A week had passed since I possessed Yeon Je-seong.
Acting as Yeon Je-seong during this time—short if short, long if long—I reached one conclusion.
"Let's give up on pretending to be a kid to blend in with everyone around me!"
It was, in a way, an obvious conclusion.
Even with the mind of an adult, trying to act like a child would definitely raise suspicions from those around me.
More than that, I had no confidence in pulling off a convincing kid impression.
'I don't even know what the original Yeon Je-seong's personality was like.'
From what the maids and servants said, he had a childish temperament, but since I wasn't the real 'Yeon Je-seong' from the start, it was far more comfortable to just act like myself.
Perhaps because of that, whispers started circulating in the clan that I'd changed.
At first, I reacted with strong wariness to the attention from the clan members, but fortunately, all I heard was that I'd matured early because of my new demeanor—no real suspicions.
They were probably chalking it up to the whims of a fickle child, just like always.
Anyway.
Thanks to that, I could act freely without caring about prying eyes.
And that meant my freedom of movement was much wider than when I was stuck playing the kid role...
So, I ended up there.
Yeah.
I'd entered the library—the one place kids like me had zero reason to go!
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The purpose of visiting the library was simple.
Starting with info on myself, then the clan, the hero, and even the surviving demons.
Since I couldn't rely solely on my knowledge of the original story, I wanted to gather as much information as possible.
To that end, over the past week, I'd scoured the library and peppered the servants around me with questions, hoarding every scrap of info I could get.
Learning clan news from the maids.
Picking up street gossip from the estate managers.
Digging out random knowledge from the library.
After compiling it all...
I uncovered several noteworthy pieces of information.
First, the day I possessed this body was exactly one year after the end of Failure Hero 2.
The hero's party from 2 had already disbanded, with its members rising to high positions in various countries.
Given they were all top-tier powerhouses, their dispersal across nations meant the international balance was holding steady for now.
Checking the records confirmed it: no major conflicts, just sustained peace.
A mere year's worth of fragile peace, but it would likely hold for a while longer.
Next, I was six years old this year—a toddler who hadn't even lost all his baby fat.
No wonder my movements felt awkward and I tired out so fast; it was because I was just a little kid.
'That explains why they assigned multiple maids.'
A mischievous brat who gets into trouble the moment you look away? One or two maids wouldn't cut it.
I nodded, enduring the stares from all directions.
Then there was news on the prince, one of the hero's party members from 2.
This Imperial Empire prince had ascended the throne right after the party disbanded, credited for defeating the Demon King.
A crown prince must have been in line, yet he overtook him.
The credit for slaying the Demon King was indeed massive.
But him as emperor...
What a headache. He wasn't a proper sort.
Not a villain since he was in the hero's party, but his personality was utterly unpredictable.
Yeah, best to stay off the emperor's radar.
I knew exactly how badly it ended for those who caught his attention in 2, so I decided without hesitation.
Cold logic dictated that the Yeon Clan—premier noble house of the empire—couldn't avoid dealings with the emperor.
Thus, as the Young Clan Head of that Yeon Clan, I couldn't avoid meeting him... but foolish me back then hadn't realized it.
.
.
.
Ahem.
The story veered off track midway, but anyway—the conclusion is that the continent is at peace right now.
Fortunately, the alliance army, riding high after slaying the Demon King, successfully drove the demons off the continent.
Without their leader, the demons couldn't mount a comeback and were pushed to the continent's edge, finally fleeing to their homeland, the Diabolos Continent.
Naturally, the victorious alliance erupted in cheers.
Even now, they vigilantly watch the seas beyond, bracing for a demon invasion.
Honestly, though, they had at least a decade before worrying.
They'd probably stir just before the original story kicks off.
'Academy City's Failure Hero basically covers events during school life.'
As students, there wouldn't be continent-wide war clouds until after the protagonist enrolls, at least.
It was an academy game, after all. If a full-scale continental war broke out?
It'd stop being a fresh tale of youth and brawls and turn into a blood-soaked war epic of screams and slaughter.
'No way the devs went that insane.'
Sure, even as an academy story, it builds to the Demon King as final boss, so the late game leaves the academy for the demon-slaying journey—but that's truly the endgame. Most events happen inside Academy City.
The academy invasion event was a staple every time, so I figured 3 would kick off with incidents there too.
Of course, to instill some tension in the students, there'd be ominous stirrings right before the original plot, but nothing like all-out continental war.
'So I need to build strength before the original story begins.'
At minimum, enough to fend off the demons invading Academy City.
Those invasions were always handled by high-ranking demon officers, so I needed power to crush them.
'Not the Four Heavenly Kings level, but officers are still pretty strong. Without some heaven-sent opportunity or unique weapon, I'd need to train from now to handle them smoothly.'
Unfortunately, my six-year-old body couldn't even handle Young Clan Head duties, let alone Yeon Clan training.
"Why not!"
"Training is too much for you, Young Master. Just play and sleep as usual, and the Clan Head will be pleased."
"I want to train right now!"
"We're truly sorry, but as your exclusive maids, our duty is to protect your well-being—even if it means defying your orders."
"Guh..."
I slumped my shoulders and trudged back to my room, defeated by the maid's dead-serious gaze.
Putting on a suitably glum act to shoo away the maids, I sat on the floor and reviewed my future plans.
"This is unexpected..."
With training blocked—a huge part of my plans—revision was inevitable.
All my schemes assumed starting training young; with that foundation gone, I needed a new plan.
'First off, I can't just abandon training altogether.'
In the Failure Hero series, growth rates spiked the younger you started, so the earlier, the better.
Plus, my Yeon Clan—frequent supporting players—boasted a wealth of combat techniques.
With their prestige, their instructors were top-notch.
'They say even without Academy City, Yeon Clan members don't need it...'
So I'd been hyped for clan training, but...
"Never thought they'd refuse because I'm too young."
Any other reason, I could've persuaded them, but this was airtight—no good counterargument.
They wouldn't know early training boosts growth potential, and if the Clan Head's son got hurt? Disaster.
'And Young Master, training too young stunts your growth—you won't get tall.'
Not giving up because of what the exclusive maid added.
"163 cm's off the table again."
...Anyway, not that.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
They say the important thing is an unyielding spirit.
Recalling the wisdom of the ancients, I steeled my resolve and decided on mental training instead of physical.
In simple terms: cultivating inner energy.
"I planned to train it alongside physical conditioning originally."
But rejected, so what choice did I have?
Too young for training? Fine.
So, inner energy cultivation it was.
Requiring mental discipline over physical strain, it wouldn't tax the body.
Thus, meditation time was born.
"..."
After a quick lunch, I holed up in my room and plopped down on the floor.
Cross-legged was ideal for efficiency, but my short legs made it impossible.
Eh, as long as I focused my mind, posture shouldn't matter.
The waiting maids shot puzzled looks at my sudden move, but I ignored them and began observing my body.
'First, grasp the aura and mana inside me.'
Skills—commonly called abilities—all stemmed from aura and mana, so like physical training, starting early yielded big gains.
'A master would be nice, but expecting that while sneaking around is too much.'
In-game, meditation alone raised stats, but reality wouldn't work that way—I needed to get a feel for it early.
'If luck strikes and I sense aura or mana, jackpot.'
But contrary to expectations of it taking forever, I quickly detected one energy in my body.
'...This?'
Groping through the dark void like wandering a pitch-black room, I suddenly felt a warm energy rising near my solar plexus.
"...Ah."
Warm, but not hot, it spread from my core throughout my body.
If my guess was right, this was definitely...
'Aura?'
Mana was supposed to be cold in nature, so aura it was.
Finding it this fast meant, like the game, meditation alone boosted stats.
'Huh? But I'm not the protagonist—or even a playable character...?'
For a split second, I wondered if an NPC like me could wield protagonist-level powers, but the sensation of aura drowned it out.
'Whatever, good is good!'
I'd thought it'd take a month to find aura—finding it early is a win!
Something about the maids' stares intensifying nearby, but probably imagining it.
Shifting my focus from my core, I searched for mana, ignoring the eyes and continuing the introspection.
But the joy of finding aura was short-lived.
"...Wait."
I opened my eyes, face grim.
"Is my sensing off?"
No, I found aura, so that's not it.
My introspection was fine.
Yet still like this...
"Nah, no way. Must be my imagination."
Closing my eyes again, I scanned my body.
Hmm...
Once more.
Just in case, one more time.
For safety, one last check.
T-This can't be...?
No side character was ever like this!
Yeah, my senses must be wrong.
Otherwise, it makes no sense.
Because—
No mana?
A critical flaw had emerged in my plan to aid the protagonist in slaying the Demon King.