Hiro sat cross-legged on the carpet, staring up at Daisy and Marian who occupied the couch like queens on thrones. Elira sat to the side, eyes glued to the TV, though the volume was low.
Is this seating arrangement really necessary?
Feels like I'm in detention again.
He scratched his cheek.
Ah forget it. Bigger fish to fry.
"So let me explain—" Daisy began, straightening her posture.
"No, let me," Marian cut in smoothly.
Daisy shot her a look. "Captain asked me to take care of this idiot, so I shall—"
"I don't care," Marian replied lightly. "It's a small issue. Anyone can explain it."
"It's not small."
"It is."
"It's not."
"It is."
Hiro blinked as they went back and forth.
Is this what Royal Units argue about? Who gets to lecture the slave?
Ten minutes later, Elira's eye twitched.
Her bandages snapped forward, wrapping around both Daisy and Marian's mouths.
"I will explain it to him," Elira said flatly. "So please stop."
The room fell silent except for muffled protests.
She turned to Hiro.
"Listen, idiot. I am only saying this once."
"Why does everyone start with 'idiot'?" Hiro muttered.
"Because it fits," she replied without missing a beat. "You already know about blessings, right?"
"Obviously. Everyone does."
Blessings. The thing that divided the world into the gifted and the useless,the protectors and the protected and most importantly the women from the men.
"Good," Elira continued. "Then do you know how awakened males are enslaved?"
Hiro shook his head. "Something to do with contracts or something,I don't really know the exact method. After all it's one of the army's best guarded secrets."
Though there are like… twelve conspiracy threads online.
Aliens. Nanomachines. Brain chips.
Elira leaned back slightly.
"Every member of the Imperial Army has a unique blessing. Fire. Lightning. Enhancement. Healing. But we all share one additional blessing."
Hiro tilted his head.
"What additional blessing?"
"Its called a gifted blessing."
"A gifted blessing?" he repeated.
What the hell is that? I've never even heard the term "gifted blessing."
Elira nodded. "Some blessings can be transferred to other users. Those are called gifted blessings."
"Transferred?" Hiro frowned. "So they're not awakened naturally?"
"Correct. They are inherited or bestowed. But there is a condition."
"Compatibility," he guessed.
"Exactly."
Marian and Daisy stopped struggling and just listened now.
"If the receiver is incompatible," Elira continued, "the blessing will reject them. In severe cases, it causes spiritual backlash."
Hiro swallowed.
"Wait… so if blessings can be transferred… does that mean males could get one?"
For a brief second, hope flickered in his chest.
Maybe I could get something broken. Something flashyMaybe I could get something broken. Something flashy.
Elira shook her head.
"Not possible. Males do not awaken blessings naturally. That means their spiritual structure lacks compatibility."
"So…" Hiro's shoulders slumped. "We're incompatible with all blessings."
"Yes."
There goes my dream of getting some OP fire dragon nonsense after begging Yurei.
Elira continued calmly.
"When girls are drafted into the army, they are all given the gifted blessing
"All of you?" Hiro asked.
"Yes."
"How? Wouldn't compatibility differ?"
"Spirit Chain was designed to be universally compatible with female awakeners," Elira said.
"It is a simplified imitation of the First Matriarch's original blessing."
"First Matriarch?" Hiro frowned. "Never heard of her."
"You're not supposed to," Daisy muttered from under the bandages.
Elira ignored her.
"With Spirit Chain, a female soldier can bind an awakened male. The chain stabilizes his beast form and prevents berserk states."
"So it's like a safety leash."
"In simple terms, yes."
Hiro's eyes narrowed slightly.
"And that's it?"
"No."
Of course not.
Elira's gaze sharpened.
"Hiro. Why do you think awakened males are drafted into the army?"
"To prevent them from going berserk," he answered immediately.
"That's the secondary reason."
"Secondary?"
"The primary reason is their Aether."
Huh?
"What about it?"
"When a Spirit Chain link is formed, the female soldier gains direct access to the slave's Aether reserves."
"…Access?" Hiro's voice went flat.
"Yes. She can draw from it freely during combat. It significantly amplifies her strength."
The words hit harder than he expected.
So that's the real reason.
Not mercy.
Not protection.
Battery packs.
His fists tightened against the carpet.
He remembered other boys—collars around their necks, forced smiles, soldiers telling them to be grateful.
"Hypocrites," he muttered under his breath.
Elira noticed the shift.
Her tone softened slightly.
"It is efficient. One female soldier plus one male slave is stronger than either alone."
"Sounds more like exploitation," Hiro shot back.
Silence lingered.
Elira met his eyes directly.
"Hiro. When I killed that spider, whose Aether did I use?"
He blinked.
"…Yours."
"Yes."
Daisy's bandages loosened enough for her to speak. "We don't have Spirit Chain."
Hiro looked between them.
"You don't?"
"No," Marian said quietly. "We're incompatible."
He froze.
"Incompatible… with the gifted blessing?"
Elira nodded.
"Every member of the 13th Royal Unit is incompatible with ."
"That's…" Hiro's mind raced. "That means you can't bind slaves normally."
"Correct."
"You can't siphon Aether."
"Correct."
"You can't amplify yourselves through a link."
"Correct."
The pieces fell into place slowly.
"Then how are you even considered a Royal Unit?"
Daisy's jaw tightened.
"Through merit."
Marian smiled faintly. "And stubbornness."
Elira continued.
"Because we cannot use Spirit Chain, we are labeled the weakest Royal Unit in the entire army."
The air shifted.
Even the TV felt distant.
Weakest.
The word lingered heavier than any insult.
Hiro stared at them.
They didn't look weak.
They looked… frustrated.
Proud.
Quietly angry.
"So…" he said slowly, heart pounding, "that means—"
Elira didn't let him finish.
"Yes. There are no beast slaves in the 13th Royal Unit."
Daisy looked directly at him.
"You are the only one."