Even after a time that could not be called short, Fjodra’s mouth did not open.
Her face seemed full of many thoughts.
As if she bore a heavy responsibility.
That we too bore… no, were forced to bear something.
Thus she felt anxiety, yet she could not express dissatisfaction and had no choice but to swallow it.
And that she had been overlooking such a point all along.
‘…Could it be that she’s finally realized it?’
I hope that’s the case.
“Just in case, let me add that we are also doing our best in our own way. We are fully aware that we could die if we make a mistake. It’s not just Her Highness the Imperial Princess who is seriously contemplating with actual combat in mind. Therefore, I earnestly ask that you refrain from assuming we won’t cooperate and from pressuring us with an overbearing attitude.”
The person before me was a member of the imperial family.
So I temporarily set aside the mask of arrogance I always wore and put on the dignified attitude of a noble addressing a high-ranking person.
I bowed politely according to the etiquette I learned after possession.
“…I shall take it to heart.”
Rather than arguing, a positive answer came back.
Fjodra had understood my words.
So I could have ended the conversation here, but there was still one more issue to address, so I couldn’t.
“Since we’re on the subject, let me also mention that there is a reason Reysir did not reveal the existence of his silver Aether and its abilities.”
“Yes, that must be so.”
If you read it as text, you might misunderstand, but from the way Fjodra just nodded in response, I felt no sign of nitpicking.
She wasn’t being sarcastic either.
She accepted my words as they were, and looked at the original protagonist with a gaze that said she was ready to understand, so go ahead.
Perhaps she thought it best to hear directly from the person himself since he was present.
Or maybe it was an act reflecting the original author’s wish for her protagonist to say a few more lines and get more screen time.
Anyway, now I just needed to quietly watch the original protagonist and the supporting character talk.
But contrary to that thought…
“Karbaldr, can you explain instead?”
The protagonist of another novel dumped his job on me.
Is his antipathy toward Fjodra still not settled?
So he judged he couldn’t have a calm conversation with her?
Or is he displeased with this very situation of having to explain and make the First Imperial Princess understand, afraid that his voice might inadvertently grow thorns?
Either way, I had a feeling that the barely calmed situation would head straight back to a crisis.
I felt an indescribable sensation as if I had become Reysir’s spokesperson, but there was no helping it, so I decided to accept his request.
But I had to get the First Imperial Princess’s permission first.
“May I do that?”
“It’s fine.”
Fjodra answered quickly.
It seemed she too was uncomfortable talking with Reysir.
“For now, it’s only been temporarily controlled thanks to my buff skill. Reysir cannot control his silver Aether characteristic skill, which is why he had no choice but to go around with his eyes covered. His silver Aether is a latent power like my sky-blue Aether… but about ten years ago, an incident occurred where he had no choice but to forcibly squeeze out all his power. As a side effect, the already unstable silver Aether went out of control, leading to that.”
“……”
Regarding the incident where the Demonic Realm swallowed the Daudabiner Count’s territory, Fjodra could not add a word.
I could see her face rapidly coloring with guilt.
Still, I continued.
“If controlling the skill becomes impossible, normally one would try to overcome it through training. But Reysir couldn’t even do that.”
“Why is that? Professor Dyuf’s specialty may not be Aether, but he is knowledgeable and capable, so he should have been able to help to that extent… Or does it require expensive medicinal herbs to treat? If so, I can provide all the support.”
Though it was far too late and utterly insufficient as compensation, Fjodra spoke urgently as if asking to be allowed to repay her debt of conscience, even a little.
But no herbs were needed, and it was already resolved.
I shook my head and continued.
“Reysir’s Aether skill is to read information about a target. Although it can only be applied to inanimate objects or plants without ego, it is a very useful ability. Criminals involved in stolen goods trade, such as illegal auction houses or black markets, would be unable to resist coveting it.”
“……!!”
“If it were known that a child who lost his parents and lived in someone else’s house had such an ability, criminals would not stay still. They would surely kidnap him, lock him up, and use him.”
“That must be so…”
“So he decided to pretend that such a skill and the silver Aether didn’t exist at all. He had no choice but to cover his eyes, the medium for using the skill, and live giving up one field of vision.”
“O……”
Fjodra let out a sigh, completely absorbed in my story.
“Then suddenly, the Awakened Special Class was created, and if he received an order to report all his abilities in detail… who could honestly reveal everything? Isn’t it natural to feel fear as well as reluctance? Moreover, matters regarding Aether characteristic abilities are sensitive personal information that cannot be easily disclosed, aren’t they?”
“Th-that’s right…”
“Also, as I said earlier, Reysir’s skill can only read information about ‘things without ego.’ So he said that skill wouldn’t be helpful in fighting monsters, and I felt the same, so I thought there was no need to reveal it.”
“Indeed… the monsters of the Demonic Realm observed so far have been living creatures with ego, so that judgment makes sense.”
Perhaps because she had just been thoroughly scolded and had her old guilt dug up, Fjodra did not assert the arrogant logic that judgment was hers, but nodded in agreement with a subdued attitude close to dejection.
“The boss monster we just defeated was a special type, so the skill apparently applied, but it didn’t actually help at all. The decisive role was played by the skill he obtained today… so if you make an issue of him hiding his original silver Aether skill, it might raise suspicion that it wasn’t to grasp our abilities for everyone’s safety, but for some other purpose.”
“Set that suspicion aside. I have no intention of making an issue of it.”
Hearing ‘no intention’ made me think it should be ‘no longer has intention,’ but since she first expressed that she wouldn’t pick a fight, I decided to do the same.
“But… has Reysir told you everything about the ability he had been hiding and pretending didn’t exist, and the reasons why he had to do so?”
“Ah… yes… well, it just happened that way.”
“Just happened?”
“Yes, just happened.”
“…So, just happened?”
It seemed Fjodra was curious about how I came to know all these things.
Honestly, I thought,
‘Now of all times?’
“Are you curious? When I tried to explain earlier, you dismissed it by saying I wasn’t asking about that, so I thought you weren’t interested…”
For reference, the ‘earlier’ mentioned here is in Chapter 312.
“At that time, I prioritized other matters…”
“Ah, I see. But… hmm… it still doesn’t seem like something Her Highness the Imperial Princess would be interested in, so I’ll refrain from explaining.”
“You don’t need to be cautious in your speech.”
“No, I just don’t want to talk about it. Earlier, I was being interrogated, so I had no choice to speak. But am I obligated to report to Her Highness the Imperial Princess about who I talked to, where, and how it happened? This is a clear invasion of privacy.”
“Ugh… hearing that, you are right.”
Having already exchanged words about digging into Aether skills, she probably couldn’t trigger a privacy invasion issue.
So Fjodra backed down obediently.
“Senior, senior! I’m really curious!!”
However, a person whose job is privacy invasion raised one hand and even waved it around, not hiding her curiosity at all.
But that didn’t matter unless I spoke.
I ignored such Pret and looked back at Fjodra.
“Anyway, as a member of the Awakened Special Class, if we set out to conquer the Demonic Realm, I will cooperate as much as possible. So from now on, if a skill arises that requires information sharing, I will report it without concealment.”
“Meaning you won’t say anything if information sharing is not needed.”
“Is there a reason to disclose something that isn’t necessary? If there is, please explain in a way that convinces me.”
“…No, there is no reason. If there’s no need to disclose, then you don’t have to.”
Fjodra hesitated for a moment before answering, but that was it.
“However, sharing skills among ourselves is ultimately for survival through cooperation in the Demonic Realm, isn’t it? So…”
I paused and withdrew my gaze from Fjodra.
I had something I wanted to say to her, even though there was no guarantee it would be observed.
Since it wasn’t something I could say directly to an Imperial Princess’s face…
“Regardless of how close the person is, even if it’s family, don’t think about casually talking about someone else’s abilities. That destroys trust, and if you can’t trust each other, cooperation becomes impossible.”
I slowly scanned the others with this warning, then faced Fjodra again, hoping that if she had already reported the previously revealed skill information to the Emperor, she would stop doing so from today onward.
“Ah, since it would be good for Senior Risi to know about the buff skill I used today, I’ll explain again later when we’re all together.”
“You’ll be meeting Miss Risi soon anyway, so why bother…?”
Of course, there was a need.
If I immediately told Risi about the [Encouragement] skill, it would create an atmosphere where Reysir would also have to talk about the skill he gained today.
‘It might be a skill like [Jin-Ik-Nun] that shouldn’t be revealed straightforwardly.’
In Chapter 312, Reysir whispered in my ear,
‘I’ll tell you the details later when we’re alone.’
That must have been for that reason.
He wanted me to come up with a fake skill like [Identification] before telling everyone about it.
So I gave a reason to postpone the skill reveal.
“If we add talk about the skill Reysir gained today, time will be delayed, won’t it? And everyone is tired now… Besides, Hailga and I have a schedule.”
“What schedule do I have? And with the Young Lord…?”
Afraid of any strange misunderstanding, Hailga openly showed disgust.
I was about to flatly deny that I had any such thoughts about being alone with her, but I felt it was a waste of time, so I got straight to the point.
Thank for the new chapter!
Tyftc!