Chapter 18: The Truth of Abilities
“No, no, no, this is Academy City, right?”
A man-made academy island that accommodates those with special abilities, a secret meeting arranged for the night.
“Shouldn’t we start with some supernatural topics?!” Nagi sternly stated.
“……Brother, please think carefully.”
“What?”
“To make ‘brother’ a true ‘lady’—isn’t that statement supernatural enough?”
“!? I—I’m at a loss for words!?” Nagi felt a lightning bolt flash behind him.
“Right now, brother, you seriously lack common sense as a woman… whether it’s the short skirt from this morning or the overly fancy underwear…”
“Is there something wrong with ‘brother lacking women’s common sense’?” Nagi tried to counter with the same words, but unexpectedly, Amaha smiled triumphantly.
“Precisely because you lack this common sense, brother, you need to learn properly, don’t you?”
“Uh-oh!? I never expected such an explanation!?” Nagi collapsed to the ground in an orz position.
Seeing Nagi’s amusing reaction, Amaha couldn’t help but chuckle softly.
Moments like this, joking and bantering with friends and family, had always been what she longed for.
As the daughter of the Amano family, it was generally difficult for Amaha to find her peers who truly wanted to be her friends; most were either overly subservient or hostile toward her.
So at this moment, Amaha felt a long-lost joy from playing with Nagi, reminiscent of her childhood with family.
“Ah~” Nagi stood up from the ground while reaching to take off the mask on her face, revealing—
A head wrapped in stockings, looking akin to a robber.
“Brother—wait a moment!”
Amidst something that felt off entering her line of sight, Amaha instinctively shouted.
“Wha—what’s wrong? Why did you suddenly shout so loudly, Amaha?” Nagi tilted her head.
“That might scare others, you know?”
“That’s something I should be saying! What kind of outfit is this, brother?!”
“After all… wearing a mask is to hide one’s face, right?”
“Is—is that so?”
“To prevent the mask from falling off in various special situations, isn’t it normal to add an extra layer of security?”
“But I wish you could pay a bit more attention to aesthetics!”
That legendary “Red and White Shrine Maiden,” countless people had discussed the face behind her fox mask, fantasizing about her extraordinary beauty, hoping to see her without the mask—
Only to be greeted by a robber-like appearance paired with a beautifully designed red and white shrine maiden outfit.
Modern science and ancient theology fused at that moment.
It felt like she would walk into a bank carrying a shrine’s offering box, demanding the tellers to stuff it with money.
“Actually, you don’t need to worry,” Nagi consoled, noticing Amaha’s headache expression.
“Although my head is covered, my hair isn’t stuffed inside, so my hair will still flow during battles!” Nagi gave a thumbs-up.
“Why would I care about whether my hair flows in brother’s eyes…?”
“Eh?! Because… hair flowing during battle can be the highlight, right?”
“Why is it brother who looks so surprised?! I can’t comprehend your sensibility!”
After the banter, Amaha rubbed her temples.
Nagi, in an effort not to irritate Amaha further, took off the stocking cap on her head, and while Amaha wasn’t paying attention, she also removed a dark face mask beneath it.
To prevent identity exposure, a common trope in ACG works when masks fall off in battle, Nagi had invested much effort in this area.
A top-tier, mysterious, beautiful girl character must prepare in advance for this.
However, what Nagi didn’t know was that compared to her face, her alluring figure hidden beneath the shrine maiden outfit might more easily lead to her identity being revealed.
“Brother, I’ve actually been wanting to ask… why the shrine maiden outfit?”
After Nagi revealed her pure and cute face by taking off the cap, Amaha looked at her healing visage a few more times, finally regaining a bit of her sanity.
Amaha couldn’t help but sigh; gazing at a beautiful girl truly could rejuvenate one’s spirit.
“Because… isn’t a shrine maiden really cool?”
“Is… it?”
“Of course, especially when dodging projectiles!”
“Can you please avoid making jokes like an old person?”
“Old, old person!?” Upon hearing this, Nagi spat an old mouthful of blood and collapsed again.
“It’s fine, it’s fine, I’m still… young and vibrant at 17…” Nagi mumbled softly.
“Mm, good, brother is starting to care about age.”
Seeing this, Amaha nodded in satisfaction: “That’s a good start.”
Then Nagi was strongly urged by Amaha to return to Shikikan and change outfits.
To avoid being noticed.
The two decided to silently use Amaha’s “Shadow of Finality” ability to blend into the shadows and infiltrate Shikikan.
Along the way.
Nagi couldn’t help but ask Amaha beside her.
“By the way, Amaha, have you… awakened your ability?”
But unexpectedly, the latter looked puzzled and replied, “Am I not using my ability right now?”
“No, I’m sorry, I didn’t clarify.” Nagi cleared her throat and asked again, “Besides the shadow-controlling ‘Shadow of Finality,’ do you have any other abilities?”
For Amaha, Nagi’s question seemed to be something unbelievable.
“Wait, brother, isn’t it that everyone can only have one ability?” Amaha recalled the knowledge learned at Ark Academy.
Everyone should have only one ability.
“Could it be… that a person can actually awaken two abilities?” Amaha questioned.
Her question sparked a figure in Nagi’s mind.
“Well… actually, it’s not rare to possess multiple abilities~”
“Do you mean abilities like Senpai Yang, who can copy multiple abilities for use…” When mentioning Mana’s name, a trace of yearning appeared on Amaha’s face.
Mana’s abilities were known only to a select few in the special department of Ark Academy.
But everyone who knew about her abilities envied or admired her incredible power.
It was akin to a protagonist’s strength.
“Actually, Amaha, you’ve overcomplicated things,” Nagi explained with a smile. “A person with multiple abilities is not so uncommon; for example, the most common is—contract beasts.”
“If you can sign a contract with a fantasy creature, you can use their abilities.”
“In the case where one has their own awakened ability, it’s equivalent to having multiple abilities.”
“Or signing contracts with multiple fantasy monsters can achieve a similar effect, right?”
Nagi explained that the ability to use multiple abilities wasn’t extraordinary.
But using multiple abilities and having multiple abilities are two different matters.
The gap between them is almost unimaginable.
However, this wasn’t something Amaha needed to know right now, so Nagi decided to sidestep the topic.
“So what you’re saying is—” Amaha, with a flash of inspiration, quickly guessed the essence of her current ability.
“My current ability actually comes from a contract with a fantasy monster?”
“Mm, although the form of expression is somewhat special, the essence isn’t wrong.” Nagi nodded, confirming Amaha’s guess.
“So, does that mean I still have the chance to awaken my own ability?!” Hearing this, Amaha’s eyes lit up. After observing various abilities of others, she had often thought, “If only I had a different ability.”
She never expected that this thought could actually come true now.
After Amaha finished speaking, as if remembering something.
“By the way, brother, last time you were called ‘Elemental Sovereign,’ right? So what kind of ability do you actually have?” Amaha curiously asked the question that had been on her mind.
Since joining Ark Academy, she had always been curious.
What kind of ability did her brother have to be called “Elemental Sovereign” and become a savior who once saved the world?
Unexpectedly.
Nagi revealed a bitter smile.
“You might be disappointed.”
She seemed to read Amaha’s thoughts through her facial expression.
“Actually, I haven’t awakened any abilities.”
In the world view of the “Celestial Call” series, awakening abilities often represents an irreversible tragedy.
The stronger the power, the heavier the price demanded.
In her past life as a player of such games, Nagi sought a true “perfect ending.”
Because she didn’t want anyone to die, refusing to let any tragedy unfold.
This led to her inability to awaken any powers.
She could only contract with various fantasy monsters, acquiring the abilities necessary to save the world.
Nagi has never awakened any abilities of her own, both in her past life and this life.
