novelraw Chapter 185
Chapter 185
Chapter 185
The festival was not over yet.
My body, already reinforced to the utmost, was not so fragile that it would feel fatigue just because of a little lack of sleep.
Miyu, who had cried herself to exhaustion in my arms, was lying quietly asleep on the bed.
I decided to stay by her side until morning. Partly because I was worried about Miyu’s condition after going through “that” today, and partly because there might still be something left behind by Benedict.
‘By morning, everything will be settled.’
The festival would go on safely.
The “Fireworks” exhibition hall was, unfortunately, likely to be closed... but then again, who knew? Once Miyu woke up, she might come up with some other groundbreaking way to fix it.
‘Haa….’
I leaned back in the chair.
To be honest, this might have been the most physically and mentally exhausting of all the incidents I had gone through so far. No joke—the moment I nearly got swallowed by ‘Aaron Stingray’s’ personality was nothing compared to the shock of seeing Miyu transformed into something like a gelatinous mass.
“……”
I gently stroked Miyu’s sleeping head. I could feel just how deeply their presence had rooted itself inside me, far more than I had imagined. Maybe because we had spent so much time together, I had grown attached to them beyond the vague admiration I had once felt as a “reader.”
And so.
I reaffirmed my resolve once again.
‘It’s time to move on to the next stage.’
Act 4 of Part 2 had ended safely.
Now Part 3 would soon begin.
It would be a time when the focus shifted away from incidents within the Academy, toward the events unfolding outside.
From this point to the conclusion, there weren’t many crises ahead that could truly threaten me.
The divergence from the original had grown so vast that unexpected things could happen at any time, but with the power I now possessed, I could handle most deviations without much trouble.
But there were three obstacles.
The first was [Mystics].
Archdemons, archangels, gods, and dragons.
Among the many [Mystics] born from folklore, myths, legends, and the primal fears and emotions of humanity, the highest-tier beings lurked outside the city.
Among them, the Divine Race and the Dragonkin had played the most decisive roles in driving humanity to the brink of extinction two hundred years ago, according to the story’s setting. Which meant that even as the “world’s strongest,” Aaron Stingray, they were still a heavy burden for me.
‘In the original, Evangeline had acted as the bridge that allowed the protagonist to establish a peace treaty with them….’
Thanks to Evangeline, the protagonist Shade Wells had gained the help of the world’s strongest race—the dragons—and was able to bring down the Stingray Group.
But now, with the protagonist dead and Evangeline reduced to a child, it was impossible to predict how those transcendent beings would view humanity.
If they suddenly decided to descend en masse upon New Valhalla City and reduce it to rubble? Then I would probably be left as the last lonely human alive.
That was a situation I absolutely did not want.
The second obstacle was Chairman Drake Stingray.
As the final boss of the story, I still hadn’t decided exactly how to deal with him.
If only I could peer into what was inside his head… but I couldn’t exactly just show up and say, “Father! Mind if I hack your brain?” and pry it open.
‘The problem is that he’s the existence most likely to cause unforeseen variables.’
I could, in theory, just forcefully beat him down and wring out what I wanted… not impossible, but that would be the worst of the worst options. Something to be reserved as the very last resort.
Until the final scenario arrived, I needed to decide firmly how I would handle him.
And the last one.
An existence more troublesome than anyone else.
The “Author.”
Not one of those [Mystics] born of myth, but the actual being who created this world. The one who dragged souls from other worlds here, who pushed transmigrators into clearing scenarios through things like hunting grounds and perk systems.
Since I could neither observe nor interfere with him, I had no idea what to do about him.
What was his goal? As “Motherboard” had said, would he erase this world once all the scenarios ended? And so on, and so forth.
‘I thought that by progressing through the scenario, I would eventually learn something…’
But even after completing Act 4 of Part 2 with great effort, no tangible clues had fallen into my hands. I couldn’t even be sure if my current strategy was the right one.
‘……For now, put it on hold.’
As before, until a solid clue surfaced, I would shelve it.
The Author seemed intent on having transmigrators push the scenario forward no matter what, so rather than doing something that opposed that will, it would be better—for now—for my own safety—to follow along obediently.
‘Ah, right.’
While thinking about the “Author,” I remembered something I had briefly forgotten.
The clear reward for Act 4 of Part 2 had arrived.
To be honest, my body had grown so strong that there was almost no room left for further growth, so I had grown indifferent to perk points or rewards lately… but still, it was never a bad thing to gain more, so I needed to check properly.
-----
[Scenario End]
Change in relationship with ‘Miyu.’
Act 4 of Part 2 has ended.
Final Contribution: 99%
Scenario rewards will be given.
Rewards vary according to contribution.
【Scenario Reward】
Achievement Points: +5000P
‘Yellow Hunting Ground Ticket’ x1
[Achievement Unlocked]
You opened Miyu’s heart.
Achievement Points: +3500
-----
[Special Achievement Unlocked]
You held the Academy Festival.
Achievement Points: +500
-----
[Special Achievement Unlocked]
You completely won Miyu’s heart.
Achievement Points: +2500
-----
[Achievement Unlocked]
You saw all the first-year events.
-----
[Achievement Unlocked]
[Achievement Unlocked]
…… …
…… …….
----
‘No, why is there so much!?’
More had come in than I expected.
Especially since I had also achieved things called [Special Achievements], which I had never seen before, my points had suddenly gathered up to around 25,000P.
‘What on earth are Special Achievements supposed to be?’
Judging by the contents, it seemed like they were obtained when you influenced the main scenario in ways that never appeared in the original… basically, a kind of “Hidden Achievement,” just under a different name.
“Mmm……”
Special Achievements.
If I used these well, I could probably gain even greater benefits. While I was carefully examining the conditions for them, suddenly, as if a light bulb had gone off in my head, something struck me.
‘Ah! Wait… could this be… the stories the Author couldn’t fit into the main work?’
Yes, that was it.
The Author had imagined them in his mind, but for some reason hadn’t been able to show those “possibility” stories himself.
For example, the Academy Festival.
In school-life works, a “festival” was almost always used as the setting for some special event, but in [Cyber-Module’s Necromancer], there had never been a festival episode.
‘Maybe the Author actually wanted to write it, but just didn’t have room for it. The setting was a cyberpunk world without dreams or hope, after all.’
The same went for the achievement “You completely won Miyu’s heart.” The Author had carefully crafted Miyu’s backstory and prepared episodes for it, but in the end, for some reason, they had never been revealed in the original.
That must have left the Author with lingering regret, so when I showed the “festival episode” and the “Miyu episode” in his stead, he rewarded me in the form of [Special Achievement Unlocked].
‘Wait. It’s starting to add up, isn’t it….’
Stories of possibility.
Ah, yes… that was it…!
‘The Author regretted what his work lacked! So he used transmigrators to run a remake of it!’
It had started with the quiz contest.
He gathered readers who had a deep understanding of his work, then used the format of a “quiz contest” to select them, and planned to supplement the work together with them. Devoted readers with high understanding would surely be able to make it into an even better story.
The method was scenario rewards.
The Author encouraged transmigrators—readers who perfectly reenacted the scenarios—by rewarding them. With rewards, transmigrators would work harder to push the scenario forward.
‘Synchronization must also be a mechanism to maintain the world’s integrity.’
If the transmigrator’s original personality alone remained, they would act outside the role of the set character. So synchronization was carried out to ensure they stayed faithful to roleplaying.
‘But the scenario began veering off course from the very start.’
Shade Wells died, Aaron Stingray cured his illness, Evangeline was killed by Araya, and so on.
The Author probably hadn’t expected transmigrators to cause such chaos, even with “scenario rewards” and “synchronization” as restraints.
‘The Author liked Motherboard’s simulated world more than the one the transmigrators messed up. That’s why, while Motherboard was alive, he was so absorbed in it that he abandoned his role as administrator!’
Administrator?
No, I should say game master.
It was more accurate to think of myself not as having entered a novel, but as playing a TRPG based on the novel.
‘I still don’t understand everything… but if I think of it that way, it more or less makes sense.’
So, to summarize:
We are playing a TRPG based on the novel.
The Author is the game master.
The Author wants transmigrators to play the scenario in the direction he desires.
Players who satisfy the master receive generous rewards.
‘Ha… what the hell is this.’
Once I organized it in my notepad, I found myself laughing. That invisible, unobservable transcendent being turned out to just be some guy who liked TRPGs.
Since I had once been a fan, I started to feel an odd sense of familiarity toward the Author, but even knowing that now didn’t change anything. I couldn’t confirm whether my guess was even correct in the first place.
‘For now, diligently pushing the scenario forward will probably help my reputation with the master.’
Not just progressing according to the original, but also fulfilling the Author’s “hidden intentions.” That would be even better. Who knew? Maybe later, he would give me some special reward that he wouldn’t give to anyone else.
‘Well then, shall I start spending points now?’
After clearing this scenario, I had 25,500P. One Yellow Hunting Ground Ticket.
I also still had one Green Hunting Ground Ticket that I had obtained earlier but hadn’t found the right timing to use, and one Module Level Up Ticket.
‘Since my body has adapted to the [Black Out] module, I should probably raise other Game Changers to Lv.6….’
So first, I bought two more Module Level Up Tickets to match the number of Lv.5 Arcane Modules I had. I planned to use them on [Techblade], [Cloud Spider], and [Corpse Eater].
‘But using them all at once would put too much strain on my body. Better to use them after getting Miyu’s advice.’
That left me with 15,500P.
Hmm. Now my point spending options were starting to feel vague. Wasn’t the shop balance a little off? Then again, I had chosen the cheat character “Aaron Stingray” from the beginning, so maybe that was why.
‘What should I do with the rest? Should I invest in the kids?’
With about 15,000P, I could buy three tickets and give one each to Iri, Silence, and Raina.
But it felt a little too wasteful to do that already. They still had plenty of Replacement Rate left.
Even without transmigrator perk items like tickets, they could grow stronger quite easily.
“When does the shop level even go up….”
Act 4 of Part 2 was over. Wasn’t it about time already? My wallet was full, but I had nowhere to spend it.
As I secretly muttered those thoughts aloud—
[Notice]
The shop level has increased.
“Oh……”
Wow, now it came out blatantly.
That bastard, the Author.
He had been spying on me.