Glorious Vanity (SI LitRPG)

Freyr blinked. "What are you talking about, Vain?"

I pointed to the feather hanging from Heaven's Veil and said, "That. Why do you have that?"

It was dangerous. No, not dangerous. At least, not with Heaven's Veil there to protect her. But it was a giant mass of mana that could erupt at any moment and do god knows what. Not only that... but if *I* could feel it, then there was no way that it wasn't affecting Freyr even through Heaven's Veil.

"Hm?" Freyr looked down and then said, "Oh." She smiled and said, "This feather, you mean? This was the gift that Uncle Sjur gave me before he sent us off."

"...Is it safe?"

Freyr nodded. "Of course. And even if it was not... It is a keepsake from my older sister, so I would keep it around regardless."

"Older sister?" I frowned.

Freyr was definitely Odin's kid. And Loki was definitely her brother. From her lightning, it seemed that Thor was her brother too... or at least taught her. But older sister...

There wasn't anyone like that in Norse Mythology, was there?

Freyr was quiet and said, "There... It is a long story."

I was curious, but I decided to set it aside for now. There was something more important at stake.

Mostly the fact that the feather was an unstable mass of mana and was definitely affecting Freyr's emotions judging from how she was acting recently.

"That's fine. And I get having a keepsake... But Freyr. You do know that thing is affecting you, right?"

"Pardon?" Freyr blinked and looked down at the feather. "It is?"

I nodded. "I'm not sure what it does, but I'm pretty sure it's making you a lot more emotional. Not only that, but it's almost bursting at the seams with unstable mana... and not just a little bit."

Freyr grabbed the feather and frowned. She looked thoughtful and then said, "I see... In that case, it seems that this is where my sister's powers ended up. I had always wondered where father sealed them afterwards... To think that Uncle Sjur had it the entire time..." She paused. "But in that case, why did he give it to me?"

...That was a flag. Definitely a flag.

<What's a flag, Master?>

Don't worry about it, Avalon. But anyway...

I looked to Freyr and said, "Mind if I take a look?"

Freyr hesitated. "...I do not. But knowing you..." She gave me a level gaze and said, "You will not do anything reckless like trying to assimilate the power or forcibly quell it for my sake, will you?"

I laughed and said, "I'd never do anything like that."

<...Master is a very good liar.>

"...Anyway." I ignored Avalon and stepped close to Freyr. "Let's see." I reached out and lightly held the feather.

Freyr blushed, averting her gaze. "V-Vain. Th-that is a bit too-"

"Well, you can't take off Heaven's Veil, so this will have to do. And besides, I always enjoy being close to you."

<I-I won't lose!>

Hm? Ah, dammit. That passive skill triggered again, didn't it? Freaking annoying class...

Freyr's face turned an even darker shade of red, but then she let out a happy smile.

I decided to ignore that and focused on the feather in front of me.

...Dammit. Of all the times for Alice to be out of commission...

"Is something the matter, Vain?"

"No. Just thinking."

No status windows popped up. But that was because Alice was in charge of that, and she was still asleep. Because of that, I didn't get the handydandy automated process.

But I could remember it.

[A Different Path] worked by using raw materials to form a new item. And while I didn't have a cheat identification spell, I was fairly familiar with mana now. And so if I focused...

I closed my eyes.

The world turned dark, similar to when I was stuck in that void at the boundary of life and death. And because of that, I could sense it.

A vicious curse that seemed to resent the entire world. A maddening love that wanted to hold 'someone' close no matter what.

And the source of it all...

[Well-Read has unraveled the nature of the item.]

[Covenant of the Plume - Brynhildr has been revealed.]

...Right. I knew this story.

The valkyrie who defied Odin's orders and was sentenced to imprisonment within cursed flames. The one who fell in love with Sigurd and was eventually betrayed because of that love. Not willingly, but because of the machinations of fate.

A story that ended in tragedy, and a tragedy that still lingered in the item before me.

[The Betrayed Valkyrie whispers that she will not forgive you if you allow her sister to echo her fate.]

"I know that already." I muttered and then said, "So stop lingering around like a haunted spirit and just give her your blessing. She's going to need all the help she can get, you know?"

"Vain?" Freyr frowned and looked at me. "What are you talking about?"

"Don't worry about it, Freyr."

"You keep saying those words... I do not think you know what they mean, Vain."

"Like I said, don't worry. And now..."

[The Betrayed Valkyrie says she will be watching.]

Yeah. Just keep doing that.

I focused.

I didn't have the system to help me, but I remembered the process.

Taking the story, weaving in the tales, writing a new path from the established events and materials. And the end result...

'Something' changed. A ripple spread from me to the feather and then to Freyr.

She gasped and instinctively stepped back.

I let her go, but I made sure to keep an eye on the feather in case anything crazy happened.

I wasn't sure exactly what I could do... but I was confident that I'd be able to get Freyr out of it... And if not, that Avalon could handle it.

<I-I will do my best, Master!>

Fortunately for both of us, nothing happened. Well, something did, but nothing dangerous.

The feather shimmered and turned a soft blue color. At the same time, the unstable mana calmed down. Not only that, but the resentment I felt from it before was gone, and the feather emitted a calming presence instead.

Freyr stared at the feather, carefully cradling it in her hands, her eyes wide.

"Did something happen?"

Freyr shook her head let out a bright smile. "No. Nothing happened, Vain. ...But thank you."

"...You're welcome?"

She was hiding something from me. She was definitely hiding something from me.

But I had the feeling things would get really troublesome if I asked about it. So instead, I shifted my attention to our surroundings since that time bomb was resolved. "Anyway... What should we do now?"

We were still out on the open plains. And there were still a few sparks smoldering in the distance from my solution to the problem of charging orcs.

<Master definitely has a way with words... I should learn from you.>

Please don't.

"Well." Freyr lowered her hands and said, "Our objective was to increase your level and status. Though..." She looked back to where we came from before meeting Akira and said, "It seems that you got a head start on that?"

"A little." I nodded and said, "It turns out that orcs are much more fragile than a mythical dragon. Though it also seems like it'll take a lot of effort to level me up... All of that and I only got a single level."

Freyr frowned. "Truly? After all of that? ...What level are you, Vain?"

"Seven."

Freyr blinked. "Seven?" She frowned. "That makes no sense. A single orc should be in the mid-twenties. Killing that many should have easily raised your level to at least ten..." She placed her hand on her chin and then said, "How did you kill the orcs again? Did you learn some fire magic?"

"Nah. I just used a wave of Ragnarok's flames. Had to be sure, you know?"

"A wave of-? Ah. Right. You stole some from Surtr."

"Yep." I nodded. "Serves him right considering how he has it out for you."

[A Herald of the End says that he had nothing to do with Miss Valhalla's misfortune!]

I snorted.

"Hm?"

"Nothing, Freyr."

"...In any case." She frowned. "This will be a problem... Even if you did use Ragnarok's flames to kill the orcs, that should still be a considerable amount of experience... Perhaps it is a penalty? No, but an ordinary human like yourself should not be restrained..."

Wait. 'Ordinary Human...'

Oh. Right. I technically wasn't an ordinary human. Well, by Babel's standard anyway.

But damn. Did that mean that it'll be hard to get back those bonus stat points? I didn't regret using them to save Freyr, but...

Freyr sighed. "Well. I suppose it cannot be helped."

"Hm?" I looked at Freyr. "What do you mean it can't be helped?"

"We will simply have to commit a thorough extermination of the monsters in this plateau. And if there are more troublesome adventurers like before, we will simply eliminate them as well. I have not attempted it myself, but from what I know, other Chosen are a bountiful source of experience. Even if you do not kill them- Hm?" Freyr tilted her head. "What is with that expression?"

"...Maybe I shouldn't have gotten involved with you..."

"V-Vain?!"

I smiled and patted her head. "Just kidding. But alright. I suppose we can go level grind. I'm curious to see my beloved valkyrie in action anyway."

"...You shameless flirt."

"Sadly, yes. But it's the truth, so that's fine, right?"

Freyr blushed.

I laughed and started walking off. "Come on. Let's see if we can't get me another level before we head back. Ah, and we should probably check in with Aqua and Gale too. Partying up is always a good idea."

Freyr sighed and then walked beside me. "Does anything faze you, Vain?"

"Everything. I'm a good actor though."

Freyr snorted.

Nobody ever believes the truth, huh?

<I see what Miss Alice was talking about now. Master is truly a scoundrel of a man...>

...