Editor 123

Thanks to the magic activated with the magic stone ruby, the rate of ether consumption was slower, so he had not yet lost consciousness.

‘Not yet, and today I absolutely can’t let go of my senses.’

Now both Grendels clung to Arthur. The one whose back had been split charged with its legs and neck cut, but was finally devoured by the magical fire.

Beg’s sword, enchanted by Kleio’s magic, not only burned the beast’s mercury but also seemed to draw it in.

‘That’s the effect of the incantation…’

Kleio felt his vision blur. His consciousness was cut off very briefly, then rapidly returned, repeatedly.

Unfortunately, as Arthur faced off against the last Grendel, the flame on his sword gradually began to die down.

It wasn’t only that Kleio’s magic had worn off. Arthur’s remaining ether was also severely lacking.

Grendel, who at first could not even approach the sword, finally grabbed Arthur’s sword with both hands.

Unable to use [Origin of Assault], Arthur could only rely on direct attacks, which the beast had seen through.

Grendel, whose body was reduced to only bones after all the flesh had melted, bound the sword. He could not use [Transformation] or [Origin of Assault], but he still retained [Enhancement].

Instead of pulling the sword, Arthur pushed, using [Enhancement] himself and shoulder-charging Grendel.

Boom!

The energies of the two ethers clashed with an explosive sound.

When Kleio’s vision flickered back on, Arthur and the beast were facing off at the edge of the room where the wall had disappeared.

A bitter wind whipped and shook Arthur dangerously.

Too much blood had been lost for Kleio to overcome his dizziness.

He was now maintaining the circle purely by willpower. If that faint flame went out, it was all over.

Entwined like one body, Grendel and Arthur, wrapped in the black mercury that the beast shed as it eroded all its bones and flesh, began to fall through the air.

All the stars in the sky vanished, and the ground underfoot became insubstantial. Kleio saw such a vision. As vivid as reality.

“No…!”

His mind went blank.

This world could not be dismantled here.

He did not even think of the author’s intentions.

Only Kleio did not want that.

Even “Separation” could not pull this despair into the realm of objectivity.

At that moment, he was neither an editor gauging narrative coherence, nor an advisor to the author.

Just, simply.

[—The user’s degree of narrative intervention is rising.

Accumulated ratio: 36%]

‘Promise’s light shone on Kleio’s small face, soaked in blood and tears.

[—With the fulfillment of certain conditions, the unique skill ‘Diegesis’ is activated.

—The manifestation form and retrieval of ‘Diegesis’ are not fixed.

—The essence of ‘Diegesis’ will be recorded in the manuscript. Activation of this ‘Diegesis’ may threaten the work’s internal consistency.

*Warning: If the internal consistency of the manuscript is severely compromised… narrative structure collapse… risk….]

As often happened when it involved the brothers of the Riognan royal family, ‘Promise’ could not display a complete message, and the letters scattered meaninglessly.

The complex characters, blurred, brushed past Kleio’s eyes.

But even though he could not read it all, the warning was clear.

It was just like with ‘Editor Authority.’

Any attempt by Kleio to directly alter the content would inevitably degrade the manuscript. In some way or another.

[—Will the user permit the activation of ‘Diegesis’?]

Amidst the predictions of catastrophe, ‘Promise’s message shone indifferently.

Kleio had no choice.

He ended up nodding.

Regret was only possible if the world remained after this night.

[Unique Skill: ‘Diegesis’

—Manifestation form: Resonance of Consecration.

—Within the caster’s ether domain, the hero gains supernatural abilities.]

The next message delivered to Kleio was a little different than usual.

It was not seen with his eyes, but heard with his ears.

『When one sincerely shares intent with a being deeply entangled in the world’s safety, the glorious favor of the gods descends upon the earth.』

Kleio could hardly understand what he had heard.

Until, in the darkness of the void, golden ether soared again, recreating the form of sunrise.

What shone on Kleio before Arthur’s real body was dazzling golden letters.

[Level 6 Swordsman

Title: ― ]

The roar and tremor that shook the castle was transmitted through his knees.

KAAAAAAANG!

Arthur floated in the air, moving as if unaffected by gravity.

For a moment, it seemed as if he was flying.

Even though he knew Arthur had used the sword embedded in the outer wall of the castle as a support, and launched himself with the recoil, it still felt that way.

“It’s strange. My body feels incredibly light.”

Arthur, unfamiliar with his body overflowing with vitality, muttered to himself.

“Right now, I feel like I could do anything, understand anything. That such a thing could even have an answer.”

The knowledge and strange realizations passed to Arthur might have been side effects of the skill. But regardless of what means, Arthur was alive.

“Arthur….”

Relieved, Kleio’s head drooped helplessly. His loosened hair spilled over his face. His clothes, scattered on the floor, covered the blood he had vomited. Arthur did not notice Kleio’s condition.

“Ray, did you do this? I’ve never seen magic like this. Truly, absolutely.”

Even torn, wounded, soaked, and battered, the boy smiled. Like daylight had returned, a bright and clear smile colored the face of the living boy.

It was a life Kleio had saved.

And it would be a new life made to live.

“This is… cough!”

“Don’t overdo it. You can answer slowly. Just, wait a moment.”

At least one thing was clear.

‘…This isn’t magic.’

A strange emptiness and lassitude weighed heavily on Kleio’s limbs.

The light protecting the prince was several times more brilliant than the first flame Kleio had given Arthur.

Just like Arthur, the bones of Grendel, who clung to and climbed up the outer wall of the castle, were no longer a threat.

Boom!

With the faint remnants of Kleio’s magic still upon him, Arthur activated [Origin of Assault] for the first time.

The sword energy poured out like flame, burning Grendel. It was a power far exceeding level 6.

In the fire caused by the resonance of consecration, the beast screamed its death cry.

After all the ether vaporized, all that remained were a few brittle bones. They were the bones of Duke Tristain, the original owner of this bedroom.

Kleio, who had been barely maintaining the circle in a state where it would not have been strange to lose consciousness at any moment, also lost strength.

The magic stopped and darkness returned.

His breath was rough and his heart pounded wildly.

Tinnitus rang in his ears, and his throat and mouth were full of blood, but at least he did not faint.

Someone lifted Kleio, who was lying with his cheek on the cold stone floor exposed by the torn carpet, into a sitting position. The rough touch made his head throb.

His nosebleed, which had barely stopped, began to flow again.

Without even being able to wipe the blood, Kleio barely managed to lift his eyelids.

The one grabbing his scruff was Taetherton Tristain.

With his left arm bent in an odd direction and the bleeding in his thigh still not stopped, Taetherton dragged Kleio to Melchior’s side in that condition.

“What…?”

“Heal His Highness. Use that magic from before, again.”

The lord, his neck cut to the point of being unable to speak properly by Grendel’s claws, could not even raise his voice. He did not seem to be in his right mind either.

Although Melchior had only lost consciousness from skill overload and did not seem to have any injuries, Taetherton’s wounds were much more serious.

“It’s impossible. I have no ether left at all. And more than His Highness, your condition is….”

Shhh!

“Heal him.”

Kleio could hardly believe the sensation of the jagged blade, melted by the beast’s fluids, touching his carotid artery.

At this point, he just wanted to lie down, whether this guy killed him or not.

He was terribly tired.

“What are you doing, Sir Taetherton!”

Arthur rushed to their side in a single breath, but it was too late to pull Taetherton off, who had already subdued Kleio and held a blade to his vital spot.

Kleio’s cheek and jaw, exposed by Taetherton’s grip, were a mess of dried blood. The corners of his eyes, where tears had frozen, were as dark as the freshly spilled blood.

Arthur bitterly regretted being so intoxicated with his newfound power that he failed to check on his friend. Even so, the boy mustered superhuman patience to speak politely.

“Put away your weapon. The castle’s mage can tend to my brother. He doesn’t seem to have any major injuries, so when he wakes up….”

“His Highness is not merely sleeping.”

At Taetherton’s words, Melchior’s fingertips twitched in response. His fingers, curling as if trying to grasp something, were fixed in a strangely twisted state.

Kleio squeezed out the last of his strength to ask. As his vocal cords vibrated, the sensation of Taetherton’s blade digging into his skin became clearer.

“What do you mean?”

“His Highness is suffering. As he is, he will not wake up. That nightmare and agony is something we cannot even imagine.”

“If it’s that serious, shouldn’t you entrust him to Meyer, who is much more knowledgeable in medicine, rather than a student like me?”

“He can’t do it. His [Relief] is too weak.”

The information about Melchior that Kleio had heard so far pieced itself together in his exhausted mind.

Melchior’s unique skill comes with an additional function.

It is a power strong enough to restrain even a beast using level 8 ether, but at the same time, it carries terrifying aftereffects.

If you break the usage limit or experience a clash during use, the aftereffects become severe.

It is the kind of pain the crown prince himself described as ‘the agony of shards swirling in your blood,’ a nightmare so dreadful that a knight would lose his reason from worry.

‘…The problem isn’t if he’ll go mad in the future, but how hasn’t he gone mad until now?’

Kleio felt like he would lose his mind.

Meyer, though only level 3, must be a skilled mage in medicine, seeing how he had managed to keep the Duke alive so far.

If someone like that could not help Melchior, then it would be the same even for a much higher-level mage.

‘Ordinary painkillers don’t work, so you have to use the strongest stuff.’

Kleio’s magic was abnormally powerful thanks to the author’s adjustment. And he had even used the rarest of magic stones.

‘No, maybe the key is the double-cast using the magic stone.’

If double-casting wasn’t necessary, they could have just lured in any mage and had them heal with charm. But the higher the ether level, the greater the resistance to Melchior’s skill, so securing manpower wasn’t easy.

As his exhaustion peaked, a strange calm came over Kleio, as if his body and mind were separating. He sat, surrounded by the scattered bones of the Duke, with a blade at his throat.

It was a businesslike composure similar to what one experiences after working 96-hour weeks, moving Kleio in place of rationality.

So-called, the “whatever, let it be” state.

Barely able to sit, he looked for the quickest way to be able to lie down.

“I suspect my magic alone won’t have a [Relief] effect. Give me a magic stone onyx.”

“Ray, you don’t have to. I’ll call someone.”

“It’s fine. If it’s activated with a magic stone instead of my own ether… I’ll make it work somehow.”

Kleio, answering Arthur, did not look fine at all.

Even with almost no ether left and his whole body covered in wounds, Arthur still had moving limbs and physical strength stored in his body.

Even if there was a level difference, if he clashed with Taetherton, whose breathing was already irregular, he might still have a chance.

His muscles twitched painfully inside his ragged shirt.

…But.

Kleio’s feeble neck looked as though it would be cut off if Taetherton mishandled his sword.

Arthur summoned all his patience, enduring this moment once more.

Among all the patience he had exercised in his short life, this was the most miserable.