The Sky, Sea, and Death - III

The <Grand City of Laquer> had three <Skills > Aventine could acquire, hidden within its ginormous walls.

The easiest one to find was sitting on an old smithy's dusty shelves, hidden away from view. It took the form of a snow globe, with a carving of an old, bearded blacksmith working the forge.

Gron was the son of a family of blacksmiths who were in decline. Ever since his grandfather's mysterious disappearance, bad things had been happening to his family. Problems were cropping up on the management side of things, and his family's legacy of blacksmithing techniques was lost when his grandfather disappeared.

Gron's father was not much of a blacksmith so he couldn't learn much of the legacy. He opted instead to gamble, thinking that he could earn a fortune in that manner. Now, with a mountain of debt, Gron was the only one who could save him from becoming a slave.

"Hah," Sighing for the nth time today, Gron pumped air into the forge. A hot wind blew into his face, singeing his brows. "Whoa—"

Startled by the sudden heat, Gron stepped back.

"I think I used too much force..."

Glancing at the hand pump, Gron shook his head and began writing things down in a notebook. He then tried pumping air a few more times and documented each effect. The lessons he once whined about as a child seemed so important now that his father's freedom was on the line.

"Damn it, grandpa. If only you wrote things down..."

Gron continued to grumble.

It was only until his stomach also began grumbling that he stopped. It was already late afternoon, and he had been in the forge since morning. He had been experimenting, documenting, and observing how things were used.

Walking out of the shop, Gron passed a young man sitting on a chair. His eyes were closed, and he sat so serenely that Gron didn't notice him at first.

When he did, he was already half a step outside the shop.

Gron's head nearly snapped as he looked at the young man.

"Yo!"

Gron jumped in fright. A ghost? Had his ancestors come to haunt him?

That was when the young man opened his eyes. An obsidian gaze fell upon Gron, and in that moment, Gron felt as if he had no secrets to hide.

"...Why do you look like a frightened puppy? I'm not a ghost."

***

Aventine was trying his best to hold back his laughter. Gron's inner monologue was so loud that he didn't need to activate his gift. He could read the blacksmith with his bare observation skills.

So, he felt that it would be appropriate to mess with Gron a little bit. But not so much that he would scare him away.

"Third-year student at the Academy of Laquer," Aventine stood up, graceful like a swan. "Might you be the one named Gron Gaven?"

Gron nodded, albeit still wary.

"You are under arrest."

"...Huh?" Gron froze as he stared at Aventine's innocent smile.

What? What was he under arrest for? Oh no... Did they discover that?

"I—I swear I didn't do it!" Gron began to panic, "I was forced into it. The fourth-years said it would be good money so I was tempted to help!"

"Hm?" Aventine tilted his head. "I was just joking, but it seems like you've indeed done something bad."

"—Keheuk!" Gron choked. "I..! I didn't do anything!"

Stifling his laughter as much as possible, Aventine tried to forget all the discrepancies in Gron's panicked defense. Otherwise, he would surely burst out laughing.

Aventine's innocent smile twisted, becoming that of a corrupt noble, "You think I'll believe you? If you can give me something of enough value, I can turn a blind eye to such transgressions. If not, then... Perhaps you will face expulsion."

"N-no! Anything but that!" Gron scrambled back into the smithy. The sound of metal rang out like hurried footsteps.

He then walked out with a bunch of swords, hoping that they would suffice. Judging from the sword at Aventine's waist, Gron thought that he was dealing with a swordsman.

Aventine went over each sword with a scrutinizing gaze.

Each moment fuelled Gron's anxiety, and each time Aventine shook his head, Gron felt his heart drop.

"No, no, no." Aventine again shook his head, "There's nothing here I fancy. Do you have anything ornamental? Like perhaps... a snow globe?"

"A... A snow globe?" Gron felt stumped. This was a blacksmith shop. Why would he have something like that?

His gaze, desperate to find a way out, fluttered towards the shelves behind the counter. He recalled that his grandfather was a fan of collecting things from various people and places. Perhaps he would have something like a snow globe there.

Hurriedly, Gron went through the shelves, yet still careful with the different trinkets. Gron silently hoped that Aventine wouldn't notice some of them. After all, they were much more expensive than they seemed.

Some were magic items.

Eventually, Gron spotted it. The thing that Aventine wanted.

'A snow globe!' Gron was ecstatic. It wasn't a magic item, so Gron felt it wouldn't be his loss at all.

He swiftly handed the item to Aventine who looked at it with approval.

"As a collector, this is a good piece of work. I'm glad I came here."

"Then!"

"Yes, I will turn a blind eye to whatever you're doing, boy. The Academy will know nothing of it. However, you need to be careful."

Aventine paused, seemingly in thought.

"Some of your professors are growing suspicious."

***

Walking out of the smithy, I was giggling to myself, without care for the gazes that were being sent my way. There were noticeably fewer weird looks now that I had changed my clothes and covered my backpack.

Instead of my camo clothes, I now wore a long black coat over a white frilly blouse, with black cotton pants and leather shoes. I looked every part a noble, but it cost me one of my gemstones.

It wasn't as comfortable, but it was necessary to blend in.

That boy, Gron, wouldn't have reacted as he did had I worn my camo clothes. It was likely that he wholeheartedly believed my false identity. After all, a part of what I said was true. The shady business that Gron had been coerced into was going to be discovered soon if they didn't do anything.

It didn't take me much mana to figure that out.

"That aside!"

I was now holding my first <Skill >, spending only a few minutes and taking zero risks.

"Easy money," I muttered, appraising the artifact in my possession.

This snow globe was an artifact called the <Sky Globe> which could grant one the powers related to the sky. In particular, the power to control wind without any magic spells.

With it, I could influence the weather, fly, or send powerful gusts of wind to whoever I wanted. I could also summon lightning from the storms I create.

It was very Zeus-like, might I say. Moreover, the other two artifacts I was going to find seemed to be related to Poseidon and Hades respectively.

It was weird, and I tried looking into how that happened, but I didn't have enough mana. All I got for my efforts was a hazy connection to Minerva.

***

Hiding within a dark alleyway, I held the <Sky Globe> in my hands. After one last verification using [Absolute Awareness], I crushed it.

I felt the <Sky Globe> shatter instantly. Immediately after, a soft breeze began to flow from it and into my body.

My hair danced in the wind, and I felt my breathing lighten. It felt like I was high in the sky, hiding between the clouds. I was free. Unfettered by the shackles of the earth.

With a thought, I began to hover above the ground. The wind became an extension of my mind.

With a breath, storm clouds began to gather high above the city.

However, I allowed it to dissipate before it grew too large.

"Wonderful,"

I couldn't help but grin.