Ch.2This Isn’t Right (2)

I’ve said it before, but my hobby is reading. There’s no smartphone, no computer, and no television here, so reading naturally became my hobby.

You might ask, didn’t I once say it was boring and that’s why I wrote a fantasy novel myself? That only applies to ‘novels.’

This world is a fantasy with various races and monsters, and adventurers who enjoy exploring the unknown. Moreover, ‘gods’ actually exist, so myths are widespread.

I tend to enjoy reading exploration stories written by adventurers—autobiographies or books related to mythology.

Autobiographies written by adventurers or mythology books give me a feeling similar to fantasy novels. Of course, others might dismiss them as diaries or boring mythological stories.

‘The descriptions are still terrible.’

Plus, all the descriptions are awful. To put it kindly, they’re intuitive.

For example, suppose there’s a passage in an autobiography about discovering a monster or plant. The explanation simply states what was discovered, with almost no detailed description.

For this reason, I always carry a field guide when reading adventurers’ autobiographies. The guides contain illustrations and explanations, making them perfect for imagination.

“Young Master Issac. It’s time for your meal.”

“Okay. Just leave it there.”

“Um…”

The maid who brought lunch on a tray hesitated. I looked up from my book with a questioning expression.

The maid with brown hair and a cute face watched me nervously before speaking in a careful voice.

“The mistress instructed me to watch you finish your meal…”

“…”

“She said reading is good, but mealtime must be observed.”

“Sigh… I understand.”

Since she seemed determined to watch until the end, I had no choice but to close my book.

As the maid began placing food on my desk, I moved aside the manuscript I had been working on. When I moved it, the maid’s gaze naturally followed.

“…”

Come to think of it, this maid doesn’t know I’m the author of Biography of Xenon either. Only my family knows that I wrote it.

A secret ceases to be a secret the moment someone else knows it, but what can I do? Unless my parents slip up, there’s absolutely no way the secret will leak out.

I put the manuscript in my desk drawer to prepare for any contingency. I even sealed it securely with a lock.

Hmm. Perfect. Now I just need to enjoy my meal.

“I’m done.”

“You need to eat your broccoli too.”

“No.”

They could at least give me some sauce. I don’t like raw broccoli.

When I firmly refused, the maid seemed to give up, sighing deeply. She looked like she was watching a child throwing a tantrum over side dishes.

“Thank you for your work. Oh, today’s newspaper?”

“Here it is.”

Afterward, she placed the empty dishes on the tray and went outside. As soon as she left, I unlocked the drawer and took out the manuscript, placing it on the desk.

I’m almost finished reading the book, so I plan to start writing soon.

I’ll read the newspaper after I finish my work.

‘Fortunately, there are many useful books.’

Someone once said that books are food for the mind.

And I completely agree with this statement.

If it weren’t for books, I would have struggled quite a bit writing Biography of Xenon. Especially helpful were books about mythology—that is, books related to religion.

In this world, people view zealots very negatively because of the stupid things one religion did in the past. Of course, anyone would feel bad if someone portrayed their devoutly believed religion negatively.

So I didn’t explain directly, but wrote just enough that anyone would think, “Ah, this religion is modeled after this real-world religion.”

‘Plus, there are no holy maidens at all. So there shouldn’t be anything to nitpick about.’

Rather, I’ve heard that the religion that served as the background has seen a significant increase in followers. I’m not sure why, but perhaps it’s because of the supporting characters.

I added a tender romance between a holy maiden and her knight in Biography of Xenon—the story of Lilly and Jin, as you know.

My mother told me their story was incredibly lovely and heartbreaking. I heard it’s especially popular among women.

Of course, Jin is still the final boss.

‘I’m sorry, Mother. I have no intention of bringing those two together.’

The thought suddenly occurred to me: “I won’t be disowned over this, will I?” But I deliberately ignored it.

A novel is just a novel. Let’s skip over how my novel completely changed the treatment of demons.

“Mmmmm~”

How much time has passed? I stretched to loosen my stiff body.

Looking at the clock, it was already 4:30. Since lunch was at 1:30, it means I’ve been writing for three hours straight.

‘My concentration has really improved.’

It’s partly because there are no distractions like computers or smartphones, but my concentration itself is at an impressive level.

When I was about 10, my father tried to train me to be a knight like my brother and sister. This was the result of that training.

Of course, my father realized I had absolutely no talent as a knight and gave up after a year, but in exchange, my concentration and patience increased dramatically.

Crack- crack-

Perhaps because I’ve been sitting at the desk for too long, I hear rhythmic bone sounds just from slightly twisting my waist.

After loosening up with some simple stretches, I headed to where the full-length mirror was placed. There, my face—newly acquired through reincarnation—was reflected.

Flame-red hair and golden eyes that shine like those of a beast. Up to here, I inherited my father’s genes intact, but not my facial features.

My features are delicate and distinct like my mother’s, quite cute—a description like “prettily doll-like” would be fitting.

The owner of this face with even snow-white skin is none other than Issac Dukar Mayshall.

Not “Kim Yuhwan” from my previous life, but who I am now.

“I’m glad I was born handsome.”

I’m still growing, barely over 170cm tall, but the true completion of fashion is the face. I’m quite satisfied with this face.

My only complaint is that I look delicate like a parasitic younger brother, but I can overlook that. Wanting more with this face would be greedy.

After examining my face here and there to see if anything needed attention, I moved to the bed and threw myself down.

‘Tomorrow I’ll be going to the academy.’

I experienced university life in my previous life too, but I’m still looking forward to it. I wonder what life at the academy will be like.

According to my brother and sister who entered before me, no one knows what will happen. Well, even in my previous life’s university, you could be buried alive if you made a mistake, so how much worse could it be here where social status exists?

I’m relatively fine as a baron’s son, but commoners who entered through difficult exams will probably have a tough time.

‘Plus, the princess of Helium…’

After hearing that Cecilly, the princess of Helium, would be entering Halo Academy, I collected information about her.

She could be described in one word: perfect.

Not only is she accomplished in both literary and martial arts, but her beauty is so renowned that it’s spread throughout the world. From what I’ve briefly heard, she inherited the blood of a succubus, though I’m not certain.

The only flaw is that she’s a demon, but even that doesn’t matter anymore.

“Hmm…”

This might be fortunate. If all attention is focused on her, my academy life might be more peaceful.

Moreover, critics are currently speculating that the author of Biography of Xenon is an elderly sage. They don’t think at all that it’s a young man not even 20 years old.

So I just need to be careful not to arouse suspicion and enjoy academy life. And be careful not to let my manuscript be discovered.

“First, I need to build up as much reserve as possible.”

Today is probably the last day I can write leisurely. I got up from the bed with a start and sat back at the desk.

“Ah. Right. Come to think of it…”

The latest volume was released three days ago. I was about to pick up the pen but instead opened the newspaper the maid had given me.

‘I wonder what the reaction will be today?’

I used the skill “Cutting Demon Technique” after a long time, so it must be quite intense…

-Crown Prince of the Empire of Minerva, Leort: The author of Biography of Xenon must release the next volume immediately. If not, I will find you myself and imprison you in the imperial palace.

-Not only that, Princess Rina also urges the prompt publication of the next volume…

-Xenon in a life-or-death situation. How will he escape? Through a comrade’s sacrifice? Or…

-All readers eagerly await the next volume, and the author’s identity must be revealed urgently…

“…”

I quietly closed the newspaper.

I’ve received comments like this in my previous life too, but I could laugh them off. It was because readers were joking around because they found my work entertaining.

‘But here, they might actually do it. Fuck.’

This is seriously scary.

*****

“Aaaaargh!!”

A man’s scream echoed throughout the imperial palace of the Empire of Minerva, a place so magnificent that calling it splendid would be an understatement, filled with golden hues.

As it was the imperial palace where royalty resided, nothing trivial could be overlooked—especially a scream?

Naturally, there should be a commotion, but no one reacted. Partly because the location where the man screamed was thoroughly soundproofed, but more importantly…

“This damn person! Why end it here?! Huh?! Why cut it off at this exact point?!”

Because it was a scream of unbearable anger, not pain.

While the man glared fiercely at the book he had thrown, a woman sitting across from him quietly spoke.

Her voice, though not as much as the man’s, was tinged with subtle anger.

“This… this… this is definitely deliberate. How could they, at such a critical moment…!”

Golden hair that shone brilliantly as light reflected off it. Eyes as blue and beautiful as sapphires.

Finally, facial features that seemed carved with painstaking care by a master craftsman. She exuded beauty that could rightfully be called a work of art.

Her name was Rina Urmi Christine, the First Princess of the Empire of Minerva.

Rina was also an ardent fan of Biography of Xenon, but she had never been as angry as she was today.

“Brother. Do you really not know who this author is?”

Rina asked the man in front of her urgently, her voice trembling.

In response, the man—Rina’s brother and the Crown Prince, Leort—exhaled deeply through his nose and slumped into the plush chair.

While Rina had a cute, puppy-like face, Leort had a somewhat fierce, tiger-like face, though their hair and eye colors were identical.

“…Even if I go to the publisher, they say they can’t tell me. The author submitted the manuscript through multiple intermediaries, making it difficult to track. But we’ll find them eventually.”

“Can’t you find them quickly? I’ve wanted to see them before, but now I really want to see the face of an author who plays such tricks.”

“I’d like to as well, but we can’t waste resources on this. Besides, if we find the author and they run away, we’re the only ones who lose. Do you want Biography of Xenon to end here?”

“Tch…”

Rina clicked her tongue in disappointment. As an ardent fan of Biography of Xenon, she wants more books to be published.

One might think Biography of Xenon would be read mostly by men since the protagonist is male, but in reality, the readership is split exactly half and half between genders.

The story itself is interesting, and the female lead who always stays by Xenon’s side is truly charming.

“Surely Xenon won’t die here, right? I absolutely cannot bear to see Merry sad. They must get married and have children.”

“How do you think I feel? If they turn Xenon into a half-cripple, I’ll find the author somehow and do the same to them.”

If Issac had heard this conversation, he would have rushed to publish the next volume. The Crown Prince actually had the ability to do what he threatened.

Rina sighed deeply in frustration before speaking in a troubled voice.

“Sigh… For now, we should express our feelings in the newspaper. If the author sees it, they’ll at least be cautious.”

“I wonder. Will this person really bend their will? I don’t think so.”

“But since they’re likely a sage who has experienced much of the world, they’ll probably pay attention.”

They too are speculating that the author of Biography of Xenon is an experienced sage.

For them, who have received an education far superior to commoners and ordinary nobles, the readability and expressiveness could only lead to such a conclusion.

There had never been a novelist with such remarkable writing skills that scenes could be immediately visualized in the mind.

“Anyway, we have no choice but to wait for the next volume. Biography of Xenon has been coming out once a month so far? At its fastest, once every two weeks.”

“Yes. The good thing is that tomorrow is the academy’s opening ceremony. Both you and I will be busy, so we won’t be as bored as we are now.”

“Haa… How annoying. By the way, you’re enrolling too, right?”

“Yes.”

The fact that Princess Rina is entering the academy is already an open secret. Again, an open ‘secret.’

Issac, who has only been getting news from newspapers, is completely unaware of this. He would need to have gone outside for that.

Moreover, Issac is a baron’s son, and his father rose from commoner to nobility, so his connections are limited. Even if his mother collects information at tea parties, there are clear limitations.

“Various annoying things will happen. Most people will suck up to you just because of your status.”

“Do you think I don’t know that? I’ve already experienced it to the point of nausea.”

While Halo Academy is indeed the best educational institution in the Empire of Minerva, it’s not just for people who haven’t interacted before.

Commoners usually have one or two friends they’ve become acquainted with before entering the academy, and nobles even more so. Unlike commoners, nobles can enter unconditionally, so most build connections early on through their parents’ guidance.

Yes, Issac is the unusual case, having never gone outside except for basic physical training. Even when his parents suggested going out, he stubbornly refused. His parents, who deeply loved their youngest, had no choice but to give up.

In other words, Issac currently has no one he could call a ‘friend.’

“And I heard the princess of Helium is also enrolling? I’ve heard she’s an ardent fan of Biography of Xenon too.”

“Demons have no choice. Their treatment has changed completely since this book came out.”

“Hmm…”

Rina habitually poked her cheek before smiling and speaking.

“Perhaps we could become good friends.”