If you act like a character, the world will treat you like one. That was the basic principle behind Fae magic. I had followed it, acting like a protagonist in a story. A protagonist that had transmigrated into a side character.

Elena’s presence seemed to have confirmed my suspicions. The question stood then, what was happening now? Why was the door suddenly locked? How had stone walls appeared beyond my windows?

What the heck was going on?

I turned towards around with mounting horror, tossing my head to and fro as I tried to make sense of it. Elena was still passed out, not having noticed what was happening. Perhaps if she were awake, I could ask her if she saw it too. This could be an illusion. Then again, there was but one person I could think of that would bother making such an illusion.

Leif. And that boy was more than powerful enough to have us share an illusion. So there really wasn’t much point in waking her up.

“Is this you, Leif?” I asked before I could help it. No, that was a bad idea. Reacting to Leif’s acts just made him want to do them more. Gulping my fear down my throat, I headed back to my bed and sat down.

The floor grew cold as soon as I did so, so chilly that I pulled my feet up by instinct. In that very second my surroundings changed. The magic lit room I had transmigrated into disappeared, replaced with a corridor.

I fell onto my ass, having somehow lost the bed’s support. But that hardly registered. What did register were my new surroundings? The hallway had glossy black walls, glowing faintly with golden lines of light that looked like they formed a pattern.

But for the life of me I could not figure out what pattern it was. Still, it was beautiful. For some reason, the walls just captured my attention. I stood up, looking down at the floor that had a similar pattern upon. Even the ceiling was the same.

The golden lines of light curled around me, twisting and turning in wavy patterns that made it seem like they were heading in a direction. I followed them, my heart thundering against my chest.

What the heck was going on?

First the way I had been locked into my room. And then I was transported here? I was pretty sure this was an actual teleport, not an illusion. Well, not that I thought some more about it, I was a bit less sure. Leif might be able to pull something like this off.

Would he do it was another matter? I didn’t think so, but I wasn’t exactly an expert on him. What if he was different from what the book showed him as? Heck, the book itself hadn’t really said much about him. Leif was just the ‘scary guy who ate people’.

Still, I didn’t think he did this. There just didn’t seem to be any point to an illusion like this. Scaring me some more in my room would probably have been better and easier for him. This was something else. Could this have something to do with what happened? The doors had locked just seconds before this.

Perhaps some magical protection had been triggered. But who was powerful enough to not just trigger Eldanveir’s magical protection and still take someone away? I stopped walking, coming to a standstill as I looked at the walls again.

Black and gold. Yes, those were his colors weren’t they? Now it made sense. I could only think of one character that was active around this time and powerful enough to do this.

Prince Verlinaus of the House of Manevorus. The Monarch of Justice.

I had done it. I did not know how I had done it, but it was done. The Court of Justice had invited me. Even though I had wanted it, I had not expected it to be this easy.

Mana chose who got to attend the Court of Justice, but it was usually someone with a great need for justice. The kind great enough to reach out to a Monarch across the multiverse. I suppose my situation really was that bad, to have reached the Monarch from so far away.

A series of footsteps echoed across the hallway, enhancing my nervousness by their presence alone. Gulping, I slowed my pace, more than a little fearful of what awaited me. The footsteps increased in pace, as if the other person had heard me and decided to run.

Perhaps that was what had happened.

I stood rooted in place, wondering what I should do. Why was there another person? The Court of Justice might invite multiple people at once, but their paths usually did not cross. What was going on? What should I do?

There really was little I could. This was the Court of Justice, I could not control what happened. But I could move forward. The Monarch of Justice wouldn’t harm me…probably.

Taking a step ahead and then another I moved forward. The wall to my left grew fainter as I walked, the two hallways seeming to cross each other. I could vaguely make out another figure running, though his pace matched with mine. The Monarch’s doing, I was sure. The figure slowed as he noticed me, coming to a stop as he took a step back, clearly getting ready to fight.

The translucent wall disappeared into a shower of sparks, letting us see each other. A boy with long black hair stood across me, his body little more than skin and bones as he balled his fists at me. An eastern look that would have been well suited to the protagonist of a martial arts novel were it not for his golden eyes.

What could have been considered a large sack covered his body, his head protruding out of an opening. The ‘rags’ that had been described in the novel. There was not a weapon at his side nor did he look to be in any condition to fight. And yet I was not sure I could defeat him if it came down to it.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

For this person was the protagonist of the book I had transmigrated, the person who would come before the Monarch of Justice and ask them to end the Eldanveir. And at that moment I remembered one horrible thing.

Whatever my troubles with my family be, I too was an Eldanveir. And that meant that the protagonist was going to ask for my death too.

sc

The Duke of Eldanveir sat in a wooden chair. An uncomfortable wooden chair he was wondering if he should destroy. The thing was the only chair around, but was it really better than standing?

A sigh propelled out of him. This was the kind of thing that occupied his mind when he was left alone in a hallway with his son. For some reason a Monarch had decided to interfere in their matters. Not that one appeared when he was the one in need of help, but when it came to someone else they would come running.

Well, it was not yet confirmed that the Monarch was here for them. The Monarch of Justice might not even be here for someone on this planet. Just because the Court of Justice appeared near their planet did not mean the applicant was here. There were other planets around.

And sometimes the Court of Justice tended to appear a few systems away from the planet it was actually going to act on. Or perhaps their lovely superiors that ruled the galaxy were the ones in trouble.

There were far too many ways this could be related to someone other than them. Going into hiding just seemed like an unwise decision. And yet here he was, sitting in an abandoned hallway after activating every defense the mansion had. The reason was simple.

This was the Monarch of Justice they were dealing with.

“So, have you done anything particularly interesting lately?” he asked his son.

Leif looked up, his purple eyes gazing into the Duke’s as if wondering why the latter was even talking to him. If he was being honest, the Duke was wondering that too.

“I killed a spy,” the boy offered. “A boy from the Riding family that you let live.”

The Duke looked up. “Why?’

“I felt like it.”

The Duke sighed. Why did he not learn? Well, the boy learning would make him an even greater threat than he already was. So this was to his benefit. But still. This felt like a failing on his part.

“Raising him would have been a better idea. The boy had the Riding bloodline, he could have easily reached Rank 5. That would be significantly more mana you know.”

Leif yawned. “That fool? I doubt it.”

And that was why the boy annoyed him. A fool was better. An intelligent person might take the power and escape. A fool would do the same. The latter would just be worse at it. The thought of the lost mana just made him want to sigh. A Rank 5 barely gave him any mana anymore, but it was still better than nothing. Finding more was such a chore these days.

Speaking of escape.

“I hear your brother left his room.” he stated.

For the first time since he had trapped them in this corridor, Leif showed visible emotion. The boy grinned like he had just been given a great gift.

“Yes, he did.”

The Duke waited for a response, only for his son to maintain silence.

“And I heard you killed his maid.”

“Oh yes, that was fun.”

“And then he decided to say some unnecessary things to our dear spy. Do you take that for a coincidence?”

“I would hope not.” Leif’s grin grew even wider. “I found out that he had himself assigned a maid. The Riding boy was careful to assign her to him.”

“I see.” the Duke replied. Of course, he already knew that. There was little that escaped his attention in the mansion. That was why he was confused as to why it was happening. The actions of his sons did not seem to align with what he knew of them. The younger twin had not left his room of his own accord even once before. And the older one was only concerned with mana. Now they were both acting out of the ordinary.

That worried him.

“And I suppose there is a reason you sent her to him anyway?”

“Of course there is.” the boy replied.

As usual, he did not see fit to clarify, to perhaps explain his reasoning. The Duke knew why well enough. The boy was simply looking to annoy others. A habit that had made no small amount of nobles let themselves be lured into a duel with him. Just because a duel wasn’t supposed to be to the death did not mean the boy would not kill them.

And yet the fools kept letting themselves fall into a trap.

“A pity then. I shall be disposing of your brother tonight.” he stated in reply. To his surprise, that got a reaction.

“No.”

“No? Are you telling me what not to do, Leif Eldanveir?” the Duke asked. Perhaps he should kill the boy too. The boy was getting powerful enough to be a threat. And threats could not be allowed. Yes, there was little need to let him pose a greater threat. That was plenty of mana already.

“I read a book.” the boy said, unprompted.

“And?” the Duke asked, readying his spell. A simple darkness spear could do it, but it was wiser to take a more thorough approach. Perhaps a darkness net -

“The book talked about Eldanvier twins. And how, when one dies by the hand of the other, the killer inherits the abilities of the other.”

The Duke paused, a net of black mana woven silently hovering above his son’s head. “What do you mean by abilities?”

“The mana,” Leif said, slowly raising his hand until the tip of his fingers was just below the net. Then he extended his hand forward along the net’s edge, making it clear that he could sense it. “The bloodline, even the elements, can be stolen. Don’t you think that is fun?”

“Even the bloodline, you say?” the Duke asked, his gaze landing on a ring on his finger. The House Ring of Eldanveir. A ring with the power to steal a relative’s bloodline if they also shared the Eldanveir ability.

Not the most useful power as such things went. But if Leif somehow managed to merge the Eldanveir bloodline with the royal bloodline…then it could be used. If he had the royal bloodline then he could use their power. Finish them off.

And that was what Leif had wanted to tell him,

“Why not kill the boy then? Why leave Aphra alive?”

“The thing only works if the twins are of equal rank.” Leif declared calmly.

The Duke nodded, withdrawing his net. “I hope you succeed, son of mine.”

“So do I, father. So do I.”

And they both knew, the second that royal faced son of his was dealt with, it would be time for them to face off. After all, only one Lord of Eldanveir could be allowed to live.