Chapter 25 Not Many Will Celebrate With You, Same-Sex Edition
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
The next morning at school, Ethelena and I stepped into the classroom together.
Classmates glanced our way once, muttered among themselves, then did a double-take. Well, when you’re usually just brushing elbows and suddenly locking hands in a proper arm-in-arm grip, that kind of reaction is expected.
Ethelena, perhaps startled by the attention, pressed herself closer into my arm. Her warmth was a little slice of happiness I didn’t want to let go of.
”Morning!”
”Morning!”
Our greetings alone set the classroom abuzz. Were they really that surprised we were this close now?
”Yo!”
A familiar, energetic idiot waved at us, his grin wide as always.
”Morning!”
”Morning!”
”Finally tied the knot, huh?”
When we returned the greeting, his teasing smirk broadened. I gave Ethelena’s hand a little squeeze, grinning like I’d won.
”Yeah, and jealous yet?”
The guy might be an idiot, but I noticed the other boys sneaking glances at Ethelena. Not a chance they’re getting anywhere near.
”…Yeah, totally jealous!”
Despite the teasing, his eyes held something gentle, a trace of care. He’d known me since childhood and probably remembered what it was like when I lost my parents. Come to think of it, he’d taken me around, kept my mind off that tragedy—it had helped.
”Ethelena!”
”Wha!? What?”
”Take care of Tatara, alright?”
Strong words, yet when he smiled quietly, entrusting me with that responsibility, it made me pause.
”…I’ll make him happy as best as I can,” Ethelena replied, determination shining in her gaze.
Stop it, both of you! My heart can’t take this level of earnestness.
”Good, good. Make sure I’m invited to the ceremony!”
He wandered off toward his seat, and I had a fleeting thought: maybe I’ll never outshine him in life.
With the shared class over, we moved to our specialty lessons. Today, our juniors might come, so I had a few things ready just in case.
Soon enough, two sets of energetic footsteps approached. A knock at the door, a response, and in came Shamir and Est.
”Senpai! We’re here for today!”
”…Yes, we are.”
I smiled at their greetings.
”Today, I’m going to show you two something a bit unusual.”
The mood of celebration from the idiot earlier lingered in me. It felt like the right moment to introduce the juniors to something a little side-step from the usual. I placed iron ingots and two smaller Mana Stones on the workbench.
”Something unusual?”
”…Knowing you, senpai, I’m sure it’ll be useful.”
Shamir tilted his head, curious, while Est’s expression leaned skeptical. I told them to watch the workbench, then combined my Crafting and Alchemy skills, channeling mana from the Mana Stones into the iron.
The idea was simple: fill the gaps in the iron with mana. Using Appraisal, though clumsy at first, made it easier. Once familiar, the heat and feel of the iron alone could guide mana flow.
No rush. Fill every gap. Once the mana stone was depleted, the creation was complete.
I was making one of my early Elementary School failures: Demonsteel.
”Se-senpai!?”
”Is… is that Demonsteel!?”
Shamir and Est both let out near screams. I had no idea why they were panicking so much.
”Yes, the ingot is Demonsteel. Not exactly rare, is it?”
”Rare!?”
”And can this really be made without the Mayor’s equipment?” Shamir added, voice cracking.
Est, having regained composure, murmured about the Demonsteel while examining it. I made it myself, so of course it works—but their astonishment was understandable.
”Really that strange?”
”They don’t teach this in middle school classes!”
”Apparently only veteran crafters, screaming about lack of reproducibility, attempt this, often paying hefty usage fees.”
”Seriously…”
This was something I had crafted in Elementary School with minimal skill. The steps and the mental image were conveyed, yet the reaction remained extreme.
”This wasn’t exactly a grand birth story, though.”
”Really?”
”The Mayor called it a ‘genius achievement,’ but that only counts if the intended product succeeds.”
They nodded, absorbing my words.
”This started as a study to create a substitute for expensive Mithril,” I explained.
”Substitute for Mithril?”
”Yeah. The alloy could reach about seventy percent of Mithril’s strength, enough to work.”
They looked skeptical—good. That curiosity is necessary.
”But the real issue was mana conductivity. That was the main goal.”
”Mana conductivity…?”
”Oh, now I get it,” Est muttered.
”Est, do you understand?”
”Yes, I get it.”
Est met my gaze and nodded, recognizing what I was implying. She inhaled, closed her eyes, and spoke with serious precision.
”You mean the high-mana-conductivity material needed for internal mechanisms, right?”
”Exactly, continue.”
”And Demonsteel, though strengthening the iron’s properties, actually lowered mana conductivity.”
Est was right. Filling the metal gaps with mana blocked proper channels, dropping conductivity drastically.
”So, if we wanted a Mithril alternative, low-conductivity Demonsteel wouldn’t work. That’s why it’s a failure.”
”Correct, Est.”
Est’s smile brightened, though she quickly hid it, embarrassed.
”The same happened with steel—it became Shape Memory Alloy.”
”No way.”
”Yes, it happened.”
I still don’t fully understand it myself—metal shifting shape from mana wavelength and intensity. Did carbon act as a mana switch?
”And pseudo-Orichalcum?”
”Classified as successful, I guess.”
”Why even think to embed the tiniest mana-retaining particle into metal?”
”Purely a whim.”
”A ‘whim’?”
The idea came from an anime in a past life, but I couldn’t say that here. Despite imperfect mana conductivity, it’s cheaper and stronger than using precious metals.
”Senpai, one thing I’ve wondered.”
”What is it?”
”How do you know all this so well?”
”Shamir, you…”
Shamir blinked at Est, puzzled, and Est looked at me thoughtfully. Probably she researched existing technology and patents; in that case, she’d realize why I know so much.
”I developed this, remember? All this technology is mine.”
”Eh?”
”You didn’t notice, but Tatara-senpai holds the most patents of anyone individually.”
”Eh?”
”I realized it later too, but yeah, he’s incredible.”
Shamir’s confusion deepened, bouncing between our faces.
”No way… you’re trying to trick me…”
”No, really.”
”When I saw his registered age, I couldn’t believe it either.”
Est gave me a dry, measured look. I chuckled. Even if created in Elementary School, it was normal to file a patent.
”This tech was originally made to create simple, affordable Arcane Armor.”
”Simple Arcane Armor?”
”Before we go further, quick check—do you two know what materials are needed for Arcane Armor?”
Shamir tilted his head in confusion, but Est tapped her fingers lightly on the desk and spoke.
”A high-output mana source to power the armor, magic metal to conduct that mana, and a high-strength base metal to withstand the output?”
”Exactly, Est, spot on.”
”Wow, Est! I didn’t get any of that!”
”Shamir, you need a bit more studying…”
Watching them, I couldn’t help but smile at the way Est beamed while correcting Shamir.
”As Est said, Arcane Armor requires those three components, which is why a high Crafting skill level is needed.”
”Really?”
”You’d need at least Crafting IV.”
”Est’s right. But I felt like taking the challenge anyway.”
”‘Taking the challenge’…?”
”I just thought it was weird that something this complex couldn’t be made, so I studied, researched, and experimented until I could make it with alternative methods.”
”Wait… Est, is what senpai’s saying… wrong?”
”Too late for that. This is the person who made a technology no one could reproduce even after being explained. We’re just here as witnesses, Shamir.”
Was I being insulted right in front of them?
”So basically, what I did was create substitutes for the power source and the magic metal. And the Demonsteel failures that popped up along the way? Well, those became the third component by sheer luck.”
”Est, is that really impressive?”
”Even if people say it’s not reproducible, the tech itself is incredibly useful.”
I noticed Shamir kept turning to Est to ask questions. Smart move—leaning on a friend rather than the genius senior. Lonely, but smart.
”I’m thinking of giving you two the blueprints for the simplified Arcane Armor before I graduate. There were no other juniors around, so it’s a special case.”
”Really!?”
”…Would we even be able to make it?”
Shamir’s face lit up, but Est’s expression betrayed her concern over her own skill.
”Sorry, I can’t guarantee you can make it. Reproducing any tech depends on effort. I can recreate anything given the blueprint and equipment, but others? Not so much.”
”Est, I don’t understand what senpai’s saying.”
”Don’t worry, Shamir, neither do I.”
Why does everyone look at me like I’m some kind of mad scientist? I’m just doing what I can.
”One last thing—any tips for making Demonsteel?”
Est asked carefully, trying to find a manageable workaround.
”Well… first, use Appraisal on the iron you’re working with, right?”
”Start with Appraisal…”
Est quickly started jotting notes, waiting for me to continue.
”Then, when you see the iron’s distortions, fill them with mana… From an Alchemy perspective, that’s the trick to making it succeed.”
”I’m sorry… I don’t get it.”
That reaction reminded me of when I asked an AI in a past life a hopeless question.
”Uhm… if you push Appraisal deep enough, you can see the conceptual essence of the object in front of you, right?”
”…Sorry, I still don’t understand what you’re saying.”
”You don’t…!?”
Now both of them were utterly lost.
”No, seriously, deep Appraisal works!”
”Deep… what do you mean by that?”
”You focus harder, pushing your brain to its limits—nosebleeds, blood tears, the whole works!”
”Who else does that?!”
”I do. Just don’t ask me to brag about it.”
”That’s impossible!!”
All-out denial from the juniors. Why?
”…I once told the teacher I was observing senpai, and they made a face. Now I get it.”
”So basically, senpai started at a completely different level from us…”
”Eh… what kind of conclusion is that?”
Using my past-life game knowledge helped, but deep Appraisal? That’s something I figured out in this life. Surely that’s the default here…? Maybe they just haven’t pushed their skills far enough.
”Well… then I guess I’ll just have to teach you the method.”
If they can’t grasp it, it’s my duty as their senior to show them.
”First, I’ll pull out a sword.”
From my inventory, I retrieved a plain, self-made iron sword.
”Use Appraisal on this, and you can read its information, right?”
One-handed iron sword:
Physical Attack 5
Special Ability: None
Just a standard iron sword, nothing special.
”What exactly is it referencing?”
Shamir and Est exchanged puzzled looks.
”The skill reads numerical and textual data for things you shouldn’t normally know, but where does it actually get that information from?”
I had wondered this while using Appraisal in this world. My brain assumed it referenced my prior game knowledge—but if that were true, people without game knowledge couldn’t use Appraisal at all.
”If you can Appraisal something you’ve never seen before, the skill must be tapping into an external information source outside the user.”
”External information source…?”
”That’s my theory. So when using Appraisal, I imagine there’s a filter to keep the data manageable for the human brain. I tried removing that filter to increase the amount of information I could read.”
”W-wait, Est… is this—”
”Shh, Shamir, this is important.”
Shamir stammered, but Est cut him off, her expression deadly serious. The difference in passion for crafting between senior and juniors was evident here.
”As a result, I can now read deep information about any object in front of me. I assumed everyone could do this… but from what I see, no one else has.”
”Well, we never question our skills,” said Shamir.
”Just because you use it doesn’t mean the technique won’t decay or be lost…”
I was born in a country once known as a tech powerhouse, but many traditional techniques were lost over time. In this life, I dream of reviving them.
For now, my main goal is simple: be happy with Ethelena.
”Senpai, what are we even looking at right now?”
”Who knows? Maybe the memory of the world itself, or what some call truth—but honestly, I don’t fully get it.”
Shamir likely sensed the strangeness of the skill. Humans fear the unknown; maybe this is normal.
”Not fully getting it… aren’t you scared, senpai?”
”Well, if that truth has a will, I’d be one of its subjects of fear.”
”…Senpai, have you ever tried Appraisal on something you made and gotten no information?”
”Frequently. The last time I made a new Arcane Gun, Appraisal returned nothing.”
”I knew it…”
Once, the Archangel came to my workshop saying, “Something that doesn’t exist in this world is about to be born.” That phenomenon occasionally occurs when I create something not in the game.
’Lonisera’ didn’t reveal detailed information until Ethelena used it. Demonsteel and Shape Memory Alloy didn’t yield anything initially either.
Inversely, if something exists in the world, Appraisal can access it. I limit that information to the smallest units in the object in front of me—that’s my deep Appraisal technique. With practice, it can even be applied in combat.
Just then, the school bell rang.
”Already the end of class? We only managed to discuss Demonsteel and deep Appraisal techniques.”
”No, for me, that was priceless.”
”Really?”
”Yes, I’m glad I could attend your lesson, senpai.”
”Oh, me too! It was tough, but I’ll practice this new way of using Appraisal!!”
Their smiles were contagious. I couldn’t help but smile too.
”Good to hear. Well, I’d better head home.”
They bowed and left the workshop, polite and eager.
On the way out, Ethelena and I walked side by side through the school grounds.
”Ah, senpai!”
A bright voice called from behind, and when I turned, there was Shamir, my familiar blond junior, waving energetically.
”Hey, Shamir! What’s up?”
Ethelena and I stopped in our tracks, our eyes tracking him. She kept glancing between Shamir and me, probably because it was her first time meeting him.
”You two know each other?”
”Yeah, he’s a junior who comes to observe the specialized classes. That’s Shamir. But… where’s his partner, Est?”
Just then, Est appeared from behind Shamir, her dark hair catching the light.
”Uh… sorry, senpai. And my apologies to your senior, too,” Est said, bowing slightly.
”Eh, no, it’s fine. Don’t worry about it,” Ethelena replied.
Est blinked in surprise at Ethelena’s calm words. Well, anyone meeting her for the first time would probably react like that. Ethelena’s appearance tends to do that.
”I’m surprised. Senpai, you already picked a partner, huh?”
”Don’t start that just because you two aren’t as… good-looking as me,” I said.
”…Eh?”
The three of them reacted oddly, all staring at me at once. Seriously? This is making me want to cry.
”You’re handsome, senpai, really,” Shamir said.
”Thanks, Shamir. No need to flatter me.”
”And you’re popular with the girls in our year, too, you know?”
”You two are the only observers here, Est.”
”That’s fine! I’m here, aren’t I?”
”Actually, you alone are enough.”
”Oh… okay!”
”Much obliged.”
Both of them looked like they’d eaten a mouthful of sugar all at once.
”You two get along well.”
”I guess so. Glad it comes across that way.”
Ethelena’s shy smile made Est stare for a beat—admittedly, it was a little irritating. Immature of me, I know.
”You two are dating, right?”
Shamir’s eyes sparkled as she alternated glances between Ethelena and me.
”Dating, yeah…”
”More like… we’re planning for marriage, I guess.”
Shamir’s face lit up with sheer joy, while Est’s expression twisted slightly—sorry, Ethelena is my most important, and I’m not giving her up.
”In that case, you two must invite us to the wedding! I’m really looking forward to it!!”
”…I’d like to celebrate you too, senpai, so please do.”
After saying that, they politely excused themselves and left. Ethelena’s smile glowed like sunlight—clearly, Shamir’s words had made her happy.
I silently gave Shamir a mental ‘good job’ as we walked home together. Just the two of us, planning for tomorrow’s day off, skipping the Dungeon today.
Running the shop together, heading into the Dungeon, or just spending an entire day side by side—it was all fine.
Honestly, I realized I’m a simple guy: Ethelena being next to me is all I need to feel happy.
A few days later, Shamir reportedly managed to replicate my Appraisal techniques, and Est followed suit shortly after.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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