"Can you also leave the clouds and make only the rain stop?"
"Nyang!"
Unlike forming the clouds, which had taken quite a while before the rain started falling, stopping the rain was quick.
No sooner had the words left my mouth than the streaks of rain came to a halt.
The clouds filling the ceiling remained as they were.
"It's a bit too dark, so is it possible to move the clouds covering the lights a little?"
"Nyang~!"
This time as well, Yor carried out my command perfectly.
The light pouring through the dark clouds was reminiscent of a spotlight.
I stood in that light, lost in thought for a moment.
'The pre-delay, meaning the time it takes for the ability to manifest, is a bit too long. That's a drawback.'
Still, there is an alternative.
It seems possible to simply maintain the clouds.
I can create the clouds in advance and leave them floating in the sky, pretending they're natural.
That way, if I make it rain when needed, the pre-delay would practically disappear.
Besides, hasn't Yor only just been born?
As she grows and her power becomes stronger, she should be able to shorten the time.
'The real problem is how to ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ utilize this ability in combat...'
The ability to call rain would be a great help when facing fire attribute ability users or monsters.
That would be especially true if we entered a lava zone or desert environment in the Demon Realm.
But this is only a support ability, after all.
It cannot be considered a direct means of attack.
"Is it also possible to call down lightning? Ah! Even if it is, don't do it right away. Just answer me."
Currently, the floor rippled with rainwater, and I was soaking wet.
In this situation, if lightning were to strike, getting electrocuted would be unavoidable.
Realizing that fact midway through speaking, I quickly added a condition, though it seemed there was no need.
"Nyo..."
If it were possible, she would have answered confidently with a "Nyah!", but Yor's response was rather lackluster.
Had I expected too much?
It would be a lie to say I wasn't disappointed, but the thought, 'I guess it can't be helped,' was stronger.
"Well, lightning attribute abilities are quite rare in this world, so it's only natural if it's impossible."
"Nyao Nyaong, Nya Nya Nya, Nyang Nyao Nyang!!!"
"I didn't mean I had low expectations because I underestimated you. It's because Reisir, the protagonist of 《NaSE》, had lightning as his main ability. Author Senna probably made that ability rare to emphasize the protagonist's uniqueness. Because of that, among the characters who appeared in the original novel, Reisir is the only one who uses lightning..."
"NyaNya Nya Nya Nyat—!!!!"
Yor cut me off and became extremely angry.
If my familiar were a cat instead of a dragon, I wondered if she would have scratched me with her forepaw.
I had no idea why she was acting that way, so I could only stare blankly at the baby dragon.
Yor clenched her forepaw... or so I thought, but she used it more like a hand, forming a fist and pounding her chest.
If she were human, she would have looked like she was beating her chest out of frustration.
"Did I misunderstand your answer? Can you call down lightning?"
"Myo..."
"Doesn't that mean you can't?"
"NyaNya."
She gives a lukewarm answer when asked if it's possible, then shakes her head when asked if it's impossible.
Somehow, I felt like I was playing Twenty Questions.
But it was a version where none of the participants were having fun, and both sides were only growing more frustrated.
"Then does it mean you don't know whether you can or not, so you think you need to test it first?"
"Nyao."
"Not that either? Then... you can't do it right now, but you'll be able to once you grow up?"
"Nyan nyan nyan nyan nyan nyat! Nyan nyan nyang, NyaNyat!!"
It seemed this was the correct answer.
Yor expressed her joy by frantically flying around me, sometimes spinning in circles and sometimes flipping upside down.
Though I wasn't as boisterous as Yor, I felt a similar joy.
'So I can't use it right now, but to think I'll get an attack skill later on!'
Moreover, as I mentioned earlier, lightning is the Original Protagonist's main ability, and it even has the rare attribute attached to it.
But didn't they say the protagonist was modeled after Odin from Norse mythology?
Isn't Zeus from Greek mythology the supreme god who wields lightning?
Though that question crossed my mind, it is still the Original Protagonist's ability.
'In other words, lightning attribute abilities possess overwhelming destructive power within the setting.'
Though, since the Sky Blue Ether doesn't directly manipulate lightning but instead creates it through rain clouds...
...it would be impossible to imbue a weapon with the power of lightning and attack an enemy the way Reisir does.
It would also be useless if the opponent were smart enough to use a lightning rod or something similar to divert the current.
Still, just the fact that I'm destined to gain a proper attack skill later is something worth being thankful for.
"For a cumulonimbus cloud that generates lightning to form, water droplets and ice particles have to collide inside the cloud, right? And for that to happen, you need wind... Yor, can you control wind too?"
"Myo..."
Once again, Yor gave a lackluster response.
But I wasn't disappointed.
I had learned that Yor's subtle reactions appeared whenever she was asked a question that couldn't be answered with a simple yes or no.
"I'm going to ask you a few more questions. If you can do it right away, answer with 'Nyah,' if you can do it later, 'Nyang,' if it's impossible, 'Nyah,' and if you don't know, 'Nyaong'."
"Yaong~!"
At my words, Yor replied crisply and nodded.
She seemed to like this method of preventing frustration.
"Alright, let me ask again. Can you control wind?"
"Nyang."
"Can you make snow or hail instead of rain?"
"Nyang."
"Can you stop naturally falling rain or clear away clouds?"
"Nyah."
"What about controlling the rainwater pooled on the floor?"
"Nyah."
"In that case..."
Through several more questions like that, I began to understand what Yor's ability, and by extension the Sky Blue Ether, was capable of.
Then, I suddenly felt a chill and sneezed.
"There's still a lot of time until dinner, but it seems training here today is out of the question. Should we wash up quickly and head back to the room...?"
"Yaong, yaoong! Nyan nyan nyat!"
Was she worried I would catch a cold?
Yor cried out noisily and even pushed against my back.
Thus, half by my own will and half by hers, I entered the shower room and saw the bag lying on the floor.
It was the one I had thrown aside right before the rain started pouring down.
Thankfully, it was dry and intact.
Praising my excellent judgment and quick reflexes, I took a warm shower and changed clothes.
According to Valhalla Academy's rules, the training uniform had to be worn with thigh-high boots.
With the school uniform, Balmoral shoes, also known as "Oxford shoes," had to be worn.
I used to think it was a pointless rule, but not anymore.
Thanks to that rule, I had brought spare shoes, so I didn't have to wear soaking wet ones.
On the first floor of the Training Tower, I left my drenched clothes and shoes for laundry and requested cleaning service for the private training ground.
The workers would probably struggle to drain all the water pooled on the floor.
Since I couldn't do it myself, all I could do was feel grateful that such a service existed.
'When I get back to my room, I'll wrap myself in a blanket and study the epistemology book I borrowed from the library yesterday. Then after dinner...'
The unexpected flooding had disrupted my schedule, since I hadn't even started training yet.
So I was reorganizing my daily plans in my head as I entered the dormitory lobby.
To explain briefly, the dormitory had two buildings, one for males and one for females, but they shared a single lobby.
First, you enter the lobby.
Then, going left leads to the male dormitory, while going right leads to the female dormitory.
As a result, the lobby was a place where students of all genders and grades could easily gather.
Many tables and chairs had been arranged to encourage students to meet and interact freely.
Today as well, several students had gathered there chatting.
So far, there was no problem, but...
"Did you all see it? The familiar of the Austri Family's Youngest Duke's Son."
Just then, the conversation about Yor and me became the topic of discussion.
I reflexively hid behind a pillar.
"Shouldn't you be more careful talking about that?"
"It's fine, it's fine. I don't know what's gotten into him, but Karvaldr has been holed up in the personal training ground after afternoon lectures lately. Or he goes to the research building. So today too, he'll probably only come back after dinner. Or he'll stay locked up in the personal training ground even after eating."
The two voices I heard this time belonged to different people than the one who had spoken first.
One seemed to be trying to watch his words, but the other was completely unabashed, even referring to my possessed body as "that guy."
'Should I step out boldly instead of hiding like this? That way they won't be able to talk carelessly and the students will disperse...'
If it were only about my possessed body, I wouldn't care, but it's a different story when it comes to Yor.
I can't let an innocent baby dragon be exposed to people's malice and get hurt.
'But this is also an opportunity to naturally find out how Yor's appearance looks to others.'
Besides, even if they disperse now...
...they'll surely gather somewhere else and gossip about Yor and me when I'm not around.
If I let this continue for too long, the number of people looking down on me will increase, and eventually it will become uncontrollable.
They'll chuckle among themselves, turning Yor and me into objects of ridicule even while knowing I'm listening.
And it won't be just one or two people, but a large number of them.
If the situation escalates to that point, there is only one solution.
'Just as Karvaldr did in the original novel, I would have to whip the most conspicuous student in front of a crowd to make an example out of them.'
I simply couldn't bring myself to do something like that.
So I had to resolve this with words while everyone was still conscious of me, and for that, I needed to catch the moment properly.
However, they still hadn't said anything insulting about Yor or my possessed body yet.
Stepping out and getting angry at this point would be the worst possible move.
To others, it would obviously look like an expression of inferiority complex, and it would only accelerate my becoming a laughingstock.
'I'd rather they talk about Yor's appearance and then insult my possessed body... instead of speaking carelessly about Yor.'
Had my wish come true?
Someone brought up one of Yor's physical characteristics.
"Anyway, isn't that familiar incredibly long? It's the first time I've ever seen a feline creature like that exist."
My ears perked up at those words.
So even to others, Yor doesn't look like an ordinary cat?
"But aren't cats originally long?"
What kind of conversation is this?
I peeked out from behind the pillar to see who had made that remark.
"I know because I raise one, but cats are originally much longer than you think. If you pick one up under the armpits and stretch it out, you'll see for yourself."
Judging by the color of his necktie, he was a third-year student.
Most of the first years had seen Yor's appearance firsthand in the campus cafeteria.
But since he belonged to a different year and used a different floor, he probably wouldn't say something like that if he had actually seen how long Yor was.
