LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 12 - Is the penalty window talking? (2)
[Conversation is also possible through thoughts.]
‘You thought I’d say “I see”… you bastard.’
There’s no way polite words would come out from the start.
Suddenly appearing and making me terminally ill and setting ability limits.
‘Hey, what are you exactly?’
[……]
‘Answer.’
[Impossible.]
“Sigh…”
I can only sigh.
What’s the point of being able to talk if you won’t give me any of the answers I want?
‘Then what range of things can you tell me?’
[The range of expression is too broad.]
What am I supposed to do with that?
“Um… Lord Aaron?”
While distracted by the penalty window’s words, I had forgotten about the people here…
“Uh… Aaron?”
Ah.
“Aaron? Suddenly sighing like that, it’s hard to think it’s with good intentions?”
I had momentarily forgotten about the trio in front of me.
“Uh… no! I was just surprised to learn for the first time that my eyes are special…”
‘Penalty window, let’s have a proper chat later.’
[Confirmed.]
I learned that the penalty window can talk, but right now, these people in front of me come first.
—–
“So you’re saying that you saw a flow when Gwen used her aura, and when you imitated it with mana, the Cabala family’s characteristic appeared?”
“That’s exactly it!”
“Are you joking?”
Well, I wouldn’t believe it either if I were them.
“If you had used someone else’s characteristic, I might understand, but what you used was none other than a ducal family’s characteristic.”
A ducal family’s characteristics were unique, so saying, “I just saw it and imitated it,” is essentially nonsense.
But what can I do? It’s the truth.
“But what can I do? It’s the truth.”
“Well, I’ll believe it since the decree is properly in effect, but…”
My level is just 2 circles no matter how much I try to deceive.
It’s absolutely impossible to escape a ducal family’s decree at this level.
Aslan knows this too, so he must be confused.
“Aaron, let me confirm once more. You saw Gwen’s sword strike momentarily, and with that, you used the Cabala family’s characteristics. Is that correct?”
“Yes.”
“And you can still copy this flow now?”
“Yes.”
“I see.”
Aslan nods.
It seems the confirmation is over-
“Then let’s test it.”
“What?”
-Whoosh
Flames suddenly appear on Aslan’s arm.
“If it’s true that you captured the flow that passed in just one sword strike and imitated it, then you should be able to do the same after I show you for this long.”
“Uh…”
“I know the decree is strong, but it’s not absolute.”
-Whoosh
“I am Aslan Reinhardt. As a member of the Reinhardt ducal family and one of the five pillars of the Empire, I must judge your worth.”
-Swoosh
He extends his flame-covered arm towards me.
“Now, try to imitate it. That flow.”
A sudden test. But the reason is clear.
To verify me, who could potentially leak the ducal family’s unique characteristics.
“Aslan! What are you going to do if Aaron really imitates it!”
Ninian’s worried voice.
‘That’s true.’
If I were to imitate the Reinhardt family’s characteristics, he would also become a criminal who leaked information about his family.
That’s not a good situation for me either.
“That’s a meaningless worry. Do you think he, who imitated a characteristic from just one sword strike, couldn’t imitate my characteristic in 3 years of attending the academy? If he can imitate it, I’ll definitely make him my ally. If he can’t, we can just keep checking gradually.”
“That’s… true.”
-Whoosh
“Now, try to imitate that flow.”
-Swoosh
‘Isn’t this too much pressure…’
It’s more burdensome when you set the mood like this.
“Whew…”
This seems like a dangerous situation in many ways.
“I’ll try for now.”
With the mood set like this, what else can I do but try?
Even if I don’t want to, I’m moving forcibly thanks to the decree.
-Woong
I gather mana in my eyes to check Aslan’s arm.
“Oh.”
What the.
The flow I came to see.
Countless streams of aura flowing to the extent that counting them would be meaningless.
A flow where each thread, thinner than a hair and more complexly woven and unwoven than hair, changes moment by moment.
‘You want me to imitate that?’
No, did I really imitate something like that?
“Aaron?”
Aslan’s call with a sense of urging.
“Um…”
How should I say this?
“It seems… impossible?”
—–
-Whoosh
“You say the flow is too complex to imitate?”
“Yes.”
“This level of complexity is normal, Aaron.”
“I see.”
“Then how did you imitate Gwen’s flow?”
“I just did it somehow…”
-Whoosh!
Ah, Aslan seems angry.
The fire is getting bigger.
‘If that gets any bigger, it might burn the bed.’
-Clang
At that moment, a staff came down on Aslan’s head.
“Aslan, can you cool down. It’s getting hot in here.”
“I’m feeling it too…”
Considering that body reinforcement also increases heat resistance, if Arcana, who uses double body reinforcement, says it’s hot, it must be really hot.
As for me…
‘I can’t feel anything beyond my skin…’
It feels like my skin has already died.
Aslan extended his arm while saying cool things, but telling him to move his arm away just because it was hot would ruin the mood.
“I apologize for that.”
-Whoosh
Only then do the flames return into his arm.
The flow of aura changes moment by moment, becoming more consistent and easier to see.
“Hahaha, I seem to have gone too far.”
-Clang
Ice falls on Aslan’s head.
-Plop
Ice also gently falls on my and Arcana’s heads.
“Cool off with that for now.”
As expected of childhood friends.
She looks used to cleaning up after her friend who caused trouble.
-Sizzle
‘Ah, now I can breathe.’
The kind of sound when water drips onto a fire.
“For now, I’ll believe you today since you could only speak the truth under the family’s decree, Aaron.”
“Yes.”
“However, I haven’t completely erased my suspicions, so be careful in front of others as well.”
“I will.”
“It’s fortunate you only made a thin layer of frost because your mana quantity is so small. If you had made even a single piece of ice that anyone could see, it might have caused a meeting of the Empire’s five ducal families.”
“……”
“I’ve never seen all five ducal families gather, I almost saw something amazing!”
That’s not something to laugh about.
—–
After that, we spent time talking about various small things.
I wondered how to approach them, being from a ducal family and the Magic Tower Lord’s disciple. However, it seems we’ve developed quite a friendship through this incident.
“Well, we’ve finished asking everything anyway, so let’s go!”
Aslan slowly gets up from his seat.
“Aaron, there were many improprieties today. I’ll apologize on his behalf.”
“I’ll bow my head and-”
“Is a ducal family’s head supposed to be bowing? You need to learn how to do it moderately.”
‘…Is this really a ducal family member and the Magic Tower Lord’s disciple?’
I knew they were always bickering, but watching from the side, I saw they lacked gravitas.
It’s a conversation that makes even the tensest person relax.
“Then, I’ll be going too!”
Arcana bows her head in greeting.
“Goodbye.”
As expected, Arcana is the only normal one.
By the way, I’m included in the abnormal category.
How could I be normal when I’ve been marked by two ducal families?
And on the first day of admission at that.
‘I’m crazy.’
“Oh, right. Lord Aaron!”
“Yes?”
Arcana calls out to me as she’s leaving the infirmary.
“Could you help me later with that ability to read flows?”
“Ah, yes! Of course.”
Didn’t Arcana say earlier that her mana and aura were entangled?
I should take this opportunity to see how much I can be involved in Arcana’s growth.
Besides, it’s the kind Arcana, what could go wrong?
-Slurp
“Huh? What did you say?”
“Nothing? Anyway, I’ll see you later!”
-Screech
Everyone left the infirmary one by one.
“”……””
It feels a bit empty.
The space that was noisy until just now, for better or worse, suddenly becomes silent, and it feels like there’s a hole.
“Though it is comfortable.”
-Plop
I lie back down.
“Nice…”
Is it because it’s the academy’s infirmary bed?
It’s very soft.
“Oh right.”
‘Hey, it’s time to get up.’
[…Yawn.]
‘…?’
This guy, did you just wake up?
[What? Is it your first time seeing a penalty window sleep?]
Hasn’t your character changed a bit?
‘You seem… different?’
[It’s my first appearance, so I tried to set the mood.]
I see.
‘Mood is important.’
I admit that.
Just as I was about to start a conversation with the penalty window.
-Swoosh
“How long are you going to lie down? Aren’t you going to the dormitory?”
Oh right. The dormitory.
My mind, which had been blown away by getting involved with the ducal family due to Merlin’s meddling, finally returned to reality.
“I’m sorry!”
I quickly get up from the bed and start gathering my things-
‘My belongings, I left them on my desk in the classroom.’
I should go back to the classroom first.
-Tadadada
As I get up from the bed and try to leave the infirmary, I finally notice the state of my clothes.
I’m wearing a patient gown.
“Um… where are my clothes?”
“You mean those?”
My clothes hanging where Merlin pointed.
‘Huh.’
But why are they all washed?
To the extent that no blood stain can be seen.
‘Well… let’s think positively.’
Let’s think positively.
-Whoosh
“Take them with you.”
He moved them in front of me at once with magic.
“Thank you.”
Maybe it’s because of Merlin’s unique personality, but he’s not as bad as I thought.
“Goodbye.”
-Screech
And so Merlin is left alone in the infirmary.
-Snap
As she snaps her fingers
-Crack
Something breaks.
“Ill-mannered disciple. Come here for a moment.”
-Pop
Vivian suddenly appears in front of Merlin.
In her hand was a shirt soaked in blood.
“What?”
“Sigh…”
A sigh that means, “What on earth is this girl doing…”
“First, I’ll ask, why do you have that dirty shirt?”
“… Don’t call Aaron’s blood dirty.”
“Sigh…”
His disciple who suddenly appeared before that Aaron guy woke up.
“Master. Please make one shirt the same as this.”
“What?”
It was quite surprising that this girl, who wouldn’t mingle words unless she needed something, suddenly made a request.
“Please, I need it.”
She even grabbed his arm and said she was desperate.
So Merlin made a shirt of the same kind.
The shirt is nothing special, just a mass-produced item without any pattern that commoners might buy.
She hung that next to the other one, but she’s taking the blood-stained shirt for herself?
“Hehehe”
Hugging it and laughing like that because she likes it…
It has been years since he’s seen this girl laugh.
“So, how long will you keep observing that guy?”
However, he couldn’t understand his disciple’s behavior.
“I’m going to keep doing it.”
Usually, when she finds something interesting, she immediately starts experimenting, but why is she acting so carefully this time?
“Why don’t you just catch him and do what you always do?”
“No.”
-Squeeze
Vivian clutches the shirt she’s holding with all her might.
“My assistant… is different from those things.”
Not even caring that the blood on the shirt is staining her hair.
“He promised me. That he would always enjoy being together with me.”
She just hugged the shirt, smiling.
“This time, I’m going to approach him first.”
-Drip
Falling teardrops.
“So that he won’t suffer because of me anymore.”
Watching Vivian like this, Merlin felt.
“Sigh…”
That he had such a troublesome disciple.
‘Still, she’s better than Ninian, I guess.’
Ninian, who didn’t notice his disguise at all.
He decided to train that girl later.
‘To think she’d end up in the classroom that glutton from a hundred years ago was supposed to take.’
In many ways, it seems like it will be an interesting 3 years.