Chapter 159: Remake

“By the way, do you plan on continuing to attend the Academy?”

I broached the subject as a way to change the topic.

Since the situation had changed in many ways from the Original Work, I didn’t think it would be strange for Reysir Daudabina to continue attending the Academy in terms of plausibility.

Still, I wanted to properly confirm his intentions regarding why he chose to stay at the Academy.

However….

“Karbaldr, are you perhaps considering dropping out?!”

For some reason, Reysir’s expression hardened as he blurted out something completely unexpected.

It seemed he had taken my words far more seriously than intended, heading in a direction entirely different from my own.

Just how did he reach such a conclusion?

The answer to that question is revealed in the very next line.

“Is it because of the anomalies… you know, because no one knows when or where a ‘Demonic Realm’ might appear? And because you can’t trust the professors, and you can’t bring escort knights with you. Have you become afraid of continuing at the Academy…?”

Through the dialogue above, there are three pieces of information that the readers can discern.

The first is the reason Reysir predicted the high possibility of my withdrawal. The second is that Reysir is extremely anxious because of it. And the third is the fact that the term ‘Demonic Realm’ has become established.

“Now that I look at you, those dark circles are back. You definitely just arrived after staying at the Capital until yesterday… Did you lose sleep at night because you were agonizing over whether you should drop out?”

I sat there blankly, lost for words because I was so flabbergasted, while the Protagonist of Another Novel proceeded with a misunderstanding trope all on his own.

“It’s only natural for you to feel uneasy and think the Academy isn’t safe. But… I don’t know if I should call this my personal wish… or my greed… anyway, I want you to continue attending the Academy with me.”

As he said that, Reysir suddenly grabbed one of my hands.

The situation was becoming increasingly ridiculous.

“No matter what happens, I will definitely protect you. I will never be late because I’ve lost my senses like last time, I swear. So…, please?”

I began to wonder just how far he would go if I simply left him alone.

However, the pressure was greater than my curiosity, so I decided to correct his misunderstanding before the other person’s emotions escalated any further.

“I have no intention of quitting the Academy.”

“Really……?”

“Think about it logically. If I truly doubted the safety of the Academy, would I have come here a whole week early just to borrow books from the Library? I would have arrived exactly on the start date of the semester.”

“Ah…!”

“Now that you’ve realized you were mistaken, let go of my hand.”

Unlike the last time when he had held onto my hand until the very end while pleading and begging.

Today, Reysir let go obediently, looking quite embarrassed.

“Sorry for overreacting. I just thought that if you were to leave the Academy, our bond would be severed just like that. No matter how much I try to stay in touch with you, it’s useless if you don’t accept it, right? But you don’t seem to favor exchanging contact over trivial matters….”

“……”

A sudden thought occurred to me.

Perhaps he feels it intuitively.

That if I were given the chance to sever my bond with him, I could choose to do so at any time.

Because I couldn’t bring myself to flatly deny it, I feigned ignorance and aimlessly toyed with Yor’s fur.

Then, Reysir didn’t ask why I wasn’t saying anything.

He didn’t beg for me to say something nice even if it was just lip service.

He simply shifted the topic naturally.

“But if you weren’t considering dropping out, why did you ask if I was going to keep attending the Academy?”

“I was literally asking for your intention.”

“I mean, why? Did you think I was going to quit the Academy?”

It wasn’t that I thought he ‘might’ quit; I thought it was only natural for it to happen that way.

“Isn’t the ‘Magyeongization Phenomenon’ occurring frequently all over the world right now? That’s why I thought you would quit the Academy to go around investigating the Demonic Realm incidents occurring in various places. To find the cause of its occurrence and prevent tragedies like the one you experienced as a child from befalling others. And while you’re at it, to save those in danger of dying while trapped in a Demonic Realm.”

“I guess that’s the kind of image you have of me?”

“Well, you do have a rather strong sense of responsibility. Besides, seeing how you’ve been living at the Academy for a month and checking the area around the Grand Hall, I can sense that you have some desire to do so…. Did I guess wrong?”

In the Original Work, Reysir practically staked his life on identifying the cause of the Magyeongization Phenomenon.

When he survived alone after losing everything to the Demonic Realm as a child.

He speculated that the reason he gained the skill 【Truth-Reading Eye】, which is specialized for investigation, was perhaps some kind of divine arrangement.

He felt a sense of mission that he had to dig up the root of the Demonic Realm.

That was why I had been certain for a long time.

That even if I succeeded in preventing Hailga’s death on the day of the Graduation Ceremony.

This Original Protagonist would quit the Academy and go around investigating the Demonic Realm.

“You weren’t entirely wrong. Like you said, I do want to investigate the Demonic Realm. I also don’t want other people to experience the same tragedy I did…. But.”

Reysir paused for a moment after attaching a conjunction that hinted at a twist.

It was an intentional silence. He was likely doing this because he wanted me to pay attention to what he was about to say next.

I knew it was a transparent trick, but I couldn’t help but be curious about what he was going to say.

So, I made eye contact with him and sent a signal that I was listening.

Only then did Reysir speak again.

“You told me that I’m still just a student, and that responsibility isn’t my burden to bear. I’ll be an adult soon, but there’s still a lot I need to learn here, and I’m immature in many ways. I thought it was premature for now, so I’m going to leave it to the experienced adults until I graduate from the Academy.”

He was quoting what I had said in the very late stages of the Graduation Ceremony arc. That is, in chapter 137.

“In the first place, everyone I want to protect is here at Valhalla Academy, you know? Isn’t it a bit contradictory to leave this place just to save total strangers?”

“……”

“And more than anything, life at the Academy has become so much fun. The preparation process for the Bimu Tournament was fun, and I was so excited when we all went out to play on the weekends. Since I know I can make plenty of memories like these if I keep attending the Academy, how could I quit?”

He certainly had a point.

As I was nodding in agreement, I saw Reysir’s eyes curve playfully.

No matter how you looked at it, his expression was saying, ‘I knew you thought so too.’

Even though he hadn’t asked the question himself, I couldn’t exactly tell him not to jump to conclusions.

Because if I did, he would surely think I had a guilty conscience.

As I sat there with a dissatisfied scowl, the smile on his face grew even deeper.

“Is the reason you couldn’t sleep peacefully even at the Capital perhaps because of me? Were you worried about what would happen if I quit the Academy?”

“What kind of nonsense is that now?”

“Isn’t it too random to ask someone who just said they want to stay close to you if they have intentions of quitting the Academy? Doesn’t that mean you’ve had that question floating in your head the whole time, just waiting for the right opportunity to bring it up?”

It was a massive leap in logic.

There was no connection between my lack of sleep and Reysir’s withdrawal.

However, if I denied his words now, I would be asked why I couldn’t sleep peacefully even at the Capital.

I couldn’t give him a prefix answer to that reason, and I had no other excuse to make.

I had planned to give an excuse that my insomnia had flared up during the week I stayed at the Academy if anyone asked about the dark circles after the semester started.

I racked my brain desperately to squeeze out an excuse even now.

Unfortunately, the Protagonist of Another Novel was faster at reaching his own conclusion.

“I see, you also had fun hanging out with me. I wasn’t the only one thinking about wanting to stay close in the future…! To think you’ve been showing such confusing reactions despite that, what on earth should I do with this tsundere?”

“You’re the one misunderstanding, so just leave me alone…!”

“Ahahaha!!”

The Protagonist of Another Novel burst into laughter for a long time.

As if he still hadn’t come to his senses, he continued with his nonsense.

“Could it be that coming back to the Academy earlier than the start date to visit the Library also has something to do with me? Because you promised to recommend a genre fiction novel you enjoyed reading once the next semester starts? Was it to carefully select a novel to recommend to me?”

“That is absolutely not it. The novel I borrowed today is one you have already read.”

Fortunately, this time there was clear evidence to refute him.

I subtly took out the book I had borrowed from the Library earlier from my Inventory, showed him the cover, and put it back in.

‘Come to think of it…. I really have to recommend a novel, don’t I?’

Since I thought Reysir would quit the Academy anyway, it was just something I had blurted out as a temporary excuse to dodge the situation, and I had forgotten about it until now.

It wouldn’t just end with recommending a novel; it would come as a set with a discussion of his impressions.

This has become quite troublesome.

“Are you only reading that now?”

“Is that any of your business?”

“Why wouldn’t it be? Once you’ve read everything that’s out for that novel, we can have an exciting conversation while predicting the development of the next volume together.”

He wants to hear me talk about the future development of my own novel?

He only says that because he doesn’t know what it means.

“I am willing to listen to you talk to yourself, but I will not say a word about Author Byeol’s novel.”

“Why?!”

“Just as there are novels whose impressions you want to share with someone, aren’t there also novels whose impressions you want to keep to yourself? To me, Author Byeol’s novels belong to the latter.”

It was just nonsense I had made up on the spot.

However, Reysir nodded with an incredibly serious expression, as if he had heard something profound.

Then, he muttered to himself, ‘I hope I find a novel like that someday too…’

“Then I shall take my leave to go read my borrowed book. You go do your own work as well.”

“Ah, wait! I’ll come to your room at 7:00 later. Let’s have dinner together.”

Just as I was about to get up, he suggested we have dinner together.

It was something I had expected. It would be pointless to say I didn’t want to eat together at this point.

So, just as I was about to nod without thinking too much.

“There’s someone I want to introduce to you.”

Reysir added these words.

There was one person who came to mind.

No, rather, since the current Original Protagonist’s social circle was extremely narrow.

If he were to introduce someone, it would surely be ‘that person.’

“…Who is it?”

“It’s Lord Dyuf, my guardian. He’s Helly’s father, and he’s like a father to me as well.”

The name of the person I expected flowed from Reysir’s mouth.

However, I couldn’t just brush it off as if it were nothing.

Surely he wasn’t planning on taking a Gate home right now and bringing Dyuf back to the Academy before dinner time.

‘If that’s the case, it means that person is currently at the Academy… but why?’