain reaction.
The sheer destruction left no doubt—no one could have survived that.
"...Not bad."
From a distance, a hooded figure observed the fiery wreckage.
Beydia tugged her hood lower over her face.
Tractus must have died flailing in despair to the very end.
He never would’ve suspected that the carriage’s brakes had been tampered with, or that the magic cores he was transporting had been rigged.
With this, the organization would suspect the resistance.
A perfect success.
A smirk played on Beydia’s lips as she turned away.
***
"Due to the treacherous terrorist attack by the Resistance, the seat of Number Four has been left vacant. In accordance with protocol, former Number Eleven, Thystina, shall be appointed to the position."
Upon returning to the organization’s headquarters, Beydia was swiftly summoned by the other Single Numbers.
This was Beidos’s direct circle—his highest-ranking apostles.
And with this promotion, she was finally allowed to reclaim her true name.
Thystina.
That was who she had been all along.
"I told you! I knew she’d climb the ranks this fast!"
"Hah! That much was obvious. The real question was how long that idiot Tractus would take to die!"
"Congratulations on becoming an Apostle, Thystina."
The Single Numbers stood as equals, except for one.
Beydia offered them a polite nod in response.
The real challenge began now.
"The great one wishes to see you."
"Don’t worry. He likes you."
An audience with Beidos.
It was both a privilege and an obligation.
As a Single Number, she now held the right—and the burden—of facing the ancient god in person.
Tension coiled in her chest.
With the other executives watching, Beydia descended deep into the organization's sanctum.
Deeper.
And deeper still.
The pressure thickened with every step, weighing down on her like an iron chain.
Had her sister endured this same crushing presence?
At the end of the path, she passed through the veil.
And there, she saw it.
A true god.
An ancient being that had slaughtered countless deities and drowned entire worlds in fear.
***
Meanwhile.
"Ehehe~"
The Lady of the Night clutched a long pillow tightly, rolling across her bed.
The pillowcase bore the image of Akashic Archive’s Curator.
Naked.
She lazily traced a finger over the excessively detailed nipples printed on the fabric.
"Oh my~? What's wrong, Curator? Hmm? Are you struggling to hold back? Oh dear, oh dear, this won’t do~."
"..."
Pressing her bare feet against the lower half of the pillow, she rubbed against it with deliberate slowness.
"Tell me what you want. If you don’t say it, I won’t do it."
She had no idea.
"That’s it! Beg for it properly! This queen shall grant you her divine favor!"
"..."
The man who had entered her dream, seeking answers through the power of the Authority of Dreams, stood frozen in horror at the sight before him.
Without a word, he quietly stepped out.