Whoever Designed This Story Must Have A Mommy Issue

So no, I didn’t need to rush at all—despite that oh-so-'convenient' countdown ticking away.

I took a glance at the available options:

[Gevurah Kingdom][Elysia’s Fiancee][Yehwach Kingdom][The Esteemed Celestial’s Members]
...
I went speechless—both literally and metaphorically.

But to be fair, I probably could’ve said something along the lines of, “Oh! Fantastic! A list of words that sound like red flags wrapped in a diplomatic present! What a gift!”—in the most enthusiastic tone, laced with brutal sarcasm and irony in a single line of dialogue.

No, I mean… how wonderful. Political intrigue, suspicious romance, more kingdoms, and a cult-sounding organization for good measure.


Yeah, this is fine.

Perfectly fine.

Information with multiple choices, huh?

Joke’s on you. I’m too tired of playing this game.

And strangely enough... I was already getting used to it.

Like I’d been stuck here for months.

And then—of course—the panel twitched.

As if I was solo-levelling or something.

A new prompt blinked into place, far too calmly for what it was offering:

[Would you like to memorize the consequences tied to each choice before selecting one?]

[WARNING: Contains SPOILERS. No rewind. 3 seconds.]

[“Yes” to proceed with Memorization Mode.]

[▶ YES]   [✖ NO]

What—

Consequences? Spoilers?!

You’re telling me each option leads to something pre-determined, and I only get three seconds to burn them into my memory, not to mention it leaks the plot?! 

This isn’t an otome game.

This is some kind of unhinged laboratorium experiment disguised as a webcomic story cliche.

Naturally, I of course picked YES. Wait, what do you mean I wouldn't?

The panel stuttered, then burst open like a fan of flashcards:

[MEMORIZATION MODE ACTIVATED - DURATION: 3 SECONDS]

[Gevurah Kingdom]

[You will be declared a war criminal in absentia within the next 7 days. You must either flee or negotiate with a blood-sealed contract. Failure to act results in public execution. Should you succeed… further consequences will unfold.]

[Elysia’s Fiancee]

[The identity of him will be revealed—to both you and Elysia. Emotional volatility expected. A new dialogue route locks until the misunderstanding is resolved. 60% chance of hostile confrontation. 40% chance of... something else that is out of your own will.]

[Yehwach Kingdom]

[You will receive Cassandra of Troy's divine vision. The authenticity of this vision will always be disputed. You may speak a prophecy aloud—doing so will alter the fate of one major character, but no one will believe. Speaking the wrong one… will have side effects.]

[The Esteemed Celestial’s Members]

[A mark will be burned into your skin. This will allow you access to "truth layers," but render you visible to Celestial Gods, exposing your information to them. Passive memory corruption will begin immediately. Estimated time before total override: 72 hours.]

[00.3… 00.2… 00.1—]

[Make your choice.]

After reading all of that... gone.

Those panels were completely gone.

And now I had to choose—with nothing but the screaming echo of those bombs ringing in my ears as if experiencing the psychological effect of sell shocks, the so-called trauma end-product as a combat stress reaction.

Never ask me how I knew all of these when I was a police detective.

And as if just to drive my point home, the panel then politely returned back to its habitat:

…

So, to summarize, let me get this straight:

- One kills me, gets me executed, or maybe not if I manage to escape.

- One exposes someone and risks emotional trauma, a psychological minefield with her maybe-not so-called-fake fiancée to overturn the stakes in this story.

- One breaks reality throughout what ever divine nonsense with consequences for speaking.

- And one starts erasing me from the inside out, exposing myself.

Great. Awesome. Fantastic.

I can’t wait to receive guillotine as a punishment! Duh. I mean...

What the hell?! This has to be the trickiest choice I've ever made in both worlds, and the story hasn't even been started yet!

I have dealt with the most dangerous case, facing so many risks to die, but nothing... nothing could ever manage to surpass what ever the fuck was with these multiple choices.

I feel like playing a Visual Novel. Good ol' times.

Yes, the alternative routes format are my comfort zones.

However, this manhwa webtoon format kinda pissed me off.

Like, what do you mean I'm a villainess in another world?

Sounds like a lame web novel title.

Alright, never mind. Time to get into the root of this matter.

Apparently, here is the most common trick to overcome the most overused trope in a story: 

Think differently.

Doesn't mean it's chaotic. No, not at all. 

But more so that you needed to destroy it.

So, I took a breathe then came up with the most compelling answer for these multiple choices.

Gevurah Kingdom.

[CONGRATULATIONS! YOUR ANSWER IS CORRECT! IT'S GEVURAH KINGDOM!]

Hoh?

My jaw dropped platonically. My mouth went agape.

Okay, something doesn't feel right...

Had I choosen another answer, what would've happened?

[You would be erased for not following the rules and laws of playing this game!]

So, you mean it's a quiz, not a multiple-choice format with alternative plots a.k.a the IF route?
Mind-blowing, literally.
After seeing so many plot twists in just several chapters, I wasn't surprised anymore.
And whoever designed this story must have a mommy issue.
Well, not that I would comfort them as one.
I then spoke my mind for the first time,

"Are you trying to torture me?"

[No.]

[I wouldn't, mommy.]

GASP!

Son? Is that you?

No, wait for a goddamn second, did they just reply with "mommy"?

He never said anything like that before! So, I'd just ignore it.

I feel no good to become one, let alone deserving such a privilege. 

No, what am I talking about? I literally said previously I was a terrible mom in my world!

Ain't that enough?

All of a sudden the panel showed up once more.

[Here is the information for Gevurah Kingdom: Placed in the northern shore of this world, this Kingdom is gifted with a lot of resources, mostly used for military. It has twelve counties, each of them separated by a river created using magic to concretely divide them. The Kingdom values strength. Also, about the correct answer part, it was a prank.]

Oh wow, I'm so surprised!

My a**! As if this thing would surprise me that ever.

Anyway, time to get into this-

"Miss Fahrmann, what's wrong?"

"No, nothing."

It seemed that I have lost track of the current conversation. What was it again?