Is the Careless Supporting Character Lucky in This Non-Slice-of-Life World? (1)
In less than three minutes, the supporting character returned holding the book he'd been reading. It was an ordinary, thick book with nothing remarkable about it. The boss accepted it with a twisted expression and asked, "You read this?"
"Yes."
"You really read it? From start to finish?" the boss pressed again.
"That's right?"
"Nothing happened? No side effects? No sudden enlightenment or anything?"
"Enlightenment? Nothing like that. What's so special about this book anyway?"
Seeing the boss's unusually grave demeanor, the supporting character grew increasingly uneasy.
"This is probably a forbidden text. A book that shouldn't be seen or read. Reading it normally could drive you mad or kill you. That's why I got a nosebleed—because I heard words I wasn't meant to hear. And you read the whole thing without any problems?"
"Uh... yeah? I read it. It was just a boring, ordinary thesis-like thing. Nothing weird about it. Is this really a forbidden book?"
The supporting character stared blankly at the sudden notification window while the boss looked utterly dumbfounded.
"This is ridiculous. I never expected the gods' basic language translation to be this flawed... Tell me what you read."
"The content—well, how should I put it... [!$^$... ]"
"Stop! Shut up!"
The boss's face turned deathly pale as he shouted to cut the supporting character off.
"Listen carefully. The contents of that forbidden text can harm others just by being spoken aloud. So never mention it again. Understand?"
"Got it... But why was something like that even in there? You said it was all junk stock."
"Forbidden texts are junk stock too—since no one can read them. I didn't even realize it was forbidden. I just thought it was some scribbled book full of unreadable text."
"That makes sense."
"Tsk. There were quite a few unreadable books. Don't tell me there are more forbidden texts? I'll have to check personally."
"Ooh, forbidden texts."
"...Why are your eyes suddenly sparkling?"
"Aren't forbidden texts supposed to be amazing? If I can read them without any harm, I might as well, right?"
"Don't be stupid."
The boss snapped at the supporting character's hopeful words.
"You were just lucky with the one you read. Its contents probably do reach some profound truth about the soul, like you said. But what if it's a forbidden text that kills you the moment you read it?"
"Eek. Those exist too?"
"Of course. That's why they're called forbidden. If you die, it'll be a hassle for me—I still need to film more videos. First, I need to find out what forbidden texts we have."
The boss immediately left the dining area and headed toward the supporting character's room.
"Uh— I haven't finished eating yet..."
The supporting character cast a lingering glance at his unfinished meal before reluctantly following the boss.
****
"Hmm... There were more forbidden texts than I thought. I didn't even know they were here since they've been buried away for so long."
After checking the titles of every book in the room, the boss sighed in relief while holding about ten volumes in his arms.
"Can't I read those?"
Watching the boss take them away, the supporting character voiced his disappointment.
"Don't be stupidly attached. You could really die if you're not careful."
"I guess so."
"Anyway, if you find any magic books with strange contents, let me know. I'm going to rest for the rest of the day."
"Okay."
After thoroughly examining all the magic books over a long period, the boss left the room looking exhausted. The supporting character stared at the closed door for a moment.
"What a shame. Maybe I shouldn't have said anything. I thought I might gain some incredible ability."
Setting aside his disappointment, the supporting character called up his status window.
• First Modern Person to Sense Mana — Increases mana comprehension.
• First Modern Person to Understand the Substance of Souls — Can sense souls.
• First Modern Person to Fully Read a Forbidden Text — Small stat increases each time a forbidden text is read.
Language Translation (God-tier)
[Wood Flame] (E-rank) — Ignites dry firewood.
[Reverse Gravity] (F-rank) — Levitates for 1 second.
[Light] (F-rank) — Slightly illuminates darkness.
[Water Walk] (E-rank) — Walks on water for one step.
His once-empty status window was now considerably filled.
"The abilities are pretty useless... but the titles are decent."
Besides the forbidden text title he'd gained while with the boss, there was one more. It was the title obtained from fully reading the forbidden text for the first time.
"I don't know what 'sensing souls' does yet, but I'll figure it out eventually. And..."
The supporting character pulled out the thick book he'd been reading before heading to the dining area—the one that had been bundled together with the forbidden text.
"No matter how I look at it, this one bundled with the forbidden text must be forbidden too, right?"
He hadn't told the boss, but the book he'd been reading was the one found alongside the forbidden text. Though he hadn't read much yet, its contents weren't those of an ordinary magic book either—it was about the history of some family.
"If it's forbidden, the title should give me stat increases... but I don't even know how the stats rise in the first place... Well, whatever. What could go wrong?"
Reverting to the mindset that had landed him in this situation, the supporting character sat at his desk and resumed reading without a second thought.
****
A month had passed since the two worlds merged. It was far too little time for a world engulfed in chaos and war to find stability. The concepts of nations and laws no longer functioned properly, leaving only human ethics intact. Meanwhile, the hideout where the supporting character stayed was preparing to reap enormous profits from the situation.
"Bring the guns over here! Stack them properly!"
"Magic books go this way! Make sure they don't get wet!"
"...Where on earth did all this come from?"
Having stayed inside the hideout the entire month, the supporting character was summoned by the boss and stepped outside the cabin for the first time in ages. He couldn't hide his shock at the sight of subordinates sorting guns and countless magic books.
"Guns from North Korea, magic books from the magic tower I was trading with."
"You can't just say that so casually. Isn't that pretty far away?"
"...We just used the magic tower's portal magic. Created a temporary portal near North Korea and went back and forth. Walking around in this world right now is a guaranteed death sentence."
"Portal magic? Does that mean you can go anywhere? Can anyone at the magic tower use it?"
"One question at a time. You can go anywhere—as long as there's no anti-teleportation magic circle. All major strongholds in the magic world have them."
The magic towers where numerous mages from the magic world belonged. Some used their special environments to perform large-scale magic that individuals couldn't cast, renting it out for a fee. Portal magic was a higher form of spatial magic, possessed only by large magic towers. It created massive gates capable of transporting people or objects anywhere as long as the gate remained open—an extremely advanced spell. However, as the boss said, gates requiring long durations couldn't be created in areas with anti-teleportation magic circles, limiting them to predetermined locations or empty spaces. Since the modern world's land lacked such magic circles, it was easy to use.
"And as for using portal magic... Honestly, it's best not to even think about it for at least a year. Thanks to those magic tower bastards casting magic without properly confirming the changed coordinates after the world fusion, some of my men died for nothing."
"What? They died?... Are they okay?"
"Of course they're not okay. We were already short on manpower. Well, we got more magic books than planned in exchange, so I'll just have to forgive them. We still need to keep trading with them anyway."
"Ah... ha..."
The boss wasn't the type to mourn his subordinates' deaths.
"But you really made a deal with North Korea?"
"Yeah. That guy's ridiculous too—trying to scam me. I got pissed and tampered with the contract on my end. Slipped in a few clauses that put them at a disadvantage."
"...Are you already selling?"
"Not selling yet, but I'm releasing some items little by little. People need to know they can buy them first."
"Shouldn't you sell quickly?"
"The world still doesn't understand the importance of guns and magic. Modern people at least know magic exists through the internet and are trying to get their hands on it, but they can't go outside easily since they'd die if they ran into monsters. Plus, there are still magic users in countries that haven't grasped the situation yet. But it'll happen soon. Modern people will need ways to protect themselves, and magic users will realize they need to stockpile war materials for the coming territorial wars. For now, focus on gathering inventory."
"...This isn't so much brokerage as war profiteering, is it?"
"It is right now. I'll diversify later. More importantly, did you read the magic books I got for you?"
"Yes. Thanks to you, I can now heal minor wounds."
Having made initial funds through various deals over the month, the boss had procured the recovery magic book the supporting character had wanted. At first, he couldn't use it properly due to insufficient mana, but after repeatedly experiencing mana depletion, his mana capacity had grown enough that he could cast it once without fainting.
"Today we'll film a video of you using your recovery magic—"
Vrrrrr!
"Hold on... Hello? Ah, yes. Good morning, valued customer."
The boss suddenly trembled and pulled out a crystal ball the size of an adult man's fist, beginning a conversation with someone.
So that's a communication crystal.
"Yes, customer. Excuse me for a moment. Joyeon, let's postpone the filming. Take the day off."
"Uh... okay."
Still on the call, the boss walked toward his subordinates. Suddenly granted free time, the supporting character pondered what to do before telling one of the men he was going for a walk around the hideout and circling the cabin.
If he moved less than thirty minutes away, he could escape to his school, but the supporting character now knew better. Running away now would only make things more dangerous—he'd end up dead for nothing.
"It's been a while since I walked. Feels pretty refreshing. It'd be even better without this iron ball, though."
As he continued walking, the supporting character realized he'd wandered far enough that the hideout was no longer in sight.
"Well, the boss would probably understand this much... but just in case, I should head back."
Thinking there was no need to stir up unnecessary trouble, the supporting character turned to return to the hideout.
Sniff...
"Ugh. What's that smell?"
Just before turning, a rotten stench hit his nose and drew his attention. Deciding to check the source and then head back, he slowly walked toward the intensifying smell.
"Did someone take a massive dump out here... Blegh...!"
Parting the grass, the supporting character had no choice but to turn his head away from the source of the stench. The cause was corpses. Human corpses. Already half-rotted, with bones exposed. And not just one—there were at least ten scattered about.
The supporting character slowly turned his head again, his face pale, to examine the corpses once more. Half wore armor or dresses straight out of fantasy novels, while the other half wore high school uniforms he knew all too well.
"......"
If they'd been wearing ordinary modern clothes, he might have ignored them, but the thought that his friends might be among them made him retch as he tried to check their faces.
"Ugh...! They're too decayed to identify... Blegh!"
Unable to fulfill his purpose due to the severe damage, the supporting character hesitated before speaking to the corpses.
"Sorry. I'll come back at night. Wait for me."
With that, he turned and headed back to the hideout.