Chapter 42 - Enhancement
12 min read ·
So. Time to take stock of his current situation.
-Skill Info
◈ Weaver of Fate
【 Noel Astria Seamus 】
- Bond: Level 6
◆ Heart of Pure White
◆ Energy Enhancement: Consecration
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【 Katya Heinkel Craven 】
- Obsession: Level 2
◆ The First Vow
◆ Sacred Body
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⎨ Lionel XIII ⎬
- Bond: Level 1
◆ Unique Trait: Imperial Bloodline
⎨ Dunadan U`zal ⎬
- Bond: Level 1
◆ General Supernatural Power: Dharmic Power → Savior’s Vow
⎨ Rania A`shan ⎬
- Bond: Level 1
◆ Spiritual Attunement
⎨ Meyer Belford ⎬
- Bond: Level 1
◆ Analysis
⎨ Abigail III ⎬
- Bond: Level 2
- You may copy 2 skills.
⧾Arden Brimstone Lionel
- Malice: Level 1
- You may imitate 1 skill.
※ It is impossible to form a Bond with this target. Skill effects will differ from the originals!
... Seeing it all laid out, he really had scraped together quite an assortment.
Two entries stood out most, of course: the Pontiff’s two skills and the prince’s one. His most recent acquisitions.
‘Not bad.’
With that thought, Aiden immediately brought up another window.
-Quest Info
♠ Main Quest
◈ Act 1, < Rift in the Capital >
- Chapter 1, <Ghost Knight Disturbance>
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▶ Subjugation Battle (D-Day!)
◈ Sham Marriage
- You have been chosen as Dame Noel’s spouse. Maintain your contract with her until its end!
- A related event will occur soon. (D-Day!)
With his rematch against the Lord Protector just around the corner, he could reasonably say he had done quite well.
The moment he opened his eyes and left this dream Mindscape, he would be heading straight into the event.
“So.” Aiden shrugged and asked Meyer, who stood before him, “What did you say was the most effective combination for beating up a spirit?”
“...”
“Just checking whether I brought the right stuff.”
... Actually, he intended to copy whatever Meyer told him to.
Like copying from an answer sheet.
After listening in silence, Meyer sighed and spoke.
“... You know something?”
“Yes?”
“Aren’t you getting a little too used to dying?”
“...”
To be fair, Aiden’s torso was split in half even as they spoke.
“Well, you know. Die enough times and you get used to it.”
“Listen.” Meyer sounded utterly deflated. “Do you even realize what you’re saying?”
“...?”
Had he said something strange?
Aiden tilted his head and replied, “Isn’t that possible...?”
“It’s certainly strange.”
“... Sorry?”
“I’ve put plenty of students through their paces. Losing your aversion to combat or your fear of death isn’t something you can explain away with grit or mental fortitude.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“It feels like your personality itself is changing on a fundamental level. Like it’s being forcibly... ‘reengineered,’ I suppose. It isn’t natural.”
Meyer stared hard at Aiden for a while, then let out a deep sigh.
“Well, let’s wait and see. I’ve never seen a case like yours before. It’s worth observing and analyzing.”
“At least you won’t freeze up no matter what happens,” he added, sighing again.
“There are elemental advantages to consider. Spirits are weakest against divinity, after all. So your first priority is maximizing its output.”
“Aha.”
Aiden nodded and scrolled down the Pontiff’s skill window.
‘... More awkward picks here than I expected.’
The Pontiff’s skill list was unquestionably a gold mine, but everything was either too difficult to use or required too many prerequisite skills.
Apparently that was another problem with taking skills straight from someone who had reached the pinnacle.
Even so, he soon found something that met Meyer’s specifications.
-System Message
▶ Copying [ Divinity Enhancement: Detonation ]!
-Skill Info
◆ Divinity Enhancement: Detonation
Doubles the output of divinity released on a single use. Has a one-day cooldown.
Perfect.
Simple, exactly what Meyer had asked for, and no restrictions on its use.
Hell, instantly doubling his output just by activating it, with no conditions to worry about, was ridiculously powerful all on its own...
‘What happens if I combine this with the Guardian’s Flame?’
Aiden already had ways to further amplify his divinity. With a skill like this added to the mix, he could hardly imagine how powerful the output would become.
“Second.”
As Aiden entertained those happy possibilities, Meyer spoke again.
“Shaping. Even if you have a blade, you can’t just grip it barehanded and swing it around. What ‘form’ you solidify your supernatural power into matters, too.”
... Ah. He had seen that before.
He had once seen Katya hone her divinity into blades and fire them, and Noel did the same when she wrapped energy around her sword and launched slashes.
He had even copied several skills from Noel for making energy barriers.
Meyer must mean the ‘shape’ in which the supernatural power would solidify.
‘That works out nicely.’
He happened to have the skill list of someone exceptional in that field right in front of him.
There were many ways to describe the prince, but the most representative was ‘a once-in-an-era genius.’
Of course, Noel was also called a genius for wielding pure-white energy, a power unprecedented in history. But the prince had carved out a standing of his own.
In his case, the title was earned primarily through ‘technique.’ Not the ‘output’ of his supernatural power, but his ability to ‘handle’ it.
-System Message
▶ Imitating [ Special Manipulation Technique: Spiral - Bore ].
-Skill Info
◆ Special Manipulation Technique: Spiral - Bore
Carves supernatural power into an intricately subdivided spiral. Can penetrate defenses to strike the opponent.
★ This skill is exceptionally difficult to execute. Prerequisites must be met.
★ The effects of [Skill: Analysis] satisfy these prerequisites.
★ This skill was copied through Imitation. Its power is lower than the original!
... Normally, he wouldn’t have been able to use this skill. Thanks to Meyer, it seemed he could.
‘I ought to thank my senior.’
Considering the talent the prince had displayed in the original game, reproducing this should have been as impossible for Aiden as plucking a star from the sky.
It might be weaker than the original, but its accompanying property was extremely attractive.
‘Ignoring defense, huh...’
No one went into battle without some form of protection.
That property would always be useful, regardless of the situation. As far as abilities he could get right now went, nothing beat it.
‘... With this much...’
Having carefully explained the ‘ingredients’ he had brought, Aiden broke into a broad smile.
“Honestly, if you can’t make what I asked for with all this, senior, you’re just incompetent.”
“...”
“Agreed?”
“...”
Meyer narrowed his eyes at Aiden, who was practically snorting with pride.
“... Really enjoying yourself, aren’t you?”
Despite his words, even Meyer seemed hard-pressed to find fault with Aiden’s claim.
To his eyes, too, the abilities Aiden had acquired were powerful enough to warrant this much pride.
With two top-quality ingredients like these, failing to produce what Aiden wanted would disgrace the name of the Knight of Dawn.
“But...”
Meyer tilted his head slightly at Aiden.
“I can make it for you, sure. How do you plan to land it?”
The combination Aiden wanted would all but guarantee victory—as long as it connected.
But as Meyer had pointed out before, landing the hit could itself be a problem.
“You said last time you had some way of doing it. What exactly is it?”
“... Well.” Aiden scratched his head. “Ultimately, you’re saying I can’t land a hit because there’s such a big gap between our basic abilities.”
“Right?”
“I just have to close that gap.”
“... And I’m asking how?”
“Somehow.”
“...”
“I have something in mind.”
Meyer sighed as though giving up on the conversation. Aiden merely shrugged.
No, he really did.
It wasn’t something he could explain to anyone else. And, honestly, they might curse him out for daring to call it a plan.
But that ridiculous plan would work.
‘I only need to prove one thing.’
He just had to determine whether the Lord Protector’s spirit had truly been summoned in her right mind.
Almost no one possessed authority capable of manipulating even spirits.
Almost. There were beings who could do it—some of the main scenario’s primary enemies.
They were probably—surely—lurking behind this incident.
‘And I have a suspect for their agent, too.’
All he needed was to get a solid lead out of the man.
But for now, more importantly...
“Senior.”
“What?”
“Give me some advice as someone with more life experience.”
“About what?”
“How do you soothe a fiancée who’s extremely on edge?”
“... I’ve never been married.”
“...”
“... Does almost getting there count?”
... First the Pontiff, now him.
Why were so many remarkable people single?
▣
During the harvest festival, the Empire became a place overflowing with music and drink wherever one looked.
Even as the entire country reveled in drinking, singing, and dancing, the imperial flags and their emblems hanging everywhere lent the celebrations an almost solemn grandeur. A dignity befitting the Empire’s greatest holiday.
Which made the gloom here alone feel like another world.
“...”
Aiden cautiously studied Noel as she walked beside him.
She looked unhappy. Terribly so.
No, more than unhappy—her face was so pale she looked as though her PTSD had been triggered.
Of course, having to face the prince and the minister of administration in court during the holiday was hardly pleasant. But she looked worse than that could explain.
“... I’m sorry. I seem to have worried you.”
When he asked about it, Noel managed a smile despite her pallor. She explained the reason more readily than he had expected.
“The Magic Kingdom launched its attack during the harvest festival, too.”
People always let their guard down most on festival days. All the more so toward the end of a war. The attackers had probably counted on that.
Which, naturally, meant...
“... Today is also the anniversary of Teresa’s death.”
“...”
... Earlier, he had wondered why the prince and the minister of administration had chosen today of all days for their event.
That single remark seemed to explain everything.
Noel was visibly struggling to hold herself together. If the Lord Protector’s spirit actually appeared while she was in this state, she would very likely be unable to do anything at all.
“Dame Noel.”
In that case, there were things he needed to do beforehand to keep the other side from dictating the pace.
With the courthouse entrance in sight, Aiden firmly seized Noel’s shoulders.
“Look at me.”
“... Aiden?”
“Look me straight in the eye.”
Her startled eyes met his, and Aiden spoke clearly and deliberately.
“Do you think Dame Teresa’s vengeful spirit attacked you because she still held a grudge against you?”
“...”
“This is important. Please answer me.”
... He had never asked her outright before, knowing it must be a sensitive subject.
But with the hearing imminent and her in this state, he had to settle this before they went in.
Whether she got angry or not.
“...”
Noel’s breathing grew ragged. Countless emotions flashed through her eyes.
At last, she spoke in a trembling voice.
“It was my mistake.”
“...”
“Teresa paid for it instead. For my poor judgment.”
“...”
“So, to save me, Teresa, alone, stayed on the battlefield—”
He could see the scenes flashing behind Noel’s eyes.
Screams, hellfire, blood, mountains of corpses, seas of blood—
And as those images threatened to consume her consciousness, Aiden gripped her shoulders hard again.
“I’m not particularly interested in the details.”
“...”
Reason returned to Noel’s eyes.
... Probably because she found that so utterly absurd.
“... Then why did you ask?”
“Because you seem half convinced the Lord Protector resents you for it even in death.”
“...”
“So let me ask: do you think Dame Teresa is that sort of person?”
“...”
After a long struggle, Noel forced out an answer.
“... I don’t think she is.”
The Lord Protector.
Guardian of the people. The woman who had been the Empire’s sun.
Noel remembered her running through the streets with the slum children, covered in dirt.
She remembered her sacrificing herself for the Empire’s subjects and its people until the very end.
Before she had been called the Lionhearted, Noel had been a cowardly, painfully slow little crybaby.
She remembered the woman who had been like an older sister, always making crooked pinwheels for her and holding her tight.
[“I’ll protect you, Noel.”]
[“And I’ll protect the country where I was born and raised.”]
She could not imagine someone like that turning a blade on her.
‘... But.’
Doubt still lingered in a corner of her heart.
Her mistake had gotten Teresa killed.
Could she really be certain Teresa had never, even at the end, resented her—
“Then she isn’t.”
She could, the man before her declared with certainty.
“If you say she isn’t, she isn’t.”
“...”
Aiden said this as Noel blinked blankly at him.
Whatever had happened on this same date in the past, that evening near the end of the war, was not Aiden’s concern.
It was not his job to dissect who had made a mistake on the battlefield, whose fault it was that things had gone wrong, or who deserved the blame.
Perhaps Noel really had been at fault.
But...
“I trust you, Dame Noel.”
At the very least, this woman was more bound by morality than anyone Aiden had ever met.
Even in danger herself, she always worried about civilian lives. She tried never to hurt anyone first.
And while she made such an enormous fuss over the slightest injury Aiden sustained, she was prepared to stake her own life on taking responsibility for what she had done.
“So I trust the person you trust, too.”
That meant he also trusted the person who had made Noel Astria Seamus into the woman standing here today.
He trusted Noel’s judgment that Teresa would never do such a thing.
“The Lord Protector isn’t that kind of person.”
Yes. Dame Teresa Adelaite would never do that.
And the means of pinning the Lord Protector down—the one he had so confidently promised Meyer—stemmed from that very fact.
Aiden grinned at Noel, who was still staring at him in a daze, and turned.
“And now I’m going to prove it.”
The courtroom came into view, the prince and minister of administration waiting inside.
The smile on his lips grew a little fiercer.
Well. He had never really known how to smile like this before. It felt as though Katya had been rubbing off on him lately.
“Let’s go.”
... Well, that expression suited the occasion better anyway.
“Let’s crush those bastards.”
It was time for revenge.