Darin lay in bed, utterly exhausted, desperate for sleep.

Unfortunately, the Overlord was still talking.

"I must say, Darin, your generation is shockingly weak."

Darin gritted his teeth. "Oh gods, what now?"

The Overlord sighed dramatically. "In my time, men would have seized power, conquered their enemies, and taken the most beautiful women as their own."

Darin groaned. "Yeah, well, your time sucked."

The Overlord chuckled. "Oh, don't be so bitter. I conquered entire kingdoms. And you? You can't even get a proper duel without your pet knocking someone unconscious."

Darin threw his pillow across the room.

"SHUT UP."

"Or what?" The Overlord smirked. "You'll hit me? Go on, punch yourself in the face. I dare you."

Darin actually considered it.

*****

Darin eventually passed out from sheer mental exhaustion.

When he woke up, sunlight streamed through the too-fancy palace windows, and for one blissful second, he forgot about everything.

No overlords. No duels. No political nonsense.

Then—

"Ah, you're awake. Did you dream about her?"

Darin bolted upright so fast he nearly fell out of bed.

"I AM GOING TO MURDER YOU."

The Overlord laughed. "You can try, but we both know I'll still be here."

Darin groaned loudly and dragged his blanket over his face. "Nope. Nope. I refuse to acknowledge this. I refuse to engage."

"So you're just going to lie there all day?"

"Yes."

"Pathetic."

Darin ignored him.

The Overlord sighed dramatically. "Fine. I suppose I'll just entertain myself while you waste away in bed."

Darin said nothing.

The Overlord waited.

Silence.

Then—

"Hey, Darin."

Darin gritted his teeth. "Not listening."

"You know what would be a real power move?"

Darin ignored harder.

"You should go downstairs and kiss the sorceress."

Darin threw the blanket off his face. "WHAT?!"

The Overlord grinned. "See? That got you up."

Darin grabbed his pillow and screamed into it.

The Overlord chuckled. "Oh, don't be so dramatic. You used to have passion, you know."

Darin flung his pillow at the ceiling. "I swear to every god in existence, if you don't shut up, I will find a way to exorcise myself."

The Overlord hummed thoughtfully. "Doubtful. But I'd love to see you try."

Darin stomped out of bed, his entire body vibrating with rage. "FINE. You win. I'm awake."

"Good!" the Overlord said smugly. "Now let's talk about your duel."

Darin froze mid-step.

Oh. Right.

The duel.

The entire kingdom expected him to fight Duke Varian.

A war-hardened, trained noble warrior.

A man who had been actively hunting him for months.

Darin grabbed a towel and slowly dried his face. "...I don't suppose running away is an option?"

The Overlord burst into laughter. "Oh, Darin. You truly are the most disappointing reincarnation I could have imagined."

Darin glared at his own reflection in the mirror. "Not an option, then."

"Absolutely not."

Darin sighed. "Fine. Then what's your brilliant suggestion, oh mighty warlord?"

"Kill him."

Darin nearly choked on air. "WHAT?!"

The Overlord sounded completely casual. "Kill him. Brutally. In front of everyone. Make an example of him. Break his body, shatter his legacy, and declare your reign."

Darin stared at his reflection, horrified. "That is literally the worst possible idea."

The Overlord sighed dramatically. "You're such a disappointment. In my day, rivals were executed without hesitation. Made public examples. Letting them live only breeds rebellion."

Darin rubbed his temples. "I'm not trying to start a reign of terror! I just want to survive this!"

"And killing him is the best way to ensure that."

Darin let out a long, exhausted groan. "You're impossible."

"You're weak."

"I'm SANE."

"That remains to be seen."

After several more minutes of bickering, Darin finally sat on the edge of his bed, rubbing his face as he tried to think.

"Okay. New plan."

The Overlord perked up. "Finally! Some ambition!"

Darin pointed at the wall. "I'm going to ignore you forever."

The Overlord burst out laughing. "Oh, Darin. That's adorable."

Darin gritted his teeth. "Nope. That's my plan. I'm going to get dressed, pretend you don't exist, and handle this duel without your input."

"Fascinating. I give you ten minutes before you break."

"I WILL PROVE YOU WRONG."

Darin stood up with determination, grabbed his clothes, and stomped toward the wardrobe.

The Overlord snickered. "I'll be in your head watching. Waiting."

Darin ignored him.

It was time to face reality, and unfortunately, reality sucked.

Darin marched out of his room, dressed, determined, and absolutely not listening to the Overlord's smug voice in his head.

"You're ignoring me again, aren't you?"

Darin clenched his fists. Yes, I am. I am ignoring you so hard.

The Overlord sighed dramatically. "You know, this would be a lot easier if you just let me take over for the duel."

Darin immediately froze mid-step. "I'm sorry—what?!"

"Oh, you heard me." The Overlord's voice took on an amused lilt. "You're slow, you hesitate, and you fight like someone who hasn't held a sword in years. If you just let me take the wheel, I could end this in seconds."

Darin spun around, whisper-shouting to himself like a crazy person. "I am NOT letting you 'take the wheel'! This is MY body, and I'd rather DIE than let you—"

"Oh, please. Don't be so dramatic. I'd give it right back."

Darin narrowed his eyes. "Oh? Just like how you 'gave it right back' last time?!"

The Overlord chuckled. "Well. I did give it back… eventually."

Darin screamed internally.

"Just think about it. You wouldn't have to struggle. Wouldn't have to worry. Just a little switch, and the fight would be over."

Darin started walking again. Faster. "No. Nope. Not happening."

"You're going to regret that when the duke smashes your skull in."

"I will take my chances, THANK YOU."

The Overlord sighed. "Suit yourself. I'll just be here. Watching. Judging. Laughing when you fall on your face."

Darin gritted his teeth and kept walking.

He needed a strategy.

Darin stormed into the war room, barely keeping himself together. He needed a strategy desperately, and unfortunately, the two people waiting for him were the absolute worst people to help.

Vincent sat lounging comfortably in a chair, idly stirring his tea, while the sorceress was scanning a map, entirely focused.

Darin collapsed into a chair with a groan.

"Ah, Darin!" Vincent greeted, grinning. "Did you sleep well?"

Darin glared. "No."

Vincent smirked. "That bad, huh?"

Darin dragged a hand down his face. "I have a duel in less than a day. I need a plan. A real one."

The sorceress hummed thoughtfully. "That does seem like a problem."

Vincent leaned forward, grinning. "Have you considered running away?"

Darin groaned, rubbing his temples. "That was my first plan. Apparently, it's 'not an option.'"

Vincent sighed dramatically. "A shame. You do 'running away' so well."

The sorceress, ignoring Vincent's antics, finally looked up. "You've fought before. You were a knight in your past life. It's still in you. You just need to remember it."

Vincent, who had just taken a sip of tea, froze.

For a second, he just… sat there.

Then, very slowly, he lowered his cup, staring at the sorceress like she had just announced she was actually a dragon.

"...I'm sorry. What?"

Darin tensed.

The sorceress, unbothered, continued. "Your body may be different now, but the instincts should still be there. If we—"

Vincent snorted.

Then he laughed.

Then, as if the sheer absurdity of what he had just heard fully hit him, he burst into full-on wheezing laughter, slamming a hand on the table—

—And spilling his tea everywhere.

Darin and the sorceress both stared.

Vincent, still gripping his sides, wiped at his eyes. "Oh gods, oh gods, that was a good one. I almost believed you."

The sorceress tilted her head. "Believed me?"

Vincent grinned. "Oh, come on. That was a joke, right? Darin? A knight?" He let out another wheeze. "And in his past life? You really expect me to believe in—

Darin shifted uncomfortably.

Vincent noticed.

The laughter stopped.

A long, awkward silence stretched between them.

Then—

Vincent's smile slowly faded.

His eyes flicked between Darin and the sorceress. "...Wait. Wait, wait, wait. You're serious?"

The sorceress arched an eyebrow. "Why would I joke about this?"

Vincent blinked rapidly. He pointed at Darin. "You—him, you're telling me that he—"

Darin sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's… complicated."

Vincent stared at him like he had just grown a second head. "So you're actually saying that you—"

"Yes."

"You—"

"Yes."

Vincent exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair. "Okay. Okay. Hold on. I need a second."

Darin waited.

Vincent let out a long sigh, then muttered,

"You know… when I was a kid, I used to meet the sorceress sometimes. Business deals. That's how I got to know her."

Darin blinked. He didn't know that. Reader support at M*VLEM*PYR made this translation possible.

Vincent leaned forward, still piecing things together. "And I've heard a lot of stories about the war. About the Overlord. And about…" He hesitated, then gestured vaguely.

"And there was this knight. The one who fought alongside the sorceress. The one who helped end the Overlord."

He frowned slightly.

Then, with growing confusion, he looked at the sorceress.

"So… who was that knight?"

The sorceress's gaze flicked toward Darin, then back to Vincent.

"It was him," she said simply.

Silence.

Vincent stared.

Then blinked.

Then blinked again.

And then, as the realization slowly crushed him, he let out a long, suffering groan and collapsed face-first onto the table.

"No. No, no, no. You are lying." His voice was muffled against the wood.

The sorceress sighed. "You wanted the truth. Now you have it."

Vincent lifted his head. "Let me get this straight."

He gestured vaguely at Darin. "You're telling me that this guy—"

"Yes."

"—This absolute disaster of a human—"

"Yes."

"—was the actual knight who helped end the Overlord?"

"Yes."

Vincent pressed his hands over his eyes. "Oh my gods. I have spent months traveling with a reincarnated war hero and NO ONE TOLD ME?!"

The Overlord, meanwhile, was laughing in Darin's head.

"Oh, this is wonderful. I could watch this man suffer all day."

Darin sighed. "Vincent, please. Not now."

Vincent wheeled around. "Not now?! You are telling me I've been making fun of you for WEEKS, calling you 'Lord Disaster' and 'Master of Bad Decisions,' and the WHOLE TIME you were some ancient knight warrior?!"

Darin muttered, "I mean, technically, I was just a knight, not—"

Vincent slammed his hands on the table. "AND NO ONE THOUGHT TO MENTION THIS?!"

The sorceress exhaled. "We had… other priorities."

Vincent threw up his hands. "This kingdom is insane. I am surrounded by insanity."

Darin leaned back in his chair, exhausted.

The Overlord's voice purred in his mind.

"Oh, I hope he sticks around. He's fun."

Darin rubbed his temples. "Yeah. Sure. Fun. That's one word for it."

Vincent, still in mild shock, muttered to himself. "Unbelievable."

Darin sighed.