This Novel is not my Novel

As you readers have probably guessed, the place we headed after finishing lunch was the usual bench on that secluded walking path. It was the same place where Reisir and I had talked several times, and where Pret had eavesdropped on our conversation in Episode 245.

And yet.

"Wow~! I had no idea a place like this existed inside the academy!"

Pret spouted such an obvious lie, feigning ignorance.

It was truly absurd, but if I showed it, the original protagonist would start to suspect me. I decided to ignore it, walked straight ahead, and took a seat at one end of the bench.

"Since I need to talk to both of you, it'd be best if I sat in the middle!"

"No. The middle is Yor's seat. So you can just stand there."

This meeting had been arranged for Reisir to interrogate Pret. As such, the two of them would be doing most of the talking, and I had no desire to sit awkwardly between them. That was why I sat at the edge of the bench.

In any case, I've avoided getting stuck between them, so it's fine... right?

The original protagonist's behavior, getting into a battle of nerves over a mere seat, seemed childish. But then I reminded myself that the current Reisir was still young and wary after learning Pret's identity, and I found it understandable.

As if Yor shared my thoughts, she shook her small head and curled up in the center of the bench.

Pret shot Reisir a flabbergasted look.

But whatever the case, the protagonist of someone else's novel had already taken the one empty spot and sat down.

"Don't you think this arrangement is a little... strange?"

This time, Pret looked at me and pleaded his case.

It was a statement I couldn't deny. But unfortunately, it was also a situation where I had no choice but to ignore his plight.

Senna's readers already seem to dislike me as it is. If I take the side of a suspicious person in front of the original protagonist, they'll really start to hate me.

I stealthily lowered my gaze and feigned indifference as I stroked Yor's fur. While I was doing so, the protagonist of someone else's novel took a tumbler out of his Inventory, stuck two straws into it, and handed it to me.

"Share this with Yor. I actually wanted to prepare a separate one, but this was the only cup with a cold-insulation function..."

As I took the tumbler, I heard ice rattling inside. And when I put the straw to my lips and took a sip, the sweet taste of strawberries and the refreshing tang of yogurt, blended with milk, went down smoothly.

There was no way Reisir had made this himself.

Did he stop by the cafeteria before lunch?

As if to confirm my conjecture, Reisir then took out a sandwich filled with chocolate cream and dotted with fresh strawberries, personally unwrapped it, and handed one each to me and Yor.

I took a bite, and the excellent harmony of flavors was clearly the work of a professional.

And so, words of gratitude nearly escaped my lips.

"If you... only had one tumbler, you should have told me beforehand. I would have given you mine, wouldn't I?"

On second thought, I realized this wasn't something to be thankful for, so I changed my stance.

After all, it was largely Reisir's fault that Yor and I hadn't been able to finish our meal properly. He must have prepared these snacks because he didn't want to have anything to apologize to me for, so why should I be the one thanking him?

"Hahaha. The thought of preparing a snack came to me while I was showering after the morning lecture. So I didn't have time to tell you, you see? So can you just let it go for today?"

"...Tell me in advance from now on."

"Yeah, yeah. I will."

I considered asking him when he had decided to talk to Pret, not just when he had decided to prepare the snacks, but I decided against it.

It was obvious that it had been the moment he found Pret's needle during lunchtime yesterday. There was no need to ask a question I already knew the answer to, and...

It feels wrong to continue some pointless small talk with someone standing awkwardly right in front of us, doesn't it?

So I silently took another bite of my sandwich.

"Senior Reisir, what about mine?"

"There isn't any."

"Why?"

"Because you need to talk to me."

That was the extent of their conversation.

Come to think of it, Reisir hadn't taken out a sandwich for himself either. Then again, if you were having a serious conversation while eating a chocolate strawberry sandwich, the mood would become far too light.

But... if that's the reason, what is this in my hand?

I had a feeling that thinking too deeply about it would only be a loss for me.

So I decided to interpret it as him giving it to me with the meaning, I'll handle Pret's interrogation, so you can just watch.

That, however, was followed by the nagging question of why he had dragged me here in the first place.

But this, too, could be naturally explained if I assumed he had done it because he couldn't be bothered to take the time to explain today's conversation to me later.

"Oh, really? I thought you'd set me up here to flaunt how close you are with Senior Karvaldr. It's a relief to hear you actually called me here to talk."

"If that were my purpose, I wouldn't have put Yor in the middle."

"Wasn't this just the result of you trying to stop me when I said I would sit in that spot?"

"Hmm? I think so, but maybe not."

At Pret's sarcastic remark, the protagonist of someone else's novel merely shrugged and smoothly brushed it off.

But the atmosphere was thick with the feeling that the real battle of nerves was about to begin.

I couldn't let them waste any more time, so I decided to intervene briefly.

"Enough with the pointless talk. Get to the main point already."

"I was just about to."

I had my doubts about whether that was truly the case.

But knowing that pointing it out would only prolong the meaningless conversation, I took another bite of my sandwich and watched them.

"To put it bluntly, my Ether Attribute Ability isn't just 'the power to wield lightning.' Like Karvaldr, I also possess two types of Ether."

As Reisir spoke, he slightly lifted his eyepatch to reveal a silver iris, then immediately covered it again.

I had expected him to start by probing whether Pret was truly a circus member, so this was unexpected.

Still, the surprise I felt must have been a drop in the bucket compared to what Pret felt.

"I've never heard of such a thing. Not even in rumors..."

Did it hurt his pride as the successor to the world's best Information Guild?

Somehow, Pret seemed more shocked by the fact that he hadn't known about the Silver Ether until now than by the fact that Reisir had revealed its existence to him.

"Well, when I was young, this Silver Ether hadn't properly settled, so a silver glint would occasionally appear in my eyes and then vanish. Not many people saw it, and those who did merely thought they'd seen it wrong and moved on. Besides, after it became like this, I always wore an eyepatch, so it's only natural."

"Why are you suddenly revealing this to me now? You've been hiding that Ether's existence so thoroughly, going so far as to cover one eye despite the discomfort."

"I haven't told just anyone and have kept it a secret, but I wasn't intentionally hiding it by covering one eye."

"If not that, then why?"

"When the First Demon Realm appeared... I was struggling to survive, and my Golden Ether was completely depleted, causing the Silver Ether to go on a rampage. After that, a transparent window appeared in my right eye, displaying all sorts of information about objects and blocking my vision, so I couldn't see properly. I had no choice but to start wearing an eyepatch."

Reisir touched the eyepatch covering his right eye and continued his exceedingly kind explanation.

He could have simply said, It's to let you know that I read the information on the needle you dropped with this eye!

There was a way to corner Pret without giving him a chance to ask questions.

Is he trying to see whether the setting I created for him works on the successor to the Information Guild Head...?

Fortunately, Pret seemed to believe the original protagonist's words completely.

There wasn't a single hint of suspicion. Only pure surprise was clearly written across his face.

"Information about objects appears? Can you see information about people, too?"

"The only things I can see with this 【Identification】 skill right now are 'things without an ego, such as objects and plants.' They say I'll be able to look at 'one who has consented to their information being viewed' once my proficiency increases, but I can't even control the Silver Ether yet, so that's a distant dream for now."

"That's still amazing!"

"It is. It's amazing enough for me to find out your true identity right now."

The one who had been kindly answering every question suddenly let his eyes flash sharply, revealing his wariness.

A normal person would have flinched and unknowingly revealed their bewilderment at such a sight.

But Pret was no ordinary person.

"Aha? What might you mean by that?"

...he said, reacting as though he had no idea what was going on.

From his bewildered expression, I could even sense a trace of incredulity, as if he had just heard the most ridiculous nonsense.

It seemed his intention was to play dumb for now and see what evidence Reisir would present.

"After Professor Kaldrun's lecture ended yesterday, I picked this up and kept it."

"Is that my needle? Did you kindly keep it for me?"

"You really think so?"

"Hmm~, judging by the atmosphere, I suppose not. Did you keep it to examine it with your 【Identification】 skill? Even so, I doubt there's any particularly amazing information written on it, is there?"

"If that were the case, I wouldn't be talking to you like this right now."

Reisir held the needle he had just taken from his Inventory between his index and middle fingers and threw it at Pret with a whoosh.

Pret let out an "Oh dear!" and caught it by clapping his hands together.

His exaggerated interjection and movement were somewhat comical.

But despite that, Reisir's expression remained as cold as ice.

And a faint trace of discomposure appeared on the usually calm and composed Pret's face.

"What did Senior Reisir's skill have to say about this needle?"

"It said it was a special weapon, crafted one by one with great care by an artisan from the Hrafnin Information Guild for 'Pret Grymur'?"

As I wrote in the last chapter, which you readers should know, Pret's real name does not appear in the information on the 'Hyeonchim (玄針)' that can currently be read with 【Jinilnun】.

In other words, it was an element Reisir had intentionally inserted.

To definitively corner his opponent.

"Pret. So the surname 'Hulid' was fake? And you're not from a circus troupe, but from an Information Guild? What's more, a blacksmith from that place put his heart into crafting every single one of these tiny needles just for you... Just what kind of position do you hold in that guild?"

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