Chapter 19: Leveling Up

A few days later, one morning at Constel, the students arriving for school witnessed a sight that made their eyes go wide.

“H-hello...?”

“Good morning...”

“Whoa! Ah, good morning.”

Every student passing by widened their eyes and bowed in greeting. The person they greeted gave no response, but they all greeted him nonetheless.

“President, it’s time.”

“Mm.”

Malia, standing beside him, informed him of the time.

The man was none other than President Ospreet. Rarely seen in public, he was standing in front of the school gates.

There was someone he had to welcome—someone who warranted a reception from a man of his standing.

Then, from the distance came the rumble of a sedan’s engine. It stopped directly in front of the gates, and a middle-aged man stepped out of the driver’s seat.

“...!”

Every student passing through the gates stopped.

And not just the students. Constel’s faculty and staff, and even ordinary people merely walking past the gates, all stopped when they saw him.

In the distance, girls let out cheers that sounded like screams, while the boys voiced heartfelt cries of “Wow!”

Now they understood why Ospreet was standing at the gates—what could possibly warrant his coming out to greet someone.

The man’s advancing footsteps carried a weight that seemed to press down on the very air. Only Ospreet and Malia remained unperturbed by his presence.

“It has been a while.”

His voice was cool and weighty. Most people would have been intimidated by that voice alone, but Ospreet greeted him calmly.

“Good to see you, Ampere.”

Angper de Roah had come to Constel.

Later, the three sat facing one another in the president’s office.

Ospreet sent his secretary out, instructing them to let no one into the office unless something important came up.

“What a fuss. I won’t hurt anyone who comes in.”

“You never know.”

Malia answered in Ospreet’s stead and handed Ampere his tea. The sight of her serving tea was itself a rare one.

Watching him drink, she asked casually,

“Ampere, why don’t you join the Zodiacs?”

Ampere’s brow twitched.

“You want me to become the Empire’s dog?”

His question could have been taken as an insult to Ospreet. It was as good as calling Ospreet, already one of the Zodiacs, the Empire’s dog.

But Ospreet took no offense.

“Were we not all once the continent’s watchdogs?”

“... That was long ago.”

Ampere and the current Zodiacs had all lived through the same era, facing the great calamity that had struck during it.

They had fought monsters from the Outside in a battle resembling the recent attack on Constel, but far more vicious.

Every time monsters invaded human territory, humanity’s borders wavered. There had been occasional small advances, but ultimately, humanity’s territory had only continued to shrink.

It was Ampere and the Zodiacs who had secured those borders, erecting walls and obstacles along them and assigning prominent nobles to defend the walls.

Thus, Ampere had taken charge of the northwest, while Lidwe von Urpa of House Urpa had taken the northeast.

The north was the sole exception in being entrusted to people who were not Zodiacs. The remaining eastern, western, and southern regions were all under members of the Zodiacs.

“In the end, we’re wild dogs. That’s our nature. We need a fight, and we need someone to be loyal to. Isn’t that true of you as well?”

“Once, perhaps. Not anymore.”

“Every lie you tell is bad for your health. You’ll understand when you reach my age.”

Ospreet chuckled as he spoke, his laughter matching his age for once.

Ampere shook his head.

“I have Atzier now.”

“... Atzier. Yes.”

Ospreet nodded. Every attempt to persuade Ampere to join the Zodiacs was thwarted, ironically, by Atzier—the man hailed as Constel’s finest graduate.

“Atzier will surpass me before long. He will become humanity’s new banner. Once that happens, reclaiming the lands humanity has lost will no longer be a mere dream.”

“Are you truly certain? That Atzier will surpass you?”

“He is already showing the signs.”

Ospreet scratched his temple with a wrinkled finger. He had seen Atzier’s abilities for himself and knew them well enough, but...

There was no doubt about it. Ampere was simply a doting father. Either that, or he had already forgotten what he himself had been like in his prime.

“So, have you come today because of Atzier?”

“That is half of it. I came to see how his work as a substitute teacher is going.”

Half? Was there another reason?

Ospreet wondered, but set the question aside for now.

“Atzier is a good teacher. The students think highly of him, too. I worried that someone accustomed only to actual combat might struggle to teach, but he’s doing surprisingly well.”

“Mm. Naturally.”

Yes, definitely a doting father.

“Come to think of it, why did you send Atzier here so suddenly? Because the Combat Skills teaching position was vacant? Surely that wasn’t the only reason.”

“I thought Constel would need him. For the students’ growth, too.”

“Does that mean danger is approaching? Something the students would struggle to handle as they are now?”

“Yes.”

“Why do you think so?”

“Just a feeling.”

A feeling, was it?

If it was Ampere’s intuition, Ospreet could hardly dismiss it. More importantly, it probably wasn’t truly just a “feeling.”

“Then what is the other half of your reason?”

The other half of his reason for coming here, aside from Atzier.

Ampere, who had answered every question immediately and without hesitation, suddenly fell silent.

He furrowed his brow as if something displeased him and took a sip of tea.

Ospreet was beginning to suspect what that other reason was, but kept it to himself for now.

“... The other half concerns my other son.”

Just as he thought.

“Frondier?”

Malia asked, and Ampere nodded.

Her lips tightened. “My other son”? As if even saying his name made him uncomfortable.

“I hear my son placed sixteenth in the recent midterms.”

“Did he? Malia?”

There was no reason for Ospreet to know every first-year’s midterm results. Malia nodded at his question.

“Yes. He received a perfect score on the written exam, and Aster Evans took most of the points in the practical.”

“Hmm. Even so, that’s a fine ranking. What of it?”

Ampere answered.

“Were the midterms not too easy?”

Ospreet narrowed his eyes. It wasn’t Ampere’s criticism of Constel’s exams that bothered him.

It was the suspicious intent behind his words.

“In other words, you’re displeased that Frondier ranked so highly?”

Malia turned to Ampere as well. He briefly closed his eyes, then opened them and spoke.

“Yes.”

“... Ampere.”

Malia spoke his name. It was a warning of sorts.

Frondier would be disowned if he failed to place in the top ten overall this semester. Malia knew about that, too.

But she had believed it was only meant to encourage him to improve. She hadn’t thought Ampere meant it.

What father would actually want to disown his son?

“I understand the finals are coming up soon.”

“They are.”

“I trust those will be more proper examinations.”

Frondier’s high ranking was merely because the exams had been easy. Because he had been lucky. There was no other explanation.

Seeing that Ampere had reached that conclusion, Malia felt her temper flare for the first time in a while.

“... Whatever the exam, Frondier will meet your condition. If it’s difficult, it will be difficult for every student.”

“Malia.”

Only then did Ampere look at her.

The looks they exchanged were far too menacing for a husband and wife.

“Have Constel’s standards fallen so low?”

“Ampere.”

“Even if Frondier earns decent grades and places in the top ten...”

Knowing what he was about to say, Malia’s expression hardened. Ampere remained calm, without the slightest flicker in his eyes.

“It has already been decided that Frondier will be disowned.”

* * *

[Analysis Complete]

[Target: Skill ‘Fabrication’]

[Available for Viewing]

After returning to the estate and freshening up, I heard a welcome notification.

The analysis that had been running for days was finally complete.

I opened my smartwatch and checked the results of the analysis of Weaving.

[Fabrication]

- Frondier de Roach’s Unique skill.

- Possesses the functions ‘Workshop,’ ‘Replication,’ ‘Modification,’ and ‘Restoration.’ The ‘Restoration’ function is currently locked. Level-up required.

- Skill targets are currently limited to ‘objects.’ Level-up required.

- To level up, attempt to weave more targets simultaneously, or weave higher-grade targets.

──Cautions──

- A ‘Descent of Thanatos’ trigger unrelated to the original skill is currently attached as an option.

- The trigger activates when Weaving first affects reality.

- The trigger activates when Weaving injures a ‘monster from the Outside.’

- The trigger activates when Weaving injures a god.

“...?”

The Analysis skill had displayed only a single line for Neil’s short sword. This time, it had produced a considerable amount of text.

That was a good thing, but the sheer volume of information left my head spinning.

“W-wait a minute. First...”

Let’s go through this carefully, one thing at a time.

First, the first new thing I’d learned: Weaving also had a ‘Restoration’ function.

In addition to storing a target’s image and information in the Workshop and replicating it, the skill could also ‘restore’ a target.

I didn’t know why, but that function was currently locked. I needed to level up.

Second, the fact that its targets were currently limited to objects meant that Weaving could actually work on a broader range of things, not just objects.

... And third.

A ‘Descent’ trigger had been embedded in this skill, unrelated to its original functions. Probably the work of a god.

Thanatos, the first god I had encountered, had appeared before me when I used Black River to create Gram. It was because I had set off this trigger.

If Weaving grew stronger and I wounded a monster from the Outside...

Without knowing about this trigger, I would have been helpless to avoid death. The Analysis skill had saved my life.

“I have to get rid of the trigger.”

At least before I faced a monster from the Outside.

I had the Modification skill, which I’d obtained by leveling up Weaving.

Since the trigger was attached to Weaving as an option, I should be able to use ‘Remove Option’ on it.

... But Weaving could still only target objects.

In other words, I needed to level up Weaving until its targets expanded beyond objects to include skills, then use Modification to remove the trigger attached to Weaving.

And to level up, I needed to weave things simultaneously over and over, and weave high-grade targets.

In the end, what I needed to do hadn’t changed. I just had to keep doing what I’d always done.

Still, knowing exactly what I stood to gain had its own value.

First up: simultaneous weaving.

I had plenty of weapons stored in the Workshop. I’d swallowed up all sorts of weapons by now, including those in the Imperial Palace’s armory and Nils’s smithy.

I ought to at least get good enough to weave all of them at once.