Chapter 110: An Unwritten Story

Beneath the academy, deep inside a secret tunnel, Noa pushed open a large door. A draft swept through as the doors parted with a loud groan, and he stepped inside, followed by Vionette and Elina.

Vionette looked around at the architecture and the gathered members. “This is the place?”

Noa spread his hands. “What do you think?”

As they advanced, the cult members drew apart, carving a path towards the stairs that led up to the raised platform.

Vionette moved her eyes from left to right, studying each member once, before smiling. “Some of them are citizens of Gergrain… even shop owners.”

At her words, some of the members flinched, staring at her in fear.

“How the hell can you even tell?” Noa asked, rolling his eyes towards her. “It’s not like you remember everyone—”

“I just memorize everyone I see, inside my head.”

Noa stopped and turned around. Looking at her with dull eyes, he asked, “Are you serious?”

Smirking mockingly, she walked past him and stopped before the stairs, gazing up at the platform. Four seats now sat atop it, side by side.

“Well, they certainly know how to lick feet properly.” She ascended the stairs.

While Vionette settled into one of the middle two seats, Elina sprinted past Noa with a gleeful grin and leapt into the other middle seat. As she looked down on the crowd with a smug smile, resting her fist against her cheek and crossing her legs, Noa stopped in front of her.

[Nihility Decree]

Null Essence formed a large hand behind Elina and seized one of her horns.

She looked at it with wide eyes and barked, “Hey—!”

The hand lifted her up and set her down on the seat at the far left.

“That spot isn’t yours.” Noa took the vacated seat.

Once the hand had placed her down and dissolved, Elina folded her arms and let out a draconic growl at Noa, glaring intensely. Then she noticed the empty seat beside Vionette.

“Isn’t Lina coming?” she asked.

“No, she’s turning her Aether Core into a Blossom Core in her room right now,” Vionette answered. She looked at the head cultist. “What’s your name?”

He bowed to her and answered, “Gireld, My Lady.”

“Gireld, you guys were trying to summon this Lord Baleck guy, I heard?”

He nodded, confused. “Yes, My Lady.”

Noa shot her a sidelong glance, and she continued, “And how, when, and where were you trying to summon it?”

“‘It’…?” Gireld gulped as he saw her eyes widen. “M-my apologies! We were planning to gather the bodies of 100 dead people to forge a vessel for its Astral Body to inhabit. The ritual was to be held on the island the academy is traveling to tomorrow.”

“Heh? On the island the academy is going to?” Vionette’s smile widened. She licked her upper lip, her eyes filled with hunger. “You can proceed with the ritual as planned, no changes.”

Gireld’s eyes widened. “Pardon?”

“Yes, you may continue.”

Noa turned towards her. “Hey, you sure about this?”

“Yeah.” Vionette nodded.

“But, My Lady…” Gireld’s words drew Vionette’s attention back to him. He was glancing at Noa, sweating. “The Lord already destroyed all the bodies we gathered that day.”

A fist landed on Noa’s head in an instant.

Vionette sighed. “Just kill some more people, then. I’ll give you someone to help you out.”

Gireld bowed. “Yes, My Lady.”

“Now,” she said, tilting her head, “give me the names.”

“Names, My Lady?”

“Don’t play dumb with me. You guys wouldn’t know about the academy’s future plans without a professor on your side.” She smirked. “And you wouldn’t be able to hide the deaths of that many people without a noble.”

“...It’s Professor Alicia and Duke Vaelthorn,” he muttered, looking down.

Vionette rose from her seat, and as Noa stared in confusion, she descended the stairs.

“Now, gentlemen, make way. I have somewhere to be,” she said as the cult members parted before her.

“Hey, where are you going?” Noa called from behind her.

She waved her hand. “To aura farm on someone.” Once near the door, she stopped and turned around to look at Gireld. “Also, add another seat up there next time.”

***

‘So, did you notice anything unusual in the Rune Study class?’ Lucion whispered to Adrian.

They sat at their desks while Professor Castil taught the lesson.

‘No. She was just normal, like every day,’ Adrian whispered back, adjusting his glasses with two fingers. ‘I’m starting to think she has two personalities at this point.’

‘That may be a possibility, but that alone doesn’t make her strong enough to cast wind spells that fast.’ Lucion looked down at his desk. ‘We still don’t have anything on Emmy, it seems—’

“You two youngsters,” Castil called out loudly.

‘Oh no!’ Adrian instantly straightened up.

“Are you two holding your own little class up there?” She smiled teasingly. “Or if you need the bathroom, don’t worry, the interval is in sixteen minutes.”

“No, Professor…” Lucion lowered his face in embarrassment, a faint blush colouring his cheeks.

He glanced to the side, and there she was: Neiscris, chuckling at him.

“Excuse me~” A new, playful voice drifted in.

Everyone, including Castil, turned towards the door and found Vionette standing there. At the sight of her, both Lucion’s and Edel’s eyes narrowed.

Castil approached Vionette and gave a slight bow. “Yes, Lady Vionette? What brings you to our class?”

“Well, you see,” Vionette said, turning to gaze over the students, “I need some assistance with something, so I’m looking for a good alchemist.” Castil opened her mouth just as Vionette raised a finger. “Ah, don’t worry, I got Sinia’s permission.”

“An alchemist?” Castil’s eyes took on a glassy sheen. She put on a smile. “Then how about my daughter, Neiscris?”

“Are you high? I heard she brewed poison when she was supposed to make a healing potion.” Vionette’s gaze turned towards Lucion. “Rather, I heard there was an excellent alchemist who earned the professor’s praise. He’s the one I’m specifically looking for.”

Lucion clenched his teeth, knowing what was coming. This damned woman.

Castil’s eyes narrowed. “But he’s studyi—”

Vionette leaned towards Castil’s ear and whispered something that made her eyes widen. She fell silent for a few seconds.

Then she turned towards Lucion. “Lucion, you’re permitted to go. Assist Princess Vionette.”

Lucion stood up and walked down the aisle, annoyance and nervousness mingling on his face.

‘Getting to assist the Princess herself. Lucky commoner!’ a whisper drifted over.

‘I know, right?’

It’s not as good as you think! Lucion screamed inside his mind.

Lucion stopped in front of the two women. Then he glanced back at Adrian and flashed a series of hand signals.

Vionette read the signs as he made them. If… I. Late… Continue. Look. At. Code Green.

Adrian gave Lucion a salute. I’ll look out for Emmy, don’t worry!

Watching the exchange, Vionette chuckled to herself, not amused, just indulgent. She turned around and walked out the door.

“Follow me, then.”

As they left, Neiscris stared at Vionette’s back, a neutral expression on her face. Is it time?

Vionette strode down the academy halls, humming playfully, while Lucion followed behind, on guard.

I don’t have a good feeling about this…

“How has life been here?” she asked as she entered a room.

It wasn’t decorated like the academy’s other rooms, furnished only with everyday items like tables and couches. This was the private room Vionette had received from Sinia.

“In the academy?” He stood in the doorway. “I’m not very talented, so you can guess.”

“Oh, you misunderstood.” Vionette sat on a couch before a table set with two teacups on opposite sides. “I meant here in this fantasy world. Very different from Earth, isn’t it?”

Lucion’s eyes widened, his face draining of color. “...W-what do you mean?”

“Take a seat first.” She gestured towards the chair.

Uncertainly, he did, left with no other option. He looked at her, his gaze keen. “I won’t pretend anymore. How do you know this?”

“I know a lot.” After taking a sip of her tea, she laughed softly. “I know that you’re from Earth. I know that you’re not Lucion Vale. And I know that you know the future.”

Man, this tea hits the spot, she thought with a smile.

Lucion’s grip on his own hand tightened beneath the table. As he had suspected from the day he realized she knew about his system, the woman before him was different from the rest. 

Very different.

“So, how is this world?” she repeated.

He looked at her, and his answer came out stiff. “Not particularly good. Not now.”

“Really? We might have different tastes, then.” Setting down her tea, she leaned back on the couch. “So, have you been preparing for the first major boss, Baleck?”

Lucion’s heart skipped a beat. “What—”

“Was it Alicia? That trainer of yours.” Her smile shifted. “She and Duke Vaelthorn. You’d have to survive them too, wouldn’t you?”

Lucion was silent.

She had known about the system only he could see. She had known every answer to his questions. She had known everything in the present. But now… now she even knew his past, and the future.

She knew everything he did, and even more.

After weighing everything that had happened around this woman, he wove a conclusion in his mind:

Could she be the one… who transmigrated me?

And the only kind of being capable of such a thing was…

“Are you a god?”

Vionette paused, mildly puzzled by the question.

“A god?” Then she laughed. “Who knows?”

“How do you know about the game’s story?” he asked, his tea untouched.

So it really is a game, not a novel. I could tell by how he moved in that pocket dimension, she mused.

“Enough of that stuff. I wanted to meet you to make a deal,” Vionette stated.

Lucion tilted his head back. “A deal?”

“Yes. I’ll help you in the second boss fight, and in return,” she said, eyeing his neck, “you give me that necklace.”

Lucion looked down at himself. “You knew I had this?”

“I saw you equip it right before it turned invisible.” She extended a hand towards him. “What do you say? We can make a Soul Contract if you don’t trust me.”

Lucion didn’t answer, lost in thought. I need the necklace to boost my Aether value… but help from her of all people could be more than useful. A forced smile formed. Can I even say no and live?

“Okay… I’ll make the Soul Contract,” he said, extending his hand towards her.

Each stated their terms of the contract, and their bodies were bathed in light. And so, the Soul Contract was formed.

Lucion removed the Necklace of Ishlim from his neck, and it became visible again. He handed it over to Vionette.

She studied the necklace. I saw his Aether rise after he put this on. This’ll help me last at least a little longer in battle with this fragile body.

Sweeping her hair back, she fastened the necklace around her neck, and just as with him, it turned invisible. Then several system windows appeared, one of which held a surprising message.

[Aether: 20 → 60]

[Authority: 0 → 2]

[Congratulations to the Host for reaching Authority!]

The fuck?

[Error! This Authority is in conflict with Crown of Accumulation!]

[Notice! Solution found: convert the unique Authority inside the Necklace of Ishlim into a skill using the Authority of Crown of Accumulation!]

System, explain the situation, she asked, keeping her poker face in front of Lucion.

[Answer: It seems the Necklace of Ishlim contained a fragment of a Script Writer’s Authority.]

Vionette tore her gaze from the system and looked at Lucion. “Your system doesn’t show a stat named ‘Authority,’ does it?”

“Authority…?”

“So it doesn’t.”

An amused smile curved on her lips. I see what’s going on here… someone’s playing a game behind the curtain. She looked back at the system. Okay, system, what is this about Authority and [Crown of Accumulation]?

[Answer: The most common power of an Authority is the ability to impose one’s will upon reality (all of existence).]

Reality manipulation, basically?

[Correct!]

[However, Authorities vary. Crown of Accumulation is an extremely rare Authority that manipulates skills.]

[But skills are written in a language that no one can comprehend. Systems are made of that same language, yet unlike skills, a system possesses a mind, which is why it alone can read it.]

[Therefore, manipulating skills requires a system. Simply raising the Authority attribute is not enough, even if the Authority itself holds that ability. And a system cannot manipulate an Authority on the Host’s behalf.]

[So the Authority was converted into a skill. A system can manipulate skills, and the Host can use that skill to manipulate other skills.]

[As a result, Accumulation Points serve as the Host’s Authority attribute.]

So we just bend the rules until we can make it work. Works for me, I guess?

[The Authority inside the Necklace of Ishlim holds the power to manipulate the narration.]

So they can’t coexist, and they’re fighting each other?

[Not quite!]

[One’s Authority attribute normally measures how much power one wields through an Authority.]

[But since Crown of Accumulation is measured in Accumulation Points, the Authority inside the Necklace of Ishlim has nothing to connect to, leaving the two powers in conflict.]

So it’s a goddamn system error! Not my problem! How can we fix that?

[Suggestion: Create an empty skill using the Accumulation Points of Crown of Accumulation, and move the Authority inside the Necklace of Ishlim into that empty skill!]

If there are no drawbacks, just go for it.

[What would you like to name the skill?]

You know me well, you fucker, she chuckled, and thought over it for a second. Then, she answered, Go with [An Unwritten Story].

[Proceeding, please wait…]

[Completed!]

Just as the skill was acquired, Vionette’s eyes widened subtly, her mouth parting a fraction.

I see… so that’s what’s going on. System, did you get that too?

[Correct! The Host’s memories are connected to mine!]

Anyway, let’s leave those future plans for the future. We’re doing this run right. So, how much AP do I have now?

[Accumulation Points: 20.304]

Ah, fuck me! Vionette snatched her teacup and hurled it at the wall while Lucion stared at her. At least give me the description of this shit.

[An Unwritten Story]

• Allows the Host to manipulate the narration, to the extent of the Host’s Authority.

It doesn’t have a class?

[Answer: Since the extent of the Host’s influence over the narration depends entirely on how much Authority the Host possesses, it has no class.]

What happens if I remove the necklace now?

[Answer: The Authority that remained within it has been transferred to the Host, permanently setting the Host’s Authority attribute to 2.]

So it’ll only remove the Aether buff?

[Correct!]

“Okay, I just decided I don’t want it.” She took the necklace off and handed it back to him.

“What…?” Lucion asked, completely lost.

Does she not like its effects? Is that why she threw the cup like that?

“Doesn’t this break the Soul Contract?” he asked.

“How? You gave it to me as promised, and I’m just giving it back.” She smiled. “So you basically get free help from me, since I still have to keep my end.”

“...” Lucion took the necklace and put it on, unsure.

System, with the Authority I have now, what kind of things can I do?

[Lift some dust off the ground]

Fuck!

She grabbed the table and flipped it.