"What?"
lvin froze with his mouth open.
Narce and Leo, who already knew my story, beca even more serious.
Let's verify sothing here.
When I first ca to school, this guy was one of the students whose favorability I checked. At that ti, it wasn't surprising to see a score of -10.
Since what I'm saying now isn't easy to accept, I need to see if the persuasion characteristic is being applied.
lvin Klochner
Favorability: -8
Title: The Epito of Diligence
Health: 4
ntal Power: -1.5
Magic Power: 4.5
Skill: 4.5
Impression: 5
Luck: 1
Trait: Trust (Lv.3)
'Good.'
Even though there was nothing that could have changed his favorability, it increased by 2 points from -10 to -8. The newly appeared asterisk also suggests that the trait is being applied.
It's likely that persuasion is working fine.
I leaned toward lvin and asked in a firm voice.
"lvin, what was I like according to your knowledge? Wasn't I the guy who always had ssy hair covering his face, unable to answer any questions properly, and just mumbling? Always walking around powerlessly and hiding in the dormitory all day?"
"What? You know yourself pretty well."
Ignoring Leo's comnt, I waited for lvin's response.
"Y-yeah, that's how you were... and you couldn't use magic at all."
"Right, and now?"
"...You're like a different person in many ways."
"And what do you think caused that change?"
I stared intently into lvin's eyes with a faint smile.
lvin, at a loss for words, blinked and muttered with a troubled expression.
"S-so you're saying you've been acting for the past year? Is that right?"
"Well, it's complicated. But..."
I quickly continued.
"The reason I revealed my changes in the second year is simple. It's ti to start executing my plan."
"......"
Other students attended the three training institutes equivalent to elentary and middle school, but this place is the first for Luca.
There are no records to judge except for the past year.
It would be troubleso if they knew that I've lived like I did last year since I was very young, but that's not the case, so it's doable.
lvin, still with a confused look, nodded his head.
"...Yeah, I don't know the details, but I guess you're saying you lived that way on purpose. You said the Pleroma rumor was a baseless story you made up. It’s related to how you acted last year, right?"
I waited silently for lvin to continue speaking. There was no need to answer as he was already thinking about what to say next, mouth opening and closing repeatedly.
"It's true that you've changed like a different person. Honestly, I never thought you'd be able to respond to professors so calmly. I didn't think you could raise your grades enough to join the special class, and I didn’t expect you to stand up to Phillip after he hit you and not back down to his group. ntally, I an."
Phillip... the guy who hit last month.
I nodded, listening to lvin.
"Everyone thinks the sa as . Whenever friends talk about you, they always wonder how you changed so drastically. If what you’re saying is true... everything makes sense."
I listened to lvin's words without reacting.
lvin, furrowing his brow and glancing around nervously, finally looked at with hesitation.
"But there's still sothing I don't understand. Why did you spread the Pleroma rumor? There's no benefit to it. I don't get it at all..."
At those words, I smiled.
Now for the main point.
"lvin, I am going to eliminate Pleroma from this world."
"U-uhh... Yeah. That's a good idea... So?"
"You know as well as I do, the imperial family hasn't been able to properly deal with Pleroma for the past 12 years. Their unpredictable movents and irregular behavior tis play a part. The special magic they use is the sa. To figure all this out, you need to catch the essence that no one else can grasp."
I paused to give him ti to process before continuing.
"I will maintain this act and contact Pleroma, lvin."
lvin's eyes widened.
He looked like he was doubting what he heard.
Leo, who had been standing quietly behind lvin, spoke in a low voice.
"As I ntioned earlier, this is why Lucas is here."
The fact that it was Leo who said this brought another shock to lvin's face. He looked back and forth between and Leo, then dropped his gaze, seemingly needing ti to think. Until now, he was overwheld by the unbelievable stories, but now he needed ti to organize his thoughts.
After a long silence, I spoke.
"I guess I should explain why the imperial family hasn't captured . The imperial family officially declared long ago that I'm not Pleroma. Do you rember?"
"Yeah, I heard about it when I was a kid."
"Then why do you think I'm Pleroma? Why don’t you accept the imperial announcent? It's not just you, it's the entire nation. Why is that?"
lvin tilted his head, unable to find words.
I gave him a long ti to think before speaking again.
"Shall I rephrase the question? Pleroma consists of two main groups. The first generation, and the second generation. Which one do you think I'm considered part of?"
The first generation refers to the naturally occurring original Pleroma, while the second generation consists of resurrected corpses and devout followers of Pleroma's doctrine.
lvin answered without hesitation.
"First generation."
"Right. The imperial family verified that I am alive and not in agreent with Pleroma's doctrine. I don't qualify as a second-generation mber. But people avoid because they think I possess the qualities of the first generation. To be precise, because such rumors have spread. Correct?"
"Yes."
"But if the imperial family had discovered such qualities in , they would have captured regardless of my beliefs. So why am I still here and not detained?"
The reality is that this, too, was glossed over by the family’s own investigation and their pact with the imperial family.
However, people are not aware of this.
"That's because your core grade is... the lowest. Wait a minute! You’re saying you’ll infiltrate Pleroma when you can't even use magic?!"
"When did I ever say I couldn't use magic?"
"What?"
lvin stared at with a blank face.
Bang―!
I took out my wand and lightly tapped the desk, causing a gust of wind to blow. The magic activation spread a bright white light, dazzling our eyes.
"Ugh!"
lvin shielded his face with both arms against the fierce wind.
Then, with his mouth agape, he slowly lifted his head.
"...What was that? What just happened?"
He looked at the white light swirling around him and then at my eyes.
"The activation range... No, wait a minute. Why... why is it white?"
"Why do you think?"
"This, this is divine power, isn't it?! No way, Narce, you...?"
"Um, it's not ."
Narce shook both hands. Leo, in an indifferent tone, chid in.
"Lucas can use divine power too, lvin. Hard to believe, but true."
lvin, once again, looked like his soul had left his body, his mouth opening and closing wordlessly.
"So, what do you think? Don't you think we have a chance? I joined because I thought we did."
Narce, resting her chin on her hand, smiled and flicked the white light around her. Then, she looked at and nodded towards lvin, winking.
It was a signal that we were done.
***
Ding―!
< Chapter 3. Constant dripping wears away a stone (1) >
Proposal 3: Life is Bold! Recruit 10 team mbers. (10/10) (1 hour 07 minutes 18 seconds)
* Route 1 ― < Chapter 4. Constant dripping wears away a stone (2) >
* Route 2 ― < Chapter 4. Don’t Put Off Till Tomorrow What You Can Do Today >
One hour.
I succeeded with an hour to spare.
I sighed with relief and touched my forehead. Leo, noticing my bowed head, asked,
"What’s wrong?"
"Nothing...."
Even with my eyes closed, the white light flashed in my vision.
Congratulations!
Proposal 3: 'Life is Bold! Recruit 10 team mbers.' Successful!
‘Chapter 3. Constant dripping wears away a stone (1)’ Completed!
‘Route 1 ― < Chapter 4. Constant dripping wears away a stone (2) >’ Confird.
I dismissed the window and shook my head.
Anyway, it's done successfully without any problems.
Each chapter seems to give a special reward, so I'm satisfied to move on to the next chapter.
‘I wish I knew how to level up my traits soon.’
As I persuaded the seven people this ti, I felt that so parts were made easier by the 20% increase in persuasiveness. If I can level up, conversations will go faster in the future.
Thanks to the trait effect, the favorability of all seven reached positive numbers.
The latest favorability check on lvin was 1.
Of course, even without the trait, it’s -1, which is a dramatic change considering the initial -10.
Not only lvin but the other six students also had similar numbers. Like with Leo, once misunderstandings about were cleared up, the favorability soared close to zero.
"Lucas, hello...!"
lvin awkwardly smiled as he entered the room.
I smiled back and waved lightly.
"Hello."
"Today is the start, right?"
"Yeah."
At my answer, lvin sat down and pulled out materials with sparkling eyes.
As the promised ti approached, the students I had persuaded ca in and took their seats.
"Hello, Lucas. Ah, I still can't believe it. Who knew you had such plans, Lucas."
"Exactly."
I responded to the students' chatter with a smile and fell into thought.
This eting would produce better results than my initial plan. It shouldn't just end as a school club.
I know how Pleroma will move over the next ten years.
Even if not in detail, I know what major events will occur and how the protagonist will resolve them. Writing down everything I rembered in a notebook early on helped.
‘Of course, I have to consider that the story might change.’
So I analyzed the existing movents of Pleroma.
When the story changes, I need to understand which parts of the original pattern were altered and which remained to derive a new outco.
The statent that I could connect any ending if I knew the beginning wasn't just boasting. Nothing leaves a deeper impression on people than a person misunderstood as Pleroma eliminating Pleroma.
Simply using divine power and claiming not to be Pleroma while acting like an ordinary person isn't enough. Gradual and leisurely changes should occur behind the scenes, not in the public eye. If my brother has ti to devise another scenario that matches my changes, it’s over.
The thod that shocks the public in an instant is the most certain way to make my brother unable to lay a hand on .
Therefore, I must also be earnest in this matter. I can't find a better weapon than this.
I spread a map on the desk and started the discussion.
"Thank you all for making ti. Let’s get started."
***
The next morning, I woke up early to bring my things to the special class before the morning assembly.
I hadn’t been able to attend the special class because of fulfilling the proposal. If I continue to be absent, I might get a warning, so I needed to be there at least in the morning.
Clunk―
"Oh."
I froze as I opened the door.
A student stood in front of my room. Startled as the door opened before they could knock, they took a step back and cleared their throat.
"I ca to deliver a letter."
The student lifted a basket of letters and picked out the top one. The letter, sealed with the Papal State’s insignia, was handed to .
I flipped the letter over imdiately. At the top left, in neat handwriting that looked freshly written, was a glowing dark green script.
Adrian Askanian.
It was a letter from my brother.
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