Academy’s Weapon Replicator

Odyssey

The air in the room changed.

Prisoners who had collapsed en masse, and those kneeling in between.

The gaze of everyone looking at me changed.

“Gasp, gasp…”

Those who had been subjected to Ecclesis, even if they hadn’t fainted, were still not free from fear, some of them breathing heavily.

Irregular inhalations and exhalations, with hiccup-like sounds of blocked breathing as if their muscles were convulsing.

I wondered if I had gone too far, but they were prisoners. There was no need to treat them like ordinary people. After all, they were the ones who attacked first.

I decided to understand Esther’s strict gaze and treat the prisoners as she did.

“Alright, those who haven’t fainted, stand up. You’ve passed the first test.”

At my words, the prisoners hesitantly stood up.

The confident momentum from earlier had completely dissipated, and they retreated while watching each other cautiously.

“What, don’t you want to leave?”

Even a light provocation elicited no response.

It seemed that considerable fear had been instilled.

But this was unavoidable.

‘What you have to fight in the future are the monsters outside. If you collapse in fear at this level, you’ll be useless. Besides, these guys are prisoners, not soldiers. If they see even a slight gap, they’ll try to escape at any time.’

Anyway, my goal is not to rehabilitate these guys. I just need ‘fairness’ in the process of bringing Cora.

If it doesn’t work out, I’ll just eliminate them all.

Thud.

“Oh.”

At that moment, one of the prisoners stepped forward.

“W-what’s the next test?”

Although still scared, he seemed determined.

I pointed to one side of the wall with my finger.

“Do you see the weapons lined up at the back? You can pick whichever one you like. I guarantee the quality.”

At my words, the prisoners finally noticed the weapons mounted on the wall.

There were enough types and numbers of weapons. Everyone naturally picked up familiar weapons.

The air changed once more.

The guards of Obsidian naturally tensed up. Even though they had heard the story through Esther in advance, many of the guards would not be convinced.

No matter how much they were handcuffed, prisoners with weapons were dangerous.

Handcuffs are not omnipotent. They prevent the use of physical strength, but in other words, they do not block physical strength.

“From now on, we’ll fight one by one. Ah, don’t worry. You won’t faint or collapse like just now.”

I didn’t mention Eclexis.

But anyway, no one here knows about the existence of Eclexis.

Maybe only Renzo knows. But I don’t think he would brag about it to those who aren’t interested.

I drew out Neil Jacques’ short sword.

As long as I am hiding that I am a Frondier, I cannot use any other weapons. Whether it’s weaving or the black sky.

For the time being, I decided to use only this short sword.

The weapon the first prisoner held was a sword. It was a bit longer than my short sword, but it was enough to hold with one hand.

As he touched the sword, I spoke.

“Fighting one by one, we are handcuffed.”

“Ah, that.”

Clink.

There was a sound from the handcuffs of the prisoner who stood in front of me.

The handcuffs were not released, but he would probably know.

Now he can use mana and aura.

“I’ll release it for 5 minutes. So those 5 minutes are the test time.”

“……”

“What are you doing? If you stay still, your precious test time will fly away. 5 minutes is not long.”

“You’ll regret it!”

There was a nostalgic feeling in the appearance of the shouting prisoner.

Since falling into this world, almost every day, I have repeated this ‘duel’ format.

With Azje and the disciples, with the students.

Others might be able to create better tests, but this is what I do best.

‘The opponents are the most dangerous criminals on the continent.’

On the other hand, I have sealed all my main weapons.

So don’t let your guard down.

Tap!

One step forward, the next step accelerated. The shoulder is pulled, and the muscles expand.

‘Next.’

The tip of the sword pierced the air, aiming at my face. In an instant, the aura gathered, the air trembling.

Tak!

“Huh…?”

Immediately, the man dropped his sword.

He looked at his swollen wrist.

His eyes widened, and his enlarged pupils followed the pommel of the short sword.

Swoosh—!

He barely ducked to avoid my sword slicing horizontally.

‘His reactions are dull.’

Is the sense of Eclectics still lingering? His movements are not as quick as I thought.

“Is it over once you dodge?”

“…!”

Thud!

The prisoner, who had come to his senses at my words, rolled his body. Thanks to that, he avoided the downward strike.

‘Oh no, without realizing it.’

I spoke to the prisoners as if they were students. It was presumptuous of me.

“Sorry. That was a slip of the tongue. Forget it.”

“…”

The prisoner, without answering, looked at me in surprise.

“…What are the conditions to pass this test?”

He asked a strange question.

I laughed.

“What if the condition is to defeat me?”

The prisoner rolled his eyes a few times at those words.

“I will give up.”

He said in a clear tone.

The other prisoners watching him shouted.

“What nonsense are you talking about, Moretti! Stab that b*stard in the face!”

“Why are you suddenly acting like a fool!”

“Kill him! Kill him!!”

The voice was not from the prisoners who had come down, but from the prisoners watching from above.

Those who have not yet tasted Eclectics.

I was a little dumbfounded.

‘Those guys don’t even have the guts to go out and catch the monsters outside, yet their voices are annoyingly loud.’

In the first place, not coming down here means they don’t intend to participate in this operation.

“Shut up, you b*stards! Why don’t you try facing them!”

The prisoner I was fighting couldn’t stand the jeers from around and was shouting anywhere.

I asked him at that sight.

“Is your name Moretti?”

“…Yes.”

“There’s still time. Why don’t you try a bit more?”

“…It’s a waste of time. I can’t win anyway.”

“Still.”

I calmed my eyes.

Swirling, I spun the small sword once and pulled it into my arms.

“How about giving it a try?”

“…!”

Moretti took a deep breath, seemingly understanding my meaning.

He took his stance again and observed my demeanor with more cautious eyes.

‘Not bad.’

If the first test participant is at this level, this excuse made to bring Cora might not just end as an excuse.

* * *

But the first spark was a dog’s spark.

“Alright, that’s it.”

I caught my slightly quickened breath and said.

I checked all the humans who participated in the test.

But unfortunately, there was no one useful after Moretti.

‘They said they were the worst criminals of the empire.’

Being inside Obsidian should mean that.

In other words, I thought it meant there would be plenty of guys close to Renzo’s level, if not Renzo himself.

Unable to use either the Black Heaven or the Weaving, I had no idea what would happen if I faced those guys. I had prepared myself for that.

Feeling tense seemed foolish.

“Well, is there no one else?”

I asked again.

Anyway, the plan was proceeding as expected.

Now, if Cora comes out here, takes the test, and passes, she can legally leave this place.

But.

“Oh, then, can I give it a try?”

The one who came out was not Cora.

It wasn’t Renzo either.

Quietly hidden among the prisoners, the one who spoke slowly made their way to the center where I was.

It’s a familiar face.

But what should I say?

I didn’t know what expression to make at the face I hadn’t seen in such a long time.

So I just smiled.

“Hey, hello.”

“Yes, hello. I’m Kraken.”

Kraken.

A former member of Indus and a monster.

He helped Renzo escape and was the one who troubled me the most in Indus.

Originally, he had three lives, but I took one, and he used another to save Renzo. So now he has one life left.

I heard he was captured by Esther and imprisoned here in Obsidian.

…It was such an old story that I had forgotten.

“I want to do it too. That monster subjugation thing.”

“……”

I roughly understood the meaningful smile Kraken made as he spoke.

‘You’ve noticed, haven’t you, this guy.’

He realized that I am Frondier.

He must have been unsure from the first time he saw me. He hadn’t come out until now because he needed confirmation.

‘A monster wants to help subjugate monsters.’

At first glance, it sounds absurd, but if it’s Kraken who said it, there’s a strange persuasiveness to it.

This guy genuinely considered the members within Indus as comrades. Unfortunately, it seems the other people in Indus couldn’t fully trust Kraken.

The organization called Indus didn’t leave me with good memories, but Kraken’s affection towards humans is real. I don’t know why a monster wants to befriend humans.

‘Kraken is closer to the abyssal monsters than the outer ones. In terms of intelligence, there’s no difference from humans, and in some aspects, it’s superior.’

This guy definitely has the power to help subdue monsters.

If he really intends to, that is.

‘Well, either way, I have no reason to refuse right now.’

The reason he keeps quiet about my identity is obvious.

It’s an appeal to let him participate in this plan.

‘Come to think of it, I’ve never fought Kraken seriously.’

It was Esther who restrained Kraken, not me. I’ve clashed with Kraken a few times, but never had a proper fight.

“Alright.”

I drew my sword.

“Shall we test it? Weapons?”

“Not necessary.”

Clank.

At that moment, Kraken’s aura was released.

“…Hoohoo. This feeling, it’s been a while. I feel liberated.”

“Yeah. That’s─”

Swoosh!

Clang!

“─fortunate, I guess.”

I blocked his tentacles and continued speaking.

Kraken takes a human form, but any part can turn into tentacles to stab the opponent. And unless you use aura or magic, you can’t block or cut those tentacles.

In other words, without both aura and magic, Kraken can deflect all attacks while his own attacks hit the opponent directly, making it a one-sided ravaging.

He’s truly a hellish existence for ordinary people.

He’d certainly be useful as an ally, though.

‘But to use tentacles so casually in a place like this. The prisoners of Obsidian already know Kraken’s true identity.’

A monster is rampaging, yet no one is surprised.

Could Obsidian be the ideal world where there’s no discrimination between monsters and humans?

The Kraken looked at me with shining eyes.

“Wow, you blocked a surprise attack so easily?”

“Because it was a simple attack.”

“Hehehe.”

“Hahaha.”

The Kraken and I laughed together.

Swish, swish, swish!!

And then, tentacles flew at me in succession. They were like blades pouring down almost simultaneously. While blocking one, I would be stabbed by another.

However.

Slash─!

In the moment the tentacles aimed at the small target that was me, they gathered together, so even if I couldn’t block them all, I could cut them down at once.

“Wow, you handled this easily too. I’m surprised.”

“Why are you surprised? It was to be expected.”

I smiled warmly.

“Have we met somewhere before?”

“──No way.”

The Kraken extended both hands.

Pababat!

The ten fingers turned into the blades of tentacles, and as if branches grew from the stems, more blades grew and rushed at me.

It was like dozens of wild dogs with only teeth left were attacking.

‘…Well, I expected this, of course.’

Test or not, it was just trying to kill me.

Confirming that was enough.

After all, the opponent knew my true identity.

Even if I couldn’t show everything, there were many ways to make it come to its senses.

Neil Zack’s short sword

Imbue

Mana of the Nine Worlds

I grabbed the end of the short sword’s hilt and threw it.

The blade of the short sword, imbued with mana, turned black.

Puh-buh-buh-buh-buck!

After smashing all the incoming tentacle blades.

Thwack!

“Ugh?!”

It struck Kraken’s shoulder.

“Kraken.”

I slowly walked towards Kraken, who was holding the small sword embedded in his shoulder.

He tried to pull it out with force, but it didn’t seem to work well.

Of course, it wouldn’t.

It’s not something you can handle with your strength.

“Don’t overdo it.”

Kraken finally wiped the smile off his face and glared at me.

Yes.

You can’t hide that emotion from me.

The emotion of ‘anger.’

You’re different from me, Kraken.

You can’t take the smile away from me.

“With only one life.”