Chapter 91: B-Grade Skill Book

Kina had never once doubted her Master. Not just because she’d worked out plenty of things on her own, but it also came from a genuine sense of gratitude.

She was here now, given all these opportunities, having come this far, and fundamentally, all of it traced back to her Master’s help, always pushing her forward at such an incredible pace in so many ways.

Her Master wasn’t someone she trusted simply because he’d never let her down. Kina trusted him because every single time the world told her she had no future, her Master had proven otherwise, again and again.

After everything, how could she possibly feel any doubt?

To her, doubting her Master would mean doubting the entire journey that had brought her this far.

So, today, right as Kina had settled into her usual routine, training until the day she’d be sent off to the Elite Academy, her Master suddenly showed up with something new.

"What’s this, Master?" Kina asked, puzzled. She stared at the book in her hands, a simple notebook with a children’s cartoon cover.

At first, Kina figured her Master had probably brought another skill book pulled from the Academy’s archive, but that didn’t seem to be the case here?

"That’s a skill book."

"....Yes?" Kina blinked, looking up at her Master, a flash of surprise crossing her face.

Kina had never once doubted her Master, of course not, it was just...

’What kind of skill has a book cover like this?’

A cover depicting a sheep standing upright on two legs like a humanoid, holding a microphone on stage.

It was some kind of sheep concert, with a handful of other animals serving as the audience.

Kina smiled a little awkwardly, staring at the book’s cover. But whatever thought had crossed her mind vanished the instant her Master spoke:

"That’s a book I bought at a roadside shop. There wasn’t anything else, so I just used it."

’A roadside shop? You mean, this is a skill book Master bought at a roadside shop?’ Kina doubted her own hearing. Was her Master genuinely being serious right now?

Or was this some kind of joke?

But Kina quickly shook her head. Of course that wasn’t it. She racked her brain, trying to make sense of what he actually meant, then blinked as a certain realization struck her.

"...Master, did you write this skill yourself?"

Her Master stayed silent for a moment, then finally nodded.

"Seriously?" Kina’s mouth fell open, her eyes widening slightly as she stared at her Master. But that lasted only a moment before her lips curved into a wide, beaming smile.

Her shocked eyes now shone with pure, radiant brightness.

"Seriously? Master! You’re not lying!? This is a skill you wrote yourself? For me?"

Kina didn’t even bother thinking about what kind of skill it actually was, she simply understood that since it came from her Master, it couldn’t possibly be anything ordinary.

Especially thinking about how her Master had written it himself, not pulled from the Academy archive, but actually written from scratch!

How likely was it that this skill didn’t even exist anywhere in the Academy’s records?

’Considering Master comes from a distant past! This has to be an extraordinary skill.’

Kina couldn’t help but hug the book tightly to her chest, her heart pounding hard as another feeling started taking over as well.

On the other side, Julian, watching just how thrilled Kina was, could only give an awkward internal smile.

’I stayed up all night just writing all that. I hope this is enough to make up for all the credits I’ve taken from Kina so far.’

Julian could only hope it would actually turn out teachable. After all, the system had already registered it as a new skill, so it should theoretically be possible.

"Master, what Grade is this skill?"

Julian snapped out of his thoughts and looked at Kina, still hugging the book, and with a completely flat, blank expression, immediately answered in that same indifferent tone he always used:

"That’s B-Grade."

"..."

’B-Grade?’

Kina lost all her earlier enthusiasm, freezing awkwardly, her expression turning genuinely comical as she stared at Julian.

Was there any chance she’d just misheard something?

’B-Grade?’

Kina repeated it in her head.

That phrase, "B-Grade," kept looping over and over in her mind without stopping.

I mean, who in this entire world, still stuck at Rank-F, had access to a B-Grade skill?

No one. Not a single person, even those already at Rank-B themselves weren’t guaranteed to have a B-Grade skill.

Because a B-Grade Skill already sat at a level powerful enough to cause a small-scale disaster on its own.

Kina had no idea what was actually going through her Master’s head, handing over a book like this, even taking the trouble to write it himself.

But if there was one thing Kina was thinking about, one thing she was genuinely curious about.

She forced a smile onto her face, an unabashed smile as she moved forward and wrapped her arm around her Master’s, her attitude turning playful and just a touch teasing.

"Master... would you mind demonstrating this skill for me?"

She was genuinely curious, incredibly, incredibly curious.

To Julian, that wasn’t a difficult request. Of course he could do it, except, since this was a B-Grade skill, he’d need proper permission first.

He couldn’t just carelessly use a B-Grade skill only to end up wrecking the Academy’s training room.

So Julian paused for a moment and looked at Kina.

"If we get permission, then of course—"

Julian’s sentence cut off, because right then, Kina moved fast. She took off running, leaving the training room while shouting with genuine excitement.

"Wait right there, Master! I’ll get us permission~"

Watching that, Julian stood frozen in place, blinking, his lips twitching with the urge to laugh.

"Why is she this excited?"

Of course, Julian understood the reason. Kina’s excitement over a B-Grade skill was a perfectly reasonable reaction, he just couldn’t figure out where that seemingly endless well of energy actually came from.

Letting out a small sigh, Julian pulled out his phone, planning to pass the time while waiting for Kina.

But before that, he noticed a message from his manager.

’Ah, right, I did ask her if there was something that could help me become braver...’

Since Aveela had been genuinely swamped, her answer had only just arrived today, right at the exact moment Julian no longer needed it, having already found his own answer.

He tapped the chat bubble and checked Aveela’s reply.

—Hmmm, I’m not sure, honestly?

—But, maybe you could find the answer with Aclyris, just go see them!

—*Shared location.

The message ended just like that. Julian wasn’t surprised, since even back in his old world, his manager had always preferred talking things out directly rather than exchanging texts.

So Julian’s mind drifted elsewhere instead.

"....."

Aclyris, the Alien merchant.

Julian mulled it over again.

"...I think, I should probably try meeting them again?"

Of course, this time, for an entirely different need.