For a while now, it was obvious to Xenos that the previous owner of this body wasn't exactly a learned kid, more so because he barely, if ever, left the manor, leaving him clueless about some extremely important and basic things in the world.
In turn, he, who now took hold, wasn't sure that the Rune-Leash Decree was still a thing or if it was just a mechanic the game used to improve a player's Diving, Coliseum Battle, and overall gaming experience—a little quality-of-life tweak, per se.
Thankfully, it was real; he would've easily lost control of his life otherwise.
In Runethera, the Houses of Gods, those in control of Hieron, the police and official military of this entire realm, instituted what became known as the Rune-Leash Decree, a Divine Law binding all Runebearers to their Stratum and their families, Noble Houses or not, even beyond death.
Meaning that if Xenos died, by law, his body, and most importantly, his Runes, would be given back to his family to do with as they pleased. In the game, it worked the same, only instead of another user gaining the Runes, they returned to the player's House, allowing them to use the Runes even if their other character died completely, and yes, permanent death was a feature.
On the surface, it was justified as an act of piety: ensuring no Runebearer's body was left to rot, that their Runes were returned to the sanctity of their family, and that their kin could mourn with proper rites.
But beneath this veil of sanctity was a machine of control, both a leash and a noose.
Naturally, most, whether in his position or not, would never even entertain such a wild thought, never mind using its existence in such a way, never, but that was exactly why it was so beneficial to him.
With it, he could calm Veynar, reminding him that he had complete control.
That, in turn, would delay his death, as whenever his father lowered his hand and sent for his head, it'd only be at an opportune moment, a moment that could be anticipated, giving Xenos much more time to prepare for its arrival.
Of course, Veynar might not have him killed, but Xenos didn't work like that.
If the possibility were there, he would be sure to ready himself for it.
'Anything that can go wrong will go wrong.'
He knew that law by heart.
...
"Hmmmm~"
Xenos calmly walked back to his room, hands behind his back, shoulders loose.
"Hmm-hmm…"
Every maid he passed flinched, glancing at him from the corners of their eyes like he was some ticking bomb.
'Guess news of what happened already made the rounds.'
He was amused...
'Maybe they think I finally snapped.'
Very, very amused.
'That I became some monster.'
A neglected monster.
He wasn't offended, though.
Again, he barely knew these people.
Sure, he remembered them, but he didn't know them.
The difference between the two was both non-existent and as far as life was from death.
Once inside his room, he shut the door with a soft click and leaned his back against it for a second, his eyes staring at the ceiling.
Xenos didn't want to break everything down like your usual protagonist.
That had become a bit of a cliché by now, especially the arranged marriage part.
He wanted to start flipping out, destroy the room, or something, but...
Such a 'want' was impossible.
His mind had already calculated it.
Step one: Establish the obvious:
'Forced marriage.'
Step two: Establish the other obvious:
'No obvious starting objective or guide.'
Step three: Establish the third obvious:
'I haven't died yet or been attacked... weird by this game's standard.'
Step four: Finally switch things up and stop repeating the word obvious:
'Maybe... maybe there's another prerequisite?'
'Something I have to accomplish first to get an objective?'
Or perhaps it was literally like a game where he had to be given those by NPCs.
It made sense.
Why else would the {Quest} tab leave only what 'They' had given him, something that would ultimately take him many, many, many years to achieve, if at all? And why else would it leave its objectives blank?
Nodding to himself, he pushed that final thought aside and turned to the main problem at hand:
Packing.
Veynar, and consequently the entire manor, wouldn't help him in any way, shape, or form; he only had what this room offered... and that didn't seem to be much of an issue to him.
'It should be here...'
Lowering himself by the bed, he reached out to the dark beneath it.
'Yes, it is~.'
His hand found a soft leather strap, and he pulled it out.
'A rucksack!'
Indeed, it was a rucksack, and quite a big one at that.
'My Rune's paying off already~.'
Though he said that jokingly, it wasn't exactly false.
Neither was the fact that he walked around and grabbed everything that seemed remotely useful, stuffing it full.
A few pairs of boots, both barely worn.
A few underpants, rough and plain, but durable.
A simple but heavy coat, thick enough for travel in the cold.
A small pouch of copper drachma, this realm's currency, 'lucky' find number two.
A plain knife... more of a utility tool than a weapon.
A tiny flint and steel set for fires.
And finally...
'Guess this dumbass was an engineer too.'
A single thin book titled [Basic Herbs and Potions].
'Though a chemical one.'
Xenos clicked his tongue at himself.
He kind of hated those types, always so obnoxious, never a shred of humility within them, and that meant a lot when coming from someone like him... anyhow, he had also found some dried jerky from a wooden box hidden in his wardrobe.
That, alongside the flint and steel, made it obvious that his dumb self once planned to escape but was too much of a coward to actually go ahead with it, delaying it until he no longer had the chance.
'Don't worry, I'll at least do that for you~.'
He grinned while also raiding the bathroom, grabbing:
A weird wooden toothbrush.
A block of rough soap.
A tiny, battered comb.
Some kind of herbal deodorant stick that smelled... acceptable.
And, of course, a small rag he figured was used as a towel in this realm.
'Just because I'll be stuck traveling in a medieval dump doesn't mean I'm going to walk around smelling like it... these people might be fine with it, but I sure am not.'
Xenos explained himself to no one in particular and strapped up the rucksack.
Then, he sat down on the bed and tapped his foot rhythmically.
"Hmm~ hm…"
He was already thinking ahead.
"Hm-hmm-hmmm~."
Tonight was going to be a big night; he'd test his luck and start moving forward.
He already had a plan, but first, he had to survive the afternoon circus...
And what a circus he knew it'd be.