Chapter 252
Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 252
Chapter Title: Part 2 Chapter 21: Genius Elf (1)
"Amazing. A full-body suit of armor, huh? Though it's too slim to really call it armor. More like something an assassin might wear."
Ironwill poked and prodded at the black full-body suit here and there, his face full of wonder.
"I have no idea what material it's made of, but it's incredibly well-crafted and dense. Great elasticity too, and unlike how it looks, no ordinary sword could slice through it. The pads protecting the vital spots, elbows, and knees are surprisingly tough despite being made of a lightweight material. And the fact that just wearing it skyrockets your physical abilities is downright miraculous. I've never even heard of armor like this in the world. Actually, calling it armor feels a bit off. If it's a suit like assassins favor..."
Even Ironwill of the Five Hands had no clue what the black full-body suit was for.
There was almost nothing made in the world that dwarves didn't know about.
No matter how mysterious the material, it inevitably passed through a creator's hands.
But there were things even they naturally wouldn't know.
Things that existed before the World Reset.
Little had been uncovered about what the previous world was like or what existed in it.
The material of the black full-body suit was surely one such relic from before the World Reset.
Jamie said,
[It feels like extremely thin threads—too thin to even call them thin—are connected to my muscles, bones, blood vessels, energy channels, mana core, and so on.]
Like invisible threads to the naked eye forcibly boosting the performance of his entire body.
It wasn't just stronger strength, faster speed, or better jumping power.
His eyesight alone felt like he'd gained a bird's vision.
And the hearing?
Like a rabbit's ears—if he focused, he could hear villagers murmuring in the distance.
It was the women's voices.
-That handsome new guy with the pretty hair who showed up yesterday? He beat Hawks, they say!
-No way? Really? Well, that explains it. He's tall, got a solid build, and such a handsome face.
-Oh my, oh my!
-Hey! What's so great about Hawks losing? He was always so good to us!
-N-No, that's not what we meant...
-If he's handsome, we say he's handsome—what else are we supposed to say?!
-What did you say? Hawks is handsome too...!
He decided to tune it out.
Jamie's face flushed with embarrassment for no reason.
If his face weren't hidden by the helmet, Ironwill would've spotted his beet-red cheeks.
Oblivious to it, Ironwill pondered Jamie's words before speaking up.
"An enhancement-type suit, then. Things like that do exist. Still, this is astonishing. Incredible performance. How the hell does it even work? I hammered on it with everything I had and got zero reaction. But..."
Ironwill tilted his head slightly and asked Jamie,
"You infused it with mana—black mana, at that. Is that what activated it?"
Jamie had thought he hadn't noticed the black mana infusion amid all the focus on the suit.
But of course he had.
Dwarves had sharp eyes, and one of the best among them wouldn't miss the activation method.
[...As you saw.]
"A black sorcerer, huh? The mana purity was exceptionally high for one."
[Not your average black sorcerer.]
"I see."
Ironwill showed no particular prejudice toward Jamie being a black sorcerer.
Most people would flip out and turn hostile.
But dwarves and black sorcerers rarely crossed paths.
Dwarves were artisans who crafted with minerals, while black sorcerers tinkered with taboo things in the shadows.
Besides, dwarves lived outside human realms, so black sorcerers seldom ventured there.
Ironwill said,
"Just try not to do anything too wicked. Karma has a way of coming full circle back to you."
[Uh, yeah. I'm nothing like those black sorcerers, but I'll keep that in mind.]
"So, how do you take it off? Let me see."
Ironwill was far more interested in the black full-body suit than in Jamie being a black sorcerer.
Jamie nodded and thought about removing the suit.
The entire thing writhed, then began seeping into his skin.
Once fully absorbed into his body, the two stared at each other in silence for a moment.
It seemed the suit had permanently fused with Jamie's body.
Ironwill muttered regretfully.
"Ugh. I wanted to tear into it, but no such luck."
"I didn't expect it to get absorbed into my body either."
"A parasitic type, who knew? Well, that's fascinating in its own way."
He called the full-body suit a 'parasitic type,' referring to weapons or gear that bonded symbiotically with the body.
Jamie learned he'd never seen one before—it was cutting-edge tech from later eras.
"Probably high technology."
"What's that?"
"Not sure myself, but it's future tech from the ancient past. I've found traces of it, but most were too damaged for proper analysis. I suspect your parasitic suit is a product of that high technology. Can't say for sure, but it's definitely beyond current capabilities."
The world had reset multiple times, but humanity had invented plenty even within those cycles. It made Jamie feel a bit proud.
'Humans kept pushing forward, no matter what.'
High technology.
The term rolled off the tongue nicely.
Jamie raised his right hand, envisioning the black suit's glove portion.
Tiny cubic particles rose from his skin, enveloping his hand.
"Black Suit. Let's call it the Black Suit."
"Black Suit?"
"Yeah. Simple name, but nothing better comes to mind."
"Black Suit..."
Jamie thought it was a fine name too.
"I'll put it to good use."
Black mana roiled over the glove.
Ironwill grinned in satisfaction and turned aside.
"Whoa! What the—?! Who're you?!"
Jamie turned at Ironwill's startled shout.
There stood an elf with turquoise hair and no hood—Nell-Sharan.
The bright daylight revealed her face more clearly than last night.
Her skin had looked pale in the dark, but in the sun, it was ghostly white.
Veins visible beneath the surface said it all.
Jamie withdrew the black mana, retracting the Black Suit's glove into his skin.
"What's that?"
Nell-Sharan pointed at his right hand.
"Why'd you sneak up without a word, girl? Nearly gave me a heart attack."
"Hey, old timer."
"Hey my ass. Scaring an old dwarf!"
"Did I scare you?"
"I just said you did! So why're you here again? Staff break on you?"
Jamie had thought they were on bad terms at first, but Ironwill just grumbled—they were clearly close.
And she visited often.
She shook her head and pointed at Jamie.
"Came to see him."
"This guy?"
"Yeah."
"You're in trouble then."
"Why?"
Jamie asked, and Ironwill scratched his head awkwardly.
"Nell gets fixated on something, she'll stalk it obsessively. Not steadily, though—she pops up out of nowhere. Like right now."
Come to think of it, she'd appeared out of the blue yesterday too.
The scary part? He hadn't sensed her presence.
Same today.
'Specialized in stealth?'
A terrifying assassin's talent.
She didn't seem the type, but you never knew with people.
Especially since she was an elf who didn't act very elven.
What was an 'elven' personality? Jamie couldn't quite say, but still.
"So, interested in me?"
"Yeah."
"Why?"
"Share. Uh... share?"
What was she getting at?
Jamie glanced at Ironwill, who scowled.
"Why look at me? I don't know what goes on in her head either."
"Aren't you close?"
"That's separate. She's an even bigger weirdo than me. Probably the biggest oddball in the Frontier."
Seemed that way.
Nell-Sharan shook her head side to side, mumbling "Share? Share?"
Then it hit her—she snapped her head up and shouted,
"Exchange! Let's exchange!"
Jamie considered just leaving.
So how the hell did it come to this?
Jamie eyed the excited elf's back with mild annoyance.
"Hm-hmm~ Hm-hmm~ Hm-hmm~"
She couldn't even hum properly, yet she wiggled her hips in high spirits.
Nell-Sharan had dragged Jamie to her workshop.
The cool beauty now buzzed with excitement, nostrils flaring as she prepared something.
At first, her cries of "Exchange! Exchange!" made him think she wanted a magical knowledge swap.
But following her here revealed it was nothing like that.
"This! Isn't this cool?!"
She thrust forward a lump of scrap metal, puffing her cheeks expectantly for praise.
Distorting that pretty face was a talent in itself.
Separately, Jamie swallowed hard at the scrap heap she offered.
'What is this? A mana amplifier? The design's hideous for one, but... the output is insane.'
Aesthetics aside, the performance was top-tier.
Did she have a passion for artifact crafting?
"What do you think?"
Nell-Sharan's eyes sparkled.
Jamie examined the lump, then handed it back casually.
He didn't want to give her the satisfaction of a big reaction.
"Not bad."
"Oh... Show me something else. Something else."
She pouted and shuffled back to her desk.
It was littered with similar scrap heaps.
Parts strewn everywhere—she clearly never tidied up.
Not very elven, who usually loved neatness.
'Half-elf? Or...'
She didn't look mixed, but her personality and habits screamed atypical elf.
Then someone approached from behind.
"Long time no see."
It was Brara.
Five years apart, but she looked unchanged.
Being an elf.
"Kept muttering your name until she dragged you here."
"My name?"
"Guess the fight with Hawks really impressed her."
Right—Nell-Sharan had popped up right after that fight too.
Muttered something incomprehensible and vanished.
"She's unique."
"Seems socially challenged."
"Spot on. In human terms, it's Savant Syndrome."
Savant Syndrome.
A rare trait in some with autism, granting overwhelming talent in one field.
That explained a regular elf reaching 9th-class archmage status.
Impaired social skills, but innate magical genius that propelled a non-high elf to the pinnacle.
But Jamie saw it differently.
"It's not just magical talent, though. Savant Syndrome gave her that, sure, but she wouldn't have reached this level on that alone."
"What do you mean?"
Jamie watched Nell-Sharan gleefully fiddle with desk clutter.
"She's obsessed with making things, so she dove into magic for it."
Savant Syndrome stemmed from autism.
And those with autism often fixated intensely on something.
Nell-Sharan fixated on creation, realized magic was key, and pursued it.
Brara nodded in agreement.
"You're right. It's been bad since she was little. Got her in trouble a lot."
Her cousin, Brara had grown up with Nell-Sharan and knew her life best.
Brara eyed Jamie curiously.
"How'd you figure it out so quick?"
"Know someone similar."
-Diablo! Diablo! Golem! My golem! Love golems! Make tons, golems!
Watching Nell-Sharan stirred a forgotten old connection.
And with it.
Dormant memories began slowly resurfacing.