Gazing back at me was a young man with a pale, unhealthy complexion, unkempt purple hair, and lifeless purple eyes burdened with huge bags. He had the appearance of someone who only had a few days left to live. His skinny physique further accentuated his undead status, with fatless limbs and ribs almost visible through his skin.
To crown it all, this was me.
I gazed at the mirror one more time, but the reflection never seemed to change.
I was Amael.
I was him…
Or… was he me?
I had no idea anymore. My memories blurred with time, and I could barely remember my own face—only my name: Eren.
But this doesn't make any sense…
Why am I here? What am I meant to do?
These questions had plagued me for the past four hours, but the answers remained ever elusive.
Amael Kyren Arenford.
The very character I hated the most, as much as I pitied.
He was a villain—the [Minor villain] in the first game and a [Major villain] in the second.
He was the sole entity in the game bearing the title [The Catalyst].
The agent of [Bad Endings].
With the treatment I received and the condition my body was in, I could somewhat guess the current situation. The awakening must have taken place, and from the look of things… I don't have much time left.
The awakening is a ritual carried out when a child reaches the age of thirteen. It reveals the blessing a child receives and activates their innate abilities.
Now, considering Damian's coming-of-age ceremony is today, that only means three years have passed since the awakening, and I am now sixteen.
Another bad thing, considering what happens when Amael turns sixteen.
I really don't have much time left.
The dark church, [Kyneal], is an organization or religious faction opposing the order of [Hermit], the god worshipped by all of [Nevel].
Amael.
I remember reading his biography after his countless interferences in the game, leading to a never-ending repeat of [Bad Endings].
He wasn't loved by his family—at least not by his father and stepbrother. But that didn't extend to his stepsister, Christina, and his other childhood friends.
From the beginning of the game, there was never any mention of his mother or how he came to be a child of Arenford.
But…
What really led to his fall into depravity was the revelation three years ago.
The day of his awakening.
...
Kneeling before a man dressed in flowing white garments and holding onto a grimoire was Amael. His purple curly hair framed a childlike, slightly chubby face, his eyes tightly shut as his hands were placed on a dark orb.
"Do we really have to do this?" asked a lady standing in the corner, Rachel, dressed in a white tunic. She had flowing waist-long hair and deep sea-blue eyes.
"It's expedient. We have to know what blessing he bears; only then can we truly know what we are up against," said the man standing beside her, Duke Arenford. He had a more mature face, slightly reminiscent of Damian, with styled black hair combed back in waves, and fiery red eyes that held an immeasurable depth.
They were all in the cathedral, but it was deserted, with only these four figures standing in its vast confines.
"You may proceed, Varten," Duke Arenford nodded, and Varten gazed into the book he held.
"Heed my call and reveal yourself. Make known to all who thou art, and bestow upon your vessel the blessing thou bears. Revelia Vemoth!" he chanted, and the orb before Amael began to glow with an unsettling, eerie light, a violent darkness that spoke of untold evil.
"W-What is this?!" Varten stammered, stumbling back.
Sensing something was extremely wrong, the other two figures in the corner of the room dashed forward, knocking the orb straight out of Amael's hold. The lady knelt down and helped the man up, staring into his eyes as she spoke, "What happened? What did you see?" she asked.
"A-A demon," he replied.