Chapter 2 The Author’s Manuscript
The sound of his own scream seemed to bounce off the high walls, leaving a heavy silence in the room. Rudy gripped his black hair with both hands, pulling at the roots just to see if he would wake up. The pain was small, but it was real. He was definitely not asleep.
He began to pace across the wide floor, his breath coming in fast, shallow gasps. His eyes moved rapidly from one corner of the room to the other, trying to find a flaw in the reality around him. He looked down at his clothes. He was wearing a loose, white nightshirt made of a very soft, costly material, tightly fitted at the wrists. The room around him was filled with luxury. There were dark wooden chairs with intricate carvings, a wide desk covered in heavy paper and feather pens, and a small metal bowl on a stand. A thin line of smoke drifted up from the bowl, filling the air with the sweet, heavy scent of expensive incense.
Rudy stopped in his tracks, his mind racing through the details of the web novel he had just finished.
"This is impossible," he muttered, his voice shaking. "The Vance family crest on the wall... the descriptions of the heavy tapestries... the smell of northern dream-leaf incense. No, this can't be happening."
He rushed back to the mirror, staring at the pale face again. He pieced the clues together one by one, and a cold dread filled his chest. He had not just woken up in a random fantasy story. He had taken over the body of Rudeus Vance, the eldest son of the Vance family. In The Shattered Crown, Rudeus was a completely useless, arrogant villain. He was a minor character meant to cause trouble for the main lead before being executed in the very first part of the book.
Rudy forced himself to close his eyes and take a deep, slow breath. He needed to calm down. Panic would not help him escape whatever trick this was. He opened his mouth, testing his new voice again to see how it felt.
"Hello? Is anyone there?" he said aloud.
The voice was remarkably smooth and deep, carrying a natural tone of arrogance that made him feel uncomfortable. It was a voice that sounded like it had never been used to say thank you or please.
He began to calculate the timeline in his head. If he was currently inside the body of Rudeus at this specific age, it meant the final apocalypse of the novel was exactly three years away. But that wasn't his biggest problem right now. His immediate issue was much closer. According to the early plot of the book, Rudeus was scheduled to be executed by Crown Prince Kaelen in less than a month because of a stupid mistake at an upcoming family banquet.
"A month," Rudy whispered, his palms sweating. "I have less than a month to live if I follow the story."
As his anxiety hit a peak, the air directly in front of his face began to ripple like water. Rudy jumped back, his back hitting the edge of the large desk.
A glowing, semi-transparent rectangle materialized in the center of the room. Rudy braced himself for a blue, glowing game screen like the ones he always read about in web novels, but this interface was entirely different. It looked like a long sheet of ancient, yellowed parchment hovering in the air. Right before his eyes, fresh black ink began to write itself across the surface in a fluid, moving script.
Rudy stepped closer, his eyes wide as he read the words forming on the floating page.
The text did not list any strength stats, mana levels, or skill points. Instead, it showed a literal paragraph of text that described his exact current state:
Rudeus Vance, the foolish heir to the estate, paced his bedroom in a state of pathetic confusion. He gripped his hair and stared at his surroundings, entirely unaware of the dark doom awaiting him in the weeks ahead.
Rudy felt a chill go down his spine. "It is literally writing out my life like a story manuscript."
As he spoke, a bright, flashing prompt appeared at the very bottom of the yellowed parchment. The text shifted, displaying a set of rules that explained how this system worked.
The Author’s Manuscript
Current Resource: 0 Drops of Ink.
Rule 1: The established story cannot be changed by normal means. The world will always attempt to force characters to follow their written destiny.
Rule 2: To alter any written sentence of your fate, you must expend Ink.
Rule 3: Ink is earned exclusively by performing actions that are completely contrary to the original character's personality and written actions. If you stay on script, the written ending is absolute.
Rudy read the words over and over again until they were burned into his memory. The meaning was crystal clear. If he acted like the old, cruel Rudeus Vance, he would earn no Ink, the story would proceed exactly as it was written, and he would be dead in a matter of weeks. To survive, he had to completely break his character's established behavior.
He stared at the floating page, and for the first time since waking up, the terror in his chest turned into something else. A dark, cynical smile slowly formed on his lips.
"So, I just have to stop being a jerk to earn points," Rudy said softly, his confidence building. "I know every single plot point in this book. If I can rewrite the sentences, I actually have a fighting chance to beat this system."
Before he could celebrate, a sudden, heavy knock echoed through the room, striking the thick wooden door of his chambers. The sound was so loud it made Rudy flinch.
The glowing parchment instantly vanished into thin air, leaving the room exactly as it was before.
Rudy turned toward the door, keeping his breath steady. He didn't say a word, waiting to see who was on the other side.
A cold, detached servant's voice spoke through the thick wood, the words instantly setting the entire plot of the book into motion.
"Young Master Rudeus," the voice called out, entirely lacking any real warmth or respect. "Your father demands your presence in the courtyard immediately. And he expects you to bring the adopted girl with you."
