What is the hardest game you've ever played?

  Think about it for a moment. What game was it, and what made it difficult? Was it a game with hard bosses? Demanding survival mechanics? Or did something else make it challenging?

  For me, that game was the Duke's Duplicity. It's often compared to Dark Souls and Fear and Hunger, though it's bonding system is more similar to certain social games. In any case, The Duke's Duplicity was both praised and criticized for telling one of the most brutal revenge stories ever seen.

  Or at least that's what the critics said. I did my best to avoid spoilers. But man, that game was hard! Managing health and sanity was a nightmare. The fights were absolutely brutal. I couldn't even beat the first boss, no matter how hard I tried! Or, I guess the tutorial boss?

  Either way, I...

  "Dante! Dante!"

  I snapped to attention. My black hair swung as I looked in front of me.

  Glancing at my reflection in a window, I saw that I had crystal blue eyes. That wasn't right. My eyes weren't blue, they were...what color were my eyes? Why couldn't I remember?

  Forcing myself to focus, I got a bearing of my surroundings. There was a desk in front of me; a man was sitting at it with a rage-filled face. There was a velvet doublet with a large white collar on his chest and a wide-brimmed hat on his head. On his belt was a rapier, and there was a flintlock pistol in a sash across his chest.

  I thought I recognized this man. It was faint, but...maybe something else would give me a hint?

  Looking down, I saw that I also had a doublet on my chest. It reminded me of images of clothing from the early 1600s. Aside from that, things were getting more familiar.

  "Dante!" the man snapped, his expression contorted with anger.

  I quickly glanced up, fixing my attention on him. The rage had faded from his face, instead, it was coated with concern.

  "Are you alright, boy?" the man asked.

  Who was he talking to? My name wasn't Dante. At least, I didn't think it was. It was...why couldn't I remember my name?

  My body suddenly felt horribly hollow.

  Looking around the room, I couldn't see anyone else there. He must be talking to me. But was I Dante? What the hell was going on?

  "You're talking to me, right?" I questioned.

  "Yes," the man replied, confusion mixing with concern. "You are Dante Montressor, correct?"

  I wanted to say that I wasn't. But then I took a more careful look at the window. Every last bit of my skin turned pure white as full recognition dawned over my mind. My reflection looked exactly like Dante Montressor, the main character of The Duke's Duplicity.

  Sweat poured down my brow. I started shaking. Why did I look like Dante? And this room...it was just like a place from the Duke's Duplicity! Why was I in a video game? And why couldn't I remember anything about my life?

  My breathing became heavy. I felt shivers pour down my spine. The man's voice crashed into my ears.

  "Are you ill, Dante?"

  Dammit! This was not the time to freak out! I needed to pull myself together!

  I took a deep breath to force myself to calm down. The shaking slowed, but I still felt the salty sweat.

  "I may need to eat something after this, but I should be fine then," I said.

  The man nodded.

  "Very well, I will be fast. To sum things up, while you are a commoner, you did well enough on our entrance exams that you will be admitted to our prestigious school," he said. "Welcome to King Casimir Academy."

  A few minutes later, I was leaning against a wall. I felt the back of my clothing get soaked as the hard stone trapped my sweat there. Heavy breaths escaped my mouth.

  Right now, I was in one of King Casimir Academy's courtyards. The sweet scent of flowers flowed into my nose. A sea of green hedges surrounded the area before me. And the faint babbling of water from a fountain flowed into my ears.

  Inside, I was still freaking out. But the scenery helped calm me a little bit. I placed an arm over my forehead and tried to put things together.

  I needed to think this through before I went insane. I was in the body of Dante Montressor, the main character of the Duke's Duplicity. But I had no idea who I was before I got here. I remembered everything I experienced in the game, but...

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  A deep sigh escaped my mouth. I felt like I'd get a headache.

  ...I couldn't even beat the first boss. Why had the devs have to make the game so hard? And since I avoided spoilers, I have no idea what would happen after I killed it.

  I shook my head.

  Well, unless I could figure out how to beat the boss, I was going to know what getting my ass kicked by a pig monster was like for real. Then, I'd get to find out if the Duke's Duplicity's world has an afterlife. This was, by far, the most likely outcome.

  A sinking feeling came over me. I felt like my gut fell into my intestines. Nausea washed over my throat.

  Images flashed through my mind of stories about people getting sent into video games. In those stories, they had already completed the game and knew everything about it. Or they at least knew enough to make their real life run much easier.

  As for me, I didn't even know who Dante wanted revenge on or what they did to him. Why couldn't I get a super cheat skill or a goddess companion or anything?

  I tried taking another deep breath, but I felt despair crawl over me like a centipede. My gaze turned to the ground as I slumped over. The wall slowly scraped against my back as I fell all the way to the ground. My eyes gazed at a line of ants. Hopelessness flowed through my entire being.

  Did I have family in my old world? Friends? Does anyone miss me? I don't remember any of that. Is there any way for me to go back? Did I die and come here, or did something else happen? I had so many questions and no answers. For all I knew, I really was Dante, and some god fucked with my memories as a joke. I mean, I don't have any of his memories either.

  Then, a voice came to my ears. It was as cold as ice and as unfeeling as a serpent. Yet, it was soothing like a cold drink on a warm Summer day.

  "Are you alright? Boys like you should stand proud, not cry in the corner."

  I looked up. A girl Dante's age, which should be 15 at this point in the game, was gazing down at me. Her face was a blank mask, but I could see flickers of sympathy in her eyes.

  Black hair with large streaks of white came down from her head. The girl's eyes were a blazing crimson. Her dress was purple in color, yet of a far simpler design than most nobles' clothes. Additionally, her skirt was shorter, only going down to her knees. Tight-fitting black pants covered the rest of her legs. There was a rapier with a wavy blade, a flamberge, on her hip.

  Despite everything, seeing her made me smile. My shaking stopped, and my nausea disappeared as if it was never there. Excitement coursed through me like race car drivers going past the speed of sound.

  Holy crap, that's...that's...Princess Augusta! She's the coolest character in The Duke's Duplicity! This is awesome! I...I never thought I'd actually be able to meet her! She only has a few appearances in the first chapter, but she's so amazing!

  "I was feeling a bit down, but I'm doing better now. It's a true honor to meet you, Princess Augusta," I said.

  The girl blinked, a hint of shock passing through her eyes before fading.

  "You're...not scared?" she asked.

  I tilted my head. Scared? Of her? Well, I guess meeting a princess would be intimidating for most commoners, but...

  "Why would I be? I don't have any reason to be afraid of you," I answered.

  Silence overtook the area. Minutes passed by. A sense of incredible awkwardness seeped in. I shifted nervously. Then, I saw the faintest of smiles cross Augusta's mouth for the briefest of moments.

  "If you're not afraid of me, let's have a fencing match sometime," she suggested without emotion.

  This was awesome! My favorite video game character wanted to spar with me! I was still in an absolutely horrible situation, but this at least gave me something to look forward to!

  "Okay. That sounds fun!" I gave her a warm smile and a thumbs-up.

  The princess stood stoic. It filled me with reassurance. Kuudere are really awesome!

  "What's your name?" Augusta asked.

  "Dante Montressor."

  I had no idea if it was my real name, but it seemed I was in Dante's body. The idea that I might have possessed and stolen his life made me sick to my stomach. But there wasn't anything I could do about it right now. I'd have to use his name while I survived.

  Augusta gave me a single nod.

  "I will remember your name, Dante. Please don't hold back. I'll crush you if you do," Augusta said.

  She wasn't bragging, just stating a fact.

  Shrugging, I placed my arms to the side. There was still a smile on my face. Augusta was so cool!

  "You'll probably crush me even if I don't hold back, so I'll make sure to go all-out," I promised.

  Once more, Augusta blinked in shock.

  "You won't hold back?" she asked.

  "I won't. You're one of the strongest students in school, right? I'll need to go all-out to stand a chance against you," I answered.

  Augusta looked at me as if she didn't believe me for a second. It was a bit weird. Still, she gave me a single nod. I guessed that was one of her favorite gestures.

  "Don't feel bad when you lose, Dante. If I'm stronger than you and you give it your all, there shouldn't be any shame in losing to me. Even if you're better and lose, there's still no shame," Augusta stated.

  "Okay, I won't feel bad," I promised. "But I might not lose; I might get lucky, even if I'm not as good as you."

  Augusta shook her head.

  "I've never lost a fight before, Dante. And I know that you won't defeat me. But there's no shame in that. Please don't be sore about losing."

  Then, she walked away. A flicker of hope entered my heart.

  This changed things. The Duke's Duplicity started with Dante's first day at King Casimir Academy. He meets Augusta then, but only briefly. But now that I'm here, things don't have to go the way they did in the game's story.

  Augusta isn't recruitable in Chapter 1 of the game. I don't know if she's ever recruitable, however...

  A plan started forming in my mind. Greater hope welled up in me than before. Even if it was still a faint hope.

  I couldn't defeat the first boss with the party members you could recruit. But if Augusta joined my party, I should be able to get past it. Considering how strong she's supposed to be, I might be able to get through many bosses with her before I got killed. Maybe even through the whole game? Besides, it'll be awesome to get to hang out with someone as astonishing as her.

  Standing up to my full height, I tried to fill myself with some degree of pride despite myself. If I was going to survive and get my memories back, I couldn't just sit around, doing nothing. That would just make things worse.

  Aside from recruiting party members, I should learn magic. Magic is rare in the world of The Duke's Duplicity, but there is a way to learn it at the school. Now, I just need to see if I can find where Dante's quarters are...

  A deep sigh escaped my mouth.

  I suppose that I'm Dante now, at least until I can figure things out. I don't remember my old name anyway. So, I might as well think of myself as him. For now, at least.

  And if I'm not the real Dante and I took over his body, please forgive me, Dante. I didn't mean to possess you. At least, I think I didn't. For all I know, this could have been entirely intentional. Not having my memories really sucked.