This Novel is not my Novel

I did my best to pretend I hadn't heard the barrage of questions, meticulously chewing my biscotti and sipping the sujeonggwa.

At that, the protagonist of someone else's novel seemed to have the corners of his mouth twitch before he suddenly opened his mouth wide and burst into a roaring laugh.

It was exactly as I had expected.

How on earth did he play the role of a despair novel's protagonist when he laughs so much?

The moment that thought crossed my mind, a sense of absurdity and a heavy feeling washed over me.

Because the Reisir I had read about in the original novel before the remake and the Reisir before my eyes were undeniably the same person.

The Reisir from back then must also have been someone who could find joy in trivial things and knew how to laugh happily.

He must have laughed so little because he couldn't enjoy this trivial daily life...

He was described as a remarkable person who never collapsed despite repeated despair and continued on his path.

But he was also an ordinary person like this, which made my heart stir at the thought that he must have been worn down, struggling in pain.

But I couldn't let these feelings show.

If I did, the relentlessly persistent protagonist of someone else's novel would surely pester me about why, and I couldn't possibly tell him the truth.

I deliberately put strength into my eyes and glared at him, putting on a displeased expression.

"Stop laughing and hurry up and eat. Then get out."

"So you'll wait until I'm done eating?"

"Well... you're the one who brought these cookies. And I can't let the beverage Yor personally made go to waste... can I?"

"Phfft—!"

I hadn't said anything particularly funny.

The protagonist of someone else's novel, who laughed so easily, even turned his head away, his shoulders shaking.

The feeling of pity that had stirred my heart just moments ago faded, replaced by an earnest desire to simply punch him.

Since this was a thought I didn't particularly need to hide, I immediately gave the protagonist of someone else's novel a light kick in the shin.

A cry of "Ouch!" escaped Reisir's lips.

I knew he was only feigning pain, but it still felt like a successful punishment, which was oddly satisfying.

"By the way, about that skill that slows down perceived time... Is it really okay to overuse it in training like that?"

After he had completely stopped laughing, the original protagonist adopted a serious tone again and brought it up.

Reisir probably came to my room to hear the answer to this question. The reason, of course, must be that he's worried about the side effects.

His intention was plain to see, so there was no need to beat around the bush and drag out the conversation.

So I immediately said the following...

"If it wasn't okay, do you think Yor would have stood by and let me use that skill?"

"Yaong, aeong weong myaong myaa, nyaat, nyan nyan nyat, myaa mya."

"Yor doesn't seem particularly happy about it either...?"

It seemed I had presented the wrong basis for my argument.

I didn't know exactly what Yor was saying, but I could definitely tell she had a lot to say.

It was no wonder Reisir reacted with suspicion.

"...Anyway, it's not the kind of side effect where damage accumulates from frequent use. It recovers on its own with plenty of rest, and it gets better immediately with treatment. Just in case, I was checked periodically by my family's physician during the break, and he said he couldn't find any problems."

Lest you wonder, let me explain now that saying I was checked by the physician isn't merely an excuse; it's the truth.

Though it was because of my fake amnesia, not the side effects of the 【Character Analysis】 skill.

In any case, it had been definitively proven that there was nothing wrong with my brain.

"That's a relief, but... I still don't think it's good to rely on that skill too much. You might recover right after drinking a Potion, but you can't just drink a Potion anytime in a real fight, right? Drinking them repeatedly weakens their healing effect."

It was a question of what I would do if I got injured before the cooldown was over after using a Potion to treat the skill's side effect.

I had always been concerned about this part too, so I immediately understood the implied meaning in his words.

"I'm aware of that problem. So I try to use the skill intermittently rather than keeping it active, but... it's not easy when facing Her Royal Highness the Princess and Pret. If I miss even a single movement for a moment, it becomes impossible to respond..."

"Then you should train to increase your reaction speed so you can react quickly even without using a buff. And also raise your physical abilities so you can respond even if you react a little late."

The protagonist of someone else's novel was spouting such obvious and predictable things.

"I'm already doing all that."

"I said that because I intend to help you with that training."

"What about your own training?"

"I proposed it because sparring with you is helpful for me too."

"Hmph. Even if that's true, it can't be better than sparring with the professors."

"That's..."

Reisir couldn't bring himself to refute the words I'd thrown out with a snort.

He probably knew that if he told a sugarcoated lie just to praise me, his future words would lose their sincerity.

So he hesitated for a while, then spoke while glancing at my expression.

"I naturally thought we'd all gather and train together every weekend, just like we did for the martial arts tournament practice last year... By any chance..."

"It's not that we plan to train without you."

"No? Then are you not doing joint training at all...?"

Reisir's face, which had shown a brief hint of disappointment, was now colored with puzzlement after hearing my answer.

"Unlike you, whose top priority is gaining experience, the other students and I still need to focus on personal training. Besides, we're scheduled to keep sparring during lecture time anyway, aren't we? For now, I believe it's more helpful to take time to review the sparring process alone based on the professor's advice from class rather than just recklessly repeating spars."

For the same reason, I was also planning to stop the swordsmanship instruction I was scheduled to receive from Vigdís every Saturday.

It had been proven that this body had no talent for swordsmanship, and I had also sufficiently achieved my original purpose of grasping a swordsman's movements.

Moreover, it's now certain that I'll be entering a Demon Realm with Vigdís. And in the near future, at that...

Her talent blossoming as quickly as possible was the path for all of us, myself included, to become even a little safer.

Therefore, I must not take up any more of Vigdís's time.

This was the conclusion I had reached.

"Right... what we need to prepare for now isn't a martial arts tournament where we students compete against each other. We need to build a solid foundation by taking it step by step."

Judging by how he was nodding and muttering those words, it seemed Reisir thankfully understood me properly without any misinterpretation.

But regrettably, this protagonist of someone else's novel had a very serious chronic ailment.

Now was not the time to be relieved, but to be wary.

"I always think this, but... Karvaldr, you're a person who thinks deeply and has great foresight."

As expected, Reisir was once again offering words of praise.

He must have been planning to quickly get through this influence event while I was feeling embarrassed and flustered.

Knowing this, I cut him off with a solemn face before the embarrassment could rear its head.

"I'm simply not distracted by joking and playing around like someone is."

"And who is that 'someone'?"

"Are you really asking because you don't know? I see now that 'someone' has no conscience either."

"No way... Are you saying this because Pret tricked me and snatched my ribbon this morning?"

"So you are well aware."

At my answer, Reisir wore a baffled expression.

Then he muttered, "Karvaldr really holds a grudge..." which I decided to pretend I hadn't heard.

But what he said next was something I couldn't simply close my ears and ignore.

"Speaking of a related topic, show me a wink."

"What...?"

What on earth was this?

This absurd demand, thrown out of the blue while ignoring the context of the conversation.

Mentioning a "related topic" was just an excuse.

He had probably been waiting for a chance to bring it up, and now that an unfavorable topic had come up, he used it to cover that up.

I suspected he was simply blurting out what had been on his mind this whole time.

"Don't treat it as nonsense and think carefully. When I asked you to show me a certain expression, if I had been sure you would show me, do you really think I would have been tempted by Pret's words and looked away? Absolutely not."

"Just because you say it seriously and try to be logical doesn't make your nonsense make sense. And isn't this a problem that would be solved if you just paid attention in the first place?!"

"But didn't Professor Bjorn advise you too? That you should show me a wink."

"That's not advice, it's meddling...!"

"But still..."

But still, my ass.

I couldn't understand why the guy who had started this chapter with the declaration, "I'm not some crazy wink maniac," was acting like this.

"It wasn't because Pret's remark was so out of the blue that you turned your head out of momentary curiosity. Did you really want to see me wink...? Why on earth...?"

"The expressions you usually show are too limited, right? So, except for your expressionless face, your pretend-arrogant face, and your embarrassed face, your other expressions feel so rare and precious. I feel like I have to see them whenever the opportunity arises."

I wished he would stop treating my facial expressions like limited-edition products.

No, wait, surely the expressions I showed weren't limited to those, were they?

Shouldn't expressions of anger or dumbfoundedness, like now, be included?

"And on the last day of school, that smile you briefly showed when we parted felt like an unreal mirage..."

"It was a mirage. You were seeing things."

"Don't be stubborn just because you're embarrassed that you showed a genuine smile."

"Who's embarrassed about something like that...!"

"Or will you show me a smile like back then? Along with a wink."

I had no idea why this guy kept spouting such nonsense so seriously and firmly.

"If you wanted to see it so badly, you should have just stayed quiet when Pret suggested that we all take turns winking. Why did you oppose it?"

"If I had stayed quiet then, when it was your turn, you would have been unable to hide your embarrassment, winked with a look of determination, and then, flustered with shyness, hugged Yor."

"What... what kind of..."

"Pret probably made that suggestion just to see that. Otherwise, you would have simply given me a quick wink."

"Do you think everyone is like you? No, more importantly, why do you talk as if it's a given that I'd wink at you?!"

"Of course, he's different from me. I'm just watching with a pure heart, wanting to see a different side of you. But Pret's purpose was probably to use this as an opportunity to close the psychological distance between you."

"No, that... Haa..."

I was so dumbfounded that not even a hollow laugh came out, only a sigh.

I was growing tired of this verbal sparring over such a ridiculous topic, and I even started thinking about simply squeezing my eyes shut and showing him what he wanted.

What's more, in this case, it would be over with just closing one eye, not both.

Surely he isn't spouting all this nonsense just to induce me into having this thought...?

I was highly suspicious, but the scales of my heart, once tipped, simply couldn't find their balance again.

In the end, I decided to squeeze one eye shut and give in to his demand.

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