The last figure worthy of my attention was not with Ourin and Bessita.
He stood further away, near the first carriages, watching everything with that innate nobility flowing in his blood.
George Borunin.
The legitimate son of a count from the Chernobyl Isles, and not just any heir, but one of his father's favorites. In my thoughts, flashes of the original story echoed: later he would choose the Ivory Ring Tower of Ennea, guided by the heavy hand of the count and the bonds his family held with one of the old magi there. But that was only background.
The most important detail was something else: George was Feng Ming's very first ally after his reincarnation. He was the one who helped him train in secret during cold dawns, preparing the ground so that Leylin could have his long-awaited revenge against Ourin. A silent friend, a key piece.
I observed him calmly, comparing him to myself. Young, tall, broad-shouldered, with blond hair and eyes as blue as the summer sky. His features made me recall my past life as an American.
I drew in a deep breath and, after memorizing every detail, decided I had seen enough. I ignored Ourin, Bessita, and even George, and walked toward the carriage that awaited me.
The wood creaked beneath my steps.
"Baq~~"
When I pushed the door and crossed the threshold, silence fell like a blade. Conversations stopped instantly, eyes turned toward me. It was as if my simple movement had pulled all the attention in the room.
I felt the weight of their gazes, but it didn't bother me. I remained indifferent, steady, until one by one they began to avert their eyes, as if my presence was something not worth questioning. It was almost funny… a silent acceptance, as if everyone instinctively knew I was not someone to be disturbed.
As far as I remember, my personality before had been that of a quiet man who disliked being provoked… and that had built a kind of social barrier. And that was good—less interaction, the better.
In the part of the story I'm at now, most of them are nothing but useless cannon fodder anyway.
I looked for my seat and, upon finding it, almost frowned.
At my side… sat him.
Leylin.
Or rather, Feng Ming, still recovering from the head injury. Seated, trying to shrink in on himself, pretending to be invisible. His eyes, narrow and calculating, only shifted for a brief instant, studying me from the corner like a wounded fox before a larger predator.
I ignored him, giving him not the slightest bit of attention, and sat down. The seat was wide, built for two, but I had barely settled in comfortably when the system burst into my mind with a cascade of messages, panels projecting before me.
[An inferior artificial intelligence attempted to analyze the user's body!]
[Block Successful!]
[An inferior artificial intelligence attempted to analyze the user's body!]
[Block Successful!]
[An inferior artificial intelligence attempted to analyze the user's body!]
[Block Successful!]
I nearly laughed out loud. My eyes almost drifted toward Leylin, who beside me was cycling through a series of ridiculous expressions. He furrowed his brow, looked away, bit his lip—clearly confused. With each block, his "chip" reacted, trying and failing to decipher what I was.
Ah, I had been expecting this. After all, that little worm had brought along the most dangerous trump card of the entire story: an artificial intelligence that transcended worlds.
But before the GIGA CHAD system… even that was nothing more than a useless tool.
.
.
.
...
Pov Leylin
Leylin, now in this new world, waited for the carriage to resume its journey. He was already used to the scorn of the youths around him, and of course, he didn't care about it. The less attention he attracted, the better.
His head was full of unanswered questions.
"Why did the A.I. Chip merge with me? …Forget it, I'll think about that sort of question later, when I have the ability and qualifications to do so. At least with this A.I. Chip, I have some assistance in this world."
The corners of Leylin's lips curled into a radiant smile. He knew that in this medieval era, possessing technology born from a futuristic world would definitely open some extraordinary doors for him in the future.
"Even so, the physique of this Leylin is really pathetic…"
Leylin was left speechless after seeing the statistics displayed before him.
The stats were based on every aspect of an adult's physiology as the standard. Theoretically, the numbers shown for a normal adult would hover around 1. Although this Leylin was only about 13–14 years old, his statistics were still far too low.
"Hm? This isn't right. Could it be that the bodies of people in this world are naturally weaker? A.I. Chip, scan the bodies of the people inside this carriage and show me their statistics!"
[Beep! Task established. Beginning data collection.]
Immediately, 3D holograms of the people around him appeared in front of Leylin, displaying their stats.
[Name: Unknown. Gender: Male. Strength: 0.9. Agility: 1.1. Vitality: 0.8.]
[Name: Unknown. Gender: Male. Strength: 1.2. Agility: 0.8. Vitality: 1.0.]
[Name: Unknown. Gender: Female. Strength: 0.8. Agility: 1.2. Vitality: 0.7.]
....
"Well, it looks like the bodies of these people are stronger than those in my previous world. This Leylin is actually inferior to a girl… I'm starting to feel embarrassed for him…"
Leylin looked around. Everyone here was about his age. There was one girl in particular, visibly fragile and delicate, whose stats were still much better than his own, making him feel utterly hopeless.
"It seems the previous owner of this body was a useless leech, an overly lustful piece of trash with no self-control!"
It was then that the carriage door opened once again, and someone else entered.
Great, another one who looks like he stepped out of a painting. Between George and Ourin… this one, Raven, is definitely the most intimidating. He looks like an adult among children here. Leylin thought to himself before issuing another mental command.
"Chip, analyze him!"
[Beep! Task established.]
[Beginning data collection…]
Suddenly, the chip froze, halting the command, and returned with strange error notifications.
[Interference detected!]
[Error during analysis!]
[Task cannot be completed!]
"WHAT?" Leylin nearly fainted inside. What do you mean interference? Is this guy secretly a mage in disguise?!
[Unlikely!]
[No trace of energy detected around him, but something is preventing my sensors from zooming in to scan his cells.]
1107 Words
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