Glorious Vanity (SI LitRPG)

"Sir Kadashi?" Freyr blinked and looked towards Akira. "What brings you here?"

The Japanese young man laughed and rubbed the back of his head. "It's a long story actually. I wanted to find some fish to make that sashimi I promised, but I don't have a very good sense of direction and ended up out here."

I blinked. He... didn't seem to be lying. But that guy had also managed to warp through space to get to us. Shouldn't he be able to just warp back to Eden if he got lost?

<He seems a bit more careless than Master, so perhaps not?>

I frowned.

Akira *did* seem a bit carefree and reckless... But I also clearly remembered him cutting apart people with a smile on his face as well as being quick to pick up on the situation.

"Hey!" A female voice called out from the distance. That generic looking female archer. She stomped her foot and said, "Stop ignoring us!"

Akira's eyes flicked over towards the group. He frowned and then said, "You're being too loud."

A single instant. One that I only caught because I had been looking at him.

Akira's eyes flashed blue and his knife twitched. Barely any movement at all. But the moment that happened, a tremor started and the ground suddenly started sinking. But only part of it.

The ground we were standing on was fine. But the ground around that JRPG style party immediately started sinking into the ground.

"W-What the hell?!" The brown-haired swordsman cursed and then drew his sword, glaring at us- No, at me. "What did you do?!"

I blinked and said, "I didn't do anything." I looked to Akira and pointed at him. "This guy's the one who did that."

"Don't lie!" The brown-haired swordsman stepped forward, like he planned to charge at me. "You're the reason why Lady Freyr-"

Akira clicked his tongue. "Annoying."

Again, his eyes flashed blue. And again, his knife twitched.

This time, I managed to get a better look at what happened.

...Only it didn't make sense.

There wasn't mana. That movement didn't involve any sort of energy fluctuation or sheer power.

But the ground under the rude people yelling at us suddenly vanished, sending them tumbling down.

"AAAAAHHHHH!"

"MONSTEEEERR!"

"I WON'T FORGET THIIIIS!"

Like an old cartoon, those three generic characters tumbled down into the chasm, their voices drifting in the wind.

<...Terrifying.>

I felt Avalon tremble against my arm.

And to be honest, I felt the same.

Intuitively, I could sense that what the guy did wasn't a skill or magic. Instead, it was something like my World Creator ability. Something that was an extension of his very being that he could do as easily as breathing.

And I didn't know what that was.

Still, I kept a neutral expression on and looked to Akira. "That was a bit excessive, don't you think?"

Akira waved his right hand and said, "They'll be fine. Those guys might look like pushovers, but they're surprisingly durable, you know?"

Freyr sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "I had forgotten because of Vain, but Sir Kadashi is quite the headache as well..."

"Vain?" Akira blinked and looked at me. "Oh yeah!" He held out his right hand and said, "I don't think I've introduced myself." He grinned and said, "I'm Kadashi Akira, high schooler and current leader of the Princess Moon Guild."

I grabbed his hand and nodded. "Nice to meet you... But Princess Moon?"

It was a weird name. Weird, but also familiar for some reason. Like something nagging in my memories when thinking about that name paired with Akira's appearance and actions.

Akira laughed and said, "Yeah... It's a bit embarrassing. I wanted to call it something else, but the girls fought over it and compromised after Luna won." He frowned and said, "I get that it fits since she's a vampire princess, but it's still a bit embarrassing going around announcing it, you know?"

Freyr rolled her eyes and said, "As if that is more embarrassing than being dragged around by a flock of beauties."

Akira glanced over at Freyr and grinned. "Ooh, Miss Freyr's learning to be snarky. Nice. I was worrying about how uptight you were."

"Excuse me?!"

I sighed and said, "Remember our lessons, Freyr?"

She blinked and then blushed. "A-Ah. My apologies. I will... remember this in the future."

"Hoh?" Akira looked at me, impressed. "So you're the one who loosened her up, huh?"

Freyr's blush deepened and she said, "It was not like that!"

Akira raised an eyebrow.

I shook my head. "Ignore her. She's been a bit out of it, so Freyr might say some weird things or react weird."

"Vain!"

"Anyway." I ignored Freyr and looked at Akira. "I'm Vain Glory. First name's Vain, my family name is Glory."

Akira tilted his head. "Vain Glory? For real?"

I let go of his hand and shrugged. "That's what the system's calling me, and that's what I'm going by. My memory's a bit fuzzy anyway, so it's not like I have a better one to use."

Freyr frowned. "You never mentioned that, Vain."

Akira gave me a sympathetic look and said, "Ouch. Heard that happens sometimes... Those dumb gods just yoink people without asking." He stuck his knife on his waist and then laced his hands behind his head. "Well, you got a beautiful goddess out of the deal, so it's not too bad, right?" He tilted his head towards Freyr and winked.

Freyr groaned and said, "I knew it. I should never have let you two meet."

Akira laughed.

As he did, I carefully examined him.

...The guy was familiar. He wasn't any character in particular, but his features reminded me of someone.

Princess Moon. Powers that turn his eyes blue when he uses them. Instantly cutting through space and erasing the ground. Surrounded by beautiful women, and then the mention of a vampire princess-

Wait.

Wait, wait, wait.

<Master?>

I kept a neutral face and said, "Hey, Kadashi-san."

Akira shuddered and quickly crossed his arms in an X. "Stop that. Just Akira's fine. Hearing that from Miss Freyr's boyfriend... Yeah, it's too weird."

"B-Boyfriend?!"

I ignored the fact that Freyr had devolved into a generic embarrassed female lead and focused on Akira. "That was a pretty neat trick you pulled off there."

"Oh yeah." Akira nodded. "It's pretty useful. Miss Freyr was actually the one who helped me realize what it was, actually."

"Freyr did?" I looked over at her.

"Ah." Freyr nodded. "That is true... I had forgotten."

Akira blinked and said, "You forgot? Damn." He looked to me and said, "You work fast. Making someone like her forget about all other guys after just a couple of days... Could you let me in on your secrets, Aniki?"

Freyr's eyes widened and she quickly stepped in front of me. "Absolutely not!"

I sighed. "Freyr."

She glanced at me and said, "Your silver tongue and charm paired with that man's roguish nature CANNOT mix! For the sake of all females, I cannot allow it!"

Akira held up his hands. "Okay, okay. No need to be so uptight about it, Miss Freyr. It's just a joke."

Freyr frowned. "You can say it is a joke when you stop charming every beauty you meet."

Akira flinched. "Hey. That's not my fault, alright?" He rubbed his left arm and said, "I don't know why those girls keep chasing me around either."

I cleared my throat and said, "We were talking about Akira's power, Freyr?"

Freyr blinked and then blushed. "A-Ah. My apologies-"

"And stop apologizing. Leaders don't apologize for anything except big mistakes. Understood?"

"Y-Yes, Vain. My- I mean, understood."

Akira whistled. "You trained her pretty good, huh?"

Freyr narrowed her eyes, her left hand slowly reaching towards Volsunga.

"Freyr..."

She coughed. "Yes. In any case... Sir Kadashi's power is similar to that of Balor's eyes of death."

"Oh yeah." Akira nodded and said, "That was the guy's name." He shrugged and turned towards me. "Basically, I kill things real good-" He paused. "...Wait, is that why those girls keep chasing me? I mean, I did stop Luna from needing to drain blood, free Shion from her curse, and then removed Karen's genetic disorder..."

Freyr gave me a sideways glance, as if to emphasize that Akira was just as bad as I was... Or that I was just as bad as him.

But I ignored that. Instead...

A power similar to Balor's eyes of death? In that case... Wasn't Akira basically Tohno Shiki from Tsukihime? He said he was a high schooler too... and come to think of it, that guy was wearing a navy blue school uniform-

[For discovering the 'core' of a Chosen's existence, your intelligence increases. Intelligence +1 (+3 due to Well-Read)]

Wait, what?

"Anyway..." Akira rolled his neck and said, "I should probably get going." He looked up at the sky and said, "I've been gone for a few hours now... Those girls are probably tearing up the city looking for me." He sighed.

Freyr winced. "Yes... Lady Luna is quite... volatile."

I blinked and stared at Freyr. "Says the woman who-"

"That was *one* time, Vain! And you know the circumstances!"

Akira laughed and said, "Well, this was fun." He looked to me and waved. "Enjoy your date with Miss Freyr, Aniki."

"D-D-Date?! We are not... That is to say, I would not be averse to... but..." Freyr walked off to the side, mumbling to herself and twiddling her fingers together.

...Which was weird. Did she get hit with a status spell or something when she was out?

Seeing Freyr walk to the side, Akira moved towards me and held out his hand. "Let's hangout sometime too so you can teach me your tricks." His carefree smile faded and a brief flicker of desperation appeared in his face. "Please. I'll make it worth your while."

The look of a drowning man that saw a lifeline thrown at him. That was the expression Akira gave me.

<...Master. You should not associate with a man like this.>

Yeah, I could sense that Akira was just as troublesome as Freyr. Still...

On the one hand, having a guy like that as an ally was much better than having him as an enemy.

On the other hand... if that 'Luna' was similar to a certain other vampire princess I was aware of, and if that was enough to make Freyr wince...

Wait.

I stared at Akira's knife and thought for a bit.

...A knife was technically a sword, right? And if so...

[You lack understanding of <Nine Nights> to replicate it.]

"Aniki?" Akira laughed and said, "Sorry. Was that too much?"

I smiled and shook his hand. "No. It's just weird being called Aniki."

"My bad."

"It's fine. But as your Aniki then... Here." I conjured up a fancy looking bag and filled it with a dozen boxes of gourmet chocolate. After that, I handed it over to Akira. "You'll probably need these."

"Huh?" Akira blinked and said, "Where'd you get-"

"A-KI-RA!"

A rumbling female voice. Refined, elegant... and also completely furious.

Akira flinched and he quickly grabbed the bag from me. He glanced inside and then let out a sigh of relief. Looking back to me with a smile, he said, "Thanks, Aniki. I owe you one." With a quick salute, he grabbed his knife and slashed the air, vanishing from view.

As he did, I made sure to stare at his knife. And as a result-

[You have gained partial understanding of <Nine Nights>]

[First Night - Slash can be partially replicated.]

[First Night - Slash (Fake)]

An ability that embodies the concept of severing through striking at the inherent weaknesses within an existing object. Inflicts Strength as true damage.

Well... I guess that was worth it?

<Master should be careful. With your disposition, it would not be hard to be trapped in a similar situation as that man.>

Believe me, Avalon. I know. Also...

I looked back at Freyr.

She was still lost in her delusions, face a deep red. An ordinary phenomenon, it seemed. But...

"Hey, Freyr."

"A-Ah." She stopped and looked towards me. "Yes, Vain?"

I stared at the necklace I gave her. Specifically, I stared at the new charm that was dangling beside the wings of Heaven's Veil.

It was just a feather. At least, that's what it seemed to be. A golden feather shimmering with a beautiful radiant light.

...Except that feather was filled with a ton of unstable mana that looked to be only barely kept at bay by Heaven's Veil.

"Why do you have that?"

-V-

[Status Screen]

-Biography-

Name: Vain Glory

Age: 20 (Adjusted)

Race: Human (Heaven Defying)

Class: Shameless Flirt

Current Condition: Healthy

-Racial Traits-

Divine Anathema - Those not only forsaken by their gods, but those who have killed their gods and constructed their own. Drastically reduces effectiveness of Divine Attacks. Minor probability of obtaining partial Divine Authority through analysis and perception. Greatly increased hostility by Divine Beings.

-Traits-

Man of a Thousand Faces (Can filter emotions and experience through personas)

Well-Read (Increased intelligence growth)

Self-Determined (Luck is treated as 100 for calculations)

-Titles-

World Creator (Minor) - Allows construction of non-magical items through one's will

Hero Creator - Removes growth limitations on user and their allies. Rapidly accelerates growth of allies.

-Parameters-

Level: 7

Strength: 22

Agility: 29

Vitality: 20

Intelligence: 98

Mana: 70

Luck: 15 [100]

Bonus Stat Points: -47

-Skills-

No One's Story - A gambit that defies the gods through sacrificing one's identity and very memory. All attempts to scry your status are denied. Removes skill requirements. Memory and visualization abilities are enhanced.

A Different Path - Direct interference with a hero's fate, granting him a new path and divergent futures. Allows reproduction of 'conceptual weapons' provided the requisite materials. Allows reproduction of 'sword skills' provided the requisite understanding.

Lesser Flames of Muspell - The flames that will harken the end in Ragnarok. A world-consuming fire that will burn even the divine. You are immune to all but absolute temperature changes. Even then, you can function normally in absolute temperature ranges. You can summon (Mana/10) square meters of flames. You can dominate all flames.

First Aid - A basic healing spell that stops bleeding and accelerates the body's natural regeneration.

Disengage - A skill that allows the user to immediately retreat from battle as well as return the user's condition to the state prior to engaging in combat. Can be used once per engagement per hostile opponent.

Loki's Blessing (Minor) - A blessing from the Trickster God, Loki. Can change and conceal one's appearance. Due to synergy with No One's Story, it is a flawless disguise, capable of fooling even Loki without intense scrutiny.

Item Box (Minor) - A skill that grants the user a small spatial pocket to store items. Time is slowed within the spatial pocket to 1/10th of the normal flow. Can hold approximately 1 cubic meter of items.

First Night: Slash (Fake) - An ability that embodies the concept of severing through striking at the inherent weaknesses within an existing object. Inflicts Strength as true damage.

-Class Skills-

Silver Tongue - A skill that aids in persuasion and manipulating the emotions of the target. Super effective against members of the opposite sex, or those interested in the user. Chance to instantly charm the opponent. (Extreme Synergy with <Well-Read> and <Man of a Thousand Faces>)

Rapport - A skill that builds rapport with the target. Passively increases general likability. Similar to <Charisma>, but the core of this skill is trust and empathy rather than admiration. With enough mastery, it is possible to create allies willing to throw their lives away for your sake. (Extreme Synergy with <Hero Creator> and <Well-Read>)

-Inventory-

N/A