I must have fallen asleep quite peacefully. As I smacked my lips, even the air seemed sweet.
Reluctant to open my eyes, I hugged the rustling blanket and rubbed my face against it when the last word I'd seen suddenly flashed through my mind.
Rachel?
Seriously? I couldn't help but chuckle dryly. Rachel? As if that arrogant Red Dragon, the heroine notorious for her fiery temper even among Kane's Party—a group seemingly composed entirely of communication-challenged individuals—would send such a polite message.
Using a heroine's name as the GM? How lazy! I thought. A heroine who punches first and asks questions later? What kind of response would she even give?
Come to think of it, has my bed always had such a comfortable mattress? Today, it felt like it was molded perfectly to my body, enveloping me completely.
"Lord Adellian."
A timid clapping sound reached me from afar, like someone clapping with their palms pressed together, only tapping with their fingertips.
Wait a minute...
The one who handled timidity in Kane's Party...
I jolted upright and shouted without thinking,
"Luna!"
"Eek! I'm sorry!"
Two white furred clumps vanished downward, leaving behind afterimages that revealed the opulent room.
Dazed and still half-asleep, I looked around to see a girl with white rabbit ears pressed against her hands, crouched and trembling. The lavish living room was decorated primarily in white and gold.
Wait, is this even a room?
I was lying on a bed large enough for four or five people.
"What is this?"
"Waaah, I'm so sorry! I'm sorry for waking you up..."
But it's time for you to get up...
A timid Rabbitkin girl muttering apologies through tears, in a lavish room.
Without realizing it, I got up and headed to the mirror. Long golden hair, blue eyes, and a face that looked utterly arrogant.
This, this... it's that, isn't it?
"My special perk..."
"Ugh... Lord Adellian..."
Adellian.
Adellian Kruger—Golden Noble
Representative Traits: Financial Power (A), Arrogance (S)
Hidden Traits: Sense of Detachment (S), User's Eye (SSS)
I waved my hand to close the Status Window.
After half a day of mental breakdown, I'd finally figured out I was inside Innocent Saga.
In the original Kane Saga, Adellian—that is, me—didn't exist. This NPC was an optional bonus added as a reward for my crowdfunding campaign.
He was Gadia's younger brother, one of the heroines, and a literal background extra who only appeared in Kane and Gadia's flashbacks.
"Ughhh!"
Clang!
As I tore at my hair and screamed in frustration, Luna, who had been cautiously eating her cake, dropped her fork.
I glared irritably at the pink-eyed, pink-haired Rabbitkin.
"Auu..."
"Don't cry. If you do, you'll never get to eat cake again."
This is a disaster! A complete disaster!
I turned away from the Rabbitkin girl, who was pressing her long ears against her mouth to stifle her sobs, and resumed tearing at my hair.
That idiot Kang Suho! He should have just brazenly demanded to be included in the main storyline! After paying that much, he should have insisted on at least being a significant character standing next to the protagonist on the cover!
As Innocent progressed, it became overrun with superhumans. I was just an extra, as useless as a goblin, destined to have my neck sliced by Gadia—who ultimately needed the family seal—for nothing.
A mere plot device to showcase Gadia's cold nature, her willingness to betray even her family and younger sibling for the sake of the protagonist, Kane.
I ran a hand across my suddenly chilled neck and swallowed the now-lukewarm tea in front of me.
"Luna, bring me a pen and paper."
"Yes, Young Master!"
Luna, who had been watching me carefully, perked up and dashed off excitedly when I said something other than forbidding her from eating the cake.
She's as fast as a rabbit, just as you'd expect.
In the blink of an eye, Luna returned. I snatched the crumpled paper and quill from her hand and immediately began jotting down traits, starting with what came to mind first:
Why am I here? Can I ever go back?
I didn't need to spell these out; I understood them instinctively.
The real question was: How do I achieve a happy ending?
Kane's Party hadn't failed because of a lack of strength.
In both the game and the original story, opportunities to grow stronger were everywhere. Even if they missed most of them, they still managed to scrape by with half the gains.
The problem was singular:
The members of Kane's Party. Not just the Hopeless Trio, but the Hopeless Septet (non-physical).
Communication? What's that?
Kane, the misanthropic leader. Rachel, the violent, hands-on fighter. Gadia, so cold she freezes any man on sight. And Luna, the timid, tearful coward.
Seven people... no, sentient beings, and the main characters are all like this.
You'd think the others would be normal, but no. That's why even though Kane saves the continent from disaster, everyone still blames him for being the root cause.
Oh, did you save us? they might try to praise him, but he'd just snap, Shut up. Die. Or an ice spell would come flying, and who would even notice? Who would care?
Wiping the sweat from my forehead, I glanced at Luna, who was still sobbing. I'd spent pages writing down the locations of artifacts and dungeon strategies in Korean.
At least Rachel had some conscience, giving me the sole perk she'd secured: the User's Eye.
Luna Index—Tearful Rabbitkin Maid
Representative Traits: [Timidity (S)] [Cuteness (A)]
Hidden Traits: [Leg Strength (A)] [Frenzy (C)]
I stared at the Frenzy trait attached to my hidden traits with cold, dead eyes.
That's unacceptable.
I had to live as if that trait didn't exist... no, I absolutely couldn't let it awaken.
Frustrated by Luna's Timidity trait, I had recklessly pushed her into combat, using her up. As a result, I lost control of both her attack and retreat items...
In this reality, which had become more than just a game, I didn't know how that trait would manifest—and I didn't want to find out. Absolutely not.
I wrote down Luna's traits on paper, then organized the traits of the other heroines as best I could remember.
Later, I could compare them to the actual traits when we met and devise strategies based on their characteristics in advance.
The problem is Kane.
Kane—Title currently forgotten
Representative Trait: Indomitable Will (SSS)
After writing down Kane's name and trait, I sat back with my arms crossed, staring intently at the paper.
Other traits? Hidden traits? None of that matters for this guy. The only thing that matters is that damn Indomitable Will trait.
I couldn't remember if it had been triple S-rank from the start, or just S-rank in the early stages, but the problem was that it was a genuine trap trait.
When I first read about it on the official website, I had thought, "Wow, typical protagonist. How epic."
Indomitable Will: This trait maintains the character's Strength, Stamina, and Regeneration based on their Willpower, and it also has a chance to trigger miracles.
At first, the Indomitable Will trait seemed fantastic. But after using it, it turned out to be surprisingly effective.
To put it bluntly, even without a single red potion, if you just sent Kane into an appropriate dungeon and let him grind, he could survive with 1 HP thanks to the Indomitable Will status effect, even after taking near-fatal injuries.
Initially, everyone thought it was a godsend.
It made all sorts of grinding possible.
But then we discovered that the Indomitable Will trait actually...
...used Kane's Willpower as fuel.
Once we realized this, he became unable to interact with any NPCs.
He couldn't converse or act with the heroine.
Some might have cheered when they saw his Status Window, where his resistance to mental attacks like confusion or brainwashing had skyrocketed to 500%.
It's not me.
If you called me an obsessive otaku, you might be right.
Some might find it convenient and even like the protagonist who can only press the attack button when facing monsters.
It's not me.
Even though the protagonist was so socially awkward he was almost pathetic, and so distrustful of others that he would have been as fragile as a glass fish without his Indomitable Will, he was still precious to me in his own way.
Besides, the fact that my head would be chopped off if I didn't interfere with the original story was a pretty compelling reason.
Simple enough. Find Kane, erase his Indomitable Will no matter what, and start over.
That was the best course of action for now.
Some might think, knowing my situation:
"If you hate danger so much, why not just hand everything over to your sister Gadia before you get your head chopped off and live peacefully?"
Nope, not happening.
According to the game's lore, all authority within the Kruger Family—the wealthiest clan on the continent—is concentrated in the hands of the Patriarch.
How?
Magic, of course!
The family's magic is inherited through bloodlines.
Since primogeniture dictates that the eldest son inherits first, my sister can't withdraw even a single copper from the family vault without my permission—unless I die.
"Why not just swear absolute cooperation, sign a contract, and do the whole song and dance?"
Nope, still not happening.
Gadia would never trust Adellian, a man with a history of mistrust and a reputation for being a complete scoundrel.
Moreover, as Patriarch, Gadia could magically withdraw money from anywhere on the continent. Why would she need to come to Adellian, begging for money every time she needed it?
Even fan art that absurd would be torn apart for its lack of coherence.
Besides, if I don't intervene, the hopelessly dysfunctional Kane's Party will continue its downward spiral, leading to the inevitable conclusion: Kane's infamy spreading across the entire continent.
In a party composed of a Red Dragon, an Ice Mage, and others, who could possibly make their voice heard?
It wasn't by chance that Kane's Party was exclusively composed of women infatuated with him.
No one else could handle them. Only an overwhelming, almost fanatical love could sustain such a group.
"In the end, it's just me, isn't it?"
I said it jokingly, but only a sigh escaped my lips.
The only reason I can even consider tackling this without feeling overwhelmed by reality is probably due to my hidden trait, Sense of Detachment.
It's unclear exactly what this trait does, but in a place as vividly real as this, where the wind brushes my skin and the sunlight feels tangible, I find myself thinking, "It's just a game anyway." This suggests it's acting as a mental barrier.
I refuse to deliberately alter it to experience the full, vivid reality and become terrified of the upcoming war. For now, let's just go!
"Lord Adellian, where are we going?"
Luna, clutching a pink cotton candy as big as her head, scurried after me and asked.
"The Auction House."
Her one ear flopped down adorably.
I've always preferred mature women, so Luna, with her loli-like appearance, wasn't my ideal heroine. But seeing her in person was a treat for the eyes.
I tugged playfully on her drooping rabbit ears, then spoke again to Luna, who was a head shorter than me.
"Your special traits only awaken when you reach adulthood, according to the game's lore, right?"
"Umm... what?"
"Rabbitkin reach adulthood at 15, so it's too late for you to change your Timidity trait. But humans become adults at 18, meaning you can still change your representative trait before your birthday."
"Ugh... I... I don't understand... By the way, my ears..."
The Innocent Saga begins after the protagonist has already become an adult, but from what I've gathered in the few days since arriving here, we're currently in the early-to-mid stages of the original novel.
In game terms, it was two years ago.
If my calculations were correct, it was two months before the protagonist's birthday.
So, this is the time when his family was slaughtered as sacrifices to an evil god, he was dragged away by a passing Black Mage for live experimentation, escaped only to be betrayed by everyone he sought help from, and finally sold into slavery, ending up in the Auction House's underground chambers.
Just thinking about it made my eyes water.
It sounded brief when summarized, but this whole ordeal spanned several volumes, with only one moment of catharsis: the scene where he stabbed the Black Mage in the gut.
That damn Stone Moss bastard.
After a moment of silent tribute, mentally hurling stones at the original author, I released the soft, velvety ear.
Ah, this is going to be addictive.
Did they plan to throw me into this mess from the start?
Adellian opened his eyes to find himself in Labes, the pleasure city where the Kruger Family's main residence was located. It was also home to the continent's largest Auction House.
Though human trafficking was illegal, the law had become practically obsolete, and the continent teemed with the trade. Countless humans and Demi-humans were bought and sold here.
Kane himself had been sold into slavery after drinking a cup of water given to him by the seemingly innocent village chief.
In the original story, he was immediately sold to an assassin's guild. In the game, which had become a notorious failure, I bought him and used him as a living training dummy to hone my swordsmanship.
But no matter how brutally I beat him, his swordsmanship skill remained stuck at F. Eventually, I resold him, and he ended up back with the assassin's guild.
Despite enduring such hardships, Kane never wavered in his resolve for revenge. During his first assassination training, he awakened the Indomitable Will trait...
Back then, I was so moved, thinking, "This is where the real fun begins!" My naive younger self. Just close the window, please...
"Welcome, Young Master. Only three members of your party may accompany you into the Auction House."
I nodded vaguely at the Elf Gatekeeper standing before the VVIP-only gate and stepped inside.
One would be Luna, and the other two would be from the invisible guards assigned to protect me.
The main auction hadn't started yet, but as a VVIP, I had the privilege of purchasing items other than the main lots in advance.
Even so, rushing to buy Kane right now would be problematic.
A degenerate who spends his days drinking, gambling, and chasing women comes to the Auction House and singles out a specific person to buy before the auction even begins?
And not someone with a useful Trait and a clear purpose, but an ordinary human male whose Traits haven't even been identified yet?
No matter how little I care about my reputation, this is just too much...
And no one would ever buy someone before the auction starts.
If that were the case, Adellian in the game wouldn't have bought Kane either.
For now, it's best to act like I'm just here to browse the Auction House and then make my purchase during the main auction.
"Let's start by checking out the upper floors," I said casually, as if I were just here for fun, and started walking.
200 chapters at NovelsHub.org