This Novel is not my Novel

Seriously, overpowered protagonists...

I clicked my tongue inwardly and swung the whip again.

Predicting his next movement.

But it was no use.

Raysir saw what I was doing and quickly twisted aside to evade it.

He even fired a bolt of lightning at Yor in the process.

Perhaps because he knew Yor's elemental resistance was extremely high, he did not seem to have held back much.

The beam was thick enough that its considerable power was obvious at a glance.

Rather than test whether he could endure it with his body, Yor chose to spread a wide ether barrier and defend himself.

As a result, the barrage of arrows raining down on Raysir stopped for a moment.

The protagonist of the original work did not miss that opportunity and kicked off the ground with all his strength.

Was it because of his Strength stat, his Agility stat, or both?

With that single step, the distance between Raysir and me shrank dramatically.

Are stats really everything after all?

I gritted my teeth, swung the whip, and even threw a dagger, but once again, I accomplished nothing.

Even when Yor resumed his barrage of arrows, it only slowed Raysir's approach slightly.

The protagonist of the original work did not allow a single attack to touch him, maintaining his calm, composed manner throughout.

Just last week, he seemed to struggle against Riolikin and Lausa's combined assault...

Come to think of it, even that had only lasted a short while.

After clashing with them a few times, he quickly learned how to handle multiple opponents and easily shook off their pressure.

Besides, they had been a tank and ranged attacker combination, while Yor and I both fought from a distance.

It made sense that we would be easier to deal with.

I understood that logically.

Even so, it felt as though we were being helplessly overwhelmed because I was too weak.

Judging by the sheer number of arrows he could create, it was obvious that my baby dragon was stronger than Fjodra's summoned beast.

Which means I'm ultimately far weaker than Riolikin, doesn't it?

It was not that I looked down on Riolikin.

But when I recalled how absentminded and clumsy he usually seemed, the conclusion I had just reached came as a shock.

To prove it wrong, I would have to land at least one blow on Raysir.

But he's already right in front of me.

At this distance, Raysir could easily reach me by swinging his spear.

Conversely, it had become difficult for Yor and me to attack him.

Worried that I might be struck by one of his ether arrows, Yor could no longer overwhelm him with sheer numbers and instead had to control a small number of arrows with care.

And since my main weapon was a whip, I could not attack properly when the enemy was too close.

Left with no choice, I released the whip and drew a dagger in each hand instead.

That took scarcely a second.

Yet in that brief moment, Raysir took another step closer.

My body was now completely within his attack range.

I raised both hands, daggers gripped at collarbone and solar-plexus height, ready to block his spear if he swung it.

But Raysir did not swing that long, solid piece of metal at me.

He shifted the spear from both hands into one, lightly batting aside Yor's incoming attacks with it.

Then he lowered his stance and lunged toward me at a slight diagonal.

At the same time, he stretched his free arm out to the side rather than forward.

He was not aiming for my bag.

He clearly intended to seize my torso and hold me in place.

The instant I realized it, I threw myself sideways.

But Raysir immediately followed and ultimately succeeded in catching me around the waist.

Just like that, I found myself held from behind.

It's still too early to give up.

Both arms were still free, so I had not been completely subdued.

I spun the dagger in my right hand and shifted it into a reverse grip.

If he grabbed someone holding two knives like this, he had to know there was a risk of being stabbed.

And if anything happened, I could simply treat him with one of the potions in my inventory.

But... if he failed to dodge, it would hurt terribly... And there would be a lot of blood...

No. Stabbing him like this still did not feel right.

My right hand was already descending toward Raysir's thigh.

But thanks to the thought-acceleration effect of 【Character Analysis】, I had plenty of time to blunt the tip of the ether coating the dagger.

To give the conclusion first, it was a pointless effort.

Before the blunt ether around the dagger could even touch Raysir, he released his spear and caught my wrist.

Then, with the arm still wrapped around my waist, he seized my left wrist as well.

I thought he'd instinctively let go and pull away...

I did not know whether he had anticipated my attack or simply reacted after seeing it.

Either way, there was nothing left I could do.

My head was already pounding because I ended up fighting Raysir so soon after finishing my battle with Vigdis. This is probably for the best...

With that thought, I deactivated 【Character Analysis】.

That was not mere self-justification. I had truly been close to my limit.

My mind felt slightly hazy and dizzy, and I could tell my head was burning without even touching my forehead.

Had the battle lasted much longer, I would definitely have gotten a nosebleed.

"Karvaldr. Did you blunt the tip of the dagger with ether because you were worried I might get hurt? How very kind of you."

"N-no...! You're mistaken!"

Damn it.

Before deactivating 【Character Analysis】, I should have withdrawn the ether from the dagger first.

I immediately reclaimed it and destroyed the evidence, but it was already too late.

"Heh... No need to be embarrassed..."

Raysir murmured teasingly, amusement in his voice.

I could not simply let his misunderstanding stand.

"I merely wasn't prepared to stab another person...! In other words, I did it because I was worried about myself, not because I was worried about you!"

"Right, right. Of course. You are surprisingly softhearted, after all."

"No, that's... not what I meant..."

"Sure, sure. Let's say it isn't. For now, put the daggers away before someone gets hurt. And Yor, why don't you dismiss those ether arrows too? You can't fire them anyway. Karvaldr might get hit."

The protagonist of the original work spoke like a criminal threatening his hostage.

Keeping so many ether arrows suspended in the air that they seemed to surround us had to be burdensome even for the baby dragon.

Besides, Raysir was not our enemy, and this standoff was only part of the training.

Though Yor glared at Raysir with a resentful expression, he eventually dispersed all the ether forming the arrows and absorbed it back into his body.

Still unable to let go of my lingering resistance, I twisted my wrists this way and that, struggling to escape Raysir's grip.

Only after accepting that it was hopeless did I place both daggers into my inventory.

"Good. Well done. Now all you have to do is stay still."

It sounded like something a robber would say after disarming his victims, promising to spare their lives if they stopped resisting.

Just as I wondered whether the protagonist of the original work should really be acting like this, he suddenly lowered my arms into a rigid position at my sides and wrapped both my arms and torso in a tight embrace.

"What are you doing now...?"

"I'm going to take out the capsules in your bag and check them."

"You don't have to hold me like this to do that!"

"Normally, no."

Raysir replied lightly, opened the zipper of my bag a little, reached inside, and took out one capsule.

"Why not take both of them out and let me go?"

"I don't think I can do that. This one's empty."

I hurriedly made the suggestion.

Unfortunately, the protagonist of someone else's novel opened the capsule and checked its empty interior before I could do anything.

No, there was nothing unfortunate about it.

He had probably known from the beginning that the capsule was empty.

That was why he had seized my body instead of the bag and was acting as though he had no intention of letting me go.

"As expected, this one's empty too."

After opening the remaining capsule and confirming it, the protagonist of someone else's novel casually dropped the two halves onto the ground.

"Karvaldr. Where could the notes that were inside these capsules possibly have gone?"

"Th-that..."

"Come to think of it, Yor was trying to bury these earlier. I wonder how many empty capsules you've already buried."

"None. This was our first attempt."

"Then you're saying you only have two treasure notes?"

"That is correct."

"Really? So you are currently 'carrying' the treasure notes on your person?"

"No, that's..."

"What do you mean, no? You just said so yourself."

I could not believe I had fallen for such a cheap leading question...!

The frustration and humiliation of losing a battle of wits against the protagonist of someone else's novel surged through me.

"Fine. I admit it. Now let go, and I will take them out myself."

"No. I can't."

"Why not?!"

"Because you're lying about only having two treasure notes."

"I'm not! I really only have two."

"I ran into Vigdis on my way here."

"Then you should know even better, shouldn't you? That I was carrying nothing but capsules filled with 'duds'..."

"But before that, I met Svein too."

"......"

Had Svein truly been so aggrieved that I took his treasure capsule?

So aggrieved that he could not help telling everyone he met?

"I'll give you another chance, so tell me the truth."

"...I only have three."

Pret would never carelessly spread the "information" that he had handed over his treasure capsule to me.

Even if Pret had told Raysir, I could simply explain that Yor, not I, was carrying the remaining one.

That was the reasoning behind my answer.

Sure enough, Pret was not loose-lipped like certain other people, because Raysir did not mention his name.

However—

"It's been well over two hours since the treasure hunt began, and you're saying you haven't found a single treasure yourself? You were even searching together with Yor. And you expect me to believe that?"

"I really didn't find any! I'm the one who should be upset!!"

"I don't believe you. You already lied once and said you only had two treasure notes."

Would he have believed me if I had simply said three from the beginning?

Regret briefly crossed my mind, but it was immediately followed by the thought that there was no chance he would have.

Judging by the protagonist of someone else's novel's uncompromising attitude, he probably would not have believed me even if I had answered four, including the one Yor carried.

"...So? What are you going to do if you don't believe me?"

"I'll have to check for myself."

"......How?"

"Is there any way besides searching you?"

Even I could not think of another method.

"No, no. That... surely isn't necessary, is it? Maybe if it were someone else..."

"What does that mean? You're fine with someone else searching you, but not me?"

"That's not what I meant...! I meant that because you're strong, you have no need to go so far as searching me just to steal what I have! It would be much easier to take the treasures from someone still carrying them inside their capsules..."

"There is."

"...There is what?"

"A reason I need to take yours in particular."

Surely not...

I denied the suspicion that suddenly flashed through my mind again and again.

But reality was exceedingly cruel and merciless.

"The headband Professor Bjorn prepared looked like it would suit you."

No wonder he had seemed far too happy to see me when he appeared in the previous chapter.

He must have been searching for me so he could take every treasure note I possessed and force me to receive the punishment.