Instead of lingering on that strange dream, I started drawing up more detailed blueprints for the weapon I had in mind. All things considered, I hadn't done half bad.
"Hey, Master's brother..."
"You can just call me Daiki."
"My apologies, Daiki-san, but what is that shape that looks like a pig's tail?"
"Huh?" I glanced at where he was pointing. "That's a spring. It's a piece of metal coiled up like this. When you compress it, it tries to snap back to its original shape, pushing in the opposite direction."
Zanoba pulled the blueprint closer to his face.
"So it stores the force applied to it and releases it once the pressure is gone."
"Exactly."
"I see. And you plan to use it to reset this piece after every shot? That way, you don't have to do it by hand."
"Yeah. That's the idea."
"Hmm... Such a simple mechanism. Though crafting a part capable of bending over and over without losing its shape might be trickier than it looks."
"It is, Zanoba. That's precisely why I let you in on this."
By the end of the day, I packed everything into a notebook and slid it into a pouch at my waist.
"So, Daiki-san, do you plan to forge a spring, or will you try something else?"
I thought it over for a moment.
"Well, if I can't get my hands on one... it'll have to be a manual action weapon. Just as lethal, but it'll lose speed and efficiency, and it'll rely a lot more on the shooter's skill. Still, I don't have many options. For now, we need to track down the right material."
"In that case, would you mind taking me on as your student? I just hope the twins won't fight over who the real master is."
"No... I don't think it'll come to that, Zanoba. Either way, let me know if you find anything."
"Understood. See you around, Daiki-san."
"See you, Zanoba."
Night fell.
Around this hour, young Fitz, who was actually Sylphy, the girl I had known back in Buena Village, would meet me on the training grounds to work on her swordsmanship.
"In Buena Village..." Sylphy lunged with a sharp thrust, which I deflected with a rap to her wrist. "I... I really missed your lessons."
I caught her wrist and spun her around. She kept her grip on the hilt and pressed the attack.
"Paul-san is great at teaching swordplay, but when it came to theory... I had a hard time following the sound effects he made whenever he attacked."
"Yeah, he's always been like that. He was never good at explaining things with words."
"Paul-san would say things like 'do this and then fzzz,' just like when he sparred with you, so I never quite got it... Later on, I got so caught up in magic that I never made it past Advanced rank."
"Huh? But Advanced is already plenty high. Looks like defense suits you better anyway."
"Yeah. In the Sword God Style, I'm barely pushing Intermediate... And even with Advanced in Water God Style, I still can't land a hit on you."
I tapped her in the ribs with measured force. Sylphy cried out and dropped to the ground, utterly defeated.
"Well, that's probably because I'm... what, two ranks above you in all three styles?"
The ground flared with light, healing her completely.
"Tch... it's tough. But I still don't want to stop. I want to keep getting stronger."
I sat down next to her. Sylphy rested her head against my shoulder, and seeing her looking so quiet and lost in thought, I couldn't help wrapping an arm around her. It was a mood I'd fallen into quite a bit myself ever since the run-in with Orsted.
"I want to get strong so I can find my mom. After that... I don't know what I'll do."
"What if you get strong for the day you have kids?"
"I doubt that'll happen, Fitz..." It felt strange calling her Fitz, but I had to be careful with silence settling over the yard. "Besides, I don't really have anyone left to share a life like that with."
"Huh? Why would you say that, Daiki-san? I remember you used to say you had no idea what you wanted to be when you grew up, but here you are, studying and training at the academy so you can find your mother."
"Yeah, but this time is different. I have to save her. Then... keep looking out for her so I don't lose her again."
We pulled apart and moved over to a nearby bench.
"Speaking of which..." I looked at her. "What's the deal with you and Rudeus?"
"W-what about me and your brother? There's nothing going on! We just see each other a lot, and I guess... I mean, I don't know when to tell him. If I keep putting it off, I'm worried he'll get mad and I'll end up dragging you into it too, and I really don't want that. But I don't know what to do... How has he still not figured it out?"
"Fitz, your face lights up red every single time I bring him up. Before you even get a word out, your cheeks puff up and your ears start twitching. It's not subtle. That's why I never bring him up like that around other people."
"You mean you figured it out? How...?"
"Because I used to be the exact same way around... someone."
"Really?! I mean... for real?"
"I used to smile around her a lot more than I ever did in Buena Village."
"Wow..." Her eyes went wide. "It's sweet picturing you in love, but it hurts to see how much it took out of you. Is there anything I can do?"
"I doubt it, Fitz. I really doubt it." I sighed. "Want to get back to it?"
"How about tomorrow?"
"Same time. Sound good? Does Ariel know?"
"Yeah, she knows, and I think she wants to meet you. Well, who wouldn't? Honestly, I think she either wants you as a bodyguard or just wants a taste of that bloodlust of yours. That's roughly how she put it, anyway."
"Ah... sure, fair enough."
---
Not long after, I found out my brother had gone to the slave market with Sylphiette and Zanoba. I couldn't wrap my head around why at first, but they told me they had taken in a young girl named Julie.
The reason? Figurine sculpting.
Zanoba was dead set on learning Rudeus's techniques so he could make them from scratch. But since he couldn't use chantless magic and lacked the mana pool to cast with such fine control, he couldn't make the constant micro-adjustments needed to carve the finer details into stone.
Unlike the things I was teaching him, his status as a Blessed Child gave him monstrous physical strength, which made delicate manual work like chiseling impossible. Whenever he tried working with clay or hand tools, he ended up shattering the material because he had no fine motor control.
Weapons were a different story. In my case, I actually needed his raw power. I handled the precision, and all he had to do was follow my lead. That was it. But with clay, one microscopic slip was enough to ruin the whole piece.
Even if he couldn't shape the gun's frame or handle the intricate components, his sheer strength was still a massive asset. If I could teach him some restraint, he might be able to do more than just supply brute force. The real issue was that Zanoba was so strong he could warp solid metal and ruin hours of work without even trying.
While forging a gun with chantless magic wouldn't have been particularly hard, I wanted a purely mechanical firearm, something anyone could pick up and fire without relying on mana.
If I wanted to cut corners, I could've just used the barrel and frame as a conduit. To an onlooker, it would look like a gun, but all it would really do was channel a high-speed stone bullet spell through the muzzle. But as everyone knows, chantless magic isn't something just anyone can pick up. And if you're already skilled enough to cast a pinpoint stone bullet, why would you even need a gun?
Anyway, that was beside the point.
With my brother out of the picture for a while, I roamed the hallways hoping to run into the woman carrying my sword. But instead of finding her, I bumped into Cliff.
"Daiki. How's it going?"
"Hey, Cliff. Doing fine. Just finished training."
"Always training, huh?"
"You know it."
Cliff smiled.
"Good. Because if you weren't training, you wouldn't be you, right?"
That stung a bit. What Cliff said was true, I wouldn't know how to be myself without training. Why couldn't I break out of that?
"Yeah, unfortunately. Though I do have other hobbies."
"Ah, right. Something about a gun, wasn't it? I remember you bringing that up now and then back in Millishion. A weapon to level the playing field for the weak. I'll admit, I don't think it's a brilliant idea, but I suppose that's what happens when someone like you tries being creative."
We ended up chatting for quite a while. Cliff had definitely matured. He seemed more cheerful and far less arrogant than before, even if he still looked down on most people. Well, almost everyone.
"And during the snow, I built a reputation. That's how I ended up with the moniker."
"I see. I'll admit, the moment I heard 'Obsidian,' I knew it was you. Though hearing you'd joined another party... I suppose that didn't matter in the long run, did it?"
"I wouldn't say that. But either way, I'm here with you now, and I've cut all ties with them."
"I see. You've gotten a lot taller than me, you know. It's..." He hung his head slightly. "A frankly ridiculous contrast. So don't expect me to walk side by side with you across campus."
"Fair enough." I held back a chuckle. "I wasn't expecting you to."
[Me neither... Wait, did you actually laugh? That's progress.]
It is, Ayam. Weird, maybe. But good nonetheless.
"Daiki, nyaaaa! Found you!"
An obnoxious voice cut in. Before I could even turn around, Linia pounced, wrapping her legs around my waist until she was perched firmly in my lap.
"Linia? What are you doing?"
"Saying hi, nya!"
"You can't just do this in public..."
"Do what? I'm just listening to your heartbeat, nya."
She nuzzled her face into my chest.
"Leave her," Pursena mumbled around a massive bite of steak. "Once she gets bored, she'll hop down on her own."
"I'm not gonna get bored, nya!"
I glanced over at Cliff. He just sighed, shook his head, and walked off without another word.
"Cliff..."
And so, sandwiched between two beast girls, one using me as a personal pillow and the other offering me scraps of meat—I sighed and did the only thing I knew how to do:
I stood up.
A complete waste of effort. Linia latched on so tightly she didn't budge an inch.
"Just a little longer, nya..."
[Look, I'm sorry, but hear me out on this one. You never listen to me when things get serious, so at least do as you're told for once and let the cat show you some love!]
"Just a minute. But after this, you're done jumping on me, got it?" I sat back down.
"Nya... grr..."
Damn it...