* * *

    "One glass of the cheapest thing you’ve got, please."

    At my request, the stout tavern mistress brought over a glass filled to the brim with cheap liquor.

    Thud!

    The sound of the glass hitting the table briefly cut through the noisy chatter of the tavern.

    "You always go for the cheapest stuff, don’t you? Here you go."

    It was midday.

    I was sitting in the tavern, drinking.

    It might’ve looked like the life of a lazy bum, but so what?

    I was someone who had been possessed into the world of a video game.

    A little indulgence like this didn’t seem so bad. Honestly.

    ...Anyway, to sum it up—

    I had somehow entered the world of my favorite game, Garland Eternity Saga.

    The first thing I did upon arrival was desperately call out for a status window.

    But, as if to mock me for being in an old, outdated game, no convenient status window appeared before my eyes.

    Even so, I was able to figure out a lot of information without much trouble.

    Or rather—it wasn’t so much that I figured it out, but that the memories of this body naturally felt like my own after I had [possessed] it.

    My name was Swen.

    I was 20 years old this year.

    No noble title, no family name.

    No family to speak of either. Basically, the perfect form of a disposable extra character.

    The only way to return to my original world—

    was to unify this continent.

    More specifically, if the country I belonged to succeeded in uniting the continent, I could safely return to where I came from.

    ‘Up to this point, it’s a pretty common cliche?.’

    Since I couldn’t change the circumstances already given to me—

    The next step was to check my stats.

    Without a status window to display exact values, I had to test my abilities physically.

    The fact that I was out of breath just from climbing a small hill meant my strength and endurance were likely low.

    Even though I’d gotten eight years younger, my body felt even weaker than before.

    Probably somewhere between 5 and 15 points, give or take.

    As for my charm stat... honestly, I had no idea.

    Looking in the mirror, my face wasn’t particularly ugly, but it wasn’t especially handsome either.

    Aside from my almost pure-white hair, I didn’t have any distinct features.

    The most accurate way to describe it was... plain.

    Since this game had a medieval fantasy vibe, characters often had vividly colored hair anyway.

    In fact, there was never any specific text in the game that said the charm stat directly determined a character’s appearance.

    It was just my own vague assumption.

    In the game, charm mainly affected persuasion and diplomacy.

    So I guessed mine was probably around 50 or 60 points.

    There were plenty of other stats, too—things like politics and leadership.

    But I had no way to check those right now.

    Maybe once I managed to join some army, I’d be able to see them.

    And the most important stat... intelligence.

    Over the past few days since my possession, I had run several tests to be sure.

    ‘My intelligence stat... it’s definitely 100.’

    "Hey there! You’re back again today, huh?"

    A man I’d seen around a few times approached as I drank my cheap liquor.

    He was just a regular villager—at least, as far as I knew. Not some named officer or anything like that.

    "Hello."

    "Yeah. Did you hear the news? The Brans Army successfully recaptured Hyzel Castle."

    "Did they?"

    I figured as much.

    The Brans Army controlled the land this town was part of, and it was led by one of the game’s named characters, Lyn Brans.

    Lyn Brans—the most talented of the Brans family’s three siblings.

    Despite being the third child and a woman—both of which were disadvantages—she had taken the throne purely through her own abilities.

    Her two older brothers now served under her as generals.

    To put it simply, the Brans Army was:

    “The beginner-friendly ruler!”

    It had no particular weaknesses in terms of stats, and its talent pool was excellent.

    With a decent grasp of basic game mechanics, it was easy to unify the continent under this faction.

    But after one successful playthrough, most players would quickly move on, as the Brans Army didn’t really require complex strategies.

    "You’re really something, you know that?"

    "Me?"

    Feigning innocence, I replied casually.

    "You predicted it perfectly! First, you said the Brans Army would lose Hyzel Castle to Walnut Army’s sudden attack. Then, despite the Brans Army barely having time to reorganize, you said they’d retake the castle right away. And they actually did!"

    The Walnut Army was about as average as a faction could get—suitable for mid-level players but not particularly unique.

    Apparently, it had spawned next to the Brans Army in this timeline.

    Unfortunately for them, their leader was doomed to die early unless directly controlled by a player.

    It was one of those factions that could never unify the continent under normal circumstances.

    The game’s power dynamics seemed to have transferred into this world as well—

    even regular citizens, like this man, naturally assumed that the Walnut Army had no chance of defeating the Brans Army.

    But.

    When I analyzed the situation, the Walnut Army could capture Hyzel Castle.

    I didn’t know why, but no matter how I looked at it, that was the conclusion I kept reaching:

    “Walnut Army wins.”

    And sure enough, they did.

    That alone was strange enough, but what came next was even more bizarre—

    the Brans Army, without even reorganizing properly, threw together whatever remnants of their forces they could find and retook the castle the very next day.

    This man beside me was explaining all the reasons why he thought the Brans Army wouldn’t win this time—listing every logical argument he could think of.

    But.

    For some reason, the only conclusion I could come to was:

    Having played this game before, including Luna’s route, I knew her army’s financial situation better than anyone.

    I might as well rob a beggar for pocket change.

    "Then..."

    She carefully took a seat across from me.

    Thinking back, I was still a bit stunned by our first meeting.

    The outdated pixel graphics of the game never hinted at just how stunningly beautiful she was.

    If I’d known Luna was this pretty, I probably would’ve played her route more often.

    "I... Sir Swen, I’m terribly sorry to bother you again, but... could you please help me...?"

    "As I mentioned before, Luna, I don’t think my skills are suited to serve under you."

    At my shallow excuse, she shook her head so vigorously that her cream-colored hair bounced.

    "No! Sir Swen, I’ve heard you’re an incredibly brilliant man. It’s embarrassing to admit, but my army doesn’t even have a single strategist right now... We desperately need your help."

    "......."

    Honestly.

    If I rejected her now, it would be the fifth time.

    She’d already come to see me four times in a single week.

    By the third rejection, most people would’ve taken the hint and stopped coming.

    But here she was, the ruler herself, still visiting me in person and using honorifics.

    I felt bad for her, but I didn’t have two lives to spare.

    Luna’s army was bound to disappear from the map along with Walnut’s soon. I couldn’t afford to join her.

    ‘Maybe I was too polite with my rejections.’

    It seemed like it was time to be brutally honest.

    "...Luna. May I speak frankly?"

    "Y-yes, of course...! Please, go ahead."

    "Luna, why did you raise an army?"

    "That’s... to unite the continent and bring peace to everyone—"

    "So you intend to become an emperor?"

    She faltered slightly at my direct question.

    "Y-yes."

    "Then something doesn’t add up. For someone who aims to be an emperor, you’ve been bowing and scraping to everyone—including me."

    "T-that’s...!"

    She looked like she’d been struck speechless.

    I knew her personality from the game, so I expected this reaction.

    From her perspective, though, it must’ve seemed like I could read her mind.

    "Luna, you’re kind to everyone. I’m not saying that’s a bad trait. But in these chaotic times, it’s unnecessary. I don’t believe you have what it takes to unify this continent. That’s why I can’t serve under you."

    "......."

    Surely, after saying this much, she wouldn’t come back.

    I felt a little guilty, but I already had my plans laid out.

    With that, I turned away from her and downed my cheap drink.

    And then—

    I heard her quietly sobbing.

    "I... I see..."

    "......."

    Lunarian Iniang was a fragile person.

    She loved peace and even raised an army to spread it, but—she was completely unsuited to lead during these chaotic times.

    Even in the game, if left to the CPU, her army was doomed to collapse.

    Her tears shook me a little, but... I had no choice.

    I only had one life.

    "Sir Swen... do you truly believe... that I can’t unify this world...?"

    "......."

    Well...

    .........

    .........

    .........

    And in that moment—

    my world came to a halt.

    ‘...Wait, what?’

    Luna’s question:

    "I, Lunarian Iniang, cannot unify this world?"

    And my 100 intelligence—

    Delivered its conclusion.

    -------------------------That’s wrong.