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.

out any of those secrets, I wasn't too sure how he would react. There was a high chance that a rift could form between us, creating some unnecessary drama

"I see."

was an obvious indication to me that he was

going on with

drag

been having

off. But I wasn't the least bit mad as his

"Visions?"

visions in

"...Yeah."

Kevin nodded.

of

down. Take a look for yourself

to take out a small book from

book. Although I was confused,

'Let's see.'

lowered my head and directed my focus on the

serious, it must

"...What the?"

didn't think there would be anything I didn't know,

remnant? Akashic records?

more 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

world, yet at the same time couldn't be considered gods. It was a confusing concept that I decided to add near the end of the novel, but that wasn't

isn't supposed to find out about the Akashic

but the visions that he was currently experiencing were also not

My head throbbed.

in the world

actions had pushed forward a couple of plot points several times ahead of where they should've been. Sucked, but it was nothing new. Happened many times in the

Flip—!

through the passage, my

you hadn't been so compassionate, I hope her death can finally

you are, a piece should act as a

hope this will finally clear

looking back at me with a

to say. It felt as though a lump was

again reading

"It can't be..."

as I shook

way of speaking...and those

felt it too

the whole time,

hand and pointing at the book,

vision was you, wasn't

"This..."

the book reminded me an awful

"No, it can't be."

horrifying thoughts flashed

figure

the side. But I didn't respond.

'...Monarch's indifference.'

mind as I re-read the passage multiple times. I

using it. Not only did it feel as though I would lose all control of my body,

aside...now that I look back, my chess ideology did not stem from meeting

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

more prominent the moment I met the other Ren. Maybe that was why I never noticed it, and only noticed it now that I was reading

ran down

"Huuu..."

to look back at any of the

that particularly stood out

it to save Kevin. More specifically,

it really a fluke? It had to be, didn't it? After all, under

this nagging feeling inside of my head that

'I'm definitely overthinking things'

my head, trying to

just too far-fetched to make sense, but

about my 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 needed to take. I couldn't quite explain it...it just felt