Free Web NovelDuring the introductory swordsmanship course, I didn't so much as glance in Vigdís's direction.
Did that build trust, or was he simply doing his job as a professor? The swordsmanship professor was surprisingly diligent in instructing me. Though he clearly found it bothersome that he had to teach me everything from how to hold a sword, since I had never learned swordsmanship anywhere before.
'It seems taking the introductory swordsmanship course won't be a problem... The next lecture is Ether Attribute Enhancement, right?'
The 'Understanding and Application of Ether' lecture I took yesterday, Wednesday, focused on utilizing Ether as a single source of energy, excluding the unique attributes that differed from person to person. free𝑤ebnovel.com
So why exclude the attributes?
Because compressing Ether after filtering out its attributes creates physical force.
Using this, it was possible to create a protective barrier to block attacks. You could also wrap compressed Ether around a weapon to reinforce its durability or shape the Ether sharply to enhance its cutting power.
'Some people are even said to layer Ether imbued with attributes over that compressed Ether...'
That was irrelevant to me, since my Ether attribute was Buff.
If I wrapped that around a weapon, I'd end up strengthening my opponent every time I struck them.
Of course, the upper limit of the enhanced abilities was determined by my own capabilities, so opponents wouldn't grow infinitely stronger every time I hit them. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com
But still, there was no benefit in strengthening the enemy.
But I digress.
To continue the explanation about the physical force created from attribute-filtered Ether.
It could also be used like telekinesis, such as moving objects without touching them.
Although the efficiency was terrible due to the massive Ether consumption and severe mental strain, it could become a very useful skill if used properly.
'Actually, the field that uses Ether as pure energy most actively is Ether Engineering, but well... I'm not planning to become an engineer, so I'll skip over that.'
As for today's 'Ether Attribute Enhancement' lecture, the name alone should already make its purpose obvious, so I didn't think a detailed explanation was necessary.
The goal of this lecture was literally to strengthen each individual's Ether attribute.
As I briefly mentioned earlier, the upper limit of abilities enhanced through buffs was determined by my own capabilities.
So if my capabilities improved, then naturally the upper limit of the enhanced abilities would rise as well.
If the original story proceeded as planned, Karvaldr would form and operate an Einherjar team after graduation, so ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) the buff ability was extremely important.
'That's true, but I have another reason for taking this lecture. After all, abilities that have already bloomed continue to grow through steady, repetitive practice.'
If things went as I hoped and the 'Sky Blue Ether' truly existed within this possessed body, then I might be able to receive the professor's help in discovering it.
I had been searching through related books in the library whenever I had spare time, but I still hadn't found anything.
Even if I did obtain information regarding that second Ether, it would still be better to receive expert guidance in understanding its characteristics and strengthening it.
'When someone awakens, their abilities are automatically registered in the skill window, but abilities that haven't bloomed yet, even if they possess potential, don't appear...'
Because of that setting, I concluded there was a limit to what I could do alone in discovering and developing the second Ether ability.
And it was also because of that setting that I couldn't abandon hope, even though only buff and whip technique skills were registered in Karvaldr's skill window in the original story.
Perhaps the Sky Blue Ether was merely an illusion, a phantom created by hope.
If I still reached that conclusion even after receiving the professor's help, then I planned to ask him to help me find a way to at least use the poison ability, the Austri Family's unique Ether attribute.
"Nice to meet you, everyone. I didn't teach any First Year lectures last semester, so I'm probably a new face to all of you. Let me begin with a brief introduction. I am Radvisin Frodreik, and..."
The professor in charge of Ether Attribute Enhancement appeared precisely when the lecture was scheduled to begin.
The moment he arrived, he immediately started rambling about himself.
He talked about what kinds of research he had conducted, what achievements he had accomplished, and how he came to focus on Ether attribute studies.
I couldn't remember all of it and didn't think I needed to, so I simply let it go in one ear and out the other.
Anyway, the important information was already recorded in the directory of names.
By the way, since I planned to visit him often for help, referring to him as the 'Ether Attribute Enhancement Professor' was too long.
So from now on, I'll simply call him 'Professor Radvisin'.
"Um, Professor? When are we starting the lecture?"
"Hm? Oh dear! An hour has already passed? And there was still so much left to talk about... My research lab is always open to students, so if anyone wishes to hear more, please feel free to visit."
Thanks to one student who could no longer endure the boredom, Professor Radvisin's TMI session finally came to an end.
To think he still had more to say after talking for an entire hour.
The students looked utterly exhausted by Professor Radvisin's rambling, though they were also relieved it was finally over.
But since I planned to visit his research lab, I couldn't feel relieved at all.
"Now it's time to hear about all of you, especially your Ether attributes. In order to help you strengthen them, I first need to understand them properly. However, it seems lecture time is insufficient to hear from all twenty-something of you individually, and some of you may be reluctant to openly reveal the details of your Ether abilities."
As he spoke, Professor Radvisin handed several pens and a stack of paper to the student sitting closest to him.
The meaning behind that action was obvious to everyone.
The student who received them began passing the pens and paper around one by one.
Naturally, I also received a writing instrument...
'So they even have retractable ballpoint pens you can use by clicking the back end instead of using a cap?'
After eating 'whirlwind omelet kimchi fried rice' for lunch at the school cafeteria today, should I really be surprised by something as minor as a ballpoint pen?
Instead, I decided to be grateful for having a pen that was convenient to use.
All the pens owned by this body were fountain pens, so I should probably go shopping for stationery once I had a chance to visit the commercial district.
"Did everyone receive a pen and paper? We only have three hours of lecture time left, so it may be a little tight, but please write down your Ether attributes in as much detail as possible and submit them. If you need additional paper, come to the front and take more... Ah! I'll also be checking attendance through this, so don't forget to write your names at the top."
Perhaps because he was the kind of person who could talk about himself for an hour straight, he genuinely seemed to believe students could spend three hours writing about their Ether abilities.
Even though the students who had just received their writing tools all looked completely lost.
"There really isn't that much to write..."
"If that's the case, then think of this as an opportunity to deeply examine your own Ether ability and squeeze every last thought out of your brain."
Professor Radvisin chuckled in response to the extra student's grumbling mutter.
It was a statement that clearly showed he had no intention of allowing students to simply scribble down whatever came to mind and hand it in.
"You may not realize it yourselves, but surely you understand your own Ether attributes well. How could you fail to understand your attribute while actively using your Ether ability?"
I was willing to bet most of them didn't understand it at all.
As proof, the students had already begun scribbling something onto their papers, only to lift their heads and glance around after barely a minute.
If there was a student with a fire attribute Ether among them, he had probably written a single sentence beneath his name:
'Can create fire.'
I hadn't peeked at anyone else's paper, but it was easy to imagine something along those lines.
"If you're worried about information regarding your abilities leaking out, then rest assured. Once I've memorized the submitted 'reports,' I will burn them all immediately and never discuss them with anyone else."
Whether Professor Radvisin was completely oblivious to the students' suffering or simply pretending not to notice, he casually demanded they produce something on the level of a short research paper.
It was truly an impossible request.
Even I, who had seen Karvaldr's skill window through the original story, didn't have that much to write.
For the record, the reason I was able to see that skill window was because the original protagonist, Reisir, possessed a 'Truth Reading Attribute' within his second Ether.
Author Senna had briefly mentioned that the ability existed because the protagonist had been modeled after 'Odin'...
'It must have been a convenient storytelling device that allowed detailed explanations of villains' and supporting characters' abilities while still maintaining a first-person protagonist perspective.'
That's right.
Though it was grandly described as reading the truth, in reality, it simply allowed him to freely inspect other people's status and skill windows.
Still, it was undeniably useful.
Because he could read the descriptions of objects as well as people.
It even displayed information about non-awakened individuals.
In addition, the ability only functioned through his right eye, which had turned silver, and he still couldn't properly control it.
That was why he wore an eyepatch.
Because the skill was permanently active, his vision constantly became disorienting and his Ether was continuously consumed.
'I wonder whether that ability could reveal the fact that I've possessed the original body? Or perhaps even that truth-reading ability can't perceive this one truth?'
Anyway, skill descriptions in novels shouldn't be excessively long.
That was especially true for characters who weren't the protagonist.
If they became too detailed, readers would simply skip over them.
So there was no choice but to write them as concisely as possible while still including the important points.
Because of that, even though I knew what was written in Karvaldr's skill window, there still wasn't much to write.
It was concise and memorable, but precisely because it was concise, there was a limit to how much I could elaborate on it.
「 Can increase the target's physical and mental abilities. 」
After writing that sentence, I added supplementary explanations such as:
'Physical abilities here refer to strength, stamina, agility...(omitted).'
「 In addition to the basic buff, there is also a stackable buff skill. Activating it requires fulfilling a specific condition, and I believe this condition is deeply related to my personal inclinations. Because...(omitted) 」
While writing that section, I even fabricated various hypotheses as though I had personally deduced the information myself.
Even though it felt like I had been writing for quite a while, there were still two and a half hours left in the lecture.
When I looked around, the other students had already put down their pens and were staring blankly into space.
