This Novel is not my Novel

If the original author intended to use the Seed Bloom's sleeping powder to drive us into danger and ultimately kill "Karvaldr," how would the plot unfold?

The first thing I need to consider is which of us—Reisir or me—will fall asleep.

It was very easy to imagine what ending would follow if I succumbed to the sleeping powder and lost consciousness.

No, there was no need to imagine it at all.

When the Seed Bloom appeared in the original work, the original protagonist had likewise been trapped in a Demon Realm alone with a supporting character.

The supporting character fell asleep first.

And in the end, that supporting character never woke again.

A large, solid boulder blocked the area behind them.

The original protagonist mistakenly concluded that as long as he blocked every attack coming from the front, the companion behind him would be safe.

But... Reisir truly did everything he could in the original novel.

He deflected every one of the countless stalks lashing at him and every seed fired his way.

The stalks and the seeds imbued with 【Germination】 merely bounced away, but 【Seed Bombs】 were different.

They exploded the moment they struck his spear, subjecting him to tremendous impacts.

Even so, he never once tried to dodge them.

A bomb was dangerous even if it did not strike someone directly and merely exploded nearby.

He feared that the defenseless companion sleeping behind him might be caught in an explosion and injured.

So he took every one of those dangers upon himself.

Despite such self-sacrifice, however—

when he finally finished the battle, his body in tatters, and turned around—

the supporting character had already been dead for quite some time.

While the original protagonist struggled through the grueling battle, the monster's roots, concealed beneath its leaves, had burrowed into the earth.

They passed beneath his feet—

and pierced the heart of the supporting character lying carefully on the ground.

The supporting character remained exactly as the original protagonist had laid them down, dead and bleeding from the chest.

He stared blankly at the body for a long time, utterly devastated and refusing to accept reality.

In the end, however, he could no longer look away from it. He sank to the ground and fell into self-loathing, blaming his own inexperience.

If the sleeping powder gets me here today, something similar will probably happen.

But that did not mean I could allow Reisir to fall asleep instead.

Even if Yor and I joined forces, we could probably handle only one monster.

We might not even be able to defeat a single one.

At present, I had no "decisive blow" capable of ending a monster's life.

Even if I tried to carry Reisir on my back and flee, the monsters would soon catch us.

In the end, I would have no choice but to fight.

Simply fighting them would already be difficult. If I also had to protect someone who was asleep, even holding out would become unbearably hard.

I would have to keep hoping Reisir wakes up soon, clinging to that as my only hope....

I could say with certainty that, in this scenario, Reisir would awaken at the exact moment I stood on the brink of death.

That way, the story could depict the blood-soaked supporting character and the protagonist's state of mind upon seeing him, followed by a final exchange of farewells—

creating as tragic an atmosphere as possible.

Reisir is the protagonist, so he will not die anyway. I suppose abandoning him and running away is one possible option.

But that did not mean I would survive.

On the contrary, it would put me in far greater danger.

There would no longer be any need to keep me barely alive until Reisir woke.

[ Karvaldr was eventually found surrounded by a horde of monsters, dead in a gruesome state. It was a fitting end for a coward who had fled alone. ]

...That single passage would settle the matter, would it not?

Perhaps this was precisely the development the original author wanted.

Especially if the author had decided to kill Karvaldr because of criticism that the story was glorifying a character who had committed school violence.

If everything he had shown since the second semester of last year was revealed to have been nothing but an act and a facade, while his true nature was that of a cowardly and selfish villain—

then the story could escape the controversy over glorifying an abuser.

Reisir would naturally be rescued without so much as a scratch.

When he opened his eyes, he would not see a sky covered by a translucent gray barrier, but the familiar ceiling of his own room.

He would be told that the monsters had apparently left him alone after the sleeping powder took effect because they had prioritized pursuing the human who was still moving.

And then he would hear the news that "Karvaldr abandoned him and fled, only to meet a horrific end."

The grief of losing someone close to him yet again.

The emptiness of waking to discover that all of this had happened while he slept.

The helplessness of having accomplished nothing despite promising to protect me.

The remorseful self-reproach of believing that his unnecessary request had caused everything.

The sense of betrayal stemming from the fact that someone he trusted had abandoned him while he was defenseless.

All those negative emotions would consume Reisir's heart....

Therefore, leaving Reisir asleep and running away had to be the worst possible choice.

The mere fact that I would die was terrifying enough, but I could also expect the process to be cruel and horrific.

Even the developments after my death would be utterly bleak.

It would be a terrible thing to do not only to myself, but also to the person who survived.

No matter what I choose, is there no way to change the future in which I die? If so, perhaps I should at least choose the less painful—

Get a grip, Ymir.

I could not start giving up already.

At this rate, it would be better not to think at all. If despair swallowed me, I would fail to notice even an obvious escape route.

"You look like you have a lot on your mind...?"

I was concentrating on my breathing, trying to escape those thoughts that were not merely negative but downright ominous, when Reisir approached without my noticing and voiced his confusion.

He had defeated the monster without sustaining a single injury.

He did not seem to understand why I looked troubled rather than relieved.

"No, I was merely.... Hmm.... You said that monster possessed two skills, 【Seed Bomb】 and 【Germination】, did you not? It bothers me that we failed to determine exactly what kind of skill 【Germination】 is...."

"Maybe the monster didn't use it during the battle because it isn't useful in combat?"

My words were merely an excuse because I could not honestly reveal what truly concerned me.

Even so, there was no question that this was an extremely important matter.

Yet he intends to dismiss it so casually and move on....

The protagonist of someone else's novel had just raised the flag known as "lower your guard and pay the price."

"How can you say that when your guardian possesses the ability to control plants?"

"Uh...? Now that you mention it, I feel as though I just said something terribly disrespectful to Dyuf...."

"Naturally. That is precisely what you did."

"I didn't mean it that way.... Should I apologize to him later?"

My observation made the protagonist of someone else's novel quite serious, but not in a way that helped our present situation.

Therefore, I had no choice but to add,

"What would be the point? Your guardian will never know you said such a thing anyway. Forget that nonsense for now and remind yourself to remain wary of the monster's ability. Perhaps the monster refrained from using the skill because it was its 'hidden trump card,' only to die before it ever found the chance. Is that not possible?"

"Ah...! Now that you mention it, that could be true."

The protagonist of someone else's novel let out an exclamation of realization and agreed with me.

This should be enough to prevent him from erasing the existence of 【Germination】 from his mind.

"You said earlier that 【Germination】 is an ability that makes seeds grow, correct? If so, the monster must be capable of producing two kinds of seeds. We do not yet ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) know whether there is any visible difference between those seeds and 【Seed Bombs】.... After dodging a seed, listen carefully for the sound. If you do not hear an explosion, leave that spot immediately, no matter what."

"Because something might suddenly grow from the seed and grab me?"

That was far from the worst it could do, but it was capable of that as well.

I nodded in confirmation and continued explaining the necessary precautions.

"If you succeed in getting away safely.... No, even if you do not. If something grows from the seed, make certain you use 【Truth-Reading Eye】 to read its information. There is no possibility that something a monster used a skill to grow will be an ordinary plant."

"Yeah! Got it!!"

The words leaving my mouth were unquestionably serious, and Reisir took them seriously.

Yet for some reason, a smile spread across the face of the protagonist of someone else's novel.

And not just any smile. It was one tinged with unmistakable satisfaction.

"Why... are you making that expression?"

"I was wondering why you stood back without intervening during the battle. Now I realize you were taking the information I skimmed over seriously, keeping watch and observing so you could respond immediately if something unexpected happened."

I had not carefully considered the information Reisir gave me. I had simply known the Seed Bloom's abilities from the original work.

But I could not tell him that.

At the same time, saying, "No? I was just standing around doing nothing," did not seem quite right either.

In any case, it is true that I was watching the situation closely because I was wary of the Seed Bloom's 【Germination】 skill.

For that reason, I did not go out of my way to deny it and merely fell silent with an uncomfortable expression.

"You really are dependable. I'm so glad the person beside me right now is you."

The protagonist of someone else's novel spouted that nonsense and made me feel embarrassed.

To think he would attempt an influence event even at a time like this.

I truly could not understand what was wrong with him.

"......This hardly seems like the appropriate situation for such remarks."

"Ah! Sorry. You were caught in this Demon Realm because you tried to grant my request, so you must be extremely upset and dissatisfied with the situation.... I was thinking only from my own perspective."

If I replied that I was fine and told him not to worry, that would cause a collapse in characterization.

Instead of being comforted, Reisir might feel even guiltier and become distraught.

He might mistakenly assume that I was so deeply anxious that I felt compelled to break character just to pretend I was all right.

No, wait. I really am anxious, so can that even be called a misunderstanding?

If it was the truth rather than a misunderstanding, that was all the more reason not to reveal it.

Thus, I decided to behave as I normally did.

"Hmph! As long as you understand. Now tell me what you intend to do next."

"I'll take responsibility for protecting you and make sure you escape this place safely."

"I did not ask for something so obvious. Tell me the actual plan."

"First... we should move toward the Demon Realm's boundary... right? Was that too obvious as well...?"

It was, but that did not matter.

Falling for the original protagonist's influence event in a situation like this would be no different from sealing my death.

My goal had been to make him say something other than lines meant for an influence event.

So rather than rebuking him for stating another obvious fact, I gestured with my chin for him to lead the way.

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