Reunion (1)

'Isaac.'

It was a name that sounded strangely familiar.

It wrapped softly around my ears, feeling so natural, as if it had always been my name. The fear I secretly harboured—that my original self would somehow weaken because of taking on a new name—was nowhere to be found. If there was any noticeable change, it was the relief that I was no longer a foreign presence in this world of the story, a sense of lightness filling me.

"You kept your promise, after all."

In that moment, my vision was once again flooded with dizzying letters.

[Due to an unknown error, ■■■'s information window is now accessible. Some records have been lost and are excluded from view.][Viewing Information.]

Role – Isaac (???)

Rank – ■■ (???)

Script – [The actor with a thousand masks.], [■■ and at the same time ■■.], [■■■■■■….]

Dialogue – 「…What is this? Wait, are my thoughts here?」

Information window.

But this isn't about the "me" in the scenario… it's an information window about the original "me."

[Abnormal access detected.]

[Blocked: This information is restricted from being accessed outside…]

As if even this brief glimpse had been a grave mistake, the letters vanished in an instant, dissolving away. I was abruptly expelled from the array of characters and found myself back on the stage. In front of me stood Leonardo, just as before.

"Are you all right? You seemed a bit lost for a moment."

"Yeah, I'm fine."

An information window… about me.

'…Seems like I'm not entirely an outsider.'

"It's just hard to believe. If I'm going to get used to it, you'll have to start calling me by my name a lot."

"Alright. I promise."

"Haha, but don't go overboard. It's a precious name I received, after all."

Beyond his shoulder, the sky was tinged with a faint teal. Dawn was breaking.

Special Ability: <■■■■■■>

Watching the special ability of the one who had quietly hidden behind the curtain once again, I felt that the sudden anomaly that had rushed in was beginning to settle.

At that moment, Leonardo suddenly lifted his head. 

"A presence…."

"Is it them?"

"No, it's humans. The presence of the remaining monsters is fading one by one. It looks like they're taking care of it."

With that, Leonardo moved towards the riverbank, where he sensed the presence. Beyond the swollen river, the bushes seemed to rustle gently before suddenly, a person's head popped out. I was momentarily startled, having seen so many fearsome things lately.

"Uh?"

The face was familiar.

"Ah! Your Grace! Finally! And you're safe too! Hurry, let's go and tell everyone we found you!"

It was the knights of Baron Roald, with whom we had lost contact during our separation in Rilke.

As we made our way down to the slower currents of the river, the faces that had been uncertain from a distance became clearer. Before I could even ask what had happened, a small shadow darted out from between the trees and ran towards me, jumping into my arms. Unable to hide my joy, my voice naturally rose.

"Vittorio!"

The child clung to me tightly, showing no signs of wanting to let go. As I gently patted Vittorio's round head and carefully checked for any injuries, I felt relieved to see that aside from being slightly out of breath from running, he looked healthy and bore no noticeable wounds. After ensuring his safety, I finally collected my thoughts and was about to ask about what had happened when—

Rustle.

As if making it a new trend to emerge from the bushes, another familiar face appeared behind him.

"This is…"

"Sir Roald."

It was Baron Roald. He looked quite weary; his well-groomed beard was even more unkempt than usual. Upon seeing Leonardo's disheveled appearance, he was visibly taken aback.

I couldn't help but empathize with Baron Roald's reaction. When I had briefly glimpsed Leonardo in the dark of night, he had already looked significantly worse for wear, but now his condition was beyond description.

'Where did you bring a bandit from?'

His outer garment had been hastily thrown aside, and his exposed torso was marked with bruises and scratches. He looked utterly disheveled, caked in mud and rainwater.

I wasn't exactly looking pristine either, even if I was a bit better off than Leonardo. Baron Roald seemed to want to say something, his lips twitching, but he let out a deep sigh and changed the subject.

"It seems you're safe, Young Master. I'm relieved to find you so quickly. And you don't appear to be seriously injured, either."

As he said this, Leonardo lifted his gaze, trying to reassure Vittorio, who was nervously hovering around, that his limbs were still intact.

"It looks like you're safe as well, Baron. What happened?"

At that, Baron Roald began to explain the events that had unfolded since we had been split apart in Rilke. He shared that his party had successfully taken refuge inside Rilke to escape the attacks from the rock-wielding monsters. Thanks to the turbulent currents, the fortifications surrounding Rilke, and the landslide debris, they had created a natural fortress that made it difficult for the beasts to approach. However, the monsters had not left the vicinity of Rilke and continued to roam nearby, which meant they were trapped there for a while.

"There was nothing we could do but wait it out inside. But the next day, when we looked outside, all the monsters surrounding Rilke had disappeared, and it was eerily quiet. One strange thing was that even the corpses of the monsters that had been left behind were gone…"

'That's not hard to guess.'

It was clear why the monsters that had been lurking around Rilke suddenly vanished. After learning how to evolve into the , they must have quickly shed their old skins and chased after us, leaving Rilke a safe haven.

Thanks to this, Baron Roald and his party had regained their freedom of movement.

After leaving Rilke, the Baron concluded that it would be difficult to find us with only a small number of knights at his side. He hurried to El Dante to explain the situation and request additional search personnel after consulting with the Count.

"But… right before reaching the city, we encountered Lord Ferdinand and his knights."

'Leonardo's brother?'

Leonardo, who had been quietly listening to the explanation, asked in surprise.

"The Count's younger brother?"

He started to say, but when I poked him in the side, he quickly corrected himself.

"Um, I mean, my older brother?"

"Yes. What a coincidence it was."

Here's how it went down:

Upon receiving reports that the cities and villages under his jurisdiction were suffering due to the monsoon and landslides, the Count ordered his eldest son to take a few knights and soldiers to assist with the recovery efforts. It was on their way back after completing their tasks that they encountered Baron Roald's party.

The Baron explained the situation to the Count's eldest son, detailing how he had been searching for his younger brother, Leonardo, and how they had been scattered due to a monster attack on their way to El Dante.

The moment the Count's eldest son heard this, he hurriedly turned his horse around and was about to give an order to search the area near Rilke—

"Aren't those two donkeys coming towards us?"

All the adults' gazes turned toward Vittorio. Perhaps feeling the weight of so many eyes on him, Vittorio flinched and ducked between Leonardo and me for cover.

"Anyway, when we asked the little kid where the young master and his father is, and why he was alone, he explained what happened so far, and after listening to him, we were able to come here too."

Vittorio had played the role of the North Star, guiding them here, despite having rushed through the dark forest alone, feeling scared and disoriented. As I held the child's hand, I noticed how tightly he had gripped the reins, his palm red and likely sore from the pressure. The knights offered compliments, praising how well he had been raised. Since I had never raised him, I didn't know how to respond and ended up feeling flustered while Baron Roald let out a deep sigh, looking years older in that moment.

"I think that's enough explanation for now. We should start heading back."

And then, for the third time, the bushes rustled.

A white horse emerged, shaking its mane as it pushed its head forward, and I stood there dazed, staring at the rider atop the white horse.

'Wow. If you were to push Leonardo into a highly structured organization like the military and leave him for five years, he'd probably turn out just like that.'

The man, clearly related to Leonardo Ertinez, shook the blood off his elongated sword. It was evident who had dealt with the remaining Nameless Ones. His gaze flew directly toward our small group, and I noticed his eyebrows twitching.

"Leonardo, you…!"

[Accessing information on the specified entity.][Viewing information.]

Role – Ferdinand, the Young Count

Rank – Minor Character (Scenario weight 16.90%)

Script – [The eldest son and heir of the renowned swordsmanship family, the Ertinez Count family. He is famous for resembling his father in both personality and talent, and is known to be diligent and earnest.]

[He has lived under the pressure of having to protect the family left behind in the absence of his father, who often went on expeditions and campaigns. As a result, he has a strong sense of responsibility toward his family, but he has become somewhat resigned regarding his younger brother Leonardo's long wandering.]

Dialogue – None

Thud.

Ferdinand, who had dismounted from his horse, strode forward with long strides. His expression was too complex to be described in a single word. There was relief and fatigue in the face of an older brother who had confirmed his younger sibling was safe, and beneath that, a suppressed rage toward his wayward brother, who had been missing for over a month with no news of whether he was alive or dead.

'He's going to hit him.'

But beneath that skin, it wasn't Leonardo Ertinez' soul that resided; it was Leovald.

As I glanced between the burly man clad in full armour and Leonardo, who looked like he had been rolled around in the mountains a few times and had his muscles overworked, Leonardo appeared comparatively pitiful.

'Wait, is this right? Is my vision a bit off?'

However, during the days and nights spent fleeing from the Nameless Ones, Leonardo hadn't eaten properly, leaving him gaunt and emaciated. The knights, hesitantly backing away, began to clear the path, slowly removing the obstacles between Leonardo and Ferdinand.

As Ferdinand approached, his prominent veins visible at a close distance, he looked down at the only remaining obstacle between him and his brother. Their appearances were remarkably similar, but their eye colours differed. Ferdinand's icy blue eyes gleamed sharply. Retaining some semblance of reason, he calmly opened his mouth to speak.

"...Who are you?"

In the very next moment, strings of text appeared before my eyes.

[The settlement has been completed!]