The Author's POV

After Hein's match, there were a couple of more matches, but none interested me, so I just made small talk with the others in order to pass time.

Fortunately, Hein's match was one of the very last ones as the round of 128 finally came to an end after one last big battle.

Though I said big, it was only like that because the two opponents facing each other were of similar strength and so was very entertaining to watch.

"This will be it for today's matches. I hope the contestants will take this time to rest for tomorrow's matches." The elven lady once again said as she showed up on the stage. Following her words, everyone stood up and left the premises.

Similarly standing up, just as I was about to follow the others out, Kevin came up to me. He had a serious look on his face.

Instantly my brows knit.

"...what's wrong?"

"Ren, we need to talk."

There was undeniable solemness in his voice as he spoke to me. Glancing around to make sure that the others had left, I slowly nodded.

Kevin wasn't the type of guy to act like this unless there really was something wrong. As such, I knew that the situation was serious.

"Where should we talk?"

"Your apartment."

"...my apartment?"

"Yeah. It's the place that has the least amount of people nearby."

"Fair."

And so we decided to head to my apartment to talk. The walk wasn't long as within ten minutes we were already there, but it was strangely uncomfortable as I felt this weird tension coming out from Kevin's face.

His face reminded me of someone who was just about to go to war.

Ci Clank—

Opening the door of my apartment and letting Kevin in, I slumped down on one of the chairs of the room.

Kevin shortly followed suit as he sat on the seat opposite of me.

"..."

An uncomfortable silence descended on the room as Kevin leaned forward, with both his arms on his thighs. Interlocking his hands together, Kevin's foot repeatedly tapped onto the ground.

Seeing that Kevin was having difficulty speaking, I decided to break the silence.

"...So? What did you want to talk about?"

Lifting his head, Kevin looked up at me.

"Say..."

His brows furrowed even more tightly.

"...do you perhaps have a secret that you can't tell me?"

"A secret?"

I was taken aback by his abrupt question.

'Did he find something out?...and isn't that rather vague?'

I had plenty of secrets, and so I wasn't really sure about which one he was referring to.

Nodding his head, Kevin's crimson red eyes continue to gaze in my direction.

"Yeah, do you have any secrets that you can't tell me?"

Leaning back, and deeply gazing into Kevin's eyes, I eventually nodded my head.

"...There are."

The fact that this world was a novel, the book, my skills, I had plenty of secrets that I couldn't tell him.

how he would react. There was a

"I see."

of Kevin's foot became more prominent. This was an

going on with

with you? Don't drag

been having

the least bit mad as his words instantly

"Visions?"

recall Kevin ever having visions in the

"...Yeah."

Kevin nodded.

type of visions

down. Take a look for yourself and tell me

take out a small book from his dimensional

took the book. Although

'Let's see.'

at Kevin one more time, I lowered my head and directed

Kevin is this serious, it must

"...What the?"

opening the book. Why would I? I didn't think there would be anything I didn't know, but I was quickly proven wrong as my

remnant? Akashic records? Black-clothed

I read, the greater the confusion on my face became. That was because I didn't know any of the things that were written in the book apart from the Akashic records which I already knew

essentially an entity that acted as the gods of this world, yet at the same time couldn't be considered gods. It

about the Akashic records till later in

the visions that he was currently

My head throbbed.

the world is

where they should've been. Sucked, but it was nothing

Flip—!

Reading through the

been so compassionate, I hope her death can finally set

a piece you are, a piece should act

this will finally clear

looked at Kevin who was looking back at me with

It felt as though a lump was stuck in my throat, preventing

and once again

"It can't be..."

disbelief as I shook

way of speaking...and those words...that's definitely

it too

in my direction throughout the whole time, Kevin

pointing

the vision

"This..."

his words with all my might...but I couldn't. The man described in the book reminded me an awful lot of me...or

"No, it can't be."

horrifying

figure something

But I didn't respond. I was too

'...Monarch's indifference.'

rang inside of my mind as I re-read the

reservation about using it. Not only did it feel as though I would lose all control of my body, but it also felt as though my actions were somehow

back, my chess ideology did not stem

thought that the ideologies that were being implanted inside of my head came from the moment I met the previous Ren, but that wasn't true at

exponentially more prominent the moment I met the other Ren. Maybe that was why I

down my

"Huuu..."

a deep breath, I tried to look back at any of the incidents revolving around me using Monarch's

that particularly stood

in the dome when I activated it to save Kevin. More specifically, the

of Monarch's indifference since my goal was saving Kevin...but was it really a fluke? It had to be, didn't it? After

inside of my head that

'I'm definitely overthinking things'

shook my head,

sense, but

past, many of the big incidents that had occurred to me felt kind of forced...almost as though someone was trying to manipulate the path that I