Chapter 40 : Chapter 40
Chapter 40 : Crafting
Upgrade took a sip of coffee and let out a satisfied breath.
“Alex, if you didn't look so terrible, I would have even kissed you.”
She let out a sigh of gratitude as she touched the alchemy-brewed coffee to her lips.
Alex laughed and poured coffee for Sal as well.
“Joined the all-nighter crew? Then I guess I will see you often.”
As Sal took out his Q-Card to pay, Alex waved his hand to stop him.
“The first few cups are free. I’m giving it to you so you get addicted.”
Alex pointed with his chin at Upgrade, who was happily hugging her coffee.
Seeing that, Sal understood and accepted the coffee with a grateful heart.
And he inadvertently checked the clock one more time.
There was no way Upgrade would miss that glance.
“Stop worrying. We are taking the workshop elevator. Just try living as the Professor's favorite student for today.”
She lightly tapped Sal’s head and laughed.
“The classroom is in the same building. Plus, the workshop elevator goes straight to the classroom. It is useful when moving machines or equipment, but we never tell the students.”
“Why?”
“Then would the elevator ever get a break? The workshop would turn into a madhouse.”
Upgrade took the lead, pressed the elevator button nonchalantly, and waited.
She glanced at Sal’s hand and curled the corners of her mouth up.
“Want to test out the new gloves?”
Sal nodded and looked at the fingerless gloves on his hands.
From the moment he first put them on, they felt like they were originally part of him.
He finally realized what Hannah meant when she said the gauntlet felt like part of her body.
As such, Sal had many things he was curious about.
There was a question he really wanted to ask Upgrade about these gloves currently on his hands.
The elevator door opened, and Sal deliberated as he followed Upgrade inside.
‘Should I ask after class, or should I ask now?’
After taking one more sip of coffee, he decided.
He would probably only think about it throughout the class anyway, so it seemed better to ask now.
“Um, I have one question. Can’t you only upgrade up to Epic Grade, Professor? How did you make the armor Legendary Grade?”
Upgrade blinked and said.
“You saw that?”
Sal nodded, recalling when Upgrade had activated her armor.
The armor Upgrade wore, which he had appraised, was clearly Legendary Grade.
Upgrade shrugged and glanced at his gloves again.
“It is part of the Upgrade ability, but it requires ridiculously precise Essence control. You remember how you kept that gun in a sort of stasis state? You maintained it in a Legendary Grade state without continuously consuming Essence, right? You can think of it as the same thing.”
She continued her explanation by transforming into her armor right then and there.
“Actually, the material itself doesn't completely transform. My Essence fills the gaps and shows ‘how far the Upgrade ability can potentially maintain it.’”
Sal blinked once more and asked back.
“So, are you momentarily overloading your ability to raise it to Legendary Grade for a short time? Doesn’t that consume a lot of Essence?”
Upgrade pointed to her neck and grinned.
“It did. But thanks to someone changing my Essence flow, it became okay. Now I don’t have to store overload Essence even without this Core.”
Sal still had an unconvinced look on his face.
Upgrade waved her hand and added.
“When I enter this state, my tools also become Legendary Grade. I work quickly in that state and finish before the effect wears off. If I hadn’t made the gloves in this state, they wouldn’t be like they are now.”
Upgrade lifted her coffee again and let out a breath mixed with a sigh.
“You think this is cheating right now, don’t you? But I will show you that it isn’t. You try it yourself, and judge after that.”
At that moment, both of them stopped talking simultaneously.
Upgrade looked at Sal’s gloves and muttered.
“Then wouldn't your tools... become Mythos Grade?”
Before either of them could dig deeper into that thought, the elevator door opened.
The classroom was visible across the hallway ahead.
Upgrade lowered her voice toward Sal.
“Don’t even think about appraising that weapon until I get back. Got it?”
The noisy sounds of students entering the classroom filled the hallway.
Upgrade visibly shuddered as she watched the scene.
Just as Sal was about to say something to her as she downed the remaining coffee in one go, she snatched his cup and emptied it as well.
Upgrade exhaled with a satisfied face and said.
“Much better. You at least got some sleep. So no complaints. Now focus on the class, and don’t act like you know me, okay?”
She plastered a fake smile on her face and followed the students into the classroom.
Sal was left alone in the hallway, standing blankly holding two empty mugs.
***
“Okay, let’s start by figuring each other out. Raise your hand if you chose crafting because you didn’t want to go out into the field.”
Upgrade smiled and looked around the classroom.
A few hands went up, and she nodded without hesitation.
“I’m not trying to judge you. I’m just asking because I’m curious about your motives. Then... who chose crafting to make money?”
This time, quite a few students raised their hands, and Upgrade responded with a smile.
“Lastly... who chose crafting because you didn’t know what you were good at yet?”
This time, to help the atmosphere, Upgrade herself raised her hand.
“I also had no idea what I wanted to do when I first came here!”
At that moment, the entire classroom visibly relaxed.
She was completely different from Jez, Rust, or Sinclair.
Sal could almost hear everyone sighing in relief inwardly at that moment.
Upgrade sat on the desk and leaned back on her palms to secure her posture.
“Since today is an introductory class, we won’t be doing any practical exercises. Instead, we’re going to take time to find out what kind of people you are. And decide on the personal project you will proceed with during the semester! We need to be honest to align our mutual expectations. So, everyone close your eyes.”
Sal closed his eyes along with the other students.
“You aren’t here just because you have a Skill. You are here because you want to be heroes. There are about a hundred students from various cohorts in this class. Everyone has different goals and has walked different paths.”
Soon, Upgrade’s voice filled the quiet classroom.
“Personally, I chose this path because I wanted to make things that could save people. A very subjective reason! A great weapon can kill monsters and save countless lives, and a well-made barrier can stop a flood and save a hundred people. It could be faster transportation, a better signal system, a more accurate aiming system, or even a sturdy shirt.”
The students gradually began to listen to her words.
“For example, what if you made protective clothing? Crafting can go in any direction you want. There is no correct answer here, and no perfect direction. The only direction is developing your own capabilities.”
Upgrade’s voice remained steady as she continued.
“Here, you will learn skills and expertise. This eventually makes everything equal. You cannot learn the basics just with abilities or Skills. So close your eyes and think seriously. Right at this moment, you are all standing on the same starting line. Rankings and abilities mean nothing. If you hear something that applies to you, raise your hand honestly.”
Upgrade’s voice got closer.
It was clear she was walking among the students as she spoke.
“Raise your hand if the reason you learned crafting is to make money.”
Sounds of bodies moving were heard here and there.
Upgrade burst into laughter.
“There are a few? Don’t worry, it’s not a bad thing. Not all of us are altruistic. The ability to earn Q-Credits is really important for surviving here. If that is your goal, I just have to teach you accordingly.”
Sal thought about raising his hand for a moment, but in the end, he didn't.
Money wasn't his real goal.
Right now, Watcher’s reaction when he saw the sniper rifle he crafted was more important than money.
Just imagining what options the finished weapon might harbor made Sal’s heart race.
“This time, who came because they wanted to help people?”
Upgrade’s voice was heard very close to his side.
Sal tried to raise his hand, but as if she read his mind, Upgrade asked the next question right in front of him.
“Or, just because you want to make the best thing you can make? Money is good, saving people is better.”
Sal immediately raised his hand.
Her words felt like they were spoken to him.
“I knew it. Okay, you can open your eyes.”
Upgrade leisurely walked back and forth in front of the podium, smiling as if lost in reminiscence.
“There were a lot of kids playing in the amphitheater last night, right? I don’t know why they did it on a Thursday instead of Friday... but I’ll let it slide for today. I’m not the stuffy style like the other professors. Mutual respect is the basic rule here. If you don’t skip class and do your work well, everyone will receive good results!”
When the party was mentioned, most students shifted in their seats or exchanged disgruntled looks.
There was no way Upgrade would miss that reaction.
“Ah, I see…. The kids who don’t take this class organized it, right? Did they think there was no need to postpone it a day because of the Support lines? Nothing much has changed then or now. Well, we’ll talk about that later.”
As she activated her ability, exclamations flowed out from among the students.
Upgrade’s clothes changed into her signature armor, and mechanical equipment was draped over her hands.
Sal looked around at the students wearing expressions of admiration.
He had made the exact same face when he first saw that appearance.
But she continued speaking calmly, showing no sign of being conscious of it.
“When I first came to the Academy, everything I saw felt like a defect. I wasn’t satisfied until I fixed everything. Actually, that was a bit of an obsessive fixation. Since I kept feeling that something was lacking. So my peers hated me, calling me an elitist or saying I had an unpleasant personality. Why is this important now? Why am I suddenly talking about old stories?”
The students didn't say anything.
Because they thought she naturally wasn't expecting an answer.
Upgrade waved her hand and continued.
“It’s because of perspective. If I had listened to them back then, I absolutely wouldn’t have found my own path like I have now. Crafters like us are usually grouped into the Support category, but that’s practically just treating us like junk by rounding up kids whose abilities are unknown. If they don’t know what you can do, or don’t know what the ability does, they label you a Supporter. It’s easy to feel inferior to kids with flashy abilities or attack lines. But drop that thought right now.”
Upgrade’s tone became sharper, and her mechanical claws flexed flexibly, moving as if trying to grasp something invisible in the air.
Each mechanical part rotated separately like living fingers, making operating sounds.
“Who makes the weapons, armor, and tools? What about the analysis that provides information? Who makes the potions that maintain life? Who on earth makes the barriers that protect you every night?”
Upgrade grinned at the students.
“We make them. The Support profession is the backbone of the hero industry. So never lower your heads. Without us, everyone would still be fighting monsters with non-Essence weapons, you know? You all know what the end of that is, right?”
Laughter spread throughout the classroom, and Upgrade deactivated her ability, returning to her casual clothes.
“There is another reason I brought up my personality or abilities. The goal of this class is to grow each of you. Not with some special ability, but by teaching you skills that can influence society. The evaluation criteria are simple. Willingness to learn, overall development, and a personal project. You just have to submit it by the end of the semester. And the group project I mentioned earlier, that one you will work on with me.”
She smiled as she returned to her desk.
“Crafters tend to be individualistic by nature. But if we cooperate, we can achieve things beyond imagination. I intend to show you that this time.”
Upgrade leaned against the desk and said.
“I’ll count today as just adjustment time. We won’t do theory or practice, but instead, let’s answer two questions. First, what is the invention you will make for your personal project? Ignore all abilities or limits and write down what you really want to make. And why you want to make it. Second, imagine that the best crafters have formed a team. Propose the coolest item imaginable that could be made as a team project. Likewise, there are no limits on this. You can talk to each other. Just make sure to submit these two answers before you leave.”
Sal looked down at the desk. Two text boxes were floating on the screen.