Episode 3 — Standing Alone Now

1

Manus stood there, bewildered for a long while.

What on earth was this ability?

Feeling uneasy about the people around him, he quickly moved away.

He felt burdened, wondering what they were still looking at him for.

‘Does the name Caesar attract this much attention?’

He wasn’t used to being the center of attention.

Having reactions to his every move left him unsure of how to behave.

Manus quickly made his way back to the dormitory and collapsed onto his bed.

A day.

It was just a single day.

He couldn’t believe how such a short time could open up such incredible possibilities.

All skills, all abilities, all passives.

And all the hidden stats of every character.

‘Is this really his ability? This isn’t just overpowered, it’s downright cheating.’

The skills used by the final boss of the world took over a thousand years to learn.

A thousand years, which is an eternity.

The original story spanned only a few years.

There was no time to wait a thousand years.

He didn’t need such grandiose techniques.

What he needed now was to maintain his position as the top student at the academy.

To graduate without becoming a laughingstock.

‘Interference could be a hint. If I want to stay true to the original story, I need to get stronger to some extent.’

At the very least, he needed to function properly as a person to avoid being ignored by the Caesar family.

As a student, he had to maintain his grades.

Surely, somewhere, there would be someone who ‘moves on his behalf’ to keep his grades up.

-Living while constantly watching others’ reactions was enough pressure already, from job hunting to marriage.

He slowly browsed the semi-transparent list in front of him.

This was way too much.

“Is there a search function?”

[Please enter a keyword.]

“Passive.”

[Search results for passive skills: 1,302 results.]

“Why are there so many? Even monster and boss NPC skills are included. Can I really learn all of these?”

There was no answer, but he already knew.

Manus slowly went through the list.

[All Attribute Resistance: 50 years]

[Adrian’s Mindset: 100 years]

[Flois’s Mindset: 30 years]

[Caesar’s Mindset: 0 hours]

[Messiah’s Mindset: 450 years]

…

…

“This is useless. Wait, what’s this?”

Just as he felt the need to narrow down the search range, he found something interesting.

[Caesar’s Mindset: 0 hours]

What was the ‘Mindset’ skill?

Out of curiosity, Manus clicked on the skill.

A description quickly unfolded.

-Even if he was considered a half-wit, he still had Caesar’s blood.

He immediately understood why the skill was listed as ‘0 hours’.

“Hmm-.”

[Caesar’s Mindset]

[At the center of the continent. Beneath the radiant sky lies dense fog and fierce darkness.]

[The group that revered this darkness was punished, and the fog covering the entire continent was cleared by those called the Conquerors.]

[Conquerors established their own territories and created families to eradicate all evil.]

[They revealed themselves to the world and wanted to become the protectors of the world.]

[Caesar. That great name became a symbol of those who protect the world.]

A brief description of the skill.

Below it was a list of effects that came with acquiring the mindset.

[Additional damage to monsters +100%]

[Ability to understand all magical theories]

[Additional defense against monsters +100%]

[Mana regeneration rate +100%]

[Maximum mana capacity +100%]

[Nullify stealth/mental-type skills]

“In the original story… the Caesar family didn’t intervene in the story. That’s because…”

Manus recalled what he read in the community.

If the Caesar family intervened directly, the story would either become a mess or too easy.

The early part of the story had to be small in volume.

But what if a family like that intervened in the story?

The game’s world was vast, but the early story unfolded inside the academy, which was somewhat limited.

‘For a family that runs a duchy, it wasn’t worth their attention.’

It wasn’t worth the attention of a family running a duchy.

He was the top student in school.

Maintaining his grades was essential.

-The name Caesar carried weight. Manus had always felt the burden of that name.

“Let’s learn it.”

Nothing to lose.

Apart from anything else, the ability itself was overpowered.

There was no reason not to learn such a skill.

[Caesar’s Mindset: 0 hours]

[Would you like to acquire it?]

“Yes.”

[You have acquired Caesar’s Mindset.]

[You have one skill slot left.]

[Please select a skill to acquire.]

Just a few lines.

A message indicating that he had gained the skill, and his body changed.

His senses, vision, and understanding of everything transformed.

-His perception twisted so much it made him nauseous.

He bowed his head and closed his eyes for a moment.

In the spinning darkness, Manus barely maintained his consciousness.

A considerable amount of knowledge poured into his mind.

[How to handle mana… what mana is, moving the body constantly to let magic dwell in the body, types of elixirs, basics of elemental magic, fire, wind, ice, lightning, darkness, light, mana dwells in the heart-.]

“This is insane.”

His nose tingled.

His temples throbbed, and his crown burned painfully.

Lying on the bed, he recalled the knowledge crammed into his head.

-Understanding all magical theories.

It would certainly help maintain his grades.

“…Search,”

[Please enter a keyword.]

“Cadenza.”

[Search results: 1 result.]

[Cadenza: 3 days]

[Cadenza]

[Combining two or more opposing types of magic to create new magic. Each magic must have different attributes, and magic of different grades cannot be combined.]

[Mana consumption is 80% of the total combined magic.]

[Successfully combined magic will be registered in the recipe.]

He didn’t hesitate.

Manus knew how to survive in this world.

What was most needed and which skill combinations were most efficient.

There were thousands of strategy guides on the community, and tens of thousands of tips revealed by collective intelligence.

‘-With this talent, I can use it more efficiently than the protagonist.’

Cadenza.

A term meaning an improvisational solo performance just before the end of a musical piece.

A skill created based on the concept of ‘freedom’, and the protagonist’s main passive.

It was no exaggeration to say it formed the foundation of the game.

“And it’s also a skill I can utilize best.”

Countless recipes filled his mind.

This should be enough to navigate through crises.

“Cadenza, I’ll learn it.”

[Starting skill acquisition.]

[72:00:00]

“I still can’t believe this.”

A day.

Just a day’s difference caused such a significant butterfly effect.

The original Manus in the game was really pitiful.

2

It was late at night.

Students were free to stay out as long as they didn’t leave the dormitory or interfere with their studies the next day.

To them, even time after dark was valuable.

Will-o’-the-wisps-like lanterns lit up the school.

Walking through a sparsely populated area, Manus stopped and spoke.

“…Come out.”

“…”

He saw a place where mana was deeply swirling.

He looked directly at the swirling spot and spoke.

He felt strong, dark mana.

His body, which couldn’t sense mana before, found this unfamiliar, making his stomach churn, but he held it in.

By now, a seed of a monarch had sprouted in his heart, and he didn’t show any signs of discomfort from enduring such mana.

“You no longer need to do anything on my behalf.”

“…”

There was no answer.

The swirling mana stayed there for a long time.

Manus sighed softly and walked away.

Even though he moved, the mana remained rooted in place.

After confirming it wasn’t following him, he suddenly wanted to test his abilities.

It was truly fascinating.

To think he would change so much just by having the skills.

『Understanding Elemental Magic』

He recalled the contents of the book he had briefly glanced through.

How to wield the knowledge.

How magic manifests.

He had only a small amount of mana, but he could now handle it efficiently.

‘I need to go there.’

There was a perfect place to test it.

He quickened his pace.

3

“Does this even make sense?”

A heavy voice.

A dignified walk.

A keen eye recognizing a first-class assassin at once.

No, could this really be done with just keen eyesight?

‘He was definitely a noble.’

How much neglect had he suffered while in the family?

He had completed all basic etiquette training, but evaluations were poor.

His movements were awkward, his speech clumsy.

Noble elegance?

No, just the sluggish movements of a lazy person.

That was Manus.

A person who didn’t seem like Caesar’s blood at all.

-But.

“Should I report this?”

Someone skilled in transformation magic with excellent magical knowledge.

Someone who could deceive the professor’s attention and mimic every small habit of the target.

One of the ‘Umbra’ meticulously trained by Caesar.

For the past year, he had acted in place of Manus.

His transformation magic allowed him to do that.

He was someone powerful enough to face a whole knight order alone, but he had just seen a real noble.

He almost knelt and answered.

The majesty almost made him treat him like a real Caesar.

His master had once said this.

[-If you dedicate yourself to my incompetent son, I will give you a small reward.]

‘He wasn’t one to offer anything usually. What did that mean?’

Did he foresee the young master’s intentions, or did he know how difficult it would be?

Either way, he thought he should report this.

There was a change.

It was impossible to know how far this small breeze would grow.

“Oh, an outsider?”

“…”

And then another surprising thing happened.

-Today was a day of wounded pride.

He thought he was undiscovered when it came to stealth.

No, maybe he was a bit flustered now.

Turning his head, he saw a maid walking gracefully towards him.

“This is a restricted area. Please follow the procedure for visits.”

“…”

“What a strange guest.”

He leaped over the wall.

Yeah, it was because of the shocking event today-.

He rationalized it, but it didn’t change the fact that Umbra’s pride was hurt.

Caesar’s shadow had to be more secretive than anything, and more composed.

Today was a failed day as a shadow.

‘If it were the enemy’s territory, I’d be dead.’

Or caught in a trap.

He decided to observe a bit longer.

The young master might be immature, but he was still a direct descendant of Caesar.

Meanwhile, after sending away the shadow, Manus looked at the enormous tower.

It was almost midnight.

‘I need to go up there to get something.’

The foundation of the game was opening today.

The reason was…

“Manus?”

His thoughts were interrupted by a voice, and he turned to the side.

Silver hair gleamed softly in the moonlight.

Cat-like eyes added an air of arrogance, and her neat attire showed how gracefully she lived.

“Alano.”

“It’s unexpected to see you at this hour.”

“I have somewhere to go.”

“At this hour?”

The armband of the student council president seemed to weigh heavily on her shoulder.

Manus nodded silently.

Harrison Alano.

The eldest daughter of the Harrison family, known as the best ice mage among the game’s companions.

She quietly looked at Manus with her narrow eyes.

The academy’s tyrant, who had spent a year without friends.

Why?

Why did she feel pity rather than hate?

She had watched him for a year.

She had approached him several times, but he had only pushed her away.

Even having this conversation seemed distant.

‘You weren’t like this when you were younger.’

The Harrisons and Caesars had interacted for a long time.

She had seen him when they were both very young.

She remembered being very surprised to see how different he was from what she remembered.

A self-centered man who always seemed to be hunting prey.

But now?

“It’s dangerous here, go back. It’s not time for you to come here yet.”

“-What do you mean…”

There were no dangerous places in the academy.

“Go back. It’s not time for you to come here yet.”

“…You’re still the same.”

You’re still pushing me away.

She wanted to ask what had happened.

But he didn’t look back.

“Go with people better than me.”

Manus walked forward, leaving Alano behind.

Heading somewhere beyond the lit area.

Her gaze, watching him, still held ambiguous feelings.

It might have been the time when they laughed and talked to each other.

4

“Here it is-.”

The enormous tower.

The left one among the twin towers.

Although it was where the school’s main building was, stepping into a specific area revealed the ‘hidden world.’

Another world that supported the world of light he lived in was visible.

A place unknown to anyone outside, where secret threats lay.

The main stage of the game, where the protagonist trained and grew stronger for three years.

The root of all events and the threat that would bring the world to ruin.

“Ziggurat.”

He stepped into the tower of arrogance built by a false god.

–TL Notes–
Hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you want to support me or give me feedback, you can do it at patreon.com/MattReading

Join my Discord! https://discord.gg/BWaP3AHHpt