Chapter 93

Dispatch (2)

"Have you been making good use of the equipment?"

As soon as I arrived at the combat training ground, Morrigan brought that up right away.

"Yes. It’s been immensely helpful."

That was, of course, the only possible answer.

In the duel with the Crown Prince before, I had easily overwhelmed him, but that was less about my own skill and more thanks to how thoroughly I had prepared in advance.

Among those preparations, the role Aether played couldn’t be understated—even as a figure of speech.

Even though I hadn't used all of its functions, the single trait of maximizing the efficiency of the supernatural powers I imbued contributed overwhelmingly to my base specs.

"Then, as its creator, I should explain its functions in a bit more detail."

"Sorry?"

Wasn’t this something Sia had made? That thought made me tilt my head, and Morrigan continued speaking calmly.

"While the intermediate processes and finishing touches on the materials were handled at a workshop run by elves, the actual 'creation' of Aether was done by me, Master."

...Ah.

Now that I think about it, Sia did say that even though he handled the mana processing, the final production was outsourced to someone else.

I remembered how Sia, who ran the workshop, spoke of Morrigan with a rare sense of reverence and difficulty.

Now that I was looking at her in person, I could understand why.

"Because she's part dragon."

Even among all demi-humans, dragons stood out as especially unique.

They were the original race from which the ancient power known as mana—once the ruling force of the continent before the gods' supernatural powers were distributed to humanity—originated. They wield a primordial form of magic known as "Word Magic," incomparable to the arcane magic of the Mage Kingdom.

"...Maybe the reason there hasn’t been an uproar yet is simply because no one knows."

If people found out she was part dragon, I was certain someone like Noel or Katya would’ve completely lost it already.

They probably assumed she was some ordinary demi-human with reptilian traits.

I could see why she kept it hidden.

Before humanity gained access to the gods’ supernatural powers, dragons were the undisputed rulers of the continent among non-human races—they were not only powerful, but also known for being violent and arrogant to an extreme degree.

Even among demi-humans, they were especially hated.

"Would you mind taking out Aether for a moment? There’s something I’d like to show you."

Following her request, I obediently brought out Aether. What Morrigan showed me next perfectly demonstrated how such a race would earn its reputation.

As soon as she received Aether, she quickly and precisely unfolded it, spreading it out into tiny nodes all around us.

"That’s amazing."

The thought came naturally. The way she could manipulate it so swiftly and intricately in such a short time truly deserved that kind of praise.

All supernatural abilities have their own unique traits, but if one were to represent mana in particular—

"Precision."

No other supernatural power could compare when it came to the finest and most meticulous movements—that was mana’s defining characteristic.

In fact, beyond combat, it was said to be so incredibly precise that it could be used for things like surgical procedures or delicate engineering processes without any issue.

That’s probably how something like Aether could even be created in the first place.

"Aether has many advantages, but one of the biggest is that it can change its form freely. You can combine two types of attacks and use them simultaneously."

As she said that, Morrigan immediately manipulated Aether into the shape of a spear.

Though called a spear, it wasn’t the sleek, streamlined kind typically imagined—it was bulky, like something used in a jousting tournament.

"It’s usually more efficient to add different ‘functions’ to the original weapon form. For example—like this."

After forming Aether into a spear, she turned its tip toward a training dummy nearby.

Then, she pushed it straight in.

-!

The Aether spear easily pierced through the center of the dummy. Normally, a weapon that size would be difficult to wield, but Morrigan handled the massive lance without any trouble.

As expected of a demi-human—she possessed tremendous strength that didn’t match her slender frame.

With one arm, she drove the lance through the dummy like it was paper.

But it was clear Morrigan had more to show than just that.

"The usage I recommend is something like this."

Then, from inside the embedded lance, another burst of mana detonated.

Like a gun firing, compressed supernatural power exploded from the spear tip lodged inside the dummy.

"...Oh."

Seeing it, Aiden couldn’t help but be impressed.

The idea was to first pierce the enemy’s outer defenses with the spear, then trigger an ability through the embedded tip.

Like a cannon going off from inside the enemy. The ingenuity of the technique immediately struck him.

"I can utilize all of its functions that way."

It made clever use of the liquid metal’s ability to take any form, combined with Aether’s innate trait of excelling at "releasing" supernatural energy.

"Especially for someone like you, Master, who can wield multiple supernatural abilities, this kind of method would suit you well. Mixing qi and holy flame, for example, would be even more effective."

"..."

...And she even pointed out how to take advantage of Aether’s equipment trait of high supernatural conductivity.

Aiden let out a dry laugh.

This woman, seriously.

She stated it as if it were the most natural thing in the world—that Aiden could wield multiple supernatural abilities.

"...Well, she was Ganesha's assistant, after all."

She casually spilled that information without the slightest hesitation.

Granted, she had crafted equipment specialized for such abilities, so it would be easy to deduce that the user could handle them—but giving suggestions on which specific combinations to use was on another level.

"It might be best to find out which combination works the best. You do have quite a few options, Master."

Aiden nodded.

That made sense. They could test each one to find the optimal combination.

What didn’t make sense was what she did next.

Morrigan spun the spear-shaped Aether around—

Then stabbed it right into her own arm and triggered a supernatural ability.

-!

With a loud bang, blood spurted out.

Though her injuries weren’t severe—thanks to being from a race known for their protective dragon scales—she was still clearly hurt.

Aiden’s jaw dropped open.

"You—what are you doing…?!"

"I’m handing it over to you."

But Morrigan, who had just done something so extreme, casually passed Aether back to Aiden.

"Now you can strike me and compare the strength of each combination. We’ll use the one I just showed as the default and start the experiment from there."

"...What?"

"Just go ahead and attack me. Despite appearances, I’m quite confident in my defense and vitality."

So basically—

This woman—

She was saying, use her as a test dummy?

"...?"

At first, I didn’t even understand what she was saying.

It was too absurd.

"...Why would you do that?"

"A training dummy would break no matter what you hit it with. But I’m durable and have decent healing capabilities. Don’t you think I’m an ideal subject?"

Faced with her utterly matter-of-fact answer, Aiden was speechless for a moment before managing to respond.

"...Are you into that kind of thing?"

People like Katya did exist in the world. He wondered if Morrigan was the same type.

"No, I don’t particularly enjoy pain."

"Then why would you ask for something like this?"

When Aiden asked with a tone of disbelief, her answer came just as calmly.

"Isn’t efficiency the top priority? You seem to operate on that principle yourself."

Aiden’s expression hardened.

"I exist to help you. Do whatever you want with me—use me however you please. I’m only recommending what I think is the most efficient method."

With sunken eyes, devoid of even a shred of emotion, Morrigan articulated each word with perfect clarity.

"You don’t need to feel guilty. For our kind, this doesn’t even count as a serious injury. As long as it helps, I don’t think what I ‘feel’ really matters—"

Morrigan had continued speaking calmly, but then her mouth clamped shut.

"You."

That was it.

"What do you think people are, exactly?"

...The Aiden standing in front of her was visibly furious—from head to toe.

▣

From Morrigan’s point of view, his reaction wasn’t exactly understandable.

Up until now, Aiden Kellermain had always acted as if growing stronger, as quickly as possible, was his top priority. That had been the pattern in all his behavior, as observed together with Ganesha.

She was simply suggesting what she believed to be the most effective method. Besides, he often did similar things with Katya, so she assumed he wouldn’t feel much resistance.

But—

...Right now, this man was more than a little angry.

"Master, but you’ve done things like this with Deathwish without hesitation—"

"That’s because she likes it! You said you can feel pain!"

Aiden snapped back harshly.

"I can’t stand people who live like that. I can put up with nuisances, even lunatics, but I can’t deal with people like you!"

Breathing heavily with frustration, Aiden immediately called up his skill window in front of him.

He had a rough idea of what was needed to heal a mana-based lifeform like a dragon. Fortunately, he had just the means to do it.

-System Message

▶ Copying 'Special Ability: Mana'.

A black "line."

If qi manifested as smoke, divine power as flame, and mana arts as spheres of light—then mana stood out by appearing in a clear, distinct form like this.

Seeing it, Morrigan's eyes widened more than ever before.

"...You can wield mana?"

"Isn’t it obvious?"

"B-but, how—"

Aiden paused when he saw Morrigan stumbling over her words.

‘Ah, I see now.’

They knew he could wield multiple supernatural abilities—

But they didn’t really understand how he was able to use them.

Well, naturally. How could anyone predict the growth pattern of someone who could literally rip skills straight from others through affinity?

It was almost amusing to realize they didn’t fully grasp him either—but right now, that wasn’t the focus.

What mattered was the reaction of the person in front of him.

"You’re surprised, huh?"

As soon as he said that, Morrigan’s expression froze.

Aiden’s eyes narrowed.

‘...This woman.’

From what Aiden could tell, it was as if she believed expressing emotions was, in itself, a mistake.

The impression he’d had earlier hit the mark. This woman wanted to be treated as a tool.

Emotionless, handled however her owner saw fit—a tool to be used.

As if she’d been raised to believe that was the “right” way to live.

And Aiden couldn’t stand the fact that she had projected that value system onto him as well.

It’s disgusting.

He had no idea what kind of circumstances led her to develop this kind of mindset.

He wasn’t sure if Ganesha had treated Morrigan like that. If she had, he’d break her nose the next time they met.

What he was sure of was this—

She’d lumped him in with that kind of human garbage. And that made him furious to the core.

So, he figured he had to say something to the woman who’d done something so reckless without thinking.

While wrapping Morrigan’s arm in mana shaped like a bandage, Aiden spoke bluntly.

"Keep expressing yourself like that. It’s much better to see. Makes you seem human."

"...Sorry?"

"I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it. If you really want to help me, then try living like a person. Take care of yourself, too."

"I... didn’t know that sort of thing mattered to you. With Deathwish, you—"

"If you keep dragging Katya into this, I’m seriously going to get mad. Do you think you and she are the same?"

Hardly.

At the very least, she was brutally honest about her emotions.

She did things because she wanted to. She endured pain because she wanted to feel something. That’s why she asked Aiden, and that’s why Aiden didn’t hesitate to oblige.

But doing something painful, doing something you don’t want to do, while throwing yourself away in the process—that, to Aiden, was nothing but torture. Nothing more, nothing less.

"…"

What was clear was that she was so hollow, so empty, that she didn’t even understand that basic difference.

"And another thing."

Aiden clicked his tongue and went on.

"Stop calling me ‘Master.’ If you don’t call me Aiden, I won’t answer you."

"...What?"

"The concept of human rights has been around for a while now. What kind of ‘Master’ nonsense is that? What is this, a historical drama?"

"…"

"You and I, we’re both people. Equals. With the same rights. And I’m going to treat you like that."

With that, Aiden sighed and stood up.

"Get yourself healed, and I’ll see you tomorrow."

"…"

"If you try to destroy yourself again, I won’t let it go. Got it?"

Morrigan watched in a daze as Aiden walked away.

As if she couldn’t even comprehend what she had just heard.