[=Chapter 2 (1) - The Academy's Weapon Replicator=]

I've gotten used to the classes.

Not that I've started to understand the material. I still don't get a thing.

I just store everything I'm supposed to learn, whether from the blackboard or textbooks, as images in the workshop.

What I've gotten used to is the atmosphere during class. It would be more accurate to say that everyone, including me, has gotten used to it.

Everyone has gradually gotten used to me, keeping my eyes open and looking at the blackboard during every class.

The fact that I don't take any notes seems to have convinced the students somewhat.

"Let's pose a question here."

The teacher lowered the Wizard view screen he had been displaying.

The answer to the question is probably on that screen.

"Mr. Frondier."

The teacher's eyes, as he called on me, looked very displeased.

The fact that I'm keeping my eyes open and listening to the class.

To some teachers, that might be pleasing, but to others, it might be the opposite.

The fact that Frondier could sleep through the entire class is because he's a 'child of the Roach family'.

The educational institution I attend, 'Constel', doesn't distinguish between nobles and commoners. The only distinction is based on ability.

However, not everyone inside feels the same way.

Just because Constel's system is meritocratic doesn't mean all its people share the same views.

Some suck up to the nobles while looking down on commoners,

While others blindly support commoners and despise nobles.

Frondier's position was interesting in that regard.

Teachers who brown-nose the nobility don't bother me when I sleep,

And teachers who openly dislike nobility ignore me whether I sleep or not.

In other words, either way, they don't interfere with Frondier's laziness.

'When I think about it, the teacher who woke me up initially was a unique character.'

He woke me up simply because I was a student, and it was during class.

Such a typical teacher's reaction.

The more people like that, the more it seems like a proper educational institution.

However, the teacher before me now didn't give off that feeling.

The disdain in their eyes as they looked at me proved it.

"What happened in the year 144 of the Terst Empire?"

...?

The answer to this question was in the content I had just displayed on my viewer.

But it had been only a few minutes since I saw it.

Others would have diligently written it down in their notes.

"You can look at your notes and answer if you want."

Ha, this lady.

Was she annoyed because I hadn't written anything down and was just sitting quietly?

I pulled out an image I had saved in my 'workshop'. This was my 'note'.

While I was pulling out the image and checking the content, the teacher sighed dramatically.

"Can't you answer? If that's the case, make sure to take proper notes next time,"

"Edesion Terst passed away."

Edesion.

Simply put, he's the grandfather of the current Emperor of Terst.

Honestly, he's not an emperor the citizens of the empire are proud of. At that time, the human territories were continually being reduced by the monsters.

Just an incompetent emperor who left behind only a record of defeat.

But anyone who had ascended to the throne at that time would have died bearing the same disgrace.

It was such a difficult and desperate time. It was just bad luck.

The teacher's gaze towards me became more hostile.

Why are you looking at me like that?

The student got the answer right.

"...There must be more than that."

"Immediately after the emperor's death, the capital was moved to Silester, marking the third and, to date, last relocation of the Terst Empire."

I was just reading from the image I had pulled up.

It might look petty, but what else could I do?

"At that time, once, the need for a combat training institution like Constel, where we are now, was highlighted and it reached the legislative stage but was dismissed. Ultimately, this decision was correct. At that time, it was a priority to clearly delineate the boundaries between humans and demons."

"And then?"

The teacher seemed to ask me with the intention of seeing how far I would go.

But I'm just dumbfounded.

"The next one is in 145 years."

Now that I've read it all.

"..."

"..."

A brief staring contest.

Honestly, I don't know why we are having a staring contest.

A vein bulged on the teacher's forehead as she glared at me.

Shortly after, she adjusted her glasses with a deliberately calm expression.

"Alright. Then let's move on to the next page-"

As if nothing had happened, the Wizard View opened again and the class continued.

However, during the time the students were holding back laughter, the teacher's fingers trembled slightly.

[=Chapter 2 (2) - The Academy's Weapon Replicator=]

Divine Power Measurement Room.

This facility boasts the largest space within Constel.

Students with divine power are few, but their divine power varies greatly in strength and scale.

For more accurate measurement, students with divine power each have a record sheet, and teachers comprehensively review these records to make appropriate evaluations.

"...Incredible."

And there stands a girl.

The chilling scene around her.

Cracked rocks, charred soot, frozen ground, distinctly engraved lightning patterns, etc.

It's hard to believe that one person created this scene.

The teacher, Alles, who was watching her measurement, swallowed hard.

'Is this child the 'Inies'.'

Inies is not her exact name. She was given the middle name 'Inies' for receiving the love of five gods.

Elodie de Inies Rishaé.

Elodie, the eldest daughter of the Rishaé family.

A girl who monopolizes as many as five divine powers, a feat difficult even for one person to achieve.

At the tender age of seventeen, her future seems almost set. It's a future filled with everyone's envy, respect, jealousy, and rivalry.

"How about it? The record."

"Um, it's almost identical to before. No worries about it dropping."

Alles answered with a feigned calm expression.

"Ah. I was hoping it would go up."

Elodie said with a playful smile.

Alles smiled back but broke out in cold sweat.

What was she expecting if it went up further?

However, there was a shadow somewhere in Elodie's joking demeanor.

She still had the memory of encountering Frondier in the corridor.

-...How I, waited for you with such feelings.

The sentence was left unfinished. It was interrupted by a baseball that suddenly flew in.

But now, she considers that a blessing.

Frondier and Elodie have known each other since they were young.

Though nobody within Constel knows it.

The Roach family of Frondier and the Rishae family of Elodie have been allies and rivals for a very long time.

The 'Iron Wall Achievement' of Anfer, the head of the Roach family, is well-known, but the Rishae family also played no small part in that achievement.

It was inevitable for the son and daughter of each family head, being the same age, to know each other.

...Elodie had no particular expectations for Frondier.

That son of Anfer, that brother of Azier.

Everyone expected Frondier to have the same level of talent as them.

But Elodie didn't care about that.

She simply hoped that Frondier, as a long-time friend, would properly play his part as one person.

But Frondier was not like that.

Lacking in divine power and talent, even his character left much to be desired.

He lacked the effort to improve his insufficient skills, the responsibility to accomplish the tasks assigned to him, and even the ability to manage his own daily life.

The affection seen from childhood had faded over time.

Frondier had finally broken the last promise he made with Elodie.

-Frondier, meet me at the Constel gate after school. I have something important to give you.

It was surely a promise easy to keep.

He was the one who said okay.

...But Frondier never showed up, and tried to pass by Elodie in the hallway as if he didn't know her at all.

"...The hallway."

Elodie squinted her eyes and then asked Alles.

"...Teacher, if it were you, how would you block incoming arrows?"

She remembered the minor commotion that had occurred in the hallway when she was with Frondier.

A baseball flew and shattered a window, and she incinerated everything in a moment.

But as they fell, they were deflected in mid-air.

It was clearly something Frondier had done. But she could not guess how.

Not wanting to explain everything in detail, she changed the example from glass shards to arrows.

"There are countless ways magically, whether it's burning, freezing, or blowing them away with wind. As long as you make them lose their force. Unless it's a demon-breaking arrow."

"...What if someone blocked the arrows with something like an invisible wall?"

"Are you suggesting they were pushed away by the wind?"

"No, I mean literally deflected by an invisible wall."

"Have you seen someone do that?"

"Oh, no! It's just a hypothetical. Just wondering what if."

Elodie's question might sound childish and silly to another student.

But Alles took it seriously. Because the student who asked was Elodie.

Alles must have had the same thought as Elodie. Yet, the fact that she asked means there was considerable concern behind the question.

...But upon reconsidering, Alles's conclusion remained the same.

"It's peculiar."

"Right?"

"The most likely possibility is an invisibility spell. Whether it's a wall or a shield or whatever, you make an object that a person can carry invisible, and then block arrows with it. To others, it would seem like an 'invisible wall.' Literally. But invisibility magic is quite tricky. It's not actually about becoming invisible, but about manipulating light reflection. A slight miscalculation can result in failure. Even if you succeed, there are still questions left."

"Why go through all that trouble?"

"Exactly. If it's just for blocking, there's no need for it to be invisible, and then a simple shield would suffice. Magic wouldn't even be necessary. If you really wanted to use magic, there are easier ways, and if you're going to block with a shield, there's no need to make it invisible. It doesn't make sense."

Elodie nodded in agreement.

...Moreover, Alles didn't go into detail, but.

The fact is, shooting arrows is a matter of combat situations, and in Elodie's case, it wasn't arrows but glass shards, more like an everyday accident.

Who would walk around the corridors carrying something like an invisible shield, preparing for an attack that might or might not come someday?

After a moment of thought, Alles slowly opened his mouth.

"There's another possibility, but it's highly unlikely."

"What is it?"

"Well, it's a preposterous idea."

"Still."

Alles gave a bitter smile. That expression alone conveyed that what he was about to say was going to be an absurd story.

"Using aura."

"...Aura? The aura that's infused in warriors' weapons?"

"Right. Mana and aura are essentially the same substance, referred to as 'qi'. If a mage manipulates mana through formulas to produce magic, a warrior embeds aura into themselves through tens of thousands of training sessions and discipline."

"But how does that relate to an invisible wall?"

"It might be unfamiliar to mages, but warriors who have reached a certain realm can generate aura without a weapon."

Elodie's mouth dropped open. She finally grasped what Alles was trying to say.

Now she understood why it sounded so preposterous.

"So... are you saying that a warrior who has reached such a realm can create a shield-sized aura with their bare hands?"

"It was just a hypothetical discussion, wasn't it?"

"Oh, right! Just hypothetically speaking! Asking if such a thing could be possible."

Even as Elodie responded, she thought to herself.

The possibility that Frondier had created aura, was of course, non-existent.

The idea of creating aura with bare hands, without a weapon, was already rare enough.

And to create an aura of sufficient size to deflect all those countless glass shards?

'...That's impossible.'

Then, Frondier must have either foolishly cast an invisible magic on the shield, or else.

...Or what?

Seeing Elodie ponder with a troubled expression, Alles smiled.

It seems Elodie definitely saw something.

But Alles was certain. She must have seen it wrong.

"But it's just a theory. It's impossible for anyone."

"...Ah, I thought so."

"If there had been even one person capable of that, humanity's territory would be much wider than it is now."

"Is it that significant?"

"If one could create a shield-sized aura with their bare hands, without any weapon, their body itself would be equivalent to a legendary weapon. And not just any legendary weapon, but one that fires indiscriminately. Imagine dozens of invisible weapons flying at you, each hit would leave a hole of that size."

At Alles's words, Elodie's face turned pale.

"That's for sure, it's scary."