I Became the Academy's Disabled Student-Chapter 367: Gift (3)

Daera stared intently at her reflection in the mirror.

She was dressed in a neat cadet uniform. Her aesthetic sense wasn't particularly sharp, but compared to the days when she wore beast skins, this was a hundred times, a thousand times better.

‘Compared to back then, what else could have gotten worse...’

She gently adjusted her hair.

Her tangled, beastly hair loosened into smooth strands.

She lowered her hand to her face. The face in the mirror distorted. Her skin was fairly smooth. The soot that had stuck to her skin was also cleaned away, vanishing completely.

However, the scars that occasionally caught her with their sharp sensation couldn't be helped.

The part that hadn’t changed. Daera ran her eyes over the fluttering sleeves.

Her right arm, which had vanished down to the shoulder. This part, even now, couldn't be helped.

‘Tch...’

Her spiritual blueprint was damaged. Regeneration prospects were bleak. She had never expected much, so she quietly accepted it.

But sometimes, when she became aware of the empty space, a dirty feeling would rise.

The isolated dungeon. All the other transcendent beings besides Daera were dead. Her arm had been shredded by the claws of monsters. She had been too slow to react, and a large maw bit her right arm, ripping it off with a sickening sound...

Kwajik!

"Dammit."

The sudden pain stabbing at her right shoulder made her expression scrunch up. It was a phantom pain that occasionally visited.

Daera irritably grabbed at the fluttering sleeve. It kept swaying, pulling her gaze and bringing up nothing but bad memories.

In the end, Daera changed into a new outfit.

It was still a cadet uniform, but unlike the one she had just worn, it had no sleeves.

‘It’s originally for summer weather, but since it’s still warm, it should be fine.’

There were several versions of the cadet uniform with the same design.

No matter which version, the uniform always had functional magic attached, so there wasn’t much difference in its functionality, but they provided several versions.

On the way to the location Ihayul had sent her to, she didn’t see many cadets. It was still during the afternoon, and most were in their major classes.

Daera and Ihayul were different. Thanks to Artla, Ihayul’s major class had finished early.

‘It’s surprising to see the teacher being so flexible.’

It was an unusual thing for Daera. While Artla tended to show a soft side toward her, she was always strict when it came to training.

When it was over, Artla would always sigh as though saying, "If you’re tired, so be it," but during training, she never allowed distractions.

"Teacher, could you maybe finish a bit earlier? I need to do something with Daera..."

"Oh? I see."

"?"

...Such was Artla, who crumbled at a single cautious request from Ihayul.

‘She always looks so smug when she hugs like that...’

Though Daera had experienced it several times already, it was still a shocking sight. Every time, she couldn’t help but feel a chill at Ihayul’s strength.

Shaking off those thoughts, Daera quickened her steps.

As she got closer to her destination, more people started to appear.

However, finding Ihayul was not difficult.

As she got closer to her destination, there was a place where people’s gazes overwhelmingly focused. Following those gazes was all it took.

Soon, Daera’s gaze was naturally drawn as well. There, amidst the crowd, was a small white fluff, receiving all the attention and stares from everyone.

"Teacher, why are you here so early?"

[And you just came out of the office, didn’t you?]

[Strictly speaking, didn’t you just come out at the right moment?]

Ihayul, who had been sitting on a bench, jumped up. His pure white hair sparkled in the sunlight, and the soft white wings fluttered around him.

Due to his overwhelming appearance, it was easy to spot Ihayul even in the middle of the bustling crowd.

[Teacher, are you hot?]

"Mm? Ah, no. It’s just more comfortable like this. Feels cooler."

Ihayul, who had walked over, tilted his head. His eyes were closed, but she could tell what he meant.

With no sleeves, his left arm was cool, while his right was covered by a thin cloth draped over his shoulder like a cape.

Daera shrugged. It was cool and comfortable. That was part of the reason, but she didn’t say anything more.

[Hmm...]

[Okay, let’s go right now.]

After a moment of fidgeting, Ihayul turned his body. As he approached, the crowd naturally parted.

Daera, who had planned to respond, quietly followed Ihayul.

‘The smell of iron?’

As Daera moved, she wrinkled her nose. A faint metallic and oil-like smell brushed her nose.

Clang! Soon after, a faint sound of hammering reached her ears. The sound of metal being struck forcefully, changing shape. It wasn’t just one sound, but several happening simultaneously.

"Is this the manufacturing major area?"

[Yes, I rented the facilities there.]

As expected, the destination was the manufacturing major area. Daera nodded as several facilities came into view.

Despite the complex surroundings, Ihayul moved without hesitation.

Without even checking a map, Ihayul quickly entered a building and descended into the basement via stairs.

"Uh, isn’t this a training area?"

[Well, more like... a maturation room?]

The wide basement was empty. There were no fancy furniture. Instead, bluish stones were embedded in the flat floor in several places.

[These are attribute magic stones. The one embedded right now is for the brain attribute. We’re going to use it to sensitize materials... it’s that kind of facility.]

"Am I supposed to put it here?"

[Of course not.]

Ihayul, cheeks puffed for a moment, walked to the center of the basement. Daera, who had been fiddling around, followed behind, avoiding the embedded magic stones.

"So, what are we doing here? Didn’t you say you had a gift for me?"

[Yes, I’ll give it to you here.]

"What kind of gift is it...?"

Daera glanced around.

The air around her was thick with magical energy, likely because of the magic stones embedded in the floor. She could sense the presence of magic around them, but didn’t know its type.

Did a gift really require all this? Daera tilted her head.

[Tada! Here you go.]

In the middle of her doubts, Ihayul turned and handed her something with both hands.

It was a lump of dark blue clay, about the size of a human head.

"Mm?"

A question mark appeared over Daera’s head.

She had imagined something like the winged robes her companions had started wearing, but this was completely different from what she had imagined.

Tsk tsk, this is still an unfinished product. It’s going to change from here on, so watch closely.

Ihayul seemed to have expected Daera’s reaction and stuck out his tongue as he handed her the clay.

"Oh, really? It’s unfinished, huh."

Daera tried to focus her eyes, though she couldn’t hide the slight suspicion as she looked at the clay.

This clay is the gift? Even if it’s unfinished, what is he going to make out of this?

[Now, touch it, and try channeling your magic into it.]

Following Ihayul’s instructions, Daera placed her hand on the rather heavy clay and pushed her magic into it.

Zzzt!

The magic-infused clay crackled as lightning swirled around it. Daera glanced at Ihayul, but, as expected, he didn’t flinch.

What is this...?

Why would I be told to channel magic into a lump of clay all of a sudden?

Grrrr...

"Mm?"

While Daera was pondering this, the clay suddenly twitched and began to shrink.

Shrink? That’s right. But the sensation felt odd. A strange feeling crept up her palm as the clay wiggled.

"What is this?"

Daera, startled, began to fidget with her fingers.

As soon as her fingers grasped the clay, the surface of the clay began to scatter into light. It wasn’t shrinking... No, it was absorbing quickly.

Eventually, her fist closed. Daera’s eyes widened as she opened her fist, but the clay was completely gone in the meantime.

"What...?"

What in the world was that? She couldn’t find words to describe the sudden phenomenon.

But the strange occurrence wasn’t over yet.

Zzzt!

"Ugh?!"

Daera’s face twisted as she felt a sensation in her right shoulder. It reminded her of the phantom pain she had just felt.

Of all ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) times... She turned her gaze to the right.

Zzzt, zzzt...!

"...?"

Her head tilted instinctively.

The cloth wrapped around her right shoulder like a cape turned into a band of light and disappeared. Instead, blue lines started to protrude from her shoulder.

"Dammit, what is this?"

[It’s fine.]

As Daera was about to react with her thunderstrike, Ihayul stopped her with a firm hand.

[It’s okay. It’s working well. You can leave it as it is.]

"...Teacher, you’re not experimenting on me, are you?"

[Already finished with me─]

[...It’s not like that!]

"...Phew, you really scared me..."

Daera exhaled heavily, calming herself from the shock.

There was something growing out of her severed arm, and it was no wonder she was shocked.

Sighing deeply, Daera finally turned her attention back to the phenomenon coming from her right shoulder.

"...A circuit?"

The blue lines protruding from her shoulder were familiar. The energy that formed them was Daera’s brain energy, altered by the thunderstrike.

The magic flowing through the blue lines formed Daera’s circuit.

From the cross-section of the severed circuit that had been torn earlier, a new circuit began to extend.

It extended from her shoulder down, forming a bone-like structure.

Woong!

Soon, the circuit that formed the skeleton overflowed with magic, filling it. Daera stared at the scene in a daze.

Clank!

Soon, the magic was converted into substance. Her shoulder trembled with a heavy vibration. Reflexively, her fingers began to fidget.

"Ah...?"

Her fingers moved. The five fingers of her left hand began to move.

On the opposite side, something resembling a hand made of dark blue metal moved.

The five fingers folded and unfolded one by one. The movement was so smooth and natural, despite being metal.

"Uh...?"

It wiggled. Daera could see it. Thanks to that, she knew.

But it wasn’t just visible to her eyes. She could feel the wiggling sensation. Trembling, Daera touched the metal with her left hand.

The cold sensation of the left hand gripping it.

The unfamiliar sensation gripping her right side...

"...What is this?"

[The artifact I was using was a bit damaged at the back.]

How many times had Daera asked that question today?

While absentmindedly stroking the metal arm, Ihayul, who had been quietly standing by, stepped closer.

[Repairs are possible, but since my arm regenerated like this... I analyzed the shell... the prosthetic arm, and used some of it to create a prosthetic arm specifically for Daera.]

"...The sensation... it works?"

[That’s proof of the protection. My artifact did the same. It’s the sensory synchronization function. Additionally, instead of the protection’s power, I incorporated a function to enhance Daera’s thunderstrike.]

Ihayul explained fluently. However, Daera, too busy examining the prosthetic arm, didn’t fully comprehend his explanation.

"This... this..."

Words didn’t come out smoothly.

Ihayul’s artifact, prosthetic arm, and the fact that the sensation was synchronized... Honestly, she was somewhat envious, but she didn’t dare to desire it.

It was a top-tier artifact. Even major figures would struggle to acquire something like it, and if it were that valuable, it was probably already bound to someone.

Yet, despite having no expectations, she had actually received something similar.

She couldn’t even describe her current feelings—emotions of awe and gratitude overwhelmed her.

[Sorry for the metal prosthetic.]

"...What?"

[I wanted to make it regenerative, but touching the spiritual blueprint is still... not safe.]

Yet, Ihayul was apologizing.

When Daera turned her gaze absentmindedly, Ihayul awkwardly laughed and stepped closer, reaching out his hands.

Woong! The blue light flickering from his hands sank into Daera’s face. Her face tingled.

[Here, instead of that. I’ve been meaning to give it to you for a while, but there hasn’t been a chance...]

The hands fell. Daera, with a stunned expression, reflexively placed her hands on her face.

"Mm?"

She gasped again. She touched her face. The sharp sensation. There were no little scars that should have been there.

[But this much is safely possible.]

Although she hadn’t seen it, Daera understood the situation.

She touched her face with both hands and opened her trembling lips.

"...This... this... you’re being way too kind to me, aren’t you?"

[Hmm?]

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"No, this prosthetic arm... How precious is it? I don’t understand... I might not be able to repay this..."

She had received so much from Ihayul.

Immediately, he had saved her life, and how much help had she received since then? She had even heard that her entering the Shyoram had a lot to do with Ihayul’s influence.

And now, she had even received such a precious prosthetic arm as a gift.

How could she repay all this? No, what could she possibly repay it with?

[Who gives a gift expecting money in return?]

Her lips, trembling with emotion, closed.

Ihayul shook his head, as though not understanding her.

[I told you. I’ll give you a gift, so expect it. How about it?]

Do you like it?

Ihayul asked with a proud face, though a trace of unease showed through his pride.

Did he not realize how precious what he had given her was? Even Daera, who wasn’t very worldly, understood that much.

‘Ah, this is it.’

She had felt it for a while.

Ihayul was too kind to her.

There was one reason for it. He was Artla’s disciple.

Maybe now he liked her for another reason, but the reason he had been extremely kind from the very first meeting was because he was Artla’s disciple.

It all started from that one thing, and now he was giving Daera such precious things as gifts.

This was why the people around Ihayul had to keep their eyes peeled and drive away those who approached him for shallow reasons.

"...Teacher, are you intentionally trying to get close to me?"

[Confused?]

[Hmm?]

Ihayul tilted his head, and the ends of his winged robe tilted too.

Was he really doing this on purpose? If so, that’s even more frightening. Did all the women around Ihayul get caught in his grasp like this?

"...Ugh, I don’t know. Teacher, really... really thank you..."

[?]

Squeak

Daera clenched her mouth shut, holding back her overflowing emotions, and pulled Ihayul into an embrace.

[...Hehe]

[I’m happy that you’re happy.]

Daera’s joyful reaction made Ihayul smile brightly.