With this evolved appraisal skill, dealing with others would become infinitely easier. Finding hidden key characters or detecting traitors was no longer a guessing game based on intuition. I could simply look at them and see the truth written in the air.
I had already tested its limits earlier this month.
The result was... humbling.
[ Name: ??? ]
[ Rank: ??? ]
[ Affiliation: The Black Spire | ??? ]
[Titles: Mistress of The Spire | ???]
[ Trauma: ??? ]
[ Obsession: ??? ]
[???...]
Everything was a row of question marks except that title and affiliation. In fact, I only was able to know them thanks to that.
But yeah, the System failed to penetrate her defenses entirely.
However, that failure only solidified my earlier hypothesis. The gap between us wasn’t just a matter of levels. She existed on a plane of existence far above the scope of my current abilities. She was undoubtedly an entity surpassing the Mythical rank, a true primordial or perhaps something even more ancient.
I dismissed the thought. Knowing the gap was better than remaining ignorant of it.
Finally, I turned my attention to the Narrative Glimpse.
This skill had also leveled up significantly, gaining a crucial new effect: [Scenario Discovery].
Previously, I could only see details of scenarios I had already triggered. Now, I could scan my surroundings to check if I was unknowingly walking into a plotline or if I was part of a hidden narrative I hadn’t discovered yet.
I had already tested it multiple times over the last two and a half months.
But just to be sure, I activated it again today.
[ Scanning... ]
[ ... ]
[ No Active Scenarios Found. ]
I stared at the empty log.
’Still nothing, huh.’
Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, I wasn’t currently involved in any storyline.
It was strange.
In a world governed by narrative laws, silence was often more dangerous than chaos. Usually, a protagonist was always entangled in some grand destiny or immediate crisis. Yet, here I was, trapped in a dimension of nightmares, married to an eldritch entity, and housing a calamity in my soul... and the System considered this "mundane."
I was completely off the narrative grid.
’Well,’ I chuckled, closing the interface and leaning back against the pillows. ’I suppose I should enjoy the peace while it lasts.’
However, recalling what I left behind in my original world, I couldn’t help but feel a pang of worry.
The silence of the System wasn’t just about me being safe; it was about me being disconnected.
Since arriving here, I had completely lost access to the storylines happening back in the main world. My Narrative Glimpse couldn’t breach the dimensional barrier between the Nightmare Realm and my plane. I was blind to the events unfolding across the world.
However, thanks to the sudden barrage of scenario completion messages I received shortly after the battle, I knew the immediate crises had been settled.
But that was almost three months ago.
A lot could happen in three months.
I stared up at the dark, shifting canopy of my bed, my mind drifting to the faces I hadn’t seen in what felt like a lifetime.
’I wonder what Cassandra is doing right now.’
Did she manage to secure her position as the Merchant Queen? Without my direct intervention, did she handle the fallout of the assassination attempt and the political pressure from her enemies? Was she completely safe now, or were the vultures still circling, waiting for a moment of weakness?
And then there were Aeron and Emilia.
My intervention had changed their tragic fate, but the path ahead was still treacherous. Did they find the cure for her Eternal Sleep Syndrome? I hoped the tragic harem protagonist hadn’t done anything too reckless to save her.
’What about Shaela?’
The image of the timid, yet fiercely loyal girl flashed in my mind. Did she awaken successfully? Did she receive the funds and the letter I had prepared for her? I hoped there were no problems. But since Emory was there, perhaps I could relax a little. As for Nolan? Although he was the one who seemed to have resolved the situation back then, my impression of him was still not that good. But yeah, I believe in his big brother.
’And Uru’en and her tribe...’
The last time I saw them, they were teleported away by Nemo. Were they able to safely escape? Was no one hurt? Unfortunately, since they weren’t involved in a storyline, I was unable to get info on them. I only hope that broken crown prince, Bane, didn’t do anything to them.
Speaking of him, my thoughts shifted to the capital.
’Aurelia and Vance... are they fine as well?’
The ghost princess and her stoic knight. I haven’t heard of them since that second trial. Were they able to pass the other trials safely? Bane didn’t cause a problem for them, right? I hope not.
Finally, the heaviest thought settled in my chest.
’My family.’
My parents.
My siblings, whom I haven’t even seen once.
Did they find the letter I left behind? Did they trust the info in it?
...I hope they did.
If not...
I can’t bear to imagine the consequences.
Just the mere thought of something happening to them caused a sharp, visceral ache in my chest.
Although the time I had spent with them wasn’t long, and I had lost most of my memories regarding our past, deep down, beneath the layers of pragmatism and schemes, I had long admitted that I loved them.
Well, if I didn’t, why would I be worrying about them like this? Why would I have gone to such lengths to prepare that letter and secure their safety before marching to my ’death’?
The bond of blood was a terrifying thing. It tethered you to people across dimensions, pulling at your soul regardless of logic or distance.
"They have to be safe," I whispered, the words more of a plea than a statement.
Thankfully, there was one chaotic variable that gave me a shred of peace of mind.
Lady Nisha.
She had promised me. That unpredictable, terrifyingly powerful woman had sworn she would protect them. Considering her strength, I could rest assured. As long as she kept her word, no political scheme or assassin could touch the Luthaire household.
I exhaled slowly, letting the tension in my shoulders drop.
And finally...
My thoughts drifted to the wastelands, to the most dangerous place on the continent.
’What could Zephyr and the Turtle Brothers be doing right now?’
Were they still deep within the Forbidden Zone, hunting abominations and tempering their bodies against the abyssal winds? Or had they already moved out, their training complete?
A faint, wry smile touched my lips.
’Was Master still beating the living hell out of them in the name of "training"?’
I could almost see it. The sadistic gleam in the old snake’s eyes as he pummeled the poor brothers, claiming it was for their own good. I missed that brutal simplicity. I missed the days of simply trying to survive his training rather than surviving cosmic horrors. At least his cosmic horrors were cute and useful.
And...
My smile faltered slightly.
’Did they know what happened to me?’
Master Virion was an enigma. His perception and understanding of the world went far beyond that of a normal resident. When the spatial tear swallowed me, when my presence vanished from the world... did he sense it?
Did he realize that his youngest disciple wasn’t just dead... but no longer in that world entirely?
I stared at the ceiling, feeling a profound sense of isolation.
’I hope you haven’t written me off yet, old man,’ I murmured inwardly. ’Because I’m not planning on dying here.’