28 - Skill Steal (6)

Dawn breaks, and the river reflects the moon.

The gentle ripples are dyed red with blood.

I didn't need to hide all the way up to the second waterfall to snipe him. With the bastard right at my feet, a headshot guarantees a critical hit.

Luck was on my side—or maybe the gimmick changed—because I didn't need to venture into the cave anymore. The most crucial skill, Skill Steal, had dropped from him.

Without a second thought, I claimed the reward and untied the bound woman first.

"Mmph… mmph!!"

She had the kind of face you'd see in any Ebbenbach tavern, and she looked middle-aged. Tears streamed endlessly down her cheeks as she stared at me, her expression screaming, If you're gonna save me, do it quick; if not, just kill me already.

She was probably still unsure if I was her savior or just another bandit.

"Do you know how to ride a horse?"

"Y-yes…? Yes…!"

"Then head to the knights' order first."

"Th-thank you for saving—"

"Report that you found monster corpses in Twilight Valley. There might still be bandits around, so be careful."

"Thank you…"

-Hiiing.

With that, she bowed repeatedly to me, chose the black horse out of the two, mounted it, and rode off.

Left alone, I thoroughly searched the wagons. Anything worth salvaging?

Unfortunately, they were empty. The bastard must've planned to shake them down later.

"Lucky break."

If not for his habit of rescuing women, I might never have tracked him down. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Thanks to Aria's unwitting help, I'd caught his tail.

"Ah, Aria."

She might've woken up by now. I immediately mounted up and headed straight for her.

* * *

It was only around dawn, when the sun began to rise, that I finally reached Ebbenbach.

'Slept enough today…'

Aria was still sleeping soundly, so with her right in front of me on the horse, I couldn't help but go slow.

-…

Even in Reincarnation Ark, she was the type who never showed disarray or weakness, but now she was completely defenseless, snoring softly.

The warmth of her skin brushing against me with the horse's movements, her pleasant breathing, her vibrant hair… the hyacinth floral scent, like fabric softener. This was definitely no dream.

I was walking through Ebbenbach—inside it, no less.

Staying within the academy felt like Reincarnation Ark, but step just a little outside, and it turned into Reincarnation Hero playthrough. This wasn't some limited-zone game; the entire world was alive and moving in real time.

I had to admit it now. This was a real world.

-Rustle.

"?"

At that moment, the pressure against my body eased, creating a gap. Aria, who had been leaning fully against me in deep sleep, was waking up.

"Wh-what… is this situation…?"

"What situation? It's all over."

"Why am I… sharing a horse with you…?"

"Couldn't just leave you sleeping."

"Did you… do something to my body…?!"

"…Didn't do a thing."

Aria slowly, cautiously checked her clothes one by one, adjusting them. Finding nothing amiss, she quieted down soon enough.

"……"

I spoke to the back of her head.

"Shouldn't you be thanking me? You slept like a rock."

"That's because you…!"

Aria started to argue but seemed to give up, sighing.

"More importantly, what happened to that person?"

"Handled it fine."

As I gave my curt reply,

"Keep formation!"

"Yes, sir!!!!"

"There might still be monsters left!"

Thankfully, her report must've gone through smoothly—the knights' order galloped past us toward Twilight Valley.

Aria watched them for a while before muttering to herself.

"It doesn't add up."

"What doesn't?"

"Did you really… come all this way just for one monster…?"

"Told you, yeah."

It wasn't wrong, exactly. Aria asked no more.

And so, we headed to the magic tower in silence. Time to go back.

"Yes, to Clarice Academy? Two of you?"

We were at ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the magic tower entrance, getting our identities checked.

"W-wait a moment!"

"Huh."

Her neat clothes almost made me miss her. It was the woman I'd rescued from the wagons.

"Th-thank you so much for saving me. Truly, thank you."

Saving her… The word made me oddly embarrassed. It was the kind of thing you'd only hear in this world.

But ruining the mood felt weird, so I kept quiet.

"If it's not too much trouble, might I have your name…?"

"Lev. More importantly, ask the knights about the reward—make sure you get it."

"Ah, yes…! It's not much, but… could you take this…?"

She pulled out a worn pouch filled with silver and copper coins.

Why make it awkward? It seemed like quest-appropriate compensation.

"Just for carriage fare…"

"No need."

Magic tower fees to the academy were paid in gems anyway. I'd gotten the important stuff, and from now on, I'd be holed up in the academy—no real need for it.

Was it the villain trait? Leaving the woman who no longer pressed, I departed Ebbenbach and returned to the academy.

* * *

Selafi Black Dorm, Yeogudi Green Dorm.

"Then I'll… head off here…"

"Yeah, thanks."

Aria, parting ways with Lev Denek and returning alone. She showered under streams of water, lost in deep thought.

That was the extent of their conversation after dismounting. It felt like they'd been through something major, and spending the night with an unrelated man was a first for her… yet the farewell was surprisingly clean.

"Lev Denek is… just a decent guy…?"

Sudden changes, questionable actions—plenty of doubts. But results-wise, he'd calmly taken down the bandit, resolved the danger.

And in Ebbenbach, he'd slain a monster and saved civilians.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

-"Hero, thank you so much for saving us. Thank you."

His behavior toward Lilith, his academy life lately—it seemed like his own will, not someone else's orders.

So, intentions unknown, he was just a decent guy with more ability than she'd thought.

But the past still gnawed at her. Because of his old deeds, even as she tried to think positively, one look at his eyes brought suspicion flooding back.

Maybe because they hadn't faced each other while riding. With him behind her.

For the first time in ages, Aria had enjoyed deep sleep without nightmares.

She touched her shoulder lightly. The warmth of that ragged ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠cloak seemed to linger still.

* * *

"…You could've at least told me you'd be out overnight…"

"Sorry."

"…I knew it, right? Staying in that uncomfortable Selafi dorm… better to crash outside…!"

"No, not that…"

"It's fine! I get it…!"

I was getting scolded. By Yeriel Artina, the Selafi Black Dorm supervisor—even though we were the same age by setting.

She'd apparently waited for me through dinner last night.

"I got all excited alone. So embarrassing…"

"…"

It wasn't exactly scolding; watching the ever-cheerful Yeriel sink into real-time self-loathing was more painful.

Just yell at me or dock points already! Nah, points would be bad—I'd get kicked out.

"I'll be careful next time."

"No… Maybe I'm just unqualified as a dorm supervisor. If you were uncomfortable, I should've noticed first…"

"…I surrender."

In the end, I had no choice but to apologize over and over until she regained her confidence.

. . .

After barely calming Yeriel and entering my room, I started planning next steps.

First up in Chapter 2: the academy ranking matches. The bracket should drop tomorrow or so.

But before that, my showdown with Gailon loomed.

-Lose, and you'll crawl at my feet the whole time you're at the academy.

A duel set up to catch Selena's eye, but for pride's sake, I had to win. Until Kaeran showed up, he was Edwin's rival—the sweet potato character.

'Hmm…'

Archer vs. archer might sound like "shoot a lot, dodge well," but the surefire way was speed.

You know, those Western showdowns. Back-to-back, take three steps, turn, and draw.

That's why Wind Archery dominated. Revolver fanning? Child's play compared to its rapid-fire speed.

But soon, I'd wield Wind Archery too.

This hard-won skill. Prep work done.

Of course, to prevent sniping high-mastery OP skills, the conditions were strict: only the lowest-level skill acquirable.

Signature skills are never the lowest level, usually.

But Selena hadn't learned Wind Archery yet.

That was the key.

Just you wait…