Villain's Second Heart: Trapped in A Fantasy Novel (BL)-Chapter 37: The Omniscient

"Alcor!?" Rav exclaimed, nearly spilling his glass - it had only just arrived seconds before the sudden intrusion.

Ezra reached for his throat. That had never happened before. It wasn't just Alcor's voice in his head - he spoke through him.

[What's the matter, Rav? All this talk about System powers, did you forget about mine?]

The voice didn't come from Ezra's mouth that time, but it was still clearly heard by Rav. The Ferin found himself on edge, uncertain of what to make of the sudden developments.

"Of course not, Alcor. Omniscience. That's what you called it, isn't it?"

"Omniscience?" Ezra questioned, unsure of who he was even talking to. It felt wrong, being the only one out of the loop - especially when the voice was originating from inside his own body.

[Anything I see, anything I hear, I can follow to it's logical conclusion. In a sense, you can think of me as the world's greatest detective. Ah, but my power doesn't stop there. I've always been able to see ahead. To know everything about whatever becomes the subject of my fascination. And lucky for you, Ezra, I'm in your System.]

"And you've been holding off on this little ability to speak just for a moment like this?"

[A new power I've been working on, since getting swapped out by the kid. I didn't think I'd make such progress so quickly.]

Rav gritted his teeth. "Ezra, you feel okay, don't you? You don't feel weak or anything? Like...like Alcor could take control?"

[What's the matter, Rav? Don't want to see me back in the flesh?]

"Nothing like that," Ezra said, trying to wrest back control of the conversation.

[Ezra is correct. He already knows what it'll take to give me the reins. Unfortunately, that decision is all his. That's the Storyteller's stipulation for letting me stay inside his head.]

"There's much about magic even I still do not understand, I see," Rav surmises. "But if you don't mind, Alcor - now's not the time for us to 'catch up'. I'm speaking with Ezra."

The presence began to retreat from Ezra's mind.

[As you wish, 'Great Sage'. I'm only ever a breath away...don't you forget it.]

Suddenly, the foul, lingering essence of Alcor vanished. Ezra exhaled a sigh of relief.

"Sorry about that," Ezra apologized. "I had no idea that would happen."

Rav patted Ezra on the back. "Not your fault. Alcor's a pain in the ass. I know it too well. At least it seems to me that he can't cause any direct harm."

"No, he can't," Ezra affirmed. "I won't let him. There...there was that one time, though. You used some magic and drew him out, didn't you?"

Rav swirled his drink in a lazy circle. "Carefully controlled hypnosis," Rav clarified. "He was awake, but your body was fully asleep. Nothing for you to worry about happening accidentally - not in the middle of the night, not when you get knocked out. Certainly not while cuddling with a cute little Nephilim, hm?"

Ezra blushed, and suddenly all he could think about was Oberyn. He wondered if he was awake yet, or if he was still drooling all over Ezra's pillow.

It felt good to hear Rav's assuring words, at least. As confident as he was that he could keep Alcor under control, there was a growing fear that the voice inside his head might grow more powerful. After all, he already found a way to speak out loud, against Ezra's wishes.

Ezra could only think of one way to ensure he had the upper hand on Alcor - he needed to become the dominant force, without question.

"I need to get stronger, Rav."

His voice was filled with determination and conviction. The resolution made sense to him. Last night, he was able to intervene - but only at the cost of Oberyn's free will. If he found himself against another trial, he couldn't exclusively rely on his Desire to see it through. He also needed strength.

"Hm, hm."

Rav swayed back and forth, thinking. "We're going to Asteria tomorrow. I suppose I could squeeze in a little time for training today. What level are you?"

Before Ezra could answer, Rav activated the System in the same way Deek did days ago. Ezra's profile appeared, visible to both of them.

[Name: Alcor Star (Ezra)

HP: 500/500

MP: 6684/500

Race: Human (Irregular)

Level: 11

Class: Mana Thief]

"Only 11...curious. Alcor was at least level 20."

"Twenty!?" Ezra gasped. "I was only at ten when I woke up!"

"It must be indicative that you are only able to use half of Alcor's powers. This...explains a lot."

Rav sniffed, suddenly beheld by a devilish thought. "You want to see mine?" he winked.

Before Ezra could respond, Rav flicked his own profile open with his fan.

[Name: Ravager Hale

HP: 950/999

MP: 979/999

Race: Ferin (Cat-Anima)

Visit ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com for the 𝑏est n𝘰vel reading experience.

Level: 81

Class: Custom - Magician of Clouds]

"EIGHTY-ONE!?"

It was Rav's turn to blush - and gloat.

"Most of those levels were from when I killed a literal god, to be fair," Rav giggled. "Leveling after twenty can be preeeetty tricky. Regular monsters just won't do it after that point."

Ezra nodded along. It made sense - but the difference was astounding.

"Thankfully, you have a high-level housemate who can set you straight. What do you say, want to rush headfirst into a monster den with me? Go on a killing spree? I can get your level up in no time."

"That sounds great!" Ezra exclaimed. He was excited - all else aside, he always dreamed of being some kind of OP warrior. Now, in the Storyteller's world, even that was possible.

Rav put his arm around Ezra and shook him playfully. "We'll get you to level twenty in no time, and - ah?"

The two sitting down hadn't even noticed, but at that moment Oberyn had just walked into the den, looking for Ezra. The first thing he saw were the two young men sitting on the couch, Rav with his arm around Ezra - and he'd heard the last few things they'd said.

Oberyn lingered in the doorway. "Oh, are you two going somewhere?"