Chapter 2 of the Weapon Replicator at the Academy

Chapter 1: Slothful Human Frondier (1)

The next day.

During class, a small commotion broke out.

"Look, look at that..."

"It's unbelievable..."

Everyone looked at each other with disbelieving faces and eyes, whispering and glancing at me.

"Frondier de Roah..."

Wake up!

"..."

It seems like all the students' eyes are saying the same thing.

Have you really never opened your eyes during class, Frondier? That's quite something in itself.

"Well, then, let's move on to the next slide..."

The teacher also looks quite flustered by the fact that I'm awake.

But there's no choice. I have my father's orders.

If I don't rank in the top 10 overall at Constel, I'll be expelled.

Constel is the school I'm attending now... the same academy... the same school.

In short, it's an educational institution.

While other schools generally focus on building knowledge and culture, Constel also includes combat training to fight against monsters. Therefore, it's very intense and difficult.

Not only do you need to excel in studies, but also as a combatant.

To achieve both of these excellently, you need to rank in the top 10 overall.

For Frondier, this is an impossible task.

Come to think of it, when playing the game, Frondier would sometimes disappear without anyone noticing. I thought he was just forgotten, but it turns out he was expelled.

Did he know he would be expelled and still stay? Did he think he wouldn't really be expelled?

The overall score is a combination of written and practical tests.

With this body, which has no divine power or proper magic, I need to get the highest possible score in the written test. That's why it's natural for me to focus on the class.

Of course, the ultimate goal is to clear the game, but the position of the Roah family is important, so being expelled is a problem.

The title of a noble from a prestigious family is one of the few advantages Frondier has.

Without this, clearing the game as Frondier would be even more impossible.

'Let's put that aside.'

I'm sleepy.

Just like Frondier's habits and poor physical condition, a hard-to-shake sleepiness is overwhelming me. I always end up sleeping at this time.

Suddenly focusing on the class is no easy task. I can't understand anything written on the blackboard.

In this situation, I'm not much different from Frondier, who always sleeps in class, as I'm only familiar with the game.

'...Let's try.'

I remembered Frondier's skill.

Weaving.

I don't know if this will work.

I tried to use Weaving on what the teacher wrote on the blackboard.

The content of the writing on the blackboard came into my mind clearly.

Even if I don't understand the content, it's stored in my mind like a photograph.

'This is quite useful.'

I also stored the content of the book in the storage.

I stopped taking notes. There's no need to. Instead, I focused on the teacher's explanation.

The content on the blackboard is stored automatically, and I can review it anytime.

When I stopped taking notes, the strange looks from around me decreased a bit.

They seem to think I stopped taking notes because I was bothered.

Even the teacher seemed to calm down, with a face that says, "That's what I thought."

Why is that?

* * *

Even if I pour time and effort into taking notes, the problem is the practical test.

For Frondier, who has no divine power or decent skills or magic, the wall of the practical test is too high.

The only thing I can rely on is Weaving, but what can I do with it?

'A copy that can't be seen and can't interfere with reality.'

The main reason for Frondier's laziness is likely due to this skill. He probably tried all sorts of things with this skill and then gave up, finding no use for it.

The situation is desperate.

"..."

While pondering about Weaving, I was walking down the corridor.

A woman was approaching from the other side.

The sound of leaves brushing against the window.

Sunset-colored hair, large eyes, and eyes like a lake.

With every step she took, the atmosphere she exuded colored the entire scene.

Without even a glance in my direction, she slowly approached.

──I immediately knew who she was.

It's hard not to recognize her beautiful appearance.

Elodie.

Elodie de Inies Risha.

The child loved by the five gods is standing right in front of me.

Elodie is a character in the Etius game who is all about talent.

The phrase "loved by the five gods" alone can describe her overpowered nature.

The only regret is that she doesn't become the protagonist's companion.

No matter how many times the protagonist offers to be her companion, she always refuses, and the reason is never revealed.

Still, as a key figure in the army later on, she is a reliable ally.

In the diverse cast of Etius, she is one of the few named characters who can give the player a sense of security.

...But that's the story when I'm the protagonist.

I am Frondier.

I don't know Elodie, and even if I did, I wouldn't get a good word from her.

Many students dislike Frondier. His grades are terrible, and his behavior is negligent.

Just a lazy good-for-nothing who uses the name of a prestigious family as a shield. That's Frondier's reputation, and it's true.

In contrast, Elodie is a model of diligence and propriety, a role model for other students. From her perspective, I must be the epitome of disgust.

...So, since I'm not the protagonist, I'll just let her pass.

"Frondier."

I tried to let her pass, but she stopped me.

I looked at Elodie.

Elodie's eyes, filled with anger, were directed at me.

"Got nothing to say to me?"

I do.

You know?

I couldn't say it and just looked at her, and I heard the sound of her grinding her teeth.

"...What kind of feelings do you have for me..."

Just as Elodie was muttering something,

Something flew in from the window on her right side.

A baseball, heading straight for us—

Without thinking, I moved my hand. It was almost simultaneous with the woman's movement.

Clang!

The baseball shattered the glass. Glass shards and the ball were falling, and I—

Frondier's Unique Skill

Weaving (織造)

Storage 3rd Edition

Level - Common

Iron Shield

I wove the shield that the previous Frondier had stored and extended it forward.

Only then did I realize.

'Ah, stupid.'

This is a game, so it won't do any good to block it,

Whoosh—

Just as I thought that, the baseball and glass shards were instantly engulfed in flames.

They lost their momentum and fluttered like petals.

'Wow...'

This wasn't something I did.

Elodie's right hand was extended toward the glass shards, and her eyes and hair had turned red. She had burned everything in an instant.

The glass shards and baseball, now on fire, lost their momentum and fell.

Just as some glass shards were about to stick to or graze my clothes,

Clang!

"Huh?"

"...What?"

The woman and I both voiced our confusion.

The baseball and glass shards bounced off in mid-air.

My hand and her entire body were unharmed, and the glass shards missed us.

'It didn't just bounce off in mid-air. My shield... '

The shield blocked the glass and the baseball. My shield, which should be an illusion, clearly did.

"...Well, thanks, Frondier. I don't know how you did it... "

Elodie didn't understand.

Of course, she couldn't see my shield.

But she is very sincere to thank me.

"But what! You saw it, right? Even if you hadn't blocked it, my flames—"

She continued to talk, but my attention was elsewhere.

"...Are you listening? It's a bit embarrassing."

I thought about the situation again.

My shield clearly blocked the glass and the baseball.

"Hey, can you just say something?"

In other words, Weaving is not just an illusion. Under certain conditions, it can interfere with reality.

I don't know what those conditions are, but the fact that it can interfere is significant.

"Hey, you don't have to ignore me that much!"

I felt a small shiver.

I clenched my fist and took a step forward in the corridor.

It felt like I had found a faint glimmer of hope in this hopeless game.

The sunlight briefly and beautifully touched my face.

"Hey!!!"

* * *

"Ouch."

I was hit in the head with a baseball again. I picked up the ball that had rolled to the side after hitting my head and rubbed my head.

"I thought it would work."

I'm currently testing Weaving with various things.

The thing that blocked the shards was definitely the shield I wove.

At that moment, I thought,

Could this skill turn into something real when the user is in danger?

To confirm this, I replicated a shield and threw a baseball. I aimed the shield upward as the baseball was falling toward my head.

...But it didn't work.

The baseball passed through the shield and hit my head.

Well, if it were that convenient, I would have cleared the game long ago.

"How can I make it work in reality?"

The fact that it blocked the glass shards is real.

All these situations are proof that my Weaving appeared in reality.

But I don't know how.

"Ugh, I'm tired."

I leaned back in the chair, feeling drained.

It's not just a matter of mood; my body is really tired.

Maybe it's the backlash from using Weaving too much.

"But if it doesn't appear in reality, why does it make me tired?"

While muttering to myself,

...Why is that?

Why am I tired?

What is this strange sense of fatigue?

These questions came to mind one after another.

I sat up.

"...Is it mana?"

The game Etius, which has skills and magic, naturally has mana.

Of course, I, as Frondier, should have it too.

However, since I'm not a human from this world, I don't know the sensation of mana.

But if my fatigue is due to mana,

Weaving is a skill that uses mana.

In other words, it's close to magic.

'Recall your memories. What was mana in Etius? What was the concept of magic?'

Magic in Etius is not a material concept.

It's a phenomenon.

Whether it's shooting fire, throwing ice spears, or building earth walls, none of these can persist in reality.

They disappear when the caster cancels the spell or when the mana is exhausted.

A naturally occurring forest fire will continue to burn until it is extinguished or there's nothing left to burn, but the flames created by a mage will disappear when the mana is exhausted, even if the fire spreads.

So when I learned that Frondier's Weaving couldn't affect reality, I was disappointed but understood.

Magic may seem omnipotent, but it has clear limits.

You can burn, freeze, and destroy, but you can't create something out of nothing.

Even if it's a copy.

'I need to change my thinking. The idea of creating something in an empty space is wrong. It's impossible. I can't create a shield.'

What I need is not a material.

It's a phenomenon.

Just like a mage creates the phenomenon of "burning" when they start a fire.

For a sword, it's the phenomenon of "cutting."

For a shield, it's the phenomenon of "blocking."

I threw the baseball up.

At the moment it was about to fall on my head,

Frondier's Unique Skill

Weaving (織造)

Storage 3rd Edition

Level - Common

Iron Shield

I'm not creating the shield itself.

I'm creating the phenomenon of "blocking an attack with a shield."

For just a moment.

Clang!

The sound was light, and the baseball was deflected by the shield and fell.

"...It worked."

For that moment of blocking, it appeared in reality.

Even if it was just for a moment, it was reality.

I shivered with a small sense of awe.