The Academy’s Weapon Replicator - Chapter 117

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Weapon Replicator of the Academy — Episode 117
Chapter 35: The Genuine Article (2)
The butler Dushang whispered something to Quinie, then came over to me.
“My apologies, Appraiser. Would you mind waiting just a moment? It seems I’ve failed to offer you proper hospitality. I’ll have tea and refreshments brought to you shortly.”
“Of course.”
At my reply, Dushang smiled again and called for a maid.
“Bring tea and light refreshments for our guest here. Don’t be stingy—bring out the finest we have.”
“Yes, sir.”
With that, Dushang left the room immediately.
I let out a sigh.
“They’re going to call in another appraiser, aren’t they?”
“That’s right.”
Quinie admitted it freely, without bothering to hide it.
She simply couldn’t bring herself to trust the method I was using, so she was going to bring in another appraiser.
But since I came through her introduction, she couldn’t ask me to step aside, so she was doing it quietly instead.
“Your butler hasn’t even asked my name yet. No introduction, nothing.”
“Right? No faith whatsoever.”
As she said this, Quinie chuckled. He’s your butler, after all.
In the meantime, a maid arrived with tea and refreshments. Just as Dushang had said, you could tell at a glance they were premium goods.
I was taking a break with my tea when Dushang returned sooner than expected.
“How are you finding it, Appraiser? Does it suit your taste?”
“This tea would please almost anyone.”
I offered honest praise, and Dushang seemed pleased, his smile widening.
People generally tend to exchange praise in short measures but prolong criticism at great length.
A compliment ends in a word or two, while a rebuttal repeats in dozens of voices; you might praise someone absent just once and be satisfied, but you could spend an hour running down their name and never tire of it.
So if you want to keep things brief, offer praise.
All I wanted was to finish quickly.
“Once you’re ready, please begin.”
“Yes, right away.”
I set down my teacup, and the maid skillfully cleared the dishes and withdrew.
A servant then placed an item on the shelf as before, and I examined it and announced my verdict.
“Authentic.”
……
After that, the servant silently took the item and left the room.
Clearly, they were taking it to the appraiser in another room for verification.
……
After a long wait, I sat in my chair with my chin propped in my hand.
It might have looked somewhat arrogant, but I couldn’t help it.
If I didn’t prop up my chin, I’d collapse right there and fall asleep.
“The next item.”
The servant placed a ceramic piece on the shelf.
“Authentic.”
The servant took it and left. He returned only after a considerable wait.
“The next item.”
The servant placed a necklace on the shelf.
“Authentic.”
The servant took it and left. Again, he didn’t return for quite some time.
“The next item.”
The servant placed a crafted jewel on the shelf.
“……A diamond. I can’t say what its value is.”
“Understood. Thank you for the confirmation.”
Quinie, who had been watching from the side, interjected.
“Hey, you’re actually doing this properly, right?”
“Absolutely properly. My body and soul have become one, and I’m conducting this with the utmost care. Honestly, I’d almost prefer it if something turned out to be counterfeit.”
The work itself was nothing special.
I brought the items into my workshop and examined them; when necessary, I used my Analysis skill.
The problem was how tedious it all was.
Other appraisers probably use magnifying glasses to check for fine scratches and grain patterns, then sift through reference materials while analyzing to determine authenticity. But I just have to look.
On top of that, because they were taking each item I’d authenticated to the newly summoned appraiser for a second opinion, the waiting periods had only gotten longer.
I was half-tempted to just tell Dushang: “I know you’ve brought in another appraiser—why don’t you let them work alongside me?”
Besides, I’m not the only one who’s bored.
“Look around you. The only person here with bright eyes is you.”
At first, even the servants and butlers of this mansion had shown interest when they saw me, since Quinie introduced me as an excellent appraiser who could verify genuine items at a glance. The description wasn’t inaccurate, so I’d kept quiet about it.
But the truth is, I really do verify them at a glance.
Not just the butler—everyone around me now was watching with suspicious eyes. I must look like someone who just answers “authentic” whenever any object is brought out.
And they’d be right to think that. If I’d watched someone else doing this, I’d think the same thing.
Nearly everyone here, myself included, must be thinking the same thing right now.
‘Please let a fake come up.’
Then a servant placed the next item.
This time it was a pendant. A violet gemstone was set in the center, and around it, a rather complex mechanism was woven together with precision. Three concentric rings surrounded the central loop, each capable of rotating on the same axis.
Hmm, now this is interesting.
“It’s authentic.”
I spoke, and the servant took the item and left. Now I had to wait again for the appraiser to finish their evaluation.
That’s when Quinie approached me and leaned close to whisper in my ear.
“That one has something to it, doesn’t it?”
I whispered back.
“How did you know?”
“Your expression gave it away.”
Typical Quinie.
When it comes to appraising objects, few could match her at reading people.
Shortly after, the servant and Dushang entered together.
“Um, well, Appraiser?”
“Yes?”
“About the pendant you just examined—it’s that….”
I scratched my cheek. I could already guess what Dushang was about to say.
The outcome would be the same anyway, so I might as well make this easier.
“You called another appraiser, didn’t you?”
“…Yes? Ah….”
“I don’t mind. Please bring them here. It seems we’ve reached different conclusions.”
Dushang looked somewhat taken aback at my words, then bowed deeply and left again.
Soon a middle-aged, gaunt man entered with Dushang. His narrow eyes and spectacles gave him a quite meticulous appearance.
I stood, and we exchanged greetings.
“Good day. My name is Quentin.”
“Frontdier. A pleasure.”
Since he hadn’t given his family name, I introduced myself by my given name only.
Besides, there was no point in mentioning the name Roach here, and it felt a bit unsavory. Dushang, standing nearby, seemed to be thinking something after hearing my name, tilting his head as he looked elsewhere.
“I must tell you first—this pendant is counterfeit.”
The appraiser who introduced himself as Quentin stated this with absolute certainty. He held up the pendant in his gloved hand.
“The gemstone in the center is genuine, certainly. However, the connection points of the rings surrounding the gemstone, and the degree of wear on each ring, differ from one another. In other words, the components have been swapped. I suspect the original owner had something break or go missing, and then reassembled it with replacement parts.”
Having said this, Quentin cast a sidelong glance at me.
“It seems the young appraiser only examined the authenticity of the gemstone and declared it genuine. A proper appraiser must attend to the overall details of an item. You simply lack experience.”
He spoke as though he understood, but his eyes gleamed with contempt.
He must have heard from Dushang how I conduct my appraisals. Since he sees me as nothing but a fraud, this explanation is the maximum courtesy he’s showing.
I felt a bit sorry about that.
“The reason the rings on this pendant were changed is,”
I had to dismantle the veteran appraiser’s argument.
“because the craftsman replaced the components.”
There—I heard Quentin’s scoff.
“The craftsman replaced the components? For what reason? If you alter the original decoration after creation, the value only decreases.”
Quentin’s words were sound.
As Quentin himself demonstrated, the replaced section could be immediately identified, and if old and new decoration were mixed together, the overall value of the item would naturally plummet.
But this pendant doesn’t follow that logic.
“The rings on this pendant are not decoration.”
I put on gloves and extended my hand to Quentin. He furrowed his brow slightly but said nothing, handing me the pendant.
I took the pendant and manipulated the rings this way and that.
Let’s see—according to the manual my Analysis skill reveals….
Click.
Whirr-click.
As I manipulated them in the correct sequence, the stacked rings suddenly began moving of their own accord.
The moment they aligned in a single line, the rings drew their gaps together, filling the space inside the violet gemstone seamlessly. Then the gemstone began to glow.
And then came a voice.
[……Mistiltein wasn’t a branch at all.]
[What are you talking about?]
[We were deceived! Mistiltein isn’t some branch that happened to carry Divine Power! It was a weapon made from the start! It was—]
Two voices spoke, and then abruptly cut off as if interrupted mid-sentence.
……Hm, I didn’t expect to hear that. Anyway.
“This Pendant isn’t mere decoration. It’s a secured mechanical device. But now it’s been infused with some Magic Engineering.”
“…….”
Everyone stared in astonishment at my explanation. Quentin was no exception.
“This Pendant won’t open unless manipulated in the exact sequence. But for it to actually function, it must be constructed with an extraordinarily high degree of precision. That’s why the components kept changing. In other words, this Pendant is the final completed version containing all of the creator’s countless failures intact.”
It was like the “very, very final last revision” of a report.
I looked at Dushang. It seemed right that I should address Quentin, but I hesitated—he’d already taken a blow to his pride.
“So this is Authentic. As I said before, I can’t speak to the price.”
“……I, I see.”
Dushang answered almost reflexively.

* * *
Quinie had watched the entire process in pure astonishment.
She’d trusted Frontdier, but what he’d demonstrated far exceeded her expectations.
‘He recognized that the ornament was a mechanical device, manipulated it directly, and demonstrated how it worked.’
And it had taken him only about three seconds to appraise and confirm it.
Ah, I see. That Pendant was an encrypted recorder. It had stored sensitive information as voice data—the sort of thing not meant for just anyone to hear—and could be retrieved when needed.
……But what happens when you decrypt it like that?
‘And the content itself is bothering me.’
It had been about Mistiltein. The voices had been grave and urgent. And the recording hadn’t even finished—it cut off mid-conversation.
But for now, she’d think about it later. Quinie approached Frontdier.
“Frontdier, that was impressive. Your skills haven’t dulled at all.”
And Quinie fixed Dushang with a steady gaze.
“Nothing to say for yourself?”
“……I apologize for my baseless suspicion, Appraiser. Or rather, Frontdier.”
This time Dushang bent his waist ninety degrees and bowed formally. Seeing his apology, Quinie smiled. Suspecting Frontdier was the same as doubting Quinie’s judgment in recommending him.
That’s right—my eye for talent is flawless, after all.
“But I must say, senior.”
At that moment, Frontdier spoke up.
“Hmm?”
“I find it somewhat insufficient to accept an apology and leave it at that.”
“……Hmm?”
Frontdier smiled at Quinie.
Where had she seen that smile before?
Ah. It was like the expression she practiced in front of the mirror.
“You’ve always placed great importance on ‘compensation’, haven’t you, senior?”
“……Ah, what?”
“I’ll be selling some items to the Quinie Family. Would you purchase them?”
“What? What did you buy?”
“A bit of this and that from the Terst Department Store.”
Quinie’s eyes flickered at those words. The Department Store sounded distinguished, but on this continent, a “Department Store” was truly a place where the ceiling and floor of value for all manner of goods stretched endlessly in both directions.
“Of course, you’ll need to purchase every single item. Not one left over.”
Speaking thus, Frontdier maintained his smile toward Quinie.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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