Chapter 223 - Chapter 222: The Overloaded Bracelet and the Mysterious Summons
The third day of the third month of Earth.
Three weeks have passed since the academy entered its long vacation.
Since a ban on movement outside the capital has been issued, I cannot return home, so I have no choice but to stay in the capital.
Today, I am taking a walk in District 3 with Paraila.
Paraila has become more reclusive than ever before, completely absorbed in her scientific research.
It seems Paraila and science are a good match.
Unlike alchemy, which yields no answers, my scientific knowledge provides answers.
She says it is "so incredibly fun."
She repeatedly thinks of various things, formulates various hypotheses, and then presents them to me.
Even if I don't remember the formulas, I often know the concepts and logic.
When I convey that way of thinking, she immediately derives plausible formulas.
Really, she is unnaturally sharp, Paraila.
Walking through District 3, I gaze at the streetscape.
Paraila, hunched over against the cold wind, tried to turn back.
"Wait, wait, why are you trying to go back?"
"It's obviously because it's cold."
I grab Paraila's arm and try to stop her from returning to the academy.
"It'll get warmer soon, so just go out once it gets warm. You'll catch a cold."
"If Paraila-san catches a cold, it's not because it's cold, but because she's exposed to too much sunlight and her immunity has dropped, isn't it?"
I had taught Paraila about the immune functions humans possess.
"The beginning of science is showing interest in everything right in front of your eyes. Why does the wind blow? What are clouds made of? Why do they float?"
"The wind is atmospheric circulation. Clouds are water. They aren't floating; they are just balanced against gravity by updrafts."
I look up at the sky, and Paraila answers without any enthusiasm.
Speaking of which, I did teach her a bit about meteorology.
I sighed.
"It's heartening that you've learned it well, but if you get too absorbed, the Cafeteria Ladies will worry. Please restrain yourself."
"Yes, yes..."
Paraila makes a bored face at my nagging.
Usually, I am the one being nagged, so I understand Paraila's feelings well, but I had no choice since the Cafeteria Ladies begged me.
I went to the dormitory just to check on Paraila's condition, and they asked me to drag her out of her room.
How long had she been cooped up?
And so, we spent about thirty minutes aimlessly strolling.
Although a ban on movement outside the capital has been issued, District 3 is included in the definition of the capital in this case.
Strictly speaking, District 3 is not considered part of the capital, but this order is different.
This is because the magic academy itself is located in District 3.
If we banned movement in District 3, staying within the academy would become a violation.
Therefore, this movement ban means do not go outside District 3.
"Well then, shall we head back soon?"
"Yeah... please do..."
Walking along the main street, I consider the route back to the dormitory.
We could go back the way we came, but since we are here, maybe we should take a different route.
As I was thinking that, Paraila suddenly ran back the way we came.
Paraila was heading toward the road.
The road leading to the southeast gate of the Second Wall.
"............What's wrong?"
I whisper while staring at Paraila's back.
I chase after her lightly and catch up to her immediately.
Paraila runs with a desperate expression, but she isn't very fast.
Isn't she too out of shape for this?
"What's wrong, Paraila-san?"
I ask, but Paraila does not answer.
She runs desperately toward the southeast gate of the road.
――But she runs out of strength immediately.
Panting heavily, she squats by the roadside.
Seeing this, I shrug my shoulders.
"............As I thought, you should go out a bit more often."
"............Hmph! ...Hmph!"
I say with exasperation, and Paraila protests with a voice that isn't quite a voice.
Seriously, even your breathing sounds weird?
For now, I cast [Heal] on Paraila, who has become unable to move.
In this state, she probably can't use [Heal] herself either.
Tsk... what a bother.
"So, what exactly happened?"
"............Nothing, really."
I speak to Paraila, who has calmed down a bit.
But she seems unwilling to say anything, grimacing and muttering.
"It doesn't seem like nothing, though?"
"............"
I ask again, but Paraila stares at the ground as if glaring.
It seems she has no intention of answering.
I have no choice but to urge Paraila and return to the dormitory.
I could dig deeper, but Paraila, who is generally grumpy, dislikes being questioned persistently.
And there is a part of that which applies to me as well.
Having an unyielding personality is troublesome. ............ For both of us.
After seeing Paraila off to the dormitory, the Cafeteria Ladies thanked me profusely.
They said, "Please ask us again," but I politely declined.
Well, if it becomes truly unavoidable, I'll manage somehow.
"She seems to be in a bad mood, so she might go back into her room again."
When I said that, the Cafeteria Ladies made faces saying, "Oh dear..."
I have not told Paraila that the young man with reddish-brown hair was beheaded by Ozendorwa.
Paraila is an important person who could be connected to someone holding a deep grudge, but recently she seemed happy, engrossed in her research.
So, I deliberately chose not to tell her.
She won't be able to forget it, but if I can lower its priority to a level where she isn't bothered, she can live looking forward from now on.
I decided to remain silent, thinking there was no need to remind her of it.
Although, if she asks, I intend to tell her honestly.
Leaving the academy, I headed to Adelriese's magic tool shop.
The bracelet, which I had asked them to add [Enchant] to for durability enhancement, should be ready soon.
"Hello!"
When I greet the young man at the counter immediately upon entering, the old man comes over quickly.
"Oh. It's ready."
Saying that, the old man guides me to the back.
It seems the old man and the young man are father and son.
They are people hired by Adelriese who love magic tools and materials.
"You're already a regular of ours. Just you, a boy, account for over ninety percent of our annual sales."
"That's a precarious business model. Relying heavily on a single client. Shouldn't you get more customers?"
"What do you do when the back shop is packed with a thousand guests? We're hiding and sneaking around, you know."
While chatting like that, we go up to the second floor.
"Hello."
"Oh, welcome. It's ready."
Adelriese points to the table and retreats to the back for a moment.
I immediately sit opposite the table holding the bracelet.
"The ordered defensive enchantments. A huge amount. [Heat Resistance], [Fire Resistance], [Cold Resistance], [Poison Resistance], [Paralysis Resistance], [Petrification Resistance], and so on. I put in everything I could think of for now."
"Thank you. Oh ho ho, amazing."
This is the bracelet where I had [Durability Enhancement] and [Enchant].
Since there was still room for [Enchant], I had them add resistance-type enchantments as well.
When I make a strange sound of joy, Adelriese and the old man smile bitterly.
"It's amazing that there's so much room for [Enchant], but actually performing the [Enchant] is amazing too. How much did the material costs run?"
I told the old man that I got something of slightly higher purity than the recently circulated "Rare Copper Metal [Orichalcum]."
Well, maybe he noticed something.
"This isn't that much. The amount for each one is... well, it's an impossible amount, but not as much as the materials needed for durability enhancement."
The materials needed to enhance durability were bought up across the kingdom, and even then, we couldn't get enough, so we ordered them from the Trade Federation and the Seven Duchies Federation.
It seems the price is still fluctuating wildly and is unstable.
Sorry about that.
"This is just for resistance enhancement, so don't trust it too much."
"Yes. That said, those resistances are quite overloaded, aren't they? Hyaah."
It seems they cannot make it completely nullify effects.
Even so, my excitement skyrocketed as I gazed lovingly at the bracelet.
Adelriese watches me, a child holding the bracelet and smiling innocently, and smiles bitterly.
Then, she points to the bracelet.
"Also, you said your momentum was too great and it was hard to find footing, so I added the Earth attribute as well."
"The Earth attribute?"
I look at Adelriese with a big smile.
No good, I can't stop my cheeks from loosening.
"There are adventurers who sometimes handle super-heavy weapons. People ask for this to make it easier to find footing."
It seems that [Enchant] has been applied to Yaroibarov's Halberd as well.
Normally, such things are usually [Enchanted] onto the weapon itself, but they say this will also make my high-speed movement somewhat easier.
"Honestly, I have no idea how much [Enchant] should be applied, so for now, I applied twice the amount of the Halberd. If this isn't enough, consult with me again."
"Understood."
Well, I thought I would just run with a bit of adjustment since I only felt it would be slightly difficult to move.
Once I can move without restraint, I might easily exceed the speed of sound.
How many Mach was Com...piled?
(But how do they make it so you can find footing?)
Increase the coefficient of friction?
Well, I'll just have to try it.
"Is there anything I need to be careful about?"
When I ask that, Adelriese lightly raises her gaze and thinks.
"There's nothing special... but the burden on your feet should increase by a huge margin, so you might not be able to output as much as before."
"Oh... I see."
If all the force that was slipping away is now applied, the burden will increase significantly.
It might happen that my bones break when I try to stop.
Or rather, if I can't kill the momentum, my feet will be mush.
"Also, to make it easier to find footing, the ground will be instantaneously reinforced. ............ Maybe you can even run on water."
"Seriously!?"
Ninja!
My heart fluttered at Adelriese's prediction.
Kick the next foot before it sinks! I have memories of reading that when I was a child.
Secrets of ninjas, the Ninja Art Encyclopedia, etc.
"But I think you'll sink the moment you stop."
It seems the ground is reinforced in proportion to the force applied.
In other words, just don't stop, don't stop.
Or rather, the Earth attribute, but water is reinforced?
Hmm, I don't really get it.
As I look at the bracelet saying "Ho he~...", Adelriese taps the table.
"So, I collected one hundred million Rats for material costs, but there's nearly twenty million left over. What do you want to do? Return it?"
"Please keep it as is. We'll be ordering a large amount of materials again for everyone's materials."
I plan to give bracelets to Kaerya and Trys, so I will have to buy materials again.
I am already exactly like a nouveau riche who spends money freely.
I thought I never wanted to become a human like this... but I feel that self far away now.
I can't go back to those days anymore.
As I ponder that distant self, Adelriese lets out a big sigh.
"Oh, right, there was a consultation regarding that for the boy."
"A consultation? What is it?"
Brought back to reality, I ask again.
Adelriese glances at the old man, and the old man, sensing something, goes down the stairs.
After confirming the old man has gone down, Adelriese speaks.
"This time, there are four bracelets, right? After that, you're making bracelets for Yaroibarov and Ozendorwa too, aren't you?"
"I intend to... Is there a problem?"
Adelriese asks, watching my expression.
"It's not really a problem, but... shouldn't you order from others?"
"Others? Specifically, where do you intend to ask? Or rather, does that mean distributing pure rare metals [this] to others?"
My gaze sharpens, and Adelriese tightens her expression.
"............Did the Soiree say something?"
"N-no! It's not that!"
My eyes cool, and Adelriese frantically denies it.
If they make additional demands, I said I would crush the Soiree.
Because of that, Adelriese desperately explains to me.
"It's just that we don't have enough hands? We are creating four bracelets while doing research, and two more are waiting. Also, gathering materials is becoming harder than ever. It's like increasing the research team."
"Increasing the research team..."
"We asked people who run magic tool shops in the background for the current research team, didn't we? I want to ask those kinds of people..."
Hearing Adelriese's words, the tension in my eyes lessens slightly.
"Can't we work with the blacksmith team?"
"They are having a hard time on their own, right?"
"Yes, they are."
I hang my shoulders and sigh.
Currently, the blacksmith research team is researching how to turn pure "Rare Copper Metal [Orichalcum]" into threads.
It seemed to be going well for a while, but in the end, it failed, and they were trying various approaches from different angles.
If we succeed in making threads with "Rare Copper Metal [Orichalcum]," we plan to have them make robes, but it's not going as planned.
I put on the bracelet and look up at Adelriese while checking the fit.
"It's not the Soiree, is it?"
"No. In the first place, we haven't told them anything specific. We just relied on the connections of the underground magic tool shops. There is someone like a coordinator, so we just asked that person."
Regarding the distribution of "Rare Copper Metal [Orichalcum]," I consulted with the coordinator of the underground magic tool shops.
This is as Gaeras predicted.
"How about starting a separate team to process the threads that aren't going well right now? Shouldn't we leave weapons and armor to the blacksmith team?"
I cross my arms and think.
Adelriese's opinion is reasonable.
The blacksmith team is currently doing things far from their specialty.
Considering efficiency, it is best to let them focus on what they are good at, but...
"............Who exactly do you intend to ask?"
"We have connections where we share materials that are difficult for us to obtain. They call it the Underground Magic Tool Association. The reason the Soiree has influence is because they gather like this."
Is it like a union or a federation?
By gathering underground magic tool shops, they must have gained a certain voice.
"Well, trust is... hmm? They seem to have tight lips."
"Originally, they handle things that cannot be told to anyone, so having tight lips is natural. They are a group of people who love magic tools and materials and don't even care about the law for rare materials. My kindred spirits."
Hearing Adelriese's words, I smile bitterly.
Then, my face becomes a little serious.
"If they leak it, I will crush the underground magic tool shops in this country one by one, like lice."
"I know that if you get serious, you can really do that."
Using their abundant financial power to buy up information, they will crush anyone no matter where they hide.
Adelriese knows very well that I possess that much violence.
"Understood. However, I do not wish for the number of people to become too large. If you keep in mind that I think so, I will permit a separate team."
"Understood. I will make sure not to leak information to everyone at once. I think I will select about four or five skilled people."
"............Think?"
When I tilt my head, Adelriese pushes her hair back and smiles.
"I'll introduce you to her next time. The boss of the underground magic tool shops [us]. They call her the Great Mother, but she's just an old lady who loves magic tools."
A weirdo [Oddball] who loved it so much she opened a shop and even touched things she couldn't show to others.
It seems I am asking a separate team from the boss of such underground magic tool shops [weirdos].
"Still... Haa... the story keeps getting bigger..."
"Is it too late for that?"
Adelriese whispers with exasperation at the slumped Mika.
■■■■■■
"I'm home."
When I arrive home, Kistil and Nerisfeene are struggling to bring in the laundry in the garden.
The wind is strong, and the laundry flaps wildly.
The two, noticing me, reply while struggling.
"O-oh, welcome back, Mika-kun... whoa."
"Welcome back, Mika-sama."
The sheet they were trying to bring in flapped in the wind and covered Kistil from head to toe.
Kistil panics, rustling about.
I expand my magic range to cover the garden and generate wind at the periphery to push back the blowing wind.
The two look surprised that the wind suddenly stopped, but they prioritize bringing in the laundry for now.
Well, it is strange.
The tree in the next house is swaying back and forth, but the laundry has stopped moving completely.
After finishing bringing in the laundry, I release my magic range, and the wind starts blowing again.
Seeing this, Kistil and Nerisfeene exchange glances.
"Mika-kun. Did you do something?"
I do not answer that, shrug my shoulders, and head to the room.
"Mika-sama. A letter from the Adventurer's Guild arrived. I left it on the desk."
"Okay."
I enter the room and look at the desk.
Recently, I have been receiving letters from the guild about once a month.
I am not completing commissioned requests as diligently as before, but I have been performing curse removal for the entrusted items once a month.
Removing curses from houses, I only take Fee with me when I feel like it.
Reaching for the letter from the guild, I notice another letter left out.
I pick up that letter first and put it in the desk drawer.
I could not return to Rish Village this year.
A 'Ban on Movement Outside the Capital' was issued for academy students.
Even so, if the two wanted to go to Rish Village, I intended to grant permission.
Given the situation with the Gronoir Empire, I am a bit anxious, but well, if necessary, I can just fly there.
Whether I am blamed for violating orders or not, it is not worth considering which is more important.
Even if I get scolded a bit, I intended to quickly bring the two back, and if necessary, take measures to move the villagers.
However, the two said that if I do not return home, they will not go to Rish Village either.
I understand Nerisfeene, but Kistil must have been looking forward to it greatly.
So, I said she didn't have to force herself to match me, but she still said she would not go to Rish Village this year.
"If we go, it's better if everyone goes together."
She said that with a smile that showed she was forcing herself, and I could not say anything more.
So, I sent a letter to Amalia explaining the situation, and confirmed with the Noisheim family and the Scobata family if they could come to the capital again.
Yesterday, the reply arrived, and the answer was, as expected, "No."
I open the letter from the guild and check the contents.
It seems to be something other than the usual report on the number of entrusted items.
It was written in beautiful handwriting that they wanted to hold a meeting urgently.
"A meeting?"
What kind of meeting?
Probably for confidentiality, but as always, the letter from the guild is troublesome because you don't know what it's about until you go there.
"If I go at this time, I can get back before it gets dark, right?"
Well, even if I'm a bit late, it shouldn't be a problem.
My house is in a normal residential area, but the Fifth Knights Order is guarding the neighborhood here intensively.
It is a merit of injury, but it is grateful that I don't have to worry so much even when I am not present.
Leaving the room, I peek into the dining room.
Kistil and Nerisfeene are spreading the laundry on the large dining table and folding it carefully.
"I'm going out for a bit."
"What about dinner?"
"I'll eat it. But I don't know what time it will be, so eat first."
And so, I headed to the guild.
The usual reception room.
Waiting for me was Rosalinde.
"............Where is Yunressa?"
"She's off today. What, are you dissatisfied with me?"
Rosalinde became moody.
I messed up.
"Even if Yunressa is your favorite, the other person is a married woman? You shouldn't have such a rotten relationship with your sister-in-law――――."
"I'm not talking about that!? What are you saying, you!?"
It was Rosalinde [that side] who started talking about Yunressa being in charge!
Or rather, Rosalinde might have forgotten that already.
Before I even heard the story, my energy was completely drained.
With my head down, I ask Rosalinde.
"So, what happened today? You said it was a meeting..."
"Mika-kun. Are you free tomorrow?"
"Uh, well. Since I'm told not to leave the capital. I have nothing to do, so I'm quite free."
I usually told them in advance when I returned home, so I also told them this year I wouldn't be returning.
However, since I can't leave the capital either, I can't take distant requests either.
Hearing my reply, Rosalinde frowns between her eyebrows.
"You're free~? Then, put more effort into commissioned requests! Being urged from above to kick the butt of the Dispeller is――――."
"What are you talking about!? And is that the reason you called me!? Can I go back!?"
I suddenly complain to Rosalinde, and I become half-angry.
"That's not it! It's a commissioned request."
"Well, since you called me specifically, it must be a commissioned request. Then talk about that first..."
Now it is my turn to mutter complaints.
Not a millimeter of progress.
"If you're free tomorrow, go to the guild headquarters. You've been there before, right? On suspicion of fraud."
"............No, I'm not wrong, but... it sounds bad, hey."
It is only a suspicion, but that way of putting it has the worst impression.
"Or rather, headquarters? Why headquarters? Can't you explain it here?"
"As for the content, the Second Branch [here] hasn't been informed yet. We were only asked to coordinate the schedule. We shouldn't use the branch for every little thing, you know."
Rosalinde breathes heavily and complains.
"Oh... in that sense, it was better. If they called me to headquarters just to confirm tomorrow's schedule and sent me back, I would be furious."
The Adventurer's Guild headquarters is in District 7.
A huge building facing the West Main Street.
Even in a straight line, it's probably about four kilometers from my house.
Since I can't cut through the Royal Castle and District 1 in the very center of the capital, it will probably be more than five kilometers one way.
"Well, understood. What time?"
"Ten o'clock or three o'clock, which is better?"
"I want to finish quickly, so ten o'clock."
"Understood. I'll arrange it."
Rosalinde writes on some paper right there.
Seeing the characters written on the paper, I notice.
"The letter from the guild that arrived today. Did you write it, Rosalinde?"
"Yes, I did."
It would be rude to say surprising, but she writes beautifully.
"Is something wrong with that?"
"No, nothing."
Next time, if I need to copy something, I'll have Rosalinde write it.
If I bait her with alcohol, she will surely do it.
If anything, I'll add delicious food.
Thinking like that, I stand up.
"Well then, I'm going home."
"Yes. ...Ah, by the way."
As I started walking toward the door, Rosalinde calls out to my back.
When I turn around, Rosalinde is writing something on the document and murmurs softly.
"Be careful."
"......? Yes."
And so, I went straight home that day.