Inheriting the Novel

Chapter 3 : Inheriting the Novel (2)

Inheriting the Novel (2)

The two individuals mentioned in the setting of the poisoned inkwell.

Baian Deoric, and Tedric Eaton.

Among them, Baian Deoric is someone with whom I share a particularly deep connection.

The House Vanhart and the House Deoric were quite close, so during our childhood, the two families frequently interacted.

When I was little, even Leon Deoric, the eldest son of the Deoric family, would come by to demonstrate his swordsmanship.

The House Deoric is a renowned martial family in the kingdom, so each time, many knights would gather to observe.

Naturally, I had known Baian Deoric since those days.

A well-mannered face and the genius of the Deoric family who never neglected his efforts.

Currently, the kingdom's army hails him as a model knight, and everyone holds him in high esteem.

'What a joke.'

But as someone who had known Baian since childhood, all I could do was laugh.

Because I knew very well that he was not as good a guy as people said.

'Still, I didn't think he was the type to do something like that.'

I looked at Baian, who wore the mask of a virtuous man right before me.

He seemed puzzled by my unexpected visit to his barracks.

Of course, that was natural. Since our childhood, we'd barely interacted at all.

The reason I had sought him out was simple.

Rather than waste time unnecessarily, I judged that the fastest way to confirm the truth was to directly check the setting mentioned in the inkwell.

"Is there something you need from me? For you to come find me, it must be something out of the ordinary."

"I just thought I'd drop by and see your face for the first time in a while."

"What?"

He frowned, as if suspecting I was playing a prank.

But I didn't care about his reaction.

My gaze was fixed solely on the sentence floating next to Baian Deoric.

==

〈Baian Deoric〉

Age: 22

Gender: Male

Role in the story: Second son of House Deoric (Villain)

Possessed Skill: Silver Star Sword (5-star)

Special Notes: Spy of the Kingdom of Kainzel. Assassinated Duke Gale and framed Tedric Eaton as the culprit, shaking the entire Talua kingdom's army. Fabian's first adversary, a swordsmanship genius with extraordinary talent.

==

'Wow.'

I couldn't help but be impressed.

I figured he might pull some stunt, but I never imagined he'd be preparing something this spectacular.

'So the incident in which Sir Eaton is framed is Gale's assassination?'

Ivan Gale.

He is the current commander-in-chief of the Talua kingdom's army.

He is so capable that he is called the hope of the kingdom, and it's said that the Kingdom of Kainzel hesitates to attack because of Duke Gale.

Moreover, the House Eaton is a prestigious martial family, known for producing excellent knights for generations, and has considerable influence within the military.

Tedric Eaton is the heir to that house and an advanced-rank sword expert.

If something were to happen to these two influential figures in the military, it would shake the entire kingdom's army.

If Baian is indeed a spy from the Kingdom of Kainzel, those would be the best possible targets.

But there was still something I couldn't accept.

'Why would Baian become a spy...?'

Unlike our fallen family, the Deoric family is a long-standing and prestigious noble house.

I genuinely couldn't understand why he would side with the Kingdom of Kainzel.

I stared intently at Baian, puzzled by the unexpected information.

And it seemed to further irritate him.

"... Clay Vanhart."

He, who never revealed his true feelings behind his mask, spoke now with a twisted expression.

"Though we may have been close as children, I'd appreciate it if you'd maintain proper decorum."

"Close... huh."

Well, it wasn't wrong.

Back then, our families associated frequently, and I too was fond of the Deoric household.

Especially, I wanted to learn the Deoric family's sword technique, the Silver Star Sword, and pestered them for lessons.

'Of course, there was no way I could ever be taught.'

There's no way a secret family technique would be taught to another house.

Still, I got to watch the Silver Star Sword from up close several times, and even received general sword instruction from Leon Deoric.

That was until our family fell and exchanges ceased.

"Anyway, sorry for dropping by out of nowhere. I just wanted to see you after so long."

"Me? Are you saying you came seeking my help?"

"Well, something like that."

To be honest, I already got all the help I needed just by confirming your setting.

Of course, Baian had no way of knowing this, and began interpreting it in his own way.

"I know you're trying hard to save your family. But there are things that one can and cannot do."

His tone sounded almost like consolation, but he was in fact mocking me, saying that it was impossible to save my family with my own power.

Someone else might have been infuriated, but I simply chuckled.

I've heard that sort of mockery countless times already.

"Thanks for that. I appreciate the advice."

"I told you to mind your manners."

Cracks formed on his gentle mask, and his tone turned hostile, but with a smiling face I continued.

"Let me give you a bit of advice in return."

I knew.

His patience was much thinner than people thought.

"There's an old saying from the East: retribution for one's deeds. I find it very fitting."

"... What are you trying to say?"

"Nothing much, really."

That's about all I could say for now.

Just enough to put a tiny crack in his mask.

For now, that was more than enough.

* * *

After confirming Baian's setting, I checked whether the "Poisoned Inkwell" setting was true.

Once this was verified, I'd be done testing my abilities.

'As expected, the poison is real.'

After some experiments, it turned out that the liquid in the inkwell was indeed poison.

A delayed-action toxin that shows symptoms 30 minutes after coming into contact with or ingesting it.

That meant the abilities I'd acquired were the real deal.

'If I want to seize my opportunity, I have to understand exactly what my abilities are.'

At first, I had no idea how to check—until, quite simply, it appeared in the ability column right after I checked my own setting.

==

〈Clay Vanhart〉

Age: 20

Gender: Male

Role in the story: Second son of House Vanhart (Extra)

Abilities: Dao Inscribed Sword (3-star), Setting Confirmation, Setting Addition, synopsis

Special Notes: Stand-in author of the novel "The Sound of the Sword".

==

This is my current setting.

Naturally, my role is merely an extra.

Everything else was relatively normal compared to others, but there were notable peculiarities.

Specifically, my abilities and special notes.

"Setting Confirmation, Setting Addition, and Synopsis..."

These were the phrases I read in the letter before I lost consciousness.

Of them, I'd already used Setting Confirmation several times, so I knew it well.

Whenever I wanted, I could check any setting, and if I refused, I could clear it from my sight.

"That's the first one, but what about the other two?"

I had no proper information other than what could be inferred from their names.

'First, I need to figure out how to use them.'

Fortunately, the usage was not complicated.

If I said the name of the ability or traced the floating letters in the air with my finger, it would activate immediately.

==

〈Setting Addition〉

You may add an ability by meeting its plausibility conditions.

The kinds and numbers of plausibility conditions depend on the ability; only when all conditions are met can you add the ability to your setting.

- The (stand-in) author can only add abilities that have been read from another's setting window. The requirements for plausibility of read abilities can be checked in the 'Setting List.'

==

"That's rather strict."

In short, I could only add abilities I'd read from a setting window, and even then, only by fulfilling specific conditions.

But...

'Even just this much gives me plenty of options.'

Seeing others' settings wasn't difficult, and even though there were plausibility requirements, the potential to gain various abilities was a huge advantage.

'For example...'

An ability immediately came to mind, so I opened the 'Setting List' without delay.

「Silver Star Sword」

The signature swordsmanship of House Deoric.

Having been fascinated by it in my youth, I knew well how powerful it was.

My heart pounding, I checked what conditions I needed to acquire it.

==

〈Silver Star Sword〉

Required Plausibility

1. Observe Silver Star Sword at least 100 times [Current progress: 99 times]

2. Receive swordsmanship instruction 10 times from a swordsman with 5-star mastery of Silver Star Sword [Achieved]

==

'Wow.'

A gasp escaped as soon as I saw the plausibility.

Never did I think things would go so smoothly.

'To think my childhood experience would help like this.'

Now, the ties between our families had been cut.

But that experience had contributed greatly to fulfilling the requirements for learning Silver Star Sword.

'It's a bit of a shame I couldn't get it right away.'

What I was missing was just one more observation.

I couldn't obtain it immediately, but the opportunity would surely arise soon.

"Well, now that I've checked Setting Addition..."

Lastly, the most mysterious ability—'Synopsis.'

Fortunately, unlike Setting Addition, it was very easy to use. Just like Setting Confirmation, I could activate it whenever I wanted.

Without much thought, I used 'Synopsis.'

And was left speechless.

"... What is this?"

[There are currently four viewable episodes.]

==

Episodes 19–32, 'The Unexpected Traitor'

Episodes 33–46, 'A Plan Gone Wrong from the Start'

Episodes 47–51, 'Escape'

Episodes 204–225, 'Calamity of the Dragon'

==

Synopsis.

It was, simply put, the ability to "preview" the future.

* * *

Viscount Delmore was currently feeling extremely bewildered.

It had been an ordinary morning, until Clay Vanhart showed up and turned everything upside down.

'What is going on?'

The House Vanhart had already fallen from grace.

He never imagined he'd feel such things toward Clay Vanhart, whom he'd always looked down on and dismissed.

'No, now that I think about it, it was strange from the beginning.'

When he finished organizing the supply warehouse instantly and perfectly—it was odd.

As the quartermaster, Viscount Delmore knew all too well that it was no simple task.

It was tedious, troublesome, and required long hours of hard labor. No matter how far the House Vanhart had fallen, it must have been an insulting task for one of its scions.

Yet Clay had finished it easily and remained silent about it.

And now, today, he appeared out of nowhere and said this:

"Have you not been embezzling supplies recently?"

The words were so sudden that Viscount Delmore was left speechless, only letting out a groan.

'How did he find out I was skimming supplies?'

There were a great many nobles participating in this war. Supplies came not only directly from the kingdom but also from each noble household—a considerable quantity.

Just from the supplies alone, you wouldn't be able to tell if this place was a battlefield or a social gathering.

As quartermaster, Viscount Delmore had been quietly siphoning off luxury items from the supplies. He'd simply claim they got lost in transport—there was nothing difficult about it.

As long as he wasn't too obvious, he figured he'd never get caught. Just like always.

'Did he figure it out while organizing the supplies?'

That couldn't be.

How could he know about items that had already disappeared?

The records had been forged, and were in his own hands besides.

No matter how hard he pondered, he couldn't figure out how Clay had found out.

"Playing dumb won't help. Taylor and Roden have already confessed."

Taylor and Roden.

They were Viscount Delmore's retainers who had carried out the embezzlement under his instructions.

When Clay mentioned their names, Viscount Delmore could no longer hide his expression.

"W-wait. There must be some mistake."

Looking at his face turning yellow, Clay smiled faintly.