Reincarnated User Manual

Blocking the other children from interfering in the succession ceremony, Encia slapped the air as she spoke.

“Do you intend to kill? Even if you are Lucia, such words cannot be taken lightly.”

Her casual hand gestures made her seem playful. But her words carried weight. After all, the organizers of the succession ceremony included Yuma and all the guardians of the Dawn Castle.

“I’m merely suggesting, as a precaution, that an outsider might cause harm if they intervene in the succession ceremony.”

“A warning?”

“It means there might be something after the warning.”

Encia nodded to Lucia’s question. She drew a line on the ground with her forefinger. White lightning emerged from her fingertips, melting the snow and blackening the earth, producing smoke.

“After this moment, if someone unrelated to the succession ceremony crosses this line, it won’t just end with a warning. I might be more lenient than the other guardians, but not to that extent.”

“It’s fortunate that it’s just a warning then.”

Johan took a step back with a bitter smile. Suddenly, in front of Johan, a line of demons stood. They didn’t hide their hostility towards Johan.

Johan surveyed each of the demons. They all had an aura of high-ranking demons, only felt beyond the Makal Mountain range.

Had he not received a brief warning from Hugo before coming here, Johan thought he might’ve instinctively reached for his waist-bound knife. A deeper wrinkle appeared at the corner of his mouth.

“Then…”

Lucia squinted at Encia.

“What happens when I, who is related to the succession ceremony, cross the line? Will you harm me?”

“Of course not.”

Encia laughed, waving off the notion. However, unlike before, her tone and demeanor were respectful and gentle.

The person she was addressing now wasn’t some unknown knight but the daughter of the head of the household. This difference made Encia’s approach kinder.

“As you’ve already heard, the succession ceremony wasn’t created to kill the descendants of Prient. We, who live to perpetuate Prient, won’t harm a lady who’s passed the succession, right?”

“So, if I cross…”

Thud-

Lucia couldn’t finish her sentence. From behind Encia, a muffled sound echoed, clearly the sound of something striking the lake.

The heavy sound echoed repeatedly. Since there was only one person beneath the lake right now, everyone present could predict the source of the noise.

All those present focused their attention and gaze on the source of the sound as the noise, reminiscent of breaking ice, rang out repeatedly.

“Did he swim under the ice? This is madness.”

Hugo, who had been silently observing the situation, muttered with a sigh. His attention had already shifted from the maids of Dawn Castle to Shiron beneath the ice.

‘Yuma remained quiet, but I never expected this reckless behavior.’

Shiron’s action carried a significant risk. The succession ceremony’s endpoint was not the lake’s end but reaching the shore.

It wasn’t that no one had thought of this in the past 500 years. Many had dismissed the idea with jest, but no one had actually tried it.

‘Such a courageous kid.’

Hugo smiled pleasantly, rubbing his chin.

Currently, Shiron was taking a life-threatening gamble. Even if he managed to reach the end, he would drown if he couldn’t break the ice without assistance. The ice of the lake was too tough and thick for a young boy whose brain was not fully developed to break through.

Yet, knowing all this, Hugo was intrigued by how Shiron would tackle the challenges ahead.

Hugo glanced at Yuma, who was still on the opposite side of the lake. He could guess why she hadn’t stepped in. Considering her personality, she would probably be the most worried.

Thud-

Yet, even as Shiron madly pounded on the ice, not a single crack appeared. The previously continuous sound suddenly stopped.

“Could it be…”

Lucia whispered, looking at the spot where the sound had been coming from. A foreboding feeling crept over her.

“…I need to help.”

“Miss.”

Encia sighed, looking at Lucia, who was nervously licking her lips.

“I hope it doesn’t come to this, but if Miss Lucia assists Lord Shiron, both Lord Shiron and Miss Lucia will be disqualified from the succession ceremony.”

“…So what? Are you trying to threaten me with that right now?”

Lucia turned her head to glare at the blonde maid. However, Encia didn’t flinch under her gaze.

“Actually, the young lord told us yesterday. Even if he fails, no one should step in.”

Encia said this while gently shaking her head at Lucia, who continued to stare at her silently.

“All of us, even Yuma, objected. But Shiron was insistent. There are witnesses.”

Encia said, pointing to Berta, who stood quietly by.

“Also, would the young lord truly welcome your assistance? At least, I don’t think so.”

Lucia found herself speechless.

---

Shiron, even in a situation where he was running out of breath, didn’t rush his actions.

In the succession ceremony, what mattered was not just a notable outcome but also the journey to achieving it – it shouldn’t be too excessive.

But it needed to be dramatic.

Therefore, Shiron had no intention of doing something crude like drawing the holy sword and splitting the ice in one stroke or digging through sand to rise above. His goal was a cool scene where he broke the ice with his fist.

‘Surely, it won’t resist this.’

Shiron gazed at the holy sword. Sensibly, the sword didn’t emit any light or eerie sound; it just shimmered silently underwater.

‘Slowly…’

Shiron carefully inserted the holy sword into the ice ceiling above him.

The ice, which had not cracked no matter how desperately he pounded on it, began to melt like butter at the touch of the holy sword’s blade.

Yet, Shiron remained cautious.

He didn’t thrust it in one go. It felt like he had been holding his breath for quite a while, but he could still bear it.

He focused all his senses on the sensation transmitted through his fingertips, ensuring the blade didn’t protrude outside the ice.

Shiron withdrew the blade and inserted it again, pushing it in a direction opposite from its tip.

Sagak- Sagak-

Shiron took a moment to realign his aim, being cautious not to act impulsively as his breathing became more rapid.

His single-minded goal was to pass the succession ceremony without anyone’s help. He couldn’t leave any evidence that he had used the holy sword, a cheat-like tool, here.

So, slowly, ensuring the blade didn’t jut out of the ice, he carved just enough so he could break it with a fist…

Soon after.

Kagak-

A conically carved chunk separated from the ice ceiling.

Shiron didn’t stop there. He sliced the separated chunk of ice into smaller pieces until, in this upside-down world, it looked like the chunk of ice was rolling on the floor.

‘Good.’

A faint cluster of light cascaded down like a waterfall.

‘It’s roughly two fingers thick, right? Even though it has melted considerably.’

Shiron continued his work.

Again, he meticulously crafted smaller ice pieces. The fragments separated from the ceiling would scatter the light, preventing those outside from seeing his actions.

Though there was a thin layer of snow on the surface of the ice, he couldn’t be too careful.

After being engrossed in the task for some time, he thought.

‘This should be enough.’

He created a slush that looked like water-soaked shaved ice.

Shiron stabbed the holy sword into it.

Though the sword could cut the hard ice like tofu, it didn’t harm Shiron’s flesh.

There was no need for focused intent. The holy sword was smoothly drawn into his hand as if it belonged there.

Shiron then stepped onto the sandbank again.

The second attempt felt right.

Despite his breath gradually reaching its limit, he felt considerably at ease as he thrust his fist toward the ice.

Kwagak-

A dull sound echoed in the water, but the fist he thrust toward the ice felt light. He felt the outside air grazing his outstretched fingers. The muffled noise from the outside was a bonus.

Kwagak- Kwagak-

With a renewed determination, Shiron shattered the ice. Finally, the hole widened enough for his body, and Shiron thrust his head towards it.

“Ha—!”

Though it was only a few minutes, it felt endlessly suffocating. The air outside tasted as sweet as honey.

He was so disoriented that he forgot about the sting he felt in his hand.

When he brushed off the hair sticking to his eyes and looked ahead, all eyes were on him.

“…Why are you all looking like that? It’s embarrassing.”

Shiron laughed playfully. It was all for attention, but now that he had experienced it, he genuinely felt shy.