Seraphim is a Bystander

First Training with Father - Part 2
 

Once Aoi’s excitement had settled down—and Father’s over-the-top doting had run its course—the training resumed. The light-hearted atmosphere from earlier quickly dissipated as they returned their focus to the session.
While Aoi and Father trained one-on-one, Sou watched quietly from a distance.
…I want to pet him.
“At first, the goal is to circulate your special ability throughout your entire body.”

“Yes, Dad!”
As the training grew more serious, the advantage I’d prepared for Aoi began to shine. At first, Aoi struggled to grasp the sensation of moving his power. But once he got the hang of it, he quickly learned how to circulate his special ability throughout his body.
“…Aoi, you’re picking this up fast.”

“Really!?”
Father blurted that out in surprise, and Aoi responded with innocent joy. Seeing that, Father seemed to decide not to let it go to Aoi’s head. He dropped to eye level and spoke seriously.
“Listen, Aoi. Even if you’re improving quickly, this is just the basic stage. If you want to get stronger, you mustn’t stop training—no matter how good you think you’ve become.”

“…Okay.”
“This power isn't something meant to hurt others. It’s for protecting you and the people important to you. Don’t ever forget that.”
“…Yes, Dad.”

Though Aoi didn’t fully understand everything his father said, he could tell it was important just from the serious look on his face. So he made sure to commit the words to memory.
Satisfied with Aoi’s solemn response, Father gently patted his head before standing up.
“Alright, that’s enough for special ability training. Even just moving your ability during free time will help. If you want to grow stronger, keep practicing.”

“Okaaay.”
“Now then, let’s move on to weapon handling.”
Just as Father said that, Ichijou-sensei’s voice rang out from a separate room within the training area.

“〈Mind if I chime in?〉”
“Ichijou-sensei? What’s the matter?”
“〈If you’re moving on to weapons, my present might finally come in handy!〉”
At the sound of Ichijou-sensei’s cheerful voice, Aoi and Father exchanged glances. They looked down at their bracelets, wondering how they’d be useful for weapon training. But before they could come up with any ideas, she continued:

“〈Seeing is believing, right? Try channeling your special ability into the bracelet, would you?〉”
At her suggestion, Aoi and Father began to pour their special abilities into the bracelets. It was Aoi’s first time channeling power into an object, so he did it nervously and slowly.
“Whoa!”

As he did, the bracelet emitted a soft glow—perhaps synchronized with nanomachines—and a translucent display appeared in his field of vision. The same thing seemed to happen to Father, who raised an eyebrow slightly before examining the display in front of him.
The screen showed a wide variety of weapons.
“What… is this?”

“〈Fufufu… allow me to explain! That device lets you create weapons based on your own special ability!〉”
Ichijou-sensei’s tone was borderline obnoxious, but the bracelet’s function itself was undeniably impressive.
The bracelets worn by Aoi and his father were devices that allowed the user to manifest ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) weapons using their own special ability.

With preloaded data on various weapons, the bracelet used the user’s energy to form solid versions of them. As long as they had the bracelet, they could summon and wield thousands of types of weapons without carrying any heavy gear around.
With some customization, users could alter the size or weight of the weapons freely. They could even dull the blades for safe training purposes.
“〈Of course, since the weapons are formed from special ability energy, their performance depends heavily on the amount and quality of that energy. But you two should be fine! While you’re at it, I’d like to gather some data too, okay?〉”

“I see… In that case, we’ll be happy to help.”
Father glanced through the weapon list and seemed to spot one he was familiar with. He quickly finished his own selection and turned his attention to Aoi’s choice.
“Go ahead—choose whatever weapon you like.”

“Okay!”
As expected, Aoi’s inner boyish excitement kicked in, and his eyes sparkled as he scrolled through the list. Swords, spears, axes, staffs—there were countless options. He examined them all, overwhelmed by the variety.
After about five minutes of intense browsing, Aoi’s gaze stopped at one particular weapon.
…Wait, that’s the one?

“Dad! I want this one!”
“You’ve decided? …You’re sure about this?”
“Yup!”

Aoi pointed with a bright smile, but Father looked puzzled.
It wasn’t a sword, a spear, an axe, a staff, or even a katana.
No, the image it immediately evoked was something much darker—
Perhaps the Grim Reaper.
What Aoi had chosen…
Was a scythe.