Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Magic Power. Divinity. Mysticism.

Each of the three Traits was endowed with its own inherent attribute.

They were also called signatures, such as Magic Power’s “Piercing” and Divinity’s “Increased Natural Recovery.”

Above all, attributes were applied automatically, so there was no need to learn them separately.

[If you learn Divinity, you will be able to raise your endurance. Even if you keep moving for a long time, you will not tire easily.]

“Then do I have to believe in the Golden Rule from now on?”

[The deity is generous, so they do not care about things like that.]

Coming from someone who was already half-dead and barely clinging to life, that was rich.

In fact, Divinity could be unlocked whether you believed in the Golden Rule or not.

Of course, if you wanted to raise Divinity in earnest, you would need faith, but we were not going for a Divinity build, so it did not matter to us.

[We can just calmly stick in a straw and siphon off what we need.]

We sat quietly and waited for everyone else to finish the test.

It took an entire day for all the examinees to complete it.

The result was that every single one of them passed.

Thanks to my negotiation, the sixth test had astonishingly ended without producing even a single casualty.

“I cannot believe there were really no victims...!”

“I lived! I actually survived and passed the sixth test!”

Some people gasped in admiration, while others shouted in joy.

Those who had been sent here for disposal for one reason or another even broke into tears.

People who laughed and cried for their own reasons came running toward Ishara.

“Thank you! Thank you so very much!”

“Ha ha. It is truly a blessing to be in the same class as a young lady like you.”

“Thanks to you, I made it through safely! I will buy you a drink later!”

Some grabbed her hand and wept openly, some showered her with kind words, and some laughed while ruffling her hair.

Their expressions varied, but one thing remained the same: all of it was goodwill directed toward Ishara.

“Ahaha... but Isran did all the cool parts....”

“We cannot touch the fairy gentleman, can we?”

“You can touch the sword, though?”

[?]

Then, without warning, she held out the sword I resided in toward the others, her eyes sparkling far more brightly than necessary.

At the sight of her asking them to pet the sword instead of herself, the people who had briefly looked baffled started laughing one by one.

“Mister! Thanks to you, I got through the test safely!”

“Thank you very much for stepping forward for our sake.”

“What a shame. I really should have found some way to choose you, ha ha!”

Choose me? Keep dreaming.

I had only ever intended to be chosen by Ishara, and no one else.

[I was trying to get you some attention. If you do this, will their focus not just end up on me?]

“But it is true that Isran did it.”

Ishara said that as she hugged the sword tightly to her chest.

“I like Isran so much, so I want other people to like Isran too.”

Honestly, how had she come to like me this much after only knowing me for a few days?

I was used to her, but she should not have been used to me at all.

The feeling of having the one-sided goodwill I had once sent past the screen returned to me in this world was...strange, and yet...

[Yeah. Thank you.]

It was not bad at all.

[Get ready. It is our turn now.]

“Okay!”

Time passed, and the final turn approached.

It was our turn to form a team, but at this point the members were practically already decided.

There were only three people left, after all.

[Dominic.]

“Mm. An excellent choice.”

Dominic nodded readily, as though he had been waiting for that.

And then there was one more person left.

I flew over to Persica, who was glancing this way from the corner like a complete loner.

[Persica.]

“I-I can do it alone.”

Must be adolescence. She was putting up that pointless pride of hers.

She might act as if she did not want to, but I already knew she wanted to team up with Ishara.

I had seen her sneaking glances this whole time.

‘She will not be able to refuse.’

Just as Ishara had used Persica as teaching material, if they formed a party, Persica would be able to apprentice herself directly by watching Ishara fight.

And was that all? I would even advise her personally.

She seemed like the type with a strong desire to grow, so with that much on offer, there was no way she could turn it down.

[You are going to do it anyway, so stop playing hard to get.]

“What!? Hey!!”

I ignored Persica’s shriek.

She started ranting like some old fossil, saying things like, “Do you even know who I am,” but I was a fairy, so that kind of thing did not work on me.

As Persica shouted, Ishara ran over and took her hand.

“Let us do it together, Persica. Okay?”

“Ugh....”

Persica averted her eyes from Ishara’s glittering gaze.

“...Just this once.”

“Thank you! I am looking forward to it!”

“Hmph....”

Of course, at that pitiful scene, Dominic, who had folded his arms, added in an austere and solemn tone, “If you were going to do it anyway, why put on such an act of pride?”

“I-It is not like that!”

Anyway, while the three of them were exchanging greetings, I greeted their fairies as well.

Since we were colleagues, in a sense(?), it felt like we ought to at least introduce ourselves.

[Hello. I am Isran.]

[I-I-I am Cecil! It is an honor to be working with you. I may be lacking, but I humbly ask for your guidance...!]

[If you ask who I am, I am Dolke.]

[?]

Persica’s owner was strange, and now Dominic’s fairy was strange too?

Well, it did not really matter since they did not affect the battle.

[Dominic will take the front line, and Ishara and Persica will handle the offense.]

“Is that formation not too simple?”

[He is not an enemy strong enough to justify anything more complicated.]

Persica’s objection was not unreasonable, but the golem was not that difficult an opponent.

If they made the roles too complicated when they had never even fought together before, they would only trip over each other.

After finishing our short meeting, the three of us stood before the golem.

Perhaps because it was such a rare spectacle, the area was already packed with people swallowing dryly as they watched.

—You who challenge the test.

“Hello!”

—What power do you desire?

The golem lightly ignored Ishara’s greeting and went straight to the point.

Naturally, Ishara, the very incarnation of positivity, was not hurt in the slightest.

“I will choose Magic Power.”

“So will I.”

Persica and Dominic chose Magic Power, which they already knew how to use.

They clearly expected us to choose Magic Power too, but not this time.

“Then I will choose Divinity.”

—I understand.

The light in the golem’s eyes flashed, and a golden radiance seeped into Ishara.

Apparently no one had expected us to choose Divinity, because voices of surprise rose from every direction.

“Divinity? I thought she would obviously choose Magic Power.”

“She could even use Sword Aura, so why would she suddenly choose Divinity?”

“She is taking the difficult road....”

Most of the voices were filled with a mixture of doubt and concern.

Even though Divinity had a higher ceiling than Magic Power, it was difficult to use and had many complications when it came to development.

It was unpopular for that very reason, and only twenty percent of the examinees had chosen Divinity in the test.

‘Though that is still nothing compared to Mysticism.’

For reference, the other eighty percent had all chosen Magic Power, and not a single person had chosen Mysticism.

That was what it meant to be a minority among minorities.

“You can even use Sword Aura, so why did you choose Divinity?”

Persica voiced her doubts as well.

[Because I told her to.]

“What...?”

Persica would not understand, but this was the right choice here.

Mysticism could be unlocked later anyway.

Right now, this was the moment when we needed Divinity’s natural recovery to endure a long series of attempts.

[Before we begin, promise me that you will stay with us to the very end. If you do, then I will promise you a reward greater than merely passing.]

“What does that even—”

“I agree.”

As expected of the old man. I liked how decisive he was.

Ishara had already planned to do it, so the only one left was Persica.

“Seriously... I am not the kind of person who gets dragged around like this.”

From what I could see, you absolutely were that kind of person by nature.

In any case, now that Persica had accepted too, the preparations were complete.

When I nodded, the golem bestowed Traits upon the three of them.

—I shall grant the power of Traits unto you.

The golem’s eyes shone, and blue radiance seeped into Dominic and Persica, while golden light seeped into Ishara.

Unlike the other two, who were already familiar with it, Ishara widened her eyes as if startled by the appearance of a power she had never had before.

“Wow... it feels like I have put on another layer of clothes. It is warm.”

In fact, her complexion looked better than before.

That was because Divinity enhanced natural recovery... and yet she described it as putting on another layer of clothing.

Her sensibilities were truly impossible to predict.

—I shall give you ten minutes.

Those ten minutes were the time granted to manifest the Trait they had received.

Once ten minutes passed, the golem’s sure-kill punch would come flying whether they had manifested the Trait or not.

“It does not look like she has ever handled Divinity before. Will this really work?”

“Even if she has accomplished everything else so far, using an unfamiliar Trait right away will not be easy....”

Maybe they had grown attached to us already, because concern was written all over their faces.

We were the ones taking the test, yet somehow they were the ones sweating harder over it, which was rather funny.

That was simply how difficult it was to use a Trait you had never used before.

When Ishara had first unlocked Magic Power, she had said it felt as though she had suddenly grown an extra set of arms and legs, so it was not hard to understand.

But did those people know?

The moment Ishara first accepted that unfamiliar power of Magic Power, she had immediately used it.

“Hm... I see. So this is how you use it, right?”

Fwoooosh!

Before even a full minute had passed, a bright haze flared up from Ishara’s entire body.

This time, I did not even need to teach her anything.

Maybe because she had already used the power called Magic Power before, she handled Divinity smoothly on her own.

“She used it right away! It did not even take a minute!”

“Do not tell me she already knew how to use Divinity...?”

“As if! If that were the case, some of the examinees would have sensed it already!”

Cheers laced with shock burst out from all sides.

They worried, then cheered, then worried again. It felt just like the old man in the hospital room next door watching the KBO.

Leaving behind the people who were more or less shouting that they had believed in us all along, I looked over at Dominic and Persica.

‘These two are not surprised.’

Dominic simply nodded, while Persica merely snorted as if this had been obvious.

Dominic was one thing, but for even that ill-mannered brat Persica to acknowledge it?

Maybe there really was something different about having experienced getting thoroughly crushed firsthand.

—I shall begin the test.

After confirming the manifestation of all three Traits, the golem raised its fist.

“Hup!”

Dominic dashed forward, drew back his knuckle-clad fist with all his strength, and struck directly against the golem’s incoming punch.

I seemed to recall him knocking it away originally, but perhaps because the difficulty had increased, his body slid backward in the stance he had used to block it.

[That old man is basically already complete just as he is.]

Dominic had not gone through the Selection Grounds, but he had trained steadily and had already mastered a martial art of his own.

He had his own style, so there was no need for me to teach him anything, and his skill was far from poor.

Having a teammate who could perform well on his own was incredibly convenient.

Boom!!

While Dominic held back the golem in an absurdly rough-and-ready way, Persica raised her sword next.

But compared to Dominic, her way of slipping into the opening was terribly clumsy.

It was embarrassing even to compare her with Ishara.

Anyone could see that she was not used to team play at all.

[Miss Self-Proclaimed Genius Persica. You are the worst one here.]

“Shut up! I have never done cooperative combat before!”

[This is why loners are hopeless.]

It stood out plainly how she had trained alone all this time.

Her technique was fairly good, but even that was still unripe, and as for team play, this was her first time altogether.

[This will not do. Ishara, keep an eye on her for a moment. I am going to help.]

“Okay!”

I had originally intended to guide her only through instructions, but there was no helping it.

I moved and stood in front of Persica.

[Just this once. Watch what I do carefully and follow me.]

“....”

Persica’s eyes trembled.

She understood, did she not? This was the heavenly secret that had raised Ishara.

The moment the golem, having shoved Dominic back, showed a brief opening, Persica and I shot forward together.

[Take a wider stride. Hold the sword lightly. Do not thrust recklessly.]

Just as I had done when teaching Ishara, I demonstrated the optimal movements in front of Persica.

She looked half doubtful, as if it felt strange to be taught by another person’s fairy, but she still followed my motions without complaint.

[Keep your steps light. Always move so you can break off your action at any time. At the same time, aim for the exact right moment.]

Persica’s Flash Lightning Thunder Sword was a technique with tremendous power, but heavy after-delay.

To use it properly, she had to cut off the motion with her footwork after thrusting.

And she had been throwing it out far too carelessly. This was a technique that had to be thrust properly, with the timing measured precisely. That was how you triggered the critical hit and dealt real damage.

[Now!]

Persica, who had been stepping along in time with me, thrust out her sword the moment the command fell.

Unlike her earlier attempts, which had been obviously clumsy, this strike was precise, as though it had been pulled straight into the target.

The instant the sharp tip of her rapier pierced the golem—KAAANG—!

“...!”

A pale flash, unique to Magic Power, blazed brilliantly, and the golem’s massive arm was driven back, scattering fragments of stone.

It was an unbelievable level of force for something delivered by such a slender rapier.

That meant the distinctive critical effect of Flash Lightning Thunder Sword had triggered perfectly.

[Not bad.]