[Main Quest ‘Raid’ completed.]
– No named character losses.
Finally, the main quest was completed.
I checked my smartwatch in my room and clenched my fists in excitement.
It might seem strange to others, but having no named character losses was worth celebrating.
As a player, that is, as Aster, it was something I had failed to achieve several times before.
Moreover, the casualty rate among civilians this time was lower than in any of my previous plays, so it was natural for me to be this happy.
[Check Quest Reward]
[The quest reward varies depending on the number of named characters lost.]
[Top grade reward confirmed. The reward is adjusted to your current character’s level and provided accordingly.]
Even while playing as Aster, the game Etius allows Aster to grow in various directions.
Players experience unexpected events activating, and even if they know how to handle them, the responses are never exactly the same. Add to this the players’ individual preferences, and even the same character, Aster, grows to possess entirely different strengths.
Therefore, rewards are always given that suit the character.
“So, what’s the highest-grade reward that suits me right now?”
Not just any reward, but the highest-grade reward from Frondier.
I’ve grown stronger, and I have a unique-grade skill called Weaving, so they shouldn’t give me anything strange.
[Skill, ‘Analysis’ Acquired]
[Analysis]
•Rank: Unique
•Description: Analyzes the target. Once the analysis is complete, all information about the target can be confirmed, and if necessary, mastered.
“……Huh?”
I gained a skill.
Reading the details, the skill’s name said it all.
…What do I use analysis for?
I was scratching my head. I had hoped for a skill that would be useful in combat or a spell effective against monsters.
Since ‘Weaving,’ why is it that everything I get from Frondier is like this?
“…No. It’s because of that Weaving that I’m still holding on.”
What I thought was a useless skill, Weaving, has become an indispensable core skill for me now.
This ‘Analysis’ must hold value as well. If used well. If I think hard enough.
…Analysis, huh.
“Should I analyze Weaving?”
A thought spoken out loud without much thought. But once I said it, it didn’t seem like a bad idea. I was always curious about the identity of Weaving. I hadn’t found much in the library either.
Whether it would work or not, I wouldn’t know until I tried.
Analysis
Target, skill ‘Weaving’
Analysis start
So, I tried using the analysis skill on Weaving as a test, but nothing seemed to change.
Just as I thought it wasn’t working, an idea struck me, and I checked my smartwatch.
[Analyzing skill ‘Weaving’. ……1% complete.]
“……It looks like it’ll take a while.
At this rate, it seems like it’ll be a few more days before it’s complete.
* * *
Then it was time once again to head to Constel Academy.
I was prepared.
The day I fought Elysia and Chimera, I had not gone to Constel in the morning.
That meant that some people, including the teachers, would know that I was not there at the time of the invasion.
It would probably be assumed that I, as a frail human, had run away out of fear or that I had somehow known about the monster invasion or that I was in cahoots with them.
I would have to endure these logical yet spiteful misunderstandings.
My mind was prepared as I steeled myself and opened the classroom door.
“…….”
“…….”
I definitely felt everyone’s eyes focused on me. It’s coming—the torrent of cutting jeers directed at me.
“…….”
“…….”
But the jeers never came.
The gazes directed at me were different from what I had expected. They were gazes of caution, suspicion, or perhaps even a little fear.
What? This is not what I had in mind.
“Frondier.”
Aten happened to approach me then. She whispered in an uncharacteristically hushed voice.
“Over here.”
“Ah, sure.”
I sat in my usual seat, and Aten sat down next to me. Her voice reached my ears with a distinctive tone.
It felt like a magical current. It seemed she had taken some measures to ensure that only I could hear her.
“About the invasion. Frondier, you weren’t there.”
“Yeah.”
Aten knew too, as expected. Then the others must know as well.
But why are they making those kinds of expressions?
“That’s why people think that, well, Frondier did it.”
“Did what?”
“Th-the ‘Fireworks.'”
“Fireworks?”
“The story is that Fireworks exploded over the fleeing monsters, and the monsters underneath were all killed.”
…Khryselakatos. And also Iokheira.
“Why do they think I did that?”
My older brother, Azier.
That’s strange. I am undoubtedly the proud human sloth Frondier.
How could I have done such a great thing?
“Well, you weren’t seen when we were fighting off the monsters, and also because of your training room record.”
“Oh.”
“Your 3.14-second record for ‘target practice’ in the private training room. The rumor is that it must’ve been due to firecrackers.”
… That’s good reasoning. And it’s true.
Constel students are too smart for their own good.
That’s why the clever ones…
Right then, the class bell rang. Our next class was Basic Combat Skills. I had to go to the gym.
“I’m going ahead. Pay Atention in class.”
“Oh, okay.”
Aten is a magician, and I’m a warrior.
Because of that, even though we were in the same grade, we often had different classes depending on the lecture.
After parting ways with Aten, I thought about it while walking.
What should I do? I need something to distract the students.
It can’t be good for my story to keep coming up among the Constel students.
I am Frondier, the human sloth. Maintaining this position forever…
Even after I got to the gym, I kept worrying about it. But I didn’t come up with any answers.
In the meantime, someone came in.
As soon as that happened, my worries became meaningless. The students who had been sneaking glances at me in the gym had their gazes fixed on the man who had come in as if they were glued to him.
── I had briefly forgotten what the first class was. No, I had forgotten what that class meant from now on.
“Nice to meet you.”
The man standing at the podium gave a very short greeting. He was a man to whom brevity suited him well.
“Due to extenuating circumstances, Teacher Alex won’t be at Constel from now on.”
That’s right.
Now that Alex, Elysia’s accomplice, had been expelled from Constel.
The Basic Combat Skills class was vacant.
And the man who had filled that vacancy was none other than.
“My name is Azier de Roach, and I’ll be your temporary teacher.”
It was my brother, Azier.