Interlude: Elaine's Gift Awakening
Peaceful noises from the academy drifted in through the window. Far off on the athletic field, students who had just finished class chattered and burst into laughter. The sounds of footsteps in the hallways, snippets of casual conversations about evening plans—all the vibrant hum of daily life filtered inside.
But in stark contrast to the lively atmosphere outside, the club room was utterly silent. The club members stared at me wordlessly, their focus intense. It wasn't their first time witnessing a gift strengthening. They'd already seen me reinforce my own gift once before. Yet seeing it happen to themselves was apparently something else entirely.
Even Rozalia Soline and Aurora Victoria, who weren't the ones undergoing it this time, held their breath cautiously, tense for this second round of strengthening.
Elaine Astraea and Rone Yustria had frozen solid the moment I mentioned gift strengthening.
They're ridiculously tense. Well, it was only natural. As a reincarnator from Earth, reinforcing my gift just felt like, "Oh, okay." But for these girls, born and raised in Hifnia, strengthening a gift went against everything they'd ever learned.
A gift was a special blessing granted at birth. It couldn't be acquired later in life, nor could its abilities change or grow stronger. The immutability of gifts was an ironclad truth in Hifnia.
They'd lived with that knowledge for over twenty years, only to discover barely a month after enrolling at the academy that they could strengthen their gifts. No wonder the shock was immense.
In the suffocating silence, the students watched me, and I watched them back. Tension thickened in the club room.
"...."
"...."
Finally, Elaine spoke up, her voice strained with nerves.
"Um... so how exactly do you strengthen a gift?"
"...Huh?"
That came out of nowhere.... I blinked, turning the question back on her in confusion.
"Doesn't a status window or something pop up in front of you?"
"...I've never seen anything like the status window you're describing, Teacher."
"Me neither."
Elaine looked troubled by my words, while Rone nodded in agreement.
"...."
Come to think of it, I'd been able to strengthen my gift because the status window—tied to my Observation gift—guided me naturally. But what about them, without Observation? How were they supposed to do it?
I pondered this and mentally queried my own 'status window.'
"...."
Of course, it didn't respond. I knew that much. Observation wasn't the type of gift to be used that way. It could confirm if my answers were right or wrong, but it never spoon-fed solutions. I had to figure it out myself.
Sigh.
Gifts and ghost stories were both ultimately made of resentment. So if they desperately wished for their gift to strengthen, wouldn't it respond in kind?
The holder of the Observation gift can conveniently strengthen their gift by observing their own inner self through its abilities.
However, gift holders without the Observation gift require a separate process to strengthen theirs.
First: They must have accumulated a sufficient amount of resentment.
Second: A strong will or emotion must manifest.
When both conditions are met, the accumulated resentment is consumed, and the gift strengthens.
...If you're just gonna give the answer like that, why not from the start? It's annoying no matter how I slice it. This gift was so convenient yet inconvenient at the same time.
"That's simpler than I expected. But it suits gift strengthening pretty well."
"So if we focus our minds right now and desperately pray for our gifts to strengthen, that'll do it?"
The two of them shut their eyes and began concentrating immediately.
"...."
...Wait. What about my Advice ability, the upgrade to Observation? When was I supposed to use that?
The moment the thought crossed my mind, another message window appeared.
To intervene in another gift holder's strengthening using Advice, direct a strong intent toward a gift holder who has accumulated enough resentment, declaring that you will use Advice.
Strengthening via this method allows you to choose the direction of the gift's evolution, unlike standard strengthening.
"Wait! Wait! Wait! Stop!!"
Startled by my shout, Elaine and Rone broke their concentration.
"Teacher! That was a crucial moment!"
"I felt like something was about to happen...!!"
They grumbled at my interruption. No, if they'd gone through with it, that would've been a disaster.
I sighed and addressed their complaints.
"You almost strengthened your gifts randomly. I chose the Advice gift specifically so we could actively select your strengthening paths—and you nearly skipped using it."
"...Oh."
"Now that you mention it, we got so excited about strengthening our gifts..."
This time, I resolved to do it right. I called out first.
"Elaine. Let's start with you."
She approached quietly when I said her name.
"Here we go."
"...Yes."
As I focused on her, I felt my attention sharpen toward her like a lens. She'd been with me the longest solving ghost stories. If anything, her strengthening was overdue.
She'd spent the most time by my side—not just quantitatively, but she'd been a huge help in resolving them. Everlight Academy's top enrollee. The girl who'd crafted a self-proclaimed mysterious, aloof image since starting here. But in truth, she loved ghost stories and history, with emotions as rich as anyone. Her public aloofness was just an act to hide those "unladylike" interests.
Her strong mental power gift had made her top student, but it also dulled her to anything less stimulating than ghost stories. Outside the club, she had no friends and wore a mask to hide her hobbies.
Yet she never rejected her gift. She embraced it as part of herself.
...My precious student. She's strong.
And then, as if rising from her body, message windows centered on her appeared before me.
Understanding of Elaine Astraea has reached a sufficient level. Advice activates.
Paths for gift strengthening proportional to understanding are revealed.
It was the first time. The status windows weren't based on my viewpoint—they were centered on someone else.
"Teacher. These translucent things..."
"You can see the message windows?"
"...Is this the status window you mentioned? It's... strangely shaped."
The other students whispered, unable to follow our conversation.
"What are they talking about...?"
"Aurora, what are Teacher Allen and Elaine seeing? There's nothing there."
"It seems like Teacher's ability has brought up a status window only he and Elaine can see."
So it was shared only between Elaine and me. This was Advice....
I calmed my surprise at the unfamiliar windows and focused, reading the ones emanating from her.
Further greatly strengthens the gift holder's personal mental power.
The holder becomes immune to weak mental contamination that even ordinary humans can somewhat resist, and gains resistance even to intense mental attacks that ordinary humans absolutely cannot withstand.
Mental power begins influencing the material world.
The gift holder's mental power can substitute for physical stamina. As long as mental power holds, they can act even with fatal injuries.
However, this consumes mental power proportional to the injury's severity and activity level, reducing resistance to mental contamination relative to consumption.
Synchronizes personal mental power with a group's.
The holder can share their mental power with others. Those sharing gain the holder's level of mental contamination resistance.
However, mental power consumption increases proportional to the number of people sharing it.
Rapidly recovers consumed mental power, even from mental contamination.
By brightening the group's mood, can also recover others' mental power and heal their mental contamination.
Four paths in total. All evolutions of her original strong mental power gift. Like mine, only one—Survivor—directly amplified the base output. The other three unlocked new abilities based on it.
Mostly limited to mental contamination scenarios, but that made them incredibly useful against it.
"These are the paths I can choose..."
Elaine read the messages before her eyes and let out a gasp of admiration. After scanning them slowly, she turned to me.
"Which one should I pick?"
"Personally, I think... Nah, you should choose."
I stopped myself from recommending and left it to her. She'd lived with strong mental power longer than anyone—she knew it best. And ultimately, it was her gift. Something she'd carry for life, even after we defeated the outer gods.
Was it right to dictate her future based on my selfish view of what's convenient for ghost stories? Maybe that was too naive when the world's fate hung in the balance.
But I couldn't help it.
...I've become a teacher without realizing it.
"...Advice is just advice. The final choice has to be your own will."
"So please decide for me, Teacher."
"Elaine. Did you even hear what I—"
"This is my choice. Accepting whatever you pick. No matter what you choose, I won't regret it or resent you. That's what I've decided."
She looked at me with clear eyes, my reflection shining in them.
"You..."
Ahem!
A sudden cough interrupted. Snapping back, I saw the other students eyeing us uncomfortably.
Rozalia Soline crossed her arms, pouting.
"Excuse me, Teacher? You haven't forgotten we're here too, right?"
Rone Yustria added with a sulky expression.
"It's like we're not even in the room. Are we just extras?"
Aurora Victoria said nothing, but her stare was piercing.
"...."
Under their sharp gazes, even Elaine looked flustered and turned away. I averted my eyes and cleared my throat.
"A-anyway, if that's what you want, I can recommend one."
I glossed it over and voiced the path that had caught my eye.
"The ability I recommend is..."