Chapter Forty-One: Break
Third Checkpoint
Thursday,
10:05 A.M.
Inside a dimly lit room.
A small workshop, small enough to accommodate a small number.
Dim light flickered overhead, casting a shade on the people within this room.
Three of them.
A male, his back against the wall, with eyes closed as though he were deep in thought.
And there, resting on the bed, sickly, was a silver-haired female.
Tending to her, making checkups, was a middle-aged man.
"I see, so she's a
Elric paused for a moment, adjusting his spectacles professionally.
After that, he turned back to his patient on the bed, continuing.
"Your girlfriend?"
"She's not."
Morgan instantly denied it.
He had shared everything with Elric before now, so even he was aware of what happened these past hours.
As such, the data and footage of everything were sent to him.
Especially the readings of his brainwaves, something Elric seemed almost obsessed with.
Hearing the firm denial, Elric merely sighed.
As much as he'd like to poke the young man.
No, honestly, he couldn't call Morgan a brat or a young man anymore.
"Still… I can't believe you actually fought that woman."
He muttered this while heading to a compartment attached to the table.
Pulling it open, he grabbed a roll of bandages and stretched a strip loose as he returned to the bedside.
Morgan, however, shook his head.
"I can't believe you actually knew her. But, well…"
Before he could continue, Elric cut in.
"Hah, well, even if you knew, that wasn't going to change your mind, was it?"
Elric didn't look up from patching the girl who lay on the bed.
Instead, he focused on it while still talking to Morgan.
And it was just as he said.
Just because he knew that wouldn't have changed anything.
Perhaps his view of her might have changed earlier on if he had told her.
"That makes sense."
Of course, he wouldn't actually kill his relative.
With Beta managing his attack output—
He could switch between lethal and non-lethal, adjusting the intensity as needed.
Enough to injure, maybe incapacitate, but never anything irreversible.
«A tsundere?»
Beta decided to quip, making Elric turn toward her projection with a raised brow.
And, surprisingly, a look of agreement.
Morgan, on the other hand, grimaced.
But then his mind reeled back to before now.
He and Kurumi had gone their separate ways for now, leaving
And with Raizen High in ruins, this might actually be the perfect opportunity to go abroad.
'Hmmm...'
Morgan stroked his chin in deep thought.
If possible, he'd have brought both Nia and Kurumi along.
And while Nia wasn't a fighter, her Omniscience could—
'Forget it… Beta and I will do.'
He nearly laughed at himself with a hint of self-mockery.
"By the way, I looked over the report your assistant sent about your brain waves. It's exactly what I suspected."
Pulled out of his thoughts, Morgan watched Elric step away from
Clang!
The utensils clattered onto the steel trolley, the sound ringing sharply through the room.
"For magicians, the more distinct their Brain Waves, the greater the power they can draw out."
With a gesture, Elric tapped the side of his temple with his index finger.
"Even so, following that logic doesn't guarantee much."
His eyes then shifted to Nia, still resting quietly on the bed.
Her pulse had steadied.
Her condition was noticeably improving.
Morgan preferred avoiding using his personal resources because of a certain someone.
"Can you watch over her for a while?"
Hearing that, Elric gave him a long, almost unimpressed look.
"What exactly do you think I could do to a Spirit?"
«Master, the strain from everything she has undergone could lead to unexpected outcomes.»
Beta turned her gaze toward Nia.
"So you're suggesting she may lash out, or her memories could create instability?"
«Correct.»
Elric found himself more impressed by the AI's assessment than by Morgan himself.
A quiet pause settled over the room before Elric wiped his hands with a handkerchief.
"Let's go up."
Morgan followed.
They stepped into the creaking elevator that carried them to the ground floor, the apothecary shop.
Elric removed his white coat, now wearing only a simple shirt as he moved behind the counter.
"So? How was the Combat Realizer? I already know its specs, but I still want to hear it from you."
Sitting at the counter, Morgan exhaled, rubbing his neck until it cracked.
"It exceeded my expectations."
Elric nodded, satisfied, as he opened a cabinet behind him and worked a machine like a coffee brewer.
He drew out a small container, opened it, and a strong herbal fragrance filled the shop.
Morgan raised an eyebrow, silently asking what he was up to, when Elric replied—
"Your body must be exhausted from repeated use of Territory. I'm making a potion to ease the strain."
"So you noticed that too."
Morgan slumped forward against the counter.
Right… his body was being pushed into deep fatigue and sluggishness.
Yet all he truly felt was a dull numbness.
Well, that was expected.
He'd flooded his entire body with light particles or mana.
Not to mention, using his Territory to deaden his pain receptors.
"...This should help. Don't worry."
The sound of liquid filling a cup drifted through the room, followed by a sweet aroma that spread gently in the air.
"It smells nice."
Click.
"This one's on the house."
Elric set the cup on the counter with a soft tap, offering nothing more, before wiping his hand clean with an handkerchief.
Morgan tilted his head.
"Well, if you insist."
He lifted the matcha-colored drink, swirled it and, without thinking twice, swallowed it down.
And then—
"Kuh! Ack!"
His free hand shot to his throat as he hastily set the cup back onto the counter.
He staggered backward, swaying, nearly losing his balance.
A look of disgust churned his expression as he did.
"Bleh… that's so bitter…"
Cough! Cough!
Elric blinked at him, genuinely surprised.
Why the dramatic reaction?
Thinking that, he brought his hand to his chin for a moment.
Ah. So Morgan really couldn't handle bitter flavors, could he?
'Who would have thought.'
Entertaining as it was, Elric eventually reached into the overhead compartment.
He retrieved a cluster of leafy herbs, selected a particular stalk, and slid it across the counter.
"Here. This one's sweet."
Morgan looked at him with deep betrayal.
"Come on, it's sweet. It'll clear the bitterness from your mouth."
That only made Morgan narrow his eyes.
He'd briefly studied some of these herbs here.
There were some that were like spices, and some that were more dangerous.
One in particular had stimulating properties.
Yes, it was unparalleled if one wanted to use it in that certain area.
And…
'I can feel my fatigue easing.'
Clenching and unclenching his hand, he grumbled under his breath, "Ugh… still bitter…"
But he took the stalk anyway and placed it into his mouth.
He bit down lightly, and a sweet liquid spread across his tongue.
If he had to describe it—
"Sugar?"
"Mhm. All natural. Though Basic Realizers helped a bit… he's not listening."
Elric shook his head.
"Anyway, my colleagues are eager to meet you. They were impressed and want to collaborate."
Returning to his herb brewer, likely preparing something for
Morgan looked up.
…Right.
Elric had mentioned his friends had been the ones helping out.
He'd even messaged with one overly excited researcher.
"They all say they want to work under you."
"Huh?"
Morgan frowned.
"Forget it. I'm just a high-school student. I have nothing they're looking for."
"High-school, huh? Was that supposed to be a joke?"
Elric barely glanced his way while tending to the mixture.
Then he paused.
"With what I've seen so far, what you can do falls into a zero point one probability."
And over time, he'd reached a conclusion:
Morgan was special in a way that defied easy explanation.
Something must have happened to him, or, at least, that was his working theory.
"Just by sharing those ideas of yours, you've opened an entirely new direction for how realizers can be applied."
Morgan waved a hand dismissively.
"Alright, enough with the praise—"
"You think I'm exaggerating? Well, you'll understand once you meet them and see the uproar you've started."
Morgan could only stare at Elric in disbelief.
Now that he thought about it…
That researcher he'd spoken with did mention something about a 'revolution' or something equally overblown.
His expression flattened into a dull monotone.
Forget the Butterfly Effect.
It looked like he was the Butterfly Effect all along, because—
«Aligning with Master's current line of thought»
«There's a very high chance AST will create more specialized weapons to counter you and the Spirits»
«Bandersnatcher might become the foundation for those developments»
«Given the ripple effect of Master's innovations, it's fully plausible»
'So all this time…'
Morgan pointed at himself, stunned.
"I'm the problem, aren't I?"
He'd originally assumed he was just a background character in all of this.
But from the perspective of the actual protagonists of this story…
Didn't that make him the instigator of chaos?
"Beta… I might've messed up a bit."
«Haah. Only Master could say that while downplaying everything. Truly, you never cease to amaze me»