This Novel is not my Novel

"I'd like to let you rest longer, but... I suppose it's about time we got moving."

Had it been about five minutes since we started resting?

Valtraus released the spirit beast he had been holding and rose to his feet as he spoke.

The cheetah-shaped spirit beast, which had been sprawled out almost as if lying down, also planted all four paws on the ground and stood.

Its breathing had returned to normal, but there was no way its stamina could have recovered in a mere five minutes.

Exhaustion was plain in Laskatl's eyes and posture.

Valtraus's gaze was full of pity as he looked at his spirit beast.

"When we get back, I'll give you plenty of delicious treats, so hang in there just a little longer."

His voice was filled with affection as he spoke.

A question suddenly occurred to me.

How could someone capable of this have been so cold and cruel only to his own younger brother? Why had he never once pitied him and taken him into his arms?

It seemed I had become far too immersed in Karvaldr's feelings and circumstances.

The fundamental cause was probably the original author's decision to establish that "Karvaldr had never received love or attention from anyone."

The fact that such a question had occurred to me despite knowing that perfectly well proved as much.

I forced those thoughts aside and tried to focus on the present situation.

Encouraged by his master's words, Laskatl rallied and activated 【Gigantification】 once again.

Valtraus took his whip in hand.

The buff must have expired while we were resting, so he was preparing to activate the skill again.

The whip will make a loud noise when he cracks it, but that shouldn't draw any monsters toward us.

Even the thunderous lightning Reisir had called down had failed to provoke any reaction from the ordinary golems.

Hadn't they remained motionless, scattered around like piles of stone, only coming together once we approached?

I was therefore confident that they would not react to the crack of Valtraus's whip either.

"Please wait a moment."

I stopped Valtraus with those words.

It was not because I was worried about the noise, of course. I had another reason.

"Weren't you in a hurry?"

"I am. That's why......"

Though I claimed to be in a hurry, I hesitated instead of quickly saying what needed to be said, and a puzzled look settled over his face.

Valtraus frowned in frustration, but he did not urge me on.

Judging by the way he kept glancing at his spirit beast instead, he seemed relieved that this was at least allowing Laskatl a little more rest.

But just because he was in no hurry did not mean I could afford to take my time.

After drawing a deep breath, I finally said what I needed to say.

"Well, you see... Since you came all this way to help me, try a little harder and do a better job."

"W-What?! I realized I may have wronged you all this time, so I am risking danger to help you! Yet instead of showing me gratitude, you mock me and pick a fight?! There is a limit to how much insolence I will—"

"That's not what I meant! I only said that because I had no choice. I needed to fulfill the activation condition for a skill."

Valtraus forgot his anger and blinked at me, his expression caught somewhere between bewilderment and disbelief.

I suspected that after reading my line, the dear readers were probably thinking, What is he talking about?

The more perceptive among them, however, had likely already realized it.

The "skill" I had just mentioned was 【Encouragement】.

"...There's a skill whose activation condition requires you to pick a fight with someone? Did you acquire some kind of taunt skill? Leaving aside how you even obtained such a skill, why did you use it on me?"

"It isn't a taunt skill. It's a buff skill that draws out the target's potential through words."

The description of 【Encouragement】 included the line, "The narrative flows through the author's sentences, and the characters advance."

Given that the skill was named 【Encouragement】, the natural interpretation was that those "sentences" referred to "words of encouragement."

But what matters is that it draws out the target's potential and allows them to exert more power than they normally can, isn't it?

And encouragement did not always have to consist of pleasant words.

Sometimes, provocative encouragement could make someone on the verge of giving up rise to their feet again.

From that perspective, the words I had just spoken were more than sufficient to fulfill the activation condition for 【Encouragement】.

I had indeed felt the skill activate properly.

"A skill that draws out someone's potential by making them angry? What kind of absurd skill is that?"

"There are other methods, but... No, that isn't important, so let's move on. In any case, its effect is to strengthen Ether Attribute Abilities."

"What...?! Is that truly possible?!"

Valtraus's eyes widened in astonishment.

I gave him a slight nod.

Then, by giving myself the perfectly ordinary encouragement of Come on, I can do this! in my head, I applied the buff that strengthened Ether Attribute Abilities to myself as well.

I swiftly followed it with 【Exhortation】.

"My proficiency is still low, so unless you concentrate, you may have difficulty sensing the change in your Ether. But you'll know as soon as you use your skill."

At present, the enhancement provided by 【Encouragement】 was only 1.11 times.

Compared to when I had first discovered the skill through my status window, it had increased by a mere 0.01.

Even so, I had told Valtraus about 【Encouragement】 and used it on him because the skill paired well with 【Exaltation】.

They're both multiplier-based enhancement skills, after all. It's effectively no different from stacking two 【Exaltation】 skills.

It was unfortunate that my proficiency with 【Encouragement】 was still abysmally low, but an additional 1.11-times increase in stats was undeniably significant.

That was especially true because Laskatl's Strength and Agility stats were probably somewhere around two to three hundred, if not even higher.

"Hmm... I think I may feel stronger than usual, but perhaps not..."

After cracking his whip and activating 【Exaltation】, Valtraus muttered with an uncertain expression.

He had applied the buff to me again as well, so I opened my status window and checked the increase in my stats.

【Encouragement】 had been applied correctly.

The reason Valtraus still could not feel much of a difference was...

"That would be because your body isn't particularly well trained. Your spirit beast should be different."

"...Let us set off. Hurry up and get on."

Valtraus looked slightly offended, but apparently unable to argue, he hurriedly changed the subject and climbed onto his spirit beast's back.

Rather than continue the conversation, I settled into place behind him and steeled myself.

I knew the spirit beast carrying us would be moving even faster than before.

I could not afford to lower my guard merely because Laskatl was exhausted.

Hadn't my experiments on the senior research students in Episode 28 led me to conclude that reapplying a buff produced an effect similar to recovering stamina?

Sure enough, Laskatl proved the effectiveness of 【Encouragement】 by running even faster than before.

And that was not all.

He even succeeded in carrying me to the place where the original work's major and supporting characters had gathered.

Before the Boss Monster raid began, no less.

"A-A giant cat...?!"

"Wouldn't it be more accurate to call it a cheetah rather than a cat?"

"Gasp! It's a giant cheetah...

"I'd like to let you rest longer, but... we should probably get moving soon, shouldn't we?"

Had it been about five minutes since we began resting?

Valtraus released the spirit beast he had been holding and rose to his feet as he spoke.

The cheetah-shaped spirit beast, which had been sprawled out almost as though lying down, also planted all four paws on the ground and stood.

Its breathing had recovered, but there was no chance its stamina could have returned in a mere five minutes.

Exhaustion was evident in Raskatl's eyes and posture.

Valtraus's gaze was filled with pity as he looked at his spirit beast.

"When we get back, I'll give you plenty of delicious treats, so hang in there just a little longer."

His voice was brimming with tenderness.

A question suddenly occurred to me.

How could someone capable of such tenderness have been so cold and cruel only to his younger brother? Why had he never taken pity on him and held him close, not even once?

It seemed I had become far too emotionally invested in Karvaldr's feelings and circumstances.

The fundamental cause was probably the original author's decision to establish that "Karvaldr had never received love or attention from anyone."

The fact that such a question had unconsciously occurred to me despite knowing that perfectly well was proof enough.

I forced myself to cut off that train of thought and focus on the present situation.

Encouraged by his master's words, Raskatl rallied and activated 【Gigantification】 once more.

Valtraus took his whip in hand.

The buff must have expired while we rested, so he was preparing to use the skill again.

The whip makes a loud noise when he cracks it, but it shouldn't draw any monsters toward us.

Even when the lightning Reisir had created came crashing down with a deafening peal of thunder, the ordinary golems had not reacted at all.

Hadn't they remained scattered in piles of stone until we approached, only then assembling themselves into whole bodies?

I was therefore confident they would not react to the sound of Valtraus's whip either.

"Please wait a moment."

I stopped Valtraus as I spoke.

Of course, it was not because I was worried about the noise. I had another reason.

"Weren't you in a hurry?"

"I am. That's why......"

When I claimed to be in a hurry yet hesitated instead of quickly saying what needed to be said, confusion settled over his face.

Valtraus frowned in frustration, but he did not rush me.

Instead, he kept glancing at his spirit beast, apparently relieved that this delay would at least allow Raskatl to rest a little longer.

But just because he was willing to take his time did not mean I could afford to do the same.

After taking a deep breath, I finally said what needed to be said.

"Well, the thing is... since you came all the way here to help me, you should try harder and do a better job."

"W-What?! I realized I may have mistreated you all this time, so I am risking danger to help you! Yet instead of showing gratitude, you mock me and pick a fight?! There is a limit to how much insolence I will toler—"

"That isn't it! I only said that because I had no choice. I needed to meet the activation condition for a skill."

Valtraus forgot his anger and blinked, his expression a mixture of disbelief and bewilderment.

If I had to guess, the dear readers probably thought, What is he talking about? after reading my line as well.

Still, the more perceptive among them had probably already realized it.

The "skill" I had just mentioned was 【Encouragement】.

"...There's a skill whose activation condition is picking a fight with someone? Did you acquire some kind of taunting skill? Setting aside how you even obtained such a skill, why would you use it on me?"

"It isn't a taunting skill. It's a buff skill that draws out another person's potential through words."

The description of 【Encouragement】 included the line, "The narrative flows through the author's sentences, and the characters move forward."

Given the skill's name, 【Encouragement】, the usual interpretation would naturally be that those "sentences" referred to "words of encouragement."

But either way, the important part is that it draws out the target's potential and allows them to perform beyond their current capabilities, isn't it?

And encouragement did not always have to consist of pleasant words.

Sometimes, encouragement laced with provocation could get someone back on their feet just as they were about to give up.

From that perspective, what I had just said was more than sufficient to satisfy the activation condition for 【Encouragement】.

I had indeed felt the skill activate properly.

"A skill that draws out someone's potential by making them angry? What kind of ridiculous skill is that?"

"There are other ways to use it, but... No, that isn't important, so let's move on. In any case, its effect is to strengthen Ether Attribute Abilities."

"What...?! Is that truly true?!"

Valtraus's eyes widened in surprise at my words.

I gave him a slight nod.

At the same time, I encouraged myself in the ordinary fashion by thinking, Come on, I can do this! thereby applying the buff that strengthened Ether Attribute Abilities.

Then I quickly activated 【Exhortation】 as well.

"My proficiency is still low, so unless you concentrate, you may have difficulty sensing the change in your Ether. But you'll notice it immediately once you use your skill."

At present, the enhancement provided by 【Encouragement】 was only "1.11 times."

Compared to when I first discovered the skill through my status window, it had increased by a mere "0.01."

Even so, I had revealed the existence of 【Encouragement】 to Valtraus and used it on him because it worked well in combination with 【Exaltation】.

They're both multiplier-based enhancement skills, after all. In practice, it's no different from stacking two 【Exaltation】 skills.

It was unfortunate that my proficiency with 【Encouragement】 was still woefully low, but an additional 1.11-times increase to one's stats was undoubtedly significant.

That was all the more true because Raskatl's Strength and Agility stats were probably somewhere around 200 to 300, if not higher.

"Hmm... I suppose I might feel stronger than usual. Or perhaps not...."

After cracking his whip and activating 【Exaltation】, Valtraus muttered with an uncertain expression.

He had granted the buff to me as well this time, so I opened my status window and checked the increase in my stats.

【Encouragement】 had been applied properly.

The reason Valtraus could not feel much of a difference despite that was...

"That must be because your body isn't particularly well trained. Your spirit beast should be different."

"...Let us get going. Hurry up and climb on."

Valtraus looked mildly irritated, but apparently unable to refute me, he hurriedly changed the subject and climbed onto his spirit beast's back.

Instead of continuing the conversation, I settled in behind him and thoroughly steeled myself.

I knew the spirit beast carrying us would be even faster than before.

I could not afford to let my guard down simply because Raskatl was exhausted.

Hadn't my experiment on the senior research students in Episode 28 demonstrated that reapplying a buff could produce an effect similar to stamina recovery?

Sure enough, Raskatl proved the usefulness of 【Encouragement】 by moving even faster than before.

And that was not all.

He ultimately succeeded in bringing me to the location of the original work's principal characters.

Before the Boss Monster raid had even begun, no less.

"A-A giant cat...?!"

"Rather than a cat... shouldn't we call it a cheetah?"

"Gasp! It's a giant cheetah...!"

They must have been startled when an enormous beast suddenly raced toward them at incredible speed and skidded to a halt, kicking up a cloud of dust.

The protagonist of someone else's novel blurted out something utterly absurd in a dumbfounded voice.

Helga corrected her childhood friend's words in an equally bewildered tone, while Ríolíkin cried out in terror....

"Could it be a new monster...?!"

And the future traitor from the original work spouted even greater nonsense than the protagonist of someone else's novel.

"It must be a spirit beast belonging to Karvaldr's family. Its fur is pure white, its eyes are violet, and most importantly, someone who resembles Karvaldr is riding on its back."

"It has been some time, Lord Valtraus."

Pret corrected his fellow student's misunderstanding.

Fjodora greeted the person he had just mentioned.

"Yes. It has been some time, Your Royal Highness. We have not met since the New Year's celebration banquet."

Valtraus dismounted from Raskatl, planted his feet on the ground, and offered a proper greeting.

For reference, I had also gotten down around then, but I could not stand upright as he did.

Raskatl's increased speed had brought my motion sickness surging back.

"Karvaldr! Are you all right?!"

He must only now have noticed me because I had been clinging tightly to Valtraus's back.

Reisir hurried over and supported me.

Under normal circumstances, I would have reflexively shoved him away, but unfortunately, the motion sickness had left me too dizzy to do so.

I could hardly drop to my knees here.

I was almost grateful that even when I dry-heaved, "Ugh...!" he did not recoil in horror.

"Don't... pat my back.... It feels like you're making my stomach even worse...."

"Ah, sorry."

The hand patting my back changed to one gently stroking it.

That was not going to settle my stomach either, so he could have simply kept his hand still.

"More importantly, where's Yor?"

Apparently realizing that my condition was merely the result of motion sickness, Reisir calmly looked around instead of panicking and noticed Yor's absence.

Come to think of it, I had no idea how to get the baby dragon out of the wish-granting orb.

Yor shook the wish-granting orb to take things out of it, so should I do the same?

Thinking that I wanted Yor to come out now, I lightly shook the wrist wearing the wish-granting-orb bracelet.

Yor popped out as though she had been waiting for me to do exactly that.

The bracelet also returned to its original form and settled neatly into the baby dragon's hand.

"That orb can do something like that too?!"

"I only found out today myself."

Perhaps she felt guilty that she had rested comfortably inside the wish-granting orb while I struggled to endure the ride on the running cheetah.

The moment Yor emerged, she grabbed my wrist and firmly pressed the pressure point said to relieve motion sickness.

She curled her fingers and used her knuckles rather than her sharp claws.

Now I finally feel alive again.

Yor's hands worked wonders.

Just as I was returning to normal thanks to the baby dragon...

"Um, well... H-Hello...?"

Vigdís hesitantly approached Valtraus and greeted him.

Although their engagement was scheduled to be broken, that remained a secret.

She was therefore still officially the fiancée of my possessed body, so she could hardly pretend not to know Valtraus, her future—and fake—brother-in-law.

"You are... Karvaldr's fiancée, were you not?"

"Yes. My name is Vigdís Schalbrady."

"It has been some time."

"Yes...."

"By any chance...."

"Yes?"

"...Never mind."

"All right."

Fortunately for Vigdís, the conversation did not continue for long.

I was curious what Valtraus had intended to ask her, but he must have had a reason for stopping himself.

Perhaps it had been a question about my feigned amnesia, or about how I regarded my family.

Wait! Come to think of it, since Vigdís is here, wouldn't it have been fine even if I'd denied that we were friends...?!

Valtraus would surely have accepted it if I had simply said I was doing it for my fiancée.

After all, Vigdís was only the fiancée of the body I had possessed. She was certainly not my fiancée.

That excuse had not occurred to me in time.