Chapter 330

I’ll be posting an illustration of Danyerin soon!

*****

First off, let me make an excuse—I was planning to fly safely. Do you think I’m crazy enough to crash into Rod’s Residence?

But there was a part I didn’t expect at all, and that was none other than the newly constructed Monument.

Seeing that the Monument had been newly erected, I figured it would have similar performance to before.

So I planned to fly just close enough to avoid any anti-air magic, but that was all my mistake.

-Kuwung!

“Ugh?!”

The Academy’s Monument was built at the same time as the Academy itself. Some time must have passed since, so I assumed the Monument also evolved.

I never thought there would be a shield. It was transparent, and I was so excited that I didn’t even notice it.

Adding in my flying speed, it was only natural that I crashed downwards. To make matters worse, there was the issue of my skill level.

I tried my best not to attract attention, but in the end, I couldn’t help but fall into Rod’s Residence.

-Kwajik! Kwajik!

“··· ···”

“··· ···”

Isn’t this déjà vu? As I crashed through the ceiling, I locked eyes with Rod.

He was smiling while holding a teacup, just like last week, but to me, that smile looked like it belonged to the Underworld’s Lion.

Moreover, after going through the backstroke, the pressure was no joke. I just lay there.

“Wh-what is that noise… huh?”

“··· ···”

The difference this time was that Eli was there. Fortunately, she was in the kitchen and wasn’t hurt.

“Haha, look at this. You’re fully armored now.”

“··· ···”

“Now, let’s hear your excuse, Sivar.”

He already has a clue who I am. Rolling my eyes, I tried to think of excuses.

But in the end, all that came to mind was, “I’m not Sivar.”

“So who are you?”

“I am Iron Man.”

“··· ···”

I truly got beaten up. Even with the suit on, the scabbard hitting me was no joke; the pain was overwhelming.

I’ve heard it called the principle of intrusion, but that aside, it felt like getting hit with a blunt object.

I remember hearing a story about knights in full plate armor being bludgeoned to death with blunt weapons in medieval times.

Rod was dealing damage with nothing but the scabbard. When I take the suit off, I’m sure I’ll have bruises all over.

“This time, you’ll get a proper scolding! Last time I was alone, but this time we have Eli here! What if Eli was underneath?!”

“······I’m sorry.”

“There’s not just ‘sorry’ here! Can’t you hold back for just a week?”

Eventually, time passed and I found myself kneeling in the suit. I took off the mask covering my face.

Next to me, Jane was also kneeling, treated as a kind of accomplice.

In reality, I hadn’t properly tested its performance and just jumped right into it, so I really had no words.

“I didn’t know there would be a shield…”

*Hiss!*

“I’m serious here. I was going to be safe.”

Of all things, I had no clue there was a shield on the Monument. I protested about my unfairness.

I wonder if it was because of that? Or maybe I don’t usually express such grievances.

Rod’s fierce look slowly softened. He seemed to be calming down.

“Uh… I understand. Besides, it’s a hassle to seize that armor anyway.”

“So, then…!”

“I’m not saying I’ve forgiven you yet. For now, don’t wear that armor for a while.”

It was a bit disappointing, but I could accept that punishment. I briefly grumbled internally and nodded.

Jane also looked relieved that her suit wouldn’t be confiscated.

“By the way, Sivar, does this really fly?”

Once the situation started to settle down, Eli asked curiously. Rod also showed interest in the question.

Even if you can fly with magic, understanding how that heavy hunk of metal could fly is hard to grasp logically.

Nodding in agreement, I opened my mouth.

“Yeah. It can fly. Want me to show you?”

“Oh ho.”

As I subtly suggested, Rod immediately cut me off. That was off-limits.

But I had reasons for suggesting that. I coaxed Rod in a teasing tone.

“I’ll just show it. I can fly in front of Grandpa.”

“Still, no.”

“Just once. Can I do it just once? Honestly, Grandpa is curious too.”

“Hmm…”

It seemed my words might have shaken Rod’s resolve as he started to scratch his mustache.

Though he turned his head away, he glanced at me every now and then, as if he secretly wanted to.

Even the most serious person can’t resist certain things. One of those things is steel armor.

Just having the armor is romantic in itself, and now it can fly? There’s no way he’d hold back on that.

“Alright. But just this once. No more than that.”

“Thank you!”

“Also, don’t leave my line of sight. That’s the condition.”

That much was good enough. I jumped up from my seat.

After falling, I hadn’t been able to do what I wanted most. Now I could finally do it.

“But first, clean up before you go. We need to tidy up this mess.”

“Yes.”

“And the ceiling… ugh…”

Seeing the gaping hole in the ceiling, Rod sighed heavily. I didn’t dare say a word and just hoped for the best.

But after all, we had the all-purpose engineer here. Jane, sensing her moment, raised her hand.

“I-I can repair the ceiling!”

“Hm? You?”

“Yes!”

“Come to think of it, you single-handedly made that armor, right? I’ll be counting on you.”

“Just leave it to me!”

“But last time, didn’t you just leave it?”

“That was because I was shocked from having my boots confiscated…”

It wasn’t the most convincing excuse, but Jane must have been sincere. Rod seemed to understand and generously let it slide.

Anyway, after quickly cleaning up the messy house, we went out to the backyard. This is when a slight problem came up.

I couldn’t go out to the backyard while wearing the suit. In the end, I had to take it off one piece at a time and put it back on.

“To think it would enhance my strength as well as let me fly… Jane,”

“Yes?”

“Are you aware of what you’ve created?”

As Rod put on the suit and heard the explanation, he asked incredulously. That reaction was, indeed, normal.

Jane’s invention was far ahead of its time, almost transcending reality. Even the Earth’s technology would find it impossible.

Jane seemed to realize the gravity of the situation too late and awkwardly smiled. Her slipping glasses reflected her mind.

“Haha… it’s in the form of armor, but it’s really an Assistive Device. It’s for people with limb disabilities.”

“It looks like even people with healthy limbs would end up losing theirs, though?”

“Well, I can’t imagine it going that far…”

Well, if it shoots beams from the hands, I can see people lining up to cut theirs off.

Of course, to move smoothly like real limbs, it would take an enormous amount of time and effort.

It just generates an amount of power that a regular prosthetic could never manage. As Jane said, it was closer to an Assistive Device.

-Clank!

Soon, Jane finished meticulous checks while I was fully suited up. Despite falling and crashing into a shield, nothing was seriously damaged.

Accidentally, I ended up testing its durability. If a complex machine has even one flaw, it often stops working.

“The balance device has disconnected a bit, but there’s no problem. It’s fascinating.”

“Fascinating?”

“Yes. It feels like the magic circuit has replaced its performance… I think I’ll need to check this properly later.”

I had no idea what that meant. Let the experts handle that; my job was just to test it.

Once everything was ready, and people stepped back a few paces, I infused magic power into the suit.

As I channeled magic, the suit began to operate with its characteristic mechanical sounds. Now all that was left was to soar into the sky.

-Kwahhh!!

“Whoa… Whoa! I’m really flying?!”

“How fascinating. How is that heavy armor…”

“Hehe…”

Eli’s eyes widened in awe, and Rod toyed with his mustache, showing his curiosity.

Jane seemed to beam with pride at their reactions, sporting a goofy smile. That smile made her look quite endearing.

But I still had what I truly wanted left to do. I took off into the sky, making sure not to leave Rod’s sight.

As I flew around 10 meters up, I began to slowly reduce the magic I infused into the armor.

-Kuuwuu

As I decreased the power, my altitude naturally started to lower as well. I waited until I reached about 3 meters high.

Finally, upon reaching the spot I wanted, I cut off all the magic so the suit wouldn’t function anymore.

Naturally, the heavy suit fell down, and all I had left was to land.

-Clang!

The sound of metal echoed loudly. I used the landing technique I had seen in movies.

One arm stretched back, one fist grounded. The key was bending both knees in different ways.

In other words, the so-called superhero landing. Regardless of anything else, I definitely wanted to try this.

Childish, you say? Let’s see you decked out in that suit and not want to pull this off.

As a man, fulfilling dreams at least once is a given.

‘That’s so damn charismatic.’

Today, my dream was realized. I wished I could use it in action.

However, the suit had a designated wearer. I slowly stood up, pushing down my disappointment.

“That’s really amazing! You actually flew?!”

“How about it? Isn’t it incredible?”

While I bathed in self-satisfaction, gasps emerged around me. Eli was even clapping her hands.

Jane couldn’t restrain herself either, her nose lifting slightly in pride. The way she placed her hands on her hips was quite cute.

In a lighter mood, I took off my helmet. Removing it opened up my vision significantly.

“Jane, are you thinking of going back right away?”

“Yes?”

“If I go back wearing that armor, I feel like I’ll attract all eyes on me.”

Then Rod said something a bit out of the blue. It felt disconnected altogether.

But it was true. Jane hesitated for a moment before nodding in agreement.

“I guess you’re right…? The size does draw attention.”

“Then let’s leave the armor for tomorrow. The sun is setting, and you need to come back to fix the ceiling anyway.”

I looked up at the sky hearing that. The sun was still quite high; what was he talking about?

Still, since Rod said it, I had no choice but to listen. In the end, I had to return to Jane’s workshop without the armor.

While returning, Eli naturally joined in, which was, again, Rod nudging her along.

“Jane, can you make something like that for me?”

“Uh, y-yes? I could make one, but…”

“I’m just a bit weak. Can’t you do something about that?”

Eli’s request made Jane glance at me. I felt like she was asking for permission since I was the investor.

I nodded hence, signaling that it was okay. Giving Eli one wouldn’t be too bad.

“Alright. I’ll need to take measurements, so let’s head to my workshop.”

“Okay, but first… should we stop by a café? I’m feeling a bit hungry.”

“C-café might be a bit… just something simple…”

“No! Sister! If you’re making me that, I need to eat to replenish my energy.”

“Ugh…”

And so Jane spent the entire day being drained by Eli while I followed along.

A day later, we headed to Rod’s Residence with Jane. It was to retrieve the suit and repair the ceiling.

“Huh? Why is this like this?”

“What’s wrong?”

“The knee part has some serious damage… that’s odd.”

“That’s probably from the landing I did yesterday.”

It’s a landing technique prone to impact on the knees. But Jane’s assessment was different.

“That little of damage wouldn’t happen. It’s a symptom that comes from repeated impact…”

“Hmm…”

As I heard that, I turned my head towards Rod.

Rod was leisurely sipping tea, seemingly oblivious to our conversation.

‘…There’s no way, right?’

I wanted to believe it wasn’t.

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