novelraw Chapter 108 : Chapter 108
Chapter 108 : Chapter 108
Chapter 108 : Reconciliation
Sal was flustered by Chatfield's sudden appearance.
It took him a few seconds to realize he had been asked a question.
Sal's eyes followed the completed sketches Chatfield was pointing at.
On the surface, they appeared untouched by anyone.
Sal turned his gaze back to Chatfield, casually lifted his coffee, and forced a smile.
"I just wanted to get some design work done before the second-years take over the workshop. But, if I may ask, what brings you here at this early hour, Professor?"
The corner of Chatfield's mouth twitched subtly, as if almost smiling but not quite.
"Nothing special. I'm constantly checking newly released equipment. I was writing a report on how outdated our Academy's equipment standards have become over the past few years. While doing so, notifications for items matching my search criteria started pouring in. They were all the work of one person. Items that looked like they had been painstakingly collected over quite a long time."
Chatfield rose from his chair and slowly circled the table, sending curious glances.
"What I simply can't understand is why he would dump data that contradicts my report onto the store just days before submission. And under a pseudonym, no less..."
With narrowed eyes, Chatfield pressed a finger firmly against Sal's chest.
"Mythos."
Sal took a slow sip of coffee, waiting for Chatfield to reveal his true intentions.
From Chatfield's perspective, it was suspicious, but to Sal, it meant little.
He wasn't in the Controller Class anyway, so he wouldn't fall under Chatfield's jurisdiction.
Moreover, he didn't like Chatfield's attitude or his view on the Support Class.
So Sal could confront him without hesitation.
Seeing the look in Sal's eyes, a bright smile finally spread across Chatfield's face.
It was a sincere smile.
He lowered his hand and approached the blueprints Sal had been working on.
"Mind if I take a look, Mythos?"
Sal nodded briefly and pointed to the blueprints.
"Of course. Since most professors already know I'm Mythos, you would have heard eventually. What I'm currently working on are breastplate sets. They're configured to be craftable within the Academy, and designed to be upgraded to advanced versions later. The one you're holding right now should be the Agent set."
Sal tilted his head to look at the blueprint in Chatfield's hand.
Confirming it was indeed the Agent set, he took a step forward.
"I know you expressed concerns about the grappling hook design and the exoskeleton suit. But I've only been here a month, and I'm still building my foundation. Having the ability to craft up to Mythos rank is great, but I'm still learning the basics."
Sal carefully observed Chatfield's reaction.
He wanted to let Chatfield know he wasn't a pushover and emphasize that there was context to his previous designs.
However, Chatfield focused on the blueprints before him without much reaction.
He turned over each blueprint, taking several minutes to examine them thoroughly.
Sal wondered if Chatfield hadn't heard him at all.
Finally, looking at the Specialist set, Chatfield suddenly raised his head and spoke.
"You made all these sets in just a few hours? Common, Uncommon, and even Rare rank?"
Sal tapped the lid of his coffee cup and nodded.
"I was going to start on the Epic rank set too, but I needed some caffeine first. Are you interested in buying the blueprints? I haven't set a price yet, but I won't give you a special discount just because you're a professor."
Sal took another sip of coffee and smiled.
Receiving such genuine admiration for his work was quite thrilling.
Especially if it came from Chatfield.
Sal was anxious that Chatfield might change his attitude at any moment and dismiss his blueprints as garbage.
Chatfield exhaled slowly and picked up a blueprint.
Confusion was evident on his face.
Sal tried to explain that it was one of the transition blueprints, but realized Chatfield had already figured it out.
His hands moved quickly, arranging the various breastplate sets, placing the transition blueprints between them.
Chatfield looked at the spread-out blueprints, stepped back, and crossed his arms.
"Truly excellent work, Argento. An amazing talent."
He smiled genuinely at Sal and gestured over the blueprints with an open hand.
"And to be working until this late hour... it's simply astonishing. My theory is that diligence cannot be taught, but you were born with it."
Sal was quite surprised by his words.
There was no other way to describe it but shock.
Chatfield examined the blueprints meticulously, revealing his thoughts without reservation.
"As I said, I want to purchase this entire set and all the transition blueprints. I'll entrust the crafting to the team I've assembled. This Specialist set, in particular, stands out for its excellent balance in offense, defense, and mobility. The configuration clearly shows traces of deep deliberation. Furthermore, considering synergy effects was an outstanding choice."
Still oblivious to Sal's surprised look, Chatfield continued.
"So the pseudonym Mythos comes from the Mythos Crafter ability. Seeing directly what I've only heard in rumors puts my mind at ease. It feels like that tremendous ability has gone to a truly capable person. If someone other than you possessed such an ability, they would have been engrossed in crafting only for the wealthy top 1%. But you are a Supporter, and you understand the reality your colleagues face."
Chatfield burst into laughter and shook his head.
"Now I understand why you argued so passionately for the role of a Supporter in Quest's office. I admit it was my mistake to try and bring you to the Controller side. You definitely have a talent for helping others."
Sal didn't bother mentioning that this activity was actually a strategy to earn Q-Credits or that he was willing to offer his services to the highest bidder.
For some reason, Chatfield seemed to believe he was an altruistic person, and Sal didn't want to break that impression.
"Since I lack practical combat experience, I tried to design the sets focused on multipurpose abilities to prepare for all possible situations. Could you advise me on how to improve them for better use in the field?"
Sal was quite satisfied with this performance.
He was well aware of Chatfield's dissatisfaction with the lack of equipment and the fact that the majority of students advancing to the second year had zero combat experience.
Chatfield nodded and pointed towards the workbench.
"Was the grappling hook also one of the concepts for this set?"
Sal had to think fast.
In fact, it was a concept he came up with to provoke Upgrade, so he couldn't speak honestly.
Sal took a long sip of coffee, pondering how to utilize the grappling hook.
Watcher could use it to occupy high ground with a sniper rifle, but that was too specific a situation, and he kept quiet fearing Chatfield might ask him to craft a Legendary rank evolution weapon again.
Based on his experiences so far, he tried to think of realistic uses for the grappling hook.
‘The zipline yesterday...? But the grappling hook design came before that.’
Sal put down his cup, let out a deep sigh, and tried to look natural.
"Ahead of the mounted combat, there was an incident involving a Commander-class monster variant using absorption abilities. The massive crater discovered during the dungeon raid was teeming with monsters. The Offense team I saw moved around it. So, the grappling hook was created to move quickly in that situation. Recalling the training with Lars yesterday or the battlefield simulator, I thought a grappling hook would help escape difficulties."
Sal regretted not using Watcher as an example as he spoke.
Because the more he spoke, the flimsier the excuse felt.
Chatfield looked into the blueprints again, lost in thought.
"What is the original intended use for the Epic rank set? If you create transition blueprints, they might be tied to the existing set, limiting the potential of this rank. If the target audience is Academy students, only a few dozen can handle Rare and Epic ranks. Those who can reach Legendary rank would be extremely few. So it would be better to limit the transition set to Rare rank. You have to consider the level Crafters can reach."
Sal was surprised that there were Crafters in this Academy who could aim for Legendary rank.
Although the existence of competitors wasn't welcome, it was good that there were talented people to learn from.
Chatfield's suggestion to limit the transition set to Rare rank was somewhat unexpected.
Sal decided to honestly reveal his plan.
"I intended to create up to Legendary sets and allow anyone to continue upgrading existing sets as long as they had the blueprint and materials. Is there any other alternative?"
Chatfield sighed and pointed to a nearby blueprint.
"Reaching this level of production causes material costs to skyrocket. Improving existing structures leads to increased requirements, likely resulting in a general-purpose set covering all situations. Those who can afford this cost are usually on highly specialized paths. To them, even if your blueprint is the best, they won't be able to fully utilize their expertise through it. If I were you, I would craft Epic rank sets specialized for major classes. Making equipment optimized for top-tier Master Classes. The grappling hook would be very useful in Assassin builds. Provided it's designed with stealth in mind. Conversely, for Healers, it could help improve mobility. But it would be meaningless for Offense or Defense builds. At high ranks, customized specialization is more important than versatility."
Sal nodded.
"Thanks to Professor Alastair's class, I was invited to the Tactical Master Class, but I'm not sure how to implement it in equipment form."
Sal remembered an item he had put off for a long time.
"...There was the Tracker project. I don't know if I can include it as part of a set, but there are quite a few elements usable in tactical aspects."
Chatfield raised an eyebrow, smiled, and sat down next to Sal.
He gestured for Sal to sit as well.
Unlike before, there was no sharpness in his tone at all.
"Why don't you talk about the projects you're working on? I might be able to offer some advice on field application."
Sal was confused.
He couldn't tell if he was anxious about this overly kind Chatfield, or if he was anxious that he might start liking Chatfield more and more.