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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 21
Chapter Title: Agnes
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Agnes
Phase 2 Unlocked? I never created a setting like that.
"W-what in the world is this?"
Giranox's teeth chattered as he stared, terrified, at the glowing Agnes floating in mid-air.
I don't know either, you fool.
When the protagonist used Agnes, he just had to call its name through an incantation to complete the contract and use it right away. I have no idea why it's like this for me.
"Ah..."
As Agnes's light grew more brilliant, Giranox fell to his knees, about to prostrate himself before it.
Good thing we're in an alley. This would've caused an uproar on a main street.
[Phase 2 Unlocked.]
[Would you like to proceed with the Soul Contract with Agnes?]
"I accept the contract!"
The moment I shouted my acceptance, I felt something embed itself in my heart. Simultaneously, the glowing sword before me vanished, replaced by a small, transparent object floating in the air.
Is this transparent thing Agnes?
I was taken aback; it looked different from the Agnes I'd originally written into the story.
[What the hell!]
A very cute female voice was ringing not in my ears, but inside my head.
The voice is just as I'd set it—like a cute female voice actress.
Seeing Giranox's dazed expression, I figured Agnes's voice was audible only to me.
[I said, what the hell!]
"What about?"
[Who are you to have released me! A guy with not a speck of talent!]
"Ack!"
Ah, her personality is completely different from the novel. Is she acting like this because I have no talent with the sword?
In the novel, Agnes falls for the protagonist's talent and becomes an ardent fan who gives him everything.
She used honorifics and was practically a slave, willing to do anything for him. But with me, she starts off by picking a fight.
[Wow, I can't believe this! To be contracted to such an incompetent fool! I'm so pissed I could just die.]
"Calm down a little."
Hearing such words in a cute girl's voice felt strange.
[Calm down? *Calm down?* Just think about it! You wake up after hundreds of years, and they tell you to marry the ugliest woman in the world. Wouldn't you be pissed? You talentless hack!]
Agnes's voice grew louder, as if she were genuinely furious.
[And where did you learn my release incantation! How did you even find out about me? What the hell are you!]
Who else? I'm the novelist who created you.
"I heard it from a prophet."
[A prophet? No way! You mean the Great Prophet still exists?]
"Yes."
The Great Prophet was a setting I shoehorned in to maintain the novel's plausibility. The Great Prophet knows every secret, including the locations of all people and items.
You could think of it as a real-life search engine that knows everything.
[Damn it. Why of all people did the prophet tell a talentless guy like you about me?]
The reason Agnes dislikes me is obvious. Being an item from the novel, she can't recognize my martial arts or internal energy.
To Agnes, I must seem like a complete incompetent with no special traits whatsoever.
[Still...]
"Huh?"
[Your face is at least decent.]
"..."
Agnes's voice softened a little. I'd rather she acknowledged my talent. A sword judging someone's face is even more ridiculous.
Did she become a woman just because I set her voice to be female?
"Um, Lord Yuren?"
"Ah, sorry."
I must have neglected Giranox for too long while talking to Agnes. He was looking at me with frightened eyes.
"This one started talking to me."
"What? Don't tell me it has a will of its own?"
"Yes. Her name is Agnes."
"Agnes..."
As expected, it was an unfamiliar name; Giranox muttered it to himself.
[Don't just go around telling people a lady's name!]
"It's fine. He's one of mine."
[Hmph!]
Calling herself a lady and huffing like that... she's really no different from a woman.
Ah, right, there was something I needed to ask.
"Agnes, what's 'Phase 2 Unlocked'?"
[Oh, that. I had no idea either, it just popped into my head.]
Agnes suddenly became a bit kinder, as if she genuinely liked my face.
"It just popped into your head?"
[Yeah. It was information I never knew, but when you released me, it came to me as if I'd known it since birth.]
It seems to be the same method by which I learned martial arts—imprinted directly into my mind.
"So, what is this Phase 2?"
[Division.]
"Division?"
[Yes. I can only transform into one thing at a time. Huh? Wait, you know about my abilities too?]
Agnes suddenly posed a sharp question.
"The prophet told me."
I passed it off with the all-purpose prophet excuse again.
[Really? Well, that makes things simple. I can now transform into two things at once. I can create a sword and a sword, or a sword and armor simultaneously. Pretty amazing, right?]
"Yeah. Amazing."
Wow, this is ridiculously overpowered.
I acted calm in front of Agnes, but I was incredibly surprised. If what she said was true, it was no different from having two Agneses.
[But you can't use it anyway. From what I can tell, you could train your whole life and never be able to use Aura. Hah, if only your skills were even a quarter as good as your face.]
"Do I need Aura to use it?"
[Yes. A lot of it. You'll never unlock it in your lifetime, so you don't need to worry about it.]
Then it doesn't matter. I've already confirmed that my internal energy can be used in place of Aura.
"Giranox."
I decided to talk with Agnes later and finish things with Giranox first, so I called out to the gaping man.
"Y-yes!"
"How much for all the swords here?"
"Let's see. I think it would be about 30 gold."
"Really?"
I took 30 gold from my pouch and gave it to him. It was the money for my warp trip back, but it didn't matter since I was going to steal—no, borrow—money and treasures anyway.
"How much time do you need to sort them out?"
"Three days—no, just give me two days."
"Then let's meet in two days at noon, at the fountain in the center. It seemed to be the main meeting spot."
As I walked around today, I noticed a lot of people at the fountain. It seemed like a good place to wait and people-watch.
"Yes. Understood."
"If you run, I'll chase you to the ends of the continent."
"Eek! I would never, ever run away."
Giranox was terrified, taking my joke as a serious threat.
"Agnes, come."
At my call, the floating Agnes shone brightly before wrapping around my finger, becoming a beautiful ring.
[Huh? What the hell are you! How are you using me already?]
To make Agnes transform, one must hold a clear image in their mind. But I had succeeded in transforming her without being told how, so her surprise was natural.
"What do you mean, 'what'? I'm your master."
[Eek!]
No matter how much she ran her mouth, she was bound by the contract. I was the master, and Agnes had no choice but to obey my commands.
[I'm asking what you are!]
"I have a lot to say to you and a lot for you to do, so let's go talk."
[D-do? What are you going to do to me!]
Ah, I'm already tired.
**
The next day, I went to a nearby forest to test Agnes.
She kept whining, but she never refused my commands, transforming as I wished.
My biggest concern was whether she could perfectly replicate the structure of the Sichuan Tang Clan's hidden weapons from my mind. Fortunately, she could create all of them perfectly.
Moreover, perhaps due to Agnes's power, they were even more potent than described.
To test one more thing, I had come to the forest again today, the day of my appointment.
[Isn't today your appointment? Aren't you going?]
"No, just one more test."
[Hey, you already messed with my body so much yesterday. What more are you trying to do?]
"Anyone hearing that would get the wrong idea..."
She's been saying things like that every time I make her transform since yesterday. Dealing with her is exhausting.
[By the way, what are these things you're making me transform into? What are they to have such power?]
"They're called hidden weapons."
[I know what hidden weapons are! But such intricate forms aren't created in a single generation. Those shapes must have been refined over at least several hundred years.]
As expected of a weapon, she's unusually perceptive.
"Something like that."
[Hmph, I knew you wouldn't tell me. So, what are we doing today?]
"Division."
[Sigh, I get that you want to try, but I told you, you need Aura or mana.]
"How do you do it with Aura and mana?"
[You just have to infuse me with power while imagining two separate forms.]
"Simple enough."
Following Agnes's instructions, I pictured two daggers, one in each hand, and infused her with my internal energy.
[Kyaa! W-what is this power!]
Agnes shrieked, startled by the internal energy I had injected.
[Such pure power! I've never felt anything like this before!]
Seemingly pleased with the energy from the Myriad Poisons Magnetic Divine Qi, Agnes's voice was filled with ecstasy.
*Vwoom—*
At the same time, the daggers I had imagined appeared in my hands.
[Yuren, what in the world! How could I not have sensed you had this kind of power?]
"That's the first time you've used my name."
Even after I told her my name, Agnes had only ever called me 'you'. Now, as if finally acknowledging me, she used my name for the first time.
[Forget the name, what is this power! I was made to be able to grasp my master's strength. I can sense your traits, talent, and current power, but I couldn't feel anything from you.]
Agnes's tone grew higher, as if she were frustrated by her inability to sense my power.
"That just shows your limits."
[Ugh!]
"They call someone like me, who exists on a plane of their own, a genius. It's only natural that an ordinary relic like you wouldn't comprehend my power."
I hadn't used any internal energy yesterday, all to set up this one big surprise for Agnes today. Seeing the talkative Agnes speechless was truly satisfying.
"Now, listen to your master. You pathetic relic who can't even sense your master's great power."
[Eek! You!]
*Fwoosh.*
I threw the Agnes-daggers from both my hands.
*Thud-thud!*
Agnes pierced through the tree in front and embedded itself in the one behind it.
To have this much power even with a light throw... I've gotten stronger, but Agnes's destructive force is incredible.
When I reached out my hand toward them, the thrown Agneses reappeared in my grasp.
This is actually its best feature.
Agnes seemed better suited for hidden weapons than for a sword. It can transform into countless hidden weapons and be retrieved instantly after being thrown.
Agnes wasn't born to be a sword, but a relic for hidden weapons. I was right not to hand it over to the protagonist!
"We've tested everything, so let's head back."
[Is it time for the appointment?]
"There's still some time, but arriving early is the professional thing to do."
[Professional?]
There I go again, using words from the real world. I guess I haven't fully shed my old habits.
I entered Ars Castle and headed for the fountain at its center.
"Still so many people."
The castle was bustling with knights and mercenaries, and the sound of hammers striking iron rang out from the blacksmiths.
"Complex, noisy... feels like a living place."
[This is what you call living?]
"People are complicated by nature."
Looking at this place felt like being at a market or a supermarket.
"Looks like he's not here yet."
I reached the fountain, but Giranox was nowhere to be seen, likely because I had arrived earlier than expected. I sat on the edge of the fountain and started to people-watch.
"What a nice time to be alive."
Seeing a young man and woman, who looked like mercenaries, arm-in-arm and acting all lovey-dovey made me feel warm inside.
Is this what it feels like to be an old man?
"Yuren?"
As I was watching the couple, I heard someone call my name.
That's not Giranox's voice.
I naturally turned my head in that direction.
"What? Why are you here?"