Faking My Lineage in a Romance-Fantasy Novel (1)

After clearing Floor 32 with ease.

I was about to head straight for the next floor.

…I would have, if not for the notification that appeared the moment I threw myself into the portal.

-Ding.

[An error has occurred.]

"…Huh?"

An error? What do you mean, Tower?

'Wasn't this what popped up when I killed the Orc Lord?'

Had I done something?

Did this count as an achievement, too?

My thoughts grew tangled for a moment.

But fortunately—or unfortunately.

It wasn't that kind of error.

[Scenario error detected… Processing….]

[Processing complete.]

[The scenario settings for 'Ryu Hwi-min's Beginner's Tower and Challenger's Tower are being integrated as follows.]

- Bastard son of the Babel Imperial Family

- New knight of the Minette Kingdom

- Attempts to set the empire right by traveling between the past and future

"Ooh?!"

My Tier-Four setting had changed.

My eyes lit up the moment I saw it.

I immediately understood why this revision had been made.

'Since I'm traveling between Towers, the story got tangled up like crazy!'

Egen Tower's Tier Four was a fantasy adventure about becoming a knight and doing all sorts of things.

The Normal Tower was a heroic tale about saving an empire from the brink of destruction.

Naturally, the Awakener's settings differed slightly as well.

In Egen Tower, I was a knight from a commoner's background, but in the Normal Tower, I even had the backstory of being 'a bastard son of the imperial family.'

Normally, this wouldn't be a problem, but…

I was a freeloader who could travel freely between Towers.

Because of that, the story for each floor had been left blank,

so the Tower seemed intent on stitching the stories of the two Towers together under the theme of 'time travel.'

Unlike Luca's case, this change probably only applied to me, but still.

I laughed because it was so absurd.

'It's not like I'm going to watch the story anyway.'

What good would patching it up like this do?

I already knew the entire Tier-Four story from watching recap videos on YouTube.

'Not buying it, not buying it.'

I reached out without much thought.

I planned to clear away the notification, cheese the Hard Tower reward, and head to Floor 33 of the Normal Tower.

-Freeze.

'……Huh?'

But just as I was about to close the notification,

I suddenly realized something, and my eyes widened.

This minor revision to the setting…

carried the faint scent of a sweet, easy freebie.

'Come to think of it, Egen Tower's Tier Four took so long because of the issue of social status, didn't it?'

Egen Tower's Tier Four was supposed to be the fastest.

Yet some floors actually took longer than those in the Normal Tower.

The reason was the Awakener's social status.

Since the setting said I had come up from the countryside,

I had to start from the bottom while being harried by the other nobles.

Starting as a squire and getting promoted step by step, I could only finally stand beside the princess from Floor 36 onward…

'If I'm royalty, my status should be good enough.'

Egen Tower's main setting was a kingdom.

The Normal Tower's main setting was an empire.

Of course, because the timelines were different, the kingdom had already been destroyed by the time of the Normal Tower.

But the Egen Tower folks didn't know that anyway.

'I just need to prove my status.'

I immediately put my wits to work.

A new setting. A new strategy.

Once every factor had whirled through my head,

"…I think this could work?"

The status problem in Egen Tower was solvable.

I came to that conclusion.

'Let's try it first!!'

Fwoosh—!!

I immediately sprang to my feet.

Now that I could see a shortcut, I planned to head to Floor 33 of the Normal Tower first.

-Ding.

[You have obtained the reward for climbing Floor 32.]

- Stat Points +20

- Lowest-grade Healing Potion x1

- Weapon/Armor Summon Ticket x1

[The trait 'Golden Rule+' activates.]

You obtain the following additional rewards.

- Stat Points +2

[Ryu Hwi-min]

Level: 760 (+45)

Title: Beyond the Impossible

Strength: 240+50 (+15)

Agility: 225+50 (+20)

Vitality: 205+50 (+10)

Mana: 96+50

Luck: 53+50

'First, I'll collect the rewards…'

After collecting the Hard Tower reward,

I moved to the Normal Tower and stepped into the portal.

Whoosh—!!

A blue light illuminated my vision.

-Ding.

[You have entered Challenger's Tower, Floor 33.]

You are now a hero.

But for some reason,

the Imperial Family does not seem pleased to welcome you.

At the same time, you sense something suspicious.

You have a premonition of an attack.

[Objective]

- Survive for 3 hours

- Reach the next portal

[Reward]

- Stat Points +8

'So this is Floor 33….'

After arriving at Floor 33 of the Normal Tower,

I casually swept my eyes around.

An elegant marble floor.

My body, prostrated with one knee on the ground.

Finally, the shoes of the man standing before me.

"Kain… No, Ryu Hwi-min, raise your head."

"Yes."

My eyes traveled upward.

I met the gaze of a man dressed in jewel-encrusted clothes.

'Was he supposed to be my half-brother?'

According to the Tier-Four story, he and I shared the same father.

He was the legitimate son born to the primary wife, while I was the bastard son born to a maid.

And yet I had suddenly appeared as a war hero.

In a time of immense turmoil, one practically tailor-made for starting a rebellion.

Perhaps that was why his eyes were full of wariness.

He seemed to suspect I was plotting treason.

"Ryu Hwi-min… What a barbarian-sounding name."

"……."

"Do not worry. In these troubled times, we can never have too many 'generals' like you, so I shall not treat you poorly."

He even went so far as to flatter me by calling me a general and whatnot.

It sounded like an indirect warning not to get any foolish ideas.

"Yes."

I obediently lowered my gaze.

Perhaps satisfied by my response, the man smiled complacently.

"Hmph, good. Continue to serve the Imperial Family loyally. We share a bond from childhood, so I may even put you to important use… Hmm?"

But that lasted only a moment.

He stiffened as he realized something.

His gaze was undoubtedly fixed on the corner of my mouth.

"Kain—no, Ryu Hwi-min. Why are you smiling?"

"…Heh."

He didn't know.

I hadn't just lowered my gaze…

I had turned it aside to find what I wanted.

-Ding.

[Babel's Signet Ring]

A ring handed down since the founding of the empire,

engraved with the crest of the Babel Imperial Family.

It proves that the wearer is a member of the Babel Empire's imperial family.

(Cannot be equipped by anyone without imperial blood)

'If it's been passed down since the founding, it should exist during Egen Tower's timeline, too.'

The status problem should be solvable with that.

Thanks, Crown Prince.

'Well then, shall we give it a try?'

"…Bloodburst."

I activated my Stigma immediately.

Bloodburst, the Tier-Three Stigma I had created after clearing Tier Three.

The Stigma, which temporarily increased my stats in proportion to self-inflicted damage, flashed across my forearm,

'Lord, please allow me to become a righteous ring thief!!'

"Hup!!"

I sprang to my feet.

Quickly, as if kneeling had merely been a way to build momentum.

The Crown Prince before me couldn't move even a finger until I had taken the ring.

"Kain!? What are you…"

"My precious!!!"

Slip—

The ring slid smoothly off his finger.

Holding it, I flashed a brilliant smile.

To me, this ring was nothing less than an item of absolute value—a shortcut through the Tower.

-Clang!!

"You bastard!!!"

"What do you think you're doing!!!"

Of course, this was the heart of the Imperial Palace.

The knights immediately drew their swords.

The mages also pointed their staffs at me and began chanting spells.

"You insolent wretch, so you truly are plotting treason…!!!"

The Crown Prince, whose ring I'd stolen, belatedly tried to draw the sword at his waist, but

'Yeah, I just need to run~.'

"Move!!"

I had already changed the ring's Trait Enhancement to 'Tower Harmonizer.'

That allowed me to move between Towers even while challenging one, rather than only in a safe zone.

One click of the button.

My vision was flooded with the pure white light unique to Egen Tower.

-Ding.

[Beginner's Tower, Floor 33….]

"Phew."

'The atmosphere really is different.'

Ah, Egen Tower. You feel harmless just from smelling you.

I really do think this place suits me better.

'Now, the ring….'

After enjoying the peace for a moment,

I checked the ring in my hand.

The item description: unchanged.

The engraved crest: unchanged.

"Excuse me, do you know the Babel Empire?"

"New guy? Why do you ask about the empire?"

"What does its imperial crest look like?"

"A winged lion."

"Thank you~."

I asked a nearby knight, and it seemed the ring would work perfectly here, too.

A smile rose naturally to my lips.

The easy-win angle looked promising.

'It would fetch a fortune if I took it outside and sold it. What a shame.'

Unfortunately, this wasn't equipment or an artifact, so I couldn't take it outside the Tower, but…

Well, it was still something.

As long as I got the easy freebie, that was enough.

'Well then, shall we draft the scenario?'

I wouldn't need to go to the Normal Tower anymore.

If I could prove my status, I could skip the time-consuming events in Egen Tower.

There was only one problem.

Who exactly was I supposed to prove this status to?

'There is only one person, right?'

The princess.

The key NPC of Egen Tower's Tier Four, and the burden who would accompany the Awakener from Floor 36 onward.

What would happen if I told her, I'm actually an imperial of the neighboring empire?

'She'd probably say, "Why are you here?"'

The empire was bound to be more powerful than the kingdom.

They would surely treat me with the utmost respect.

There was a high chance I wouldn't even have to remain a knight.

But that wasn't a problem.

The princess and I had interests that aligned.

'Well then, shall we go see her face?'

"Trait Enhancement Swap, Inventory."

I switched the Trait Enhancement to the ring.

I took a hat out of my inventory.

I wasn't fond of it, but the Legendary-grade invisibility hat Tarnkappe was so absurdly effective that I used it often.

'And I'll pour some mana into the necklace…'

I also infused mana into the artifact I was already wearing,

the Necklace of Concealment.

My body became invisible.

It was complete stealth, undetectable even by Level-601 Awakeners.

Thanks to that, I had no restrictions on movement.

-Ding.

[The trait 'Dragon Eyes'….]

'The princess is this way.'

The royal palace was heavily guarded.

I raced through it using my footwork.

Since Dragon Eyes made the princess's presence clearly visible, I had no trouble finding my way.

'She should be here… Oh, there she is.'

And so I came to a stop at a garden belonging to the royal castle.

"What is he doing now?"

"We've assigned him to the Knights for now. Not the Minette Knights, though."

"He defeated Sir Cedric, so why not assign him to the Minette Knights right away?"

"His conduct during his brief time as a squire is suspicious, too. If we put him in Minette right away, the other members might…."

One maid and one female knight. And the princess, drinking tea at a luxurious table.

In particular, the princess's posture was relaxed, as if she were in her own bedroom.

The two of them seemed to be close aides who didn't need to maintain their dignity around her.

Reassured, I pulled out the chair opposite her and sat down.

"…Oh my? That chair."

"Hmm? Bestie, did you move it?"

"No? I've been standing here the whole time."

They couldn't see me, or even sense my presence, so the three of them were bewildered, unable to figure out what was happening, but…

-Thump.

"Greetings, Your Highness."

Without giving them time to react, I put my hand on the hat.

Thanks to the Inventory trait I'd already enhanced, it slipped straight into my inventory without needing to move it.

I also released the mana stored in the necklace.

The reaction to my reappearing after my stealth was, naturally, shock.

"Kyaaaah!!?"

"Who are you…? A new recruit?!"

"Th-this is a men-forbidden area…!!!"

The princess shrieked in fright.

The knight tried to draw her sword, then faltered when she saw my face.

Finally, the maid was flustered but still carried out her professional duty.

I casually held the ring out to the three of them.

"You know what this is, don't you?"

"……The, the Babel Empire's."

"Yes. And I can wear it."

I slipped it onto my finger and displayed it proudly.

The princess's pupils shook violently.

"A member of the imperial family… one who carries the blood of the Babel Imperial Family."

"Something like that."

Then, after making her accept my false identity,

I leaned my upper body forward.

My eyes met the princess's.

"Let me get straight to the point. I can break off your political marriage with the Empire."