Only I Am A Reader

Chapter 34 - First Appearance

'Impossible…?'

Looking at the new page full of words, Leo couldn't help but question the 'impossible' rating that the book had given to his successful survival.

Although it did make sense to him that he received 10 times the 'Reading Points' of the last event, especially considering that it would have an impact on the protagonist, the fact that the book recognized the event's rating as above the 'requirement' sparked a lot of thoughts in Leo's head.

'Is it different from the novel?'

The fact that killing the Fanged Wolves' team or at least driving them off wasn't a requirement meant that Leo would have likely survived even if he didn't do so. However, this strongly clashed with the novel, where the death of the whole Orphanage was confirmed.

While it was very obvious to Leo that the Fanged Wolves' team leader wanted to capture him alive, he originally thought that this was due to his plot-breaking behavior that attracted the man's interest, but that no longer seemed to be the case.

Ever since he was thrown into this world, Leo didn't receive anything from the voice nor the book. So, to suddenly receive something like a 'bonus' made him feel more serious than usual.

It was possible that simply relying on someone to save him was the personal book's requirement, but Leo's gut feeling denied that possibility.

'Am I the cause?'

Taking all points into consideration, Leo wondered if this was a butterfly effect that he caused or just a misportrayal from the novel. In either case, Leo came to an understanding that the effect of knowing the events of the novel was even more limited than expected.

Nevertheless, Leo was more than satisfied with what he had for now. Regardless of the future, he had managed to overcome an 'impossible' situation as described by the book, so he settled with feeling great and checking his 'bonus'.

[ Book 1 ]

Name: Arthur (Leo Lock)

Age: 12 (18)

Role: Reader

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Personal Statistics:

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Physique: 0.83 (-0.09)

Mind: 1.3 (+1.92)

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Personal Skills:

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'Basic Swordsmanship' - Chapter 1 - page 2/10

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Quests:

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Main Quest: Reach the epilogue

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Events:

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- Teaching Crane - Unique

- Counter Elimination - Impossible

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Despite looking at the 'personal' tabs being Leo's intention, the first thing that caught his eyes was the addition to the 'book 1' page.

Seeing the new events tab, Leo wondered about its late appearance, it wasn't like his survival was the first event he had 'influenced'. The only things that came to mind were that it had either rating or time restriction.

Regardless, the tab didn't have much value other than being reference material, so Leo browsed the rest of the page as per his original intention.

'Is it the wound?'

The next thing to catch his eyes was none other than the deducted numbers in parentheses beside his Physique. Despite increasing by 0.01 points, his overall physique was currently lower than he started.

However, it wasn't hard to guess the cause of this decrement. As an impartial parameter, it made sense for there to be a temporary decrease in Physique having been wounded as well as losing quite a bit of blood. According to Leo's calculation, it should be fully restored to normal in less than two weeks.

'This is a pretty good function.'

Although seeing the deduction mark wasn't particularly dopamine-inducing, the fact that even injuries were monitored allowed the Physique statistic to act like a 'health bar'. If he was to be injured in the future, Leo wouldn't even need to rely on his medical knowledge to know when he fully recovered!

As his eyes descended to the Mind statistic, Leo stared at it for a moment as he pondered about the reason for the increase. Even though he had already speculated that the numbers in the parentheses were his original Mind value as Leo, seeing it increase rather than Arthur's mind value made him fall into deep thought.

'It has to be that…'

The only thing that happened that night which Leo could relate to Mind growth was him letting go of his suppression over the assimilated emotions, but even then, Leo wasn't sure what to make of it.

Was it a good thing to let it out every once in a while? Or did it have to happen under certain requirements? Would he still be himself if he did so? Or would he just become an agglomeration of thousands of authors' emotions?

'Let's just be happy with my accomplishment for now!'

Pushing his dreadful thoughts away, Leo's eyes finally landed on the tab that he was looking forward to, the personal skills tab!

Ever since he came to after that night, Leo could feel that the knowledge that he had absorbed from sword books had increased even further. It was similar to when 'Skill Reading' was first activated but at a much slower but consistent rate.

Having originally thought that this was the insight he gained from confronting sword breath users, it finally made sense to him after Leo checked the personal book today.

'It deserves to be called a bonus.'

In all seriousness, Leo was more than satisfied to have received this specific bonus. Although he didn't know what were the other possible options in the randomization, the 'deepened reading' was what he needed the most at this moment.

Even though training to get more experienced with the sword could help advance 'Basic Swordsmanship', it was something that had limited effect as it required time.

On the other hand, receiving extra insight from his readings not only allowed Leo to directly advance his skill but also gave him direction as to how he was to further develop his swordsmanship.

In this remote town where he lacked both books and teachers, such a bonus was like an oasis in the middle of the desert.

"Big brother!"

In the middle of his rejoicing, Leo's thoughts were cut short by the sound of little Anne and his siblings. It seemed like Ria had brought them over for another visit.

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

"I'm heading out!"

Announcing his departure, Leo left the Orphanage as he took slow but calm steps towards the town.

Having spent a week staying at the doctor's place, this was already his third day after his dispatch. Although Leo's injury hadn't completely healed yet, unlike modern hospitals, staying for too long in this small town's medical facility that could barely count as a pharmacy wasn't possible.

After gaining some freedom, Leo wasn't in a rush to start his practice again until he reached full recovery. Thankfully, Ria had already stopped 'babysitting' him.

Since he couldn't do anything physical, Leo couldn't help but turn back to his one true addiction, leaving the Orphanage every afternoon to visit the town's library.

Although the books there were either history books that held too little information or books speaking of fantastical legends, Leo still found enjoyment in reading them. However, he was elated to find out that he was as addicted. Rather, he felt like he would prefer some sword training rather than reading the library's children's books.

'It won't be long anyway.'

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Personal Statistics:

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Physique: 0.83 (-0.01)

Mind: 1.3 (+1.92)

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After nine days of rest, Leo's wound had mostly closed. Thankfully, there was no infection nor organ damage, so it was nothing but a mere flesh wound. The reason he was weaker than usual was due to the blood loss.

'It's about time…'

Spending a few hours in the library itself, Leo selected a few of the better books to borrow before leaving, slowly treading towards the town's entrance.

Passing through, Leo walked even further till he reached a familiar spot where an old tree was erected among the short grass.

After spreading a small blanket beside the tree, Leo sat down and leaned against the tree. Putting the bundle of the books to the side, he took out a pair of binoculars…

'Not today either?'

Using the binoculars to look at the area ahead, a slight disappointment appeared on Leo's face as he didn't spot any human figures. However, before he finished scanning the area…

'This is…'

Three small figures suddenly appeared in the binoculars' line of sight, one particular figure among them looked eye-catching regardless of his unclear appearance.

Taking another look, a small smile took shape on Leo's face. It seemed like it was about time for the protagonist to finally make an appearance....