24 - Skill Theft (2)
Clarice Academy, practical archery class.
The academy's classes are divided by grade, but aside from general education, major classes are taken according to each student's position. Since I've become an archer aiming for the rear guard no matter what, I'm in a position where practical shooting is a required major course.
And right before my eyes, a shooting show by countless aspiring archers was unfolding.
"Next, Group 4 to the shooting lanes!"
At the professor's words, the group two ahead of me lined up neatly at the lanes. Nimble hand movements, arms steady without a hint of tremor.
Shuuuuk!
And a release point without any excess motion. This was a clear demonstration of the gap in talent.
"Isn't that him? The crossbow guy."
"Yeah, the one who tied with a monster during the exam and got bumped up."
Even now, there were plenty of students mocking my qualifications as an archer, saying a C-grade like me was a waste in B-grade. In reality, since the targets weren't living things or demons, my triple critical wouldn't apply, and with my proficiency level far below theirs, it was hard for me to put on an impressive show.
"Heard he's dueling Senior Gailon."
"What? With bows? Or just a bet?"
"Bows. Totally insane."
It seemed word of the duel had already spread widely among the students. In the end, what I desperately needed for my future was none other than Wind Archery.
<Reincarnated Hero> exclusive. Elves contract with the wind spirit Sylph to acquire it.
Includes basic passives like arcing shots and rapid fire, plus countless archer techniques.
The ultimate archery manual—no explanations needed. Mastering this alone catapults me to new heights.
So, I had no choice but to steal... no, learn it from Selena.
In our conversation just moments ago,
"I have no obligation to teach you."
She, who couldn't use Wind Archery herself, seemed to want to hide that fact and left those words behind before vanishing.
Fine by me. Trust isn't built overnight, and I had groundwork to lay first anyway. I could approach her slowly.
First things first: Wind Archery isn't a skill you can just learn because someone teaches you. It's an elf-exclusive unique trait, after all.
But apparently, nothing's absolute in this world.
Surprisingly, the closed beta of <Reincarnated Hero> featured an absurd ability to steal skills!
Of course, I'd have grabbed such a cheat ability right after possessing this body if I could. But the acquisition conditions were brutally harsh.
And even after all that effort, the skill came loaded with restrictions for each theft.
For starters, Skill Theft is an F-rank skill from a named monster boss in the tutorial: the "Phantom Thief."
The Phantom Thief is pathetically weak, so killing it is no issue. The problem is getting there.
Since <Reincarnated Hero> and <Reincarnated Academy> have different main stages, even using the academy's magic tower for teleportation would cost a fortune in gems.
And killing it doesn't guarantee the skill. Defeating the Phantom Thief sends you to a reward room with 100 golden chests, but players can only pick one.
Data-wise, Skill Theft exists, but in practice, all are duds. It's an Easter egg of sorts.
Thus, the way to get it is to clear the tutorial without claiming the reward, leave it be, then later use detection skills to identify it.
But Aria. Among her surveillance abilities is a detection skill. If I use that...?
It fit together like a perfect puzzle. I suppressed a grin and headed to the classroom.
Aria, waiting for the required general education course "Party Member's Qualities," was deep in thought.
"Too dangerous."
A man and woman under one roof—sure, she'd heard Yeriel was incredibly strong, but... the guy might be a demon.
Lately, despite not wanting to admit it, Aria's mind was filled with thoughts of that man.
As she organized her thoughts, a newly realized fact came to mind.
"The monsters definitely weren't targeting Lev Denek."
Both with the hobgoblins and the rags, monsters were usually aggressive, yet they never struck first at him. This simple fact carried huge implications.
It was as if he were on the same side as the demons—and it made sense.
Yet? He was the one cutting them down in the end.
Without a shred of hesitation, and without attaching any special meaning to it.
In fact, after killing them, he'd looked pleased, lost in thought.
What connected these facts?
First priority: confirm if demons truly never attacked Lev Denek.
That was when—
"It's the Magic Department Student Council President!"
"Senior Lilith from year two!"
"Whoa, what's going on?"
"She got business with a freshman?"
Jet-black hair. The black robe symbolizing her as student council executive and top mage amplified her presence. She carried herself with the dignity and considerable intimidation of an imperial court mage descending.
Lilith stopped in front of Aria. Looking at her light purple-tinted silver locks, she said,
"What a cute junior."
"…"
Instinct, perhaps. From orientation, Aria hadn't thought well of Lilith.
Some ominous aura wafting from her. And that smile for juniors—it felt like there was a reason behind it, hypnotic somehow.
"I'm looking for someone. Do you know Lev Denek by any chance?"
The mention of searching for someone stirred the surroundings.
"…Yes. But his class hasn't ended yet, it seems."
"I see…"
Thinking back, when Aria was in temporary C-class, Lev Denek had made a huge fuss trying to impress this woman.
The student council at Clarice Academy wasn't an absolute power, but everyone wanted in—for connections to TAs and professors, scholarships, and such.
But the president coming personally? Not an everyday sight.
And then, the protagonist of this tale, Lev Denek, entered the class. Gray hair, sharp features as ever.
"Junior!"
Lilith called him familiarly.
Birds of a feather, maybe. But Lev Denek made a face like he'd seen something he shouldn't,
"Come out."
And suddenly dragged Lilith off somewhere.
"What the hell? Didn't he buy his way into council and get booted?"
"Dunno. Must've caused some big incident…"
Aria knew she shouldn't, but she followed the two.
Lilith, quiet for days, suddenly shows up. No clue what she's thinking.
"Junior, you feeling okay?"
Asking after my health with that grin after what she did—hilarious.
I answered curtly.
"What's your business?"
"Ah, I'm here on student council matters today. You wanted in, right, Lev junior? So specially…"
"Not interested."
"Huh?"
"Didn't buy it. Go. I have class."
As I dismissed her with contempt, Lilith's poker face started cracking.
"I'm not a salesman… That aside! Don't you have something to say to me?"
She finally grabbed my arm as I turned to leave. Looked like a clingy girlfriend pleading.
I hated that crap. I spoke as flatly as possible, devoid of emotion.
"No. Nothing to say."
"Th-that can't be…"
"Sorry, we've both seen enough ugly sides. Let's go our separate ways. No need to meet again."
"Wait… Junior…"
Lilith, who'd been eyeing demonization, gets exposed for black market corruption in chapter 2, losing all her reputation and trust.
In chapter 3, she tries to go dark but gets saved by Edwin, then helps forge his holy sword after expulsion—that's canon.
The absolute hero's blade, Lilith's life's work.
Unlike Kaeran's sword, it kept Edwin from corruption—the key difference.
Meaning, no matter how much I crave side character kills, for Edwin's sake, I had to spare even this minor villain.
"Let go."
As I turned away indifferently, Lilith dropped an unexpected bombshell.
"I-I did it! I rigged your selection exam…"
I knew that already.
"You hated it so much, it disgusted you. But... you weren't. Instead…"
"…?"
"A demon, right? The high demon I'd longed for and sought… aren't you? Otherwise, you couldn't escape the devil's brand."
Putting together Lilith's rambling: I wasn't affected by the devil's whisper or the pendant because I'm a demon, so she fully believes I'm a high demon now.
"So save me… Turn me into a demon…"
"Calm down a bit…"
From her devil-worshipping perspective, she and I were like high priest and fanatic follower.
"Junior, save me…"
There's one foolproof way to snap someone out of it. A time-honored traditional method.
Whip!
Slap!!!
The heavy smack shattered the mood. Lilith stood dazed, head fully turned.
Yes. I'd cleanly slapped the cheek of my esteemed senior.
"Get a grip, you idiot."
Third-Rate Slap!
Supporting Character Points +10