Only I Am A Reader

'I will miss this…'

Eating the heated leftovers of the chicken pasta that Leo made for lunch the day before, Rain couldn't help but sigh in regret.

One of the royal chefs assigned to him was supposed to be the one doing the cooking from the very start. However, after experiencing Leo's cooking for the first two days, Rain could only dismiss the chef under Leo's earnest request to take care of the cooking as a 'freeloader'.

Naturally, the food made by royal chefs was just as astounding as Leo's if not better, but the fresh taste of Leo's recipes relieved Rain's boredom of eating 'fancy' food every day…

"He is undeniably the best candidate that I could have chosen within the current decade."

Even disregarding how satisfied his stomach was lately, Rain had nothing to complain about being Leo's teacher over the past few months!

As a youth who had barely lived for a dozen years, Leo's preservation in adhering to his strict schedule gained him more than a few praises from Rain who was particularly 'stingy' with his praises. Even then, what really astonished Rain was that he was as strict when it came to applying Rain's advice.

'To think I thought he was prideful at the beginning...'

The ability to put aside one's self-esteem in order to improve the best was a characteristic that could be rarely found, especially in the current era where some could kill just to satisfy their pride.

'I thought I had just underestimated him, but he simply couldn't be estimated to begin with.'

Even for someone like Rain whose number of students surpassed the number of existing 'manuals', Leo was an abnormal student who seemed both human and inhuman at the same time.

During his morning training, Leo expressed the talent of a monster, comparable only to one more person in Rain's memory, while at night, his talent regressed back to human levels. This particular contrast allowed Rain to rediscover the joy of being a mentor, something that he lost very early on his path…

Despite being inelaborate regarding his teaching, only hinting at the answers for the questions that might arise in Leo's path, this mysterious student of his was too good at connecting the dots, directly applying what Rain hinted at as soon as possible.

Hssp…

"Sadly, this can't go on much longer…"

As he took one last sip of his milk tea, Rain stood up as he let out a disheartened sigh, feeling quite contradictory himself.

'I should be happy, but…'

Finally making his way into the porch, however, Rain's oral cavity couldn't help but widen!

'Ha?'

It seemed like his intuition was as sharp as his insight today…

`~~~`~~~`~~~`

Swish! Swoosh! Shwish!

Seeing that the deck chair was still empty by the time he was done warming up, Leo waited an extra 5 minutes before he continued according to schedule.

'Even if it isn't the goal… I should be pretty close, right?'

Leo's excitement to wield a supernatural ability had carried him far, but at this point, his resolve couldn't help but waver.

Over the last five months starting from the moment he confirmed the positive effect of 'mastering' the 'Universal Sword Breathing', his 'Personal Statistics' segment kept changing considerably…

Even though there was no increase in Sword Breath gain after his mastery went up to 9 points, the extra 0.01 points he gained after the mastery was maxed up 2 months ago further accelerated his progress.

Reaching one goal after another, Leo simply looked forward to the next goal, waiting for a change.

________________

Personal Statistics:

Physique: 0.98

Mind: 1.38 (+1.97)

Sword Breath: 99.89

________________

Yet, here he was, only two- no, the first set was already close to done. Only one set stood before him reaching the last of the goals that he had set.

Using Ray's experience as a reference, Leo guessed that he would be able to finish his 'Accumulation Phase' within 6 months at most, double the protagonist's record. However, being this close to the major goal he had set made various thoughts arise in his mind…

What if he was still incomparable to a protagonist's ability despite having better conditions than him? He had the same manual at hand, his teacher's teacher, and a special ability of his own, but was that really enough to overcome the gap on his peer's 'home ground'?

What if his previous 'illness' had a negative effect on his 'Breathing'? What if the required amount wasn't 100 but 1000 instead?

What if…

Despite Rain's approval of him, Leo wasn't sure how to judge someone like himself who didn't completely belong to this world. He could tell that he was somewhat 'full', but the confidence he might have felt was overwhelmed by anxiousness.

In the end, the 'Personal Book' that pushed him forward only reinforced these thoughts. As the second set was coming to an end, Leo dreaded the possibility that surpassing its gain would result in nothing.

"No!"

Just as the doubt almost overwhelmed him to the point of being close to running his 'Sword Calligraphy', Leo's grip tightened around his sword trying to get a grip of himself!

His grip kept tightening till his hands were blood-red, only stopping when his skin was about to get ruptured.

'It overflowed again…'

Taking advantage of his apprehensions, the 'Read' emotions that he was used to suppressing almost managed to consume him once more, throwing him into eternal self-denial.

'So what if it isn't the goal?'

Although Leo didn't have the ability to completely suppress these emotions again in their current state, he could only fix the 'loophole' that they used to escape their prison.

'If half a year isn't enough, I could always do it in a year! If a year isn't enough, 2 years would still do!'

As a reader, Leo had simply adapted to his new status too quickly, losing hold of what his limits could be. Ironically, he almost considered himself as another main character without realizing it…

'If 2 years won't cut it, then I just have to go treasure hunting and any limits would simply disappear!'

Immersed into a role that doesn't fit him, Leo almost forgot the essence of his 'role'. Whatever he needed could be obtained with the knowledge he had, he didn't need to rely on 'luck'!

Seeking confirmed opportunities still had a certain degree of danger to them, but that wasn't the limit of what he 'knew'. There was more than one way to avoid this danger!

Under the threat of mental collapse, Leo was able to realize the core fault that made him vulnerable before it was too late. Reconfirming his standing in a round of self-reprimanding, the berserk emotions had no choice but to retreat to their 'shell'.

'It doesn't matter.'

With an 'ascended' mind clear of all distractions, Leo acceptingly made the final stroke of his 'Sword Calligraphy', calling out to the 'Personal Book' to check the result regardless of the outcome.

'Hmm?'

However, the only thing that Leo managed to see was the whole 'Personal Statistics' segment blurring out before his eyes lost focus!