Chapter 257: Identification

“Anyway, to continue the explanation… Yor, could you lend me your writing tools for a moment?”

“Ong!”

It had only been a few minutes since I had received the whiteboard and marker back from Reysir and put them into the Yeouiju.

Therefore, it could have felt bothersome to take them out again.

However, Yor gave a cheerful answer and took the items out without showing a single hint of annoyance.

I stroked Yor’s head once… no, three or four times, with a mix of gratitude and a bit of personal affection.

Then, I took the whiteboard and marker and wrote the following:

[You can check information on the following targets.]

Level 1. Things without an ego, such as objects and plants.Level

2. Those who have consented to their information being shown. [Locked]Level

3. Beings possessing killing intent toward you. [Locked]

“If someone asks what kind of power [Jin-Ik-Nun] has, I should explain it like this…?”

Reysir asked the question after reading what was written on the whiteboard.

It was a fact one could see at a glance, and there was no room for a different interpretation.

Even so, the fact that he reacted this way meant he was likely asking for the reason why he had to do so.

“Your skill can read other people’s information at will, and it’s a power derived from the Demonic Realm, isn’t it?

So, naturally, you’ll be able to find out the abilities of monsters as well.”

“I haven’t checked yet, but… yes, I think so too.”

“That information will be a great help to all of our survival.

And it’s obviously much more efficient to share that information with everyone rather than you knowing it alone.”

“I understand up to that point.

But if that’s the case, shouldn’t we move the part about being able to check a monster’s information to the earlier levels?

And I feel like it might be better to hide the fact that I can read a person’s information as much as possible….”

Indeed, since he was young, he must have been warned countless times that the fact he could see others’ status windows should not be known.

And now that he was old enough to know the dark side of the world, he understood more than enough why Dyuf had repeatedly given him such warnings.

He could easily guess the possibility that someone hiding their identity or abilities might try to kill him, or that a greedy person might take his loved ones hostage to exploit his power.

That was why, even if there were restrictive conditions like needing consent or the target having killing intent, it would naturally feel uncomfortable to him.

Especially if he was thinking it would be better to just claim he couldn’t read human information at all.

But…

“Unless you reveal that Silver Aether is a power derived from the Demonic Realm, do you think others will blindly believe your claim that you can’t read human information but can read monster information?”

Surprisingly, in the Original Work, people believed such illogical stories quite well, but expecting that to happen this time as well was excessively naive.

Especially since, unlike the version before the remake, Reysir was now in a situation where he had to share his abilities with the members of the ‘Awakened Special Class’ rather than just telling those close to him privately.

Furthermore, this ‘Awakened Special Class’ was a system created by the Imperial Family, and isn’t the Imperial Family the group given the role by the Original Author to throw the protagonist into trials and hardships?

There was a high probability that information regarding Reysir’s [Jin-Ik-Nun] would flow into the Imperial Family somehow.

Therefore, I judged it would be safer to block any potential issues in advance.

“That’s why, instead of explicitly stating ‘monsters,’ I wrote ‘beings possessing killing intent toward you.’

Someone who wants to kill you will threaten you regardless of what your ability is anyway.

And if that person is misled into thinking these are the conditions for using your skill, they will try to avoid confronting you however they can.”

“Then it will also be possible to notice someone trying to kill me in advance…?”

“It doesn’t stop there. If someone is hiding their ability or identity, they will never harbor killing intent toward you.”

“Oh…!”

Reysir let out a low exclamation, looking as if his soul had been sucked out.

He looked so stunned that I wondered if he could even hear me if I continued the explanation.

“I’m not finished yet. So, pull yourself together.”

“Ah, right…!”

“Keep your voice down.”

“Okay…”

As expected, he must have been half out of it.

Only after my correction did Reysir compose himself and look at me with a focused expression.

I opened my mouth to finish the explanation.

“You can think of the Level 2 content as a kind of bridge. After the stage of ‘objects and plants,’ it’s common to think it would lead to humans through animals and monsters. Or people might immediately think of ‘animals, including humans.’ So, wouldn’t it be too suspicious if we suddenly mentioned killing intent?”

“Then, the reason you wrote ‘things without an ego’ in the Level 1 description was…”

“For the same reason. To instill the perception that a process of obtaining the other party’s consent is absolutely necessary.”

“Ohh, I see!”

The sight of him marveling with his heterochromatic eyes shining was quite burdensome.

To the point where I wondered if I should have just left him in his dazed state.

“…Even with this, the Level 3 target setting might feel a bit abrupt. But if you let it slip that the standard isn’t the ‘target’s resistance’ but the ‘skill owner’s survival instinct,’ most people will be convinced.”

“You even considered that? Karbaldr, you really are amazing. I want to pour out all kinds of praise and admiration, but I’ll hold back because I might accidentally raise my voice if I do.”

“Just how much was he planning to raise his voice while marveling?”

I couldn’t help but think it was a relief this wasn’t a place where Reysir could make a fuss.

“And, uh… if you use the Level 2 condition, you’ll be able to interrogate Pret without fully revealing your ability. If he really is a normal circus member, he shouldn’t have anything to hide, so you can tell him to allow you to read his information…”

“Then I can prove I’m not being unnecessarily suspicious while still hiding the fact that I can read others’ information without permission?”

“Well, yes…”

“You’re so reliable.”

“W-what is…?”

“The fact that you’re on my side.”

I think I should take back the thought that it was a relief.

Perhaps he concluded that since he couldn’t raise his voice, he should speak closely instead; Reysir leaned in so close he looked ready to embrace me.

“…First, get back.”

“Ah, sorry. I was just so moved, and you felt so precious and valuable to me… was it burdensome?”

“Including that comment just now. Anyone would have felt burdened to the point where there’s no room for ‘maybe.'”

“Is it that much?”

“It is. So please, back up and talk.”

When I pushed him away in disgust, Reysir retreated obediently with an embarrassed look.

Even though he added the following useless words.

“But you aren’t denying the fact that you’re on my side, are you?”

“No, well… we’re planning to go into the Demonic Realm and fight together, so it’s only natural to see us as being on the same side, isn’t it?”

“I see, it’s natural.”

Despite me providing a clear reason, Reysir seemed fixated on the word ‘natural’ and stared blankly at my face with a beaming smile.

He must have completely ignored what I said earlier about it being burdensome.

That was surely why he immediately said the following.

“I think I really did the right thing by honestly telling you about my ability. To the point where I regret not revealing it and consulting you sooner. Until now, I only thought it would be dangerous if this skill became known, but to think of using it as a means of ensuring safety by explaining the skill differently…”

As he spoke, his emotions seemed to well up again.

Reysir’s expression was filled with deep moved.

For that reason, I held the whiteboard up like a shield and took three or four steps back before continuing.

“Anyway, uh… at the right time, when you take off your blindfold and someone who sees it asks what happened… you can explain that you thought the Level 3 ability of that skill would be helpful when fighting monsters, and since you felt the limit of fighting with one eye covered, you’ve been working hard to control the unstable Silver Aether and finally saw the results.”

“Yes, I’ll do that.”

“…And the skill name [Truth-Reading Eye] is too grandiose, so it would be better to create a new, ordinary-looking skill name. Lower the grade appropriately too… to around S.”

“Do you have a skill name in mind by any chance?”

“No.”

“Then can you think of one starting now?”

I was truly dumbfounded.

It was exactly like the saying, ‘save a drowning man and he’ll ask for his bundle.’

“Since you rewrote the skill description, I thought it would be right for you to decide the name that fits it. And I’ve never done something like naming before. So please help me, okay?”

The fact that I was appalled must have been written all over my face, considering how Reysir asked again in such an earnest tone while lowering his stance.

‘I was going to tell him to figure it out himself and stay out of it…’

However, because he didn’t take getting an answer from me for granted and the reason was understandable, I decided to accept the request.

Thus, I leaned my back against the bookshelf and closed my eyes, recalling and discarding countless words as I searched my mind for a suitable term.

***

And after a long time had passed, I was able to pick out an appropriate word to use as the skill name.

[Identification] (S)

By distinguishing what enters your field of vision, you can discover its true identity.

“What I wrote earlier was more of an explanation of the levels rather than a description of the skill itself. While I was at it, I added a line for the description too.”

I said this and showed Reysir what I had written on the whiteboard.

For the record, I had asked my brilliant baby dragon to write the character next to ‘Identification.’

“Thank you so much. Not just for naming the skill… but especially for considering this and that for me while writing the description… If you hadn’t helped me, I would have ended up in a very difficult situation, wouldn’t I? And not just once or twice, but for the rest of my life. Thinking about it now makes me dizzy…”

“T-that’s enough of that talk.”

“Haha, you’re being shy again.”

“Isn’t it because you keep saying things that would make anyone shy?”

“I said it because I thought you’d be used to it by now, but there’s no sign of that happening at all.”

“……”

Even as I watched the smile on his face grow deeper and deeper, I had no choice but to keep my mouth shut without being able to offer any rebuttal.