Overpowered Reincarnation Perks! - Chapter 9.5
“The bed is upstairs. Ju-in, you can use the second floor.”
“What about you, Arvan?”
“I can sleep on this sofa for now. I’ll bring in a separate bed tomorrow or the day after, so don’t worry about it.”
“Okay. Thank you.”
Since the homeowner told me not to worry, I’ll put my concerns aside. It’s a successful deal to exchange a thank you for a bed.
“You should take a bath first. There should be hot water in the bathroom, so go in and wash up.”
Arvan pointed to the door right next to us.
It was a cute wooden door that resembled him, with a hole at the top fitted with glass.
“Oh, a bath? Here?”
“Are you going to keep wearing those wet clothes? They’ve dried a bit, but it’ll be uncomfortable if you stay like that. It’s good to warm up your body.”
No, I know. I know. I want to wash up too. I’m all wet from falling into the fountain, and I got all dirty from lying on the prison floor, so I’m in quite a messy state.
‘But using the bathroom right away in a stranger’s house feels a bit…’
Plus, there’s glass in the bathroom door. Who puts glass in a bathroom door? Where’s the privacy!
Of course, I know. Arvan has been living alone until now, so he didn’t need to worry about privacy.
As a result, my silent scream disappeared helplessly into the void where no one could hear it.
‘When I was with Callion, we sometimes washed up with just a screen between us, but this feels a bit burdensome.’
As I hesitated, Arvan approached with a gentle smile.
I was curious about everything from body measurements to skincare routines, but now wasn’t the time to ask.
“I still don’t know much about you, Arvan. It’s not just about relying on you, we’re supposed to help each other, but if there are too many secrets, it feels like there’s a distance between us.”
“Well, that’s true.”
As Arvan nodded, a system window popped up with a ‘ding’.
[Skill Acquisition Chance!]
Your ally [Arvan] is observing you.
Try to gain his trust.
You can obtain useful information for surviving in the castle.
Success Reward: Acquire skill [Insight]
Oh. Insight, that sounds quite useful.
Will it show item descriptions when I look at objects, or personal information when I look at people?
I’m not sure of the details, but it seems like it would be a helpful skill. The skill name and characteristics are usually related.
‘Having a discerning eye would be useful in many ways.’
The problem is that the acquisition condition is ‘Arvan’s trust’. Aside from the abstract criteria, he’s observing me.
‘It means he’s trying to gauge if I’m trustworthy.’
He looks like a fairy born from evening dew, but he’s quite calculating.
“I’ll tell you more when we get closer, Ju-in.”
…If it weren’t for that face.
***
Feeling that pushing further would shatter even the shallow trust of being allies, I went up to the second-floor bedroom.
The bed was more comfortable and spacious than I expected. I lay down on the bed and looked around the room.
There was an attic above the bedroom, with a ladder structure that left it completely open, allowing a clear view of the upper space.
A small desk and chair. Some odds and ends.
‘Come to think of it, what does Arvan do for a living?’
It can’t be his main job to break prisoners out of jail, and seeing that he has colleagues around, he seems to interact with people to some extent.
‘He looked agile and clever. Calculating, and good with words too.’
I’m not sure if there are dark wizards in this world. Assassin seems too far-fetched.
‘He can’t really be a con artist, right?’
There’s no way my ally’s occupation is a criminal. Such good looks should be used for something more beneficial to the world!
‘Let’s just sleep for now. I can get to know him slowly as we live together from tomorrow.’
This time, I have a 60-day survival period, so there’s a bit more leeway.
I fell asleep under the moonlight coming through the round window.
***
Perhaps because the bed was comfortable, I felt refreshed the next day. It was surprising that nothing ached, unlike someone who had been locked up in prison.
‘Maybe it’s the effect of that sweet thing Arvan gave me to eat.’
I stretched comfortably and came down the stairs. The bedroom was pleasant and the bed comfortable, but it was inconvenient not having a bathroom on the second floor. Being in the position of a freeloader, I couldn’t bring myself to ask for another bathroom to be built.
“Ju-in. Are you up?”
“Yeah, Arvan.”
Feeling embarrassed about coming down with messy hair and in pajamas, I quickly ran my hands through my hair.
“You seem to have recovered from your fatigue. Is the bed comfortable to use?”
“Yes. I slept well, thanks to you.”
Arvan looked neat as if he had gotten up early to prepare for the day. Yesterday he was wearing a black robe like a wizard, but now he was in a neat shirt and pants. Over that, he wore a white gown, a look that could easily be mistaken for a doctor.
But I couldn’t focus on Arvan’s outfit. It was because Arvan, with his bangs swept back, was wearing glasses.
‘Handsome man in glasses… intellectual… perfect!’
Oh my. Where did yesterday’s mischievous angel, no, devil go? In front of me stood a sophisticated city gentleman exuding the smartness and charisma of a professional.
“Arvan.”
“Yes?”
You’re so handsome.
“You wear glasses too?”
“Almost always when I’m working.”
“Glasses are nice. Good thinking. They say glasses are so good for working.”
“Haha. Why are you suddenly like this?”
Words were coming out without passing through my brain, and I couldn’t stop them. They say when you see a handsome man, your memory gets a bit worse, and your vocabulary drops. It means my barrage of nonsense is an irresistible force.
‘A receding hairline and glasses definitely create a synergy effect with a slim build.’
My preference is for larger, more muscular types, but the delicate and intellectual cold beauty has been considered the first love of girls across all times and cultures.
‘Indeed, clichés are great.’
As I was trying to calm my foolishly fluttering heart by patting my chest several times, I suddenly realized that I was still in my pajamas.
Ah, I should have put something on before coming down.
“Arvan. Let me change my clothes… No, wait. I don’t have any clothes to change into, do I?”
That’s right. I was a one-suit gentleman.
The clothes I wore yesterday got soaked when I fell into the fountain, so I can’t wear them again. The clothes Callion bought for me in the previous village all disappeared when I died and came back to life.
‘I can’t believe I’m a pauper!’
I suddenly felt wronged. There’s a status window, skills, and even leveling up, but no inventory? Isn’t that too much?
“I’ll bring you some clothes to change into later. For now, come closer.”
“C-closer? I’m in my pajamas right now?”
Isn’t it too early in the morning to be closing the distance between us? Don’t we have many steps to go through first?
While internally making pointless objections, I approached with small steps. Arvan took out a spare pair of glasses from his shirt pocket and handed them to me.
“These are for you to use, Ju-in.”
“Glasses? But my eyesight isn’t particularly bad.”
“You said you caught people’s attention in the square yesterday, right? The soldiers will remember your face too. We can’t stay inside the house forever, so it’s better to hide with glasses.”
“That’s true, but will wearing glasses alone really change my appearance that drastically?”
“Those are made with magic stones.”
Magic stones? But the lenses are transparent?
I quickly put on the glasses.
“Huh? Are these glasses non-prescription? I don’t feel any difference from before putting them on.”
“Yeah. They’re meant to erase your impression.”
“Erase?”
“We should change your hairstyle too.”
Instead of answering my question, Arvan braided my hair into two pigtails. His hands were so delicate that I was impressed by how neatly he braided it without a single strand out of place.
But pigtails and glasses? I suddenly feel about ten years younger.
“They’re glasses that disrupt the viewer’s vision and lower their cognitive abilities. When you wear them, no one will recognize you.”
“Uh… really?”
Is that true? I checked in the mirror.
“Arvan. I still see my face in my eyes though?”
“It doesn’t work on people who know it’s the same person before and after taking them off.”
He explained that just like when you read text in a foreign language you don’t know, you see the shape of the letters but their meaning doesn’t register, when you wear glasses made of transparent magic stones, others can’t recognize the specific features of your face.
Even if they look at me, they won’t think I resemble someone they know, and once they turn away, they won’t remember what I looked like.
‘That’s nice. It’s like a transformation item.’
I didn’t know such a useful thing existed. But I’m worried that if these are freely distributed, wouldn’t they be used for crimes? It’s an item that eliminates witnesses.
“Be careful not to let anyone see you taking them off. It’s a problem if someone recognizes your face, but these glasses are also prohibited items, so you’ll be punished if caught.”
“……”
As expected, it was an illegal smuggled item.
Before falling into this world, I lived the life of a law-abiding citizen, but given my current situation, I’m gradually transitioning into the life of a criminal.
‘At first, I was unfairly imprisoned just for being an outsider.’
At this rate, I might end up going straight to prison under the righteous judgment of the law.
