Copy Skills with Affinity! - Chapter 12

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Natty

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Copy Skills with Affinity! ◈

Chapter 12: Spiritual Power (2)

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“Noel.”

“Yes, Chieftain.”

“You picked a good husband.”

“...”

Noel silently refilled Dunadan’s glass. She had never expected her hobby of collecting liquor to come in useful like this.

It was certainly early for a drink, but seeing the state Dunadan was in, she could hardly refuse.

At first, she had wondered what had brought Dunadan here so suddenly. After hearing what had happened, though, she could understand.

“...Aiden formed three Spiritual Power Cores in only a few hours.”

“Absurdly easily, too.”

After Noel carefully explained what had just happened once more, Dunadan poured the drink she had filled straight down Dunadan’s throat.

The despondency in that gesture was extraordinary.

“Do you know that forming one’s first Core is used in place of a coming-of-age ceremony in the Plains Coalition, Lionheart?”

“I heard as much from those I fought alongside.”

“Then you must also know that everyone in the Coalition is required to learn how to use Spiritual Power from birth.”

Even with training from such an early age, forming one Core by adulthood was considered average.

And simply being capable of that made the Plains Coalition one of the nations with the highest individual combat power on the continent.

‘Definitely...’

Noel searched through her old memories.

Had there not been countless Great Plains warriors who had shone even in the hellish Coalition War with only two or three Cores?

Yet Aiden Kellermain had reached that level in only a few hours.

“Being born with an ability and using it well are entirely different matters.”

There were occasionally people blessed enough to handle several abilities with perfect ease.

It was difficult to deny that Aiden Kellermain belonged to that sort.

That was why Dunadan had been ready to comfort Aiden.

“Honestly, I was ready to console him. Even those confident in wielding power struggle to master Spiritual Power.”

I’m obviously a genius. I’m blessed.

So why can’t I even do this properly?

Dunadan had seen plenty of people fall into that sort of despair.

Especially someone who, by some unknown method, possessed both Lionheart’s pure white ki and the divine power of the Holy Empire’s royal family. It was not difficult to expect him to be proud.

Dunadan had expected Aiden to encounter the same impressions Dunadan had when first handling Spiritual Power, or the same sort of wall Dunadan had seen others face.

Dunadan certainly had not expected to feel that way while watching a “beginner.”

“He’s a genius.”

At Noel’s quiet nod, Dunadan briefly frowned.

Dunadan seemed to be reconsidering what had just been said.

“No. Calling him a genius isn’t quite right either.”

Dunadan swirled the liquor in the glass and continued.

“He’s a monster.”

“...”

Aiden’s talent was certainly extraordinary, but it was not unique. Even history books held more than enough figures whose talents were overwhelming enough to be called violent.

The Savior of Humanity, the Defeated Calamity God, the Forgotten Demon King...

With such terrifying, transcendent names carved into continental history, it was not an especially exceptional talent.

That was what Dunadan had thought.

Until Dunadan saw what Aiden had done yesterday.

“I grew up hearing I was a genius too, but I’ve never seen anything like that in my life. Even if I went back to the Great Plains and told my fellow chieftains, they’d think I was insane.”

After a brief silence at that blunt assessment, Noel spoke.

“How long does it normally take to reach that level?”

“Ten years for an ordinary person.”

“...”

“It took me two.”

“...”

“Believe me, Lionheart. You really picked your husband well. I’m curious myself just how far that man will grow.”

Something a person called a genius had achieved in two years, Aiden had done overnight. In only a few hours, at that.

Noel touched her cheek as she considered what to say.

Dunadan was someone born with talent that had placed Dunadan above others throughout life. Dunadan had become the standard for genius.

Now, having witnessed talent so immense it made Dunadan feel a wall for the first time, Dunadan was clearly close to losing his mind.

Should she comfort him?

Or...

“As expected of Aiden.”

“...It’s good that you two get along so well, but did you have to brag about your husband right in front of me?”

Noel gave a quiet snort and refilled Dunadan’s glass.

In truth, it was less bragging than Noel herself being so taken aback that she felt compelled to say it aloud.

It was not merely Aiden’s abilities. She had questions about his actions.

‘...Why did he suddenly decide to train?’

Anyone with sense could see that Aiden avoided getting involved in “serious,” “troublesome,” or “difficult” matters as much as possible.

Of course, staying by her side meant he could not avoid such storms entirely. That was why she had brought in a man who seemed able to endure them. Still, it was obvious that he did not welcome such things.

Was that not why Noel kept him by her side almost as though she were monitoring him? To protect him from being suddenly dragged into such matters whenever possible.

As she mulled over that question, Dunadan dropped another sentence in a dazed voice.

“This is good liquor.”

“There’s another bottle. I’ll give it to you as a gift.”

“Don’t you intend to drink with me?”

“I still have official duties.”

Noel smiled bitterly.

At least one person had to remain clear-headed, in case someone out of their right mind caused a disaster.

At least, that was what she would have done if she had not decided to voice the question she had been holding back.

“By the way, why did Aiden want to learn Spiritual Power?”

“He said there’s someone he wants to impress. That he wants to become a better person.”

“...”

“I told you, didn’t I? You picked your husband well. Isn’t life worth living when someone born with that much talent looks after another person so devotedly?”

Noel stared at Dunadan in silence.

For a long time.

Long enough to fluster even the person who had said it.

She almost looked as though she were suppressing her embarrassment.

“...Surely he wasn’t talking about me.”

After remaining silent for so long, Noel cautiously murmured that. Dunadan answered in a dumbfounded voice.

“Who else could he mean, if not his newlywed wife?”

“...”

Noel’s blank expression deepened slightly.

No, strictly speaking, Dunadan was right.

But still.

Aiden had been kidnapped and forced into a contract marriage with her.

There was no reason for him to say something like that about Noel.

- It seems you don’t remember the past. Maybe from when you were young.

- No, it’s nothing. I never thought you’d truly forgotten.

Maybe he did have a reason.

A string of remembered words hammered at Noel’s mind, and she rubbed a hand over her face.

Again.

Again and again.

No matter how much she wanted to believe otherwise, those words seized her as though she had been bewitched.

Did that man really have some history with her?

Was that why he went around saying such things without a shred of shame?

She did not know.

She wanted to push the matter to the back of her mind because she could not uncover the answer yet, but she could not help dwelling on it when things like this kept happening.

“...”

The solution to these distracting thoughts was fairly obvious.

With a sigh, Noel took another glass from the cabinet.

Seeing the clear intent behind her action, Dunadan let out a short laugh.

“Didn’t you say you had official duties?”

“...Now that I think about it, a few drinks may help rather than hinder me.”

“Of course.”

The two clinked the rims of their glasses together.

‘...Could he really like me?’

As Noel poured liquor freely into her glass, that thought suddenly crossed her mind.

“...”

No. Of course not. What was she thinking?

She downed the half-full glass in one gulp.

...Perhaps because of the alcohol, her face felt hot.

▣

-Skill Info

『 Dunadan U’zal 』

- Bond: Level 2

- You can copy 1 additional skill.

< Copied Skills >

◆ Generic Ability: Spiritual Power

An ability bestowed by Urgan, God of the Supreme Vehicle. It can be used by imposing a constraint on yourself.

▶ Number of Cores: 5

※ Proficiency increases rapidly due to the Omnipotence skill modifier. An anomalous trait is granted.

※ Only “Unique” category constraints can be designated. It cannot be used by any other method. However, if this condition is met, the skill will change.

Aiden stared at the number beside Number of Cores.

‘For now, I only made three because of the Chieftain...’

As the number of Cores increased, Dunadan had looked closer and closer to losing composure. Aiden had started to feel self-conscious.

As a result, he had not been able to ask the additional question he had intended to bring up.

The two lines added at the bottom of the skill window were the problem.

‘Only Unique ones work for me?’

In the game, simple constraints such as “skip one meal” or “do not sleep for more than seven hours” had been possible without issue.

But when he tried them, every constraint of that sort was invalidated for Aiden. As the skill window said, it seemed that only special ones were possible.

‘What exactly does Unique category mean...?’

Judging from the terminology the system had used so far, it likely referred to a trait no one else possessed.

‘A constraint that no one else has ever used?’

...Just considering the number of people in the Great Plains made his head spin.

Thinking about how many people used Spiritual Power across the entire continent made it worse.

Would he end up unable to use Spiritual Power after going through all the trouble of learning it?

‘I’ll need to give this some thought.’

As he moved to close the window, a new message suddenly flitted before his eyes.

-System Message

▶ Target “Noel Astria Seamus” has increased in affinity.

▶ Bond level has increased from Level 2 to Level 3.

▶ You have gained 1 additional Skill Copy!

▶ Related details will soon be added to the Main Quest!

Aiden blankly blinked at the window that had suddenly appeared before him.

‘...Did that actually work?’

He had considered the possibility that the words he had casually fed Dunadan might reach Noel.

Still, he had said them half-jokingly. Seeing her affinity genuinely rise left him feeling somewhat uneasy.

“...”

At this point, he felt he needed to reconsider things a little.

If her affinity kept rising this quickly, their relationship might truly develop into something deep later on.

‘...As if it would go that far.’

For now, various coincidences had merely caused her interest in him to grow.

In the end, all the attention currently directed at him would shift to the protagonist once the protagonist appeared.

In any case, Aiden planned to dump everything on the protagonist he would soon meet, then return to an ordinary life. He only had to make good use of things until then.

Aiden tapped his chin as he fell into thought.

‘What I have left is...’

He currently had three Skill Copies remaining.

One from Katia, one from Noel, and one he could take from His Imperial Majesty.

‘There’s no need to learn them immediately.’

Something could happen in an event related to the main scenario. Learning skills in advance would be strange.

He had taken a quick look through the available skills, so it would be ideal to choose and learn whichever ability best suited the situation when things became urgent.

Had he not learned Spiritual Power to prepare for just such an emergency?

‘...Though it would be best if I didn’t have to learn anything at all and everything passed peacefully.’

That was why he was working so hard now.

He headed to a place he remembered visiting before.

Billy Hagan’s tool shop. He had come to collect the information he had requested.

The moment Aiden entered, Billy recognized him and snorted.

“Ah, you’re the guy who stuck his head into that dangerous business.”

...That was a slightly strange way to remember him.

“What about the information?”

The moment he asked, a roll of documents landed on the counter with a thump.

“I sorted out the trade volume, distribution routes, and most importantly, the exchange location.”

Billy had emphasized the exchange location because it was highly likely to be where the incident occurred. Aiden had specifically asked him to find it.

Aiden nodded and quickly scanned the documents.

It was certainly work worth every extra coin.

Aiden placed the sack of gold he had brought on the counter.

“I added fifty gold. As a token of goodwill.”

“You got that much money?”

...Noel had given him quite a lot. Aiden gave a vague nod.

Billy emptied the sack, checked the amount, and gave a short laugh when he saw that Aiden had been serious. Then he removed the extra share.

“You can take this back. I didn’t even finish the job properly.”

“What?”

“Those weapons. I couldn’t find out who was distributing them. They’re hidden more tightly than usual.”

“It was five hundred and fifty gold. Couldn’t you have put in a little more effort?”

Billy answered with an easy smile.

“Bullshit.”

“...”

“If even I can’t find them, it’s at least a high-ranking noble. You want me to dig into that? Want to get someone killed?”

“...I see.”

Aiden nodded, frowning slightly.

‘Was it impossible to find in the original game?’

A high-ranking noble.

In the game, it had not been particularly difficult to trace the organization handling distribution.

They were common petty criminals. The problem had been finding the person who had hired them.

Being blocked from the very first step made it difficult to rely only on Aiden’s memories of the original game.

‘...Something really is different.’

The First Act’s virtuous prince and the emperor having a poor relationship was one thing.

The very first event of the main scenario being out of place was another.

Small details kept giving him a sense of unease.

And the feeling that this world differed from the “original” he knew became even stronger because of one fact.

“Um, Billy.”

“Billy is fine. What is it?”

“The personal details of the person I asked about aren’t here.”

“I didn’t include them because I don’t have them.”

“...Is that so?”

Information about the protagonist was missing this time as well.

Even a capable information broker like Billy had not been able to find it.

“...”

Aiden had not abandoned hope yet.

Even if the main scenario had been twisted little by little, the absence of that person would shake the very foundation of this world inside the game.

But...

“-”

If.

If that person was not at the site tomorrow.

If it became certain this was a world without a protagonist.

-Quest Info

▶ Failure to complete the events listed below will result in massive penalties!

◈ Fake Marriage

- You have been selected as Lady Noel’s spouse. Maintain the contract with the other party until the end!

◈ First Act, < Imperial Capital Rift >

- Your contact with important figures in the scenario is increasing sufficiently.

- Your existence will soon be formally incorporated into the scenario. The course of the scenario will be determined by your actions!