As a fundamental rule, Skills can sometimes manifest in increasingly powerful stages.
If someone possesses a body-enhancement Skill, most of its applications are simply enhanced versions of that same enhancement.
However, exceptions exist for everything.
My first-stage Skill, [Experience], is a dubious ability that lets me gain more experience points than normal.
This compensates for my drawback of requiring vast amounts of experience and rarely leveling up.
But my second-stage Skill, [Connection].
This is a Skill that creates bonds.
It's not about gaining more experience—it's an entirely different kind of Skill.
If it let me earn even more experience, that would've been fine. My always-active [Experience] already consumes a considerable amount of mana.
Even if the drain increased a bit more at this point, my mana reserves were plentiful enough that it wouldn't be a problem.
The problem was that a completely different Skill had manifested instead.
After encountering the Kirin, Shannon had started acting suspicious toward me, which led to me being cornered into an interrogation. Now was the perfect time to explain this Skill and deflect the conversation.
The timing was terrible for explaining that the wills of five Successive Heads were recorded in my Jewel alongside their Skills.
(I should have explained before it came to this.)
The reason I'd hidden it was simply that explaining would've been a hassle.
Actually, I... have a guardian with me!
That wasn't something I wanted to explain, and there was also a small bit of pride—I didn't want to be thought of that way.
Night.
We'd started a fire near the Porter and were pouring hot drinks into metal cups.
Everyone was waiting for me to start talking.
Inside the Jewel, with Shannon keeping watch, the Successive Heads remained silent.
(...The timing is just too terrible.)
Shannon and Eva both knew about the Jewel.
And they also knew that Ceres possessed a Jewel of her own. If the Jewel showed resistance, things would become troublesome all over again.
I received everyone's skeptical gazes—some of them tinged with excitement—and cleared my throat.
"...Actually, there's something I've been keeping secret."
White steam rose from my cup, and I watched it drift away in the occasional cold gust as I spoke in small bits.
"About my Skills."
Shannon tilted her head.
"Hey, why are we talking about Skills? If you could just tell us about that blue gem hanging around your neck—"
"Because they're connected!"
Shannon was so startled that the contents of her cup bounced slightly and spilled onto the ground.
I muttered "sorry" and began explaining my Skills.
"My Skill—[Experience]—allows me to gain more experience. It's always active."
Hearing this, Eva spoke up.
"Wow, that's really useful! Is it a support-type Skill? Can't you just live off Skills like that normally?"
I nodded and went on to explain my second-stage Skill.
"However, my second-stage Skill, [Connection], is a Skill for forming bonds."
Clara had been bringing her cup to her lips but stopped and looked toward me.
"I wouldn't call that an application of the Skill."
I took a single sip of my drink, moistened my mouth, and continued.
"It's a Skill that creates a special line with me at the center. It allows for communication of thoughts... and, well, it seems like activating it is what angered the Kirin."
The moment I said that, everyone's gazes sharpened.
Novem, however, fixed me with a skeptical look.
(Yes! I can pull this off!)
I decided to press on with this explanation, since it was far more convincing than the story about the Successive Heads.
To tell the truth of the matter, I'd have to start with the Jewel and work my way to the Skills of the Successive Heads.
And then I'd also need to explain the Fifth Generation.
I could go that far, but being misunderstood would be a pain. Even if I told them, they might think I was being manipulated, wouldn't they?
If that's what they believed, clearing up the misunderstanding would be a nightmare.
As things stood, everyone believed that the Jewel was connected to how Ceres had started changing, based on Novem's explanation.
I didn't want to be thought of as one of Ceres's kind, and having the Jewel sealed away would be a serious problem for me.
Aria spoke with a look of exasperation.
"So you angered it by trying to use the Skill? ...As I thought, it wasn't Lyle's fault."
Her gaze toward me turned cold, but inside my head I was thinking:
(Yes! Now the conversation is heading in the direction of Skills!)
If only I'd come clean earlier, I could've avoided all this trouble... I'd regretted it more than once or twice already.
Miranda spoke up.
"If that's true, then Lyle is absolutely extraordinary. Just being able to communicate thoughts is amazing enough. It practically seems like an entirely different Skill."
The first stage increases experience gain.
The second stage is communication with companions.
They're definitely completely different Skills. So if you asked if that's why I was hesitant to explain, the answer is no.
(Ugh, should I tell them? But I have to... Though I really don't want to.)
The instant a Skill manifests, its name and usage method float into your mind as if you've suddenly remembered them, bringing a sense of clarity.
That's why everyone understands their own Skill. Naturally, I also understand how to use Connection.
It's precisely because I understand it that I didn't want to talk about it until now.
(If I say this, it'll lead to another weird misunderstanding...)
I absolutely didn't want to explain it, and if possible, I'd prefer not to use this Skill. Its performance is excellent, but the method of establishing the link between us is just... no good.
Honestly, even I think there's something wrong with it.
Miranda presses me.
"So, why don't you use this Skill on us? Is it because you don't want us prying?"
I avert my gaze from the grinning Miranda.
"...If we establish a link, I manage it on my end, so prying is impossible. Think of it as being able to hear each other's voices regardless of distance or obstacles? Ah, does distance matter?"
Clara pushes her glasses up with a fingertip, returning them to the correct position, and speaks with a hint of excitement.
"That's incredible! There should be a similar support-type Skill, but just possessing it draws headhunters. It's a Skill that allows for much more efficient group coordination, after all."
The room gets a little excited, but then Novem speaks.
"...Lord Lyle, why haven't you used this Skill until now? Was there some problem?"
I decide the time for explanation has come and drain the contents of my glass. It had gone lukewarm, but that actually made it easier to drink.
Monica approaches me and pours a fresh drink into my glass.
"...It's a kiss."
Eva looked at me.
"Huh?"
"To create the Line, what's needed is a kiss! And not just once — every single time you use it! If I'd told you guys this, would you have really believed me?"
Everyone was staring at me with complicated expressions when Aria spoke up.
"J-just a little kiss and then it's over, right? What's the big deal? It's not like we're children or anything."
Her face was bright red, which made her words about as convincing as a wet napkin. If anyone here was naive about that sort of thing, wasn't it Aria herself?
"It's not a peck. To connect the Line, we're talking about the deep kind! Not the kind of kiss parents give their kids!"
Aria's face went even redder. "D-deep...?" she mumbled before looking down at the floor.
Then Miranda, who had been wearing a complicated expression the whole time, let out a sigh.
"Ah... Lyle, so that's what happened? You tried to kiss the Kirin to connect that Line to it?"
I could only nod reluctantly at this point.
"...Yes. That's right."
Clara said something about how "that would make anyone angry," while Eva forced a strained smile and stammered, "W-well, some people do love animals that much, I suppose."
Shannon looked utterly repulsed.
"You tried to kiss the Kirin and it got mad? Are you an idiot?"
I knew this was coming, but hearing it actually spoken aloud somehow hurt even more than I'd anticipated.
Miranda shot me a look of utter exasperation.
Novem had her hand pressed to her mouth, lost in thought.
As for Monica, she...
"Good grief... if you had just said so, I would have gladly given you a kiss, whether it was light or heavy! Now then, Chicken... let's share an adult kiss and connect the line."
I stopped Monica's head with my left hand as she came at me with both arms spread wide, and told her the truth.
"No, you and I already have a line formed through magic or whatever, so a kiss isn't needed. Lucky for you — I don't have to kiss you."
Hearing that, Monica collapsed onto the spot right there.
"Kissing an animal tongue-to-tongue, yet refusing to kiss me, Monica, the ideal maid... Even so, I will serve by your side until the very end, Chicken. Poor, poor Monica. But I won't lose to some Kirin!"
(She's such a handful...)
With the atmosphere around us having turned awkward, I let out a sigh of relief, thinking I had somehow gotten through the whole ordeal.
But the price, it felt, had been steep.
Night.
After confirming that everyone besides the lookouts had fallen asleep, I directed my consciousness to Jewel.
In the meeting room with the round table, Fifth Generation was waiting.
He was sitting in a chair, but he couldn't seem to settle down at all.
He had his elbows propped on the round table, his chin resting in one hand, while the fingers of his other hand tapped the desk with a dull rhythm.
'You're late.'
"I know you've got the wrong idea, but I managed to explain myself somehow. And thanks to that, I'm being treated like a pervert."
When I cracked that joke, Fifth Generation tilted his head.
'How does kissing an animal make you a pervert? That sort of thing is basically just a greeting from an animal's perspective. Oh right — come to my room immediately.'
At those words, I opened the door to the Memory Room together with Fifth Generation.
Fifth Generation's Memory Room led into a place that resembled a horse stable.
But it wasn't only horses that were there.
Animals of all shapes and sizes seemed to be living there.
"Um, what is this place?"
"I had this stable built for them. At first it was just dogs and cats, but then I started keeping birds, and once these were the only ones I could really trust, they just kept multiplying."
Though honestly, hadn't he been the one multiplying them?
As I was thinking that, the door at the far end of the fairly spacious stable opened on its own.
Inside, a small Kirin lay on its side — white-bodied, with a yellow mane and a small, rounded horn.
"Is it hurt at the base of its neck?"
A bandage was wrapped around it. Whether out of caution or something else, the creature was curled up at the back of the room. The bandage around its neck had turned red, and it didn't seem to have touched its food.
"I named it May. It's a Kirin and all — different species. Hard to get attached."
Fifth Generation stroked the frightened May, but since this was a memory, it showed no response.
Then, from near the entrance of the stable, footsteps could be heard. Several people filed in, among them a middle-aged Fifth Generation with a bag stuffed full of supplies.
Fifth Generation in the memory, looking at May.
"You won't get better if you don't eat, you know."
One of them — a veterinarian, perhaps? — spoke while still trembling.
"My Lord, I've heard that when you capture a Kirin, it calls its companions and seeks revenge. We should release it back into the wild immediately. Besides, what will the surrounding lords say..."
The Fifth Generation in the memory turned back toward the veterinarian—
Fifth Generation
—sneered.
"So what? It was injured, so I brought it home and treated it. I haven't done a single thing to be ashamed of. And you want me to throw out this child who can't even walk properly because of its injuries? How could anyone be so cruel!"
Fifth Generation, who had poured so much love into these animals——.
(No, you could stand to pour just a little more love into your family)
I thought this, but kept it to myself.
From the bag, I pulled out expensive medicines and handed them to the veterinarian.
"If we're short on anything, I'll have it procured right away. Your job is to treat this child."
The veterinarian accepted the medicine and began treatment.
When the Kirin grew wary and thrust out its horns, the wound had reopened and the bandages had turned red. Pale lines crackled in the air around it, and Fifth Generation pinned the creature down.
"Hurry up!"
"Y-Your Excellency, it's dangerous!"
The veterinarian scrambled to finish the treatment, but by the time it was done, Fifth Generation was the one who looked like he'd been through a war.
Immediately, the vet dragged Fifth Generation outside the hut, where he could be heard shouting.
"Someone! Anyone! His Excellency is—!"
Amid the desperate cries, Fifth Generation was smiling.
"Ah, now that you mention it, something like this did happen. I'd completely forgotten."
I couldn't help but feel sorry for the veterinarian, but May, now finished with her treatment, lay on her side with her eyes closed.
Seeing this, Fifth Generation spoke.
"Cute, isn't she?"
"Well, when you consider she grew to that size in just seventy to eighty years, I'd say I'm more stunned than anything."
When I met May, she already had the magnificent appearance of a full-grown adult.
I still remember how Fifth Generation's voice rang out, and how for some reason hostility was directed at me.
"Um, so... why exactly was hostility directed at me? At first, there wasn't any."
When I said that, Fifth Generation also raised his hand to his chin as though deep in thought.
"...No, even I can't make sense of it. For starters, I was surprised she followed me in the first place. Kirin soar across the sky and annihilate evil — that's why they're called divine beasts. They have no interest in getting close to humans."
Kirin are considered auspicious creatures, and there's even a widespread superstition that capturing one will bring prosperity to your family.
But there were plenty of failed attempts by people who tried to capture a Kirin.
A few successful cases did exist, but those would be an extreme minority at best.
These divine beasts — which roam not a single country but entire continents, wiping out Monsters — despise contact with humans. Or rather, they maintain a certain distance from them.
They won't attack humans unless provoked first.
"But she reacted to Fifth Generation's voice, didn't she? You haven't done anything to earn her grudge, have you?"
"...Listen here. I may have failed at marriage and raising kids, but I haven't failed at anything involving animals!"
That was somehow just as bad.
"Then why was May angry?"
"That's exactly why I'm going to sift through her memories. Come on — let's keep moving."
As I followed after Fifth Generation, who had already started walking, the scenery around us began to shift and transform.
We found ourselves standing in the inner courtyard of the manor.