Ch.110110. The Exchange Meeting is a Lump of Experience

Gilbert, having achieved the “100 Slayer” achievement, smiled with satisfaction at earning the expected title.

The title “Master of Duels” was a beneficial one that increased stats, particularly magic power—one of the few titles that did so.

Currently, Gilbert’s magic power was woefully inadequate compared to the level he had reached in other areas.

While his physical stamina was sufficient for prolonged battles, his magical reserves were not up to par.

Due to his character setting as a delinquent who neglected training in his youth, the “Gilbert” he had possessed hadn’t even learned mana circulation techniques that every noble family member typically mastered.

He only began proper mana training after entering the academy, when he learned the Lion Heart mana circulation technique from the Lion King. No wonder his magic power stats were low.

Thanks to the Dragon Fruit and completing the main scenario, he had somewhat alleviated his mana deficiency, but considering his future plans, it was still far from enough.

In this situation, the magic power boost from the “Master of Duels” title was like rain during a drought.

Moreover, the “Sword Master” title, which increased strength and physical stats, helped Gilbert take another step toward superhuman territory.

Gilbert opened his status window with a satisfied smile.

<Status Window>

Name: Gilbert Lion Heart

Gender: Male (20)

Titles: Hero of the Academy (+)

5th Grade Knight

Singer of Sagas (+)

Master of Duels (+)

Sword Master (+)

Fame: 70K

Possessions: Honor Badge (2)+

5th Grade Knight

Stats

[Strength]: [90](+5)

[Physique]: [94](+1)

[Control]: [100]

[Magic Power]: [60](+10)

[Authority]: [70](+40)

[Leadership]: [70](+30)

Gilbert felt satisfied just looking at his status window.

Though he had played countless games for achievements, rarely had a character grown this much.

Moreover, this wasn’t an infinitely replayable game but reality. Having grown this much in a world where one could only rely on their own strength gave him both relief and a sense of accomplishment.

Except for magic power, his stats surpassed those of most 1st Grade Knights.

Even named characters typically only excelled in specific stats; few possessed such well-rounded abilities.

It was understandable why Gilbert felt proud.

However, after closing the status window, Gilbert opened the mission window and looked at the still-glowing sub-scenario tab.

Two sub-scenarios were glowing: “Seeker of the Sword,” which he had obtained previously, and “Twisted Possession,” which had been newly added.

Like “Seeker of the Sword,” the “Twisted Possession” sub-scenario was one Gilbert had never seen before.

Since most main and sub-scenarios were related to achievements, he had cleared all scenarios in Tactical Combat.

Therefore, there shouldn’t be any sub-scenarios he didn’t know about.

Among the achievements was “Clear All Scenarios,” which required completing every scenario to reach 100% achievement completion.

The only remaining possibility was that he had forgotten the scenario name after clearing so many…

Gilbert immediately dismissed this possibility.

Someone as obsessed with achievements as him wouldn’t forget distinctive scenario names like “Seeker of the Sword” or the ominous-sounding “Twisted Possession.”

Besides, while “Seeker of the Sword” might be one thing, “Twisted Possession” reeked of danger just from its name.

Such sub-scenarios typically involved difficult clearance conditions or frequent game overs, and this one would likely be no different.

So why “Twisted Possession” of all things? This was the greatest puzzle facing Gilbert now.

The problem was that this unhelpful system was even more cruel than Tactical Combat.

It didn’t reveal why the scenario appeared, how to handle it, or even who triggered it.

This was the key difference from Tactical Combat’s system, which provided clues about scenarios.

He shook his head and closed the mission window.

Worrying wouldn’t yield any answers now, and this wasn’t the time to leisurely contemplate sub-scenarios.

Gilbert left the training ground, leaving behind Maium Yar, who was biting her lip in frustration.

Having completed the “100 Slayer” achievement, there was no need to continue grinding duels.

“Hehe.”

“Something good happen?”

“I just realized how nice it is to be protected.”

Gilbert ignored Brynhild’s knowing smile. Engaging with her would only lead to his disadvantage.

-Clap clap clap

“Magnificent.”

“Hmm?”

Gilbert looked around at the sudden applause.

He realized that at some point, the cheers of the students had stopped. During his duels, he had assumed he was simply too focused to notice, but the continued silence suggested another reason.

When he saw who was clapping, he immediately understood why.

It was his master Seraphina, accompanied by numerous student council officers.

She wore an expression Gilbert had never seen before. Outwardly, she appeared as beautiful as ever, but Gilbert couldn’t shake the feeling that her expression was somehow chilling.

“You’ve arrived?”

“Indeed. My disciple always has a talent for surprising me. When I heard what you were up to, I couldn’t help but be amazed by this ‘100 Slayer’ feat.”

“It wasn’t my intention.”

Of course, Gilbert had planned and orchestrated all of this, but he feigned innocence. Normally he would have proudly admitted it, but something told him it would be dangerous to do so with the current Seraphina.

He couldn’t explain why. His gamer’s instinct, honed through countless achievements, warned him not to proceed.

“Trying to slip away again? That’s fine too. If you wish to be my entertainment, I’ll play along.”

“I don’t understand what you mean.”

“I thought my disciple lacked charm, but perhaps I was wrong.”

With a soft laugh, Seraphina left with her student council officers, leaving only her smiling eyes behind.

Gilbert exhaled his held breath only after she disappeared into the crowd.

What on earth is going on?

Even Gilbert had no idea.

***

[Ian?]

“Ah, sorry, Fresia.”

Ian, who had been lost in thought after returning to his quarters, snapped back to attention at the artificial spirit Fresia’s call.

He had been so preoccupied with Gilbert’s outrageous behavior earlier that day that he hadn’t noticed her calling him.

[Is it because of that scoundrel Gilbert or whatever his name is?]

“I tried not to think about it, but it’s not easy.”

Ian smiled bitterly as he gently stroked Fresia’s core. As if enjoying his touch, a faint light flickered from the core.

[You don’t need to worry so much! We decided to show him during the exchange meeting, remember? You just need to trust me!]

“I know. With you, I can do anything.”

Ian could easily imagine Fresia’s confident demeanor as she declared this.

If she had a body, wouldn’t she be standing with her hands on her hips, looking triumphant?

The thought made Ian laugh. He kept to himself the thought that it would be quite cute.

[What? Don’t you believe me? I’m Fresia, the most beautiful and greatest artificial spirit of Atlantica!]

“The ‘beautiful’ part lacks credibility.”

[That’s only because you’re weak! It’s not like I wanted to be in this form.]

“I’m sorry about that.”

Ian, who never admitted his weakness to anyone, made an exception for Fresia. The fact that she remained in this core form instead of her true form was proof of his weakness.

Though it frustrated him, he didn’t intend to stay that way forever. Under Fresia’s guidance, he was growing day by day, and he firmly believed that before long, he would be able to restore her true form.

[By the way, aren’t you going to write in that diary today?]

“Please forget about that already.”

Ian bowed his head at Fresia’s giggling remark.

He had recently burned his entire collection of quotations.

People often can’t view their own actions objectively.

Ian was one such person.

Honestly, he still thought the numerous quotes in his collection were cool.

Words change their meaning depending on how they’re delivered, and each quote he had come up with contained its own unique charm.

But because Fresia laughed so hard (though in her core state, she couldn’t actually have a belly to laugh from), he reluctantly disposed of his entire collection.

If he hadn’t burned it, wouldn’t she still be teasing him about it?

Since the quotes all came from his head anyway, burning them wasn’t a problem, but enduring her teasing all day would have been quite painful.

[Ian, you’re fine in other ways, but in this respect, you’re just like a child.]

“Can we stop now? Everything Fresia says is right…”

[I’ll stop for today. But I think that side of you is cute.]

“Thank you, Lady Fresia.”

[That’s right! Worship me more!]

Ian couldn’t help but smile. Meeting Fresia had been purely by chance, but now he couldn’t imagine how terrible it would be if he hadn’t met her.

He encountered Fresia on the Lion King’s birthday.

It was a festive day when everyone at the academy was celebrating. Ian had been watching Gilbert’s Lion King parade with a disapproving gaze.

It was embarrassing to think about now.

How ugly to be consumed by jealousy and an inferiority complex.

Though meeting Fresia had given him emotional space, back then he had been exhausted by things not going well.

Because of this, he had been heading back to his quarters to write in his quote collection with a bitter heart after watching Gilbert’s parade.

At that moment, the academy fell into chaos due to a sudden invasion by resistance fighters.

Somehow breaching the academy’s security, the intruders carried out indiscriminate attacks while piloting giant mechs.

Faced with this unprecedented danger, Ian hurriedly headed toward the mech hangar.

No matter how defeated he felt, as the protagonist of this world, he couldn’t just stand by during a crisis.

But the mechs’ bombardment made it impossible to proceed on foot. Though he managed to enhance his body by circulating mana, just dodging the attacks was draining.

Nevertheless, he struggled to reach the hangar, only to fall underground when the ground collapsed beneath him as he fled from falling debris.

Even now, he couldn’t tell what that place was. It was just an underground cavern with a mysterious light, where he found a faintly glowing artificial spirit core.

As if entranced, Ian grasped the core and immediately lost consciousness. In his mental world, he met Fresia and formed a contract with her.

When he regained consciousness, Gilbert had already resolved the entire incident. Where he might have once envied Gilbert being hailed as a hero, Ian now only offered a faint smile.

After learning Fresia’s true value through their contract, Gilbert was no longer an object of envy for Ian.

Only a bright, brilliant future lay in his hands.

Meeting Fresia was truly a once-in-a-lifetime stroke of luck.

[Ian, your expression is strange again. Are you thinking of writing in your quote collection?]

“I thought you said you’d stop teasing me.”

[But your current expression makes me want to tease you!]

Ian sighed deeply at Fresia’s playful words.

While it remained an unparalleled stroke of luck to have met her, he wished she would cut him some slack.

And so, Ian had to endure Fresia’s teasing for the rest of the night.