The next morning arrived.

Only 9 days left and with it, every first year scholar within the academy received the same notice about the Vazrun Island Test.

====================

—Item Rules & Guidelines for Vazrun Isle Test—

Permitted Equipment:

→ One standard-sized backpack per scholar.

→ One Grade-C Storage Artifact only.

→ Weapon-type artifacts, magic scrolls, defensive artifacts, and utility artifacts must not exceed Grade-C rank.

→ Healing potions, stamina boosters, mana recovery potions, and similar recovery items are limited to a maximum of 10 items per person.

Mandatory Items:

→ Survival Kit (Knife, rope, flint, bandages, water container, and other basic necessities.)

→ Academy-Issued Compass

Recommended Equipment:

→ Hunting or gathering tools

→ Lightweight tents, cloaks, or sleeping gear

→ Basic camping supplies

====================

Ruvian lightly tapped his finger against the parchment while reading through the notice a second time.

The academy only listed the basic supplies scholars were recommended to bring, but the rest was left for them to decide on their own. In the end, the Vazrun Island Test was not something people could pass by simply following instructions.

The novel had explained that part clearly enough.

Back then, Zian had realized the real difficulty of the test much earlier than everyone else. Fighting Voidspawn was not the only one part of it.

There was more than just that.

The island slowly wore people down little by little as the days passed. Food became harder to manage, and exhaustion will slowly piled up. Many scholars failed in this test not because they were weak, but because their bodies and minds could no longer keep up.

Ruvian quietly folded the letter afterward, carefully smoothing its edges before slipping it back inside his notebook.

’Well, I already asked Silvena to prepare all the equipment I’ll need for the island test, so for now... I should just focus on strengthening myself. There are still 9 days left.’

’Now, the last matter I need to take care of is speaking with Vanessa later this evening.’

Fortunately, the meeting itself had already been arranged.

After returning to his room last night, he received a letter from Vanessa. In it, she agreed to meet with him and have a conversation.

As for whether that conversation would actually lead anywhere, Ruvian could not say for certain. However, considering Vanessa’s circumstances and the information he possessed, he intended to ensure the outcome unfolded in the most favorable way possible for his own objectives.

*****

As evening slowly settled over the academy, Ruvian made his way toward one of the private training halls, the one he had managed to reserve under Silvena’s name. Lost in his thoughts, Ruvian remained there quietly until the heavy door of the training hall suddenly creaked open behind him.

Ruvian turned his head toward the source of the noise. Then, a faint satisfied smile slowly appeared on his face.

Vanessa Eldrienne had come.

Compared to the last time Ruvian visited her, her expression was completely different now. There was determination in her eyes.

A burning intensity that had not existed before.

’She really came.’

There was a reason Ruvian chose to reveal that he knew about her family’s execution. He understood, better than most, how heavily that secret weighed on Vanessa. It was something she could never allow others to discover.

And precisely because of that, he decided to use it to gain her trust. So that, in the end, they could become useful allies to one another. He would help her with her objectives, and she would help him with his.

Vanessa finally came to a stop before him. "I came, just like you asked. So, I’ll be direct... how exactly did you find out about that?"

Ruvian carefully read the expression on her face.

Then, he activated [Bookmarks].

A translucent grimoire suddenly materialized before him, its spectral pages fluttering open on their own as faint cerulean light spilled into the surroundings.

One page after another flipped rapidly.

Moments later, the pages finally came to a halt.

[Which character would you like to bookmark?]

’Vanessa Eldrienne.’

Then, the translucent grimoire reacted.

[Selected Character — ’Vanessa Eldrienne’]

[One Vacant Bookmark Slot Detected.]

Moments later, Vanessa’s name slowly etched itself across the parchment in luminous silver letters, followed by countless smaller lines rapidly filling beneath it.

[’Vanessa Eldrienne’ Has Been Added To The Bookmark.]

[-2000 Plot Points has been deducted]

The grimoire emitted a low resonant hum.

Then, at the very bottom of the page, a final sentence quietly appeared.

[The recorded character may now be inspected.]

Without wasting any time, Ruvian silently selected the inspection option within the grimoire.

[’Vanessa Eldrienne’ is currently wary of you. Even so, her desire for truth brought her here.]

[’Is he an enemy, or an ally? Can I trust him?’]

’Oh, so that’s how the inspection works. It only picks up the thoughts a person is consciously aware of at the present moment.’

But why did the inspection skill not work on Julian last night? Then, the realization cleared up a lingering question in his mind.

’Ah, I see. I guess that explains why it failed to work on Julian last night. The distance between us was simply too great.’

After giving it some thought, Ruvian nodded inwardly.

’Well, that makes sense.’

Then, all traces of levity disappeared from Ruvian’s face. At the sight of that, Vanessa instinctively flinched.

"Firstly, before I answer your question, I’m neither your ally or an enemy...." (+100PP)

Vanessa fell briefly silent.

"...I’m just an ordinary scholar who became interested in the truth behind House Eldrienne’s downfall."

Without breaking eye contact, Ruvian continued.

"Doesn’t it strike you as strange? A family once praised as one of the kingdom’s greatest pillars was suddenly branded as traitors overnight. The same house that led countless victories during the Voidspawn Raids through their military strategies."

"And more than that, the records never properly explained their supposed treason. They only declared House Eldrienne guilty and erased everything afterward. They didn’t provide any details. No evidence or whatsoever either. Almost as if the kingdom wanted the truth to be buried entirely. So, out of curiosity, I started looking into it myself. But the deeper I dug, the more obvious it became that someone was deliberately hiding the truth." (+200PP)

Vanessa’s eyes widened slightly after hearing that. Those very doubts were the same questions that had haunted her for years.

Why were there barely any surviving records regarding House Eldrienne’s trial? Why were the testimonies of the nobles involved completely sealed from public archives? And why had the royal court erased nearly every achievement House Eldrienne once accomplished?

None of it made sense.

Even Vanessa herself had spent years secretly searching for answers, yet every trail ended the same way.

But then, Vanessa suddenly realized something.

Her expression sharpened slightly. "...I understand your reasoning now. But that still doesn’t explain one thing."

Her eyes locked onto his.

"How did you know that I’m an Eldrienne heir?"

Ruvian simply smiled softly in response.

He had already prepared for such questions.

"During my investigation, I came across an old fragmented record regarding House Eldrienne," he said calmly. "It mentioned that the family had two daughters — Vanessa Eldrienne and Anastelle Eldrienne."

Vanessa’s body stiffened slightly.

"The author of that record speculated that at least one of the daughters survived the execution. Possibly both. After all, their bodies were never recovered."

Without saying another word, Ruvian reached into his storage artifact before pulling out several folded documents.

He calmly extended them toward Vanessa.

Vanessa hesitated briefly before taking them from his hand.

The moment her eyes scanned the contents, her expression subtly changed.

"This..." she muttered quietly.

"One of them is your library activity record," Ruvian explained calmly. "The other is your elective class application form."

Vanessa immediately looked back at him.

"At first, I didn’t actually know who you were. But after you confronted Julian during the joint training session for Class A and Class E, I started paying closer attention to you." (+100PP)

"And then there’s your elective form," Ruvian added. "You were unusually persistent about enrolling in the Noble Etiquette class."

His eyes narrowed slightly.

"But your submission was repeatedly removed before it could ever be approved. Oh, and that wasn’t the only reason," Ruvian added with a quiet sigh.

His gaze settled directly on her eyes.

"Do you really think no one would notice? The beauty of those amethyst eyes you have is not a coincidence. They were a signature of House Eldrienne." (+300PP)

Vanessa froze completely, slightly embarrassed to hear that.

"Of course, not many people today would know that. Most records regarding your family were erased long ago, after all."

A faint smile appeared on his face.

"But that fragmented document I found happened to mention it."

In truth, everything he said was a blatant lie. And yet, paradoxically, it was all true. After all, the record that he read was the half-finished damnable novel itself!

So technically, he wasn’t lying!

Vanessa remained motionless for several moments, still trying to process the explanation he had just given her.

"So, during our meeting in the infirmary, I came to confirm my suspicion," Ruvian continued. "To confirm the real you."

"And so, I have my answer now."

Vanessa slightly lifted her head at him.

"You are Vanessa Eldrienne, the..." (+100PP)

──────── ✦ ────────

[Chapter 205: Last Heir of Eldrienne]

Plot Points= 35,380