Some time passed, and as the sun dipped below the horizon, stars began to emerge. The alley was cloaked in an eerie shadow, as if it were shrouded in black fog, making it impossible to see even a step ahead. The scene had a surreal, dreamlike quality, reminiscent of the haze just before dawn. However, this calm scene was quickly reversed.

*Snap!*

With a light flick of my fingers, the fog that had swallowed the alley vanished in an instant, leaving no trace behind.

“Haa...”

I exhaled as the darkness receded. Perhaps I wasn’t used to using my powers again after such a long time. My fingertips tingled with a slight sting.

Maybe I went a little overboard.

I brushed off the shadows lingering on my sleeves. While I absentmindedly dusted myself off, I heard faint groaning nearby.

“Ugh... uuurgh…”

Two people were rolling on the ground—Dector and his guard. Their bodies, miserable and pathetic, were twitching with their eyes rolled back.

I had hit them directly with ‘Lies,’ and now, it seemed, they were broken. From here on out, they would live as empty shells, spending the rest of their days in misery. I quietly expressed some sympathy.

“I didn’t really mean to go this far…”

I had hoped to resolve things peacefully, after all. I’m a magnanimous person. But when that bastard said *Regia’s* name, I couldn’t hold back.

“Well, people should know their place, don’t you think?”

A mere extra character dared to try and lay hands on our protagonist. That was unacceptable. Once a line is crossed, a price must be paid.

“This is the price I impose on you.”

I smirked mockingly, savoring the satisfaction of my vengeance, then turned away. Now that the danger had been dealt with, it was time to head back to my inn.

As I moved, something brushed against my foot. I knelt down quietly to examine what it was.

It was the body of a boy, no older than ten. His face was covered in blood, his features battered and broken, likely from being beaten with mana-infused blows.

Was he an unfortunate victim of misplaced anger? The hollowed cheeks, lined with dried tears, told his story. I reached out slowly and gently wiped the cold, lifeless tears from his eyes.

“Such cruelty…”

The slums were like this. A place where the weak, the young, and the powerless were killed for nothing more than being unable to protect themselves.

“You died simply because you were young.”

Every adult was once a child. But most forget what it was like to be that young.

“My poor Leon Berth.”

But you were not even given the right to forget your childhood. Your time stopped before you had the chance to grow up. May this alley remember you. And may it forget the childhood you never had.

*Rustle.*

I covered the boy’s face with a handkerchief from my pocket. For a brief moment, a song of mourning filled the air. Afterward, I stood up.

‘Now it’s really time to go.’

There was much left to do. Only a week remained before the academy entrance, and tomorrow was a particularly important event. I needed to prepare.

‘Although... I’ve had the feeling someone’s been watching for a while now.’

I frowned, sensing something from a distance. I scanned the area, but since I had just used my ability, my senses were dulled by a lingering dizziness.

Still, there didn’t seem to be any reason to be alarmed. There was no malice in the air, no strange mana flows. It was probably just some drunk wandering nearby.

I concluded my thoughts and decided it was best to leave quickly before anyone spotted me in this compromising situation. Without looking back, I moved out of the alley.

After I left, a figure hidden in the shadows stepped into the open.

It was a girl who didn’t quite belong in a place like this. Her blue eyes, reminiscent of the sea, and her platinum hair shimmered even against the night’s backdrop. Though she wore a cloak to hide her identity, her noble aura was unmistakable.

The girl carefully scanned her surroundings, making sure the snake had left completely. Once satisfied that there was no danger, she finally let her hand drop from the hilt of her sword.

*Thud.*

She collapsed onto her knees as if her strength had left her. Her forehead was damp with cold sweat. Though her face remained expressionless, it was clear she was shaken.

“What… was that?”

She murmured to herself. The girl’s gaze turned hazy, replaying the scene she had just witnessed. It was like a nightmare. She clenched her fists, her shoulders trembling involuntarily.

“I’ve never heard of something like that before.”

There had been rumors of strange happenings in the slums recently, but nothing about a creature like that. What on earth was going on? She pressed her fingers against her temple, feeling the pounding in her head.

The girl rose to her feet. It seemed she had decided that further investigation was necessary. She needed to learn more about the ‘man’ she had seen.

“I guess I’ll head back for now.”

This girl was none other than Charlotte Litt von Staufen, the First Princess of the Empire. She was also known as Charlotte, the Little Prince—a central character in the original game *The World Seen by the Little Prince.*

Moving with caution, she disappeared into the shadows, making sure no one noticed her presence.

---

After a long day, I finally returned to the inn and lay down on the bed. I wasn’t particularly tired, but I needed to recover from the use of my powers.

“As expected, it’s a difficult ability to handle.”

I muttered to myself. My fingertips still tingled from the aftereffects. I clenched my fist lightly.

“Hm.”

The ability was hard to control, but it was also incredibly powerful. If I wanted to, I could wipe out the entire continent with ease.

*The power of Lies.*

The ability to bend reality through the lies I speak. I could deceive anything I wished, deny anything I chose, and control others to my will. It even extended to objects, magic, nature... and even the laws of the world itself.

For example, I recalled the final battle between the protagonist's group and Yuda from the original game.

- “Haha! No matter how many times you swing your sword, it won’t reach me. Why? Because I deny your very existence.”

The sword saint's strike would miss, as if Yuda were toying with him, narrowly dodging every blow.

- “Hmm~ Magic is troublesome. Let’s set a rule, shall we? From now on, magic will no longer affect me.”

The mages' attacks, brimming with mana, were effortlessly deflected, leaving not even a scratch on the snake.

- “Oops! You almost killed me, Miss Regia. Your summons are dangerous! Shall I make them disappear?”

With a clap, the protagonist’s summons vanished, as if they had never existed in the first place.

- “This is getting boring. Why don’t we... make things a bit more exciting?”

Yuda snapped his fingers, and the laws of gravity across the entire continent were reversed, sending people hurtling toward the sky.

It was an apocalyptic scene.

*That* was the power of *Lies*.

“...”

Just thinking about it triggered some trauma.

Damn it. Who the hell made this character the final boss? He’s ridiculously overpowered.

I didn’t attempt 1,943 runs for nothing.

The difficulty was insane. One misstep, game over. Yawn? Game over. Blink? Game over. Watching the protagonist’s party get wiped out repeatedly made me swear endlessly.

Still, in the end, I managed to beat him. The problem was that I was pulled into this world before I could actually see the ending.

“Frustrating.”
=This sucks.

Anyway, that’s the kind of ability this body possessed—the power to erase the world with a single move. Of course, it wasn’t without limitations.

As powerful as the ability was, it wasn’t energy-efficient, making it hard to sustain for long periods.

In the original game, Yuda eventually overcame this limitation in the later stages, but I hadn’t. I was still in the third year of my possession, after all.

It’s important to compare things on a fair scale.

In short, I couldn’t do something like ‘reversing the continent’s gravity.’

‘I could try, but I’d probably run out of power first.’

This ability was like a battery. Once I used up my lies, the ability wouldn’t activate anymore. It was similar to trying to run a computer on AAA batteries—impossible.

Not only that, but after using the ability, it needed to be recharged. I couldn’t do anything with an empty battery.

The recharge method was simple:

“I confess to myself. I did nothing wrong today.”

A short phrase, and then a blue screen appeared before my eyes.

*Ding!*

[Your lie has been partially restored.]
[Remaining energy: 57%]

It was a fitting ability. Telling lies recharged it. The more perfect the lie, and the more it affected the listener, the more it restored my power.

“I had stew for lunch today.”

*Ding!*
[Your lie has been partially restored.]
[Remaining energy: 57.5%]

“I am outside right now.”

*Ding!*
[Your lie has been partially restored.]
[Remaining energy: 57.8%]

“I hate video games.”

*Ding!*
[Your lie has been partially restored.]
[Remaining energy: 58.4%]

“I’m not human.”

*Ding

!*
[Your lie…]

You get the idea. These little lies didn’t add much, but it was better to keep stacking them. I always needed to be in a state where I could use my powers.

Maybe in time, I’d find a better way to manage it. But for now, this was the best option. It was also good practice to keep lying on my tongue.

As I lay in bed, I continued murmuring lies to myself.

‘Come to think of it… tomorrow is the day that event happens, right?’

The thought popped into my mind, and a sly smile spread across my face.

Tomorrow’s going to be fun.

Ripples of excitement coursed through me as I closed my eyes to end the day.

---

The next day arrived.

I left my inn only around dusk, the sun beginning to set. I was heading out for the event I had been anticipating. Hiding my excitement, I took my time walking through the streets.

*Whiiiiiissshhh.*

Though the sun was setting, the spring wind was still gentle. Cherry blossom petals floated in the breeze, painting a peaceful scene.

It didn’t take long for me to reach my destination.

Of course, I hadn’t walked the entire way. I had used *Lies* to deny the distance, cutting down what should have been over an hour’s travel to less than ten minutes.

*Ding!*

[Remaining energy: 81.7%]

The mechanical chime echoed in my ear as I looked up.

A massive building loomed into view. Its ornate exterior was overly lavish for such a secluded location.

‘It looks exactly like it did in the game.’

This was *Apple Tree,* the Empire’s largest illegal slave auction. Run by a shadowy figure known as ‘The Merchant,’ it was an underground facility known only to the underworld’s elite.

And it was also the setting where a certain character’s story began.

I approached the grand entrance. A gatekeeper blocked my path, seemingly ready to check the guest list.

“Only those with reservations are allowed into the Apple Tree. May I have your name?”

Of course, I didn’t have a reservation.

Instead of answering, I raised my right hand slightly and spoke.

“Could you look this way for a moment?”

“Huh?”

As soon as our eyes met, I snapped my fingers.

*Snap!*

The gatekeeper’s eyes lost focus immediately. The broken puppet twitched for a moment before freezing in place, completely losing his will. I whispered to him.

“Let me in.”

“…Reservation confirmed. I’ll show you to the VIP section.”

“How kind of you.”

“Please enjoy your time.”

And so, I leisurely entered the auction hall. The gatekeeper had reserved me an excellent seat, no doubt thanks to the direct hit of the hypnosis. I now had a premium view of the stage.

- “We’d like to thank everyone for attending today’s auction at Apple Tree! Before we begin, let’s go over a few announcements…”

The host's voice droned on enthusiastically, but my attention was elsewhere—focused on the lower levels beneath the auction hall.

Beneath the floor was a hidden prison. Illegal captives from various races, kidnapped and sold as slaves, were locked away below. I was certain that the person I was looking for was down there as well.

A character from *The World Seen by the Little Prince.* A supporting character who helps the protagonist, eventually becoming a Swordmaster and a powerful ally.

“It’s time to meet the fox.”

I was about to flip this auction upside down.

All to rescue her.