novelraw Chapter 64 : Chapter 64
Chapter 64 : Chapter 64
Chapter 64 : Daily Life
Sal adapted to his daily routine over the course of the week.
Most of his time outside of classes was spent in team training or at the Workshop.
While he believed Divinity's training would be helpful, Rust's classes were still unfamiliar.
Even though they were learning basic formations in class, it was chaotic with team members shouting and confusion mixed together.
As the evening training sessions repeated, the intensity gradually increased, and the synergy between teams improved little by little.
However, thanks to Divinity, who inflicted pain in new ways every time their defenses were breached, muscle pain was constant.
Through the Skill class, Sal opened three new Gates, and now he had passed a total of twenty-one Gates.
He tried to meditate for this during the evenings as well, but most days he was exhausted from the continuous sparring.
On days when he barely had any energy left, he went into the Workshop to focus on crafting or spent time improving parts requested by staff and students.
Such a busy daily life continued, and even on the day he was supposed to meet Hannah, he fell asleep as soon as he sat on her bed.
Later, he received a slightly playful message from Hannah, but after she learned how much work Sal was doing outside of class, she was understanding.
Jack and Blanid succeeded in crafting Uncommon rank uniforms and proudly wore them to every class.
Eventually, Anthony asked them for help, and the two readily assisted him.
Barry didn't say a single word about the uniform and devoted himself to training.
His old snide remarks and sarcasm gradually disappeared, replaced by a strong determination and will.
Formation training also improved noticeably, and the team members followed instructions without hesitation.
With the aid of drinks from the kiosk, progress was made quickly, and as training proceeded smoothly, the tension gradually disappeared from Divinity's face as well.
Whenever Sal asked if they had a chance of winning, Divinity avoided answering, telling him only to focus and not get conceited.
When Monday morning came, Sal looked less like a person and more like an exhausted wreck with his soul drained out.
He sat in the cafeteria like a zombie, clutching his coffee with both hands.
Bringing the coffee to his mouth would surely bring back the pain from last night's training, so he hesitated even with that short movement.
The kiosk coffee alleviated the pain, but the morning routine of having to endure the pain first to see its effect was repeating itself.
“You look a bit sensitive this morning?”
Divinity said teasingly as she sat down.
“Oh, you really do!”
Barry chimed in as he sat next to Sal.
Sal glared at the two, but that only stimulated their amusement further.
Barry pointed behind him with his thumb.
There, the team members were lined up in front of the kiosk.
“They're going to take a few minutes. You'd better drink up now, or they'll think you're really dying.”
Barry's annoying smirk was almost enough to invite a punch from Sal, and Divinity's clear laughter was like pouring oil on the fire.
As the coffee took effect, the pain in his body disappeared, and Sal let out a long sigh.
“This hellish training ends if we just endure a few more days, right?”
When Sal asked pleadingly, Divinity nodded.
“I thought you were secretly enjoying it? What happened last night?”
Instead of answering, Sal pointed a finger at Barry, and Barry raised both hands toward Divinity and said.
“Sal asked to test the newly custom-made gauntlet. To give you the conclusion, the shockwave was much stronger than the barrier.”
Divinity's eyes widened.
“It's already finished? How was it?”
Sal closed his eyes for a moment and swallowed his rising annoyance.
After shaking his head lightly, he reluctantly answered.
“It works. Very… painfully effectively.”
Barry burst into laughter.
“Sal was flung back 10 meters. The armor didn't even register it as an attack, so he just took a direct hit. Seriously, every scene was art.”
Divinity covered her mouth and burst out laughing.
“Sorry, Sal. But that is really funny. How about imagining using that gear on Gerard?”
Sal eventually burst into laughter, and at the same time, a stabbing pain rushed into his abdomen.
He let out a groan, took another sip of coffee, and glared at Barry with fierce eyes.
A moment later, when all the other team members were seated, Divinity called for attention.
“Alright, we're really in the final stretch now! We'll train for the next three evenings, and keep Thursday and Friday open as a recovery period. During those two days, we'll focus on getting used to the gear Sal provided. The first battle will start on Saturday. We'll swap gear between teams to try it on, and as we discussed, if we end up facing each other, the team with more wins will throw the match so we can get through without injuries. Now, I'll hand it over to Sal, whose body is a bit sensitive.”
When Divinity gestured toward Sal across the table, Sal shook his head from side to side and spoke.
“The shield gauntlet and pistol-type gauntlet are finished, but after testing yesterday, there are parts that need a little tweaking. Jack, I'd like you to take a look at the Runes engraved on the shield gauntlet with me. I think I missed something.”
Jack nodded excitedly and gave a thumbs up.
Sal expressed his gratitude and continued.
“The jump boots are still being worked on due to size issues, so swapping them between teams might be difficult. Still, I'll do my best in the remaining time. I'll bring everything to the training room today, so I need a few people to help move them. We can actually test them then and hear your opinions. So far, over 1,000 Q-Credits have gone into this plan… and I think most of it went to the kiosk! Honestly, considering what we've achieved so far, I think it's a fair price.”
At Sal's words, Barry almost spat out his coffee, and the others around the table looked at Sal with equally surprised expressions.
Sal shrugged and smiled.
“Honestly speaking, everyone worked so hard that not a single penny feels wasted. The team assignments, luck, none of it was set up for our team to win. In the end, they wanted to see how well we endure and overcome. Once we get into battle, let's just do our best. That's all we can do.”
Barry raised his coffee cup high.
“A toast to the most desperate team leaders in the Silver Cohort! Thanks for picking us…. Well, not that we had a choice!”
Everyone smiled and quietly raised their cups, and Divinity and Sal looked at each other before eventually bursting into laughter.
***
Upgrade smiled brightly as she examined the finished equipment on the table one by one.
“Honestly speaking, Sal. I've never watched the first-year battles.”
She glanced at Sal, who was so engrossed in the Rare rank sword that he didn't even lift his head.
He was completely absorbed in appraising, but Upgrade was used to his work style now and knew he was listening to everything.
“I hated it because it looked like the Supporters, who aren't combat-oriented, were being punished for no reason. Since it happens right at the beginning of the semester, they didn't even have a chance to properly show their skills.”
Upgrade looked at the arm guard, boots, and gauntlet set again and smiled softly.
“But you know, this time everyone at the Workshop is making a fuss about going to watch the battle! To think the day would come when I'd look forward to a Crafter team battle! Are you nervous?”
Sal took his eyes off the sword and pressed the corners of his eyes slightly.
He shook his head slightly to the side and gave Upgrade a bitter smile.
“Rather than nervous… I think anxious is closer. We've prepared everything we can, and I think we at least won't embarrass ourselves. Well, even if we can't win. The goal is just to avoid demotion and make sure all this passes by well.”
He smiled proudly as he looked at the equipment on the table.
As the information window for each piece of equipment popped up in front of his eyes, his smile grew deeper.
“You said you wouldn't help, but thank you so much for persuading the other crafters. If it weren't for your help, Professor, I would still be stuck in the waiting line and unable to work.”
Name: Pulse Gauntlet
Origin: Crafted Item
Condition: Brand New
Rank: Uncommon (High)
Size: Circumference 8.5 inches
Material: Refined Mythos Crafter Essence, Faux Cowhide, Iron
Attributes:
● Counter: Generates a knockback effect in a designated area
● Essence Bullet: Creates a low-impact Essence projectile fired at high speed
Abilities: Counter | Essence Bullet
Power Source: Basic Core
Evolution Potential: None
Quality: Excellent
Durability: 100%
Estimated Value: $2,200.00 - $3,500.00
Name: Tactical Boots
Origin: Crafted Item
Condition: Brand New
Rank: Uncommon (Low)
Size: Size 11
Material: Refined Mythos Crafter Essence, Faux Cowhide, Infused Rubber
Attributes:
● Feather: Reduces wearer's weight to increase jump height and movement speed
Abilities: Feather
Power Source: External Essence
Evolution Potential: None
Quality: Excellent
Durability: 100%
Estimated Value: $1,000.00 - $2,000.00
Name: Shield Guard
Origin: Crafted Item
Condition: Brand New
Rank: Uncommon (High)
Size: Length 8 inches | Circumference 9 inches (Adjustable)
Material: Refined Mythos Crafter Essence, Infused Iron
Attributes:
● Barrier: Creates a protective shield in front of the wearer
● Shock Absorption: Nullifies enemy attacks and inflicts reflected damage with a certain probability
Abilities: Barrier | Shock Absorption
Power Source: Basic Core | External Essence
Evolution Potential: None
Quality: Excellent
Durability: 100%
Estimated Value: $3,000.00 - $4,500.00
Upgrade shook her head.
“It had nothing to do with me. I just mentioned that there seemed to be a competitive team among the Supporter teams in this year's combat class… and they volunteered to handle it as a priority. Everyone was curious about how you combined the equipment and what it looked like. Don't you really want to show them once?”
Upgrade gestured over her shoulder, but Sal firmly shook his head.
“The more people know, the worse it will be for us. I don't want other teams to start making countermeasures.”
Upgrade giggled and covered her face with her hand.
“Sorry! It's just cute that you think other teams operate that strategically.”
When Sal frowned, Upgrade looked at him as if he were being ridiculous.
“You know, right? This is going to be a total mess. The reason we do this at the beginning of the semester is to make you personally feel how terrible you are so that you genuinely commit to training. The real judgment starts from the inter-cohort battles. That will be held later in the semester.”
Sal shook his head.
“Divinity saw the future and said we would be demoted if we didn't take it seriously. I believe what she says.”
Upgrade shrugged.
“Well, if that kid could see the past too, she would have known. That there's nothing to expect from the first few battles. I'm not trying to discourage you, nor am I telling you to be complacent. What's important now is learning, and for Professor Rust to recognize that you did your best. That's what's really important.”
When Sal didn't answer immediately, Upgrade's expression softened.
She let out a deliberately exaggerated sigh and approached the sword.
“Now, let's see your latest masterpiece. Explain it to me.”
Sal smiled and stepped aside.
“Originally, I was going to put a recovery engraving on the blade, but I completely reforged it following your advice, Professor. Thanks to that, it's much better than the original, but I had to re-engrave all the Runes. Jack drew the patterns for me, and since infusing Essence is still difficult with his ability, I did it. But Jack succeeded in enchanting the blade. Originally, that sword didn't have such a function.”
Sal pointed to the bottom of the sword handle.
“This part was cracked, so I recast it with Porge. I changed the Core to one with a larger Essence storage capacity, and the sword adapted to it very well. The metal threads that were originally a shield were broken, so I designed them small like tentacles… I don't know if it turned out well.”
Upgrade raised an eyebrow, looked closely, and burst into laughter upon discovering the face at the bottom of the sword.
“Did you make a baby octopus?”
Sal shrugged and laughed.
“I was almost out of my mind back then, but I wanted to give the sword a unique feel. All the parts are ready, and it will be finished once I fill it with Essence. I have Professor Lombardi's Skill class today, so I think I'll have to infuse the Essence tomorrow. Opening each Gate is harder than I thought, so I need all my Essence.”
Upgrade tilted her head and looked at the sword.
“But I want to see it now….”
She looked at Sal and held up the key to the Essence Core storage room.
“How about if you don't have to use your Essence?”
Sal grinned and said.
“If you're okay with it, I'd love that.”