《Two as One Princesses》


 CH 1

    I feel that stories where the characters are reincarnated into another world have become quite common these days.


    And even if it was in hard mode, most of them would at least have their own body.


    Still, she¡¯s quite beautiful, so they¡¯d probably charmed by her regardless of gender.


    Even I, who looks at her all the time, think to myself regularly, ¡®She¡¯s adorable¡¯.


    Back to topic.


    Now, as for why I¡¯m talking about this, it¡¯s because there¡¯s a problem with this child¡¯s living circumstances. Specifically, it was enough to make me think that a single misstep would¡¯ve resulted in her death before she became aware of herself, no, immediately after she was born.


    But now, it all ends today.


    Inside a swaying carriage, with the clattering of broken restraints as an accompaniment, I sang a ¡°song¡± as I thought back on our 10 years together.

 CH 2

    That day, I rode a late-night bus back to my parents¡¯ house.


    It would have been nice if I could sleep until my stop, but I wasn¡¯t really used to doing so. So even in the dark, I couldn¡¯t quite sleep and I think I was just blankly staring at space at that time.


    Because of that, I remember it.


    The sudden floating sensation, the unbearable impact.


    The feeling of pain that made it bothersome to even lift a finger. The pained groaning all around me.


    I thought to myself then, ¡®If only that last thing I heard was the sound of someone singing¡­¡¯ and that moment, I died.


    ¡ó¡ó¡ó


    However, just when I thought I was dead, for some reason, I woke up.


    And suddenly, it was just cold. The air itself feels cold, everything that touched me felt just as cold, even the clanking sound I hear was cold. Everything my senses feel is only the absolute cold.


    And even though I was in this situation, I couldn¡¯t make a sound, my body doesn¡¯t move, and even my eyes can¡¯t see a thing.


    Am I blindfolded and tied up to something?


    Even so, I should be able to move my fingers.


    I¡¯m sure that I should be able to move my head and raise my voice. And yet, I can definitely feel my body, but I can¡¯t move anything.


    I definitely should have died, so is this hell?


    Will I be tortured like this, unable to do anything, forever? Will my body be burned, chipped, and ripped apart with my senses intact?


    The more I think about it, the more my mind comes up with horrible answers. And even though my body should be shivering, even though my heart should be racing, even though I should be at least breaking out cold sweat; the fact that none of these are happening was just absolutely terrifying for me.


    I wonder how much time has passed since?


    Nothing ever happened from then, so I managed to calm down a bit.


    Though I can¡¯t see a thing nor even move a finger, since I still have my senses, I tried getting a grasp of my current situation. And just as I thought of doing so, my vision suddenly cleared up.


    My line of sight was clearly high; if this really is my height, then I would easily go over 2 meters.


    Still, it doesn¡¯t feel to me like I became taller, but rather it¡¯s more like I¡¯m floating in the air ¡ª which reminds me of my final moments, it definitely doesn¡¯t make me feel better. I have an eagle¡¯s eye view of myself now but at the spot where I should be, what was there was a newborn child.


    Am I dreaming? Maybe my death was just my imagination and I¡¯m just in my bed sleeping back at home.


    I began thinking so myself, but the vivid memory of my death dragged me back to reality.


    So because I¡¯m dead, does this mean that I¡¯m a ghost? I didn¡¯t really believe in things like ghosts up until now; but seeing how I am right now, I can¡¯t really deny it.


    Still, I can definitely feel the cold even now, so I can¡¯t say for sure that I became a ghost.


    However, I can¡¯t really be sure that ghosts can¡¯t feel anything. Rather than thinking of myself as dead, for some reason, I feel that being alive in this situation makes much more sense.


    So am I reborn? If the cold I feel is what this child feels, then that still makes sense.


    So am I currently in that out-of-body experience situation? There are a lot of stories of people having a special power after being reborn, but is this is mine?


    It is convenient, but really? I¡¯ve seen people that have memories of their past life on TV before, so it¡¯s not like I don¡¯t understand. But just like with ghosts, I didn¡¯t really believe it.


    Now that I think about it, even if I was reborn as the baby right in front of me, the chances of me staying alive is really bleak.


    That¡¯s because my body, probably to keep me from escaping ¡ªnot like a baby this age can actually run away¡ª is chained by my limbs.


    The chains extending from shackles with no trace of rust hang down parallel to my bed and is fixed to the ground with stakes.


    The bed itself is made of stone, it¡¯s the very opposite of comfortable, and the only clothing I have on is a thin piece of white cloth. The room is overall made of stone: stone walls, stone floor, and there are even iron bars, so I¡¯m pretty sure it¡¯s a prison cell.


    I want to take a look outside as well, but it seems that I can¡¯t go too far from my body. All I can see from beyond the bars are some similar-looking cells in front of this room.


    Definitely not the best place for a baby to sleep.


    Even if I was taken care of in this environment, would I even stay alive?


    Really, what a bizarre place to be reborn. And though I¡¯m in this terrible situation, surprisingly, I don¡¯t feel any anger. Maybe it¡¯s because I¡¯ve already died once, but if I had to say, I¡¯ve just given up now.


    Still, I wonder why this is happening.


    With skin white as silk, bright golden hair, and blue eyes clear as the sky, I¡¯m quite the cute baby if I say so myself.


    Shifting my gaze as I was thinking so, I met my own gaze.


    It was like it was staring right at me, I could feel clear intent.


    Clank¡­¡­ the chains rang.


    I was shocked by the sudden noise, but it looks like the child was just trying to reach for me with its little arms.


    But either due to the chains¡¯ weight or it¡¯s short length, the tiny arms are once again drawn back to the bed.


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    Right now, I ¡ª or should I say, my soul? ¡ª am out of my body.


    In that case, there¡¯s no way that my body is conscious at all. And yet, why is it gazing so intently at me?


    Then I realized. I just rejected the possibility of being a ghost, but maybe I am some sort of thing possessing or inhabiting this child.


    Perhaps I might be some sort of split personality even. If that¡¯s the case, then this body isn¡¯t mine, it¡¯s this child¡¯s.


    It¡¯s not a second life, not some sort of bonus stage, but the beginning of this child¡¯s only life.


    And yet, why is this child getting this kind of treatment.


    It¡¯s unthinkable that this child committed some kind of crime. At this age, it¡¯s not like this child can do so. And even if something did happen, it¡¯s the parent¡¯s job to take responsibility.


    The more I think about it, the more anger just boils in me. If it was just me, I would¡¯ve accepted this as my fate, but if this child really has a separate soul, this situation is absolutely unforgivable.


    However, my seething rage was interrupted by the sound of footsteps coming from outside the prison cell.


    The footsteps slowly draw closer to our cell. And then, it gradually grew louder and suddenly stopped upon reaching the front of this cell.


    The one who stood there was a man draped in luxurious clothes, the very image of nobility. He was a tall looking man with a prominent nose and chiseled features. His combed long hair was brown in color, and his eyes were blue. And as he is clearly not Japanese, it¡¯s hard for me to gauge his age, but I¡¯d say he¡¯s about 30-40 years of age.


    He has the figure of a calm and mature adult and if not for the current situation, I¡¯d probably admire his look.


    In fact, the situation right now, as well as the look on his face, is the worst it can be.


    The man entered the cell with some sort of flask, displaying a vulgar smile that¡¯s in contrast with his orderly features.


    Looking at him and the baby side by side, I can see that they have the same eyes, making it clear that this man may be the child¡¯s father. However, even if it¡¯s true, I just can¡¯t feel relieved.


    Rather, I feel less relief and more danger.


    After that, he flashed a wide grin, placed the flask on the bed and took the baby¡¯s right arm.


    His grasp on the wrist felt extremely unpleasant. As I thought, our senses are linked.


    In the first place, what did he even come here for? Thinking so, I closely observe the man and notice something shiny in his right hand. The next instant, a sharp pain ran through my right arm.


    I reflexively looked at my own right arm, but all I see are the stone floors and walls; my right arm doesn¡¯t even exist. Rather, I don¡¯t even have a body ¡ª perhaps because I¡¯m just a soul now.


    And yet, the burning pain won¡¯t disappear.


    I see, so that¡¯s how it is. Bearing the pain, I shift my gaze to the baby¡¯s arm and it stained in bright red.


    In my sight, I see a beautifully pure flow of red ceaselessly drip onto the stone-cold prison floor. That same red gradually stains my own mind with its color. I don¡¯t think I can keep thinking anymore.


    The next thing I felt, was even more pain and the disgusting feeling of something injected into my body.


    Moving my gaze, I see that the man poured the contents of the flask into the baby¡¯s wound.


    That something I felt going inside me probably was the thing in the flask.


    And though I want to stop him, the fact that I can do nothing but scowl at him only frustrates me.


    As the flask ran out of its fluid, the man puts his hand on the wound and whispers something. Then, a faint light started leaking from the man¡¯s hand. Before I even noticed, the wound was suddenly healed.


    Seeing that the baby never cried during the whole operation, the man audibly rejoiced and left the cell in a still excited state.


    Left behind, the baby silently began falling asleep; however, I couldn¡¯t get my mind off what happened just now.


    From then on, I started thinking of ways I could somehow protect this child.

 CH 3

    A few days have passed since I first saw that man ¡ª I think.


    After all, I can¡¯t see the outside from within the cell, I don¡¯t need any sleep, and all the baby seems to do is sleep; so it¡¯s hard for me to keep track of time.


    Ever since then, that man regularly appears, cuts a section of the baby¡¯s body, and pours some liquid into the wound.


    It¡¯s a nauseating sight to see, but it seems that the fluid serves as a substitute to this child¡¯s meal.


    I say that because even though he hasn¡¯t fed us anything, the child hasn¡¯t shown any signs of physical weakness. That¡¯s why even if I could stop him, I didn¡¯t.


    Other than the man, I haven¡¯t seen any other people; and he likely only comes once a day for feeding time. So what about all the child¡¯s dirt and sweat then? Well, it looks like the white cloth just automatically cleans it all.


    I¡¯ve seen the child¡¯s wound being healed so I already considered it, but it seems that magic exists in this world.


    That¡¯s also firm proof that this place is somewhere that¡¯s definitely not Earth.


    It¡¯s not like I have absolutely no lingering attachment to Earth, but as someone who is already dead, it¡¯s not really something I cling on. And even before considering that, it¡¯s not something I was shaken about.


    I vaguely wondered if this is the so-called another world reincarnation; but seeing my current state, it¡¯s more of a teleportation if I had to say.


    I don¡¯t really mind it much, but what¡¯s clear to me right now is that this place isn¡¯t anywhere on Earth.


    Other than this, another thing I do know now is that this baby is a girl.


    The places where that man had cut hasn¡¯t been limited to the arms, at worst he even cut her stomach open from top to bottom. That time, he needed to remove the baby¡¯s clothing and I saw that there wasn¡¯t anything hanging below.


    Well, our senses are linked so I already had a hunch about it.


    Now then, in this situation, the question is how I can protect this girl? Well, I think that learning to use magic is my best option.


    Rather, testing out if I can use magic is the only thing I can do now.


    After all, even if I borrow her body, I can barely move her limbs and it¡¯s not like we even have any weapons to use.


    By the process of elimination, the only thing I think I can probably do in this infant body is magic.


    Besides, since that man has been using healing magic on us every day, I have a grasp on that something ¡ª I¡¯ll just call it magic power ¡ª that¡¯s needed to use magic.


    Just the fact that I¡¯m not starting completely from scratch helps me think I can manage this somehow.


    Still, I need a body to use magic. From what I felt seeing how that man do it, magic works by circulating the magic power in the body and then manipulate it.


    Borrowing the girl¡¯s body is my only option but I¡¯ve already confirmed that I can¡¯t take control while she¡¯s awake.


    For that reason, I¡¯ve decided to act while she¡¯s sleeping.


    First of all, I try borrowing her body. No problems here. It¡¯s chained to the bed, so I can¡¯t really move much but the body moves to my will.


    Next, to circulate magic power throughout the body, I attempt to sense magic power.


    It¡¯s difficult to put into words, but it feels like something nice and warm gently flowing through my body.


    Maybe due to that man using magic to force the liquid through the veins during feeding time, this step was surprisingly easy.


    Then, I attempt to move it manually. I tried gathering it to the hands, then the feet, and then made it quickly course through the whole body.


    So as to not injure her body, I do stop immediately when something felt strange. Still, since the man practically taught me how to do it on a regular basis, I managed to do it easily.


    However, there are some problems.


    First, maybe it¡¯s just due to her age, but the amount of magic power I have is tiny compared to that man. Rather, if you imagine mine as a cup of water, then his would be about as big as a 25 meters pool or so. It¡¯s that much different.


    Well, it¡¯s still better than nothing, so it¡¯ll depend on how I use it. But if we¡¯re just talking about the sheer amount of magic power, we definitely can¡¯t win.


    Next, I have absolutely no idea how to use magic.


    One thing that comes to my mind is that he whispers something when using healing magic. If that was some sort of spell chant, then my chances of being able to use magic to protect this child is slim. However, when he forced the liquid from the flask into the veins, he didn¡¯t do any kind of chanting.


    For that reason, I think that there may be spells that don¡¯t need chanting. But if they do need magic circles or the like, there¡¯s nothing I can do about it.


    Another thing to consider is what¡¯s the magic for me to learn.


    Thinking on a purely emotional level, I want a magic that can harm that man ¡ª one strong enough to kill him. I may need that kind of magic in the future, but I don¡¯t need it right now.


    I have nothing but anger for that man, but it¡¯s because he is taking care of her now that this child continues to live.


    In short, if I kill that man and stop getting ¡°food¡±, this child wouldn¡¯t last three days. As you¡¯d expect, I can¡¯t let that happen.


    Well, then what magic would be best? First, a barrier-like magic to protect her from external threats. Another would be a magic to preemptively sense any nearby threat. And then healing magic, just in case she ever gets hurt.


    And lastly, something to make sure that the use of these magics would stay hidden to others, some sort of concealment magic so to speak.


    If magic can do just about anything, I would¡¯ve considered things like magic that can teleport her out of here, magic that can provide her nutrition, or magic that can brainwash that man. But I just can¡¯t imagine those being possible.


    I figured that chants are probably necessary, but I skipped some steps and tested out the use of chantless magic, so because of that I decided that it¡¯s best that I don¡¯t try anything that feels impossible for me to achieve.


    On the opposite side of things, the ones that I did enumerate are those that I felt that are somewhat possible to do, such as healing magic in particular, since that is something I actually experienced myself. To be honest, I just think it¡¯s better to try everything I can than just staying idle to think about stuff.


    First of all, so I can assess our surroundings, a detection magic. After all, it would be useful when we escape, and we could avoid bringing unneeded suspicion if I know when that man will come to visit in advance. As for how to do it, I have a few ideas.


    First I¡¯ll try to detect by emitting a ripple of magic power in the shape of a sphere. To test it, I circulate my magic power and indiscriminately release it from my body.


    As soon as I felt something escaping my body, a thin film-like something suddenly spread out.


    And when it hit the prison walls, it vanished.


    I did slightly notice a reaction when something hit it, but to be honest it¡¯s not useful. Well, that¡¯s probably just how things are the first time around. Rather, having some kind of result is plenty enough.


    The only problem is that, just now, this child ran out of magic power. Unexpectedly, I don¡¯t feel tired or anything though.


    Does this mean that I actually need to start with increasing her magic power? In the first place, do you even recover magic power? Thinking about these, I decided to return her body for today.


    ¡ó¡ó¡ó


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    The next day ¡ªI guess?¡ª it seems that my worry was unfounded since her magic power was fully restored.


    In a lot of fantasy works, magic power or the so-called Mana thing recovers overnight; however, I didn¡¯t have any assurance that it would be the same in reality, so that¡¯s a relief.


    But the thing is, the total amount of magic power didn¡¯t increase. Like this, I can barely do anything I want to test out.


    For that reason, this time I¡¯ll need to think of how to increase magic power somehow.


    Following the flow of magic power through the body, I found a thin trace that¡¯s unaffected by the circulation of everything around.


    It¡¯s roughly near the heart, and the magic power stored within is a lot more than the amount flowing through the body.


    However, after I tried to draw some magic power like how I moved the circulating flow, it¡¯s not going too well.


    The answer is just in front of me, just within my grasp. Yet I can¡¯t reach it. That fact only increasingly vexes me. So, while I focused on following the flow of magic power, I decided to separate myself from the baby¡¯s body.


    I was thinking about flying about in this ever unchanging prison cell as a change of pace, when I noticed that a thin cord-like something made of magic power was also connected to me.


    It feels similar to the flow I saw earlier connected near the heart, but what is this?


    Just to test it out, I tried pouring magic power to the part where it¡¯s connected and it flowed into the body with practically no resistance.


    At the same time, a slight feeling of emptiness suddenly hit me.


    The magic power that came from there was easy to control.


    I attempted to spread that magic power like I did yesterday, and as a result, I understand the room¡¯s structure much better than I did before.


    The part where it couldn¡¯t pass through the wall stayed the same, but it kept its shape even after echoing from the wall.


    It became a lot more useful, and at the same time, I now constructed roughly a few theories about magic power.


    Magic power is stored in the soul-like thing, at least according to my observation. And using magic power other than yours has bad efficiency.


    The reason why I ran out of magic power after only one use yesterday was probably due to that magic power not being my own.


    And while I¡¯m probably the only person who can test this, you can still use magic even when the soul is separated from the body. However, the farther you are from your body, the lesser the effect of magic.


    I don¡¯t know if this sounds right, but the further you are the more it feels like you¡¯re stretching your arms just as far while doing some precision work.


    On the other hand, the fact that I can still use magic to some extent even while we¡¯re separated is good news. This means that I should be able to circulate my own magic power, use magic, and protect her even while she¡¯s awake.


    While looking at the baby from the side, I got a bit too excited and repeatedly used detection. Then, I suddenly felt dizzy.


    Yup. It seems like when you use too much magic power, regardless of the presence of a body, you just shut down.


    And as I calmly though so, I slowly drown in darkness.


    ¡ó¡ó¡ó


    It¡¯s been a long time since I did something even similar to sleeping.


    Since I¡¯ve got too much free time while being awake, it¡¯s good to know that I can actually sleep. But the fact that I need to exhaust my magic power to do so is something I¡¯d like to fix.


    More importantly, I¡¯ve practiced magic since then and now I roughly managed to give it shape.


    For detection magic, rather than releasing magic power like an echo, I formed a thin layer of magic power into a three-dimensional mesh and spread it out to the surrounding area. As for the barrier magic, on top of also making the magic power thin enough to seemingly melt into the air, it only barely extends from her body, and can spread outwards to about half a meter radius, while still being somewhat strong¡­ I think.


    Specifically speaking, I can¡¯t run endurance tests on the barrier magic, so I don¡¯t know how close it is to my imagination.


    Anyway, the reason for all the thinness is that making it thin is also meant to conceal them; but I don¡¯t actually know if it¡¯s practical or not, so I¡¯ll need to test it on that man someday.


    As for why I¡¯m putting effort into concealment, it¡¯s because I don¡¯t want that man to know I can use magic.


    If by any chance I draw his attention, I don¡¯t know what he¡¯ll try to do.


    For now, healing magic is on hold. Unlike barrier and detection, which just uses magic power as it is, it seems that I need to change the property of the magic power to something else or healing won¡¯t work. And above all, this child doesn¡¯t get hurt outside of feeding time, so I can¡¯t really test it out.


    At worst, I need to consider putting more effort into barrier and detection even if I need to abandon healing magic.


    My goal: to be the shield protecting her from every possible attack, and to be the eyes and ears that perceives all those with ill intent well in advance.


    It may seem over-the-top, but if I don¡¯t set my goals this high, I don¡¯t think I can keep my spirits up.


    Still, there is some solace for me these days. While working on my magic research, when I hum to myself some songs from Japan, the baby giggled and laughed.


    Up until now, she never even smiled, and she seemed really disgruntled when I stopped singing; so I¡¯d like to think that she liked my songs.


    From then on, I began singing every day and before I noticed, she started moving her body to the beat of my song.


    Obviously, she could barely even move. But seeing her smile and moving her body to the beat of my song was my salvation in this empty world.

 CH 4

    The girl had grown up a lot and finally is able to walk around.


    Currently, her shackles have been reduced to only the one on her right leg. But in exchange, its chain is twice thicker than before; so no matter what, we likely can¡¯t escape.


    How the crude metal is disproportionate with the girl almost seemed to me like it¡¯s the physical manifestation of that man¡¯s obsession with her, and that only disgusts me.


    If you really don¡¯t want her to run, then there should be better ways to go about it. Really, I don¡¯t understand how that man thinks.


    These days, since it seems that the girl can now understand simple questions, I could often see her exchange words with the man.


    And as for me, I still can¡¯t understand it one bit. For her to learn how to speak in this empty room, a child¡¯s learning ability is really amazing.


    Also, there hasn¡¯t been any direct harm on her up until now, but lately it¡¯s been different.


    Just as soon as I notice someone entering the room exactly when the girl falls asleep, knives come flying, fire magic starts burning around, and continuous attempts on her life happen. Let¡¯s just say that it¡¯s thanks to these happenings that I couldn¡¯t study the language.


    Well, the detection magic is always active and the barrier seems to be working well, so only this much wouldn¡¯t be a problem.


    I was convinced that this violence started because he noticed me using magic, but there was quite a gap between me using magic in front of him and the start of the assassination attempts, so it¡¯s not related to that¡ª I think.


    Still, though I did say that it isn¡¯t a problem, there was a time that the attacks were so much that my barrier couldn¡¯t take it, so I needed to replace the barrier again and again, resulting in me running out of magic power.


    From then on, I¡¯ve put effort into how to minimize my use of magic power.


    More importantly, I often see the man entering some time after the assassination attempts, and dance in delight after seeing the girl unharmed.


    I can¡¯t understand what he¡¯s saying, but seeing him screech in a weird voice with his eyes wide open and his mouth warped in a crazed smile is absolutely scary, so I just wish that he¡¯d be happy about it like a normal person.


    My question here was who wanted the girl to be killed, but I¡¯m sure that it¡¯s probably this man.


    After all, even after the assassination attempt, he didn¡¯t move the girl elsewhere, so I¡¯m sure that he¡¯s at least related to this. Still, he doesn¡¯t seem to want the girl to be dead. On the contrary, it seems that he¡¯s delighted that she is still alive.


    Thinking with that in mind, maybe the man is testing her.


    Maybe he thinks she¡¯s somehow special, and she might actually be in some way; but if I wasn¡¯t here, she would be dead.


    In that case, is he doing this taking into account that I exist? But still, the reason this girl is physically protected is because I was luckily able to use magic, so I¡¯m not sure he knows. Does this mean that this girl worthless to him if she can¡¯t even do this much?


    Or maybe there¡¯s a completely different reason? I don¡¯t really know but whatever it is, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll ever forgive him.


    After finishing my now daily routine of singing for her enjoyment and after she had fallen asleep, I once again feel a strange presence and focus on it.


    I feel it inside the cell opposite of us. In the cell¡¯s corner, I can feel the presence of magic power.


    This presence is somewhat thin. Is something being written on the ground?


    This may be the so-called magic circle thing. And the moment I got a bit distracted, I sense a countless amount of things appear from the magic circle.


    One increased to two, two to four, suddenly appearing and squirming about. Each of them are small in size but when all of them move together they can be a threat.


    Obviously, they¡¯re all rushing to our cell. I suspect that this is just one of the regular attempts on her life but today it¡¯s larger in scale.


    Those things come closing in, squeaking in a high pitch while rushing towards us.


    I suspected it from their noise, but after confirming with detection, it¡¯s definitely a swarm of rats. Like a wave, they flood the room and start biting everything inside indiscriminately.


    The stone bed, the walls, the floor, the bars, the chains, the shackles, and of course¡­ the girl too.


    I don¡¯t know how much of a threat the mice in this world are, but they don¡¯t seem strong enough to bite through stone and steel. Nevertheless, they do seem to be able to put a dent on them, so a human bitten by them would likely get injured, and if bitten too much, we would probably die.


    Even the girl is being bit right now, but since my barrier is protecting her, there¡¯s no problem for now. The only thing being whittled is my magic power.


    After a while, the rats started biting each other.


    Since the girl is asleep, it¡¯s not like I can see, but probably since I¡¯m using detection magic, I ended up knowing all the details of what¡¯s going on.


    Worse, the smell of meat and blood is drifting all over the room.


    Add in the screams of dying rats, it¡¯s like a scene from hell. Not very good for my sanity.


    After a while, the rats suddenly disappear. This is probably due to magic too, but right now that¡¯s the best I can guess.


    It was a lot more stressful than I expected, but I¡¯m glad that she didn¡¯t wake up.


    While thinking so, my consciousness slowly begins drifting to sleep.


    ¡ó¡ó¡ó


    On another day, a big beetle larva thing was sent in.


    Unlike the rats, they don¡¯t really bite. Still, seeing only one of them is another thing, but the image of a crowd of them wriggling around is likely enough to make some people faint.


    And moreover, it seems like they¡¯re trying to find tight spaces to squirm into, and they¡¯re wriggling more and more downwards.


    If you throw a person into this crowd, they¡¯ll probably crawl into more than just their mouth; and if it¡¯s a girl, it goes without saying what they would do. Really, I can¡¯t say if he¡¯s crafty or just plain evil, but I¡¯m really glad I was able to use the barrier.


    But one day, something happened.


    It was another of the many swarm flooding. I feel like I¡¯m developing trypophobia and I now have the urge to push all kinds of insects to extinction.


    It seems like this time, by the look of these eight-legged, palm-sized things jumping around, he¡¯s going with spiders.


    They come rushing to the cell and bite all over the place like the rats, but if it¡¯s only this much, it¡¯s nothing. Still, seeing how some of them look like they¡¯re melting, they may be venomous.


    Since I¡¯m possessing the girl right now, I can¡¯t see a thing; so if I can just bear the utter disgust boiling within me it should be fine. Or so I thought when a light suddenly shone through my eyes.


    Suddenly in my field of vision, I see its hairy legs, its red eyes, and its sickening body.


    Then I hear some unpleasant sound.


    Several of those eyes shift their gaze towards us and start closing in. Since they¡¯re blocked by the barrier, I can¡¯t feel their touch and I know that it¡¯s fine, but realizing what¡¯s happening to us once again, I suddenly feel sick to the core.


    There¡¯s this much just in front of my eyes. I¡¯m sure that there are a thousand more of them crawling all over her.


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    I feel sick.


    I feel sick.


    I feel sick.


    For better or for worse, the girl might have been disgusted as well as she immediately closed her eyes, but now she¡¯s trembling in fear.


    To distract her even just a bit, I began to lull her to sleep. But the fact that I¡¯m singing a lullaby while covered in spiders only whittles my sanity even more.


    ¡ó¡ó¡ó


    The girl has now grown to look like a five-year-old.


    Every day, I secured some time to sing and tried to communicate with her and lately, she¡¯s definitely dancing along.


    After all, she¡¯s definitely on rhythm. And seeing how she changes her dance to suit the change of songs, she¡¯s probably quite talented.


    I might sound too doting on her, but seeing a cute young girl dancing to the beat of my song makes me happy and it¡¯s adorable.


    On the magic side of things, I¡¯ve also been growing well.


    This time I focused on conserving the use of magic power and now, even if I constantly use detection magic, I don¡¯t run out of magic. And as long as my barrier isn¡¯t completely destroyed, I can repair it again and again.


    Thanks to that, lately my tendency of losing consciousness from overusing magic has considerably decreased.


    I¡¯m quite talented if I say so myself. But on the other side of things, I feel like I absolutely can¡¯t use healing magic.


    It¡¯s hard to describe, but I suspect that I poured all my magical talent on using barrier and detection. Though thinking about what has been happening up until now, I don¡¯t really see it as a problem.


    Still, the fact that no matter how much I strengthen my defenses, I absolutely cannot defend her from the wounds that man gives her is really bad for my mental health.


    Since she relies on the mysterious liquid for nutrition even now, I don¡¯t really have a choice. And though he is healing her in a way that doesn¡¯t leave any wounds, it¡¯s still vexing.


    In the first place, it¡¯s probably bothersome for the man to keep on feeding her like this anyway.


    Except that, everything¡¯s probably all right. Me thinking so may have been due to my own pride.


    It was then, that incident just suddenly happened.


    One day, along with the usual mysterious fluid, the man brought a different container with a fluid different from the usual.


    It was the usual mealtime, the usual disgust. And since our senses are linked, I feel the usual pain as well.


    But on that day, before feeding the girl, the man had a slightly long talk with her.


    Somewhere in my mind I hoped, maybe this disgusting feeding time will finally end today. That didn¡¯t happen, however, and the man tore the girl¡¯s clothes off and brandished his knife on her smooth, white stomach.


    You would think that I¡¯d be used to getting cut deep enough almost to the point where you can see the organs after experiencing it every day, but I just couldn¡¯t help to scowl in pain.


    After pouring the fluid into the wound, and healing the girl as usual, the man excitedly moved his hand to the girl¡¯s leg.


    Usually he would just dress her and leave, so I suspected that he¡¯s planning to use some weird medicine again. That instant, he took the other container he brought along and poured its slimy fluid on her lower body and his finger.


    Having a bad feeling about this, I was about to protect the girl; but since the man was touching her body, I feared that he might find out about me and hesitated.


    It was only an instant of hesitation. But for that excited man to take action, it was an instant long enough.


    At the same time as I felt something entering from below, pain assaulted me.


    It was a pain different from the sharp cut of the knife I¡¯ve felt so far. It was like my organs were being gouged out and I almost screamed in pain. Even when I tried to use magic, my mind blanked out and I couldn¡¯t activate it.


    The intruder that was the man¡¯s hand entered deep without any resistance. And with excitement, he began collecting the flowing red, the proof of pain, in a test tube-like container from his pocket.


    I dazedly thought this is his handcrafted hell, as I felt madness from the man looking lovingly at the flow of fresh blood.


    Soon after, the man dressed her up and hastily rushed out of the cell.


    Left behind, the girl saw him off with no emotion in her eyes. However, I didn¡¯t have the composure to worry about her right now.


    My dazed, blanked mind began working and right now, I immediately understood what had just happened.


    At the same time, the fact that I couldn¡¯t protect her began rapidly weighing down on my conscience.


    Looking back, the reason the man talked for a while before feeding her was probably to tell her about this.


    In other words, if I just understood even just a bit of this world¡¯s language, I may have been able to avoid this.


    In the first place, if I just didn¡¯t hesitate earlier, this obviously would not have happened.


    Right now, the girl may seem to look fine, but that¡¯s because she¡¯s still a child. For someone like her who endured pain every day of her life, it¡¯s doubtful that she understands what this pain means.


    Once she learns of what this means in the future, will she despair? Just thinking about it makes me anxious.


    At the same time, a calm part somewhere inside my mind began speaking to me.


    ¨CAnxious? You just don¡¯t want her to blame you.


    ¨CYou¡¯re only ignoring the fact that your mistake caused this.


    ¨CWhy do you never learn? Why did you hesitate?


    ¨CJust because you can use a bit of magic, haven¡¯t you gotten a little too conceited?


    ¨CIf this causes her any trouble in the future, this is all your fault.


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    I know. I know, but I just couldn¡¯t stop it.


    I couldn¡¯t do anything, I didn¡¯t do anything, I didn¡¯t want to look at reality.


    Even if I apologize, her chastity will never come back. And if she starts fearing men because of this incident, she¡¯ll fear half of the world.


    If there will ever be any peace for her, someone like me who was once a man would never know.


    And exactly because I don¡¯t know, that I wanted to protect her in the first place.


    My thoughts just loop back and back, cursing me every time.


    ¡ºI¡¯m¡­ sorry.¡»


    In a voice only she could hear, I apologized to her. Even though I know that it¡¯s meaningless, even though I know it¡¯s only for my own ego, I just can¡¯t bear it.


    Because I, who doesn¡¯t even have a body, can¡¯t even cry.


    So I just continue to apologize.


    I¡¯m sorry. Forgive me. Next time, I¡¯ll definitely protect you.


    I¡¯m sure that she doesn¡¯t understand me speaking in Japanese.


    Even so, I continue to apologize. To the point that even I forget who I¡¯m apologizing to.


    My lamentation continued on until I lost consciousness.

 CH 5

    When I first died, I didn¡¯t die immediately so I had time for contemplation.


    I think that it might just be my life flashing right before my eyes, but I remember that a lot of things went through my mind. Even then, there was still nothing I ever regretted more than failing to protect the girl.


    ¡ó¡ó¡ó


    I smell the scent of wood. It felt quite nostalgic to me. Maybe because all I¡¯ve felt lately was the cold of stone.


    With this in my mind, I slowly wake up.


    I don¡¯t feel the usual prison¡¯s cold sensation. It seems like she¡¯s sitting on something warm.


    Surprised by this, I check my surroundings and find myself in a room packed with bookshelves.


    It was about 10 square meters wide. There are bookshelves placed, naturally, along the wall and some almost dividing the room.


    Being here means that the girl was likely moved to this room. However, why move her now? All I can think about is that something changed with that incident.


    Just to make sure of her safety, I search my surroundings.


    However, the room isn¡¯t that wide so I immediately found her. At the same time, I was lost for words.


    Her once golden blond hair lost its color and is now pure white. Likely because of an injury, her neck and limbs are wrapped in bandages. I can¡¯t see it over her clothes, but even her torso seems wrapped up as well.


    From the sharp sensation I¡¯ve grown used to feeling, I can guess that those are from knife wounds.


    In that state, she¡¯s reading a thin book on the floor.


    Only the sounds of flipping pages echo inside the room.


    Her dead-looking eyes and complete silence may even make people mistake her for a machine.


    I could only squeeze a gasp. Right now, she¡¯s like a doll. Her fragility, making it seem as though touching her would make her crumble, only adds a transient beauty. However, these fresh wounds and this painful scenery is just another proof that I failed her once again.


    My promise to protect her the next time was broken before I could even noticed. The voices in my head starts cursing me once again.


    I feel like going insane.


    That¡¯s why as unreliable as I am, even though she might only see me as undependable, when the time comes that the man decides to get rid of her, I need to protect her.


    First, her heart. The only things I can do are make barriers, search the surroundings, and sing; so I can only pray that with my songs, I may be able to distract her from the pain even for a bit.


    And if her now empty eyes would direct even just a bit of anger at my inability to help her before everything happened, then maybe she can still start over as a person.


    Believing this, I began to sing a peaceful song with the softest and quietest voice I can muster in the middle of this silence.


    But being severely shaken after seeing her current state, my voice greatly trembles and I can barely sing the song.


    Pathetic. Right now, I can¡¯t even do the only thing I can.


    Still, maybe with this she would show anger at my pathetic state.


    Thinking so, I look at her. Her eyes are wide in shock, and from the edge of her jewel blue eyes, tears are streaming down.


    And then, she faintly smiles and slowly opens her mouth to speak.


    ¡¸¨C?¡¹


    Her voice was clear as a bell and pleasant to the ears.


    However, I don¡¯t understand a word she¡¯s saying. And just when she tries to communicate with me.


    All I understand is that she isn¡¯t angry and that she¡¯s trying to ask something.


    ¡º¡­¡­ Sorry, I don¡¯t know.¡»


    Though I can barely speak through my grief, I somehow managed to reply.


    I don¡¯t even know if she would notice that our languages are different. Still, I can¡¯t just ignore her.


    After blinking twice she immediately nods, seemingly noticing something and reaches out for me.


    In the first place, what does she even see me as?


    What does she think of her situation? There¡¯s a lot I don¡¯t know. But after talking to her the first time, I feel that she¡¯s a lot more mature than how she looks.


    ¡ó¡ó¡ó


    Different from the empty prison, this room is full of books. And in this room full of books, she reads endlessly.


    But it doesn¡¯t seem like she already understands all the letters, since she¡¯s mostly reading books with fewer words per page.


    Still, considering that she has never seen letters before, I say she¡¯s rather intelligent.


    She¡¯s much more smarter compared to me at the very least, seeing that I haven¡¯t even learned a single word in the years we¡¯ve been together.


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    Perhaps that may be the reason why, after reading the book by herself, she points her finger at something and slowly starts to speak.


    She might be trying to teach me the letters and words.


    To help her with her studies, and most importantly, to prevent my earlier mistake from happening again, I decided to accept her kindness. Rather, I can¡¯t really speak up even if I wanted to decline.


    Seeing that she¡¯s doing this for me, she herself properly recognizes my existence and understands that I have my own consciousness. Moreover, she might have even realized that I speak a different language.


    She really is a bright child. When I was her age, I wasn¡¯t even in primary school. Worse, I probably couldn¡¯t even read letters that age.


    I likely couldn¡¯t stay behaved and would just immediately run out to play outside.


    Part of the reason why we are so much different may also be due to her own nature. But there is no doubt that it¡¯s also because if she¡¯s not this talented here, she can¡¯t survive. Considering that, her excellence only makes me feel depressed.


    After reading books and teaching me, I wondered what else she needs to do; when suddenly I sense a person approaching.


    Using detection to examine it closely, it doesn¡¯t seem like *that* man is heading to this room, it was a different person.


    After the visitor stopped in front of the door, without even knocking it, he swiftly entered the room.


    It was a butler with a mask-like expressionless face that looked a few years older than that man.


    It was extremely eerie when paired with his formal attire, and he held a tray on his hand as well.


    He roughly placed it on the ground and stood with his back to the door, arms crossed and all. He says something to the girl. Judging from his tone, it might be something on the lines of ¡¸Eat¡¹.


    On the tray are a hard-looking bread and some thin soup. Still, because it¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve seen a meal that actually looked like food, I was deeply moved.


    Even so, it is a shabby meal. And since the man didn¡¯t come, I¡¯m now certain that the girl¡¯s value has dropped to some extent. However, rather than getting rid of her, he might have told her study.


    Another curious thing I¡¯ve noticed is a black ball-like thing on the tray that the girl actively ignored. It doesn¡¯t seem to be food. If anything, it¡¯s likely to be some kind of medicine.


    The girl approaches the tray, not even giving a glance to the mask-faced butler, tears the bread into smaller pieces, and dips it in the soup.


    She eats the now soft bread, however, I can¡¯t say it¡¯s delicious in any way.


    Furthermore, likely due to her not eating any proper food up until now, she has difficulty swallowing the food. As the bread goes through her throat, I feel it getting stuck a few times, leaving me uncomfortable.


    Still, it¡¯s a thousand times better than getting your veins cut open and force-fed with some mysterious liquid.


    As the bread and soup are finished, I thought that mealtime was now over. However, the girl stares at the black ball with a serious gaze.


    By how she¡¯s acting, she probably doesn¡¯t want to eat it. However, it doesn¡¯t seem like the mask-faced butler would allow that.


    He kept staring at her since she started eating until now, it¡¯s really uncomfortable. He¡¯s most likely here to observe her.


    Resigning herself, the girl swallows the medicine.


    At that moment, the area near the stomach began to feel hot and that heat started to spread throughout her body.


    From the way it feels, I¡¯m sure that this heat is magic power. However, it¡¯s going berserk and the amount of magic is no joke. I can probably compare it to being injected more blood than what the veins need.


    If you don¡¯t hurry and circulate the magic power, it¡¯ll end up pooling somewhere; and from that location, your body will most likely begin to break.


    Examining it closely, it seems that to deal with this overflowing magic power, she even directs its flow to every single strand of her hair.


    However, I¡¯m sure that it¡¯ll be much easier for her from now on. After all, only this much magic power is not that difficult for me to control.


    Since she¡¯s closing her eyes to bear the pain, I quickly seize control of the magic power.


    Maybe because she¡¯s feeling something unusual, she resisted it at first but then she immediately leaves it all to me.


    After directing the flow, I noticed that this magic power is easier to control compared to the girl¡¯s magic power. Perhaps it¡¯s because the magic power from the medicine was not under anyone¡¯s control?


    Maybe because the magic power is just injected from the outside, but it gradually evaporates and disappears if I just continue to circulate it.


    It¡¯s a bit of a waste for it to just disappear. If I can make it mine, it might be useful for us in the future.


    If possible, I¡¯d like to increase the girl¡¯s magic power so that she can also defend herself; however, to ensure her safety I¡¯ll try it on myself first.


    Since I only need to force the medicine¡¯s magic power through the tube connecting to my soul, it shouldn¡¯t be that hard.


    When I did it all at once, it felt weird, it was like my soul would crack or something, so I slowly direct the magic power. As a result, even though there isn¡¯t that dramatic of an increase, I feel that my magic power increased.


    Some of the berserk magic power was probably used up in the process.


    Before I was aware of it, the mask-faced butler left and the girl is sitting there puzzled.


    After that, reading time starts again.


    For a while, I float around thinking that I might distract her from reading when she suddenly closes her book and started restlessly searching for something.


    And when she saw me, she stopped and stared at me seemingly wanting to say something.


    As I was wondering about what she might want to say, the girl started speaking.


    It sounded similar, but not exactly like Japanese. It looks like she was mimicking my singing.


    So in other words, is she telling me to sing? Well, singing is practically my only entertainment here. So if she asks me to, I absolutely will.


    Thinking so, I began singing and the girl delightedly starts to dance. Without her shackles, her dance was now free from its chains, and when it was paired with her snow-white hair, she was reminiscent of a dancing fairy from a fairy tale.

 CH 6

    Ever since we were moved to this room, we¡¯ve been having more peaceful times.


    After all, the only danger here is the medicine during meal time. For normal children, it¡¯s no different from torture but for better or for worse, I¡¯m here. Better yet, it¡¯s now demoted to object for increasing our magic power.


    The medicine helps in practicing on how to control magic power and lately, I¡¯ve been sending some magic power to the girl as well so her magic power has likely increased by a lot.


    So, we mostly just pass time either by reading books¨C as suspected, it was by that man¡¯s orders for her to read ¨C, studying, singing, or sleeping. Even when she¡¯s asleep, there hasn¡¯t been any attempt on her life as well.


    The girl¡¯s dances have been evolving day by day and I noticed lately that she has been dancing while being conscious of her whole body¡¯s movements, even that of her fingertips.


    Even if she¡¯s just twirling, her center of balance is so stable that even an amateur like me can tell the difference. Still, I¡¯m not really well-educated on dancing ¨C or even singing, to be honest ¨C so I don¡¯t really know how it would look to other people.


    The food, as usual, is hard bread and thin tasting soup. It doesn¡¯t taste anything special, but just the fact that it does have some taste makes it completely different from when we were at the cell.


    Still, since she¡¯s always on her guard on the only time that there are other people around, she really gives a cold and unfeeling impression. Well, looking at how they treated her, I do think that it¡¯s only natural.


    She also gives that same impression when she¡¯s reading by herself; but when she¡¯s teaching me and dancing, she smiles quite a lot.


    Because of her smile, I can still keep going on. Considering this, I really can¡¯t thank her enough.


    I wonder how long it has been since we started this unchanging lifestyle.


    Now, I finally have a better understanding of this world¡¯s language, so we decided to officially have a proper conversation with each other.


    After all, although we¡¯ve been with each other for years, we don¡¯t even know each other¡¯s name. It might have been better if I had introduced myself when I was already capable of talking, even if it was with broken speech. However, since our situation is quite complicated, I wouldn¡¯t have been able to explain things to her with only a limited vocabulary.


    Besides, she probably doesn¡¯t have a name. She seems to understand the concept of a name, but she doesn¡¯t seem to know if she has one.


    At the very least, the masked-faced butler hasn¡¯t called her by name even during mealtime. He always used words that roughly mean¡¸Hey¡¹or ¡¸You.¡¹


    For me, I think that using the name I had when I was alive would probably need some explanation because it sounds completely different from the language here. And most of all, since I¡¯ve already died, using my old name feels weird so I¡¯m practically half-nameless now.


    And now, we¡¯re about to have our first conversation, but having a heart to heart talk with someone the age of a primary school student feels really bizarre.


    Though in her case, she¡¯s awfully wise and mature for her age, so I¡¯m instead worried that I¡¯m the one that¡¯s going to be seen as the younger one.


    ¡¸In this situation, I¡¯m supposed to introduce myself first, right? But I think you¡¯ve already noticed, I don¡¯t have a name.


    That¡¯s why, can I ask for yours instead? ¡¹


    ¡ºFor now, my name is¡¸Ainsel.¡¹ Please call me Ain.¡»


    This name was something I have thought of using if I ever manage to communicate with her.


    Ainsel is just something I borrowed from one story I¡¯ve heard of before. Rather than my old name, I feel like this one is more fitting for me. And with how smart she is, she probably already noticed that this name is only an alias.


    The polite speech because it¡¯s the only way I could think of to hiding my masculine speech habits. She might find it the way I talk weird, especially with how I¡¯m not used to the language yet, but it¡¯s better that her knowing that I was a man.


    Even her way of speaking is a bit awkward as well, so I¡¯ll just consider that we sound just about the same.


    After all, except when talking she¡¯s talking to me, she only speaks as little as possible. Worse, even just this exchange of ours might be more than how much she had spoken to other people in the past few days.


    And maybe it¡¯s because she¡¯s happy to have something to call me, she repeatedly mutters Ain to herself for a few times.


    ¡¸Say, Ain. I know that we probably have a lot of things we want to say to each other.


    But before that, let me thank you. I¡¯m sure that the only reason I¡¯m still here, is because Ain protected me, right?


    If Ain wasn¡¯t there, I would have definitely died. And if I hadn¡¯t heard your song, I probably would have given up on living.


    Her words had made all the hardships I faced ever since being reborn feel like it was worth doing it after all.


    These past years, all my effort wasn¡¯t just pointless. I¡¯ve saved a life. Just hearing it, saved me.


    However, I know that I¡¯m not someone who¡¯s qualified to receive her gratitude.


    My contrasting sense of fulfillment and guilt clash inside me, I can¡¯t think of words. If this goes on, I might start endlessly apologizing, just as I did on that day.


    If I do that, it would only be for my self gratification, I¡¯m sure that I¡¯ll only be bothering her.


    But even if I don¡¯t do anything, she might be already bothered by me, as she worriedly asks ¡¸¡­¡­Ain?¡¹ and tilts her head.


    ¡ºI, was unable to protect you. For that reason, I¡¯m, not qualified to receive your gratitude.¡»


    I was so lost for words that I ended up saying these shameful words. However, it¡¯s still my true thoughts.


    I can¡¯t take back what I said, so I wait for her reply feeling like a criminal waiting for their judgment. Then, she shakes her head, waving her beautiful white hair, and denies my words.


    ¡¸That¡¯s impossible. Ain¡¯s songs, have always healed my heart.¡¹


    ¡ºStill¡­.. I was the cause, for your lifelong scar. Just when I should¡¯ve protected you, if I was just, just more cautious of that man¡­¡­!¡»


    Unable to honestly embrace her kindness, I forget myself squeeze my words out.


    However, as though to forgive all of my failures, she smiles at me with pink lips and starts spinning her words.


    ¡¸Ainsel. My gentle person. It was inevitable.


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    Certainly, in this mansion, you can never be sure with your life.


    A powerless infant might die in a day. An ignorant child would be lucky to last two. Even a grown adult could die here any time.


    As long as we¡¯re in this mansion, if that man¡¯s aim was her virgin blood, no matter how much I protect her he would likely never stop.


    In that sense, it may certainly have been inevitable and might be a necessary rite. But still, I just can¡¯t accept it.


    ¡¸More importantly, I have something to ask you, Ain. ¡¹


    ¡ºMe?¡»


    When I was about to sink into my own thoughts, she called out to me.


    The sudden change in topic was probably her way of distracting me from my thoughts. As I suspected, this child is clever.


    Rather, maybe it¡¯s me that¡¯s not good in communicating. It¡¯s been a few years since I¡¯ve talked to someone like this. I might have forgotten how.


    ¡¸Would you think of a name for me¡¹


    ¡ºA name?¡»


    ¡¸Ainsel is a name Ain came up with too, right? That¡¯s why, it shouldn¡¯t be hard, I think.¡¹


    ¡ºSo it really was obvious¡­¡­ my alias.¡»


    ¡¸Ain didn¡¯t really try to hide it, after all. But still, I won¡¯t ask why, so don¡¯t worry.¡¹


    She lets out a giggle saying so.


    I¡¯d be troubled if she ever expands on that topic, so I replied ¡ºUnderstood.¡» and decided to think of a name.


    Looking at her, the things that might have made most of an impression to me are her jewel blue eyes and now white hair.


    Her white hair itself looks quite healthy compared to an elderly white hair.


    Blue and white. The first things that come to mind are¡­¡­ the sea and sky of my previous life. Will it be the same color in this world, too? Wondering so, what came to mind was a name associated with them.


    ¡ºHow does Cielmer sound?¡»


    ¡¸Cielmer¡­¡­ in that case, people close to me would call me Ciel, right?


    Thank you for the beautiful name. For until now and from now on, please take care of me, Ain.¡¹


    ¡ºOf course, Ciel.¡»


    She, Ciel, smiled at me with delight; so even just in my mind, I smiled back.


    Lately we¡¯ve spent peaceful times here, but this might be the first time we had a moment this tranquil.


    Singing is enjoyable too, but this time now is a different, enjoyable gentle time. Now that I can talk, I desperately wish for more of these kinds of days.

 CH 7

    ¡ºCiel, what would you like to do from now on?¡»


    Now that I¡¯m able to converse with the girl ¡ª Cielmer ¡ª I asked her about our future plans.


    Puzzled, Ciel tilts her head and asked me back ¡¸What do you mean by that?¡¹


    ¡ºIf you wish to, I¡¯ve been thinking about finding a way to escape this mansion.¡»


    ¡¸Oh, that¡¯s right. Of course I¡¯d like to escape. Would you lend me a hand, Ain?¡¹


    ¡ºIf it¡¯s for you, naturally.¡»


    I suspect that, depending on how I use my magic, just getting out for this mansion isn¡¯t impossible.


    After all, with detection we can move unnoticed and even if they can find us, I can protect her with my barrier. I¡¯ve hidden the existence of these two as much as I can, so I believe that even that man wouldn¡¯t notice.


    In addition, with Ciel being as young as she is, her small build is likely the best for moving unseen.


    However, our problem is if he sends out pursuers after we escape. Both Ciel and I are too ignorant of the world to continue the runaway.


    If the other party only had the influence of a common household, then it may be possible for us to live in hiding even on just the neighboring town. However, that man is definitely some sort of nobility. At the very least, he has enough finances to keep Ciel locked away.


    Even after considering that, we have no guarantee that outside the mansion is safe. We live in a world with magic after all, so there might be monsters as well, and expecting the roads to be paved like in modern Japan would be too optimistic of me.


    If we ever encounter monsters, with only my defense and no means for us to defeat them, it¡¯ll result to an uphill battle.


    The most ideal scenario would likely be for that man himself to cast Ciel away. Considering our current state, I think the best course of action might be to make him abandon her by getting him to lose enough interest on Ciel.


    Another one I¡¯ve thought is to have Ciel feign her death. However, it¡¯s difficult to do inside this mansion and even outside this place, if we don¡¯t prepare a corpse to take her place, it would be hard to make it convincing.


    Be it we decide to run or play dead, we still need more information about the world.


    ¡ºWith that said, although I would us like to make our escape as soon as possible, I feel that it¡¯s dangerous to go unprepared.¡»


    ¡¸It certainly seems so.


    But you know what, Ain? I really do think that planning out our escape is important. ¡¸But for now, how about we start off by learning about each other, alright?¡¹


    ¡ºBut we don¡¯t know how long we can stay safe here. If that man ever changes his mind, we could even be disposed of right now.


    Well, it is hard to call our current lifestyle safe, but¡­¡»


    ¡¸In that case, we¡¯ll be fine. At the very least, until I become 10 years old, our current lifestyle should continue as is.¡¹


    ¡ºWhy can you be so sure about that?¡»


    With Ciel speaking so confident, I was confused.


    After an adorable ¡¸Hmm¡¹ to herself, Ciel mutters ¡¸Right¡¹ and began her explanation.


    ¡¸Ain, do you know what that that man¡¯s current goal is?¡¹


    ¡ºI don¡¯t know. He was aiming for your blood before, right?¡»


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. Specifically, my virgin blood it seems. And then, the part where it didn¡¯t work out should be familiar.


    The word princess just came up naturally in our conversation, but I don¡¯t think becoming a princess is something that you can just do.


    In Ciel¡¯s case, with how that man seems to be, I really do feel like she might actually be one in reality. Still, I do understand that¡¯s not what she meant by that.


    Also, a bit of topic but, it seems that what I thought of as magic until now is called sorcery here.


    Ciel seemed to be surprised with my question, but she immediately continued.


    ¡¸Ain, do you know what Jobs are?¡¹


    And at the start of her explanation was, as expected, another unknown term.


    Just taking the meaning of the word job at face value, it refers to occupations such as teachers, office workers, firefighters and the like.


    You can probably see ¡°princess¡± as a type of job, too.


    Still, based on my experience so far, I can somewhat guess what it means. After all, back in Japan, I did enjoy playing games to some extent.


    However, if I play know-it-all now and it actually turns out to be completely different, the one who will get into trouble would be me and, as an extension, Ciel. So I honestly replied ¡ºI don¡¯t know.¡»


    ¡¸Jobs are something that gods bestow to people at the age of 10 and based on what that job is, it¡¯s said that it defines what you¡¯re good at. For example, it seems that having ¡°** Swordsman¡± as a job would make it easier for people to learn swordsmanship.¡¹


    ¡ºIs princess among those jobs?¡»


    ¡¸The princess is, a bit different. Maybe it¡¯s easier to put it this way; even in the same jobs, there are different ranks.¡¹


    ¡ºSo that means that there are high grade swordsmen as well as low grade swordsmen. So does that mean that a princess is particularly high-tier job?¡»


    ¡¸Yes! Exactly!¡¹


    Ciel clapped her hands in delight. The joy of being understood after explaining something difficult is quite similar to the satisfaction felt when solving complicated riddles; it seems Ciel is feeling an emotion similar to that right now.


    So it looks like that man is currently thinking of having Ciel obtain a sorcery-related job to have her be useful. Even with how he¡¯s treated her, he had likely spent a considerable amount of money on Ciel. Seeing that he¡¯s trying to make use of her somehow, this is clearly his last resort.


    ¡¸To be exact, the princess is the highest female rank in common jobs. The male equivalent of that would be the king.¡¹


    ¡ºAre jobs something that you can choose for yourself?¡»


    ¡¸To be honest, it¡¯s not really clear. It¡¯s said that when you reach 10 years old, gods randomly decide what your job will be.


    Still, it seems like there were many cases where a person¡¯s job was related to something that they were good at to begin with.


    Somewhere in this room, there was a thesis that found out that a child who practiced swordsmanship everyday had a better chance of having a job related to swords than someone that didn¡¯t practice at all. ¡¹


    ¡ºIn other words, that medicine that causes magic power run berserk is needed to better the chances of Ciel getting a sorcery-related job even just a bit.¡»


    If that¡¯s the case, most of the books in this room are likely to be sorcery-related as well.


    If everything that Ciel needs to be his assistant is written on the books here, then that knowledge should be helpful for us when we make our escape. In that case, it¡¯s really a waste that I can¡¯t read like Ciel. I can talk, but I¡¯m not good with letters.


    I can¡¯t really ask her to read each book out loud, so there¡¯s no other choice but to rely on Ciel¡¯s memory.


    ¡¸That man wanted me to be a princess, but you know, in reality just being a princess doesn¡¯t mean you¡¯re the best.¡¹


    ¡ºWhy is that?¡»


    ¡¸I read before that there was once a Sword King that lost to a Swordsman.


    That¡¯s why in the end, effort and persistence is important, it said. That¡¯s why I think that no matter what job I¡¯ll have, it might still be useful for our escape.¡¹


    ¡ºI see. Moreover, although it would be useful, it might be for the best that you don¡¯t get a sorcery-related job. ¡»


    ¡¸Back to topic. What that man wants from me is a job, so I need to stay and study sorcery in this room until I reach 10 years old.¡¹


    On the other hand, this means that until Ciel turns 10 years old and her job can be known, he won¡¯t get rid of Ciel that easily.


    I see, it certainly might be best that we don¡¯t rush ourselves to think of an escape plan right now.


    ¡¸Now that we¡¯re sure that we have time, I want to us to talk about ourselves but¡­ can we?¡¹


    ¡ºRight. Being impatient right now does seem to be more dangerous. But what should we start with?¡»


    ¡¸First, there¡¯s something I really wanted to ask you. Ain, you¡¯re a god aren¡¯t you?¡¹


    ¡ºNo, but what makes you think that?¡»


    ¡¸That man¡¯s first goal was to have a god inhabit a baby, me, and make a god.


    But if you aren¡¯t a god, then he really did fail.¡¹


    (This chapter is provided to you by Re:Library)


    (Please visit Re:Library to show the translators your appreciation and stop supporting the content thief!)


    As the scale of our discussion suddenly increased in magnitude, I instantly froze. With Ceil saying it so casually, the gap it resulted only made me speechless.


    In Japan, I haven¡¯t really thought much about gods; but in this world where the gods are close enough to grant the people jobs, you can definitely feel their presence. Perhaps that¡¯s also why crazy ideas like creating a god are thought of.


    Still, that doesn¡¯t explain why anyone would use their daughter as test subject. At worst, Ciel¡¯s consciousness might have been taken over and might even disappear. No, he¡¯s exactly the kind of man that would be fine with his ¡°daughter¡± dying.


    ¡ºSo that means that when I saw that man taking care of you and rejoicing your safety when we were at that cell, it was because he thought there was a god inside you.


    The many attacks too, were to confirm a god¡¯s existence. He probably thought that a god wouldn¡¯t die from that much. If you died, it would¡¯ve been likely that he would only conclude that the experiment was a failure and there was no god in the first place.


    Considering all of this, I can understand that man¡¯s joy at that time.¡»


    ¡¸He didn¡¯t actually say it, but that was probably so.


    The reason he didn¡¯t give us food too might have been because he was afraid that giving human food would make me stop being a god. Although he didn¡¯t actually have any basis for that one.¡¹


    ¡ºThat means that his goal wasn¡¯t actually Ciel¡¯s virgin blood, it was a god¡¯s virgin blood.¡»


    I gaze at Ciel nodding in agreement with mixed feelings. With a god¡¯s blood, it¡¯s obvious that there would be some tremendous power within. More so if it¡¯s blood that could be only shed once, it won¡¯t be strange for it to be capable of miracles like reviving the dead.


    That man might have had wanted something enough to push him this far. It might even be something like exchanging some last words with a beloved.


    Still, it absolutely doesn¡¯t pardon him for how he had treated Ciel.


    If asked if learning enough about the situation to imagine this much quelled my anger, it doesn¡¯t.


    Up until now, I was distracted by an indescribable disgust at the eeriness of this unknown situation. But now that the mystery is cleared, my anger only boils even more instead.


    ¡¸So then on that day, he noticed that I wasn¡¯t a god and took me to this room.


    That time, he told me to read all the books here until I become 10 years old. After that, you already know, right Ain?¡¹


    Ciel said nothing about this, but the reason that she was wrapped in bandages is probably due to that man venting out his frustration on her after realizing that she wasn¡¯t a god.


    Really, in a world where gods are so close, I¡¯m amazed that he could think of doing that. Now if only he¡¯d get hit by divine judgment right now.


    ¡¸It looks like I¡¯m already done with my story¡¹Ciel mutters to herself. We¡¯ve been together practically from the day she was born, so although she still wants to talk, she likely doesn¡¯t have anything more she can tell.


    ¡¸Next, I want to know about you, Ain.¡¹


    ¡ºWell then. First of all, I myself don¡¯t know why I¡¯m with you.


    I suspect that I might have been caught by something that was used to have a god inhabit you. It¡¯s absolutely unrelated to me, but it¡¯s quite convincing.¡»


    ¡¸Then it means that Ain isn¡¯t the lightly shining person, right?¡¹


    ¡ºHmm, let¡¯s see. I think that it¡¯s probably my soul.


    It¡¯s strange to me that I can exist only as a soul, so perhaps it¡¯s best to think that your body houses both of our souls.


    Since it does seem that I¡¯m bound to your body.¡»


    ¡¸If that¡¯s the case, then it means that my body is yours too, right? I¡¯m sorry, for getting you injured a lot.¡¹


    It was somewhat for me hard to explain, so I ended up being quite vague. Still, Ciel roughly understood what I said and apologized with a downcast gaze.


    If Ciel dies, I think it¡¯s likely that I¡¯ll die too, so it¡¯s not wrong to say that it¡¯s my body as well.


    Still, I¡¯ve already died once and Ciel¡¯s body is hers, so I¡¯ll be happy if she lives her own life. How do I describe it? It¡¯s only like I borrow it sometimes.


    ¡ºPlease don¡¯t mind, I¡¯m really just borrowing your body.


    After all, I¡¯m someone that¡¯s already dead.¡»


    ¡¸Ain is dead?¡¹


    ¡ºI don¡¯t know how best to explain it, but I¡¯ve definitely died once.


    I clearly remember how I¡¯ve died as well, so I¡¯m certain about it.


    My guess is that after dying and becoming just a soul, I was pulled into your body by the said experiment. In other words, the body is yours, Ciel, and I¡¯m just someone that came afterwards.¡»


    ¡¸Alright, I¡¯ll just leave it at that.


    You said that you¡¯re just borrowing my body, so does that mean that you can also move my body?¡¹


    ¡ºI¡¯ve borrowed it while you were asleep before. I¡¯ve also assisted a bit when taking the medicine.


    However, I don¡¯t know if I can move while you¡¯re awake. Would you like to test it?¡»


    ¡¸Fufu, I¡¯ll leave my body to you.¡¹


    No longer feeling down, Ciel energetically flashes me a smile. It looks like she found a compromise for herself, which really helps since it¡¯s difficult for me to explain.


    Besides, she¡¯s probably also interested in experiencing the bizarre feeling of her body moving outside her control.


    It might be necessary for us in the future as well, so there¡¯s really no harm in trying it.


    First, I call out to her and try to move like I usually do when she¡¯s asleep.


    The whole body feels weirdly tensed up, it doesn¡¯t seem to budge.


    ¡ºCiel, could you try closing your eyes and relaxing?¡»


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    Following my instructions, Ciel closed her eyes and relaxed her body.


    This time there isn¡¯t as much resistance as before and I now can move Ciel¡¯s body to my will.


    However, the body feels heavy and I can¡¯t move it very smoothly.


    At present it¡¯s not completely useless, but it might be better to test it out more. After testing with some light movement, I return the body to Ciel.


    ¡¸It felt really bizarre. But it felt pleasant to feel your existence, Ain.¡¹


    ¡ºDid anything feel uncomfortable?¡»


    ¡¸Nope, it was fun. So you always protected me like this, right?


    Thank you, Ain.¡¹


    ¡ºIt was only natural to do.¡»


    Specifically, I only used sorcery, but the fact that I borrowed her body doesn¡¯t change.


    It was embarrassing to hear her thank me so frankly, so I ended up replying a bit curtly. But the fact that I can now accept her thanks might be a sign that we¡¯ve gotten a bit closer.


    Up until now I¡¯ve made a lot of mistakes, but as long as Ciel doesn¡¯t reject me, I want to keep protecting her.


    For that, until Ciel reaches the age of 10, we need to do everything we can, one by one. So for now, we¡¯ll start with learning about jobs.


    ¡ºFor our plans, I think we should first study about jobs.


    Learning what kind of jobs there are, which one of them are valued the most and the least and, if possible, finding a way to get a specific job should raise our chances of escaping this mansion.¡»


    ¡¸So we should prioritize reading books about jobs, right?


    Still, I do plan to finish reading all the books in here in the first place.¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s true. Then shall we continue on as usual?¡»


    ¡¸Are you perhaps going to sing?¡¹


    ¡ºDo you dislike it?¡»


    ¡¸Nope, I¡¯m looking forward to it.¡¹


    With her face filled with anticipation, Ciel began searching for books about jobs.

 CH 8

    Some time has passed since we decided on our plans.


    Considering that we still don¡¯t know what Ciel¡¯s job is, I don¡¯t think she¡¯s 10 years old yet.


    Thanks to the long time we spent, I finally managed to read letters and Ciel has also finished reading everything in this room.


    Of course, we spent our time just as usual and took the medicine as well, so our magic power has increased more.


    The books in this room include sorcery (magic) related books, job related books and writings about gods as well; so I now roughly understand why that man thought of reaching for the gods.


    Personally, learning that the words Ciel used to comfort me before came from a children¡¯s picture book was the best part of it all.


    Why? Because it gave me a chance to see Ciel¡¯s embarrassed, apple red face. The scene of Ciel muttering¡¸I just wanted to make you feel better¡¹in a quiet voice was something I would have liked to record in physical media.


    Anyhow, we¡¯ve gathered all the information that we can, so here we are today deciding to put it all together.


    ¡¸As expected, I couldn¡¯t find any way to ensure a Job beforehand.¡¹


    ¡ºWell, we were just hoping for it in the first place. After all, if there really was a way of securing a Job, I¡¯m sure that that man would have already used it on you.


    Still, it was good that we found out about the different kinds of Jobs. And even though we can¡¯t be certain that we can have it, we¡¯ve found our target Job.¡»


    ¡¸The Disappointing Kings and Princesses, right? Calling them ¡®disappointing¡¯ seems to me like people haven¡¯t put any actual thought to them, but that¡¯s something we can use to our advantage.¡¹


    Jobs are, so to speak, a talent carved into the soul by the gods, I guess?


    The technical skills related to the Jobs are passively augmented. It can probably be seen as a type of support magic, in which the offering needed by the said support magic is compensated by the gods instead.


    In other words, Jobs are directly connected to the gods and we suspect that that man is using that connection to reach for the gods.


    Back to topic. The terms Disappointing Kings and Princesses are insults referring to people who gained King or Princess tier Jobs that are unnecessary in battle or in everyday life. They are sometimes called the Dud Kings and Princesses as well.


    For example, it was once said that there was a man who became a Clown King that didn¡¯t really have much success in life so, as a result of being ridiculed continuously, he lived his whole life hiding his Job.


    Kings, Princesses and other high tier Jobs can do more things than other people in the same Job line; but for some reason, higher tier Jobs ¡ª Clown Kings rather than Clowns ¡ª have a worse reputation to the public.


    To roughly describe it, they are probably seen as people mastering a useless skill.


    Although the jobs have some sort of uniformity, it¡¯s not strange to discover a completely new Job; in the past years, the number of Jobs have continued to increase.


    It won¡¯t even be surprising if a ¡°Pebble Princess¡± that¡¯s skilled in using pebbles suddenly appeared.


    And even among these disappointing jobs, the one that¡¯s touted as synonymous to the term Disappointing Princess is the ¡°Song Princess¡±.


    The other than making singing easier, the effects of this job are the so called buff, debuff, and healing support in video games. Comparing it with other existing Jobs, it¡¯s a Support Sorcerer and Priest/Saintess hybrid, I guess.


    Song Princesses can provide highly effective support and healing. Just hearing that would probably make you think of them as extremely excellent back liners, but the problem here is their effective range.


    You see, the said range includes everyone that can hear their song. In a battlefield, everyone regardless of affiliation are enchanted; and when they intend to heal an individual, even the enemies are healed. The effects of their enchantment only last within the duration of the song, so they can¡¯t even apply support sorcery beforehand.


    Due to that, they get don¡¯t much work at all. On the contrary, you can say that it¡¯s number one Job you don¡¯t want people to know you have.


    In reality, even among the books, there are quite a few records of Song Princesses being persecuted after having their Jobs exposed.


    There is even a record of a Song Princess that had enough of it and used her power to attract monsters, destroying both the royal capital and herself. The said capital is somewhere far east from here, seemingly still abandoned.


    Hearing this story, I was just weirdly impressed by the existence of monsters.


    The reason we¡¯re aiming for a disappointing Job is, of course, so that man gets sick of Ciel. There¡¯s a chance that he¡¯ll run wild with his knife again the instant he sees her Job, but I can defend her from that much.


    More importantly, if that man still has his eyes on us and sends out pursuers after us when we escape would be much worse.


    Just having a Disappointing Job has the demerit of simply making it hard for us to grow stronger. However, I do feel that their bad reputation, especially of the Disappointing Kings and Princesses, are intentional. So I think that depending on the situation, they could likely fight toe to toe with the combat jobs.


    Now, for the question of which Jobs are conversely the most popular, it¡¯s the Combat Jobs.


    In this world where monsters exist, it¡¯s best to have power, and strength becomes a sort of status.


    After all, if you¡¯re strong, then you can live off of that strength; and if you¡¯re not, then it¡¯s dangerous to even travel to the next town without being escorted by strong people.


    And among all of the Combat Jobs, we especially need to avoid the sorcery-related Jobs. I don¡¯t know how we¡¯ll do it, though.


    Not studying sorcery seems like it would help us with that, but I think that¡¯s exactly what that medicine exists for. Most importantly, I don¡¯t want to throw away one card that could help us during our escape. After all, if we can use combat sorcery, we can reduce the chances of dying to some random monster encounter when leaving the mansion.


    If the combat Jobs are the stars of the Jobs, then farmers, merchants and other Jobs that are greatly concerned with livelihood are like the office workers in my past life. Most people get these kinds of Jobs.


    And at the bottom of the Job caste are the people with jobs that are related to entertainment, like Clowns. Even among them, the Song Princess is at the bottom so to speak.


    A slight change of topic but some Jobs are subdivided even further, for example: the Sorcerer has Jobs like¡¸Flame Sorcerer¡¹and¡¸Ice Sorcerer¡¹ that are specialized in a specific area, as well as¡¸Sorcerer¡¹ that encompasses all of those.


    The difference of a specialized-type and balanced-type makes which one of them better dependent on the situation, so there isn¡¯t much discrimination on that regard.


    Speaking of which, a special tool is needed to know your Job.


    Some wealthy individuals personally own one, but generally 10 year old children gather at the church and are inspected. During that event, they seem to have ways to make sure that other people won¡¯t know the results, but the church itself probably knows.


    Moreover, the privately owned inspection tool¡¯s way is different from the one used by the church, so it¡¯s likely that Ciel¡¯s inspection will use the former. Since there isn¡¯t any difference in accuracy, there¡¯s really nothing to worry about.


    ¡¸As for the job, we¡¯ll just try what we can. But Ain really can¡¯t use combat sorcery, right? ¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. I¡¯ve tried using both chants and magic circles, but it seems that a cup full of water is the best I can do. It should be useful in our everyday life but it¡¯s absolutely useless in combat. I¡¯m sorry. ¡»


    ¡¸That¡¯s not what I mean. Don¡¯t apologize. Instead, I¡¯m the one that should be apologizing.


    After all, for Ain to use sorcery without knowledge about it, using magic to enable performing sorcery without chants and magic circles was the only way. I¡¯m sure that Ain was supposed to be a really amazing sorcerer, but you gave up your ability to use combat to protect me . I¡¯m sorry, no, thank you, Ain.¡¹


    ¡ºNo, please don¡¯t mind it. As long as I can protect Ciel, I don¡¯t mind.


    Besides, thanks to that, it seems that my barrier and detection has turned quite powerful.¡»


    ¡¸Right, I¡¯ll just do my best in your place instead. It¡¯ll be nice if we can defeat that man, but running away is our best option, right?¡¹


    ¡ºAfter all, he is someone that reached for the gods and, even though he failed, he left tangible results.


    He¡¯s likely to have high-tier Sorcerer Job, and he is definitely experienced. Regardless of what job we acquire, since sorcery is our main means of combat, I¡¯d say that that man has an overall advantage.


    I can¡¯t deny the possibility of him being actually weak, but it¡¯ll be best not to invite unwanted trouble.¡»


    In this world, magic and sorcery exists.


    For example,¡¸Fairas Baalaru Fralie (Fire, become an orb, fly)¡¹will shoot out a ball of fire.


    Magic circles are defined as a more complex version of this and can be thought of as an objects transforming magic power into something else.


    And to use sorcery without these, you could either rely on your Job¡¯s power or use magic.


    Currently, not much is really understood about magic.


    What is known is that by losing magic power and something that serves as an offering, you can acquire something else.


    Magic power will recover eventually, but what you¡¯ve offered will never return. It¡¯s not sure to be an equivalent exchange, so using it needs resolve.


    In my case, it¡¯s likely that by offering my ability in using combat sorcery, I succeeded in transforming my barrier, detection and concealment into chant-less and magic circle-less sorcery.


    It¡¯s not really something that happens by coincidence, but it actually did, so I don¡¯t have anything to say about that.


    While it¡¯s true that I thought that I don¡¯t need a magic strong enough to kill that man, I didn¡¯t actually think that it would actually happen.


    Because of that I was able to protect Ciel, so it¡¯s all good. But using combat sorcery was a bit of a dream of mine, so that was depressing.


    It¡¯s said that the reason magic circles are called so even though they are used to execute sorcery is because it is something that was originally used to execute magic.


    In actuality, there are cases where you need magic circles to use magic, but you can also use magic without it, so it¡¯s likely somewhat arbitrary.


    (This chapter is provided to you by Re:Library)


    (Please visit Re:Library to show the translators your appreciation and stop supporting the content thief!)


    Both magic and sorcery use magic power and it is commonly thought that magic power is produced in the center of the body. However, it seems like a result of that man¡¯s research found that it¡¯s actually in the soul.


    ¡ºI will be protecting you with my barrier as usual, so Ciel will be in charge of fighting off monsters and pursuers.


    Until our escape, let¡¯s have you pretend to be incapable of using sorcery. That way, I think it would make him see you less useful.


    If, in the worst case, you ever get a Sorcerer job, as a last ditch effort we¡¯ll destroy the mansion and run away. ¡»


    ¡¸That, doesn¡¯t really sound like much of a plan, does it?¡¹


    Hearing my words, Ciel giggled. What Ciel said is frankly true, but we don¡¯t really know how the mansion is built; we don¡¯t even know what job Ciel will have and, in the first place, I¡¯m not really that bright.


    Fortunately, Ciel¡¯s magic power seems to have increased by a lot as well, so she can probably destroy the mansion; also, more importantly, just having a last option can give people an emotional leeway.


    Frankly, it¡¯ll be better if I already made plans on what to do after escaping the mansion; but although Ciel may be smart, she¡¯s still a child not even 10 years old. Rather than making her remember a lot of things, I thought that it¡¯s better for her to only focus on one thing.


    Also, it¡¯s a bit off topic but we¡¯ve learned a bit about this household.


    Duke Rispelgia, one of the kingdom¡¯s high nobility. That¡¯s the name of this mansion¡¯s master.


    As I suspected, this world runs on an aristocratic governing system. This was my first thought. That man did indeed look the part, so I wasn¡¯t that surprised; but the fact that he¡¯s a duke is a big problem.


    After all, his authority is only next to the royal family. And depending on the situation, he might even be more influential than the royal family.


    Naturally, his finances are incomparable to the lesser nobles and now that it¡¯s come to this, I can only hope that the nobility itself doesn¡¯t have much power here.


    The nobles of this world are, so to speak, individuals with magic power.


    People that can use sorcery are nobles and those who can¡¯t are commoners. However, in the long records of history, nobles born without magic power as well as common folk born with it were few but certainly existed.


    Among the said commoners, there were some with as much magic power as nobles; but it seems that to be a noble, you need some great achievements or a large amount of riches.


    The greatest card in our hand is Ciel¡¯s job. That man ¡ª Duke Rispelgia might have already been informed about what we¡¯re doing, so it might be a really dangerous gamble, but I think we have a winning chance


    Thinking so, today we once again spend our remaining time just as usual.

 CH 9

    After years of not visiting Ciel, Duke Rispelgia finally appeared before us one day.


    He seems to have aged as well, but I don¡¯t feel any weakness in his powerful gaze.


    Rather than growing old, it feels to me like he just got more refined and as a former man, it¡¯s really enviable. His stomach hasn¡¯t gotten any bigger as well; so if he keeps silent, he could be described as an attractive middle-aged man.


    Yet unfortunately, his gaze directed at Ciel is still ice cold, and just as he arrived, he immediately left the room after only saying¡¸Tomorrow, I¡¯ll be seeing your job.¡¹


    Ciel hasn¡¯t uttered a word the whole time.


    I assume it¡¯s because Ciel wore a doll-like gaze, but he might have not felt like he was speaking to a real human being as well.


    It¡¯s unpleasant, but this means that the opportunity that would finally change everything has arrived. And this also means that it¡¯s been nearly 10 years since I¡¯ve reincarnated as well.


    The orderly and timely life I¡¯ve lived in Japan feels like it was all a lie.


    After all, in our life so far, after taking the medicine we were practically free to do whatever we want.


    Pondering about the end of this lifestyle, I expected myself to be restless; but I¡¯m surprisingly calmer than I thought I would be. Ciel seems to feel the same as well and had no problem falling sound asleep.


    ¡ó¡ó¡ó


    And now, it¡¯s finally arrived; Ciel¡¯s 10th birthday.


    Since Ciel isn¡¯t allowed to leave this room, the mask-faced butler informed us earlier that Duke Rispelgia will come with the tool used to check jobs.


    The whole time, Ciel expressionlessly let things run its course.


    ¡ºAre you nervous?¡»


    ¡¸Not particularly. Still, I don¡¯t like the fact that that man is coming here.¡¹


    ¡ºYou¡¯re amazing, Ciel. I¡¯m so nervous that I feel like I might die.¡»


    ¡¸In that case, I guess I can¡¯t switch with Ain right now. I don¡¯t want our heart to break, after all.¡¹


    Giggling so, Ciel has now grown to be quite feminine.


    Though her height might be even shorter than average, her chest started to puff up and her whole body is growing more mature.


    Especially her expressions, particularly the smile she displays when she¡¯s poking fun at me, is unthinkably sensual for a 10 year old. However, I do vaguely remember seeing a glimpse of that smile in the past.


    I was still fine yesterday, but why am I feeling so nervous now? I hate my own cowardice. At the very least, I would have liked to talk with Ciel to relax myself. Unfortunately, I felt a nearing presence from my detection.


    ¡ºIt seems like he¡¯s here.¡»


    ¡¸How annoying. But I really shouldn¡¯t say that, right?¡¹


    ¡ºIf you¡¯re just saying it, then feel free. After all, I understand the feeling.¡»


    Sighing with absolute displeasure, Ciel closed her eyes.


    And by the time she opened them, the emotion in her eyes have already disappeared.


    Before long, the door opens loudly and yesterday¡¯s Duke Rispelgia appears before us once again. Entering the room, that man¡¯s hands carry a somewhat thick paper-like object and his face is masked with a smile.


    If by some chance I first saw him with this smile, I would¡¯ve mistaken him for a good guy. But now, it only makes him look highly suspicious. Being a noble, I assume that this smile is his way to hide his emotions.


    ¡¸Today, your job is decided. I expect that you understand the meaning of what you have done so far?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes.¡¹


    ¡¸Pour your magic power in this paper. You do know how to do so, do you?¡¹


    ¡¸I do.¡¹


    ¡¸Very well, hurry up and go.¡¹


    From his majestic voice appeared words that instantly rubbed me off the wrong way.


    Is this man just purely talented at angering me? I¡¯ve already lost count of how many times I¡¯ve almost snapped.


    Moreover, as a finishing touch, he threw the paper to the ground to make Ciel pick it up.


    In this situation, I hate how little I can do. If only I could use combat sorcery, I would¡¯ve already burnt him to a crisp.


    Ciel expressionlessly picked it up, held it with both her hands and poured in her magic power.


    With magic power flowing through it, the paper began to faintly glow and eventually the light from it gently floats into the air.


    It began to gradually form something and, when the light has completely stopped, there were letters revealed.


    ¡¾Cielmer Job: Dance Princess¡¿


    It was just a short string of letters, but it had a very big meaning for us.


    We won the gamble; I felt like I almost let out a grin.


    And as we expected, that man¡¯s face turned grim.


    ¡¸You¡¯re absolutely useless.¡¹


    ¡¸My apologies.¡¹


    ¡¸You think an apology would resolve this? You were just playing these past few years.


    For what purpose did you even think I left you alive? ¡¹


    Seeing Ciel hanging her head in silence, Duke Rispelgia was no longer capable of hiding his emotions and audibly clicked his tongue as he turned his back on us.


    Anyway, it does seem that he¡¯s lost further interest on Ciel so I¡¯ll consider this good news.


    After Duke Rispelgia left the room, and even after confirming that he¡¯s left my detection range, Ciel is still staring at the paper.


    ¡ºWhat¡¯s wrong?¡»I asked Ciel. With eyes brimming with curiosity, she turned her gaze to me.


    ¡¸Say, I wonder what would happen if Ain did it?¡¹


    ¡ºWon¡¯t it just show the same results?¡»


    ¡¸But Ain is different from me, right? You might even have a job too.¡¹


    At the time of escape, we¡¯ll need everything at our disposal. And since there¡¯s really nothing for me to lose, it won¡¯t hurt for me to try.


    So after asking Ciel¡ºWould you lend me your body?¡»I take a look at the thick sheet.


    It¡¯s probably the thing called parchment. I¡¯ve felt it when Ciel was holding it, but its texture has a strange feel to it.


    The light has already vanished, likely because Ciel¡¯s magic power has already disappeared from it.


    I try pouring magic power into it once again and as before, light danced in the air and formed letters.


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    ¡¾Ainsel Job: Song Princess¡¿


    Seeing a different result from before, I took my eyes off of it for a moment and confirmed it once again.


    The written letters aren¡¯t changing. Against Ciel¡¯s confident¡¸Just as I thought.¡¹ I don¡¯t have anything to answer back; so I just laughed it off saying¡ºIt was just as you said, Ciel.¡»


    Returning the body to Ciel, the first thing she said was¡¸We¡¯re Disappointing Princess buddies.¡¹as she delightedly smiled. I was confused with her words but since she¡¯s so happy about it, I just replied¡ºThat¡¯s right.¡»


    Ciel safely becoming a misfortune princess, moreover the target job dance princess, was a godsend, to be honest.


    A dance princess is a job that allows the performance of all dances. Other than dancing for entertainment, it even allows the execution of ritual dances that can achieve feats such as summoning a rain with a rain dance.


    Because of that, it¡¯s not as discriminated upon as the song princess. And since there are also dances, such as the sword dance, which is performed with weapons; it¡¯s not entirely helpless in combat.


    However, to pull out the dance princess¡¯ full potential, a suitable stage needs to be set. Particularly, they absolutely need music.


    When fighting monsters, as long as there is music, they have the potential to exhibit equal or even more fighting capacity than the combat jobs. Still, to begin with, you can¡¯t bring musicians and instruments to a battle.


    And even on summoning rain, since a Water Sorcerer and the like can resolve a drought with only sorcery, there aren¡¯t many particular reasons to gather people and prepare a stage.


    For these reasons, it¡¯s been touted as a disappointing princess. However, this exact job was our target.


    Even if we can¡¯t use it to the fullest, it has some potential for battle. Meanwhile, its reputation should be enough to make that man give up on us.


    Most of all, I¡¯m certain that Ciel already had a high chance of becoming a dance princess. After all, Ciel has been dancing to my songs from when she was still a baby.


    Lately, her beautiful dances almost make me forget to continue singing my song. I didn¡¯t expect our daily routine which began from the day she was born to help us this way. Still, thanks to that, Ciel is now a dance princess that can also use sorcery.


    Me being a song princess was an unexpected result, but it¡¯s not really a problem; and depending on the situation, we can use it for our escape.


    In the meantime, we probably need to confirm Duke Rispelgia¡¯s next move.


    We also thought of hiding the paper used to identify jobs so we can sell it after escaping, but the mask-faced butler took it away not soon after.


    ¡ó¡ó¡ó


    A few days later, Duke Rispelgia came before Ciel.


    The duke brought with him an untidy pig-like man.


    He isn¡¯t any shorter that the duke, but his body is almost twice as wide and his round face was drenched in grease.


    Even when I was still in Japan, it was the look of a person that I don¡¯t want to deal with; and now, I don¡¯t even want to see him in my sights. Is this what people mean by being physically repulsive?


    The fact that the pig man was looking at Ciel¡¯s body with a sleazy gaze only added to my disgust.


    ¡¸Is this girl the ¡°Dance Princess¡±?¡¹


    ¡¸It is. I took her in, but she can barely use sorcery. With that, I don¡¯t have any use of her.¡¹


    ¡¸So you would like to sell her to me?¡¹


    ¡¸You have money on you, don¡¯t you?¡¹


    ¡¸Well I certainly do. However, with her being of this quality, I¡¯m not quite sure if this is enough¡­¡¹


    As he was flattering the duke, the pig man extends three fingers and took a glance at the duke¡¯s expression.


    The duke audibly snorts and scowls at the pig man.


    ¡¸You¡¯ve brought twice as much, haven¡¯t you? I¡¯ll take that price.¡¹


    ¡¸Well in that case, isn¡¯t twice too much when following the procedure?¡¹


    ¡¸The remaining sum is for my silence. You won¡¯t say no, would you?¡¹


    The duke took out a sheet of paper. Since I can faintly feel magic power from the letters written on it, I assume that it was written using a special ink. The duke then added something to its contents and handed it to the pig man.


    I¡¯m really glad that they think we can¡¯t use much sorcery. Usually, nobody would think that someone who became a dance princess would actually be well-versed in sorcery.


    After receiving the sheet of paper, the man quickly skimmed its contents. And like the duke, he wrote something on it with a wide smile. They then placed the paper on the side table, then they both proceeded to take out knives and cut their own fingers.


    This might be some form of magic. Using a special ink and paper, they offered magic power and blood to create an unbreakable contract.


    ¡¸With this, the transaction is complete. Hurry up and take this away.¡¹


    ¡¸Then, I shall excuse myself.¡¹


    The pig man lowered his head and left the room.


    In his place, the mask-faced butler came in and his master immediately juts his chin, as though commanding him something.


    The butler immediately approaches Ciel and, just as one would carry heavy luggage, he carried Ciel on his shoulder as he walked out of the room.


    Then, after exiting the mansion, he placed Ciel on the back of what seems to be the pig man¡¯s wagon and shackled her limbs.


    I immediately felt nostalgia from the touch of the shackles, but it¡¯s not the time for this nonsense. This whole situation was unexpected; but in short, the Rispelgia household sold Ciel to this pig man.


    The duke¡¯s goal is most likely money. After all, he needs funds for his experiments, so he¡¯s probably using Ciel to compensate for the money he lost on her.


    Then, what is this man¡¯s goal? I can think of quite a lot. Will he be reselling her as a slave, using her as a maidservant, or perhaps as a toy?


    Still, at least he doesn¡¯t seem to have as much power as the duke¡¯s household, so I¡¯m sure that it¡¯ll be easier to escape from him.


    Or rather, this might be it. Depending on the strength of the escorts, we probably have the best situation to execute one of the plans I¡¯ve imagined. However, it¡¯s going to be risky.


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    ¡ºCiel, can you do something about the restraints?¡»


    ¡¸It¡¯ll take some time, but it¡¯s not a problem. After all, it doesn¡¯t seem to be the type that seals magic power.


    They¡¯ve underestimated us just because I became a dance princess, right?¡¹


    Just as Ain planned, Ciel praised me so; but it would have been quite bad if it were the magic sealing ones.


    Nonetheless, it turned out well for us. With this, we¡¯ve broken through our first barrier to freedom.


    ¡ºI have a way that could help us smoothly escape from this situation, but how should we go?


    It¡¯s extremely risky and, in the worst case scenario, might kill us too but¡­¡­¡»


    ¡¸If Ain doesn¡¯t tell me what it is, I can¡¯t really answer, you know?¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s true¡­¡­¡»


    So after hearing my escape plan, Ciel ponders for a bit and gave my plan a go, replying¡¸Let¡¯s try it out.¡¹

 CH 10

    And so, while hidden from sight by the closed wagon¡¯s canopy, I borrowed Ciel¡¯s body and merrily sang a song.


    I hear the two people on the driver¡¯s seat react in surprise, so they¡¯re probably listening in as well.


    ¡¸Heh, her voice doesn¡¯t sound bad either.¡¹


    ¡¸But with how she can sing so happily right now, she just might be weak in the head.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s fine, being a bit weak in the head. In the end, she¡¯ll go stupid on the earl¡¯s bed anyways. ¡¹


    ¡¸No doubt. Moreover, she¡¯s a ¡°Dance Princess¡± too.¡¹


    ¡¸A Dance Princess¡¯ performance is first-class even in bed. That rumor, huh. She¡¯ll definitely be a favorite. Now, how many days do you think she¡¯ll last?¡¹


    ¡¸You want to bet?¡¹


    ¡¸If you lose, get me the bar¡¯s most expensive drink. I¡¯m betting on 10 days.¡¹


    ¡¸No choice. Then, I¡¯m going with 5. With that voice of hers, I doubt that the earl would let her rest a day.¡¹


    ¡¸Tsk, now that you¡¯ve said it, that¡¯s right. That¡¯s such a waste. If it was me, I would¡¯ve cared for her for about 10 years.¡¹


    Just when I thought they were amazed, I¡¯ve just overheard an amazingly vulgar discussion.


    The mere fact that Ciel is listening as well gives me the urge to kill.


    What¡¯s worse is that Ciel likely doesn¡¯t understand what they¡¯re talking about. It¡¯s becoming even more doubtful if I could ever tell her that I was once male.


    I ignore their conversation and continue singing, but then the wagon suddenly stops.


    Quietly peeking from the gaps in the canopy, I see ugly green midgets ¡ª well, they are about the same height as Ciel right now, but still ¡ª with worn-out weapons surrounding the caravan.


    So this is a monster. It¡¯s my first time seeing them, but they aren¡¯t really pleasant to look at for extended amounts of time.


    The green midgets were immediately eliminated by the wagon¡¯s escorts. Still, the scene of their black blood flying about was quite shocking for this former Japanese.


    After that, we were attacked by a few more monsters. Since the escorts were getting tired as well, our break started earlier than planned.


    Though I said that, we were still left inside the wagon.


    From the conversations outside, I can hear them talking about how there are clearly more monsters than usual. However, that¡¯s natural.


    ¡ºThe monsters are gathering as planned.


    The reason the wagon is being attacked more than usual is because of me.


    Just as the Song Princess in the past did so, I¡¯m gathering the monsters with my song.


    Specifically, I¡¯m gathering every living organism that can hear my voice. Thanks to that, the caravan probably doesn¡¯t have any problem with the food supplies.


    This time, with Ciel¡¯s assistance, the distance my voice can reach is now increased.


    It attracts everything indiscriminately, so it¡¯s quite risky for us as well. But since we want that man to think that we¡¯ve been killed by the monsters, this is our only choice.


    If possible, I hope that the coming monster would be strong enough to kill everyone but also leave us be.


    And as I continue to sing, I eventually felt a large reaction from my detection magic.


    This time, even when I poked my head outside the canopy to see the situation, no one reprimanded me. Are they in that much trouble?


    What was directly approaching towards us, while mowing down the trees on its path, was a one-eyed giant nearly twice the size of the escorts. On its head is a horn, on its hand is a tree carved into roughly the shape of a club, and the color of its skin was of a bluish green.


    The escorts, seeing its figure, muttered¡¸Why is that in this kind of place?¡¹with a look as though they were witnessing the end of the world.


    In the next instant, one of the escorts was crushed by the giant¡¯s club.


    With a noise sounding somewhere between a splat and a crunch, a red puddle was born. The unpleasant smell of blood and organs was scattered in the air.


    The other people taking a break scrambled to escape and a few of them died on the way.


    The escorts bravely stood against the giant, but as their swords can¡¯t pierce its skin, taking a hit would kill them instantly, and with the battles up until now exhausting them as well, they shortly bloom into flowers of blood.


    What should I do? It seems that I ended up luring a beast. It¡¯s no wonder that the Song Princess was killed by the monster she called. Haha. If I didn¡¯t get distracted by that little trivia, I don¡¯t think I can keep my calm right now.


    I¡¯m not afraid of death. After all, if I get crushed like that, I probably won¡¯t even have time to feel any pain. But seeing the sight of people getting crushed was not good.


    The smell of blood and flesh stimulates my senses; I feel disgust bubbling up from the pit of my stomach, and I vomit out everything. Just this time, I was grateful that they barely gave us any food.


    Still, I can¡¯t keep being distraught. Outside the canopy, there is an absolute threat that can kill anything in one blow. All I can do against it is to feel its presence and defend with a barrier.


    Singing is¡­¡­ Difficult to do right now. I don¡¯t really know how resilient it is, but I can only hope that my barrier can pull through.


    I close my eyes and hope at the very least for it to please not notice us, when¡ºAin, protect me, okay?¡»resounds in my head. My body suddenly moves on its own.


    Taking back the control of the body, Ciel takes a fearless step outside. It seems that the only people alive right now are us. The surrounding area is so silent that the clamor from earlier feels like it never even existed.


    It seems like the giant intends to crush every wagon one by one. If Ciel didn¡¯t move us, our wagon would¡¯ve likely been crushed eventually.


    However, because we went outside, the giant noticed us.


    Its sole large glaring eye locked on to us. Considering its speed I felt through detection, it¡¯s not realistic to think of running away. Still, I also think that fighting it is reckless, but Ciel seems to have chosen to fight.


    Ciel resolutely invigorates herself and calmly raises her arms up in a swing of an arc.


    She clapped her hands together and a bright red flame followed behind the path of her hands. From a human¡¯s perspective, the elegance of her movements would have likely enamored the viewer. However, our lone audience today is but a monster.


    It only crudely and inelegantly swings down its raised club. With a big noise sounding almost like an explosion, a small crater was formed when the ground was smashed.


    Ciel dodges with a nimble back-flip and, unlike the giant¡¯s earlier swing; she gracefully swung her arm down and shot the flames dancing in the air.


    Her target is its large eye. And likely knowing so, it simply blocked the flames with its free hand. It seems that it got slightly burned by it, but that¡¯s all.


    Ciel immediately made a new flame dance in the air. This time, she continuously created more and more flames before releasing them. As though they had had a will of their own, the flames move to surround the giant and fuses into a single enormous flame, engulfing it.


    How would a Dance Princess fight? This was something we¡¯ve been imagining for the past few years.


    With a sword, Ciel could probably fight in the style of a sword dance. However, it¡¯s too optimistic to think that we would conveniently have a sword on hand at time of our escape. So our only method of attack is sorcery.


    So what we¡¯ve come up with is our current fighting style, dances that employ the use of combat sorcery. To begin with, what exactly is dancing? After reading many books and documents, we¡¯ve concluded that to dance is to perform with your body and tools, if needed, to fascinate and impress.


    Something necessary to fascinate others is precise gesturing. In this case, a nobleman¡¯s manners could be considered a type of dance.


    So, the fact that the Job has great affinity when combined with sorcery is plain to see. After all, presentational theatrics attracts people¡¯s interest. Moreover, a Dance Princess can summon rain just by ¡°dancing¡±.


    That¡¯s why we thought that perhaps a Dance Princess can employ the use of sorcery without the need for chants or magic circles. And though this was unrehearsed, Ciel managed to pull through.


    Ciel stares intently at the burning flare.


    It was an attack that would¡¯ve definitely killed a regular human. However, the giant only swung his club to sweep the flames clear.


    There are noticeable burns all over its body, but it definitely wasn¡¯t enough to defeat it.


    Seeing the giant undefeated, Ciel immediately took distance and shrugged.


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    ¡¸If that one right now wasn¡¯t enough, we¡¯re in real trouble.¡¹


    ¡ºShall we run away? If we distract it with magic, we might be able to escape.¡»


    Though she said so, Ciel seemed to be somewhat composed. Maybe because of that, I was able to keep myself calm enough to suggest her to escape.


    ¡¸That¡¯s fine too, but you know Ain? I¡¯ve noticed something.¡¹


    ¡ºWhat is it?¡»


    ¡¸I¡¯ve danced a lot so far, but I¡¯ve never danced alone like this up until now.


    If possible, I¡¯d like to dance like I always do.¡¹


    Ciel looks at me with expectation in her eyes. Is she asking me to sing? My job is the Song Princess. It¡¯s a job that grants everyone that can hear my voice an enchantment, regardless of them being an enemy or an ally.


    But¡­¡­ It might be worth a try.


    Taking a deep breath even just in my mind, I try to calm down as much as possible. And then, I sing like I always do.


    Right now, what Ciel¡¯s attacks lack is pure firepower. That¡¯s why, to raise her spirits up, I sing an intensely invigorating and explosively powerful song.


    There¡¯s no need to rush; right now, I¡¯ll have Ciel dance with passion.


    This is one of the most intense songs that I know. I¡¯m certain that Ciel doesn¡¯t understand what the lyrics mean, but I¡¯m sure she will understand what I¡¯m trying to say.


    I¡¯ve sung many songs up until now, but this might be the first time I¡¯ve sung this.


    Ciel widens her eyes in surprise, but she immediately flashed a smile.


    Da-dan. With her foot, Ciel rhythmically taps the ground twice.


    And seemingly answering to it, multiple flames burst forth around her. They fuse and compress, eventually forming into spheres.


    After that, our usual fun time begins.


    Matching my song, Ciel begins to dance. Today¡¯s passionate dance abandons all subtlety. She furiously moves her arms and legs and her flexible limbs cut through the air like a whip.


    Her powerful steps even kicked up clouds of dust and sand, but it didn¡¯t look inelegant even for a bit.


    Her blue eyes brim with determination and her pure white hair moves as though it had a will of its own.


    The dancing flames soar towards the giant and pierce its body while burning through its skin.


    It was just a short while that didn¡¯t even last 5 minutes. But at the end of Ciel¡¯s dance, the giant¡¯s body was full of holes as it fell.


    As her dance ended, the fairies of flame disappeared as well, so it was most likely under the control of ¡°Dance Princess¡±.


    To finish it off, Ciel pierced the giant¡¯s heart. However, there wasn¡¯t any much bleeding, probably because of the burning flames.


    As everything ended and the surroundings fall silent once again, Ciel delightedly giggled with satisfaction.


    ¡¸As I thought, dancing with Ain is the best.¡¹


    ¡ºCiel, were you aware of that?¡»


    ¡¸If it¡¯s about the ¡°Song Princess¡±, I just thought that it might work like that.¡¹


    Originally, it would have provided enchantments to both enemies and allies alike. But right now, my voice only reaches Ciel.


    That¡¯s likely the reason why my enchantments only affected Ciel and why the Song Princess was able to demonstrate its full potential.


    Still, it feels out of place that Ceil, a 10 year old child, was able to one-sidedly annihilate an enemy that easily destroyed the escorts hired by a noble.


    Does that just mean that Ciel and I are amazingly compatible with each other?


    ¡ºSo my song functioned as Dance Princess¡¯ required stage setting, right?¡»


    ¡¸I didn¡¯t expect that as well; but it¡¯s just proof that together with Ain, there¡¯s nothing to fear.¡¹


    ¡ºFrankly, I do think it¡¯s a bit too much.¡»


    ¡¸It¡¯s not too much, you know? After all, from the day I was born, we¡¯ve been dancing and singing together the whole time. It¡¯s obvious that we¡¯re compatible.¡¹


    Ciel looks at me with a beaming smile.


    She¡¯s a lot more lively than usual, but as that¡¯s just appropriate for her age, I answered the very charming Ciel¡ºThat¡¯s true¡» with a tender voice.


    ¡¸I¡¯m sure that it was fate that got me to meet Ain.


    So, even after this, would you stay with me, forever and ever?¡¹


    ¡ºI¡¯m the one who should be saying that. Even after this, please take care of me.¡»


    After all, I also felt like meeting her was destiny. Though I¡¯ve always been protecting Ciel, in reality, Ciel has always been protecting me as well.


    That¡¯s why I¡¯m certain; being able to laugh together right now is our destiny as well.


    I¡¯m not sure what will happen to us from now on. But for now, we step forward to a new day.

 CH 11

    If possible, I would¡¯ve wanted for Ciel to take a break after defeating the one-eyed giant. But since the smell of blood might attract other monsters, I need Ciel to move away from here immediately.


    With people being crushed this much, they probably won¡¯t think that Ciel is still alive. However, there are still some things I want to do.


    ¡ºNow, what shall we do with this fallen giant?¡»


    ¡¸I think just leaving it here is fine, but am I wrong?¡¹


    ¡ºIf they ever find this corpse by some chance, they might suspect the existence of survivors.


    The monsters and animals of this forest might make short work of it before that happens, but it¡¯s better if we do something about it. Burning and burying it should do well enough.¡»


    ¡¸Understood. ¡°Faro (O fire)¡±¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡ºCiel, stop.¡»


    After halting Ciel when she immediately prepared to burn it with sorcery, Ciel pursed her lips and looked at me with a questioning look.


    As someone that¡¯s considered more or less to be an adult in age, Ciel¡¯s honest obedience felt dazzling to me. If it was me, I would¡¯ve been defensive and say¡¸You¡¯re the one that told me to burn it!¡¹at the very least.


    Well, enough of that. Let me try out something that I was a bit curious about.


    ¡ºCiel; do you think that you can, perhaps, stab a knife into its body?¡»


    ¡¸I don¡¯t really think that we still need to confirm if it¡¯s dead.


    Or is there perhaps another reason for that?¡¹


    ¡ºProbably somewhere near where a person¡¯s heart is, I can feel a concentration of magic power.¡»


    ¡¸So, slice it open and see what it is, right? As for the knife¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡ºLet¡¯s try looking for one. It¡¯s likely that the pig man or his company has one on them, after all.¡»


    ¡¸Pig man? ¡­¡­ Oh, I¡¯ve never seen a real pig before, but he certainly looked like one! Still, Ain can talk like that too, huh.¡¹


    I ended up calling him as I named him in my thoughts. Still, I couldn¡¯t think of a better name for him and Ciel even understands who I¡¯m referring to, so it¡¯s probably fine.


    I didn¡¯t want Ciel to be disappointed in my attitude, but after seeing her chuckling in amusement instead, it seems like it was just needless worry from me.


    I really don¡¯t want to bring along any of the squished people¡¯s items as much as possible, so we rummaged through the remains of the smashed wagons and immediately found a knife. It was a gaudy knife that had exaggerated ornaments, but it¡¯s probably usable, still.


    There was also money as well. It¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve seen it, but as they were small heavy silver and gold discs, I¡¯m likely not mistaken.


    There¡¯s nothing to lose in bringing them, so we decided to bring as much as we could.


    And while we were at it, I¡¯ve also instructed Ciel to search for a hooded robe or mantle.


    Since Ciel¡¯s long white hair might stand out, I wanted something that could hide it. Since the bangs were a nuisance, Ciel haphazardly ¡ª though I did watch and give some instructions ¡ª used sorcery to cut it. We practically left the hair on her back untouched, so it¡¯s grown up until her waist.


    There¡¯s no problem with the length, but the fact that it changed color from being originally blond is what¡¯s worrying me. If it¡¯s a common hair color to have in this world, then it¡¯s fine; but if white is rare or doesn¡¯t exist at all, it¡¯s very likely that it could get us into trouble.


    Still, even without her hair color, Ciel already has a lot of traits that would get her into trouble.


    The robe is for hiding her hair as well, but I also wanted to avoid having Ciel be seen by other people in her current state of being only covered by just a piece of cloth.


    ¡¸So that¡¯s why we were looking for a robe.¡¹


    ¡ºIf we couldn¡¯t find one, we would¡¯ve had no other choice but to borrow one from the dead, so I¡¯m really glad.


    Still, as expected, there weren¡¯t any that would fit Ciel¡¯s size.¡»


    ¡¸The dragging edges really look bad. Can I cut it to my size?¡¹


    ¡ºI see. Then please do so.¡»


    I entrust Ciel to trim it to the right size with sorcery.


    I can do as much as making water or cooling and heating drinks, but maybe since cutting counts as attacking, I can¡¯t do it.


    In contrast, Ciel focused on learning combat sorcery. Rather, she can generally do everything since she didn¡¯t sacrifice her talent like I did. The only areas I can win against her are probably on defensive power and detection capability.


    Since we would go searching for some later anyways, we searched for food supplies before returning to the giant.


    Taking a closer look at it, the way it died was really unpleasant. There are holes boring through its body. However, since the wounds were cauterized by the flames, I can¡¯t see any blood flowing out as well as inside of it; which makes staring at it more discomforting.


    Particularly the head, the brain ¡ª though I¡¯m not sure if there is one ¡ª is completely gouged out so I¡¯m sure that it¡¯s dead. However, it looks like it¡¯s still alive, making it feel detached from reality.


    The fact that I¡¯m relatively fine with it may be either because of my reincarnation or because I¡¯ve spent nearly 10 years in that kind of life.


    Whichever it may be, it¡¯s likely something I¡¯ll need to survive in this world.


    However, seeing someone die is still heart-wrenching, yet there might come a time in the future that I shouldn¡¯t think of it that way. It¡¯s not that I need to get used to death, but I need to be able to bear it at least.


    As Ciel approached the giant, she went on her knees and thrust the knife into its body.


    The knife had too many ornaments so I thought it was just for show, but it cut through the giant¡¯s flesh much more smoothly than I anticipated.


    Since it was already dead, there was no spouting blood and we immediately found an indigo blue orb that was a size bigger than a softball. This orb filled with pure and untouched magic power is probably the so called magic stone.


    ¡¸Was this perhaps what you were looking for, Ain?¡¹


    ¡ºSince I can feel pure magic power from it, it most likely is. Might this be a magic stone?¡»


    ¡¸So this is a magic stone. The books did say that it was taken from monsters.


    Seeing the actual object that she only knew from reading a book, Ciel got quite excited.


    Among the books in that room were books with catalysts used in sorcery and magic, such as herbs and jewels, and how to acquire them. Still, maybe they thought that it wasn¡¯t that important, as there weren¡¯t really much of these books. That¡¯s why it¡¯s natural that Ciel didn¡¯t remember them much.


    I just remembered it from an assumption, so it¡¯s not really that I¡¯m amazing. Still, I don¡¯t intend to tell Ciel about my past life yet, so I just accepted her praise with a strained smile.


    ¡ºI believe that magic stones can be sold in many places and it might even help increase our magic power.


    So there¡¯s really nothing to lose in bringing it along.¡»


    ¡¸So that means that this really is that thing, right?¡¹


    ¡ºYes, this seems to be one of the medicine¡¯s main ingredients.¡»


    Attentively reacting to my words, Ciel really is much more intelligent than me.


    It looks like she¡¯s really not just a duke¡¯s daughter for show.


    Moving on, they most likely didn¡¯t just feed us raw magic stones. Still, that medicine was undoubtedly some processed form of a magic stone.


    Magic power increases as you grow up, but it stops when you reach your mid-teens. There are some people that still continued increasing their magic power even after reaching adulthood. However, there should have been no established means of actively increasing one¡¯s magic power.


    I can¡¯t really say that we¡¯ve read all of them, but I¡¯m positive that the books in that room all delved quite deep into the study of sorcery. We really need to adjust our common sense about sorcery when we reach the town or village as well.


    ¡¸After this, I just need to burn and bury it¡­¡­ right?¡¹


    ¡ºYes, please feel free.¡»


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    Hearing my words, Ciel burns the giant, digs a hole and buries it.


    All of these were done with sorcery, so Ciel herself didn¡¯t get dirty and was able get it done in a few minutes.


    As she leveled the filled ground flat, I noticed that Ciel was deeply thinking about something.


    ¡ºIs there anything wrong?¡»


    ¡¸Say, Ain. Is it possible that instead of using a knife, we could have just used sorcery to take out the magic stone?¡¹


    ¡ºAh¡­¡­¡»


    Now that she said it, it¡¯s true. Yeah, just the thought of dismantling a monster made me immediately think of using a knife; but Ciel¡¯s sorcery is much more easy to use.


    ¡ºB-But, still, we might need to use the knife in the future¡­¡­


    No, um¡­¡­ I¡¯m really sorry that my hasty decision made us waste effort in finding it.¡»


    I made up an excuse, but I hastily apologized before finishing so. Perhaps because of shame and embarrassment, my voice ended up gradually disappearing by the end of it.


    If that continued on I might have gone defensive, but I want to be honest with Ciel as much as possible. Even if I am keeping my gender and past a secret.


    Still, it doesn¡¯t change that what I did was shameful. And just as I thought so, Ciel rapidly blinks her eyes in silence for some reason.


    ¡ºUm¡­¡­¡»


    ¡¸It¡¯s nothing, it is nothing, you see. It¡¯s just that, I just thought a little, just a bit, that there really are things that even Ain doesn¡¯t notice.


    Since Ain always helps me out, I thought that Ain can do anything.¡¹


    ¡ºNot really, there are probably more things I can¡¯t do.¡»


    While confused at the unusually talkative Ciel, I replied so.


    Still, after seeing Ciel strangely delighted for some reason, I was relieved that I haven¡¯t disappointed her.


    But rather than just being delighted, is she perhaps grinning?


    ¡¸Now then, what should we do now?


    Since all I¡¯ve thought was how to escape the mansion, I¡¯ve never really thought about what to do next, you know?¡¹


    ¡ºSince there is a road before us, let¡¯s first try following it as far as we can.


    At the very least, we should reach some village or town.¡»


    It¡¯s a bit hard to call it a road, but since the grass is trampled on what are definitely a wagon¡¯s tracks, I¡¯m likely not mistaken.


    At the very least, I think it¡¯s more reliable than trying to find a river right now.


    ¡ºThough there¡¯s a limit to the food we can bring, we do have a few days¡¯ worth and we can produce water with sorcery.


    Once we reach the town, that¡¯s where the problem will likely be.¡»


    ¡¸Problem?¡¹


    ¡ºFrankly speaking, Ciel is packed with traits that would get one into trouble.


    After all, Ciel¡¯s a young girl, a disappointing princess, and a relative of the duke. Moreover, you look good too. It¡¯s filled to the brim.¡»


    I¡¯ve absolutely slipped up. To be tested just the next moment that I decided to be honest with her. It¡¯s quite pathetic but as I can¡¯t lie, please let me off.


    Seeing her giggle delightedly, I¡¯m not sure what Ciel is thinking. Still, since it seems that she knows that I don¡¯t want her to probe me, I decided to follow her lead.


    ¡ºI do think that your job and past can be kept hidden, but your appearance might be difficult to hide. Covering your hair is probably the most this robe can do.¡»


    ¡¸I don¡¯t really think there¡¯s that much gender difference at my age, so can¡¯t I disguise it?¡¹


    ¡ºIf you cut your hair short and wear some over-sized clothes, I do think you would look androgynous. However, I don¡¯t really recommend it.¡»


    ¡¸Because my circuits run up to my hair, right? I don¡¯t know how much cutting it would change my appearance, but certainly getting weaker is bad.¡¹


    ¡ºMoreover, if you absolutely need to show your Job for some reason, they¡¯ll notice by the ¡°Princess¡± part.¡»


    If we live our life carefully, it¡¯s probably possible to keep our jobs hidden. However, entering the town, for example, might require us to show our Jobs. And since we don¡¯t have any that can be used for identification, all the more a problem.


    Exactly because we¡¯re ignorant of the world, it¡¯s best that we think of every possibility.


    ¡ºAlso, if possible, once we reach a town, would you allow me to handle things for a while?¡»


    Hearing my question, Ciel ponders deeply with a serious look.


    In the future, I¡¯d like Ciel to develop enough communication skills so that she would have the initiative. However, I think that it¡¯s unreasonable to ask her to do so right now.


    Rather, I think it¡¯s amazing that she doesn¡¯t even reject going to a human community right now.


    After all, the only people she has met so far are the savage duke, the mask-faced butler, and the pig man + escorts. Even thinking optimistically, I think anyone would develop androphobia after that.


    So until Ciel gets used to it, it¡¯s probably best that I have the initiative for now.


    ¡¸Ain, I¡¯ll leave it to you.¡¹Ciel gave in. It seems like she understood what I mean as well.


    ¡¸There¡¯s something I¡¯ve been wondering about. Is there really any place we can work at?


    With our current money, we might be able to live on for a while, but it¡¯ll run out eventually, right?¡¹


    ¡ºRegarding that, I do actually have a lead.


    I¡¯m not absolutely sure about it, but since there are monsters everywhere, there¡¯s an organization that should also exist. However, we¡¯re going to get into a lot of trouble.¡»


    ¡¸Is trouble, really a definite thing?¡¹


    Saying so with slight bewilderment, I replied¡ºIt¡¯s a standard.¡»

 CH 12

    Ever since we took the magic stone, more than a day has passed. At this rate, it seems doubtful if we can really reach somewhere with people. The simple fact that we¡¯re making slow progress is a part of it, but I don¡¯t think that we¡¯ll reach it before the day is over.


    The reason for our slow progress is that, first of all, Ciel isn¡¯t used to walking in a forest. In addition, she isn¡¯t used to traveling while wearing a cloak and a pouch, so it seeps her stamina all the more. The fact that she has built up some stamina thanks to dancing regularly really helped. If not for that, perhaps we wouldn¡¯t have managed to cover half as much ground that we did today. Another reason is that Ciel¡¯s focus was all over the place.


    After all, after 10 years, we¡¯re finally in someplace other than that mansion, so it¡¯s only natural for a 10-year-old girl to be curious about everything. Rather, it¡¯s my first time walking in this kind of path, so even my curiosity is stirred. Still, this is the road that leads to that mansion, so I have my detection at maximum output to make sure that we can immediately hide if ever someone approaches us.


    Anyways, Ciel was adorable yesterday.


    Since I wanted to distance us from the place where the caravan was as soon as possible, I urged Ciel to leave immediately; but as soon as I told her that we were far enough, she called for me¡¸Ain, Ain!¡¹with a lively tone. And the words following that were¡¸The sky really is blue!¡¹and¡¸Look, look! The leaves are so green!¡¹and such, making me think back on how much hardships in our life up until now were.


    As she was in such high spirits in the middle of this unfamiliar forest yesterday, Ciel ended up falling asleep before sunset.


    We couldn¡¯t set up a camp and all, but for Ciel who had been sleeping on a stone bed and floor, the soft soil was rather very comfortable to sleep on and she was soon fast asleep.


    Truth to be told, a small wolf-like creature came while she was asleep, but since there were no signs of my barrier breaking, I watched it give up and go home without waking Ciel up.


    To be exact, I did try waking Ciel up but she didn¡¯t even budge. She has been constantly on guard up until now, so I have no problem with her falling in deep sleep now that she¡¯s free from that. But for us to live on from now on, I¡¯d like her to be able to awaken in times when I wake her up. Still, that¡¯s all because I¡¯m not capable of fighting.


    Nonetheless, my detection isn¡¯t reacting to anything right now and we¡¯re basically just having a walk through this sunlit forest, so it¡¯s probably fine for me to loosen up a bit.


    Still, though I say loosen up, all I can do is just sing. Well, I do like singing and will be listening as well, so it¡¯s fine. As I sing a song that fits my mood, the pace of Ciel¡¯s steps change to suit my song.


    Walking forth as though she was skipping, Ciel stops walking just as I ended the song.


    ¡ºIs there anything wrong?¡»


    ¡¸Hey, Ain. You¡¯re singing a song, right?¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right, is there anything strange about it?¡»


    ¡¸There¡¯s nothing strange¡­¡­ or perhaps there is? A song is when you say words matching the rhythm of music, right?¡¹


    I gaze as Ciel slowly talks while finding the right words to explain and roughly understood what she wants to say.


    In short, she¡¯s probably curious about the fact that the lyrics of the song I sung was in Japanese.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s in the language of the country I lived in while I was alive, so it might have sounded unfamiliar to you, Ciel.


    It does actually mean something. The song right now had lyrics roughly say ¡°I¡¯m walking on a forest path!¡± and such.¡»


    ¡¸I see, so even things like that can become a song. So in that case, perhaps anything can become a song.¡¹


    Certainly, I don¡¯t even remember how many songs I¡¯ve sung to Ciel. I¡¯m sure that I¡¯ve sung about 2,000 to 3,000 songs, but the frequency of repeating songs are also different for songs that I know well and songs that I don¡¯t.


    At any rate, I have a shallow but wide knowledge of songs. Since singing is what I enjoy doing the most when I was still alive, I¡¯m pretty confident on just the number of songs I can sing. I never imagined that it would be useful when I¡¯m in another world. Still, rather than being useful, it was just the only way I could kill time.


    ¡¸Speaking of words, is ¡°Cielmer¡± perhaps a name used in Ain¡¯s country as well?¡¹


    ¡ºYou name is, based on words from another country different than that of where I lived in.¡»


    ¡¸So, Ain knows words from different countries. That¡¯s amazing.¡¹


    ¡ºNot really. Except for the language of my country, I only know about a few words, you see.¡»


    ¡¸You didn¡¯t know about this country¡¯s language, after all. Does Cielmer, have some meaning to it?¡¹


    I think that that¡¯s just how Japanese people are. Including me, even though most people have a hard time even speaking English, we¡¯re weirdly informed about specific French or German terms.


    I¡¯m hesitant on talking to Ciel about Earth, but it might be alright to share a bit about it if I just nuance it like I¡¯m talking about another continent on this world. After all, as the one who thought up her name, I¡¯m happy that she¡¯s interested in what it means.


    ¡ºCiel means¡¸Sky¡¹while Mer means¡¸Ocean¡¹¡£I thought that your blue eyes and white hair resembled them.¡»


    ¡¸I still haven¡¯t seen the ocean, but the sky, is it?


    Now that you¡¯ve said it, it really is blue. It¡¯s a blue that I¡¯ve never seen before. And it looks like it continues on forever; almost as though it¡¯s sucking me in.


    But, are my eyes really that blue?¡¹


    ¡ºYes, definitely.¡»


    ¡¸In that case, I¡¯m just a bit jealous of you, Ain. After all, you see this blue every day.¡¹


    ¡ºIt¡¯s a side benefit.¡»


    ¡¸Well, I can listen to Ain¡¯s song too, so we¡¯re even.¡¹


    Saying so, Ciel flashes me a broad smile. Even though I was the one who started it, her ticklish words almost made me writhe in embarrassment.


    In my past life, at the very least, there was no one that frankly praised me like this and I haven¡¯t even praise anyone like so. However, Ciel seems to be delighted, and most of all, it¡¯s not like I¡¯m unhappy about being praised; so I guess I¡¯ll just bear the embarrassment.


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    ¡¸So if my eyes are the blue of the sky, then this means that my white hair are the clouds, right? When I first saw the sky, I wondered what those floating white things are, you know. But because of our situation, I kept quiet, see.¡¹


    ¡ºThat really helped a lot. Since I really had my hands full with just escaping yesterday.¡»


    ¡¸I just didn¡¯t want to disturb you, Ain.¡¹


    And even as she humbly said so, for some reason Ciel delightedly snort out a chuckle.


    It¡¯s adorable how she sometimes displays this kind of age appropriate reactions, so even I become delighted as well.


    This whimsical conversation of ours continued until evening.


    ¡ó


    We stopped walking as the sun began to set and ignited the fallen leaves we gathered here and there with sorcery.


    Ciel¡¯s body remains clean thanks to the usual piece of cloth, but I want to take a bath once we reach some village or town.


    Is casually thinking that a proof that I¡¯m too used to Ciel¡¯s body? Or do I am just not conscious of Ceil¡¯s body because she¡¯s still a child?


    Leaving these nonsense thoughts aside, as we finished eating the food rations we brought from the wagon and it seemed to be about the time to sleep, Ciel called out to me.


    ¡¸Ain will always be on the lookout from now on, right?¡¹


    ¡ºI¡¯m fine even without sleep after all. I can use the barrier and detection as well, so I¡¯m suited for it.¡»


    ¡¸Can I perhaps stay up with you? I think that it¡¯s not good to always burden Ain with this.¡¹


    I hesitate upon hearing Ciel¡¯s words. To be honest, considering our future safety, I¡¯d like Ciel to sleep on times that she can.


    After all, the lack of sleep might cloud her judgment and moreover there is a possibility of her dozing off while travelling tomorrow.


    However, speaking of our security, the only thing that might be able to break through my barrier as of now is the one-eyed giant that attacked the caravan.


    Since the attack, I haven¡¯t felt another one of them and even if Ciel falls asleep somewhere tomorrow, I could probably protect her plenty.


    ¡¸I can do it. Is it perhaps bad that I want to do so?¡¹


    ¡ºIn that case, well¡­¡­¡»


    Frankly, I should deny her here. If we¡¯re practicing for the future night-watch, then we should do it in a much safer place. Still, it¡¯s difficult to turn down Ciel¡¯s feelings of wanting to do something for me.


    Seeing how I end up giving in at times like these, well, really reminds me how Japanese I am.


    As we pass time talking like so, the heavens are blanketed by a starry sky. And then I noticed.


    The moon, which there was only one on Earth, is a twin here.


    One of them is golden and the other silver. It somewhat reminded me of Ciel¡¯s hair and at the same time it deeply moved me as I¡¯m reminded that I¡¯m now in another world.


    Last night I didn¡¯t have the calm to look around like this, but Ciel being awake might have relaxed me a bit.


    ¡¸So night are actually this bright. Yesterday I fell asleep before night came, so I didn¡¯t know.¡¹


    ¡ºIt was totally dark when the lights are out in the cell after all. I couldn¡¯t even see my own hand.¡»


    There was generally a lit torch-like thing in the cell. But in the 5 years we were confined there, there were times that it went out.


    As the cell was probably underground, if the lights went out, you can see absolutely nothing at all.


    It¡¯s likely that it¡¯s not a problem of your eyes being unused to it.


    ¡¸So because of that, I thought that nights were always that dark.


    See, even the books just state that it¡¯s dark at night and not much else.¡¹


    ¡ºWell it is darker compared to daytime. Besides, though it is bright, it¡¯s not enough for reading and it becomes hard to recognize the roads and paths.¡»


    ¡¸In that case, it becomes hard to work, right? But if it¡¯s Ain, then can you perhaps recognize the road?¡¹


    ¡ºRather than the road itself, I can grasp the area we¡¯re walking in.¡»


    ¡¸So, what were you thinking about while watching the sky, Ain?¡¹


    ¡ºWhy do you think so?¡»


    Well, I certainly was thinking about the differences between this world and Earth a while ago.


    Did I do something that made Ciel notice? Rather, my current form shouldn¡¯t even be recognizable as a human silhouette.


    Ciel stares at me and lets out a giggle.


    ¡¸There are times that Ain suddenly goes silent when we talk, after all.


    On those times, I thought that Ain might be thinking of something, but am I wrong?¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s, I¡¯m sorry. Certainly it¡¯s rude to do while we were talking.¡»


    Now that Ciel mentioned it, it¡¯s just as she said; it does seem like I tend to drown in my thoughts every time I experience a disparity from Earth.


    I don¡¯t really think that I have an attachment with my previous world, but it looks like the common sense in me being destroyed is actually that much of a shock to me.


    Even now, we were in the middle of talking about night watch if I remember correctly. I¡¯m lucky that Ciel saw it in a positive light but it might be best to be more careful in the future.


    ¡¸As I thought. You want to go back to your country, right Ain?¡¹


    Hearing her ask me in a small voice, I reply¡ºNot at all.¡»and deny so.


    I don¡¯t know how she arrived in that question, but there might be a scene in a book she read about a character reminiscing about their hometown while looking at the sky.


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    ¡ºNormally, life ends when people die after all.


    I practically have no regrets on the things I left behind in my old country and right now, I¡¯m just someone that exists together with Ciel.¡»


    ¡¸Then, what were you thinking about while looking at the sky?¡¹


    ¡ºAbout how being in a different place also changes what you see in the night sky, and such.¡»


    ¡¸? The night sky is the night sky, it doesn¡¯t change, right?¡¹


    ¡ºThe fact that you can see the moons and the stars doesn¡¯t change, but the positions of the stars and so does change.


    I¡¯m not knowledgeable about it, so I can¡¯t exactly explain how it¡¯s different.


    Also, it¡¯s quite bright.¡»


    ¡¸Is that perhaps compared to the sky that Ain has seen?¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right.I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s different here, but it¡¯s bright even in the evening where I lived at, so the light of the stars were drowned out.


    Because of that, even among the stars I see right now, the only ones I could see are those that are particularly bright.¡»


    Perhaps since I pretended to myself that I was talking about some country in a different continent, I was no longer reluctant on talking about my life in Japan.


    Still, I can¡¯t really talk about technology or the absence of sorcery and stuff.


    Well, I feel like I might mess up sooner or later if I just keep to myself, so I want to believe talking about it a bit is a needed compromise.


    After that, I did notice Ciel drowsily nodding off a few times but we spent our time talking until dawn arrived.

 CH 13

    In the end, night watch ended with Ciel not having a wink of sleep. Her tenacity is a sight to behold but Ciel¡¯s movements being dull right as she started walking after breakfast is worrying me.


    Now that I think about it, since sleep was practically the only thing we had the freedom to decide on, this might be the first time Ciel lacked any sleep.


    I¡¯m also at fault for allowing this, so I put all my focus on detection to at least reduce our chance to come across monsters as much as I can.


    ¡ºAre you sleepy£¿¡»


    ¡¸Not really sleepy, but it¡¯s a bit hard to move my body.¡¹


    ¡ºResting without pushing yourself for today is an option as well, alright?


    The food supply is a bit concerning but I don¡¯t think there¡¯s much distance left until we reach a village or a town.¡»


    ¡¸But if we stop here, then staying up last night wouldn¡¯t have any meaning, right?


    Just being a day longer in this forest will only increase the burden on Ain, after all.¡¹


    I¡¯m happy about Ciel¡¯s concern for me but I wish she would worry more about herself.


    Nonetheless, I have a feeling that thoughtlessly rejecting Ciel might be bad for her growth, so I¡¯m stumped. Right now, Ciel is using her own head and acting on what she thinks is good for me, after all.


    If it was someone with a certain extent of life experience, persuading them with a proper explanation might be the correct thing to do; however, since Ciel is as blank as a sheet, I believe it¡¯s best for me to watch over the course of events to let her gain experience.


    And if that choice was a mistake, then we¡¯ll just think about what went wrong together.


    Well, seeing that her body¡¯s currently in a bad condition, it might already be considered a mistake but Ciel is still full of energy. I think I¡¯ll have a talk with her the next time she¡¯s about to push herself.


    I planned on doing so, but there was an unpleasant reaction from detection.


    ¡ºCiel, would you mind stopping?¡»


    ¡¸There¡¯s something, right?¡¹


    Perhaps the tone of my voice conveyed the severity, because Ciel obediently followed.


    Even while telling her so, I¡¯m still observing the reaction caught by my detection but I just can¡¯t wipe off this bad feeling. Why, why is it staying absolutely still? And of all places, why there?


    Unable to nod in confirmation, I answered¡ºYes.¡»for now and started explaining¡£


    ¡ºIf we continue onward on this path, we¡¯ll encounter with what¡¯s most likely the same monster as the one that attacked the caravan.¡»


    ¡¸In that case, might it perhaps be best to stay here and wait for it to leave?¡¹


    ¡ºI agree with that decision, however it¡¯s definitely acting strange, don¡¯t you think?


    Slightly off the path, it feels like it¡¯s waiting for something there.¡»


    ¡¸Then, that means that it¡¯s aiming for us, right?¡¹


    ¡ºThere¡¯s a high possibility. Come to think of it, Ciel read a lot of books in that mansion.


    We can only believe the information from the books so it might lack some certainty, but I can say that documents there that are more than what¡¯s commonly known by society, those might even be the results of Duke Respelgia¡¯s research.


    And those documents might have been read by you, Ciel. However, if you¡¯re not worth keeping, then killing you would be the best option. Either being killed or being kept by the pig man until you die was probably good enough for him.¡»


    ¡¸So in that case, is that man perhaps capable of controlling monsters?¡¹


    ¡ºPossible by use of magic. Still, this is nothing more than our guesswork so it might just be there by coincidence.¡»


    We¡¯re free to do as much guesswork as we want and we can base our next course of action on multiple inferences; but since we can only try once, then I think that it might not be bad to go in without a plan and just leave things to chance.


    ¡¸Ain, do you think that it¡¯s best to just wait like this?¡¹


    ¡ºIf we could go without any incident, then I think that it would be best.


    However, if we continue on waiting out like this, then we might get surrounded in the event that a pursuer comes from behind. Most likely, there aren¡¯t any pursuers; but if we continue waiting for days, then we¡¯ll run out of food supplies.


    As another plan, we could get off the path and try to cut through the forest. In doing this, we do have the risk of possibly being unable to escape the forest.


    Finally, we could choose to defeat the monster as well. It¡¯s likely the most simple of them and since we can continue following the path, it¡¯s the most certain way of going to a populated place. However, it goes without saying that you might get hurt, and in the worst case, you might lose your life.¡»


    ¡¸Still, defeating it is the easy one to do, right? I also won yesterday, after all.¡¹


    I¡¯ve thought much about it but I do think that Ciel¡¯s answer is reasonable.


    Since she won with quite the ease, she should be able to win even if she¡¯s a bit out of form.


    Thinking about the future, both waiting here and finding a different path is just a temporary solution. I do think that I might have become too cowardly so I replied to her¡ºThen let¡¯s do it.¡»


    Now that we¡¯ve decided, we once again continue on our path. This time, to reduce the risk, we go full force from the start.


    Last time, if I had also supported her from the beginning, it would have ended in an instant. So this time, we should be able to settle this before she pushes herself as well.


    As soon as we can see the place where the monster will be ambushing us, after telling Ciel¡ºJust outside your vision, the monster is there.¡»I began to sing.


    Long before we noticed the monster, each and every one of Ciel¡¯s movements have been refined and she¡¯s always ready to jump into battle as well. After all, if you know that an ambush is coming then it¡¯s not difficult to avoid the first attack; and after that, an all-out attack with sorcery would finish it. It might seem cowardly, but it doesn¡¯t make it less safe.


    Rather, if the opponents are humans or weak monsters then we could just stealthily approach and stab them with a knife, so we¡¯re still acting fair and square.


    Still, even if the opponents are humans, then I don¡¯t really think we need to fight fair and square.


    Also, the fact that the other party is hiding in the forest makes it difficult. If we ignore the collateral damage then we could drive them away with Sorcery from here, but doing that with Ciel¡¯s full power would risk the trees suddenly setting on fire.


    Thinking on a larger scale, it¡¯s not funny if we get discovered as well, so we can¡¯t fight unless it comes out on this reasonably open road without any trees nearby. For that reason, it¡¯s going to be problematic if it doesn¡¯t come to ambush us as well.


    Step by step, we approach the place where the monster is and just as it¡¯s directly horizontal from us, we hear a loud sound combing through the grass.


    Immediately our gaze shifts to its origin and the figure of a one-eyed giant raising a club overhead enters our sights.


    If you¡¯re not aware of the other party¡¯s existence, then it¡¯s impossible to avoid. That one blow is approaching imminently.


    However, if you¡¯re aware of it, then it¡¯s easy to dodge¡­¡­ It should have been.


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    Thud. As Ciel was about to leap backwards, her legs got tangled up.


    I realize from Ciel¡¯s surprised look, as well as from the transmitted sensation, that there¡¯s a disparity between how Ciel expected to move and how she actually moved.


    By all rights, it¡¯s only a small insignificant difference; but in the middle of a dance, which demands precise movements, it becomes a fatal mistake. Even still, Ciel would usually be capable of correcting herself with ease.


    However, Ciel just currently experienced her first all-nighter. There¡¯s absolutely no way that she could correct herself as the club is swung down.


    As the club comes down right before my eyes, I instinctively screamed¡ºCiel!¡»but she was unable to avoid the attack that has enough power to easily crush a person and ended up she taking the full brunt of the blow.


    I feel a sensation similar to having my head pressed down and, before I notice it, our body was blown away after getting exposed to an impact.


    We were hurled at speeds that made it feel like we¡¯re riding on a roller coaster and we stopped as we slammed into a tree.


    My back feels a bit painful. Huh? Why is my back in pain? And why just a bit?


    ¡¸Ain, can you sing?¡¹


    While I was confused, I hear Ciel¡¯s voice.


    Just by the feel of it, there¡¯s probably no fatal injury to the body. The feeling of pain is already settling down and the pain from being cut in the mansion was much worse than this as well.


    For the meantime, Ciel¡¯s requesting for my song, so I start singing while organizing what happened.


    The monster was definitely waiting for us ¡ª or maybe for anybody that follows this path, I¡¯m not sure ¡ª and went for an ambush.


    We were going to dodge it and counter as planned, but we failed and should have been crushed.


    But in reality, we were just blown away. Did it do so because it couldn¡¯t crush us?


    And right now, a cluster of ice made by Ciel pierces through the giant. The sharp tipped ice, reminiscent of an icicle, freezes the giant from where it pierced through.


    And from there, an ice sculpture of a tree gradually forms over it and, crack, the monster shatters along with it into tiny pieces.


    The scene of the girl displaying that fantastic phenomenon and a gracefully flowing dance was likely more than enough to fascinate people.


    Leaving it at that, it might be best to have a proper discussion with Ciel here and now.


    After all, it all ended before I even realized it happening but it¡¯s hard to call this a success.


    Rather, there¡¯s much for Ciel to reflect on, but there¡¯s much more for me as well.


    ¡ºGood work. You did very well.¡»


    After this, I have no choice but to have a very unenjoyable talk with her but it doesn¡¯t change that fact that Ciel did her best.


    This is definitely something that I should praise and I even want her to be happy as well. Even if depending on how the conversation goes, scolding Ciel becomes unavoidable.


    Why must I scold Ciel even though this was my fault? Just thinking about it almost spirals me back to self-hatred. But, to make sure that these kinds of mistakes don¡¯t happen again, there are situations where I need to turn blind to my own faults.


    Or so I thought, but to my words, Ciel listlessly replied¡¸Right. Thank you, Ain.¡¹with a forced smile, so it seems like there will be no scolding this time.


    Rather, it might be better to give her some encouragement.


    ¡ºIn the meantime, shall we move from here and talk somewhere we can rest?¡»


    ¡¸Of course, I¡¯ll do as you ask, Ain.¡¹


    Disheartened, Ciel walks forth totteringly. It might be the fatigue from the earlier battle, as well as from her becoming discouraged, showing.


    I want to let her rest as soon as possible, so a short distance away from where we defeated the monster, I had her go off the road and sit hiding among the trees.


    ¡¸Say, Ain. Will you perhaps still stay with me even in the future?


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    Ciel seems as though she is about to break into tears at any moment now; even so, she¡¯s doing her best to stop herself from crying.


    What would be best to say to her? I don¡¯t have any parenting experience nor have I ever been in this kind of situation in Japan, so I¡¯m stumped. Ciel¡¯s a good girl, so I hope she¡¯ll be able to forgive herself and find a good compromise for herself.


    ¡ºYou¡¯re talking about when volunteering to keep watch for me, right Ciel?¡»


    ¡¸Right, that¡¯s right. Even though Ain told me not to push myself, I didn¡¯t even realize if I was pushing myself or not.¡¹


    ¡ºStill, you were doing your best to take some load off of me, right Ciel?¡»


    ¡¸Even so, in the end, I only troubled Ain even more¡­¡­ ¡¹


    ¡ºRather, I think that the one that was more burdened here is you, Ciel. Besides, you didn¡¯t only increase your own load. Because you kept me company last night, I was able to notice the difference of the night sky from when I was alive.


    Up until yesterday, I was so on the edge that I didn¡¯t even notice it before. All I thought about was how to run away as quick as possible.


    So thanks to you, I was able to relax myself, Ciel.¡»


    ¡¸But that doesn¡¯t change that, because of me, Ain was exposed to danger.


    Even though I want to protect Ain, I always need protection, I¡¯m useless.¡¹


    ¡ºIf you say that, then it¡¯s also my fault for having so much fun yesterday that I didn¡¯t tell you to go to sleep, Ciel.


    Besides, giving me a chance to relax is the opposite of useless, don¡¯t you agree Ciel?¡»


    Seeing Ciel reluctantly nod, I continue speaking.


    I feel our whole conversation from earlier had hit my conscience back like a boomerang, I just want to run away.


    ¡ºHowever, it is true that Ciel might have done things wrong this time.


    Ciel, do you know what I can do?¡»


    ¡¸Umm, barrier and detection sorcery, right? After that, Ain can sing. Of course, I enjoy it when you sing to support me as a Song Princess as well, but I love it when Ain sings even without any reason.¡¹


    ¡ºI love seeing Ciel dance as well.


    Also, another thing I can do is to be restlessly on the lookout.


    Then on the other hand, what are the things I can¡¯t do?¡»


    ¡¸Ain can¡¯t use combat sorcery, right? But that¡¯s¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡ºAlright, we don¡¯t need to talk about that right now.


    I can¡¯t use combat sorcery, so it¡¯s safe to say that I practically can¡¯t fight.


    To be honest, I can¡¯t do the dirty work. I¡¯m quite relieved about that fact, but it¡¯s also something I¡¯m extremely ashamed of.¡»


    Noticing myself being relieved that Ciel is desperately rejecting my words, I hate myself more. It¡¯s because I¡¯m aware that I¡¯m saying an awfully terrible thing and that the conversation is going in a way that¡¯s convenient for me.


    I¡¯m sure that in the future, there will be a time that we will need to kill not only monsters, but people as well. And I¡¯m certain that at that time, I would advise her that it would be best to kill them. However, no matter how much I advise and no matter how much I justify it, since I myself can¡¯t fight, the one that will execute it will always be Ciel.


    Compared to that, what I¡¯m doing is nothing special. In actuality, I practically don¡¯t have any burden on me. If I¡¯m forced to say it, I¡¯m just bored without anything to do at night.


    Still, I think it¡¯s for the best. If I was able to do everything, Ciel would become a dependent child unable to do anything and even presently, I can proudly say that I did my best for Ciel. For now, just ignore this mistake for a bit, please.


    ¡ºI understand how you feel as well, Ciel. However, just as you want to do your best for me, I also want to do something for you, Ciel.¡»


    ¡¸You too, Ain?¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right, it¡¯s because I wanted to protect Ciel that I was able to protect you up until now. There were also times I¡¯ve failed to do so, but I would be troubled if Ciel wants to take this away from me.


    After all, I can¡¯t defeat monsters for you, Ciel.¡»


    ¡¸So then I can fight, right? But, I don¡¯t want to just fight.¡¹


    ¡ºThen in my case, I¡¯m only protecting.


    I¡¯m happy that you¡¯re concerned about me, Ciel; but as I said earlier, fighting is very difficult for me to do. Therefore, I want Ciel to first be capable at combat. In other words, we distribute our roles. I¡¯ll defend, you¡¯ll attack. I¡¯ll sing and you¡¯ll dance. There might be other things we want to do for each other, but first we need to settle firmly into these roles. Ciel, your role is to stay in good condition until when we need to fight, so you can go with all your strength.¡»


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Understood.¡¹


    ¡ºOnce we¡¯ve settled into our roles, we¡¯ll likely have more leeway.


    I¡¯m sure that as you live on, time will come that just one sleepless night would no longer be a problem.


    When that time comes, let¡¯s keep watch together again. I look forward to chatting with you after all, Ciel.¡»


    ¡¸Absolutely. It¡¯s a promise, alright?¡¹


    ¡ºOf course. Promise.¡»


    Finally, it seems that I¡¯ve convinced Ciel, so I breathe a sigh of relief in my mind.


    I¡¯ve said a lot of different things, but I really don¡¯t want Ciel to push herself too much and I hope she grows healthy as well.


    She doesn¡¯t have to live fast and recklessly, so gradually learning to do things one by one is fine. I hope I was able to convey this to her even just a bit.


    In the first place, it might have been best if I was able to tell this to her yesterday, but it¡¯s too much to expect from me.


    ¡¸Say, Ain?¡¹


    Now wearing a cheerful expression, like she has been freed of some evil spirit, Ciel calls my name.


    ¡ºWhat is it?¡»


    ¡¸I exposed Ain to danger but to be honest, I believed that Ain would be able to defend against that giant¡¯s attack, you know?


    So when it actually protected me, I was really proud.


    It doesn¡¯t change the fact that I was pathetic but you¡¯re really amazing Ain. Remember this, okay?¡¹


    Being praised so frankly, I think of how incomprehensible my barrier¡¯s defensive capability have become as an escape. Though, that in itself is a fact that I want to escape from as well.

 CH 14

    A night passed since then. Today, Ciel is briskly walking through the forest in perfect condition. Since we got more carry space as our food supplies dwindled, we brought the giant¡¯s magic stone with us. We also found a monster today, but luck ran out when we rushed to battle it as a warm-up.


    What waited for us there was an eight-legged large spider with its bright red eyes and glistening fangs. But in an instant, it left only its magic stone behind and turned to ash. I obviously have a trauma with spiders and Ciel does as well.


    We brought the magic stone just in case. It was two sizes smaller that the one-eyed giant¡¯s and the density of the magic power it contained was thin as well. Still, it might be useful when experimenting on how to seize magic power inside magic stones and make it my own.


    It might be also useful for learning the value of magic stones as well, we would¡¯ve been even much happier if it didn¡¯t come from a spider. Still, it might be better since we¡¯re not reluctant in letting it go.


    We also thought of defeating other monsters before but after encountering the spider, I wanted to get out of the forest as quickly as possible; so after a unanimous decision from the both of us, we hurried our pace. To be honest, we¡¯re going in a much faster pace than when we were focusing on trying to get away from the duke.


    ¡¸I think it¡¯s getting somewhat brighter.¡¹


    ¡ºWe¡¯re likely near the end of the forest. After all, just a bit further from here and the amount of trees sharply decreases.¡»


    ¡¸We¡¯re finally getting out of this forest. If we were to stay here even for another night, I would¡¯ve had driven those big spiders to extinction.¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s quite extreme.¡»


    ¡¸Didn¡¯t you also mutter the same thing, Ain?¡¹


    ¡ºRight, spiders should just disappear. Let¡¯s exterminate them.¡»


    As we discussed so while rotating Ciel¡¯s palm, we can now see the end of the forest. Seeing that we are at last out of that man¡¯s territory, I now feel like I can catch a breath. But as I thought so, I feel something out of place with the boundary of the forest.


    ¡ºWould you mind stopping just before we exit the forest?¡»


    Not to brag, but I do consider myself a specialist in Barrier Sorcery. After all, I did learn many things from the mansion¡¯s collection; and even if this is something meant to monitor the people going in and out, we wouldn¡¯t be discovered.


    After all, even that man couldn¡¯t notice my magic power concealment. It¡¯s safe to say that the effectiveness of my concealment regarding sorcery is guaranteed. Still, it can¡¯t erase our presence, much more allow some god-like feat of stealth like making us unnoticeable even when we¡¯re right in front of an enemy.


    I¡¯m done with the preparations, so I tell Ciel and have her exit the forest. Even in the forest, we can see the sky; but the feeling you get when your field of vision opens up as the trees are no longer in sight is quite different.


    In front of us, the road splits into three directions and we can see a mountain far in the distance, but it¡¯s practically grasslands as far as the eyes can see. Aside from the road, there is only the lush grass swaying in the wind and some spots of trees growing along the roads.


    At any rate, we have three choices here. Regardless of which one we choose; I imagine that it¡¯ll take us two days at most to reach human habitation. However, a somewhat large town would be great, if possible. In that kind of place, it seems much simpler to disappear into the crowd.


    Leaving the choice to Ciel, for now I look back at where we came from to confirm what that barrier was all about.


    ¡ºAs I thought, this is what happens.¡»


    ¡¸What do you mean by that?¡¹


    Turning around as she spoke, Ciel eyes then open wide in surprise. It¡¯s certainly as Ciel said, there is only an ordinary forest there.


    The road we took that should have been there doesn¡¯t exist. It¡¯s not at the level of being hidden behind the trees, it¡¯s at the point that it¡¯s hard to imagine that a person would even think of entering this forest.


    ¡ºIt seems to be a barrier that inhibits recognition. As long as you don¡¯t know that a road exist here, you probably wouldn¡¯t think of entering.¡»


    ¡¸Sorcery is really amazing. No, perhaps this may have already reached the realm of magic.¡¹


    ¡ºProbably so. As I am right now, I can¡¯t possibly replicate it.¡»


    ¡¸So this means that he would go this far to hide that mansion¡­¡­ right?¡¹


    I empathize with Ciel who is taking a deep sigh. This means that that man has enough power to use magic of this scale; moreover, he¡¯s using that power to hide whatever he¡¯s doing from the world. If he had his eyes on us, it¡¯s probably no exaggeration to say that he¡¯ll chase us till the end of the world.


    ¡ºIt looks like it might be best that we leave this country as soon as possible.¡»


    ¡¸Is it perhaps simple to do so?¡¹


    ¡ºThere¡¯s a high possibility that an average citizen doesn¡¯t have the freedom to travel.


    However, if the organization I imagine does exist, it¡¯s likely possible to do so.¡»


    ¡¸So in the meantime, we¡¯ll figure it out when we reach a place with people, right?


    Ciel lets out a giggle as she said so. It would be nice if it goes as Ciel says, but I think that both Ciel and I understand that our prospects are dim.


    ¡ºNow then, first, about the continuing road splitting into three ways; which one shall we take?¡»


    ¡¸In times like these, there aren¡¯t any signs and such to choose which one is better, aren¡¯t there?¡¹


    ¡ºRegardless of which you choose, I do believe that we¡¯ll reach some village or town somewhere, but there isn¡¯t much basis for deciding on choices like these.


    If you absolutely find it difficult to decide, then it might be better to let the stick decide.¡»


    ¡¸Will we perhaps know which is better if we do so?¡¹


    ¡ºIt¡¯s not a definite answer, but in this situation there might be not much difference between choosing to let the stick decide or talking it out ourselves, don¡¯t you agree?¡»


    ¡¸Hmm¡­¡­ True; rather than use up time here, it would be better to make the choice now, right?


    Is a branch good enough for the stick?¡¹


    After groaning while seemingly pondering on it, Ciel adopts my suggestion. If we were in Japan, then it would be more productive to find a map rather than doing this; but in our current situation, there¡¯s hardly anything we can do.


    Even if the road going straight after leaving the forest leads en route to an ideal town and the roads left and right directs us to villages that hate outsiders; if asked if I would choose the road straight ahead, I wouldn¡¯t be sure. After all, I have no means of knowing if the road ahead so is the best.


    Even if I think that the place we reached isn¡¯t too safe of a place, it would only be on hindsight; the only thing at fault there would be our own bad luck.


    After replying¡¸Of course.¡¹to Ciel, she walks towards the base of the nearest tree.


    She then extends her forefinger and draws an arc, moving as though she was waving a conductor¡¯s baton.


    A blade of air shoots out and a narrow branch falls. It¡¯s vastly weaker than how Ciel¡¯s sorcery should originally be, but even just this was recognized as a dance; being able to use chant-less sorcery isn¡¯t really something I would call disappointing. This shot can at least defeat a large spider after all.


    Out of all the Dance Princess in the past, was there no one that could use sorcery?


    Or perhaps have they just not hit upon the idea of using sorcery to make their dances more fascinating? Regardless of the reason, considering the need to hide Ciel¡¯s job, it really helps that this isn¡¯t known.


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    After picking up the branch, Ciel mutters¡¸Let¡¯s choose the one that the narrower end points to.¡¹and, swinging her arm upwards, she throws it to the air. Soaring just above us, the branch soon loses to gravity and starts falling down.


    And as the branch returns to the ground, it lands center right and falls towards the right.


    Seeing that Ciel says¡¸So here then.¡¹and begins walking on the road to the right.

 CH 15

    ¡¸Ain, Ain! That¡¯s a town, right?¡¹


    As we were travelling on a road wide enough for two wagons to pass by each other, Ciel calls my name in excitement.


    In the direction Ciel was pointing at was a wall made as though to block the path. Moreover, sitting on a hill beyond that, I can see a not so large rampart and a castle as well. And even further beyond that, there seems to be a mountain.


    I don¡¯t know this world¡¯s standards, but it doesn¡¯t seem to be a large town.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s my first time seeing this kind of town, but yes, it should be a town.¡»


    ¡¸But considering that, I don¡¯t see any people nearby. I wonder why?¡¹


    ¡ºI can¡¯t feel any human-like responses with detection as well. Though, there are still some small animals and monsters here and there.¡»


    ¡¸So does this perhaps mean that this town isn¡¯t quite big?¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. At the very least, they don¡¯t have much traffic here for sure.¡»


    In my mind, I imagined that a town would have a long line of people at the gates and it would take hours to just enter, but it may be that it doesn¡¯t happen unless the town is large.


    I do believe that being bothered by someone while waiting in line is a common cliche, but it seems that it¡¯s not going to happen here.


    Not being bothered is good and all, but while I wanted to get some information before entering the town, it doesn¡¯t seem like I can do any data gathering.


    Seeing that there aren¡¯t any people around even as the town is in sight, Ciel shows a complicated relieved but disappointed look.


    ¡¸Well, that¡¯s good too, perhaps?¡¹


    ¡ºAs I thought, is meeting men bothering you?¡»


    ¡¸Eh, well¡­¡­ Yeah.¡¹


    ¡ºIf you¡¯d like, we can also switch now, okay?¡»


    ¡¸There still aren¡¯t any people, right? Then it¡¯s fine.¡¹


    ¡ºI want to confirm this in advance but if you¡¯ll ever need to fight in front of people, will you be alright Ciel?¡»


    Ciel being bad with men can¡¯t be helped, but currently I don¡¯t know how much it affects her. In our normal everyday life, I can just take her place when needed; but if my expectations are true and we get dragged into trouble, we might have no choice but to fight against men.


    At that time, it¡¯s much better if Ciel¡¯s the one fighting; or rather, if I do it, I probably won¡¯t lose but I won¡¯t win as well.


    However, I believe that Ciel can win. So far, objectively speaking, the only data I have is that we¡¯re strong enough to overpower the one-eyed giant, but I suspect that it means we¡¯re pretty strong.


    After all, the one-eyed giant was strong enough to easily mow through the pig man¡¯s escorts and those same escorts have consistently defeated every monster before encountering the one-eyed giant.


    At the very least, it should be safe to assume that they were about middle class in strength.


    Still, there is also a possibility that the escorts were actually really weak and the one-eyed giant could be defeated by anyone with some understanding of combat.


    ¡¸I¡¯ll be fine. In the first place, as long as I¡¯m with Ain, there¡¯s nothing to be afraid of.


    If that wasn¡¯t the case, then when facing that man, I would have no other choice but to tremble in fear, you know?¡¹


    ¡ºThat may be true, but please tell me if it gets difficult for you, alright?¡»


    As Ciel said, even when facing the most traumatizing Duke Respelgia, she was undaunted.


    However, I think that even if she can endure it, it might mean that she won¡¯t feel at ease.


    In that respect, I¡¯ll just see how it goes, I guess. This is Ciel¡¯s life after all, so it¡¯s not good if I interfere too much.


    ¡ó¡ó¡ó


    ¡ºI didn¡¯t notice it when seeing it from afar but the wall is this large, huh.


    I wonder how many times taller this is compared to me. And it continues on even reaching so far away, right?¡»


    ¡ºI assume that the wall is for protecting the town from monsters, so it¡¯s likely that it surrounds the town.¡»


    ¡ºSo in other words, the whole town, continues that far beyond, right? Amazing, that¡¯s amazing!¡»


    Ciel gets excited in a voice only I can hear, but it¡¯s quite heartwarming.


    Considering that we¡¯re going to enter the town, there¡¯s a risk that people would view Ciel as a suspicious individual if she frequently talks to herself; so we tried to have a conversation without Ciel speaking out loud and it was surprisingly easily done.


    And with that said, we¡¯re finally nearing the wall. While it isn¡¯t a long queue, there¡¯s still a line to enter the town, so I switched with Ciel and we¡¯re currently at the end of the line. When lining up, a few people were staring at us, but that was inevitable.


    The clothes of the people here are, as expected, different from that in Japan. A lot of them were made of durable-looking thick cloth and had simple designs. Men wore a plain, long-sleeved t-shirt and pants underneath a cloak.


    Women wore a simple dress and a vest, maybe for fashion I guess?


    Other than that, there are some people wearing tough-looking boots, hats, and other accessories as well.


    It¡¯s only my assumption but the former might be people coming from a nearby town and the latter are probably travelers or people coming from far away.


    Among them, I¡¯m absolutely out of place. First of all, everyone is clearly taller than me. Even when compared to the shortest person I can see, I probably look like a child.


    And regarding the clothes, it clearly doesn¡¯t fit my size, so again it stands out.


    Fortunately, there are a lot of people covering their hair, so I¡¯m not standing out in that respect..


    Right now, people who are good at communicating would probably talk with the person in front of them. Most of all, they would be keen on gathering information from other people but, unfortunately, my communication level is zero.


    When I was still alive, I did at least socialize with other people, so I want to believe that I¡¯m not completely hopeless; but it¡¯s not like I frequently went out and had many friends, so I only socialized enough that it won¡¯t bother me in everyday life. And most of all, I have a big blank period of 10 years.


    Well, I can¡¯t really keep running away from this, so I guess I¡¯ll try talking to the gatekeepers.


    They probably won¡¯t just let us in anyways.


    While I was thinking about this, it seems like it¡¯s almost my turn.


    The gate is a common swinging type but from its size, it might need multiple people just to open and close the gate. Maybe it¡¯s equipped with something to open and close it automatically.


    On both sides of the gate, there is a pair of gatekeepers standing on guard, one of them would interact with people and the other would watch over them.


    Also, there might be a lookout inside the gate side since detection picked up ten-odd people standing by.


    If there are any problems, they would likely take them to an office-like place I can see peeking beyond the door.


    ¡¸Next.¡¹Being shortly called, it¡¯s my turn now.


    One of them is about 30 years old wearing only the bare minimum armor and the other wears a complete set making the face hard to see. My first impression of them together reminds me of the neighborhood blue-collar workers, I suppose.


    When the gatekeeper saw me, after opening his eyes wide in surprise, he scratched his head with a seemingly troubled look.


    ¡¸Boy¡­¡­ No, little miss? Being here means that you want to enter the town of Sannois, right?


    Where are your parents?¡¹


    ¡¸I came here alone. My parents are¡­¡­ Umm¡­¡­¡¹


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    I intentionally muddled my words. Even if I told him the truth, he wouldn¡¯t actually believe me, and even if he does, it¡¯s probably more likely that he¡¯ll hand us over to Duke Respelgia.


    Thinking that this would happen, I thought of a setting for us to some extent, but it¡¯s much better if people made their own misunderstandings by themselves. If they do that, then even if what we say feels forced, they might randomly interpret it to convince themselves, after all.


    The gatekeeper crosses his arms and goes into a thinking pose, then he said to the other gatekeeper behind him¡¸Call for the next shift.¡¹The armored person nodded silently and went inside the door I was looking at before.


    The remaining gatekeeper took a deep breath, as though he was trying to hide a sigh, and continued our conversation.


    ¡¸I¡¯m sorry to say this little miss, but right now I can¡¯t let you through inside. Do you understand why?¡¹


    ¡¸Because I need money?¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s that too. Also, we need to check if it¡¯s okay to let you inside.


    So for that, I want to have a talk for a bit, but we can¡¯t really talk here for long, you see? So let¡¯s go talk inside.¡¹


    ¡¸Can I get in after that?¡¹


    Likely tanned brown because of his work as a gatekeeper, the tone of his voice gradually became weaker as he muttered.


    It seems that he doesn¡¯t seem to be a bad person, that¡¯s a relief.


    It looks like not all people are like Duke Rispelgia, the mask-faced butler, and the pig man. In this case, the day I leave this to Ciel might not be too far.


    The armored person came back with two armored people, so we stopped talking for now and went through the door as they take our place. Beyond the door is a hallway with some doors on the right.


    I was brought to a somewhat simple room with a table and chair. Since the room is generally made from stone, it gives a cold impression.


    The mister told me to stay in this room and went outside.


    The window used for letting sunlight in the room is in a high location and with my height, I can¡¯t look at what¡¯s beyond it.


    In this situation, I wonder how children of Ciel¡¯s age would react?


    Will they get scared after being overwhelmed by the atmosphere? Or will their curiosity show through?


    ¡ºWhich do you think it will be?¡»


    ¡ºI can¡¯t choose if you don¡¯t give me a choice, you know?¡»


    When I tried asking Ciel, she replied with a reasonable answer.


    So now, I asked her how she would react and she answered confidently¡ºNo reaction.¡»


    ¡ºI do understand that he¡¯s different from the people we¡¯ve encountered so far.


    ¡ºBut, I don¡¯t know how I should talk to him, after all. So for that reason, I think I won¡¯t react, so that I can avoid talking as much as possible.


    So, what you¡¯re doing really helps, Ain.¡»


    ¡ºJust hypothetically speaking, being locked up here is still a possibility, so I don¡¯t really know if I¡¯m doing this right.¡»


    ¡ºWhen that happens, let¡¯s just run away with all our strength.¡»


    Ciel gleefully suggests so, but I think I¡¯ll do my best to prevent that from happening.


    If that does happen, there might be some casualties, and causing a ruckus could cause them to call for someone stronger than us.


    And most of all, there¡¯s a possibility that mister gatekeeper might be even stronger than us.


    After a while, he returned and brought a lady with him.


    I assume that she¡¯s an office worker type, she¡¯s a neatly dressed lady about 20 years old and seems to be a strong-willed type. Her gaze seems to be probing me, I can¡¯t calm down. She has a pen-like thing on one hand and a board-like thing on the other, so she might be a secretary.


    ¡¸For now, take a seat.¡¹


    As the mister said that, I sat on the chair facing his seat.


    The mister sits in between me and the exit, and the lady is standing diagonally behind him.


    The reason the lady was brought is probably in consideration for me, since I am, well, a girl. There wasn¡¯t really any introductions from them and the inquiry begins.


    ¡¸Little miss, what¡¯s your name?¡¹


    ¡¸Cielmer¡¹


    ¡¸Little miss, where have you been up until now?¡¹


    ¡¸Inside the forest. Deep in the forest, I lived with mom and dad.


    And then¡­¡­ Ummm¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Stop, you don¡¯t need to say any more than that.¡¹


    Seeing the mister shake his head, I think on how being a girl is extremely convenient in these kinds of situations, for real.


    If I was an adult male, it likely wouldn¡¯t go this smoothly. Still, if I was an adult male, I probably wouldn¡¯t be brought here in the first place; I would just be asked to pay the toll fee and be allowed to pass through.


    ¡¸But still¡­¡­ Except for rare cases, it¡¯s not allowed to let kids with no Job yet enter town, you see¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m already 10 years old, you know?¡¹


    It seems like they misjudged my age, so I honestly told the truth; his eyes blinked in surprise and he asked me again¡¸Really?¡¹


    I thought that everybody here seemed tall, but it¡¯s likely that they¡¯re like the Europeans on Earth.


    I assume that Ciel is also the same, but no matter how you look at it, she didn¡¯t have enough nutrition so it¡¯s likely that her development is slow.


    Recovering from his surprise, the mister showed a somewhat relieved look. It seems like our chances of getting inside just got higher.


    ¡¸Can I get in if I¡¯m 10 years old?¡¹


    ¡¸Well it¡¯s not that 10-year-old kids are allowed to randomly pass through, but it¡¯s a lot easier than if you were 9 and below.¡¹


    ¡¸Then, can I go?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯d really like to let you, but not yet. What can you do, little miss?


    I¡¯ll be frank, I¡¯m going to be bothered if you can¡¯t do anything and just became a pickpocket once you get into town.¡¹


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    ¡¸What can you do?¡¹Behind those words I can vaguely see his intention of asking what my Job is, but I don¡¯t have any intent of honestly answering here. If I have no other choice but to say it, I¡¯ll say that I¡¯m a Song Princess, but that time is not now.


    ¡¸I can defeat monsters.¡¹


    ¡¸Well considering that you lived deep inside a forest, that makes sense. So then you¡¯re aiming to be a Hunter, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Are Hunters people defeating monsters for a living?¡¹


    ¡¸Defeating monsters is what they mainly do, but I hear that low ranked hunters can do requests like what errands kids do.


    If you really can defeat a monster, then you¡¯d probably get out of the lower ranks immediately but¡­¡­¡¹


    The mister stops talking mid-sentence and steals glances at me as though he¡¯s asking for something. I don¡¯t really feel happy with a middle aged man giving me that kind of look, but since I know what he¡¯s trying to say, I decided to take out the spider¡¯s magic stone.


    I plan on thinking about what I should do with the one-eyed giant¡¯s magic stone after seeing how he¡¯ll react to this one.


    As I place this magic stone, that I can barely carry in one hand, on the top of the table, he was surprised once again and let out a¡¸Hah?¡¹


    ¡¸Is this something really rare to see?¡¹


    ¡¸No,it¡¯s not really that rare. Instead, it¡¯s really common to find.


    But not 10-year-old kids bringing this. At the very least, this is beyond the level of a novice hunter. Which shows just how good the Job is.¡¹


    ¡¸Since it depends on the Job, is it really that surprising?¡¹


    After answering my question, mister began talking almost in monologue; but for the sake of data gathering, I ask him more questions.


    He might have become more talkative because he¡¯s talking to a young girl, but is this really okay for a gatekeeper?


    Maybe he¡¯s only teaching me this because it¡¯s general knowledge but for me, it¡¯s really a lifesaver.


    ¡¸Usually it takes a few years to learn how to use your Job¡¯s power.


    I don¡¯t really know the details, but I hear that even hunters take at least two years before they can hunt monsters.¡¹


    ¡¸Can you be a hunter when you¡¯re 10 years old?¡¹


    ¡¸If it¡¯s just becoming one, you can. As long as you¡¯re 10 years old, your Job doesn¡¯t matter. But being able to live as a hunter is another story.¡¹


    ¡¸Then it¡¯s like I found how I can work now.¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah, that¡¯s right. It should be fine to let you enter the town. The toll fee is 2 large silver coins, but can you pay?


    If you have a certificate, then you can enter for free but you don¡¯t have one, right?¡¹


    While appropriately continuing the conversation, I feel out the money inside the pouch. The pouch has both gold and silver coins, but unfortunately large silver coins seem to be something that exist.


    The money I have are gold coins and silver coins, and both of them are uniform in size with their respective coin groups. Considering that the previous owner was quite rich, what I thought to be silver coins might be large silver coins, but I still can¡¯t be sure of that.


    ¡¸Hunters can go freely as long as you show your card¡¹While being taught so, I took out a gold coin and placed in on the desk.


    ¡¸Is this okay?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m not going to be surprised anymore, but a gold coin even came out. Alta, do you have 8 large silver?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. I prepared some just in case.¡¹


    The lady continuously taking down notes of our conversation ever since she entered the room spoke her first words.


    Her name seems to be Alta-san. It¡¯s hard to read her emotions from the tone of her voice and she gives the impression of a professional.


    Also, it seems like 1 gold coin is worth 10 large silver coins.


    ¡¸Well then, sorry for keeping you here, little miss.¡¹


    ¡¸Umm!¡¹


    After finishing the transaction, it felt like our conversation was ending so I called out in a slightly loud voice to show that I have still something I want to talk about.


    Sorry about this mister, but I want to get as much information as I can now.


    ¡¸What is it?¡¹


    ¡¸How much do I need to stay in an inn in this town?¡¹


    ¡¸Generally 2 silver coins, I guess. A better place would probably cost more, though. But you can stay for about 40 days with what you have, so don¡¯t worry about it.¡¹


    80 silver coins makes 8 large silver coins, so this means that 10 silver coins make 1 large silver coins. I¡¯m glad that it¡¯s easy to remember.


    Rather, it¡¯s likely that way so it would be easy to remember.


    In addition, there seems to me no doubt that the silver coins I have are the large silver coins. In that case, I suppose that we won¡¯t be worrying about money for quite a long time.


    ¡¸Also, where do you become a hunter?¡¹


    ¡¸Go straight after passing through the gate and the big building, and what you¡¯ll run into is the place where hunters are gathered. The Hunter¡¯s Guild, commonly known as just the Guild.


    Maybe I should even write you a letter of introduction. After all, they might immediately turn you away, little miss.¡¹


    Saying so, mister takes a sheet of paper from Alta-san and began writing something.


    The letter of introduction honestly helps. After all, if people don¡¯t recognize me as a 10 year old, not only can I not be a hunter, I probably won¡¯t be able to work at all.


    I¡¯ve asked most of what I needed to hear, so I¡¯ll make the next question my last one and ask about other things at the Hunter¡¯s Guild.


    ¡¸In this town, will people be mean to the color of someone¡¯s hair?¡¹


    ¡¸Oh, your hair, huh. It¡¯s true that it¡¯s rare to have hair that white, but I don¡¯t think that will happen.¡¹


    ¡¸Um¡­¡­ did you notice it before?¡¹


    ¡¸It looked like you wanted to keep it hidden so I didn¡¯t talk about it, but despite how I look, I have been a gatekeeper for a long time.


    Well, it does stand out so it¡¯s best that you take care. There are hunters that are bad people too, okay?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, I¡¯ll be careful. Thank you very much for the advice.¡¹


    While I¡¯m at it, I¡¯m sorry for doubting your capability as a gatekeeper in my mind.


    After that, just as I entered, I was led outside and we part our ways.


    As we parted, he told me¡¸If something happens, feel free to visit!¡¹He really is a good person.


    In any case, I managed to enter the town without any problems so I decided to head to the Guild first.

 CH 16

    Beyond the gates of the town of Sannois, there¡¯s a marketplace opened up and even in this time, it¡¯s still quite lively.


    Still, I¡¯m curious about the few shops that aren¡¯t open among the many shops lined up.


    And although I did call it lively, it¡¯s not busy to the point that it¡¯s hard to walk around and, being small, I can easily weave through the gaps in the crowd. Now that I¡¯m through the gates, since I wasn¡¯t attracting that much attention, I suppose the people only see me as a normal child.


    After leaving the commerce district-like area, I now feel a sort of unrest in the atmosphere.


    While it¡¯s true that it¡¯s still bustling with people, different from the liveliness of the marketplace, it¡¯s somewhat turbulent.


    I even occasionally see people walking around that are unlike the regular pedestrians wearing simple clothes, having weapons on them and equipped with protective armor.


    In the tavern I caught sight of while on the way; there were a lot of men drinking about even though the sun is still up.


    ¡ºSo the organization Ain was talking about before, was the Hunter¡¯s Guild, right?¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. I wasn¡¯t exactly sure what it would be called, but anyways, I assumed that there would likely be an organization that would make a livelihood out of defeating monsters.¡»


    ¡ºIs that because there was one in your hometown?¡»


    ¡ºThere wasn¡¯t, actually. However, it seems wasteful to let physically healthy but problematic people roam idly.


    I thought an organization that would gather and lead people like them might exist in towns of a certain scale, and that the organization itself would probably be large in scale, as well. Most of all, I believe that they might accept even unidentifiable people.¡»


    Made up a somewhat believable explanation, but the real answer is that it¡¯s just a common thing to see in fictional media. And because I know that there are organizations similar to the Hunter¡¯s Guild in stories and such, I reached the conclusion that there might be something like that in this world.


    That¡¯s also the reason why I introduced myself as Cielmer, because I thought that a name would be needed to register as a Hunter. Although I¡¯m the one mainly active in this town, I do plan on shifting it so that Ciel would be the one mainly active in the future. So in that time, it¡¯s going to be inconvenient if the name registered is Ainsel.


    And though this might also be based on fictional information, I believe that guilds like these aren¡¯t organizations that exist for a certain country, but are the ones that cross over national borders most of the time. So a lie I made up here might become a problem for us in another country.


    ¡ºAfter going to the guild, what might we be doing today?¡»


    ¡ºCome to think of it, I didn¡¯t actually talk about it. It will depend on what time we leave the guild but if we still have some time after finding an inn, why don¡¯t we go find you some clothes?


    Since it seems like we don¡¯t need to hide your hair, why don¡¯t we take the chance to get you prettied up?¡»


    ¡ºI don¡¯t really mind staying like this, you know?¡»


    ¡ºAbsolutely not.¡»


    Ciel wearing it means that I¡¯m going to wear it too, but maybe since I look completely different from how I was before; it feels like playing with a dress up doll.


    Rather, I guess it¡¯s more similar to a game¡¯s avatar creation.


    In online games, there are people so unusually obsessed with roleplaying that they pick how their equipment looks like rather that the practicality, but now I know how they feel.


    Anyways, I¡¯m really worried about the fact that in our life so far, Ciel hasn¡¯t shown any interest in fashion. I wasn¡¯t really the type to think about being fashionable too, but it might be for the best to be conscious about how Ciel looks if possible. Since Ciel is pretty to begin with, it would be a waste to leave it be.


    But now that I think about it, maybe I also need to not only think about her clothes, but also on how to tend to her skin and style her hair as well.


    As expected, I¡¯m actually reluctant on going that far; but if I don¡¯t do it, Ciel would likely be lazy about it too. Most of all, since I¡¯m the one actively moving for a while, it¡¯s probably part of the things that I should do something about.


    Hmmmmmm¡­¡­ While I was deeply contemplating, Ciel asked¡ºWhat were you thinking about now?¡»


    ¡ºI was pondering a bit about myself.¡»


    ¡ºSo did you perhaps learn something?¡»


    ¡ºFor now, I concluded that it¡¯s a problem for next time.


    Since it seems like we¡¯ve just arrived at our destination.¡»


    After seeing the end of the road and stopping right before a building, I forcibly end our conversation.


    Out of all the buildings I¡¯ve seen in this town, which were usually about the size of one or two-storey buildings, this three-storey building is considerably big, so I¡¯m sure that this is the place. In addition, there¡¯s a gate leading to the outside next to it. So it seems that people can drop by the guild after coming back from the outside.


    I imagined it to look like an extension of a tavern, but it actually has the exterior of a somewhat stylish shop.


    Opening the central door, I see a counter in the front, a simple lounge-like area with tables and chairs furnished on both sides of the counter, and people that do indeed look like how a hunter would be having a discussion about something. Since it looks like they¡¯re not selling any alcohol, it seems that it¡¯s not annexed to a tavern.


    Seeing that it doesn¡¯t look as spacious as it seems from the outside, this probably means that there¡¯s just that much work done behind the scenes.


    As I opened the door and entered inside, there were some people stealing a glance at me but seemingly losing interest, they immediately went back to their conversation.


    I somewhat expected to receive an¡¸Oi missy, this ain¡¯t a place fer little missies like you¡¹kind of thing, but it looks like that¡¯s not happening.


    But the part where the receptionist is a young lady seems to be the same as it is in the stories. I¡¯d probably still think of the same thing even if the receptionist was an old man or lady, though.


    Well, being unbothered is for the best, but a problem occurred as I reached the counter. It¡¯s extremely tall. It reaches up until my neck.


    Because of that, the reception lady ended up looking at me with a warm gaze. Also, due to our height gap, her moderately large things are right in front of my eyes.


    To see the face, I need to point my head up but it¡¯s a bit painful.


    ¡¸How may I help you today?¡¹


    ¡¸Um, could you please read this?¡¹


    If I just told her that I want to be a Hunter, she probably won¡¯t take me seriously, so I hand the receptionist the letter of introduction that Mister Gatekeeper wrote for us


    ¡¸Then, if I may.¡¹After politely replying to me, she received the letter and, with a surprised look, repeatedly looked at the letter then back at me.


    ¡¸Please wait for a moment.¡¹Excusing herself, she went inside the place behind the counter.


    If I¡¯m correct, it should be written there that it guarantees that I¡¯m 10 years old and am capable of defeating monsters, but maybe there¡¯s a problem?


    ¡ºOr is it because of how we look?¡»


    ¡ºWell, everyone is taller than us. I haven¡¯t seen anybody shorter than me, after all.


    Can we safely become a Hunter, I wonder? Will we perhaps be mistaken of being a child?¡»


    ¡ºI believe that it¡¯s fine. If not, then lets at least find a place to sell the magic stones.¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood.¡»


    Ciel ended our conversation, I assume it¡¯s because she noticed the receptionist coming back.


    The receptionist, probably because she was rushing, is breathing a bit fast.


    ¡¸Thank you for waiting. We are currently validating the letter, so would like to hear an explanation about Hunters?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, please.¡¹


    ¡¸The Hunter¡¯s Guild was originally an organization that aimed to defend towns or villages by defeating monsters nearby.


    Since the Hunters leave the town constantly, gradually people who can¡¯t leave the town freely such as the town¡¯s inhabitants, nobles, and the town itself began to send out requests, and that¡¯s the present condition of the Hunter¡¯s Guild.¡¹


    ¡¸So do Hunters only need to do requests?¡¹


    ¡¸That would be the gist of it. By completing requests, they receive money from the client through the guild.


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    ¡¸First of all, being an F Rank allows you to freely exit the town. The Hunter Card made during the registration will act as an entry pass limited to this town, so you won¡¯t be required to pay for the toll fee.


    From E Rank, you will be allowed to accept requests for monster subjugation.


    From D Rank, your Hunter Card will act as an entry pass limited only to this country, so you can move much more freely. Reaching D Rank generally guarantees your social status as well.


    Moreover, when reaching B Rank and above, you will be allowed to go to the Guild Headquarters. That means you can freely travel between countries.¡¹


    So that means, our current goal for now is to become a B Rank Hunter.


    It doesn¡¯t seem like we can immediately get out of the country after registering as a Hunter. There might be other ways out but, from how she was speaking, it seems to be difficult for the general public to leave the country. At the same time, I¡¯m now sure that the Hunter¡¯s Guild is an organization that bypasses countries. I¡¯m really thankful that the effort we put in here will have a direct effect on other countries.


    ¡¸To raise your Rank as a Hunter, you will need to have enough achievements recognized and pass the examination.


    First, you should probably start from regularly completing requests. The examinations are usually formal matches.


    After all, working as a Hunter requires strength.¡¹


    ¡¸So, can¡¯t I start from E or D Rank right away?¡¹


    ¡¸If you¡¯re deemed strong enough, then it¡¯s possible to start from E Rank. After that, however, to become D Rank you will need to be tested if you are competent enough to be a Hunter. Concerning that, the Hunter¡¯s Guild periodically offers training courses, so please try participating in them. If you join all the courses, then you could be deemed acceptable in as short as a few months.


    Furthermore, in cases when your Rank doesn¡¯t match up with your strength or when you leave a particularly great achievement, your Rank might also be raised as an exception.¡¹


    ¡¸So working regularly is for the best, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. People that are on a rush to rise in Ranks and lost their life accepting requests beyond their level are common to see.¡¹


    Hearing her frankly saying this really paints a picture of how easy it is to lose your life in this world.


    If you stepped into the forest for a bit and encounter that one-eyed giant, you¡¯d usually just die. Even without that, several of those green midgets would often be dangerous enough.


    ¡¸I¡¯ll continue the explanation, okay? Among the requests, there are common requests put up by the guild that are available at all times.


    This is because the guild buys out the materials from monsters that are usable for weapons and magic stones that are said to be created from monsters. These ones have no required Rank. Concerning the request, I believe that there will be a much more detailed explanation when you accept them.¡¹


    Right after explaining things that are generally asked about, a man whispers something into the receptionist¡¯s ear.


    Then after nodding a few times, she once again looks at me.


    ¡¸It seems that the letter has been validated while we were talking. So after giving a brief explanation of the bylaws, I would like to ask a few questions. Alright?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. Please continue.¡¹


    Among what she said after, the main points of it would be:


    ?Disputes between Hunters are forbidden. If it can¡¯t be avoided, then formal battles will be allowed.


    ?Damaging towns or villages are also forbidden


    ?Forcibly asking for an individual¡¯s Job and recklessly spreading it around is forbidden.


    ?Falsifying your Hunter Card and Rank is forbidden.


    ?In times of emergencies, you will be called for an obligatory gathering but unless there are special reasons, refusing is forbidden.


    ?In cases where you have violated these forbidden clauses, you may at worst lose the qualification to be a Hunter and be forbidden to reenter then on.


    ?You will be free to act as you like, but if your extended lack of activity is unauthorized, your Rank may be decreased.


    ?There are separate Party Ranks and Individual Ranks and if the strength of a party with individuals of the same Rank is deemed acceptable, they will be allowed to accept requests one Rank higher than their individual Rank.


    ?A change of party can be done in any local guild.


    To sum it all up. There are actually more rules and details, but these are probably the only ones we need to pay attention to.


    It was surprising that there was a forbidden clause concerning Jobs, but it seems that Hunters don¡¯t consider Job discrimination as a good thing.


    Maybe they just don¡¯t care as long as you¡¯re strong.


    ¡¸Now then, for the creation of your Hunter Card, we will be filling in the needed information through inquiry but, can you write?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes.¡¹


    ¡¸Then, please¡­¡­¡¹


    The receptionist was about to hand us a sheet of paper but then, she stopped.


    Yup. The counter is so tall that I can¡¯t see anything. I can read, I can write, but I didn¡¯t think that we wouldn¡¯t be tall enough.¡¸Then may I read out the forms and fill it in instead?¡¹Since she was being considerate of me, I gladly accept her proposal.


    ¡¸First, may I have your name and age?¡¹


    ¡¸Cielmer, 10 years old.¡¹


    ¡¸Then, if possible, I¡¯d like to ask for your Job, otherwise what you are good at.¡¹


    ¡¸I can use sorcery.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. Then how about I introduce you to a party?¡¹


    ¡¸I plan to act alone.¡¹


    After frankly telling her that I wanted to go solo, the receptionist looked at me worryingly before saying¡¸That¡¯s all.¡¹and passing me the paper. She probably wants me to check if she miswrote something.


    ¡ºI do think that we¡¯re sort of in a party, don¡¯t you think?¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s true. But they likely won¡¯t recognize it. And even if they do, I think that it¡¯s better that we don¡¯t do it.¡»


    ¡ºWe do need to keep Ain¡¯s existence hidden as much as possible, after all.¡»


    While having that exchange with Ciel, I confirmed that there were no mistakes and returned the paper.


    ¡¸Then from now on, Cielmer-san is now a Hunter.


    Lastly, would you like to take the exam so you can start from E Rank?¡¹


    There were probably a lot of newbies that took the exam but completely lacked in strength.


    From the receptionist¡¯s words, I can somewhat feel that she¡¯s fed up with it.


    Anyway, since we were given some time, I decided to discuss with Ciel. Though, rather than a discussion, it¡¯s actually more of a confirmation. Also, I sense a person acting fishy from my detection.


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    ¡ºWhat do you think?¡»


    ¡ºYou already planned on taking it, right? When you asked me if I can fight, wasn¡¯t it because you already expected this to happen?¡»


    ¡ºWell, it¡¯s a bit different but¡­¡­ It seems like what I was expecting is going to happen as well.¡»


    ¡ºNo matter what, we need to reach B Rank as fast as we can.


    Ain, do you perhaps think that it¡¯s not going to go well?¡»


    ¡ºI just think that it¡¯s going to be a bit bothersome.¡»


    ¡ºSo then there¡¯s no need to worry about it. It¡¯s also a chance to get rid of that magic stone, after all.¡»


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s actual motive, I told the receptionist ¡¸I¡¯ll take the exam.¡¹ and placed the magic stone we got when we beat the spider on top of the counter.


    ¡¸Is this enough for a proof of strength?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Pardon my rudeness, but is this something you obtained yourself?¡¹


    ¡¸Of cou¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Man, to think that this little girl here actually picked it up.¡¹


    As I was about to answer the receptionist, sure enough one of the Hunters that was looking at us cut in with a crude tone.


    At the very least I expected something like [It¡¯s impossible for ya to be a hunter. I¡¯m gonna teach ya with my strength!] but a much more greedy one came instead.


    Since the receptionist is wearing a frown as well, he¡¯s probably not a well-liked hunter. Still, rather than a girl that just became 10 years old defeating a monster, it¡¯s more believable that a notorious but actively servicing Hunter beat the monster.


    I was wondering what kind of person came to pick a fight, but as I turned and looked up to where the voice came from, I saw the picturesque look of an evil-faced skinhead man wearing a vulgar smile.


    He doesn¡¯t seem to be that strong and it also doesn¡¯t seem like we need to hold back on him.


    I assume that it¡¯s because of how Ciel looks, but the skinhead confidently continued the conversation.


    ¡¸You just became a Hunter, right?


    There¡¯s a penalty for stealing other people¡¯s spoils, you know? But if you give it back now, I won¡¯t make this a problem. What do you say? If you don¡¯t give it back, then there¡¯s no choice but to fight, you know? Because we couldn¡¯t solve it with a discussion, after all.¡¹


    ¡¸Then let¡¯s make that battle be the examination, shall we?¡¹


    I don¡¯t really think that we¡¯ll lose even if we battle, but the receptionist¡¯s eyes are telling me not to do it. So as I was thinking about what I should do, the voice of a young lady echoed in my ears.

 CH 17

    The one that suddenly cut into the conversation was a blooming, rather mage-looking young lady with a monocle, a staff, and a robe on top of some loose, flowing clothes.


    The skinhead awkwardly clicked his tongue as soon as he saw her appear.


    ¡¸I¡¯ll serve as the examiners as well; are you good with that, Celia?¡¹


    ¡¸Carol, could you do it?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s one favor, is what I¡¯d like to say; but I have some reasons this time, so how about no favors for now?¡¹


    ¡¸As long as you make sure our young 1 day old hunter safely returns.¡¹


    ¡¸Worrying about that would mean that you¡¯re doubting¡­ uhh, something-chan, you know?¡¹


    ¡ºFor some reason, we¡¯re being left out of the conversation.¡»


    ¡ºWe¡¯re supposed to be the concerned party here, but we¡¯re not even given a glance. Judging by skinhead¡¯s reaction, the lady that just arrived ¡ª Carol-san is most likely high-ranked.


    It might be best that we don¡¯t needlessly speak up right now. It doesn¡¯t seem like that they¡¯ll treat us badly, I think.¡»


    ¡ºWell, it doesn¡¯t look like we need to speak up.


    By the way, the standard that Ain was talking about before was this, right? Why is he picking a fight with me, I wonder?¡»


    ¡ºFrankly speaking, it¡¯s likely because you seem weak. From the eyes of an adult, just being a child makes you look weak.¡»


    ¡ºYou can¡¯t really do anything about the difference in size, after all.¡»


    We unexpectedly got some time to be silent, so I talked to Ciel for a bit but surprisingly, Ciel isn¡¯t angry. Well the same could be said to me but in my case, I¡¯m more impressed by the fact that I encountered a clich¨¦ and also dumbfounded that it actually happened, so I just didn¡¯t have any place for anger.


    It might be similar with Ciel as well, but rather than being impressed, she¡¯s probably doing some human observation.


    Although we¡¯re not really angry, it doesn¡¯t mean that we won¡¯t make him pay for this. So if possible, I¡¯d like to have an overwhelming victory so that we can lower the chances of people messing with us in the future even just by a little bit.


    Also, it¡¯s a great opportunity to learn about a Hunter¡¯s strength.


    Seemingly done with their conversation, Carol-san was the one who approached us.


    ¡¸And so, I¡¯ll be overseeing the examination.


    The rules are simple. Something-chan and Alejo are going to battle and based on how the match goes, the ownership of the magic stone she brought in and her Hunter Rank will be decided.


    Alejo is a D-Rank Hunter. The magic stone that she brought is also D-Rank in value. In short, you just need to win.


    Are the two of you fine with that?¡¹


    ¡¸I can¡¯t actually say no, yeah? So if I beat this little girl like a rag, you¡¯ll accept that the magic stone is mine, right?¡¹


    The skinhead ¡ª Alejo flashed a smirk and shot a glance at me.


    The receptionist Celia-san has a vaguely pained look, but I don¡¯t have any complaints with that. As I nodded, Carol-san suggestively smiles saying¡¸However, killing is prohibited.¡¹


    ¡¸In case anything happens, I¡¯ll stop the match. If you don¡¯t stop even after that, I can¡¯t guarantee what¡¯ll happen next.¡¹


    Just as I was still taking in the fact that Carol-san is a B-Rank Hunter, I was suddenly asked for my name.


    The conversation is really going too fast right now. Also, I can¡¯t help but feel like she¡¯s telling us not to kill just now.


    Alejo is a D-Rank, since that spider is also a D-Rank, there¡¯s no way we would lose. In addition, this means that that one-eyed giant that had a bigger magic stone is probably at least a C-Rank monster.


    ¡¸Are you also fine with that, Cielmer-chan?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, I¡¯ll do my best.¡¹


    ¡¸Then, Celia. I¡¯ll borrow the room.¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah, sure. Make sure nothing happens, okay?¡¹


    ¡¸I know, I know. Now, follow me.¡¹


    Waving her hand, Carol-san began leading us inside


    ¡ó¡ó¡ó


    While putting up with Alejo¡¯s bloodthirsty gaze, we arrived at an arena-like place.


    There weren¡¯t any actual audience seats, but that area is enclosed in some sort of dome and seems about as wide as a running track. Other than the window for taking in sunlight, there¡¯s nothing particularly special about it.


    I assume that they didn¡¯t process the ground since it¡¯s uneven like in the plains. We were lead to the middle of the grounds.


    ¡¸Alejo, you use a battleaxe, right?¡¹


    Saying so, Carol seems to be rummaging for something when she suddenly threw out a battleaxe she got from somewhere.


    That considerably heavy-looking thing made a loud crashing sound as it fell to the ground.


    ¡¸The edges are dulled, so work with that.¡¹


    ¡¸Not a problem.¡¹


    ¡¸For Cielmer-chan, what would you like?¡¹


    ¡¸A knife¡­ maybe?¡¹


    ¡¸Then use this. This is just a common knife that you can buy anywhere, so be careful with where you stab it.¡¹


    ¡¸Okay.¡¹


    The same as with Alejo¡¯s axe, she threw a knife she got from somewhere.


    As expected, I don¡¯t want to catch it directly, so I picked up the knife after it fell to the ground.


    As she said, it does look like it can cut. Well, I do think that a battleaxe that seems to be a lot heavier than me is a lot more dangerous even without its sharp edges.


    ¡¸Now then, feel free to start.¡¹


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    After giving us our weapons, Carol-san casually said so and took some distance from us.


    Since it doesn¡¯t seem like Alejo¡¯s going to move any time now, I decided to do a simple planning with Ciel. It would¡¯ve been better if I did it prior to this, but I didn¡¯t really see any way for us to lose the fight, so I forgot.


    I think that as long as I¡¯m not limited on how to fight, even I can probably win. Since in the end, the enemy is just a human after all. But fighting is Ciel¡¯s role, so I¡¯ll never take it away from her.


    ¡ºI¡¯ll put up a barrier that¡¯s easy to see, so after that, can I leave it all to you?¡»


    ¡ºOf course. Still, not killing him, is hard to do. I¡¯ve been pondering for a while on how I should do it, you know?¡»


    ¡ºFor now, why don¡¯t you try to do as much as you can without relying on your Job and the barrier?¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood.¡»


    ¡ºAfter that, as long as it doesn¡¯t seem like we¡¯ll lose, try not to use your full strength. It¡¯s going to be somewhat troublesome if our Jobs are exposed, after all.¡»


    ¡¸Oi, girl. Now¡¯s your chance to apologize.


    If you don¡¯t, then I might~ just accidentally kill you with a single hit, you see?¡¹


    ¡¸Since you have the energy to say so, then why don¡¯t you try and get me? You¡¯re going to trip on your feet, you know?¡¹


    I¡¯ve started to become irritated by Alejo¡¯s attitude, so I casually talk him down.


    We¡¯re the one¡¯s actually worrying about how to not accidentally leave you dead, how carefree of you.


    Well, the only one actually worrying about it is Ciel, though.


    ¡¸Haah? It sounds like you¡¯re tired of living, girl.


    Don¡¯t blame me when you start regretting this, yeah? ¡¹


    ¡¸¡¹


    ¡¸Tsk. A Sorcerer, huh. This is gonna get annoying.¡¹


    As I chant and put up a random barrier, Alejo clicked his tongue and narrowed his eyebrows.


    This time, to make it easier for Alejo to see, I made the barrier¡¯s surface look like water.


    While it is transparent, it bounces off light so it¡¯s easy to figure out where the barrier is. It¡¯s shaped like a sphere and is wide enough to fit Ciel¡¯s whole body inside. Imagine a common barrier.


    Now that I¡¯m done making the barrier, my role ends here. I switch with Ciel.


    Although not much time has passed between me chanting and switching with Ciel, Alejo didn¡¯t just watch it happen in silence. He brandished his battleaxe and swung down at us.


    Drawing a smooth arc, the battleaxe passed right in front of us and gouged out the ground it hit.


    If Ciel didn¡¯t jump backwards, it would¡¯ve likely landed a direct hit. Moreover, it had a considerable force behind it.


    I thought that missing the large swing would leave him wide open, but surprisingly Alejo sprung up using the battleaxe as a pivot and continued on to do a second strike.


    ¡¸Ra!¡¹With an energetic yell, his second strike, likely because he made good use of the first one¡¯s momentum, was stronger than before.


    Furthermore, even though he fired off in a slightly difficult position, he swung the battleaxe again into a third, horizontal mowing strike.


    In all honesty, he was more skilled than I expected and that left me really impressed.


    So his D-Rank isn¡¯t just for show. If you can move this much then you can probably defeat that spider.


    He¡¯s moving much faster than how Ciel currently is and I notice that Ciel is forced to keep dodging.


    ¡¸Oi, Oi. So you¡¯re all just talk, huh. I guess you really did just steal that magic stone.


    Well, that¡¯s convenient for me, though. That barrier looks strong but it¡¯s probably trash, yeah? Explains why you keep on running away.


    What¡¯s wrong? You¡¯re quiet, are you scared now? Well, with that weak barrier, all you can do is run scared.


    Now, how many seconds does that barrier have left? Doesn¡¯t matter how long it has left if I smash it open, though.¡¹


    Alejo got more confident and began talking eloquently, I guess because he arbitrarily decided that Ciel¡¯s weak.


    I¡¯m not really borrowing Alejo¡¯s words, but I wonder how long this barrier will last? I was pondering about that but since the glint on Ciel¡¯s eyes have just changed, I stopped thinking about needless nonsense.


    The only way to describe Ciel¡¯s current status is that, she snapped. Like she could kill with a stare.


    Still, from Alejo¡¯s point of view, she might only be as scary as an angry puppy.


    Just as Alejo laughed¡¸What? You angry?¡¹Ciel¡¯s every emotion disappeared, as though some switch inside her flipped. She has an almost doll-like expression, like during the time when she¡¯s dealing with Duke Respelgia.


    ¡¸If you say so, then by all means. Please feel free to strike as much as you wish. In the meantime, I shall take my time to prepare my sorcery.¡¹


    It¡¯s been awhile since I heard Ciel talking with polite speech, but it¡¯s not like she¡¯s actually showing him respect. I feel that suppressing her emotions is a habit that formed because of the happenings at Duke Respelgia¡¯s mansion.


    Hearing Ciel say so devoid of any emotion, it seems like Alejo finally notice something¡¯s wrong with Ciel. Without talking back, he thrust his battleaxe at Ciel. So it looks like you can use an axe with a long handle like that as well.


    Well, we probably won¡¯t use an axe but not knowing about it could risk catching us off guard.


    However, it was blocked by the spherical barrier and not even a fragment of it would reach Ciel.


    From my perspective, it¡¯s a flimsy barrier, but since he can¡¯t even get through this, it¡¯s impossible for him to even scratch Ciel.


    In the end, he¡¯s only as strong as that spider, I guess.


    Outside the barrier, Alejo repeatedly made large swings with his battleaxe.


    However, not only does the battleaxe not hit Ciel, but not once did it even hit the ground.


    ¡¸Once this barrier breaks, it¡¯ll be the end.¡¹


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    Although Alejo was full of confidence at first, as he began swinging it more than 10, 20 times¡¸Why won¡¯t it break?¡¹He began losing his composure.


    Moreover, perhaps it¡¯s because Ciel isn¡¯t minding him one bit, with a bright red face, he even tried inciting Ciel¡¸Damn coward, fight fair and square!¡¹


    By the time I got tired of counting his hits, Alejo began whining¡¸Why? Why doesn¡¯t it even budge?¡¹He¡¯s having difficulty in breathing and his hands are bleeding from grasping his battleaxe. He was drenched in sweat and covered in mud. His vigor from before has disappeared somewhere beyond the horizon.


    At first, the plan was to fight without relying on the barrier but since it¡¯s your fault for angering Ciel, please give up on it.


    In addition, please don¡¯t start whining now. After all, Ciel¡¯s magic circle is almost complete.


    Lifting her head, Ciel captures Alejo in her line of sight.


    ¡¸Well then.¡¹


    After saying so, Alejo seems to have remembered what Ciel was doing up until now. His face is rapidly turning pale.


    As the magic power circulating in Ciel¡¯s body is absorbed into the magic circle, a thin trail of blood flows from Alejo¡¯s cheeks.


    The sorcery Ciel is using is an ordinary wind blade. It was quite useful when cutting Ciel¡¯s robe and such; and when Ceil uses it, it boasts quite the sharp edge. When I use it, it turns into a cooling fan.


    That exact wind blade attacks Alejo 2, 3¡­ without any rest.


    ¡¸Light, it¡¯s damn light. You can¡¯t defeat me with this kind of scratch!¡¹


    Noticing that Ciel¡¯s attacks aren¡¯t that strong, Alejo loses his fear and, as though he¡¯s trying to hide the fact that he got afraid, yelled in a loud voice. However, his vanity soon disappeared.


    The incessantly pouring blades of wind created an innumerable amount of shallow wounds.


    Even if he can bear the pain, he can¡¯t stop the streams of blood. Every attack he makes only serves to encourage his bleeding, and he can¡¯t even break through the barrier.


    And all the while, his light wounds only increase in number.


    ¡¸Stop! Stop it! Please stop it!¡¹


    In the end, I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s because he lost hope first or because he bled too much; but Alejo dropped his battleaxe, and while cowering in the fetal position, he screamed those words and soon lost consciousness.

 CH 18

    ¡ºI see that you packed a lot into that magic circle.¡»


    ¡ºYup, it¡¯s really interesting; how you can put so many conditions into it.


    I was relieved that I somehow added no-killing as a condition.¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯m happy that you were satisfied with the results. By the way, it looks like fighting without depending on the barrier seems difficult.¡»


    ¡ºFighting a D-Rank hunter without any preparations seems to be impossible.


    All I could do was dodge him after all. Though it would be fine if I could at least prepare something in advance.¡»


    ¡ºWell, although I did make you do this, I don¡¯t really think that you fighting without a barrier is something that would happen that much after all.¡»


    ¡ºFufu, naturally. But you don¡¯t need to push yourself if it gets difficult, okay Ain?¡»


    Maybe it¡¯s because she was able to do something she wanted to or perhaps she just feels refreshed after beating up Alejo, Ciel is now in a good mood. Rather, it might only be that, no matter how bad her mood is, she cheers up when talking with me.


    Even back at the mansion, there were a few times when Ciel got in a bad mood but it was never directed at me.


    I considered alluding to the fact that she got snapped in the middle of the fight and ended up relying on my barrier, but if I limit her that much then she probably wouldn¡¯t win. So, well, I¡¯ll let it slide.


    After all, I only wanted to know the gap between Ciel¡¯s current unenhanced physical strength and the strength of a D-Rank hunter.


    If it didn¡¯t seem like she would win, then there¡¯s no need to push it. Rather, I don¡¯t think that situations where Ciel, a Sorcerer-type, battles head on against a full-on vanguard axe-user will happen that much at all.


    Now then, for now, since I believe that this is a win, I borrowed Ciel¡¯s body and looked at Carol-san.


    Staring at me ¡ª or rather the magic circle by my feet, Carol-san, likely noticing my gaze, gave an overdue announcement¡¸The match has ended.¡¹


    After that, she went out of this stadium like place and brought a few guild staff ¡ª or maybe just some nearby hunters ¡ª back with her.


    The people following her were startled after seeing the bloodied Alejo on the floor and then shot a questioning glance at Carol-san.


    I see. They¡¯re likely thinking that Carol-san caused this disaster.


    Certainly, it¡¯s more convincing than thinking that I ¡ª Ciel ¡ª did it.


    And then they looked at me with a confused look, but come to think of it my hair is still hidden.


    Still, Carol-san probably noticed it with how much we moved, so I don¡¯t think I need to keep the hood up anymore.


    ¡¸With this, you can now start as a E-Rank hunter.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, thank you very much.¡¹


    ¡¸My, you don¡¯t seem that happy about it. Well, it¡¯s hard to feel a sense of accomplishment after winning while barely using your full strength, right?¡¹


    ¡¸No, it was really difficult, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s no use in hiding it. Nobody that can use a magic circle like that would ever lose to a D-Ranker after all.


    At that level, you could¡¯ve instantly killed him if you wanted to, right? ¡¹


    ¡ºCiel, would you mind if I ask you something?¡»


    ¡ºWhat is it, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºShowing our full power to a certain extent and quickly aiming for B-Rank, or hiding our strength and steadily working towards being a B-Rank. Which would you prefer?¡»


    ¡ºOnce we become B-Rank, we¡¯ll stand out whether we like it or not, right? Then, there¡¯s no need to hide our strength, is there?¡»


    Since it felt like Carol-san was probing into us, I pretended to think and had a quick strategy meeting with Ciel.


    Our topic, whether to stand out or not. In conclusion, be at B-Rank even if we stand out a bit. And with that said, I think that we¡¯ll display our strength with just a little flare.


    ¡¸It takes some time to perform sorcery, so instantly is impossible, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸Well that¡¯s true.¡¹


    ¡¸So Carol-san, what do you want me to do?¡¹


    ¡¸I want to see your real sorcery. After all, for someone like you who has at least hunted two B-Brank monsters, there¡¯s no way that that was all you had.


    But, well, even just this magic circle is enough to use as research material, but I¡¯m absolutely sure that there¡¯s more than this!¡¹


    Seeing Carol-san suddenly high in spirits, I was overwhelmed.


    Maybe she¡¯s one of the so-called geeks. It seems that even though I¡¯m in a different world, there are still similar people. In that case, I hope that the entertainment here is well developed too.


    ¡¸Two B-Rank monsters? What do you mean?¡¹


    Suddenly realizing something, I took out the one-eyed giant¡¯s magic stone and after showing it to Carol-san she replied¡¸That.¡¹


    In the end we defeated it in an instant, but there¡¯s no denying that it was all thanks to the combined power of the Song Princess and Dance Princess, two Princess Jobs.


    On the other hand, being a B-Rank monster means that the strength of a B-Rank hunter or more is needed to defeat it, but I really feel that my barrier is getting out of hand for being able to endure that monster¡¯s attack.


    Though at this point, I¡¯m honestly much more curious about how far it can go rather than the practicality.


    ¡¸If that¡¯s true, then I did defeat a B-Rank monster.


    But there isn¡¯t any merits for me even if I show you my real sorcery, right?¡¹


    ¡¸The fact that I mediated your battle¡­¡­ is what I¡¯d like to say, in your case, even without me mediating, Alejo wasn¡¯t really a problem. Rather, I was the one that limited you.


    So, in exchange for showing me your sorcery, how does a formal match with me sound to you? If you win, I¡¯ll convince the guild that you passed the B-Rank Exam.¡¹


    ¡¸Can you prove that you can keep your promise?¡¹


    ¡¸You heard my conversation with Ceila, right? For my own reasons, I did it without any favors.¡¹


    ¡¸You ¡°asked¡± to do this, right?¡¹


    ¡¸The test to become B-Rank is to have a hunter of B-Rank and above to acknowledge your strength. And if you clear the test itself, which is to make me, a hunter B-Rank and above, recognize your strength, then I just need to do something about the test schedule.


    Also, if you have a match with me, I¡¯ll look after you until you reach D-Rank. Your strength itself is probably already about B-Rank, but it¡¯s not as if you only need to be strong to raise your hunter rank after all.


    If you want to rank up fast, asking instruction from you senior is the best.¡¹


    After asking Carol-san a few more questions, I consider whether we can trust her or not.


    The demerit for accepting it would be that our strength would be exposed more than the previous battle. However regarding that, how much we can show is decided on.


    The merit is that we can learn how strong a high-ranking hunter is. Based on Alejo¡¯s reaction, I¡¯m sure that she¡¯s at least C-Rank or higher.


    With that as our minimum reference, I think that there¡¯s no doubt that Carol san is a B-Ranker. And if she¡¯ll help us after this, there¡¯s no reason to decline.


    ¡ºPersonally, with some conditions, I think it¡¯s fine to accept it, but what do you think?¡»


    If anything ever happens, being known as a Song Princess rather than a Dance Princess is much more convenient to avoid Duke Rispelgia, but I can¡¯t disregard Ciel¡¯s feelings. And most of all, I¡¯m also the one who suggested that we stick to our roles.


    Me disregarding that won¡¯t leave a good impression on Ciel.


    ¡ºI understand. However, please fight in a way that won¡¯t make them realize that you are a Dance Princess.


    In exchange, if the barrier is fine, then I don¡¯t mind if you rely on it.¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood.¡»


    Since we¡¯ve decided, I tell Carol-san¡¸I¡¯ll do it.¡¹


    Though I did tell Ciel that¡¯s fine to rely on my barrier, there¡¯s no assurance that Carol-san wouldn¡¯t destroy it.


    I can only pray that she won¡¯t attack us with something that strong.


    Seemingly delighted by my answer, Carol-san almost skips lightly towards the center of the dome.


    ¡¸By the way, is it okay for me to keep this barrier up?¡¹


    ¡¸Well, it¡¯s your second round after all; I¡¯ll treat that as one of my handicaps.¡¹


    ¡¸Then thank you for your consideration. And I¡¯m sorry if I don¡¯t meet your expectations.¡¹


    ¡¸Nu-uh. For me, I already had enough new material. Still, people become more and more indulgent when they see easy success.¡¹


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    Well, I do understand how you feel but I think, with that mindset, you¡¯ll just be more disappointed when you don¡¯t get good results.


    ¡¸Well, enough with the minor details, let¡¯s do it. The moment this knife lands on the floor, the battle starts. Is that good?¡¹


    ¡¸I understand.¡¹


    Throwing a knife around sounds dangerous to me, but there aren¡¯t any convenient branches or rocks laying around, so maybe for Carol-san the knife is just the right thing to throw.


    Since we¡¯re about to fight, I should stop making weird quips now. While Carol-san is putting some distance between us, I switch with Ciel and leave the battle to her.


    As the two of them faced each other, Carol-san chucks the knife high into the air.


    The moment the knife landed after a few seconds of airtime, I sensed a countless amount of magic power reactions appear in before us.


    In my vision, I see multitude of ice arrows facing towards us suspended in the air.


    Even if all of those are shot at us, it¡¯ll still depend on the power of each and every one of them but I think my barrier can probably block them all.


    However, Carol-san likely knows that too. In that case, there might be something to those arrows.


    As Ciel was about to move, the arrows were shot towards us.


    I expected them to come in a barrage to limit our movement, but they were fired in a line and disappeared as soon as they hit the spherical barrier.


    While Ciel was protected, she ran to escape from Carol-san¡¯s attack, but she couldn¡¯t shake off the pursuit of the arrows.


    Each of the arrows hit about as strong as Alejo¡¯s attack but this might be a bit dangerous.


    Looking at Carol-san, although the arrows don¡¯t reach Ciel, she still looks composed.


    In other words, she¡¯s likely doing this intentionally. To simply explain, barrier sorcery creates a wall with magic power to defend against attacks but there can be inconsistencies in its durability.


    In other words, the durability of the barrier isn¡¯t uniform, you can end up having strong spots and weak spots.


    And Carol-san¡¯s arrows, are accurately hitting the weak spot. There was the magic stone thing before too, so I think that her ability to sense magic power is considerably high.


    Likely understanding that running is meaningless, Ciel stops on her tracks and begins drawing something on the ground.


    As though to prevent her from doing it, the amount and force behind the arrows increase; finally something cracked and the barrier collapsed.

 CH 19

    ¡¸With this, that annoying barrier is finally gone. Now, isn¡¯t it about time that you show me your next sorcery?¡¹


    After breaking through my barrier, Carol-san places her hands on her hips and snorts triumphantly.


    My first impression of her was that of a mature adult woman, but looking at her now, she seems more like an immature adult woman.


    Considering that it just shows how much she loves sorcery, it¡¯s quite heartwarming to see and at the same time, slightly enviable.


    If asked, do I really have the time to think about such rude remarks? I¡¯d answer, absolutely yes.


    It¡¯s not as if Ciel was running around thoughtlessly, she was actually running to the spot where the magic circle we used during the match with Alejo is. After all, we can easily reuse it after rewriting it a bit. Moreover, we can also change the various written spells used for holding back during the fight with Alejo into more combat oriented ones.


    Perhaps noticing that fact as well, Carol-san becomes vigilant and restarts her bombardment of sorcery.


    Matching that, Ciel pours her magic power into the magic circle and activates the sorcery. The sorcery here are bullets of wind that automatically intercept the enemy¡¯s sorcery.


    In short, she decided to shoot down the ice arrows that the barrier was blocking earlier.


    And since we can¡¯t win by just defending, Ciel brandishes her hands in front of her body and locks on to Carol-san.


    ¡¸Faraalu Entendi Fralie (Bullets of flame, line up, fly)¡¹


    Following the chant, bullets of flame flew towards Carol-san. Just like the ice arrows, they are flying while lined up behind each other. So even if she intercepts the one in front, the ones behind would likely still continue burning.


    With her eyes widened with surprise, Carol-san then smiles with delight and mutteringly moves her lips.


    Not soon after, a transparent wall of ice appears right before Carol-san. With a smooth surface that reflects light, it blocked all of the flame bullets with ease.


    After seeing that, Ciel gracefully moves her arms and makes an earth spike that¡¯s projected under Carol-san¡¯s feet, but she freezes it to prevent the attack.


    In spite of being in the middle of this super flashy sorcery battle that almost seems like it was from a movie, it was probably unavoidable for me to be very excited. I hope that I could be forgiven for being depressed by the fact that I can¡¯t be a part of it.


    Anyway, about our current condition, we¡¯re disadvantaged enough that even Ciel seems agitated.


    First of all, Ciel¡¯s control isn¡¯t good enough to use the magic circle, chanting, and the Dance Princess¡¯ ability to attack at the same time. And another thing, each attack simply doesn¡¯t have enough power behind them.


    It¡¯ll be easy to fix this if I use my power as a Song Princess; but since I don¡¯t want to spoil Ciel¡¯s experience, and because I also want to see how far she can go, I¡¯ll stay still for now.


    This is just my hunch, but I suspect that Ciel probably has more endurance in sorcery combat while Carol-san has more firepower.


    To win, Ciel would need to maintain the status quo. If she does, Carol-san will eventually run out of magic power first.


    However, to keep the status quo, Ciel needs a delicate control over sorcery to compensate for her lack of firepower.


    Even now I can already see her control lacking. Moreover, even if she has more than enough magic power to keep on going, I can¡¯t be sure that she can keep her focus and force of will.


    And while I thought so, Carol-san¡¯s magic power suddenly swelled up. It seems like she had somewhat lost her mind. Might be an exaggeration, but she¡¯s like a child that was so engrossed in playing that she lost track of her surroundings.


    I see, so up until now, she was only keeping herself at Ciel¡¯s level. Because she¡¯s having so much fun right now, she¡¯s beginning to forget to hold herself back. And maybe due to her focusing too much, Ciel hasn¡¯t noticed this yet.


    Since it seems that we might get overwhelmed, I began singing to give her some support.


    Right now, I want Ciel to calm down so I intentionally chose a relaxing song to sing. And after noticing Carol-san¡¯s current state, Ciel nods with a serious look on her face.


    So about the Song Princess¡¯ power, basically a song¡¯s characteristics and its effects will be similar to each other. For example, a cheerful song would make the listener cheer up. It amplifies the effects that can be felt even from a normal song, so singing a relaxing song would calm the listener down and singing a lullaby would probably make them sleepy.


    Concerning our Jobs, both Ciel and I are still in the testing stage.


    What flew from Carol-san¡¯s direction is a thick and sharp spear of ice that makes the earlier ice arrows look cute in comparison.


    It looks like it¡¯s also quite elaborate. Instead of having a simple pointed stick design, it has a unique look with the tip seemingly twisted and tapered into a sharp point.


    There are roughly ten of them and each of them are taller than Ciel.


    Carol-san, are you fighting some large monster right now? No matter how you look at it, that¡¯s too much for a human target.


    Sure enough, Carol-san seemed to have noticed the fact after launching her sorcery.


    As soon as the spears began flying towards us, though I couldn¡¯t hear her saying it, I could see¡¸Oh crap¡¹written all over her face.


    At this point, I just want to avert my eyes already, but Ciel stares directly at the approaching spears of ice and concentrates on pouring magic power into the magic circle.


    The moment one of them entered the magic circle¡¯s range of interception, Ciel¡¯s face flinched slightly.


    And after a short while, the first spear was destroyed. Turned to dust by the force of the wind, pieces of the ice spear sparkled beautifully, but this isn¡¯t the time to get distracted by that.


    Ciel¡¯s reaction was likely because it was strong and sturdy enough that it took time to destroy the spear of ice.


    With the second and the third spear, the place where they were getting destroyed at were gradually getting nearer and nearer.


    By the seventh and eighth one, it was probably about just a few centimeters from us. And as she destroyed the ninth one, the tenth spear is already right in front of our eyes.


    It¡¯s extremely unlikely that she can destroy it in time, the most she can do is to move our vitals out of the way.


    Immediately after she barely moved, the spear of ice hits our flank and Ciel falls on her backside as she was swept by the impact.


    However, the spear wasn¡¯t able to pierce through Ciel¡¯s skin and remained sticking out the flank. Looking closely, it seems that the part where it hit is slowly freezing and is gradually being covered in ice.


    After the ice had spread for a while, it was destroyed along with my usual barrier and vanished.


    I can make another barrier at any time. It doesn¡¯t take much if I only need to maintain it but making a new one consumes a slightly large amount of magic power.


    Although it¡¯s exactly for times like these that I made that barrier, I wonder when was the last time my barrier got destroyed like this?


    When I was still getting used to it, before Ciel turned 5 years old, my barrier was destroyed several times and I even ran out of magic power. But we didn¡¯t face any danger during the five years we spent locked in the book room, so it¡¯s been a long time since this happened.


    At any rate, just our second fight with a person and this happens. Are B-Rank hunters strong or is Carol-san just stronger than the usual B-Ranker?


    ¡ºCiel, are you alright?¡»


    Ciel replied so with confidence, but now I realize that being trusted too much might be a problem as well.


    If I needed to protect her from those ten spears, I doubt that it would have blocked them all.


    After all, it consumes a considerable amount of magic power and after the barrier offsets one spear, I don¡¯t even know if I can make a new one before the next spear comes.


    So I still need to improve my barrier sorcery even more.


    Since we¡¯re still in the middle of an important match, I end my reflection here. Although I am using detection, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s good to be distracted about other things.


    But since the barrage of sorcery has died down, maybe the battle is finished? If Carol-san uses a sorcery that¡¯s more powerful that the spear of ice, I¡¯m absolutely going to lose confidence in my ability to defend Ciel, so please let this be the end.


    I notice Carol-san approaching us with my detection, and she doesn¡¯t seem to be using any sorcery, so it should be safe to think that we¡¯re done.


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    ¡ºSince it seems that the battle is finished, would you mind switching with me?¡»


    ¡ºRight, I¡¯ll do so immediately. Still, have we won?


    Since, you know, we were on defensive from beginning to the end.¡»


    ¡ºAlthough we were on defensive, we would have won if we kept it on until she ran out of magic power, so I don¡¯t think that this will be considered a loss.¡»


    Rather, if Carol-san tells us that we lost after going this far, I won¡¯t hesitate on having a super-extended battle.


    Now, speaking of Carol-san, as she approaches us, she¡¯s awfully fidgety for some reason. Well, no, it¡¯s not as if I don¡¯t understand.


    With how concerned she looks, it¡¯s surprising that she¡¯s not running towards us.


    ¡¸You¡¯re alive, right? You¡¯re fine, right?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m alive. Though I was definitely surprised that my real barrier was destroyed.¡¹


    ¡¸That last one, right? But it definitely looked like the Glacio Lentso hit you, so you being fine means¡­¡¹


    She was quick to change from being worried. As soon as I talk about the barrier, she begins talking rapidly and slowly draws near me.


    Glacio Lentso¡­ so that sorcery had some kind of name¡­ but it¡¯s not the time to think about that stuff.


    She draws near me with eyes full of curiosity, and as I¡¯m slowly being driven backwards towards the wall,¡¸Carol?¡¹a chilling voice reaches my ears. Shifting my gaze, I see Celia-san standing with a furious look.


    ¡¸Geh¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Don¡¯t you Geh me. Just when I came to check on you since you were taking such a long time, why were you trying to kill Cielmer-san?¡¹


    ¡¸I-I wasn¡¯t trying to kill her or anythi-¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Do you think you can convince me after using that spear of ice?¡¹


    ¡¸No¡­¡­ Nevermind.¡¹


    After seeing Carol-san hang her head down, Celia-san lets out a deep sigh and shakes her head.


    As expected, it seems that Carol-san went too far. A sorcery with that power was definitely not something you should use on people, one mistake and someone would have probably died.


    Luckily it was Ciel, so there wasn¡¯t any casualty, but it¡¯s not a problem that you just brush it off as an accident. But at the same time, since this world puts importance on achievements and abilities, I thought that they might put the fault on the one who died for dying or something, but it doesn¡¯t seem to be that way.


    As I thought, it¡¯s difficult to judge things like this if I don¡¯t know the common sense of this world.


    For now, as I thought about getting a clear answer on the result of the match and the state of the promise we made before, an awfully apologetic Celia-san led me and Carol-san to a different room.

 CH 20

    ¡¸So from what I understand, Cielmer-san blocked Carol¡¯s ice spear at the very end but¡­ To start with, would you mind explaining how this happened?¡¹


    Celia-san led us to a moderately sized interrogation room-like place with a table in the middle and asked me for an explanation.


    In my opinion, asking Carol-san would be better since she knows everything that happened but that might be wrong in this situation.


    Perhaps she¡¯s going to ask Carol-san for confirmation after I speak to make sure that I¡¯m not lying.


    Well, that¡¯s how I see this situation from a calculating lens, but the one that¡¯s being tried right now is probably Carol-san. I think Celia-san wants to hear the story from my perspective first before asking her about it.


    After all, the current situation is a result of Carol-san¡¯s mistake in the first place.


    Celia-san is sitting on the other side of the table while Carol-san and I are on the same side, and after Celia-san finished speaking, I feel a weird pressure emanating from Carol-san beside me.


    ¡¸Do I need to explain from when I won against Alejo-san? I don¡¯t really think that there¡¯s much I can explain about it though.¡¹


    ¡¸No, it¡¯s alright. After all, what I want to know is about how you two ended up fighting and a general summary of the battle. Specifically, the matter about the spear of ice.¡¹


    ¡¸I understand. We ended up fighting because Carol-san asked me to show her my sorcery.


    And as compensation, she said that she¡¯ll make it so that if I win, I will pass the B-Rank examination. Then she also said that she¡¯ll watch over me until I reach D-Rank.¡¹


    And because of that, I wanted to clarify the results of our match but it might be difficult to ask right now.


    Anyhow, since we¡¯re talking about the details of the battle, I do hope that we get the answer for that as well.


    Perhaps to maintain her neutral reaction, Celia-san replies,¡¸I see¡¹with an even tone.


    ¡¸If it was only that, it seems like she didn¡¯t do anything that would cause any particular issue.¡¹


    ¡¸It won¡¯t cause any problems?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. It¡¯s not very common but there are cases where, for example, a former soldier registers to the guild.


    When that happens, they can use their former rank as a basis for their achievements and are allowed to take a Rank Up examination.


    Not only that, there are also times when people with exceptional strength want to register. In this case, making them start from E-Rank is a demerit even for the Hunter¡¯s Guild. So, there is a special system that allows particular E-Rankers to complete high ranking requests. Based on the rank of the request that they completed at that time, they can Rank Up to the same rank without taking an examination.


    This match can be seen as an application of that.


    Carol deciding to back Cielmer-san up is her personal issue, so it¡¯s not something that the guild can concern themselves with. However, this gives Carol a huge responsibility.¡¹


    Since there isn¡¯t any issue with my promise with Carol-san, it seems like there wasn¡¯t any downsides for us.


    I was really nervous that I might also be held responsible for doing a formal match, or rather exam, by ourselves but I¡¯m happy to see that it¡¯s not the case.


    In contrast to my feeling of relief, Carol-san¡¯s face went stiff. While she is still smiling, her cheeks are twitching and I can see that she¡¯s forcing herself to smile.


    Now then, Celia-san is asking for the details of the battle, but how much should I talk about it?


    As for what we did, I used a spherical barrier along with the usual one that fits to the shape of Ciel¡¯s body and also supported her with my song.


    As for Ciel, she used sorcery via spells, magic circles, and the Dance Princess.


    However, she barely used 10% of the Dance Princess¡¯ true strength while my support via Song Princess isn¡¯t something that people would notice. In addition to that, since Ciel stopped using the Dance Princess¡¯ power as soon as I began supporting her, we haven¡¯t displayed the synergy of the Dance Princess and Song Princess as well.


    Perhaps for the sake of showing off our abilities a bit as well, it might be best to tell her everything that happened.


    Concluding so, I decided to tell her about everything except for our Jobs.


    As I reached the part where the spherical barrier was destroyed and it turned into a sorcery battle, Celia-san suddenly interrupted me.


    ¡¸It might be a bit too late to ask after hearing so much but can I confirm something, you are a sorcerer right, Cielmer-san?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. If I don¡¯t use sorcery, I likely can¡¯t do anything.¡¹


    ¡¸In other words, you fought Carol without any prior preparations?¡¹


    ¡¸Preparations? Of what?¡¹


    Since I constantly have a barrier up and we can end most fights just by me singing and Ciel dancing if we don¡¯t limit ourselves like we did this time, it always feels like we¡¯re always prepared.


    Still, from a sorcerer¡¯s point of view, it might be common sense to have a different kind of preparation.


    I immediately look at Carol-san and she instantly looks away.


    ¡¸Ahh, right. I see. So a certain someone picked a fight with an unprepared rookie while she herself was completely prepared.¡¹


    ¡¸But a hunter should be always prepared to fight, right?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. I was only teaching her that harsh reality.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s true that that¡¯s how a hunter should be and in that regard, if anything happened to you, Cielmer-san, the public would likely see that as your fault for not being fully prepared.


    However, my personal opinion of Carol has dropped low. Even though she¡¯s an aspiring hunter, that¡¯s not something you should do to a 10-year-old girl.¡¹


    For now, I said so to make sure of what I currently know but suddenly Celia-san¡¯s opinion of Carol-san got lower.


    Well, since she did play along with a child¡¯s statement to justify her own actions, it might be fitting to lower your opinion of her.


    ¡¸Umm, so, what do you mean by preparations?¡¹


    ¡¸Excuse me. Sorcerers generally prepare magic circles on their clothes, shoes and the like, so that they can use their sorcery as soon as possible.


    The amount of magic circles one can prepare would depend on their ability but in situations like these, where you are taking an examination, it¡¯s expected that you did prior preparations. As I said earlier, in cases where you aren¡¯t prepared, it¡¯s generally seen as your fault for being unprepared.¡¹


    Certainly having a magic circle beforehand would mean sorcery can be immediately used in case of an emergency, so it¡¯s considerably good even as a last minute defense.


    At the very least, it¡¯s possible to avoid the worst case scenario if the enemy ambush is noticed before they attack. In the case where the sorcerer can only use spells, it¡¯ll inevitably need time to chant a spell after noticing the enemy, so it¡¯s likely for the sorcerer to die in the middle of it.


    When using sorcery with spells, it¡¯s only possible to use one per spell but with the case of using magic circles, being able to use various kinds of sorcery at the same time becomes a huge advantage.


    It¡¯s obvious that handling multiple magic circles requires good control. But if it¡¯s just Ciel using it, we could have probably handled 3 more magic circles on top of being in mock battle mode.


    And having that much more options would have probably given us a bigger advantage in the last battle.


    Still, I don¡¯t think that 3 more magic circles would have done anything to stop that spear of ice.


    And as I was about to move on from the sorcery battle to talk about the spear of ice, I felt a light tug on my arm.


    As I was wondering what this is about, I see Carol-san shaking her head and her pleading for something with her eyes.


    Hmm, so you don¡¯t want me to talk about the ice spear that much, huh. But since Celia-san already knows about it, I don¡¯t think that there¡¯s any point in hiding it.


    Besides, I don¡¯t have any obligation to make the details more favourable for her currently, even by a bit. So I reply to Carol-san by casting my eyes down and shaking my head.


    I see despair written all over her face, but you reap what you sow.


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    ¡¸During a stalemate, Carol-san used the spear of ice, Glacia Lentso was it? and shot 10 of them.¡¹


    ¡¸Excuse me. 10 of them?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m sure there were 10 of them, I think. I really thought I was going to die, so it should be right.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m very sorry. Right now, there¡¯s something I need to ask Carol about, so can I ask for a bit of time?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, please don¡¯t mind me.¡¹


    After getting my confirmation, she sent a spine chilling gaze to Carol-san.


    Carol-san awkwardly averts her eyes but it doesn¡¯t feel like she can run away.


    ¡¸Say Carol. What were you fighting against?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ A 10-year-old girl.¡¹


    With a big sigh, Carol-san takes out a leather pouch the same way she did with the battle axe and the knife.


    It looks quite heavy so I¡¯m likely not mistaken to think that it¡¯s probably filled with gold coins.


    Since a night at an inn costs 2 silver coins, 100 gold coins can get you 5000 nights to stay, so I now understand that it¡¯s a really large amount of money. So a high ranking hunter can earn enough to spend this much without any issues?


    Rather, what is 5000 nights even? Based on my past life, I think a cheap hotel is about 3000~5000 yen, so 100 gold coins is probably worth around 1.5M~2.5M yen.


    Even if I¡¯m wrong about it, since I now see Carol-san as someone out of reach, the power of money is truly great.


    ¡¸Thank you for waiting. Would you mind if we continue?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s not really much of a continuation, but after that, I destroyed 9 of them with an interception magic circle and blocked the last one with my barrier.¡¹


    ¡¸I see. Understood.¡¹


    Saying so, after pondering for a while, Celia-san asks Carol-san¡¸Is it all true?¡¹for confirmation.


    And as she replied¡¸Yes¡¹Celia-san lowered her head.


    ¡¸I¡¯m very sorry for this incident.¡¹


    ¡¸What are you apologizing for?¡¹


    ¡¸For entrusting this matter to Carol. This time, I attempted to settle the dispute by entrusting Carol to be the examiner.


    However, Carol herself used a sorcery that shouldn¡¯t be used on a person on you.


    The responsibility lies on the Hunter¡¯s Guild for designating Carol and Carol will be punished by the Hunter¡¯s Guild at a later time.¡¹


    ¡¸I see. In this situation, what will happen?¡¹


    ¡¸Currently, Cielmer-san¡¯s standing quite is ambiguous. It can be said that you¡¯re a hunter now but at the same time, you¡¯re still not considered to be a hunter.


    The fact that Carol almost killed someone in that situation, and clearly not in self-defense, is a grave situation.


    For that reason, the guild will answer your wishes as much as possible.


    Seeing Celia-san willingly offering her own dismissal, Carol-san reflexively open¡¯s her mouth.


    However, Celia-san only said¡¸Shut up, Carol¡¹and continued.


    ¡¸However, I¡¯m very sorry about this, but you cannot exile Carol from the Hunter¡¯s Guild.


    Cielmer-san¡¯s is considered half-hunter in standing. Moreover, since you are on a considerably lower rank compared to Carol, even if you had died, the heaviest punishment she will receive is a temporary decrease in rank.¡¹


    So it means that a high ranking hunter gets that much special treatment. In this world where monsters exist, even only one high ranking hunter can probably protect a small town, so comparing the value of that person and a young rookie hunter is unthinkable.


    It¡¯s a world of aristocracy. The value of one person¡¯s life greatly differs from that back on earth.


    I do have a problem about almost being killed.


    That¡¯s why I wasn¡¯t going to be satisfied unless Carol-san receives some sort of punishment but she did pay 100 gold coins earlier, so I guess that could be considered a punishment.


    Besides, making Celia-san quit would be a downside for us considering that we¡¯ll be working here from now on. It¡¯s going to be awkward, obviously, but as a member here, having 1 less person that can treat a 10-year-old child with this much sincerity is not good.


    In that case, it might be better to make a choice that would give me an upside.


    Still, before deciding myself, I should ask for Ceil¡¯s opinion.


    ¡ºIf you¡¯re alright with it, I would like to see if we can use this to ask for a high rank, but how about that?¡»


    ¡ºErrrr, um. Right. You should do as you want to, Ain.¡»


    ¡ºCiel, what do you think about these two?¡»


    ¡ºThey seem to be considerably much better people than some duke somewhere. Still, even if you ask me, it¡¯s quite difficult to answer.


    To begin with, it didn¡¯t really feel to like she was going to kill me.¡»


    ¡ºI see. Then for now, allow me to do as I want.¡»


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s absolutely troubled tone, I end our discussion.


    Since her life was constantly targeted with ill will, just being almost killed due to over-excitement is probably nothing to Ciel.


    Besides, she¡¯s met too few people to be able to pass judgment. In that case, she probably didn¡¯t fully understand the punishment and quitting part of the conversation.


    In that case, the reason she snapped during the fight with Alejo might be because he was a man or because of the insults.


    Well, if asked who I wouldn¡¯t forgive between Alejo and Carol-san, it¡¯s definitely Alejo though.

 CH 21

    ¡¸I see. Regarding Carol-san¡¯s punishment, I¡¯ll leave it to the Hunter¡¯s Union. But please don¡¯t let her off with no punishment.¡¹


    ¡¸Of course. Naturally.¡¹


    ¡¸And there¡¯s something I want to confirm but, after what happened, what actually is the result of the match?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s your win.¡¹


    Carol-san immediately answered my question. I really like the way she¡¯s fair and sincere but why does she have to be so reckless. No, maybe we were just coincidentally the type that incites recklessness in her behaviour.


    After all, this likeable part of her might be the reason that Celia-san decided to let her handle the exam. In a way, she¡¯s just unlucky but, as the party involved, I definitely don¡¯t have any sympathy for her.


    ¡¸Then that means I passed the B-Rank qualification exam, right?¡¹


    ¡¸It might take some time to get it approved, but there should be no problem. After all, you have proven to us that you have enough strength to meet the qualifications, Cielmer-san.¡¹


    ¡¸So then, please raise my hunter rank as high as possible. If possible, I want to be B-Rank and if I can¡¯t, I want to at least be high enough that I won¡¯t get treated badly in case I get into some trouble with high ranking hunters.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m very sorry. Regarding the the rank, there¡¯s a limit to what we can do.


    However, as long as you are in this town, I can arrange it so that you can be certain to make achievements. I can¡¯t be certain about it, but we will support you so that you reach C-Rank within a year.¡¹


    ¡¸How long does that usually take?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s typically said that it takes 5 years to reach D-Rank and 5 more years to reach C-Rank. Even capable people would likely take several years to get to C-Rank. Furthermore, since C-Rankers and above are recognized as Veteran Hunters, the guild¡¯s treatment of them will change as well.


    However, just as C-Rankers and above are considered top hunters, it¡¯s not a level that anybody can reach simply by trying.¡¹


    In that case, reaching C-Rank in a year might be quite big.


    ¡¸Then from today¡¯s incident, I would like to demand the guild for assistance until I reach C-Rank.


    Besides that, I would like to request only Celia-san to handle me on the reception desk. After all, I don¡¯t think that the conversation will go just as smooth when talking to other people.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. Then allow me to arrange that.¡¹


    I was fine with just knowing the place but it seems that she¡¯ll be guiding me too.


    Well it¡¯s not Japan after all, so it might be dangerous for a girl to walk at night by herself. Based on creative media for example, I might even encounter a kidnapper.


    Since I¡¯ll immediately notice if there are any suspicious movements, I don¡¯t think we¡¯ll be abducted though.


    Most of all, even if I know how to go to the place, I might get lost as well. There isn¡¯t a single reason for me to turn down this kindness of hers, is there?


    ¡¸I would like a place that has a bath and is not very far from here.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. Now then, we¡¯ll talk about the exact details tomorrow; so for today, let me guide you to the inn.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you very much.¡¹


    I don¡¯t know if either she¡¯s just being considerate of me, it¡¯s part of the Hunter¡¯s Guild¡¯s regulations, or both; but since she¡¯s going to take me to the inn, I¡¯ll follow her.


    At that moment, she told Carol-san¡¸I¡¯m not finished with you yet, so stay here.¡¹and left the interrogation? room.


    ¡ó


    Outside the Hunter¡¯s Guild, it¡¯s completely dark now but, from the windows of the surrounding buildings, light shines through.


    It¡¯s not a flickering light like those made by flames, and although it¡¯s not as bright as that from a fluorescent bulb, it¡¯s still probably bright enough for reading a book in the middle of the night.


    ¡¸It¡¯s really bright even though it¡¯s nighttime.¡¹


    ¡¸Is this your first time seeing a lamp magic item?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. I¡¯m worried that I wouldn¡¯t know how to use the one they have at the inn.¡¹


    I mustered up my courage and asked about it but it seems that she didn¡¯t find it that weird. In that case, magic items might not be available in small villages and such.


    As I made a sigh of relief in my mind, with¡¸If you don¡¯t mind answering¡­¡¹as a preface, Celia-san asked me a question.


    ¡¸Why are you rushing to rank up?¡¹


    ¡¸Because I want to get out of this country?¡¹


    ¡¸Get out, is it?¡¹


    ¡¸Are you against me leaving this town?¡¹


    I asked a slightly involving question and carefully looked up to Celia-san. Since I was answering a question with another question, I was worried that Celia-san would find it offensive but it seems like it¡¯s not a problem.


    After shaking her head, she looks directly into my eyes and answered¡¸I agree with that.¡¹


    ¡¸Cielmer-san, in my opinion, you¡¯re an individual that shouldn¡¯t be held back in a town like this.


    So regarding that, may I ask you why you want to get out of the country?¡¹


    ¡¸Celia-san, do you still remember how old you were, the first time you ate something?¡¹


    ¡¸Let¡¯s see. I don¡¯t really remember but I believe that children can generally start eating oatmeal half a year after their birth.¡¹


    ¡¸The first time I ate something, was when I was 5 years old.¡¹


    As I kept in mind to say it as casually as possible, Celia-san was left speechless and was unable to find anything to reply with.


    I¡¯m not really trying to brag about our misfortunes but since it looks like she might support us, I decided to talk a bit more about us.


    ¡¸Celia-san, have you seen my hair?¡¹


    This means that she can tell her co-workers to watch out for a white-haired 10-year-oldish girl.


    In this sense, standing out isn¡¯t always bad.


    Since the mood got somewhat lighter, I asked her something that I was a bit curious about.


    ¡¸By the way, about my match with Carol-san, is it really okay to see it as my win?


    We¡¯ve already talked about it earlier, but I don¡¯t really think that we finished the fight.¡¹


    ¡¸I would like to confirm, you can still fight right, Cielmer-san?¡¹


    ¡¸I can still probably take one more ice spear.¡¹


    ¡¸Since Carol doesn¡¯t have enough energy left to use any proper sorcery, you would have most likely won if the fight continued on.


    That¡¯s just how much magic power Glacia Lentso consumes.¡¹


    ¡¸After all, it doesn¡¯t only pierce through, it also freezes the place it hits.¡¹


    ¡¸So you¡¯ve notice that as well.¡¹


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    It seems like the ice spear is something that¡¯s extraordinary compared to other spells. Maybe that¡¯s also why it had a proper name.


    As I vaguely nodded, Celia-san stops in front of a certain building.


    Seemingly familiar with the place, she enters the building with a brightly lit interior.


    And as I followed her, it looks like Celia-san brought me to a place much prettier than I imagined. Having a calming light color as the main tone of the inn, I¡¯m probably not mistaken to think that it¡¯s a female-oriented inn.


    At the counter there is a lady as well, that¡¯s about old enough to have a child of my age. Her gentle smile and her height, slightly tall for a female, leaves a strong impression. So she seems to be an indulgent person in a lot of ways.


    Since they seem to be close by how they¡¯re talking, Celia-san might know her in private.


    After talking for some time, Celia-san suddenly faces me.


    ¡¸So with that, Nilda-san, please take care of Cielmer-san.¡¹


    ¡¸Sure sure. Cielmer-san, nice meeting you today.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. Please take care of me.¡¹


    Nilda-san is looking at me with a friendly smile but I wonder what she sees me as.


    Does she think of me as a country bumpkin that came from a declining village? I should¡¯ve listened to their conversation.


    Nilda-san takes out a key and gives it to me while saying¡¸You¡¯re probably tired for today, so I¡¯ll have dinner brought to your room. Your room is in the innermost area of the 2nd floor. It¡¯s a bit far but do your best.¡¹


    After receiving the key and thanking her, I did as she said and went up to the 2nd floor.


    I enter the room that fits my key and decide to rest while waiting for the food to arrive.


    Today was somehow awfully tiring.

 CH 22

    Thanks to Celia-san, we managed to find a place to stay without any problems. With that, I can feel a bit relaxed now.


    We had a somewhat tiresome conversation before arriving here but I wonder if she noticed what I meant by that.


    If she didn¡¯t, I have no choice but to give up on it but I really think that Ciel needs allies other than me, so I have my hopes on Celia-san.


    I¡¯ll forget about this for now since there¡¯s nothing I can do about this until tomorrow but, what happened today was really exhausting.


    In the first place, it¡¯s been a while since I had this long of a conversation with anyone other than Ciel and it¡¯s absolutely different from how I usually talk with Ciel. It gave me a fatigue similar to suddenly using the muscles I don¡¯t usually use at all.


    The room we were guided to has a bed, a chair, a table with a lamp on it, and is even equipped with a toilet and a bath.


    How should I say this, I thought that only the high-grade inns would have bathrooms, but I guess that¡¯s not the case. I¡¯m getting a bit scared to see how much the lodging is. If it¡¯s just 1 gold coin per night, we should be able to manage but¡­¡­


    It¡¯ll be difficult to find a new place right now and most of all, I don¡¯t want to move anymore.


    We¡¯ve been in the wild for several days so I know that our clothes aren¡¯t clean but, I want to lie down in bed already.


    I could just take off the clothes¡­¡­ but it¡¯s Ciel¡¯s body, so I definitely shouldn¡¯t.


    I¡¯ll leave that and taking a bath to Ciel. While I did say that I wanted to have a bath, I feel awkward about doing it with her body.


    ¡ºCiel, should I return your body back now?¡»


    ¡ºThey¡¯re going to bring dinner, right? In that case, how about we do it after that?¡»


    ¡ºI see. But still, I don¡¯t really have anything to do right now.¡»


    ¡ºIf that¡¯s the case, I want to ask a few questions but can I?¡»


    ¡ºIf I can answer them, then feel free.¡»


    I nod to Ciel¡¯s words without hesitation. Since I¡¯ve been doing as I like for the whole day, there are probably a lot of things that she¡¯s wondering about.


    Before long, Ciel¡¯s questions reached my ears.


    ¡ºFirst, was it really okay to talk about us that much?


    It might have not given any clue about Ain¡¯s existence but isn¡¯t it bad if this reaches Duke Rispelgia?¡»


    ¡ºI can¡¯t be sure about this, but it¡¯s ¡°probably¡± fine.¡»


    ¡ºWhy is that?¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s because Celia-san isn¡¯t someone from this country.¡»


    ¡ºI see, I see. But I wonder why you know about that, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s simply because she wasn¡¯t against us when I asked her about us leaving the country.


    It¡¯s weird for me to say this but, since we¡¯re somewhat strong, the people of this town should want us to stay here. That way, the town should become safer and since we look like this, they might be thinking that it should be easy enough to talk us into taking unpopular requests.¡»


    ¡ºBut Ain knew about it even before that, right?


    If not, you wouldn¡¯t have asked her about leaving the country in the first place.¡»


    I¡¯m really amazed to see that Ciel is perceptive enough to say so with confidence. If it was the 10-year-old me, I would¡¯ve probably reacted like¡¸Hue~, really, amazing!¡¹or something like that.


    Like what she said, I asked Celia-san about it because I already thought we have a chance but, my reasoning is a bit vague so it¡¯s really difficult for me to say it.


    Still, I can¡¯t not talk about it, so preparing myself for certain embarrassment, I put my reason into words.


    ¡ºThe reason I thought so, was because of how she treated me, I guess.¡»


    ¡ºSo in other words, Ain noticed it from the very start!¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯m glad that it surprised you, but it¡¯s not as if I immediately noticed it or was completely sure that Celia-san isn¡¯t from this country.


    It¡¯s just that, you see, she was always polite even when interacting with a child and she didn¡¯t immediately write off our letter of introduction as being fake as well.


    It¡¯s just my assumption but, Sannois is probably not that big of a town. In places like these, most of the people know each other so most of them are casual to each other. It might sound a bit rude but, the people in these places are generally rustic and somewhat stubborn.


    I tried saying a lot of stuff but, in short, I just thought that the way she interacted with me somehow reminded me of someone dispatched by a shop¡¯s main branch.


    I¡¯m honestly not sure why I thought of her that way. It might be my intuition or maybe based on my experiences in the past.


    That¡¯s why I¡¯m embarrassed about it.


    ¡ºEven after hearing Ain¡¯s explanation, I still don¡¯t completely understand.


    But it¡¯s not that I¡¯m doubting you alright, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºWell even for me, it¡¯s only a gut feeling. Besides, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll understand it in the future, Ciel.


    After all, you knew that I noticed it from the beginning. It¡¯s similar to that, you see? ¡»


    ¡ºI see, I see! It¡¯s because I know everything¡­¡­ well not everything, about Ain but I do want to think that I know a lot about you.


    By the way Ain, can I ask why you told her about us?¡»


    ¡ºIf she isn¡¯t a person from this country, I wanted her to be our ally.¡»


    ¡ºBut you only told a bit about us, you know? You didn¡¯t ask her to help us, right?¡»


    ¡ºI didn¡¯t ask her directly but, considering that we didn¡¯t eat anything until you became 5-years-old or that your hair became white within 10 years, it should have communicated to her that we have a lot of trouble following us.


    By doing that, it¡¯s like I¡¯m indirectly asking her ¡°I have a lot of problems but will you help me?¡± and so. I¡¯m not sure if she got it, though.¡»


    ¡ºAssociating with people is difficult, isn¡¯t it?¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯m never doing this again.


    After all, I have practically no experience at sending signals or being implicit. This time, we were the ones that initiated it so I somehow managed. Though, if the other party was the one that started it, I don¡¯t know if I can properly read between the lines.¡»


    After all, I was just a regular citizen in the past. There was absolutely no reason for me to have any opportunity to try outfoxing anyone.


    But since our situation is really complicated this time, it was hard to ask Celia-san directly. If I just hid everything, asked for her help, and went ¡°I¡¯m actually targeted by the duke¡±, it sounds like a scam.


    However, if she understood what I was trying to imply, even without talking about the duke, she might be able to at least figure out that a high-ranking noble is related to our problem.


    If she is willing to help us even after noticing my message, then Celia-san would probably somehow allude to it tomorrow.


    Just as we¡¯re done with this topic, I hear a light knocking on the door.


    ¡¸Ye~s?¡¹After informing the one knocking that I¡¯m inside, the door opens. I already knew it but the person on the other side of the room is the inn¡¯s landlady, Nilda-san.


    In her hands is a tray and sitting on top of it is a piece of bread and a bowl of stew.


    ¡¸Would you like to eat right now?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, please. Thank you very much.¡¹


    ¡¸When you¡¯re done eating, just leave the tray with the bowl in front of your door, okay?


    Also, this is the magic stone for your bath, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. Umm, can I ask how much this room is¡­¡­?¡¹


    After asking her so, Nilda-san smiles as though she¡¯d giggle any moment now and shakes her head.


    ¡¸It¡¯s already paid for, so don¡¯t worry about it.¡¹


    ¡¸Then I¡¯ll thank her tomorrow.¡¹


    ¡¸She¡¯ll be happy to hear that. Now then, I¡¯ll be leaving now. You can feel at home here.¡¹


    After seeing Nilda-san off as she leaves the tray and the magic stone on the table, I once again look at the tray.


    On the tray is a soft-looking white bread and a hearty bowl of stew. In the standards of my previous life, it looks like a modest meal someone living alone would cook for themselves, but this is my first proper meal ever since I arrived in this world.


    The rations we snatched from the carriage was better than what we had back in the mansion but in the end, it¡¯s just preserved food. The taste is just secondary for that stuff.


    ¡ºDo you want to eat it, Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºYou can eat it Ain. You¡¯ve wanted to, right?¡»


    ¡ºYeah. Thanks for the meal.¡»


    Since Ciel gave me the chance, today I¡¯ll thankfully oblige.


    Well, I¡¯ll still be able to taste it even if Ciel was the one eating and vice versa, so there¡¯s not really any sort of problem but it¡¯s really nice to be able to eat at my own pace.


    First, I take the spoon and scoop some of the stew.


    After slightly cooling the hot stew, I bring it to my mouth. It tastes somewhat lighter than what I¡¯m used to in my past life, but the flavor from the meat and vegetable stock makes a complexity that pleases the tongue. I can also notice the gentle taste of either milk or butter.


    And as for the soft-looking bread, just holding it in my hand changed it¡¯s form. Tearing it into smaller pieces took absolutely no effort and even though it doesn¡¯t have any extra flavoring to it, when I took a bite, the taste of wheat flour spread throughout my mouth.


    It¡¯s hard to describe but, was wheat flour always this delicious?


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    Having this meal, tears just suddenly stream down my cheeks.


    I¡¯ve never thought that I¡¯d cry over a meal but, it seems like that¡¯s just how much I was hungry for proper food.


    Considering that I have memories of the food in my previous life while I didn¡¯t have any proper food for ten years, I guess it¡¯s only natural.


    ¡ºAin, is it delicious?¡»


    ¡ºYes, very much. How about you Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºIt tastes so complicated, I don¡¯t really know what to say about it.


    Ain, it might be hard to answer but, what is delicious?¡»


    What delicious means, is rather hard to answer.


    However, I¡¯ve already considered the possibility of Ciel asking these kinds of questions. After all, the only food that she has ever eaten before is that black bread and that watery soup.


    That¡¯s likely why Ciel doesn¡¯t have a concept of delicious or even the idea of enjoying a meal.


    ¡ºWhat is delicious is different depending on the person. However, if after eating a meal you want to eat it again from the bottom of your heart, then I think that meal is something that¡¯s delicious to you.¡»


    ¡ºThen in that case, I want to eat this again.¡»


    ¡ºI see, then let¡¯s have this again sometime.¡»


    Promising so, I went back to eating.


    ¡ó


    After finishing what was a personally emotional meal, I returned the body to Ciel as agreed earlier.


    Just as I¡¯ve been doing this the whole time, Ciel is leisurely sitting on the provided chair.


    And as I was thinking about that,¡ºAin¡»she called my name.


    ¡ºWhat is it?¡»


    Hearing her say so with full confidence,¡ºUgh¡­¡­¡»I reflexively groaned.


    It¡¯s not as if I¡¯ve gotten overconfident with my barrier but I was confident since the barrier endured a strike from the one-eyed giant. Though, I¡¯ll be lying if I say that today¡¯s formal match with Carol-san didn¡¯t shock me.


    ¡ºDon¡¯t worry about it too much, alright? It¡¯s true that your barrier was destroyed but even if the spear hit me, you would have done something about it, right Ain?¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s a different story. Since Carol-san seems to be B-Rank, this mean that since it couldn¡¯t bear her attack, that¡¯s the limit of my barrier.¡»


    ¡ºStill, the one-eyed giant is a B-ranked monster too, right?


    Although I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s fine to compare hunter ranks to monster ranks.¡»


    ¡ºWhile it¡¯s true that the force of the spear of ice might be on the stronger side of B-rank, my goal is to ¡°withstand the attack of even the strongest monster¡± you see?¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s not a problem to have a high goal, but you don¡¯t need to be in a hurry alright?


    After all, I¡¯m going to get left behind. Besides, regarding today¡¯s match, it wouldn¡¯t have been a problem if only I had blocked all 10 of them, no?¡»


    ¡ºStill, you were able to intercept 9 of them, so¡­¡»


    ¡ºI was able to do it because of your help, Ain. Since we have each other, if we can overcome things together, isn¡¯t it good enough?¡»


    That¡¯s right, if Ciel can handle it on her own, then it¡¯s fine. And in times where she can¡¯t do it, I only have to support her.


    On the other hand, if there¡¯s something I can¡¯t deal with on my own, then I could just overcome it with Ciel.


    I¡¯ve been always striving to create an unbreakable, undetectable, and inexhaustible barrier but, it doesn¡¯t mean that I need to work hard by myself.


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. Maybe I am being in too much of a hurry.¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯ll also do my best so to keep up with you, Ain.¡»


    ¡ºRight, let¡¯s do our best together.¡»


    Somehow, I felt my chest being a bit lighter but more than that, I¡¯m glad to see Ciel being delighted.


    Most of all, the fact that there¡¯s someone that understands me like this feels somewhat, ticklish.


    Just when I thought that we¡¯ve settled this topic, Ciel suddenly clapped her hands as though she remembered something.


    ¡ºCome to think of it, Ain prefers big breasts, right?


    My size is, unsatisfactory, right?¡»


    ¡ºUmmmm, what do you mean? Did I say anything about this?¡»


    Hearing those abrupt words, I reflexively asked her about it.


    Even after rummaging through my memories, I¡¯ve never talked with Ciel about breasts before, though. Well, no, I simply think that I haven¡¯t become enough of a woman to talk to Ciel about breasts and things.


    No matter what, I¡¯m absolutely going to be embarrassed about it and just the thought of talking to Ciel, a 10-year-old girl, about it makes me want to crawl into a corner and disappear.


    Then why? Just as I questioned myself, Ciel dropped another bomb.


    ¡ºI mean, when you see a person with a big chest, it always caught your eye, Ain. You¡¯re envious about it, right?¡»


    She dropped a bomb but thankfully it missed the target.


    If asked whether I like the big ones, I¡¯d say that I like them moderately but I don¡¯t have the courage to answer if Ciel asked me that.


    Also, if I¡¯m allowed to make more excuses, I may have had impure feelings over them in the past but that doesn¡¯t extend to my present life at all.


    ¡ºI just thought that it seemed very heavy.


    It¡¯s not that I¡¯m interested about them, I just have a habit of looking at unusual things.¡»


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    Though I didn¡¯t give her a proper answer and only replied with something that sounds true, it seems like Ciel was convinced.


    And after groaning while being deep in her thoughts, she mutters¡¸I wonder how I can make it bigger?¡¹


    I shouldn¡¯t have answered that question. However, after barely storming through the previous conversation, I reflexively blurted out a common saying in my previous life.


    ¡ºThey say that massaging makes them bigger.¡»


    ¡ºWill something so simple really do it?¡»


    The time I noticed my mistake was when Ciel was about to bring her hands to her chest.


    ¡¸Stop.¡¹I managed to stop Ciel from moving any further.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s only a rumor so it¡¯s best not to believe in it.¡»


    ¡ºHave you ever tried it before, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºN-no.¡»


    ¡ºWhat about the people around you?¡»


    ¡ºThey haven¡¯t tried it as well. And even if they have, I haven¡¯t heard them saying they did so.¡»


    Of course I haven¡¯t. There¡¯s no way I have.


    After all, the people around me are generally men. And although I had female classmates, there¡¯s no way I could ask them if they rubbed their breasts to make them bigger.


    After nodding to herself, Ciel asks me¡ºCome to think of it, how do I take a bath?¡»


    I¡¯m a bit worried about how this conversation led her to thinking about taking a bath but since it changed the current topic, I¡¯ll consider this a good thing. With that, I began explaining bathing to Ciel.


    Hiya~! It¡¯s really obvious but, I¡¯m late~! Anyway, we¡¯re back to more Ain and Ciel fluff!


    This chapter had Ain telling Ciel the plan! And Ciel being the usual curious little princess!


    And also Ain being emotional over a proper meal!


    Still, I like how Ain can¡¯t really hide much to Ciel, lol.


    ¡°Do you like big breasts?¡± ¡°UHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH¡±


    And then on the next chapter, their first touch of hot water! Ain is a bit worried about the sequence of events that led to this but¡­ is she just worrying too much?


    Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Feel free to comment and have a nice day~!

 CH 23

    ¡¸So this is the bathroom that I¡¯ve been frequently reading about, I see.¡¹


    Although I was going to try explaining it to her, I don¡¯t really have the vocabulary to do so. As such, I ended my explanation by pointing her to the bathroom.


    Since in most cases, my vocabulary is only limited to what Ciel actually knows, actually finding the words to explain something new to her would become quite difficult.


    In the first place, how people bathe is probably different in this world as well, so there¡¯s no point explaining to her now.


    And so about that said bathroom, the bathroom right in front of us right now is a small, tile-floored room. And although the bathtub itself isn¡¯t that big, with Ciel¡¯s height, it¡¯s spacious enough for her to soak up to her shoulders.


    The bathtub is unlike the traditional wooden ones found in Japan and seems to be made of stone that¡¯s overlayed with some special coating.


    Moreover, there is a pipe attached to it and if you follow where it leads to, there is a switch-like thing and some sort of thing that can hold a round-ish object.


    ¡ºThat pedestal, it¡¯s likely where we place the magic stone.¡»


    ¡¸Like this?¡¹


    ¡ºAnd now, please try pushing the object protruding next to it.¡»


    ¡¸You¡¯re right Ain, water¡­¡­ hot water, perhaps? is coming out.¡¹


    As Ciel was amazed by it, I was also amazed as well.


    It¡¯s the very image of civilization. Warm food, a soft bed, and a bathtub. After experiencing all of this, I can¡¯t help but be moved by the level of civilization here.


    Still, it doesn¡¯t seem to be the type that automatically stops when the tub is full. So, while watching the water gushing forth, we wait for the tub to be filled up.


    ¡¸A bathroom is a place for washing the body, right?


    Is it possible that, since I haven¡¯t used it even once, I¡¯m actually really dirty?¡¹


    ¡ºIn your case, you aren¡¯t that dirty, actually.


    That cloth played a part of it as well, but since you¡¯re really pretty, I¡¯ve made sure to have the barrier keep dirt off of you as well.¡»


    It¡¯s been 10 years since my meeting with Ciel. Let alone a proper bath, Ciel¡¯s body has never been rinsed clean with water, nor has it ever been wiped clean with a wet cloth, so she¡¯s definitely not clean¡­¡­ is what could¡¯ve been my answer, but it¡¯s not actually so.


    First of all, there was the mysterious white cloth that the duke dressed us in. I¡¯ve already confirmed that it has a purifying effect. Thanks to this, everything covered by the cloth is always kept clean.


    When she was still a baby, it practically covered her whole body. And since he even gave us a new one every time she grew out of it, it always covers a large portion of her body.


    In addition to that, we also have my barrier sorcery. The barrier repels dirt coming from the outside. It¡¯s basically the same as having a thin film covering her, so even if she¡¯s splashed with rain and mud, nothing actually stays on Ciel.


    Still, it¡¯s not as if the barrier blocks everything, so she can still feel the cool blowing breeze and everything I judge as safe is ignored like the wind. Really handy of you, barrier.


    But because of that, it feels like it affected the barrier¡¯s durability; so in the future, I want to find a way to increase the durability while keeping this effect.


    ¡¸Umm, from Ain¡¯s point of view, I¡¯m pretty, is it?¡¹


    ¡ºYou are. If I was as beautiful as you in my past life, it would¡¯ve changed my life.¡»


    ¡¸Are you happy about me being pretty, Ain?¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. Well, I am looking forward to seeing you become prettier in the future and I do want to try prettying you up as you are right now.¡»


    With her face slightly flushed, Ciel quietly repeated her words.


    I guess she¡¯s embarrassed about being called pretty. Seeing this relatively rare reaction from her, I feel blessed.


    Seemingly calmed down after a while, with her cheeks now back to their usual color, Ciel began talking again.


    ¡¸But then in that case, is there really any meaning in me taking a bath?¡¹


    ¡ºMy barrier can¡¯t do anything about sweat and such, so it¡¯d be better if you still do so. Besides, since taking a hot bath will warm your body up, I hear that it can help prevent sickness and such.


    Other than that, because it can improve your mood, I guess? When you take a bath, how should I say this, it makes you feel really refreshed.¡»


    ¡¸Then in that case, it might be nice to try it after all.


    But since we¡¯ve already filled the tub with water, it¡¯s practically good as confirmed, though.¡¹


    As a former Japanese, knowing that Ciel doesn¡¯t seem to dislike taking a bath honestly makes me happy.


    Since our situation was how it was, I don¡¯t really feel filthy even if we don¡¯t take baths, rather I always feel clean, but I really want to take a bath.


    Still, I don¡¯t want to make Ciel do something she doesn¡¯t like just because I want to do so. So while I might not say the same in the future, if she says that she doesn¡¯t want to take a bath right now, I would likely give in.


    Also, since the places that aren¡¯t covered by the said cloth, such as her head and arms, should still have sweat, dead skin and so, I really wanted to wash those off.


    Now then, I¡¯m happy that Ciel is going to take a bath, but there¡¯s a problem here. And the problem is that, frankly, I don¡¯t actually know much about hair and skin care.


    Since it seems like they have soap here, taking a bath by itself shouldn¡¯t be an issue, but I have absolutely no idea where to go from there on.


    Rather, it¡¯s exactly because I have some vague information on me, like how water can damage the hair or something, that I end up overthinking about things.


    I¡¯m not actually sure if there¡¯s any meaning in paying attention to these kinds of things since Ciel is still 10 years old. However, I also vaguely remember hearing, from the television or something, that it¡¯s important to start early with things like these.


    Yeah. Now I really want Celia-san¡¯s help.


    Or maybe I should learn some kind of purification sorcery, like the one used on the cloth. With that, we can just soak in the tub without any problems.


    The tub got full while I was thinking about such things, so Ciel pushed the switch to stop the flow.


    I had her leave the bathroom for a moment, take off her clothes, and bring with her a towel and the said cloth when she entered back inside.


    Come to think of it, we don¡¯t even have underwear. The cloth is just something roughly sewn into a shape we can wear, so it probably can¡¯t serve much use as ladies¡¯ underwear.


    And with that, we¡¯re back in the bathroom but since they don¡¯t have a shower, we filled a bucket with the hot water from the magic stone and poured it over our body. When Ciel poured water over her head ¡ª in the end I decided to go all out and guard her hair with the barrier ¡ª she ended up inhaling water through her nose, so Ciel passed the baton to me.


    I¡¯ve also made the same mistake when I was a kid but I forgot to warn her about it.


    As we switched, Ciel said¡ºMy body should remember it when Ain does it once.¡»so it doesn¡¯t seem like this mistake made her hate taking a bath.


    Now then, I run through my memories in full strength to bathe in a way that¡¯s as feminine as possible. The difficulty is going to be really high.


    First, I lather the soap. Since this is something I also did in the past, it¡¯s not really that hard to do. Rather, since I tended to be weirdly obsessed about things like these, I can make the soap really bubbly with just my bare hands. The point here is to be careful with how much water to use and to get air into the lather.


    When people saw me do it during the field trips in the past, it was weirdly popular.


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    While Ciel is playing around and blowing bubbles, she also spread it all over her body just as instructed. The sensation of Ciel¡¯s small hands gliding over smooth skin felt really good.


    Once her whole body, including her face, was covered in bubbles, I asked for control and washed it all off with hot water.


    Next, I move on to the head issue. In the first place, I planned on starting from the head but since Ciel showed interest in the bubbles, I decided to go with the body first but well, who cares.


    So now, about the hair, I decided to cover her hair strands with a barrier and wash just her scalp.


    Just as I did earlier, I lather the soap and gently massage it onto her scalp.


    And after properly washing it off, we¡¯re now done for today. I return the body to Ciel and have her soak in the bathtub.


    ¡¸Taking a bath is such a hassle, isn¡¯t it?¡¹


    ¡ºSince we used a barrier, we didn¡¯t wash the hair but if we had, it would have been much more harder.¡»


    ¡¸But Ain, you like taking baths, right?¡¹


    ¡ºI do¡­¡­ Or rather, it was a part of my life. Besides, my hair wasn¡¯t as long as yours, Ciel.


    With longer hair, drying it is also a problem.¡»


    ¡¸We can¡¯t cut my hair, right?¡¹


    ¡ºWell there¡¯s the issue of the circuits but¡­ You have such beautiful hair, so it would be a real waste to cut it short.¡»


    I¡¯m pretty sure of it since I just touched it earlier but Ciel¡¯s hair really is smooth.


    It¡¯s the kind of hair that makes you want to keep touching on it. It¡¯s really different from my old frizzy hair. Honestly, I¡¯m a bit jealous. Well it¡¯s also my hair too, though.


    And so that same smooth hair is currently soaking in the bathtub. I know full well that it¡¯s bad for the hair but we have a barrier, so yeah. It¡¯s my first time feeling the sensation of wet hair sticking to my skin, so it¡¯s a bit ticklish.


    While I¡¯ve been thinking of nothing but her hair, however, Ciel¡¯s line of vision shifted to point directly down to her body.


    Just when I noticed that I¡¯m staring at her faintly plump mounds, Ciel suddenly placed her hands over them.


    Since they have a bit of a puff, they¡¯re really soft. And as I was thinking about that nonsense, Ciel began massaging them.


    ¡¸With this, they¡¯ll grow bigger, right?¡¹


    ¡ºI told you, it¡¯s a just a myth.¡»


    ¡¸And I told you that I want to try it, right Ain?¡¹


    Ciel is doing it out of honest curiosity but the stimulus really feels ticklish for me.


    I know that it¡¯s practically my own hand touching me but unlike Ciel, who¡¯s moving it by her own will, the fact that I don¡¯t know when a strong stimulus is coming makes it even more ticklish.


    Moreover, it seems like I¡¯m the only one feeling this way, so if I make a sound, she¡¯s going to find it absolutely weird.


    Anyway, I just need to bear with it until Ciel gets satisfied but, all of a sudden, her hand grazed the tip and I almost feel like my whole body just twitched as a response.


    And at the same time, I ended up letting out a weird¡ºHyuu!¡»sound. However, since Ciel¡¯s body itself didn¡¯t show any particular reaction to that, I was assaulted by a weird illusion that my body wasn¡¯t connected to my mind.


    If we switch now, I¡¯m practically sure that I¡¯ll end up doing inappropriate things.


    And just as I thought about that, since she naturally heard my voice, Ciel asked me¡¸Ain, what¡¯s wrong?¡¹in an extremely puzzled tone.


    On top of it being embarrassing to explain how I was gasping from a new, unfamiliar stimulus, it might tip her off that I was a man in the past, so I tried to be as calm as possible as I told her¡ºIt¡¯s nothing.¡»


    And as I was wondering why Ciel suddenly blinked three times, she replied¡¸If so, then never mind.¡¹with a cheerful tone for some reason.


    ¡¸Still, it¡¯s not getting any bigger.¡¹


    ¡ºAt the very least, if it grows just by doing it once, that¡¯s another problem altogether.¡»


    ¡¸I see, that¡¯s true. In that case, then perhaps I should try again when I remember it next time. ¡¹


    ¡º¡­¡­ If you really want to do it, I won¡¯t stop you.¡»


    What a mistake. If I only told her¡ºIt wasn¡¯t effective at all, see?¡»I might have prevented this from ever happening again. But now, it¡¯s going to happen irregularly without me even knowing when.


    I could tell her to stop it, but I don¡¯t really have a clear enough reason I can say to stop her from doing it. So I just threw my hopes into oblivion along with the foolish idea of telling her that doing it regularly might be much more effective.


    ¡ó


    We stepped out of the bathtub and wiped down her body but, although it¡¯s protected by a barrier, Ciel¡¯s long hair is drenched with water, so drying it up is going to be a hassle.


    I told her that drying long hair would be a problem, and that¡¯s exactly the problem we¡¯re facing now.


    In the meantime, we used the towel to prevent Ciel from getting wet again and had her wear the cloth.


    After that is the issue of drying. And so what came to my mind was a hair dryer. My fire sorcery isn¡¯t really strong enough to turn into combat sorcery and although it¡¯s said that heat can damage hair, me using it probably can¡¯t actually hurt her hair, so it should turn into a good enough drying sorcery.


    ¡¸Drying hair really is a problem.¡¹


    ¡ºAbout that, there¡¯s something I want to try, but can I try it?¡»


    ¡¸Really? In that case, would you mind?¡¹


    After borrowing Ciel¡¯s body, I quickly form the chant. Since I only need to choose the words, activating it is a different problem, simply making a chant isn¡¯t that difficult. Purification sorcery might be actually simple enough to make but I don¡¯t really have a clue of what words I can use, so I¡¯ll leave that for another time. Maybe it¡¯s not even sorcery, but actually magic. In that case, it¡¯s going to be much more troublesome.


    So with that, I imagined a hair dryer while I simply chanted¡¸Oh fire, make the wind heat up¡¹and, as I expected, warm air began to dry Ciel¡¯s hair.


    And since it¡¯s not an actual hair dryer but a product of sorcery, I can control the wind being blown making it super convenient.


    However, it still took about 10 minutes to completely dry up her hair.


    ¡ºHow was the bath?¡»


    ¡¸It was fun, it was absolutely fun.¡¹


    While she was sitting down on the bed, Ciel suddenly starts dozing off.


    After that, she let out a cute little yawn.


    ¡ºShall we sleep now?¡»


    ¡¸Right¡­¡­ For some reason, I feel really¡­¡­ sleepy.


    Ain, would you sing for me?¡¹


    ¡ºSure, of course.¡»


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    So after turning the lights out and making sure that Ciel is laying down on the bed, I began to sing her a lullaby.


    Hiya~! More AinCiel for all of us! *clap, clap, clap!


    Ain being unnecessarily obsessed with making a good lather from soap, lol. I ended up reading about making a good foam for a bit. Nice to have that in mind.


    Meanwhile, Ciel playing with bubbles probably for the first time, cute!


    Also, Ain just casually covering every single strand of Ciel¡¯s hair with barriers. Every. Single. Strand¡­ Excuse me? Is this another result of your weird obsessions with random stuff? lol


    It was fun to read Ciel struggle with taking a bath for the first time as well. Also, Ain struggling with¡­ well, being, ehem, cursed with knowledge¡­ Moreover, Ain just being a bit too much of an airhead these past¡­ Actually, she¡¯s just a mature-ish airhead, she just knows how to sound like she knows everything (Only my opinion). You better hope Ciel doesn¡¯t remember about this.


    Anyway, today we are presented the product of modern technology, just as important as food and the almighty bedding, the bathroom! The modern another world bathroom seems to be have a bathtub with a pedestal next to it that displaces hot water from a magic stone. In this context, we have the information that otherworldians of this plane traditionally bath in hot water. Based on the absence of a shower head, it might infer that they tend to take their time bathing and soaking themselves in the bathtub for stress relief and pleasure. As the bathtub is said to be of a different design and material from the traditional Japanese wooden Oh! Fu! Roh! This means that the construction may be much more similar to the western bathtubs and that they have better crafting technology that enables them to use much sturdier materials than wood. In this essay I¨C


    ¨CWait, we¡¯re done with information gathering? No more mind games? Oh, sorry¡­


    Now then, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Feel free to comment, stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 24

    The next morning, Ciel woke up quite late. The sun was already high in the sky, so in terms of time, it¡¯s probably less of a breakfast time right now but more of a brunch time.


    I¡¯m really glad that she can be in such a deep sleep but we have a lot of things we need to do for today, so we can¡¯t really stay in bed for too long.


    ¡ºCiel, good morning.¡»


    ¡¸Ain~? Morning~¡¹


    She¡¯s absolutely still half-asleep but it¡¯s a bit unusual for her to be this drowsy when waking up.


    It might be due to her sleeping in a bed. Well sure, it should be much easier to fall asleep on a bed compared to a stone floor, but still unusual for her.


    After being dazed for a few minutes, Ciel suddenly stretched her arms and is now properly awake.


    ¡ºAre you wide awake now?¡»


    ¡¸Beds are amazing. It¡¯s really soft. Somehow, it makes me feel happy.¡¹


    ¡ºIn that case, I¡¯m really glad to hear that.¡»


    ¡¸So, what time is it?¡¹


    ¡ºIt should be just before noon now.¡»


    ¡¸No doubt about it, I actually did oversleep. You could have woken me up, you know Ain?¡¹


    ¡ºI¡¯ve also thought of doing so since we have plans for today as well, but it seemed like you were really enjoying it, so¡­¡»


    Ciel being tucked in a pure white bedding with her white hair peeking out was like a doll that you¡¯d want to decorate somewhere. However, Ciel being hit by sunlight gives her a somewhat divine look.


    It might be because of what she¡¯s wearing right now as well but, now that I think about it, just wearing this under a cloak feels really perverted. If the one seeing us knows about our circumstances, this should be able to get us some sympathy. Now the question is, would Celia-san ask us of our circumstances?


    Nevertheless, today¡¯s morning was really refreshing, so I began singing with a la~la~la~.


    Since Ciel woke up late, it feels to me like it¡¯s a holiday right now, so I¡¯m somewhat excited for today. Still, although I¡¯m always awake, Ciel¡¯s body is refreshed, so my mood is influenced by that.


    ¡¸Then, Ain. I¡¯ll leave it all to you today as well.¡¹


    ¡ºI¡¯ll switch if something ever happens, so when that time comes, I¡¯ll leave it to you too.¡»


    While we¡¯re staying in this town, I¡¯ll be the one mainly moving. As such, I switch with Ciel, wear our cloak, and leave the room.


    Maybe it¡¯s only because I¡¯ve kept Ciel¡¯s hair inside the hood up until now, but it feels weird to have long hair moving around freely. Still, it is a sensation that I never had a chance of experiencing when I was still a male, so I think it¡¯s quite interesting.


    As we went through the hall and down the stairs to the lower floor, Nilda-san was standing at the reception desk.


    ¡¸Good morning.¡¹


    ¡¸My my, hello sleepyhead.¡¹


    When I greeted her, I was faced with a somewhat tender gaze.


    And although I actually expected that there might be no breakfast prepared, Nilda-san said¡¸Here¡¯s your meal!¡¹while giving me a small basket.


    ¡¸Is it really okay?¡¹


    ¡¸Well, I already got paid by the guild. So if I don¡¯t give it to you, it¡¯ll be a breach of contract from my side, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸If that¡¯s the case, thank you very much.¡¹


    ¡¸Also, if you¡¯re going outside, leave the key here before you go okay?¡¹


    ¡ºIt seems that we don¡¯t need to bring all of our things with us.¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s true. Still, I¡¯m really glad that we don¡¯t need to worry about the inn fees for 10 days.¡»


    ¡ºAfter all, it¡¯s much better than sleeping on the ground.¡»


    ¡ºAlso, since we have our own room, we can talk without worrying about other people¡¯s eyes, right Ciel?¡»


    While we were heading to the guild, I had this conversation with Ciel.¡ºFufu, that¡¯s right.¡»Ciel cheerfully replied. Is this because she¡¯s really excited about our private conversations?


    The way to the guild wasn¡¯t really complicated, so we quickly reached our destination.


    There are less people inside the guild compared to yesterday and by the looks of it, most of them are generally young people. Well even though I call them young, all of them are likely a lot older than Ciel.


    And maybe since I didn¡¯t hide Ciel¡¯s hair today, there were a lot of people stealing glances at me on the way here and even right now.


    Still, it¡¯s not as if they¡¯re looking to pick a fight with us, they just seem to be reacting to Ciel¡¯s unusual hair color, as everybody immediately went back to their business after that.


    Considering this, I might have been a bit too obsessed about not standing out. Still, this is just hindsight.


    Looking at the guild¡¯s reception area, Celia-san isn¡¯t there. Instead, a girl that seems to be a few years older than Ciel is standing behind the counter. Based on her movements, she seems to be a rookie.


    But as I approached the counter, she blinked visibly and now seems to be observing me.


    Don¡¯t tell me, did she just notice my barrier? Or maybe detection?


    Either way, if she did notice my sorcery, something that even a B-Rank hunter couldn¡¯t notice, she might be considerably strong.


    And so, I was just being too paranoid. After all, she simply asked me¡¸Are you here to make a request?¡¹when I reached the counter.


    Yup. Well, if a kid with an unusual hair color, and doesn¡¯t even look anything near 10 years old, suddenly enters the guild; sure, that¡¯s probably a natural reaction. Rather, since she didn¡¯t mistake me for being lost, she¡¯s actually handling this pretty well.


    ¡¸I have a promise with Celia-san so, can you call her for me?¡¹


    ¡¸Uhh, Celia-san, right? Are you her daughter¡­¡­ maybe not but, are you related to her?¡¹


    ¡¸Did Celia-san say anything about calling her if there¡¯s a white-haired girl?¡¹


    After hearing my words, the receptionist lady probably remembered something, as her shoulders suddenly jumped.


    After telling me¡¸Can you wait for a bit?¡¹she quickly retreated to the back room. Celia-san told me that it should go smoothly since Ciel¡¯s white hair stands out, but I don¡¯t really see the smoothness right now.


    Well, sure, I know that our white hair standing out helped make our conversation here a bit easier, but still.


    I can hear something like¡¸What kind of girl did Celia-san tell us to look out for again?¡¹coming from the back room, so the fault might lie on the receptionist earlier.


    Do your best, nameless receptionist. It might be better if you write down the more important stuff though.


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    (Please visit Re:Library to show the translators your appreciation and stop supporting the content thief!)


    Since we have some time, I borrowed an empty seat and checked the contents of the basket.


    Inside the basket is a sandwich filled with a variety of vegetables. On one hand, it looks pretty simple but on the other hand, I can clearly distinguish the taste of each vegetable, so it¡¯s actually really delicious. Since I didn¡¯t really find vegetables this delicious while I was still alive, maybe hunger (?) really is the best spice after all.


    Some time after the receptionist went to the back room, Celia-san came out in a hurry and said¡¸I¡¯m sorry for taking your time.¡¹while lowering her head. In contrast, the said receptionist that came back along with her giggled¡¸That¡¯s too formal~¡¹but seeing Celia-san¡¯s face, she might just get a good scolding later after this.


    But since Celia-san¡¯s face immediately went back to normal, that might just be my imagination.


    ¡¸I would like to lead you to the room we used yesterday but would that be alright?¡¹


    ¡¸We¡¯re going to talk, right? Then it should be fine.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you very much.¡¹


    While having an objectively stiff conversation, we are guided to the back room.


    Still, we were just led to the same room as yesterday, and we¡¯re positioned in the same way as well.


    In other words, Carol-san is here sitting next to me. I know she¡¯s not unrelated to what we¡¯re going to discuss today but, this monocle-san here might get weirdly triggered by some weird stuff, so I don¡¯t really want to sit this close to her.


    For now, just as we¡¯re set for discussion, Celia-san apologized again.


    ¡¸I would like to apologize our staff¡¯s earlier behaviour.¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t really mind it. After all, I do look younger than the usual 10-year-old.


    Now that I think about it, I still don¡¯t have a Hunter Card, so I don¡¯t actually have anything that can prove that I¡¯m a hunter.¡¹


    ¡¸Regarding that, once again, I¡¯m very sorry. I¡¯ll hand it over now.


    This will be your Hunter Card, Cielmer-san.¡¹


    After saying so, she handed me a metallic card. It¡¯s maybe about one size bigger than the usual point or credit card, I think. With Ciel¡¯s hands, it¡¯s going to be a bit difficult to hold.


    In the front, it has the name Cielmer and the rank ¡ª it¡¯s E-Rank by the way ¡ª written on it. On the back, there is some complex pattern drawn all over it but, this is probably some sort of magic circle. Moreover, it¡¯s the type that uses magic. Because of that, I can¡¯t even understand what¡¯s written on it.


    ¡¸So the cards are regulated with magic, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Right. It¡¯s compatible with a magic item in each guild and using that, a hunter¡¯s request completion rate or their rank up test results can be read in detail. It can also rewrite a card.


    Similar devices can be found in a town¡¯s entrance and checkpoints and these ones can distinguish whether a Hunter Card is real or not.


    However, it seems like no one can recreate this technology from scratch. One theory even says that this might be something given to us by a god.¡¹


    ¡¸A god¡­¡­ Is it Alsharohs-sama?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m not quite familiar with the details but I think it was Mehtestos-sama.¡¹


    ¡¸I see, that makes sense.¡¹


    In this world, there isn¡¯t just one singular god. There are a number of gods and each one of them have something they rule over but, I¡¯ll just end this part here.


    Still, similar to the gods of mythologies back on earth, it seems like they have their own romances and stuff here too.


    However, the only god that the church worships is the god that¡¯s considered as the god of love, Alsharohs. The reason for that is because she is actually the only goddess that has given oracles, it seems.


    In some regions, the god of war is sometimes worshiped as well but it seems like there haven¡¯t been any reports of that god making some direct action, like an oracle or so. Moreover, since the church has an influence in many countries, the one generally referred when talking about a god naturally becomes Alsharohs.


    I do want to make it clear, however, that the church doesn¡¯t actually intend to reject the other gods.


    Now back to the main topic.


    Celia-san directs us back to the main issue.


    ¡¸Then once again, allow me to discuss our affiliation. Carol and I, a hunter and a receptionist respectively, are guild members that were dispatched here from the headquarters. As for the reason for this, it¡¯s strictly confidential so I¡¯m not allowed to answer that.¡¹


    ¡¸Since you¡¯re telling me this, does this mean that you¡¯ll support me?¡¹


    I already had a hunch about it but it seems like even the Hunter¡¯s Guild has their own internal problems.


    Even if the Hunter¡¯s Guild itself sits on a neutral standpoint, they probably recruit their staff on site, so depending on the place, the top management might not consist of people from the headquarters.


    In those cases, they might even prioritise the country¡¯s interest over the headquarter¡¯s will.


    Still, it doesn¡¯t change our intention of only talking about ourselves to the people we think we can trust. If we want to, this could even be the first and last possible time we¡¯ll talk about ourselves, so discussing this isn¡¯t really something we need to be too worried about.


    ¡¸Still, even if your information is something the guild cannot accept, we will not abandon you, so please don¡¯t worry about that.


    At the very least, what we¡¯ve decided on yesterday is already guaranteed.¡¹


    ¡¸Speaking of guaranteed, what happened with Carol-san¡¯s punishment?¡¹


    I don¡¯t actually care what it is as long as she gets a proper punishment. After all, it¡¯s not like knowing about it would change anything. Still, I want to hear what her punishment is just to be sure.


    So while I¡¯m at it, I stole a glance at Carol-san¡®s face and, for some reason, she looks like she¡¯s lost all hope in the world.


    ¡¸The Hunter¡¯s Guild has penalized Carol with a usage restriction on the research room and the payment of your inn fees while you are staying at this town. Specifically, the guild will be assisting you in your life here, so it has been decided that the guild will be shouldering the inn fees.¡¹


    ¡¸Ah, thank you for paying for my room.¡¹


    ¡¸As stated earlier, this is the guild¡¯s responsibility, so please don¡¯t worry about it Cielmer-san.


    In exchange, if you don¡¯t rank up even after a year of assistance and are unable to earn enough to sustain your livelihood at that time, we will no longer assist you in reaching C-Rank, so please take note of this.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    Frankly, I really wanted to do something about our current money issue, so having our inn guaranteed is a big help.


    At the very least, we should be able to manage with the money we have on us. And if the magic stones we have can be sold for a good price, that should solve the issue of us running out of money.


    ¡¸After that, this is not a part of her penalty but during that year or until you reach C-Rank, Carol will be your instructor.¡¹


    ¡¸I-Is that so¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸You don¡¯t have to look that uneasy about it, you know?¡¹


    I guess it really showed in my face, because Carol-san got a bit sulky from my reaction. Still, me reacting like this is her own fault, so I absolutely don¡¯t intend on either sympathizing or forgiving her.


    Still, she did promise to look over us until we reach D-Rank, so it¡¯s already too late for me to react like this.


    (This chapter is provided to you by Re:Library)


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    ¡¸You did almost kill me, so it¡¯s hard to be welcoming.


    There might be a high chance that you¡¯ll even forget about instructing me and just start discussing sorcery. I don¡¯t mind the latter, but I don¡¯t even want to imagine the former happening again.¡¹


    ¡¸I completely understand what you¡¯re talking about but with our situation, having Carol as your instructor is our best option.¡¹


    And just as we were talking about her issue, Carol-san¡¯s eyes suddenly spark with interest.


    On the other hand, Celia-san immediately frowned as though she just got a headache.


    ¡¸Carol. Don¡¯t you understand that that¡¯s exactly why she¡¯s cautious of you?¡¹


    ¡¸I-It¡¯s fine. I¡¯m not going to make her go a bit serious or anything. Right, just discussing about sorcery is enough.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s still on the grey zone, you know?¡¹


    Celia-san lets out a deep sigh but Carol-san doesn¡¯t seem to care too much.


    Well if Carol-san gets a bit too lazy with teaching, I¡¯ll report it to Celia-san.


    ¡¸For now, let¡¯s get back on topic.


    As for the reason why we would like to hear about what you want to say, it¡¯s because having information in advance would make it easier for the guild to formulate a countermeasure.


    Specifically, in the case where there might be pursuers already searching for you, the guild could move in to search your surroundings as well.¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s still a possibility that I¡¯m the one at fault, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸While that could be true, the chances for that should be quite low, so we¡¯ll be ignoring that for now.


    And even if you are being pursued because of murder, I¡¯ve judged that there was enough of a reason for you to have done so.¡¹


    At this point, it really feels like I¡¯m being given a special exception because I¡¯m 10 years old.


    Well normally a 10-year-old child would never murder someone, so they probably thought that if I did kill someone, I probably had no other choice or so.


    How convenient can this little girl¡¯s body get!


    Now then, ignoring that nonsense, I should think about how much I can say.


    Hiya~! Back to world building and adulting time, the not NSFW adulting~!


    Today we see the full power of Baby! Baby girl can¡¯t be a murderer, they say! Well, yeah, they didn¡¯t actually directly kill any humans but, from an objective standpoint, Ain/Ciel can be quite the creepy child when you start to notice that she¡¯s not really acting like a normal child. *Flashbacks to Alejo¡¯s death of a thousand cuts moment.


    Still, Ain¡¯s so paranoid.


    Receptionist: *Blinks


    Ain: ALERT! ALERT! MIGHT HAVE DETECTED SORCERY! SH*T! SH*T!


    Receptionist: What are you here for, little girl?


    Ain: ¡­Oh


    Well, it is understandable but, lol.


    The most hilarious thing here is that Carol is actually the most immature one in the room.


    Also, Ain questioning herself if she can quote ¡°Hunger is the best spice¡± when she¡¯s not that hungry, lol. Dinner was probably a lot more than what they usually eat in the past.

 CH 25

    ¡¸Now then, I¡¯d like to talk about my background for a bit.


    However, it seems like you have already somewhat figured out my past from our conversation yesterday.¡¹


    ¡¸As there might be some misinterpretation from our side, we would like to hear about any information you¡¯d be willing to talk about, regardless of how little it is.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. Before reaching 10 years old and receiving my Job, I was at a certain noble¡¯s place.¡¹


    ¡¸Do you know of their name or peerage?¡¹


    ¡¸Perhaps, but since I¡¯m not completely sure about it, and for safety reasons as well, I¡¯d like to keep it to myself.


    And so when I was 10 years old, I was sold to a man who seemed to be another noble. The wagon that was transporting me was attacked by a monster on the way, and I was able to escape. That¡¯s why, there should be no one searching for me basically.¡¹


    I know that Ciel looks quite unusual, so if her name and Job becomes known and her face is seen, she¡¯ll obviously be found out. Still, based on Duke Respelgia¡¯s personality, he¡¯d probably prioritise conducting his next experiment rather than care about Ciel, a girl he threw away.


    If more beings like us are made in greater numbers, the world might just get thrown into chaos. Still, I don¡¯t really think that this would happen. If it¡¯s easy to do, then we should have been thrown away or killed at that time when Ciel was 5 years old. I don¡¯t think he¡¯ll repeat a failed experiment that takes years to complete multiple times.


    ¡¸In that case, the noble that bought you is already dead, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸Aah¡­¡­ Yes. When I escaped, other than the monster, there were only corpses nearby.


    So they probably don¡¯t expect me to be alive.¡¹


    ¡¸The number of nobles that go missing or die mysteriously are not that many, but not so few as well.


    Therefore, I believe that there should be a low possibility of Cielmer-san being linked to that case. And depending on the situation, the fact that the said noble is dead might directly lead to your own safety.¡¹


    Celia-san covered for my slip up, but having the other party cover for me feels really complicated.


    It even feels like I might have just given them a hint leading directly to Duke Respelgia instead. At this point, I have no other choice but to pray that the duke didn¡¯t make the mistake of leaving anything that can link him to that pig man.


    The fact that I¡¯m praying for the duke is extremely infuriating but if the guild discovers Duke Respelgia¡¯s involvement and decides to do something about it, he might just suspect that we¡¯re still alive.


    ¡¸So what was the monster at that time?¡¹


    ¡¸The monster was the owner of this magic stone. It was a one-eyed giant that had a big club-like thing.¡¹


    Saying so, I show them the magic stone. Based on the amount of magic power stored inside it, I suspect that this might be the same type of magic stone that was used to make that black pill, but even if that¡¯s true, I can¡¯t do anything about it right now. It would be great if I can find a way to directly absorb the magic power from the magic stone but since I can¡¯t control magic power I don¡¯t own outside of Ciel¡¯s body, I can¡¯t do anything about it. Rather, a pill that injects another person¡¯s ¡ª monster¡¯s? ¡ª magic power into the body might actually be abnormal.


    According to Carol-san, it was a B-Rank monster; and since I¡¯ve already officially won against Carol-san, Celia-san wasn¡¯t surprised even after seeing the big magic stone.


    Instead, she even nods to herself looking somewhat convinced about something. I assume it¡¯s about what she said earlier, about how this might directly result to my safety.


    ¡¸Judging from this magic stone and your description of the monster, what attacked you must have been a cyclops.


    It¡¯s a giant one-eyed B-rank monster. Assuming that they hired, for example, C-ranked escorts, a confrontation with it would lead to certain annihilation.


    You could say that the one that imprisoned you was simply well prepared.¡¹


    ¡¸So you think that the noble that locked me up set this up too, right?


    Or rather, is there actually a way to control monsters?¡¹


    ¡¸There shouldn¡¯t be, is what I¡¯d like to say. In reality though, a Job for taming low-ranking monsters has already been discovered, so it wouldn¡¯t be that strange if there is a Job that can control high-ranking monsters.


    Besides, if the noble have set up residence in a forest where B-rank monsters can be found, depending on their methods, they should be able to easily use them.¡¹


    I assumed that the cyclops was just lured by my song, and that might actually be the case, but even without my song, the cyclops would have attacked the caravan still.


    And since the result would have been the same either way, I guess what actually happened doesn¡¯t really matter that much for both the duke and me.


    ¡¸Coincidentally, what happened to the monster¡¯s body?¡¹


    ¡¸After getting its magic stone, I burned it and buried it.¡¹


    ¡¸Really, your knowledge is quite patchy for these sorts of situations, you know?¡¹


    As I asked Carol, who joined in the conversation,¡¸Was the way I handled it incorrect?¡¹she shakes her head in reply.


    ¡¸The problem here is exactly because it wasn¡¯t. From what you just said, you were locked up for 10 years, so the fact that you know how to properly handle the situation is ridiculous.¡¹


    ¡¸Since I became 5 years old, they probably wanted some use out of me, so I was kept in a room full of books.


    Everything I know came from those books.¡¹


    ¡¸So you mean that your knowledge in sorcery came from there as well, right?¡¹


    ¡¸It was from the books and also from my own experience.¡¹


    ¡¸Rather, with your level of sorcery, I can¡¯t believe that you were sold.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s because I pretended that I can¡¯t use sorcery. Other that locking me up so I can¡¯t escape, I was usually just left alone.¡¹


    Since he is a duke, he probably can¡¯t stay around all day, so he probably just didn¡¯t have too much time to spend on me.


    In that sense, I¡¯m really grateful for that kind of environment.


    ¡¸In other words, your sorcery was already at this level by the time you received your Job, right?¡¹


    ¡¸It had only been a few days since that happened after all.¡¹


    ¡¸So, what Job did you receive?¡¹


    If I remember correctly, Carol-san¡¯s question right now should be relatively problematic.


    Since the guild doesn¡¯t find Job discrimination agreeable, it¡¯s forbidden to forcibly ask what someone¡¯s Job is.


    In reality, since Carol-san, a higher ranked hunter, is asking me, a lower ranked hunter, even by simply asking, she still has some authority over me.


    However, considering that Celia-san would have stopped her if she really went overboard, it seems like Celia-san is also curious about my Job as well.


    Rather, since she seems to be somewhat confident in her tone, she probably already knows that I received a disappointing Job at the very least. If so, this is probably for confirmation.


    On the positive side, this might be so they can plan something so that I won¡¯t get discriminated against.


    However, I¡¯m the poster child of disappointing princesses. Currently, I don¡¯t exactly know how hated my Job is, so the risk is high.


    Still, by telling people who have been this kind and caring to me the truth, I should be able to learn how loathed the Job Song Princess is. In the worst case scenario, we¡¯ll be forced to run away so¡­ what to do.


    ¡ºI¡¯d like to tell them that I¡¯m a Song Princess, but is it okay?¡»


    ¡ºSong Princess? Even though they know Ain as Cielmer?¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s because if people know Ciel as a Song Princess, we¡¯ll be able to trick the duke since he only knows that you¡¯re a Dance Princess.


    I got Ciel¡¯s permission, but I wonder why Ciel sounds so happy about that.


    Her being that optimistic definitely makes me feel less tense, so I won¡¯t be asking her about it though.


    I don¡¯t know how they see me since I went silent for a bit while discussing with Ciel, but since what they¡¯re asking is what it is, it should have been communicated to them that my Job is hard to disclose. Though, we¡¯ve just made our decision to say it.


    ¡¸I¡¯m a Song Princess.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ To think that it was Song Princess of all things.¡¹


    ¡¸Is there some kind of problem with that?¡¹


    ¡¸The guild itself doesn¡¯t have any problems with it. However, in the case that this becomes known, we can¡¯t guarantee that we can protect you.¡¹


    ¡¸So in other words, it¡¯s fine as long it doesn¡¯t get exposed, right?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. So please, try to refrain from telling this to other people.¡¹


    ¡¸It might be best to think that I won¡¯t be able to stay in this town if I get exposed.¡¹


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    After casually saying so, Celia-san quietly nods in agreement.


    Now then, is this hate just limited to this town, limited to this country, or is this something worldwide? I don¡¯t know which it is but it doesn¡¯t seem to be a global thing.


    Still, it¡¯s possible that this hate is present in multiple countries, and I¡¯m almost sure that it¡¯s deeply-rooted in this whole country as well. After all, a Song Princess had messed up the capital in the past. I won¡¯t be surprised if there are some embellishments around the Job or people call you cursed for having it.


    ¡¸In that case, let¡¯s make it so that I¡¯m an orphaned child of a mother from a country in the far east, and that I inherited a Job related to songs, is that good?¡¹


    ¡¸In some sense, this country is in the far east, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸Then west it is.¡¹


    ¡¸Random, aren¡¯t you?¡¹


    Carol-san said so in an appalled tone but it seems that she doesn¡¯t see any problem with me saying that I have a Job related to singing.


    She likely knows that it¡¯s better to mix in some truth rather than awkwardly trying to completely hide it or something.


    In fact, since I¡¯m just doing this with vague information ¡ª rather, I¡¯m actually doing this so I can sing if I have the chance ¡ª she probably knows how effective it is more than I do.


    ¡¸Just to confirm, if I¡¯m facing north, my right is east, left is west, and behind me is south, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Right, that¡¯s right. I see. That absolutely makes sense. You definitely should have no knowledge of what¡¯s usually common sense.


    Does this mean, I¡¯ll have to teach you about this as well?¡¹


    ¡¸My barrier. Other than protection and concealment, do you know what other effect it has?¡¹


    ¡¸Of course I will. You¡¯re my adorable little junior after all. It¡¯s only natural to teach you everything you don¡¯t know.¡¹


    This monocle-senpai, she¡¯s quite troublesome but in some ways, easy to manage as well.


    Still, other than protection and concealment, all it can do is things like repelling dirt and other stuff, though. Well, I¡¯m not really concerned about whether this would be worth Carol-san¡¯s time, but since I managed to win her over, it¡¯s all good.


    ¡¸By the way, was I right about the directions?¡¹


    ¡¸What you said was correct. Incidentally, why didn¡¯t you choose to be from this country?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s because the songs that I know aren¡¯t from this country.¡¹


    ¡¸Would you mind singing for a bit?¡¹


    Since Carol-san asked me, I will, but what should I sing? Also, should I use the Song Princess¡¯ power or not?


    Well, it¡¯s just a problem of the language I sing in, so I suppose I don¡¯t really need to use my Job.


    So after saying¡¸In that case¡¹I sing a simple song. And since I just need a simple one, I choose one that is just about 1 minute and longer.


    As I thought, singing with a throat is pretty nice as well. It¡¯s a bit different from when I¡¯m only singing for Ciel to hear.


    ¡¸Certainly, I haven¡¯t heard of those words before. It¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve heard a melody like that as well.¡¹


    ¡¸Still, it was a nice song that really stays in your ears.¡¹


    After the two of them stated their opinions on it, Carol-san asked me¡¸Where did you learn that?¡¹a question both of them are probably wondering about.


    ¡¸I¡¯ve been listening to my mother singing, so I learned it naturally. That¡¯s the backstory.¡¹


    ¡¸I wasn¡¯t asking about the backstory.¡¹


    ¡¸It was when I was locked up, that¡¯s the only thing I can say.¡¹


    ¡¸Haah¡­¡­ Well that makes sense.¡¹


    For Cielmer, it¡¯s actually somewhat close to the truth. And since it¡¯s probably hard to think of anything else from Carol-san¡¯s point of view, it seems like she¡¯s convinced.


    ¡¸Let¡¯s leave it here for today, shall we? After all, we¡¯ve already discussed about the minimum of what we need to know and we can¡¯t really keep you here for too long.¡¹


    ¡¸Well that¡¯s true. As for the discussion of sorcery, we could just do it anytime later, I suppose.¡¹


    Maybe because of the relaxing atmosphere, it looks like we¡¯re done with the discussion.


    Nevertheless, Carol-san is really unshakable. As I was thinking about that, Celia-san suddenly asked me¡¸Do you have any plans for today?¡¹


    Don¡¯t tell me, is she going to ask me to do some hunter work right now if I tell her to? So since I got a little concerned, and because it would be more convenient for us this way, I honestly told her about our plans.


    ¡¸After this, I was planning to go shop for something, but do you know of a good store?¡¹


    ¡¸What are you planning to buy?¡¹


    ¡¸For now, underwear.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Hold on. Do you perhaps not have any underwear under your dress right now? ¡¹


    ¡¸When I escaped, this cloth was the only thing I was dressed in.


    Since there¡¯s no use in lying about it, I honestly told her the truth but¡­ it really took courage to declare that I¡¯m not wearing anything underneath.


    That¡¯s why I talked about the cloak to divert the topic but Celia-san wouldn¡¯t let it slide. After all, she has a hard to describe look on her face right now and I even feel like her fists are trembling from the tightness of her grip.


    ¡¸Yeah, I¡¯m definitely starting to hate the noble that locked Cielmer-san up even more.¡¹


    Ah, her tone just changed. She¡¯s only casual with Carol-san since they¡¯re acquaintances, but she was always polite and courteous with me, probably due to our work-based relationship as well.


    But, well, since it¡¯s not like she¡¯s actually saying that to me, I should be safe.


    ¡¸Let me help you with your shopping. I can¡¯t say for sure, but Cielmer-san, you aren¡¯t sure about what to buy, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸Y-yes. If possible, I¡¯d like to buy other necessities too and not just clothes¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Alright, don¡¯t worry about it. I do believe that make up is still too early for you, so I¡¯ll teach you about skin care and some other things instead.¡¹


    ¡¸Celia, aren¡¯t you overreacting? Normally, a guild staff doesn¡¯t go that far to help.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s obvious. But this is only me, not a guild staff but an adult woman, helping a girl that has suffered through misfortune. Fortunately, I don¡¯t have any important business today, so it should be absolutely acceptable for me to take half the day off.¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah, sure.¡¹


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    Somehow, it has suddenly been decided that Celia-san would be joining but since it¡¯s convenient for us, as the one being taken care of, I gladly go along with the situation.


    But still, I really think that this treatment is all because of how Ciel looks, so I¡¯m grateful about it¡­¡­ That was how I thought about it this time.


    Hiya~! We continue on adulting, but it seems like the guild chapter this time ended reasonably quick!


    Not really much AinCiel this week, but we did have a glimpse of Ain being a bit of an airhead, which is generally good.


    Also, Ciel really wants to be a Disney Princess with her own princess, huh?


    C: Let¡¯s go live in a forest then that happens, shall we? (meaningful smile)


    A: (Concerned about the smile, but yeah, let¡¯s not ask too many questions, I¡¯m scared to know)


    Carol is a bit behaved this chapter, also had some really funny reactions today, and instead, Celia was the one that actually got out of control, lol.


    Understandable though, especially since Celia seems to be the really caring type to begin with.

 CH 26

    ¡¸To be honest Cielmer-san, it pains me to let you walk outside in that outfit but¡­¡­¡¹


    After that, Celia-san immediately took the afternoon off and before I noticed it, we had already left Carol-san behind and exited the guild.


    Along the way, Celia-san was looking at me with a really conflicted look on her face while I was being amazed by the new area I¡¯m seeing.


    ¡¸This is the only thing I¡¯ve been dressed in ever since I was born.


    But that¡¯s not normal, right?¡¹


    I already know that much, though. But my backstory is that I was locked up for 10 years and just recently escaped, so it¡¯ll be weird if I don¡¯t act it out for a bit.


    In this regard, having Ciel switch with me might make our reactions seem more natural but that¡¯s not our main priority, so I¡¯m not considering that for now.


    Speaking of Ciel,¡ºUnderwear? What might that be?¡»She seems to be very curious about the topic.


    ¡¸It may be hard to believe but it¡¯s said that underwear didn¡¯t exist until several decades ago.


    However, except for the particularly peculiar individuals, mostly everyone uses them nowadays. Mainly women, since it¡¯s highly linked to their safety.


    It also seemed like women were only allowed to wear skirts in those days, so there were likely only a handful of female hunters as well. Although even now, it¡¯s still hard to say that there are a lot of ladies in the business.¡¹


    After saying all of that, Celia-san says¡¸By the way,¡¹and changes the topic.


    Well that¡¯s reasonable, since it¡¯s not really something to talk about while walking on the streets, but the response I¡¯ve thought of for this topic will never see the light of the day now.


    ¡¸I don¡¯t think that I really need to tell you this, but not everybody would be willing to help you just because you¡¯re a young girl, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸Of course. After all, I think that the level of misfortune I¡¯ve said earlier isn¡¯t very uncommon.¡¹


    ¡¸Well, I believe that the environment is quite unique still.¡¹


    ¡¸But even though that¡¯s the case about my environment, there are probably people who get hit by their parents everyday and others who have nothing to eat as well. Compared that, what I¡¯ve told earlier isn¡¯t life threatening at all, so there may even be people that would consider me blessed.¡¹


    ¡¸So you already know that much, I see.¡¹


    If I include the daily failed assassinations, well, that should make our level of misfortune considerably high but there¡¯s no meaning in including something that I haven¡¯t even told them about.


    Celia-san mindfully replied to my words and after seemingly pondering about something, she asked me a question.


    ¡¸Cielmer-san, what are your thoughts on your appearance?¡¹


    ¡¸I haven¡¯t actually seen myself before, so I¡¯m not sure.¡¹


    Ainsel constantly sees it, but Cielmer has never seen her own face before.


    From Ainsel¡¯s standpoint, though it might be just because of some familial bias, I think that Ciel is very pretty. She might seem like an aloof doll-like beauty and feel a bit robotic, but when talking to me, she¡¯s really expressive and shows a lot of emotions, so she¡¯s a really approachable beauty from my perspective.


    Still, it¡¯s probably because of her age but I think her cuteness right now is still more prominent.


    Now back to the topic.


    Seeing me reply immediately, Celia-san planted her palm onto her face.


    And after seemingly preparing herself, she began the conversation.


    ¡¸Frankly speaking, Cielmer-san, you are considerably attractive, so you might attract kidnappers.


    And even in the Hunter¡¯s Guild, there may be some people that would try to forcefully pull you into their party. I do believe that you should be able to handle both of these situations but it¡¯ll definitely still be troublesome.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s one bad thing after another.¡¹


    ¡¸Depending on your actions and behavior, being attractive has more merits overall but please be aware of the dangers of it. Particularly, it¡¯s highly unfortunate but there have been cases where young female hunters were pressed into joining a party and were then assaulted outside of town.¡¹


    Just as Celia-san said, I, or rather Ciel, can probably deal with them easily.


    Even when facing someone on the same level as Carol-san and probably even against Carol-san, running away itself should be possible though I can¡¯t be completely sure.


    And thanks to my detection, we¡¯re also capable of dealing with ambushes, so that should be enough as a safety net. Still, the fact that we might actually need to deal with these problems because of Ciel¡¯s attractiveness is really unfortunate, also it¡¯s time-consuming as well.


    Still, just as Celia-san said, it¡¯s not as if there aren¡¯t any merits for us too. With Ciel¡¯s looks, if we choose who we¡¯re talking to, we should be able to get people to help us and even if we¡¯re new to a town, it¡¯ll probably be easy for the residents to welcome us.


    I am already aware of this fact but I think having Ciel hear an objective assessment of herself is important as well, so I just act surprised and nod to myself.


    ¡¸Another thing, Cielmer-san, I don¡¯t know if you plan to stay a hunter forever but in case you consider choosing another path in the future, polishing your charm as a lady in the meantime won¡¯t hurt as well.


    In fact, the more popular receptionists in the guild are the attractive ones. For that reason, I will also teach you about what you¡¯ll need to be a lady for the future, so I hope you enjoy it.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you very much.¡¹


    ¡ó


    There was a time when I was thankful about it. Well, no, I¡¯m still thankful even now. However, I¡¯m mentally and physically tired from the shopping.


    Now that we¡¯re back at the inn, this thought occupied my mind as I took off our cloak and revealed a light yellow dress. Then, while being careful to not wrinkle the dress, I took it off as well. And now that the only thing I¡¯m wearing is the white cloth, I changed into a house dress and laid in bed.


    This house dress, or maybe nightdress, is a dress made of thin fabric. Honestly, it only shows just a little less skin than the white cloth, so I¡¯m not really sure if there¡¯s any meaning in wearing this at all.


    However, I don¡¯t want Ciel to grow up into the kind of girl that would only wear underwear in her room, so making a habit of wearing clothes should be fine.


    Speaking of underwear, the underwear of this world is what looks like drawers1 with thin threads and with the private area properly sewed close. Because of that, sleeping in only your underwear probably wouldn¡¯t look as sensual as it would be in Japan.


    For the top, nobles would wear corsets and commoners with enough money would wear bustier-like underwear. However, it seems like I don¡¯t need it yet.


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    Ciel seemed to have a lot of fun today, which is nice, but I was really exhausted by Celia-san¡¯s enthusiasm.


    Nonetheless, the underwear talk was still good. The bathing talk was also fine and skincare was something I¡¯ve actually wanted to ask about, so I¡¯m really glad. Learning how to style hair was also quite worthwhile.


    Though Celia-san got a bit envious of Ciel¡¯s skin and hair that time, so I didn¡¯t really know how to react to that.


    Among what Celia-san discussed about, what mentally exhausted me, was the talk about that time of the month. Since I only have surface level knowledge on the topic, really, everything about it was just unknown territory.


    I didn¡¯t want to hear real talk about blood. I¡¯m fine with looking at my own blood but I don¡¯t like seeing other people¡¯s blood. Though unfortunately, I have already ended up seeing people get smushed.


    Still, Ciel is already 10 years old. There¡¯s a possibility that this would happen within a few years time, so I am glad that I learned about how to deal with it and all before it even happens.


    If I didn¡¯t learn of this by that time, I wouldn¡¯t be able to answer Ciel¡¯s questions after all, and worse, I definitely would panic that time.


    ¡ºAin, thank you for today as well.¡»


    ¡¸Please don¡¯t mind it, it was nothing.¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s a lie, isn¡¯t it? At the very least, I know that Ain is physically exhausted.


    Since you didn¡¯t lie down on the bed yesterday but you did just now, it means that you got that exhausted, right Ain?¡»


    ¡¸It seems like there¡¯s no use hiding it. Still, it¡¯s also because I don¡¯t have anything I want to do anymore.


    Ciel, how was your day today? ¡¹


    ¡ºLet¡¯s see. I feel really sorry for Ain, but it was fun.


    Today was full of things I knew nothing about and learning about it was absolutely fun. Since we bought the tools we needed to write magic circles, we can prepare in advance now. I¡¯m not sure of what sort of magic circle to write, so help me with it, alright Ain?


    If I do it on my own, it might become too destructive after all.¡»


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    ¡ºAnd then dressing up was also fun. I only vaguely understand what beautiful and cute is, but you can express yourself with what you wear.


    Still, not needing the bustier clothes yet was a bit disappointing. I¡¯m not big enough yet.


    So this means that I seriously need to work hard on making them bigger, doesn¡¯t it!¡»


    ¡¸Don¡¯t worry about it. They¡¯ll get bigger eventually, so you don¡¯t have to be in a hurry.


    They did say that people that grow fast start wearing them at 10 years old, so since you¡¯re only growing late because of nutritional reasons, there¡¯s really no need to rush.¡¹


    There¡¯s no deep meaning for my emphasis on nutritional reasons but Ciel simply giggled and let me off the hook for today. The phrase letting me off the hook might be weird here, but that is really tough to endure.


    ¡ºThen after that, I saw my face for the first time, but I¡¯m not sure if it was because Ain was using my body, but it felt awfully weird.¡»


    ¡¸Well, assessing yourself is difficult after all.¡¹


    ¡ºBut Ain was right, it was blue. It was really like the color of the sky. So the color of the ocean is like this too, right?¡»


    ¡¸Only if it¡¯s the same as the ocean that I know.¡¹


    ¡ºCome to think of it, does ¡°Ainsel¡± have a meaning as well?¡»


    ¡¸It does but it¡¯s a secret.¡¹


    ¡ºMy, that¡¯s mean.¡»


    Although Ciel said that, it doesn¡¯t feel like she actually meant it. And although I did call it a secret, one reason for this is that it¡¯s just plain hard to explain.


    After all, I don¡¯t really know if there are fairies or something similar to them in this world.


    ¡¸They say that women are more fascinating when they have secrets.¡¹


    ¡ºSo then, can I perhaps not become fascinating to you, Ain?¡»


    ¡¸No, you¡¯re already very fascinating Ciel.¡¹


    From an outsider¡¯s perspective, it would seem like we¡¯re, like, flirting or something? Anyways, there¡¯s no meaning in lying and making Ciel lose confidence in herself. Doing that just makes me sound conceited. So if impulsively praising her like I did right now would only lead to my embarrassment in the process, I¡¯m fine with that.


    And as I said so, I returned her body to her. I was worried that what happened yesterday might happen again in the bathroom or on the bed, but since Ciel restrained herself, I didn¡¯t have to endure anything today.


    ¡ó


    The sun rose and Ciel woke up as it turned dawn today.


    So about this world¡¯s time, it seems like there are 25 hours in a day. There are 6 days in a week, 30 days in a month, and 360 days in a year, so it¡¯s pretty close to earth¡¯s measurements.


    This piece of common sense was also taught to us yesterday by Celia-san.


    Clocks do exist but clocks are magic items and they¡¯re quite expensive. In towns, clocks are installed in important buildings, the guild has one too, so just knowing what time it is isn¡¯t really that difficult.


    However, only a few people live strictly following time; and for commoners, they begin working when the sun rises and finish working at dusk.


    The lamp magic item isn¡¯t really that expensive but since it¡¯s not bright enough to help in agriculture and the like, most people synchronise with the sun or so.


    It seems like around these parts, this also depends on the person¡¯s occupation or their region.


    Hunters, for example, return before sunset when they¡¯re not out for the night.


    Today, on our 3rd day since we reached the town of Sannois, it¡¯s finally the day we start working as a hunter.


    The request we would accept will be dependent on Carol-san, so our first day at work might be a bit special. Still, I can probably trust her with anything as long as it¡¯s not related to sorcery.


    Maybe she¡¯ll even make me choose instead.


    G-rank requests are¡­¡­ something I want to avoid, since I don¡¯t want to stand out in town, but I¡¯d like to accept at least 1 F-rank request.


    If I¡¯m not wrong, I think these are the ones that make you collect herbs and so, learning about these kinds of things should come in handy.


    When talking about Fantasy works, guilds and hunters ¡ª adventurers ¡ª are a staple, so I¡¯m really excited; but it seems like my excitement was shown clearly on my face.


    Ciel, looking at me as though she was seeing something amusing, called me.


    ¡ºAin, you seem somewhat excited today, you know?¡»


    ¡¸Working as a hunter was a bit of a dream of mine, so now that it¡¯s happening in reality I¡­¡­ I got a bit too excited.¡¹


    ¡ºDon¡¯t worry about that, seeing Ain looking excited makes me happy.


    How can I describe it? Adorable? Right, so this really is how it feels to see something adorable, isn¡¯t it!¡»


    ¡¸Ummm¡­¡­ Uhh¡­¡­ Thank you very much. Now then, are we done preparing the magic circle?¡¹


    Because of the embarrassment I felt from being too excited, the indescribably ticklish sensation I felt from hearing Ciel judge my excited look as adorable, the shock I felt from naturally accepting Ciel¡¯s adorable as a valid assessment, and because my face is physically getting hotter from blushing; I started feeling somewhat dizzy in the head, so I immediately changed the topic.


    Hearing Ciel giggle inside my head further stimulates my embarrassment, but thankfully,¡ºLet¡¯s see,¡»she jumps into the next topic.


    ¡ºFor Ain, it¡¯s already enough, right?¡»


    ¡¸As long as we have the magic circle you used against Carol-san, there won¡¯t be any danger for us in this town.¡¹


    ¡ºStill, even through a magic circle, Ain still can¡¯t use combat sorcery, right?¡»


    ¡¸That just shows how strong a magic¡¯s effect is. Who would have thought that that magic circle would turn into a breeze blower.¡¹


    Before Ciel went to sleep yesterday, we prepared Ciel¡¯s magic circle.


    Currently, we¡¯re wearing a knee-length dress with a leather belt and vest, traveller-style. In these, we¡¯ve hidden a magic circle. The only problem is, it¡¯s only drawn on paper, so it¡¯s durability is an issue.


    I don¡¯t think that just moving around would damage it but if we get drenched in water, it might get dangerous.


    If we can embroider it, it¡¯ll be more durable and much more easy to hide; but I¡¯m not skilled in sewing and Ciel, naturally, isn¡¯t as well. So¡­ practice makes perfect.


    (This chapter is provided to you by Re:Library)


    (If you are reading this from other sites, that means this content is stolen. Please support us by visiting our site.)


    Now that we¡¯re ready to leave, it¡¯s time to head to the guild to get our request.


    So we head out as we usually do. Just as we usually do!


    Hiya~! One moment we¡¯re out of the guild, the next thing you know, I¡¯ve got proper clothes! (Ain, probably)


    In this chapter, Ain finally got the information she wanted to get the most: proper beauty treatments and skincare! Also, the talk, which she particularly felt really uncomfortable with but it¡¯ll come in handy for the future! Flirty Ain being embarrassed at herself is precious too, more please. Most importantly, cute Ain excited about her first adventure! (The hardships of reaching this point isn¡¯t recreational adventuring, so it doesn¡¯t count.)


    Also, today¡¯s (this afternoon¡¯s?) Celia got into big sister overdrive, it seems. Which is understandable. Also, Celia literally facepalming as she realised that there¡¯s no way Ciel (Ain) would have seen herself in a mirror, lol.


    Ciel on the other hand, while we can¡¯t really read her mind to be sure, seemed to have a lot of fun during the shopping, after shopping, and even on to the next day. Ain is just so absolutely too cute, it seems. I like imagining Ciel having a Meaningful Smile the whole time she¡¯s intentionally teasing Ain, and Ain, being Ain, trembles cutely before her. It¡¯s a good thing Ciel didn¡¯t decide to try her best to get bigger, right Ain?¡­¡­ Or is it?


    Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 27

    Since it¡¯s already the 3rd time that we¡¯ve went to the Hunter¡¯s Guild, I already considered myself used to it. Still, I didn¡¯t fully realise how difficult working as a hunter would be.


    We arrived at the guild in what¡¯s practically the first hour of the morning but inside, there is battle continuing on. The battle for who gets the most profitable requests first that is.


    On the area to the left after entering the guild, there is a wall that has a bulletin board on it. The requests are posted up there, but that place is absolutely packed right now.


    On the space right of the entrance, there are even more people than there are in front of the bulletin board, so probably only 1 person from each party is out choosing requests.


    To accept a request, the party needs to take the request form from the board and bring it to the receptionist. It seems like they¡¯re doing that to prevent the issue of having multiple parties booking for the same request.


    With my height, even if I jumped into this packed crowd, I probably won¡¯t be able to see the bulletin board anyway; and since I don¡¯t have any other party members to wait for, I decided to observe the guild on a spot beside the entrance.


    There are different kinds of people working here as hunters but the hunters currently crowding in front of the bulletin board are mostly young people. Still, although I call them young, it¡¯s from an objective point of view. There doesn¡¯t seem to be any people that look younger than Ciel.


    There are a few people with a veteran-ish feel to them and they¡¯re just casually looking at the crowd as well.


    Among the crowd, there are also some people that are likely in their teens.


    ¡ºIs this perhaps because the lower ranked people want to find the most profitable requests they can?¡»


    ¡ºI think so. In fact, we should be in that crowd as well but¡­¡»


    ¡ºAin, do you really think that we can find a request if we enter that?¡»


    ¡ºMost probably not. Although if we use sorcery, we should be able to make a path in an instant.¡»


    ¡ºWell that¡¯s, quite extreme, isn¡¯t it?¡»


    Even though she brushed it off with a giggle, Ciel probably thought of the same thing as well.


    Obviously, I don¡¯t really plan on do that but, honestly, I¡¯d never even consider entering that.


    With that said, there are some pretty young people as well. I see one over at the bulletin board too, he seems to be over 20 years old appearance-wise but he¡¯s probably around the age of a high schooler.


    On the other side, where the people are watching over the crowd, there is a group of three people close to his age as well, so they¡¯re probably in the same party as him. So including the one searching for a request, there are 2 boys and 2 girls. A group of friends forming a party together is something that¡¯s commonly seen in literary works, they might be that kind of party as well.


    And while I was observing some other random stuff, I continued talking with Ciel.


    ¡ºAs for me, it would depend on the requests left but I¡¯m fine even if we take the leftover.¡»


    ¡ºWhy is that?¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s because since we shouldn¡¯t be having any issues with money for a while, I think that doing leftover requests that the guild is troubled about could get some gratitude from the guild.


    How about you Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºLet¡¯s see¡­ if Ain says so, then¡­¡­ No, wait, give me a moment.¡»


    When I asked her about her opinion, Ciel almost immediately agreed with me but she then suddenly paused our conversation to think about something.


    It¡¯s not as if there¡¯s a right answer for what we should do, but it¡¯s probably best for Ciel to start thinking about what she wants to do for herself as early as now.


    Although I¡¯m in control in this town, I would generally only be in the position to assist Ciel. I¡¯m not going to be the one in full control after all.


    While waiting for Ciel to figure out her answer, I continue observing.


    Come to think of it, I don¡¯t see Alejo anywhere. I wonder why? Well, he should have been a D-rank hunter, so maybe he just doesn¡¯t need to work diligently everyday. Still, it could also be because he can¡¯t bear being seen in public after getting beaten up by Ciel.


    Also, the boy¡¯s party that I saw earlier seems to be arguing about something.


    Since they¡¯re a party of 4, the earnings per person would probably be about 1/4 of the original reward; so considering the profit, doing a difficult request should be good.


    However, since they seem to be from this town, I don¡¯t think that they need to be too concerned about earning money. If they¡¯re not living in an inn, even 2 copper coins would be enough to buy food for the day. And with a single silver coin, even living alone shouldn¡¯t be a problem.


    Though if I take their equipment in account, they might need money as much as they can get.


    Speaking of money, we exchanged the D-class spider¡¯s magic stone for 8 silver coins. It seems like this is already more than a commoner¡¯s daily earnings and since the only tools I use is a knife, this means that we have a lot of savings now.


    And as I was thinking about random nonsense, it looks like Ciel is done pondering, so she began talking to me.


    ¡ºFor me Ain, I want you to do the requests you want to do.¡»


    ¡ºDoes that mean, you agree with me?¡»


    ¡ºNo Ain. I want you to choose the requests you think are interesting without worrying about getting gratitude or whatnot.


    After all Ain, you were so excited earlier, weren¡¯t you? We¡¯ll be doing a lot of requests from now on, so I want you to at least choose what you want for our first request.¡»


    Hearing her remember what happened this morning made my cheeks feel a bit hot.


    I don¡¯t know if I should be embarrassed or I just¡­¡­ It¡¯s hard to tell who¡¯s the mature one in this situation.


    ¡ºUnderstood. Thank you very much.¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s fine. Honestly, it¡¯s also true that I don¡¯t really have an idea of what we should do after all.¡»


    It didn¡¯t really matter what Ciel would say, as long as she gave her own opinion. That was what I originally thought but Ciel had put more thought on it than what I expected, so I really have no words. In fact, I want to praise her, that¡¯s my girl.¡ºDon¡¯t worry about it, good work Ciel.¡»So I tried praising her but she didn¡¯t quite understand the reason why.


    Somehow, I feel like I¡¯m being more doting lately.


    Before we noticed it, most of the hunters have left the guild, so we headed to the reception desk to greet Celia-san¡­¡­ we did, but there are now two reception counters.


    That in itself probably isn¡¯t weird at all. The guild probably has two counters open when there are a lot of people. The reason why I only saw one when I came here should be because there were just a few people at that time.


    However, the problem here is that one of those counters has a stool in front of it.


    Even for the party of young people I saw earlier, the counter isn¡¯t actually too tall. It might even seem a bit too short for the boys.


    Then in that case, who is this for? Well, there¡¯s no point in asking the obvious, really.


    So since they went out of their way to prepare it, I thankfully obliged and used the stool, a small wooden box that was definitely originally used for something else.


    Most likely expecting our arrival, Celia-san was waiting on the other side of that counter.


    ¡¸We have been waiting for you.¡¹


    ¡¸Is it really okay to step on this box?¡¹


    ¡¸Of course, we prepared it just for you after all.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s, how I should interpret that?¡¹


    When I said so in a slightly pouty tone, Celia-san giggled and said¡¸My apologies.¡¹


    I didn¡¯t actually mind it that much, so I pulled myself together and started with what had happened yesterday.


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    ¡¸Thank you very much about yesterday.¡¹


    ¡¸Please don¡¯t worry about it, I might have been a bit too intrusive after all.¡¹


    ¡¸So then, what should I do for today?


    Would it be okay if I just accept a normal request?¡¹


    ¡¸Let¡¯s see. Cielmer-san, in the future, you will be required to complete several high difficulty requests.


    However, it¡¯s not something you will be asked to do immediately. This will be decided based on your progress. In your case, since you¡¯re already capable enough in combat, Carol will judge whether or not you are capable of completing different types of requests.


    So for today, please feel free to choose a request that you would like to accept. However, you are only allowed to accept requests of E-rank and below. Please consider this a review of the standard procedures in utilizing the guild¡¯s services.¡¹


    ¡¸I understand. Then can I look for a request now?¡¹


    ¡¸Certainly, please bring with you anything that piques your interest. If not, we will have you complete a standing request.¡¹


    So with that, I headed to the front of the bulletin board. Since I already have Ciel¡¯s permission, I look for requests that I¡¯m interested in doing.


    Still, since most of the requests are now gone, so the only ones left are F-rank herb gathering and hunting requests, and also the standing requests for E-rank hunters and above, it seems.


    For D-rank and above, there are some escort requests and such, but I don¡¯t see any requests that are B-rank and above. Since C-rank also has gathering requests, there are probably only a few strong monsters near the town.


    Among these, the ones that I should be able to do is, herb gathering, I guess. After all, I can only rely on Ciel when fighting monsters and hunting is practically impossible for me to do.


    Besides, there is something I¡¯m slightly curious about, so it¡¯s time to go gather up some herbs.


    I rip the form from the bulletin boards and once again examine the form¡¯s contents.


    What¡¯s written on the form are the type of herbs needed and the needed amount. For the amount, one pouchful of the designated pouch is enough. This request is worth 3 copper coins. The more herbs gathered, the more reward we would get but since there¡¯s a maximum amount specified, it seems that they won¡¯t accept anything more than that.


    For the information about the herbs, there are the general characteristics of the herb, the placed where it can be found, and what seems to be a drawing of the herb written on the form.


    If possible, I¡¯d like to see a live sample of it, so I wonder if I can ask Celia-san to show me one.


    For now, I bring the form back with me and step onto the stool. The guild is nearly empty now but there are still some adventurers and guild staff left, and among them, I heard someone hold back a chuckle.


    Well, I can¡¯t really blame them since I¡¯m the only one that would need to use a stool. It would be nice if they just thought that I was here for a G-rank request.


    ¡¸What did you choose?¡¹


    ¡¸I was thinking about going a herb gathering request but can I ask about a few things?¡¹


    ¡¸If it¡¯s something that I can answer, go ahead.¡¹


    ¡¸What happens to the herbs after the request?¡¹


    ¡¸They would be processed into salves by herbalists. It can¡¯t be created from this specific herb but a different herb can be similarly processed into potions by alchemists.¡¹


    ¡¸Then what¡¯s the difference between them?¡¹


    I can imagine that they¡¯d look completely different, but I can¡¯t quite imagine what makes their effects distinctly different.


    Surprisingly, there are only a few games where salves and potions both exist, if I remember right. But as someone who has lived in Japan, salves, healing ointments, are much more familiar while potions have a special feel to them.


    The difference between the two of them might be common knowledge here but since Celia-san understands that I might not know about them, it¡¯s likely that it¡¯s why she intentionally told me about both of them.


    ¡¸Both of them mainly heal wounds. Potions are much more effective and immediate compared to salves but are very expensive.


    Salves, meanwhile, are cheap but in exchange, they don¡¯t heal as much as potions do and the only thing it can do immediately is stop a person¡¯s bleeding. It would also depend on the severity of the wound but salves would likely need a whole night¡¯s rest to heal the wounds.


    I believe that it¡¯s a general consensus that high-ranking hunters use potions while lower-ranking hunters would use salves.¡¹


    Since magic can immediately heal wounds deep enough to reach the organs, I already imagined that potions might have a similar effect, but salves seem pretty amazing too. After all, on earth, even scratches treated with just wound ointments don¡¯t heal in a single night, do they?


    This is, in a sense, within my expectations, so I am glad about it.


    Either way, both of these are undoubtedly essential for hunters.


    ¡¸The salves seems to be really important, but why is this request still here?¡¹


    ¡¸I think you¡¯ll understand after completing it but it¡¯s reward is rather little considering how time consuming it is.


    Moreover, since the salves that can be made from this herb are only that of the lowest quality, it can be said that it¡¯s not very profitable for herbalists too. After all, making more effective salves are much more profitable for them as well.¡¹


    I see. Come to think of it, 3 copper coins are equivalent to completing 3 G-rank requests. Moreover, a G-rank hunter can usually complete 2 requests in a day, maybe even 3 if they try hard enough, so they probably won¡¯t even risk going outside just to earn 3 copper coins.


    And as for the herbalists, they¡¯d probably use this herb if they have some but it wouldn¡¯t really matter to them even if there isn¡¯t any in stock. I don¡¯t have any clear proof of this but this herb is probably for their apprentices to practice making salves with or something.


    ¡¸I see. For now, I would like to accept this request.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you very much. Still, are you really sure about this? As for the guild, we would be glad to process this but I don¡¯t really think that this would be rewarding enough for you, Cielmer-san.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, would you mind talking with me for a bit more?¡¹


    ¡¸That will depend on what we¡¯re talking about. As long as it¡¯s something concerned with working as a hunter or something related to the request, it should be alright.¡¹


    ¡¸First, would you mind showing me a sample of this herb? I¡¯d like to bring it along if possible, but¡­¡¹


    ¡¸If that¡¯s the case, alright.¡¹


    After saying so, Celia-san calls a working staff member and asks her to get a sample.


    The said staff saw me and showed a surprised look but then left us after flashing me an amused smile.


    ¡¸For these kinds of herbs, can they be used to heal wounds even if they¡¯re not processed by a herbalist?


    If I accidentally get injured, it might come in handy for first aid.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s said that simply washing it thoroughly and pressing it against a wound can stop the bleeding to a certain extent.


    However, severe injuries would be too much to heal for this particular herb.¡¹


    ¡¸When hunters get severely injured, what would they usually do?¡¹


    ¡¸It should be to either treat the wound with what medicine they have on hand or, if they have a sorcerer with them, the sorcerer might be able to heal the wound.


    However, sorcerers are a precious few in the business and sorcerers that can use healing sorcery as well are even rarer to find. Because of that, hunters would likely go to the church to have their wounds heal.


    It¡¯s much cheaper than buying a potion after all, and the church also treats diseases as well.¡¹


    Here I replied¡¸I see¡¹and nodded in agreement. I only knew that the church exists from the information I have, so I¡¯m glad to hear that it actually exists.


    To have a position in the church, you would need to have a Job derived from one of these three Jobs: the Priest, Saintess, and Divine Messenger. These Jobs excel in using healing sorcery, making them capable of healing other people.


    Among them, the Saintess is considered to have the most potent healing capability and the Divine Messenger is said to be able to hear the voice of the gods. Or so I learned from the books.


    I now know the things that I¡¯ve wanted to know about, so I should probably end the herb talk here.


    ¡¸Understood. Thank you very much.¡¹


    ¡¸This much is no problem.¡¹


    ¡¸Also, can I ask about something related to the standing requests?¡¹


    ¡¸What is it about?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯d like to ask about the parts I need to get when defeating the monsters around here.¡¹


    ¡¸Well, I can imagine you subjugating the monsters you encounter on the way after all, Cielmer-san.


    It¡¯s a somewhat long topic, so I¡¯ll also forward you compiled documents in a later day.¡¹


    And after starting with that, Celia-san began talking about the monsters that can be seen around these parts.


    Hiya~! We¡¯re back in the guild once again but we managed to find a request before the end of the chapter, yay~!


    In this chapter, more world building and a tasteful amount of AinCiel, delish. A blushing Ain is always a welcome scene and very much welcome if it¡¯s because of Ciel.


    (This chapter is provided to you by Re:Library)


    (If you are reading this from other sites, that means this content is stolen. Please support us by visiting our site.)


    Also, stool. Yer a shortie, Cielmer-san. (by Celia, I guess. lol


    There was just a lot of world building and human observing today (random nonsense, according to Ain), but it¡¯s nice to know the layout of the Guild and the workplace rush hour traffic, lol. Just to be sure, I also want to show the guild layout.


    o¡ª-ProbablyLoungeArea¡ª¡ª¨C


    !


    !


    !(Ain?)


    Entrance


    !(Ain?)


    !


    !


    o¡ª¡ªRequestBoardArea¡ª¡ª¡ª


    Yeah, maybe a bit too rough. Also, the counter should be directly in front of the entrance. So Ain was probably just standing in one of those spots¡­ Menacingly. Like a horror movie child. Or a cute normal one.


    Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 28

    Enthusiastically leaving the Hunter¡¯s Guild, I head towards the gate from the side where we entered Sannois.


    That¡¯s because I wanted to see if the mister at the gate that time is still there. One of the reasons why I chose to accept this request is because the gate I¡¯ll exit from is nearer to the guild.


    Though, another reason is because I wanted to be able to do it by myself. It¡¯s my first request after all.


    Since the gate can be seen directly ahead of our path, we reached the gate without getting lost.


    As usual, soldiers are guarding the gate. The mister, that I don¡¯t really know the name of, is also keeping watch as well but since I might distract him from his work, I decided not to greet him.


    After all, I¡¯ll probably get stopped again when I try to enter the town later.


    As I was going to pass through the gate while feeling a bit awful about it, it seems like the mister noticed me. He asked me¡¸Did you become a Hunter?¡¹and so I just said¡¸Thanks to you.¡¹ and bowed my head in reply.


    Just doing that made me feel somewhat satisfied but now that I passed through the gate, I realized that it might have been a wrong move.


    Real talk, even if I get close with that mister, we¡¯ll still leave this country in the end, so it¡¯s not really a good thing.


    Still, we¡¯ll probably be staying here for at least a year, so being a bit close might not be that bad.


    Being treated and acting like a child every time we leave the gates is troublesome after all.


    Today, under the pleasantly clear blue sky, I search for herbs while having a nice stroll.


    I managed to get the sample after all, and I also received the specified bag. And since I don¡¯t really plan to gather a lot of herbs today, just one bag is enough. Even so, it seems like it¡¯s already twice the required amount to finish the request.


    Ever since we left the guild, there is something I¡¯m curious about but since it¡¯s something I already expected and nothing happened as we exited town, it¡¯s fine.


    So, about the herbs, it seems like they grow in a well lit part of the grasslands and said grasslands was the place Ciel passed through on the way to Sannois.


    Hence, it seems like we need to search for it through the vast grasslands.


    I get it, it makes sense that only a few people would want to take it. After all, there are also animals and small monsters around and, more importantly, it¡¯s not as though the herbs can be found immediately after entering the grasslands. At worst, it¡¯s also possible that even a whole day of searching could lead to zero results.


    ¡ºSo how do we search for it then?¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯m thinking of using detection. Since it seems like the herbs have magic power in them, we might be able to find it quickly.¡»


    That¡¯s right, I¡¯ve confirmed it after getting the sample but I was absolutely sure that the herbs contain magic power. After all, it¡¯s effects are ridiculously strong.


    At first, I just thought that the people of this world heal naturally quickly, but when Ciel got wounded, it still took quite a while for it to heal. As for the exact time, I don¡¯t actually know. I don¡¯t have a watch after all.


    So considering that, I tried asking for a sample and, while it wasn¡¯t much, there really was some magic power. Its magic power was different from that of ours and a magic stone¡¯s.


    Concentrating, I tried searching for magical reactions that I usually ignored and I found a lot of reactions everywhere.


    But what¡¯s interesting is that each of these reactions are somewhat different from each other.


    To test it out, I went to a nearby reaction and there I saw herbs that are completely different from the sample.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s different.¡»


    ¡ºBut it did react, didn¡¯t it?¡»


    ¡ºSo then I guess it might be used for something else. Still, it is different from the one requested.¡»


    ¡ºWhat will you do, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºLet¡¯s gather a few of them and ask Celia-san about them.


    That person should be able to answer immediately but, well, it¡¯ll probably get annoying if I ask.¡»


    ¡ºThat person?¡»


    ¡ºThe one that has been following us ever since we left.


    If I ask them, it¡¯ll probably end up starting a sorcery discussion after all.¡»


    To my words, Ciel made a seemingly convinced hum.


    I found the required herbs as I followed the reactions but since there aren¡¯t enough for the needed amount yet, I took samples of the herbs that detection is reacting to while searching for more.


    Just as the sun is directly overhead of us, and since the specified bag was now full, I decided to end this for today.


    ¡ºSince we still have some time, why don¡¯t we gather some magic stones then?¡»


    ¡ºBut we¡¯re being watched, is that really alright?¡»


    ¡ºThen we¡¯ll test out the magic circle. It is important to test it first after all.


    Besides, we¡¯re already surprisingly close to the forest. Even if anything ever happens, we can still fight without revealing our trump card after all.¡»


    ¡ºThen if that¡¯s the case, let¡¯s switch after entering the forest shall we?¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood.¡»


    ¡ó


    Around this area, the monsters that inhabit the place are the D-rank forest wolves and giant spiders, and the E-rank goblins and kobolds. Deeper in, there are also C-rank monsters but they rarely go out to the shallow parts of the forest.


    Though we¡¯ll definitely instant-kill any spiders on our path, since we don¡¯t intend to go on a full-scale hunt, I searched for E-rank-ish monsters with detection and told Ciel their location.


    Using the whirlwind slash magic circle, Ciel defeated them rather quickly. Well, though I called it that, it¡¯s just a revised version of the wind blade. So although it can probably only make shallow cuts on a cyclops¡¯ skin, it should be able to dispatch D-rank monsters and below in a single strike.


    We hunt, harvest the magic stone and parts needed for verification, then burn them. There are also parts that we can sell as materials but because of their size, we can¡¯t bring them along. So considering the magic stones and the evidence parts, the most we can bring is probably ten monsters¡¯ worth of these.


    It¡¯s a bit of a waste that we already reached our carrying capacity just by using the whirlwind slash on a group of them though.


    And with that, even after our magic circle test run, the sun is still up high.


    Because of that, I thought that we could just go home for now and return later, but then I suddenly felt multiple reactions from my detection.


    ¡ºIt looks like some sort of party encountered a group of monsters.¡»


    ¡ºAre they near us?¡»


    ¡ºLet me check. There¡¯s nothing near us, but the encounter is of four people and ten monsters.¡»


    After I said so, we heard an energetic¡¸UuooH!¡¹from a slight distance.


    And after that, we began to hear the shrill sound of clashing metal.


    ¡ºWould you mind if we look at the battle for a bit?¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s fine, but will it be alright? We¡¯re being watched, right?¡»


    Checking it out is fine, but will it be alright to go as a hunter? That¡¯s probably what Ciel meant to say.


    For me, I just wanted to see how a party fights even only for a bit, so it shouldn¡¯t be a problem.


    ¡ºIf it¡¯s not allowed then the person watching us would probably call us out.¡»


    ¡ºI see. So then I only need to sneakily watch over them, right?¡»


    ¡ºPlease do.¡»


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    And as Ciel sneakily peeks from the cover of a tree, we see the party of young people I noticed earlier there fighting a mob of goblins. The party of four are using a longsword, a one-handed sword and shield, sorcery, and a bow respectively. I don¡¯t actually know if their party is well balanced or not.


    Still, since they¡¯re having a hard time against goblins that only have worn out weapons on them, it seems like the party might not be that strong.


    There are two vanguards in the party but they can¡¯t keep the ten goblins in check, so the party is slowly taking more and more damage.


    On the other hand, the goblins aren¡¯t just attacking blindly, they have some level of coordination as it looks like the relatively big goblin is giving out commands. It¡¯s hard to judge who¡¯s the real human here.


    That should be the so-called Goblin Leader. Although it¡¯s not at the level of a D-rank, it¡¯s said to be the E-rank¡¯s strongest monster. For E-class hunters, maybe it¡¯s a bit too difficult for only the four of them.


    ¡ºIt seems like this isn¡¯t really a fight we can observe teamwork from, is it?¡»


    ¡ºLook at it as a 3 vs 9 battle. The person with the longsword isn¡¯t pulling his weight.¡»


    As Ciel said, if I change my perspective, the one with the one-handed sword is using his shield to hold back the goblins while the ones at the rear is focused on attacking, so I can see that they are at least working as a group.


    However, it feels like that person alone isn¡¯t enough to push nine goblins back. So considering that, if he is an E-ranker then the vanguard might be actually highly capable.


    If they only had one more vanguard, they could probably handle the fight a bit better.


    So what is the remaining one doing then? He¡¯s charging at the Goblin Leader. At first glance it might seem like they¡¯re fighting toe to toe but since the Leader is giving out commands while fighting, it¡¯s likely the stronger one here.


    If I just let them be, the hunters will lose.


    Hmm, I just wanted to see if I can learn something from them but this ended up being a choice of whether we help them or leave them to die.


    ¡ºAs a hunter, just leaving might not be wrong but¡­¡­¡»


    ¡ºYou want to help them, right Ain?¡»


    ¡ºDo I really? I want to help them but I don¡¯t want the troubles that come after helping them. That¡¯s how I feel about it, I think.


    Helping itself is easy to do after all. How the person watching us would feel about it is a factor too.¡»


    The one doing the helping is Ciel, though.


    I can imagine it going like: Help them ¡ú They¡¯ll feel grateful ¡ú They¡¯ll tag along; and I also can¡¯t say for sure that they can properly reward us after we rescue them. Still, maybe, just maybe, we could get something from the guild.


    Also, seeing people die right in front of my eyes, feels absolutely horrible.


    The problem here is probably that even though we don¡¯t have any duty to help out, helping itself would barely take any time.


    If Ciel¡¯s life could be put at risk, I¡¯ll absolutely choose to run. But even if that party is crushed and the goblins attack us next, we can take care of them in seconds.


    And other than that, another problem is that Ciel doesn¡¯t care whether we help them or not.


    ¡ºI¡¯d feel awful if they die right in front of us, so would you mind if we help them?¡»


    ¡ºSure, I wouldn¡¯t mind it.¡»


    ¡ºBut about that, please make it seem like sorcery was used from the right-hand tree diagonally behind us.¡»


    ¡ºFufu, Ain is a really mean person, you know?¡»


    Giggling delightedly, Ciel began pouring magic power in one of our hidden magic circles.


    It¡¯s not the whirlwind slash that we¡¯ve been using up until now, but an ice arrow magic circle. Although she called me mean for this, Ciel herself is making this a pretty elaborate setup as well.


    From the place I told her, ice arrows shot out and pierced the heads of five goblins.


    The hunters already defeated the other three goblins, so they should be able to manage with only the Goblin Leader left.


    ¡ºLet¡¯s run.¡»


    ¡ºWhere shall we go?¡»


    ¡ºPlease head to the gate we left from.¡»


    After that short exchange, Ciel sprints off.


    After leaving the forest and running halfway through the grasslands, I switched with Ciel.


    And after that, I walked back to the gate and saw that the mister was still on shift.


    As he saw me, he seemed relieved and waved his hand.


    ¡¸Hey little miss. Looks like you¡¯re back unscathed.¡¹


    ¡¸I only went to get herbs after all. If it¡¯s just goblins, them being around or not doesn¡¯t really make a difference.¡¹


    ¡¸Normally encountering a goblin is already problematic enough, though. Anyway, good work coming back.¡¹


    Unlike on our first day, we were allowed to enter without any issues, so I said my thanks as I entered the town.


    After walking through the straight path and entering the Hunter¡¯s Guild, there I see Carol-san staring at me as though she wants to have a word with me.


    Hiya~! We¡¯re surprisingly out of the guild quick this time and we¡¯re back again by the end of the chap¡­ orz


    So for today¡¯s chapter, Ain had a lot of fun, plain fun but fun nonetheless. A nice stroll in the nice beautiful weather (ignore the monsters, lol).


    As for the hunters, lol. Ciel be savage, not only in actions but also in words. ¡°It¡¯s a 3v9, one¡¯s not pulling his weight¡± Kek. Also AinCiel¡¯s exchange be like:


    (This chapter is provided to you by Re:Library)


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    Ain: This is a trap, a narrative trap, but I can¡¯t leave them after knowing that they¡¯ll probably die, so yeah, use sorcery and make sure that it¡¯ll look like it¡¯s from ¡°that person¡± following us, m¡¯kay?


    Ciel: Lol, you¡¯re such a bully.


    Also Ciel: *Proceeds to make sure that they¡¯ll identify the rescuer as *that person* by specifically using *ice arrows* even though Ain didn¡¯t say anything about ice magic*


    That person: WHy!? (Probably)


    Well, it¡¯s nice to see Ciel having the initiative even in just that way, lol.


    Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 29

    ¡¸A bit late, aren¡¯t you?¡¹


    ¡¸Am I? There is still some time before the evening rush and sunset, so I think I¡¯m here early.¡¹


    I indifferently answered to the seemingly displeased Carol-san staring at me.


    Still, I do think that by being so expressive about it, she¡¯s practically exposing that she stalked us herself, really.


    ¡¸Anyways, would you mind telling me the reason for that?¡¹


    ¡¸What are you talking about?¡¹


    ¡¸I see, so it¡¯s okay for me to scream that I was being stalked. Understood.¡¹


    ¡¸Fine. It¡¯s not something we can talk about here, so could you follow me to the back?¡¹


    ¡¸I want to report the request first, though.¡¹


    In my mind, my treatment of Carol-san is gradually getting worse.


    I know that she might not be a bad person, but it seems like I still have a grudge about her almost killing us.


    Also, when I think of how bothersome she can get when it comes to sorcery, I just don¡¯t feel like having a serious conversation with her. In addition, I guess this time¡¯s stalking wade it worse.


    Besides, concerning the party earlier, there shouldn¡¯t be any reason to be upset about what happened since I did actually save them.


    ¡¸In that case, I¡¯ll bring Celia along as well. How about that?¡¹


    ¡¸As long as the request gets processed.¡¹


    ¡¸Then let¡¯s go.¡¹


    ¡ó


    I was led to the booth that I¡¯ve visited several times by now and, as usual, I sat at the seat that I¡¯ve always used.


    A while later, Celia-san entered the room, and so I told her¡¸First, I¡¯d like to process the request please.¡¹and handed her the pouch.


    After receiving it, Celia-san replies with¡¸Excuse me.¡¹and checks the herbs.


    ¡¸I¡¯ve verified the requested goods. There¡¯s no doubt that all of these are the specified herbs.


    It¡¯s great that you didn¡¯t misidentify these on your first time, Cielmer-san.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you very much. By the way, are these also herbs?¡¹


    Celia-san¡¯s eyes widened as I handed her the bag of small samples that I gathered. She then looked at the contents of the bag to verify them.


    ¡¸Yes, all of them are definitely herbs. Based on their rank, hower, these are only 1 or 2 ranks higher than the ones you¡¯ve gathered for the request, so these aren¡¯t that expensive, still¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Please don¡¯t mind it, knowing that these are herbs is good enough.¡¹


    Just by knowing this, completing herb gathering requests will be easier from now on.


    ¡¸Also, would you mind checking these too?¡¹


    ¡¸These are¡­ goblin evidence parts and magic stones, aren¡¯t they? The guild certainly welcomes these goods.


    But as I thought, it might be best for you to have a magic bag, Cielmer-san.¡¹


    ¡¸A magic bag?¡¹


    ¡¸These are bags that can store more objects than they should be able to. It can be said that the magic bags that can ignore the weight of the objects are highly coveted by solo and higher ranking hunters.¡¹


    ¡¸Come to think of it, Carol-san also uses one too.¡¹


    So when the battleaxe and other things suddenly appeared, she was probably using a magic bag.


    True, if we had one, we should be able to make some good progress with subjugation requests and the like.


    ¡¸I want one but it¡¯s expensive, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Unless you¡¯re a high-ranking hunter, privately owning one would be difficult.


    It¡¯s said that only Alchemist-type Jobs can create these and because of the scarcity of these, even a small one would require gold coins to purchase. However, as long as you have enough achievements, it¡¯s possible to borrow a magic bag from the guild.¡¹


    Celia-san only said that much but in short, just earn some achievements, I guess.


    The part where the guild would lend it out might be because it¡¯s necessary to do so when subjugating large monsters or delivering huge objects for a request.


    While I am interested in magic bags, it¡¯s not like I can do something with it right now, so I moved on to the main issue and looked at Carol-san.


    ¡¸And so, why was Carol-san following me?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right! Why did you push all of that trouble to me?¡¹


    Carol-san, who should¡¯ve been thinking about something, immediately reacted to my words with a fed up look on her face.


    Don¡¯t answer a question with another one¡­ is what I¡¯d like to say, but I don¡¯t really have the right to complain about that, so I stopped myself and just answered her.


    ¡¸It¡¯s because it seemed troublesome.


    Even if I did save them, I can¡¯t be sure that they¡¯d believe in me but if Carol-san was the one that saved them, they wouldn¡¯t have have any doubts and I wouldn¡¯t attract any needless attention, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸Sure, that might be the case, but troublesome things are still troublesome, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸So would it be better if I didn¡¯t save them?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m not saying that. After all, if you haven¡¯t saved them, I would¡¯ve done it instead.¡¹


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    So isn¡¯t it fine then? But I guess this doesn¡¯t change the fact that I pushed them to her. It¡¯s just like how I still have a grudge on her for almost killing us.


    ¡¸Me following you is, something like an initiation of sorts.¡¹


    ¡¸What do you mean?¡¹


    As I just got more questions from her anwer, Carol-san shot Celia-san a glance.


    ¡¸In the past, for people that started at G-rank and ranked up, and for people that started from E-rank as well, there¡¯s a high mortality rate for those at E-rank. The former would¡¯ve been used to going outside of the town while they were still at F-rank and the latter would¡¯ve become overconfident from starting at E-rank; so in both cases, they end up being neglectful of their surroundings.


    For that reason, a secret test is held for every hunter that have just reached E-rank.¡¹


    ¡¸So then, the top hunters follow them and see if they¡¯re actually paying attention outside of town?¡¹


    ¡¸Technically, since we ask hunters of D-rank and above, it isn¡¯t exactly the top hunters that are doing so, but that is indeed correct.


    If the hunter in question is being defenseless outside of town, a situation where they should have been acting cautiously; then as a warning, the hunter following would surprise them.


    And so, you were also tested as well, but¡­¡­¡¹


    After saying that much, Celia-san turns to Carol-san.


    So it¡¯s not just me they¡¯re watching over, it¡¯s the guild as a whole. Unlike Ciel and I, as we¡¯ve been always fighting for our lives, it might be difficult for rookie hunters to always pay attention to their surroundings when they¡¯re outside the town.


    Then in that case, it shouldn¡¯t be necessary to question them any further.


    ¡¸Even I didn¡¯t think that I¡¯d be discovered that easily, you know?


    Rather, you can also use detection magic, right? It¡¯s no wonder that you found me.¡¹


    ¡¸I can¡¯t use detection, you know?¡¹


    Although I tried playing dumb, Carol-san said¡¸There¡¯s no doubt about it.¡¹and was absolutely certain.


    In actuality, I really did use detection but I¡¯m sure that I didn¡¯t do anything that would make it too obvious. Still, she probably doesn¡¯t know when I used it. After all, I¡¯m still using it now but she¡¯s not saying anything about it.


    ¡¸If you really can¡¯t, then there¡¯s no way that you would have specifically gathered only herbs and distinguish between them like so.


    It should be impossible for someone who has never been outside up until recently to know which is which just by looking.¡¹


    ¡¸If I¡¯m not mistaken, detection is difficult to do, isn¡¯t it?¡¹


    ¡¸Right, it¡¯s difficult. In the first place, there isn¡¯t any established method of doing it, so it¡¯s different depending on the user.¡¹


    So detection is difficult, huh? It doesn¡¯t really feel that way though. Still, if I¡¯m remembering it right, there were probably no books about detection sorcery in that room. Though, it might be possible that I just didn¡¯t know about it. It¡¯s not like I¡¯ve read every single book there after all.


    So, since saying something about it might catch Carol-san¡¯s interest and all, I asked¡¸So then, how did I do in the test?¡¹and changed the topic.


    ¡¸I just want to confirm but you¡¯ve been using your barrier the whole time, right?¡¹


    ¡¸I have.¡¹


    ¡¸Then I don¡¯t even know how the heck you can fail this test. Just from how you look, you seem completely defenseless but you¡¯re doing that on purpose, aren¡¯t you?¡¹


    As for that, I¡¯m not actually doing this on purpose, so I just vaguely smiled as a reply.


    ¡¸Come to think of it, what happened to those hunters?¡¹


    ¡¸They came back safely. Their request was treated as a failure on their part, so they seemed to have had a dispute within the party but I¡¯m not going to take care of that too.¡¹


    ¡¸Well, as long as they¡¯re alive, then I¡¯m glad.¡¹


    Although I said so, I didn¡¯t really mean what I said.


    Maybe it¡¯s because it¡¯s not happening in front of me but I¡¯m not really concerned about them for some reason. I¡¯m sure that it¡¯s because I¡¯m not in a situation where I can care about strangers.


    ¡¸Are you convinced now?¡¹


    ¡¸I understand why Carol-san was following me. What should I do from tomorrow on?¡¹


    ¡¸In the morning, come to my place. I¡¯ll teach you the competencies you need to be a hunter.


    In the afternoon, complete the requests that Celia assigns to you and you¡¯re free to go after that. If you acquire all the competencies and complete all those requests, you¡¯ll become a D-rank.¡¹


    ¡¸Is it fine to tell me that?¡¹


    If it¡¯s really fine to say about it, then they could¡¯ve just told me about it much earlier, right?


    I glanced at Celia-san and she seemed a bit troubled as well.


    ¡¸Originally, it¡¯s not something we should tell you. However, it¡¯s also true that the requests needed to reach D-rank are publicly known.


    In Cielmer-san¡¯s case, your requirements for ranking up would be slightly unique but since we¡¯ve judged that you wouldn¡¯t get rash after knowing it, I allowed Carol to share this to you.¡¹


    I don¡¯t really know if there¡¯s any meaning to these required requests if everyone knows what it is, but I guess this means that the completion of the requests are more important than the information of what these are.


    I can¡¯t be sure about what techniques we¡¯ll be required to have but I can imagine it probably being something like how to set up camp or maybe, like in today¡¯s test, about how to secure oneself outside the town and such.


    ¡¸I understand. Thank you very much.¡¹


    ¡¸So this discussion ends here. Do you have any plans after this?¡¹


    ¡¸Not really. But if there are any pubs around, I¡¯d like to go there.¡¹


    ¡¸You won¡¯t be able to drink even if you go there, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ve heard that pubs are places for gathering information, so I thought that I would need to go there sometime.¡¹


    ¡¸Sure, you can collect information at a pub, but still¡­¡­¡¹


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    The pub being a place to gather information is just a somewhat vague bias of mine, but I know that gathering information would require considerable communication skills.


    Considering me in the past, even if I went to a pub, I probably would just order something and go home after finishing my order.


    Back to the topic.


    Carol-san is contemplating on whether she¡¯ll give a name of a pub and it seems like there¡¯s also a minimum legal drinking age for drinking alcohol.


    Although she might just want to stop us, a 10-year-old girl, from drinking regardless of the legal drinking age. And most of all, there is a possibility of us getting involved with drunk adults.


    I, or rather Ciel, would be able to fight them off if they try to mess with us, but that in of itself would make us stand out.


    ¡¸You can just take Cielmer-san to the authorized pub, can¡¯t you?¡¹


    ¡¸True, if it¡¯s that place then there shouldn¡¯t be any immediate trouble.¡¹


    ¡¸What¡¯s an authorized pub?¡¹


    ¡¸The authorized pub is, to be exact, a pub authorized by the Hunter¡¯s guild.


    To make sure that there are always hunters available in the unlikely event that the towns and villages are attacked by monsters, a number of hunters are asked to be on standby at these towns and villages.


    However, since there are many temperamental people among hunters, the ones to host them are these authorized pubs. It wouldn¡¯t be an issue no matter how much commotion you make there. However, it¡¯s forbidden to have disputes between hunters. If this rule is broken, then at worse, you¡¯d lose your qualification to be a hunter. So even if you go there, Cielmer-san, there shouldn¡¯t be anyone who would try to mess around with you.¡¹


    ¡¸Then, could you take me to that place?¡¹


    So after hearing about what the authorized pub is, I turned to Carol-san and said so. She then muttered¡¸Fine.¡¹with a clearly reluctant look.


    Hiya~! Here we are again back in the guild, and *that room* lol, but it seems like we¡¯re getting out fast this time!


    Today our princesses pressed Carol for answers and the certainly got answers. Not much Ciel in our AinCiel today, but there¡¯s a bit of Carol bullying and more world building~!


    We now know how the guild is so formal and office-like even though most of the hunters are rowdy hooligans: they literally have a pub to be rowdy at so the guild itself can look respectable. Which, if you think of the people making requests, makes sense. If there are so many scary looking big dudes at the guild always drinking, it¡¯s a bit hard for normal people to feel welcome. This can be solved having a good building layout, for example in the goblin slayer anime where the counter is right in front of the entrance so you don¡¯t really bump into the scary hooligans when it¡¯s not rush hour, and probably having the second floor or a lower floor as the drinking area. Some just have a different counter reserved for making requests too. But yeah, you still need to look respectable, especially if you¡¯re operating an international level organization and this implies a bit about how the Hunter Guild wants to present itself to the public. It¡¯s really nice to see how different stories portray their guilds.


    (But this is just my opinion though, lol


    Also, really great to see more about hunter culture(?) and stuff. I mean, it¡¯s hard to trust newbies to be always, *always* alert. It¡¯s not a problem in most kinds of work, but a single mistake can literally kill you in this working environment.


    Still, imagine Carol: sneaking behind a little girl when she randomly, but precisely, picks out herbs. *Only herbs.* And then, just after noontime, after hunting some poor poor E-ranked monsters (goblins based on the parts they gave), she suddenly goes to peek at some newbies fighting a losing battle and suddenly cast sorcery. Right above your head. *Exactly near where you are **hiding**.* And then, she runs. lol.


    It¡¯s not hard to imagine why Carol would think that AinCiel is insane and that everything they do is calculated, even if it isn¡¯t.


    So then, next time: to the pub! For what reason? Well, I wonder what~ (Stares at the Sunday Cafe Bossa Nova playing in the other tab) Who knows~?


    Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 30

    While looking somewhat exasperated, Carol-san brought us to an abnormally rowdy pub.


    Even from outside the building, I can clearly hear boisterous laughter and the sound of mugs smacking together.


    ¡¸So, are you going in? Or rather, what are you planning to do inside?


    Even if it is the authorised pub, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if they kicked out an underaged child like you, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸Why are you saying that now?¡¹


    ¡¸See, now that I think about it, practically no one below the age of 15 ever comes to this place.


    More so, a regular 10 year old child definitely wouldn¡¯t come here. Because of that, even I can¡¯t tell how they¡¯ll react to you.


    Well, some heckling will likely be involved at the very least.¡¹


    ¡¸Then, will it be hard to ask them to let me sing at the pub?¡¹


    ¡¸People who earn the money they need by amusing people at pubs isn¡¯t anything new.


    Particularly, since hunters have too much spare time, it¡¯s more welcoming here compared to other pubs.


    However, whether the pub master allows it or not is another issue altogether. Don¡¯t expect me to help you in that regard too, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸As long as you can introduce me to the pub master, I¡¯ll handle everything else.¡¹


    But even though I said that, I still haven¡¯t gotten Ciel¡¯s permission.


    Ciel might even say no here but somehow Ciel almost never disagrees with anything I want to do, so I can¡¯t say for sure.


    ¡ºUmm, Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºIf Ain wants to do it, then I don¡¯t mind, alright?¡»


    ¡ºBut it may end up causing us some problems, so¡­¡­¡»


    ¡ºWhen that happens, we just need to run. We can do that, right?¡»


    ¡ºIf it¡¯s just running, then it shouldn¡¯t be that difficult, but¡­¡»


    ¡ºThen it¡¯s fine.¡»


    So I got her permission, but will this really be okay?


    Well, since we¡¯re already here, I follow Carol-san as she goes inside.


    It¡¯s just a normal pub with a counter. The only difference here is that there are only adventurer-like people inside.


    Most of them are well-built and more importantly, all of them have some sort of weapon. The people with no weapons are¡­ probably sorcerers. The gender ratio is maybe about 7:3 with more men than women.


    The first thing I heard as I got inside was the words¡¸Oi, the B-ranker is here.¡¹and the like.


    What I heard next was snickering. Words like ¡¸She has a child?¡¹and¡¸Why bring a kid to the pub?¡¹were thrown around.


    But listening closely, however, I noticed that only thirty percent of the people reacted like that, and all of them came from the obviously crude looking bunch.


    From a glance, they don¡¯t seem very strong. But to begin with, can a person¡¯s strength really be judged just by looking at them? Still, I consider my risk detection abilities to be pretty high, mostly because we¡¯ve been exposed to life-threatening danger for a long time.


    And based on my experience, the most dangerous person in this building is the one next to me, Carol-san. In other words, the people in this pub aren¡¯t scary at all.


    The bearded pub master at the counter seems like a hearty person and although he gazed at me with a confused look, there¡¯s probably still room for negotiation since I don¡¯t feel any sort of hostility from him. Well, today I have Carol-san, an adult, with me, so it might just be that he doesn¡¯t have the choice of immediately kicking me out.


    ¡¸It¡¯s been a while.¡¹


    ¡¸The Ice Witch here along with her child, this some sort of joke?¡¹


    ¡¸Would you stop calling me that? Also, this isn¡¯t my child. Look at how old she is.¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah, yeah. Anyway, this isn¡¯t a place for kids, hear me? Though she won¡¯t be in danger, it¡¯s just that and nothing more.¡¹


    ¡¸Well, she said she has something to do here.¡¹


    ¡¸Well then little miss. What did you come here for?¡¹


    Just as I was caught off guard by his rather unique way of speaking, they suddenly shifted the topic to me.


    ¡¸Nice to meet you, my name is Cielmer. I was wondering if you could let me sing in this pub today.¡¹


    ¡¸Sing¡­¡­ is it? So in short, you¡¯re here to earn some coins, yeah? Well see, I can¡¯t just let you do your gig here for free.¡¹


    ¡¸Then in that case, I¡¯ll pay for one glass, so would you let me sing just one song?¡¹


    ¡¸With all this noise around still?¡¹


    ¡¸And after that, I¡¯ll give half of what I get to pay for the venue fee.


    If nothing happens after I sing one song, then I¡¯ll go home immediately. It won¡¯t take much time, so there¡¯s nothing to lose, right?¡¹


    ¡¸If you¡¯re fine with that then sure but you woudn¡¯t really get much from that, wouldn¡¯t you?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s safe here, and there are people.¡¹


    Right now, I just want to learn how to gather information rather than actually earning money, so it¡¯s not a problem.


    Rather, if money¡¯s the problem, then I only need to do more requests. Even with just the standing requests, Ciel can probably earn enough money to reach the worth of gold coins in a single day. For that reason, that magic bag thing will probably become necessary.


    Also, it¡¯s bothering me that I rely too much on Ciel.


    Still, since we¡¯ve chosen to work as a hunter, there¡¯s no helping it that fighting becomes more frequent, which is mainly Ciel¡¯s role.


    When the time comes for Ciel to choose the requests she wants to do and earn money on her own instead of doing what I ask her to do, will this feeling of guilt in me also disappear?


    Regardless, if I can get even a little bit of money just from singing, It¡¯ll be satisfying enough for me.


    I¡¯m a modern child raised by the Internet. I¡¯ve seen a lot of people singing online, selling their first CDs, and becoming famous overnight. It was even something I yearned for. After all, I really love singing. Maybe I might have even succeeded if I actually tried, but I couldn¡¯t take that first step.


    That¡¯s why it¡¯s not an exaggeration to say that being in a place where I can earn money by singing was my dream. I¡¯m not sure if it¡¯s because of the Song Princess, because I continued singing for a long time, or because Ciel is really talented, but I do feel that I¡¯m better at singing now than I was before I died, so I should be able to win the people over if they hear me.


    After telling the pub master that I¡¯m fine with those conditions, I moved to the space next to the counter.


    It was the only place I could sing at, so I had no other choice.


    And so, the people that are paying attention to me right now are about half of all the pub¡¯s customers.


    From here on, it¡¯s going to be a matter of catching the attention of as many people as possible. Nevertheless, it¡¯s noisy. Will they even hear me?


    I can get them to listen to me with the power of the Song Princess but if I do that, they¡¯ll know that I¡¯m a Song Princess. So from here on, it¡¯s going to entirely depend on my singing.


    With that, I took a deep breath and raised my voice to fight against the clamor.


    ¡ó


    After singing a lively song, I bow down my head.


    Since I sang completely in Japanese, there were people that were puzzled at first and even some still making merry on their own even after I finished my song. But since there were some that threw their coins after I finished, I consider it a success.


    The coins were mostly copper coins but I can see some silver too, so this should have earned quite a lot. At the very least, even after deducting half to pay for the venue fee, it¡¯s still a lot more than what a lower ranking hunter can earn in a day.


    ¡¸Hey little lady, give us one more song.¡¹


    A hunter sitting nearby who seemed to be about the same age as the pub master requested, so I quickly looked at the pub master.


    Since he nodded his head, I got really happy and sang one more song.


    This time, a lot more people listened to me. Even though they should have no idea of what I¡¯m actually saying, they seemed to enjoy listening to me, so I¡¯m feeling really good right now.


    And before I noticed it, I ended up singing about five songs. The money has piled up into a small mountain and my throat is parched too, so I bow down and go to where Carol-san is.


    Carol-san was drinking a wine-like red liquid at the counter seat.


    ¡¸As usual, you¡¯re really good at singing.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m glad that you enjoyed it.¡¹


    ¡¸It seemed to me that you also enjoyed it yourself.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s true. It was really fun.¡¹


    ¡¸Still, you actually act like your age when you¡¯re singing.¡¹


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    Saying that, Carol-san takes a gulp of her wine. That said, however, if what she meant by that was that I was acting like a 10 year old, then I actually wasn¡¯t acting my age.


    Still, it is true that I enjoyed it and I certainly do look like a 10 year old, so I don¡¯t mind it.


    ¡¸I see. The little miss being that confident while negotiating earlier makes sense now.


    I¡¯ve never heard of those songs before, but it¡¯s popular with the crowd.¡¹


    ¡¸Like I promised earlier, please take this half.¡¹


    Since the pub master talked to me, I pushed the small mountain of money in his direction.


    With a troubled look, he shook his head and pushed the mountain to a stop.


    ¡¸Say, you¡¯re troubled with money, aren¡¯t you? Then I can¡¯t take this.


    The drinks are selling because of your singing too, so I already got enough from you.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m not really troubled with money, so please take it. That¡¯s what we agreed on after all.¡¹


    As I once again pushed the little mountain, the pub master turned his head to Carol-san to ask for help.


    After shooting a glance at me, Carol-san made an exasperated sigh. I¡¯m not the one who dragged you into this problem, so please don¡¯t look at me like that.


    Well, sure, this wouldn¡¯t have been a problem if I just obediently accepted it, but, at least while I¡¯m still in this country, I don¡¯t want to accept charity.


    ¡¸Well, you don¡¯t need to worry that much. This child is a hunter, you see?¡¹


    ¡¸Even if she¡¯s a hunter, she¡¯s at G-rank, yeah?¡¹


    ¡¸Nope, she¡¯s E-rank. Moreover, she¡¯s an E-rank that can go solo.¡¹


    ¡¸Haah? This little girl¡­¡­ is an E?¡¹


    ¡¸To begin with, I¡¯m taking care of her, so you don¡¯t worry about it.


    I only took her here today because she wanted to come after all.¡¹


    ¡¸O-Okay. Then, I¡¯ll take it, I guess¡­¡­¡¹


    With that exchange, the pub master finally accepted the money.


    I put the remaining half inside a pouch, but it¡¯s pretty heavy. I wonder if that pig man had a magic bag on him. If he did, then I really wasted the opportunity.


    I actually wanted to gather some information from the hunters since they¡¯re in a good mood now, but Carol-san was letting out a ¡°hurry up and finish already¡± aura, so I decided to leave the pub for today.


    As we left, the hunters told me¡¸Come back again.¡¹so it should be fine even if we go alone next time.


    On the way to the inn, after we parted ways with Carol-san, Ciel talked to me with a slightly sulky tone.


    ¡ºI¡¯m glad that you enjoyed it, Ain.¡»


    ¡ºWhy are sulking?¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯m not sulking at all.¡»


    Although she said so, Ciel sounded somewhat displeased.


    I generally sing my songs for Ciel¡¯s sake, so she might have felt possessive over it.


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. It¡¯s the most fun I¡¯ve had other than when I¡¯m singing for you.¡»


    ¡ºReally?¡»


    ¡ºYes, really. The happiest I felt while singing was when you first heard my song. I am how I am today because you enjoyed my song back when you were a baby.


    Even now, the one thing I look forward to the most is singing for you, Ciel. And it¡¯s because you¡¯re the one that listens to me singing the most.¡»


    After all, Ciel has been listening to me singing continuously for more than ten years without getting tired of it.


    With that said, there¡¯s no doubt that my greatest pleasure is having Ciel enjoy my songs.


    ¡ºI enjoy listening to Ain sing the most too!¡»


    And even though she was still sulking just moments earlier, Ciel is already back in a good mood. So with that, I decided to sing her a song.


    Hiya~! We¡¯re here at the pub and it¡¯s the debut of our beloved song princess~! Yay~!


    I really love how it shows how much Ain changed from how she was before. In my opinion, you don¡¯t need the MC¡¯s past memories in reincarnation or transported to another world stories unless you do something with it. However, some of these stories just leave the MC¡¯s personality and character depth for some reason and use the memories as an excuse to make trendy jokes and pop culture references. It¡¯s not bad in of itself but having, for example, Frodo talk about pop culture jokes in Lord of the Rings really doesn¡¯t fit the mood. Unless you immediately destroy his hopes and dreams, that is. Sometimes, we tend to forget that the reincarnated individual is reincarnated because of how much of their past we never explore, which is prevented by some novels because of how much they want the ¡°food from home¡± almost irritatingly so. This is what I like about Ain, she has little nonsense quirks that can be traced to her past. The weird talent that mostly serves no purpose tends to be forgotten but¡­ don¡¯t we all have that weird thing we do because we like doing it but it doesn¡¯t really help much for your daily life? Her singing is an important part of the story and even the fact that the language she is singing in being different is addressed and might even become a problem since no one knows about it. Her being a fan of singing also naturally comes out here since, if you think about it, she doesn¡¯t actually need to sing to gather information, she just wanted to sing in public and for her voice to be recognized, something that she didn¡¯t have the courage to do in her past life regardless of the various media she could have used. Still, maybe this difference I see is because of the fact that she didn¡¯t actually have any wish to be reincarnated. Maybe it¡¯s because she didn¡¯t really daydream of redoing her life better in another world. She just loved singing. And likes making really foamy bubbles. And doing the plain but relaxing herb gathering quests? Yeah, but it¡¯s mostly characters that are driven by what they want to do but aren¡¯t given some op power regarding that that I like the most. Well, she does have the song princess though, just doesn¡¯t want to use it. Also, I may just be a bit too biased but still.


    Also, jealous Ciel be always cute. I love both of them. I need more jealous Ciel¡­

 CH 31

    Although we¡¯ve reached D-rank, I wasn¡¯t particularly overjoyed about it.


    And since it was just a waypoint to our goal, I didn¡¯t really feel like we need to brace ourselves for what¡¯s next. Though it might be because the only D-rank hunter that comes to my mind is the battle ax wielding Alejo too.


    Actually, realizing that we¡¯re at the same rank as that makes me feel less excited instead.


    Even Ciel¡¯s reaction was only¡ºSo being D-rank is supposed to be amazing, right?¡»and nothing else.


    If the other hunters heard her words, they would probably think that she¡¯s taunting them, but Ciel was only asking out of pure interest.


    On the other hand, the Hunter Guild was already amazed about us reaching E-rank at 10 years old and they even boasted that being D-rank at this age was practically unheard of.


    Though, since Celia-san was the one explaining it to us, it was in a more humble and polite way than how I¡¯m describing it.


    Although my power was something I got practically by cheating, Ciel learned to use sorcery from her own efforts and she has great control over the Dance Princess Job as well. Still, other people would probably think that Ciel¡¯s being cheeky.


    Like the type of people that would weirdly flare up and get angry after you tell them that you got the highest score, even though they were the one who asked about it. But well, maybe I¡¯m just overthinking it.


    Nonetheless, since we¡¯re still doing the same cycle of hunting monsters and picking up herbs even though we¡¯re D-rank now, it should be fine to think that we don¡¯t need to brace ourselves just like I thought before.


    However, the giant spiders are unforgivable. Why are they even D-rank? But more importantly, why are we being asked to hunt them?


    Even if we agree to hunt them by some miracle, it¡¯s absolutely unreasonable to expect us to bring any evidence parts back. After all, giant spiders are to be annihilated instantly upon encounter in our case. Having a part of their body or even their magic stone left behind is rare even.


    In general, we haven¡¯t had any problems continuing on as a D-rank hunter, but as expected, there seems to be some techniques and favored abilities required to reach C-rank.


    With that said, Celia-san and Carol-san led me to the booth inside the guild.


    ¡¸We¡¯re going to have you form a party.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s quite sudden.¡¹


    ¡¸Well, you can decline if you want. It¡¯s not a prerequisite after all.¡¹


    ¡¸But you want me to accept it if possible, right? Since that¡¯s what Celia-san¡¯s face is saying.¡¹


    I understand that it¡¯s best to work with a party, especially with how hunters work.


    In our case, considering our background and abilities, it¡¯s better for us to work solo, but there might be situations where we can¡¯t insist on going solo.


    For example, monster stampedes. It¡¯s a natural disaster that happens when, for some reason, monsters run out of their food supply and begin targeting humans for consumption. To make sure that doesn¡¯t happen, the Hunter Guild regularly cull monsters and because of that, it¡¯s considered to be a rarely occurring event.


    Still, since stampedes can be artificially triggered, we can¡¯t let our guard down.


    The most famous case of this is the Song Princess¡¯ suicide stampede, but drugs that can attract monsters do also exist and can be made.


    Obviously, the usage of these drugs are forbidden and their raw materials are also not easy to get. Using just a bit of it can barely attract a handful of monsters, so it¡¯s said that making enough of these to cause a stampede would practically cost a fortune.


    By the way, if I use up all of the money we have right now, I¡¯ll have enough to actually buy that drug.


    Back to the topic.


    If I¡¯m forming a party, then working with Carol-san would be best, but because of our difference in rank, that should be impossible.


    In other words, there¡¯s someone they want me to work with. The currently downcast Celia-san will probably explain to me the details. I don¡¯t have a good feeling about this, though.


    ¡¸Cielmer-san, do you still remember the party of four that you helped before?¡¹


    ¡¸The ones I left to Carol-san, right?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. After that incident, it got absolutely troublesome.¡¹


    ¡¸The possibility of that happening was exactly why I left them to you after all.¡¹


    ¡¸Anyway, we¡¯re already done with that. However, what happened that time is connected to this.¡¹


    Frankly, they didn¡¯t leave much of an impression on me. I just saw them from afar, had Ciel help them appropriately, and then we just ran away.


    And speaking of Ciel,¡ºWho were they again?¡»it seems like she practically has no memory of them.


    ¡¸Regarding the said party, they are split up as of now and are acting separately, with three of them working as a team and the other working alone.¡¹


    ¡¸So they kicked out the other one. Now that I remember it, they did seem to act like that even when they were fighting that time.¡¹


    ¡¸To be exact, it seems that the other three were the ones who left but that¡¯s not too important.


    Cielmer-san, the one we¡¯re referring to you, is the one acting alone. We¡¯d like you to form a party with the E-rank hunter having the role of a swordsman, Brass-kun.¡¹


    They¡¯re probably pushing something troublesome to us again, but I keep silent and listen.


    Up until now, the requests that Celia-san gave us included many that were left unprocessed in the guild. In those cases, since completing the unpopular requests were meant to improve the guild¡¯s impression of us, I went along with it to some extent.


    This time is likely an extension of that as well. Even after hearing the other person¡¯s name, I still don¡¯t really know who it is, but since it¡¯s probably the boy who recklessly rushed towards the Goblin Leader, it¡¯s definitely going to be troublesome.


    Roles specify what someone can do in a party, independent of their Job, or so. In our case, we can probably just go with Sorcerer as our role. Just like in my case, a person¡¯s role doesn¡¯t necessarily match their Job.


    One¡¯s role is a personal decision but generally they¡¯re like swordsman, spearman, axman, sorcerer, and so on. Because of that, even if one calls himself a swordsman, it¡¯s hard to guess if they¡¯re referring to their Job or to their role.


    ¡¸Can I have some time to think about it?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. Please feel free to.¡¹


    ¡ºFor you Ain, what do you think about this?


    I can¡¯t remember anything about him, so I don¡¯t really know what to do.¡»


    After all, it¡¯s someone that was abandoned by every member of his party.


    In my case, I¡¯ve thought of some conditions that I want before we¡¯d agree to it but I want to give Ciel the opportunity to ponder deeply about it, so I decided to wait for her response.


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    ¡ºHe¡¯s an E-rank hunter, correct? Then that means he¡¯d at least be weaker than us.


    Assuming that we would take up a request, it will have to be an E-rank request, so even if he¡¯s nothing but a burden, we likely wouldn¡¯t be in any danger still.


    So then, what we¡¯ll need to be cautious about are things other than the request, right? Could you perhaps ask if what happened that time was the only reason their party disbanded?¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood.¡»


    ¡ºThank you. I really appreciate it.¡»


    ¡¸Why did his party split up?¡¹


    ¡¸I believe that you¡¯ve seen it firsthand but it seems to be from Brass-kun¡¯s reckless way of fighting and due to them having an issue with their allocation of the rewards.¡¹


    ¡¸I see.¡¹


    ¡ºSo in that case, we should only form a temporary party that would only work together to complete requests. It would be nice if, after the request, the guild also makes sure that the other party doesn¡¯t come in contact with us more than necessary.


    And then, we should ask the guild to have him agree with dividing our rewards equally.


    Finally, how about having them recognise that we will not be helping him to get stronger or try to reform him?¡»


    ¡ºSure, I think that that¡¯s good.¡»


    I¡¯m not sure about what the guild really wants from us, but what they asked from us was only if we can cooperate in times of emergencies.


    Even if they actually want us to incite his personal growth, we don¡¯t have any reason to take care of him to that extent.


    When I told them what Ciel said almost practically as she told it to me, Celia-san showed a slightly dejected smile before saying¡¸Then please do your best.¡¹and bowing her head.


    Carol-san even muttered¡¸Doubtful that you¡¯re really 10 years old.¡¹as she stared at me, but Ciel was the one that thought of this. That¡¯s why it actually is something a 10 year old would say, so no problems here.


    Hehe~ My Ciel is pretty amazing, isn¡¯t she? Just kidding.


    ¡¸Also, I have one more request, or rather, one more question.¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s still something, I see.¡¹


    ¡¸I just wanted to ask, even if we form the party, is it fine to treat it just as usual? ¡¹


    ¡¸Well of course. After all, this is simply a test.¡¹


    ¡¸Then in that case, it¡¯s alright.¡¹


    With that, our first party work was decided like it was some sort of free trial.


    ¡ó


    After that decision, we were led to a place, and what awaited us there was a boy considerably taller than me who seemed to look somewhere between a teenager and a young adult.


    His hair was brown with hints of red, and his eyes were green in color. He had a solid masculine build as well.


    He looks like the regular dream-chasing youngster, I guess. Well, I suppose I¡¯m also still a youngster too, but anyway.


    He should be Brass-kun, but please stop staring at me.


    I¡¯m sure he¡¯s thinking Why do I need to play babysitter? or something right now.


    After all, judging from how I look, he probably thinks that I¡¯m just a G-rank hunter, and he likely won¡¯t believe us even if we tell him that I¡¯m at D-rank. That¡¯s what I get from his expression.


    ¡¸So, I just need to take care of this shrimp here, right?¡¹


    ¡¸If that¡¯s your definition of forming a party, then sure. Naturally, you don¡¯t have any right to refuse. Since you¡¯ve kept repeatedly failing your requests lately, if you refuse now or can¡¯t work together as a party, you¡¯ll be demoted to F-rank.¡¹


    ¡¸Hmph.¡¹


    Hearing Carol-san¡¯s words, Brass-kun hatefully glared at me. No matter how you look at it, that was entirely his own fault.


    Taking over from Carol-san, Celia-san begins the explanation.


    ¡¸If you form a party with her, then we can allow you to accept high difficulty E-rank requests.


    And as your party was arranged by the guild, regardless of any reason, your rewards will always be divided equally. Unlike a regular party, in cases where there is trouble between the two of you while you two aren¡¯t working on a request, it will be treated as a conflict between hunters instead, so please keep that in mind.¡¹


    ¡¸And if she¡¯s weighing me down?¡¹


    ¡¸Well, since the two of you are hunters, in the end it¡¯s self-responsibility.¡¹


    ¡¸Then fine, got it.¡¹


    He probably meant that he¡¯ll abandon us if the situation calls for it. Well we¡¯re thinking of doing the same, so I don¡¯t really mind that in particular.


    Still, doesn¡¯t he understand that doing something unbefitting of a party member would get him demoted?


    ¡¸Then I¡¯ll take this request. Don¡¯t drag me down. Shrimp.¡¹


    ¡¸A Kobold subjugation request, is that okay?¡¹


    ¡¸You just listen to what the Greater Swordsman¡¯s saying, shrimp.¡¹


    After saying so, Brass-kun went to the reception desk and then left the guild.


    Before following him, I shot a glance towards Carol-san¡¯s and Celia-san¡¯s direction, and there I saw them looking at me with a troubled look on their faces.


    How can I say this, Brass-kun is much more unapproachable than I imagined. But looking closely, he¡¯s walking somewhat unsteadily.


    They did say that he¡¯s been failing his requests repeatedly, he might have no money at all. His clothes also seem worn out and I can see a lot of scratches on him. Maybe he¡¯s also unsteady because of hunger, or so.


    I can¡¯t believe that he even thought of accepting that kobold subjugation request in that state.


    Kobolds are E-rank, so I don¡¯t consider them strong but since the bipedal dog-looking kobolds always act in groups consisting of 5-6 of them, they¡¯re more annoying compared to goblins.


    Although it¡¯s common to see mobs with Goblin Leaders leading more than 10 of them, goblins generally move independently and one would only encounter at most three of them at the same time.


    So considering that he had a close fight with just a Goblin Leader, I don¡¯t really think that he can handle several kobolds at the same time.


    In the first place, we haven¡¯t even introduced ourselves to each other yet. I¡¯m amazed that he actually just accepted a request like that.


    I know who he is, but he probably doesn¡¯t even know who I am. Well, since detection is showing the same results as usual, I¡¯ll just let Brass-kun do as he wants and ask Ciel to focus on supporting him.


    Though until the battle starts, I¡¯ll still be the one mainly in control.


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    Hiya~! Mwahwahwahwa! He¡¯s back! Also, we¡¯re back to the main story and AinCiel! Also, the last chapter was objectively interesting but subjectively not fun, lol. Particularly the comments, they were fun~


    Well, there were already some foreshadowing on the party event but it was probably hard to guess which half of the disbanded newbie party she would be dealing with. On one hand, the slightly vanilla group of three. On the other, it is he, Brass the Greater Swordsman! And now we see. And now we know.


    Still, other stories would usually go with the less troublesome? party members. Here the guild seems to be attempting to reform Brass with an external stimuli that just happened to be in line for a cooperative aptitude test. Though seemingly not very cooperative with their plans.


    I¡¯m sorry for another ¡®what I like about Ain¡¯ rant but what I like about Ain is that she is, to some extent, the same with the regular Japanese reincarnator protagonist, but she literally had a character development breaking and remolding her current character quite early in the story on as she was barely prepared to face most of what the duke threw at her and her being unable to stop whatever it is would instantly mean danger to Ciel as well. Most characters would show their willpower by overcoming what despair lies on their own, but Ain practically broke the moment she realised that she was a baby and just gained her willpower after realising that she¡¯s not the only one being harmed when she is harmed. This results to her prioritizing Ciel and their freedom above all else. This makes her limit her human relations as more connections mean more relationships to cut off when they inevitably decide to leave the town. If they weren¡¯t trying to run away, Ain probably have been quick to decide to help the party instead regardless of the usual cliche trouble. She would probably show more interest on the newbie party. And she would probably feel more offended about how Brass is talking to them. But right now she doesn¡¯t care much about what isn¡¯t Ciel. Still, this is all speculation. Likely just my opinion. Though it¡¯s a bit long.

 CH 32

    About one hour after we entered the forest for the request, my detection caught the presence of what should be a kobold.


    Usually I would just head towards it, have Ciel defeat them, and that¡¯s that, but since we¡¯re not alone today, I want to avoid moving independently.


    Still, I¡¯m not so generous to tell him about my detection sorcery, so I just told Brass-kun¡¸I heard something over there.¡¹to make it sound believable.


    Although he clicked his tongue after hearing that, he still went in the direction I pointed him to, probably because he didn¡¯t really have any particular idea on where to go.


    Does he hate getting advice from someone younger than him? Or is he just really hungry?


    It¡¯s much better than him asking things about me though, so I just leave him be.


    ¡ºYou¡¯re really patient, Ain.¡»


    ¡ºI just thought that, considering Brass-kun¡¯s age, his reaction was likely unavoidable. I already predicted that he would be annoying after all.¡»


    ¡ºBut although that¡¯s the case, Ain doesn¡¯t really need to tolerate him, right?¡»


    ¡ºRight, I don¡¯t. Still, reacting to every little thing he does would only be a waste of time.


    Rationally speaking, unless it¡¯s about something that would absolutely cause an issue, I¡¯m planning on ignoring everything he says.


    After all, this is part of the test to become C-rank.¡»


    ¡ºYou¡¯re so mature, Ain.¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯m not actually that mature. I¡¯m far from mature.¡»


    Even if I ignore Brass-kun, I still have Ciel to talk to. So either way, I¡¯ll still have an enjoyable time.


    Moments later, just when Brass-kun started complaining¡¸You really sure that you heard something?¡¹we bumped into a mob of kobolds. Since there are 6 of them, normally one would think that we should handle 3 of them each. If he considers my rank as well, then 4 for me and 2 for him.


    And if Brass-kun isn¡¯t just all talk, then I¡¯d handle 2 of them while he goes for the other 4, I guess.


    So, as for Brass-kun¡¯s instructions, it¡¯s¡¸I¡¯ll get the strongest one so take them.¡¹he says.


    Moreover, he rushed in without waiting for my reply. They likely haven¡¯t even noticed us yet, now they definitely know we¡¯re here.


    I switched with Ciel and entrusted the battle to her. With how Brass-kun acted just now, well there¡¯s no wonder why his party members left him.


    It¡¯s possible that he was so hungry that he couldn¡¯t control himself but we don¡¯t have any reason to be too considerate about that.


    Rather, if I consider Brass-kun¡¯s recognition of my, or more like Ciel¡¯s, strength, I¡¯ll probably die here.


    Is he fine with us dying then? Is he not? Or did he just not think that far ahead?


    I¡¯m getting a bit angry now. And while I was thinking about that, Ciel defeated the last kobold.


    With an experienced touch, she took out their magic stones and snapped off their evidence parts, their fangs.


    It took her some time since there were five of them but looking at Brass-kun, it seems that he¡¯s still not done with his fight yet.


    Ciel doesn¡¯t seem to be planning on helping him, she¡¯s just watching over the fight.


    And while still staying alert with detection in case a new monster approaches, I decided to spectate as well.


    Speaking of kobolds, they use all four limbs when running and can run faster than normal dogs. Due to that, if an ordinary person is being pursued by kobolds, they probably won¡¯t be able to escape. If I¡¯m only considering Ciel¡¯s physical capabilities, she¡¯s not really that fast, so kobolds can easily catch up to us.


    If these kobolds can use their agility to intentionally lead their enemies around, they could probably be about as strong as D-rank monsters instead of E-rank. Another dog-like monster, the wolf, can be said to be a perfect example of that effect.


    Though, wolves don¡¯t really walk on two legs and kobolds sometimes use weapons to attack, so they aren¡¯t exactly too similar.


    So about Brass-kun, he¡¯s not keeping up with the kobold¡¯s movements at all.


    It looks like he can see through the kobold¡¯s movements, which allows him to dodge, parry, and block, keeping his injuries to the bare minimum, but he¡¯s not matching his attacks with the enemy¡¯s movements. It even looks like he¡¯s being swung around by his sword instead.


    Since he¡¯s staggering, that might be the reason for it but I can¡¯t believe that he even thought of doing this kobold subjugation in that state.


    Still, as expected of someone who boasts of being a Greater Swordsman, each of his strikes are sharp. Even just a graze from his sword seems to do a good amount of damage since it can still lop off slightly thick branches.


    More importantly, even with that much strength, he still can¡¯t win.


    He does a big swing and the kobold dodges it, he then quickly blocks the kobold¡¯s attack in a panic. He doesn¡¯t even realise that Ciel is watching him, completely bored and while I¡¯m at it, he doesn¡¯t even seem to notice that we¡¯ve already defeated, cremated, and buried the kobolds.


    I detected monsters approaching, so I told Ciel, had her defeat them, and had their bodies disposed of with sorcery.


    I don¡¯t really know much about how swordsmen fight but since he¡¯ll likely lose at this rate, I asked Ciel to help him just a bit.


    But although I said help, I only had her make a small lump on the ground in conjunction to the kobold¡¯s movements. It¡¯s a simple trick but it¡¯s enough to tip someone over.


    After the kobold tripped on the lump, Brass-kun mowed down the staggering kobold and ended the fight. As I thought, it looks like as long as he can land a proper hit, he can defeat it in one strike.


    After having Ciel switch with me, I went to Brass-kun and for some reason, he had a completely triumphant look on his face.


    And when he saw me unscathed, he said¡¸He~eh, so we¡¯re done, huh.¡¹with a satisfied tone.


    There were a lot of things I wanted to say but I just swallowed my words, replied¡¸Yes.¡¹and showed him the magic stones and the fangs inside our pouch. And as I anticipated, he didn¡¯t even notice that Ciel defeated one more group.


    Brass-kun took the kobold¡¯s fang and magic stone and was about to throw them to me, so I stopped him.


    ¡¸The request reward won¡¯t really change, so let¡¯s keep those to ourselves.¡¹


    ¡¸Tsk, that¡¯s right.¡¹


    He clicked his tongue but probably because he knew that the magic stone he had was somewhat bigger than the usual E-rank magic stone, he still agreed.


    After that, on the way back to town, Brass-kun went in a completely different direction, so guiding him back was annoying.


    ¡ó


    We returned to the guild, headed to the reception desk together, and handed over the fangs and magic stones. The receptionist was naturally Celia-san. It¡¯s because since Brass-kun originally can¡¯t accept high difficulty E-rank requests, Celia-san is the only one that would deal with him ¡ª to be exact, the other desk also could as well but it would take us much more time.


    With the slightly bigger magic stone, Brass-kun proudly puffed up his chest but I clearly have more of them on my side.


    A hunter should understand what this means, but unfortunately Brass-kun doesn¡¯t seem to understand.


    ¡¸Would it be alright to consider these the monsters that you¡¯ve subjugated respectively?¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah.¡¹


    ¡¸Please purchase the magic stones inside too.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    Since Brass-kun continued the conversation on his own, I clarified that half of the magic stones are to be sold.


    I had Celia-san purchase the magic stones that aren¡¯t related to the request. Seeing me say that, Brass-kun looked at me with suspicion but I didn¡¯t really say anything weird.


    ¡¸We¡¯ve confirmed the completion of the request. This will be the reward for today¡¯s request.


    As stated before, the reward will be divided equally so please confirm the amount.¡¹


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    While I was thinking about how relatively little the E-rank reward is for us, I noticed that Brass-kun was staring at my coin tower as though he wanted to say something.


    I¡¯m absolutely not planning on giving him any, so I immediately took the coins and put those in the leather pouch we¡¯re using as a wallet.


    This pouch is getting heavier as well. Rather, since the currencies are all in coins and each of them are much bigger than the Japanese 500 yen coin, these get extremely bulky. Though even with this, I still keep the large silver and gold coins separate.


    I really want a magic bag that can be used as a wallet even if it¡¯s just small.


    ¡¸And then, this will be the amount from the magic stone¡¯s purchase.¡¹


    This time Celia-san hands me a small pouch with money inside.


    More money. This is my own fault but it¡¯s much easier to carry magic stones when converted into money, so I had no other choice.


    Again, just as expected, Brass-kun glares at my money. Then he now argues¡¸Don¡¯t I get half of that too?¡¹with a mysterious air of confidence. Well yeah, I expected him to say that so I prepared in advance but it somewhat feels like I lured him into a trap.


    ¡¸Why?¡¹


    ¡¸We get half of the money from the request, right?¡¹


    ¡¸We only halve the reward. This is just money I got from trading magic stones, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­.. Tsk, yeah. That¡¯s right, huh. No choice then. ¡¹


    Responding to him, I played innocent and he only replied with that as he left. Now what he meant by no choice then, I don¡¯t know.


    However, I do understand that he really wants money. Is it because he has debts from repeatedly failing requests, or is it because of other reasons?


    Whichever it is, it¡¯s unrelated to me. Well, we¡¯re in the same party, so it might not be unrelated to me but it¡¯s not my problem.


    Since we were left behind, Celia-san and I looked at each other and let out a strained smile.


    To think that you¡¯d actually leave that sort of person to us.


    Rather, it¡¯s amazing how long the previous party stayed with him. He left without even planning what we should do next but really, what is he thinking.


    Should I go to the guild in the morning? If he doesn¡¯t come then fine, I¡¯ll just keep a certain someone company. I still need to think about what to do with the B-rank magic stone after all.


    I have nothing to do left but I want to stay in the guild for a while.


    However, Carol-san, who has been with us the whole day as usual, was staring at me with her eyes practically saying, You¡¯re still not going home?, so I decided to exit the guild.


    ¡ó


    ¡¸I saw ya earlier, got some money on ya, eh?¡¹


    Immediately as I left, someone got in our way. This likely happening was exactly why I didn¡¯t want to leave the guild yet.


    I noticed earlier that he seemed to have been waiting for someone just outside the Hunter Guild but unfortunately, that someone was me.


    When I ignored him and tried to pass by, three new men appeared like it was preplanned.


    All of them look to be about 20 years old, they seem to be older than Brass-kun but younger than Alejo.


    ¡¸Quit ignoring me. I¡¯m just sayin¡¯ that it¡¯d be nice if ya treat us ju~st a little bit, ya see?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s getting tedious, let¡¯s just battle. If I lose, I¡¯ll hand over all the money I got today.


    In exchange, if I win, give me the same amount of money I currently have on me.¡¹


    ¡¸Ya fine with those rules, aight?¡¹


    ¡¸As long as the guild staff agrees.¡¹


    ¡¸Then let¡¯s go.¡¹


    As I entered through the doors I just exited, I saw Carol-san still there and, after seeing the people following behind me, she now has a fed up look on her face.


    Her fault for making me leave, so I¡¯ll have her come along with me once again.


    I headed to Celia-san¡¯s counter and after explaining the details, she looked at me with eyes full of sympathy.


    ¡ó


    We were led to the arena-like place from before, with Carol-san acting as the mediator again.


    The rules are simple. It¡¯s a four on one, surrender or become incapacitated and you lose. Killing is prohibited. For some reason, she really put emphasis on it.


    ¡ºSince we have the chance, why don¡¯t we use physical reinforcement and fight while running around and avoiding their attacks today?¡»


    ¡ºSo that¡¯s why Ain accepted this, right?¡»


    ¡ºWhile observing Brass-kun, I thought that it may be better if we move around to a certain extent.


    Also, please try defeating them using whirlwind slash just like with Alejo. As practice for magic power control.¡»


    ¡ºUgh¡­¡­ that sounds pretty difficult. If I make a little mistake, I might cut off an arm.¡»


    ¡ºThen please try your best so that doesn¡¯t happen.¡»


    Even while she was worried about it, Ciel still replied with¡ºUnderstood.¡»so I decided to silently watch over her.


    Our opponents positioned themselves to surround us, and just as Carol-san announced¡¸Start!¡¹they rushed towards us.


    The four of them all have swords, so it might be easier since we don¡¯t have to think about long-ranged attacks.


    Ciel made a huge leap backwards and shot off several whirlwind slashes to earn us some distance. It¡¯s good that these lightly wounded the men, but they mistakenly thought that this was the best we could do and¡¸Ignore it and go!¡¹they rushed all at once.


    ¡ó


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    As for the result of the match, the men ended up being covered in wounds, dropping their swords, and collapsing, probably due to anemia.


    Even Ciel is breathing rather heavily and near the end, her control over sorcery got worse. As I thought, Ciel¡¯s weakness is likely her stamina. I don¡¯t have much stamina too, but regardless of how tired I get, I¡¯m confident that I can still create barriers with practically the same precision I usually do.


    ¡ºBy the way, I kept on running the whole time, but was that really alright?


    After all, they kept yelling¡¸Don¡¯t run, that¡¯s unfair!¡¹again and again during the fight.¡»


    ¡ºSince you¡¯re a sorcerer, Ciel, keeping your distance should be normal.


    Instead, it¡¯s their mistake for letting a sorcerer gain distance from them. Even for training, I think that it was good.¡»


    ¡ºIs that so?¡»


    ¡ºI don¡¯t really know much about fighting, so I¡¯m not actually too sure about it.


    But for now, let¡¯s work on how to properly move and fight as a sorcerer.¡»


    ¡¸Are you satisfied now?¡¹


    ¡¸Why are you saying it like I wanted this fight?


    It¡¯s because you were staring at me like you wanted me to leave that this happened.¡¹


    Carol-san said so with an appalled tone, so I replied to her with the truth.


    Carol-san averted her gaze and said¡¸Well, alright then.¡¹as though to escape.


    ¡¸If I¡¯m correct, you demanded that they pay you the same amount that you have on you, right?


    These guys, won¡¯t they just lose everything?¡¹


    ¡¸I probably have about 10 gold coins. You can pay that much with a plop, right?¡¹


    ¡¸I am a B-ranker after all. These guys are E to D-rank. Moreover, they don¡¯t seem to be the type to save in their daily life.¡¹


    ¡¸Well, I¡¯ll compromise by having them pay three gold coins each.¡¹


    I actually have more than that, though. That¡¯s why I said that much earlier but it was of no use.


    To make sure of it, I woke them up, showed them 10 gold coins, and asked them for 3 gold coins each but then they turned completely pale.


    Since we have no other choice, we settled with having them pay with everything that they have right now.


    However, since they couldn¡¯t even follow the rules to a fight they started, all of them were demoted.


    Hiya~! Phew, this chapter was eventful! Doing the request, going back to town, getting the money, getting people wanting the money, and beating them up all in one chapter.


    So yeah, we started with Ain low-key leading the way and being really tolerant of Brass. Still, even she got a bit angry with how he was. And in the battle, we see both why Brass had the potential and how he wasted it. He has both some sort of vague monster level sensor, which came up earlier, and even with how awkward he was with his sword, his slashes seem to be always sharp. However, his problem is also the reason why kobolds are considered less dangerous than wolves: he¡¯s monotonous. His swings seem to be constantly big, even the strongest kobold in the pack can read his moves. He¡¯s being swung around by his sword, no control. Which contrasts with both Ain and Ciel, Ain being good at magic power control while Ciel is literally a dancer, someone that has a good control over their body. The being swung by his sword part reminds me of VRMMO type stories, where activating skills would automatically move your body, not sure if that¡¯s the case though. Still, a single hit from him killed the kobold and just the tip of his sword can cut nearby branches clean. But yeah, he¡¯s basically acting like a starter boss, big repetitive strong moves.


    Anyway, back to Ain. It¡¯s hilarious how she just went ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s cut to the chase, perish¡± in the last part. She clearly had a bad day today and four random peeps just come out of the blue in a tragic attempt to rob her. Still, what¡¯s great is that all of the mobs we¡¯ve seen so far has their way with words. They still have enough of a brain to get into legal fights rather than just being violent. It might be just a show of how strict the guild is, but both Alejo and the 4 randos didn¡¯t just go violent out in the open, they made their pretext. Alejo making an argument so that it becomes something they can battle about while the 4 randos were going to be annoying but they immediately backed down and agreed with the battle. Still, too bad for them, Ain just decided to use them for Ciel¡¯s target practice.


    Also, AinCiel fluff and more Carol bullying is always appreciated, lol.

 CH 33

    ¡¸Come to think of it, I heard that you go to the pub occasionally.¡¹


    ¡¸Earning money from singing makes me happy after all. As a bonus, I get information too.¡¹


    ¡¸So the information is just a bonus for you, huh.¡¹


    It was probably about a month since Brass-kun and I formed the party.


    Even though we are in the same party, we only work together for half a week. It seems like he also accepts requests during the other half of the week, but he¡¯s not really achieving particularly good results. While it looks like he hasn¡¯t actually failed any requests, he still hurts himself regularly and loses his money to the church, so he¡¯s practically earning nothing. We really don¡¯t go to the church, so I don¡¯t know how much they ask as payment but since they can heal wounds instantly, the cost is probably high.


    Rather than a church, it¡¯s more like a hospital. But the money you pay for healing are the offerings.


    Today, as we were called by Celia-san for some reason, Carol-san and I am waiting for her right now.


    Before I noticed it, we¡¯re already with them for more than half a year. Normally that would sound like a short amount of time to associate with people but from Ciel¡¯s perspective, excluding the duke, they¡¯re the two people we¡¯ve spent the longest time with.


    ¡¸In the first place, if I didn¡¯t like singing, my Job wouldn¡¯t have been something related to it.¡¹


    ¡¸Now that you mention it, good point. Still, aren¡¯t you also great with sorcery?¡¹


    ¡¸I just spent more time with singing compared to sorcery, that¡¯s all.¡¹


    ¡¸How old are you again?¡¹


    ¡¸10.¡¹


    ¡¸Well you certainly don¡¯t have the cuteness of your age.¡¹


    ¡ºWhat is she even talking about? Just look at how adorable Ciel is.¡»


    ¡ºUmm, I¡¯m adorable?¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s what I think.¡»


    ¡ºI see, I see¡­¡­!¡»


    ¡ºIs something wrong?¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s nothing.¡»


    There shouldn¡¯t be any people that would see Ciel as ugly.


    Since I was so focused on escaping, I haven¡¯t really praised her much until we escaped from the mansion so maybe she¡¯s not used to praises.


    It might be best that I frequently praise her from now on, so that she won¡¯t fall for some suspicious men as well.


    I¡¯m not that used to bluntly praising people as well, but since it¡¯s not like I¡¯m going to lie to her, it shouldn¡¯t be impossible.


    ¡¸Come to think of it, do you know anything about a medicine that uses magic stones, Carol-san?¡¹


    I asked her about it since I thought that we might be able to increase our magic power if we can make that medicine from that B-rank monster¡¯s magic stone, but she replied with a piercing gaze.


    I already know that I would have to tell them about why our hair turned white someday, but to think that it would be today.


    I had no intentions of formally explaining it, but I expected a slightly different situation than this.


    ¡¸I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s the same medicine you¡¯re thinking about but since you¡¯re asking where, it was while I was locked up.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ll change my question. Why do you want to learn about that drug?¡¹


    ¡¸Ahh, that¡¯s right, it can also be used to kill a person after all.


    Perhaps, are you thinking that I¡¯m going to use it on someone?¡¹


    ¡¸Enough of that, could you answer already? Depending on your answer, I might have to capture you as a dangerous individual right here and right now.¡¹


    Carol-san urged on with an unusually intense, top hunter-ish pressure.


    Since I can see the window misting over, the temperature might have dropped but being protected by a barrier, I don¡¯t feel any colder.


    I imagine that if I make the wrong choice here, an ice spear might just come flying. I was messing around with her a bit as a revenge for them pressing Brass-kun to me, but it looks like I overdid it.


    ¡¸Why do I want to learn about it, is it? I just wanted to know about the medicine that was used on me in the past.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Sorry for intimidating you.¡¹


    Just as the pressure from Carol-san settled down, she wearily leaned back on her chair. She then places her hand over her face, probably thinking about something.


    Based on her reaction, it looks like that medicine isn¡¯t just some regular commodity. Ignoring whether it¡¯s well-known or not for now, that medicine might have been something categorised as a lethal drug or even poison.


    Since anyone unused to controlling magic power practically has a 100% chance of dying from it, it¡¯s probably the type of medicine that¡¯s forbidden to use for its lethality or as poison.


    ¡¸You said that it was used on you, how frequent was it?¡¹


    ¡¸Every single day. For the whole 5 years from when I was five until I escaped.¡¹


    ¡¸You did well living through that.¡¹


    ¡¸I just want to confirm, but that medicine was something that compressed magic power from magic stones and releases it inside a person¡¯s body, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Right, I haven¡¯t seen it in person but that drug is highly valued among nobles as poison.


    After all, since it¡¯s simply rampaging magic power, it doesn¡¯t leave trace substances unlike real poison. The berserk magic power eventually disperses on its own as well, so it¡¯s quite ideal. Though lately, circuit analysis can be done too, so it¡¯s use will be quite clear with one look.


    Due to how troublesome it is, not only is it forbidden for use, but it¡¯s supposedly forbidden to even own them. Fortunately however, making it would need a considerable sum of money, so it shouldn¡¯t appear anywhere without any reason.¡¹


    ¡¸I think that you won¡¯t die even if you drink it, Carol-san. It¡¯s extremely bothersome though.¡¹


    ¡¸I have absolutely no plans being made to drink that.¡¹


    For some reason, Carol-san seems exhausted but was it really that shocking?


    Frankly, I didn¡¯t feel much danger from that medicine, so I can¡¯t really relate to her.


    But if I consider that Ciel on her own couldn¡¯t endure it unless she turned her hair into circuits, then it might have been actually quite dangerous.


    In other words, at that stage, the duke was already taking his chances. You¡¯ll surely die; if you survive, I¡¯ll use you, or something like that. Considering that, Ciel living on probably surprised the duke too, and his disappointment at learning she was a Dance Princess was probably unimaginable.


    Though, as for me, all I can say is that serves him right.


    ¡¸Still, now I get it. You have something that allowed you to survive even after taking that drug. Of course you¡¯ll be strong.¡¹


    ¡¸The reason I survived was this.¡¹


    I combed Ciel¡¯s long hair to my front, as though embracing it.


    As Carol-san¡¯s gaze was nailed to the pure white hair, I began explaining.


    ¡¸The result of forcing down the berserk magic power was this hair.¡¹


    ¡¸It was originally blond, wasn¡¯t it? In short, you¡¯re saying that each strand of your hair turned into a circuit, right?¡¹


    ¡¸That should be it. I only know that they became circuits as a result, so I don¡¯t understand exactly how it happened.


    Still, the reason why white-haired people are great sorcerers might be because they can use their hair as circuits. Rather, I think your hair turns white when it becomes a circuit.¡¹


    ¡¸This is a new discovery. A major breakthrough, even. But we can¡¯t exactly make this public still.¡¹


    ¡¸Even a five year old can manage it though.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s only in your case. Haa¡­¡­ Knowing that I shouldn¡¯t go through it even though there¡¯s this perfect research material right in front of me is just, bad for my mind.¡¹


    Seeing Carol-san sigh made me remember how much of a beauty she is, but her words were absolutely terrible, so it didn¡¯t really help.


    Besides this, our situation, the ritual for hauling a god, or the fact that the medicine can be used to increase magic power sounds like things that would get her interest, but I think all of those might be taboo in this world.


    ¡ºIt looks like we can¡¯t make that medicine.¡»


    ¡ºHaving more magic power might be useful, but even now I haven¡¯t actually run out of magic power yet.


    Wouldn¡¯t it better to consider selling the magic stone or thinking of other ways to use it then?¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s true. Rather, I¡¯m grateful that they used that expensive drug on us for 5 years straight.¡»


    ¡ºAin might feel that way but was quite tough for me, you know?¡»


    (This chapter is provided to you by Re:Library)


    (Please visit Re:Library to show the translators your appreciation and stop supporting the content thief!)


    As we had this sort of exchange, Celia-san arrived.


    ¡¸Thank you for waiting. Did something happen?¡¹


    ¡¸Took you long. And about that, well, I can¡¯t say.


    I know I¡¯m being unreasonable, but could you just read the mood?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s making me curious, but for now, to the main topic.


    The reason we asked you to come here as well is to ask you about Brass-kun.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s, is it really fine to ask me about that? I know this is related to my test as well, but¡­¡¹


    If I talk down on Brass-kun right now, I could probably raise my own evaluation.


    That¡¯s why I thought that calling me here isn¡¯t a good idea but seeing the look on their faces, I might be wrong.


    ¡¸We¡¯ve already seen more than enough of how you work in a party.


    Now that I think about it, since you can do everything on your own, it makes sense that you can do anything that¡¯s needed while in a party, doesn¡¯t it?


    The main worry of your mid-combat teamwork is, in the sense of doing what you¡¯re told to do, already passable. Though there¡¯s a lot to say about the part where you leave him be every time until he gets into danger, that eventual support of yours should be practical enough even for a high-ranking hunter.¡¹


    ¡¸You¡¯ve already worked in this party continuously for a whole month, in this matter, you¡¯re almost certain to have a passing grade.


    If possible, we would like to have you take command as a high-ranking hunter as well, but¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s impossible. He only hears me when I¡¯m guiding him to a destination.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, I understand. This is a problem from his side, so we have no intention of blaming you for that matter.


    However, there¡¯s an evaluation on the cooperation in nurturing low-ranking hunters, so unless any problem occurs, we¡¯d like you to work in the party for a bit longer but¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, it¡¯s alright.¡¹


    Improving the Hunter Guild¡¯s impression of us in itself isn¡¯t really a bad thing for us, so there¡¯s no need to decline.


    Celia-san had a seemingly relieved look on her face but, as it is, even if I continue working with him, I don¡¯t think it would lead to his rehabilitation.


    ¡¸Now, speaking of Brass-kun, how was he like? I don¡¯t mind hearing your honest opinion, so please tell us.¡¹


    ¡¸He¡¯s not fit to be a hunter.¡¹


    Hearing my immediate answer, Celia-san showed a troubled smile.


    ¡¸Could you give an example of why?¡¹


    ¡¸Just looking at his strength, he can consistently fight 2 goblins alone, so it shouldn¡¯t be difficult for him to make a living as an E-rank hunter.


    He can still win against the stronger E-rank monsters one-on-one as well, so if he can become a bit stronger then he might be able to defeat a lone D-rank monster by himself. However, he¡¯s absolutely disastrous in everything else.


    After all, he just walks around randomly without thinking, only looking for a target, and when he finds one, he just immediately rushes for a duel. Since he leaves all the other enemies to his allies, the more enemies there are, the more his existence wouldn¡¯t matter. Even if we find the monsters and are in an advantageous position, he still goes rushing in right in front of them, and he doesn¡¯t even listen to what I¡¯m saying. I suspect that he probably hasn¡¯t seen me fight even once.


    He has the power to see through the strongest individual in a crowd, so he might dramatically improve if he uses it well, but since he only uses it to find himself an opponent to fight, it¡¯s a waste of talent.¡¹


    I still have more to say, but this should be enough for now.


    Celia-san looks at Carol-san and Carol-san nodded in reply.


    ¡¸Just as you said. He likely does terrible at camping as well, doesn¡¯t he?


    At any rate, his attitude is problematic. Since he got Greater Swordsman as his Job, his ego blew up in size and it¡¯s not shrinking at all. When he¡¯s taking a request with her and they complete the request, he honestly thinks that it¡¯s all thanks to himself.


    How he even reached that conclusion, I have no idea at all.


    In the first place, has he even thought of why he was allowed to take high difficult E-rank requests as long as he went with this girl?¡¹


    ¡¸I understand. I¡¯m very sorry Cielmer-san, but we¡¯d like to ask for you to work with him for a few more times.¡¹


    Celia-san let out a deep sigh for some reason, but as for me, I¡¯m absolutely glad that we just need to go with him for only a few more times.


    I¡¯m not sure when we¡¯ll rank up to C-rank, but considering that it¡¯ll be a year since we arrived in Sannois after a few months, it¡¯s probably good to expect it happening during that time. Even if it doesn¡¯t, Celia-san would probably have an explanation.


    Still, our biggest harvest for today might be the fact that the medicine was actually some pretty dangerous stuff.


    Hiya~! A little time-skip again, luckily for us considering that they worked together for a few times off screen, and a well earned oof for our boy Brass it seems. Personality evaluation, baby~


    Also, sorry for the wall of text coming next.


    For the first part, we see more Ain-Carol banter, which is usually plain fun, currently only second to AinCiel fluff in my opinion, which was also present. Still, I quite relate to Carol a bit. She¡¯s not the most mature person, but is quite reliable when it counts. I see Carol & Ain¡¯s relationship as the two cousins, one older and one younger. Carol clearly wants to do other things rather than take care of Ain and Ain is like the smart little cousin with a troubled life. You can see Carol being quite stressed with all the bombshells Ain just drops without warning. There¡¯s even the ¡°I¡¯m going to tell mom/auntie¡± aspect of the relationship. Other than that, it¡¯s interesting how they¡¯re pretty similar in a lot of aspects. Both of them being sorcerers, their curiosity with magic, their maturity and even their role as the more knowledgeable in their team. Looking back, Ain and Carol might be the same age. Carol clearly treats Ain like so, and Ain¡¯s banter with her is similar to how you¡¯d mess around with your classmates. While Ain might seem polite, she¡¯s pretty mean sometimes, lol, and is quite aware of her slightly immature tendencies. Carol is on the opposite end, she¡¯s quite frank and honest with herself, but is also quite responsible, to say the least. I think that¡¯s where they clash, disregarding the part where Carol overdid it, but they really are very similar. Hilariously, you can see it in the way they dismantled Brass as well. Or maybe I¡¯m overthinking it.


    Also, Carol clearly isn¡¯t equipped to manage these kinds of stressors, lol. She¡¯s just a simple magic nerd thrown right in front of a slightly mean, troubled orphan and she has no idea on how to handle it. And AinCiel fluff was cute as usual~


    Speaking of Brass, man, Ain and Carol were savage in the second part. Rather, blast him more. One nice thing about the second part is the test contents itself. Judging on the criteria they alluded, mooks like Alejo and the 4 sandbags probably would spend their whole life at D-rank at most. You really need to earn the trust and have the proper character to be able to get to C-rank, which is the rank needed to be able to travel freely between towns. It¡¯s good for making sure that the higher ranked members would be equipped to interact with merchants and nobles without ruining the reputation of the guild. However, this does leave the problem of the lower ranked that don¡¯t grow and mature, they won¡¯t be able to leave, which might narrow their worldview like some swordsman, and if the town itself isn¡¯t that good, the quality of the hunters and the staff won¡¯t be. It¡¯s really an issue for the organization, but I¡¯m curious how long this organization has been operating. The headquarters people like Carol and Celia are clearly well trained and has the guilds goal in mind, so the problem would come from the branches. There¡¯s even the ¡°cooperation in nurturing low-ranking hunters¡± and Carol¡¯s training with Ciel, so they thought of that part for the hunters as well. Anyway, it¡¯s just my opinion. Probably overdoing the think-thonking.

 CH 34

    In the past, the longest I stayed in a hotel was about a week, so it didn¡¯t strike me as a place to settle down in. Still, it seems like staying here in the inn for more than half a year really makes it feel like a place to return to.


    While I think that it might not be a good thing, we don¡¯t actually have any other choice right now, so I¡¯ll just need to make do with that.


    As I was thinking about that, while lying on the bed ¡ª well, Ciel¡¯s the one actually lying down anyway ¡ª Ciel suddenly asked me a question.


    ¡¸Ain, you don¡¯t quite like to interact with the people in this town, right?¡¹


    ¡ºI don¡¯t plan on connecting with them too much. Besides, rather than just this town, I want to limit my interactions with the people of this country as much as possible.¡»


    ¡¸Why is that?¡¹


    ¡ºOur current goal is to leave this country and that practically means that we won¡¯t be coming back to this town.


    But if we interact with the people of this country more than we need to, we might end up having second thoughts about leaving. If we have some remaining sentiments about this country, we might end up wanting to help out when something happens. So I do this to prevent us from feeling that way.¡»


    Because of that, I don¡¯t know how many years will pass before Ciel can make any friends; but considering our safety, it¡¯s better that we leave nothing in this country.


    All I can do is support her so that we can leave this country as fast as possible.


    After all, as long as we quickly exit this country, we should be safe even if we interact with more people.


    ¡¸Although you say that, you still get along well with some people, you know?¡¹


    Hearing Ciel giggle, I ended up swallowing my words.


    ¡ºI couldn¡¯t help it. If we don¡¯t get along with the gatekeeper, we¡¯ll be detained every time, and after staying at her inn for over half a year, it¡¯s only natural to at least get along with Nilda-san.


    As for Celia-san and Carol-san, they¡¯re not from this country, so¡­¡­¡»


    ¡¸It¡¯s alright, I understand. I only wanted to tease Ain a bit.


    I¡¯m not so ignorant to not realise that Ain is keeping our human interactions to the minimum for my sake, you know?¡¹


    It looks like Ciel got me there. I¡¯m not sure if this is a normal conversation for her age, but seeing Ciel being able to smile and laugh like this makes me feel happy.


    Will she also say something like¡¸You¡¯re annoying, Ain.¡¹in the future? It might make me happy to see it as a sign of growth, but I probably won¡¯t be able to take it. Ugh, that¡¯s depressing. Just imagining it is already pretty unbearable.


    ¡¸Ain, Ain. Is something wrong?¡¹


    ¡ºNo, I¡¯m just irritated by my own over-imaginative mind.¡»


    ¡¸Is that so? Anyway, Ain, take care of me today as well.¡¹


    Ciel and I switched and our day starts again as usual.


    At the dining hall, we got our breakfast from Nilda-san. During that time, Nilda-san and I talked about normal and innocuous things and as we left the inn, she told me to be careful and avoid getting injured.


    Since we¡¯re a hunter, it¡¯s only normal to return with at least some scratches but I¡¯m not so rude to actually go out of my way to point that out. In the first place, Nilda-san herself probably isn¡¯t expecting us to return completely unscathed.


    I wanted this unchanging peaceful morning to stay that way but after we exited the inn, I felt several unsavory gazes on us.


    ¡ºIt seems like some people were monitoring us.¡»


    ¡ºYou mean that they were only watching without doing anything, right?¡»


    ¡ºYes. So far they¡¯re not showing signs of further movement. They might be waiting for some sort of timing.


    I think we¡¯ll be alright, but please keep that in the corner of your mind.¡»


    ¡ºRight, understood.¡»


    Although I said that, it¡¯ll be fine as long as I stay alert. Still, if there is something going on somewhere that I¡¯m not aware of, no matter how much I look out for it, I probably can¡¯t prevent it.


    If I didn¡¯t inform Ciel and something does happen, I have a hunch that it might make the situation worse in most cases, so I at least informed her about what I knew.


    What¡¯s scary is if the reason they¡¯re not doing anything is because we¡¯re already moving according to their plans.


    Unfortunately, even if I try to think with my weak brain, nothing is still coming into mind, so we really have no choice but to just let it be.


    To put it in better words, we¡¯ll just have to adapt to the situation; but to be honest, we¡¯re just going thoughtlessly without any plans.


    Ignoring the fact that we¡¯re being monitored for now, I randomly look around the guild while waiting for Brass-kun in the lounge area.


    The hunters that I often see at the pub greet me with¡¸Yo~¡¹and raise their hands, so I return a wave back. But for those that aren¡¯t familiar with me, particularly the F and D-rank hunters, they don¡¯t even try to make eye contact.


    Since I got the 4 hunters that one time demoted, it seems like it ended up causing a rumor. In short, it¡¯s the common ¡°anyone that associates with me gets demoted¡± sort of thing.


    Thanks to that, there aren¡¯t any more weirdos trying to mess with us, so it is pretty convenient.


    As the morning rush hour ends and there are only a few hunters left, Brass-kun finally arrives. Is this the so-called CEO¡¯s entrance? He definitely doesn¡¯t have the capability to be a CEO, though.


    If he waves his hand and shoos me off as he sees me, he¡¯s accepting a request by himself. If not, we¡¯re doing it together.


    Really, what does he even think I am?


    Since he didn¡¯t shoo me off, we met up. Brass-kun fetched a request form and we headed to the reception counter.


    It¡¯s a somewhat familiar scene inside the guild but at first, the other hunters would shudder from how Brass-kun acted towards me.


    So that combined with the rumors of me, a rumor that maybe Brass-kun is actually strong was born, which I think ended up causing Brass-kun¡¯s inflated ego, since he seriously believes it, to blast sky high to the stratosphere.


    The request he chose without my permission ¡ª probably since he thinks that he can complete it by himself ¡ª was the one that he took with his previous party, the Goblin Leader subjugation request.


    Since it¡¯s known that the Goblin Leader can make a mob of more than 10, accepting it with only two people is pretty much the definition of reckless. While I was thinking that Celia-san will probably allow it since I¡¯m here, before that happened, Brass-kun suddenly began saying nonsense.


    ¡¸From now on, we¡¯ll have the rewards portioned into three.¡¹


    ¡¸What are you even talking about? The guild told us to divide it equally, remember?¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah, that¡¯s why we¡¯re talking about it with the guild.¡¹


    I was wondering why he said it at the reception counter but it seems like he has enough of a brain to consider that much.


    However, this is practically just him dragging Celia-san into an accident. Though working together with Brass-kun itself is already something like an accident to me.


    (This chapter is provided to you by Re:Library)


    (Please visit Re:Library to show the translators your appreciation and stop supporting the content thief!)


    ¡¸First of all, why should we even divide the rewards by three?¡¹


    ¡¸I have a little sister but she¡¯s sick and can¡¯t work well. I need money to buy her medicine, so please make it three and give my sister a portion. You already have money, don¡¯t you? Then there shouldn¡¯t be a problem even with less of the reward, right?¡¹


    So the reason why Brass-kun wants money, is for his little sister¡¯s sake.


    Hearing that, he might be a kind hardworking older brother but it definitely isn¡¯t any sort of plus for him in this situation.


    ¡¸I have a little brother that can¡¯t move his feet because of an injury. To treat him, I need more money than what I already have on me.


    So please give me two-thirds of the request reward.¡¹


    ¡¸Don¡¯t lie to me.¡¹


    ¡¸Exactly, it¡¯s a lie. However, I can say the same to you.


    Even if it is true, why do I even have to cooperate with you?¡¹


    ¡¸My previous party, did it.¡¹


    ¡¸Then please form a party with those people.


    At the very least, your little sister is only a stranger to me. Moreover, I haven¡¯t even seen her.


    There¡¯s no reason for me to help, is there?¡¹


    ¡¸To begin with, the Hunter¡¯s Guild is not a charity organization, so except for certain circumstances, the guild does not allow this sort of inequality.


    Therefore, whatever the reason may be, the reward will be divided equally between the two of you. There will naturally be a penalty if the money is forcibly taken after that, so please keep this in mind.¡¹


    With Celia-san¡¯s support, Brass-kun finally shut his mouth and glared at me.


    It seems like his previous party included his little sister as a member and gave her a share of the money, but were those people some sort of saints? Maybe they simply aren¡¯t unacquainted with Brass-kun¡¯s little sister.


    For example, maybe they were a group of friends that came from the same hometown or something.


    Just when it seemed like Brass-kun was silently thinking about something, he then made a smug face as though he just thought of some good idea.


    ¡¸Then let¡¯s base the reward on the contribution to the request like a hunter would. After all, I¡¯ll get a lot since I always beat the strongest guy.¡¹


    Celia-san asked for Brass-kun¡¯s confirmation but since he absolutely didn¡¯t expect to hear that, he was caught surprised. Then he said¡¸Of course I am.¡¹as a reply.


    He really isn¡¯t coming down from the stratosphere, is he? I need to be careful not to turn out like this in the future.


    ¡¸Then let¡¯s go.¡¹


    Seemingly satisfied with our negotiation, Brass-kun exits the guild.


    Following him, I leave the guild as well while racking my head on what we should do.


    ¡ó


    ¡ºSo now what should I do then?¡»


    ¡ºPlease kill the Goblin Leader instantly and then lets wait and see.¡»


    ¡ºSo we do to him what he¡¯s been doing to us all this time then. Is this for revenge?¡»


    ¡ºWell, sort of.¡»


    About an hour after entering the forest, I already sensed a place where a Goblin Leader could be in.


    However, I don¡¯t plan on acting how we usually do, so I gave Ciel some instructions.


    Since Brass-kun did actually gain some experience fighting against monsters, he might be able to win against a Goblin Leader.


    Still, having him fight one-on-one, win, and act self-important like he always does is something I¡¯m already quite sick of seeing.


    Since we¡¯ve decided on what to do, I ignored Brass-kun and turned my feet towards the direction of the mob¡¯s presence.


    Brass-kun said¡¸What¡¯s wrong with you?¡¹ but I¡¯d like to throw those exact words back to him.


    I walked for a few dozen minutes. Detection is really easy to use but my range extended wider than I expected, so it takes time to reach a monster after finding them.


    Thanks to that, I couldn¡¯t even keep count of how many times Brass-kun cursed at me.


    ¡¸There¡¯s a mob led by a Goblin Leader over there.¡¹


    As I pointed to the place, as though it was finally his turn, Brass-kun immediately charged towards the Leader.


    But before he could reach it, Ciel was quicker as she switched and attacked.


    Brass-kun stood there speechless as he saw its head flying before his eyes, but does he understand that he¡¯s standing in the middle of a goblin mob right now?


    ¡¸I defeated the strongest guy, so please take care of the others.¡¹


    I yelled so after having Ciel switch with me and Brass-kun finally rebooted.


    Even so, he still doesn¡¯t seem to understand what¡¯s happening.


    And while he was confused, the goblins surrounded him and began their attack. Having lost their leader, the goblins¡¯ attacks were clumsy but since Brass-kun isn¡¯t used to being attacked from all sides and doesn¡¯t know how to move around to avoid being surrounded, they¡¯re splendidly disrupting him.


    If he swings his sword, a different goblin rushes from his side, so he can¡¯t attack as he wants. On the goblin¡¯s side, Brass-kun has a good reaction time, so they can¡¯t land a fatal blow.


    If he asks for help, I ¡ª or rather Ciel ¡ª intend to do so, but I guess since contribution equals reward now, he only occasionally glares at me and doesn¡¯t do anything more than that.


    Nonetheless, it¡¯ll be troublesome if he dies, so while watching over him, I had Ciel defeat goblins one by one until Brass-kun could finally put up a good fight against them, leaving him four to fight in the end.


    ¡ó


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    By the time he defeated the four goblins, his body was fully tattered and full of wounds.


    Though, compared to Alejo back then, Alejo looked a lot more close to death.


    Honestly, I wanted to make him do the dismantling and disposal as well but since I have no plans on staying in the forest forever, I¡¯ll ¡ª Ciel will ¡ª do him a favor.


    While we were taking care of the disposal, he seemed to have recovered enough strength to move, so we headed back to town.


    On the way back, I made sure to avoid monster encounters as much as possible and we managed to return while the sun is still high.


    We went to the reception counter but Celia-san wasn¡¯t there. While we had the people call for her, Brass-kun was doing some thinking with his brows furrowed for some reason.


    With the reward dependent on one¡¯s contribution, Brass-kun probably won¡¯t even get 30% of this time¡¯s reward, so I can understand him wanting to furrow his brows.


    As Celia-san arrived soon after, Brass-kun blurted¡¸She didn¡¯t do anything at all.¡¹


    Hiya~! We¡¯re back again with our local bad boi, Brass! But, phew~ Ain¡¯s pretty spicy today. And Brass-kun¡¯s getting pretty desperate it seems.


    But first, AinCiel fluff very very welcome! Ciel really can¡¯t help teasing Ain, lol. And Ain is really trying to act adult in front of Ciel. She is the more mature one here, but she¡¯s trying really hard to be a good role model but all her spiciness just oozes out sometimes, in contrary to what she wants. Like how she can get really mean to Carol, lol. And here we have spicier Ain being absolutely savage to our boi Brass. I mean, look at her lying as natural as she breathes. Not even batting an eyelash. And then following up with, ¡°See this? How can I know that you¡¯re just making it up like I did?¡± good job there.


    On the brighter side, it¡¯s really nice that Ain, in contrast to her plans, is getting along well with the bar hunters. From the wording, it seems like many of the higher ranking hunters stay at the bar in the evening, and they seem to be unfazed by the rumors, likely because they have their own better information about AinCiel. It¡¯s really cute to imagine some tough big guys just going ¡°Yo~¡± to a little girl. And it seems like the other F and D rank really do at least know about rumors of AinCiel, unlike little Brass here.


    Still, it seems like Brass really staying at stratosphere, lol. Or is he?

 CH 35

    Uh-oh. He finally did it.


    As Brass-kun declared that I didn¡¯t work, I can only stare at him with pity now.


    Celia-san turned her gaze to me, so I simply shook my head in reply.


    ¡¸The mob seemed to have been consisted of 11 monsters, but you mean to say that you defeated them all, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah. There¡¯s proof here, see? Besides, I¡¯m wounded but she isn¡¯t.


    That means we won because I worked hard. I¡¯m the only one did the work.¡¹


    ¡¸Well she is a sorcerer, so there should be less opportunities for her to get hurt, however¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Saying that she didn¡¯t do anything was probably too much. But I¡¯m still the one who did more.¡¹


    Just as Brass-kun finished speaking, I said¡¸Not true.¡¹and cut into the conversation.


    It¡¯s annoying to go along with this farce. Still, if I don¡¯t properly assert myself, Brass-kun¡¯s opinion might have some chance of going through.


    Although this time, I don¡¯t actually need to do this myself but there¡¯s nothing to lose in showing that I did anyway.


    ¡¸I defeated 7 monsters alone, he only defeated the remaining ones.¡¹


    Incidentally, since we haven¡¯t introduced ourselves to each other, I¡¯m pretending like we don¡¯t know each other¡¯s name.


    Though, as for Brass-kun, he might not be pretending.


    There should¡¯ve been several times I was called by name right in front of him but since he never called me by it, I guess he just isn¡¯t interested. I was glad about that anyway, so I just left it that way.


    ¡¸Like there¡¯s a chance for a shrimp like you could do that. Right?¡¹


    Brass-kun called out to the few remaining hunters left in the guild.


    I see, so he¡¯s planning to get the others involved. However, knowing the rumors about me, the hunters neither agreed nor disagreed and were only unsure on how to react.


    Likely different from the reaction he hoped for, Brass-kun looked at Celia-san with a slightly irritated look.


    ¡¸Brass-kun, was it? To think that you¡¯d falsify your report, you really aren¡¯t suited to being a hunter, are you?¡¹


    I already noticed her beforehand, but noticing her presence as he heard her voice, Brass-kun turned around in shock.


    The owner of this voice, Carol-san, with an absolutely fed up look on her face, was staring at me for some reason. I don¡¯t think that this is my fault though.


    ¡¸What do you mean?¡¹


    ¡¸What did I mean? I was observing the two of you right from the start.


    In other words, I¡¯ve seen everything. From you running to the goblin mob, to you struggling as you got surrounded, to the girl beside you gradually eliminating the goblins one by one.¡¹


    Brass-kun grit his teeth as he glared at Carol-san resentfully.


    To think that he would even act like this to a B-rank hunter. If the two of them ever fought, Brass-kun would probably be dead in less than 10 seconds.


    ¡¸You were peeping, that¡¯s nasty.¡¹


    It looks like Brass-kun can¡¯t do calculations, so he couldn¡¯t say anything against Carol-san.


    Though, I¡¯m pretty sure Carol-san made the leader amount to 50 percent since she can¡¯t be bothered to calculate properly too.


    ¡¸So with that said, the request reward this time shall be divided as Carol stated.


    In addition, because you falsified the report, we have judged that there is a problem in your temperament as a hunter. As such, Brass-kun, you will be, from here on, demoted to F-rank.¡¹


    ¡¸Wait. In the first place, she was cheating. There¡¯s no way that this shrimp can defeat a Goblin Leader, you know?


    More like, that woman secretly observing us, you¡¯re the one that defeated it, didn¡¯t you? You set me up!¡¹


    Brass-kun screamed. I guess he really doesn¡¯t want to be demoted to F-rank.


    Ignoring the fact that he doesn¡¯t know that I¡¯m D-rank, he¡¯s even picking a fight with the B-ranked Carol-san. Does he want to die? I can hear the sound of something freezing from Carol-san¡¯s direction, but it must be my imagination.


    ¡¸Cielmer-san is a D-rank hunter, so being able to defeat a Goblin Leader is a given.


    If you intend to cause a bigger uproar than this, then we will have to consider demoting you to G-rank as well. So, what shall it be?¡¹


    Before Carol-san moved, Celia-san warned him with a slightly low voice and Brass-kun could only grit his teeth as he ran out of the guild.


    Everyone around us let out an air of relief.


    ¡ó


    While a murder didn¡¯t happen, since the surroundings would be noisy if those involved stayed around, Carol-san and I moved to the booth together with Celia-san.


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    ¡¸We¡¯ve already discussed about working a bit longer unless any problem occurs, but¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸He then immediately caused a problem. When I heard him insisting to add his little sister¡¯s share, I was utterly lost on whether I should laugh or feel disappointed.¡¹


    ¡¸Anyway, will it be fine to think of this as the end of the party thing?¡¹


    Even if we talk about Brass-kun, it¡¯ll probably just turn into a gripe fest, so I changed the topic. Rather, I wanted to confirm this first.


    After this, they probably won¡¯t ask me to form a party anymore but I want to have their word.


    ¡¸Yes. Your party work with Brass-kun ends here.


    However, if you would join a different party for just one more time, it would smoothen your C-rank promotion. Will it be alright?¡¹


    ¡¸As long as you don¡¯t push problem children on me again, then I don¡¯t mind.¡¹


    ¡¸Ummm, yes. That should be alright. We would like to ask you to do a D-rank request with the people that originally worked with Brass-kun.


    This time, we have informed the other party that you are a D-rank hunter in advance, so if they show signs of treating you lightly, we wouldn¡¯t mind if you refuse.¡¹


    It¡¯s those kind people that worked with Brass-kun and apparently gave a share of the reward to his little sister.


    Considering that they didn¡¯t come into agreement with him in the end and parted with him as well, there should be no issues with their characters.


    ¡¸Are the members D-ranked?¡¹


    ¡¸No, they¡¯re E-rank. However, since they consistently finish their work and their D-rank promotion shouldn¡¯t be too far away, we would like them to experience a D-rank request at least once.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, I accept.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you very much.¡¹


    If this smoothens my C-rank promotion, then there¡¯s no reason to refuse.


    Hypothetically, even if they ask me to party with Brass-kun again, I¡¯ll probably accept it if they tell me that I¡¯ll be promoted to C-rank with that.


    ¡¸Which reminds me, what will be your plans after reaching C-rank, Cielmer-san?¡¹


    ¡¸Staying in this town won¡¯t help me reach B-rank faster, right?¡¹


    ¡¸For B-rank, that would be difficult. Rather, it can even be said that reaching C-rank itself in this short amount of time is irregular.


    Your existence itself can be called irregular as well, Cielmer-san, so you might be able to reach B-rank immediately; but around this area in general, there are only a few requests of C-rank and above, so I can¡¯t recommend doing that.¡¹


    ¡¸To be frank, I¡¯d like you to stay here but that¡¯s not possible, is it?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, it¡¯s impossible.¡¹


    Continuing after Celia-san, Carol-san asked. Hearing my immediate reply, she breathed a sigh.


    I really wonder why I don¡¯t sense any reluctance to part from that sigh.


    ¡¸Do you know a good place for ascending to B-rank?¡¹


    ¡¸In general, the capital, I suppose? The more people that gather, the more requests there will be.


    Otherwise, the frontier where there are a lot of monsters. Although, even if you ask me where that is, I really have no idea.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. I¡¯ll think about it until I become C-rank.¡¹


    This is something that I can¡¯t decide on by myself.


    Rather, since Ciel will be the one mainly moving once we leave Sannois, there won¡¯t be any issues even if I don¡¯t give my opinion on this.


    ¡ó


    Today, we went home after singing at the pub. But as I thought, it felt like we were being monitored along the way.


    I don¡¯t sense any danger for the time being, but it doesn¡¯t make it any more pleasant.


    Still, there were no signs of them following us in the inn, so we can eat in peace. Ciel is really looking forward to mealtime as well, so if they get in the way, we¡¯ll have to exterminate them.


    I switch with Ciel when we eat at the dining hall, since Nilda-san barely talks to us, but it¡¯s absolutely healing to see Ciel¡¯s face reacting to every single thing.


    As we finished eating, we headed back to our room and Ciel immediately laid down on the bed.


    A neatly made bed feels good to even just lie down on, so I understand the feeling of wanting to throw yourself to the bed first.


    Ciel properly sits on the bed before lying down but if it was me, I probably would¡¯ve jumped on it instead. It¡¯s really hard to say who¡¯s the real child here.


    We didn¡¯t use beds at home in my previous life, so just the fact that there¡¯s a bed raises my excitement a bit.


    ¡ºCome to think of it, there¡¯s a person that I might have seen in the pub, but did you notice them, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºNo, I was too focused on singing, so I didn¡¯t look around that much.¡»


    ¡ºAin always has fun singing after all. Are the lullabies you sing to me fun for you too?¡»


    ¡ºOf course. It¡¯s awfully fun to think about which song that would help you sleep well, what kind of voice to sing with, and what you would enjoy, Ciel.¡»


    ¡ºThank you, Ain.¡»


    Smiling as she said, Ciel looked so absolutely beautiful that it made my heart skip a beat.


    I¡¯m certain that this isn¡¯t because I was originally male, but because she has the charm to attract people regardless of gender.


    There might come a time that she¡¯ll be able to show this smile to others, but considering how it¡¯s currently only directed to me, I can¡¯t help but feel privileged.


    ¡ºBy the way, what will you do once we become C-rank, Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºThat was today¡¯s question, right? It¡¯s fine to do what you want to do you know, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºWe can¡¯t do that. Rather, I don¡¯t have anything I want to do.¡»


    ¡ºI see. In that case, I want to see the ocean. Since I¡¯ve already seen the ciel, I want to see the mer too. Can we?¡»


    ¡ºOf course we can. That¡¯s right. I want you to see the ocean too.¡»


    ¡ºBut we might reach B-rank later, you know?¡»


    ¡ºIf it¡¯s your decision, I wouldn¡¯t mind even if we get delayed.


    Besides, we don¡¯t really know the most efficient place to work at and, at the very least, I¡¯d really like to be further away from this town.¡»


    Ciel remembering the origin of her name makes me feel happy, but it¡¯s somewhat embarrassing.


    I just hope that she doesn¡¯t notice my embarrassment. Wanting to go to the ocean is not a big problem at all. Instead, since it¡¯s said that monsters become stronger as one goes nearer to the ocean, there should be more high-ranking subjugation requests available there.


    I can¡¯t be sure about how much we can fight against B-ranked monsters, but it¡¯s not like I was doing nothing for half a year.


    It might be just by a little bit, but the barrier¡¯s durability should have increased and the reapplication after it gets destroyed is now much faster than it was before.


    Ciel also has a much better proficiency with Dance Princess as well. Though, with this one, we haven¡¯t gotten any proper practice at all, so I don¡¯t know how using it would actually go.


    For those reasons alone, even if we encounter some B-rank monsters stronger than the cyclops, we should be able to defeat them without difficulty.


    In the first place, we can¡¯t accept B-rank requests, so considering that we¡¯ll be generally up against monsters of up to C-rank, it shouldn¡¯t be too dangerous no matter where we work.


    Since it¡¯s not like we¡¯ll be at the ocean the instant we leave Sannois, peeking at the requests on the guilds along the way while searching for a perfect town or village to stay at should be good too.


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    ¡ºSo, Ain. Could you tell me the origin of the name Ainsel?¡»


    ¡ºAhh, umm¡­¡­ It¡¯s a secret.¡»


    ¡ºYou¡¯re so mean, Ain.¡»


    ¡ºHaving secrets makes a woman charming¡­¡­ is what I¡¯ve heard before, you see?¡»


    Being someone that¡¯s somewhat like a woman yet somewhat not, though I still think of myself as a man if I had to choose, I couldn¡¯t say it with complete confidence. Although since I¡¯ve already decided to hide my gender, it would have been better if I did so.


    Unaware of my inner conflict, Ciel said¡ºI¡¯ll leave it at that.¡»with a gentle gaze, making me want to feel all the more depressed.


    Hiya~! The mad lad! The boi! The legend! He¡¯s finally messed up so much, beyond recovering if you ask me. Well, I doubt that he learned anything from this.


    I love how Carol played such an important role in this. It¡¯s only natural that she does, considering that, well, this *is* a test for both of them, regardless if Brass didn¡¯t see it that way. Or maybe he did and he just thought that they¡¯ll see his *true strength* or something. Anyway, good job almost turning the guild into a crime scene, Brass! This would have been Carol¡¯s second accidental murder attempt, or rather her first intentional one to be honest. Like, really? He really thinks that he¡¯s important enough to be set up by anyone?


    On the other hand, it seems like the party leadership test might actually happen now! Bless those saints that put up with Brass for so long, their hard work seems to be very much acknowledged. As for our princesses, very cute as usual. It¡¯s nice to see Ciel being curious and Ain trying to avoid the question with varying results, lol. You¡¯re too easy to read, Ain. Really, at this point, the other people are just trying to convince themselves that trauma is the reason the little girl Cielmer acts like she does. Well, it¡¯s just my opinion though.


    P.S. If you¡¯re curious, Brass didn¡¯t actually say any specifics about the reward for the *stronger guy*. It¡¯s really Carol being lazy, lol.


    So, Brass¡¯ share becomes:


    4/10 * 50%


    (Since the other 1 goblin is worth the other 50%)


    Instead of the uneven of


    4/11 * 100%


    Meaning, he gets:


    4/10 * 50% = 20% (Which looks suspiciously easy to divide **wink wink*)


    Instead of the original:


    4/11 * 100% = 36.66%


    Decimals don¡¯t really help when you¡¯re working with small money not reaching thousands, lol

 CH 36

    ¡¸So with that said, in using sorcery, control is always important and the foundation for that control is magic power circulation.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, but you can¡¯t use powerful sorcery with just magic power circulation.¡¹


    ¡¸To begin with, in the case of water attribute sorcery, there are only a few spells specialised for combat.


    Besides, having a good circulation will increase your circuit¡¯s total magic power, allowing the use of powerful sorcery. Naturally, magic power circulation isn¡¯t everything, but when two people use the same spells, the one that has better control would be stronger.¡¹


    As I was teaching Perla-san, one of the members of the three person party I was told to work with next, Carol-san mutters¡¸You teach surprisingly well.¡¹in praise.


    Since Carol-san is with us, she really should be the one teaching. It¡¯s making me feel like a child on parents¡¯ day, it¡¯s awfully uncomfortable.


    As for why I¡¯m teaching Perla-san sorcery in the first place, it¡¯s because she said that she doesn¡¯t want to join since, with a D-rank hunter, she¡¯ll just weigh everyone down.


    With that being the case, after the ice witch¡¯s coaxing¡¸Can¡¯t you just teach her then?¡¹and the sweet words of ¡°Advantage for Promotion¡±, I gave in and taught her before we would formally act together as a party.


    Somehow, whenever the term ¡±promotion¡± comes out, it feels like I always do everything that I¡¯m told to do.


    Rather, Ciel already said¡ºAin has a habit of nodding whenever promotions get involved, don¡¯t you?¡»and pointed it out. Upon hearing that, I was left speechless. Still, it didn¡¯t particularly sound like Ciel was against it.


    Though we are having lessons, I can¡¯t use combat sorcery after all, so I¡¯m teaching her while having Ciel¡¯s advice.


    Changing the topic, when I first met with the party, they were surprisingly welcoming.


    They were respectful from the start, although a part of it seems to be because Carol-san told them that I was the one that actually helped them before and due to me having been in a party with Brass-kun like them.


    They then apologised about what happened with him. It seems that they were friends from the same village. After receiving his Job, Brass-kun started to get smug, and set himself a course directly towards the stratosphere.


    ¡¸What is your usual role, Perla-san?¡¹


    ¡¸Umm, when outside of combat, I make drinking water and wash off the splashes of blood. During a fight, I shoot out water balls but it¡¯s only enough to stop monsters from moving, I can¡¯t defeat them. I can¡¯t use ice sorcery too, I¡¯m just a burden.¡¹


    Setting aside the now depressed Perla-san, I ponder for a bit.


    Based on what I saw before, they fight with Terencio-kun keeping the enemies in check using his one-handed sword while Perla-san and the archer Ilda attack from the backline. In the sense of keeping the two girls away from danger, what they¡¯re doing might be correct but, in this case, I guess Perla-san certainly does bring little help.


    After all, even when attacking from the rear, she still lacks lethal force. I can¡¯t be sure but Terecio-kun probably kills more while he¡¯s keeping the enemies away.


    Besides, she¡¯s a Lesser Sorcerer and a commoner, generally said to have practically no magic power by nature.


    What she can do is limited. But still, she should be able to at least push away an enemy by making a large amount of water but, if she does, she¡¯ll likely run out of magic power after one shot and be out for the fight.


    In the first place, she¡¯s already doing her part well outside combat in my opinion, but I¡¯m guessing that Brass-kun might have forced his ¡°Great hunters¡± equals ¡°The guy who beats stronger monsters¡± type of mentality on them.


    ¡¸When sorcerers fight, what do you think is important?¡¹


    ¡¸High offensive power¡­.. and¡­¡­ control over sorcery?¡¹


    ¡¸In my opinion, it¡¯s to observe.¡¹


    While it¡¯s good that she remembered our discussion about control, I think that awareness is important for sorcerers.


    This isn¡¯t really limited to sorcerers but the rear guard in particular should have a whole picture of what¡¯s happening. Especially in the case of individuals acting solo. If they don¡¯t observe their surroundings, they could just drop dead.


    ¡¸I generally act alone, so I don¡¯t know much about how to act in a party but no matter how strong your spell is, it would be useless if you hit your allies, isn¡¯t it?


    To make sure that doesn¡¯t happen, you should consider where your allies are, where the enemies are concentrated at, and where it would be good to release your spell.¡¹


    ¡¸So to be aware of that, I should observe, right?¡¹


    ¡¸If people can do it after simply being told to, it wouldn¡¯t be considered a difficult thing.


    However, if it¡¯s only about stopping and disrupting an enemy, powerful and complicated spells are unnecessary.


    After all, just making a puddle by an opponent¡¯s feet should be enough to obstruct their movements and just hitting their eyes with a splash of water should be enough to make them open to attacks. To perform these skillfully, observing is really important.¡¹


    ¡¸So in other words, I should be focusing completely on support?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. In my opinion, doing so should be more practical. Still, I¡¯m sure that your party has your way of doing things, so please discuss it together with them. Even if you change your methods, it wouldn¡¯t go well immediately after all.¡¹


    With our lesson ending here, I announced¡¸That will be all.¡¹as I clapped my hands twice.


    I wouldn¡¯t call classroom lectures useless, rather lectures are probably the main way of learning with sorcery, but Perla-san still hasn¡¯t reached the point of needing it yet. Since it should be better for her to have practical training with her fundamentals without thinking about the complicated stuff, lesson finished.


    Perla-san lowered her head, gave her thanks, and left the booth provided for us.


    It¡¯s hard to describe, but I believe that someone who¡¯s completely self-taught really shouldn¡¯t be teaching.


    Without any clear idea of what I was doing, I learned detection and barrier sorcery, how to conceal it, minimised the energy consumption, and I¡¯m not even sure if it¡¯s still sorcery or actual magic.


    On the other hand, I think Ciel has a completely orthodox way of learning. However, her fundamentals come from the Respelgia family¡¯s bookshelves, so they might be pretty unconventional. The part where magic power resides on the soul is already different from the general perception after all.


    ¡¸Was that really enough?¡¹


    ¡¸The basics are important. Even more so if you originally couldn¡¯t use sorcery.¡¹


    ¡¸Well, good enough. You haven¡¯t said anything wrong after all.


    Incidentally, could you teach me something too?¡¹


    ¡¸Why should I have to teach you?¡¹


    ¡¸Is there anything you¡¯d like?¡¹


    ¡¸I want B-rank hunter qualifications.¡¹


    ¡¸Could you make it something possible for me? Celia¡¯s in charge of those sorts of things.¡¹


    ¡¸Then a magic bag please. A small one is enough.¡¹


    ¡¸Oh, so you¡¯re good with that, I see. How about this one then?¡¹


    After making a surprised look, she took out a generally small sized pouch, which is slightly bigger than Ciel¡¯s hand, and placed it on top of the table.


    It¡¯s scary how smooth this conversation is going, but if I can get it then I really want to have it.


    ¡¸Magic bags are expensive, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Well, they are. But this one isn¡¯t expensive.


    This was made by an acquaintance item crafter¡¯s apprentice for practice. It¡¯s practically worth nothing, but since you can only get one if you know an item crafter, I suppose it would be quite difficult to come by.¡¹


    ¡¸This, how much can it hold?¡¹


    With the negotiation complete, time to think of what I should talk about.


    Since I¡¯m getting something I want, if possible, I want to give Carol-san information she¡¯d like as well.


    Rather, because Carol-san likes doing research, she would probably be much happier if I give her some material she can research on.


    In that case, since Perla-san was here earlier as well, maybe I should talk about Jobs and magic power. Besides, there¡¯s something I¡¯m curious about.


    ¡¸Before we discuss, I want to confirm something about the general perception. Carol-san, do you know where magic power comes from?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Just from this preface, I already feel like this is going to break the sorcery community.


    Well, anyway, what¡¯s typically said is that magic power flows from the heart. However, since there are people that have it slightly off where the heart is, the latest theory is that it¡¯s from something controlling magic power somewhere inside the body.¡¹


    As I thought, that is what¡¯s considered to be common knowledge.


    If it wasn¡¯t, then the information I¡¯m about to say would be worthless and I wouldn¡¯t get the magic bag, so this is good.


    ¡¸About that, the truth is that it comes from the soul.¡¹


    ¡¸You sound awfully confident saying that. Normally no one would believe it if you say something that absurd, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯d say that both you and I probably aren¡¯t a part of that ¡°normal¡± though.


    And about why I¡¯m so confident about it, all I can say is that I had that kind of experience myself.¡¹


    ¡¸I won¡¯t ask you what kind of experience it was. I have a feeling that, if I do, I¡¯d end up having more work to do.


    However, I do know that aren¡¯t lying. At the very least, there¡¯s no need for you to tell such a useless lie.¡¹


    ¡¸Though, if I really hated you so much, I could probably make up a lie or two. After all, it would probably steal so much of your time. ¡¹


    ¡¸If after telling me this much, what you said actually wasn¡¯t true, I¡¯d be at awe.¡¹


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    Saying so, Carol-san¡¯s eyes sparkle with excitement.


    From my perspective, since a person can still normally use sorcery even if the magic power comes from the wrong place, I don¡¯t really think that this would have a considerable impact. Well, sure, I¡¯m aware that it will have a considerable impact, but from where our conversation is right now, it wouldn¡¯t really seem that way.


    ¡¸Oh. In spite of experiencing this breakthrough yourself, you don¡¯t really have much of a reaction.¡¹


    ¡¸Well, from where I left off, it¡¯s not as if anything would particularly change after all.


    Is it really something to be that excited about?¡¹


    ¡¸What are you talking about? As long as you know where magic power comes from, it might be possible to draw out more magic power, you know?


    In that sense, it¡¯ll be at least a direct increase in firepower.¡¹


    I was overwhelmed by Carol-san¡¯s excitement.


    While it¡¯s true that it should lead to an increase in firepower, or rather output, since I already discovered it pretty early, I don¡¯t really feel the effects myself.


    Nonetheless, if Carol-san¡¯s happy about it, then great. Now we can have the magic bag without any weight on my conscience.


    Still, I¡¯m a bit worried about Carol-san¡¯s pure excitement.


    ¡¸I¡¯m glad that you look happy about it but please keep in mind that this information originated from an individual that brought forth a being like me.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right.¡¹


    Seeing Carol-san turn calm in an instant is a bit scary.


    Really, why didn¡¯t she have this composure during our formal match?


    ¡¸Actually, was it alright to tell me about this?¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s already a noble that knows about this. Even if I didn¡¯t tell you, someone else might discover and spread this information one day. While we¡¯re at it, you might even discover it yourself.


    So in this case, wouldn¡¯t it be much safer that I taught and warned you about it?¡¹


    ¡¸That might be true. At the very least, I¡¯d think of being careful about it.¡¹


    ¡¸Besides, in the event that we¡¯ll be up against the said noble, the knowledge of the information could affect the tide of battle.¡¹


    ¡¸So you¡¯re thinking that this might be a possibility.¡¹


    ¡¸Who knows? I was just being imprisoned after all.


    While I¡¯m somewhat aware of what methods he was using to accomplish his objective, I have no idea of what that objective is.


    However, it¡¯s an individual that would lock up an infant for 10 years for his objective and sell her when she¡¯s unneeded after all.¡¹


    He¡¯s probably done some other nonsense besides what he did to us but judging from the rumors, there¡¯s nothing on him. At the pub, I¡¯ve only asked about relatively surface-level topics so that people wouldn¡¯t think that I¡¯m investigating the Respelgia household. Still, people just randomly talk about the really awful nobles without me asking anyway. Thanks to that, I¡¯ve already decided on which route to use to reach the ocean after leaving this town.


    Carol-san said¡¸I¡¯ll bear it in mind.¡¹as she earnestly nodded, so it would probably be bad if I don¡¯t tell her this as well.


    ¡¸Come to think of it, I¡¯ve been lecturing Perla-san just some time ago but don¡¯t you think that she¡¯s quite an interesting individual?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Wait, by magic power comes from the soul, that¡¯s what you mean?¡¹


    Just by saying Perla-san¡¯s name, Carol-san was shaken up. She really is quick on her head.


    And based on the anxious tone of her voice, she likely felt that the relationship of Jobs and magic power is a dangerous one.


    ¡¸From my experience, the two of them are different. However, I can¡¯t say that they have absolutely no influence on each other.¡¹


    ¡¸I see, you¡¯re right. A cheap magic bag won¡¯t be enough for this information.


    Are there any other things you¡¯d like?¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, please keep our conversation a secret and the research that you¡¯ll start based on this discussion to yourself.


    In regards to our Jobs, Ciel probably has better control over hers compared to me.


    But if I can master it, I should be able to power myself up more. Still, how many years after would that even be?


    ¡¸Oh, that¡¯s right. When we discuss things, it really makes me forget about the concept of age.


    Once you reach B-rank, call me at the headquarters. I¡¯ll invite you to my house. By then, my work in this country should be done as well.¡¹


    ¡¸When the time comes, please take care of me. Well then.¡¹


    So that I won¡¯t forget it today, I made sure to carry the magic bag before I exited the room.


    Hiya~! First of all, Ain! Your age is showing! For the whole chapter! I know you¡¯re not really good at acting but try harder! lol


    In this chapter, we had a short time skip and a surprise lesson from Ain. It¡¯s quite nice to see new people to interact with and considering how the next party is, and their lesson for today, it should be a good sign of what the future holds for our princesses. Well, we already knew that Terencio and the gang are good peeps, lol. Also, thanks to a previous comment, I remembered that Perla is a word too, is relevant to the girl¡¯s abilities, and rolls off the tongue better than Pelra, lol, so I changed Pelra to Perla. Minor change, since it¡¯s both ¡°r¡± sounds in Japanese, no ¡°L¡±.


    Anyway, while there was just little AinCiel fluff this time (a really nice one though, lol. Ain, you¡¯re being too easy) there¡¯s a lot of Carol-Ain banter again~! Love it. Also minor Carol bullying. Perfect. And now, we finally have one of what¡¯s practically a prerequisite in Isekai stories lately, magic pouch, item storage, inventory, whatever you call it, the thing that makes the item management part of story writing easy! Also, it was fun to see more of Carol being a scientist, lol.


    ¡ª-Warning, wall of text incoming! It¡¯s not about the story, so feel free to skip!


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    I¡¯m neutral in the unlimited, time stopping inventory matter, however, how the character gets their items, abilities, cheats, or whatever really affects the enjoyment of the story sometimes. For example, many Isekai just has unlimited item storage as a given, which is a bit lazy in my opinion, a lot of interesting stories you could have told are now out of the option as well. The worst part would be if it¡¯s just a bonus, not even a part of your power, and if it¡¯s just a container that you can¡¯t do anything else with. Like, it¡¯s an economic threat! And you don¡¯t even use that as an advantage! Start a business or something! Physical magic bags and, for example, Ruti¡¯s shadow storage from Life with a Tail, is a good way to shake things up.


    For the physical magic bags, the characters would need to obtain it. Also, there¡¯s a possibility of it being used as a plot point. What I like in this chapter is that, even though she was given a magic bag, it¡¯s not immediately the big, rare, unique, time-stopping, one that usually goes with mainstream isekai. It leaves room for improvement. As for the other example, Ruti¡¯s shadow storage might be magic, but it has an undisclosed limit (since they couldn¡¯t carry furniture, another story being told because of the limitations given) and it doesn¡¯t stop time inside it (which also makes their shopping interesting, since there¡¯s always a need to buy food, since while it¡¯s easier to carry fresh foodstuff, they don¡¯t stay fresh).


    Making things ¡°unlimited¡± and ¡°overpowered¡± ironically limits the story you can tell, and takes away a lot of the improvement phases you could have used as plot points. Still, it¡¯s not a completely bad thing. While it limits the story somewhat, you can also use it to bulldoze over part that you don¡¯t want the story to be about and focus on what you want to write. Overpowered heroes can now focus on their daily life, since they instantly murdered their foe, and you can even put limits on the unlimited, such as All Might being only able to fight for a limited time. What¡¯s important is the creativity and the execution.

 CH 37

    On the day we were scheduled to help Perla-san and her party, I ended up coming to the guild during the time when there¡¯s a lot of people, a habit I got from working together with Brass-kun.


    ¡ºEven with the previous party, I didn¡¯t particularly think that there¡¯s a need to come early.¡»


    ¡ºDuring that time, I did it so that Brass-kun wouldn¡¯t complain about us arriving late.


    If we were even slightly late, he might have used that as a reason to gripe the whole day after all.¡»


    ¡ºReally?¡»


    ¡ºReally.¡»


    Talking about that along the way, I opened the guild¡¯s door as we arrived and what I first felt upon entering inside was heat.


    I particularly felt a lot of heat from the bulletin board¡¯s direction, so I escaped to the opposite side. As I thought of waiting for the others there, suddenly¡¸Umm.¡¹someone wanted my attention.


    Looking at where the voice is coming from, I see that everyone I¡¯ll be partying with today is already here.


    ¡¸You¡¯re all here quite early today.¡¹


    ¡¸Rather than early, this is the usual gathering time.¡¹


    ¡¸Brass-kun comes in much later, you see.¡¹


    ¡¸Ahh¡­¡­¡¹


    Ilda-san, who replied to my words, seemed to remember something and showed a seemingly convinced but exasperated look.


    Ilda-san and Terencio-kun were really formal at first but after telling them that they don¡¯t need to worry about the way they talk, especially since it could make it harder to communicate, both of them became much more casual. As for Perla-san, she said that she¡¯s fine as is, hence she¡¯s keeping the formal speech.


    While there were a lot of people in front of the bulletin board, we just ignored them and occupied a table in the lounging area to discuss for a bit.


    ¡¸Today, we will be accepting a D-class monster subjugation request, but which monster do you think would be best for this?¡¹


    ¡¸I guess the giant spider?¡¹


    ¡¸True. Considering that any monster we choose is still higher ranked, the slow-moving solitary giant spider is best choice, right?¡¹


    ¡¸I agree with that.¡¹


    ¡¸If it was only the three of you, then that indeed would be the correct choice. The cautiousness you all have is very important.


    However, today we will be hunting orcs.¡¹


    Hearing my statement, everyone tilted their heads in confusion.


    Well, they¡¯re probably confused about us not going for the giant spiders after I just told them that it¡¯s a great choice.


    Since cautiousness is important, it¡¯s only normal that they take the safest route even though they have a D-rank hunter with them. Still, this is something I just can¡¯t concede.


    ¡¸Why?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s because I hate spiders.¡¹


    It wouldn¡¯t serve as a good battle training for them, much less an opportunity to practice dismantling monsters.


    I will absolutely never accept any spider-related requests of my own free will. If I¡¯m ever asked to do so, I¡¯d definitely have the guild find some other way to prove that I subjugated them other than the parts and magic stones.


    If by any chance we encounter a spider that can withstand Ciel¡¯s attacks, we¡¯d probably burn the whole place to the ground.


    ¡¸With that said, we will be subjugating orcs.¡¹


    ¡¸G-got it. Still, will there be any orc subjugation requests left for us?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m relying on the Hunter¡¯s Guild for that matter, so we¡¯ll manage somehow.


    This is a request from the guild after all, so if they don¡¯t accommodate for this much, I won¡¯t accept it.¡¹


    Terencio-kun doesn¡¯t seem to be that convinced but if he¡¯s not convinced by that, there¡¯s nothing I can do about it.


    ¡¸By the way, have you decided on what to do with your fighting style?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, Cielmer-san. We¡¯re planning on trying what you told me. If it doesn¡¯t go well, we¡¯ll go back to our old fighting style.¡¹


    ¡¸Then in that case, let¡¯s work today with that in mind.¡¹


    As we were having a light chat, the reception desk was now vacated, so went to accept a request. I¡¯m regularly assisted by Celia-san but maybe I should try going to other receptionists for Ciel¡¯s sake.


    Although I was the one that suggested this, it might have been a bit of a mistake.


    Still, Celia-san processes my requests smoothly, so I can¡¯t thank her enough.


    After finishing our business at the reception desk, we exited the town from the gate near the Hunter¡¯s Guild and as we did so, Terencio-kun and the other¡¯s faces tensed up.


    Stay alert when outside the gates, it seems like they¡¯re properly following this fundamental rule.


    That in itself isn¡¯t a bad thing, so I said nothing about it and entered the forest. It¡¯s a bit lonesome that they¡¯re only keeping the conversation to the minimum, but since it¡¯s not like we came here to have a picnic, they likely intend to avoid unnecessary chatter until we guarantee our safety.


    Though, since I know where the monsters are, they don¡¯t really need to be this cautious.


    As we got deep enough to encounter D-class monsters, I stopped walking for a bit.


    ¡¸From this point on, D-class monsters will start to appear.


    With that in mind, let¡¯s have a short break for now. I see that you¡¯ve been on your toes up until now, you should be feeling tired, right?¡¹


    ¡¸But, we¡¯re in the middle of the forest, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸There aren¡¯t any monsters around, so don¡¯t worry about it.¡¹


    After hearing my words, the three of them looked each other in the eyes, nodded to each other, and immediately relaxed their bodies.


    It seems like they believed me.


    ¡¸Since we have the time now, we¡¯ll be discussing what to do during combat, alright?


    You will be fighting an orc. If other monsters come for us, I¡¯ll take care of them so please fall back when that happens.


    If you stay in front, to be blunt, you¡¯ll just get in my way.¡¹


    Even after I said something that would¡¯ve likely angered Brass-kun, they simply nodded to my words without any signs of being offended.


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    ¡¸In case more orcs come along, I¡¯ll decrease their numbers until only one of them is left, so Terencio-kun, please go in front while Ilda-san attacks from the backline.


    During this time, don¡¯t worry about the backline and only prioritise your safety, alright Terencio-kun?¡¹


    ¡¸What should I do?¡¹


    ¡¸Perla-san, simply observe us for now. In exchange, I¡¯ll be disrupting the orc.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    They seem somewhat nervous but will they do alright?


    In case anything happens, I¡¯ll ask Ciel to stay prepared.


    ¡ó


    While we were having what felt like a 10-minute break, I detected what seemed to be the presence of monsters.


    There were three of them. Speaking of orcs for a moment, they are pig-faced, bipedal monsters armed with weapons. The weapons they have are different depending on the individual and they¡¯re considerably tougher than goblins and kobolds, so they¡¯re pretty resilient against attacks.


    They generally act in groups of 2 or 3, so it¡¯s highly probable that what I detected are orcs.


    ¡¸Now then, let¡¯s move.¡¹


    After saying so, we approached the three presences I felt.


    There are other presences around us as well but since they¡¯re too far away to notice us, ignored.


    By chance, the three presences are also going towards us, so we should meet up with them soon.


    ¡¸We will encounter monsters any moment now, so please stand back.¡¹


    As I gave them instructions and waited for the monsters to appear, the monsters¡¯ movements suddenly gained speed.


    I guess they simply noticed us, but they seem to be much faster than Ciel in her normal state. Ilda might be able to outrun them considering her light-looking gear, but it¡¯ll be tough for Terencio-kun with his heavy equipment and Perla-san since she¡¯s not really the physical type.


    With the monsters near enough to be visible, I see three orcs that have lowered their bodies as they run towards us. I guess they¡¯re wearing leather armor since they seem to be wearing something brown from here.


    ¡¸Now then, please proceed as planned.¡¹


    ¡¸Y-yeah. Ilda, let¡¯s go.¡¹


    ¡¸Roger!¡¹


    Seeing Terencio-kun running towards it, the orc stopped observing and readied his weapon.


    The weapon it has is a spear. I¡¯m not entirely sure what the two that were just defeated had, but they probably had a sword and a spear as well.


    Moving swiftly, Terencio-kun swung down his sword but the orc directed it to its armor and swung its spear.


    Although it fortunately only hit Terecio-kun¡¯s armor, he still lost his balance and fell on his backside.


    Before the orc could follow up with an attack, Ilda-san shot an arrow to keep the monster in check.


    ¡ºUse only simple water spells, was it?¡»


    ¡ºAnd please try to keep the magic power consumption as little as possible.¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s a quite difficult request.¡»


    ¡ºShould we switch? It¡¯s not really combat sorcery, so I should be able to handle it as well.¡»


    ¡ºEven Ain isn¡¯t allowed to take my role away, you know?¡»


    Terencio-kun stood back up and this time, he¡¯s blocking the orc¡¯s spear while flourishing his sword at every spare moment he has. Unlike his thoughtless first swing, he¡¯s now targeting spots unprotected by armor. Still, he¡¯s not landing any fatal blows.


    Ilda-san is shooting at the orc as well, but it doesn¡¯t look like she¡¯s doing any significant damage either.


    However, I guess the orc has gotten sick of Ilda-san¡¯s attacks, as it started ignoring Terencio-kun and is currently staring at Ilda-san.


    Just when the orc stomped his foot and was about to charge towards Ilda-san,¡¸Wotro (Water), Jilara (gather) Grahoul (to the ground).¡¹Ciel¡¯s voice resounded.


    In an instant, the soil under the orc¡¯s feet turned into mud, tripping its feet and making it slam its body to the ground.


    Terencio-kun froze for a moment, probably startled, but immediately restarted his assault.


    Although he couldn¡¯t finish the monster off, he heavily wounded the orc. It then angrily stomped its feet on the ground and rushed to Terencio-kun with nothing but rage, so this time, a fist-sized ball of water was shot towards the orc¡¯s eye.


    The water got into the orc¡¯s eye, so it shook its head as if to shake off the water, but the party didn¡¯t let this opportunity go to waste. The two immediately resumed their attack.


    After seeing that we can disrupt the monster pretty well, we decided to mostly leave the fighting to them and only disrupt the orc¡¯s lethal attacks. Looking at them now, I see. It shouldn¡¯t take them long to reach D-rank.


    Though Ciel is disrupting the orc¡¯s movements, they are pretty stable during combat. If they can just up their overall firepower, they should be able to win even against multiple enemies.


    While I was deep in my thoughts, the final blow was struck. As the orc blocked Terencio-kun¡¯s slash with its spear, Terencio-kun¡¯s sword instead broke the spear in half and landed a strike on the monster¡¯s body.


    ¡¸We did it¡­¡­ We did it!¡¹


    After winning a fierce battle, Terencio-kun shouted out loud, seemingly unable to hide his excitement.


    It¡¯s not quite a good thing to do in this situation, but he probably just couldn¡¯t help himself from doing so.


    More importantly, I¡¯m curious about his final blow.


    ¡ºIn that last slash, magic power was flowing into his sword, right?¡»


    ¡ºAs I thought, it was his Job¡¯s power.¡»


    ¡ºFrom what I see, it seems like he was only able to do it just now.


    That¡¯s quite a rare thing to see, is it?¡»


    ¡ºI guess it is.¡»


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    ¡¸Good work. Perla-san, did that help?¡¹


    Since there¡¯s no point in staying silent, I said so and turned my eyes up towards Perla-san, who was staring at me while blinking in wide-eyed surprise.


    No sooner, she replied¡¸Yes!¡¹with a delighted expression.


    ¡¸If it¡¯s just that, then I should be able to do it too.¡¹


    ¡¸While that might be the case, it¡¯s not really something you can master immediately, so please don¡¯t be in a hurry and do your best.¡¹


    ¡¸Of course!¡¹


    Thus, their D-rank trial run has now ended. After this, we encountered a spider and immediately turned everything but its magic stone into dust. It felt like the others were taken back by that, but I decided not to think about it too much.


    Hiya~! Party adventure time for our princesses today it seems! New interactions with new characters and Ain once again showing her age, lol. Which isn¡¯t much of a problem.


    First of all, just a small notice. Monsters are now ranked in ¡®class¡¯ rather than rank. Hunters are D-rank while monsters of the same rank are D-¡®class¡¯. Just a small change, since rank and class are from the same kanji and the author just used ¡®Class¡¯ for the orcs in this chapter. The hunter ranks are called by the kanji for rank *and* the English word ¡®rank¡¯ so I translated the Japanese word for rank/class as Rank for all of them. Until the author used Class, which is now!


    Anyway, today¡¯s chapter was once again more tutor Ain and the Brass victims association¡¯s orc hunting adventure. It was a nice tidbit that Ain and Ciel just went early out of habit, but the others were already there. Also the little traces of Brass¡¯ legacy¡­ I was just kidding about that, but it¡¯s just impressionable of him, lol. Ilda just having an exasperated sigh after having a flashback from what Ain said, lol. Also, it¡¯s pretty nice how the party has acquired what¡¯s basically the only thing Brass has contributed to them, extra firepower. While I can¡¯t be sure how consistently Terencio can use his new power compared to the thoughtless yet strong Brass, just the part that they can properly plan is already a big thing, now they have a lethal finisher to make things easier.


    Ain was pretty funny today too. Spiders. Lol. I imagine that Ain and Ciel instantly sync and just fuse together every time they encounter a spider. Unanimously burned to ashes. And since Ain was talking in the last part, they actually switched instantly just to burn it to the ground. Definitely on sync. Also, you can just imagine how serious Ain was about hating spiders, like Terencio and the others was probably like, ¡°Uhhhhhhhh¡±. Also, just a few AinCiel moments today, but definitely still fluffy as usual. Ciel just asking Ain ¡°It¡¯s a rare thing right?¡± and Ain just ¡°I think?¡±, lol.


    Also, I didn¡¯t realise how small Ciel is compared to Perla. I mean, Ain needed to look up to Perla¡­ Smol¡­

 CH 38

    It was probably about a month after the party request and 10 months since we came to the town of Sannois.


    Ever since I came to this world, I generally haven¡¯t paid attention to the calendar, so I¡¯m never really sure what day it is or how many days it¡¯s been.


    All I know is that it probably hasn¡¯t been a whole year yet, considering that we still haven¡¯t been kicked out of the inn.


    A recent change is that the stalker isn¡¯t following me anymore. In the first place, Carol-san was already aware that I¡¯ve noticed her following us, and she only did that to observe our aptitude as a hunter anyway, so as long as they¡¯re aware of our aptitude, it naturally becomes unnecessary.


    However, there are still people monitoring me. While I first assumed that they might just be some guild personnel or hunters dispatched by the Hunter Guild, they¡¯re somewhat bad at it when considering that, or rather, they don¡¯t seem to care about anything else as long as they just know where we are.


    Moreover, it generally only happens inside the town, so I¡¯m almost sure that it¡¯s something else.


    The annoying thing is that, based on their presences, it seems like different people are following us every time.


    So even if I press them for answers, it¡¯s likely that they¡¯ll just assert that it¡¯s a coincidence and muddle things up.


    Today, while feeling that certain gaze, or rather their unusual movements again, we took a request and headed to the forest.


    While the forest was unfamiliar to us during our past escape, we¡¯re now used to it after walking through it everyday.


    Though with that said, I do think that the forest where that mansion was and this forest near Sannois are on completely different levels of difficulty.


    After all, B-class cyclopses appeared in that forest and the wolves commonly seen there are about D or C-class in strength as well.


    ¡ºSay, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºWhat is it?¡»


    ¡ºI wonder why spiders exist.¡»


    ¡ºSpiders aren¡¯t exactly creatures of pure evil, you see.


    They do eat insects that harm people after all.¡»


    ¡ºYour true thoughts on them?¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯ll be great if they go extinct, is what I think.¡»


    ¡ºComplicated isn¡¯t it?¡»


    ¡ºYes, it really is.¡»


    As we passed the gates while exchanging that nonsense, it looks like our pursuers are also coming with us this time.


    Today¡¯s pair are hiding behind tree to tree as they chase after us.


    Since I know the timing of their movements, I matched their timing and turned my head. There, I see two men with the so-called usual brutish and crude hunter look.


    I seem to remember them from somewhere, but where? Being discovered, the pursuers ran away at full speed, so it¡¯ll be difficult to check one last time.


    I approached the forest while racking my head on who they were when this time, I saw a party that I definitely remember.


    ¡¸Teacher, are you going to the forest for a request too?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right, but ¡°Teacher¡±?¡¹


    ¡¸Yup! I can do more things now because of Teacher¡¯s help and we¡¯re now allowed to take the D-rank test. It¡¯s all thanks to everything you taught me, so you¡¯re my Teacher.


    Will that be bad?¡¹


    ¡¸No, it¡¯s not really bad or anything. Anyways, congratulations on receiving the permission to take the D-rank test. You¡¯re not heading to the test right now, are you? ¡¹


    ¡¸We¡¯ve decided to take it after we get just a bit better with our teamwork.


    I still get Teren-kun wet sometimes after all.¡¹


    As we were talking, Terencio-kun and Ilda-san came as well, so after exchanging a light greeting, I started walking once again.


    ¡¸Come to think of it, what¡¯s in the D-rank test?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m curious about that too.¡¹


    Ilda-san followed up to Perla-san¡¯s question, but unfortunately, I don¡¯t have the answer to that.


    I was hesitant on whether I should tell them or not, but since there¡¯s no reason to lie, I decided to talk about what happened to a certain extent.


    ¡¸I was actually exempted from the D-rank examination, so I don¡¯t really know.¡¹


    ¡¸You can get exempted?¡¹


    ¡¸There seems to be a system that allows it as long as you¡¯re capable enough.


    After passing the strength test during the registration, I was given the exemption.¡¹


    Hearing my explanation, the three of them let out a convinced¡¸Ahh~¡¹at the same time.


    ¡ó


    Since we were all heading for the forest, the four of us decided to stay together until just we enter the edge of the forest.


    On the way, they enthusiastically told me about how easier it is to fight now, of Terencio-kun¡¯s combat strength, and other similar things.


    It¡¯s absolutely more preferable than being randomly asked about things, so I devoted myself to listening and just nodded continuously.


    A story about Brass-kun came up as well and it seems like he approached them all condescending as usual, having not learned anything at all, so they beat him in a formal match.


    ¡¸It¡¯s a bother but he¡¯s getting really desperate, so please be careful.¡¹


    Although I¡¯m already fed up just thinking that we might get involved with some trouble again, I replied without letting those thoughts show.


    At that moment, I caught a sweet scent from the gust of wind coming from the direction of the forest.


    It wasn¡¯t just a faint sweet scent, but a sickly-sweet smell that would likely make me choke if I drew too near.


    ¡¸Let me see. There is something sweet.¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah, but it¡¯s an awfully faint scent.¡¹


    ¡¸Really? I don¡¯t smell anything at all though.¡¹


    The three of them had different reactions each. While this definitely sounds like a topic that Carol-san would absolutely love to research about, since the three out of four of us can sense it, this smell is probably not just my imagination.


    As we approached the forest, the scent got even denser and as we reached the edge of the forest, it was so dense that it¡¯s making me feel a bit sick.


    However, Perla-san was cheering¡¸It smells so good!¡¹in high spirits, while Terencio-kun just asked¡¸Are you really sure about that?¡¹in confusion and Ilda-san looked absolutely weirded out.


    I contemplated on just blocking the scent with my barrier, but after considering that it would be better to find what caused it, I headed towards the place where the scent was the densest.


    A short distance from the edge of the forest, there was a narrow-mouthed flask-like object almost hidden in the shadow of a tree. Inside it is a small amount of what seemed to be a greenish-light brown fluid.


    As I picked it up, wondering what it might be, there was a response from detection. At almost the exact same time, I sensed something running deep inside the forest. It¡¯s likely¡­ a person.


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    It seems that my hunch was right. I¡¯m getting really depressed now.


    Anyway, I searched for the cover of the flask, put it on, and went back to the other three.


    ¡¸Was there something?¡¹


    ¡¸This drug? I suppose. Does this look any familiar?¡¹


    ¡¸Not really, but what¡¯s that?¡¹


    ¡¸Likely the source of that scent. I have a bad feeling about this but for now, would you mind going back to town and showing this to the guild people? You can tell them that I picked it up.¡¹


    Hearing my request, the three of them looked at each other and silently nodded.


    ¡¸Teacher, what do you plan to do?¡¹


    ¡¸I wonder what indeed. If there¡¯s no other choice, I¡¯ll run away.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s a promise, okay?¡¹


    Perla-san stopped, turned to me, and said so with a somewhat sorrowful expression. While I¡¯m really sorry to ruin the moment, I do think the town would probably get destroyed first before anything happens to us.


    Well, as long as they somewhat understood that this is going to be a race against time, it should be good enough.


    I once again check the presence with detection and see that the person running is trying to put some distance between us.


    Far behind him is a countless amount of monsters and it looks like these monsters are heading our direction. So this means that the the person wasn¡¯t trying to avoid us, but was simply running to the opposite direction of where the monsters are heading.


    Also, it¡¯s probably not us, but the smell of the drug inside the flask earlier, that the monsters are attracted to. If the monsters are heading towards the place where the scent is the densest, then that would explain why they¡¯re heading here.


    Come to think of it, I think I¡¯ve heard of a drug that can induce stampedes but¡­ I guess it¡¯s useless to think about it now.


    ¡ºNow, what should we do?¡»


    ¡ºEven if you ask me, Ain, I don¡¯t have any idea of what¡¯s happening right now.¡»


    ¡ºA swarm of monsters will arrive here soon.¡»


    ¡ºBy swarm, how many are there?¡»


    ¡ºI don¡¯t exactly want to count, but it¡¯s definitely reaching the three digit mark.¡»


    ¡ºIsn¡¯t that¡­ the stampede thing?¡»


    ¡ºDefinitely the stampede thing.¡»


    ¡ºAin, what do you think?¡»


    ¡ºI was thinking that it would be fine to run away, but on the other hand, if we defeat lots of them here, we might be able to reach C-rank or so.


    Returning to Sannois would probably just cause needless problems as well, so we¡¯ll need a different place if we¡¯re running away.¡»


    ¡º¡­¡­ How strong is the strongest presence among them?¡»


    For some reason, it felt like Ciel was baffled just then, but I¡¯d like to say that it¡¯s absolutely not my fault.


    Besides, I do think that Ciel somewhat understands the situation, since she¡¯s going along with the conversation.


    After all, if she thinks that it¡¯s really dangerous, she can always retake control of her body and run away.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s stronger than D-class, but should be weaker than a cyclops. There are a lot of them on that strength level, though.¡»


    Though since Carol-san is also back there at town, I don¡¯t really think that a few stragglers would be much of a problem.


    ¡ºBy ¡®returning to town might cause needless problems¡¯, what exactly is that?¡»


    ¡ºBeing framed for causing this stampede, I suppose?


    Since several people instantly come to mind when thinking about people that having a grudge on me, I¡¯m guessing that they worked together just to set me up.


    Us being followed these past months was probably so that they can get a good timing, or that so I wouldn¡¯t escape, or other similar reasons in this case.¡»


    ¡ºHow should I say this, they¡¯re quite persistent.


    Anyway, putting them aside, Ain. I want to dance with all I have.¡»


    ¡ºThen in that case, I¡¯ll sing with all my heart as well.¡»


    There¡¯s a chance that someone from the guild or a hunter the assigned might come here to examine the situation, but I¡¯ll think about that when it happens. At the very least, with my support, they shouldn¡¯t notice that Ciel is a Dance Princess. If they do, there¡¯s no doubt that it would turn the value of the Dance Princess Job on its head.


    But more importantly, if Ciel wants to dance, I only need to sing her a matching tune.


    Aahhhhhhhhh! Never have I been so excited to read the words ¡®I want to dance¡¯ in a magic-fantasy story! The end is nigh and our princesses¡¯ performance is about to begin! Don¡¯t have much to talk about this week, but still~


    While the stalker, poor Carol, stopped stalking some time ago, it seems like the other stalkers have finally tried their hand on our princesses! Monster Stampede time~!


    Anyway, nice to see Perla and the gang going up in life. Though Brass still managed to sneak in, sneaky boy. Like in the previous interlude, it¡¯s really nice to see Perla¡¯s appreciation of Ciel, honestly she¡¯s like a puppy, lol.


    And of course, AinCiel fluff~ The spider exchange, lol. Next week is definitely going to be pure AinCiel, yay~


    P.S. For anyone wondering, yup. Teacher is Sensei.

 CH 39

    ¡ºBefore we switch, would you mind if I sing for a while?¡»


    ¡ºNot at all, but why?¡»


    ¡ºI want to have as many monsters possible to come to us. There shouldn¡¯t be any people within hearing range, so I thought that if we could lead the flow of monsters towards us, the others should follow behind.¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood. I¡¯ll leave the timing of the switch to Ain.¡»


    From the edge of the forest, we¡¯re now slightly near the town. The swarm of monsters should arrive in a few minutes, but Ciel and I continue talking like we always do.


    Since we absolutely can¡¯t let anyone know that I¡¯m a Song Princess, I thoroughly checked with detection before singing a la~la~la~, making even the monsters straying from the swarm turn their feet towards us.


    After that, the drug¡¯s effect should handle everything else. I switched with Ciel and left the rest to her.


    ¡¸Ain. Doesn¡¯t it feel a bit hot today?¡¹


    ¡ºDoes it? ¡­¡­ No, that¡¯s right. Then, should I sing something with a cool and refreshing feel?¡»


    ¡¸We might be staying here for a long time, but¡­¡­. There¡¯s no need to worry about that, is there?¡¹


    Ciel let out a giggle. Even if it¡¯ll take us a few hours as she expects, my repertoire should have enough to last.


    If I don¡¯t limit the songs, I can go for a whole day, and more importantly, there¡¯s nothing stopping me from looping songs.


    Among them, I decided to sing a song related to water first.


    Though I have no idea what a refreshing tone would be, I began singing while imagining something with a cool feel.


    At that moment, the leading pack of monsters came within sight.


    The first to arrive are the fast-footed wolves and the goblins and kobolds from the shallow parts.


    Even though we¡¯re already at a visible distance, they¡¯re not looking at Ciel at all, likely since they were attracted by the scent.


    Seemingly crazed, the monsters stared at the empty air as they headed towards our direction. But then, they were suddenly engulfed in water.


    The only action that Ciel took was elegantly raising and lowering her arms, but matching her movements, a pillar of water twice her size rose from the ground and collapsed into a tidal wave, swooping down on the monsters.


    While seeing several monsters being washed away was quite the sight, the true purpose for doing this was to flood the ground.


    Though the water on the ground only reaches Ciel¡¯s ankles, it was enough to trip the feet of the monsters.


    The wolves lost their mobility and the goblins were slowed to a snail¡¯s pace.


    Setting up this stage, Ciel stands on top of the water like a water sprite.


    We already have music and dance, so thinking that we should be able to set our own stage, Ciel created¡ªdiscovered¡ªthis one Dance Princess ability. I call it Deagua Elicinary, the Stage of Water, I guess.


    Well, it¡¯s just a temporary name used to refer to it during discussions. In the first place, it¡¯s not clear whether this is made using Dance Princess or sorcery, and because it doesn¡¯t have as much power as Glacio Lentso, it isn¡¯t particularly a spell name. It¡¯s simply something used to set the stage.


    All of this water is used as Ciel dances. As proof of that, the water on the ground is absolutely clear. It would get muddy if Ciel wants it to, but I guess this time, she wants to make use of this clarity.


    As Ciel twirls, the crystal-clear water coils around her, rising like a serpent.


    As she waves her arms, trails of water trace its path.


    And as she takes a step, waves ripple out.


    Matching my song, Ciel dances. Matching her dance, the water flutters.


    And to tell the truth, she can glide around the surface of the water as well, but it seems like she won¡¯t be doing that today.


    In front of us, the monsters charge straight towards Ciel.


    To dance is to fascinate and impress. Because of that, anything that sees Ciel dancing won¡¯t be able to take their eyes off of her.


    In game-like terms, when Ciel uses her full power as a Dance Princess, she attracts the enemy¡¯s aggro.


    And so they were then knocked away by the whip-like water extending around Ciel. Engulfed by the waves. Flattened by the weight of water. The monsters were drowned, hurled, and crushed, bringing their lives to a close. Her refined dance created this disproportionally disastrous scene.


    As we roughly got rid of all the E-class monsters, the D-class monsters began increasing in number.


    The orc and boar-type monsters are highly durable, so perhaps because it took a bit more time to defeat them, Ciel¡¯s combat pattern slightly changed.


    I then sung a song about the cold of winter, adding ice to her attacks.


    As Ciel hops, steps, and raises her foot, the splashes of water in the air turn into arrows of ice, raining down a barrage that the monsters of this class have no chance of dodging.


    While each one may seem small, being filled with abundant magic power, the arrows are sharp and rigid enough to pierce through.


    The rain of ice was promptly dyed into a rain of blood.


    While the monsters¡¯ shrieks resounded, those arrived.


    Having eight red eyes and sickle-like jaws. Eight legs extending from their bristled body, four on each side.


    What was practically our natural enemies were instantly burnt to nothing upon entering Ciel¡¯s field of vision.


    With the full use of all 100% of the Dance Princess¡¯ power, in addition to having the Song Princess¡¯ support, not a trace of them was left behind. Just this time, they were immediately disposed of, regardless of the abrupt change the flow.


    It was frankly overkill but seeing the tinge of discomfort in Ciel¡¯s face, it was inevitable. Rather, even I wanted those to perish immediately.


    After all, with there being dozens of spiders, it¡¯s a spot-on trigger for our trauma. Holding back wasn¡¯t possible from the start.


    There¡¯s risk of burning the trees if Ciel uses too much firepower but it should be fine with the surrounding area being flooded out.


    ¡ó


    Probably about five songs have passed, roughly around 20 minutes. Singing is fun, but when I have too much fun, I forget how many songs I already sang.


    Except for when the spiders came, Ciel seems to be having fun dancing the whole time, so it¡¯s probably similar for her too.


    Though while she is having fun, her dance itself and the look on her face is looking pretty sharp.


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    C-class monsters then finally appeared, and thinking about it now, it¡¯s our first time seeing any of them.


    One having two horns, tough red skin, and being more than twice Ciel¡¯s height, the ogre.


    Another having grey skin, a swollen stomach, a bald head, and a large club on its hand, the troll.


    From what I can see, the only C-class here are either one of these two. And judging from the presences, I should be right.


    They¡¯re clearly much bigger than the monsters up until now, and even after they stepped into Ciel¡¯s stage, they charged on with nearly no signs of being affected by it.


    Even after hitting them with whips of water, even after smacking them with spheres of water, even with the rippling waves and the soaring arrows, it all seemed like wasted effort, all were ignored still.


    ¡ºHow troubling.¡»


    ¡ºYou don¡¯t sound that troubled considering that, Ciel.¡»


    ¡ºFufu, I was joking. Shall we freeze them then?¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood. By the way, are you still good on magic power?¡»


    ¡ºI¡­ might have played around a little too much, but this much is alright.¡»


    We stopped performing for just a short while and had a conversation.


    Battle restart. In total, the ogres and trolls together number about less than a hundred. All of them have entered Ciel¡¯s stage and the ones at the forefront brandished their clubs as they were now only a few steps away from her. While the sight would have probably left a considerable impact on others, since we¡¯ve already seen the higher-class cyclops attack us right before our eyes, it doesn¡¯t scare me at all.


    Besides, unfortunately for them, before they can even reach Ciel, she already finished tapping her toes twice on the surface of the water.


    This time, like a flowing ripple, ice began blanketing the water.


    Naturally, the monsters¡¯ feet got frozen as well, causing several of the running monsters to fall crashing to the ground. And after that, the ones behind them fell too, and then the next, and so on, giving a show of a literal stampede.


    However, as expected of a monster¡¯s vitality I suppose, none of them died then.


    Although it seems like Ciel anticipated that, or maybe she just wanted to dance in this unique environment, as she began gliding around the surface of the ice.


    In other words, she was skating on ice. While it can be said that figure skating is a form of dance, this time, Ciel¡¯s neither doing any jumps nor spins.


    While gliding her way through the gaps between the monsters, she creates needles of ice under the soles of her feet and proceeds to exterminate them all. Among them, there were some that didn¡¯t trip, but it doesn¡¯t change the fact that they can¡¯t move. Swinging her arm down in a polished motion, ice crushes their heads.


    The spout of blood freezes before even reaching Ciel.


    From now on, it¡¯s routine work, or rather, just for our amusement. Until Ciel is satisfied, I only have to sing.


    After all, in just doing that, the monsters die on their own.


    ¡ó


    As I finished one last song, with there being no signs of living monsters left, Ciel stopped dancing as well.


    She struck a pose like those at the end of a figure skating performance, but since it¡¯s not like she¡¯s giving a show to anyone, Ciel immediately went back her usual form.


    While she¡¯s breathing heavily with her shoulders bobbing up and down, the look on her face is saying that she still hasn¡¯t danced enough and it¡¯s adorable.


    Now then, we¡¯ve somehow handled the stampede, but there¡¯s still a problem.


    After all, there were two presences that came from the town and one of them went back. In other words, there¡¯s one left. I would¡¯ve preferred if both of them just went back together though. We were being watched ever since the ice part, but given that no Dance Princess can exhibit power at this scale on their own, it¡¯ll probably be perceived as a large-scale sorcery or something similar¡­¡­ Usually, that is.


    ¡¸That¡¯s awful of you to be peeping, Carol-san.¡¹


    ¡¸After having so much fun dancing, why the bad mood all of a sudden?¡¹


    ¡¸Somebody barged in while I was enjoying myself, so I can¡¯t help it.¡¹


    Casually turning around, I see Carol-san just taken aback as she stares at me.


    We¡¯ve settled a whole stampede on our own, you know? While there¡¯s a reason to show gratitude, there¡¯s not a reason to react like that! Just kidding.


    ¡¸For now, you aren¡¯t rude enough to ask for an explanation, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Well of course. After everything that just happened. Besides, I¡¯m not so terrible of a hunter to demand an explanation here.¡¹


    ¡¸But you¡¯re curious, aren¡¯t you? About my Job.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s¡­¡­ your fault for telling me about the connection of sorcery and Jobs, isn¡¯t it?¡¹


    Carol-san looking away all pouty was so amusing, I almost broke into a laugh.


    While that only ended up making her much grumpier, it seems like the lingering enjoyment from earlier made me a bit more talkative.


    Still, I have no intention of relaying everything while we¡¯re still in this country.


    ¡¸Let¡¯s see. The Job I told you then wasn¡¯t a lie.


    That¡¯s all I can say for now.¡¹


    I was wondering why it was only 70%, but I suppose the remaining 30% will go to the guild¡¯s intermediation fee and the reward for the hunter accepting the request. It¡¯s definitely much better than doing it ourselves.


    With that said, it should be fine to just take the magic stones of C-class monsters that had particularly strong reactions from detection.


    ¡ºCiel, do you have any materials you want?¡»


    ¡ºMaterials? Even if you ask me that Ain, I have no idea on how to use it.


    Would horns and such turn into weapons? Fur into armor? Even so, I wouldn¡¯t need those, correct?¡»


    ¡ºRight, you wouldn¡¯t. It¡¯s not like we can make the pills anyway, but the magic stones might be useful for something, so I think it should be fine to take only those.¡»


    ¡ºI see. Ain, could you choose which ones would be good?¡»


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    ¡¸In that case, I¡¯ll retrieve just a few magic stones.¡¹


    ¡¸Sure, take your time.¡¹


    I switched with Ciel, chose 10 out of the monsters frozen at their feet, and had Ciel get their magic stones.


    Come to think of it, Carol-san called it a ¡°disaster¡± but isn¡¯t that awful of her?


    Well, people not used to the sight of crushed monster heads and exposed organs would probably vomit though.


    Ciel swiftly retrieves the magic stones with sorcery, and after cleaning them with water, she crams them into our purse-use magic bag.


    It¡¯s really convenient. If we had a much bigger magic bag, would we be able to bring all these monsters along?


    ¡¸I¡¯ve had a quick look but, were there giant spiders-¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸There were absolutely none of those sort.¡¹


    ¡¸Could you answer me seriously? It¡¯ll affect how we should cope for the future.¡¹


    ¡¸Anyhow, every single one that headed this way was turned to ash. Their magic stones should be rolling around the ground somewhere, I think.¡¹


    ¡¸Right. Understood.¡¹


    Disregarding how I feel about them, having only one specific kind of monster surviving would probably be an issue in and of itself.


    It might become a higher-order species. Or rather, do monsters of this world evolve or transform and stuff?


    ¡¸I have a question, I know that there are monsters that have higher-order species, subspecies and so on, but do existing species suddenly change too?¡¹


    ¡¸Come to think of it, we haven¡¯t talked about evolution, haven¡¯t we?


    It¡¯s been confirmed that long living monsters turn into higher-order species. Though with that said, there aren¡¯t any differences between monsters born as high-order species and one that evolved into one.¡¹


    ¡¸So that¡¯s why you asked about the spiders, right?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯ll be annoying if one becomes a higher-order after all. Besides, a lot of monsters become more intelligent after evolving to a higher-order, and there are cases where that triggers a stampede.¡¹


    It seems like there was a time when a higher-order species was born, gathered monsters of the same lineage, increased their numbers, and descended to a village.


    On the way back, while chatting with Carol-san, I suddenly realised something important.


    ¡¸Now that I think about it, this incident will be added to my achievements, right? ¡¹


    ¡¸It will. Another person and I verified it, so this¡¯ll definitely be your achievement.¡¹


    ¡¸I can be C-rank, right? ¡¹


    ¡¸Since you resolved a stampede with several dozens of C-class monsters in it, it wouldn¡¯t be strange even if you become a top ranking C-rank from the get go. And while we¡¯re at it, since you¡¯ve already passed the test, it still wouldn¡¯t be strange for you to reach B-rank now, but it¡¯ll be tough considering your age.¡¹


    ¡¸It can¡¯t be helped then.¡¹


    For now, getting to be C-rank should be good enough.


    ¡¸So then what caused today¡¯s stampede?¡¹


    ¡¸I only came here to see if there really is a stampede, so who knows?


    Rather, what about you? Do you know something?¡¹


    ¡¸I found a oddly colored, sweet scented liquid.¡¹


    ¡¸It was sickeningly sweet, wasn¡¯t it?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s how it felt to me, but a party that I was with by chance didn¡¯t seem to feel the same.


    Rather, one of them didn¡¯t even smell anything at all.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Well that practically settles it then.¡¹


    ¡¸As I thought, the scent would feel different depending on the amount of magic power one has, right? ¡¹


    ¡¸Exactly. And since monsters have magic stones by nature, you can say that they naturally have magic power.


    Being drawn in to by the scent is already enough and all, but the annoying thing is that the higher the class of the monster, the stronger they get drawn to it.¡¹


    Letting out a deep sigh, Carol-san then asked me.


    ¡¸And the drug?¡¹


    ¡¸After covering it, I asked the party together with me to bring it to town.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case then, things should be all settled by the time we return.


    Although at worst, we might arrive in the middle of an uproar.¡¹


    ¡¸That sounds immeasurably bothersome.¡¹


    I have a hunch that the blame would be put on me after all.


    Keeping that only in my thoughts, I decided to end our discussion about this incident.


    Dancing Queen~ Young and sweet~ actually, really too young~


    The most awaited dance scene is finally here, and I love how it¡¯s an aesthetics based power. I mean, you can, like, summon needles in the sky to shoot to your enemies *or* you can embrace style and have them growing from under your soles as you skate around your enemy. Style baby~


    One nice part is the part where Ain seamlessly went from one song to another with a different theme to accommodate Ciel¡¯s slight change in combat. Literally two as one. Speaking of Ain, Ain being a bit more talkative, or rather, more open for a bit was cute. Definitely the fun affecting her. Also, pouty Carol, lol.


    It is nice that we got another aspect of the Dance Princess, the aggro gathering. Even in the explanation before about how Dance Princesses can summon rain by just dancing, it¡¯s interesting how the ¡°fascinate and impress¡± aspect is a big part of it. And highly ironic, because they don¡¯t want to stand out, but their abilities naturally gets all eyes, lol.

 CH 40

    With the stampede done, we leisurely headed back for Sannois.


    According to Carol-san, the fact that the stampede happened, and has already ended, should be known already. Hence, it shouldn¡¯t be too chaotic back in town.


    I was doubtful about that since it still hadn¡¯t ended when Carol-san arrived, but then she replied with¡¸You seriously think that after doing that much?¡¹as she was taken aback.


    To fight off a stampede, there should be preparations done outside of town, where they¡¯ll fend it off. Since there aren¡¯t signs of that happening, I guess this means that there were instructions to stop.


    We passed through the gate and entered town but for some reason, things felt different from usual.


    The people seemed awkward, looking at me but then quickly looking away.


    Did I do something? Well, sure, resolving the stampede does count as doing something, but that reaction wasn¡¯t what I expected.


    Just when I couldn¡¯t stand it anymore, Carol-san seemed to have noticed something, saying¡¸We¡¯re going to Celia.¡¹and then leading me by the hand.


    ¡ó


    In the Hunter Guild, most of the gazes felt more friendly but it¡¯s still uncomfortable.


    Still, as long as we become C-rank after this, we won¡¯t have to stay in this town, so it¡¯s not really a problem.


    Finding Celia-san, we went through the familiar path heading to the booth.


    ¡¸What happened here?¡¹


    ¡¸While I can¡¯t say the same for you, Carol, you should be informed about this, Cielmer-san.¡¹


    ¡¸If it¡¯s something that concerns me, I¡¯d really like to know.¡¹


    With that preface, Celia-san began explaining.


    To cut it short, it seems that the people with a grudge against me¡ªwith Alejo at the center¡ªwere working together to try and frame me for today¡¯s stampede.


    I expected that part, but it looks like they tried to set me up by saying that I¡¯m a Song Princess or something. Their motive for that was because they lost face and were demoted in rank because of me.


    However, since they tried to damage my reputation without any valid evidence or reason, it¡¯s been decided that they will be punished by the guild.


    Besides that, due to illegally producing and using a monster lure¡ªthe drug that attracts monsters¡ªthey were arrested by the territory knights.


    It seems like the Hunter Guild also noticed Alejo¡¯s suspicious movements, but he surprisingly used his head and had his accomplice gather the ingredients needed to make the monster lure only one at a time.


    Since most of the materials are either herbs or used for magic items, there weren¡¯t any issues in having just one of these materials by itself. And so, due to the lack of solid evidence, the guild couldn¡¯t take action. This time, it seems like they were able to arrest them thanks to the flask I sent them.


    Incidentally, if a merchant were to carry all of these ingredients, they would need a special permit to do so.


    While they were able to produce a monster lure in secret by taking all of that into consideration, their plan as a whole was just plain sloppy.


    They¡¯re still in the middle of questioning but it seems that the plan was to surround me when I come back after running away from the stampede, threaten me by putting the blame on me, and then take my money or something.


    When I asked if it was actually possible, I was told that if they could make me out myself as a Song Princess, it¡¯s likely that the townspeople would side with Alejo¡¯s gang and they might be able to succeed.


    This time however, it seems that things didn¡¯t go as planned because I didn¡¯t head back to town, but since the townspeople sided with Alejo after he screamed that I was a Song Princess, they now feel awkward when around me.


    While I really am a Song Princess, I¡¯m sure that I didn¡¯t do anything that would expose me. As expected, I became nothing more than a victim of unjustified slander since there wasn¡¯t any evidence of the matter.


    It looks like Alejo and his gang will likely be sent to the mines as crime slaves.


    ¡¸And so, it¡¯s about the next topic but¡­¡­.¡¹


    ¡¸I can now be C-rank, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Of course. Since you saved an entire town, that wouldn¡¯t be much of an issue.


    However, since there are procedures needed to be done, we would need you to wait for a whole day.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, please do so.¡¹


    ¡¸Concerning the stampede resolution reward, it will take about several days¡¯ time but will that be fine with you?¡¹


    ¡¸It won¡¯t be fine at all.¡¹


    After all, I know that even if we stay in this town, we¡¯re only going to be treated with caution.


    I¡¯d rather have comfort than money.


    ¡¸It won¡¯t be fine, so I¡¯ll only take what can be prepared until tomorrow.¡¹


    ¡¸So you will be leaving the town tomorrow then?¡¹


    ¡¸Naturally. After all, I¡¯m already C-rank and it would probably feel uncomfortable to stay in this town anyway.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. Then please come to the Hunter Guild tomorrow morning.


    Thank you for your cooperation to the resolution of this stampede.¡¹


    After receiving Celia-san¡¯s orderly bow, I left the guild building with caution.


    It wasn¡¯t like we had any plans in the first place, but now we can¡¯t do anything in the afternoon.


    Since strolling around town probably wouldn¡¯t bode well anyway, I decided to just hole up in our room.


    ¡ó


    As I returned to our room, I gave the body back to Ciel and, after seeing some hesitation on her face, she jumped onto the bed.


    The mattress is pleasant as always.


    I felt Ciel¡¯s body gradually loosening up and, thinking that she might have felt the same way as I did, it made me ticklish.


    ¡¸So we¡¯re leaving the town tomorrow, right?¡¹


    ¡ºIt would be better to leave. We don¡¯t have any reason to stay after all.¡»


    ¡¸It does feel a bit¡­ unwelcoming.


    To begin with, we settled on staying here just to reach C-rank, so it can¡¯t be helped.¡¹


    ¡ºDo you want to stay awhile longer?¡»


    ¡¸That¡¯s not what I mean. I¡¯ll be the one mainly moving in the next town and beyond, right Ain?¡¹


    ¡ºYou¡¯re feeling nervous then.¡»


    ¡¸Will I be able to do it as well as Ain did?¡¹


    ¡ºIgnoring the issue of whether I truly did well or not for now, you don¡¯t need to imitate me, alright Ciel?


    With Ciel¡¯s aversion of men, just abruptly leaving everything to her would be complicated.


    Even though she still looks somewhat nervous, she seems to have agreed with it and our conversation ended there.


    After that, Ciel and I were free to do as we wanted to.


    While we¡¯re always together with each other, it¡¯s not like we talk all day long and always do the same thing. Since all I do is research about sorcery, and I just can¡¯t help singing while doing so, it¡¯s pretty common for Ciel to naturally move her body to the song.


    ¡ó


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    ¡¸Somehow, it¡¯s been a while since we¡¯ve passed time like this even for just half a day.¡¹


    ¡ºThough it should¡¯ve only been some time ago when we spent everyday like this.¡»


    Ciel started a conversation with me and I guess she was surprised that it turned into evening in no time.


    We spent the day not much different than how we did at the mansion, but I¡¯ve never seen Ciel look as peaceful as she does right now and it made me a bit emotional.


    After all, we constantly had to brace ourselves back at the mansion. Even with that said, I¡¯m not really that much different than what I was back then.


    While idling around on the bed, Ciel continued chatting with me.


    ¡¸It¡¯s going to be a long time before we become B-rank, right?¡¹


    ¡ºIt¡¯ll probably be best think that it won¡¯t happen until we¡¯re 15 years old.¡»


    ¡¸During that time, would that man be behaving himself?¡¹


    ¡ºMost probably not. I don¡¯t know what his objective is, but it seemed to me that we were simply one of his ways in achieving it after all.¡»


    ¡¸I¡¯m not really sure of how countries work, but is this country alright?


    That man is on a considerably high position, right?¡¹


    ¡ºJudging from the rumors, it should be alright since he doesn¡¯t seem to be doing anything bad recently, on the surface at the very least.


    This is only based on my image of them but it¡¯s common for nobles to be doing something behind the scenes in my opinion. What that man is planning to do might not necessarily destroy the country.


    And even if it is something bad, this country likely wouldn¡¯t collapse before we can escape.¡»


    ¡¸Rather, wouldn¡¯t this country collapsing make it much easier to escape?¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s also very possible.¡»


    At worst case, we might get arrested from this conversation but I already confirmed that there¡¯s no one around us.


    I want to be strong enough to win against a country someday, but as we are now, it¡¯ll be Game Over if we encounter several Carol-san class people.


    I think being like a dragon or something would be ideal to some extent. Since, even though they have the power to destroy a country, they¡¯re left alone because they don¡¯t attack people.


    Regardless of the dragon thing, as long as we become powerful enough that we can¡¯t be arrested and killed even after commiting l¨¨se-majest¨¦, it should be enough.


    If I can make a barrier so strong that no being would be able to touch her, Ciel should be safe no matter where she is or what she does.


    I know that it¡¯s absolutely excessive, but there¡¯s nothing to lose in having a goal.


    ¡¸Come to think of it, Ain. You¡¯re not a god, are you?¡¹


    ¡ºI¡¯m not, but why the sudden question?¡»


    ¡¸I was just a bit curious.¡¹


    ¡ºI see. Still, if I was a god, I would¡¯ve been able to save Ciel in a much cooler way, I think.¡»


    ¡¸Then in that case, I¡¯m glad that Ain wasn¡¯t a god.¡¹


    Ciel flashed a smile, but I¡¯m really not sure how I should react to that.


    ¡ó


    The next day, just as when the sun was about to rise, I left the inn.


    Being enlightened to the absolute comfort of the bed, Ciel was still drowsy but since her blinking while in a blank daze was just adorable in and of itself, it¡¯s all good.


    Although there probably wasn¡¯t anything good about it from Ciel¡¯s perspective.


    There wasn¡¯t any discussion about this but while it was still at an early time, when hunters wouldn¡¯t be visiting yet, the Hunter Guild was already open and Celia-san was waiting there together with Carol-san.


    ¡¸Sorry to keep you waiting.¡¹


    ¡¸Me too, sorry for troubling you this early in the morning.¡¹


    ¡¸Don¡¯t worry about it. It¡¯s a problem on the town¡¯s part after all. Now, with no further delay, this will be your C-rank card.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you very much.¡¹


    The card I received had the letter C written on it. The magic circle on the back doesn¡¯t seem to have any major differences.


    Then after a closer look, the two of them seem different from usual. They look as though they¡¯re going to leave.


    ¡¸Celia-san, Carol-san, are you going back to headquarters?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. We already finished what we needed to do in this town after all. With that said, Cielmer-san, the next time we¡¯ll see each other would be after you get promoted to B-rank.¡¹


    ¡¸And thanks to a certain someone, we¡¯ve got a lot of things to report, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸While there¡¯s absolutely nothing I can do about that, please do your best.¡¹


    Their work is none of our business after all and it¡¯ll really help if the two of them go back to headquarters.


    ¡¸Also, this will be the reward for handling the stampede.¡¹


    The pouch handed to me seems packed but I ignored that and shoved it in our purse.


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    ¡¸Right, thank you. Well then, I should be going now.¡¹


    I wanted to leave before the other hunters arrived, so after a short goodbye, I left the Hunter Guild.


    It¡¯s only going to be a bother if we get a send-off party and all, but most of all, this is just how hunters are after all.


    It¡¯s pretty common to hear people going town to town in search of work. You¡¯re not going to last long as a hunter if you keep worrying about each and every goodbye.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s been awhile since we were last alone together, Ain.¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s true. So, what shall we do then?¡»


    ¡ºJust being with Ain without anyone interrupting already makes me happy, though?


    I can talk with Ain as much as I want, right?¡»


    ¡ºWe can sing and dance as much as we can too.¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s so wonderful.¡»


    While I¡¯m glad to see Ciel looking delighted without any lingering thoughts about leaving the town, it might be irresponsible of me but I just couldn¡¯t help thinking to myself: This is a problem as well, isn¡¯t it?


    Volume 2: The Town of Sannois: The End


    Hiya~! First of all, it seems like I missed a part as I was translating Chapter 29. There should be a:


    ¡°Also, when I think of how bothersome she can get when it comes to sorcery, I just don¡¯t feel like having a serious conversation with her. In addition, I guess this time¡¯s stalking wade it worse.


    Besides, concerning the party earlier, there shouldn¡¯t be any reason to be upset about what happened since I did actually save them.¡±


    During the part when Ain reflects on how worse she¡¯s been treating Carol. Like, she¡¯s not a bad person, but she did almost kill me and she can get annoying when it comes to sorcery, so yeah¡­ was Ain¡¯s general opinion of Carol that time. Lol. I¡¯ve already fixed it properly, so for future readers, please don¡¯t worry about it. And for my current readers, I¡¯m really sorry about this. Since it¡¯ll be a chore to find what I added at this point in time, I¡¯ve written it above as seen¡­ above¡­


    Now then, back to the current chapter! The bois might have lost the battle, but they have won the war¡­ Actually, no, they just figuratively poisoned the water supply and made problems for everybody. Curse you, Scum-bois!


    Still, it shows how easily manipulated the people are and, again, how bad Song Princesses are treated. It¡¯s definitely awkward, one wrong move and they could¡¯ve stoned AinCiel and hear the real news while in the act of being, you know, terrible terrible people for believing a known scum and putting the blame on a child just because they mistakenly thought that she was the cause which was also because they were prejudiced against, again, a child just because of her Job that she didn¡¯t actually have (that she did actually have). So yeah, awkwardddddddddddd~


    However, the veterans did a good job defending AinCiel. However again, it¡¯s awfully uncomfortable to be faced with guilty glances for, well, the rest of your stay in town, so yeah. Still, that shut in part was really precious, AinCiel Fluff always welcome~


    Anyways, our C-rank babies are now off to a new adventure! With C and C also leaving for Headquarters, it seems like we¡¯ll be seeing them again in the future. Although I do feel really bad for Perla. Poor girl couldn¡¯t even see her Teacher doing well one last time.

 CH 41

    ¡¸And just considering how young you are, it must¡¯ve been pretty tough.¡¹


    ¡¸I could only run away back then. Still, it actually hasn¡¯t been that tough lately, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸Well you are already D-rank at your age, huh. You really have great promise there little lady.¡¹


    With Ciel becoming 12 years old, we headed north for the time being.


    Though, we¡¯re only following the plans we made back at Sannois right now.


    After leaving Sannois, our goal for now is to see the ocean.


    This world, or rather this continent, has four major powers and two autonomous regions.


    One of these is ¡°Estoque¡±, the country we¡¯re currently at. Also called the Eastern Kingdom, it¡¯s located east of the continent.


    Next is ¡±Ausente¡±. While it¡¯s a large nation touted as the Western Kingdom, since a group of small nations exist far west of it, it¡¯s slightly on the center of the continent as a whole.


    The third is ¡±Suryuk¡±. It¡¯s positioned at the south of the continent as the Southern Kingdom, but as a portion of it turned into the fourth major country, the ¡°Empire¡±, it¡¯s currently in a state of war.


    As for the autonomous regions, one of them, surrounded by these major powers, is the ¡°Independent District¡±. This is where the guild and church headquarters are located and is commonly referred to as either the Central or the Headquarters.


    Its land area is small and most of the inhabitants are related to either the guild or the church. It seems like the guild here refers to the Hunter, Merchant, and Sorcery Guild as a whole.


    And lastly, the other is the dwarven territory north of Ausente. Just as it implies, it¡¯s the territory of a race different from humans.


    Speaking of dwarves, my image of them are of short people that excel at smithing, but I can¡¯t be sure that it would be the same in this world too.


    There seems to be an elven nation among the small nations in the west but there¡¯s barely any details about it from the information I can gather.


    In addition, located south of Estoque and east of the Empire is a vast forest and an enormous mountain valley but since the monsters there get stronger the deeper it goes, these are considered to be monster haunts.


    To see the ocean, we would need to choose between crossing the mountain far north of Sannois, entering the Empire by heading south, or plunging straight into a monster haunt, but since it has the shortest route, we¡¯ve decided on heading to the north. After all, the empire would be dangerous with the war going on and to begin with, we can¡¯t cross the national borders anyway.


    As for the monster haunt near the South Great Forest, while we might be able to pile up some achievements while seeing the ocean, the monsters there are a bit too strong.


    I heard that although the shallow parts only have about E to D-class monsters, there are monsters reaching S-class deep inside.


    Besides, it seems like the mountain in the north also has a lot of monsters, so it shouldn¡¯t be bad for making more achievements as well. This part is completely from second-hand knowledge though, so I can¡¯t actually say for sure.


    Anyway, we¡¯re currently on our way to the north. We might have reached the place by now if we just went straight towards the northern mountain but since our main objective is reaching B-rank, we headed north while passing by towns and villages and completing all the available C-rank subjugation requests there.


    Also, since people generally pick on us when we enter the guilds, even just quickly dealing with that eats up a considerable amount of time.


    And so, right at this moment, I¡¯m gathering information at the pub in the town just before the royal capital.


    For a short while after leaving Sannois, we didn¡¯t do any information collecting at the pubs, but then Ciel correctly suspected that I was itching to do so and appointed it as one of my roles.


    At the pub, I would only say that I ran away from a certain town after experiencing abuse from my parents and became a hunter at Sannois but upon hearing that, everybody would assume that I¡¯m just D-rank.


    Ciel¡¯s body has further grown since she was ten and, in my opinion, she appears roughly appropriate for her age now.


    Still, I guess from the eyes of other people, she might seem small for a 12-year-old. As for her chest, it¡¯s neither good nor bad.


    Well then, I¡¯ll have this old mister sitting next to me provide some information now.


    ¡¸Speaking of ranks, if I become C-rank, can¡¯t I make connections with great nobles?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯ll still be tough with just the rank but true, you might be able to do it someday little lady.¡¹


    ¡¸There are bad nobles too, right? Where would be a safe place to go?¡¹


    ¡¸In the meantime, I¡¯d say going to the capital would be safe for sure, but I¡¯d suggest the great Duke Rispelgia¡¯s duchy.¡¹


    ¡¸Duke Rispelgia?¡¹


    Yup. Well, I did expect to get a hit sometime soon, but to think that it would be in this timing.


    Also, because of that oh so great duke, I feel sick when paying respects to nobility.


    ¡¸You see, when talking about great Duke Rispelgia, he¡¯s known for being someone who thinks about his people the most.


    Lots of nobles out there can be cheapskates when paying hunters, but as for the duke, there¡¯s talk that he dishes out lavish rewards at his place. Awfully understanding of how important hunters are.


    On the other hand, this means that a ton of hunters go there too, though. If you don¡¯t rise among the competition, you probably wouldn¡¯t catch his eye.¡¹


    With the alcohol he¡¯s drinking getting to him, the old man started to laugh out loud. I have no idea what was so funny about that, but this still is very important information.


    If I end the conversation here, there¡¯s a chance, maybe just a sliver of a chance, that our relation to the Rispelgia household would be exposed, so I continued asking questions.


    ¡¸After leaving this town, I¡¯m thinking of going to the royal capital next. Is there anything I should be careful about?¡¹


    ¡¸Let me see. Being D-rank at that age, you probably have a Greater Job or something, right?¡¹


    ¡¸I won¡¯t say what it is, but yes.¡¹


    ¡¸The guild master over there absolutely loathes Job discrimination, you see. Better make sure to watch what you say.¡¹


    While both the Dance Princess and Song Princess definitely rank higher than Greater Jobs, these are the ones being discriminated against, so it shouldn¡¯t be that much of an issue for us.


    At worst, there might be a need to reveal our Job, but since we¡¯re probably the target of protection, it should be safe I guess.


    ¡¸I¡¯ll be careful.¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah, be sure to do that. Got to listen to your elders, you know?¡¹


    Since Ciel¡¯s a girl, he didn¡¯t do the back smacking thing, but it absolutely feels like he¡¯ll do it any moment now and it¡¯s a bit scary.


    Just when I thought this would be the end of it, another voice appeared from behind.


    ¡¸Speaking of the capital, it¡¯s practically tradition to get pocketed at least once.¡¹


    ¡¸Now that you mention it, that¡¯s true. Calling it that is a bit exaggerated, but it won¡¯t hurt to watch out for it.


    There¡¯s just that many people, you see. You¡¯ll probably be fine since you¡¯re a hunter, but watch out for the slums, okay?¡¹


    ¡¸So there really are places like those when there¡¯s a lot of people.¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s just nothing we can do about it.¡¹


    ¡¸Still, they say that there aren¡¯t any poor people in the Rispelgia duchy.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s our Rispelgia, the best~!¡¹


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    (Please visit Re:Library to show the translators your appreciation and stop supporting the content thief!)


    Ignoring the two that began laughing for whatever reason, I exited the pub.


    While I thought that it might have been a bit rude, it didn¡¯t seem like my voice could reach them anymore, so there shouldn¡¯t be any issues.


    We went back to the inn for the day and decided to pass by the guild tomorrow morning before we depart.


    ¡ó


    After staying over a number of inns, the greatness of the quality of our stay back at the town of Sannois really comes to mind.


    We might just be bad at finding inns, but first of all, we don¡¯t have a bathroom.


    That¡¯s why we do the washing with sorcery. Also, the bed is hard.


    Since it¡¯s still better than the stone ground, it¡¯s still comfortable in Ciel¡¯s eyes.


    ¡¸So Rispelgia is a good noble, right?¡¹


    ¡ºIt¡¯s just that he has that side as well. No matter how good his governance is, that doesn¡¯t invalidate what he did to you.¡»


    ¡¸Right. As long as he only leaves us be now, that would be great.¡¹


    Ciel muttered so, not sounding very interested about it.


    While I can¡¯t be sure how she really feels deep inside, at present, it doesn¡¯t seem like Ciel wants to do something about the Rispelgia household.


    Personally, I¡¯d love for it to crumble. Still, I¡¯m aware that it¡¯s impossible, so I¡¯m prioritizing our escape right now.


    ¡¸Come to think of it, what does being pocketed mean?¡¹


    ¡ºTo simply put it, it would be when your purse or other things are stolen as you walk.¡»


    ¡¸Is it really safe to do something that bold?¡¹


    ¡ºIt¡¯s done well enough that people don¡¯t notice when they¡¯ve been stolen from, you see.¡»


    ¡¸So doing that is possible then.¡¹


    ¡ºYou can¡¯t do that okay?¡»


    ¡¸I won¡¯t. There¡¯s no reason to do so.¡¹


    Since the topic seemed to have caught her interest more than Duke Rispelgia did, I warned her in advance but that ended up making Ciel puff her cheeks in a sulky pout.


    While I know that this doesn¡¯t particularly mean Ciel is seriously upset, it¡¯s still a bit troubling.


    Even I¡¯ve gotten unreasonably upset when I¡¯m told to do my homework as I was already planning to do it after all. Ciel¡¯s reaction was just natural.


    Anyhow, since this is my fault, I decided to sing one tune to better her mood.


    Ciel listened to me sing even as she was sulking and as I finished the tune, she¡¯s still huffed as ever.


    If I only had a body, I would¡¯ve loved to poke her puffed up cheeks.


    ¡¸Ain¡¯s so unfair.¡¹


    ¡ºAm I?¡»


    ¡¸Ain sings when I get angry after all. Now I can¡¯t be angry anymore.¡¹


    ¡ºThen you¡¯re not angry anymore?¡»


    ¡¸I¡¯m still angry. Ain¡¯s so unfair after all.¡¹


    Though Ciel¡¯s lines started looping, the last part sounded somewhat monotone.


    Well, that¡¯s just how it is. As I said¡ºThat would be troubling.¡»with a wry smile, Ciel responded¡¸Then I¡¯ll forgive you.¡¹and burst into laughter.


    And just as she did, I ended up laughing as well.


    ¡ó


    The next morning, Ciel left for the guild. Since we¡¯re leaving town, we plan on accepting escort requests if there are any available while we¡¯re at it.


    For hunters, the time spent travelling is equivalent to the time not working. Due to that, hunters would usually take escort requests when travelling from a town.


    ¡¸Cielmer-san, you¡¯ll be leaving today right?¡¹


    ¡¸Mn. Right.¡¹


    ¡¸Unfortunately, all the escort requests bound for the royal capital are all booked.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, it can¡¯t be helped.¡¹


    ¡¸So then, will you be delaying your-¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸No. Bye then.¡¹


    Seeing Ciel enter the guild, the receptionist lady spoke to her.


    While it¡¯s nice that she told us that the request we want isn¡¯t available, unfortunately for her, even if she wanted us to stay, we¡¯re not stopping. Since this sort of exchange isn¡¯t particularly unusual, Ciel exited the building seemingly already used to it.


    Though about Ciel¡¯s way of speaking, she started speaking like those aloof quiet characters before I noticed it.


    Well, it¡¯s my fault for blurting out¡ºIf you have a hard time speaking, then how about trying to keep your words to the minimum?¡»some time before.


    If this causes a problem then I just need to cover for her. At worst, we also have the option of running away with the barrier on full blast.


    In any case, we walk on with the royal capital in our sights.


    Hiya~! A new week, a new chapter, and a new volume~! And with that, new exposition as well~!


    This chapter, we have a general exposition about the world, or rather, the continent. And the R-man. It¡¯s just a small thing, but I love how the Western Kingdom isn¡¯t actually the one most west, lol. Also, the common fantasy elements, dwarves and elves, finally appeared! Well, just in text. More information, or rather proper information, about the Headquarters/Central is here too. While it may or may not be literally at the center of the continent, it seems to be quite ¡°central¡±, or maybe ¡°neutral¡± on it¡¯s standing from how it seems. Like, Church + all the Guilds? Must be really safe from interkingdom politics.


    (This chapter is provided to you by Re:Library)


    (If you are reading this from other sites, that means this content is stolen. Please support us by visiting our site.)


    Speaking of politics, Respelgia has really good PR it seems. Literally a guy of the masses from what we have here. You can really picture Ain¡¯s blood seething in just those short sentences though. On the other hand, Ciel seems to be more interested in the pick-pocketing, lol. They¡¯re just so precious. Pouty Ciel, troubled older sister Ain, Grr-I¡¯m-not-angry-but-I-am Ciel, Sing-to-calm-little-sister Ain. Absolutely precious. More AinCiel Please.


    Still, as usual, Ain is really airheaded, lol. Another verbal slip, really Ain? Not that it¡¯s that bad, her words are out of care but this is going to be another ¡°massaging them could make them grow¡± thing in the future, lol. But damn, Ciel¡¯s absolutely blunt, which is natural considering that Ain is above all but ¡°No. Bye.¡± love it. Ciel really has Ain¡¯s no nonsense approach too just a bit more blunter.

 CH 42

    It was the second morning since we left for the royal capital. Ciel and I were chatting and defeating the random monsters along the way, when I felt several presences far ahead of us.


    One bunch is slightly nearer to us, and considering their use of the road leading to the capital, they should be either travelers or merchants.


    Since there are two horse-like and two human-like presences, they¡¯re probably merchants.


    And further beyond them are five, somewhat smaller presences.


    I¡¯ve felt several presences similar to these before, so I¡¯m sure that these are wolf-type monsters.


    But the problem here, if I had to say, is that the merchants and wolves are about to bump into each other soon.


    Considering that there are only two people, it¡¯s highly probable that they didn¡¯t hire any escorts. Though, there¡¯s also the possibility that one of them is an escort or that they¡¯re strong enough to not need any too, I guess.


    ¡ºThere¡¯s a carriage ahead of us that might get attacked by monsters, but what should we do?¡»


    ¡¸Does that mean that we¡¯ll encounter them if we continue walking?¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. It might be better to say that we¡¯ll eventually encounter them if the monster attack makes them stop on their tracks.¡»


    ¡¸What choices do we have then?¡¹


    ¡ºRoughly sorting it, we can ignore them, help them, or observe their situation.


    If we decide to help them, we can either choose to do it openly or in secret; while if we decide to observe them, we can then choose to help them or ignore them after that.¡»


    ¡¸So, Ain, what¡¯s the thing you¡¯re curious about?¡¹


    Ciel puffs out proudly after saying so.


    It was as if she just declared that she knows me inside out but since she was actually right about that, I resigned myself to her adorable smug look.


    ¡ºFor some reason, they don¡¯t seem to have any hired escorts. I¡¯m not sure if they¡¯re strong themselves or only chose not to hire any but, particularly in case of the latter, I feel like they aren¡¯t very decent people.¡»


    ¡¸I see. In that case, why don¡¯t we observe first?


    If they aren¡¯t strong, we¡¯ll help them out after.¡¹


    ¡ºSo we¡¯ll save them then.¡»


    ¡¸I¡¯m curious about what sort of people they are after all. I wonder why they didn¡¯t hire escorts?¡¹


    ¡ºUnderstood. I¡¯ll take charge after rescuing them, okay?¡»


    With the merchants likely being men, it¡¯ll be tough for Ciel.


    Regardless, since Ciel is interested about that, then I¡¯ll keep her company. It¡¯s practically my calling after all.


    ¡¸For now, we¡¯ll have to hurry and catch up to them, right?


    Can you do me a favor, Ain?¡¹


    ¡ºIf that¡¯s the case, please keep running until I finish singing.¡»


    This is our fastest mode of movement. I sing which reinforces Ciel, while Ciel uses her excessive magic power to perform physical reinforcement.


    Physical reinforcement¡¯s effectiveness varies depending on the original body¡¯s power. Well, it is possible to improve the reinforcement by using up a lot of magic power but your body wouldn¡¯t be able to endure the backlash.


    And while Ciel isn¡¯t by any means feeble, she is quite petite and doesn¡¯t have as much strength as the people with front-line jobs, so it doesn¡¯t sum up too much.


    Because of that, we can¡¯t do any teleport-esque instant movement. Though with that said, we should be about as fast as a horse, so we caught up to the carriage in no time.


    As we arrived, we stealthily examined the situation and saw a seemingly good-natured, middle-aged, married couple despairing as they were faced with wolves.


    These types of people, huh. This could get really bothersome. Still, I called Ciel, saying ¡ºIt might be best to help them.¡» and after nodding in reply, she immediately used sorcery.


    A sudden gust of wind blew and as soon as it blew past the wolves, their heads fell to the ground.


    I switched with Ciel and asked ¡¸Are you alright?¡¹ to the couple who had with their mouths agape, seemingly unable to process what just happened.


    Examining closely, the two of them seem to be somewhat too thin. Then in that case, they might have lacked the money to hire escorts.


    Still, that isn¡¯t really worth risking their lives in my opinion.


    ¡¸Y-yes. You saved us.¡¹


    ¡¸While there are things to talk about, I¡¯ll be dismantling the monsters for now, so please prepare to leave in the meantime.¡¹


    Leaving only that, I headed towards the defeated wolves.


    Still, even though they said that, why did the look on their faces seem like they weren¡¯t saved at all?¡­¡­ I guess it¡¯s useless to think about it for now.


    I switched with Ciel and had her deal with the bodies. We once discussed about having me learn how to dismantle monsters before, but with the possibility of our clothes getting dirty and the issue of how much time it takes, we¡¯ve decided to just have Ciel make quick work of it with sorcery.


    As usual, Ciel retrieved the magic stone with wind sorcery, washed it with water sorcery, turned the body to ash with fire sorcery, and buried it with earth sorcery.


    While Ciel is doing all of this nonchalantly, with all of these attributes she used, people that can do this feat might be a surprising scarce.


    As I borrowed Ciel¡¯s body again, I informed her¡ºI¡¯ll do as you request, okay?¡»before heading back to the couple.


    The couple calmed the frightened horses down. The lady then sat in the back carriage, while the man was looking at our direction.


    ¡¸Thank you for waiting. Now, about the reward.¡¹


    ¡¸Of course, I understand. But instead of paying a reward, we¡¯d like to hire you to escort us to the capital.¡¹


    ¡ºWell then, our discussion about the reward for saving them somehow turned into a discussion about escorting them, but what would you like to do Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºAs for me, I want to observe these people for as long as possible but¡­¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood.¡»


    I absolutely have a bad feeling about this, or rather I feel like things are going to get troublesome, but I assume that Ciel still said that while being aware of this.


    They just seem like a good-natured couple at first glance, so this could be good for Ciel to experience. At any rate, asking people to escort them without telling how much they¡¯ll pay, what are they even thinking.


    ¡¸Sure.¡¹


    ¡¸Then this will be our payment. This is all we can pay for now but it should be enough.¡¹


    Receiving it, I tucked it away without confirming the contents. Observing the man with a sidelong glance, I see him with his hand over his chest as he let out a sigh of relief.


    ¡ó


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    ¡¸I never imagined that we¡¯d encounter forest wolves in this place, you see?


    We really would have died if you weren¡¯t there.¡¹


    ¡¸Since they¡¯re called forest wolves, that means that they originally live in forests, right? Do they commonly appear here?¡¹


    ¡¸While I can¡¯t say that they don¡¯t, it is rare to see them.¡¹


    The man¡¯s name seems to be Anicet. The person with him is his wife Milea-san.


    It seems like the reason they didn¡¯t hire escorts was because the road to the royal capital is said to be relatively safe.


    It¡¯s not that I doubt them, but while that might be true¡­ I¡¯ll stop retorting for now.


    The trouble at present is probably the forest wolves. I only thought of wolves as just wolves no matter where but I guess they somewhat differ based on the habitat.


    ¡¸Nonetheless, defeating forest wolves in that age, I suppose it¡¯s thanks to your Job, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Talking about Jobs is a bit¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Ahh, right. It¡¯s a breach of etiquette, isn¡¯t it?¡¹


    With a ¡®I didn¡¯t mean to do that¡¯ look on his face, Anicet brought his palm to his head and apologised.


    While it is a breach of etiquette, for a merchant who puts trust above all, to ask that kind of question¡­ It¡¯s not that I doubt him though.


    In these situations, it¡¯s difficult to judge whether the other party is just treating Ciel like a child or if they¡¯re probing her for some reason because of her looks. While this isn¡¯t Ciel¡¯s fault, so to say, there¡¯s absolutely nothing we can do about this.


    ¡¸Come to think of it, what brings you to the capital?¡¹


    I guess he wanted to change the topic, so I replied ¡¸Just dropping by.¡¹ to his question.


    After all, we are actually just dropping by on our way to see the ocean. So, it wouldn¡¯t matter even if there isn¡¯t any work for us at the capital, we would simply leave.


    ¡¸Just dropping by?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. Though as a hunter, I wanted to visit there at least once too.¡¹


    ¡¸Well sure, you won¡¯t lose anything by visiting once, but you might get surprised if it¡¯s your first time.¡¹


    There¡¯s even the talk of having a high probability of getting pocketed after all.


    However, considering the fact that I¡¯m already experienced with Modern Japan¡¯s crowded trains, I probably wouldn¡¯t be so surprised after only seeing a large amount of people.


    But if I had to say, the sight of the buildings and streets might surprise me. Since I haven¡¯t seen too many European-style castles up close, it might catch my eye too.


    Still, unlike the Japanese castles that act as tourist attractions, this one literally has the royal family residing there, so we probably wouldn¡¯t be able to get close to it easily and, most of all, we don¡¯t have any business with the country¡¯s top-ranking people anyways.


    ¡¸Since it¡¯ll be your first time, I take that you haven¡¯t decided on an inn, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s true.¡¹


    ¡¸Then in that case, I know a good place. I¡¯ll lead you there once we reach the capital. That¡¯s right.¡¹


    ¡¸My, that¡¯s a wonderful idea. As a girl, it¡¯ll be quite difficult to choose an inn after all.¡¹


    Without waiting for my reply, Milea-san¡¯s voice suddenly echoed from the back.


    It¡¯s our first time going to the capital, so we naturally don¡¯t know any inns but¡­


    Well, rather than thinking on my own, I¡¯ll try leaving the decision to Ciel.


    ¡ºWhat should we do?¡»


    ¡ºAin doesn¡¯t know about any inns, right? In that case, I think having them lead us to one would be easier but¡­¡»


    ¡ºThen I¡¯ll ask them to do so.¡»


    If it¡¯s an obviously suspicious place, then we should be able to avoid it anyway. Also, I want to think that there aren¡¯t any that bad among the capital¡¯s inns.


    Though certainly, finding an inn in an unfamiliar place is pretty bothersome.


    ¡¸If possible, an inn with a bath would be great, but is there one like that?¡¹


    Since I had the chance, I tried to ask them about it and the couple affirmed, giving the inn their stamp of approval.


    They¡¯re even guiding us to an inn with a bath, they¡¯re really such nice people~. While I really doubt that, it would be nice if we can treat this as one of our rewards.


    Well, since there is a bath, we should still be able to take a bath even in the worst case. It¡¯s really been a long time since we¡¯ve had a proper bath, so I¡¯m seriously looking forward to it.


    ¡ó


    It was dusk when we arrived at the capital¡¯s entrance.


    Its gates are the largest amongst the ones we¡¯ve seen before and the walls built around the castle town were much taller than anything and seemed to extend endlessly.


    Its size was so large that it even impressed me, and Ciel, being unfamiliar with these kinds of sights, seemed to be absolutely mesmerised and was left speechless.


    It was somewhat adorable, I couldn¡¯t help letting out a giggle. I made sure to tell her ¡ºWe¡¯re here.¡» after that.


    There was a long line in front of the gates, so I imagined that it would take us a long time to get in. However, we reached the gate¡¯s checkpoint surprisingly quickly.


    I guess since there are a lot more people passing through, the know-hows for efficiently handling these people accumulates just as quickly as well.


    The merchant couple naturally have their own identifications, so if I just kept quiet, I might have been allowed through with them. But for the sake of avoiding future troubles as well, I took out my Hunter Card.


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    While the gatekeeper was surprised at first, I didn¡¯t really do anything particularly wrong and the card is the real deal anyway, so we managed to enter the capital safely.


    Hiya~! Ciel¡¯s first chat with strangers! Or so we expected, but still, progress!


    Anyway, new characters, they even have names! lol. A good sample for our princess Ciel¡¯s human observation. It was a honestly cute that Ciel found something of interest *and* can pursue it as well. More importantly, smug Ciel~ And later on, mesmerised Ciel~


    So yeah, our new characters seem to be a merchant couple with some money problems. Ain seems to be on high alert, as Ain usually is, but it¡¯ll be nice to see more of Ciel coming out in the open, no matter how gradual it may be. After all, if it was just Ain making the decision, she would have probably ran away immediately after offing the wolves. Also, Ain, lol ¡°Not that I doubt them or anything.¡± Yup, zero doubt at all. Very trust.

 CH 43

    The royal capital had, for this world, an incredible amount of people.


    Even so, the roads were wide enough for carriages to pass through and the shops lined up on sides of the road were the most well-made I¡¯ve seen so far.


    Though with that said, it¡¯s nearly evening, so I can¡¯t really see that well.


    Entering the capital, we saw Milea-san off, since she went ahead to park the carriage at their shop, before having Anicet guide us to the inn.


    ¡¸So you have your own shop?¡¹


    ¡¸Just a small one though. Our girl is waiting for us there.¡¹


    ¡¸He~eh, you have a child then.¡¹


    ¡¸Though, she¡¯s not quite the age that you would call a child. She¡¯s turning 18 this year.


    She¡¯s also quite bright and popular at the commoner district, you see¡­¡­¡¹


    While we were chatting as we walked, it seems like I ended up pushing a certain switch that I shouldn¡¯t have.


    For a while ever since then, we have been listening to Anicet¡¯s drawn-out daughter talk.


    Like the smile she had at 3 years old or her present when she turned 5 for example. It was frankly uninteresting but since I have no intention of giving out information from our side, I just shut up and listened.


    ¡ºSo normal children grow up like that then.¡»


    ¡ºJudging from his story, they do sound somewhat wealthy though.¡»


    ¡ºIf we¡¯re talking about wealth, mine is wealthier than theirs, right? After all, I got to drink expensive pills everyday.¡»


    ¡ºCiel¡­¡­¡»


    ¡ºI didn¡¯t mean that, I didn¡¯t mean it that way. I was just a bit impressed after hearing about normal things, that¡¯s all.¡»


    I thought that Ciel got melancholic from listening to the stories of another family, but after hearing her crisp tone, it seems like she doesn¡¯t actually mind it at all.


    Then in this case, there¡¯s need for me to worry too much about this as well.


    ¡ºWell thanks to that, our magic power increased quite a lot.¡»


    ¡ºHonestly that.¡»


    ¡ºBy the way, should we go ahead and take the inn he¡¯s guiding us to?¡»


    ¡ºUmmm¡­¡­ if I said I want to because I¡¯m curious, would you get mad?¡»


    ¡ºI wouldn¡¯t. But it just¡­ might be somewhat dangerous.¡»


    ¡ºThen in that case, I¡¯ll be ready to run away at any time.¡»


    Given that Ciel already has the resolve, it should be fine to try it.


    Ciel seems to have her own reasons after all and it¡¯s quite unusual for her to say things like these as well.


    As I continued chatting with Ciel while letting Anicet¡¯s stories out of my other ear, we stopped in front of a building that had the beauty of white porcelain.


    While it looks like an expensive inn, it doesn¡¯t seem to be aimed at nobles. It seems to target commoners who want to splurge.


    ¡¸Right, right, this is the inn. I¡¯m friends with the owner here, you see? Usually it would be costly to stay here, but if it¡¯s just one night, they should let you stay for free.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s amazing. Even though it¡¯s such a great inn.¡¹


    ¡¸Hahaha. Kinda. Anyway, go inside now.¡¹


    Being urged from behind, we were pushed into the inn. With the high-class, mainly white motif of its interior, it¡¯s definitely hard to call this a place aimed towards the general public.


    Considering that we usually choose places that are neither too cheap nor too expensive, this inn feels like it should be considerably beyond our budget.


    A cheap place is naturally out due to security reasons, while on the other hand, staying at a very expensive place would risk us being thought of as a child with money.


    Especially in Ciel¡¯s case, due to her appearance, it¡¯s already common for Ciel to be mistaken for a noble and being seen as a noble¡¯s child with no escorts makes her an easy target for kidnapping.


    While we¡¯re not the type to be abducted without any resistance; if things get serious, there¡¯ll be a possibility of standing out, so I¡¯d like to avoid that as much as possible.


    Also, Ciel simply doesn¡¯t like it when my workload increases.


    While it¡¯s already too late in my opinion, given that I¡¯m operating a barrier around the clock to protect Ciel, it seems that Ciel¡¯s stance is that she wants me to get even just a bit more rest.


    ¡¸Hey, it¡¯s been awhile. This girl is a VIP, you see. If possible, could you give her some service?¡¹


    Arriving at the reception desk, Anicet spoke to a lady sitting with her eyes closed who looks to be near his age.


    Having a vaguely cold feel to her, the lady stared at me with a piercing look before closing her eyes again and nodding.


    ¡¸If that is the case, being Anicet-sama¡¯s VIP, we can offer a one night trial stay at a special room.¡¹


    ¡¸Then let¡¯s go with that.¡¹


    ¡¸Young lady, would you be fine going along with that?¡¹


    ¡¸As long as I can stay for free¡­¡­¡¹


    Not that I actually think of that for even the slightest bit. We don¡¯t have any issue with money after all.


    Rather, the magic bag we got from Carol-san is starting to get full, so I want to use up our money.


    Actually, maybe we should get a different purse to use for coins worth silver and below.


    ¡¸Well, I¡¯ll be going now. We¡¯re in your debt little miss.¡¹


    ¡¸Don¡¯t mention it, I feel the same way too.¡¹


    ¡¸Now then, allow me to lead you to your room.¡¹


    Finishing the check-in, Anicet leaves the inn. It seems like he¡¯s not staying here.


    He probably doesn¡¯t have enough money to stay here anyway and since he has a shop, I guess he¡¯s heading there.


    ¡¸Your name, what should I call you?¡¹


    ¡¸I have no name to offer to our guests.¡¹


    I tried asking that on the way, but she only returned that brief reply.


    It¡¯s not as if she has a name tag like how the employees do in modern Japan after all, though there are probably some people that simply don¡¯t want to give their names as well.


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    ¡ºI can¡¯t help feeling suspicious but I wonder if I¡¯m just being too skeptical?¡»


    ¡ºBut Ain, you¡¯re not on alert, right?¡»


    ¡¸This will be your room.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you very much.¡¹


    ¡¸We will be delivering the meal to your room, so please feel free to relax and unwind.¡¹


    The room we were shown was surprisingly spacious. While the only furniture there was a bed, a table, a chair and a clothes rack, it¡¯s double the size of the usual inn room.


    The bed is on the bigger side as well, with its pure white sheet has not a single crease.


    The bathroom and the tub are spacious too, so if not for my worries, this would¡¯ve been the perfect room.


    ¡ºSince we¡¯re in our room now, I¡¯ll return your body, okay?¡»


    ¡¸Ain, it¡¯s fine to use it for a bit longer, you know?¡¹


    ¡ºI¡¯ve used it plenty for today¡­¡­ Is what I¡¯d like to say, but I¡¯ll might have a chance to borrow it again soon, so I¡¯ll be using it then.¡»


    ¡¸Understood. Then how about we take a bath right now?¡¹


    ¡ºReally!¡»


    ¡¸Of course, it makes Ain so happy after all.¡¹


    Ciel giggled as she heard me delighted, but I hope she won¡¯t mind me feeling this way.


    After all, being a former Japanese, just when I was able to take a bath after ten years of being unable to do so, this time because I¡¯m not even sure if I can have a bath or not because of our current lifestyle.


    I can endure it. I can endure it, but I still really want to take a bath.


    Ciel took off her clothes, sliding them off her silk-like skin. Her body is now healthily meatier than before. She was just too skinny in the past, she¡¯s definitely still slender even now.


    While she gained some muscles due to the frequent dancing, she still has a feminine softness to her body.


    I always speak up when it comes to her beauty and health, so seeing Ciel stay pretty feels extremely satisfying.


    Entering the bathroom, Ciel washed her head and body, then soaked herself in the tub.


    While soaking hair in water isn¡¯t usually good, Ciel¡¯s pure white hair spreading out in hot water was awfully beautiful to see.


    Though, the only reason I allowed this is because I¡¯m using my barrier.


    Still, the sight of her hair clinging to her arm as she raised it from the tub appeared almost like a piece of art.


    ¡ó


    Stepping out of the bath, I had Ciel switch with me and dried her hair.


    It¡¯s a sorcery Ciel can do but considering her safety, it¡¯s best that I do it.


    ¡ºWe got to switch unexpectedly soon.¡»


    ¡ºI forgot the fact that we switch when drying your hair.¡»


    ¡ºShould we stay like this for today?¡»


    As I was drying her hair, Ciel certainly does seem more relaxed, or rather, drowsy.


    And even during the moment she thanked me, she sounded practically half-asleep in my opinion.


    If it makes her happy, then I¡¯ll gladly do it. Though, even if Ciel does fall asleep, I probably wouldn¡¯t mind it anyway.


    By the time her hair was dry, there was a knock from our door, and Miss No-name-to-offer from the reception desk brought us our dinner.


    The dinner menu was similar to some meals seen in Japan; white bread, big-footed deer¡ªI¡¯m told that it¡¯s literally a deer with big feet¡ªas well as a vegetable-filled soup and, likewise, a salad. Faced with food rarely seen in other places, Ciel¡¯s eyes began to sparkle.


    We were told to simply leave the dishes outside the door after eating but to begin with, I¡¯m doubtful if this is really fine to eat. I feel sorry for Ciel, but I¡¯ll need to have her refrain from eating for now.


    ¡ºI¡¯m sorry to bother when you¡¯re about to eat but if possible, would you mind not eating it yet?¡»


    ¡º¡­¡­ Why is that?¡»


    Unusually, Ciel replied in a displeased tone. Since she tends to look forward to eating ever since she encountered proper food, this isn¡¯t surprising at all.


    On another note, except when during battle, I¡¯ve never stopped Ciel¡¯s dance. While I have no idea how Ciel will react if I stop her, there are things better left unknown.


    Back to topic.


    After responding¡ºIt¡¯s possible that there was some sort of drug mixed in.¡»to the irked Ciel, she begrudgingly glares at the white bread.


    Sleeping pills and numbing drugs are likely and while I can¡¯t say the same for the former, I might not be able to do anything if it¡¯s the latter. With that said, since we¡¯ll need to leave the tableware outside, I¡¯ll have to do something about our dinner.


    ¡ºI¡¯d like to try some things out to make them edible, so would you mind switching Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºPlease do.¡»


    I don¡¯t want to eat portable food when we already have a proper meal right in front of us too, so I¡¯ll have to try my best.


    Though with that said, the most I can do is make a barrier that acts like a filter.


    As stated before, I can put restrictions on what passes through my barrier. Utilising that, this will be an experiment on whether it¡¯s possible to isolate poisonous substances or not.


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    To test, I made a barrier that¡¸Drugs¡¹can¡¯t pass through, then attempted to pass the white bread through it, but no change occurred.


    Likewise,¡¸Poisons¡¹had no effect as well.


    Next, I tried¡¸Ill will¡¹and¡¸Malice¡¹and then the bread couldn¡¯t pass through the barrier anymore.


    In other words, this bread is a lump of ill will and malice.


    I also tried other things that came to mind, but it didn¡¯t bring any good results.


    Also, this uses up a fair amount of magic power, so it doesn¡¯t seem like I can continue experimenting endlessly.


    On the other hand, when I tried making a barrier that would allow only the bread to pass through, it went through without any sign of resistance.


    While I¡¯m practically sure that there¡¯s something mixed in this bread, since it still went through without leaving anything behind, I guess that the drug is already an inseparable component of it as a bread.


    With that being the case, my last resort was a barrier that would allow only the bread¡¯s ingredients to pass through. Wheat flour, salt, butter, yeast, eggs¡­¡­ what else were there besides that¡­


    I¡¯ve never made bread before and, to begin with, I¡¯m not sure if they¡¯re even made with these same ingredients here.


    Anyhow, since it¡¯s fine as long as I exclude the drug, I enumerated every ingredient I could think of, and as the white bread went through, some white powder remained on the barrier.


    This should be sleeping powder or something. I¡¯d hate to inhale it by accident, so I made a box with the barrier and sealed it inside a jar.


    After going this far, I¡¯m starting to question what exactly a barrier is, but everything I did should be within the known limits.


    Anyway, since it went well, I should inform Ciel.


    ¡ºWith this, the white bread should be safe to eat, I think.¡»


    ¡ºAin, you can eat it, you know?¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯ll leave eating to you, Ciel. Still, this barrier requires quite a lot of effort, so please bear with just this and the steak.¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯m already happy to eat even some of this.


    Besides, it¡¯ll be rather difficult for me to finish all of this.¡»


    Good point. After all, while Ciel does love to eat, she can¡¯t eat that much.


    After detoxifying (?) the steak, I switched with Ciel.


    Ciel picked up the bread first, tore a mouthful, and ate it.


    Yup. This is delicious. While the flavor is subdued, I can still taste the sweetness of wheat, and its soft texture isn¡¯t bad at all. Though, since I unfortunately took too much time, the once freshly baked bread is now cold, and after forcefully pulling out the malicious parts during the detoxification, the bread also feels hollowed out.


    As for the steak, how should I say this, it had a strong taste of meat.


    There was barely any fat, it was practically all lean meat. It has a better base flavor compared to beef.


    In short, delicious.


    Seemingly satisfied as well, Ciel had a look of utter bliss.


    Capital: Populous, Merchants: Suspicious, AinCiel: Cute, Hotel: Trivago


    Heya~! Our princess have arrived safely at the inn, but it seems like the inn itself isn¡¯t safe at all.


    First of all, Anicet, you talk too much about your daughter, lol. But still, it was nice to see Ciel being cheerful enough to joke around like that. Anyhow, today was undoubtedly an AinCiel fluff chapter, an absolutely welcome treat~


    While there was hints of darkness all around this chapter, Mom Ain is the highlight as always, skincare, lol. On the other hand, more sulky Ciel (Also Ciel having absolute older sister energy when giggling)! ¡°There are things better left unknown¡± lol. Also, Ain completely forgetting that they were going to switch immediately after bathing. So busy being ominous that you forget your motherly duty of drying Ciel¡¯s hair. Still, Ain being happy about talking a bath was cute.

 CH 44

    It was late at night, the time when the whole capital is likely asleep.


    Naturally, Ciel is sleeping right now and I¡¯m doing my sorcery research as usual.


    I want to increase the barrier¡¯s defensive capabilities, but I guess I already crammed too much into it since it¡¯s not turning out too well.


    While I might be able to manage it somehow if I just ignore the magic power consumption, since I want to keep the barrier up constantly, it wouldn¡¯t be practical if the power consumption is greater than my natural MP recovery.


    Though from my experience, given that I¡¯m already fairly deep into this, making something better than what we currently have might be difficult in a short amount of time and there¡¯s nothing I can do about it.


    It wouldn¡¯t have been a problem if it was that easy anyway. Just when I thought so, there was a response from detection.


    Our guests seem to be neither animals nor insects, they¡¯re humans.


    Six of them to be exact. Not the number of people to send against one child in my opinion. So in other words, they¡¯re likely anticipating Ciel to be a hunter higher than D-rank.


    In separate pairs, they¡¯re heading towards the door, the window, and this room¡¯s ceiling.


    ¡ºCiel, wake up.¡»


    ¡ºSomeone¡¯s here, right?¡»


    Although Ciel loves to sleep, she wakes up on command as long as she¡¯s informed in advance.


    How should I say this? She¡¯s really good at shifting gears, it¡¯s really impressive. I myself can¡¯t readjust that easily.


    ¡ºThere are two people each at the door, the window, and the ceiling.¡»


    ¡ºSo, how should we deal with this?¡»


    ¡ºWe could defeat them and escape, escape without defeating them, deliberately get caught, or defeat them and march into their place headfirst, that should be about it.¡»


    ¡ºAin, in your opinion, are they dangerous?¡»


    ¡ºNot at all. If they were, I would have told you to run away.¡»


    ¡ºIn that case, we¡¯ll defeat them.¡»


    Saying so, Ciel operates the magic circle we prepared under the pillow.


    While it¡¯s nothing fancy, it¡¯s only a revised version of the one we used to tear Alejo apart, every living creature within the specified range¡ªin our current case, approximately everywhere inside the room¡ªwill be slashed up just to the brink of death. Sorcery would be intercepted.


    Since all I can do is affix barriers, in addition to keeping the barrier constantly up, I created a spherical barrier that¡¯s nearly invisible for this time.


    With this, as long as Ciel keeps feigning sleep, they¡¯ll likely set the trap off on their own.


    After a few minutes, the ceiling, window, and door were simultaneously opened and one person entered from each.


    I can feel their wariness from the fact that they are making as little noise as possible while having only a few enter inside, but unfortunately for those that just entered, we¡¯re going to have you all bloodied up.


    While people that have incredibly hard armor or are more proficient than Ciel in sorcery might be able to endure our trap, there seems to be none of these said people now, as without even taking a few steps since entering, they all collapsed.


    Probably noticing the collapse of the first wave, the second wave entered next, but it was only the two from the door and the window this time who came and naturally collapsed.


    The remaining one in the ceiling seems to be only intent on observing since even after some time has passed, he (she?) still isn¡¯t coming down.


    ¡¸Pick me up tomorrow morning. Also, it¡¯s a nuisance, carry them back.¡¹


    Ciel got up, said so to the 6th person¡ªor rather I asked her to¡ªbefore closing her eyes and slipping back into bed.


    Confirming that the ceiling person hadn¡¯t moved regardless of how much passed, Ciel glared at the ceiling, uttering ¡¸Now.¡¹ in a slightly irritated tone.


    While I sensed the ceiling person begin to descend after a startled response, Ciel wholly ignores the moving presence, only saying ¡ºGoodnight Ain.¡» in a gentle tone.


    ¡ó


    In the end, the ceiling person dragged the other five out by pairs and left for somewhere.


    From the time we ended up helping a dodgy merchant, the risk of being targeted was practically already confirmed and this would¡¯ve happened sooner or later anyway. Because of that, I wanted to reach the ringleader and have a talk with them as soon as possible, so that should be enough. Well, this was Ciel¡¯s choice though.


    As morning came, Ciel leisurely woke up.


    To be honest, someone has been eagerly waiting for Ciel to wake up in front of our door since some time ago but there¡¯s no need for us to be considerate here.


    As Ciel was now wide awake, I asked her ¡ºShould we switch?¡» but since she responded with ¡ºI¡¯ll try to do it myself.¡» this time, I¡¯ll be focusing on supporting her.


    After finishing her preparations, Ciel was greeted with a ¡¸Good morning.¡¹ as she opened the door.


    With a dubious stare, Ciel shifted her gaze and saw a very tall¡ªfrom our point of view¡ªupturned-eyed black-dressed beauty standing there.


    ¡¸Morning. Here for me?¡¹


    ¡¸Pardon my late introduction. Please call me Atlo.


    As requested, we have come to pick you up.¡¹


    ¡¸I see. Then, lead the way.¡¹


    ¡¸Certainly.¡¹


    ¡ºA polite person came.¡»


    ¡ºI suppose this means that they¡¯re not just some unruly organization.¡»


    ¡ºAin, do you know what will happen next?¡»


    ¡ºI can vaguely guess.¡»


    ¡ºIn that case, I want you to tell me if I might make a mistake.¡»


    As we were being guided deeper into the inn for some reason, I continued chatting with Ciel.


    A part of it might be because I only had a few options back then, but I don¡¯t fear them as much as I did the repeated assassination attempts back at the mansion.


    For that reason, even if Ciel followed unprepared, it shouldn¡¯t be too dangerous.


    Although Atlo occasionally looks back at Ciel, we left the inn from what seems to be the backdoor entrance without her even speaking to us.


    Beyond the door, the path led to a somewhat filthy street. While it doesn¡¯t seem to be some sort of slum, it had a vague air of unrest.


    After some distance away from the inn, we entered a different building and took the stairs to the top¡ªthe third¡ªfloor.


    Alto knocked on the door, saying ¡¸I¡¯ve brought the guest.¡¹ and I heard a deep masculine voice say ¡¸Come in.¡¹ in reply.


    As we entered the room, the first thing I was reminded of was an executive office. I might be wrong since I¡¯ve never seen an actual executive office before, but it had a classy-looking sofa and table set, and what seems to be the boss¡¯ desk sitting further inside.


    The presumed boss had an extremely large muscular build and was wearing tastelessly gaudy clothes. If he¡¯s next to Atlo, they would give a perfect Beauty and the Beast vibe.


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    He has two bodyguards with him but other than them, I can sense a number of other presences inside the room as well.


    ¡¸Hey little lady, how nice of you to come. Sit down.¡¹


    The presumed boss told us to sit down, so Ciel sat on the expensive-looking sofa and immediately a steaming cup of tea was served. Atlo was the one that served it, but when did she have the time to prepare that?


    ¡ºAin. On second thought, would you mind if we switch for the discussion?¡»


    ¡ºNot at all. Do you have something you want to ask?¡»


    ¡ºCould you ask why this current situation happened?¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯ll try as best as I can.¡»


    Since Ciel requested a switch, I agreed without any hesitation. As I thought, talking to men for extended periods of time might still be too much for Ciel.


    Instead of abruptly starting with a situation like this, it would be better if she started with talking to a male guild receptionist and the like. Rather, if I¡¯m being honest, Ciel doesn¡¯t need to work that hard while we¡¯re still in this country.


    ¡¸My name is Faneed. Despite how I look, I occupy the underground top.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you for the explanation. You can call me little lady or Blan, whichever you may prefer.¡¹


    ¡¸An alias, right?¡¹


    Saying so, I moved my gaze all over the room. It¡¯s a bother to count, but there should be at least 20 of them.


    Being surrounded by this many people, I can¡¯t help suspecting if they intend to start a fight.


    Hearing my words, one of the bodyguards was about to come towards me, but Faneed stopped him.


    ¡¸This is indeed a place for discussion. As long as you don¡¯t start anything, I won¡¯t do a thing.¡¹


    ¡¸Then this means that you would treat yesterday¡¯s as an isolated incident, right?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s fine. Just a hypothetical question but, Miss. Blan, would you be able to deal with this current situation? ¡¹


    ¡¸If the people around me are only as capable as last night¡¯s individuals, this much won¡¯t be any problem.¡¹


    ¡¸Okay, understood.¡¹


    Faneed raised his hands up, showing a sign of surrender.


    While I¡¯m not actually sure if it really was surrender, it seems like we¡¯ll be able to have a proper discussion.


    ¡¸But before the talk, apologies first. Pardon our young guy for being rude earlier. If you have any demands, I¡¯ll hear it.¡¹


    His tone turning slightly formal is probably a display of his dignity as someone standing at the top of an organization or something.


    As for why he has a piercing gaze despite declaring that he¡¯ll listen to our demands, it probably means that we might get into a conflict depending on what it is, but honestly I have no intention of making demands that would cause confrontations.


    In that regard, Ciel probably isn¡¯t that much different. If she wanted anything, she would have told me about it earlier after all.


    ¡¸For now, please raise your head.


    I don¡¯t have any particular intention to be in conflict with you and your people. It seems bothersome after all.¡¹


    ¡¸Ha, ha, ha! Bothersome, eh?¡¹


    Faneed raised his head and laughed in amusement.


    Shifting my gaze to Atlo, who was standing diagonally behind me, I see her staring at me with interest.


    ¡¸With that being said, could we start with reaffirming the current situation?


    I just arrived at the capital, was urged into an inn, had my dinner drugged, and had assassins sent to me. So honestly speaking, I can only make assumptions based on the situation.¡¹


    ¡¸They weren¡¯t really there to kill you, so they aren¡¯t exactly assassins per se.


    Still, your assumptions shouldn¡¯t be that far off, if you ask me.¡¹


    ¡¸Then from your standpoint, you intended to abduct and sell me to some unspecified noble for money, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. We do slave trading too, though it¡¯s not like we just randomly abduct people. Unusually we act based on proper contracts, you see?¡¹


    Faneed let out an exhausted sigh. Depending on one¡¯s standpoint, he could be seen as a victim here as well.


    Not that it¡¯s any of my business. After all, I¡¯m not really mad enough to get too involved nor do I even feel like doing so.


    There are some aspects that make him seem somewhat of a good guy too, but I can guess his contract itself is probably unreasonable to begin with.


    ¡¸Then outside of that, people with vague identities that wouldn¡¯t cause issues even when abducted should sound about perfect.


    Such as me. I can imagine being the perfect target.¡¹


    ¡¸Though, who would¡¯ve thought that the collateral I was given was a stolen royal artifact.¡¹


    ¡¸One last thing, what¡¯s your relationship with the merchant couple that sold me?¡¹


    ¡¸They¡¯re customers.¡¹


    The ¡°stolen royal artifact¡± line is probably an idiom unique to this world. Well, I can figure that it means being given a troublesome thing or so.


    Then if the merchant couple is a customer of their organisation, I finally have a good read on the situation.


    ¡¸Anyhow, this will be my first demand but could I have a chat with said merchant couple?


    You brought them here anyway, correct?¡¹


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    As I said so, Faneed called one of his subordinates¡ªa man that was among those hiding¡ªand told him something.


    Without even several minutes passing, the man brought already along a familiar-looking couple.


    They seemingly had an extremely frightened look on their faces as they entered, and as they saw me, their eyes opened wide with shock.


    Heya~! New Chapter, new characters, and new chatting room, lol. Things went quite quick this time, with the ¡°suspicious VIP treatment¡± event¡¯s mastermind (?) immediately coming to light!


    As usual with our overprotective Ain, she¡¯s still not satisfied with her currently already abnormal invincibility and continues on the uphill struggle as she¡¯s not getting satisfying results for now as well. Meanwhile, while Ciel didn¡¯t have much active participation this time, her being irritated at the ceiling guy was cute, lol. Also, Ain, Blan¡­ Seriously? How much of your mind is occupied by Ciel? (Just kidding, lol.)


    As for the new characters, we have some underground people this time: Secretary (?) Atlo and Boss Faneed or as Ain fondly implies, the Beauty and the Beast, lol. Unlike our lowbrow villains so far, the boss has a functioning brain that runs not only on hubris and impulse it seems. Well, the man is somewhere on top at least, so it¡¯s only natural that he¡¯s different huh. Also, it¡¯s just a tiny thing, but I love the idiom thing, it¡¯s a small world building thing that says, yup, there¡¯s been either a lot of royal artifacts that has been sold to unsuspecting criminals so far that it literally turned into an underground idiom or that the one time it happened in the past went really, *really* bad enough to be etched into history.

 CH 45

    The couple, Anicet and Milea, pointed at me as I entered their vision, flapping their lips as though they wanted to say something.


    Considering that I definitely don¡¯t look like an acquired commodity in this situation, I guess it¡¯s just a natural reaction.


    While they were brought here by a suspicious man, I¡¯m currently sitting on an expensive-looking sofa, so it should be pretty obvious to see who¡¯s being cordially welcomed between us.


    ¡¸Good morning. Anicet-san, Milea-san.¡¹


    ¡¸Why are you in this sort of place¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Why? It¡¯s because of you two, no? You were the ones that sold me to them, so what are you acting all flustered about? ¡¹


    Devoid of any emotions, I answered so. There¡¯s no need to show any mercy, they were the ones that set us up in the first place.


    My tone is the same as it was yesterday, but I suppose since my personality is completely different now, the two of them went completely silent.


    Even though I went out of the way and brought them here to talk, they don¡¯t seem to be interested in talking at all. Hence, I one-sidedly continued the conversation.


    ¡¸While I didn¡¯t particularly intend to ask for any gratitude, I didn¡¯t expect to be sold by the people I saved.¡¹


    Hearing my words, the couple grind their teeth for some reason.


    It looks like they have something to say. After a while, Anicet squeezed out these words.


    ¡¸We had no choice.¡¹


    ¡¸You had no choice, is it?¡¹


    ¡¸With the exception of selling you, there was no other way we could save our daughter. We had no other¡­¡­¡¹


    Saying so, Anicet fell to the ground while placing his hands over his face.


    ¡¸Would you mind explaining the details?¡¹


    As I asked, he lifted his head and looked at me as though begging for mercy.


    ¡¸We are just ordinary merchants that own a small shop here in the capital. I believe that I¡¯ve talked about this before, but we have a daughter.


    But then, our daughter suddenly became ill. The illness was so lethal that it would¡¯ve killed her if left unchecked and the cure for it costs an enormous amount of money.


    Because of that, we borrowed money to buy the medicine and managed to cure her. However, our debt still remained.


    Before we realized it, the money we owed turned into a huge sum. It was that sort of contract. If we couldn¡¯t pay it back, we would need to hand over our daughter. We couldn¡¯t bear seeing our now healthy daughter getting sold off¡­¡­¡¹


    That¡¯s why they sold us, it¡¯s because we were conveniently there, it seems.


    Well, as a parent, that might have been the right choice. Sacrificing anything for the sake of their own child.


    I¡¯m sure that children born into families like these would, in most cases, live happy lives and be grateful to their parents.


    The money they loaned might have had a normally unthinkable interest rate. They might have even borrowed money from the malicious traders and such that Faneed is involved with. I have no idea how it would be according to the laws of this world but if it was in modern Japan, they would be considered victims here as well.


    Besides, I can understand the feeling of sacrificing anything to save someone. After all, I would also sacrifice anyone if it was for Ciel¡¯s sake, in my case.


    Though, of course I constantly do my sorcery research so that I don¡¯t end up in a situation that would force me to make that kind of decision.


    Incidentally, I glanced at Faneed, stealthily asking for confirmation on whether what he said earlier was true. Since he answered with a nod, then this story should be roughly true enough I guess.


    ¡¸I see. Then Faneed-san, shall we continue our discussion then?¡¹


    Hearing that, Faneed smiled, seemingly looking interested, while the couple let out what looked like sighs of relief.


    I¡¯m not sure why they¡¯re looking that relieved and all, but I guess they just interpreted my words in a way that¡¯s convenient for them.


    ¡¸By the way, I¡¯d like to ask, but looking from the surface, what is the status of the inn I was staying at?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s a high-class inn approved by the nobles. Wealthy merchants and nobles going out incognito occasionally stay there too.


    The room you were staying at was just special, to say the least.¡¹


    ¡¸Really, you never do know what¡¯s going on behind the doors, don¡¯t you?¡¹


    It¡¯s reminding me of some certain duke somewhere. In both cases, I¡¯ve already seen their darker sides first, so it¡¯s somewhat relieving that we won¡¯t be deceived by them again, I guess.


    ¡¸In that case, please make it so that you don¡¯t associate with me any more than this.


    After all, both of us would be happier that way.¡¹


    ¡¸Fair point.¡¹


    ¡¸Besides that, please let me stay there free of charge during my stay in the capital. The cheapest room at the inn I was in would be good enough.¡¹


    ¡¸You just told me to not associate with you, didn¡¯t you? If you stay there, then we¡¯ll be associating with you to some extent, you know?¡¹


    Well yeah, but it should be different on the surface.


    There¡¯s probably a lot of people staying there without any knowledge of the other side of the inn after all.


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    ¡¸Even with that in consideration, please don¡¯t associate with me.¡¹


    After all, it is an inn controlled by a person from the underground.


    While it might not be to the same extent as yesterday¡¯s, there could be eyes monitoring what we do. What I¡¯m asking here from him is for none of these to be attached to us at all. Other than that, I¡¯ll only borrow a room, so they can just leave me alone.


    Perhaps understanding that, I received Faneed¡¯s agreement.


    ¡¸Anything else?¡¹


    ¡¸Beyond that, please don¡¯t tell anyone about me. Naturally this also applies to your subordinates and everyone in this room other than me. If you don¡¯t keep this promise, I¡¯ll riot.


    This time I¡¯ll go on a rampage in full power without holding anything back.¡¹


    ¡¸Okay, okay. I¡¯ll agree to those terms.¡¹


    Faneed lifted his hands and waved them as he accepted our demands.


    We frankly have more than enough money, so I imagine that we can pay the room charges without any issue, but receiving nothing from them would probably be uncomfortable for his side.


    On the other hand, if we¡¯re given cash or items, there¡¯s no telling if there¡¯s a catch to them. I¡¯ll politely refuse being tricked into receiving money and being oddly suspected for it as a result. That¡¯s exactly the so-called stolen royal artifact given as a collateral thing. For ordinary people like us, even without it being royal artifacts, being given stolen goods is already troublesome enough.


    ¡¸So, what do we do about these two?¡¹


    Faneed signalled to the merchant couple.


    ¡¸What about it? Can I dispose of them myself?¡¹


    ¡¸Wait a second, please wait!¡¹


    While the dispose part was naturally just a joke, Anicet suddenly perked up even though I was talking to Faneed.


    He even lounged his body towards us, but as Faneed¡¯s subordinate held him down, he couldn¡¯t come near.


    In contrast, Faneed didn¡¯t show any hint of surprise at all, so he had likely already anticipated me replying that way.


    ¡¸What is it?¡¹


    ¡¸Weren¡¯t you going to save us?¡¹


    Seeing Anicet¡¯s shock, I nearly let out a sigh. As I thought, they did misunderstand us.


    How can I say this, is he actually fit to be a merchant?


    After all, they went outside town without any escorts, carelessly asked a hunter about their Job, and even insisted that they could let us stay in a high-class inn for free while they themselves were wearing shabby clothes. I see, it makes sense that they¡¯d be tricked into making that debt.


    It¡¯s just my guess, but the thing about their daughter, them having to hand her over if they can¡¯t pay their debts, was likely already indicated in the contract to begin with. If that was the case, then they practically sold their own daughter anyways, so as for me, there¡¯s absolutely no room for sympathy.


    ¡¸Why should I have to save you?¡¹


    ¡¸These guys, they¡¯re scoundrels, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸Scoundrels we are.¡¹


    Looking at Faneed, he even nods in agreement. It seems like he¡¯s aware of how he¡¯s wicked himself.


    ¡¸Then¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸But aren¡¯t you two also scoundrels that planned to sell me?¡¹


    ¡¸But, we, our daughter¡­¡­.¡¹


    ¡¸Even if it was to save your daughter, scoundrels are still scoundrels, aren¡¯t they? Your daughter and I have no connection after all. And even if we did, it¡¯s not any reason for me to be sold at all.


    What you¡¯ve done was kidnapping a bystander to sell them for your daughter¡¯s sake, nothing more, nothing less.¡¹


    Perhaps left speechless by my words, Anicet could only scowl at me.


    ¡ºWell then, have you heard everything you wanted Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºYes. So people can get this selfish for someone¡¯s sake, huh.¡»


    ¡ºThat might be inevitable. This is an extreme example but if I were to die if you don¡¯t kill 100 passerbys, what would you do Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºI see. In this case, these people had no luck then. Also, they didn¡¯t have enough strength, I suppose?¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s true. They might have been especially unlucky.¡»


    The example of me dying was a bit problematic if I say so myself, but regardless of that, that way of looking at it certainly does make sense as well. If ever the victim of this incident was someone else that had a weak social standing like us, they would have been successfully drugged and abducted, resulting in the merchant couple likely getting a happy life with their daughter instead.


    But to their misfortune, to their disappointment, they attempted to sell us.


    ¡¸You, if only you weren¡¯t there, we would¡¯ve had enough money!¡¹


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    Perhaps because I went silent¡ªI was talking to Ciel¡ªAnicet spat out those words.


    Was that the reason that they didn¡¯t have any escorts then? After earning just barely more than enough to pay the debt off, they forced the journey without any escorts.


    It¡¯s like I¡¯m the villain for asking for the reward. Well, so what then?


    ¡¸T-that¡¯s right. If you don¡¯t save us, we¡¯re going to spread information about you.


    You want us to keep quiet, don¡¯t you?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s non-negotiable. After all, I¡¯ve agreed to keep the lady¡¯s promise with everyone in this room.


    In addition to your settlements, it looks like we¡¯ll have to educate you two so that you don¡¯t talk about our lady here as well.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, I¡¯ll leave the rest to you.¡¹


    Since it should be fine to leave things to them, I stood up to exit the room.


    ¡¸I¡¯ve already informed the inn, so just introduce yourself as Blan at the reception desk.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. Well then, I hope we don¡¯t see each other ever again.¡¹


    When did he even have the time to inform them though?


    Ignoring the audible voices of spite coming from behind us, I exited the building.


    Before I noticed it, it¡¯s already nearly noon. Still, would it be alright to go through the inn to get back to the public street?


    Even if it isn¡¯t, I don¡¯t really know any other way back, so I headed back to the inn using the hidden passage-like area.


    ¡ºFor now, let¡¯s switch once we reach the inn, okay?¡»


    ¡ºRight, understood. By the way, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºWhat is it?¡»


    ¡ºWhat¡¯s going to happen to the couple and their child?¡»


    Ciel asked me so, but I¡¯m not really knowledgeable about the underworld, so I don¡¯t have a definite answer.


    If she¡¯s fine with my speculations, then I do have some ideas in mind though.


    ¡ºFirst of all, the daughter probably would be sold.¡»


    ¡ºSo, just as initially planned then.¡»


    ¡ºThe merchant couple would have their throats broken and fingers severed¡­¡­ Or maybe not. To be honest, I don¡¯t actually know.¡»


    As for taking responsibility in the underworld, cutting a finger off is all my shabby imagination can think of. It¡¯s depressing.


    Other than that, I¡¯ve also thought of being packed in concrete and thrown in the ocean, or being sent to a tuna ship and all, but I don¡¯t think that both of those can apply to this world.


    ¡ºSo there are things that Ain doesn¡¯t know about.¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯m ignorant about society¡¯s underworld after all. Despite how I seem, I was just a common civilian, you know?¡»


    ¡ºAin being a civilian feels weird too.¡»


    Using the term commoner might have been fine, but that term wasn¡¯t really used much during my life in Japan.


    ¡ºIt only seems that way because I was somewhat grown up.


    When you reach the same age as when I was still alive, I¡¯m sure that you¡¯d understand how much of a child I am.¡»


    ¡ºThen I¡¯ll leave it at that.¡»


    I switched with Ciel, who was in high spirits for some reason, and we headed to the reception desk.


    But unlike yesterday, the person in charge today was a tall handsome young man.


    ¡¸Blan. I was told I can borrow a room.¡¹


    ¡¸Blan-sama, right. We¡¯ve been informed about you.


    We would like to apologise for the trouble we have caused earlier.¡¹


    ¡¸Hurry up and lead me to the room.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. Then please follow me.¡¹


    The young man left his reception work and Ciel then followed behind him.


    Before long, we were led to a room on the third floor that seemed about three times as large as a normal room, if I¡¯m not wrong.


    The spacious room had a large bathroom as well and a bed one size larger than our previous one.


    ¡¸This room is big.¡¹


    ¡¸This is our best room after all.¡¹


    ¡¸Right.¡¹


    After that short reply, Ciel received the room key and went inside the expensive looking room.


    Heya~! Our princesses just got a room upgrade~! Also, the merchant couple¡­ BTW, the to their disappointment part, touche Ain. And the term misfortune might seem a bit familiar to some people, hmmmmmmm~


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    Ain was absolutely scary mode in this chapter, which is quite nice. That nonchalant joking about disposing them was good. And of course, AinCiel flirting~ Just a bit, but it¡¯s nice. Teacher Ain answering her student¡¯s questions, while in other parts, group presenter Ain asking questions for quiet kid Ciel, both equally cute. The background noise isn¡¯t cute though, lol. Also, Ciel¡¯s reaction to Ain saying that she¡¯s not really that out of reach was cute, smug Ciel¡¯s signature ¡°I¡¯ll leave it at that.¡± lol. That¡¯s my interpretation of that at least, lol. Other than that, Ain¡¯s cliched yakuza punishments were funny.


    On the other hand, Faneed. Oh Faneed. You¡¯re such a great guy. ¡°Scoundrels we are¡±, lol. It¡¯s probably just my limited video game knowledge, but Faneed honestly felt like a Persona 5 Social link in this whole exchange, lol. Probably just the gallant villain aura I¡¯m sensing from him, though it¡¯s just my opinion. Also, Ain casually saying she¡¯ll riot was funny, honestly. And Faneed¡¯s reaction was great, yup, don¡¯t do it girl, my hands are up, the white flag¡¯s a flyin¡¯, you win. Just shows once again that he has a very good assessment of the situation for what information they have on hand.


    Now, on the other third metaphorical hand, our merchant couple. Naivety man. That¡¯s all I can say. Also, ego. One thing in common with these two and B-boi from before is that they all think of themselves as the protagonists, the center of a story. Brass really pushed the sick sister card as a heroic backstory but never acted heroic in a true sense, only focusing on the cool part of being the hero, being strong. Meanwhile, the merchant couple, or more specifically Anicet, really pushed the ¡°we didn¡¯t want to do it, it wasn¡¯t our fault¡± card, and were on the way to their dramatic happy ending of having just barely enough money to pay and finally paying.


    Contrast them with another scoundrel here, Faneed. Unlike the three peeps, Faneed is first of all, a realist. He had a lot of bodyguards hidden during the discussion and did as much background check as he could prior to that, resulting to the number of kidnappers being a lot for a supposedly drugged girl. The merchant couple might have been desperate, but they we¡¯re too naive and were completely unprepared for everything. The debt might have not needed immediate paying, they could¡¯ve told our princess about their situation and might have gotten off with less payment or even a delayed payment of the reward, Ain might have gotten moved but reluctant to help, while it might have gotten Ciel¡¯s interest in a different way. B-boi was impulsive and refused to listen. Big Daddy F here is emotive, yes, but barely impulsive and had a proper talk. The merchants had shabby clothes but looked like good people, while Faneed here is hella gaudy with his clothes and looked like an intimidating lump of muscle. Etc. But yeah, the guy¡¯s a bad guy, but he¡¯s not a *bad* guy, I guess, lol.


    Anyway, using the brain in random things like this is fun and a really nice exercise, lol. I can¡¯t say I¡¯m absolutely sure of what I¡¯m saying but the brain stretching was fun.

 CH 46

    ¡¸Say, Ain? He said that it was the best room, right? Why is that?¡¹


    With only the two of us in the room now, Ciel raised that question.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s because ¡¸The cheapest room is enough¡¹¡¡meant that having the second cheapest room, or even the most expensive room, would be no issue at all.¡»


    ¡¸But in that case, there¡¯s no meaning in preparing the best room for us, no?¡¹


    ¡ºMy guess is that appearance or something like that is important to influential people. They might get looked down on like, ¡¸Is this the only room you can give?¡¹ if they really did only prepare the cheapest room for us.¡»


    ¡¸Hm~m¡­¡­¡¹


    Ciel seemed unconvinced, but even I don¡¯t actually know about the real reason, so there¡¯s nothing else I can say.


    Though in my opinion, since they were already told that a cheap one was good enough, they should¡¯ve just gone with the cheapest they could give. I guess this is just telling of how much they give value to ¡ªare cautious of¡ª Ciel.


    ¡¸Well, alright then. Ignoring that, we still have an awkward amount of time left. What should we do?¡¹


    ¡ºIt¡¯s a bit late, but why don¡¯t we go out to eat lunch?¡»


    ¡¸Right. Let¡¯s go do that.¡¹


    Feeling delighted about the meal now, Ciel left our luggage behind and headed outside.


    ¡ó


    The castle town during daytime was much more lively than when we saw it last night.


    For now, we headed towards the town plaza and what we saw there was a great variety of stalls.


    ¡¸Say say, Ain. What should I eat? What can I eat?¡¹


    ¡ºYou can eat anything, I think. But why don¡¯t we check out the stalls first? You can eat anytime after all.¡»


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. Let¡¯s do so. Talking is somewhat troublesome though.¡¹


    The last exchange lowered Ciel¡¯s excitement but she immediately recovered, her eyes now wandering around restlessly.


    What came to my view was black bread, skewered meat, soup, and salads, to enumerate some I guess. While there are a lot of stalls, I don¡¯t really see anything particularly new.


    I¡¯m not sure whether that¡¯s just how stalls are or it¡¯s just how they are in this world, but it looks like there¡¯s not much variety in regards to food.


    The good ones are absolutely delicious though, so I can¡¯t wholeheartedly say that it¡¯s worse compared to the food back when I was alive, but the limited variety is disheartening. However, compared to the ten year period since Ciel¡¯s birth, it¡¯s almost like heaven and hell.


    Besides, the soup¡¯s ingredients can be different from town to town and the difference in wheat flour used changes the flavour as well.


    When I was alive, I could barely tell the difference. I don¡¯t know if Ciel¡¯s just sensitive to flavor, but since I can taste the difference now, it¡¯s still enjoyable to eat even with similar dishes again and again.


    ¡¸Hey, girl. Would you like some grilled boar?¡¹


    ¡¸Then, one.¡¹


    ¡¸Sure, that¡¯ll be one copper coin.¡¹


    ¡¸Mm.¡¹


    ¡¸H-hey, how about some soup too?¡¹


    ¡¸Give me.¡¹


    ¡¸This one¡¯s a copper coin as well.¡¹


    ¡¸Mm.¡¹


    Perhaps Ciel¡¯s white hair stood out, but when we¡¯re near a stall, the shopkeepers call out to her.


    ¡ºHow was it?¡»


    ¡¸It was delicious. Particularly the seasoning, I feel like they use more of it compared to the other towns.


    While I do like the gentle village soup, the one here is stimulating, so it¡¯s good in its own way.¡¹


    ¡ºTrue, the flavor was somewhat intense. There were some slightly expensive ones as well, but I suppose being the royal capital, there are a lot of products here.¡»


    Long long ago, the food I ate had a lot of seasonings too, but now I¡¯m already accustomed to the light seasoning.


    Or maybe Ciel¡¯s preferences have influenced my tastes as well.


    After all, I¡¯m not really wanting for the rice I used to eat practically everyday nowadays. Though, if I had been starving for Japanese food instead, I probably would¡¯ve gone insane during the first 10 years.


    ¡¸So what should we do now? Should we try going to the guild?¡¹


    Now full, Ciel asked me as we were taking a break at the plaza.


    ¡ºWhile it¡¯s somewhat awkward time-wise, there should be less people that might pick on us, so I think that¡¯s fine too.¡»


    ¡¸Somehow, it doesn¡¯t sound like that¡¯s your true feelings.¡¹


    ¡ºI¡¯m a bit tired from this morning, so I don¡¯t really want to go to the guild where there¡¯s a high chance that we¡¯ll get messed with, is what I feel.¡»


    ¡¸Then, let¡¯s rest for a while.


    While we¡¯re at it, lazing around today sounds great too. Do you have any place you want to go to, Ain?¡¹


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    Though I say that, it¡¯s just mental exhaustion, so I could endure it if I wanted to, but it looks like Ciel saw through me.


    Then accepting Ciel kindness, I suppose we should close shop on the hunter business for today.


    ¡ºSince we¡¯re in the royal capital, could we go to the castle? I imagine that they won¡¯t let us in, but I want to try getting as close as possible.¡»


    ¡¸I see. We are here after all.¡¹


    Perhaps delighted that I asked for something, Ciel stood up and walked towards the direction the castle is visible at.


    ¡ó


    So we enthusiastically marched onwards. However, getting near the castle required going through the noble¡¯s district, which a knight taught us that commoners can only enter with a significant enough reason.


    Since Ciel has the physical features like that ¡ª and, well, also the actual blood ¡ª of nobility, the people standing watch to stop commoners from entering the district were at a loss on whether they should allow Ciel to pass through. It made me somewhat guilty, so we told them that we were commoners.


    As there are quite a lot of commoners ¡ª travellers ¡ª that almost wander into the noble¡¯s district for a view of the castle, we were dismissed without any particular issues, other than that one previously, and returned to the plaza where we took a break.


    Still, while it¡¯s not like we gained absolutely nothing from this, there wasn¡¯t really much to be happy about, so I personally feel conflicted about it.


    ¡¸We¡¯ll have a chance to see it some other time.¡¹


    ¡ºI¡¯m grateful for the concern, but it¡¯s not really something I absolutely wanted to see, so it¡¯s alright.¡»


    ¡¸Is that so? But you sound disappointed considering that, Ain.¡¹


    ¡ºI noticed it when we were somewhat close to the castle, but it seems like they have some sort of field that makes sorcery unusable.¡»


    After all, my barrier and Ciel¡¯s attacks are products of sorcery. Without it, Ciel is just some little girl¡­ well not really, but it doesn¡¯t change the fact that it¡¯s problematic.


    Since I can assume that the place it is likely being used on is the audience room where people can meet with the king, it would be best to think that combat sorcery is likely unusable. And considering that it doesn¡¯t cover the entire castle, it might have some conditions, demerits, or range limits on its use. The fact that it seems complicated to use is good news, I guess.


    ¡ºSo I think that this could be a good chance to obtain a different means of attack, like a sword or spear for example.¡»


    ¡¸So, should we go to a weapons shop, right?¡¹


    ¡ºWe¡¯ve never gone to one after all. This is the royal capital after all, so there should be some fairly good weapons here.¡»


    ¡¸But, for me, what weapon should I use?¡¹


    Ciel tilts her head in contemplation.


    Being a Dance Princess, when it¡¯s things related to dancing, Ciel can handle it to some extent.


    In that sense, no matter what weapon she has, it wouldn¡¯t be unusable to her. After all, to dance is to enchant, to fascinate and impress.


    Though with that said, since some level of imagination is still needed, a Dance Princess can¡¯t dance with things that she absolutely can¡¯t imagine using.


    In my case, since I can somewhat imagine how swords, staves, and spears can be integrated in a dance, I should be able to use these.


    On the other hand, I can¡¯t imagine it with axes or bows, so I wouldn¡¯t be able to use these. In this regard, Ciel probably thinks similarly as well. Other weapons that come to mind are the guns from my past life, but they don¡¯t exist in this world.


    ¡ºIn the meantime, how about a sword? It should be enough, a lot of people own swords after all.¡»


    ¡¸Is that so?¡¹


    ¡ºYou can also pretend and say that you¡¯re ¡¸Sword Dancer¡¹ in this case. If you say that you need a sword for a Sword Dancer, the shop might be able to help us pick one.


    While Sword Dancers are rare to find, this is the royal capital, so we should be able to manage somehow.¡»


    Sword Dancers, just as what their name implies, is a Job specialized in sword dances. Concerning its status, it¡¯s considered to be in-between Combat Jobs and Entertainment Jobs, but it has also gained civil rights even as a Entertainment Job ¡ª it seems.


    As for the Job¡¯s fighting style, it¡¯s to not get hit. The so-called ¡¸Dance like a butterfly, sting like a bee¡¹ thing.


    While they aren¡¯t much different from a Dance Princess armed with a sword, in the case of Sword Dancers, they don¡¯t require music. I guess this was part of the reason that this Job gained civil rights as well.


    ¡¸I see. Then let¡¯s go.¡¹


    Heading off, Ciel left the plaza after asking a stall person where the beginner-aimed weapon shop is.


    ¡ó


    ¡¸Welcome. Oh, are you a hunter, girl?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes.¡¹


    ¡¸It must¡¯ve been tough considering your age. So you came here to buy a weapon, right? ¡¹


    ¡¸Right.¡¹


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    As we entered the weapon shop we were directed to, a well-proportioned lady between the crowded lines of weapons was surprised as she saw Ciel. As Ciel does look somewhat appropriate for her age, I¡¯m glad that she didn¡¯t think that it was just a child entering as a prank. Though, maybe Ciel¡¯s hunter-ish look helped as well.


    I guess she was either surprised that a 12-year-old girl was a hunter, which is possible age-wise, or of Ciel¡¯s hair being white.


    Since Ciel looks like she just clearly started out as a hunter with her age, it seems like we won¡¯t be chased out for going to the wrong shop.


    ¡¸What kind of weapon do you use, girl?¡¹


    I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s because the shop is aimed for beginner¡¯s, but the weapons shop lady called out to us even without us saying anything. I¡¯m honestly glad that it¡¯s the same as the stalls.


    Having a quick look at all the weapons, I naturally couldn¡¯t tell the difference between their quality or materials.


    ¡¸Which one¡¯s a Sword Dancer¡¯s sword?¡¹


    ¡¸A Sword Dancer¡¯s, eh? That¡¯s quite an unusual thing to look for. If you just need a sword to use, then the ones lined up here would be enough, but for the proper ones for Sword Dancers, there aren¡¯t any on display.¡¹


    ¡¸How are they different?¡¹


    ¡¸The looks are important for Sword Dancers, you see? Though obviously there are some people that find regular swords pretty and all.


    However, Sword Dancers need to be showy or rather they need some dazzle that¡¯s easy for the public to see.


    For an easy example, something like those slightly over-decorated swords the nobles tend to have.¡¹


    ¡¸Where can I buy one?¡¹


    ¡¸Wherever you go, it¡¯s still going to have to be made-to-order. A blunt accessory won¡¯t be any use for hunters, right?


    Well we do make those here too, but it¡¯ll cost a few gold coins.¡¹


    ¡ºShould we buy one?¡»


    ¡ºIf it¡¯s just that price, it won¡¯t really hurt that much, so it should be fine.


    Also, it being made-to-order should mean that they¡¯re going to make the sword to fit you. Still, I don¡¯t think that we¡¯ll be here for a long time, so as long as it can be finished within a few days then it should be alright.¡»


    While it¡¯s definitely not cheap considering that it¡¯s worth gold coins, I actually want to get rid of some silver and big silver coins from our magic bag. So if we can use up 10 or 20 of them, that would really help.


    Even if we go to some other shops, they might say that they won¡¯t sell for beginners, so if we can buy a sword here then that¡¯s not a problem.


    ¡¸When can you finish?¡¹


    ¡¸It should be done in five days. Do you have enough money, girl?¡¹


    ¡¸Mm.¡¹


    As Ciel showed her several gold coins, the lady was shocked for a moment but immediately recovered.


    She then opened a door that seems to lead to the back of the shop and shouted ¡¸It¡¯s a customer, dear!¡¹ beyond the said door.


    In a few moments, a bald man who was more muscular than the regular hunter and wore practically nothing on his upper body appeared from the back.


    The vaguely drowsy looking man looked at Ciel and was puzzled.


    ¡¸By customer, you mean this girl?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. She wants a sword to use for sword dancing.¡¹


    ¡¸Well that¡¯s a pretty difficult Job you have there, isn¡¯t it? This¡¯ll be your first time holding a sword, right girl? ¡¹


    ¡¸First time.¡¹


    I expected him to start finding faults in us, but that didn¡¯t happen at all. Based on our experience so far, we usually get into some sort of mess but I guess this isn¡¯t a beginner¡¯s weapon shop for nothing.


    ¡¸Considering your size, it¡¯ll be better to make it as light as possible. So I suppose a thin sword then.


    Maybe something single-edged that can be used for thrusting too¡­ Could you leave the design to us?¡¹


    ¡¸Sure. Make it easy to use.¡¹


    ¡¸Then, take that sword there, do some light swings, and tell me how the weight feels for you.¡¹


    Ciel held the sword the man pointed to and lightly swung it like he asked.


    After swinging several swords, we figured out the suitable weight and he wrote it down on something.


    ¡¸In this case, it¡¯ll cost two gold coins. If you can, it¡¯ll probably be better to buy a spare too.


    If you want a spare too, it¡¯ll be three and a half gold coins. Do you have enough?¡¹


    ¡ºShould we get the spare too?¡»


    ¡ºI think we should buy one just to be sure.¡»


    ¡¸Alright. Including the spare, how long will it take?¡¹


    ¡¸Three days at the earliest. We should be able to finish it in five days.¡¹


    The man said it without any hesitation, but then glanced at the lady after that.


    After seeing the lady nod, ¡¸Five days.¡¹ he confirmed it.


    At two gold coins, it¡¯s already ten times the cheapest weapon in this shop.


    ¡¸Are silver and large silver coins fine?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯ll help a lot. Beginners come here, so we don¡¯t really use gold coins.¡¹


    ¡¸Do you earn enough money?¡¹


    ¡¸Well, we really enjoy doing this, you see? We usually only ask normal customers to check the grip and other small details. After all, we usually just make the same cheap weapons, and if we don¡¯t, these kids that just became hunters won¡¯t be able to buy a single weapon. But this time, we even got to discuss about the design and such that will usually make it pricier when it gets more complex.¡¹


    ¡¸Then, here.¡¹


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    Ciel gave three and a half gold coins worth of silver and large silver coins.


    The lady gave Ciel a palm-sized plank of wood with today¡¯s date, the estimated completion date, and the words ¡°For Sword Dancer¡± written on it along with half of the sum Ciel gave them.


    ¡¸In these situations, you should only give half, okay? Pay the remaining sum after you actually receive the sword.¡¹


    ¡¸I didn¡¯t know that.¡¹


    ¡¸This plank will be your claim stub, so make sure you don¡¯t lose it.


    I probably wouldn¡¯t forget your face but just to be sure, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. After five days then.¡¹


    Receiving the wooden plank and the coins, Ciel slightly bowed her head before exiting the shop.


    Heya~! A new weapon for our princess!? Sword Dancer Ciel now!? And before that of course, some AinCiel fluff~!


    First half, literally a date. Nuff said. Also, Ciel looking around restlessly from stall to stall. Cute. On the other hand, Ain being a bit upset about not seeing the castle and Ciel reading her like a book, also cute. And then, sword! Actually a good point, as while they¡¯ll probably never run out of magic power against a goblin, they¡¯re currently too dependent on magic/sorcery.


    One thing that¡¯s nice is how Ciel asked the shop keepers, do you get enough? Ciel¡¯s naturally curious, but her, well, general apathy and discomfort with people has stopped her from asking those questions so far. Even on the last few chapters, it was Ain asking on her behalf, so it¡¯s a nice development. Also, the stall people calling for Ciel was cute. Also the depressed old man on the fifth stall, don¡¯t mind! You¡¯ll get our princess to buy some day. Maybe. Perhaps. All the ¡°Girl, girl¡± reminded me of God of War though. *Boy.*


    Also, *Mn.*

 CH 47

    ¡¸Next is the tool shop, right?¡¹


    ¡ºSince we still have five days left, it doesn¡¯t have to be today, but I suppose we should at least take a look at what they have.


    I¡¯m also curious if they have a largish magic bag as well.¡»


    ¡¸It¡¯ll be really handy. After all, with that, we might be able to do several requests at the same time.¡¹


    ¡ºIf they do have one, the problem would be if we could afford it but¡­¡­ even if we can¡¯t, it¡¯ll likely become something we can look forward to in the future.¡»


    In the case of the size we want, I don¡¯t think we can buy it with what we have right now.


    After all, we were told that it¡¯s at the price that you can build a house or a castle with. The ideal size would be one that would allow us to carry several dozens of monster corpses.


    With that, we could just drain the blood from the bodies and, after paying the necessary commission fees, leave everything else to the Hunter Guild.


    In small towns, there¡¯s generally one of each tool shop and weapon shop. But here at the royal capital, just like how there are a variety of weapon shops, it seems that there are also a variety of tool shops as well.


    It¡¯s divided according to the type of customers.


    Particularly since, in the case of hunters, merely entering the shop would likely intimidate the other customers. It was probably best for both the management and the customers to have it that way. Since hunters also have completely different earnings depending on their rank, there are cases when the shops differentiate based on that as well.


    So with this being the case, it now becomes a question of which shop Ciel should go to, but I say the one for high-ranked hunters is a safer choice.


    After all, the hunters picking on Ciel are almostly generally low-ranked hunters of D-rank and below. The high-ranked hunters are more mindful of themselves.


    I heard that high-ranked hunters do requests from nobles as well, so I guess it becomes necessary to at least have some level of courtesy.


    So with that, the tool shop we¡¯re currently at is, how should I say this, a small two-storey building that looks like those large retail stores.


    Naturally, the building itself isn¡¯t made out of steel-reinforced concrete or anything like that, but there are a lot of items on display and several shop assistants introduced the products as we roamed around the floor.


    There were other customers as well, but after giving Ciel a quick glance as she entered the shop, they went back to shopping without any particular concern.


    ¡ºThey didn¡¯t say anything about us, that was unexpected.¡»


    ¡ºMaybe they think that you¡¯re a daughter of nobility that came here in incognito or so?¡»


    ¡ºWell they¡¯re not wrong. Probably.¡»


    ¡ºI don¡¯t quite understand the nobility system but I think that, in your case, you¡¯re probably not considered a daughter of nobility even though you are a noble¡¯s child.¡»


    Because it was completely irrelevant to me while I was alive, I don¡¯t know the exact details of aristocracy.


    While the duke and Ciel are related by blood, would Ciel¡¯s existence be even recognised by the public to begin with? Would her treatment be the same as those of unreported illegitimate children that haven¡¯t been locked up in secrecy? How do the rights of succession work? Are the men predominant? Is the family head¡¯s younger brother higher in the order of succession, or is it the son? Etc. etc.


    ¡ºFrom a quick look, there doesn¡¯t seem to be any magic bags.¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s possible that it¡¯s just not on the first floor but¡­ the bags are concentrated around here, so I guess it¡¯s either that they¡¯re unavailable or not on display.


    In the meantime, let¡¯s check the second floor as well.¡»


    The first floor had backpacks and other luggage holders, tents, and what looks like a bike trailer.


    The second floor seems to be where lamps, firelighters, fire strikers, portable rations, and other travelling essentials are all at. There are even magic item versions of lamps sold, it¡¯s pretty expensive.


    Still, there aren¡¯t any magic bags on sale as expected. Just when I was about to give up and accept it, Ciel suddenly approached a female shop assistant.


    ¡¸There aren¡¯t any magic bags?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. It¡¯s highly unfortunate, but there none available in stock.¡¹


    ¡¸Too bad.¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s only a few magic bags and even here in the capital, it only appears in the market roughly once a year.


    With that being the case, the most reliable method of acquiring one would be to negotiate with an individual that already owns one.¡¹


    ¡¸I see. I¡¯ll come again.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood, we look forward to your return.¡¹


    We¡¯ll leave in five days at the earliest. Other than the magic bag, the only things we need are portable rations, so buying other things right now will only add to our luggage.


    For that reason, we were going to leave the shop without buying anything, but we were still sent off with a smile.


    Usually people would look displeased when customers go home without buying anything, so it might be that the people in the royal capital received good training.


    Though it might be due to this being a high-ranking hunter-oriented store as well.


    We still have some time to roam around, but since we were tensed up during the dead of night yesterday, we decided to return to the inn ahead of time.


    ¡ó


    As we reached our room, I instructed Ciel to immediately check the things we left behind.


    After confirming that nothing¡¯s out of place, Ciel throws herself faceup on the neatly tidied bed.


    Since a lot happened today, she¡¯s probably exhausted.


    As for why I had Ciel check our things first, it¡¯s because I don¡¯t trust this inn yet.


    We intentionally left some valuables behind to check if they¡¯ll get stolen or not.


    The outcome is, nothing was stolen. We should be able to relax now¡­¡­ not. In the first place, stealing is so obvious that only low-grade inns would allow it¡ªwhich is just something I heard from somewhere.


    Well, as for trusting inns, I don¡¯t really trust any inns fully.


    Since I¡¯m always awake, there¡¯s no chance of us being attacked while asleep. In other words, it¡¯s just as usual. Still the same in these twelve years.


    Rather, considering that we have a high-class bed and bath, it¡¯s actually better than the usual.


    As I was musing over that, ¡¸Fufu¡¹ a giggle left Ciel¡¯s lips.


    ¡ºIs there something on your mind?¡»


    ¡¸We¡¯ll be able to see the ocean soon, right? I¡¯m just, really excited about it.¡¹


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    Although Ciel says Soon, we still have to go to a town further north of here and cross over a mountain, so it¡¯ll take some time. Still, considering that we¡¯ve spent two years since escaping the mansion while coming this far, being able to see the ocean in less than a month may be pretty soon.


    ¡¸The ocean has a lot of water, right? But it¡¯s blue? I wonder why. The water in a cup doesn¡¯t have any color though!¡¹


    ¡ºWhy indeed.¡»


    Ciel said so somewhat excitedly, but I¡¯m stumped on how I should answer this.


    From the knowledge I had when I was alive, I know that it¡¯s related to the reflection and/or the wavelength of light but if I answer with that, I¡¯ll have to explain the exact nature of light as well.


    Ciel is bright, so maybe she¡¯ll understand it but I¡¯m also unsure if the scientific knowledge I have can directly apply in this world of magic and sorcery.


    ¡ºBesides, I¡¯ll also have to see if the ocean really is blue as well.¡»


    While the reason that Ciel wanted to see the ocean is because I named her ¡°Cielmer¡±, to start with, I don¡¯t know what color the ocean has in this world.


    On earth, I can confidently say that the ocean is obviously blue but in this world, it might be even black.


    After all, there are two moons in this world. Moreover, the two of them are different in color.


    ¡¸Then let¡¯s see it. If possible, I¡¯d like to see the ocean that Ain knows but as long as I¡¯m with you, any ocean is worth seeing.


    By the way Ain. Can I ask you something?¡¹


    ¡ºWhat is it?¡»


    ¡¸I¡¯ve already asked this a lot, but Ain isn¡¯t a god, right?¡¹


    ¡ºAnd I¡¯ve already answered this a lot, but I¡¯m not a god. If I was really a god, then it wouldn¡¯t have taken us 10 years to escape the mansion.¡»


    Ciel occasionally asks me if I¡¯m not a god.


    I suspect that this is because the magic to descend a god on Ciel resulted in me haunting her but after asking this, Ciel begins to ponder about different things.


    Every time this happens, I always end up worrying if I unintentionally said too much information about me or if I caused some huge misunderstanding, but she never asks me any serious questions after that.


    Just when I thought that we were in a somewhat serious mood, Ciel abruptly reached out to her own chest.


    And as though to check its size, she then started fondling it. It¡¯s on the small side, but it¡¯s grown bigger since.


    More importantly, I feel an indescribable sense of frustration, or rather like my mind and body is just vaguely out of sync with each other, and it¡¯s embarrassing.


    ¡ºCiel¡­¡­ What are, you doing?¡»


    ¡¸What? You said that it¡¯ll get bigger if I massage it, right?¡¹


    Right. I was the one that said that. There¡¯s no questioning it, but how is Ciel so composed like this? Because of that, it¡¯s all the more harder to interrupt her. Well, sure, if Ciel actually feels the same as I do, then it¡¯ll definitely be hard to interrupt her too though.


    ¡ºI, told you before, it¡¯s just, a rumor.¡»


    ¡¸That¡¯s true. But you also said you haven¡¯t tested if it¡¯s true or not.


    Then in this case, we can try it out by testing on me, right?¡¹


    In that case, it¡¯ll likely be meaningless unless done everyday.


    Though if I say that, then this will start happening everyday, so I definitely shouldn¡¯t carelessly speak out anymore.


    After all, today¡¯s happening is a result of yesterday¡¯s mistake, so I have to learn from it. It¡¯ll be nice if I can. Can I even?


    Still, since it seems like Ciel does it only when it comes to mind¡ªand since I can¡¯t quite get accustomed with the stimulation¡ªit might be actually better to just tell her about it at this point. Would that be bad for Ciel¡¯s education?


    ¡ºHyu!¡»


    As I was trying to somehow distract myself in deep thought, Ciel¡¯s hand touched the summit.


    From the stimulation, I involuntarily let out a shriek. It¡¯s strange, it¡¯s just unfamiliar. It¡¯s embarrassing.


    This stimulation and even this high-pitch voice I suddenly made, I somehow just can¡¯t get used to it all.


    I can only endure it so that Ciel won¡¯t notice it all. Fortunately, it seems like Ciel didn¡¯t notice my shriek as I wasn¡¯t asked anything about it.


    As this long yet short time passed, Ciel¡¯s hand moved away from her chest.


    I¡¯m finally freed. Ciel laid on her side, seeming satisfied for some reason. And then, she closed her eyes as if to bask on something.


    For now, since I wanted a distraction and it also feels like she might end up falling asleep, ¡ºIf you¡¯re sleepy, why don¡¯t we take a bath early?¡» I called out to her.


    However, I guess it didn¡¯t reach her ears¡ªthough I¡¯m not actually sure if it is her ears physically hearing me¡ªas she didn¡¯t react. Due to that, ¡ºCiel, did you hear me? Ciel?¡» I called out to her again and she reacted this time.


    ¡¸I¡¯m sorry. I was a bit deep in my thoughts. ¡¹


    ¡ºDon¡¯t worry, I only wanted to say that: if you want to sleep, how about an early bath? That¡¯s all.¡»


    ¡¸Let¡¯s do that. We¡¯ve got a good room to stay at after all, I want to enjoy it.¡¹


    Saying so, Ciel gets up and with light steps, she goes off to fill the bathtub with hot water.


    That was¡­ Not good for Ciel¡¯s education, Ain. lol


    Heya~! While our princesses didn¡¯t get to find a big magic bag, they¡¯re thoroughly enjoying their stay, it seems.


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    The dichotomy between the rude, forever low ranked hooligans and the experienced high-rankers being explained a bit was nice though, lol. Now that I realised it, the issue here is that the veterans stay in the bar, since they don¡¯t have much work that fits them, and the hooligans just feel like they¡¯re the king of the hill since the veterans don¡¯t have much to do. Might not apply to all cases though.


    Anyway, on AinCiel. First, before my blanked out mind forgets, it was nice that Ciel had the initiative to find a shop assistant, very good development. Also, that part where Ciel asked about why the ocean is blue when water isn¡¯t really stirred some indescribable emotions in my heart. Ciel is really, *really* excited about the ocean and it¡¯s making me excited now too. Now, to *that* part. Whoooooo. *Boy*. From what we know about Ciel, it¡¯s a hundred percent intentional, and she definitely noticed Ain¡¯s squeal. I will say, Ain trying to distract herself halfway in and seemingly questioning the obvious (Yes Ain, it¡¯s bad for Ciel¡¯s education, lol) made me laugh. Still, AinCiel fluff~

 CH 48

    Our bath ended peacefully without any incident.


    To dry her wet hair, I asked Ciel to switch with me so I can use my hairdryer sorcery.


    As I exposed her hair to warm air while combing my hand through it, Ciel¡¯s hair turned satisfyingly straight and smooth. I¡¯m sure that burying my face in it would feel really good.


    Though I won¡¯t, since Ciel will probably be taken aback if I do that.


    After drying her hair and returning the body to Ciel, dinner was delivered in.


    And after finishing dinner¡ªthere wasn¡¯t anything in it¡ªCiel asked me a question.


    ¡¸What should we do tomorrow?¡¹


    ¡ºWe either go to the guild or gather information, I suppose. Otherwise, should we tour around the capital again?¡»


    ¡¸Will the information gathering be about the forest wolves that came from the north?¡¹


    ¡ºYes. There seems to be something fishy about it after all.¡»


    ¡¸True, it¡¯ll be better to investigate it in advance. Still, that¡¯s not really something we can finish immediately.


    How about we go to the guild tomorrow to check the requests?¡¹


    ¡ºRight, there might be some that can help us rank up too.¡»


    By level of priority, reaching B-rank is far higher up than seeing the ocean. That¡¯s why prioritising the request checking instead of information gathering isn¡¯t particularly strange.


    And since we¡¯re hunters, it¡¯s probably just the standard practice to go to the guild for the time being when arriving in a new town.


    The problem here will be our timing in entering the guild. If we do it during the morning and evening peak times, it¡¯s practically certain that we¡¯d be picked on by somebody, and that would be nothing but a waste of time.


    We should go when there wouldn¡¯t be any people around, complete an easy to finish C-rank request, and return before the peak times. If somebody still picks on us even after doing that, we¡¯ll handle it when it happens. Otherwise, it might be good to just camp out for a night instead and return at some time when there¡¯s not many people.


    The sword will be finished in five days. Even if we camp out tomorrow, we¡¯ll still have three days remaining, so we should have plenty of extra time to gather information after this.


    ¡¸It¡¯ll be great if there¡¯s a perfect request.¡¹


    ¡ºThis is the royal capital after all. I¡¯d like to be hopeful in this regard but, at the same time, we probably shouldn¡¯t expect too much.¡»


    ¡¸Why is that?¡¹


    ¡ºSince there are a lot of people, we know that there is a higher chance for the Hunter Guild here to have more requests.


    However, as this is the royal capital, they must have put a large effort in maintaining order and safety in the surrounding area.¡»


    ¡¸Then in that case, the monsters in the vicinity might have been already hunted to exhaustion.¡¹


    ¡ºExactly. There might be an abundance of escort requests, but we can¡¯t really accept any of these now.¡»


    ¡¸So, just hope for the best of tomorrow then. I can take my time walking, right?¡¹


    ¡ºWe don¡¯t want to get pestered after all.¡»


    ¡¸Understood. Well then, Ain. Goodnight.¡¹


    ¡ºRight. Goodnight.¡»


    Ciel turned off the lights and crawled into the bed.


    Since I don¡¯t go to sleep, I decided to sing a lullaby to at least help Ciel get a comfortable rest.


    Although it might not be a lullaby to be exact, I sang a relaxing tune that wouldn¡¯t disturb her sleep. If I apply a sleeping effect with Song Princess, the people that would hear this would probably fall asleep in an instant.


    ¡ó


    Now then, speaking of Ciel as she sleeps, she¡¯s as pretty as a doll.


    She does breath and turn around occasionally though, so she definitely looks alive in any angle.


    For the remaining time today, I guess I¡¯ll work on my sorcery research while lightly staying on the lookout.


    Though, rather than just sorcery, it¡¯s more about magic, or rather my Job.


    What I¡¯m doing is testing how to apply the buffs from Song Princess to my sorcery¡­ or is it magic?


    The Song Princess can equally apply buffs, or debuffs, to every being that hears her song. I¡¯ll include abnormal status in debuffs here. While this probably won¡¯t apply to everything, since I can also attract monsters, there¡¯s likely more to it than just that.


    An easy way to explain abnormal status is with my lullaby¡ªincluding the lullaby-like songs. When singing a lullaby with the Song Princess¡¯ power, I can put people to sleep if I wanted to. What¡¯s needed to resist it is unknown.


    Because of that, I think that if I sing a head-spitting or a crazed and deranged song, it should be possible for me to induce chaos and confusion. I won¡¯t though.


    So, the issue there is the fact that every being that hears the song is unilaterally affected.


    About this, no matter how I look at it, I¡¯m absolutely exempted from it. Rather than me, it¡¯s probably the Song Princess¡¯ that¡¯s immune, or maybe singing it makes me resist the effects but in the end of it all, I, myself, don¡¯t receive the benefits of the buffs.


    Though, it¡¯s probably like this since it¡¯ll be a problem if it isn¡¯t.


    For example, if I wanted to make someone sleep and this isn¡¯t the case, it¡¯ll turn out like: I sing, the listener and I fall asleep, the singing stops, we wake up, I sing again, and repeat.


    In short, what I want to say is that I really want to strengthen my barrier with the Song Princess¡¯ power, but I¡¯m not getting anywhere as of now.


    The Song Princess¡¯ buffing power is absurd, to the point that Ciel was able to intercept several spears of ice with just regular sorcery.


    At present, I¡¯m more proficient with my barrier¡ªand detection¡ªthan Ciel is with any of her sorcery, so if I can apply a buff to my barrier, we should be able to completely shut down Carol-san¡¯s ice spears with only the barrier.


    It¡¯s exactly for this reason that I instigated Carol-san to study about the relationship between sorcery and Jobs.


    With that said, I once again continue my nightly research alone, but I just can¡¯t find a breakthrough.


    Is a Song Princess completely immune to their own powers? Is there some song resistance? Do I just lack proficiency with the Song Princess? Is it ineffective to other people with the Song Princess Job? Are there other factors involved?


    I¡¯ll be great if I can just figure which one it is, but the only one that I can immediately test is the resistance via singing theory.


    I continued contemplating about it for hours, and when I was tired and was about to give up, sunshine beamed through the window.


    ¡ó


    Ciel woke up some time after the morning sun started to shine in.


    While diligent, or financially pressed, hunters head to the Hunter Guild the first thing in the morning, since we¡¯re neither diligent nor financially pressed, it¡¯s not our problem.


    After eating breakfast and leaving the inn, I tried talking to Ciel about the song resistance.


    ¡ºCiel, there¡¯s one thing I want you to try, but will that be fine?¡»


    ¡ºWhat is it? If it¡¯s a request from you Ain, I¡¯m ready for anything.¡»


    ¡ºI want you to try singing together with me while I use my Song Princess power.¡»


    ¡ºWhy is that?¡»


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    As Ciel tilted her head in confusion, I told her about last night and she then nodded convinced.


    ¡ºIn that case, there¡¯s no need to do it then. The Song Princess¡¯ effects properly apply after all.¡»


    ¡ºReally?¡»


    ¡ºAfter all, when Ain sings, I occasionally sing along too.¡»


    Now that she mentioned it, I do remember something like that in the past.


    ¡ºIn this case, then I either don¡¯t receive the Song Princess¡¯ effects or don¡¯t have enough proficiency over my Job¡­¡­¡»


    ¡ºIt might have been better if there were two of you, Ain.¡»


    ¡ºTwo of me¡­¡­¡»


    ¡ºIf that happens, can I have both?¡»


    ¡ºNot just one?¡»


    ¡ºI mean, I want both after all.¡»


    I¡¯m not a thing, you know? Is something I won¡¯t say.


    It¡¯s not as if Ciel¡¯s being serious after all and even now, I¡¯m practically just an accessory to Ciel. Most of all, Ciel is in a good mood right now and that¡¯s enough for me.


    More importantly, I shouldn¡¯t disregard the idea of there being two of me.


    If there is another one of me and the Song Princess¡¯ power would work on that me, then I¡¯ll be capable of producing a much stronger barrier. Still, there¡¯s no changing the fact that it¡¯s just absurd nonsense.


    Even if it¡¯s possible, it¡¯ll be within the realm of magic. I might as well just ask Duke Rispelgia to have another one haunt us at that point.


    As my mind was going astray, Ciel arrived at the Hunter Guild.


    Among the ones that we¡¯ve seen so far, it¡¯s the largest guild building, having two entrances. Looking closely, it seems that one is for hunter use while the other is for requesters, or rather for general use.


    Come to think of it, people other than hunters also come to the Hunter Guild to make requests, so having separate entrances makes it easier to avoid trouble.


    ¡ºHow should I say this, the people that messed with us in the past were considerably reckless, huh.¡»


    ¡ºWhat makes you think so, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºThe guilds we¡¯ve been to so far only had one entrance, right? So that means, the people that would bring in requests would also enter through those doors.¡»


    ¡ºRight.¡»


    ¡ºAnd being 12 years old, people rarely see you as a hunter, right Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºI can¡¯t really help it, you know?¡»


    ¡ºIn other words, although they should be seeing you as a requester, they still went to mess with us.


    If you were a noble, they would¡¯ve lost their life there.¡»


    ¡ºWell, I do have some noble blood in me. If it¡¯s only by looks, it wouldn¡¯t be strange if I was seen as a noble.¡»


    Ciel¡¯s outfit might have prevented them from seeing her as one though. Otherwise, maybe a noble¡¯s daughter would have never gone to the Hunter Guild by herself in the first place.


    Nonetheless, I do think that a merchant¡¯s daughter going to make an escort request is a possible situation at least.


    We¡¯re not really requesters, so they didn¡¯t actually misjudge us in this regard but¡­¡­ I guess there¡¯s no use thinking about it.


    ¡ºFor now, let¡¯s go inside.¡»


    ¡ºRight, I¡¯m sorry for taking so much time.¡»


    ¡ºYou don¡¯t have to apologise Ain. Talking with you is fun after all.¡»


    After saying so, Ciel opens the door. Although this is the royal capital¡¯s guild, other than the two separate entrances, it doesn¡¯t seem too different from the other guilds. Simply from a quick look, I already understand how this guild works.


    Other than the receptionist, there are barely any people here. Just one party in front of the request board, I think.


    Noticing Ciel, the receptionist stares at us with a confused look on her face but Ciel ignores it and heads straight to the request board.


    We started checking in order, from F-rank first, but many of the requests are herb gathering for salve and potion-use.


    From the fact that these continue until E-rank, it seems like they need herbs even from places that have high chances of monster encounters.


    Looking closely, there are even D-rank herb gathering requests. I suppose the reason for there being practically no subjugation requests here is that these requests actually pay well and can build one¡¯s reputation.


    ¡ºIf we accept a request, we should choose the ones asking for medical herbs in places that are hard to harvest from.¡» While I was discussing with Ciel on our way to the C-rank corner, ¡¸This place is for C-rank hunters.¡¹ someone called to us.


    It¡¯s probably the party I saw earlier. The party consisted of a swordsman-ish man, a sorcerer-ish lady, a slightly stern shield-bearing man, and a slightly high-exposure spear-wielding lady. The one that talked to us was the swordsman.


    ¡¸Thanks, it¡¯s fine.¡¹


    Replying with only that, Ciel shifts her gaze back to the request board while the party looks at each other and flashed a strained smile.


    He didn¡¯t say anything else beyond that. While he might have said that out of good will, Ciel really had nothing else to say other than she¡¯s fine.


    It would be nice if they just think that Ciel is some low-ranked Hunter peeking for reference.


    That was what I hoped for, but it seems like the swordsman thought of something as he showed a convinced look.


    ¡¸Let me guess, you¡¯re C-rank, aren¡¯t you?¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah.¡¹


    ¡¸So you¡¯re the rumored one. Sorry for disturbing you. Take your time choosing.¡¹


    Hearing that, the swordsman¡¯s other party members seemed to be convinced about something as well, as they took some distance to avoid disturbing Ciel.


    I wonder, what do they mean by rumor? While it would be nice if I can play dumb like that, there are already several things that comes to my mind, so I wonder which one he¡¯s referring to.


    I do think that it isn¡¯t likely to be a bad one, but I honestly can¡¯t say for sure. If the fact that we got several hunters demoted in rank got spread, we might even get called a low-rank destroyer, who knows?


    In our defense, we only accepted the fights that they started.


    Rumors are often transmitted in amusing ways.


    Getting back into what we were doing, I looked at the request board and saw a request asking for the culling of a forest wolf pack that appeared on the northern side of the capital. As I thought, it might be best to do some proper info gathering before we leave the capital.


    It has a high reward for a wolf subjugation request with no acceptance limit, so most people must have already accepted it. For that reason, we won¡¯t accept it.


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    ¡ºHow about this one?¡»


    Saying so, Ciel pointed to a certain request form. It¡¯s a herb gathering request for herbs used for mid-rank potions and above that also has the herb¡¯s approximate habitat mapped out together with the form. With our regular walking speed, if we go there now, we¡¯ll definitely have to camp out overnight. If we leave at sunrise, we should be able to return barely before sunset even considering the time needed to gather the herbs, but it¡¯s also written down that preparing for camping is recommended.


    The request form is awfully detailed, with the herb¡¯s characteristics and the information on the possible monster encounters written down, so it¡¯s a mystery how this is still left here.


    The answer is clearly apparent from its small sum of a reward though. Considering how time consuming it is, it has the lowest reward among C-rank.


    ¡ºI believe we¡¯ll have to camp overnight, but would that be alright?¡»


    ¡ºAin will protect me right?¡»


    ¡ºWell of course.¡»


    ¡ºThen it¡¯s fine.¡»


    Since Ciel flashed me an absolutely doubtless smile, I agreed to the acceptance of that request.


    As Ciel peels off the request form and takes it to the reception desk, the receptionist stares at Ciel with displeasure.


    ¡¸Look now, this is a C-rank request, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸Ahh, that kid is all good. Would you mind showing your card?¡¹


    Before Ciel could reply to the receptionist, the swordsman from earlier answered.


    Ciel took out her Hunter Card as instructed and handed it to the receptionist.


    Receiving it, the receptionist takes a good look at the card before saying ¡¸We¡¯ll have it processed immediately!¡¹ and moving in a panic.


    ¡¸Thanks. I suppose.¡¹


    ¡¸Well, you likely would¡¯ve managed even without me.¡¹


    ¡¸Yup. Used to it.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s why, this is just me being nosy. It should¡¯ve shortened the time you would have took, so I hope you can accept this as my apology for earlier.¡¹


    The man only left those words and waved goodbye as he returned to his party.


    Are they not accepting any requests? Maybe they¡¯re here on standby, to make sure that the situation where there are absolutely no hunters in the Hunter Guild is prevented.


    After all, while there should be some people in the pub, just a bunch of drunkards might not be of any use during emergencies.


    After successfully accepting the request, we bought enough food to last until tomorrow morning and left the capital¡¯s gates.


    Heya~! Our princesses are back to work now and luckily they didn¡¯t encounter any random thugs on the way! (Or rather, inside the guild, lol)


    While we didn¡¯t encounter any hooligans this time, we actually had an encounter still. An encounter with a helpful swordsman (and his party) that is. Quite nice to see nice people first, to be honest. Still, it seems like our princesses have some sort of reputation now, judging from the *rumor* or maybe even *rumors*, lol. Also, I like the nice little thing about the doors. Yeah, people come in to make requests and some hooligans start extorting them, it¡¯s going to be a hell of a problem. One reason I can think of why the fools act like that is maybe because they¡¯re already familiar with the people of the town. Or perhaps the place is actually popular for receiving new hunters from the countryside, like B-boy and his old band of diligent friends.


    Also, there¡¯s the forest wolves outside the forest situation, *hmmmm*¡­

 CH 49

    We¡¯re at the entrance of the forest specified in the request. It¡¯s about east from the royal capital, so there doesn¡¯t seem to be a lot of forest wolves here.


    While I don¡¯t feel any forest wolf-ish presence, I still sense so many monsters to the point that I don¡¯t even want to count.


    A D-rank hunter might be able to complete this request if all of these are just goblins or kobolds, but if these monsters are all above D-class, then it would be nothing short of reckless.


    Though in my opinion, it¡¯s nothing special compared to that stampede from before, so it¡¯s not really a problem. If anything, the problem here would be the current time.


    ¡ºWe¡¯re really well into the night now.¡»


    ¡¸We weren¡¯t too concerned about timing after all.¡¹


    ¡ºShall we camp out around here tonight?¡»


    ¡¸In that case, I¡¯ll start a fire.¡¹


    While I did say camp out, we won¡¯t be exposed to any danger thanks to my barrier, so we generally don¡¯t have anything else to prepare.


    I think a sleeping bag would likely be enough to give Ciel a pleasant sleep, but since it¡¯ll simply add to our luggage as of now, we don¡¯t have one.


    Still, the reason we start a fire isn¡¯t to ward off animals or monsters¡ªit¡¯s meaningless since they aren¡¯t really scared of flames¡ªbut to prepare for dinner.


    And while Ciel said start a fire, all she¡¯s doing is using a magic circle to keep a constant flame burning.


    After this, we simply add dried vegetables, dried meat, and some salt in a small pot of water and heat it up.


    In this situation, we could probably make something pretty delicious if we had some bouillon cubes but that doesn¡¯t exist in this world.


    Even so, the dried vegetables and meat already add flavour on their own, and it¡¯s completely edible for people that are used to gentle flavours.


    And with the finished soup and the hard bread we have, today¡¯s dinner is served.


    ¡¸Even with just these, it¡¯s already good enough to eat, huh.


    Why did the food at that mansion taste so bland then?¡¹


    ¡ºLike, at that point, they definitely made it taste bland intentionally, don¡¯t you think?¡»


    ¡¸They really went through a lot of trouble then.¡¹


    As Ciel brings the soup to her mouth, I naturally taste the flavours as well.


    Our dinner tonight is by no means delicious. If this was served on earth, people will likely rate it as completely terrible. Still, this is a staple meal in this world.


    The delicious food here can taste as good as the food on earth though. This world has quite the disparity.


    ¡¸By the way, how are the monsters?¡¹


    ¡ºThere¡¯s quite a lot inside the forest. Not as many as the stampede though.¡»


    ¡¸What about our safety?¡¹


    ¡ºThere doesn¡¯t seem to be any B-class and above, so it should be fine.¡»


    Unlike humans, a monster¡¯s strength is easy to measure.


    After all, the stronger a monster is, the stronger a monster¡¯s equivalent of human¡¯s magic power is and they don¡¯t put any effort in hiding it.


    ¡¸Then that¡¯s a relief.¡¹


    ¡ºLeave it to me.¡»


    ¡¸Please.¡¹


    After saying so with a smile, Ciel gulps up all the remaining soup.


    ¡ó


    It¡¯s morning and the skies are clear. Ciel wakes up at sunrise when sleeping outside, so we¡¯re able to act without wasting any time.


    Still, what would people normally do if it was raining instead? Since they probably have tents, would they spend their whole day inside or would they go outside while getting wet?


    In our case, the barrier also acts as a raincoat, so we won¡¯t have our energy whittled by the cold rain. Although since it¡¯ll worsen our footing and visibility, it¡¯s not like we¡¯re completely unaffected by it. Still, the barrier is honestly convenient. We haven¡¯t seen anybody else use barriers like this, so maybe my way of using it is just abnormal.


    Anyway, as for today¡¯s schedule, we¡¯ll be searching for the herbs in the morning, eat lunch, and hopefully go back to the capital immediately after that.


    ¡ºWell then, please do your best.¡»


    ¡¸This time I¡¯ll definitely find them in an instant.¡¹


    Ciel psyched herself up as she entered the forest.


    While I do want to return early, it won¡¯t be necessarily good for Ciel if I just find the herbs and end this as soon as we can.


    Many herbs have magic power in them but since it¡¯s only in small quantities, searching for them is a perfect way to train one¡¯s ability to detect magic power.


    My role here in the forest is to tell if monsters are coming.


    After doing that, Ciel reaps their necks in one strike.


    It¡¯s just simple routine work. What a depressing world.


    Anyway, about this herb gathering request, it¡¯s not that difficult if we just ignore the monsters.


    After all, herbs seem to be growing just about everywhere here. I guess the request didn¡¯t get ranked up, after being ignored for so long that the monsters increased, for nothing. Rather, since there are herbs everywhere, finding our target herb might be annoying.


    As I¡¯m concentrating on the monsters, all I can barely sense is the herb¡¯s general location. I can look more closely into it, but if I do that, I¡¯ll end up accidentally hinting it to Ciel.


    And then Ciel¡¯s going to scold me since it¡¯ll defeat the meaning of this practice.


    ¡¸If we bring everything here, we should be able complete the request, right?¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s true. However, it¡¯s impossible to bring all of these, so please do your best.¡»


    ¡¸Oka~y¡­¡­¡¹


    Ciel clearly feels down now, but I understand the feeling. I continue watching over her with a strained smile.


    Nonetheless, this forest has a large variety of herbs.


    Potions should be valuable to both hunters and knights, so if this was abandoned to the point that it¡¯s overgrown like this, do they actually have enough potion reserves?


    Come to think of it, I barely saw any potions in the tool shop. If a shop of that level only has that few potions available, then it might be difficult for low-ranked hunters to even come by one.


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    While people could just have their wounds healed in the churches within town, they can¡¯t do that outside. There are times when healing a wound could become a matter of life or death.


    Though it isn¡¯t necessary for us, so it¡¯s not really our problem.


    For the nth time, Ciel once again squatted down to closely examine some leaves.


    This time, it¡¯s a plant that looks like a clover back on earth, similarly having three heart shaped leaves sticking to one another. But compared to the one in my memory, it¡¯s awfully thick and juicy. Its flower is also different, it looks like a small roundish rose and is white in color.


    ¡¸Is this it?¡¹


    ¡ºIt seems like it. The request form only had the sketch of its flower, but its features does match.¡»


    ¡¸In that case, it should be fine to bring as many of these as we can. There is a lot of it, after all. ¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s true. There shouldn¡¯t be any problem as long as you don¡¯t damage its roots.


    With this many of them, it really makes me want to find a four-leaf.¡»


    ¡¸Do you mean that there are some with four leaves on them?¡¹


    I unintentionally ended up saying so, but the four-leaf clover being a symbol of good luck isn¡¯t something from this world. It might mean the same here too, but since Ciel had no idea about it, I naturally wouldn¡¯t know if it does as well.


    Even in my past life, they could be seen differently depending on the country and culture, so I decided to explain it as is while just hiding the fact that what I¡¯m talking about is that of another world.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s about a plant that¡¯s similar to this one. In where I was in the past, the plant that originally has only three leaves would occasionally have four, and it¡¯s said that if you find it, it would bring you good luck.¡»


    ¡¸Should we try finding it then?¡¹


    ¡ºThere¡¯s no assurance that it exists, you know?¡»


    ¡¸To tell the truth, I probably found one already, you know?¡¹


    Ciel triumphantly smiled, confidently moved several steps forward, and squatted down once more.


    And right before her eyes, there surely was a four leaved pseudo-clover glimmering with morning dew.


    ¡ºAmazing. You did really well finding this.¡»


    As I honestly praised her in amazement, Ciel had a bashful look, which then turned into a strained smile.


    ¡¸I think Ain would find one immediately, you know?


    After all, it has more magic power than the others.¡¹


    Now that she mentioned it, I tried properly sensing its magic power, and as Ciel said, it has more magic power than the others here.


    Also, I feel that it has a slightly different property as well.


    ¡ºIt really is different. Since we actually found one, why don¡¯t we keep this for ourselves?¡»


    ¡¸Right, why don¡¯t we.¡¹


    This time, Ciel showed a somewhat teasing smile, and seeing her really enjoying herself makes me feel relieved.


    Keeping something that was asked for in a request somewhat feels like I¡¯m doing something bad, but I hope they¡¯d forgive us for taking one for our share.


    Rather, harvesting herbs that we need while accepting a request on the occasion is actually more efficient to be honest.


    ¡ºIn that case, there¡¯s one more thing I¡¯d like to bring back with us as well.¡»


    ¡¸I see. Let¡¯s bring it back then.¡¹


    Ciel cheerfully approached a certain flower.


    Even among all of the herbs here, this one has a conspicuously large amount of magic power. Maybe even reaching the same level as a low-class monster.


    It seemed light green from a distance but up close, I noticed that the flower is actually transparent.


    Close to the ground, it has leaves as big as Ciel¡¯s palm and on top of them is a lovely flower. The flower has a shape similar to that of a cherry blossom, but its petals are devoid of color, only having the tenderness of a plant. I lightly checked the area, but there doesn¡¯t seem to be any other like it.


    ¡¸It¡¯s pretty.¡¹


    As we approached it, we were captivated by its presence.


    ¡¸If we take this flower back and it wilts, it¡¯s just¡­¡­ right, somehow sad.¡¹


    ¡ºThere are ways to maintain its current state as much as possible, but¡­¡­¡»


    For example, pressing it and such. Pressing it inside a book is all I know though.


    If we had a flowerpot or something, we might be able to move it and bring it around as well, but that¡¯s difficult with our current lifestyle.


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    ¡¸You mean processing this flower, right Ain?¡¹


    ¡ºDrying it will make it last longer, you see.¡»


    As I answered her question, Ciel began to brood about it.


    Then in the quiet forest, a gust of wind suddenly blew.


    The wind almost made me close my eyes in instinct, but then it all happened in an instant.


    The flower rode the wind and flew gently towards Ciel.


    Almost feeling some sort of intent from the flower, it left Ciel absolutely puzzled.


    On her hand, the flower is there without its stem and its petals seem more inorganic, unlike just seconds ago.


    The shape of its leaves has changed as well, making it now look like a hair ornament.


    ¡¸Say, Ain. Do plants¡­ do this?¡¹


    ¡ºThis is my first time seeing it. I¡¯ve never heard of this happening as well.¡»


    ¡¸I know right? This¡­ what should I do with it?¡¹


    ¡ºSince it turned out like that, I think you can put it on your hair, but with it being transparent, it won¡¯t really shine too much, will it?¡»


    It¡¯s not like I¡¯m an expert with colours or anything, but even if you put something transparent on top of something white, it¡¯ll just become white and won¡¯t stand out.


    ¡¸I don¡¯t really understand it that much, but it would be better if it had colour, right?¡¹


    ¡ºConcerning fashion, I think having some colour would make it cuter on you, but in the sense of not standing out, the transparency might be good too.


    Though, if people notice you wearing a transparent flower, that could make us stand out in of it self.¡»


    ¡¸What colour would suit me then?¡¹


    ¡ºOn colors, I think black would make a good accent. But if I base it by this flower, then a dark tawny or green for the leaves with the flower being a blue that turns lighter as it reaches the tip would be nice, I suppose.¡»


    ¡¸That¡¯s awfully particular, isn¡¯t it?¡¹


    Ciel giggled so, but if given the chance, I¡¯d really like to dress Ciel up.


    While a part of the reason I chose blue is because of her eyes, it¡¯s also because I¡¯ve seen a cherry blossom of that colour before.


    ¡¸Then perhaps we should try finding a blue flower hairpin when we return to the capital.¡¹


    ¡ºIn that case, it would be better to ask the people working in the clothing shop. I¡¯m just giving an amateur opinion after all.¡»


    ¡¸Ain, I want it exactly because it¡¯s the colour you just said. I don¡¯t care about other people¡¯s opinions.¡¹


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s straightforward words, I couldn¡¯t say anything back. Well, yeah, I am making this ¡ºUu, aa¡­¡­¡» incomprehensible whimpering though.


    At times, Ciel¡¯s purity really troubles me. What¡¯s the right way to react in this situation?


    Before I could say anything, she says ¡¸I¡¯ll put this on so it doesn¡¯t get in the way.¡¹ and brings the transparent flower near her hair.


    In the next instant, the flower, or rather it¡¯s leaves, entwine almost longingly to Ciel¡¯s hair. It then turns dark and its flower turns into a blue that gets darker as it approaches the center.


    With the flower being translucent, it seems just like a gem at first glance.


    And while it¡¯s only in small quantities, it looks like it¡¯s absorbing magic power from Ciel¡¯s hair. Though, since it seems to be absorbing my magic power, I don¡¯t really mind it much. After all, even after considering the barrier and detection¡¯s maintenance needs, my magic power balance is still in the black.


    ¡¸Umm, Ain? What happened?¡¹


    ¡ºThe flower turned into a hairpin of sorts and changed to the colours I said earlier.¡»


    ¡¸Will this¡­ still turn back?¡¹


    As she said so, Ciel brought her hand close to the flower, which then undid its leaves and landed on her hand.


    What a mysterious hairpin. As it landed on Ciel¡¯s palm, its colour also turned back to normal.


    ¡¸It seems like it¡¯s back to normal. It¡¯s a shame that I can¡¯t see it for myself, but did it suit me?¡¹


    ¡ºYes, it was beautiful.¡»


    ¡¸I see, I see. In that case, I¡¯ll wear it for a while. Will that be fine?¡¹


    ¡ºIt doesn¡¯t take that much magic power, so it should be fine.


    Also, since it¡¯s absorbing magic power, then that could mean that it won¡¯t wilt.¡»


    Upon hearing my words, Ciel puts the flower back on her hair. And as before, it attached by itself.


    Seemingly satisfied by this, Ciel went back to harvesting the requested herbs.


    Heya~! Our princesses are doing good work and then suddenly, mysterious flower???


    Anyway, today was a blessed AinCiel chapter it seems. Wholesome bonding from our main pair and Ain just straight up blushing from Ciel. Ain be best girl as usual it seems. A rare but fine trait for the main characters to be honest (Definitely just my opinion). On the other hand, seeing Ciel come in contact with the world is just¡­ yeah, great as usual. Just seeing her relatively normal experience is really satisfying to see and the back and forth between Ain and Ciel is always a treat.


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    The flower part was honestly funny though. Yes Ciel, plants don¡¯t usually do that. Still, the flower is quite enigmatic. And speaking of enigmatic, really, first the forest wolves, now the overgrown herbs issue. Smells like our familiar friend ¡°trouble¡±¡­


    By the by, this is the Blue Cherry Blossom Ain was talking about. It definitely fits with silver or white.

 CH 50

    While we spent half a day on the way to the forest, it only took us about three hours to return to the capital.


    As I used the Song Princess this time, it probably just felt like a light jog for Ciel, but it¡¯s really amazing how she can run for three hours straight.


    During my lifetime, how long could I run again? I¡¯m at least confident that I won¡¯t last even a minute when running in full sprint.


    And while I did say three hours, this is really just my rough estimation based on the sun¡¯s movement, so there¡¯s a large margin of error here.


    I¡¯m not sure if the guild is crowded right now since we came at an awkward time, but it was luckily still empty, so we brought the herbs to the reception counter. Just in case, we decided to keep several herbs, other than the four-leaf clover, for ourselves.


    The receptionist was the same as the one from yesterday and it looked like she wanted to say something, but after seeing the large bundle of herbs, she was startled and quickly began dealing with them.


    Incidentally, we also tried asking her about methods of preserving plants for long periods of time and as expected, drying seems to be the best way. She said that herbs would last about one to two years that way.


    However, dried herbs are never accepted in requests unless the requestor allows it. Since it¡¯s difficult to trace when herbs are dried, it could cause inventory problems and such.


    As soon as the validation was finished, we left the Hunter Guild. We don¡¯t want any weird people going on at us after all.


    And after that, I asked Ciel if I could borrow her body for the whole day.


    ¡ó


    ¡ºAin wanting to borrow my body, that¡¯s pretty unusual.¡»


    Ciel¡¯s pleasantly delighted voice echoes in my head.


    ¡ºThere¡¯s something I¡¯m personally curious about, but it¡¯s a bit difficult to explain.¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s related to the potions, right?¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. But I myself don¡¯t know how to start looking into it, so I was thinking of asking other people while making my judgment.¡»


    ¡ºSo having me in between will make this take a lot of time, right?¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯m sorry.¡»


    Me taking control of the body means that I¡¯m taking away Ciel¡¯s time.


    Ideally, Ciel should be the one to live her own life and I should be only helping her live comfortably.


    But Ciel only asks me ¡ºWhy are you apologising?¡» like it¡¯s no big deal.


    12 years old is about the age of elementary students in my former life and individuals at this age are also still considered to be children even here.


    While this might be based on my old world sentimentalities, now that I reflect on them, every day at around this age was extremely valuable.


    I know that having Ciel understand this value is difficult, so I can only reply to her with a vague smile.


    As we continued on, we arrived at the tool shop from before, so I opened the door and entered inside.


    Their product line-up hasn¡¯t changed during these few days, so I immediately headed to the second floor. Having another close look around the second floor, I found potions at the place where the bandages and salves are sold.


    Rather, I guess it might be better to describe it as a potion area with bandages and salve sold as well.


    What they have for sale are basic and intermediate grade potions.


    I remember that the salves are for lower-ranked hunters, so I¡¯m sure that even the basic-grade potions work in great effect.


    As proof, the basic-grade potions are still slightly more expensive than the high-grade salves.


    Even if they do have high-grade potions, it¡¯s probably so expensive that they wouldn¡¯t display it along with these.


    ¡ºThis is a problem.¡»


    ¡ºWhat¡¯s wrong?¡»


    ¡ºSince I expected potions to be expensive here at the capital, I thought of looking at the actual prices as a basis for my judgment but¡­¡»


    ¡ºAin doesn¡¯t know how much potions cost in other towns, right?¡»


    ¡ºRight¡­¡­ Exactly that.¡»


    This really kills my enthusiasm, it makes me feel empty inside.


    Ever since we left the mansion, we haven¡¯t experienced any major injuries, so knowing the prices of potions never even went through my mind.


    And even if we did get severe injuries, we probably wouldn¡¯t have used potions still.


    Now it took its toll, might just be an overreaction, but it seems like I have no choice but to take a shot in the dark.


    I looked for a different shop assistant than the one from before and ¡¸Can I ask something?¡¹ called out to her.


    Without any reluctance in her tone, she says ¡¸What it is?¡¹ with a smile on her face.


    ¡¸Are the potions sold here made in the royal capital?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. It is produced by an alchemist living in the capital.


    Is there a problem concerning that?¡¹


    ¡¸Not exactly, it just seemed like the potions here cost more than the ones I saw in other towns.


    However, it looks like it¡¯s just my imagination. I¡¯m sorry about that.¡¹


    ¡¸You might not be wrong. I believe that the potions you¡¯ve seen are those of towns with herbs available in their near vicinity.


    In the past, there seem to have been a place nearby where the materials for intermediate-grade potions could be harvested from, but as there have been no harvests lately, the ingredients are now being procured from other towns.¡¹


    ¡¸So it got expensive since it costs money to get it from other places, huh.


    Do you know when the price started going up?¡¹


    ¡¸I believe it was about two to three years ago, but I don¡¯t know much about the exact details.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you very much. I¡¯m¡­ going to look around for a bit more.¡¹


    I say my thanks before parting with the shop assistant.


    It looks like I¡¯ve ended up noticing something absolutely troublesome. If only I didn¡¯t notice it, I could¡¯ve gone on without any care in the world. Though, just because I noticed this doesn¡¯t mean that I plan on poking my head into it.


    After all, if we started something here in the royal capital, it¡¯ll definitely be even more troublesome.


    After buying one potion of each grade, I decided to leave the shop.


    ¡ó


    Our next destination is the library. We barely have any time left, but this should be enough time to find out the things I want to know. I¡¯ve already asked for its location back at the shop, so it should be alright.


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    ¡ºSo you bought potions, Ain.¡»


    ¡ºNot buying anything after going to the same shop multiple times seemed, really impolite after all¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s pretty complicated.¡»


    ¡ºI think so too. Still, there¡¯s no downside on having potions on stock.¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯ve heard it earlier, but we¡¯re going to the library next, right?¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯m thinking of doing a quick investigation before we go back to the inn.¡»


    Now, about the library, it¡¯s located quite near the noble¡¯s district.


    In other words, it¡¯s in a considerably safe place where rich people go to.


    Would it be difficult for people without much money to read books then? Thinking of it that way, we might have been lucky to have read books for five years at the mansion.


    As for how the library works, we¡¯ll be asked to pay a deposit of one gold coin and a usage fee of one large silver at entry. The gold coin would then be returned when we leave.


    The books can only be read within the library. To borrow books, it will be necessary to have a special registration and with us having an ambiguous background, we definitely won¡¯t be able to register.


    As I entered the library, seeing the bookshelves full of books reminded me of our days at the mansion.


    Anyways, I caught the librarian and asked for a book about monster stampedes.


    After a few minutes, the librarian gave us a book about the past stampedes that hit the royal capital and a research paper about stampedes. Also, a historical record of some sort.


    Illuminated by the setting sun, I gracefully read by the window side. It¡¯s almost like a scene from a manga or an anime, but there¡¯s no one here I can share this sentiment with.


    It¡¯s quite a shame, especially since someone as beautiful as Ciel is in the spotlight. I¡¯m the one on the inside though.


    Collecting my thoughts, I look over the documents.


    I ignored the more detailed information about things I roughly know, skimmed through some interesting things like the after-effects of a stampede on the ecosystem and just burned all the information I need into my head.


    The years stampedes occurred, the state of affairs during those periods, and lastly, the date of when the royal capital¡¯s last stampede happened.


    I somehow managed to read through all of it before the sun completely set, which I assume is because of how gifted Ciel¡¯s body is.


    After leaving the library, I switched with Ciel and she began walking back to the inn.


    ¡ó


    ¡¸What did you figure out today?¡¹


    As we got back to our room, that was the first thing Ciel asked me about.


    Since I¡¯ve kept quiet about it so far, guess it¡¯s only natural for her to get curious about it. Rather, she might have actually held back on asking all this time.


    ¡ºI think you already saw it earlier, but the last time a stampede hit the royal capital was fifty years ago.


    Before that happened, stampedes of varied scales, both big and small, occurred in an interval of once every ten odd years.¡»


    ¡¸Right.¡¹


    As Ciel immediately figured out the meaning of my words, ¡ºYes.¡» I gave her my affirmation.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s only a possibility, but I¡¯m expecting one to happen within about, maybe a few years from now.


    After all, the potion mark-up happened two to three years ago.¡»


    ¡¸So Ain, what are you planning to do about it?¡¹


    ¡ºNothing at all. I would hate it if we stood out here at the royal capital after all, and if this does happen, its scale would be incomparable to the one back at Sannois.


    More importantly, we probably won¡¯t be here when the stampede actually happens. Though, if you want to do something about it Ciel, then I¡¯ll lend a hand.¡»


    ¡¸Then in that case, why did you look this up, Ain?¡¹


    Rather than her criticising me for not wanting to do anything, Ciel only asked out of pure interest.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s because if by any chance this would occur tomorrow, we would have to make our preparations immediately right now.


    Besides, it would be awful if we head to the north, go to the sea, and then accidentally bump into the stampede on the way back.¡»


    ¡¸I see. Thank you Ain.¡¹


    ¡ºI was just a bit bothered by it, that¡¯s all.¡»


    While we might just have barely enough time, we should be able to reach B-rank before the stampede occurs. After that, what happens to this country is none of my concern.


    Rather, this is the royal capital, so there should be a lot of people here who are stronger than Ciel.


    Anyway, we should head southeast after seeing the ocean and make sure we can cross the kingdom borders as soon as we get to B-rank.


    ¡¸By the way Ain, can I ask something?¡¹


    ¡ºWhat is it?¡»


    ¡¸How will we dry the plants?¡¹


    ¡ºOh right. Pressing them should do well enough, but how about we do it with sorcery instead?¡»


    ¡¸With sorcery? How do we do that?¡¹


    ¡ºAbout that, I already have something in mind, so can I test it for a bit?¡»


    ¡¸Sure, I¡¯m counting on you Ain.¡¹


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    I switched with Ciel and took one of the three-leaved clover-ish things we kept in reserve to test my idea.


    The spell I¡¯ll be using is ¡¸Sharol Calesfi Ougua¡¹, a chant that means something like heat up and evaporate just the moisture to dry this thing.


    It¡¯ll probably end up horribly if used on people, but it won¡¯t have any significant effect with me using it.


    Besides, even if Ciel uses this on a person, it would likely fail.


    This is because casting sorcery inside a living creature¡¯s body is unbelievably difficult.


    Because of this fact, this spell can only be used on inanimate objects.


    In the case of plants, they¡¯re considered non-living once harvested and in the case of monsters and animals, parts separated from the body and carcasses will eventually lose their resistance to the spell and will be affected by it.


    Though in the first place, even if it is possible to use this on living creatures, it¡¯s already pretty difficult to use sorcery in a place that isn¡¯t visible.


    ¡¸Sharol Calesfi Ougua¡¹


    I immediately tried it on the three-leaf clover, but considering how simple it seems, it¡¯s rather tricky.


    It needs precise magic power control and if it¡¯s a moment too late, it might even get burnt.


    Anyhow, the first one somehow turned out to be moderately good in quality.


    ¡¸Well, this definitely isn¡¯t something you¡¯d do with chant sorcery.¡¹


    ¡ºIs it difficult even for you Ain?¡»


    ¡¸I think that it¡¯ll get easier the more I try, but if you want to do it Ciel, it¡¯ll be better if you use a magic circle so you can make more precise adjustments.


    I can imagine it making for a good practice, so it might be good to try it when you have some free time.¡¹


    ¡ºLooking at Ain doing it, it really seems simple though.¡»


    ¡¸I am pretty confident with my ability to control magic power after all.¡¹


    After all, it¡¯s practically all I¡¯ve done in the past. The way I¡¯m using the barrier and detection around the clock hasn¡¯t really changed much since then.


    ¡ºThen I suppose I¡¯ll try drying some of them after dinner.


    Could you do the four-leaved one Ain?¡»


    ¡¸Sure, no problem.¡¹


    After this exchange, I practiced about two to three more times before drying the four-leaf clover.


    I was able to dehydrate it while keeping its vibrant green hue, so I guess I can consider it a success.


    Obviously, it doesn¡¯t have even a single char.


    Later on, Ciel tried drying the remaining three plants we have after finishing dinner, but every single one of them got completely scorched.


    Heya~! More alone time with our two princesses, and more foreshadowing creeping sneakily in the background! Actually, not sneakily anymore! GJ, Ain!


    First of all, Ciel being happy that Ain asked for something is pure. Just, pure. Then Ain big braining the situation while forgetting the fact that she doesn¡¯t have enough information to actually do it is hilarious. ¡°Yes, i have the perfect plan, I¡¯ll compare the prices from here and¡­¡­ Oh.¡± But brilliant job on bluffing it either way. This absolutely reminds me of how I¡¯d go to the kitchen of restaurants with food I like and ask the recipes when I was still young. Now that I look back on it, that was definitely bad for the restaurant, but some still gave me recipes, lol. I guess it¡¯s hard to shoo a child praising good food, lol.


    So yeah, there seems to be some issue with the royal capital somewhere in the dark. Increased monster sightings, overgrown herbs, priced up potions, and the unnatural appearance of forest wolves, usually thriving in forest biomes, in plains. Hmmm¡­ And Ain noticed this all because of our beloved merchant couple. Lol. Mostly the wolf part, but I digress.


    But yeah, that¡¯s a pretty big issue in of itself, the potion thing. It¡¯s basically a hunter¡¯s lifeline amd maybe even an alchemist¡¯s monopoly. There might be something a brewin¡¯ in the background for *intermediate-grade potion materials* to be ignored. In context, most low-ranked herb quests are only for herbs to be used for making salves or for hands on lecture. *This* is intermediate level potions. And it¡¯s been there for a while. That¡¯s pretty big if you ask me. While hunters may have no knowledge or care about mere herbs once they leave the odd jobs and herb collection rank, the Guild (aka the managment) should have taken notice of this. And in my opinion, that¡¯s exactly why the previous receptionist tried to stop our princesses from leaving and why escort requests are ¡°coincidentally¡± reserved, it¡¯s because a certain adorable hunter willingly does herb collection.


    Anyways, this is just my opinion, wasting brainpower for these sorts of things is fun. Ehe.

 CH 51

    I generally want Ciel to be primarily in control, but an exception to this is when I proactively take the control for info gathering in the pub.


    Since drunk people are loose with their lips, making it easy to gather information, going to the pub saves us a lot of time as a result.


    Still, underaged minors are disliked in the pub. It seems like people that don¡¯t drink are considered killjoys when going to a place that¡¯s mainly for having alcohol.


    From the pub¡¯s side, they generally don¡¯t see customers abstaining from alcohol as well.


    Because of that, I¡¯m mainly performing to entertain the people coming here to drink for the benefit of the pub while also taking the opportunity to then get information.


    I¡¯ve lined up my logic and reasoning, but this is all an excuse for me to sing in public, that¡¯s all.


    Just to make sure, I¡¯m also trying to mislead people into a She¡¯s singing in the pub, then she has a song related Job, she might be a Song Princess line of thought, so me taking control is reasonably convenient.


    If we wanted to, even Ciel¡¯s dance should be able to make us money, but dancing in a pub makes it seem like we¡¯re doing that sort of business; and more importantly, if we do something that could relate us to a Dance Princess, we might invite some trouble from Duke Rispelgia.


    Other than that, our choice for info gathering is the Hunter Guild¡¯s Authorized Pub.


    The reason for this is simple, considering that hunters gather there, it¡¯s protected quite highly.


    I¡¯ve already done this many times before arriving here in the capital, so I¡¯m quite used to performing at the pub.


    I completely ignore the stares and vulgar jeering, put one glass¡¯ worth of alcohol at the counter, and begin the negotiation for the permission to sing and gather info.


    My conditions are that I¡¯ll pay the pub half of what I earn in exchange for this and that I¡¯ll end at one song if it¡¯s not well received.


    One song takes nothing but a few minutes and I¡¯ve already paid one glass¡¯ worth of money, so maybe because there isn¡¯t much demerit for the shopkeeper, everyone generally agrees to these conditions.


    Since I¡¯ve successfully received the shopkeeper¡¯s approval this time as well, I was allowed to sing by the side of the counter.


    I brought along a basket for receiving coins and asked it to be placed at the edge of the counter.


    I¡¯m somewhat reminded of empty cans in this situation which makes me recall the time when I ended up muttering about it, causing the problematic happening of Ciel asking me what an empty can is.


    While feeling completely unwelcomed from the weird stares, I took a deep breath and began to sing.


    ¡ó


    I ended with a total of five songs. Even after this, I still don¡¯t feel like I¡¯ve sung enough but if I continue on singing until I¡¯m satisfied, I might just go on for about half a day, so I stopped here. This time, I finished while surrounded with applause, so I¡¯ll consider it a success.


    As usual, it was absolutely fun.


    Since it¡¯s still daytime, the people in the pub right now generally have a lot of money, so we earned quite a lot.


    I handed over half of it to the pub as promised and used the remaining half for the sake of info gathering.


    Now that I have obtained the freedom to gather information in the pub, ¡¸Are there anyone here who knows something about the forest wolves?¡¹ I called out to the people.


    In doing this, veteran hunters, mainly 30 years old and above, usually approach us.


    Yup. It seems like when there¡¯s a little girl around the age of their own child, people tend to awaken the willingness to teach.


    With that in consideration, being women and children have quite the advantage. Let¡¯s put this to good use in the future, as long as it doesn¡¯t bother Ciel.


    But in exchange, women and children face plenty of danger as well, so in my opinion, this advantage results in more of a negative in this world. Our lives are at a great risk after all.


    Back to the main topic.


    Usually, hunters that could be as old as Ciel¡¯s parents and above come to talk to us, but today people younger than usual approached us instead.


    Just as I thought that they looked somewhat familiar, they are undoubtedly the people who stood in front of the request board when we accepted a request before.


    ¡¸So you come to the pub too, eh?¡¹


    ¡¸Hunters gather their own information after all, so isn¡¯t this a normal thing to do?¡¹


    As I replied so with a defensive tone, the swordsman-like man replied, ¡¸True.¡¹ as he laughed.


    After that, the five of us, which included his party members, occupied a table.


    Each of them are drinking their own alcoholic drinks, but I¡¯m having nothing but a glass of water.


    ¡¸First, I¡¯ll introduce myself. My name is Chasse. Despite how I look, I¡¯m the leader of the B-rank party ¡ºFool¡¯s Gathering¡».¡¹


    ¡¸That party name is pretty amazing.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s because all of us are stubbornly focused on a single thing. Thanks to this, we were pretty stumped at first, since none of us had common sense.¡¹


    In nicer terms, they¡¯re a group of hard workers.


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    The part about having no common sense makes me feel somewhat sympathetic towards them.


    Since they¡¯re a B-rank party, that means that together as a party, they have the capability to become B-rank.


    Even if the individual members are C-rank hunters, being recognised as a B-rank party means that they are permitted to accept B-rank requests.


    Only permanent parties can be acknowledged as one and there should be some other more detailed regulations for it, but since it¡¯s irrelevant to us, I don¡¯t remember any of it.


    ¡¸I¡¯m Lucie, nice meeting you.¡¹


    ¡¸Aroldo.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m Viviana.¡¹


    The lady carrying a spear, the man with a shield, and the lady that looked like a mage introduced themselves.


    For some reason, since the turn of events makes me feel like I have to do so as well, I introduced myself, though I hesitated for a bit.


    ¡¸I believe you already know, but my name is Cielmer.


    When referring to me by name, please call me Cielmer.¡¹


    ¡¸Ciel¨Cchan**, then.¡¹


    ¡¸Please call me Cielmer.¡¹


    ¡¸Got it, Cielmer-chan**.¡¹


    Since Lucie-san isn¡¯t calling me by Cielmer, I repeated my words with a great big smile. Lucie-san then agreed with a cramped smile on her face.


    While I don¡¯t particularly mind if she uses ¡°Ciel¡± instead, this is Ciel¡¯s own preference, so I don¡¯t have any plans of commenting on this.


    As for the reason for this, it¡¯s probably just because she simply doesn¡¯t want random people to call her by her nickname. While that¡¯s what I want to think anyway, I can¡¯t help but somehow feel that Ciel is set on letting only me call her by that.


    While I¡¯m happy that she opened her heart to me to that extent, Ciel opening up to nobody else but me might become an issue.


    Though with that said, I don¡¯t have any intention of making close relationships within Estock Kingdom.


    When we escape the kingdom in the future and Ciel makes a friend somewhere, I wonder if she would allow that person to call her by ¡°Ciel¡±?


    Would it be best if we think of another nickname other than Ciel then?


    ¡¸You give a really different feel compared to when we first met. It¡¯s like you¡¯re a different person.¡¹


    ¡¸This is just how I talk when I¡¯m gathering information.¡¹


    Concerning this question Chasse-san just asked me, it¡¯s a question we¡¯ve already expected.


    Previously, I also considered acting to match how Ciel talks, but since I couldn¡¯t get rid of the feeling that something¡¯s out of place, and also since I¡¯m not really dexterous enough to do that, we scrapped that idea. Also, this is something that Ciel is aware of herself but her usual way of talking would make info gathering a bother to do.


    With those reasons, since this speech pattern problem is going to follow us everywhere, we¡¯ve already thought of a few explanations. They won¡¯t believe us if we say the truth anyway and talking about it could even link us to the Rispeliga household, so we¡¯re definitely not sharing this while we¡¯re within the kingdom.


    ¡¸Wouldn¡¯t you be more well received if you always talk like this?¡¹


    ¡¸No matter how I talk, I¡¯m going to get hound on as long as I keep working as a hunter, so talking politely when it¡¯s not necessary is bothersome. As for my reception, it¡¯ll get better on its own as I finish the unaccepted requests.¡¹


    ¡¸I see.¡¹


    If they¡¯re convinced, then all is good.


    While they probably won¡¯t figure out that it¡¯s a lie anyway, if they ask too many questions, I will be troubled on how to answer them.


    Perhaps due to Chasse-san and I talking about something unrelated to our original topic, Lucie-san, seemingly tired of our conversation, said ¡¸So you want to learn about the forest wolves, right Cielmer-chan?¡¹ and butt into the conversation.


    Absolutely grateful for this. I pretend to have forgotten about it and got back to the main issue.


    ¡¸Oh, that¡¯s right. I¡¯m thinking of heading north after leaving the capital, so if you have any information, I¡¯d like to hear about it.


    The forest wolves are strays that came from the north, right?¡¹


    ¡¸If I¡¯m not mistaken, the reason is unknown, but I hear that there¡¯s been nothing but wolves popping up for the past year.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that different from a monster stampede?¡¹


    ¡¸If this was a stampede, then there should be more of them coming at a larger scale.


    Still, I wouldn¡¯t recommend leaving for north, but¡­¡­¡¹


    Chasse-san stares at me as though to ask, so I guess he¡¯s finding it difficult to measure my strength.


    He¡¯s aware that I¡¯m C-rank after all and he might actually even know that we¡¯ve quelled a stampede before.


    ¡¸If it¡¯s only forest wolves, then I won¡¯t die even if there¡¯s a thousand of them.¡¹


    ¡¸I knew it, the rumors really were true.¡¹


    ¡¸You also said it previously at the guild, but what exactly are the rumors?¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s one that says a white-haired girl resolved a stampede by herself, or that she had a draw with the ice witch and so on.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s best if you don¡¯t refer Carol-san as the ice witch, you know?¡¹


    While she probably wouldn¡¯t get mad, I imagine that she¡¯ll definitely hate it.


    And while I didn¡¯t verify the rumors, I haven¡¯t denied them, so he should be able to read between the lines.


    ¡¸Understood. If you¡¯re strong enough to handle a pack of forest wolves, then there shouldn¡¯t be any problems with going north.¡¹


    ¡¸I see, thank you very much.¡¹


    ¡¸Speaking of the wolf outbreak, it brings that to mind. The divine messengers.¡¹


    ¡¸The divine messengers?¡¹


    As Viviana-san abruptly muttered something interesting, I reflexively repeated her words.


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    ¡¸Back in the past when the gods interacted with the people often, it¡¯s said that there were several animals that acted as their messengers.


    Among them was also the wolf. That¡¯s why there are also studies saying that the wolf was once worshipped as a god before this country existed the way as it does now. ¡¹


    ¡¸But wolves are monsters, right?¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s also a theory that says that after finishing its duty as a divine messenger, they were then tainted by malice and transformed into monsters.


    But in the wolf¡¯s case, the prominent theory is that due to them being fleet-footed and arriving first when a stampede would occur, they might have been recognised as creatures that informed about stampedes, so in other words, as a divine messenger.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you very much. Would you mind if I ask about some other things?


    ¡¸You¡¯re welcome. You all wouldn¡¯t mind it, right?¡¹


    Seeing the others nod at Viviana-san after she shot a quick glance at them, I ordered another serving of alcohol for the four of them.


    The members of the Fool¡¯s Gathering had an awkward look on their faces as they received their refill, but I suppose since they knew that I¡¯m at C-rank, they eventually began to enjoy their drinks.


    ¡¸Being alone, I really want a magic bag, but is there any way of getting one?¡¹


    ¡¸Getting magic bags are, to be honest, a matter of luck. They say that those at A-rank and above would generally have at least one magic bag per party, more or less one, while about half of those at B-rank own one.


    But I also heard a rumor that one particularly unlucky S-ranked hunter still hasn¡¯t gotten a magic bag to this very day.


    The only advice I can give is to make sure that you have enough coins saved so you can buy one if you happen upon it.¡¹


    This time, Lucie-san followed up.


    We already have our own magic bag as well, but I guess we were lucky then.


    Just when I thought of giving up on it, Aroldo-san seems to have recalled something.


    ¡¸Come to think of it, the guild has one large one.¡¹


    ¡¸They do, they do. The ones they loan out to hunters they have full trust in.


    If I remember correctly, the magic bag kept in the guild here in the capital is the largest one among all the Hunter Guilds within the kingdom.¡¹


    ¡¸That one rumored to fit a whole mountain in it, right? The one they never lend out since it¡¯ll be used when they hunt a dragon or something. Even the second largest one is enough, but I¡¯d really love a big one.¡¹


    ¡¸The one we have is by no means big after all.¡¹


    ¡¸I know right? In the first place, there¡¯s no way that a dragon would pop up around these parts anyway.¡¹


    Hearing Aroldo-san¡¯s words, Chasse-san, Lucie-san, and Viviana-san responded one after the other.


    The guild¡¯s magic bag, huh. It¡¯s not really something we can get if we asked anyway, either way, it might be best to forget about it.


    At worst, it¡¯ll be a relief if there¡¯s one even just barely big enough to fit the luggage we need for travelling though.


    ¡¸Come to think of it, what kind of person is the guild master here in the capital?¡¹


    Since we got into a topic about the guild, I took the opportunity to ask about it.


    As the forest we harvested the herbs from was left unchecked, this means that the guild likely doesn¡¯t put a high level of importance to the place, but it didn¡¯t seem to me that it was treated that way in the past.


    That¡¯s why, instead of asking about the guild master, I actually wanted to ask if there was a change in the guild¡¯s general policy, but suddenly asking that might sound suspicious.


    If I learn what sort of person the guild master is, I might be able to figure out the guild master¡¯s motives.


    ¡¸He¡¯s a guy that properly assesses people regardless if they have Disappointing Jobs, I guess.


    Though with that said, it¡¯s standard practice for hunters to keep their Jobs hidden, so he mainly made this a more thorough practice.


    It¡¯s been more than five years since the guild master got into his current position, but I¡¯ve never heard of anyone forcing out another person¡¯s Job ever since.¡¹


    ¡¸Chasse-san, what¡¯s your opinion of the guild master?¡¹


    ¡¸For personal reasons, I¡¯m rooting for him. But lately, he¡¯s gotten a bit, too carried away and it¡¯s scary.


    He¡¯s favouring the Disappointing Jobs too much and he¡¯s been getting more strict with the people with Combat Jobs. I¡¯m worried that he¡¯ll have some harsh backlash coming to him in the future.¡¹


    While it hasn¡¯t been very recent since the guild master was changed, it was five years ago.


    He put effort in fighting against the contempt towards Disappointing Jobs.


    This means that there could be a possibility that he hasn¡¯t taken a look on things other than that.


    ¡¸I see, thank you very much.¡¹


    ¡¸You have our thanks as well. It helped us kill some time.¡¹


    Parting with the Fool¡¯s Gathering, I greeted the shopkeeper before leaving the pub.


    Since we have nothing left to do for today, I was thinking of returning to the inn for now, but as I was walking through the street, I noticed that someone seemed to be following us.


    I¡¯ve only walked a straight path ever since we left the pub, so it might be just a coincidence, but considering that the person is walking nearly the same speed as I am, and I¡¯m by no means fast, while maintaining a distance from us, the person is most likely stalking us.


    ¡ºWe seem to be stalked, so I¡¯ll be walking aimlessly around the capital just to make sure.¡»


    ¡ºIf they really are stalking us, then what should we do?¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯ll try walking for a while and if they continue following us even then, I¡¯ll ponder about it.


    In the meantime, how about we have a little chat?¡»


    ¡ºNow that¡¯s something enjoyable. So, are we going to talk about when we¡¯ll report the possibility of a stampede happening in the capital?¡»


    ¡ºRight, exactly that.¡»


    Without even a trace of anxiousness in my tone, I began chatting with Ciel.


    Heya~! Ain having fun in the pub as usual, and our previously hinted new characters have come out to introduce themselves~! Still, B-rank Party, eh? It¡¯s nice that they got party ranks for the normal, non-overpowered peeps though, lol.


    Anyway, more worldbuilding~! And also some snippets of info about Ain and Ciel¡¯s undisplayed discussions. But yeah, Ciel dancing in the pub is really, really bad. Ain talking about how the veterans enter *Parent Mode*, lol. Still, there wasn¡¯t much Ciel screen-time today, but yeah her presence can be felt as usual.


    Now, for the world building and the new characters. First, Chasse is pronounced as, well, Shass and may refer to la chasse, meaning hunting (or the hunt), or maybe the chasseur, hunter¡¯s sauce. Basically, hunt? but I¡¯m not French, so yeah. Next, Fool¡¯s Gathering, lol. It was nice to see that, yes, it¡¯s not just the main character that doesn¡¯t have common sense. There are many characters in fiction that don¡¯t have common sense, but it¡¯s rare for isekai fantasy to have other people actually say that they don¡¯t have common sense unless the said character is the mc. Anyway, the one I love most here is the mentioning of *studies* and *research* about stuff, in this case, the history and possible origins of the divine messengers. It just tickles that mage = scholarly (and nerdy) spot.


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    Isekai fantasy tends to not lean too much on how scholarly they are, maybe because they¡¯d overshadow the now common intelligent (or rather, ¡°I have past life knowledge and educational smarts¡±) protagonists and just leave them to the exposition role, but in cases like these, just from the fact that they ¡°researched¡± and only have ¡°assumptions¡± of what and why this current topic is, we get the information that, yes, there was culture before the kingdom was founded and the records are hazy as they usually are. I don¡¯t know, it¡¯s just so nice to see the fact that it¡¯s hard to have solid, explainable absolute histories, heck, we don¡¯t even know why some animals are named the way they are, and we don¡¯t even know many stories about the goddess Hestia. But yeah, I just love this little thing to bits. Btw, Guild Master is looking a bit sus, don¡¯cha think?


    Also, random thing, but that unlucky S-rank hunter that still doesn¡¯t have a magic bag though¡­ Oof, that¡¯s rough, buddy.

 CH 52

    ¡ºIt seems that the forest was abandoned after the change to the current Guild Master.


    Assuming that the forest changed two to three years ago, it¡¯s likely that the forest wasn¡¯t ignored immediately after the guild master got into position, but rather was gradually neglected instead.¡»


    ¡ºBut, if the place where the potion ingredients were harvested is nearby, it should be that forest, right? They¡¯d neglect that?¡»


    While sensing that the stalker is following close behind, I began talking to Ciel.


    This isn¡¯t really a topic to discuss while being chased by a stalker, but it¡¯s also not a topic I¡¯d particularly reserve until we get back to the inn, so I decided to continue talking regardless.


    ¡ºWhile we don¡¯t know how it was in the past, they don¡¯t seem to be worried about the shortage right now, so it¡¯s probably not a priority for them. While I do think that neglecting the forest is a problem for the country, whether this is the kingdom¡¯s fault or the Hunter Guild¡¯s fault, I can¡¯t tell for sure.¡»


    ¡ºReacting only after something happens would already be too late in my opinion.¡»


    ¡ºWhile we could say that from an outsider¡¯s perspective, since organisations have their own agendas, everything doesn¡¯t always go too smoothly.¡»


    Even from a historical standpoint, things straying off course due to politics isn¡¯t particularly unusual to see.


    And while I¡¯m not sure if the same applies to this world, I at least think that this kingdom doesn¡¯t have a good risk management system.


    Is it that they can¡¯t mobilise unless something has already occurred? Or is that even if they have noticed something¡¯s about to happen, they¡¯re too busy passing the blame around to make any progress?


    ¡ºIn that case, I don¡¯t want to be in an organisation.


    After all, I don¡¯t want to think of anything else other than you and me, Ain. I suppose I should quit being a hunter too.¡»


    Ciel said so with a joking giggle, but I also wouldn¡¯t mind if we quit the hunter gig after we escape from Estock Kingdom.


    Though we currently don¡¯t really have any reason to quit in particular, so we¡¯ll probably continue on until we do find one.


    ¡ºLet¡¯s do that at least after we have already left the country.


    Back to our topic, considering the royal capital, it would be better to report the information about the stampede sometime soon.¡»


    ¡ºThey¡¯ll need time to prepare after all.¡»


    ¡ºSince there¡¯s still a very slim chance that we might be affected by the stampede, informing the guild about it should prevent us future troubles.¡»


    ¡ºStill, you don¡¯t want to tell them about it, right?¡»


    ¡ºNot really, I think that it¡¯ll be better to inform the guild eventually.


    However, passing the information just before we leave the royal capital should be our best option. Having a letter or something delivered for us seems like less trouble.¡»


    ¡ºIf we say ¡¸A stampede might happen.¡¹ or something, we¡¯d just stand out after all.


    Rather, they might not even take it seriously.¡»


    Sadly, as Ciel said, a 12-year-old girl¡¯s words would be quite hard for people to believe in.


    There are lots of people that quickly change their attitude once they learn that we¡¯re a C-rank Hunter, but convincing people that we really are C-rank would take time and effort as well. At worst, it¡¯s going to be a match spree all over again.


    Rather than going through that kind of trouble, just silently going away is a lot better.


    And since this might backfire this time, we could choose to inform them by letter in the worst case. It¡¯s the Compassion is not for the good of others thing. Well, maybe in some sense.


    Also, there¡¯s one more reason why I don¡¯t intend to give the information until the very last moment.


    ¡ºThat¡¯s a fair point as well. Also, I want to keep it as a trump card against the guild.¡»


    ¡ºTrump card? What does that mean?¡»


    ¡ºIn simple terms, blackmail material.


    After all, the possibility of a stampede happening should be the responsibility of the guild master for neglecting the forest, likely to no small degree.¡»


    If we don¡¯t need to use it, then it¡¯ll be better that way. However, while we¡¯re in the capital, there¡¯s still a chance of having friction with the Hunter Guild.


    While it would be for the best if things don¡¯t reach that point, there¡¯s also no particular reason for us to waste this advantage.


    ¡ºBy the way, how¡¯s our pursuer?¡»


    ¡ºStill keeping a moderate distance. Even after we showed an intentional opening, it¡¯s as if he doesn¡¯t plan on making further contact, it¡¯s fairly eerie.¡»


    ¡ºSo it¡¯s confirmed that he¡¯s following us then?¡»


    ¡ºYes. Considering that, I think we should try heading to the guild since I¡¯d hate it if our inn was discovered.¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯ll be awkward to enter for non-hunter people after all.¡»


    ¡ºBesides that, if there are other hunters around, I imagine that we¡¯ll almost definitely get hounded on, and if that happens, it should cause some sort of stir to our current deadlock.


    I don¡¯t know if he¡¯ll pick a fight or just casually approach us though.¡»


    While I¡¯m still very conflicted on why we have to go through this much effort, our inn is going to be exposed if we don¡¯t do anything, and we won¡¯t be able to relax at night.


    If the stalker doesn¡¯t come before us even after we go to the guild, I might have to ask Ciel to directly confront him.


    ¡ºIf that¡¯s how it is, then should I switch from the get go?¡»


    ¡ºConsidering that we¡¯ll likely get hound on, that¡¯s a safer choice. I¡¯ll entrust this to you.¡»


    ¡ºSure, leave it to me. I¡¯ll show you what I can do.¡»


    While feeling a tinge of unease after seeing Ciel unusually hyped up, I still decided to entrust this matter to Ciel since we have no other options left.


    ¡ó


    We arrived before the Hunter Guild.


    To make sure somebody would pester us this time, we intentionally arrived at a time with so-so hunter traffic. Still, even while we were killing time, the stalker didn¡¯t leave us at all.


    Really, what does he want? At this point, I¡¯d be relieved if he just attacks us.


    And so, since there was no change at all, Ciel switched with me and headed to the Hunter Guild¡¯s building entrance.


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    She opened the wooden outswing door and went inside. In inns and some other places, the doors would open inwards.


    I heard that the reason why most Hunter Guilds have outswing doors is that inswing doors by themselves cause troubles to increase.


    It goes something like: A newbie would enthusiastically open the door, which then hits some ruffian of a hunter.


    We¡¯ve never hit anyone when we open the doors but even so, just entering lands us the stares of many people.


    Like the stalking, isn¡¯t this something people could call the police for in my past life?


    Though if this was like my past life, that would mean that I won¡¯t be able to use our quick hunter-oriented problem solving method since I vaguely remember there to be laws against duels as well.


    After entering the building, Ciel heads to the C-rank request board for no particular reason.


    This is probably, like, a habit by now. Being a hunter, one looks at the request board when going inside the guild.


    ¡¸Oi, missy.¡¹


    That¡¯s only in the case of people that look appropriate for their rank, however.


    Having someone immediately call us out was, for this time, quite lucky so to speak.


    As the voice came from a man with ragged clothes, unkempt hair, a contemptuous vulgar look that makes it hard to figure out that¡¯s just his face being ugly to begin with or not, and a repulsive gaze; I can¡¯t really call this lucky though.


    Ignoring the man¡¯s voice, Ciel asked me a question.


    ¡ºHas the person in question entered the guild?¡»


    ¡ºHe did. Since that didn¡¯t cause any commotion, he¡¯s probably related to the guild.¡»


    ¡ºWhere is he now?¡»


    ¡ºAround the entrance.¡»


    As Ciel glanced at the entrance, a thin young man was staring at us from there.


    While I can say the same for us, he doesn¡¯t look like a hunter at all.


    Since he was following us ever since we left the authorized pub, I suspected that he might be a guild member but¡­.. If not that then, he might be a staff personnel. He¡¯s not wearing a uniform though.


    ¡¸Missy, what do you think you¡¯re ignoring me for, eh?¡¹


    ¡¸What?¡¹


    As the guy who approached us said so with an irritated tone, Ciel answered with a short reply.


    Seemingly back into groove after getting a reaction from us, the man returned to his previous condescending tone.


    ¡¸This isn¡¯t a playground. Scram.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m a hunter. Mind your own business.¡¹


    ¡¸Then you¡¯d be over at the low-rank area, right?


    You don¡¯t even know that? Then I won¡¯t mind guiding you closely by hand, feet, and hip, you know?¡¹


    The person accompanying him mockingly say ¡¸You¡¯d settle with that runt?¡¹ and so on, but the man replied ¡¸I¡¯m going to raise her while she¡¯s young!¡¹ defensively.


    It seems like a discussion is about to start, but as we don¡¯t have any reason to wait for that, Ciel cuts into their exchange and shows her card.


    ¡¸I¡¯m a C-rank hunter. I fit here.¡¹


    ¡¸You, C-rank? The card looks authentic but falsifying cards will get you a permanent expulsion, so you better cut that out.¡¹


    The man laughs loudly, and the people with him do so as well.


    ¡¸It is real, but it¡¯s not like you¡¯d believe it anyway.¡¹


    In the same tone she uses when talking to me, Ciel muttered so. She seems to be quite dumbfounded, or rather fed up of this already.


    Seemingly overhearing this, the man¡¯s eye shone with a hint of intelligence.


    It looks like he¡¯s thought of some worthless idea, but I unfortunately can¡¯t read his mind.


    ¡¸If you¡¯re C-rank at that age, then you have a pretty good Job, don¡¯t you? Say it.


    I¡¯ll take your word for it then.¡¹


    It seems that his goodness is of a different definition to mine.


    As the man grins as he intentionally blocks Ciel¡¯s way, we¡¯re at a point where it¡¯s now acceptable to get rid of him in a hunter-like fashion.


    However, I¡¯m waiting for the stalker to make his move this time. Also, Ciel seems to be pondering on what to do as well.


    Just when I began to doubt the chances of anything happening, a voice saying


    ¡¸Miss Song Princess.¡¹ came from behind us.


    Looking at the origin of the voice, it was the stalker as expected. Still, this development was definitely far from what I was expecting.


    Ciel¡¯s Job isn¡¯t Song Princess, but there¡¯s absolutely no issue with people having that misunderstanding.


    However, having someone¡¯s Job exposed in a situation where there¡¯s an innumerable number of people, like now, can be fatal to a hunter¡¯s career.


    Especially when it¡¯s a ¡°Song Princess¡±. In that case, there¡¯s a risk of this being fatal for that person¡¯s life as well.


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    After all, while we weren¡¯t there when it happened, we were almost lynched at the town of Sannois just for being accused of being a Song Princess.


    ¡¸What¡¯s that?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s your Job, miss.¡¹


    The stalker seems to have some sort of conviction behind his words, he¡¯s not backing down.


    Then the reason he was following us might be because he thought of getting rid of us after identifying that I was a Song Princess. But considering that, he should have had many other chances to do so.


    Leaving that aside, like fishes thrown back into the water, the stalker¡¯s words ended up energizing the pestering hunters.


    The man¡¯s voice was loud to begin with, but this time he spoke louder so that everybody in the guild can hear.


    ¡¸You heard that? A C-rank hunter with the Job of Song Princess, she says!


    Don¡¯t even mention C-rank, she probably can¡¯t even do G-rank requests properly!¡¹


    As though to answer the man, snickering echoed from around us.


    However, the reactions of other people are pretty varied, from those that agree with the man¡¯s words, those that show scorn towards the man, and those that continue on without concerning themselves with what¡¯s happening. A staff personnel went to the back of the guild as well, probably to call the guild master or something.


    I could¡¯ve sworn that I heard of the capital¡¯s guild being also kind to disappointing Jobs as well, but this man is awfully loud considering that.


    I guess Song Princesses are an exception to that, huh. A Song Princess was the cause of the capital¡¯s ruin in the past after all, so it shouldn¡¯t be unusual that there¡¯s a different level of hate for them. Still, the original reason why that even happened was exactly because there was discrimination against Song Princesses in the first place.


    The man hounding on us gleefully talked to us once again.


    ¡¸Oi, missy. Messing with us earlier, eh?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ve said nothing but the truth.¡¹


    ¡¸Don¡¯t you play around with me brat.¡¹


    I can¡¯t tell if he was just acting or if he was actually angry, but the man suddenly came to grab us. However, Ciel dodged with a light step, and, to top it off, kicked his leg as he passed by her.


    Losing his balance, the man made a loud noise as he fell to the ground, and as that happened, Ciel drew the knife hanging on her waist and held it against the man¡¯s neck.


    Come on, losing to Ciel who wasn¡¯t even using sorcery. There¡¯s a limit to how much someone should let his guard down.


    ¡¸Then you, who lost to a G-rank, is weaker than a normal person.¡¹


    ¡¸With how weak you are, what are you being cocky a-¡­¡­ GyAaaAa!?¡¹


    As the man attempted to power his way out of the situation, Ciel slashed at his arm. With her strength, it¡¯s impossible for Ciel to hold the man down in the first place, so this was a natural course of action.


    The arm seemed to be his dominant one, which I don¡¯t know if it was an intentional choice or not, so this should decrease his combat capabilities to a great extent.


    As the man squirmed and yelled from having his arm cut, Ciel looked at him with an icy stare. Still, I guess that¡¯s only natural since he¡¯s crying so much just from that little cut. After all, Ciel has endured through more terrible wounds compared to this.


    However, letting him bleed out like that would probably be bad. Just when I thought that, ¡¸Oi, Valbar.¡¹ a man who seems to be his companion approached and kneeled beside the wailing man.


    It would¡¯ve been great if he just tended to Valbar¡¯s wounds, but for some reason ¡¸You brat!¡¹ he shot a glare at Ciel.


    Ciel wouldn¡¯t even flinch from that at this point, so she simply chucked the knife to the kneeling man in reply.


    The knife brushed against the man¡¯s hair, and bounced off the ground as it landed.


    This should be the end of Ciel¡¯s role. After all, after going to this extent, anybody should be willing to listen to what we say.


    With that said, ¡ºPlease switch with me.¡» I asked Ciel and switched with her.


    I don¡¯t know where I should go from here on, but I suppose we can ignore the hunters engraved with fear for now.


    I glared at the stalker who just went silent after making the situation worse. The sin of standing silent after exposing Ciel to danger is extremely heavy. Also, the exposure of an individual¡¯s Job is normally a subject for punishment.


    If he only attacked together with the Valbar, Ciel would have beaten him up and that would have made me feel somewhat better, but instead, this man quietly remained inside his safety zone.


    I¡¯ll make sure to at least have a word with him¡­ is what I thought, but the staff personnel who went somewhere returned with a middle-aged man in tow.


    The grizzled man, while not to the same extent as a hunter¡¯s, had great strength behind his eyes.


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    ¡¸Oi, Valbar. You, what trouble did you cause this ti¡­¡­ Heck, what just happened here¡­¡­¡¹


    The seemingly dignified man was left speechless as he was faced with a girl not even of mature age standing before a man wailing as he¡¯s drenched in blood, another man next to him sitting blankly on the floor, and another different man cowering in fear as he¡¯s being stared by the said girl.


    Heya~! AinCiel is trouble!? And ruffians¡­ That were shot immediately as they inflated their ego powered hot-air balloon. What now, stupid stalker? What¡¯s your next plan, fool?


    Back to our princesses, Ciel is sharp and swift as cold steel this time around. And Ain, lol, pretty angry with the stalker of his Ciel endangerment. I¡¯d say, the fool probably isn¡¯t a part of the people that have heard of *the rumors*, so he¡¯s definitely not a hunter, and if he is, definitely not a competent one.


    Speaking of competent hunters, another example of one, is the fool writhing on a pool of his own blood. Oh, did I say competent? I mean incompetent. At the very least, this fool didn¡¯t go strong until he was sure that Ciel was a hunter. Actually intelligent of him, to be honest. Only slightly though, as his self-inflated ego made him crash horribly into self-destruction, lol. Still, actually quite cunning of a ruffian, only he wasn¡¯t cunning enough to know when to back down and be satisfied with his bullying. Still, the guy that mocked Valbar for *settling with a runt*, lol. You should really reflect on yourself if one of the boys is criticizing your actions, man. Ya lucky we can¡¯t sic Chris Hansen against ya.


    And now, the enigmatic Guild Master has appeared. Completely dumbfounded by the situation, lol.

 CH 53

    ¡¸Someone, explain this to me.¡¹


    The middle-aged man that arrived asked not us, the concerned party, but the witnesses around us for what just happened.


    And in the middle of the sudden silence, one man said ¡¸Let me do the explaining, guild master.¡¹ and raised his hand.


    ¡¸Oi, Chasse. If you were here this whole time, you should¡¯ve stopped it before things ended up like this.¡¹


    The guild master stared at Chasse-san with disbelief.


    Yup, I knew he was there. While I would¡¯ve preferred if he had helped us before things escalated to this point; in the end, our relationship is only that of acquaintances that had a short chat at a pub.


    We¡¯re not close enough to be asking for his help after all, and if he did save us over such a shallow connection, we¡¯d feel somewhat uncomfortable instead.


    Chasse-san ignored the guild master this time, ¡¸Cielmer, short time no see.¡¹ and lightly waved his hand.


    ¡¸Thank you for going out of your way to do this.¡¹


    ¡¸As I thought, you noticed that I was here, huh.¡¹


    ¡¸Though, I have no idea why you were here. You were drinking at the pub just a few moments ago, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Well not exactly a few moments ago, but this is this and that is that. We, the Fool¡¯s Gathering, are generally in the guild most of the time.¡¹


    So that¡¯s why they were there when we first came here to look at requests. They might be in a position that¡¯s similar to Carol-san¡¯s. Maybe it¡¯s precisely because they¡¯re a B-Rank party that they stay here in case something unexpected happens. As Chasse-san and I were having a leisurely chat, the guild master cut into our conversation ¡¸Chasse, do you know this girl?¡¹ as he seemingly lost his patience.


    ¡¸We¡¯ve chatted at the pub. She seems to be pretty popular, so I had some unexpected difficulties coming here after she left the pub.


    More importantly, guild master. You better brace yourself. This girl is pretty clever, you see?


    If you treat her just by her appearance, you¡¯re set to have a bad time.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that supposed to be a compliment?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s a compliment, really. In my personal opinion, you¡¯re a hunter worth giving attention to, and the hunters in the pub would probably have the same sentiments as well.


    Yet, despite that¡­¡­¡¹


    The once affable talker Chasse-san then scowled at the stalker.


    His gaze seems to have a mix of bloodlust as well, as the already pale-faced stalker is now trembling on his feet.


    Seemingly realising something, the guild master turns his eyes to the stalker and says ¡¸Tolt¡­¡­ you¡¯re a part of this too?¡­¡­.¡¹ with a distant gaze.


    After that, Valbar and his cohorts were sent to the sickbay, and we, Chasse-san, the guild master, and the stalker (Tolt) headed to the inner depths of the guild building.


    ¡ó


    ¡¸Let¡¯s start at the very beginning, shall we?


    And Cielmer, I know you have something to say yourself, but would you mind staying silent unless I¡¯ve said something wrong?¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. The concerned party¡¯s viewpoint could have some subjectivity after all. As long as Chasse-san doesn¡¯t put me in an unusually disadvantaged position, I¡¯ll stay quiet.¡¹


    ¡¸Sure. Let¡¯s do this.¡¹


    We were brought to what seems like a reception room.


    It¡¯s a more modest place than that of the underground¡¯s Faneed met us at. There are two large sofas facing each other with a matching table in between them.


    Chasse-san and I sat on the one near the entrance, while the guild master and Tolt sat on the opposite side.


    Chasse-san has a completely different tone when he¡¯s talking to the guild master compared to when he talked to me.


    When he¡¯s dealing with the guild master, he sounds somewhat hostile, I think.


    ¡¸The start of it all wasn¡¯t anything particularly special. Valbar noticed Cielmer and bumped into her.


    I didn¡¯t hear the reason for this, but it was probably because of how she looked.


    This was a conflict between hunters, so we had no reason to intervene unless things went too far, and since Cielmer was the stronger one, Valbar and his cohorts got the tables turned on them.


    From Cielmer¡¯s perspective, she was simply being bothered, but Valbar just reaped what he sowed.


    And so exactly when the tables were turned, guild master came along.¡¹


    ¡¸Couldn¡¯t you have stopped them before things got violent?¡¹


    ¡¸Cielmer was stronger than I expected, you see?¡¹


    After saying this, Chasse-san turned her eyes to me but that isn¡¯t my, or rather Ciel¡¯s, fault.


    I claim everything, including the slashes, as legal self-defense. I have no idea if legal self-defense is recognised here though.


    Still, it shouldn¡¯t be forbidden to protect oneself.


    ¡¸Well, at Valbar¡¯s level, even a girl of your age should be able to beat him depending on your Job.


    Nonetheless, hacking at him was a bit unreasonable if you ask me.¡¹


    Telling someone with a non-combat Job to deal with the combat Job-ish Valbar without wounding him is more unreasonable, actually.


    I considered giving him a look of reproach or something, but I might just endanger my position if I start getting emotional here, so I held myself back and settled for a smile.


    While the guild master knit his brows as he saw my expression, he continued the discussion.


    ¡¸Then, where does Tolt come into play?


    From what you just said, he¡¯s completely unrelated to this.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s because I intentionally left that information out. Rather, he¡¯s the one that caused this problem.


    Guild master, you know Tolt¡¯s Job, don¡¯t you?¡¹


    ¡¸No, I have no idea. Though, I do know that he¡¯s a young but promising staff member.¡¹


    As the guild master defended him, Tolt¡¯s stiff face slightly softened.


    Since the Hunter Guild is against Job discrimination, it might be possible for the top to be unaware of the Jobs of their personnel.


    However, considering what I speculate Tolt¡¯s Job to be, this is something that I think the top should be aware of precisely because of their position.


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    ¡¸If I¡¯m not wrong, you brought Tolt to the guild, right?


    You endorsed him, saying that he¡¯s sure to be useful. And it is a fact that many of the hunters Tolt has been responsible for had great records and increased in rank.¡¹


    ¡¸Right? So what¡¯s the problem here?¡¹


    ¡¸The problem here is that, no matter how great his track record is, he actually disclosed Cielmer¡¯s Job to the public.¡¹


    ¡¸Wha-¡­¡­!?¡¹


    ¡¸When Valbar was trying to force Cielmer¡¯s Job out of her, Tolt exposed it to Valbar before we could step in to intervene.


    And even though Cielmer tried to feign ignorance, he asserted with full conviction.


    Upon hearing this, Valbar loudly announced it to the whole guild.¡¹


    The guild master fell silent as his jaw dropped in pure shock.


    Still, Chasse-san seems to be asserting that what happened wasn¡¯t his responsibility. I don¡¯t particularly mind that, but perhaps he¡¯s in a position where he has to intervene with these sorts of things.


    The silent guild master finally got his act together and said ¡¸Is this true?¡¹ asking Tolt for confirmation.


    ¡¸Yes.¡¹


    The contrast between Tolt¡¯s proud nod and the perplexed guild master holding his head with both hands is pretty comical.


    At this moment, I somewhat feel pity for the guild master.


    Tolt then continued his mental attack on the guild master.


    ¡¸In that situation, if she had only told her Job immediately, it would have sorted out that problem.


    But instead, she wouldn¡¯t say it at all, so I said it in her place.


    I don¡¯t know why things escalated all of a sudden, but there¡¯s no need to be ashamed of whatever Job a person has, right? ¡¹


    ¡¸You, haven¡¯t you realised what you¡¯ve just done?¡¹


    ¡¸You said that no Job is better nor worse than the others, right guild master?


    It¡¯s also properly written as one of the Hunter Guild¡¯s principles. ¡ºDiscrimination by Jobs is strictly unacceptable.¡»


    But despite that, she caused trouble for everybody by hiding her Job. I only did what was right.¡¹


    ¡¸Then how did you know what her Job is?¡¹


    ¡¸What are you talking about?¡¹


    ¡¸I see, just shut up.¡¹


    Hearing anger in the guild master¡¯s voice, Tolt shrank away and swallowed his words.


    The guild master scratches his head with both arms in unrestrained irritation, but since all his efforts have just been crushed by Tolt, it¡¯s understandable.


    ¡¸So in short, Tolt has the Job of Appraiser. Moreover, he¡¯s specifically a Job Appraiser.


    Then after utilising his job to uncover this girl¡¯s Job, he publicly disclosed it. Be that as it may, why is Tolt here when he was supposed to be off-duty today?¡¹


    I¡¯d prefer if the guild master didn¡¯t brush things off with a Be that as it may, but based on what I¡¯ve seen from Chasse-san so far, he probably wouldn¡¯t let that slide, so I¡¯m not too concerned.


    Either because of the overwhelming tension or because he was told to shut up, it seems that Tolt is having difficulty in speaking.


    And since Chasse-san doesn¡¯t seem to know about this part of the story, I decided to do the explanation.


    ¡¸After I left the pub, he constantly followed behind me.


    I didn¡¯t want the inn I was staying at to be known, so I killed some time and toured the town; but since he still kept following me, I eventually went to the guild.¡¹


    ¡¸Why were you following her, Tolt? Was her Job something particularly rare?


    Even if that was the case, you can find as many rare Jobs as you want in the guild, you know?¡¹


    Previously I thought that he did all of this because he wanted to get rid of me, a Song Princess, but now that I¡¯ve seen Tolt¡¯s responses, that doesn¡¯t seem to be the case.


    After all, if he really did perceive Song Princesses as evil, he would have already said so at this point.


    I think he sees the Song Princess as just a Job like any other, something that ¡¸shouldn¡¯t be and will never be discriminated upon¡¹ or something.


    But in that case, why did he stalk us and such? Perhaps noticing that I¡¯m currently racking my brains for an answer, Ciel talked to me.


    ¡ºPerhaps it might be that he didn¡¯t see Ain¡¯s Job at first. That¡¯s why he was curious.¡»


    ¡ºBut since he knows about it, he should have seen it, right?¡»


    ¡ºSo then why did he insist that he saw ¡°Song Princess¡± from me?¡»


    ¡ºWhile I agree that this is weird, it might be because he saw our Job at the pub but isn¡¯t seeing it right now.¡»


    ¡ºAin constantly has a barrier up, but while Ain sings, small gaps tend to appear, see?


    I¡¯m sure that he couldn¡¯t see our Job when the barrier was fully active, but when the barrier weakened, he might have gotten a small glimpse.¡»


    Ciel¡¯s reasoning is pretty sound. No, it¡¯s probably correct.


    What a mistake I¡¯ve made. Was it because I think of the authorized pub as a safe place?


    I feel ashamed and embarrassed from my own carelessness, my face is starting to burn up.


    I nearly drowned in the vortex of my own thoughts, but I remembered my current situation, and desperately hid my emotions.


    ¡¸I think the reason Tolt-san was following me was, probably, because he couldn¡¯t see my Job at first.¡¹


    ¡¸How did you¡­¡­!¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Ahh, I get it. Man, seriously. That¡¯s amazing.¡¹


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    Tolt was shaken, but enough about him since he already let the secret slip, while Chasse-san had a variety of different facial expressions as he showed his surprise.


    ¡¸What¡¯s wrong?¡¹


    ¡¸Well, I¡¯ll be somewhat vague, but I was told that it was unraveled a bit, just by a tiny bit.


    I¡¯d be grateful if you let me off for this.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s my own fault for letting my guard down in public as well, so I don¡¯t mind that.¡¹


    Please don¡¯t suddenly set up a conversation that needs reading between the lines.


    In short, he¡¯s saying that there was somebody else other than Ciel that noticed the existence and the unravelings on my barrier.


    Chasse-san was told about it, but carelessly talking about a hunter¡¯s abilities is a clear breach of etiquette.


    And that¡¯s why he asked me to let himself off for speaking about it in this situation. After all, knowing the existence of a concealed barrier could greatly change the tide of a battle.


    Though with that said, the barrier¡¯s discovery was caused by my failure, so I can¡¯t blame him for that.


    ¡¸Incidentally, is being followed from the pub to the guild a punishable offense?¡¹


    ¡¸While it would at least ruin people¡¯s impression of the person in question, having someone punished for that reason would be pretty difficult.


    In this case though, the stalking can at least serve as additional material for judgment.¡¹


    While I was casually ignored by the guild master, from what Chasse-san just said, it seems like it is more or less punishable.


    For some reason, the more we continue on, the more dirt we dig up on the guild master.


    And he probably felt this himself as the guild master suddenly bowed his head.


    Edit: First of all, it seems like my translation ended up a bit vague in the last part. I¡¯ll explain and change it a bit. Chasse is apologising for talking about Ain¡¯s barrier. Since the hidden barrier is AinCiel¡¯s secret, while it¡¯s a breach of manners to publicly talk about it, Chasse still told Ain about it, even though he was a bit vague, to inform her that some other person told him that there were gaps in Ain¡¯s barrier while she was singing. Ain replies that her barrier being discovered, *not her Job being announced to the public*, was half her fault for being distracted, so she won¡¯t be blaming him. However, this only applies to Chasse. Ain is definitely not thinking of letting the publicity of their Job go. She¡¯s even asking if the stalking can be a punishable offence. Having her barrier discovered is one thing, but her Job? And it being announced to the public? Nah, that¡¯s not gonna fly, especially as it is a risk to Ciel¡¯s life. Sorry for the vagueness in the last part.


    Heya~! Well, well, well. The guild master has arrived, not bringing order however, but just even more chaos to the table. As Ain put it, we¡¯re getting more and more dirt on the guild master for some reason. Good job, ruining everything Tolt.


    So yes, for this chapter, the main thing being shown on display is naivety. As our good editor Fire put it: ¡°My god¡­ Tolt¡¯s a dolt.¡± The guy¡¯s misguided ¡°kindness¡± have pretty much made everything worse. I mean, really? Telling other people¡¯s personal information? Man, who could have thought that it would ended up this way? *Right?*¡­¡­ Well, his Job is really useful though.


    On the other hand, we have the guild master¡¯s secrets. First, he was the one that endorsed our dumb but useful dolt. Next, his anti-discrimination stuff. And lastly, the forest thing. One funny thing though, the guild master tried to throw Tolt under the bus, but Tolt was too honest, lol. If Tolt have said his Job himself, the guild master would have been able to go scot-free, but no, Tolt wouldn¡¯t self-destruct on his own. And in the first place, Chasse already knew that Tolt is related to the guild master.


    Still, the most important part here is Ain being embarrassed, lol. Poor Ain.


    And now, the enigmatic Guild Master has appeared. Completely dumbfounded by the situation, lol.

 CH 54

    ¡¸As you say, this is a mistake on our part. We¡¯ll have him demoted and compensate you for the trouble.


    The disclosure of your Job might be disadvantageous but since you¡¯re strong enough to defeat Valbar at your age, you would have been discovered either way. With that said, could you let this incident pass?¡¹


    The guild master likely wouldn¡¯t lower his head to some random little girl like me in most situations. Perhaps this is why doing so would serve as an apology.


    However, that doesn¡¯t work in this situation. This man intends to end this issue with merely a small sum of money.


    After this, the guild master would likely promote Tolt using some excuse and use Tolt for his own ambitions.


    I can easily imagine this even with my poor deduction skills. After all, the guild master¡¯s Disappointing Job remedial plan would gain greater results with Tolt¡¯s help.


    As they naturally keep their Jobs a secret, people with Disappointing Jobs are difficult even for the guild track down.


    However, it¡¯ll also be difficult for the guild to assist people without knowing their Jobs. I might be biased since I have a Disappointing Job myself, but it¡¯s not like all Disappointing Jobs are unsuited for working as a hunter.


    A person good at drawing might become a valuable asset for mapmaking. They might also have a better grasp of a monster¡¯s characteristics, making them capable of carrying back proper detailed information.


    And even in the case of clowns, if they can attract the attention of monsters, it¡¯ll be a huge advantage in battle and he¡¯ll only need to focus on defending himself.


    The most important thing is how one uses their Jobs. Though in our case, it¡¯s less of how to use them and more of how to minimize the difficulty of using them.


    The guild master, with how he shines a light on Disappointing Jobs, must have been an outstanding person and an exemplary Hunter Guild staff.


    I¡¯ll admit, there¡¯s a great chance that, if even one of us had a Combat Job, we¡¯ll become well-known for said Job.


    However, he doesn¡¯t have any idea what our Job is. He doesn¡¯t even know, yet how can he even say that to me?


    I plan on protecting Ciel no matter what happens, but this doesn¡¯t mean that I don¡¯t feel anything when something is done against her.


    While it¡¯s objectively better to be exposed as a Song Princess than a Dance Princess, just the thought that this happening could cause Ciel to be exposed to insensitive remarks makes it hard for me to keep my calm.


    As I suppress my emotions, I instead curl my lips into a smile.


    And it seems like I¡¯m not the only one here displeased with the guild master, as Chasse-san sitting next to me let out a deep sigh.


    ¡¸I¡¯m disappointed, guild master. I treated you with respect because Cielmer is here, but I don¡¯t feel like showing any respect for you anymore. I¡¯m tired, this is just plain stupid.¡¹


    ¡¸Chasse, weren¡¯t you and I both sick of the Job caste?


    Have you forgotten those days when we used to talk about how we should make a change?¡¹


    ¡¸No, I still remember.¡¹


    ¡¸Then, why are you siding with them?¡¹


    Saying so, the guild master turns his gaze to me, someone he sees as having a favoured Job.


    Chasse-san lets out a deep sigh once again and shakes his head in reply.


    ¡¸As you said, we both held the same goal. That¡¯s why we both worked ourselves to death, with me now leading a B-rank party, and you now in the position of guild master.


    We were distant in age, but I considered you a great companion.¡¹


    ¡¸Then why-¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s exactly why I can¡¯t help but be disappointed.


    Reevaluating those with Disappointing Jobs shouldn¡¯t be done by putting down the Jobs that are already successful.


    It¡¯s not about having people with favoured Jobs tolerate things because they¡¯re favoured, no matter what the Job is, a guild personnel should not be allowed to publicize one¡¯s Job without proper permission. And in the event that this happens, it¡¯s absolutely necessary to severely punish and discharge the culprit, as well as to give a proper compensation befitting the damage said hunter was subjected to.


    In this case, there¡¯s no denying this. On top of a guild personnel intervening; and worse, taking a side; in a dispute between two hunters, he even went as far as disclosing a hunter¡¯s Job.


    If this gets out, you¡¯re sure to lose trust from hunters, and investigations from the other guild masters and the grand master will be inevitable.


    In a situation like this, the natural course of action would have been to heavily penalize the corresponding staff member, but instead you wanted to leave it at a simple demotion.


    It¡¯s almost like you¡¯re admitting just how valuable Tolt is to you.¡¹


    Hearing Chasse-san¡¯s thoroughly detailed explanation, the guild master¡¯s face warps into a grimace.


    I feel like nearly everything I¡¯ve wanted to say was just said for me.


    Though, I don¡¯t really have any idea of what I actually wanted to say myself.


    ¡¸Alright. I¡¯ll fire Tolt, is that enough?¡¹


    The guild master then proposed so with bitter reluctance, but there¡¯s no way that this would be enough.


    Chasse-san glanced at me as if to ask if I agree with this, so I shook my head and replied.


    ¡¸With my Job already exposed, Tolt-san being fired or not is none of my concern. After all, this is simply a necessary measure for the sake of the other hunters, isn¡¯t it?


    On top of this being a mere prerequisite, weren¡¯t we supposed to be talking about what compensation I should receive?


    While I¡¯m not really hurting for money, considering the damage, I¡¯d like to have something that¡¯s worth enough to build a castle.¡¹


    ¡¸Damn low-ranker, overpricing yourself¡­¡­¡¹


    The guild master muttered so as he glared at me with resentment.


    Judging from Chasse-san¡¯s strained smile, I might have asked for too much. Still, from my perspective, we practically had our right to stay in the capital stolen from us, so I don¡¯t think money can compensate for this.


    And if this spreads throughout the kingdom, we¡¯d lose our place in this country. Though, we don¡¯t really have any place here to begin with either way.


    ¡¸First of all, guild master. So far, we¡¯ve only touched on topics that don¡¯t involve Cielmer¡¯s Job and rank.


    Cielmer here is a full-fledged C-ranker, in other words, a high-ranked hunter.


    Even if you¡¯re a guild master, wouldn¡¯t it be bad to disrespect a high-ranked hunter for no justifiable reason?¡¹


    As Chasse-san said so, I took out my card, and handed it to the guild master.


    The guild master was dubious of the card at first, but his face gradually turned grim, and eventually ¡¸Wha¡­¡­¡¹ he fell speechless.


    His shoulders visibly trembled.


    ¡¸Impossible. Except for certain cases, reaching C-rank would take at least 10 years.¡¹


    ¡¸We can check with the Headquarters if you want to be sure, but don¡¯t tell me you haven¡¯t heard the rumors of the white-haired girl?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ And you¡¯re saying that it¡¯s this little girl?¡¹


    ¡¸Her features match. She even completed the long untouched herb gathering request here in the capital¡¯s guild, so her capabilities are guaranteed.


    You¡¯re free to have your doubts, but you better realize that opening your mouth without confirming the facts is only going to endanger your position. After all, you having nearly disparaged a high-ranked hunter on top of treating her as someone of a lower rank is now cemented as a fact.¡¹


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    And even after Chasse-san said this much, the guild master continues to stare at me with disbelief.


    It feels like I¡¯m going to lose something, so please stop staring at me.


    Anyway, even if you stare that much, it doesn¡¯t change the fact that I¡¯m C-rank.


    ¡¸And now, about Cielmer¡¯s Job¡­¡­¡¹


    Stopping there, Chasse-san looks at my direction.


    This relates to my Job after all, so he probably wants my permission for this.


    In this case, it might be better for me to say it myself. With that in mind, I decided to directly inform the guild master.


    ¡¸My Job is Song Princess. Guild master, you can¡¯t tell me that you don¡¯t understand what being known would mean for me, can you?


    No matter how much you impose a gag order, information that has been leaked even once is unlikely to be controlled. If, by some chance, this gets spread throughout the capital, I might become persecuted and I might never be allowed to step inside the royal capital ever again.


    Now with this in consideration, was my previous demand really me overpricing myself?¡¹


    Even as I finished speaking, the guild master continued to stay silent, and the conversation was brought to a halt.


    Staying quiet when you¡¯re disadvantaged is a good way to buy time. Still, I have no idea how buying time could be effective in this situation.


    ¡¸By enough to buy a castle, you want a magic bag, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. As compensation, I¡¯d like the largest magic bag available in the capital¡¯s guild.


    Also, please levy the money needed to buy a new magic bag from the people related to today¡¯s incident. Those are my demands at least, but Chasse-san, you¡¯re important enough to have the final say in this?¡¹


    ¡¸Rather than me being important myself, I¡¯m just in a position where I can verify with those important people. I can contact them immediately but, if you ask me, getting the largest magic bag would be a pretty tough demand.¡¹


    It¡¯s said to be capable of fitting a whole mountain after all, so I already thought that it¡¯s probably impossible.


    In the worst case, it might be so rare that no one alive can recreate it now.


    While bigger would definitely be better, I¡¯d be satisfied as long as I can get a magic bag that has a larger capacity than the one we currently own.


    Though with that said, I still intend to do my best to get the largest possible. But before that, I¡¯ll have to secure a promise with Chasse-san to do the bare minimum.


    ¡¸Concerning the magic bag, there¡¯s still something I¡¯d like you to hear about, so why don¡¯t we start with things that could be done immediately before going there.¡¹


    ¡¸Did the guild master¡­ cause some other problem?¡¹


    ¡¸Who knows? It¡¯s not something I can make judgements on by myself, so I¡¯d be happy if you can take the information I¡¯ll provide in consideration for the arbitration.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. So, what about the things that could be done immediately? ¡¹


    ¡¸I want Tolt-san to publicize his own Job and what he¡¯s done to me. After all, he¡¯s the type of person to have no qualms about divulging another person¡¯s Job, so he shouldn¡¯t have any complaints when his Job is made public as well.


    Considering Tolt-san¡¯s Job, if what happened today isn¡¯t made public, more victims like me could appear in the future, so please be thorough about this.


    Other than that, I¡¯d like my safety within the royal capital to be assured, as well as a gag order to be imposed as much as possible.¡¹


    ¡¸If it¡¯s only that, I think it¡¯ll be approved.¡¹


    This ended up being a one-on-one discussion between me and Chasse-san, but I wonder if Tolt and the guild master are still breathing?


    Well, as long as they don¡¯t butt in, who cares?


    ¡¸About said information, it¡¯s about the forest I gathered herbs in.¡¹


    ¡¸That forest should be under periodic investigation though.¡¹


    Chasse-san glanced at the guild master inquisitively, and he just clearly averted his eyes.


    This act certainly speaks for itself, and Chasse-san simply let out a deep, deep sigh. I wonder how many times he sighed today?


    I¡¯m worried about the future of his hair.


    ¡¸When I went there, it seemed as if it was neglected for quite some time.


    Also, while there weren¡¯t enough monsters to call it a stampede, there were still quite a lot of them.


    Just while I was gathering herbs, I didn¡¯t even want to count how many I defeated on the way.


    The monsters that appeared were mostly of D-class and, occasionally, C-class, I think.¡¹


    ¡¸Continue.¡¹


    ¡¸As you¡¯d expect, I found it pretty unusual, so I tried investigating it myself and it seems like the capital has been relying on external sources to maintain their supply of the specified herb in the request for as long as 2 to 3 years ago.


    Furthermore, I also learned that the chances of a stampede occurring emerges when a place where monsters live are ignored for more than 5 years, so I expect a stampede possibly happening within as early as a few years.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s bull!¡¹


    The guild master, who was silent up until now, suddenly raised his voice.


    ¡¸I¡¯m simply stating my opinion.


    Please research it yourselves later.¡¹


    ¡¸If what you¡¯re saying is true, then you might be able to get a hold of a magic bag, the second largest one at least.


    With that said, we can¡¯t really ignore the words of somebody that resolved a stampede alone, and as of now, I personally think that you¡¯re right.¡¹


    Chasse-san, very exhaustedly, nods in agreement.


    Honestly, good job. I honestly don¡¯t want to be in the same position as Chasse-san right now.


    ¡¸That¡¯s the end of my story, but will there be anything else?¡¹


    ¡¸Well, in the meantime, we¡¯d like it if you leave things to us, I guess?


    Are you going to leave the capital soon?¡¹


    ¡¸I have to pick up a sword I ordered the day after tomorrow, so it¡¯ll be after that.


    I have no intention of showing up in the guild anymore, though.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, can we ask for some time in the afternoon two days from now?¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. Then I¡¯ll tell you where I¡¯m staying at after this.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯ll help a lot, but that¡¯s not something you should say so easily, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸Honestly, even if I¡¯m attacked by a B-rank party like Chasse-san and the others, I can handle it.¡¹


    Being B-rank as a party, I suspect that everyone of them are about C-rank individually.


    Only that much firepower isn¡¯t enough to break through my barrier.


    Nonetheless, that was pretty thoughtless of me. It¡¯s only natural for Chasse-san to be offended when a fellow hunter tells him that they¡¯re no match.


    ¡¸I don¡¯t think we¡¯re that weak, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m sorry. However, the first monster I defeated¡­ was a cyclops.


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    After shaking his head in resignation, Chasse-san stood up and led me to the door.


    We¡¯re leaving the two guild staff behind, but Chasse-san didn¡¯t seem to have the energy to care about them, so we left the room without giving them as much as a glance.


    ¡ó


    After walking a few steps away from the guild building, Chasse-san continued our conversation.


    ¡¸So, where are you staying at?¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s a pretty white inn in the area where a lot of inns are built, right?¡¹


    ¡¸That place where rich people stay then.¡¹


    ¡¸I use their best room.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Right, seems like you really aren¡¯t hurting for money.¡¹


    ¡¸Leaving that aside, I¡¯m staying under the name Blan, so please use that when asking for me at the reception desk.


    They¡¯ll probably either guide you to my room or call for me, I think.¡¹


    ¡¸Got it. I won¡¯t ask about the details.¡¹


    Exhausted, aren¡¯t you? I feel that.


    Now that I think about it, we¡¯ve only been in the capital for a few days, but it feels like we¡¯ve only gone from trouble to trouble.


    ¡¸Well then, let¡¯s meet again in two days.¡¹


    ¡¸Take care.¡¹


    After a short goodbye, I went back to our inn.


    It¡¯s almost sundown now. For some reason, today was a pretty eventful day.


    Heya~! Whelp, the guild master really dug his grave practically as deep as he could in the short time they had. And Tolt, well, have fun being jobless and in debt. The only ones that are most likely to have any money for paying a magic bag is the guild master and, questionably, Tolt after all, so yeah.


    Anyway, lol, good job squeezing the guild master for all he¡¯s worth Ain. Congratulations for having a new magic bag coming~! Still, the guild master automatically judging that our princess had a favoured Job and telling her to forget this incident? Sound like he¡¯s doing the opposite of what the guild policy says, don¡¯t you think?


    Also, good work Chasse. I really pity the messenger/middle-men in this kind of scenario, lol. But yeah, that¡¯s the nature of the job. Also, he really did well leading the guild master to show his true colours.

 CH 55

    With the dispute at the Hunter Guild, and since we don¡¯t have anything else we need to do in particular, the choices Ciel has for how we can spend our remaining free day is either to sleep or to practice with sorcery and/or our Jobs.


    Between the two, since there¡¯s no telling how many opportunities we¡¯ll have, if any, of sleeping on a bed as fancy as this, Ciel naturally chose to sleep.


    I was the one that recommended this though, since we¡¯ve been experiencing one trouble after another in these past days and I thought that Ciel is probably feeling exhausted without being aware of it.


    Ciel told me this morning that it¡¯s fine if I use her body while she¡¯s asleep¡ªthough from her nuance, she was telling me to proactively use it¡ªso to be honest, we aren¡¯t actually getting the best out of the fancy bed experience right now.


    From an outsider¡¯s perspective, it might seem like Ciel sleeps quite a lot. But the fact is, in my opinion, Ciel is under a lot of stress unbefitting for a 12 year old, so sleeping every moment she can isn¡¯t strange at all.


    After all, although I might have been the one in control during these times, people don¡¯t normally pick a fight with a guildmaster and they surely don¡¯t march into the lair of an underground boss as well.


    If it was me in the past, I would¡¯ve vomited from anxiety in these situations.


    So with that said, after waking up and eating breakfast, Ciel is now back to sleep.


    I am¡­ Ciel¡¯s protecting guardian, hehe.


    As this stupid thought ran though my mind, I sense someone approaching our room.


    Unlike what happened the other day, it¡¯s not coming from the ceiling or from outside the window, so I guess it¡¯s a proper visitor this time.


    I tried waking Ciel up for a while, but she showed no signs of waking up at all.


    A knock eventually came from our door, and ¡¸Blan-sama, are you in there?¡¹ a courteous voice asked for us.


    I could just pretend that no one¡¯s in the room, but there might have been some progress from yesterday¡¯s and I feel like ignoring this would only postpone the inevitable trouble.


    While I do feel guilty about disturbing Ciel¡¯s rest, I borrowed her body and replied to the one behind the door.


    ¡¸What is it?¡¹


    ¡¸You have a guest.¡¹


    ¡¸Did they give you their name?¡¹


    ¡¸The lady called herself Viviana and her attire seemed to be a that of hunter.¡¹


    ¡¸Could you relay to her that I just woke up and may take a while to prepare?


    I¡¯ll head to the reception desk once I¡¯m done.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    Viviana-san, she should be a member of the Fools¡¯ Gathering. If I remember correctly, she was the one who shared that the wolf is a divine messenger.


    In this case, meeting with her should be fine.


    Ah, I should¡¯ve asked if she said her reason for visiting.


    Anyhow, our guest doesn¡¯t seem to be an assassin sent by either Tolt or the guildmaster.


    Considering the situation, there was a reasonably high chance of this being the case, but I guess those kinds of people don¡¯t really attack from the front door.


    ¡ºAin, did something happen?¡»


    ¡ºViviana-san came to visit, so I was considering meeting her.¡»


    ¡ºViviana?¡»


    ¡ºThe sorcerer-like lady of the party we meet at the pub.¡»


    ¡ºOh, that person. Would it be better if I go?¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯ll leave the decision to you. I don¡¯t know the reason for her visit though.¡»


    ¡ºIn that case, it might be better for Ain to go. I¡¯m not good with long conversations after all.¡»


    ¡ºIf you put your mind into it, couldn¡¯t you talk for long periods of time like I do?¡»


    As she went back to her usual tone, for some reason, it felt like Ciel just flashed me a nice smile.


    Though since I¡¯m the one in control right now, I can¡¯t actually see Ciel¡¯s facial expression.


    Based on her tone, it was likely a teasing smile.


    Now then, although it¡¯s commonly said that girls take time to prepare, this doesn¡¯t really apply to us.


    We don¡¯t have any fashionable clothes nor do we use any cosmetics and make-up after all.


    Sooner or later, make-up might become necessary for us but¡­ I really hope someone could teach me about it.


    I could count on Celia-san for this, but she¡¯s currently at the headquarters, huh. I guess this will be a race between us getting to B-rank first or Ciel reaching the age when we¡¯ll have to learn about cosmetics first then.


    After getting ready quickly, I left the room and headed to the reception desk.


    I can see Viviana-san from a distance, but I find her really pretty.


    While her outfit is really hunter-like, having emphasis on functionality over form, she has reddish black hair and an unyielding look contrasting her polished features. And concerning her proportions, she absolutely has her curves as her body really goes in and out in places where they should.


    Since she¡¯s a sorcerer, she probably has some noble blood in her.


    After all, people like Perla, commoners at birth that become sorcerers due to their Job, are the rare exceptions.


    ¡¸Sorry for making you wait.¡¹


    ¡¸Don¡¯t worry about it. I¡¯m the one that suddenly came after all.


    Rather, you came earlier than I expected. I heard that you just woke up.¡¹


    ¡¸I really don¡¯t have much to do along the lines of preparing, you see.¡¹


    ¡¸Well, you¡¯re still quite young after all.¡¹


    While Viviana-san herself looks quite young in my opinion, when compared to Ciel, it¡¯s hard to call her young.


    After all, there are even some 12 year olds that would call high school girls old ladies.


    ¡¸So, what brings you here today? Was it because there¡¯s some progress made?¡¹


    ¡¸Well, no. I came here for personal reasons. I just wanted to have a chat with you.¡¹


    ¡¸A chat? Sure, I don¡¯t really mind.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank goodness. In that case, why don¡¯t we go to a somewhere else?¡¹


    Viviana-san started walking, so I followed behind her.


    Every subtle movement she makes feels considerably refined. She might not just have some noble blood, she might actually be a noble.


    Also, it seems that the fact that I¡¯m a Song Princess hasn¡¯t been spread yet, considering that I¡¯m not being hounded on as I¡¯m walking about in the streets. Though, this might be because I¡¯m with Viviana-san, and they simply can¡¯t.


    ¡ºThere seems to be somebody following us, so we¡¯ll have to switch places if things go bad.¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood. Still, is Viviana unrelated to this?¡»


    ¡ºWho knows. After all, I can think of, like, multiple reasons why someone would mark us.¡»


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    In Ciel¡¯s case, it¡¯s pretty common to have people following her even without any particular reason.


    I can¡¯t even keep count of how many times we¡¯ve had near encounters with kidnappers.


    It¡¯s also possible that we¡¯re being followed precisely because we¡¯re together with Viviana-san. After all, she¡¯s also beautiful as well.


    ¡¸Still, it¡¯s amazing how you actually stay at that inn.


    We¡¯re on the more loaded side in terms of money, but that inn is definitely out of reach. Moreover, the best room, I can¡¯t even imagine.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s a nice room, you know? But since it¡¯s so spacious, I do feel quite lonely by myself.


    It isn¡¯t over the top with decorations and while the quality of the furnishings are high, its simplicity is really comfortable. The bed¡¯s texture is, in my opinion, something that can only be experienced in that inn too.


    However, it¡¯s not that I paid for the room. I immediately got involved in some trouble as soon as I arrived here, so I was given an accommodation as an apology.¡¹


    ¡¸Immediately got involved in some trouble after arriving here¡­¡­ With you, I suppose it¡¯s somewhat unavoidable.¡¹


    As she stared at me, Viviana-san stated her conclusion.


    And since there¡¯s practically nothing I can deny about that, ¡¸I¡¯m used to it now.¡¹ I just replied with so.


    For some reason, she has a complicated look on her face.


    ¡¸Incidentally, you¡¯re speaking in info gathering mode today, huh.¡¹


    ¡¸Would you¡­ rather hear my usual?¡¹


    ¡¸Nope, I¡¯d rather hear you talk like you did before.¡¹


    ¡¸Then, let¡¯s go with that.¡¹


    Honestly, imitating Ciel is difficult. To be exact, keeping a smooth conversation while imitating Ciel is what¡¯s actually difficult.


    In the first place, if Viviana-san is fine with Ciel¡¯s way of speaking, then it won¡¯t be necessary for me to be the one controlling right now.


    With that in consideration, I guess it might have been better if she said that Ciel¡¯s way of speaking was better.


    And as we entertained ourselves on the way like so, the place we were brought to was a stylish restaurant.


    While it¡¯s still a bit too early for lunch timewise, there is already a considerable number of people in the store, with some having a peasant chant, while others discussing things with serious looks on their faces.


    ¡¸What an unusual store.¡¹


    ¡¸Even on times outside of lunch and dinner, this store is kept open as a place for chatting, you see.


    They only serve drinks and light meals during their downtime, but since there¡¯s only a few other places people can relax and chat in, they get quite a lot of customers.¡¹


    If I had to describe it, the store feels like a prototype cafe.


    Then, if the demand increases, stores that primarily offer drinks and light meals, like how caf¨¦s do, might even appear in the future.


    As Viviana-san sat down on an open seat, she asked me what I¡¯d like to have. I just answered with saying a cup of black tea. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m particularly fond of black tea, but I just thought that it would fit the atmosphere.


    Incidentally, while there is black tea, there¡¯s no green tea here. No coffee as well. The drinks available are water, black tea, fruit water, and alcohol, so there wasn¡¯t much of a choice to begin with.


    After Viviana-san finished ordering, we then started talking as our drinks were served.


    ¡¸Once again, thank you for responding to my sudden invitation. I can¡¯t honestly thank you enough.¡¹


    ¡¸You wanted to talk about something personal, right? ¡¹


    ¡¸Right. But before that, I¡¯ve wanted to ask about this. Is it true that you picked a fight with Chasse?¡¹


    ¡¸I didn¡¯t, really. I was just telling the truth.


    Viviana-san delightedly smiled.


    It would¡¯ve been awfully weird if she actually came here for a fight after being so polite with me though.


    ¡¸In all honesty, even if the four of us attacked you at the same time, you probably wouldn¡¯t get as much as a scratch.


    As someone with a handle on sorcery, I¡¯m really interested in your sorcery, so I came to meet with you.¡¹


    ¡¸What about the others?¡¹


    ¡¸They should be busy running around right now. A certain somebody just gave us a huge assignment after all.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s¡­ quite the trouble.¡¹


    ¡¸While you¡¯re not quite at fault here, it would be nice to see a bit more sympathy, you know?


    Anyhow, I got myself specially exempted to have a personal chat with you as a lone sorcerer.¡¹


    The Fool¡¯s Gathering. If their party is a gathering of people stubbornly focused on a single thing, then I guess what Viviana-san is stubborn about is likely the study of sorcery.


    For that reason, seeing Ciel¡¯s, or rather my, barrier had caught her interest.


    I can understand her feelings, but the circumstances surrounding the barrier are too unique, and other things like the increasing of magic power via that practically life threatening pill, or the conversion of hair into magic circuits are too irregular that I don¡¯t think these would really serve as good references for her.


    ¡¸In my opinion, I barely have anything I can teach you, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s just natural. It¡¯s unthinkable for sorcerers to simply expose their own secrets after all.


    For example, that barrier of yours. Even after discovering its existence, I still can¡¯t perceive it.


    I don¡¯t mind if you don¡¯t want to answer, but when did you defeat your first monster?¡¹


    ¡¸I was 10 years old at that time. So about 2 years ago.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, this means that your barrier could already work against a Cyclops at that point, right?¡¹


    ¡¸I can¡¯t deny that.¡¹


    For monsters at the level of a Cyclops, every and any attack is meaningless against my barrier. We already tested this.


    I¡¯ve improved the barrier since then, so there¡¯s likely no chance of an attack of that level breaking through at this point.


    ¡¸As I thought, Chasse and Lucie are still deceived by your appearance.


    Just being able to continuously maintain a barrier that can defend against B-class monsters is beyond enough for a sorcerer. Moreover, you also have the offensive capability to resolve a stampede alone.


    I can¡¯t even imagine how much effort you had put in to reach that level at your age.¡¹


    If I had to say, it was the Dance Princess¡¯ power that played a large part in resolving the stampede, but since I don¡¯t plan on needlessly giving information, I simply replied with a smile.


    In the end, what did Viviana-san really approach us for? Did she come to say that they¡¯ll be monitoring me since I¡¯m dangerous or something?


    Still, for some reason, Viviana-san seems to be red in the cheeks and somewhat embarrassed right now.


    ¡¸I don¡¯t expect you to tell me about your sorcery.


    So, I want to ask you to look at my sorcery. And if you notice something weird about it, please tell me about it.¡¹


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    Hearing her words, my eyes blinked in surprise.


    Still, Ciel is better than me in the theoretical parts of sorcery though.


    And it¡¯s not like I can just tell her to drink a pill that would make her magic power go berserk and turn her hair into magic circuits and such.


    ¡¸I don¡¯t really mind, but my way of using sorcery is awfully peculiar, so there¡¯s no assurance that what I¡¯ll say would be worthwhile, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t mind.¡¹


    Considering that she¡¯ll be showing us her sorcery for free, I¡¯m happy to oblige.


    Besides, I¡¯m also curious about how our pursuer would act when there¡¯s no people around.


    Moreover, I¡¯m interested to see if Viviana-san and our stalker are related to each other, so there¡¯s no reason to decline.


    ¡¸In that case, shall we go outside?¡¹


    ¡¸By outside, you mean outside the capital, right? That would be a bit¡­¡­¡¹


    As Viviana-san hesitated to continue, I shot her a gaze of suspicion.


    With my eyes fixed on her, Viviana-san raised her hands in resignation.


    ¡¸Viviana-san, let me ask you again. What brought you here today?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m here to guard you. It is absolutely necessary that we complete our reports and investigations by tomorrow afternoon, but the guildmaster might attempt to harass you in the meantime.


    While it seems like this was unnecessary, it¡¯s more relieving on our side if you stayed somewhere we could keep in check.¡¹


    ¡¸Yet despite that, why did you ask me to see your sorcery then?¡¹


    The instant Viviana-san showed hesitance in leaving the capital, my suspicions of her were already cleared. Still, that part didn¡¯t really make much sense.


    Asking me to look at her sorcery practically means that we would have to go outside the capital, in other words, to a lawless land.


    If I were to die outside the capital, it could be reported that I was unluckily killed by monsters or thieves, and it¡¯s not really unusual for things to end just like that.


    ¡¸While it¡¯s true that I¡¯m here to guard you, I really meant it when I said that I asked for a chance to have a chat with you.


    As a sorcerer, I thought that I should never let this chance slip by.


    But due to that, I suppose I got a bit too excited.¡¹


    ¡¸And because of this, you didn¡¯t notice that it¡¯ll be necessary to go outside to show your sorcery, correct?¡¹


    Viviana-san didn¡¯t give me an answer, but her averted gaze answered me in her place.


    Heya~! Another chapter, another new character interaction~! With: Sorcerer Viviana~!


    First of all, the first half with Ciel just sleeping was cute~ Particularly with how Ain actually used Ciel¡¯s body because Ciel insisted that she should. On one hand, Ain wants Ciel to rest; on the other hand, Ciel wants Ain to be more proactive with what she wants. Cute.


    And then we have Ca-¡­ Viviana. Now this was also cute, lol. Imagine a grown lady blushing in embarrassment as she asks a younger girl to teach her, adorable. She really serves as a nice contrast to our beloved sorcery nut, Carol. While Carol had no issues with treating Ciel (Ain) as an equal, or more like she just isn¡¯t good at dealing with children, lol; Viviana has a lot more common sense, but is also not above doing what other people would consider to be shameful for the sake of learning.


    Well, in short: Carol doesn¡¯t have any ounce of shame in her being (absolutely no offense intended, this is actually a good thing in this context), while Viviana does but is also stubborn enough to disregard it for the sake of learning. It¡¯s said that you need to be a fool to become wise, and Viviana truly is not afraid of making a fool of herself for the sake of self-improvement. As expected of someone from a party named Fools¡¯ Gathering.


    Meanwhile, it seems like trouble is a-brewin¡¯ once again as Ain detects *yet* another stalker marking them.

 CH 56

    In the end, we decided on going outside the capital to see Viviana-san¡¯s sorcery.


    Viviana-san herself was reluctant about it, but considering that we¡¯re already being followed, I¡¯d feel much better if we resolve the stalking issue straight away. Incidentally, I haven¡¯t actually told Viviana-san about this matter yet.


    After all, just like how it was understandable that Chasse-san didn¡¯t immediately help us yesterday, I still haven¡¯t spent enough time with Viviana-san for me to completely trust her.


    To begin with, Viviana-san¡¯s work here is to protect me exactly in case a situation like this happens, so her being unable to respond to the situation unless I tell her about it should be out of the question.


    Though since I will be held liable the moment I exit the capital, I do intend to make sure that Viviana-san doesn¡¯t get harmed in case anything happens.


    ¡¸Now, what to do. Please use your strongest sorcery¡­ isn¡¯t a viable course of action, right?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ I have to preserve at least enough magic to protect you after all; so naturally, yes.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, I¡¯ll make a target, so please cast a sorcery that can display your abilities to a certain extent.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    Since it¡¯s a bit bothersome, I decided to leave the choice of sorcery to Viviana-san.


    While I can¡¯t be sure to what extent of her abilities she will show here, she probably wouldn¡¯t do anything meaningless.


    If not, she wouldn¡¯t have risked going outside the capital with her escort target.


    ¡¸Ghira Mhomora Palfor (Oh earth, mold and stabilize)¡¹ I made a simple target with a clay doll-molding sorcery.


    To be more exact, it¡¯s something that molds earth according to one¡¯s imagination. While the chant is sloppy, and even beginners can at least utilize this, controlling magic power for it is considered to be difficult.


    The ground steadily piled up and what formed was just an ordinary wall of earth.


    Its durability is even less than that, so I coated it with a simple barrier.


    I can¡¯t make the same barrier we usually use from a far off distance after all, but this should be perfect for measuring her strength.


    ¡¸Well then, please fire at this target.¡¹


    Viviana-san was about 10 meters away from the target and after positioning myself roughly in the middle of the two, I gave her the signal.


    With a serious expression, Viviana-san began chanting something and shot five spheres of flame in succession.


    As each of the spheres hit the barrier, they erupted into flickering sparks, vanishing as they fluttered through the air.


    When Ciel uses sorcery with Dance Princess, it¡¯s usually during a battle; but even when this isn¡¯t the case, having sparks and such dancing around the surroundings might make her dances shine even more.


    Back to Viviana-san, four of her shots hit, while one was slightly off and only grazed the target.


    These five shots are likely not strong enough to defeat a C-class monster, I think. The time between chanting and activation was quite short.


    And, most importantly, I¡¯ve just noticed a certain something from this but¡­¡­ we¡¯ll think about what to do with it later on.


    ¡¸Now, please utilise a magic circle next.¡¹


    As I requested so, Viviana-san cringed for a moment before starting her preparations.


    In the meantime, I decided to confirm something with Ciel.


    ¡ºCiel, can you sense the flow of magic power?¡»


    ¡ºIf it¡¯s mine, I can. But that¡¯s not what you mean by that, right Ain?¡»


    ¡ºRight, other people¡¯s flow.¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s impossible. Though if it¡¯s only sensing where sorcery would appear from, I¡¯m gradually starting to figure it.¡»


    ¡ºI see. Thank you very much.¡»


    As my hunch was confirmed, Viviana-san activated her sorcery, resulting in a mass of flame destroying the barrier-coated earth wall.


    It¡¯s fairly strong, but took a lot of time.


    ¡¸How was it?¡¹


    After approaching me, Vivana-san awaits my answer.


    Now then, how much should I say?


    ¡¸Viviana-san, you aren¡¯t a commoner, right?¡¹


    ¡¸What¡¯s this all of a sudden?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s just that¡­ this isn¡¯t something I can say free of charge, you see.


    I think you already know this much, but all I can legally say is that you¡¯re ¡°not good with circulation¡±.¡¹


    Hearing my words, Vivana-san rests her chin on her knuckles and falls into deep thought.


    Considering her results, I think she has considerably high proficiency with magic power control.


    Her quickly-activated sorcery was cast forcefully and practically skipped the magic power circulation steps, so without adequate control, it would have likely damaged her circuits, much less actually activated said sorcery.


    It¡¯s very dangerous, but there¡¯s a reason Viviana-san had to do this. There¡¯s an issue with her magic circuits.


    Her magic circuits which run throughout the body like normal blood vessels are, for some reason, extremely short.


    While hers certainly does run from her head to her legs, it barely covers the top of her foot.


    Even the ones on her hands only cover her palms and doesn¡¯t extend out to her fingers.


    If these were blood vessels, then it would have caused even bigger issues.


    As a result, the amount of magic power her body could have retained is decreased and it became necessary for her to overexert herself.


    And when people overexert themselves, there will naturally be a misstep somewhere. The one shot that was off was likely that in this case.


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    Additionally, while this can be somewhat concealed with chanting, that isn¡¯t the case with magic circles.


    Because of that, even though she did more damage with the magic circle, it ended up taking a lot of time.


    On the other hand, if I had her use a high damage spell with chanting instead, it would probably take her as long as this one did as well.


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. I am, in a sense, a person of nobility. However, not a nobility of this kingdom to be exact.


    I¡¯m a member of a prominent family in the Central, I suppose.¡¹


    ¡¸The Central is where the Guild Headquarters and so are located, right?


    There are nobles there? I somewhat expected there to be none.¡¹


    ¡¸There are nobles, more or less. After all, the more people that gather somewhere, the more the necessity for people to lead them will arise.


    Other than the Guild¡¯s top management, these leaders include the people concerned with Central¡¯s administrative functions. They are the nobles of Central.


    However, it¡¯s an absolute meritocracy. No matter how much influence one¡¯s family has, the incompetents are immediately cast away, so the nobles there might be a bit different from the ones you are imagining.¡¹


    ¡¸So in other words, no matter how great the noble families are, there¡¯s a person there, if not an auditing body, at the top that keeps them all at bay, right?¡¹


    ¡¸And that would be the guild¡¯s founder, the main figure behind Central¡¯s independence, Fiyanamia-sama.¡¹


    ¡¸The guild¡¯s founder¡­¡­ The founder is still alive?¡¹


    ¡¸She¡¯s an elf after all. I¡¯ve never met her first-hand, but there¡¯s enough proof to support this.¡¹


    Elves. They occasionally appear in literature, but to think that they really do exist.


    Still, we¡¯ve already gone around several parts of the kingdom, but I¡¯ve never seen elves or even any other races before.


    ¡¸So there are races other than humans then.¡¹


    ¡¸Oh, so you were born in this country, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, that¡¯s right. But then, why aren¡¯t there any of them in this country?¡¹


    ¡¸Estoque doesn¡¯t acknowledge other races, you see. I do believe that this is relatively common knowledge though¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸I wasn¡¯t raised with common knowledge, you see.¡¹


    When slipping up, there¡¯s no better choice than just rolling with it. While I imagine this might bother Viviana-san, she¡¯ll have to bear with me on this.


    Nonetheless, this is the so-called anthropocentrism then, huh.


    Humans already discriminate based on skin color and social status by themselves after all, so with the difference in appearance and lifespan, I guess there are countries discriminating on a national scale.


    And this kingdom is exactly one of those, it seems. On the other hand, there¡¯s probably a considerable number of people from other races living at Central.


    ¡¸By the way, weren¡¯t we supposed to be on the topic of payment right now?¡¹


    ¡¸Right. That was the case, but I don¡¯t think we can really do that here.¡¹


    ¡¸Agreed. I know it¡¯s¡­ inappropriate to ask my own escort target about this, but how many people can you handle?¡¹


    Perhaps seeing us carelessly¡ªseemingly carelessly¡ªchatting about, our pursuers made a move.


    Our pursuers increased the moment we exited the capital and there are now eleven of them in total.


    As I expected¡ªor rather finally¡ªViviana-san noticed them as well, as she asked me so while sweat ran down her forehead.


    ¡¸Eleven in total. One of them looks to be troublesome. I¡¯ll handle the troublesome one while keeping the other ten at bay, so I¡¯ll entrust everything else to you.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ I barely have anything to do, don¡¯t I?¡¹


    ¡¸Quite an easy task, don¡¯t you agree?¡¹


    As Viviana-san seemed to be in a bit of a panic, I made a little joke while drawing a magic circle on the ground using sorcery.


    In the past, Ciel would manually draw magic circles on the ground diligently, but after thinking that drawing with sorcery would probably be much easier, this sorcery was made as a result.


    While drawing something as elaborate as a magic circle is pretty difficult, it¡¯s surprisingly doable.


    With the preparations done, we only have to wait for them to either come out or attack us. Just to make sure, I want to act only after confirming if the other party intends to harm us.


    ¡¸You¡¯re the brat that framed Tolt-san, aren¡¯t you?¡¹


    The ten people that surrounded us were all men that seemed to be hunters.


    Judging from his words, they probably are actually hunters. The last one seems to be watching from a distance and doesn¡¯t seem to have any intention of coming out.


    ¡¸I was wrapped up in trouble and nothing more, so it¡¯s someone else.¡¹


    ¡¸There aren¡¯t any other bratty white-haired girls around other than you here.¡¹


    ¡¸So, what are you going to do about it?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s obvious. We¡¯re gonna get you and make you confess that Tolt-san wasn¡¯t in the wrong.¡¹


    If they really just wanted to get me, then they wouldn¡¯t have gone out of their way to show themselves.


    Otherwise, maybe these ten are decoys so the last hidden one can capture me.


    Even if this is the case, isn¡¯t the distribution of their numbers strange considering that? Well, in reality, the last one is probably an assassin sent by the guildmaster or something.


    The ten of them drew out their weapons and steadily began to approach us, so I promptly enveloped them with barriers and captured them.


    Even a barrier that could be easily destroyed by a monster of C-class strength, when used on ten people, understandably took a small chunk of my magic power.


    A box used to protect oneself, naturally, can also be used as a box to capture one¡¯s foes. Abruptly bumping into an obstacle, the hunters let out confused mutters.


    And as they realised that they¡¯re all surrounded by invisible walls, ¡¸Let me out, brat!¡¹ they began threatening us. Is this some sort of zoo now?


    ¡¸Our attacks can hit them from our side, so please take care of these people.¡¹


    ¡¸R-right. Understood.¡¹


    For some reason, it seems like Viviana-san was taken aback, but this is the quickest solution among the others I¡¯ve come up with, so I hope she can understand.


    Now on my side, I switched with Ciel and asked her to handle the last one.


    ¡ºWould you mind capturing the last one, Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºSo that¡¯s what this magic circle is for.¡»


    ¡ºSince this is a good chance, try to handle the detection by yourself too, okay?


    If there¡¯s any chance that the last one might head for Viviana-san, I¡¯ll inform you then.¡»


    The magic circle I drew earlier was, to simply put, one for manipulating plants to capture a target.


    If Ciel drew it instead, then there¡¯s a risk of killing the enemy, so I did it just in case.


    While they already lost any rights to complain about being killed from the moment they pointed their weapons towards us outside the capital, we might lose the chance to figure out who instigated this if the eleventh one ever dies.


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    We have a barrier anyway, so it should be fine even if Ciel fails the capture. Just as I thought so, the eleventh person began running to our direction.


    I can barely hear any footsteps, but the guy is quite fast. Just as Ciel was about to activate the magic circle, something was thrown at us.


    It¡¯s most likely a knife. Considering its path, if Ciel avoids it, there¡¯s a risk of Viviana-san getting hit.


    Without turning to the knife¡¯s direction, Ciel activates the magic circle. Grass extends from the ground, seizing the knife in the air.


    She then promptly activates it again, this time halting the movements of the individual attempting to zero in on us.


    As Ciel turned around, what I saw was a girl with a knife frozen mid-attack and the captured knife hanging midair.


    The girl seems to be around 15 years old, I think. She looks slightly older than Ciel.


    ¡¸Song Princess, disappear!!!¡¹


    Since only her movements are sealed, the girl is free to scream and glare as she¡¯s doing right now.


    If I reached out even a finger towards her, she¡¯d probably bite it off.


    Still, in my opinion, a younger girl showing animosity in this sort of situation is really nothing short of comical to see.


    ¡¸Don¡¯t just silently stand there. You¡¯re the lowest of all, not us.


    Act more miserable like how you are.¡¹


    Perhaps because Ciel seemed absolutely uninterested in talking, the girl is running her mouth off as she pleases.


    Her actions seemed as if she was partially brainwashed into believing that Song Princesses are evil.


    These types of people don¡¯t really seem to listen to what you say to them, so Ciel¡¯s handling of the situation shouldn¡¯t be wrong.


    Rather, she¡¯s already annoying as is, so it would probably be better to just shut her up.


    ¡ºLet¡¯s knock her out.¡»


    ¡ºLet¡¯s.¡»


    It¡¯s a bit harsh, but Ciel hits her with enough non-lethal force to knock her out.


    One mistake might have killed her and even doing this might cause some permanent after-effects later on, but that¡¯s really none of our concern.


    ¡¸As you can see.¡¹


    ¡¸I saw that you knocked her out, but are you going to carry her back?¡¹


    ¡¸I should be able to manage. She seems light after all.¡¹


    ¡¸You seem lighter than her, you know?¡¹


    Viviana-san is probably right, but estimating your own weight is hard.


    ¡¸Anyways, I¡¯d like to do something about these guys, so I suppose we¡¯ll have to haul them to the Hunter Guild then.¡¹


    ¡¸Then in that case, I only need to carry this girl on my back.¡¹


    Concerning the hunters I¡¯ve entrusted to Viviana-san, on top of tying their hands, they were also gagged with ropes to keep them silent. It seems like all of them are tied with the same rope as when Viviana-san pulled on the end that she¡¯s holding, all of them got pulled along.


    ¡¸That girl doesn¡¯t seem to be a hunter.¡¹


    ¡¸Right, she likely isn¡¯t. I already have a rough speculation of this situation, and I have some connections too, so I¡¯ll try to get in touch with them.¡¹


    ¡¸Which means I¡¯m in charge of handling these other ten then.¡¹


    ¡¸How much time do you think that could take?¡¹


    ¡¸I only need to explain the course of events, so it should end quick.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, let¡¯s regroup after having lunch. Our conversation got interrupted after all.


    I might take more time on my side though, so please feel free to take your time eating.¡¹


    ¡¸I honestly shouldn¡¯t agree to this¡­¡­ but I also can¡¯t just leave these guys here.¡¹


    Viviana-san was reluctant about this but still agreed, and I¡¯m really grateful about that.


    After all, if I had to explain about the underground stuff, it¡¯ll just needlessly waste our time.


    ¡¸I¡¯d prefer to continue our conversation in my room, so please come to the inn again later.¡¹


    Viviana-san nodded and left with the men in tow.


    Heya~! As expected, trouble came but as it did, it was immediately smacked to the floor~!


    First of all, more teacher Ain shenanigans, yay~! Well not really teacher Ain this time, but I digress. One thing I loved in the first part is how Viviana is characterized in general. Just the part where Ain explains her current situation combined with the characterization of the Fools¡¯ Gathering really implies a lot of what she¡¯s went through. She¡¯s a stubborn fool who never gave up on sorcery, considering how Ain specifically says what she¡¯s doing is dangerous but necessary for her to even use sorcery. There¡¯s also her momentarily cringing upon the thought of using a magic circle instead, as she probably didn¡¯t want to show herself being weak but did it anyway without question. This is just my opinion anyway.


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    Next, more world building~! Particularly about the Central and also another reason to get out of the kingdom ASAP. Not only is there a strong discrimination in Jobs and the Song Princess in particular, there¡¯s also just plain racism as well. Imagine being reincarnated in a fantasy world, wondering why there aren¡¯t any of the staple fantasy races around, not knowing that it¡¯s just that it¡¯s actually just an issue with the country you¡¯re in. Anyway, we¡¯ve previously confirmed the existence of an elven and dwarven kingdoms, and now we have one new character, Fiyanamia, to look forward to~!


    Lastly, more trouble from a guy that¡¯s not even anywhere near¡­ And a random hysterical assassin girl. Still, the exchange between Viviana and Ain was pretty hilarious.


    Viviana: ¡°Say, how many can you fight?¡± *sweats internally as she realises how many people there are*


    Ain: ¡°I¡¯ll take one of them, but I¡¯ll also capture all of them, so have fun~¡±


    Her cold sweat is understandable when you consider that she¡¯s probably a C-rank on her own and specializes on party play. Poor Viviana, she was only there to monitor them and guard them from random attackers in the streets, not from a whole mob. Though it¡¯s partially her fault for giving in to the temptation of learning from a high level sorcerer and agreeing to exit the capital, lol. Also, Ain¡¯s making her move it seems, as she¡¯s going to try to contact her¡­ *Connections*¡­ *dun dun dunnn*

 CH 57

    Since the girl was completely tied up from mouth to toe, I nearly got into a dispute when I tried to pass through the capital¡¯s gates with her; but thanks to Viviana-san¡¯s mediation, we were able to enter the capital.


    Viviana-san herself also has a long line of men behind her, so that might have made the situation a bit easier to understand.


    While I can¡¯t tell if this is simply because we blend in with the crowd or if there are other reasons, as we entered the capital and attracted curious stares, we managed to reach Faneed-san¡¯s place without any pestering along the way.


    This was the place where we previously met. While it doesn¡¯t look particularly different to how it was before, there¡¯s actually less people hidden right now.


    I guess this is because, unlike last time, they didn¡¯t have the time to prepare today.


    As I entered the room where Faneed-san was, he looked absolutely displeased upon seeing me showing up without any hesitation.


    Still, I am aware that he doesn¡¯t want anything to do with me ever again, so I have no intention of complaining about that.


    ¡¸It¡¯s been a while.¡¹


    ¡¸Yup, I¡¯m disappointed to see you looking quite well.¡¹


    ¡¸We¡¯re the same in that regard, I didn¡¯t want to see you as well.¡¹


    ¡¸Did our men start something again?¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s a chance of that being the case, which is why I came here. But if I had to say, I came here to ask for information. ¡¹


    As I said so, I hauled the rolled-up girl forward.


    And as she saw Faneed-san, far from being surprised, she actually scowled at him.


    I see, it seems that she¡¯s not one of his subordinates.


    ¡¸She doesn¡¯t really seem to be one of ours, does she?¡¹


    ¡¸It seems so. Incidentally, will this girl be useful at your place, Faneed-san?¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s roughly several definitions of what useful could mean, but we should be able to get some use out of her.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, I¡¯ll be handing this to you, so would you mind if I ask you several favors?¡¹


    ¡ºSo it isn¡¯t ¡°this girl¡± anymore, is it?¡»


    ¡ºUhh, that was a slip of the tongue¡­¡»


    ¡ºI don¡¯t really mind that, you know? That was aiming to kill us after all.


    Moreover, it was spiteful against Song Princesses. There no reason to forgive at all.¡»


    Just as Ciel said, recalling what happened immediately after her capture, there¡¯s no denying that this girl has some sort of spite against Song Princesses.


    It¡¯s only my opinion, but she might be the type of individual that sustains her ego using the assumption that a social class treated as the lowest of all, the Song Princesses, exist.


    It¡¯s as if she¡¯s seeing the Song Princesses as similar to the outcast Eta or Hinin, but I suppose that¡¯s not necessarily wrong. Nevertheless, I don¡¯t have the slightest intention of simply agreeing to that.


    ¡¸To be frank, even if you hand that over to us, thinking of how to use it will be nothing but a headache but¡­¡­ We probably have more ways of utilizing that than you would anyway, huh¡­¡­


    Fine then. We¡¯ll accept that troublesome thing. I¡¯ll also provide as much information as possible.


    However, I¡¯ll need you to answer my questions as well, got that?¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s probably no need to say this, but this event seems to be much bigger that it seems.¡¹


    ¡¸Well that¡¯s for sure. After all, that¡¯s a prot¨¦g¨¦ of a noble, you see? ¡¹


    Faneed-san turns his head towards the roll girl.


    Certainly, if nobles are involved, then it¡¯s absolutely nothing short of troublesome.


    At the same time, I have no idea why a noble would want us killed. If it¡¯s merely abduction, then I can still somewhat understand this, but there¡¯s really no reason for nobles to have us dead.


    ¡¸This is an assassination specialist?¡¹


    Perhaps because we continued talking non-stop, this spring roll glared at me.


    Doesn¡¯t she get tired of this?


    ¡¸So, why were you being targeted?¡¹


    That¡¯s exactly what I want to ask myself, but I can somehow think of about three reasons why.


    And one among those is something I seriously hope isn¡¯t the case.


    ¡¸Specifically, do you know what house said noble is from?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s the House of Count Ortis, which the knight commander is a member of.¡¹


    Immediately feeling relief, I held my cheeks back as I nearly broke into a smile.


    I was worried that Rispelgia¡¯s name would pop up here, but I was luckily wrong.


    If the Rispelgia household isn¡¯t involved with this, then there are two reasons left.


    ¡¸In that case, it might have been due to my Job, but what do you think?¡¹


    I was talking to Faneed-san under the assumption that he already knows my Job, since he likely knows about it anyway.


    On that day, there should have been a lot of hunters who heard that I¡¯m a Song Princess. It wouldn¡¯t be strange if one of Faneed-san¡¯s subordinates was among the crowd; on the contrary, there¡¯s a very high probability of that being actually the case.


    Even if it wasn¡¯t, considering the fact that it took time to impose a gag order, it¡¯s still very likely that this information was leaked outside.


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    And it seems like that assumption was correct as Faneed-san shook his head in response.


    ¡¸Your Job shouldn¡¯t be the cause of this. Now even if we assume someone wants you dead, the Count¡¯s household wouldn¡¯t do something like sending out an assassin unless they benefit from it, even if they have a personal grudge.


    After all, they could get you kicked out of the capital just by spreading rumors about you.¡¹


    ¡¸I thought so. Then in this case, it was probably because I implied the possibility of a stampede occurring.


    You said that there¡¯s a knight commander in the household after all, so if it becomes known that a stampede is to occur due to the abandonment of the forest, they¡¯re unlikely to escape severe punishment.¡¹


    ¡¸Oi, did you just say a stampede?¡¹


    Faneed-san reacted quickly. I was surprised for a moment, but I guess an underground organization based in the capital would be concerned if something were to happen to it.


    I imagined that an underground organization would be happy about the royal capital falling into chaos, but they only exist precisely thanks to the capital after all. Considering that a stampede could wipe out the capital, then it¡¯s understandable for the underground society to be worried about it.


    ¡¸Based on my amateur judgment, it could happen within several years from now. Currently, the Hunter Guild should be investigating the location, so please work hard on investigating as well. It might not even be within several years after all.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s true. I guess that¡¯s just the way things work¡­¡­


    Anyway, what¡¯s the information that you want?¡¹


    ¡¸The truth is, I wanted to ask you to find out who ordered for my assassination, but¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Likely the Count¡¯s household, right.¡¹


    ¡¸With that said, please use this to keep the household¡¯s eyes off of me, even if I ever get involved with them. Also, if there¡¯s something that can prove this one¡¯s relation to the Count¡¯s household among its belongings, then I¡¯ll be taking it as well.¡¹


    ¡¸It can¡¯t be helped. Still, that might just run its mouth off on its own, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸You can at least destroy its voice in a way that can¡¯t be healed, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Well you could say that.¡¹


    Hearing my words, Faneed-san casually replied.


    Considering that the enemy is a noble, even with clear proof, this probably isn¡¯t something that can be resolved by tomorrow.


    Having something that can link this issue to the House of Ortis just to be sure, so that we can inform the Hunter Guild about this, should be good enough.


    ¡¸By the way, did this have a knife or something?¡¹


    ¡¸There were four or five knives¡­¡­ but one had some sort of design on it.¡¹


    Among the inconspicuous knives, there was a vaguely expensive-looking one engraved with a crest mixed in.


    ¡¸That¡¯s it. That¡¯s the crest of the Ortis household.¡¹


    ¡¸I see. In that case, this is the end of our business.


    Thank you for everything. This time, I pray we¡¯ll never meet again.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s my line.¡¹


    Ending our friendly conversation, I left Faneed-san¡¯s place.


    ¡ó


    Since it ended earlier than expected, we ordered lunch back at the inn.


    Considering that they have no issue preparing meals as long as proper payment is provided, it really gives a feel of how high-class this inn is.


    If this was any other cheap inn, it would either have nothing to serve or would only serve the breakfast leftovers, which generally isn¡¯t worth the price.


    Regarding Viviana-san, I¡¯ve already informed the reception desk about her, so she should be led to this room upon arrival.


    ¡ºIs it really alright to leave all of this to Faneed?¡»


    ¡ºAgainst a noble, even if we are in the right, things would likely just end up being bothersome for us.¡»


    ¡ºBut still, the guildmaster¡¯s behind this, isn¡¯t he?¡»


    The only people that know about the stampede crisis¡­ would be the guild master, Tolt, and Chasse-san¡­ and co.


    Among them, the one that is most likely to have a connection with the count is the guildmaster, no question.


    ¡ºEven if we expose the guildmaster¡¯s scheme, I don¡¯t think it¡¯ll raise our rank, you see.


    Besides, I don¡¯t want any more trouble than what we already have right now.¡»


    ¡ºIs it fine that Faneed knows about the Song Princess?¡»


    ¡ºFaneed is a member of the underground society, so it should be fine.


    I have the impression of the underground society being a gathering of outcasts, and Song Princesses are undoubtedly outcasts, so he might even have favorable impression of us, you know?¡»


    At the very least, he probably doesn¡¯t want to stir up trouble with us.


    After all, we¡¯re a Song Princess that¡¯s also relatively capable in sorcery.


    He also seems to understand how much trouble a Song Princess is; he¡¯s much more trustworthy than some random members of normal society as well.


    As I was deep in thought, there was then a knock on the door.


    ¡¸Your guest has arrived.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you, I¡¯ll be opening the door now.¡¹


    As I carelessly opened the door, the receptionist and Viviana-san was there side by side, and for some reason, Viviana-san had a dumbfounded look on her face.


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    ¡¸When I opened the door, you made a weird face, right?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s the first thing you ask? It just seemed somewhat careless of you considering your situation, that¡¯s all.¡¹


    ¡¸It was you that brought me outside when I was planning to just spend the whole day inside my room, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s¡­¡­ I had my own circumstances, okay. I already told you that, didn¡¯t I?¡¹


    While it might have been a bit mean of me, it is the truth, so please don¡¯t make it sound like I¡¯m the bad guy here. Seriously.


    Still, it¡¯s meaningless to continue arguing about this, ¡¸That¡¯s true.¡¹ so I simply answered with a smile.


    ¡¸So Viviana-san, how was it on your side?¡¹


    ¡¸As expected, I suppose. Or perhaps I should say, it was as utterly perplexing as I thought¡­¡­


    Have you been told about how Tolt has guided those with Disappointing Jobs?¡¹


    ¡¸I can¡¯t really remember. Still, I can imagine that. He secretly looked at their Jobs and gave them advice based on their Jobs, right?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s roughly correct. In other words, quite a lot of hunters are indebted to Tolt.


    Among these hunters, there are some that have great admiration for him, and it seems that somebody accidentally spoke about the incident in front of them.


    Due to that, these so-called Tolt faction hunters independently decided to attack you.¡¹


    ¡¸It really doesn¡¯t sound like an accident at that point, but they decided it on their own?¡¹


    ¡¸From their perspective, they were merely trying to save their saviour Tolt from the evil Cielmer, it seems.


    Obviously they¡¯re going to be penalized for this, but their penalty still isn¡¯t decided yet. And so, they¡¯re behind bars for now.¡¹


    From this I can imagine that Tolt might have become conceited after all the admiration from these hunters.


    Still, that doesn¡¯t excuse him from the trouble he caused us.


    While this case was unique, being attacked in of itself isn¡¯t anything new, so we¡¯re already used to it.


    ¡¸What about on your side, then?¡¹


    ¡¸For now, I think you¡¯ll understand after seeing this.¡¹


    To answer Viviana-san¡¯s inquiry, I showed her that certain knife.


    Upon receiving the knife, Viviana-san stares at it closely before putting her hand over her head.


    ¡¸Really¡­ that guildmaster¡¯s done it again.¡¹


    ¡¸Will you need a explanation?¡¹


    ¡¸Please do so, just to be sure.¡¹


    Even though she already put two and two together, there are details that are left unknown unless given a proper explanation.


    If this was a conversation between nobles, then an explanation might be unnecessary; but since this is a discussion between hunters, it can be said that asking for a clear explanation is a natural course of action.


    I didn¡¯t feel it was necessary to keep this a secret, so I shared everything, including the part about Faneed-san.


    When Faneed-san¡¯s name came up, Viviana-san¡¯s expression clouded once again.


    Somehow, I feel that Viviana-san is regularly in charge of troublesome work.


    Lucy-san seemed like she regularly causes trouble after all.


    ¡¸Cielmer, why do you of all people have connections with the underground¡¯s top when you¡¯ve only arrived here at the capital a few days ago?¡¹


    ¡¸For the same reason I was able to stay here.


    I got attacked, so I beat them and marched into their place.¡¹


    ¡¸Even the underground¡¯s top was been taken by surprise, it seems.¡¹


    ¡¸In any case, that¡¯s what happened. I¡¯ll be leaving tomorrow, so it¡¯ll be great if the guild understands that I was nearly killed by a noble of this country.¡¹


    ¡¸Right, there¡¯s really not much time, is there?¡¹


    Hearing all of this, Viviana-san let out a heavy sigh.


    ¡¸Anyways, we were talking about my compensation, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, that¡¯s right. That¡¯s exactly why I hurried here after all.¡¹


    Viviana-san was then suddenly reenergized. For some reason, I can feel Carol-san in her.


    Though I shouldn¡¯t be surprised about that anymore.


    ¡¸Since I might need it when I go to Central, I would like to ask for protection from your family.¡¹


    ¡¸Oh, that¡¯s right. Since it¡¯s you, you¡¯ll likely reach B-rank sometime soon.


    And having someone backing you would, in a sense, make it easier for you to move around after all. Still, what do you mean by ¡®might need it¡¯?¡¹


    ¡¸I already have someone else that might protect me, so it¡¯s for insurance.¡¹


    Carol-san probably has a great influence even in Central. She has a moniker after all.


    ¡¸Being treated as an insurance is quite rude, don¡¯t you think?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯d rather be safe than be polite. Besides, I had a hunch that you wouldn¡¯t get mad from something like that.¡¹


    ¡¸Well that¡¯s true. Still, it¡¯s not something I can decide for on my own, and even if I back you myself, I¡¯m not a legitimate heir, so it won¡¯t really amount to much anyhow.


    So instead, would you mind settling with an introduction to the house? If there¡¯s anything else, then I¡¯ll consider them as well.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, could you write me a letter of introduction? I can¡¯t be sure when I¡¯ll reach B-rank after all, and there¡¯s also no assurance that I¡¯ll be able to contact you when that time comes.¡¹


    Viviana-san pondered for a while before giving a nod.


    A letter of introduction can be misused after all, so I understand her concern.


    Still, I¡¯m glad that she agreed with having that as the payment for her request.


    It¡¯ll be best if we wouldn¡¯t need to use it, but it¡¯s better to have something prepared.


    ¡¸Also, please keep whatever we talk about here a secret.¡¹


    ¡¸Naturally.¡¹


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    With Viviana-san¡¯s agreement, I decided to discuss her issue.


    Heya~! Our man Faneed comes back to the surface world once again, and it¡¯s pretty nice, actually. We need more civil people in this series, lol.


    Anyway, first of all, Ain did not care at all, lol. I mean, look at her, casually trying to get in the capital with a girl wrapped like a shawarma and all, which understandably alerted the gatekeeper, lol. Then next she enters boss man Faneed¡¯s office like she owns the place. And Faneed was like ¡°Oh God, what happened this time now?¡±, just absolutely exhausted the moment Ain came in, which is, again, understandable. Still, Ain was pretty pissed this time, Ciel as well. The girl was just a random spring roll by the end of the first half. But yeah, it seems like it wasn¡¯t only the guildmaster that messed up and forgot his duties, but the knights as well.


    As for the second half, Viviana once again~! While even Ain feels the Carol Sorcery Nut Aura ? from her, Viviana really differentiates here. I really like how Viviana and AinCiel interacts. It¡¯s much closer to Perla and Ain¡¯s master-disciple relationship, while also leaning on Carol and Ain¡¯s equal peer relationship. Viviana respects Ain as someone better in sorcery, while also seeing her as someone younger than her. Well, in short, she doesn¡¯t have Carol¡¯s socialization issues, lol. But yeah, as usual, Ain is a meanie, lol.

 CH 58

    ¡¸Viviana-san, you might have already noticed this yourself, but your circuits are quite short compared to other people. Actually, I¡¯m not sure if short is the proper way to describe it but it¡¯s different from the ordinary.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ I thought so. Rather, you can tell?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s exactly why I want to keep this only between us.¡¹


    Hearing my words, Viviana-san was clearly in low spirits.


    Having an abnormality in one¡¯s circuits is a considerable handicap for a sorcerer, so in my opinion, that¡¯s just a natural reaction.


    ¡¸Specifically speaking, it seems that your circuits don¡¯t reach your extremities.


    One solution around that, I think, would be to simply increase the speed of your circulation flow.¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s still a limit to that, you know.¡¹


    ¡¸From what I can tell, you¡¯re still absolutely far off from reaching maximum speed, but let¡¯s leave that aside for now.


    There¡¯s still one more solution for this that I can think of, but I¡¯m not sure if we can do it or not.¡¹


    ¡¸Let¡¯s try it. Right now.¡¹


    Viviana-san suddenly lunged towards me.


    I was really surprised to see her face now near me, but I should¡¯ve expected this kind of reaction.


    After telling Viviana-san to calm down, I told her to show me her hands.


    ¡¸My hands? Will this be good enough?¡¹


    As she presented both of her hands, I nodded in affirmation before holding them.


    I haven¡¯t really experienced much of these sorts of physical contact ever since¡­¡­ Well, even before I came to this world, so it makes me somewhat nervous.


    Compared to Ciel¡¯s barrier-protected hands, her hands were a little rough, typical for a hunter. Even so, they still possess a certain softness to them, making me conscious of her being a woman.


    Though just because it made me conscious about it, I don¡¯t really think of her as the opposite sex.


    Hmm, if I was holding a man¡¯s hand instead, would my heart skip a beat then? I don¡¯t really know.


    More importantly, I need to concentrate on sensing Viviana-san¡¯s magic power.


    Feel her magic power, seize control¡­¡­ I did it.


    It feels a million times harder than controlling my own magic power but¡­ it¡¯s not impossible.


    ¡¸H-hold on for a moment. You, did you just do something to my magic power?¡¹


    ¡¸I definitely did. Since the preliminary test went smoothly, I was thinking of trying something, but would that be okay with you?¡¹


    ¡¸Would you¡­ mind telling me what you¡¯re going to do first? Otherwise, I can¡¯t make a proper judgment.¡¹


    ¡¸Oh, right. I got a bit hasty there.¡¹


    I managed to seize control of the magic power of someone other than Ciel, so I got a bit too excited.


    Still, despite that fact, it doesn¡¯t seem like I can use sorcery with her magic power.


    It might be best to conclude that casting sorcery using another person¡¯s magic power is fundamentally impossible. The only exception for this as of yet seems to be Ciel.


    Though even with Ciel, this still isn¡¯t practical since it¡¯s considerably inefficient to do so.


    ¡¸I seized control of your magic power and managed to move it by just a bit.


    Hence, I was thinking of forcibly pushing your magic power to the places it should have naturally flowed to.¡¹


    ¡¸If that¡¯s possible, then couldn¡¯t I do that without your assistance?¡¹


    ¡¸Would you like to try?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Impossible, isn¡¯t it?¡¹


    Viviana-san immediately gave up.


    People likely don¡¯t even take notice of where and how magic power usually flows through their circuits. In other words, even if you want to do it, it¡¯s not something that simple to do.


    ¡ºCan Ain do it then?¡»


    ¡ºWe won¡¯t know until we try.


    I managed to do it with your hair, so it shouldn¡¯t be impossible. However, unlike how it was in your case, the possibility of this constructing new circuits is likely low.¡»


    ¡ºSo you think that it¡¯s different for Viviana?¡»


    ¡ºIn her case, I think that her circuits either became dormant because of lack of use or is clogged up for some unknown reason. If I¡¯m wrong, then there¡¯s nothing I can do about it.¡»


    ¡¸Can I ask you to do it?¡¹


    Hearing Viviana-san, I shifted my focus back to her.


    ¡¸Before that, I¡¯d like to confirm something. If this goes well, it¡¯s possible that the feeling of using sorcery for you might feel different from then on.


    Despite that, do you still want to continue?¡¹


    ¡¸Now that you mentioned it, that is true¡­¡­ Still, that doesn¡¯t matter.


    After all, it¡¯s simply a matter of getting used to it. I¡¯ll take a break from my party in the meantime.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, let¡¯s do this then.


    Viviana-san, please try to circulate your magic power as slow as you can. Also, follow the flow of magic power as much as possible.¡¹


    Receiving her agreement, I try moving her magic power.


    I start with the hand closest to me. I attempted to direct the magic power pooling in her palm to flow outwards to her fingers, but there¡¯s a sensation of resistance, so this isn¡¯t going very well.


    I was just directing it that time, so I should be able to manage still. I added a bit more of a push behind it, but then ¡¸Ow!¡¹ Viviana-san yelped and shook off my hand.


    ¡¸Are you alright?¡¹


    ¡¸Y-yes. I was just surprised by the sudden pain.¡¹


    Is forcibly prying circuits open painful?


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    ¡ºDid it also feel that way back then, Ciel?¡»


    Even if she did feel pain, I have a hunch that Ciel would just bear it without any complaints.


    It¡¯s something I¡¯m absolutely not happy about though.


    ¡¸In that case, I¡¯ll continue a bit more, so please tell me if it gets too painful.¡¹


    ¡¸I-I can manage.¡¹


    Considering how she¡¯s stammering right now, it was likely very painful, huh. Still, I already thought up a solution for this, so it should be fine¡­¡­ I hope.


    I once again held her hand and, before manipulating her magic power, I sang. It¡¯s a hymn¡­¡­ actually it¡¯s not if I remember correctly, but instead a beautiful song utilizing religious hymns as a motif.


    Viviana-san seems to be surprised, but I take no note of that and continue moving her magic power.


    In short, I mitigated her pain using the Song Princess and continued on as I sang.


    I then moved her magic power the same way I did earlier and while Viviana-san seemed to be feeling ticklish, it doesn¡¯t look like she¡¯s in any pain, so it should be alright for me to proceed.


    As I finished the song, I was done with her right hand and I had Viviana-san check her hand¡¯s condition.


    ¡¸I only did it with your right hand for now, could you try circulating your magic power by yourself?¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    Viviana anxiously stared at her right hand.


    In actuality, even without having to ask her this, her magic power is already flowing through her now open circuits. I¡¯m glad to see that she isn¡¯t feeling any pain whatsoever.


    It seems like Viviana-san quickly noticed this herself, as she let out a surprised ¡¸Ah¡­¡¹


    ¡¸It looks like it went well.¡¹


    ¡¸Right. I can clearly tell that there¡¯s¡­ more magic power gathering in my right hand now.¡¹


    ¡¸In this case, should I continue on with your whole body? After all, if we end it here unfinished, it might have a negative influence on you.¡¹


    ¡¸Please do so.¡¹


    Since this experiment ended well, I once again took Viviana¡¯s hand and began singing.


    ¡ó


    By the time I stopped singing, Viviana-san was, for some reason, gasping for breath.


    ¡¸I-¡­¡­ It¡¯s¡­ finally¡­¡­. *over¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Umm, are you alright?¡¹


    ¡¸Sorry¡­ Just¡­¡­ let me¡­ take a breather.¡¹


    While her clothes aren¡¯t disheveled, she seems to be sweating all over as her clothes are clinging closely to her body and she¡¯s faintly flushed, making her look really suggestive.


    ¡¸Haa¡­ Haa¡­¡¹ Even her closing her eyes and trying to catch her breath gives off an erotic impression, like it¡¯s a scene from after the fact.


    ¡ºWhat happened to her?¡»


    ¡ºWhat happened to her was you, Ain.


    Look outside the window, would you?¡»


    Ciel answered somewhat delightedly.


    Following her suggestion, I looked outside the window and saw that the sun had now completely set.


    ¡­¡­ Right. I see. It seems like I got too engrossed in singing earlier.


    It¡¯s only natural for her to end up losing her breath like that after feeling a tickling sensation for several hours non-stop.


    ¡ºWas I unresponsive the whole time?¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. I called out to Ain two or three times, but you didn¡¯t respond at all.


    As for me, I¡¯m really satisfied to see Ain having fun, but it¡¯s a bit regrettable that I couldn¡¯t dance along.¡»


    ¡ºDo you know how much time has passed since sunset?¡»


    ¡ºIt just set some time ago, I think.¡»


    In these sorts of situations, I seriously miss having a watch.


    While I can instinctively figure out the time when the sun is still up, when the sun is down, I can¡¯t tell what time it is at all.


    I also don¡¯t know how to measure time using the constellations after all, and more importantly, the night sky here is different from that of earth¡¯s.


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    ¡¸So, is it safe to call this done now?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. I¡¯m sorry for taking too much time.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s fine. I¡¯m the one that asked for this after all. Besides, now I know just how short my circuits were.¡¹


    She forgave me, but then ¡¸Achoo!¡¹ Viviana-san sneezed, perhaps because her sweat was growing chilly.


    It¡¯ll be bad if she catches a cold at this rate.


    ¡¸If you¡¯d like, would you prefer to take a bath here?¡¹


    ¡¸If you don¡¯t mind.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, I¡¯ll heat up the water.¡¹


    After excusing myself, I headed to the bathroom.


    I considered using the magic item they have to fill it up, but it¡¯s somewhat time consuming, so I decided to just use sorcery to quickly fill the tub.


    Making bathwater of about 40 degrees celsius is surprisingly difficult. After all, there aren¡¯t any useful tools like thermometers here.


    Still, as long as I can do that, it doesn¡¯t even take a minute to heat up the water.


    Magic power is the only thing I have a lot of, so it¡¯s really helpful in these types of situations.


    Well, actually, it¡¯s thanks to this large amount of magic power that I can keep my barrier up constantly, so it is always helpful.


    ¡¸The bath is ready now. I¡¯ll be waiting over here until you finish, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸Oh no you aren¡¯t.¡¹


    Viviana-san would use the bath first¡­ is what I thought, but she grabbed me for some reason.


    She held me by the wrist and took me along to the bathroom that I was just inside of a moment ago.


    While I was weirdly lost in thought; Oh, so even if we¡¯re enveloped with a barrier, it¡¯s this easy to get dragged away when grabbed by the wrist, huh; Viviana-san began taking off her clothes.


    Giving up, I began taking off my clothes as well.


    As a former male, this might be the time to get shocked and go ¡¸Why are you taking your clothes off!?¡¹ but after having been educated as a girl, I don¡¯t really find this to be something worth making a fuss about.


    Otherwise, maybe it¡¯s because Ciel is still 12 years old and I¡¯m being influenced by that.


    It¡¯s really mysterious. As I was pondering about it, Viviana-san had finished taking all of her clothes off.


    Her limbs are long, slender, and healthy. Her waist is tight, and her shapely breasts are larger than Ciel¡¯s.


    Should I be sorry for Ciel for feeling like I¡¯ve somehow lost?


    Since there¡¯s no use in observing her any more than this, I took our clothes off and looked at Ciel¡¯s body. Her skin has a sense of translucence as though it has never been under the sun.


    While her limbs are thin, they have a touch of softness to them, and her chest should be about normal for a 12-year-old. Yup, really girl-like.


    Still, saying these wouldn¡¯t really result in anything. These sorts of discussions are generally unproductive after all.


    While I was pondering about this, Viviana-san had already entered the bathroom.


    Since it¡¯s not very spacious, her washing up and soaking in the bathtub first actually helps, so I don¡¯t really mind it.


    In that case, I suppose there¡¯s no reason to go in immediately, huh. With that in mind, I waited for the best moment before entering the bathroom.


    Heya~! After the long delay because of the sudden ambush, our poor sorceress finally got to hear our princesses opinion on the matter! And even got a solution!


    First of all, ample amounts of AinCiel interaction, noice. Ain getting carried away when singing as usual, lol. To put things into perspective, they started *after lunch* and ended *sometime after sunset*. Like, 5 to 6 hours? Let¡¯s go with that, 5 to 6 hours of tickling and singing, lol. Also, Ciel being too resistant against pain to help here was a bit sad but funny.


    Anyway, it was pretty nice to see Ain use the Song Princess, since they barely use it out of battle or their super dash. And to be honest, it has really great synergy with the church if not for the discrimination, which is also suspected to be started by the church, but I digress. Imagine how the voice of a Song Princess can echo in a church, combined with musical instruments, it¡¯ll literally sound divine.


    Still, it was funny how Ain immediately went ¡°Wait, this looks exactly like something after the fXcX¡± upon seeing Viviana flushed and gasping for her breath. Poor Viviana.

 CH 59

    ¡¸Children really are nice and warm.¡¹


    ¡¸I see.¡¹


    ¡¸Oh, you don¡¯t get mad about that?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m aware that I¡¯m a child after all.¡¹


    Upon entering the bathroom and washing up, Viviana-san suddenly grabbed me again for some reason.


    Currently, I¡¯m in the bathtub while being hugged from behind.


    Even though human touch does feel somewhat calming, I can¡¯t help but stay alert. After all, at this distance, she can kill me with her bare hands if she wanted to.


    ¡¸So you won¡¯t let your guard down even in this kind of situation?¡¹


    ¡¸On the contrary, consider that I¡¯ve already let my guard down enough to allow this.¡¹


    ¡¸I suppose that makes sense.


    Cielmer¡­¡­ what¡¯s driving you to persist to this extent on your own?¡¹


    ¡ºIt¡¯s because Ciel is here with me.¡»


    After giving an immediate answer only Ciel can hear, I act as if I¡¯m reflecting on the question.


    While thinking about how I should answer Viviana-san, ¡ºNmn, mhh¡­¡­¡» Ciel let out some troubling moans. Is there something wrong?


    ¡¸It¡¯s because I want to leave this country even just a second faster.¡¹


    ¡¸And you have a reason for that, right?¡¹


    ¡¸No comment.


    What about you Viviana-san? What made you think of having a bath with me?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­¡¹


    Hearing my question, Viviana-san went silent for a moment before suddenly letting out a deep sigh.


    ¡¸I was worried that you were pushing yourself too much. I thought, maybe I could hear you out and take some weight off your shoulders.¡¹


    I see, she intended to counsel me then.


    I don¡¯t see the need to do that here in the bathroom, but I guess she saw this as a perfect opportunity.


    Come to think of it, these past several days were too extreme of an experience for a 12-year-old child.


    ¡¸Today, in particular, you were exposed to obvious killing intent, right?


    There are cases where people fine with monsters can¡¯t handle malevolence coming from other people, you see?¡¹


    ¡¸Certainly, that does sound likely.


    Combat with monsters generally happens outside the town walls after all. In the case of people, while you can mentally brace yourself for it, even the streets you¡¯ve felt safe in up until now wouldn¡¯t feel as safe it was before. At worst, you even could have a nervous breakdown from it.¡¹


    ¡¸However, that doesn¡¯t seem to be the case for you.


    And that¡¯s despite the fact that you already seemed mentally exhausted from dealing with the guildmaster prior to this.¡¹


    I know it¡¯s a heavy discussion, but please don¡¯t just go silent all of the sudden.


    I can¡¯t see Viviana-san¡¯s face from my position, so I can¡¯t figure out what she¡¯s thinking about anymore.


    ¡¸Why don¡¯t we get out before we get dizzy?¡¹


    ¡¸Right.¡¹


    Since Viviana-san can¡¯t move from the tub before I do, I exited the bathroom first and dried myself with a towel.


    Viviana-san then exited the bathroom looking quite despondent, which is making things feel somewhat awkward, so I deliberately ignored the mood and talked to her.


    ¡¸Viviana-san¡­ you¡¯re concerned for me because I¡¯m a Song Princess, right?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s-!¡¹


    Viviana-san immediately reacted, but I suppose she doesn¡¯t know what to reply with as she hesitated to continue her words.


    After a few seconds of what felt like a long time, she began speaking once again.


    ¡¸My concern¡­ isn¡¯t because of your Job. Rather, my party and I admire you for being C-Rank at your age despite having a Disappointing Job.


    That¡¯s why¡­ I wanted to be of help, no matter how small. Though it seems like this help was uncalled for.¡¹


    ¡¸It was.¡¹


    Hearing my agreement, Viviana-san awkwardly averted her gaze.


    ¡¸Viviana-san, I¡¯m glad that you feel that way.


    However, I still¡­ don¡¯t have the emotional leeway to accept your concern.


    After all, it¡¯s been only a few days since we first met.¡¹


    The reason I¡¯ve lowered my guard against Carol-san and Celia-san is because we¡¯ve been with them for several months; because I¡¯ve gotten to know them to a certain extent.


    Even so, I¡¯m still reluctant to tell them everything. Though a part of it might be because we¡¯re in a country where duke Respeliga is.


    Seemingly realizing something, Viviana-san¡¯s expression suddenly changed.


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    ¡¸That¡¯s right. I suppose I was a little too hasty about this.¡¹


    ¡¸However, there is one thing I would like to ask for help with. If you don¡¯t mind, I would like to have the permission to avoid combat even in the event that I get wrapped up in the royal capital¡¯s stampede.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ll relay that and report everything that has happened today. If possible, we¡¯d prefer if you¡¯d join us as well, but it really can¡¯t be helped.


    Sorry for bothering you today. And¡­ thank you.¡¹


    After changing into her clothes, Viviana-san headed to the door leading outside.


    With her back facing me, ¡¸See you tomorrow.¡¹ I gave her a goodbye. Viviana-san turned around and ¡¸Tomorrow then.¡¹ waved at me as she left.


    While I stretched my back as I¡¯m finally done for the day, ¡ºNo fair! No fair!¡» I hear Ciel¡¯s voice in my head.


    Because of the gap from the serious discussion from earlier, this unintentionally made me laugh.


    On the other hand, ¡ºSo mean, I even held myself back the whole time!¡» Ciel reacted with a peevish tone.


    ¡ºI¡¯m sorry about that. What wasn¡¯t fair?¡»


    ¡ºThat you two were in the bath.¡»


    ¡ºI see, I should¡¯ve switched back then. I¡¯m sorry, I wasn¡¯t considerate enough, wasn¡¯t I?¡»


    From Ciel¡¯s experience, she¡¯s never had that sort of skinship with other people.


    Since she¡¯s protected by my barrier, perhaps I should¡¯ve switched with her back then and only focused on staying alert.


    However, Ciel told me that I was wrong.


    ¡ºThat¡¯s not what I meant. Not that.¡»


    ¡ºUmm, what do you mean?¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s not fair that Viviana took a bath together with Ain1


    I wanted to take a bath with Ain too!¡»


    ¡ºAhh¡­¡­ That¡­ would be difficult.¡»


    ¡ºI know. I know. Still, I¡¯m just envious¡­¡»


    In the first place, in a sense, we¡¯re always taking a bath together.


    However, considering how upset Ciel is, that¡¯s probably not the point.


    I can see Ciel from an objective viewpoint, but Ciel can¡¯t.


    Thinking that this might be the difference, I reflect on what happened earlier in the bath while mentally replacing Viviana-san with Ciel.


    Though with that said, it¡¯s absolutely unlikely for Ciel to take the same exact actions as Viviana-san did.


    After all, Ciel expresses a lot of emotions and laughs at even the smallest things.


    She might even have some facial expressions that I could only see if we¡¯re face-to-face.


    If so, I¡¯m sure that she would be extremely adorable¡­¡­ As I was thinking of this, my heart suddenly jumped.


    I frantically shook my head and talked to Ciel to distract myself.


    ¡ºIf, by any chance, there comes a time that I¡¯m able to talk with you face-to-face, let¡¯s take a bath together Ciel.


    If you like, it might be nice to wash each other too.¡»


    ¡ºFufu, that would be amazing. It¡¯s a promise, alright?¡»


    It seems like Ciel¡¯s in a good mood now.


    I let out a sigh of relief and returned the body to Ciel.


    ¡¸Now then, Ain. What should we do tomorrow?¡¹


    ¡ºAren¡¯t we immediately leaving after picking up the sword in the morning and meeting with Chasse-san and the others in the afternoon?¡»


    ¡¸It¡¯s certain that we¡¯ll receive the magic bag tomorrow, right?


    In that case, we could buy some travel equipment too.¡¹


    ¡ºI see, buying a sleeping bag might be nice after all.


    Then let¡¯s stock up on our preserved food supply as well.¡»


    And so we continued talking until Ciel fell asleep.


    ¡ó


    The next morning. A short while after sunrise, Ciel arrived at the previous weapon shop from several days ago.


    As before, the one managing the shop is the lady who seemed to be the owner¡¯s wife and as she saw Ciel, she gave us a gaze of suspicion.


    ¡¸You¡¯re the girl from the other day, yes? The sword is finished.¡¹


    ¡¸I see, then can I have it?¡¹


    ¡¸Before that, could you meet with my husband first? Depending on the circumstances, we won¡¯t sell you the sword.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Understood.¡¹


    Ciel is glaring at the lady as she enters the back room, ¡ºCiel.¡»so I called her name and chided her.


    It¡¯s been two days since I¡¯ve been exposed as a Song Princess. I suppose this means that, even with the gag order, rumors are still spreading around. ¡±The white-haired girl is a Song Princess.¡± Even with only that information, it should be enough to conclude that it¡¯s Ciel.


    Now then, I wonder what this man now standing before us has to say.


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    He looked drowsy the last time we came here but his gaze seems somewhat sharp today.


    ¡¸You, eh? You ordered a sword dancer¡¯s sword, right? Could you try swinging it around for a bit?¡¹


    ¡ºShould I?¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯ll be a waste of time to get in an argument here, so let¡¯s do as he says.¡»


    ¡ºWill you sing for me, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºIf it¡¯s after you¡¯re done testing it on your own, then gladly.¡»


    ¡¸Understood. Where should I do that?¡¹


    ¡¸We have a yard in the back, so try it there.¡¹


    Ciel followed the man and at the shop¡¯s backyard, there¡¯s a scarecrow-like human-shaped thing made of straw.


    ¡¸Try using this on that.¡¹


    As the man said so, he handed over a thin sword that had ornaments adorning its handle.


    After receiving it, Ciel placed the scabbard on the ground and readied the sword.


    Ciel isn¡¯t holding the sword with both arms right in front of her, but is instead holding it on one hand with the foot opposite of her hand positioned behind her other foot. From that stance, she quickly rushed towards the straw doll.


    She approached with a clear three-step rhythm and slashed the places corresponding to wrists in the same rhythm, first up, then down, and with a kick to close it off.


    With the momentum from the kick, she then jumped backwards to retreat.


    That ends the one flow.


    After that, Ciel adjusted her grip on the sword a few times before eventually holding it in front.


    With two breaths, she then stepped in and slashed the areas corresponding to the neck and the arms, before retreating again with a single breath.


    While her movements are a bit too stiff for this to be pictured as ¡°dance like a butterfly, sting like a bee¡±; as expected, using only the Dance Princess doesn¡¯t show too much effect.


    In the case that Ciel could only fight with a sword, she would probably be weaker than Perla.


    Now, since it seems like Ciel¡¯s testing phase is finished, I¡¯ll try singing a song.


    A song having a rhythm similar to Ciel¡¯s movements earlier should do well.


    Still, even if it¡¯s somewhat different, Ciel would match her rhythm to the song, so it doesn¡¯t need to be that exact.


    Following the rhythm of my song, Ciel brandished her sword and attacked.


    What she¡¯s doing isn¡¯t any different from what she did earlier, but her stiffness is now gone and her motions are flowing naturally now.


    Additionally, her strength increased as well, resulting in the straw doll she could only cut on the surface level now getting quickly shredded to the point that it can¡¯t maintain its original silhouette anymore.


    By the time we finished, Ciel then stared straight at the man.


    The man awkwardly stares back at Ciel before suddenly looking away and declaring:¡¸You pass.¡¹


    Ciel only gave a short ¡¸I see.¡¹, picked up the scabbard, and returned to the shop interior. She then paid the remaining sum and immediately exited the weapon shop before they could say anything to her.


    Heya~! Sudden bath episode as prophesized and more cute AinCiel fluff~! Didn¡¯t stay fluff until the end tho¡­


    First, I like how Viviana is in this chapter. And how it ended, while she didn¡¯t really succeed and ended up coming off as a bit nosey, it did show a lot about her. As some people commented, she¡¯s a bit of both Carol and Celia. However, she¡¯s also less of both. Not as nutty as Carol and not as experienced with handling people as Celia. She does have heart, which sounds clich¨¦ but is a valuable thing. Still, it¡¯s a bit unfair to compare Celia and Viviana, Celia¡¯s a full time receptionist after all, imagine being a receptionist in the Hunter Guild with all those ruffians, impressionable young newbies, arrogant fools, nobles incognito and the occasional weirdos. *And* you¡¯re not a stationed receptionist, so you¡¯ll have to adapt each time. Life experience baby.


    Also, Ciel being jealous of Viviana, cute. Also, Ain shaking off the sudden heart throb, lol. And then the promise of having a bath together¡­ Cute. It is a bit sad to think of how Ciel actually can¡¯t see Ain when she¡¯s moving Ciel¡¯s body, moreover how they can¡¯t even have any skinship with each other.


    Lastly, well, that was awkward. Ciel was really pissed tho, which is understandable. While they weren¡¯t wrong about their suspicion about Ciel (Ain), they should¡¯ve just sold it normally. Now they just got themselves played and without the assurance that Ciel is really a Song Princess, the shop owner ¡ª who made weapons for beginners out of care in the first place ¡ª now has this stain on his conscience that he will never forget.

 CH 60

    Swords are surprisingly hard to handle. Should we carry it by hand, rest it on our shoulder, or wear it at the hip? Which is the best choice, I really have no idea.


    Since Ciel is a sorcerer, there¡¯s no need to constantly keep it on her body.


    So we eventually decided to try putting it in our magic bag and it went in without any issues.


    We were told that it had as much space as a backpack, and so I thought that it might not fit due to its length, but it seemed like it¡¯s only a matter of volume.


    Considering that, the fact that it has a thin blade might have helped as well.


    After returning to the inn to wait for Chasse-san and party to come by, Ciel quietly muttered ¡¸Just being a Song Princess can change people that much, huh.¡¹


    It was as if she was thinking out loud. Her voice didn¡¯t have much feeling behind it, and it felt awfully cold; I was at a loss for words.


    And perhaps I was so silent this time, Ciel then worriedly called out to me.


    ¡¸Ain, is there something wrong?¡¹


    ¡ºWell, if being discovered as a song princess would get you treated horribly, I was thinking that¡­ maybe it would be better if I stop singing at pubs and just keep our Jobs unknown instead.¡»


    ¡¸But you love singing in front of people, right Ain?


    You told me before that being able to earn money from singing made you happy. More importantly you always look really happy whenever you sang.¡¹


    ¡ºStill, you¡¯ll experience more awful things because of this, you know?


    Besides, since it seems that my barrier gets sloppy when I¡¯m singing, I might not be able to protect you as well.¡»


    ¡¸That would never happen. After all, Ain is amazing.¡¹


    Somehow, Ciel ended up praising me.


    ¡¸Even when the control gets somewhat sloppy, there¡¯s no way that Ain¡¯s barrier would get destroyed so easily.


    That¡¯s why it¡¯s nothing to worry about.¡¹


    After saying that, Ciel¡¯s eyes narrowed into a gentle smile.


    The next words that came out of her lips tickled my ears.


    ¡¸And besides, Ain is awfully adorable, you see?¡¹


    ¡ºT-that¡¯s thank to your looks, isn¡¯t it?¡»


    ¡¸That¡¯s not what I meant. Ain, as an individual, is adorable.


    This isn¡¯t about your appearance.¡¹


    ¡ºUmm, that¡¯s¡­¡­ really?¡»


    This time she called me adorable in a completely earnest tone and I have no idea how I should even react.


    How should I say this, I just can¡¯t help but feel¡­ flustered about it. The fact that I felt this way shocked me.


    Does being flustered mean that I¡¯m happy about being called adorable then?


    While I¡¯m aware that I¡¯ve been leaning considerably towards the feminine side, does this mean that I¡¯ve changed to the point where I feel happy about being called adorable?


    As I was drowning in my thoughts, Ciel spoke with a gentle, almost maternal, expression.


    ¡¸But you see, Ain, you¡¯re most adorable when you¡¯re singing.


    That¡¯s why you should never think that it¡¯s better to stop singing, alright?


    When Ain is singing, I¡¯ll be the one doing the protecting.¡¹


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s somehow reassuring words, ¡ºUnderstood.¡» I couldn¡¯t think of any other reply.


    ¡ó


    A short while after an exchange that left me wondering who¡¯s the more mature one between us, I heard a knock from the door and we were told that Chasse-san and the others have arrived.


    Since we don¡¯t have any reason to stay in this inn anymore, we brought all our things and headed to the reception area.


    While I would¡¯ve preferred if they were led to our room instead, I suppose they wanted to avoid having men go to a room of a girl all on her own.


    Waiting in the reception area were only two people, Chasse-san and Viviana-san.


    Though, since it¡¯s not like everybody in their party has something to say, I don¡¯t really mind that.


    Since I¡¯m not the one controlling today, Ciel will be the one interacting with them.


    ¡¸Kept you waiting.¡¹


    ¡¸Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s fine.¡¹


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s curt greeting, Viviana-san casually replied.


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    ¡¸As this incident is the result of our¡­¡­ or rather the Hunter Guild¡¯s mishandling, there¡¯s no need for you to worry about it.


    After all, we are the ones asking for your time here.¡¹


    Is Chasse-san¡¯s awfully courteous response due to his own personality, or is he trying to avoid displeasing Ciel considering how large this incident ended up being?


    Whichever it is, I still intend on receiving due compensation.


    After telling the receptionist that we¡¯ll be vacating the room, we headed to a different place since this matter isn¡¯t really something to talk about in front of an inn.


    The place they brought us to was a small house in the residential district.


    While keeping watch around the area, Chasse-san unlocks the house door and enters inside.


    ¡¸This is?¡¹


    Ciel asked in a tone seeping with caution.


    ¡¸A building owned by the Hunter Guild. It¡¯s used in particular circumstances when the guild or the requestor can¡¯t make a move in public, but still have the need to meet and discuss¡­¡­ I guess?


    While it can only be utilized when authorized, it was approved pretty quick this time around.¡¹


    ¡¸I see. So how was it then?¡¹


    As usual, Ciel doesn¡¯t seem interested in other people. On the other hand, this means that she only has interest in me, which does make me feel happy.


    It¡¯s definitely not something I should be happy about though.


    I really do want Ciel to make proper friends.


    Since Chasse-san and Viviana-san didn¡¯t give attention to Ciel¡¯s way of speaking, I guess they see it as how Ciel speaks in private, which is a relief.


    ¡¸To start, the Guild Master will be a slave until he completely pays off a specified amount. After that, he can decide to either stay doing subordinate work or quit.


    It would¡¯ve been different if we can establish further evidence about what happened yesterday, but we really didn¡¯t have enough time to do that. So in the meantime, he¡¯ll be working as a slave until the next Guild Master arrives.


    In addition, all his assets will be confiscated. While the stipulated amount will be deducted from his assets, he¡¯s definitely not going to be able to pay off his fines anytime soon.


    Concerning the noble, the Hunter Guild has filed a complaint against said noble, but this isn¡¯t really something that can be resolved immediately.¡¹


    After Chasse-san explained so in a serious tone, Viviana-san then continued the conversation.


    ¡¸As for Tolt, he¡¯ll be discharged from the Hunter Guild on top of having his assets confiscated.


    He¡¯ll be monitored in the meantime, which will be lifted when it¡¯s judged that he won¡¯t do anything foolish. If it¡¯s observed that he¡¯s planning to misuse his Job during this period, at worst, his head will be flying off on the spot.


    As for the ten that ambushed us yesterday, they¡¯ll be demoted in rank.¡¹


    So far, a lot of people have been demoted after getting involved with Ciel, but with ten more added to the record, I feel like this might end up landing us an alias, which is somehow scary.


    Though Ciel, on the other hand, just seemed absolutely uninterested about it.


    ¡¸And me?¡¹


    ¡¸For you, you¡¯ll be granted the second largest magic bag in the possession of the Royal Capital Guild as well as safety within the guild.¡¹


    ¡¸Within the guild¡­¡­ is it?¡¹


    Being somewhat displeased, Ciel repeated Chasse-san¡¯s words.


    He then hurriedly continued the conversation.


    ¡¸But in exchange for that, in the event that the Royal Capital is hit with the stampede, you won¡¯t and can¡¯t be coerced into fighting.


    The involvement of nobles was acknowledged, but it¡¯s written in the papers that this is for safety reasons.


    After all, there¡¯s no way that the Knight Commander won¡¯t get involved when a stampede occurs. Not wanting to work with someone that tried to take your life is understandable. At worst, you might even get assigned to work under his command after all.


    ¡ºI suppose that was unavoidable. After all, the guild probably can¡¯t guarantee our safety if we get into trouble somewhere they can¡¯t monitor.


    Let¡¯s just be glad that they approved of us not needing to work when a stampede happens.¡»


    ¡ºIf Ain says so, then it can¡¯t be help.


    It¡¯s good news as long as we get the magic bag.¡»


    ¡¸Then Chasse. Go shop for me.¡¹


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    Immediately as Ciel said that, she took out an unneeded sheet of paper and wrote down the things we need for our trip, such as a sleeping bag and so on.


    Upon writing down everything, she took out some coins and handed these to Chasse-san.


    ¡¸Uhhh¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Not a surprise considering that we can¡¯t guarantee her safety. Give up.¡¹


    ¡¸I was glared at in a weapon shop earlier too.¡¹


    While Chasse-san had a stumped look on his face, Viviana-san patted him on the shoulder and Ciel told them about what happened some time ago. It¡¯s not as if it had no connection to the conversation, but Ciel definitely omitted too much information. I¡¯m glad that Viviana-san understood what Ciel meant.


    Chasse-san shook his head in resignation, ¡¸Viviana, can you come with me?¡¹ and asked Viviana-san.


    ¡¸Absolutely not. I told you that I have business with Cielmer, didn¡¯t I?¡¹


    Being rejected by her, Chasse-san looked like an abandoned puppy.


    ¡¸Then in that case, can I bring along the magic bag we were supposed to give you now? Since I¡¯m shopping for your things anyway.¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t mind.¡¹


    ¡¸Well, I¡¯ll be off then. It¡¯ll be a problem if we miss each other, so stay here until I come back.¡¹


    As Chasse-san was leaving by himself, ¡¸Yeah, yeah, see you later.¡¹ Viviana-san casually sent him out.


    I can¡¯t tell who¡¯s the leader between them, but it¡¯s insensitive to care too much about others peoples business.


    Rather, in the case of the Fools¡¯ Gathering, they might actually see being the leader as being the one to have the most annoying work assigned to them.


    ¡¸Business with me?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ve finished writing the letter of introduction. Also, to thank you for yesterday, I guess.


    It¡¯ll be best to keep the letter inside the magic bag. It has a wax seal, so it¡¯ll lose its validity if opened by accident.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    Ciel received the letter of introduction and put it inside the magic bag we¡¯re using as a purse.


    Considering how the sword is also inside, it should be near its maximum capacity, but the letter entered without any issues.


    ¡¸Once again, thank you for yesterday. When I tried using sorcery, the result was literally beyond my imagination.


    This does change the way I have to handle it, but I should be able to manage somehow.¡¹


    ¡¸I see. That¡¯s good.¡¹


    ¡¸Really, you have my gratitude. Forgive me for not being able to pay you back adequately.¡¹


    Viviana-san lowered her head but as if to say she doesn¡¯t mind it, Ciel shook her head in reply.


    After that, Ciel and Viviana-san had an on-and-off chat while waiting for Chasse-san to return.


    ¡ó


    As Chasse-san returned, Viviana-san checked if he bought everything and we confirmed that the magic bag is authentic. By the time we arrived at the gate leading northwards, the sun had already started to set.


    Timewise, it should be about 3 pm. There¡¯s still some time before the day ends, but it¡¯s a bit too late for starting something new.


    For that reason, Viviana-san and Chasse-san who came to send us off asked Ciel if she could consider leaving tomorrow morning instead.


    In reply, Ciel only answered ¡¸It¡¯s fine¡¹ but they didn¡¯t ask any more questions after that.


    ¡¸I¡¯ll be going then.¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah, see you again.¡¹


    ¡¸See you again sometime.¡¹


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s short goodbye, Chasse-san and Viviana-san bid their farewell.


    In these sorts of situations, it makes me imagine some touching goodbye scene; but in the world of hunters, where the people you know might be dead by tomorrow, having curt farewells aren¡¯t particularly unusual.


    Without turning back, Ciel ventures onwards to a new land.


    Heya~! What a great gifts for the holiday (not quite the exact date, but still) to have: one magic bag, two adorable princesses, twelve fools punished, and a goodbye to this troublesome little place~


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    Once again, Ciel proves to be the heart-throb of the pair, lol. Meanwhile, Ain is busy hilariously trying to convince herself that she¡¯s not happy for being specifically called ¡°adorable¡±, but is instead happy because she was complimented by a pretty girl in general regardless of what the compliment was. She subconsciously cringed from how painful her attempt of self-justification was though, lol. Still, it¡¯s quite nice to how much Ciel has grown. Ain worries too much, while Ciel cares too little but as a result, they both complement each other, with Ciel being somewhat more mature in certain occasions. Also, Ciel was the one talking the whole time in the second half! Yay~! Slightly pissed Ciel tho.


    Now on the other hand, poor Chasse, lol. First, having to clean up the hot dripping mess the guild master made, now being a gofer and also being rejected by his own teammate. As for Viviana, it seems like the hours of tickle torture really paid off considering that she just had a huge power upgrade from the incident. A price to pay for salvation indeed. On to the guild master, well, it seems like he still has his job for now (only it¡¯s not really a job but free labour, and he now has not even a single penny to his name) but only until his replacement arrives, hopefully to smite more judgment upon him. Have fun working to earn the right to decide whether you¡¯ll be sent back to the lowest position in the guild or just have no job at all in the future~


    And so our princesses have finally left the royal capital behind before the troublesome knight commander even had the chance to be a greater nuisance and before the steaming hot mess of a stampede hits the metaphorical fan~! What lies ahead in their journey~?

 CH 61

    As we were heading north, we were walking along a curved path, so we¡¯re not necessarily facing the north at all times.


    Still, there¡¯s only one path. We shouldn¡¯t end up getting lost.


    Along the way, we had several combat encounters with wolves that are likely to be forest wolves.


    Whether it can be better described as combat or slaughter might be different from person to person, but as for us, it was a great opportunity to practice using the sword, so that turned out pretty good.


    Since Ciel would have a tough time fighting a wolf on her own, this was good for training.


    Though, the fact that we blasted away wolves that appeared in packs so that only one of them would be left should be out of the question.


    As a result, there were quite a few wolves we couldn¡¯t harvest magic cores from.


    For a while, the surroundings were unchanging as we continued on but just a few moments ago, we¡¯ve started seeing what might be a wheat field.


    Still, it seemed that the harvest season had already passed since the field was deserted with only exposed soil remaining.


    As we continued walking on the path through the empty field, Ciel stared at the horizon and spoke to me.


    ¡¸The town is finally in sight.¡¹


    ¡ºFortunately, it looks like we should be able to reach it within a day.¡»


    ¡¸At this point, I don¡¯t think the difference of a day or two would cause any major issues though.¡¹


    ¡ºThe sleeping bag is already good enough after all.¡»


    It has been about 30 days since we left the capital, I think. I didn¡¯t count the exact days, so I can¡¯t be sure.


    While we dropped by a few villages to replenish food and complete some requests along the way, we generally just camped out.


    Knowing the discomfort of sleeping on a stone bed, Ciel can sleep outside comfortably as long as she has a sleeping bag.


    I couldn¡¯t even keep count of how many wolves attempted to attack Ciel in her sleep and ended up giving up.


    The sleeping bag was so comfortable that immediately after Ciel got used to it, she ended up staying asleep until late afternoon.


    Though, as expected, Ciel is now more wary and makes sure to wake up in the morning.


    And so, our outdoors lifestyle ends today.


    A town surrounded by a sturdy-looking gray wall, which was perhaps built because they¡¯re right next to a forest filled with monsters, is now only a short distance away from us.


    ¡ó


    Norvell, a town neighbouring the forest at the foot of the mountain range north of the kingdom of Estoque, and the town we¡¯ve reached on this very day.


    As the forest in question is a place where monsters spawn, it can be said that Norvell is constantly under the threat of monster attacks.


    For that reason, while it¡¯s not as large as the royal capital, the town¡¯s walls look absurdly tough.


    This toughness seemed to be only for use against monsters as we were able to enter the town without any particular questioning.


    Though perhaps this was because the guard trusted the authenticity of the Hunter Card we used for identification.


    As we were walking along the town streets, there were hunters carrying weapons with them, which I suppose is also telling of how frequently monsters attack the town.


    And considering how the people around don¡¯t seem to mind the sounds of squabbling mixed in with the loud customer calling from the food stalls, I guess this town is, in some sense, a hunter-friendly town.


    Once they do, they¡¯ll probably get beaten up though, by Ciel that is.


    Anyhow, it¡¯s nothing to be concerned about right now, so Ciel searched for an inn.


    Considering how Ciel asked for information about the inn as she bought wolf skewers from a stall, I think she¡¯s really gotten used to people now.


    While consulting with her stomach, Ciel bought some food from several different stalls and gathered information about the town inns.


    We then decided to get a room from the inn whose name was brought up the most from among the inns we were told about.


    ¡ó


    ¡ºCome to think of it, the hairpin showed no signs of slipping off at all, didn¡¯t it?


    Since you were swinging the sword around, I honestly thought that it might fall off.¡»


    ¡¸Now that you mention it, it really didn¡¯t.¡¹


    While we were lying on the bed of the room we just occupied, this thought suddenly came to mind and as I said that, Ciel touched the hairpin before giving her agreement.


    She doesn¡¯t sound to be particularly interested about it; rather, her reply was quite curt and it¡¯s somewhat concerning.


    What if she grows up without having any interest in fashion¡­ is a rather self-serving concern of mine, so I¡¯ll just keep it to myself.


    Looking back on my past memories, I think that having some interest in fashion regardless of your gender works to one¡¯s advantage.


    Still, is 12 years old too early to be concerned about accessories?


    Well for now, I¡¯ll just try recommending Ciel things that might suit her without forcing things on her.


    I just hope that my fashion sense doesn¡¯t end up being catastrophic when that happens.


    ¡ºDoes the hairpin still turn back into a flower?¡»


    ¡¸It seems like it. Ain, you said that it¡¯s absorbing magic power from you, right? ¡¹


    ¡ºIt does but not to the point that it bothers me, not at all.¡»


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    As Ciel reached out for the hairpin, it stopped being an ornament and sat on Ciel¡¯s hand as a transparent flower.


    It honestly only takes a small amount of my magic power. Still, I can¡¯t say for sure if the same can be said for other people.


    Even I am aware of how abnormal my magic power capacity is after all. I¡¯ve expanded it with what¡¯s practically a loophole abuse for five whole years, so there¡¯s no way that I¡¯d have the same capacity as other people.


    In addition, magic power continuously increases with age and I can definitely feel that mine has increased from two years ago.


    While it does only take a small amount, it had been constantly absorbing magic power from me, a beast of magic power, so it had likely absorbed an awfully great amount in total.


    ¡¸It¡¯s nice how I can just leave it on my hair but what is this really?¡¹


    ¡ºI can¡¯t feel any malicious intent from it too; and, in the first place, it doesn¡¯t even seem alive most of the time as well.¡»


    If it is alive, I hope it does something for us in proportion to the magic power it had been absorbing so far; but it¡¯s mostly inorganic, particularly since it¡¯s generally in hairpin form.


    ¡¸In that case, perhaps it¡¯s some kind of magic item?¡¹


    ¡ºThat seems highly possible.


    Magic bags do exist after all, so it won¡¯t be surprising for hairpins that attach themselves on their own to exist as well.¡»


    I don¡¯t know much about magic item construction, so I actually have no idea if something like that can be made, but I don¡¯t think it¡¯s impossible at least.


    But in that case, that still doesn¡¯t explain why this was in the middle of a forest and why it was in the form of a flower.


    ¡ºAs they say, leave the monsters to hunters. So with that in mind, we could ask an accessory shop about this but¡­¡­¡»


    ¡¸We¡¯re going to stand out if this ends up being something valuable or particularly unusual, right?¡¹


    ¡ºUs standing out is inevitable but I¡¯d like us to avoid standing out in that manner for now.¡»


    After all, Ciel already stands out for being a C-rank hunter at her age, so standing out is unavoidable the higher she goes.


    Even with the towns we¡¯ve visited up until now, while I wouldn¡¯t say that we were conspicuous in a negative way, there¡¯s no doubt that the Hunter Guild people would make sure to remember a hunter that has been completing their unaccepted requests.


    However, standing out like that is still better, standing out because of an unusual possession would get us targeted.


    Particularly in Ciel¡¯s case, her appearance has a tendency to attract the scoundrel type.


    I can already imagine them pestering us as we walk the streets.


    ¡¸Ain doesn¡¯t feel anything bad from it, right?¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. I don¡¯t feel any sort of ill will from it.¡»


    ¡¸In that case, we could delay the confirmation of what this is until we¡¯re out of this country¡­ right?¡¹


    ¡ºThat sounds good.¡»


    Ciel put the flower back on her hair.


    We have a bigger magic bag now, so there¡¯s no particular need to wear it; but since wearing it would be more girly of her, I decided to keep this to myself.


    ¡ó


    The next day, we headed to the Hunter Guild around the end of the morning peak time.


    This peak time doesn¡¯t particularly change much from town to town.


    Due to the nature of their work, going to the guild at a later time would decrease a hunter¡¯s active working hours and affect their earnings.


    While people can drink and party at night, not many can go out the town gates at night with all the monsters roaming around.


    While there are requests that could span across a few days, hunters still make sure to act in a way that will lessen the nights they¡¯ll need to stay outside the gates.


    We¡¯re probably one of the only ones that leave the town in a hurry in the afternoon and return the next day after camping out.


    As for our plans for today, we¡¯ll be gathering information at the Hunter Guild and accept some requests if there are ones that suit us.


    Speaking of info gathering; we usually do it in the pub but since the information we need this time concerns the forests as well as the mountain range north of Norvell, in other words, the places the hunters of this guild mainly go to, we decided that it¡¯ll be better to ask at the guild.


    Besides, we¡¯re only a short distance from the ocean now, so if there aren¡¯t any suitable requests, we could just replenish our supplies here at Norvell and leave.


    I suppose I can say that that¡¯s another reason we¡¯re taking a break from the pub where we might get hounded on by people.


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    The Hunter Guild of the town of Norvell is rustic and made of stone.


    While it¡¯s small in comparison to the royal capital¡¯s guild, it¡¯s still larger and sturdier-looking than those in other towns.


    Considering my image of the Hunter Guild, this fits more than that of the guild in the royal capital.


    Ciel gently opened the door and, after confirming that there¡¯s only a few people inside, entered the building.


    While it¡¯s not as if there are zero hunters, there¡¯s only a few looking at the request board right now.


    Ciel headed to the open counter and began gathering information from the young¡ªin comparison to my age when I was alive¡ªfemale receptionist.


    ¡ó


    To summarize what we heard from the receptionist: first of all, there¡¯s a lot of beast-type monsters in the northern forest.


    Including the wolves, there are also deers and boars. Besides these, there are horned rabbits which are monsters that even low rank hunters can hunt.


    As for the current state of affairs here, we¡¯ve been told that low-ranked monsters have been appearing increasingly lately, likely escaping from the forest as the number of wolves have been increasing.


    And since the wolves naturally come out to hunt for them, it¡¯s money making time for the hunters.


    We were told that passing over the mountain range would be difficult unless you¡¯re a high-ranking hunter and that practically nobody would go to the ocean on their own accord.


    She probably didn¡¯t expect an exception to that to be right in front of her, but from what I can tell, there shouldn¡¯t be any monsters that can break through my barrier. In other words, there would be no problems at all.


    As the conversation ended, Ciel was also told not to fight because it¡¯s dangerous but we¡¯re already used to being told that. I¡¯m sure that she thought that Ciel was a newbie that just asked out of curiosity.


    Getting back on focus, we decided to check the available requests on the request board.


    As the receptionist said, there are a lot of subjugation requests all across the board, from high rank to low rank.


    If we present the wolves we¡¯ve hunted along the way, we can probably complete a lot of requests at once.


    ¡ºCan we?¡»


    ¡ºLet¡¯s not. From how the receptionist acted earlier, it¡¯ll probably start an argument.¡»


    Ciel asked with less than ideal words, but I understand what she wanted to say.


    She¡¯s probably asking if we can accept wolf-related requests to get rid of the wolves taking space in our magic bag. While we didn¡¯t bring wolf materials that would spoil, they are still a nuisance to be honest.


    ¡ºBut we might still start an argument if we bring any other C-rank request to that receptionist, won¡¯t we?¡»


    In the middle of our conversation, someone came approaching us. It doesn¡¯t seem to be someone that was inside the guild up until now, so it appears that it¡¯s someone that came from outside and the person¡¯s stride is as unsteady as a drunkard¡¯s.


    From the fact that this person¡¯s going straight for us after going through the door meant that the guy likely already locked on to Ciel, so even if I alert her, we probably can¡¯t avoid an encounter. This person probably saw us by chance upon entrance. This is the worst.


    With visual confirmation just to be sure, it seems to be a boy in his teens and his face is somewhat red.


    ¡¸Oi.¡¹


    Hearing that, Ciel turned to the boy¡¯s direction but she then returned her gaze to the request board as if nothing ever happened.


    ¡ºSince it can¡¯t be helped, I¡¯ll accept a few C-rank subjugation requests.¡»


    ¡ºSure. It shouldn¡¯t be any problem for you Ciel.¡»


    While I considered giving up the requests to avoid needless trouble, since there¡¯s already trouble coming for us either way, it¡¯ll be better to just go with the requests instead. After all, we¡¯re going to need to prove that we¡¯re C-rank soon anyway. After that happens, we won¡¯t get into an argument for accepting a C-rank request.


    With our course of action decided, Ciel peeled off several requests off the board and brought them to the reception counter.


    Naturally while completely ignoring the boy. I imagined that he would immediately flare up with that, but I guess he was more astonished than anything as he simply saw Ciel off without saying anything.


    He immediately came to his senses; and incidentally sobered up, it seems; and reached out for Ciel.


    I¡¯ve learned from our interaction with Viviana-san that being grabbed is dangerous, ¡ºCiel.¡» so I called Ciel¡¯s attention.


    Still, even if he does grab us, I don¡¯t think he can do anything beyond that.


    Hearing my voice, Ciel swiftly turned around and gracefully put distance between them.


    The boy¡¯s overstretched arm catches nothing but the air and the hunters around us broke out into laughter.


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    The boy¡¯s face turned red, this time not from intoxication but rather from either anger or humiliation, and he then snappily pointed at Ciel.


    ¡¸You¡¯re a newcomer, aren¡¯t you? I¡¯ll make you my woman.¡¹


    And so he declared.


    Heya~! Happy New Year Everybody!!! New year, new arc, new¡­ villain? Or rather, nuisance? Anyhow~ Welcome to the town of Norvell!


    Leaving the royal capital, our princesses find themselves in the town of Norvell which seems to be their final stop before seeing the ocean. Today¡¯s chapter was more on the world building side, but I liked how Ciel has been the one talking to people so far. Other than that, our attention what briefly brought back to the mysterious hairpin/transparent flower. What is it really? And why is it absorbing magic power? Back to the story, the upcoming stampede seems to be affecting the ecosystem so far¡­ I think? Also, we have a drunken boy suddenly picking up Ciel, uh-oh¡­


    Still, the ocean is only some distance away, so hopefully our princesses don¡¯t get into trouble¡­¡­ get into more trouble than they currently are in until then.

 CH 62

    ¡¸No thanks.¡¹


    As a response to the boy¡¯s words, Ciel expressed her feelings with a short and concise reply before heading to the counter.


    The boy¡¯s outstretched finger stayed pitifully pointing at the now empty spot, and his face was completely red with humiliation.


    The way his whole body is shaking is reminiscent of that of a puppy¡¯s adorable shaking, but the people around us don¡¯t seem to see it that way. The gazes directed at him are only expressing either ridicule or pity.


    While I do see this as his natural comeuppance, every time these sorts of incidents happen, I just can¡¯t help but question myself if leaving for Central as a hunter was really the right decision to make.


    After all, while Ciel doesn¡¯t think much of these incidents, each time we encounter something like this, I constantly struggle with keeping my anger in check.


    As we arrived before the reception counter, the receptionist lady had a troubled smile.


    ¡¸Is the matter with him, with Gancia-kun, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s fine. I don¡¯t care about it anyway.¡¹


    ¡¸Still, he¡¯s a hunter that¡¯s already D-rank at 15 years old, promising even for Norvelle¡¯s standards.


    While it¡¯s been only recently since he rose to D-rank and he certainly has gotten carried away because of that, his skills are undeniable.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so. More importantly, process these requests.¡¹


    ¡ºHe¡¯s approaching again.¡»


    ¡¸What a bother. Please process these.¡¹


    ¡¸Ah, wai-¡­¡¹


    Since the boy¡ªGancia¡ªis approaching us, I informed Ciel about it; and after shoving her card and the requests to the receptionist, she let out a deep sigh before turning around.


    I feel bad about the confused receptionist but since we¡¯re perfectly fine rank-wise, she should be able to process the requests without any issues. As long as she doesn¡¯t think that the card Ciel gave was a fake that is.


    As Ciel faced the boy we¡¯ll use¡ªwe¡¯ll have to use¡ªto remove doubts surrounding Ciel¡¯s card, the boy had an obvious look of surprise, probably because Ciel turned around before he said anything.


    Where did he even find the nerve to say he¡¯ll make Ciel his woman when he¡¯s already surprised about this?


    ¡¸What do you want?¡¹


    ¡¸You look like you¡¯re acting alone. In that case, I¡¯ll let you party with me.


    The party¡¯s gonna start out as an E-rank party, but it¡¯ll blow past D and make it to C-rank in no time.


    And then it¡¯s full speed ahead to becoming famous.¡¹


    ¡¸The merit for me is?¡¹


    ¡¸I reached D-rank at 15 years old as a solo hunter, you know?


    From here on, I¡¯ll be history¡¯s youngest C-ranker and I¡¯ll definitely get to S-rank sometime in the future!


    Just being in the same party as someone like me is enough of a merit. Naturally, you¡¯ll never have any problems with money too.¡¹


    What the boy is saying in and of itself isn¡¯t necessarily wrong.


    Ciel is just ridiculously absurd, D-rank is actually quite high for a 15-year-old.


    As long as he constantly completes requests, he should be able to live a relatively wealthy life and likely never experience any lack of money.


    However, becoming history¡¯s youngest C-ranker is already impossible. After all, the C-rank Ciel is still only 12 years old to this very day.


    For Ciel who is a C-rank solo¡ªshe does have C-rank level capabilities even without me¡ªhunter, being in a party with him will only add dead weight and reduce the rewards.


    ¡¸I¡¯m C-rank. You¡¯ll slow me down.¡¹


    ¡¸Hah? A shrimp like you, C-rank?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ll leave that to your judgment. At the very least, acting together with you is out of the question.¡¹


    No matter how high their rank is, I wouldn¡¯t even consider being with someone who suddenly says I¡¯ll make you my woman to a person they met for the first time. More so with Ciel, her ever getting swayed by that is inconceivable.


    Perhaps due to Ciel easily deflecting him, I can hear words like ¡¸You go tell him, missy!¡¹ or ¡¸That¡¯s pathetic, boy!¡¹ from the surroundings. Since there¡¯s only a few people, it¡¯s easy to follow who¡¯s saying what but knowing this shouldn¡¯t be necessary.


    The issue here is the boy in front of us. His pride getting torn to shreds by Ciel¡¯s remarks is, by itself, actually quite refreshing but it¡¯ll be awfully troublesome if this continues on and he goes into a frenzy.


    Just when I noticed his body quivering, he suddenly glared at us.


    ¡¸Since you¡¯re saying that you¡¯re C-rank, then fight me. If I win, serve me as my woman for your whole life.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s pointle-¡­¡­ Nevermind. If you lose, hand over everything you own and leave the guild.¡¹


    ¡¸Why does it end up like that!¡¹


    ¡¸A life for a life. And besides that, it¡¯s the price for picking a fight with a high-ranked hunter.¡¹


    Ciel answered indifferently to the boy¡¯s shocked question.


    Both the price for picking a fight and his life shouldn¡¯t be of any interest to Ciel, but since she accepted the challenge, then this means that she has something she wants to do.


    If only possible, I¡¯d love to personally beat him up myself but, unfortunately, I can¡¯t do much in a fight. Though I can eat up all attacks with my barrier and just straight up stab the enemy with a knife and such. Seeing a blade slowly inching towards you as your every attack does absolutely no damage against its wielder would definitely be terror inducing though.


    The battle this time is something that Ciel accepted on her own volition.


    I¡¯ll abide by her decision.


    ¡ºWhat are you planning to do?¡»


    ¡ºSince this is a perfect chance, I want to try fighting against a human enemy using the sword.


    After all, a D-rank hunter is just about as strong as a wolf. It should be perfect level-wise.¡»


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    I can understand what Ciel¡¯s thinking. While Ciel has used a sword against a lot of wolves on our way to Norvelle, to the point that we¡¯re pretty much sick of them, she has never used a sword against a person yet.


    A battle against an intelligent being would probably feel very different from one against a blindly rushing beast after all, and we bought the sword with unexpected close quarters combat in mind to begin with.


    Still, if Ciel is to fight with a sword, then she¡¯ll naturally be fighting in the style of a Dance Princess.


    In other words, there will be a risk of being discovered as a Dance Princess.


    ¡ºCan I?¡»


    Perhaps due to my extended pondering, Ciel anxiously asked me so.


    ¡ºI was thinking that it might expose your Job as a Dance Princess, but there¡¯s likely a much higher chance of them mistaking you for a Sword Dancer.


    So, it should be alright.¡»


    ¡ºI see, there is that possible risk. Should I take it back?¡»


    ¡ºActually, since we got the sword for fighting against people, it would be better to gain experience with that.


    Oh, it look like someone arrived while we were busy talking.¡»


    I noticed somebody approaching us from the inner part, in other words the staff area, of the Hunter Guild; so I stopped talking.


    Ciel seemed to have somehow understood my intentions, as she shifted her attention to their direction.


    The person that arrived was a muscular, middle-aged man. He had no hair and somehow seemed like a person who has gone through a lot in life.


    While he has a hardened look, he might be the type that is actually really considerate to other people.


    ¡¸Wait, hold on for a moment.¡¹ The man said in a hurry.


    The boy was surprised by the man¡¯s entrance and ¡¸Guildmaster!¡¹ raised his voice.


    As I thought, it¡¯s the guild¡¯s management head.


    After all, this boy is a person of promise to this town; moreover, the man probably knows about Ciel as well.


    In short, this boy being crushed here isn¡¯t something the man would find acceptable.


    ¡¸Miss Cielmer, pardon our Gancia¡¯s discourtesy.¡¹


    ¡¸So you¡¯ve done research on me? Well, I can understand why.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m glad to hear that. I have a grasp of the sequence of events and this matter is completely Gancia¡¯s fault.¡¹


    ¡¸What are you talking about, guildmaster!¡¹


    It sounds like the guildmaster has a soft spot for the boy.


    After all, the boy is flaring up to the top of an organization, so something similar to this likely happens on a regular basis.


    ¡¸So you think suddenly saying ¡±Be my woman¡± is a normal thing to do?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s-¡­¡­ I was just drunk earlier¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸I understand the feeling of wanting to have some fun at the pub now that you¡¯re legally allowed to drink.


    I¡¯ve been there before after all.¡¹


    ¡¸Then-!¡¹


    ¡¸However, that doesn¡¯t mean to say that being drunk excuses everything you do.


    Now, if the one you picked a fight with was a different high-ranked hunter, then you might have already gotten seriously injured at this point. Have you considered that?¡¹


    As the two started a conversation on their own, Ciel is now getting bored.


    She¡¯s practically emanating a Can we go home now? aura and even let out a light yawn.


    ¡ºIt would have been better if the guildmaster didn¡¯t come.¡» She muttered, and I really agree with that.


    ¡¸But¡­¡­ She¡¯s just E-rank at best, isn¡¯t she? If she has a high rank, then it¡¯s her fault for looking so misleading.¡¹


    ¡¸You¡¯re speaking like this wouldn¡¯t be an issue if she was a lower-ranking hunter. I don¡¯t remember ever permitting the hazing of newcomers¡­¡­ Rather, if a high-ranked individual is permitted to do as they want, then you have no right to complain about how Miss Cielmer looks.


    If, by any chance, she wasn¡¯t even a hunter, then this would have made our relationship with the townsmen go sour. Can you take responsibility for that?¡¹


    The boy¡¯s assertiveness gradually shrank and he even appeared physically smaller now.


    He should be taller than I was when I was alive though.


    Leaving that aside, with how it seems at this rate, will this end up with a ¡¸Could you let him off this time?¡¹ sort of thing? I have absolutely no intention of allowing that at all though.


    ¡ºSay, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºWhat is it?¡»


    ¡ºIn this kind of situation, would it be better to just forgive him?¡»


    ¡ºFor me, from the moment he went ¡¸Be my woman¡¹ and all, I already had no intention of forgiving him; but if you¡¯d prefer to forgive him, then I think that¡¯s alright as well.


    Still, the hunters that are watching us now might make light of us if we forgive him unconditionally, so I suppose it would be best to at least demand some reparation from Gancia-san.¡»


    ¡ºI see. Thank you Ain.¡»


    Now what was Ciel thanking me for, I wonder?


    Also, will she forgive him or not? Her reply was pretty vague about that.


    Just as that went through my mind, Ciel spoke to the guildmaster.


    ¡¸So, what now? I don¡¯t plan on forgiving him, just so you know.¡¹


    ¡¸This is, after all, a dispute between hunters. As a general rule, the guild won¡¯t intervene.


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s words, the guildmaster made a pained expression.


    If he did research about Ciel then he should know how much she has contributed and, at the same time, the things that the guild has done against her.


    This mediation is for the sake of saving the boy; but from our perspective, this is practically the guild inconveniencing us once again.


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    So yeah, I can understand why he¡¯d have that pained expression.


    If he doesn¡¯t do this, the guild will end up losing a promising rookie. And unlike us who constantly wander around here and there, the boy is likely to become a major fighting force for this guild in the future.


    Being the head of an organization is pretty complicated, isn¡¯t it?


    Unfortunately though, that¡¯s no reason for me to let this slide.


    It seems like the Hunter Guild only brings us trouble despite all the things we¡¯ve helped them with.


    ¡¸If I win, demote him and grant me my remaining requirements to become B-rank.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Alright.¡¹


    ¡¸Guildmaster! What are you just agreeing with her for!¡¹


    ¡¸If you lose Miss Cielmer, then we¡¯ll have you stay here for a year and have Norvelle as your base of activities during that period.¡¹


    ¡¸Also, the battle will only decided upon surrender or incapacitation.¡¹


    As the guildmaster, he probably had no other choice but to swallow those conditions.


    After all, the boy would end up having to leave the guild instead. This is our point of compromise, and if he wanted another change of conditions, then Ciel would likely refuse and fight under the original ones instead.


    Perhaps not understanding that, ¡¸Wait a minute!¡¹ the boy continued on making a fuss.


    Heya~! As trouble is a brewin¡¯ in the guild once again, a new character has joined the fray!


    Man, I know this isn¡¯t anything new, but it must be frustrating to be in Ain¡¯s position. Anyhow, boy oh boy. This boy¡¯s got to have the most horrible luck. Think about it, the boy had enough sanity to *not* just suddenly jump Ciel out of anger and Ciel is pretty much absolutely immune to insults and taunting, except when it¡¯s targeted at Ain or anything related to her. There was practically only a slim chance of this fight actually happening, since Ciel is pretty much uninterested in him, but to his misfortune, Ciel has new equipment and quite interested in trying it out on *people*. And he just happened to be *people*. And Ain is pretty livid. I pray for his soul.


    Luckily for him though, the guildmaster came to the rescue. Still, the guildmaster is in a pretty tough spot. Practically a rock and a hard place. After all, the boy seems to be actually promising, unlike some B-boy in the past, as he¡¯s a D-rank Solo hunter. Not anything amazing compared to AinCiel, but remember, most newbies get to D-rank at like 3-5 years after joining. And most of them act in groups. To put it in perspective, B-boy and his old pals learned their jobs at 10, learned about equipment maintenance and got familiar with their Jobs for 5 years, became hunters at 15 and rose to E-rank a year after, and only got to D-rank about 2 and a half years after that. Except for B-boy, he was sent to the mines for being a naughty naughty brat. Anyhow, a regular hunter would probably reach D-rank at about 4-5 years after joining. So yeah, the boy¡¯s promising and seem to be not that cocky before becoming D-rank. Unlike some B-boy in the past. So yeah, a promising regular is important for a town literally next to a monster den, but the guest has already been compromised by another guildmaster in a previous event¡­ really tough spot there, guildmaster. He seemed to be a caring dad kind of man too.

 CH 63

    Gazes gathered on the complaining boy but it didn¡¯t seem like he took notice as he continued on asserting himself.


    ¡¸What about my opinion? Like anyone would accept being demoted for losing.¡¹


    ¡¸If I lose, I¡¯ll be your woman. And if you lose then?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­¡¹


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s words, the boy fell silent. I guess he realized that he should watch his words, but the fact that he went silent is a negative in my opinion.


    If he doesn¡¯t have enough guts to at least say that he¡¯ll be a slave, then it¡¯s unlikely that he¡¯ll gain the respect of other hunters in the future.


    Especially since he was the one that asked for a formal battle against Ciel. Moreover, all of this started just from a false accusation, or rather, it was to satisfy his own desires. It¡¯s no exaggeration to say that a great shadow is now looming over this boy¡¯s career as a hunter.


    Perhaps since the continued silence isn¡¯t really advancing this conversation, Ciel shifted her gaze towards the guildmaster.


    The guildmaster, who went speechless, came back to his senses and faced the boy.


    ¡¸The formal battle will be performed under the rules that Miss Cielmer and I decided on.


    Gancia, I won¡¯t allow any back talking, you hear me?¡¹


    Likely to prevent things from getting any worse, the guildmaster said so in a commanding tone.


    ¡ó


    And so the battle with the boy began. There was no audience, and with me excluded, the only witness of the fight is the guildmaster.


    Within the large but uncharacteristically empty training area, the clanging of swords resound.


    While Ciel rushed in with her dance-use saber and then retreated after a breath, the boy calmly matched her movements and parried her attacks with minimal action.


    As their swords collide, Ciel¡¯s rhythm is disrupted, making her unable to attack as smoothly as she wanted to.


    The best she can probably do is making light cuts on the boy¡¯s skin. While the boy¡¯s left cheek is bloodied right now, these wounds aren¡¯t anything worth any regular hunter¡¯s attention.


    As it is now, Ciel can¡¯t make a cut that¡¯s deeper than she already made and in addition to that, the boy has been adapting, making it harder to make even the lighter cuts.


    I suppose this means that while she does have physical reinforcement, Ciel using Dance Princess with only a sword and no music can¡¯t win against a D-rank hunter.


    Still, seeing how she¡¯s not going down easily, I suspect that Ciel¡¯s skill with a sword is probably at D-rank level.


    Considering that it¡¯s only been a short while since she first held a sword, this result is more than satisfactory. And since this is also her first sword fight against people, the difference in experience plays a big part as well.


    From an outsider¡¯s perspective, it might seem as if Ciel has the offensive advantage from her constant attacks, but the boy had a composed look and to match his growing complacency, he even started to smirk. He¡¯s gradually getting more familiar with Ciel¡¯s movements, so he might start aiming for a counter sometime soon.


    However, it seems like the boy hasn¡¯t noticed that Ciel is similarly as composed as he is.


    ¡ó


    ¡¸Is that all you got, C-ranker? No, you being C-rank is complete bull. There¡¯s no way a high rank hunter would be this weak.¡¹


    As points of further improvement has been identified, Ciel ended her sword practice and opened up distance between them, which the boy reacted to with an arrogant scoff.


    Nonetheless, isn¡¯t he awfully bright? For realizing that there¡¯s no way a high rank hunter¡ªCiel¡ªcould ever be this weak that is.


    Besides, just like how the boy was analyzing Ciel¡¯s capabilities, I¡¯ve also analyzed his as well.


    While he might have a hidden ace, even if he does use it, it¡¯s extremely improbable for him to be able to break through my barrier. Because of this, I suggested so to Ciel.


    ¡ºIt looks like he wants to finish this match quickly, so why don¡¯t we have our first stress test in a while?¡»


    ¡ºFufu, quite mean today, aren¡¯t you, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºDespite how I sound, I am actually angry right now. Since you seem to be done with your preparations as well, why don¡¯t you try approaching him while being wide open?¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯m sure Ain already noticed, but it¡¯s really crooked and sloppy, you know?¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯m sure you¡¯ll do just fine.¡»


    ¡ºIf Ain says so then that¡¯s a relief.¡»


    With our discussion settled, it¡¯s time to show him the true power of a high rank hunter, which Ciel will do.


    Before I could notice it, the boy was now raising his sword right in front of us. Still, since we left ourselves open for that long of a time, it¡¯s only natural for him to make a move.


    ¡¸Haaaaa!¡¹As he yelled and swung his sword downwards, Ciel caught it with only one hand. Though more accurately, she simply blocked it with my barrier.


    Whether it was his strongest strike or not, I can¡¯t say for sure. The boy¡¯s face was frozen in a dazed expression, but perhaps sensing something, he quickly put some distance from Ciel as though to run away.


    ¡¸What the hell was that?¡¹


    ¡¸A barrier, that¡¯s what.¡¹


    ¡¸Haa? That¡¯s cheating.¡¹


    ¡¸A sorcerer using sorcery is cheating? Well, not that it matters.¡¹


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    Ending their exchange, Ciel slowly approached the boy.


    As she did so, I took the chance to put up an orthodox spherical barrier around her.


    With this now, he should properly perceive it as a barrier.


    After all, the boy, while throwing around curses, desperately used his sword to check if it was a barrier or not.


    Amidst the torrent of slashes, Ciel nonchalantly approached the boy.


    As Ciel drew nearer, one step at time, the boy¡¯s face grew increasingly pale.


    When there was only one more step remaining between them, Ciel extended both of her arms towards the boy¡¯s head.


    ¡¸Got you.¡¹


    ¡¸S-so what?¡¹


    The boy was immobilized just from having a girl younger than him put her hands on his cheeks, yet he still spoke with a feisty tone. I guess this is because there isn¡¯t any danger in just being touched.


    I¡¯m sure that if Ciel ever had a knife or the saber she had earlier on hand, the boy¡¯s reaction would have been significantly different.


    And maybe noticing something, the boy¡¯s body suddenly tensed up.


    He¡¯s at a distance where Ciel can reach his cheeks, in other words, he¡¯s within the spherical barrier.


    Perhaps seeing a certain victory, the boy then showed a grin.


    ¡¸What are you acting so calm for, die.¡¹


    He pulled his sword back along with the right half of his body, and aimed the tip of his sword towards Ciel in a flowing motion. This ended up shaking off Ciel¡¯s hand from his right cheek but the one on his left still remained.


    Aimed at Ciel¡¯s heart, the boy¡¯s sword was approaching quickly.


    Without showing any intention of dodging, Ciel took the blow.


    Well, that sort of attack isn¡¯t nearly enough to wound Ciel though.


    ¡¸Hahaha! This is what you get for being cocky-¡­¡­.¡¹


    Perhaps finally realizing the situation, the triumphant boy¡¯s face began to warp in shock.


    Ciel scoffingly chuckled before channelling magic power into the boy¡¯s cheek.


    A misshapen magic circle emerged on the boy¡¯s bloodstained cheek and as it was supplied with magic power, it showed its imperfect yet functional effect.


    The magic circle is of the fire attribute. What it does is plain and simple, nothing more than turn a cup of regular water into hot water.


    It only heats things up, that¡¯s all.


    Even so, it can probably leave a burn and if it gets too hot, it might even start a fire.


    Since the magic circle was drawn using the wounds made by the saber and is, as Ciel said earlier, crooked and misshapen, it likely can¡¯t cause enough heat to actually ignite a flame. At best, it would only be as hot as boiling water¡ªthough even boiling water is dangerous enough by itself.


    Moreover, since it should be just faintly warm at first, the boy probably won¡¯t immediately notice what¡¯s being done to him. From then on, the temperature will slowly but gradually rise.


    From warm, it¡¯ll turn hot and from hot, it¡¯ll become painful.


    While it¡¯ll only be at a bearable level of pain at first, how hot this steadily rising heat will go is something the boy has no way of knowing.


    And even if he would try to run away, he¡¯s already surrounded by my barrier.


    ¡¸It¡¯s hot, it¡¯s hot, it¡¯s hot! Stop, stop it!¡¹


    ¡¸Will you surrender?¡¹


    Timewise, I don¡¯t think even a minute passed before Ciel asked the boy as he began to yell out loud.


    ¡¸I lose!¡¹ Since he screamed that, I released the barrier and the boy immediately sprinted away in retreat.


    Without proper treatment, that misshapen magic circle is going to remain on his cheek as a burn mark, but is he going to be fine with that? While it should be difficult to even activate without considerable proficiency in magic power manipulation, it¡¯s not a good look to say the least.


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    Perhaps losing interest in the boy, Ciel immediately turned towards the guildmaster.


    ¡¸My win?¡¹


    ¡¸A-ah. That¡¯s right.¡¹


    Perhaps due to how Ciel won, the guildmaster was drawn aback.


    Still, the boy picked a fight with a high-ranked hunter and left with only a burn on his cheek, so wasn¡¯t this a good enough result?


    If he wanted to, he could even continue his hunter activities immediately tomorrow.


    It might leave him traumatized, but you reap what you sow. If he stops being a hunter after only something of this extent, then it just implies that that¡¯s his limit.


    Because of that, there¡¯s no justification for the guildmaster to look at us with reproach.


    ¡¸If he¡¯s so important, then rein him properly.¡¹


    ¡¸Right, that¡¯s right¡­¡­ Apologies for the trouble, Miss Cielmer.¡¹


    ¡¸So, the reward then?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ll verify it now. Your card is?¡¹


    ¡¸Reception counter.¡¹


    ¡¸I see. Wait for me at the reception room.¡¹


    Leaving those words, the guildmaster went ahead of us and returned to the Hunter Guild building.


    Leisurely following behind, Ciel grabbed a nearby guild staff and asked for the location of the reception room.


    ¡ó


    While waiting at the reception room, Ciel nonchalantly touched her own hair which made me remember our conversation about the hairpin.


    That matter is currently on hold for now, so I don¡¯t plan on bringing it up right now. Still, there is something I¡¯m curious about, so this should keep us occupied.


    ¡ºNow that I think about it, most of magic items the guild has are pretty amazing, aren¡¯t they?¡»


    ¡ºWhat do you mean by amazing, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºJust by giving them your hunter card, the guild can immediately figure out our remaining requirements for ranking up, you know?


    Since the card itself only has the minimum required information written on it, the guild should either have a magic item that can extract information from the card or one that can give the guild personnel here the ability to contact the headquarters.¡»


    Chasse-san said something like, ¡¸We can check with the headquarters¡¹ back at the capital¡¯s guild when we were talking about my records, so I¡¯m almost sure that the former also exists as well.


    As far as I know, sorcery of that kind doesn¡¯t exist and I naturally haven¡¯t seen any telephone-like device yet..


    ¡ºWhile it¡¯s true that there isn¡¯t any sort of sorcery like that, if we¡¯re going by that, there also isn¡¯t any sorcery that acts like a magic bag.¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s true. But how can I describe this, I just thought that the magic items are weirdly advanced compared to other things.¡»


    ¡ºIs that so? I suppose it is then.¡»


    Ciel reacted as if she couldn¡¯t understand my explanation, or rather, why I even thought of asking that in the first place, but I guess the reason for why I was wondering about this was due to my former world.


    A world that had no magic and sorcery, but had well-developed technology instead. Despite having things, from lamps to transceivers, that were commonplace in my old world¡ªand even other things makes things more convenient compared to my old world¡ªthe daily life of the people here are almost similar to what can be seen a few centuries ago in my former world.


    While it¡¯s awfully unnatural from my perspective, for those that were born in this world, I guess this is the norm.


    There are magic items that are available to the common people, so it¡¯s not as if life is completely inconvenient. These are by no means cheap, but the magic cores that power them are easy to acquire as well.


    I see, so in other words magic items would only keep running as long as they¡¯re supplied with magic cores, right?


    Magic items aren¡¯t really manufactured at factories in the first place though, so they might just be unsuited for mass production.


    Besides, I also think that the reason the guild always trades magic cores in at the same price is because it can¡¯t catch up to the demand.


    As for the people who would buy that many magic cores; probably those of the upper class. Since the magic cores that could be supplied to those people would decrease if magic items became commonplace, the noble class might be putting restrictions on the selling of magic items as well.


    Thinking about it this way, it¡¯s almost as if this world was made to exhaust a large amount of magic cores.


    Though I guess that¡¯s a bit too much of a stretch for an amateur¡¯s delusion. As I was thinking about that, the guildmaster arrived.


    Heya~! Lol, Ain really did try out the idea she thought of in the last chapter. And now they¡¯re about to have their first proper chat with a guildmaster~!


    In today¡¯s chapter, it¡¯s more of a battle scene plus a little bit of world building. but Ain and Ciel were literally just having a live practice session. The boy seemed actually competent in fighting but yeah, alcohol. The it did put show just how potent the Dance Princess¡¯ power becomes when accompanied by music. Also, it was pretty funny how Ain was like ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s not talk about the hairpin day.¡± Still, on the minor world building, Ain just brought up the mysteriously fast travel of information between guilds. Imagine if they do actually have actual computers tho, that would be a heck of a curveball, lol/

 CH 64

    Following the sounds of evenly paced footsteps, the door was opened and the hardy guildmaster made his appearance.


    His gaze is extremely sharp, and paired with his large build, he exuded an aura of intimidation.


    Just being alone with this sort of fellow in a room would probably make a 12-year-old go teary-eyed. The more timid ones would probably even burst out crying.


    Though in Ciel¡¯s case, far from being teary-eyed, she only stared at him with disinterest.


    While she is interested in the information, she isn¡¯t interested in the guildmaster himself, so it can¡¯t be helped.


    After all, I¡¯m not much different myself.


    ¡¸Did I make you wait?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes.¡¹


    ¡¸My bad then.¡¹


    With not a spec of respect, Ciel replied with nothing but the truth and the guildmaster casually answered back.


    Even if we ever get held down here for a few days, it¡¯s not like the Rispelgia household would then immediately find us¡ªin the first place, it¡¯s doubtful if they¡¯re even looking for us¡ªand it¡¯s not like we¡¯ll get to B-rank in that short period.


    It¡¯s within the margin of error. On the contrary, the fact that they got the information by the time Ciel and I finished having a chat can only be described as fast.


    Regardless of that, we did wait;and Ciel only gave an honest answer.


    Is the guildmaster the type that doesn¡¯t get angry with this kind of thing? Or is he making an exception for Ciel?


    It¡¯s likely the latter. After all, a guildmaster shouldn¡¯t be treated lightly by hunters.


    After sitting down on the unoccupied chair, he seemed hesitant to speak but spoke regardless.


    ¡¸In conclusion, the only thing you lack for your B-rank promotion is age.


    As long as you continue completing one request a month, you¡¯ll automatically rank up when you reach 15 years old.¡¹


    ¡¸Age requirement. I¡¯ve never been told about that.¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s never been any precedent of 12-year-old C-ranks before, you see? The upper brass are currently having a hard time with the assessment.


    Originally, people reach B-rank when they¡¯re usually about 25-30 years old, and even the youngest ever recorded was said to be 20 years old. Almost everybody that reached B-rank by their 20s joined the guild when they were 10, so 10 years would pass before they¡¯re promoted to B-rank.¡¹


    ¡¸Too little information on me?¡¹


    Ciel skipped some words, but the guildmaster nodded in agreement.


    Compared to the 10 years the guild normally takes to judge whether an individual is fit to be B-rank, they only have 3 from Ciel.


    Moreover, we don¡¯t stay at a single place for a long time, so it was probably much harder to make an assessment.


    I understand what he wants to say.


    ¡¸Another thing. Once someone reaches B-rank, they¡¯ll be given enough power that even nobles can¡¯t treat them lightly anymore.


    While it¡¯s not like you¡¯ll gain any real authority, depending on the usage, there¡¯s still a lot of things that you can do.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s complicated because I¡¯m not mature enough?¡¹


    ¡ºAin, what do you think?¡»


    ¡ºIf I had to say, it is a reasonable reaction. After all, when doing something that has never been done before, there will definitely be people objecting against it.


    Waiting until we reach 15 years old being a compromise¡­ does sound plausible.¡»


    ¡ºIf that¡¯s the case, then we¡¯ll have to stay in this country for another 2 years.¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s¡­¡­ how it seems.¡»


    For us, who wants to get to B-rank as fast as possible, the guildmaster¡¯s news was considerably unfavourable.


    However, I can understand why having a B-rank promotion for a 12-year-old is complicated. When a hunter reaches the higher ranks, the Hunter Guild will offer them some level of protection; and when one reaches B-rank, they would probably even protect the hunter from nobles.


    However, that also implies the possibility that the activities of hunters B-rank and above will become the Hunter Guild¡¯s responsibility.


    Just from secondhand information, Ciel is nothing more than a girl before maturity.


    If asked whether she can be entrusted with a position of responsibility, then most would answer no.


    With that said, it¡¯s still extremely unfortunate. I was hoping that we might be able to leave before reaching 15 years old, so it¡¯s really disheartening.


    ¡ºIn that case, shall we hole up for another two years in a mountain or so?


    We only need to occasionally go to town to accept requests, right?¡»


    ¡ºThat could be a good idea. We wouldn¡¯t bump into that man, and we would have more time to do other things with the time we spend doing hunter activities freed up.


    But before that, we¡¯ll have to ask for proof that what he said was true.¡»


    ¡ºWhy is that?¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s because if we suddenly lower our frequency of accepting requests, they might find fault with it and judge that we¡¯re not motivated enough. If our only proof is a verbal ¡°You said it before¡±, there¡¯s a possibility that they¡¯ll turn a deaf ear.¡»


    ¡ºI see now, understood. I can use money, right?¡»


    ¡ºThe money is yours, so I generally won¡¯t question how you spend it, you know?¡»


    ¡¸If what you said is true, then make a magic contract.¡¹


    ¡¸So that¡¯s how it is¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re implying; but if it is true, then this should be possible. I¡¯ll pay. ¡¹


    Ciel took out thirty gold coins from our magic bag and placed it on top of the table.


    The magic contract is something that Duke Rispelgia and the pig man exchanged when Ciel was 10 years old. By using a pen with ink made from magic cores on a special paper, it will demonstrate its effects.


    Simply put, breaking contracts that have binding force will result in a penalty.


    The penalty can be lifted depending on the contract, but in most cases, it won¡¯t be.


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    Its effects don¡¯t last forever. Based on the materials used, the effective period will vary.


    There are contracts that lasts for 1, 3, 5, and 10 years, and the longer it lasts, the more expensive it is.


    All of them are quite costly and 30 gold coins is equivalent to a three-year magic contract.


    Since we only need it to stay valid until Ciel is 15 years old, Ciel just plopped 30 gold coins like that.


    There was even an E-rank party in the past that had a hard time saving 3 gold coins, so 30 coins is a considerable amount of money; but considering that we¡¯ve completed a lot of C-rank requests, on top of the fact that we practically use nothing but magic to attack, we basically have more money than we can ever use, so this isn¡¯t so painful to let go of.


    If we offer to pay, then it should make it difficult for the other party to decline as well.


    The guildmaster put his palm on his head, and asked so with a pained look.


    ¡¸Are we that untrustworthy to you?¡¹


    ¡¸You think otherwise?¡¹


    ¡¸Right, that¡¯s true, isn¡¯t it¡­¡­ How about, in exchange for the contract, you maintain your work frequency as before-¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸No.¡¹


    While the Hunter Guild offers requests for hunters, they can¡¯t coerce the acceptance of requests.


    When absolutely necessary, they can designate a request which gives the request a compelling force behind it, but I¡¯ve heard that there¡¯s a strict criteria for when that¡¯s allowed.


    At the very least, it¡¯s not something they can use to push unprocessed requests to hunters, so there¡¯s practically no possibility of Ciel being designated for that.


    After all, from the guildmaster¡¯s words, I can figure that what¡¯s wanted from Ciel is the extension of what she¡¯s doing right now, in other words, the completion of the unprocessed requests.


    Ciel and the guildmaster glared at each other intensely, but the guildmaster quickly yielded and took a paper, a pen, and an inkwell from the shelf in the corner of the room.


    I feel magic power from the ink in the pen, so I¡¯m sure that it¡¯s necessary for magic contracts.


    ¡¸I¡¯ll leave the details to your judgment.¡¹


    Being handed the complete set, Ciel and I discussed what we should write.


    Since it¡¯s absolutely tiresome to think of some implicit contract, we simply wrote a brief summary of the conversation earlier and the course of events starting from when the boy approached us, with ¡¸The Guildmaster of Norvelle acknowledges the validity of the details mentioned above.¡¹ written at the end.


    Originally, I wanted it to be a contract with the Hunter Guild but the contract fundamentally can only be exchanged between two individuals, so it can¡¯t be helped.


    That¡¯s why the contract Duke Rispelgia made is something purely between him and that pig man.


    I have no idea what sort of contract that was, but at the very least, it¡¯s not something that turns Ciel into a slave. In the first place, it seems like a contract different from a magic contract is used in the case of enslavement.


    In other words, Ciel¡¯s status is not that of an escaped slave; and as for whether she¡¯s a member of the House of Rispeliga, it¡¯ll depend on what the contract says.


    Her status is completely in the air. If this was my former world, it¡¯s practically no different from being abandoned without a birth certificate or literally anything to identify her.


    Back on topic.


    After showing the guildmaster the document detailing nothing but the truth, he stares firmly at the contract before handing it back to Ciel.


    ¡¸Could you add a sentence saying ¡°Promotion to B-rank may be accelerated depending on the circumstances¡±?


    There shouldn¡¯t be any issues with getting there faster, don¡¯t you think?¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    Ciel added it as told and handed the document to the guildmaster; and after he signed, Ciel signed it as well.


    Lastly, both of them added a drop of their blood to complete the contract.


    I suppose that last sentence is saying ¡¸There¡¯s still a possibility of being promoted earlier, so keep up your working pace.¡¹ or so.


    The fact that it had ¡¸Depending on the circumstances¡¹ immediately makes it unworthy of trust, so the holing up plan isn¡¯t going to change.


    ¡¸That reminds me, I haven¡¯t returned your card yet.¡¹


    ¡¸What happened to the requests I asked for?¡¹


    As the guildmaster gave the card back, Ciel asked so.


    The guildmaster had a broad smile and answered: ¡¸They¡¯re properly processed.¡¹


    How can I say this, he¡¯s pretty quick to bounce back. These requests don¡¯t particularly take much of our time and could probably be completed as we return from the sea, so I don¡¯t really mind.


    Being sent off by the guildmaster¡¯s last-minute look of triumph, we decided to return to our inn for today.


    ¡ó


    ¡¸So we already completed the required amount of requests for B-rank, huh. That was a surprise.¡¹


    ¡ºCome to think of it, since we¡¯ve done nothing but finish requests outside of travelling, it does make complete sense.


    Ciel, do you know how many requests we have completed up until now?¡»


    ¡¸That might have been part of the reason, but we also usually work on several requests at once.


    So if I include the simple ones, maybe about 300 or less?¡¹


    ¡ºI think so too. Then, do you know how many requests a typical C-rank hunter completes in a month?¡»


    ¡¸If I remember correctly, you can earn enough to live with four requests¡­ I see. I get it now.¡¹


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    It looks like Ciel¡¯s also convinced now.


    Considering that they work in parties, lower-ranked hunters; particularly those of E-rank and below; will have a really rough time if they don¡¯t complete requests every day.


    As for why they work in parties, it¡¯s naturally to stay alive. Hunters who work solo like us¡ªwhile it¡¯s a bit weird to describe it that way¡ªare actually a rare few.


    However, the higher the rank, the greater the request¡¯s difficulty and the risk of getting injured or losing one¡¯s life.


    For that reason, a typical high rank hunter only accepts a few requests per month.


    After completing one, they¡¯ll have a few days of sufficient rest. Then they¡¯ll leave for another request again.


    It¡¯s said that if you can¡¯t do that, you¡¯ll die in some random place before you can even become a high-ranked hunter.


    On the other hand, Ciel completes her requests without minding this pace at all.


    Why? It¡¯s because absolutely nothing on the level of C-rank is of danger to her. Even in the case of a B-rank request, there shouldn¡¯t be any risk of losing her life.


    Compared to the times when we were still at the mansion, being in a forest brimming with monsters is less taxing both mentally and emotionally. We don¡¯t have to be endlessly stressed with the constant danger to our lives after all.


    That¡¯s why I¡¯m not surprised to hear that we¡¯ve already gotten enough completed requests¡ªcontribution points?¡ªfor a B-rank promotion.


    It¡¯s also possible that they included our independent resolution of the monster stampede in the assessment independently of that too.


    ¡¸This is the first time I¡¯ve heard that we¡¯ve already finished enough requests for a promotion. That¡¯s because they wanted to push the unprocessed requests on us, right?¡¹


    ¡ºThat was probably the case. They know that we¡¯ll just do unprocessed requests on our own, so from the guild¡¯s perspective, we might have been seen as really convenient hunters.¡»


    ¡¸Ain, don¡¯t you have anything to say against that?¡¹


    ¡ºWell, it¡¯s important to use whatever you can, after all.


    In our case, since we¡¯ve already declared that we¡¯ll leave this country when we reach B-rank, it wouldn¡¯t be strange if they¡¯re thinking of having us complete as many as possible while we¡¯re still in here.


    It¡¯s not like I have absolutely nothing to say against this, but in my opinion, it can¡¯t be helped.¡»


    ¡¸I see. Then in that case, I suppose it¡¯s fine.¡¹


    ¡ºIf I ever get angry, it would probably be when this news is intentionally kept a secret from us even though we could have already gotten a B-rank promotion.¡»


    Nodding while seemingly convinced, ¡¸After we see the ocean, where should we hole up?¡¹ Ciel then changed the topic.


    It seems like Ciel also has something she wants to do and is glad that she¡¯ll have a lot of free time.


    As Ciel has found something she actively wants to do, I started to seriously consider the idea of holing up on a mountain.


    Heya~! And we¡¯re out of the guild after several chapters, lol! The guildmaster seems like the responsible guy that get¡¯s the short end of the stick, honestly.


    Today, we got a bit more worldbuilding~! It¡¯s nice to know more about the rank system to be honest, but yeah, a ten year period for assessment? That¡¯s too long for our princesses¡­ On another note, the guildmaster probably felt super awkward the entire time. Like ¡°Yeah¡­ So about that¡­ You¡¯re actually competent enough, but¡­.¡± And he¡¯s also pressured to keep them from lowering their work pace, when they don¡¯t even need to work anymore. If I had to guess (cuz I can¡¯t quite remember anymore), the once a month thing is just the minimum number of requests needed to keep your guild membership from being revoked/expired. Probably just so you don¡¯t get marked as MIA or dead in some random ditch. So yeah, imagine being the one that has to say ¡°Yeah, you¡¯ve scored more than the required points, but can you¡­ like¡­ keep scoring more points? Please?¡±. Yeah, no, please just spare me of that.


    And so it seems like our princesses are planning to just, well, have some alone time after this. It was nice to see Ciel actually deciding to get the magic contract on her own, yay~! Also, Ciel was definitely a bit pissed. I think. Lol.

 CH 65

    As we headed out the next day, the town seemed to be somewhat restless.


    Ignoring the commotion, Ciel headed straight towards the north gate but was stopped by the gatekeeper.


    We were told that a powerful monster appeared and the hunters that encountered it returned with serious injuries and due to that, it seems that hunters can¡¯t go outside without the approval of the Hunter Guild right now.


    ¡ºSomehow it feels like we¡¯re about to get wrapped up in something really troublesome again.¡»


    ¡ºI agree. Should we hole up in the forest immediately?¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s pretty unusual for you to suggest something like that, Ain. Is there something wrong? ¡»


    ¡ºIn these situations, we tend to get exposed as a Song Princess for some reason, you see?¡»


    ¡ºAren¡¯t you simply tired of getting involved with the guild after we got exposed back at the capital, Ain?¡»


    Ciel giggled, but what she¡¯s saying is entirely true. Now that I know we¡¯ve already completed enough requests to become B-rank, I don¡¯t have any motivation left to actively accept requests.


    But then again, while I should¡¯ve realized this earlier, I finally remember now. The reason we were heading out to the mountains to begin with is because Ciel wanted to see the ocean.


    With that in mind, it¡¯s not much of a hassle to go to the guild for the approval. While we can also choose to force our way out, since it seems to be dangerous at present, gathering information at the guild isn¡¯t a bad thing entirely. Ciel wanted to go to the ocean after all, so I can¡¯t deprive her of that.


    ¡ºFor now, why don¡¯t we go to the guild first?¡»


    ¡ºFufufu, alright.¡»


    Seeing Ciel¡¯s tender smile, it¡¯s difficult to tell which one of us is the mature one.


    I already realized this but while I¡¯ve been with Ciel for 12 years, and I was in my twenties before I died, being mentally in my thirties is something I can¡¯t assert with conviction these days.


    ¡ó


    Once we arrived at the guild, the current state of it was in complete chaos.


    After all, an injured person was just carried away. I only caught a quick glimpse, but he seemed to have lost an arm.


    He was carried off to the sickbay or some other place by the time we entered the guild though, so he might have other grave injuries as well.


    Deeper inside, I hear hunters asking the receptionists what just happened.


    Summarizing what I overheard, it appears that a wolf-type monster with golden fur appeared.


    A C-rank party had encountered it with a D-rank hunter killed as he was taken by surprise. A C-rank hunter then held the monster at bay, while the remaining members ran back for their dear lives.


    Additionally, as a result of the aftermath, an E-rank hunter that was on the shallower parts of the forest got gravely injured as well.


    I couldn¡¯t gather anything more than that, but it also seems that the chances that the remaining C-rank is still alive is hopelessly low.


    While we continued listening in, the guildmaster arrived. Upon seeing Ciel, his eyes went wide open in surprise for a moment before he approached us.


    ¡¸Good to see you here.¡¹


    ¡¸A gate usage permit please.¡¹


    ¡ºShould I go?¡»


    ¡ºI have a bad feeling about this, but we don¡¯t have much of a choice since we¡¯re going to the ocean.¡»


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    ¡¸Alright then, follow me.¡¹


    Led by the guildmaster, we were brought to the office, the guildmaster¡¯s office to be exact.


    Now that I think about it, this might be our first time entering one. While we did have the opportunity to enter the staff areas of some of the previous guilds, we¡¯ve never been in the guildmaster¡¯s office before.


    Though, since the interior of the room had the same feel as an elementary school principal¡¯s office, it wasn¡¯t particularly impressive to me.


    As we were told to sit anywhere, Ciel then sat down on a nearby sofa.


    ¡¸Have you heard that a dangerous monster appeared in the northern forest?¡¹


    ¡¸More or less.¡¹


    ¡¸Then we¡¯d like to designate a request to you, Miss Cielmer.¡¹


    ¡¸Investigation of said monster?¡¹


    ¡¸And its subjugation, if possible.¡¹


    The moment a hunter is given a designated request, they can¡¯t turn it down without any special reasons.


    However, the incident this time can be considered to be ¡°special¡± as well.


    Investigation requests for unknown monsters don¡¯t have any particular rank requirement for accepting.


    Rather, you only see investigation requests as designated requests. This is due to the fact that the strength of the monster is completely unknown.


    After all, if the investigation is left to random hunters, there¡¯s a risk that they might just make up their report.


    Another reason for that is that sometimes assigning these to cautious low-ranked hunters, instead of hot-blooded high-ranked hunters, would result in more information gained as well.


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    However, in this incident, it¡¯s been established that a C-rank party was forced to flee.


    With that being the case, they should either designate this to hunters B-rank and above just to be sure, or to hunters with a running speed higher than that of a normal B-rank. However, Ciel doesn¡¯t fit both cases. Though she is pretty light on her feet since she¡¯s a solo hunter.


    In other words, it¡¯s a request that¡¯s likely to be beyond our rank.


    So if we point out that it¡¯s in the gray area, they would have no choice but to back down.


    Still, if we don¡¯t accept this, we¡¯ll have to exert ourselves a bit to be able to leave for the northern forest.


    Additionally, we wouldn¡¯t be able to get any information regarding the threat. And it appears that Ciel understands that as well.


    ¡¸Gray area, you owe me a favour. No penalties in the event of failure.¡¹


    ¡¸Accepted.¡¹


    ¡¸Give me the information.¡¹


    The guildmaster gave us a more detailed explanation of what we overheard back in the lobby.


    The monster is as tall as a human and its claws felled trees with ease.


    Now matter how I think of it, this is definitely for hunters B-rank and above. Still, since we won¡¯t receive any penalties even if we¡¯re forced to run away, then it¡¯s acceptable enough.


    After finishing our business and receiving the usage permit for the northern gate, Ciel exited the office.


    As she did so, the guildmaster told her ¡¸I¡¯m counting on you.¡¹ with a pensive expression, but Ciel closed the door without even looking his way.


    ¡ó


    A short distance away after exiting the gate extends the northern forest.


    While the trees have been reduced to tree stumps in the area facing the gate, deeper in the forest lies untouched nature.


    I¡¯ve heard that monsters B-class and above live in the towering mountain range deep in the forest. Because of that, while it¡¯s too late at this point, the best way to get to the ocean should be to take a detour around the mountain range.


    It should be, but why did we decide on cutting through the forest again?


    Ah, it¡¯s to save time, right. While we decided on seeing the ocean, we also wanted to reduce the travel time as much as possible so that we can reach B-rank as fast as possible.


    Besides, we already took into consideration that B-class monsters are pretty much manageable and that we should be able to handle even A-class monsters as well.


    Due to that, I concluded that there¡¯s no reason to go out of the way to take a detour. It seems that I still haven¡¯t shook off that train of thought.


    When I told Ciel that, ¡¸There¡¯s nothing to lose by having the guild be indebted to us.¡¹ she replied with so.


    Certainly, if they force something troublesome onto us in the future after we did them a favour, it¡¯s going to make things considerably easier to handle.


    While I don¡¯t have a good impression of the guild considering all that happened, since we got the magic bag, I guess we should be even now.


    And most of all, since Ciel¡¯s satisfied, that¡¯s good enough.


    It¡¯s been several minutes since Ciel stepped into the forest.


    Since this is the first time we¡¯ve been in this particular forest, Ciel¡¯s walking speed is on the slower side.


    To start, we headed to the place where the party was said to have been attacked but¡­ For some reason, my body¡ªmy soul¡ªwas suddenly hit with a weird tingling sensation.


    ¡ºCiel, could you stop here?¡»


    ¡ºWhat¡¯s wrong?¡»


    Borrowing Ciel¡¯s body, I once again examined my situation.


    This is a premonition.


    This unease is caused by the monster in question.


    Rather being caused by its bloodthirst, it¡¯s likely better to describe this as the result of some sort of resonance between us.


    Deep inside the forest, I know that it is definitely there.


    Perhaps it also knew that I¡¯m here as well, since I feel like it¡¯s approaching us now.


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    ¡ºPlease head straight into the middle of the forest.¡»


    As I returned Ciel¡¯s body, I said so.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s there, right?¡»


    ¡ºVery likely.¡»


    ¡ºOnce you confirm its location with detection, could you inform me about it, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood. I¡¯ll be extending my detection range, so I¡¯ll be focusing on that for now.¡»


    While maintaining the barrier, I extended my detection range to the maximum possible range.


    I generally never do this but I have a strange feeling right now, so I¡¯m not going to be complacent.


    While I should be able to protect Ciel even from A-class monsters, I should still keep the worst case scenario in mind.


    After Ciel cautiously walked on for several minutes, I finally caught that thing¡¯s presence.


    The information that can be gained from detection sorcery isn¡¯t much. It can¡¯t distinguish color after all, and it also can¡¯t detect sound. I¡¯d say that it¡¯s pretty similar to fumbling around blindfolded with only your hands feeling the world.


    Still, being proficient with magic power manipulation, I can at least tell the amount of magic power circulating through an individual¡¯s body.


    In the case of monsters, I can roughly judge its strength based on its magic power.


    The monster in question is on all fours and has a large number of monsters following behind it. Probably around a hundred or so.


    The amount of magic power I feel from it is the most abundant I¡¯ve ever felt up until now.


    The most I¡¯ve seen so far was from the B-class Cyclops, so it should be at least B-class. It might even be around A-class, but I don¡¯t know what the evaluation criteria is.


    And so it seems like the cause of my unease is its claws.


    Something that¡¯s similar yet different from magic power is oozing from these claws.


    Something that seems to be much more dense, something that could be called an upgraded version of magic power.


    The reason this monster is capable of easily felling trees is likely because of those exact claws.


    This is just a speculation since I have no idea what that something¡¯s properties are, but it can probably cut boulders in half; and as for humans? Likely won¡¯t even feel any resistance.


    I¡¯m sure that just being grazed by it would cause a fatal injury.


    And those claws are bad news. Absolutely bad news. This is only a guess, but it¡¯s highly possible that these could easily break through my barrier.


    That¡¯s how threatening it feels.


    ¡ºI found it. It seems to be leading more than a hundred monsters.¡»


    ¡ºThose should be manageable. What about the one in question?¡»


    ¡ºThis is just a speculation, but it might be greater than A-class. Particularly, I can feel something similar to magic power from its claws and I feel considerable danger from it. It might even cut through my barrier.¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s a surprise. Definitely a surprise.¡»


    ¡ºShould we run away?¡»


    ¡ºCan we run away?¡»


    Fortunately, there¡¯s distance between us. While Ciel¡¯s running speed is slower than that of a wolves¡¯, we can still run away if they haven¡¯t noticed us yet. If they notice us from here, it¡¯s doubtful if we can outrun them.


    Meaning that if they chase us, we won¡¯t be able to flee. Moreover, I have a hunch that they probably noticed us already.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s going to be a gamble.¡»


    ¡ºIn that case, let¡¯s wait. After all, we might be able to beat them easily instead.


    If they go towards us, then we can prepare as much as we can.


    So, are the monsters heading towards us?¡»


    ¡ºThey¡¯re moving slowly right now, but they are definitely heading straight towards us.¡»


    ¡ºThen I¡¯ll start preparing now.¡»


    As we are making this exchange, the monsters are gradually drawing near.


    Heya~! Huzzah! More trouble inbound for our princesses it seems as a new threat comes approaching.


    First of all, it¡¯s nothing major, but it seems like Ciel is starting to get a hang of negotiations and stuff, lol. But yeah, this chapter we¡¯re introduced to something that might just break Ain¡¯s barrier, considering how cautious she¡¯s being right now. Not that she¡¯s not constantly cautious or anything, lol. Also, it¡¯s somewhat weird for Ain to be ¡°resonating¡± with our new threat, hmmm~ Also, Ain, it¡¯s still too early to be forgetting things, lol. Still, this is the first time there was an actual threatening monster attack that a: is not prompted by human intervention as the cyclops at the first chapters was summoned my Ain; and b: has resulted in hunter casualties. Quite interesting, really.

 CH 66

    Darkness is approaching from deep inside the forest. The darkness has many eyes and within the darkness is a glint of light.


    While every single footstep might be small and silent, with more than a hundred of them, these footsteps become much more audible.


    Based on raw numbers, there¡¯s clearly less monsters compared to the stampede in the past, but I feel a much greater pressure right now coming just from that one monster in question.


    Only a few seconds left before they arrive.


    Ciel is already done with the preparations. It¡¯s a slightly large magic circle.


    A slightly large magic circle that might be able to fit in about a hundred wolves.


    Fighting the crazy-looking monster while dealing with a hundred wolves would likely be difficult, so it¡¯s preferable if this can at least get rid of all the grunts in an instant.


    If possible, I hope that it can get rid of the crazy-looking golden wolf as well. This magic circle should have enough power to do that.


    In our first battle, the battle with the cyclops, Ciel¡¯s sorcery back then wasn¡¯t strong enough to defeat the cyclops without support, but the sorcery she¡¯s utilizing now is capable of tearing apart a hundred, if not two hundred, cyclops.


    In regards to A-rank monsters, I have no idea if the same can be applicable.


    After all, while Ciel has defeated a number of monsters up until now, we haven¡¯t fought A-rank monsters yet.


    Despite that, I¡¯m confident that with my full support we should have enough strength to defeat an A-rank monster.


    Though, to exert that much power, proper preparations will be necessary.


    ¡ºThe large one really stands out.¡»


    ¡ºRather, I¡¯m more surprised that something that large can actually be obscured by the other wolves.¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯ll activate the magic circle as soon as they get in range.¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯ll start singing right after this. From what I can sense with detection, they¡¯re unlikely to stray off the anticipated course.¡»


    ¡ºAin, I¡¯m counting on you.¡»


    ¡ºYou too, Ciel. Please do your best since those claws could be a genuine problem.¡»


    Even with the black wave approaching right ahead of us, Ciel and I were exchanging words as we usually do; but before I could finish speaking, Ciel activated the magic circle.


    In my opinion, we still have some leeway left but I guess it can¡¯t be helped, Ciel isn¡¯t as proficient with detection as I am after all.


    This will only increase the necessary magic power consumption by a slight margin, so it¡¯s not a big deal.


    As I finished speaking, I immediately began singing.


    While we¡¯re fighting against an enemy of unknown strength, strangely, I don¡¯t feel tense.


    I don¡¯t feel afraid or restless as well.


    Even as the golden wolf is heading straight towards us while mowing down the trees on its way, and even when it¡¯s so fast that it¡¯s unlikely that we can run away from it.


    Ciel activated her sorcery before I could sing.


    And this sorcery is to produce a blade of wind that can cover a wide range. The enemies within range would be shredded apart by not only one blade, but an innumerable amount of them.


    The instant they entered the effective range, a multitude of wolves screamed in agony.


    Heads fall, bodies split open, and limbs torn apart.


    Thereafter the fallen heads, the split bodies, and the torn limbs are then sliced into much smaller pieces.


    Just like a bucket of spilled water, blood was pooling all over the ground, and a thick scent of death enveloped the area.


    Even people used to killing monsters would probably grimace before this disastrous scene.


    In the case of people unfamiliar with death, they¡¯d likely feel sick from it. At worst, they might even faint from the sight.


    I myself feel somewhat unwell from this, but there¡¯s no time for that right now.


    ¡ºAs I thought, it survived.¡»


    The sorcery persisted for roughly one minute.


    This sorcery that consumed a third of Ciel¡¯s total magic power completely drowned a hundred wolves in their own blood.


    However, the main threat that is the golden wolf has kept its body in one piece.


    More than that, while there are small scratches visible on its body, it doesn¡¯t seem like it received any damage at all.


    In other words, this wolf is A-rank or above.


    It¡¯s tough, agile, and has high offensive power. Like, at this point, I can¡¯t help but think that it might just be S-rank.


    The wolf in question seemed to have completely recognized Ciel as an enemy as it shot a bloodthirsty glare.


    ¡¾KiLl tHE pEoPLe. ThEy wHo CReAtED Us, tHeY wHo TurNeD uS iNto iMiTAtIoNs, ThEse fOOlS dEsErVE DeAth.


    KiLl, kIlL, KIlL, kiLl, KilLkilLKilLkILl¡­¡­¡¿


    The wolf howled and the surrounding area trembled from its voice.


    More importantly, this wolf¡­ it spoke. And more than than, what it said was pretty disconcerting.


    An artificially created being.


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    Suddenly, Viviana-san¡¯s explanation about wolves being divine messengers came to mind.


    While I¡¯m aware that this seems absolutely absurd; at the same time, I¡¯m confident that it wouldn¡¯t be out of character for Duke Rispeligia to at least attempt to create divine messengers for his goals.


    I wouldn¡¯t be that surprised if he had the facilities and equipment to do so in secret as well.


    And if that uncomfortable presence coming from those claws are some divine godly something, it would make complete sense.


    I want more information.


    Since it¡¯s capable of speaking, communication might be possible.


    Well, let¡¯s put that nonsense aside. Even if it can speak, a being with this much bloodthirst can¡¯t be conversed with.


    Now if we have the leeway to defeat it, there might be a chance for negotiation. Though, I don¡¯t intend to stop singing until we figure out how strong the enemy is, so I actually can¡¯t make any suggestion to Ciel.


    Ggaaaaah!


    As I was occupied with my thoughts, the golden wolf raised its foreleg and attacked Ciel.


    While I can detect its movements to some extent, it was so quick that it¡¯s somewhat doubtful if we can avoid it even with physical reinforcement.


    In a blink of an eye, the distance between us vanished.


    In response to that, Ciel moved aside at the last moment, escaping the wolf¡¯s claws.


    ¡¸¡­¡­!¡¹


    However, the force produced by its large body moving at a high speed was so great that although Ciel should have avoided a direct hit, she was still blown away.


    There was a sudden hovering sensation. Without even the time to compare it to the sensation of riding a roller coaster, we slammed into a tree.


    As my barrier nullified the impact of the landing, Ciel has neither any physical trauma nor any internal injuries.


    Naturally, there¡¯s also no pain at all.


    Still, this is dangerous. Really dangerous.


    Ciel¡¯s clothing is completely torn at the upper arm part of the right sleeve.


    It was cut through my barrier.


    While my barrier has been breached, it¡¯s different compared to that time with Carol-san¡¯s Glacio Lentzo.


    That time, it was offset by the spear of ice. That¡¯s why, even though the spear broke through my barrier, its power was still reduced.


    However, it¡¯s different with the golden wolf. Its attack went through my barrier as if it didn¡¯t exist.


    Something of a claw mark is left on the remains of the barrier; and while it didn¡¯t collapse, repair is necessary.


    While I do have more than enough magic power to repair a damage of this extent, the issue here is that the barrier couldn¡¯t even mitigate the damage.


    For better or worse, our fights up until now have been won through either powerful first moves or aggressive use of my barrier.


    And just now, both of them have been shrugged off.


    A barrier that can be used constantly as long as it withstand damage is entirely useless if it can¡¯t absorb damage at all.


    And without the barrier, Ciel won¡¯t have the leeway to cast sorcery, so it¡¯ll likely turn into a one-sided beatdown.


    To begin with, Ciel¡¯s sorcery at full power didn¡¯t have any effect at all, so defeating the monster would require the enhancing buff from the Dance Princess.


    However with sorcery being our main mode of combat, while Ciel is dancing and invocating her sorcery, she would be wide open to the golden wolf¡¯s attacks and that would disturb her rhythm. At worst, we could die then and there.


    Moreover, perhaps taking offense from the fact that it couldn¡¯t kill us with a single hit, the golden wolf is looking at Ciel with a deadly glare.


    While we do have the option of running away, outrunning it is practically impossible.


    In that case, we¡¯re left with only one option. Perhaps realizing that as well, Ciel drew her sabre from the magic bag.


    With my barrier serving no use, the risk of Ciel¡¯s sword being immediately destroyed from just one hit from the golden wolf¡¯s claws, and her general lack of experience with swordplay; I¡¯m really uneasy.


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    I can¡¯t express my anxiety right now but, for some reason, it seems like Ciel saw through me as ¡¸It¡¯s alright, so let me hear your song Ain.¡¹ she said so with an awfully confident tone.


    I don¡¯t know the reason but since all I can do is sing, I complied to Ciel¡¯s request and continued singing.


    Suddenly, without any time for Ciel to take a proper stance, the golden wolf rushed in like a bullet.


    This time, it only went for a tackle instead of clawing at us, so Ciel simply dodged the monster nimbly as though it was a bullfight.


    As I thought, the only issue is that claw attack.


    Without any time to be relieved by how we pulled through, the golden wolf attacked us once again.


    Similar from before, it was another tackle. While this would blow us away if it connected, it¡¯s not scary since we won¡¯t take damage from that. I see, while we¡¯re afraid of the monster¡¯s claw attacks on our side; from the golden wolf¡¯s perspective, that same attack didn¡¯t deal much damage against us.


    In other words, it hasn¡¯t noticed that using its claws is its most effective mode of attack.


    Given no time to rest, it rushed at us for the third time. While I expected it to be the usual tackle, as the golden wolf was about to pass by us, it extended its forelimb to claw at us.


    From the trajectory of approaching claws, this is unlikely to kill Ciel.


    Still, as Ciel is already in the middle of an evasive maneuver, she won¡¯t be able to avoid this.


    I braced myself for the incoming pain, but Ciel¡¯s body moved without any hesitation.


    It was by no means quick but with her sabre, Ciel hit the golden wolf¡¯s claws with the least possible movement.


    With the blow deflected, the golden wolf lost balance and tumbled onto the ground.


    While it was deflected, that attack should still have a considerable force behind it; but against my expectations, the sabre seemed to have sustained no visible damage.


    Far from breaking, it didn¡¯t even have a crack.


    As her plan went well, Ciel displayed a dauntless smile; while in contrast to that, the golden wolf is glowering at us intensely.


    If based only in this last exchange, it would seem as if Ciel outmaneuvered the golden wolf but as we couldn¡¯t inflict any damage against the golden wolf, it doesn¡¯t change the fact that we¡¯re at a disadvantage.


    The part where the golden wolf didn¡¯t take any damage is natural since Ciel only deflected its attack, but Ciel isn¡¯t taking the initiative to attack as well.


    Despite that, Ciel¡¯s composure persisted on.


    ¡ó


    I wonder how many attacks have been exchanged ever since the battle started.


    Perhaps noticing that the only attacks Ciel parries with her sword are the ones making use of its claws, the golden wolf began attacking mainly with its claws. It¡¯s likely more intelligent than other monsters considering that it can speak, so this probably would have happened sooner or later anyway; but we¡¯re literally forced into the defensive right now.


    Still, it¡¯s not as if we haven¡¯t gained any information from the past exchanges; we¡¯ve learned that with its physical capabilities, the most it can attack consecutively at full speed is three times.


    Although Ciel seemed to be on guard against a fourth consecutive attack just to be sure, three times is likely the limit.


    Moreover, the golden wolf generally attacks in a straight line. It has a wide range when it uses its claws, but it seems like it can¡¯t change its course while in the middle of its movement.


    Still, Ciel went on the offensive once when the golden wolf wasn¡¯t constantly attacking with its claws yet; but the most she was able to do that time was lightly wound the monster, so it wasn¡¯t worth the risk to attack. Considering the golden wolf¡¯s speed, shifting to combat sorcery would be difficult as well. The moment Ciel was forced into a reactive role as a Dance Princess, she¡¯s already at a considerable disadvantage.


    Additionally, I have a speculation on why my barrier is ineffective against it.


    To begin with, the reason why Ciel told me that It¡¯s alright is probably because a C-rank hunter succeeded on buying time against the golden wolf.


    If this monster could destroy weapons and armor with ease then the hunter would have been unable to actually keep it at bay. So because it was possible, then we can consider that the hunter¡¯s equipment could take the attacks.


    The difference between my barrier and Ciel¡¯s, as well as the said hunter¡¯s, equipment is the influence of their Job.


    I¡¯ve heard that in the case of Jobs that makes use of weapons, the utilized weapon¡¯s durability would increase. Ciel has, in some sense, a Job that makes use of weapons; so while it¡¯s only a small amount, a certain amount of magic power is actually flowing through her sabre.


    So my speculation is that if this magic power originates from her Job, then it¡¯s likely to be power originating from the gods. Which is probably how it can stand against the similar hypothetically divinie-ish power that the golden wolf¡¯s claws have.


    Other than that, it seems that it simply can¡¯t destroy physical objects unconditionally.


    In other words, the nullification of magic power originating from the opposition and strength increase are the abilities of the power dwelling in its claws. It¡¯s the worst matchup against me who creates barriers without the assistance of Jobs.


    Even with more information, the situation isn¡¯t changing for the better.


    Rather, the longer Ciel¡¯s stamina and her sword¡¯s durability continues to be chipped down, the worse our situation becomes.


    And then the second attack out of the three time consecutive rush came. While Ciel managed to deflect its claws, this time, the blade of her sabre broke right in half.


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    The sword broke!?


    Hiya~! It seems like this battle isn¡¯t ending any time soon. No working barrier, no way to make any significant damage. What lies for them in the future?


    One thing I liked about this chapter is how you can really see how composed Ciel is, considering that she was the one who realised that parrying the wolf¡¯s claws should be possible. Ain was a bit too tense, which is completely understandable from her standpoint. Also, this chapter shows a glaring disadvantage of the Dance Princess, the necessity for the ¡°dance¡±. While dancing is, in a sense, the activation key to the Dance Princess¡¯ abilities, it¡¯s really hard to keep the rhythm in combat. That hasn¡¯t been a problem up until now since, as Ain says, they tend to be the ones attacking first and also abuse Ain¡¯s barrier in many occasions, but in a fight where they don¡¯t have the combat initiative and are forced into a reactive position, it¡¯s pretty difficult to actually dance. I really like it.


    Still, this far away from the duke and he still manages to cause trouble, lol. An artificial A-rank, if not S-rank, monster (?) and it¡¯s probably a failure in his eyes, considering how it¡¯s a bit, well, insane and murder happy, which isn¡¯t something I¡¯d expect from divine messengers to be honest. Whatever the duke¡¯s shenanigans are, it¡¯s definitely troublesome, lol.

 CH 67

    ¡¸Glacio.1¡¹


    Without any sign of being affected by the sabre-snapping, Ciel muttered so. We still have a spare sword, but it seems like she isn¡¯t planning on using it.


    Hearing what she said, I immediately changed my song.


    I know what Ciel wants to do. She intends on freezing this area¡ªthrough the use of Siorah Elicinary, Stage of Frost¡ªto restrict the golden wolf¡¯s movements.


    After tapping her toes on the ground twice, she then spun around.


    Her outstretched fingers left behind a seamless path while her robe gently danced in the air.


    In mere seconds, the area around us is now frozen over.


    With the distance between the Ciel and the golden wolf, the monster¡¯s underfoot should be frozen within 1 to 2 more seconds.


    Considering the scale of this sorcery¡ªthough it¡¯s not exactly sorcery¡ªthis activation speed is amazing. And this was only made possible through the synergy between the Dance Princess and Song Princess.


    However, the golden wolf can move much faster than that.


    With only a single leap, the monster would be able to reach Ciel without coming in contact with the ground. And with that, there¡¯s also no possibility for it to slip on the already frozen ground.


    That¡¯s why we won¡¯t be able to make it in time.


    Before I could even feel the looming presence of death, ice captured the golden wolf¡¯s hindleg.


    Since it was just about to leap, the ice covering its leg was then forcefully peeled off, causing it to miss its landing and tumble to the ground a fair distance from us.


    It immediately got up, but raised its right hind leg above the ground as if to protect it. From the fact that it¡¯s stained in deep red, the monster clearly got injured.


    Moreover, it landed on top of the Stage of Frost, right onto Ciel¡¯s territory.


    And with it being on stage, Ciel can now perform however she likes.


    Gliding on top of the ice like a figure skater, she leisurely circled around the golden wolf as if it were a musical.


    She clapped, touched the monster¡¯s fur, and poked on its nose. With each succeeding action, the golden wolf gradually froze into an ice sculpture.


    It¡¯s a chillingly beautiful yet dreadful sight.


    As her dance ended, Ciel approached the ice sculpture.


    I decided to stop singing as well, and began to examine the golden wolf.


    While there were some curious things that happened during the battle earlier, it shouldn¡¯t be necessary to talk about that right now.


    On closer inspection, there¡¯s visible stitches on the golden wolf here and there.


    While there¡¯s no doubt that it¡¯s core components are that of a wolf¡¯s, its fur seems to be something that was sewed on, and judging from its size, there are probably other things added on to it.


    I can imagine it being a chimera of some sorts.


    And considering these stitches, the battle just earlier makes more sense now, to some extent.


    ¡ª¨C Crack


    Sensing a sudden surge of magic power, I took control of Ciel¡¯s body practically by force and jumped backwards.


    The next instant, I was blown off to the end of the stage by a strong force and a sharp pain ran through my right arm.


    As I ignored the pain and began singing, I understood what just happened.


    The golden wolf escaped from the ice and is currently glaring at us. And by the fact that the attack bypassed my barrier, it seemed to have used its claws.


    I never thought that even freezing it wouldn¡¯t be enough to defeat it. Though, as to be expected, the golden wolf didn¡¯t survive unscatched. It¡¯s bleeding all over, and it¡¯s staggering on its feet.


    Still, it took out Ciel¡¯s right arm, so we¡¯re equal¡ª


    ¡ªActually, not quite so.


    First of all, the golden wolf has clearly sustained more damage. It can¡¯t move as nimbly as it did before. Ciel might be able to outrun it and escape now.


    Second, because we were blown away, there¡¯s distance between us now. This increases the time it takes for the golden wolf to reach us and gives Ciel the leisure to dance.


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    Third, Ciel¡¯s arm is still attached.


    After all that we¡¯ve been through, Ciel and I aren¡¯t so weak to bawl over an arm injury of this level.


    I¡¯m even fine enough to think about how that time when Ciel¡¯s stomach got cut open was more painful than this.


    Besides, Song Princess can recover injuries.


    It can heal even deep cuts, and the speed of healing is by no means normal. Still, I have no idea what would happen in the case of severed limbs, so I am grateful that it¡¯s still intact.


    Ciel¡¯s arm has already begun healing.


    Similarly, Ciel has already finished her preparations.


    As she kept her rhythm with her heel, she planted small seeds of ice.


    All that¡¯s left is for the perfect timing.


    Just for Ciel to snap her fingers the moment the golden wolf opened its mouth.


    ¡¸Siorah Sphino.2¡¹


    The planted seeds bloomed into frost roses.


    Some of the frost roses, which are practically indistinguishable from the real thing barring their color, blossomed from inside the golden wolf and tore its organs to shreds.


    ¡¸It¡¯s not symmetrical, is it?¡¹


    These roses were intended to spread out to the sides symmetrically. Since a part of them blossomed from inside the golden wolf, it naturally turned out asymmetrical just as Ciel said.


    With this, the monster should be defeated now; but just when I thought so, I felt something from the golden wolf flow into me.


    As for what, it¡¯s that magic power-like thing from the claws.


    I can¡¯t escape from it even if I wanted to, but it doesn¡¯t feel unpleasant at all.


    Having absolutely no idea on what¡¯s happening nor what we should do, Ciel and I were left with no words.


    And as we continued silently staring at the golden wolf, a tiny person suddenly entered Ciel¡¯s field of vision.


    Ciel reflexively shifted her gaze towards it.


    This tiny person had green hair, green eyes, wore a green dress, and seemingly glew with a faint green light. From head to toe, it was just a bit larger than Ciel¡¯s head.


    This tiny person that appeared to be a girl was floating in the air and staring at Ciel¡¯s hair, approximately at where the hairpin is.


    And while Ciel¡¯s surprised gaze was set on this girl, the girl seemingly noticed as she then looked at us.


    Our eyes met.


    Her wondrously green eyes were like jewels, and I could feel no ill will from her innocent expression.


    Just as she watched Ciel with great curiosity, she suddenly moved slowly from side to side.


    Ciel¡¯s gaze followed her movements.


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    The girl¡¯s face then burst with joy.


    And Ciel followed suit, saying ¡¸Adorable.¡¹ with a smile.


    While I was watching over this quite heartwarming situation, I couldn¡¯t help but notice various other things as I can see from a bird¡¯s-eye view.


    For example, the fact that there are various other tiny people colored blue, red, and more drifting afloat in the air.


    Or that there are not only human-like, but also lizard-like and bird-like ones among them.


    Or that there¡¯s a lady that¡¯s larger than the green girl in front of Ciel, being roughly more than half of Ciel¡¯s height, watching over us with a tender smile.


    Or that these beings are coming in and out of Ciel¡¯s hairpin. It seems like they can¡¯t be touched.


    I can¡¯t feel any magic power from them at all, or rather, the magic power they hold has the exact same wavelength as the magic power drifting around in the environment.


    The green girl playfully jumped around Ciel, and as Ciel¡¯s line of sight opened up, she was once again surprised by what she saw.


    While I feel sorry for disturbing them as they¡¯re having fun, I called for Ciel in order to move on from our current situation.


    ¡ºCiel, are you alright?¡»


    Ciel couldn¡¯t even think of an answer to what they are, so she¡¯s in pretty high spirits.


    Though, even without that, it¡¯s fairly obvious to see her excitement.


    Still, I just thought that Ciel would normally at least have formulated her own assumptions about them.


    As I borrowed Ciel¡¯s body, the green girl who was jumping around looked at me with eyes wide open in surprise before fawning on me.


    It wasn¡¯t just her, the others also showed a different reaction compared to when it was Ciel as well.


    While they are adorable and I would like to indulge them, I unfortunately can¡¯t touch them, so I can¡¯t really do much of that indulging.


    Ciel¡¯s refreshingly pouty ¡ºAren¡¯t you quite popular.¡» is also making me want to give more attention to her, but first I need to complete my objective.


    Among these beings, the lady seemed to be the most knowledgeable. Upon a closer inspection, her hair has flowers in bloom and she has wooden horn-like protrusions on her head.


    Her clothes are white and pale green, and seems similar to some sort of loose fitting indigenous attire.


    While she¡¯s as pretty as Ciel, she leaves a more affectionate impression.


    ¡¸Pleased to meet you. Can you hear my voice?¡¹


    I approached the tree-horn lady¡ªtree lady for short¡ªand first verified if we can communicate with each other.


    This is because although the green girl seemed to be giggling before, I couldn¡¯t hear any giggling coming from her at all.


    While we can see them, we can¡¯t touch nor hear them.


    I can¡¯t rule out the possibility of them being unable to hear us as well. Though, I do think that the chance for that is quite low.


    The tree lady moved her lips, but she seemed to have noticed that I couldn¡¯t hear her as she shook her head once before nodding.


    I guess she means that we¡¯ve already met so it shouldn¡¯t be ¡¸Pleased to meet you¡¹ and that she can hear my voice.


    Then perhaps it¡¯s not that they just suddenly appeared now, but it¡¯s that they were there to begin with and we could only see them now.


    ¡¸I¡¯m sorry to be rude, but may I ask a few questions? I don¡¯t quite understand what¡¯s happening.¡¹


    Affirmative. To begin with, I¡¯ll ask about their true identity.


    ¡¸Am I right to assume that you all are spirits?¡¹


    This one¡¯s an affirmative as well. This is honestly the only answer I could come up with, so I would have been in trouble if she denied it.


    I knew spirits existed only as information. Or rather, I only knew that ¡ºSpirit Channeler¡» type Jobs existed. Though, the explanation I¡¯ve read said ¡¸They channel the power of spirits to use magic.¡¹ and only that, so I don¡¯t know what kind of beings spirits are.


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    From the information I can pull out of my past life knowledge and taking into account the current situation, they should be beings that preside over nature. I can just ask for confirmation in this regard.


    After all, from the smiling tree lady¡¯s response earlier, she seemed like she¡¯d gladly answer.


    With that said, I asked a lot of different things. I know it¡¯s honestly impolite, but she still answered without any hesitation.


    It appears that one of the reasons why we were suddenly able to see them was because we defeated the golden wolf. However, the relationship between defeating the golden wolf and gaining the ability to see spirits is a mystery.


    The tree lady seems to know the answer, but is having a hard time answering with only a yes or no.


    Spirits come in various types and seem to regulate nature. One example is that the more there are earth and plant spirits in a place, the greater their harvest will be. Incidentally, the tree lady is a forest spirit.


    Spirits use magic power to regulate themselves and if they use too much, at worst, they can vanish. Their magic power recovers naturally, but there are places where they can recover more efficiently.


    One of those places seems to be Ciel¡¯s hairpin. It was originally some sort of mysterious plant, but the forest spirit was the one that turned it into a hairpin. She¡¯s been with us for a surprisingly long time.


    While it drains magic power, she doesn¡¯t have any intention to hurt us, she says.


    And finally, she recognizes Ainsel¡¯s existence. I¡¯ve already had a hunch since she reacted to my words and chose my magic power to drain from, but she might be the first individual to recognize me as Ainsel.


    From the spirit¡¯s perspective, Ciel is a friend and I¡¯m something like a parent, it seems. Why though?


    She wants us to keep wearing the hairpin if possible, and so we¡¯ll be leaving it on our hair just like always.


    The spirit seems like someone Ciel could open her heart to after all, and she does seem to have affection for us. Most importantly, she¡¯s not human and promised to help if we¡¯re in danger.


    As I finished asking my questions, I finally remembered the golden wolf. Yup, it¡¯s definitely dead now.


    Hiya~! The dance with the golden wolf has ended and, for some reason, our princesses now have new friends?


    As usual, it¡¯s really nice to see Ciel¡¯s Battle Mage Dancer battle style. The small detail about how Ciel still needs to keep some form of rhythm to ¡°cast magic¡± with the Dance Princess is really nice to be honest. And the part where Ciel was a bit irritated from how the roses didn¡¯t bloom symmetrically as planned, lol. Now in this chapter, we got to see another one of Ciel¡¯s stages, the Stage of Frost. It¡¯s possibly a lot more brutal than the Stage of Water, and at this point I think a Stage of Fire would probably be the most sanitized and clean if it is ever used, lol. While it¡¯ll likely scorch the area, it¡¯ll probably leave less blood and mess compared to the previous two. If it exists anyway.


    Also, Ciel being cute is, as one would expect, absolutely cute, lol. We got new friends~! While the magic power-like energy is still a mystery, as well as how long the forest spirit has been with them, we at least know what the transparent flower is, or rather what it¡¯s function is. Basically a magic power hotspot for spirits, lol.


    Also also, I tried something new with the attack names. The thing with Japanese is that they have ¡°Ruby characters¡± that show it¡¯s pronunciation. That¡¯s why in really chuuni webnovels or Fate lore in general, they¡¯d have a reading that¡¯s different from kanji (Ex. ¡°Sword of Promised Victory¡± being read as ¡°Excalibur¡±). The reason for this is pretty simple logically speaking, kanji are pretty useful in painting pictures of what something is supposed to be, and it¡¯s more obvious in RPG Skill system type stories. The kanji would like ¡°Rising Dragon Waterfall Reverse Mario Kart Slash¡± or something but that only works for kanji because each kanji only take a syllable to pronounce. A direct translation would be a mouthful, so most of the times the writer will use Ruby Characters to show the intended reading as well (Ex. ¡°Beast-Style Travel Method¡± being simply read as ¡°Beast Step¡±). So yeah, what I wanted to say is: Is it better this way (the Ruby on the text main and the kanji translation in the references), or would you prefer the old open-close parenthesis?


    Now then, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 68

    While the golden wolf is now defeated, I can¡¯t say for certain that this issue is now over just like that.


    A patchwork monster that can manipulate human speech. And thinking back on the monster¡¯s words, there¡¯s no doubt that it was man-made.


    While the fact that a monster like this can be made is surprising enough, I do think that we only won earlier exactly because it was man-made.


    Since it was forcibly stitched together into an enlarged form, its body couldn¡¯t keep up with its own abilities.


    Unfamiliar with its own body, the golden wolf could only run in a straight line; unaccustomed to its own weight, it gradually exhausted itself; and because it forcibly exerted itself, the stitches tore from its seams.


    The golden wolf was fatiguing itself more than Ciel could tire herself and she must have noticed that. That might be why she was calm even as the barrier served little use against it.


    After all, at worst, I can heal her immediately as long as she doesn¡¯t die. In addition to that, pain also wouldn¡¯t slow her down since she¡¯s resilient to pain.


    ¡ºAs I thought, Rispelgia probably created it.¡»


    ¡ºThe wolf did call itself an imitation, so he could have attempted to make a god again.


    And having likely failed, he threw it away.¡»


    As we were on our way back to Norvell, Ciel and I speculated about the golden wolf.


    It¡¯s not as if the only possible suspect is the House of Rispelgia. However, if we can ascertain that this is a god-related matter, then their involvement would be practically confirmed.


    And there is a way of confirming it, more or less.


    While we traveled on, the spirits followed and floated alongside us, but it seems that they¡¯re currently playing around by themselves.


    ¡ºIf it¡¯s only that wolf, then this would be the end of it but¡­¡»


    ¡ºIt did say us, after all. It¡¯d be best to assume that there¡¯s still more of them.¡»


    ¡ºIf they¡¯re all the same type of monster, then we might be able to deal with them; but the chance of that is slim, isn¡¯t it?¡»


    ¡º¡°Divine messenger¡± could be a key in that regard.¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s probably best to research about this properly just in case.¡»


    If the other artificial monsters are similar in strength, then it could end up quite troublesome.


    Not for us, but for the people of this world.


    There are people that are unlikely to ever encounter a B-rank monster in their entire life, much more a monster A-rank and above.


    However, these artificial monsters have a clear intention to proactively take revenge on humanity.


    Besides, if this really is the work of Rispelgia, then I find it hard to imagine that this will be the last of his experiments.


    After all, the golden wolf is by no means close to being a successful result. While it¡¯s also possible that he had a successful experiment after this golden wolf, expecting that would be too optimistic.


    Rispelgia seems to be obsessed with gods. Even though I don¡¯t think he¡¯ll produce powerful monsters for every experiment, there¡¯s still no guarantee that he wouldn¡¯t either.


    ¡ºBy the way Ain, are you feeling alright?¡»


    ¡ºAlright about what?¡»


    ¡ºSomething entered us after we defeated the wolf, right?


    I don¡¯t feel any different, but what about you, Ain?¡»


    I replied with a giggle, but maybe I was trying a bit too hard to act cool.


    Still, if Ciel hadn¡¯t smiled and laughed at my songs, then my heart would¡¯ve likely been crushed during my first five years in this world.


    Even now, if Ciel wasn¡¯t here, then I wouldn¡¯t have connected with this world.


    Just being able to support Ciel is already enough for me though.


    But in the future, Ciel might probably end up thinking of me as an annoyance, won¡¯t she? Thinking so, I stared at Ciel¡¯s delighted expression from the side.


    ¡ó


    As we were defeating random monsters on our way back, we managed to defeat enough to complete the other requests we accepted, so we brought all of these with us to the Hunter Guild.


    Having entered the forest in the morning, it was now past noon and almost dusk already.


    I really don¡¯t want to go there in this current time frame. Additionally, there¡¯s currently restrictions placed to prevent people from leaving for the forest, meaning there¡¯s a lot of hunters at the guild.


    Entering in this situation is extremely bothersome. But if Ciel doesn¡¯t report the subjugation of the golden wolf, this situation would just continue on; so I gave up and Ciel entered with the hood over her head.


    In the middle of this tense atmosphere, Ciel¡¯s appearance seems to have provoked the hunters¡ªas her small build can¡¯t be hidden even if her face can be¡ªand they shot irritated glares at us.


    Despite that, there seems to be no one causing any trouble, but then I noticed that the guildmaster has been keeping a watchful eye from behind the reception counter.


    And it looks like he noticed Ciel¡¯s entrance as well since he immediately signaled to us with his gaze to follow him to the back room the moment he saw us.


    Ciel followed behind the guildmaster and as the gazes of the hunters disappeared, Ciel asked the guildmaster to lead us to a more spacious area.


    After all, we brought the golden wolf as is, so it¡¯ll be impossible to fit it in a normal room. While somewhat puzzled, the guild master still complied.


    We changed our course and were led to the storage area where the monster materials brought by hunters are kept.


    I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s out of consideration or if it¡¯s just how things usually are, but there was no one in the storage area.


    ¡¸So, have you gathered anything about the monster?¡¹


    ¡¸I defeated something that fit the description.¡¹


    As Ciel answered so indifferently, the guildmaster had a sceptical gaze and was about to say something in reply.


    But before he could, he saw Ciel take out the golden wolf from our magic bag and closed his lips shut.


    ¡¸You really did defeat it.¡¹


    ¡¸I told you so.¡¹


    ¡¸What is this?¡¹


    ¡¸Who knows? I want to know too.¡¹


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    Perhaps being surprised by the considerably large golden wolf, the guildmaster¡¯s question was off the mark.


    The guildmaster scratched his bald head ¡¸Well yeah, that makes sense¡­¡­¡¹ and grumbled so.


    Still, there are things that we learned during the battle, so I suggested Ciel to convey it to him.


    ¡¸This wolf spoke. It couldn¡¯t hold a conversation, but it resented humans.


    It¡¯s obvious on closer inspection but it¡¯s covered with stitches all over, so it¡¯s likely man-made. It also said something to that effect.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­.Are you sure about that?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes.¡¹


    ¡¸About this wolf¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸If you want it appraised, I¡¯ll leave it here. Still, I¡¯m curious about something, so tell me the results.¡¹


    ¡¸Do you know something?¡¹


    ¡¸For now, nothing. Only some speculations.¡¹


    ¡¸I see. We¡¯ll inform you about it.¡¹


    The guildmaster gave his word as he stared at the giant wolf on the floor.


    Since we¡¯re already here, we also took out enough monsters to complete the other requests and had the requests processed on the spot.


    We brought quite a number of monster carcasess, but the guildmaster wasn¡¯t as surprised as he was with the golden wolf and just silently received them.


    ¡¸All that¡¯s left is to show your card to the reception counter on your way back and it¡¯ll be completed.¡¹


    ¡¸By the way, when will the gates open up?¡¹


    ¡¸After having several investigation requests that would confirm that the safety levels are back to normal.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, gate usage permit please.¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t really mind giving you one but¡­¡­ why?¡¹


    ¡¸To see the ocean.¡¹


    While the guild master was left perplexed, he didn¡¯t ask any more than that and simply promised that we¡¯d be issued a permit at the reception counter as well.


    ¡¸Miss Cielmer, in your assessment, how strong was this monster?¡¹


    ¡¸At least A-rank. I haven¡¯t fought monsters beyond A-rank, so I can¡¯t say for sure.


    Still, it was far stronger than B-rank.¡¹


    The guildmaster went completely silent after only replying ¡¸We¡¯ll keep that in mind.¡¹ to Ciel¡¯s words, so we simply left the storage area.


    As we finished the document processing at the reception counter, I felt a different hunter approaching the counter, but we ignored them and left the Hunter Guild.


    ¡ó


    Directly after leaving the guild, Ciel left the town of Norvell.


    That¡¯s probably just how much she wanted to see the ocean.


    Within the thick forest, we headed far northward and encountered a mountain path.


    The mountains it led to seems to be relatively low since even though we did manage to reach the peak without much trouble, the visibility from there was bad and we couldn¡¯t see the ocean.


    Around three days after leaving the town, we were now descending the mountains as we continued further northward.


    As to be expected, travelling without any stopovers¡ªalthough we did play with the spirits along the way¡ªsignificantly increased our travel speed. There were several B-rank level monsters that attacked us on the way but we defeated them without much trouble. Considering this, that golden wolf might have actually been S-rank.


    What appeared as we descended to the base of the mountain was, what a surprise, more forest covering our field of vision.


    While it didn¡¯t seem like anything was any different, compared to what was on the other side of the mountain, things that aren¡¯t visible have changed.


    For example, the air. Perhaps having a lot of moisture, the air feels thick.


    Another example, the sounds. What was once only the sound of leaves swaying in the wind is now replaced with the sound of water crashing into a wall echoing from a distance.


    The variety of trees growing might have even changed and such, but I don¡¯t know much in that regard.


    Still, the proportion of spirits having a shade of blue seems to be increasing.


    As we continued onward, our field of vision that was narrowed by the trees suddenly opened up.


    The morning sunshine shone brightly, causing Ciel to make a shade for her eyes with her hand.


    While Ciel can¡¯t see it yet, before us is a vast ocean stretching to the horizon.


    In my visual field is the color of blue and white.


    There¡¯s no sandy shoreline, only a steep cliff, as though the ground was carved out, being thrashed by waves non-stop.


    It was the blue sea and sky that I¡¯ve seen many times when I was alive.


    But to tell you the truth, I¡¯ve only seen an extensive view like this in pictures and portraits.


    After all, the place where I lived in had no cliffs nearby. There might have been some, but the only places I¡¯ve been to were beaches and harbors.


    That¡¯s why it¡¯s nostalgic but somewhat different. And while I can say the same about the scenery as well, spirits delightedly floating around everywhere is something I¡¯ve never seen before.


    Being the ocean, there¡¯s a lot of water-type spirits as expected.


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    ¡¸Ain! Ain! The water is so blue!¡¹


    ¡ºYes, it¡¯s quite blue.¡»


    ¡¸And it¡¯s really big!¡¹


    Ciel spoke in extremely high spirits.


    Seeing Ciel acting her age with her eyes sparkling with excitement, I suddenly wondered what went on my mind when I first saw the sea.


    Still, no matter how hard I try, I can¡¯t remember at all. It might have been even before I had consciousness after all, so it can¡¯t be helped.


    ¡¸Ain, was the ocean that you¡¯ve seen before¡­ also like this?¡¹


    Seemingly calmed down, Ciel¡¯s somewhat lonely voice called my attention.


    ¡ºLet¡¯s see. The sky and sea are blue, and the clouds and waves are white. Just as it is in my memory.


    However, there is something different now.¡»


    ¡¸Really? What is it?¡¹


    ¡ºI couldn¡¯t see spirits back then.¡»


    ¡¸Fufu, they look like they¡¯re enjoying themselves. Say, Ain.¡¹


    ¡ºWhat is it?¡»


    ¡¸This isn¡¯t all of the ocean, right?¡¹


    ¡ºYes, it should surround the continent, so you can say that the ocean here is only a small part of it.


    This ocean faces a cliff, but there should be places where there are harbors built for fishing and I believe that there are sandy beaches where you can be much closer to the ocean.¡»


    ¡¸In that case, once we leave this country, let¡¯s go see various other oceans. Let¡¯s see various other skies. Let¡¯s visit various other places. And then¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡ºAnd then what?¡»


    ¡¸It¡¯s nothing. Don¡¯t worry about it.¡¹


    Ciel shook her head and glossed over my question.


    This is the first place that Ciel has ever seen the ocean. Perhaps because of that, she might have various things running through her mind. ¡ºIs that so.¡»As I replied so, I imagined that if we ever visit this place again, Ciel is sure to have made more memories by then.


    I¡¯m a bit excited for that day to come.


    Hiya~! Finally, our princesses have finally achieved one of their goals!


    For the first part, the speculation continues, but Ain seems practically 99% sure that it¡¯s the duke¡¯s doing, lol. But yeah, it does spell a lot of trouble. Mostly to the people that¡¯ll have to clean up the duke¡¯s mess. Which was Ain and Ciel this time. Still, as Ain says, the duke isn¡¯t going to stop until he has clear results, and he doesn¡¯t seem to be good with disposing his ¡°trash¡±, especially if we consider our protagonists, lol.


    Also, the bit about the Hunter Guild being generally tense because everyone¡¯s locked in the town tho. A small, but nice detail. As with the guildmaster going out of his way to make sure that the big little kids behave, lol.


    And lastly, the ocean. Man, it¡¯s really nice to see Ciel just appreciate the world and Ain enjoying the world alongside her. As Ain said, she probably wouldn¡¯t have connected to this world as she does now if not for Ciel. Even now she has a hard time opening up, and for a good reason. Still, it would have been worse for the both of them if this wasn¡¯t so.

 CH 69

    From the ocean, we then returned to the town of Norvell.


    Naturally, we were able to return safely without making any detours.


    This didn¡¯t even take us a whole week based on my past life standards, but it seems that the town is still in a clamor.


    Since the golden wolf is already gone, the town should have recovered some of its cheer by now, but the atmosphere of the town is somewhat gloomy.


    Spirits are innocently flying around Ciel though, so we do have some cheer.


    Perhaps the investigation is still underway. Though, considering that, the gatekeeper was quick on letting us enter but¡­¡­


    We might get involved in some trouble if we carelessly pry for an answer, so I decided not to worry about it too much.


    I¡¯d lend Ciel a hand if she¡¯s curious about this but as of now, she seems completely indifferent to this topic.


    A more important issue is what that golden wolf¡¯s real identity is.


    While I¡¯m not sure if there are people in Norvell with the Monster Appraiser Job, six days should be more than enough to summon one from the capital. We don¡¯t have any experience with this, but traveling on horseback should reduce the travel time as well.


    Frankly speaking, Ciel has a much faster way of traveling. It might even be faster than traveling on a horse.


    With this being the case, it might have been better if we had just used that on our way to Norvell from the capital; but if we had, it would have been harder to make detours along the way.


    Since our primary goal was to ascend to B-rank, we thought that it would be better to travel on foot so that we could do requests that might help us get promoted while on the road.


    I just learned recently that this was a meaningless effort though. Still, it might be possible that we¡¯ve only managed to satisfy the promotion requirements thanks to the requests we¡¯ve completed on our way from the capital to Norvell.


    If that was the case, then it wasn¡¯t meaningless. It wasn¡¯t a complete waste.


    Back on topic.


    As expected, even the Hunter Guild was astir.


    However, unlike the time when the golden wolf appeared, there seems to be less tension; as though they don¡¯t have any personal investment on whatever is causing this stir.


    Maybe something happened in a distant town? Since even the Hunter Guild is affected, then it might be that some reinforcement requests arrived coming from said town as well.


    In the middle of all of this, Ciel briskly headed to the reception counter.


    ¡¸Is the guildmaster here?¡¹


    ¡¸Uhh, yes. Are you perhaps Cielmer-san?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ll go call him now, so please wait here for a moment.¡¹


    It seems that the discussion was quick, as there was immediate response.


    The guildmaster here handles these sorts of situations well.


    Though, to begin with, the only other guildmaster we know of is the capital¡¯s former guildmaster.


    Soon enough, the guildmaster arrived and we were led to his office.


    While I can¡¯t say that we¡¯re completely used to this, we have been here a fair number of times now, so Ciel quickly sat down on the sofa without a second thought.


    ¡¸And the appraisal result is?¡¹


    ¡¸It seems to be an¡ºArtificial Divine Messenger¡».¡¹


    ¡¸I see.¡¹


    ¡ºJust as we thought.¡»


    Ciel replied to the guildmaster indifferently, but the guildmaster was staring at Ciel like he wanted to say something.


    He likely wanted to ask Ciel since she seemed to know something about this, but should we answer?


    ¡ºIt should be fine to say that the Rispelgia family might have some involvement.


    After all, it¡¯ll be troublesome if he¡¯s left as is and ends up making another problematic thing again; and if we inform them about this, the guild might even start monitoring them as a result.¡»


    ¡ºI see. Understood.¡»


    ¡¸Then, what do you want to know?¡¹


    ¡¸Do you know something?¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t. I only have a speculation.¡¹


    ¡¸And your speculation is?¡¹


    It sounds long-winded, but it¡¯ll be disastrous if we confidently say Rispelgia¡¯s name and end up actually being wrong. Rather, there¡¯s a risk that we¡¯ll get in to trouble if Rispelgia plays dumb, so it¡¯ll be better to inisist that it¡¯s only a speculation.


    We didn¡¯t even have a discussion about this, but I guess this just shows Ciel¡¯s continuous growth.


    Though, I do question whether this kind of growth is something to be happy about.


    While I do want Ciel to grow into a decent and upstanding person, this doesn¡¯t always bring good.


    Rather, being somewhat crafty helps to go through life in any world.


    Besides, I myself have an aversion to people. Being closely involved with people seems to bring nothing but trouble after all, and there¡¯s no telling what they¡¯re thinking underneath the surface.


    Enough about my personal opinion and Ciel¡¯s education, knocking on a stone bridge before crossing it should be the perfect level of caution at present time.


    ¡¸Rispelgia.¡¹


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    Ciel briefly but clearly said that name.


    Perhaps not expecting that name to come out, ¡¸Impossible.¡¹ the guildmaster refuted in disbelief.


    ¡¸Why?¡¹


    ¡¸Duke Rispelgia is one of the nobles in this country that think of the people, perhaps the one that thinks the most even among them.


    It¡¯s unthinkable that the duke would create monsters.¡¹


    What Rispelgia wants to create isn¡¯t monsters. While the product being a monster might not matter to him as long as he can achieve his objective, since this one¡¯s specifically a divine messenger, he definitely wanted something that related to gods.


    Whether his goal is to conquer the world, to improve his territory, or even to create a new breed of humanity, I have no way to know for sure.


    Still, I¡¯m hesitant to inform the guild about the fact that he¡¯s trying to create a god and has already tried so before.


    ¡ºIt¡¯d be better to leave it at that, right?¡»


    ¡ºIn my opinion, this should be enough. Honestly speaking, I don¡¯t trust the guild. At worst, it¡¯s possible that we might even get sold off to Rispelgia instead.¡»


    ¡ºIn that case, I suppose the only other proof would be that forest.¡»


    ¡ºIt seems so. While it likely wouldn¡¯t serve as evidence for this incident, there¡¯s still no denying that there¡¯s something suspicious going on there either way.¡»


    ¡¸I don¡¯t mind if you don¡¯t believe it. It¡¯s just a speculation after all.¡¹


    ¡¸Miss Cielmer, why do you think that Rispelgia is involved?¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s a barrier affixed in the forest south of Sannois.¡¹


    ¡¸We¡¯ll have to confirm it for ourselves, huh.¡¹


    ¡¸Feel free.¡¹


    Ciel replied in a manner that could even be seen as haughty, but the guildmaster pondered silently.


    This should turn the guild¡¯s attention to Rispelgia, even just slightly. If this makes things at least a bit more difficult for that man, then good.


    The discussion ends here. From now on, we¡¯ll limit our hunter activities to the minimum and probably hole up in some mountain.


    We can sleep just about anywhere after all and since we have a magic bag, it¡¯ll be fine if we simply buy food when we¡¯re in town to periodically do some hunter activities.


    Still, since we¡¯ll be doing this for a few years, it¡¯ll be nice to at least have a house. Would something like a log house fit inside our magic bag? As my mind began wandering in that direction and Ciel was about to leave, ¡¸Wait.¡¹ the guildmaster stopped her.


    ¡¸I don¡¯t have business here anymore.¡¹


    ¡¸Sorry, but we do on our side. Please take a seat.¡¹


    Ciel reluctantly sat back down looking displeased while the guildmaster took out a request form.


    ¡¸We have a designated request for you.¡¹


    ¡¸A designation, consecutively?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m aware that there¡¯s been no precedent of this. Still, due to its urgency, it was given approval.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ The contents are?¡¹


    ¡¸Delivery of supplies to the royal capital.¡¹


    The guildmaster handed Ciel the request form and she confirmed the contents.


    Summarizing what¡¯s written, they want us to deliver a large amount of supplies to the royal capital as soon as possible.


    Still, just delivering this isn¡¯t going to be particularly difficult. Despite the large amount, we should be able to manage by using our magic bag. If we make haste, we¡¯ll likely reach the capital in a few days.


    Although, this being needed as soon as possible is a bit of a bottleneck, it doesn¡¯t say that we need to be there by tomorrow.


    Still, this makes no sense.


    With a request like this, there shouldn¡¯t be any reason to necessarily designate Ciel.


    The guild should have their own magic bags too, so they¡¯d only have to find someone who can either ride a horse or travel fast on foot.


    Since I¡¯ve never heard anyone saying that Ciel can travel fast on foot, I have a bad feeling about this.


    When I told Ciel this worry of mine, ¡ºThat¡¯s true.¡» she replied with agreement.


    ¡¸I don¡¯t see why it has to be me.¡¹


    ¡¸In the forest near the capital, signs of a coming stampede have been observed. It¡¯s reached the point where a stampede may happen at any time. Due to that, it¡¯s been decided that we would assign the strongest hunter in Norvell for this.¡¹


    ¡¸So there¡¯s a high possibility of getting overrun then. Still, wasn¡¯t I allowed non-participation during the capital stampede?¡¹


    ¡¸The promise should have been to not coerce you into joining the battle. This is only a delivery of goods, so it doesn¡¯t apply.¡¹


    Certainly he¡¯s not wrong in saying that the promise was about not making us fight.


    The request is to deliver something. It¡¯s not necessary for Ciel to fight along the way. And even if she did, then it¡¯ll end up being that Ciel simply fought on her own accord, huh.


    ¡ºDo we have no choice by to accept for this?¡»


    ¡ºSince this is a designated request, there¡¯s sure to be a penalty if we decline.


    Still, there¡¯s a lot I want to confirm first, so could I borrow your body for a while?¡»


    ¡ºSure, I don¡¯t mind.¡»


    Receiving her approval, I borrowed her body to talk with the guildmaster.


    While I could just tell Ciel and she would tell the guildmaster, playing this sort of telephone game could make the conversation needlessly complicated.


    I really wanted to contemplate on why the monster stampede is happening right now. According to my estimations, it should have been fine for a few more years. Why at this timing¡­¡­


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    For now, I need to put my feelings behind change my way of speaking, and pull through this exchange with the guildmaster.


    ¡¸I see. Then, there are several things I want to confirm and ask.¡¹


    ¡¸Of course, that¡¯s only natural.¡¹


    ¡¸Was this designation approved with full awareness that this will worsen my perception of the guild?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ That¡¯s right.¡¹


    As I showed exaggerated displeasure, the guildmaster scrunched his brow and nodded.


    The situation might be just that dire, but for the ones being used, this is completely inexcusable.


    ¡¸You can¡¯t resolve one stampede without relying on a wandering little girl?¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s been confirmation of A-rank monsters, but there shouldn¡¯t be any issue in terms of fighting potential.


    Still, once the stampede starts, there¡¯s no knowing when it¡¯ll end. It¡¯ll be great if it ends by day one, but it might not end so early.¡¹


    ¡¸And that¡¯s why I only have to deliver the supplies?¡¹


    ¡¸Right. That¡¯s the only thing this request asks for.¡¹


    If I remember correctly, naturally occurring stampedes, unlike those incited artificially, have a tendency of being drawn-out.


    As a naturally occurring stampede happens due to the extensive increase of number in monsters, I suppose that¡¯s only natural.


    If the stampede becomes drawn-out, the presence or absence of the available supplies can greatly change the course of battle, even an amateur like me can imagine this.


    I can imagine it, yes, but this conversation is making increasingly less sense.


    ¡¸A-rank monsters were confirmed, yet you designate a C-rank?¡¹


    ¡¸You should be able to handle those, right?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s not the point.¡¹


    This isn¡¯t about whether Ciel can handle it or not.


    The issue is that a request that is by all means meant for an A-rank Hunter, or at least B-rank even after undervaluing the details, is being designated to a C-rank.


    Of course there are exceptions in some cases, but none of those exceptions are applicable in this instance. A C-rank hunter should only be required to perform with the ability befitting of C-rank. The guild is breaking its own rules.


    The matter with the golden wolf was already gray enough, yet it seems that they still want to pile more on top of that.


    From an outsider¡¯s perspective, this request is practically telling the one doing it to die.


    We¡¯ve never fought against A-rank monsters¡ªthe golden wolf¡¯s rank is unverified¡ªso I can¡¯t assure Ciel¡¯s safety.


    ¡¸I know that. We¡¯ve acquired the approval to promote you to B-rank upon the completion of the request as well.¡¹


    I see, I see now. So this is where they¡¯ll use this one-time use card of theirs, huh.


    A great bait for us who are aiming for a B-rank promotion. I suppose the reason why the possibility of being promoted to B-rank outside of reaching the required age was added at the signing of the magical contract was because of the expectation of this sort of situation occurring; to leave a means of getting us to do their bidding for a single time.


    Still, I have no intention of jumping right into it so easily.


    ¡¸What sort of logic is that?¡¹


    ¡¸By that you mean?¡¹


    ¡¸The only requirement I lack to reach B-rank is age. Everything else is settled.


    Yet despite that, you say I¡¯ll become B-rank upon completing this? ¡¹


    If we¡¯re only lacking in contribution to the guild, then I can understand how completing this request would make us B-rank.


    If we¡¯re only lacking in ability, then I can understand the same happening as well.


    However, what we¡¯re only lacking is age. Yet despite that, what exactly is this request assessing to result in our B-rank promotion on completion?


    Do they mean to say that completing this request will increase our age?


    ¡¸Demotion is likely if you don¡¯t accept it, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸When that happens, I¡¯ll quit the guild.¡¹


    ¡ºOh, we¡¯re quitting?¡»


    ¡ºUmm, I¡¯m sorry for deciding by myself.¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s alright. What you said makes sense after all.


    Besides, I agree with that too, Ain.¡»


    I ended up getting Ciel¡¯s approval after the fact, but since she agrees with me, this¡¯ll make things easier.


    To be frank, I have a hunch that even if we do just honestly accept this, they¡¯ll probably still find some reason to not let us be B-rank. I also have a hunch that we¡¯ll be made to do other things outside of the delivery. I can¡¯t risk having what¡¯s supposed to be a one-time only bait being used on us again and again without us ever getting promoted.


    With that said, I want to try my best to have our B-rank promotion confirmed here.


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    Hiya~! From one comfy place to another problem we go!


    Well geez, Ain is on fire today now, isn¡¯t she? ¡°You can¡¯t resolve one stampede without relying on a wandering little girl?¡± Ouch. It is a valid retort though, lol. But yeah, the stampede flag seems to have been activated prematurely based on Ain¡¯s estimations. Still, really guild? You force the one hunter that not only realised that a stampede is coming, managing to give you time to fix the result of your people¡¯s negligence before it¡¯s too late, and that is in obliviously in risk of being crucified or burned at the stake just by staying at the capital because of your people¡¯s mishandling, to fight exactly at the one place that she¡¯ll probably get assassinated, if not lynched by the public? *And expect her to just silently nod and agree?* Genius! Well they don¡¯t really seem to expect so, considering all the cards they¡¯re playing right now, but the point stands.


    As usual, I really don¡¯t want to be in this guildmaster¡¯s position. Just, no. I can say that he¡¯s pretty good at his job though, since he was quick witted enough to add the condition that would allow them to be promoted for special reasons. Still, he¡¯s a good employee on the wrong side of the coin in my opinion. But again, really big props to him for not underestimating AinCiel. As for the small good news, the guild is now probably on Rispelgia¡¯s tail, heh.

 CH 70

    While I did say I¡¯ll try my best, there¡¯s still no denying that we¡¯re at a disadvantage.


    Since the Hunter Guild isn¡¯t likely to be so weak of an organization to topple down just from the quitting of a C-rank girl, quitting as a threat likely wouldn¡¯t have much of an effect.


    However, we¡¯re also currently in a situation that could affect the course of this country.


    A countless number of monsters will engulf the royal capital. Even if the capital were to fall into ruin, it¡¯s already been demonstrated in the past that this won¡¯t destroy the kingdom; still, chaos will be inevitable.


    And while the kingdom and the Hunter Guild are different structures, they probably have a tight-knit relationship. If anything were to happen to the kingdom, the hunters will have their work personally decreased and there¡¯s no telling what negative effects this would bring. Because of that, they¡¯d naturally help out.


    Based on their combat potential, the capital probably won¡¯t fall this time, but it¡¯s still best to have as many people and supplies as possible.


    ¡­¡­ I¡¯ve overexaggerated somewhat, but thinking about it is starting to get annoying.


    How did things end up this bothersome?


    Yeah, let¡¯s make it more simple.


    What the guild wants is for Ciel to deliver supplies.


    However, the difficulty level is B-rank even with modest consideration and when thinking about it normally, it¡¯s A-rank. On the other hand, Ciel is C-rank.


    That¡¯s why we¡¯ll be promoted to B-rank as a reward for completion.


    Since we want to get to B-rank, there¡¯s no reason to refuse.


    Still, the reason why I don¡¯t want to accept¡­¡­ is because it¡¯s infuriating that the guild is making us dance on the palm of their hands.


    Otherwise, it¡¯s because the Hunter Guild is making justifications in the breaking of their own rules.


    Either way, it¡¯s awfully childish of me if I say so myself.


    Still, if we continue to just quietly obey, they might keep on taking advantage of us in the future. With that being the case, we should persist on being childishly self-centered here. At the very least, we don¡¯t have any obligation to this country after all.


    Since they¡¯re the ones breaking the rules, the truth is on our side.


    Besides, the other party is likely fully aware that the act of going to the capital is painful for us.


    ¡¸Come to think of it, what¡¯s the rank of the Artificial Divine Messenger?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Around the higher end of A-rank or lower end of S-rank.¡¹


    ¡¸In other words, you made a C-ranker accept an S-rank request.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­¡¹


    Hearing my words, the guildmaster replied with silence.


    ¡¸Furthermore, you¡¯re designating another request of A-rank or above.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ That¡¯s right. For the sake of this country, we have no other choice.¡¹


    ¡¸This country¡¯s guild publicized my Job and colluded with a noble to kill me to erase their failure. This country¡¯s hunters caused a stampede to entrap me out of unjustified resentment. This country¡¯s people are hostile against me just for being a Song Princess.


    No matter how politely I put it, that is the Hunter Guild¡¯s statement here.


    From an optimistic angle, it can be interpreted as a pretext in order to give a clear-cut achievement to promote us to B-rank earlier.


    However, if that was the case, then the golden wolf should have been more than enough.


    In the end, this situation right now is merely the consequence of the guild continually causing us to lower our opinion of them.


    As I am now, there¡¯s no way that I can interpret the guild¡¯s words optimistically.


    ¡¸If it¡¯s not the promotion after completion, then what do you want?¡¹


    ¡¸You can¡¯t tell?¡¹


    ¡¸Promotion to B-rank first, huh¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Is there a problem?¡¹


    ¡¸Is the guild that untrustworthy to you?¡¹


    ¡¸You think otherwise? Naturally, I won¡¯t tolerate demotion to C-class due to completion failure as well.¡¹


    Are you half-asleep? I wanted to say that out loud, and my eyes are probably saying that to the guildmaster, but the guildmaster himself seems to have accepted this as a natural reaction, as his face has the look of resignation.


    Our claim is that making a C-rank accept this is the issue, so just promote us to B-rank in advance. Nothing more, nothing less. Just by doing that, the guild would have been able to brazenly designate this to Ciel. Though, since the request should be A-rank normally, they might not be brazen about it either way.


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    If our claim is approved but they¡¯d insist that failure would lead to demotion, I¡¯ll run away from here.


    Normally, one failure wouldn¡¯t lead to a demotion, and even if they promote me, the request is still equivalent to A-rank. If they even try to demote us for failure with this, then the guild is just being tyrannical.


    ¡¸Understood. I¡¯ll try to negotiate with the top. Do you want anything else?¡¹


    ¡¸Supply the magic bag for carrying the goods in.¡¹


    ¡¸Sure then. Wait here for a while.¡¹


    The disheartened guildmaster left me and exited the room.


    It seems like our demands went through. Or more accurately, passed through the first barrier.


    I was infuriated but thinking about it now, the guildmaster is in a really difficult position. The country is in serious trouble after all, and the guildmaster isn¡¯t really the one that¡¯s disputing with me, so from his perspective, he¡¯s just caught up in between.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s going smoothly, isn¡¯t it?¡»


    Once we become B-rank, we¡¯ll be able to leave the country even without completing the request.


    However, if we do that then we¡¯ll end up being in actual conflict against the guild.


    Even if we fail it, if we don¡¯t at least show visible results, it might make it difficult to move around when we reach the Central.


    Besides, abandoning a request that was accepted would probably leave a bad taste in my mouth. That¡¯s just my personal opinion, but I don¡¯t want Ciel to become a person who would easily break promises.


    That¡¯s why when accepting a request, I want to put as much effort in it.


    ¡ó


    Since the guildmaster was out for a while, I returned the body to Ciel and as Ciel returned, she played with the spirits.


    Since she¡¯s just looking, I¡¯m not sure if ¡°playing¡± would be the right word to describe it, but as Ciel is showing expressions befitting her age, I¡¯m satisfied either way.


    Feeling someone approaching, I informed Ciel and her expressions returned to the usual.


    Opening the door and entering the room, the guildmaster had in his hand several sheets of paper and a rucksack big enough for Ciel to carry.


    Timewise, it took about an hour or two but he must have gotten that permission from the top. With that in mind, it¡¯s a considerably quick response.


    I expected it to take a few days, but I guess the situation is more urgent than I thought.


    ¡¸This special case was acknowledged. Miss Cielmer, this will be your B-rank card.¡¹


    The guildmaster placed a card more grandiose than the ones used until C-rank on the table.


    Ciel was about to pick it up but ¡ºWait.¡» I stopped her.


    Accepting this will be equivalent to accepting the request. I don¡¯t think that they¡¯ll still trick us at this point, but it would be better to confirm the contents of the request again.


    ¡¸Reaffirm the request details.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Right. This is the new request form. It¡¯s also simultaneously a magic contract, so read it through.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    Ciel received the request form and checked the details.


    The new additions are that ¡¸Acceptance of request will result in recognition as B-rank.¡¹ and ¡¸The recipient will exert as much possible effort to complete the request.¡¹ included in the form.


    Other than that, there aren¡¯t any particular changes.


    ¡¸This should be enough, but I want to add one more line.¡¹


    ¡¸And that is?¡¹


    As the guildmaster asked so, Ciel wrote an additional sentence in reply.


    Seeing the returned request form, the guildmaster looked as if he was about to say something; but without alluding to the sentence, ¡¸Fair enough.¡¹ he replied so and signed.


    Ciel similarly signed as well, and picked up the B-rank card.


    ¡ºShould it be ¡°already¡± or ¡°finally¡± in this case?¡»


    ¡ºFinally, I suppose. Finally, we have the key needed to leave this country.¡»


    ¡ºI suppose so, but I don¡¯t feel much excitement from this.¡»


    ¡ºSame with me.¡»


    ¡ºStill, there¡¯s still the issue in front of us right now. Let¡¯s quickly deliver it and leave this country, shall we?¡»


    ¡ºShould we go with full speed?¡»


    ¡ºAs long as you¡¯re alright with it, Ain.¡»


    ¡ºThen that should be fine.¡»


    Ciel put the B-rank card inside our magic bag and placed our C-rank card on the table in its place.


    Then, she shouldered the rucksack¡ªthe magic bag holding the supplies.


    Ciel immediately headed straight to toward the door but right before she exited, she stopped on her tracks.


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    ¡¸You were decent.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so. I¡¯m honoured to hear that.¡¹


    ¡¸Do your best.¡¹


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s short remark, the guildmaster displayed a bewildered look but then cracked a wry smile.


    Since he has a tough look, a wry smile is just scary but only in this moment, I can vaguely feel a charm from it.


    If he was the guildmaster at the royal capital, then his relationship with Ciel might have been a lot different.


    We might have happily¡­ would be an exaggeration, but we might have joined the offense against the stampede at the very least.


    The order of events were terrible, the timing was terrible, the encounter was terrible. It was probably just these.


    Leaving the Hunter Guild, Ciel headed straight towards the town¡¯s gates.


    ¡ó


    The sun was already going down when we exited Norvell, so we gave up on traveling full speed and decided to walk as far as we can go.


    Being in the middle of nature as it¡¯s dimming feels quite gloomy. I likely would¡¯ve felt lonely or uncomfortable if I was alone.


    However, I have Ciel with me right now, so we can at least talk as we continue on.


    ¡¸Nonetheless, I wonder why a stampede is happening now?


    It should have been fine for one or two more years, right?¡¹


    ¡ºBased on our estimations, that is¡­¡­ However, it was simply based in correlation to the past stampedes, so there might be some exceptions.¡»


    ¡¸Since it¡¯s also possible that the monsters have been reproducing faster than before, right?¡¹


    ¡ºIf that is the cause, the issue would be if this is only the case for that forest or if this could also occur in other places, but¡­..¡»


    ¡¸This is a matter that should be left to the experts, correct?¡¹


    ¡ºAfter all, my amateur judgment did end up being a few years off the mark.


    Well, thinking back now, making judgments solely based on the prices of potions might have been a mistake.¡»


    ¡¸Speaking of potions, I wonder if I can eventually make potions too.¡¹


    ¡ºYou want to make potions?¡»


    ¡¸After all, if I can make it, we could earn money even if we quit being a hunter.¡¹


    The demand seems pretty high after all, so we should be able to sell if we can make some. Additionally, while it would depend on the required materials, we can probably harvest the materials ourselves; so this could be doable.


    After all, after harvesting them, herbs should last long¡­¡­


    ¡ºAhh!¡»


    ¡¸For Ain to yell out like that, that¡¯s unusual. What¡¯s the matter?¡¹


    ¡ºIf I remember correctly, herbs can last for one to two years if stored properly, right?¡»


    ¡¸From what we heard, yes. I see, so that¡¯s why the stampede was off our estimations then.¡¹


    ¡ºExactly. With this in mind, we likely would have predicted this stampede properly if we have examined the request records instead.¡»


    Somehow, I feel really refreshed. This wasn¡¯t due to abnormal reproduction or artificial causes.


    The alchemists likely used the herbs they stockpiled, deferred the price so that it wouldn¡¯t lose to the potions brought from outside, and worked hard to keep it going for two years. Potions are the lifeline of people in combat, so it wouldn¡¯t be strange if they had a large stockpile of herbs to be used in case of emergency.


    Even so, continuously producing the same amount of potions should have been difficult in this situation, so I probably would have figured this out if I had paid more attention and investigated the amount of potions supplied. There¡¯s nothing I can do even if I think about it now, but I¡¯m glad that one of my concerns has been resolved before the big job.


    Hiya~! Finishing our guildy guildy stuff, our princesses continue on their journey, now with a shiny new rank!


    Man, Ain was full sass for two chapters, which is actually pretty nice, lol. *You think otherwise? Are you half-asleep?* If I had to say, absolutely pissed Ain is one of my most favorite things. While Ciel is cold and sharp when she¡¯s angry, Ain is quite scalding it seems. Still, Ain was still quite considerate, but uncompromising. Poor guildmaster.


    One thing that was pretty funny is how Ain, in the middle of things, was just ¡°Ugh, this is too much thinking, I don¡¯t have enough brain for this.¡± and even on the last part she was like ¡°Ahh!! That¡¯s what I missed!¡±, which in my opinion says a lot on her occasional airheaded-ness. Also, it¡¯s nice that it was a complete mistake on Ain¡¯s part, which might sound unfair, but it¡¯s hard to find pure mistakes in stories that aren¡¯t related to the character¡¯s fatal flaw. It¡¯s really nice to see one. Though Ain is characterized by her mistakes, big or small. Like when she mistakenly told Ciel about the massage stuff, lol.

 CH 71

    The night has ended and this time, we will be travelling at Ciel¡¯s maximum speed.


    ¡ºYou can rest whenever you want, okay Ciel?¡»


    ¡¸In that case, we might end up traveling the whole day.¡¹


    Ciel said with a giggle, but since this requires me to sing continuously, I won¡¯t be able to tell her to take a break. Because of that, while I don¡¯t mind if it was just a joke, I¡¯ll be worried if Ciel actually means this.


    I could stop singing to call out to her, but with this method of travel, it¡¯s possible for Ciel to get injured if I suddenly stopped singing.


    ¡¸Don¡¯t worry. After all, this body isn¡¯t just mine.¡¹


    ¡ºUnderstood. I trust you, Ciel. Also, one more thing.¡»


    ¡¸About what to do upon encountering enemies, right?¡¹


    ¡ºYes. This time, there is a possibility of encountering A-rank monsters, so I¡¯ll be hard-pressed to call this safe.¡»


    ¡¸I¡¯ll observe first and if the situation seems manageable, let¡¯s defeat them immediately. If not, then let¡¯s retreat.¡¹


    ¡ºThat should be alright. However, there¡¯s one thing I want to ask of you.¡»


    ¡¸What is it? I¡¯ll do anything you ask!¡¹


    Ciel became awfully excited, so in order to keep it from affecting her judgment, I calmly relay to her my request.


    ¡ºIf we encounter an A-rank, I¡¯ll use a spherical barrier. Once is enough but please receive an attack with that barrier.¡»


    ¡¸You want to see how strong an A-rank is, right Ain? Still, I think that your barrier can block their attack completely.¡¹


    ¡ºThe golden wolf broke through my barrier after all, so¡­¡­¡»


    ¡¸In my opinion, there was nothing you could have done at that time.


    Ain¡¯s barrier was simply a bad match against it, so there¡¯s no need to worry about that.¡¹


    ¡ºI can¡¯t really argue if you put it in that way but¡­ Setting that aside, we might get into trouble if we don¡¯t check our current defensive ability, you know?¡»


    ¡¸That¡¯s true. I¡¯ll try to take some attacks then.¡¹


    I¡¯m happy that Ciel would comfort me like that, but confidently taking an attack with the barrier that would destroy it is something I can¡¯t allow to happen. For the sake of keeping Ciel from becoming a laughingstock as well, I¡¯ll need to have a proper grasp of my own abilities.


    Besides that, I want to try experimenting with the power that we got from the golden wolf. I suspect that using it should make us capable of defending against something like the golden wolf¡¯s claws, but this is still nothing more than speculation.


    Anyhow, since we finished discussing, I began to sing.


    There are various sorts of sorcery, but the ones that have a good affinity with the Dance Princess are those of fire, water, and ice.


    After all, these allow a showy use of sorcery. As to be expected, being able to fascinate and impress is fundamental.


    Sorcery itself is a prop to attract the eye, to make the dances appear more dazzling.


    And those that can do so have a good affinity with it.


    For this reason, we¡¯ve only created water and ice stage sets but we could set up fire or earth stages if we wanted to.


    A stage of earth is hard to distinguish but if we ignore the magic power expenditure, Ciel can turn the surrounding several kilometers into a forest. Though, doing something like that would exhaust Ciel before she could even dance. A forest several kilometers wide suddenly materializing would be nothing short of a problem, so we probably won¡¯t be doing anything like that.


    Something like elevating the ground or turning the area into a flower bed would keep the magic power costs down.


    If we consider earth, water, fire, and wind to be the basic elements, then the one that has a bad affinity with the Dance Princess would be wind¡­¡­ or so I thought. While we do use wind sorcery frequently on its own, that¡¯s less due to the Dance Princess¡¯ ability but more a display of Ciel¡¯s ability in sorcery.


    Since enticing is a must, I thought that the wind attribute, being invisible from the naked eye, would have a terrible affinity with the Dance Princess, but it turned out that this wasn¡¯t the case at all. And that led to our mode of travel for this occasion.


    The point is, Ciel can run through the sky.


    She can walk in the air, making it a stage of wind.


    As a dance, it can probably be described as a sort of dance of spirits or dance of fairies. My guess is that seeing the spirits happily jumping around in the air increased Ciel¡¯s mastery with it.


    While there are people that can use sorcery to soar through the sky, this is something that only the top class sorcerers can only achieve after great effort to do so.


    Ciel is an excellent sorcerer herself, but flying without any prior practice is obviously very much impossible.


    Back on topic.


    With her thin and slender feet, Ciel grasped the air and jumped towards the sky.


    Matching my song, she dashed through the air like a fawn galloping in the fields.


    Taking notice of this, a spirit began cheerfully flying around Ciel.


    As this one spirit started playing, the surrounding spirits began playing as well, and Ciel followed suit and joined in.


    With how it is now, it¡¯s turned into less of a dance and more of a festival. Though, since we¡¯re still moving onwards through the air with the ability of the Dance Princess, let¡¯s not think about that.


    On closer inspection, the spirits seemed to be moving to the beat of my song, but let¡¯s not think about that.


    There¡¯s also some of them trying to sing along, but let¡¯s also not think about that.


    It¡¯s heartwarming, so it¡¯s all good.


    The fact that the spirits can hear my voice doesn¡¯t matter too much in particular.


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    There¡¯s no problem with them being buffed after all. To begin with, I don¡¯t even know if I can buff spirits.


    After all, they¡¯re clearly beings different from normal living creatures.


    Still, from the eyes of the people who can¡¯t see spirits, Ciel¡¯s actions are dodgy.


    She is, after all, laughing and smiling at the empty sky, so people might think that she¡¯s insane.


    While considering the need to think when using this, I continued to sing as usual since there¡¯s no use in talking to her about this now, or rather we¡¯ll crash if I stop singing.


    ¡ó


    Three days after leaving the town of Norvell.


    While pondering whether I¡¯m being lazy or not, I repeatedly sing the same song.


    Or rather, I¡¯m singing a song that can continue endlessly. I¡¯ll change into a different song once I get sick of it, but I¡¯ve probably been singing the same song for several hours now.


    Game BGMs, they¡¯re amazing.


    While I could probably look for a regular song too, I¡¯m not skillful enough to do that, so songs that are made to loop from the start really helps for extended periods of time like these.


    Well, let¡¯s leave my impressions on music aside.


    After all, I can see a large silhouette within my field of vision.


    It would¡¯ve been fine if we were on the ground, but no matter how I look at it, we¡¯re in the sky.


    They¡¯re mythical beasts that are well-known even in my past life.


    Now that it¡¯s considerably close, I can see what seems to be a wyvern. An A-rank flying lizard.


    Since we¡¯re encountering one here, then the stampede likely already started.


    I have no idea what the scale of this stampede is, but just from the appearance of a wyvern, the damage to the capital is probably going to be big.


    If possible, I¡¯d prefer to ignore all of these wyverns, head to the capital, leave the supplies, and escape, but unfortunately they¡¯re heading right towards us.


    If these were just grounded monsters instead, we could have ignored them all here from the sky.


    We could head to the capital while running away from the wyverns, but in our current situation, I have a feeling that we could get captured for bringing along wyverns.


    Now, what if we had just walked instead then? In that situation, we¡¯d be forced to go through monsters numbering incomparably more than these wyverns¡ªthere¡¯s about ten of them from what I can see¡ªand so going on pure numbers alone, traveling through the sky wasn¡¯t a mistake.


    Fortunately, it doesn¡¯t seem like the other monsters are heading towards us like the wyverns are.


    From here on, whether we land on the ground or fight them here in the air will depend on Ciel, but it appears that Ciel chose to fight as she showed no signs of heading towards the ground.


    As we discussed beforehand, I casted a spherical barrier for Ciel to receive attacks with.


    The wyvern approaching has green scales, sharp claws, and a tail, with its arms and wings being fused together.


    While I haven¡¯t read up about them thoroughly, if I¡¯m not mistaken, since their tails have venom, just a graze from it would make the battle unfavourable.


    It is quite dangerous for barrier testing, but that simply means it won¡¯t matter as long as it doesn¡¯t destroy the barrier.


    Also, now that it¡¯s near, it¡¯s easy to understand that the wyvern is very big.


    It¡¯s several times Ciel¡¯s size, so it has a sort of last boss impression.


    While I do think that it¡¯s not that much bigger than the golden wolf, the wolf walks on all fours and, in contrast, this lizard flies like it walks on two legs, so this one feels more intimidating.


    It¡¯s like a wall.


    The first wyvern to come near flew at a higher altitude than Ciel and then suddenly swooped down to capture Ciel with its claws.


    Like a bullfighter, Ciel nimbly evaded and, at one occasion, had the claws hit the barrier intentionally.


    The strong impact almost made Ciel lose her balance, but she skillfully used sorcery to recover.


    At the same time, I was certain of this battle¡¯s victory.


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    It probably has other ways of attacking, but no matter how much it repeats the same attack earlier, it won¡¯t destroy my barrier.


    Or rather, the spear of ice is much more powerful than this.


    Next, we blocked its approaching tail.


    It might have some other trick up its sleeve, but there¡¯s no doubt that we¡¯re in a considerably more advantageous position.


    Yup, I guess the golden wolf really was just abnormal.


    Still, while we probably won¡¯t lose here, I have no idea if we can defeat it.


    The key here will be whether Ciel¡¯s attacks are effective against A-rank monsters or not.


    As though frolicking with a wyvern charging in for a bite, Ciel ran through the sky.


    Now flying freely in the sky like some magical girl, Ciel shot blades of wind at every given opportunity and steadily wounded the wyvern.


    If she was wearing a frilly outfit and had a wand, it¡¯ll probably look perfect. There¡¯s no issue with her age-wise as well, but since what Ciel¡¯s using is closer to sorcery than it is to magic, I guess that makes her more a sorcery girl.


    Jokes aside, there are currently too many wyverns which makes it difficult to continue on the offensive.


    Fortunately, the wyverns don¡¯t appear to be good at dogfights as they can¡¯t seem to keep up with sharp and precise movements, so we just have to outlast them.


    They likely target creatures on the ground after all and their large bodies likely make it hard for them to target small prey.


    Just as I was thinking that, I detected a reaction coming from afar a bit too late.


    A tail quickly occupying my field of vision accurately slammed Ciel on the head.


    While the barrier can block attacks, being slammed in the air means that there¡¯s no way to redirect the force of impact.


    Before I could finish thinking about how bad it could be to be hammered to the ground this way, I used what I planned to use for my second experiment.


    The mysterious power used by the golden wolf that melded into my barrier.


    Just as how I make use of magic power in sorcery, I circulated it through the body and released it outside. The fact that I¡¯m able to circulate an energy more powerful than magic power is all thanks to Ciel¡¯s atypical magic circuits.


    After a skydive that lasted less than a second, or perhaps a cordless bungee jump, I only felt the sensation of landing on the ground, it was as if there was no impact at all.


    Realizing what happened, Ciel looked around and the area surrounding her turned into a small crater.


    Looking up, the wyvern quickly drew near us.


    Without looking away from the large creature approaching close before our eyes, Ciel did nothing at all.


    Just as I was pondering what¡¯s on her mind, the charging wyvern¡¯s claws hit the barrier and snapped.


    Perhaps feeling pain, if not anger for things not happening as it planned, the wyvern roared before fleeing back into the sky.


    Yup. It looks like the barrier¡¯s defensive ability has increased.


    ¡ºWhat should we do about that? ¡»


    Since we fell from the sky, I stopped singing and asked Ciel.


    The wyverns appeared to be still locked onto Ciel, as they¡¯re circling us in the air.


    ¡¸Thanks to Ain, I won¡¯t lose against them but just going to the royal capital like this would also be bad, right? ¡¹


    ¡ºIt¡¯d be better to avoid doing that, yes.¡»


    ¡¸Then there¡¯s no other choice but to defeat them; still, it¡¯ll be hard to use anything other than wind sorcery up in the sky, while down here any other sorcery likely wouldn¡¯t reach them.


    So, how about I try acting like a typical Dance Princess for this occasion?¡¹


    ¡ºThat might be a good idea. I¡¯ll provide support to keep you from getting wet then.¡»


    With our next move decided, I started singing once again. What we¡¯re going to perform right now is a ceremony of sorts, so I sang a solemn song befitting of one. Ciel kicked the ground, constructing a simplified stage.


    After so, Ciel used her robe in place of a stole and fell to her knees as though to offer a prayer.


    While we haven¡¯t done this much up until now for some reason, this is the most typical form of the Dance Princess¡¯ ability.


    Set a stage, perform music, and offer a dance.


    Ciel slowly stood up and without any imbalance in her body¡¯s core, she then performed a gentle and slow spin.


    She moved her slim body greatly, moving as a gentle flowing stream, continuously matching my song.


    Following her movements, her robe seized the air, which spread it wide open, and followed Ciel¡¯s motions as though unaffected by the pull of gravity.


    What¡¯s perhaps the most regrettable part might be that Ciel is in a completely hunter-like attire.


    Or maybe it¡¯s the fact that her gallery only consists of lizards.


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    Being covered in thick clouds, the sky turned dark and perhaps sensing something, the wyverns began to move in disarray.


    ¨D¨DDrip


    A drop of rain fell from the sky.


    ¨D¨DDrip Drop


    Then two, then three. Before long, the raindrops increasing in number now fall incessantly.


    The sounds of the drops link into one, and their terminus gradually and steadily got gouged out.


    In the middle of this heavy torrent, Ciel continued dancing alone.


    Twirling round and round, as though eagerly awaiting this savage blessing.


    Flowing smooth and slow, as though celebrating this cruel world.


    The spirits joyfully jump about.


    The blue spirits in particular are swimming about in the sky.


    The wyverns that failed to escape had their wings slammed by the raindrops and fell to the ground.


    And as a flash of lightning descended, Ciel ended her dance.


    Hiya~! Another dance, another slain! And this time, unlike Ciel¡¯s usual battle mage-dancer hybrid battle style, we have a pure ceremonial dance princess!


    First of all, giggly Ciel is always cute. Terribly cute. Also, Ciel gladly willing to hear any of Ain¡¯s requests, lol. And Ain, lol, I feel you, game bgms are top tier background music for doing stuff. They are background music after all.


    With their growth so far, our princesses are really shaping up into fairies, it seems, lol. First the avatar bending like dances, then a mode of flight that is further influenced by that of the spirits playing around them, and Ciel basically looks like an ethereal being from how pristine she always looks anyway. And to top it off, ceremonial dancing that summons torrential rain and thunder, which is practically on the realm of this world¡¯s magic rather than sorcery. Think about it, magic needs a sacrifice that isn¡¯t particularly just magic power, heck Ain¡¯s magic (the strengthening of her barrier with the sacrifice of her combat capabilities) used zero magic power at all. So in a sense, the ceremonial dance could be seen as a ¡°sacrifice¡± as it is an offering, with the resulting rain being summoned with no magic power at all. In this sense, dance princesses are really op but specialized even without the capability for sorcery. Well, enough about me gushing over this, lol.


    Btw, is it me or is the author/Ain referring to Miyu Edelfelt from Prisma Illya when she was describing how magical girl-ish Ciel¡¯s air walk is, lol. I do see some similarities with Ciel and Miyu tho, but that¡¯s just my speculation.

 CH 72

    As the rain let up, we approached the fallen wyverns and saw their green bodies now charred black.


    As Ciel called down lightning onto these wyverns, if things go well, it might be possible for her to be eventually capable of using lightning sorcery.


    After confirming their death, the bodies were put inside of our magic bag.


    Then, scanning the surrounding area closely, I see that despite the fact that the rain was heavy enough to take wyverns down, the ground was only muddied and barely sustained damage.


    As the forest spirit that came along with us smiled in reply when I directed my gaze at her, this is probably their doing.


    Since, by nature, using the Dance Princess would generally cause increased collateral damage, I¡¯d be really grateful if they do more of these sorts of aftercare.


    As she¡¯s likely capable of hearing me anyway, I gave her my thanks without borrowing Ciel¡¯s body.


    ¡¸This should be the last of them, right?¡¹


    ¡ºSince this is only a part of the stampede, flying to the capital might be the better option.¡»


    ¡¸Are there no other flying monsters?¡¹


    ¡ºEven if there are, it should still be less bothersome than traveling on land.


    The stampede seems to be large-scale after all.¡»


    ¡¸In that case, let¡¯s continue on after a short break then.¡¹


    Perhaps feeling exhausted from the wyvern battle, Ciel said so before heading to the area that isn¡¯t muddy and wet.


    ¡¸Still, I wonder why they came our way?¡¹


    ¡ºMaybe it was because we were in the sky?


    Perhaps the wyverns saw the sky as their own territory and with them being stirred up by the stampede, it might have caused them to attack whatever¡¯s in the sky.¡»


    ¡¸The sky is my domain and yet how bothersome of them.¡¹


    ¡ºI agree, there¡¯s probably nobody more fitting of the sky as you are, Ciel.¡»


    After all, she is named after the sky. As we joked to each other, we then rested for a while.


    ¡ó


    Within the cloud of dust being raised below us are a swarm of monsters charging onwards.


    I¡¯m sure that even if we fall into them, Ciel likely wouldn¡¯t receive as much as a scratch.


    However, that¡¯s only for Ciel¡¯s case; I have no idea if the hunters fighting for the capital would end up alright.


    None of a low-rank hunter¡¯s usual prey, being goblins, slimes, horned rabbits, and the like, are present. And from our position, we couldn¡¯t see any wolves as well.


    What we see a lot of are orcs and ogres. Of the stronger monsters, cyclops.


    While there were no animal-based monsters, more powerful-looking varieties of each of them were present.


    Since the stampede Ciel resolved alone back at Sannois is incomparable to this one, it certainly does seem that resolving this would take a long time.


    Still, since it looks like the low-ranked monsters are being overrun and trampled to death by the higher-ranked monsters behind them, it¡¯s unlikely that every monster we see here would actually reach the royal capital.


    As the capital came into view, I could see that there¡¯s an open area around the gates.


    It seems like they have set their defenses in a way that will stop the monsters from coming near the gates.


    On top of the capital walls were people using bows and sorcery to attack monsters approaching it.


    As we were informed, there appeared to be a powerful person fighting on the ground as I can feel their powerful magic power. Since there¡¯s a place with clearly less monsters around, the individual in question is probably there.


    As it¡¯ll be bad if we get seen, we took a detour to enter the capital and landed on top of an adequate rooftop.


    Likely since the stampede is still ongoing, there¡¯s little traffic present but it¡¯s still hectic.


    The people or division in charge of eliminating the monsters are all busy, but everybody else are probably behaving inside their homes.


    And as for those that have money, they might have already escaped the capital.


    If possible, I¡¯d prefer that we discreetly complete this request, but where we are heading for is the place that¡¯s busy in the capital even now, the Hunter Guild.


    While I¡¯d like to keep Ciel¡¯s face hidden, since our safety is assured within the Hunter Guild, it might be better if it¡¯s visible.


    ¡ºWhile we¡¯ve finally gotten this far, going to the guild is still troublesome. Ah, please turn right on the next path.¡»


    ¡¸We¡¯ve already gotten this far, so why not¡­¡­. is not good, isn¡¯t it? Is this the one you were talking about?¡¹


    ¡ºYes, here. I won¡¯t say that it¡¯s not good, but it¡¯ll be better to remember that finishing things because it¡¯s a waste not to do so is not always the best choice.


    This time, it¡¯s issue of my personal feelings and the magic contract requiring us to do it, though.¡»


    ¡¸But in exchange, we can immediately finish our task, right?¡¹


    While using detection to inform Ciel about the paths without people, we continued our idle talk.


    While it¡¯s not as if problems occur every time at the Hunter Guild, since a big problem has already occurred here, I just can¡¯t help but feel that something will happen.


    As we approached the Hunter Guild while making detours, the place appeared to be hectic as anticipated.


    Likely assigned to as logistics support, the low-ranked hunters¡ªor people that appeared to be so¡ªmove around following the instructions of the guild staff.


    There are also people wrapped in bandages running around among them, as well as people with stretchers heading towards the direction of the gate which the monsters are swarming.


    However, I don¡¯t see any wounded people being brought in.


    But as I thought of that, I realised that the treatment of injuries is probably the church¡¯s responsibility. I don¡¯t know where the church is located, though.


    Since the church doesn¡¯t appear to particularly covet the Song Princess¡¯ power, I have no intention of going near one.


    After observing for a while, Ciel waited for the traffic in the Hunter Guild to lessen before entering inside.


    In the building were many hunters, perhaps either ordered to stay on standby or stopped from joining the battle; some of them were resting while others were working.


    However, the shared aura of exhaustion seeping from them is quite telling of how much trouble the stampede is.


    Now what will happen when someone like Ciel enters this situation?


    No one¡¯s pestering us at least, but we¡¯re attracting attention and, most of all, I can feel animosity.


    In the end, we didn¡¯t hide our face, so I suppose that could be part of the reason.


    Roughly scanning the area, I didn¡¯t see anyone I consider as an acquaintance.


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    Ignoring all of their gazes, Ciel headed to the counter.


    Usually, young receptionist ladies would be handling the reception counter, but today a veteran-ish woman, who seems to be roughly in her 30s, was put in charge. I guess since this is a state of emergency they¡¯re prioritizing efficiency here.


    While the receptionist gave us a questioning look, Ciel placed the magic bag we brought from Norvell on the countertop.


    ¡¸What might this be?¡¹


    Perhaps irked, her tone was rough but it appears that she¡¯s still open to hearing us out.


    I suppose this part is to be expected of a veteran.


    ¡¸Supplies from Norvell.¡¹


    ¡¸Haah¡­¡­?¡¹


    ¡¸Bye then. My business here is already done.¡¹


    With this, the request is completed. All that¡¯s left is to have the magic contract that is the request form be processed in Headquarters or elsewhere.


    As Ciel was about to leave the Hunter Guild without showing interest in the sudden silence,¡¸Wait.¡¹a middle-aged man came out from behind the counter breathing heavily. He¡¯s of a thin and small build, wears glasses, and has the crooked noble feel.


    Is he the new guildmaster, the submaster, or perhaps somebody else? Whoever it is, it doesn¡¯t matter, so Ciel continued on walking.


    ¡¸I said wait. Don¡¯t let her out the building.¡¹


    Considering how he can order the hunters near the door to trap us in, he likely has a management position in the guild.


    Perhaps understanding this as well, Ciel stopped on her tracks.


    ¡¸Who?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m the acting guildmaster. ¡¹


    ¡¸And?¡¹


    He somewhat pridefully announced his position, but Ciel replied with nothing but disinterest.


    He seems pretty incapable, but perhaps the Hunter Guild is lacking in manpower.


    After all, they probably started the investigation on the stampede right after that incident, so it¡¯s possible that the stampede started before they could do a proper reorganization. In that case, the submaster might have been temporarily put on top.


    ¡¸Since you came from Norvell, that means you avoided the stampede then?


    Shouldn¡¯t you be cooperating as a hunter?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m not obliged to.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, we have not received the logistic supplies from Norvell.


    The magic bag was stolen and the hunter that accepted the request will be demoted and thereafter penalized.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­¡¹


    Considering that he¡¯s not underestimating Ciel¡¯s combat potential based on her appearance, he seemed to have been informed to some extent.


    He clearly knows that Ciel is not obligated to fight during the royal capital¡¯s stampede. I suppose he knows up until the part where we¡¯re already B-rank and that we¡¯re going to leave the country.


    If we contribute to the resolvement of the stampede, the supplies will be accepted meaning the request will be treated as complete.


    Otherwise, it appears that they want to make it so I didn¡¯t complete it and stole the supplies.


    The magic bag with the supplies is already in the acting guildmaster¡¯s hand, so going back to Norvell to report the failure can¡¯t be done in this case as well.


    ¡¸You have quite the defiant look but the reason why we couldn¡¯t fully prepare is because you gave us the wrong information to begin with.


    How about you feel the weight of responsibility?¡¹


    ¡¸Taking the information gathered by a little girl in a single day at face value, how pitiful.¡¹


    Really pitiful. Mainly his head.


    Him now fuming about how Ciel talked back, showing his lack of tolerance, is quite pitiful as well.


    ¡¸I¡¯ll have you go under the command of Duke Ortis. They¡¯re sure to take good care of you.¡¹


    And with a vulgar smile, the acting guildmaster said so triumphantly.


    Speaking of Duke Ortis, he should be the one that sent the assassins.


    So putting together what he implied just now, I suppose he¡¯s planning on pinning both the guild and the noble¡¯s failure on Ciel and either killing or exploiting her in his resentment.


    ¡¸You think the Headquarters would allow it? ¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s not a problem if they don¡¯t know. To begin with, there¡¯s a magic contract, isn¡¯t there?


    If the request remains incomplete, then this lack of integrity will follow you for life.¡¹


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    I¡¯m honestly worried if the Hunter Guild will be fine with him talking like this in the lobby.


    However, the hunters here are those that know Ciel, or rather that I am a Song Princess; so not only is there no one here who would help, the hunter might actually share the same sentiments with the acting guildmaster.


    Where have the Song Princess¡¯ human rights ever disappeared to?


    I don¡¯t know if this world has human rights to begin with, though.


    And while he seems to know about the magic contract, it doesn¡¯t look like he knows about the last sentence.


    ¡ºShall we leave?¡»


    ¡ºLet¡¯s.¡»


    Seeing us ready to leave, the acting guildmaster orders ¡¸Capture her!¡¹ in a panic.


    Thanks to the Song Princess hate, everyone around is an enemy. And each with a weapon in hand, they steadily surrounded us.


    ¡ºSince they¡¯re annoying, can I use the usual? ¡»


    ¡ºSure then. They broke the agreement after all, they shouldn¡¯t have any complaints if they get injured.¡»


    After using the usual magic circle that will moderately cut those that come inside its range, Ciel walked towards the door.


    The hunters that attempted to jump onto us scream in pain and those that got within range due to Ciel walking onward yelped in surprise.


    In an instant, a scene of hell unfolded in the guild; still, not one of them is dead.


    Leaving the acting guildmaster left in wide-eyed shock, Ciel opened the Hunter Guild¡¯s doors.


    ¡ó


    ¡º¡¸The request shall be considered completed when the supplies have been placed on the Royal Capital Guild counter.¡¹I¡¯m glad I wrote that down.¡»


    ¡ºIt was obvious that they wouldn¡¯t accept the supplies after all.¡»


    While heading to the gate opposite of where the stampede is occuring, I conversed with Ciel.


    I partly anticipated this to happen but never expected them to try and capture us.


    Thanks to that, another disaster occured while there¡¯s already an ongoing stampede disaster, but at this point, I don¡¯t really care anymore.


    While they might have suffered a decrease in combatants, the main force should be all on the front-lines anyways and we¡¯ve already defeated the wyverns, so the royal capital is unlikely to fall.


    ¡ºThere¡¯s someone at the gates.¡»


    ¡¸Should we take the initiative and beat them?¡¹


    ¡ºThis magic power seems familiar, so it¡¯s probably fine.


    They might turn hostile later on, but there¡¯s nothing we can do about it now anyhow.¡»


    And I just noticed it on the way, but the gates are closed.


    Since there was no other choice, we went over the gate and landed on the other side.


    ¡¸I wasn¡¯t expecting to actually encounter you here.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s been a while.¡¹


    ¡¸You seem to be¡­¡­ not in high spirits at all.¡¹


    ¡¸Tired¡­¡¹


    Just as we landed on the ground, Viviana-san who was waiting nearby called Ciel.


    Since there were signs of an upcoming stampede, I guess their party couldn¡¯t leave the capital. Since Viviana-san and party are hunters sent from Central, their range of activity is probably limited to some extent.


    ¡¸Will the guild here be okay? ¡¹


    ¡¸Frankly speaking, nope. Since we had the former guildmaster working, assignment of a new guildmaster wasn¡¯t a high priority. So due to that, it seems like the submaster was tentatively promoted but¡­ the instant he gained authority, he¡¯s doing as he pleases.


    From his standpoint, it appears that he wanted to use this chance to prove his worth and become an official guildmaster but¡­¡­ it¡¯s out of the question.¡¹


    Come to think of it, the previous guildmaster is being worked as a slave, wasn¡¯t he?


    That¡¯s why they should have enough guild staff.


    ¡¸Why are you here? ¡¹


    Then in other words, maybe they won¡¯t be against us leaving?


    Still, just knowing someone is on our side gives a sense of relief.


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    ¡¸You won¡¯t stop me? ¡¹


    ¡¸I would love to have you fighting with us though. Still, I won¡¯t stop you.


    As soon as the stampede ends, we¡¯ll report the details to the Headquarters, so feel free to do as you like.¡¹


    ¡¸Okay. With this, it¡¯s goodbye to this country.¡¹


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s words, Viviana-san¡®s eyes went wide in surprise.


    She then showed a gentle expression.


    ¡¸So you¡¯ve become B-rank now. I¡¯d love to hold a celebration, but you won¡¯t be staying here for long, aren¡¯t you?¡¹


    ¡¸Later.¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah, I¡¯m looking forward to seeing you again.¡¹


    Waving Viviana-san goodbye, we parted ways.


    Viviana-san returns to the battlefield once again and we are heading off for a brand new stage.


    ¡¸Say, Ain?¡¹


    ¡ºWhat is it, Ciel? ¡»


    ¡¸I don¡¯t care about the people of this country, but is there a way to at least protect them? ¡¹


    ¡ºWhy don¡¯t you try asking her?¡»


    ¡¸I see. Could you help even just Viviana¡¯s party so that they don¡¯t die?¡¹


    Ciel asked the forest spirit, but she didn¡¯t look quite willing to.


    It didn¡¯t seem like she came to dislike us, so I wonder why?


    ¡ºViviana-san and her party aren¡¯t people of this country.¡»


    As something came to mind, I said these words and after showing a surprised look, the forest spirit nodded in reply.


    Thereafter she said something to the spirits around us.


    It feels like cheating, but let this off as payment for the magic power I¡¯ve given up until now.


    And with this, we have finally escaped our country of birth.


    Hiya~! After 32 chapters, the main story of the third arc: The Royal Capital and the Town of Norvell is now complete~! There¡¯s still some (5) interludes left, which I have planned to publish between regular updates, but as you can see, they haven¡¯t been¡­¡­ So I want to ask which one you would rather choose for reference: I pause the translation of the Main Story to finish these interludes up or I post the interludes concurrently with the next arc?


    Now back to the story.


    Finally, finally they¡¯re out of this country¡­ Still, the capital¡¯s Hunter Guild really, really doesn¡¯t know when to give up, lol. As with Ain and Ciel, I worry about the future of the capital¡¯s guild. First, the guildmaster has a scandal, at least two of them in fact. Then, the guild submaster was put as a temporary leader but ended up being a spiteful power hungry fool, give the royal capital¡¯s guild a break¡­ Still, he¡¯s absolutely boned. First, the princesses made the contract fool proof, so this fool can¡¯t affect it. Second, the fool broke the agreement between the guild and Ciel and this doesn¡¯t have legal loopholes like the previous scheming. It¡¯s a disservice to even compare this to actual scheming even. And lastly, as a result of the broken promise, he also got a few hunters broken and useless for the stampede. *Good going there.*


    And as for our princesses, their scheme has been revealed: The conditions for the completion has been changed from handing the supplies over to just dropping them on site. And with the request from being also a magic contract, regardless of what lies anyone might tell, the contract will be enough proof that they ¡°Completed¡± the request. That aside, I like how Ciel has cared enough for people other than Ain to actually voice it out. While she likely also cares for Cecila and Carol, that¡¯s a result of the long time they¡¯ve been together, Viviana¡¯s is the shortest amount of time it took for Ciel to take interest in a person, or just care enough about their existence. Viviana might not have been present to see it, but it¡¯s nice that she succeeded in making Ciel open up. Though back then it was Ain she was talking to, lol.


    Also, Ciel was incredibly sassy today, nice.

 CH 73

    Being able to fly decreases travel time by a lot.


    We encountered some bird-like monsters several times along the way but it seems that Ciel has gotten used to flying since she¡¯s now able to use magic circles and chanted sorcery relatively well while in the air, so it wasn¡¯t an issue.


    Rather, they couldn¡¯t break through my barrier anyway, so ignoring them would be fine.


    When I finally noticed some crashing into us, they were already stopped by the barrier and fell by themselves.


    While traveling in the air, I¡¯m singing non-stop while Ciel similarly dances continuously. The spirits were circling around Ciel as well.


    Thanks to this, the trip is extremely enjoyable.


    The landscape visible below us also gradually changed, so I never got tired of the view.


    I guess I could describe it to be like driving on a scenic highway without having to mind about other cars.


    Maybe a plane would be a closer analogy, but you can¡¯t really dance or sing in a plane.


    Anyhow, it¡¯s perfect for forgetting the troublesome events that happened at the Capital.


    We didn¡¯t even feel like going to towns and villages along the way, so we reached the national border within a few days.


    While we could fly over the national border as we are, it¡¯ll probably be bad if we get found out later, and we can pass the border legally now anyway, so we¡¯ll be passing through on foot after descending in a while.


    ¡¸National border would mean that it¡¯s a separate country from here on, right?¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right.¡»


    ¡¸Considering that, it only looks like a bigger town wall, it doesn¡¯t really feel separate.¡¹


    ¡ºHmm, that¡¯s because countries are things that are arbitrarily decided by people, you see?


    This is my first time passing a border too, so it still feels surreal.¡»


    Ciel directly told me so.


    Certainly I have experienced more things compared to Ciel.


    However, every experience I¡¯ve had in this world are all my firsts.


    Still, I suppose it¡¯s not wrong to say that Ciel and I haven¡¯t properly shared these experiences.


    Since I was so focused on protecting Ciel, I never had the opportunity to do so.


    ¨D¨DNo, I never made the effort to have those opportunities, haven¡¯t I?


    ¨D¨D¡­¡­ That¡¯s why, that¡¯s exactly why I named myself Ainsel.


    Still, I have memories, memories of firsts we share together.


    It¡¯s a secret from her, but one was during the time we first saw the two moons in this world¡¯s night sky.


    The other¡­


    ¡ºThe first person to dance to my songs was you, Ciel.¡»


    ¡¸Hm? Ufufu, is that so? Is that true? Is that really true?¡¹


    ¡ºIt¡¯s true.¡»


    I really, really am.


    Still, once we¡¯ve settled down and the time for me to tell Ciel everything came, would we be able to maintain the same relationship we¡¯ve had up until this point?


    Hiya~! Very short chapter for today, so I¡¯ll try to have another chapter before the week ends! Likely to be an interlude, but we¡¯ll see.


    Still, there¡¯s quite a bit going on in today¡¯s chapter. Cute? Yes, but a bit¡­ ominous. Particularly on Ain¡¯s part. In a sense, Ain has not been making much effort to ¡°make opportunities¡± for many things. Particularly in interaction. While paranoia could be part of the reason, they are a bit too closed off. Particularly Ain, though she does have not much reason to be on the surface most of the time. But yeah, I think I¡¯ve said this before, but I really like Ciel¡¯s tendency to repeat herself when she¡¯s happy. Cute~

 CH 74

    Higher-level, Prison, and Sorcery Seal


    Now then. We¡¯re approaching near the border wall but so our landing isn¡¯t seen, we descended some distance away.


    Because of that, we head for the border checkpoint by walking along the wall.


    Being in a very good mood after our earlier exchange, Ciel¡¯s footsteps are awfully light.


    And as the wall became within arm¡¯s reach, something interfered with my sorcery.


    Somehow, it¡¯s¡­¡­ mixing with mine?


    A sorcery extremely similar to the detection sorcery I always use seems to be deployed near the walls.


    It¡¯s not strange when considering security reasons, it might be something deployed so that suspicious people won¡¯t come near and pass the border illegally.


    To my surprise, however, this sorcery is equal, if not greater than mine.


    The most I can do is roughly estimate what things I sense via my deployed magic power.


    This sorcery¡¯s concealment is also comparable to mine.


    I wonder, how many people would even be capable of noticing this?


    ¡¸Ain, is there something wrong?¡¹


    ¡ºThere¡¯s sorcery deployed near the walls. Since it¡¯s a detection sorcery similar to mine, it shouldn¡¯t be anything harmful but the caster will most likely detect us.


    There¡¯s no doubt that this sorcery is on an equal, if not greater, level with mine.


    ¡ºDetection sorcery equal, if not greater than Ain¡¯s¡­¡­ is it?¡»


    Ciel switched to talking only in her head.


    Her decision of doing this, while frustrating, is correct. The sorcery is likely capable of picking up sounds if the caster so desired.


    It¡¯s simply that precise.


    ¡ºIf they want to, they might be able to perceive colour and sound as well.


    Additionally, considering its range of deployment, it¡¯s more high-powered than mine.¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s amazing. Won¡¯t this be our first encounter with sorcery greater than Ain¡¯s?¡»


    ¡ºThere was also the ice spear though.¡»


    ¡ºBut Ain¡¯s sorcery is greater now than it was then. Am I wrong?¡»


    ¡ºWell that might be true but¡­¡»


    Assuming that we enter hostilities with the sorcerer that cast this, would I even be capable of defending Ciel?


    If the caster is like me and gained their power through the sacrifice of combat sorcery, then I probably can.


    However, if we¡¯re attacked by combat sorcery at the same level as this one, the chances I can withstand it is likely 50-50.


    First a tie with the spear of ice, then being effortlessly cut open by the golden wolf, and this time possibly crushed from the front.


    I just can¡¯t help but feel a sense of defeat. Still, this is already the third time. Even I understand that there are better things to do than to mope around.


    ¡ºTo begin with Ain, we only need to avoid becoming enemies with the sorcerer.¡»


    ¡ºTrue, that may be the best option but¡­¡»


    ¡ºIf my suspicions are correct, we shouldn¡¯t get into hostilities anytime soon, you know?¡»


    ¡ºCiel, you know the identity of this sorcerer?¡»


    ¡ºFiiyanamia. I can¡¯t imagine it being anyone else.¡»


    Now that she mentioned it, Fiiyanamia-sama really is the most likely suspect.


    Being the Central¡¯s top, it wouldn¡¯t be strange for her to monitor Central¡¯s borders. Well, yeah, it is strange for the one at the top to do this though.


    Since we are entering through the proper procedures, at the very least she shouldn¡¯t attack us with no questions asked.


    If this is the case, then this magic power that¡¯s obstinately changing its composition only subtly isn¡¯t meant to be an intimidation but some sort of signal for us.


    ¡ºSay, can I converse with Fiiyanamia-sama (temp) for a moment?¡»


    ¡ºYou can do that Ain?¡»


    ¡ºSomehow, the magic power¡¯s composition is changing constantly, as though it¡¯s begging for attention.¡»


    ¡ºIs that so? Would you mind doing that then?¡»


    How can I describe it? It¡¯s like from a string of multiple numbers, it¡¯s only changing the digits by one.


    For example: if I assume the magic power existing in nature to be ¡°159845158794651984156¡±, then I would generally disguise the magic power I use for my sorcery as ¡°159845158794651884156¡±.


    The more deviation there is for every digit, the easier the magic would be to detect. It should be more understandable to think of it that way.


    So, as if it desperately wants me to go Aha!, this sorcery¡¯s magic power has been doing constant subtle changes in its digits up until now.


    It¡¯s not actually digits though.


    While people unaware won¡¯t be bothered, for those that do, it¡¯s unpleasant. It¡¯s like there¡¯s something blinking in and out at the corner of your eye.


    ¡¸Pleased to meet you. Is this voice inaudible?¡¹


    As I said so, the change suddenly stopped for a moment before then changing subtly.


    Since it reacted to my voice, this response should be a no.


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    ¡¸So you can hear me, correct?¡¹


    There was a different response this time, so that should be an affirmation.


    This sort of exchange again, I just did something like this recently too.


    ¡ºCiel, I¡¯m thinking about sharing my name but what do you think?¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s unusual.


    I don¡¯t mind that, but why so?¡»


    ¡ºFiiyanamia-sama has the prominent influence in this world after all, and she¡¯s obviously on a different level.


    On top of that, it¡¯s evident that she¡¯s taken an interest with us, so it¡¯s to prove that we aren¡¯t hostile¡­¡­ I guess. Also, if we get exposed later instead, it¡¯ll sure to end up badly for us.¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood.¡»


    We aren¡¯t dealing with a person from Estoque. That¡¯s why unlike how it has been up until now, to ensure greater security, we need to act in a way that would earn the other party¡¯s trust.


    ¡¸My name is Ainsel.


    And, at the same time, I¡¯m also called Cielmer. As it¡¯s difficult to explain in simple terms, please forgive me for making this sort of introduction.¡¹


    Something changed with the magic power, but it doesn¡¯t appear to be bad, so I suppose I¡¯ve been pardoned for now.


    ¡¸I¡¯m aware this must be rude, but would it be right to assume that you¡¯re Fiiyanamia-sama?¡¹


    Affirmative.


    ¡¸I¡¯m planning on entering Central right now, would that be alright?¡¹


    Affirmative.


    ¡¸Thank you very much. Now then, I¡¯ll be heading forth.¡¹


    At this point the magic power returned to its initial state, so I switched with Ciel.


    ¡¸Are you already done?¡¹


    ¡ºYes. Just to be sure, it might be best that you greet her as well.¡»


    ¡¸Just like how you did, Ain?¡¹


    ¡ºIf possible.¡»


    ¡¸I¡¯m Cielmer. Please to meet you.¡¹


    From the side, it would only seem like Ciel¡¯s talking to the wall but since there¡¯s no sign of people around, that should be fine.


    While it¡¯s hard to say that the exchange was without any issues, as we¡¯ve just greeted Fiiyanamia-sama, we can now enter Central without any worries.


    Even if this wasn¡¯t actually Fiiyanamia-sama, being polite to someone on a higher level in of itself shouldn¡¯t work against us.


    This was a pretty strange experience.


    ¡ó


    Although we¡¯ve finally reached the checkpoint, the instant Ciel showed her B-rank card, the face of the soldier interacting with us quickly warped.


    ¡¸This card isn¡¯t fake, is it?¡¹


    ¡¸You think a Hunter Card could be falsified?¡¹


    ¡¸Well that¡¯s a good point. In that case, I can¡¯t allow you to pass.¡¹


    ¡¸Why? My status as B-rank can be confirmed.¡¹


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    Umm. What was that about being able to enter without any worries again?


    It¡¯s not like Fiiyanamia-sama would be there at the checkpoint, so I¡¯ve considered disputes possibly happening.


    Still, rather than it happening due to doubts against Ciel¡¯s B-rank, it seems that in this case the attention is on Ciel herself, and I can¡¯t help but think that some complete, utter nonsense is happening right now.


    ¡¸Oh, there¡¯s no mistaking that you¡¯re B-rank. However, the Hunter Guild has ordered for the capture of a hunter named Cielmer.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ From the Headquarters?¡¹


    ¡¸Nope, it¡¯s from Estoque¡¯s Royal Capital Guild.


    Normally this should go through the Headquarters first, but the land of Estoque is currently in the middle of a stampede. Since you came from there, then it¡¯s no different from abandoning your responsibility as a hunter.


    And yet you came here intending to pass through using your guild card? Shameless, aren¡¯t you?¡¹


    ¡¸Confirm with the Headquarters.¡¹


    ¡¸Moreover, I¡¯ve heard that you made a big ruckus in Estoque¡¯s Capital Guild and caused multiple casualties.


    There¡¯s no need to confirm anything.¡¹


    ¡ºWhat should I do? At this rate, we¡¯ll be taken away.¡»


    ¡ºIt probably won¡¯t look good if we suddenly make a ruckus, so let¡¯s just quietly follow for now.


    The moment something feels off, we¡¯ll shift to offense.¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood.¡»


    ¡¸Very well. Take me away.¡¹


    Seemingly in a good mood, the soldier took Ciel along.


    We passed through several doors and reached a staircase heading underground.


    However, there¡¯s something bothering me. We were told that there¡¯s a sorcery inhibitor in here, but I don¡¯t see any sign of this happening anywhere.


    The whole place is filled with Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s magic power.


    In the end, even after entering a cell and being locked in, Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s magic power is still there.


    Additionally, my barrier and detection hasn¡¯t disappeared as well.


    ¡ºSay Ain, is sorcery really inhibited here?¡»


    ¡ºBoth my barrier and detection are functioning. Ciel, can you use sorcery?¡»


    In response to my question, Ciel casted a spell.


    Her casting went smoothly as usual, but the sorcery didn¡¯t activate and the magic power that had no place to go spiraled within Ciel.


    With that said, it¡¯s only one spell¡¯s worth of magic power. It¡¯s not even worth comparing with the pill back then.


    ¡ºIt isn¡¯t activating.¡»


    ¡ºIn that case, as I expected, it¡¯s the type that inhibits the use of new sorcery.¡»


    ¡ºI see. But if that¡¯s the case, then wouldn¡¯t it serve no use in situations like these?¡»


    ¡ºI suspect that there must have been something that can detect sorcery upon entry.


    Though it doesn¡¯t seem be enough to detect my sorcery.¡»


    ¡ºAs expected, you¡¯re amazing Ain, amazing!¡»


    For some reason, Ciel¡¯s flattering me a lot today.


    No, she¡¯s praising me. I¡¯m happy, but I¡¯m really troubled on how to react.


    ¡ºNow then, what should we do?¡»


    ¡ºSince even this place is filled with Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s magic power, we could try asking.¡»


    ¡ºWould you mind doing so?¡»


    ¡ºNot at all.¡»


    I¡¯ll have to borrow Ciel¡¯s body for this but¡­¡­ we were able to switch without any problems at all.


    I then immediately attempted to contact Fiiyanamia-sama.


    ¡¸Fiiyanamia-sama. Can I ask for your time? This is Ainsel.¡¹


    From my words, Fiiyanamia-sama showed a response.


    ¡¸Due to a mistake, or rather some personal grudge or misguided revenge, we¡¯ve been detained. However, would it be fine for us to attempt an escape? We will likely end up damaging the gate¡¯s prison but¡­¡­¡¹


    The reply was a yes. It appears that we¡¯re allowed to destroy it.


    ¡¸Understood, thank you very much.¡¹


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    I lowered my head in thanks and as I was about to switch with Ciel, something suddenly came to mind, so I tried using sorcery.


    It¡¯s the usual warm breeze spell.


    The said spell activated. It¡¯s quite difficult to control, but the activation itself wasn¡¯t a problem.


    After this, I switched with Ciel.


    ¡ºWhat should we do? Even if Ain can use sorcery, I can¡¯t.¡»


    ¡ºYou should be able to use physical reinforcement, yes?¡»


    ¡ºOh, you¡¯re right.¡»


    As it only inhibits the magic power emitted from one¡¯s body, physical reinforcement, which is done by circulating magic power within the body, can be used with no issues.


    Or at least that assumption wasn¡¯t wrong.


    In this case, it should be possible to break these bars but¡­¡­ I forgot the most fundamental issue.


    ¡ºIf we stack the Song Princess reinforcement with your own physical reinforcement via magic power, I think that you should be able to destroy our cell but¡­¡­¡»


    ¡ºThat does seem plausible. Let¡¯s try that.¡»


    ¡ºPlease wait. You¡¯ll likely suffer from a rebound.¡»


    ¡ºYou can heal me, Ain. I¡¯ll be alright.¡»


    Saying so, Ciel slammed her fist against the prison bars.


    It¡¯s already painful. She¡¯s reinforcing her body too much.


    I hurriedly began to sing, further reinforcing Ciel¡¯s body.


    Ciel¡¯s fists striked against the iron bars. The bars start to warp and and break.


    And due to the rebound, Ciel¡¯s hands broke as well.


    It¡¯s awfully painful, so I quickly healed her. While it¡¯s not as if I can¡¯t endure it, pain is not pleasant by any means.


    ¡ºWe did it!¡»


    While Ciel appears to be delighted, I was surprised by her decisiveness.


    Well, since Ciel is weak in the physical department, I guess she¡¯s happy about being able to do this much without utilizing the Dance Princess¡¯ abilities.


    ¡ºNow that we can move forward, let¡¯s leave this place immediately.¡»


    ¡ºRight. Somehow, we ended up making a strange detour.


    Still, this place would probably be good for sorcery training, wouldn¡¯t it Ain?¡»


    ¡ºNow that you mention it, that is true. Being capable of using sorcery here would be an achievement.¡»


    ¡ºIn that case, maybe we should come here again some other time.¡»


    While I do agree with her on that, I think deciding how to deal with the soldier above is more important right now.


    Hiya~! Escaping trouble, our princesses were then immediately faced with what Ain called Complete Utter Nonsense, which in less tasteful terms can be interpreted as Absolute Bullcrap. But even so, they have managed to escape immediately thanks to a new yet visible ally(?)~!


    First of all, as said above, Ain was in complete bullshit detection mode today and that was a bit funny to be honest. She was like, ¡°This is suspicious, veeeery suspicious¡± calling it out immediately at the first sign of nonsense about to occur. Also, she was like ¡°Without any worries? Who am I kidding at this point? Me? Probably.¡± and while she was somewhat prepared for trouble, it was a completely different kind of trouble than what they expected.


    Now back to the first part, we now have a new named character: Fiiyanamia, the person at the top in Central. Actually, she was introduced before but only by name. With sorcery greater than Ain, who sacrificed her own combat capabilities to reach the level she is now, she might possibly be the most powerful sorcerer we¡¯ve been introduced to so far, and she hasn¡¯t even appeared in person yet. That¡¯s something to look forward to.


    Lastly, Ciel. It¡¯s really scary how Ciel just doesn¡¯t care about pain. While there has been a recent fight where she has been wounded, a rarity, this time Ciel is punching iron bars while forcefully making her punches harder with physical reinforcement, which can break the caster¡¯s body if they push the reinforcement beyond the limits of their body. Add on to Ain¡¯s reinforcement. Punching iron bars is painful enough, add on the rebound from using two reinforcements to push twice beyond her limit, which breaks her bones. Ain would probably be screaming in pain if she didn¡¯t have to sing to support Ciel. Ciel absolutely does not let mere pain stop her, lol.

 CH 75

    For now, we left the cell and headed back to our original path.


    We have no intentions of getting caught this time, so I cast a spherical barrier around Ciel to prevent anyone from coming near.


    On the way back, I heard some clattering footsteps and then two soldiers appeared. Both of them didn¡¯t seem familiar to me, so they¡¯re probably not the one from earlier.


    ¡¸What do you think you¡¯re doing?¡¹


    ¡¸Going to Central.¡¹


    ¡¸So the noises from the cell is your doing then?¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah.¡¹


    The corridor is narrow. With two soldiers standing next to each other, passing through would be difficult.


    Though, swinging a sword in this narrow path should be difficult for them as well.


    Seemingly displeased with Ciel¡¯s blunt attitude, the two soldiers are flushed red in anger.


    ¡¸Can I ask you to return?¡¹


    ¡¸No.¡¹


    ¡¸Well then, we¡¯ll have to use force.¡¹


    The soldiers raised their swords, each held with both hands, making them considerably more intimidating.


    With them approaching like that, normally this would have been frightening but, after fighting against the golden wolf and wyverns, I can¡¯t help but feel underwhelmed in comparison.


    In fact, they don¡¯t seem to be a major threat as even though they attacked Ciel as she was walking forward, their swords were just repelled by the barrier.


    And I guess they swung with considerable force, since they landed on their backside from the recoil.


    Still, for soldiers who protect the national borders, is this level of strength adequate for their duties?


    Leaving the dumbfounded soldiers aside, Ciel continued walking through the corridor.


    ¡¸There¡¯s an escape!¡¹


    Being unable to even grab Ciel as she leisurely passed by them, one of the soldiers shouted so.


    While I don¡¯t have any idea how many people are guarding this gate, they probably don¡¯t have anyone capable of catching Ciel.


    Since this is supposed to be a valuable location, there shouldn¡¯t be anyone who¡¯s plain weak here, but I also doubt that anyone would assign their strongest people here.


    Rather, I wonder who these people are affiliated with.


    Are they soldiers of Central? Hunters from the Hunter Guild? Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s private army?


    Probably not the private army. Rather, since the orders for Ciel¡¯s capture came from the Hunter¡¯s Guild, they¡¯re likely related to the Hunter Guild.


    ¡ºYou¡¯re not running, Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºWould it be better if I do so?¡»


    ¡ºWhile running doesn¡¯t seem to be necessary, don¡¯t you feel bad for them?¡»


    While it might be different if we¡¯re escaping stealthily or moving at high speeds, being unable to catch a girl who¡¯s just casually walking would be an embarrassment for life.


    Still, unlike me, Ciel didn¡¯t really strike me as being the type to do something childish like this, so this seemed unusual.


    As I was wondering about this, Ciel pouted her lips.


    ¡ºAin, I might not look like it but I¡¯m angry you know?¡»


    ¡ºUmm, why is that?¡»


    Up until now, Ciel generally only gets angry when someone insults me.


    Also, I don¡¯t think she ever got angry enough to say that she¡¯s angry.


    After all, even what the Hunter Guild just did didn¡¯t seem to particularly affect Ciel that much.


    ¡ºI mean, I was having so much fun on the way here, you know?


    After all, we¡¯ve finally left Estoque and Ain has been singing a lot on the way.


    That¡¯s why I¡¯m angry that we were dragged down like that.¡»


    ¡ºI see. Well, I was relatively annoyed from the start as well.¡»


    ¡ºThen in that case, shall we walk?¡»


    ¡ºRight, let¡¯s walk.¡»


    As the soldiers stood up and ran after us, I expanded the barrier so that they couldn¡¯t come near and Ciel steadily walked onward.


    ¡ó


    As we returned to our original path, two more soldiers appeared, causing us to be surrounded on all sides; but as none of them could break through our barrier, the soldiers realized that it was hopeless and they simply followed us instead.


    As we returned to the gate, 10 more were waiting for us, so in the end there were 14 soldiers in total.


    Seeing the soldiers merely following us, a soldier¡ªthe first one we encountered who seemed to be high-ranking among the ones that joined in late¡ªbegan reprimanding them.


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    ¡¸You lot, what are you even doing? Hurry up and seize her!¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s impossible, leader.¡¹


    ¡¸Haah. She¡¯s just walking, isn¡¯t she?


    Still, despite her appearance, she is a B-rank hunter. Let¡¯s secure this. Surround her!¡¹


    On the leader¡¯s command, the soldiers surrounded Ciel.


    While I applaud him for taking cautious action without being deceived by Ciel¡¯s appearance, this won¡¯t be enough to break through my barrier.


    ¡¸Leader. She¡¯s using a barrier.¡¹


    ¡¸Tsk. Come to think of it, she is a sorcerer. Shift to D3.¡¹


    I don¡¯t know the meaning of his words, but the soldiers changed their formation following the leader¡¯s command. The soldiers formed groups of 6, lined up with the leader in between them, and brandished their swords.


    Destroying a barrier is simple, just attack it until it breaks. As the caster will have to mend their barrier if it tears even just a little due to damage, it will exhaust magic power.


    If the weak points are targeted, then this tearing will happen much easier.


    And since maintaining a barrier also exhausts magic power, a drawn-out battle might be needed at worst but the barrier will still disappear eventually.


    If possible, destroying a barrier with a single powerful attack would be best.


    Just as what happened with the spear of ice, the barrier would quickly disappear.


    However, my barrier is something even a wyvern couldn¡¯t whittle down. Moreover, I gain more magic power through natural recovery than I exhaust to maintain the barrier.


    ¡¸Attack!¡¹


    On the leader¡¯s command, 12 soldiers began to move. As though it was a performance, all of them moved in perfect unison.


    With one foot forward, they pulled back their arms, and each 6 from the group thrusted their swords in the exact same place.


    It was about as strong as a wyvern¡¯s attack. It was powerful enough to stop Ciel on her tracks and if I only judge its offensive potential, it would probably be viable against A-rank monsters.


    In other words, the barrier is still very much fine.


    As such, after this attack, Ciel continued walking as though nothing happened.


    Seeing this, they repeated the attack for a 2nd and 3rd time but it doesn¡¯t even exhaust a bit of my magic power.


    Honestly speaking, I¡¯m on a magic power surplus.


    On the other hand, the soldiers¡­¡­ or rather the leader is already breathing heavily with his shoulders.


    I wondered why, but perhaps the soldiers¡¯ perfect coordination is due to the leader¡¯s Job.


    Commander as a Job certainly does seem plausible.


    ¡ºSay, Ain.¡»


    ¡ºWhat is it?¡»


    ¡ºIs walking good enough like this?¡»


    ¡ºWhat do you mean by that?¡»


    While this was a pretty interesting thing they showed, it seems like Ciel is already sick of it, as she called to me.


    However, in regards to her question, I have no idea how to answer it.


    Walking¡­ Isn¡¯t the way she is currently walking already good enough?


    ¡ºI was wondering if the nobles or royalty would have a different way of walking.


    Even how the soldiers walked just now was a bit dance-like with the way they matched their breaths, right?¡»


    ¡ºI see. So you want to incorporate even just the way you walk into Dance Princess, right?¡»


    ¡ºWouldn¡¯t this be good? I thought that if I can do this, then it¡¯ll be convenient in a lot of ways.¡»


    ¡ºI see, that is true. At the very least, it could make things safer.¡»


    If Dance Princess can activate with only walking, then it would be powerful against ambushes and surprise attacks.


    It would be as if I¡¯m constantly singing.


    Besides, among the upper-class people, even the way one walks would probably make a difference. I don¡¯t really know too much about it, but it wouldn¡¯t be an exaggeration to say that the way people walk in fashion shows and events¡ªthough clothing is also a factor¡ªis one that fascinates people.


    Still, there are a few problems.


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    ¡ºHowever, I unfortunately don¡¯t know how to walk properly.¡»


    ¡ºReally? You seemed to know about etiquette and manners, Ain, so I thought you would know.¡»


    ¡ºMy etiquette is only based on surface level knowledge. Besides, etiquette is something that changes depending on the country or region.


    In regards to walking, I honestly only have a vague idea about it. It would be best to simply pay attention to your posture for the time being and then ask an expert about it later on.¡»


    ¡ºPosture, right? It¡¯s also important when dancing. It¡¯s hard to spin when my core isn¡¯t stable after all.¡»


    ¡ºIn that case, wouldn¡¯t that mean that you¡¯re already walking properly, Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºDo you think so?¡»


    As Ciel walked on, the people surrounding us started decreasing one by one¡ªperhaps due to exhaustion¡ªand before I realized it, there was no one around us anymore.


    Far behind us, I can hear a voice yelling out loud. Does Fiiyanamia-sama not find these sorts of voices annoying?


    Since I could probably ask about it, I should try asking her sometime.


    ¡ó


    After passing the national border, the first thing you¡¯d see in Central isn¡¯t a large town or the like.


    There¡¯s a well-maintained road, with villages and fields along the way, making it feel like a somewhat tranquil place.


    I expected to see more developed areas, so it was a bit surprising.


    On the other hand, it¡¯s abundant in nature and spirits can be seen frequently.


    Every spirit would come near upon seeing Ciel and they would play a bit before taking their leave.


    I¡¯m glad to see Ciel enjoying herself.


    After one night of camping since we began our walk, we can now see a city that appears to be the heart of Central.


    While we could have reached this city without taking a day if we had traveled by air, I don¡¯t plan on doing this immediately on our first time entering Central.


    After all, if we do travel by air, Fiiyanamia-sama would see it as well.


    Now then, the city within our sights is large, even comparable to Estoque¡¯s Royal Capital.


    Rather, it seems to be an even bigger city than Estoque¡¯s Royal Capital.


    Beyond the city is a forest and a river flows throughout the city. It seems to be a place rich in nature.


    I noticed it as we were walking but there¡¯s a lot of people waiting at the gates leading to the city. As Ciel joined the line, someone immediately followed behind her.


    Perhaps due to Ciel lining up alone at her age, she attracted the attention of the people nearby but the attention quickly dispersed.


    And just as I imagined how long this line could take, several soldiers came rushing from the gates.


    And as they approached near, they surrounded Ciel.


    ¡ºI suppose it¡¯s to be expected that they¡¯ve been contacted about what happened. We did damage the prison after all.¡»


    ¡ºBut we¡¯ve received permission to do that, right?¡»


    ¡ºHmm¡­¡­ Well, although Fiiyanamia-sama has full knowledge of it, that doesn¡¯t necessarily mean that those under her are aware, you see?¡»


    ¡¸Cielmer, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes.¡¹


    ¡¸We need you to follow us to the Hunter Guild.¡¹


    ¡¸Why?¡¹


    ¡¸They want to hear the complete details. At this present, we don¡¯t have any intention to harm.¡¹


    While they certainly don¡¯t seem to be hostile, even so, I don¡¯t believe it¡¯s necessary to surround a young girl like this.


    If this is because they¡¯re aware of our strength, then I don¡¯t think this would be enough anyway.


    Or, are these people perhaps S-rank hunters? It¡¯s honestly difficult to measure strength when it comes to people.


    Still, if we had to wait in line on this long queue, then I have a feeling that being led to the Hunter Guild right away would probably make me happier.


    ¡ºCan I follow them?¡»


    ¡ºYes. After all, we¡¯d likely waste a lot of time waiting for the line to move forward as is.¡»


    As Ciel and I came to the same conclusion, ¡¸Lead the way.¡¹ Ciel answered so in reply.


    And despite having a puzzled look on their faces, ¡¸Alright, follow along.¡¹ the soldiers guided us in.


    The soldiers surrounded Ciel in all directions as we walked, so I wonder how this would appear from the general public.


    Does it look like an escort or an arrest? Depending on which, it might affect how the people of Central will treat us.


    If we get hounded on because of this, I¡¯ll file a complaint.


    ¡¸¡­¡­ So you¡¯re not going to struggle?¡¹


    ¡¸Should I?¡¹


    ¡¸No, please continue as is.¡¹


    As we were being guided, one soldier timidly asked Ciel.


    Ciel simply answered with a short reply, but the soldier ended the conversation in a panic.


    I wonder what he meant by that. Ciel didn¡¯t particularly struggle against anybody on any occasion.


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    In both the Estoque Royal Capital¡¯s Guild and the national border, Ciel was simply walking, nothing more.


    She might have destroyed the iron bars, but there wasn¡¯t any other choice in that regard.


    While there was no more conversation from then on, we gradually overtook the queue and finally passed through the city¡¯s gates.


    This place has a different environment compared to the other human habitations we¡¯ve visited up until now but because of the soldiers surrounding us, we can¡¯t have a clear view.


    I should be able to see it if I try but I¡¯d rather see it together with Ciel if possible, so I held myself back.


    From the gaps between the soldiers, I see a city full of greenery.


    It appears that trees are planted on either side of the roads and, looking up, I can see large leaves that are starting to turn red.


    The season seems to be autumn now. In this world, autumn is the season to prepare for the coming of winter.


    My only experience of the winter cold is the flicker of snow.


    Maybe snow even piles up during the winter in Norvell and other places.


    Regardless if the snow piles or not, the harsh coldness would still prevent crops from growing and with the temperature, hunting for animals would hardly go as planned.


    Well, I didn¡¯t really have the leeway to enjoy the change of seasons during our time in Estoque.


    And thanks to my barrier, the cold didn¡¯t stop us from completing requests, so I do remember us being thanked during winter.


    It might be nice to play in the snow with Ciel sometime in the future.


    In the meantime, I pray that we¡¯ll be able to quickly solve this trouble right in front of us.


    Hiya~! It¡¯s a Jailbreak! A really quick one at that, lol. Now, welcome to Central!


    Anyhow, this chapter was more of an exposition/worldbuilding chapter in summary. Though there are also the soldiers blocking the view, lol. First interesting thing was the leader¡¯s Job. It¡¯s honestly similar to Ain¡¯s Song Princess, being a buffer and all. Also, it¡¯s interesting to see the variety of Jobs in general. This did inspire Ciel to reflect on her way of walking, although she seems to already have a good posture, lol. As usual, AinCiel interactions were cute, but it was really funny how they were like ¡°Don¡¯t you feel bad for them?¡± ¡°Nope, I¡¯m angry.¡± ¡°Okay, fair enough, I was also angry too.¡± Also, the soldiers confused because Ciel isn¡¯t struggling, lol. They¡¯re really eating up misinformation up there but honestly, who would admit that they let a child *simply* walk away. The pluck of the the guy that asked tho, that was funny.


    Central is pretty interesting tho. It¡¯s pretty small considering that it only took them more or less a whole day of walking to reach the heart of the nation. I guess it¡¯s like a city-state? There¡¯s villages on the way, but the abundance of nature and spirits seems to be the focus, which isn¡¯t surprising if we consider who the ruler? is. Ain expected a more developed place, likely in the architectural, if not technological, sense but the place seems rich in resources. Which is a bit surprising, considering how Central is supposed to be where the headquarters of the guilds are.

 CH 76

    We were led by the soldiers to a conference room-like location inside a large building.


    In the middle was a large table and around it was a number of chairs.


    Sitting on those chairs were 9 people in total.


    There was a muscular bald old man. He has a similar feel to Norvell¡¯s guildmaster, but they don¡¯t look alike. This person here looks like he¡¯s filled with confidence.


    He¡¯s not just muscle, he also has a considerable amount of magic power too and from a rough scan, his capacity for sorcery combat should be about C-rank or above.


    Other than him, there were also two corrupt noble-ish people and a stout merchant-like man. A similarly corpulent priest-like person and henchman-ish person.


    A bearded small man. A long-eared, thin lady. And a lion.


    Regarding the last three, I think they¡¯re a dwarf, elf, and beastman respectively.


    The beastman isn¡¯t the type that¡¯s a human with animal ears attached, but leans more on the beastly side. Humanoid with fur on the beastly characteristics, with a human-like skeletal structure. Not like an animal standing on two legs.


    Also, from how her magic power feels, the elf doesn¡¯t seem to be Fiiyanamia-sama.


    These 9 people have inquisitive gazes on us, so this definitely must be a bit too much for Ciel.


    Still, how should I even handle this¡­¡­ To begin with, it isn¡¯t even clear why we were brought here.


    ¡¸For now, take a seat.¡¹


    With Mr. Skinhead¡¯s prompt, Ciel sat on the nearest chair.


    The soldiers that led us here then exited the room, leaving only one to guard the door.


    Just being surrounded by adults feels extremely overwhelming. Considering that this isn¡¯t a one on one conversation, this probably isn¡¯t the time to be thinking about giving Ciel more experience.


    ¡ºShould we switch out?¡»


    ¡ºCan we?


    Then I¡¯ll leave the answering to you, Ain.¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯ll try to include your comments as much as possible.¡»


    With that said, I switched with Ciel.


    And in doing so, the spirits then gathered to me. Though, when they came too close, they just passed through me.


    Now then, those who reacted when I switched in were the dwarf, elf, and beastman. Those that showed the biggest reactions were the dwarf and elf.


    They seem to be staring at me, so they can probably see the forest spirit.


    While the forest spirit usually keeps a certain amount of distance even when I switch in, she¡¯s on top of my lap for some reason, attracting their attention.


    It doesn¡¯t look unusual size-wise, but since the forest spirit looks older than Ciel, it¡¯s a bit comical seeing her sitting on my lap.


    Also, to be exact, since I couldn¡¯t touch her, she¡¯s floating in a way that looks like she¡¯s sitting.


    She seems to be enjoying herself, so it doesn¡¯t really matter.


    ¡ºSay, Ain. Is she actually sitting down?¡»


    ¡ºShe¡¯s floating.¡»


    ¡ºRight? But wouldn¡¯t she get exhausted?¡»


    ¡ºShe¡¯s enjoying herself, so it should be fine?¡»


    While talking with Ciel, I shifted my attention since something appears to be starting, when the merchant-like man suddenly spoke with an irritated tone.


    ¡¸You don¡¯t seem to understand why you were brought here.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, absolutely.¡¹


    While a lot of possible reasons came to mind, we were the ones that suffered in each and every one of those, so I don¡¯t see any reason to be surrounded like this. Because of that, I answered with no hesitation. However, it seems that the merchant-like man wasn¡¯t pleased by that, ¡¸You¡­¡­¡¹ as he lunged out of his chair with his face deep red.


    However, since Mr. Skinhead stopped this with his hand, the merchant-like man could only groan as he sank back on his chair.


    ¡¸This is the Hunter Guild¡¯s problem. Merchant Guild, save your complaints for later.¡¹


    ¡¸Ahh, certainly. We will have our grievances heard afterwards.¡¹


    Well, I don¡¯t have any idea why someone from the Merchant Guild would have grievances against us.


    Rather, there¡¯s a Merchant Guild? We had nearly no exposure to them, so I didn¡¯t know. Though, maybe I just forgot that they do exist.


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    Still, in this case, would saying ¡°the guild¡± also refer to the Merchant Guild then?


    It might be best to differentiate with X Guild during formal discussions.


    ¡¸So, why was I brought here?¡¹


    Implicitly telling them to hurry up and start this, I ask the 9 of them.


    Only a few of them showed an obvious reaction, but the priest-like person had a displeased look.


    Ignoring their reception, these people gathered here are probably people in leader-like positions here at Central.


    As for the lack of introduction, they probably don¡¯t think I¡¯m worth giving introductions to.


    It is nice not having to remember anything though.


    ¡¸Can I refer to you Cielmer?¡¹


    Just as he said earlier, the skinhead Hunter Guild representative is advancing the discussion.


    ¡¸You were summoned here for cross-examination, as well as to answer several questions.


    Depending on your answers, we may require you to go straight to prison but¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t remember doing anything that would warrant that.¡¹


    ¡¸What non-¡­¡­.¡¹


    ¡¸Quiet, Merchant Guild.¡¹


    Just when things were moving forward, it immediately halted. Are they even interested in discussing?


    ¡¸To confirm, Estoque Kingdom is currently under the assault of a stampede, is it true that you came here ignoring it?¡¹


    ¡¸I didn¡¯t ignore it. I delivered supplies to the royal capital and defeated the monsters I encountered on the way.¡¹


    ¡¸Then, is it true that, during that time, you committed acts of violence in the Royal Capital Estoque¡¯s Hunter Guild? ¡¹


    ¡¸No. When I delivered the supplies, the acting master told me that he wouldn¡¯t accept the supplies unless I cooperated with resolving the stampede and threatened to refuse the completion of my request or to make it so that the magic bag was stolen by the hunter who accepted it. Moreover, he ordered the hunters present to capture me, so I was pressed to defended myself.¡¹


    ¡¸Haven¡¯t you gone too far? You increased the burden on a city that is being ravaged by a stampede, you know that?¡¹


    ¡¸To begin with, wasn¡¯t I supposedly promised personal safety within Capital Estoque¡¯s Hunter Guild building?


    This promise was broken, yet why should I be the one required to show consideration here?¡¹


    Every now and then, we would be interrupted and prevented from moving forward, but the exchange generally went like this.


    The Hunter Guild¡¯s Mr. Skinhead still appears resolute, but I notice that he¡¯s gradually losing vigour.


    Or rather, I feel like he wasn¡¯t really energetic to begin with. He was probably sent to this place knowing that I have no fault here.


    Throughout this, the priest-like person lively continues butting in.


    ¡¸In other words, you had no intent of fighting the stampede from the start.


    While many are in great peril, you merely delivered supplies? If I¡¯m not mistaken, it should be mandatory for hunters to cooperate during stampedes, is it not?¡¹


    ¡¸To begin with, information says that insufficiency in preparation was due to how unreliable your information was.¡¹


    ¡¸If Estoque falls, it¡¯s possible that this danger will befall Central. How do you plan on taking responsibility for that?¡¹


    From various pretentious remarks fly from the human side.


    However, the ones from other races only have their brows raised staring at those people.


    They, at the very least, don¡¯t seem to have negative sentiments against me. Well, even the ones arguing against me might not be doing it out of negative sentiments but rather might just be doing it for political reasons.


    ¡¸First, during my dispute with the Hunter Guild, I was permitted to abstain from fighting if a stampede hits Royal Capital Estoque, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, undoubtedly.¡¹


    ¡¸Nevertheless, it¡¯s beyond absurd to come here in neglect of the people.¡¹


    Asking Mr. Skinhead, he replied with agreement, but someone then raised their voice.


    Why do they keep interrupting? Do they have a disease where they¡¯ll die unless they give their opinions?


    ¡¸For that matter, those showing objections against my actions, please head to Royal Capital Estoque and loudly yell ¡°I am a Song King/Song Princess¡±. In my case this was exposed against my will, but I believe you should be able to understand what I¡¯m trying to say after doing so.¡¹


    It seems that they know that Estoque loathes Song Princesses as the room fell silent.


    More than that, they seem to have understood that I¡¯m a Song Princess from that statement as the priest (temp) displayed an obviously displeased look.


    ¡¸Besides that, I¡¯m also being targeted by a noble of Royal Capital Estoque.


    As for why, it should be because I hinted at the stampede.


    Additionally, the Hunter Guild told me to fight under the noble suspected to be the one wanting my life.¡¹


    Are you telling me to die? Implicitly relaying that, the person who kept arguing then averted his eyes.


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    ¡¸Also, I subjugated 10 wyverns, but is this not enough of a result for a B-rank hunter fighting in a stampede?¡¹


    ¡¸If that¡¯s true, then it¡¯s more than enough.¡¹


    ¡¸They¡¯re inside the magic bag, so I can show proof of the subjugation.


    After that, the information about the stampede, was it? If the people present here had put full faith in the information researched by an amateur passing time during her spare time, then I must apologise. However, if not for this information being available to begin with, I don¡¯t think that any preparations would have even been done.


    Now then, are there still any accusations for me regarding this?¡¹


    ¡¸No, rather these results are worth being rewarded compensation.¡¹


    With this the Estoque issue should be practically resolved.


    Still, this is just half of it, isn¡¯t it? It is true that I damaged the cell, so this is likely where things get serious.


    I¡¯m sick of this already¡­ Just as I was feeling half-resigned, the elf lady that has been silent up until now raised her arm.


    ¡¸Is this done yet? Can we¡­¡­ No, I suppose I should introduce myself first.


    I am Yunmica Ma Messi. I¡¯m something of a mediator for the Elves of Central.¡¹


    ¡¸The name¡¯s Bajo Tua Sentro. Same with Yunmi, I¡¯m the mediator of the Dwarves.¡¹


    ¡¸Oh, if Bajo¡¯s going along, then I guess I¡¯ll join in. I¡¯m Wangwan Liev. Mediator of the Beastmen.¡¹


    ¡¸Pleased to meet you. I¡¯m Cielmer.¡¹


    They all suddenly introduced themselves, so I paid in kind and told them Ciel¡¯s name.


    While Ciel¡¯s name already came up earlier and they should already know us by now since they were gathered here, we haven¡¯t actually introduced ourselves, so this act should be meaningful.


    ¡¸Now back to the topic. Can we stop it with this farce right now?


    I¡¯ll say it now, but I¡¯m siding with her. Bajo, Wang, it¡¯s the same with you two, right?¡¹


    ¡¸You¡¯re right there.¡¹


    ¡¸Yup.¡¹


    Hearing Yunmica-san¡¯s announcement, several of the humans began shaking on their seats.


    Among them, the priest (temp) turned bright red and was leaning forwards from his chair.


    ¡¸In that case, how can you explain what happened at the border¡¯s prison?¡¹


    ¡¸Oh, I gave permission for that matter, you know?¡¹


    A voice came from behind me and everyone¡¯s gaze gathered there.


    She had the same white hair as Ciel, smooth and clear skin, and a slender figure. Her height is¡­ somewhat shorter than the average female height in this world.


    Despite her slightly upturned eyes, it didn¡¯t give her a harsh impression and her wide eyes shined with the colour of gold.


    Small nose, long and pointed ears, pink lips, and her overall appearance, no matter what you focus on, they¡¯re all well-shaped features.


    With her beauty, practically everyone passing by her in the streets would turn around to look.


    Lastly, magic power that just screams that she¡¯s at the top of Central.


    ¡¸Once again, pardon my intrusion.¡¹


    As I lowered my head, she tenderly smiled.


    ¡¸I don¡¯t mind. So, how do you like my garden¡­¡­ Is what I wanted to ask, but did you have a good view?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ll have a thorough look later on.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, yes. Feel free to do so. Still, since we got the chance of seeing each other, let me introduce myself.


    My name is Fiiyanamia. I am the mistress of this manor. It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you too. Umm¡­¡­¡¹


    I was about to reintroduce myself, but I feel conflicted about introducing myself to Fiiyanamia-sama as Ciel. But on the other hand, I also don¡¯t want to say the name Ainsel in this place.


    Seemingly understanding my worry, Fiiyanamia-sama told me ¡¸It¡¯s fine.¡¹ before turning her eyes to the people gathered here.


    ¡¸Now then, what is this situation here? What did you intend to do with this manor¡¯s guest?¡¹


    And despite the smile on her face, her eyes were by no means cheerful.

 CH 77

    Fiiyanamia-sama slowly approached the priest (temp) and stared at him.


    ¡¸I do have knowledge of why this situation came to be, however.


    You lot were planning to publicize the Hunter Guild¡¯s errors to strengthen your influential power, correct?


    And, if possible, perhaps obtain the magic bag Cielmer-chan has as well.¡¹


    I¡¯m sure that she would know. After all, Fiiyanamia-sama should be able to overhear any conversation inside this city easily and she should know who and where a person is.


    If anyone even tries to have a slightly shady meeting, then the details would likely be immediately known.


    In my opinion, if hers is the same as mine, then with just how much information there is, grasping all the information that can be obtained would be impossible to do unless you¡¯re a god.


    The priest (temp) averts his eyes from Fiiyanamia-sama.


    While I¡¯ll praise him for saying something like ¡¸H-how did you-¡­¡­¡¹ and digging his own grave, isn¡¯t that reaction practically him giving an affirmation?


    However, Fiiyanamia-sama didn¡¯t pressure him any more than that, and just returned to where I am.


    ¡¸If you ask me, I wouldn¡¯t mind evicting everyone concerned here for causing discomfort for my official guest¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸W-what are you even saying! The one that will suffer for that will be Central itself!¡¹


    ¡¸I wouldn¡¯t suffer at all. Rather, Ciemler-chan leaving would bring in greater losses.


    However, in regards to this situation, a person not present here is the cause, correct? The clear cause.


    Yes, yes. And so you should know what to do, correct? I¡¯m angry right now.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. He will be summoned from Estoque and atone for it.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, make it so. It¡¯s unbearable for me to have a shameless organization within my garden, you know?¡¹


    With Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s smile, the conversation ended.


    Yup, this is the type of smile that you shouldn¡¯t argue with.


    With this, the responsibility for these series of issues is now for Estoque¡¯s acting guildmaster to take.


    In my opinion, this in itself just serves him right.


    After all, he was the one who started the attack and he did disparage us.


    ¡¸Now are we done? No objections, alright?¡¹


    Fiiyanamia-sama asked for the final confirmation and everyone nodded.


    After that, Fiiyanamia-sama pointed at all the humans, excluding those related to the Hunter Guild, and ¡¸Will you all leave?¡¹ prompted them to leave.


    ¡¸Wha-¡­¡­¡¹ Those who were prompted were in shock but in the end, they left with frustrated expressions.


    I really hope they¡¯re not the head of their organizations. Still, there¡¯s probably some other people above them.


    With everyone ordered to leave the room, only Yunmica-san, Bajo-san, Wangwan-san, the Hunter Guild¡¯s Mr. Skinhead, and the henchman-like person were left. Which means to say that Mr. Henchman is a Hunter Guild personnel?


    ¡¸Now, now. With this, the discussions will make progress again.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you very much.¡¹


    ¡¸This is for my guest¡¯s sake. I¡¯ll say this but I only permitted this because it seems problematic from an international perspective otherwise. Originally I would have already invited her into my mansion at this point, you know?¡¹


    Mr. Skinhead talking politely to the young-looking Fiiyanamia-sama looks really unbalanced and comical.


    Looking down as I was wondering this, I see that the forest spirit is still on my lap. Seeing a beauty smile amiably really warms the heart.


    ¡¸Understood? Understood. The topic to be asked of Cielmer-chan today is about the Artificial Divine Messenger, correct?¡¹


    Before I knew it, Fiiyanamia-sama was hosting the discussion. Based on her position, there shouldn¡¯t be any issues with her hosting though.


    As Fiiyanamia-sama asked Mr. Skinhead, he answered with a nod.


    ¡¸Before that, let me introduce myself. I wasn¡¯t able to earlier after all.


    My name is Dourthe. I¡¯m part of the Hunter Guild executive staff. Forgive me for what happened earlier. No, for the many inconveniences Estoque¡¯s Hunter Guild has caused you on your way here.¡¹


    Mr. Skinhead¡ªDourthe-san¡ªlowered his head.


    ¡¸As long as appropriate reparations and preventive measures are made, then I don¡¯t mind.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, of course.¡¹


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    Hearing his tired tone, I¡¯m convinced that Dourthe-san has the same position as that of Chasse-san from Fool¡¯s Gathering.


    The type that would be given the troublesome work, the type of person that has been through a lot.


    I know it¡¯s tough, but please do your best.


    ¡¸Are you done now? I¡¯m sorry but can we return to the main topic?¡¹


    Fiiyanamia-sama steered the conversation back to the original discussion.


    Yeah, having someone that would force the discussion back to the main thread is really important.


    If Fiiyanamia-sama was there earlier, then maybe the discussion would have even gone smoothly. Rather, it¡¯s all thanks to Fiiyanamia-sama that it ended where it did.


    ¡¸Even if you ask me about the Artificial Divine Messenger, there isn¡¯t really much that I know of them.


    All I know is that, since it¡¯s artificial, then Duke Rispelgia could be the one that made it.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s the point. Why is it that you suspect Duke Rispelgia here?¡¹


    ¡¸Being a Duke, he must have a considerable amount of assets, so shouldn¡¯t he be a strong suspect instead?¡¹


    I avoided the question, but it is true that trying to make a monster should require suitable facilities and cost considerable amounts of money. That¡¯s why it shouldn¡¯t be unnatural for the name of a duke, who definitely has money, to come up here.


    If it can be done cheaply, then artificial monsters would have already been an issue.


    Dourthe-san scratched his head before breathing a heavy sigh.


    ¡¸Duke Rispelgia of Estoque is famous for his good reputation even among hunters.


    Even from a national standpoint, he should be a highly acknowledged noble. He¡¯s by no means someone that could be just investigated at random.¡¹


    ¡¸Which means that a clear reason for an investigation is necessary then.


    But haven¡¯t I given the location to the hidden mansion Duke Rispelgia has for that exact reason?¡¹


    ¡¸We¡¯ve been busy due to the ongoing stampede at Estoque, you see. We can¡¯t do a proper investigation.


    Dourthe-san began thinking with a serious expression.


    Seeing that, they appear to consider this case with high importance. If a monster that overpowered not only low-ranked hunters but even C-ranked hunters was made with human hands, I guess any sparing effort isn¡¯t an option.


    ¡¸To begin with, why do you know about this barrier, Cielmer-dono?¡¹


    I suppose the reason that he referred to us with ¨Cdono is because we¡¯re Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s guests.


    I¡¯m not used to being called that way, so it feels weird.


    ¡ºHow much should I say?¡»


    ¡ºShouldn¡¯t it be fine to talk about most of it?


    This place is out of Rispelgia¡¯s reach, right? Then in that case, wouldn¡¯t it be better to inform them in advance?


    After all, the larger the damage becomes, the more trouble there might be.¡»


    ¡ºThe way of conveying and my existence?¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯ll leave that to you, Ain.¡»


    Not wanting to decide by myself, I asked Ciel¡¯s opinion and I was answered with an unexpectedly lax reply.


    What Ciel said was true and, regarding Fiiyanamia-sama in particular, it might be best to explain to earn her trust.


    ¡¸The proof of why it could have been Rispelgia¡¯s doing is right before you.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Is it you yourself, Cielmer-dono?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. I was raised at the mansion inside that forest, a failed work of Rispelgia.¡¹


    ¡¸How can you verify that?¡¹


    ¡¸I can¡¯t tell it here. As a hunter, I can¡¯t expose just my own abilities after all. While I am a failure, it¡¯s still enough to give me an advantage.¡¹


    The simultaneous use of Song Princess and Dance Princess is an advantage only we can utilize.


    The combined strength of two picky princess Jobs is enough to bring down A-rank monsters with rain.


    While there are cases where the superiority of a Job can be overturned by hard work, this does make me realize just how amazing the power of Jobs really is.


    That aside, since just saying ¡¸I¡¯m the proof¡¹ is understandably hard to believe, I¡¯ll give additional information.


    ¡¸I will be relaying conclusive evidence to Fiiyanamia-sama, so please make your judgement after that.


    However, the discussion might not make any progress with only that, so here are a few materials for judgment.


    From my birth until I reached 10, I lived at the mansion. On the day of my tenth birthday, since my Job was also deemed useless in addition to me being a failure, I was sold to another noble.


    However, the carriage we were on was attacked by a cyclops on the way. The noble and his escorts died, and I defeated the cyclops and became a hunter at a town.¡¹


    ¡¸That is your proof?¡¹


    ¡¸Do you know of anyone that can defeat a cyclops at 10 years old?


    If not a cyclops, then is there anyone of my age range who can handle a stampede, regardless of how small, on their own?


    What about 10 wyverns?


    If there is none, then you should be able to understand that there¡¯s something to me, right?¡¹


    While it absolutely doesn¡¯t answer the question, our track record, which is honestly insane in hindsight, should be enough to convince them that there¡¯s something different about us.


    ¡¸Alright.


    Can we leave the final judgment to you, Fiiyanamia-sama?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, yes. It¡¯s alright.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, assuming that your words are true, what does Duke Rispelgia want to do?¡¹


    ¡¸Honestly, what does he want to do?¡¹


    Regarding this, I honestly don¡¯t know.


    After all, even turning Ciel into a god was just a checkpoint for his goal.


    Specifically, a god¡¯s virgin blood. As for what it could be used for, I guess for making medicine or some sort of philosopher¡¯s stone?


    Well, I have no idea.


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    As I gave my honest answer, Mr. Henchman next to Dourthe-san clicked his tongue.


    As if saying, you couldn¡¯t even discover that?


    Currently, he¡¯s the only other human here but if those that left earlier were present right now, then someone probably would have interrupted at this point.


    ¡¸It¡¯s not as if I was there to investigate. I was only there as an imprisoned test subject.¡¹


    ¡¸To begin with, to begin with! Aren¡¯t you expecting too much from a child that hasn¡¯t even reached adulthood?


    Altro, was it? If I¡¯m not mistaken, you have a 13-year-old daughter in your family, no?


    Immediately sell that child to the empire at south and have her investigate from the inside, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸H-how can you say that! That sort of thing, it¡¯s obviously impossible, isn¡¯t it!¡¹


    The henchman¡ªAltro¡ªresponded to Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s statement in a fluster.


    Fiiyanamia-sama, being how she is, is currently smiling but is one of enjoyment or one of anger?


    ¡¸Right now, you clicked your tongue because Cielmer-chan didn¡¯t have much information, didn¡¯t you?


    In other words, you think it¡¯s natural for a girl not even 10 years of age to investigate the goals of an organization imprisoning her, yes?


    Your daughter is 13 year old. She¡¯s much older compared to Cielmer-chan at her time. In that case, she can then investigate perfectly, don¡¯t you agree?¡¹


    ¡¸T-that¡¯s¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸You are freeloaders, Cielmer-chan is a guest. You wouldn¡¯t tell me that you don¡¯t realize the difference, would you? Well if you don¡¯t, then I¡¯ll simply have you leave.¡¹


    With Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s words, Altro fell silent.


    Somehow, I feel left behind despite being the concerned party here, but since Fiiyanamia-sama said what I wanted to say, I honestly felt refreshed.


    ¡¸Can I ask something?¡¹


    Yunmica-san who was only listening up until now spoke up.


    ¡¸It¡¯s fine if you only answer with what you can say and know, but this duke¡¯s goal isn¡¯t the Spirits, is it?¡¹


    I see, since I, a human Song Princess, am strangely fawned on by a spirit, she was worried about that.


    True. If one can have spirits do their bidding, then they could practically do anything with the world.


    ¡¸While I don¡¯t know that Duke Rispelgia¡¯s end goal is, he seems to be fixated on gods and not spirits.


    I was originally a failure that resulted from an attempt to create a god, you see. However, I have no idea what he plans to do after creating a god.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ I see, understood. Thank you.¡¹


    Despite informing her that spirits aren¡¯t involved, for some reason Yunmica-san showed a negative reaction.


    In my opinion, she should be overjoyed that spirits aren¡¯t involved here. Actually, no, being overjoyed probably would be an exaggeration.


    Hearing this exchange, this time it was Dourthe-san who reacted.


    ¡¸Create a god, you say?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s why I suspect that the Artificial Divine Messenger was created by Duke Rispelgia.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ In that case, we¡¯ll have to wait for Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s judgment, huh.¡¹


    ¡¸Alright, alright. So this is the end of this discussion, yes? If so, I¡¯ll be guiding Cielmer-chan to my mansion then.¡¹


    With that, we were abducted by Fiiyanamia-sama.


    ? Previous


    Next ?


    ? Index ?


    Hiya~! With Fiiyanamia¡¯s entrance, the discussion ended swiftly and without much interjections! Also, it appears that we¡¯ll be seeing Fiiyanamia¡¯s mansion next chapter, lol.


    First of all, whew, all the annoying people were immediately kicked out, lol. The fact that Fiiyanamia can potentially sense anything and hear everything within her own territory is really unfair, lol. However, it doesn¡¯t seem like the people know about that, so they probably can¡¯t detect her magic power all over the place too. Also, as revealed before, our princesses are treated as ¡°guests¡± for some reason and even treated better than the ¡°freeloaders¡±, which is natural, but it begs the question, why? Which is also something that Ain wonders regarding how they¡¯re to be invited to Fiiyanamia¡¯s mansion.


    After that, continuing the trend of Ain savagely rebuking hypocrisy from last chapter, geez Fiiyanamia is absolutely savage, lol. The part with Altro¡¯s daughter is my personal favourite. ¡°Oh, you expect a child to do perfect spywork? Good thing you also have a child, now have her do spywork.¡± Also, the Hunter Guild is now confirmed to be a potential force against the duke. Also, Ain¡¯s self reflection on how crazy their track record has been so far, lol.


    Hiya~! New chapter, new characters~! And most importantly, the first proper introduction to Fiiyanamia~!


    First, a few trivias about the names of the new characters, for their last names in particular. Yunmica¡¯s Messi seems to be taken from the Greek ¦Ì?¦Ò¦Ç which means waist, middle, or midpoint. Bajo¡¯s Sentro similarly seems to be taken from centro/sentro, both meaning, you guess it, center. And, lastly, Wangwan¡¯s Liev might have been based on the Russian word for lion, §Ý§Ö§Ó, which certainly would fit him considering how Ain just instantly saw him as a lion, lol. While these might just be coincidences, it¡¯s still quite interesting. Oh, and for those interested about it, Bajo is read as Baho.


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    (Say no to content thief!)


    Moving on, Ain¡¯s quite snappy this chapter, which is quite a treat. *Are you telling me to die?* Lol. This whole chapter is basically Ain finally saying what she¡¯s been wanting to say: the chapter. From how it seems, only the non-human race representatives and the hunter guild representative seem to be on the neutral/ally position, with the hunter guild representative openly recognising our protagonist¡¯s efforts despite being an interrogator of sorts and even stopped the merchant guild representative who can¡¯t even take ridicule from a child. Every interruption presented moral dilemmas, which might even be understandable if not for the hypocrisy of them berating a child for not doing a soldier¡¯s duty as well as them selectively ignoring all context of why this child went here in the first place. So far, only 1 person seems to be at least neutral on the human side, with the merchant guild representative and church? representative being openly hostile (possibly for political reasons? The church representative can still be speaking from belief and moralistic reasons, but the merchant guild is still iffy) and the other unknown 3 being generally silent and only described based on looks.


    And then we got the three non-humans who sided with Ciel. The three of them seems to have noticed Ciel and Ain switching for some reason, or maybe they just noticed the spirits? The elf and dwarf definitely noticed the spirits behaving weird, since they stared at the forest spirit. Meanwhile, the beastman might just have enhanced beastly senses or something. And finally, Fiiyanamia~! First of all, she definitely has a lot of magic power, not only because Ain said so, but because of her white hair. Up until now, white hair has been treated as a measure for excellent sorcerers and in truth, it also means that the individual¡¯s magic circuits have extended out to their hair, draining it of colour. Second, gold eyes. Now, where have we seem this colour before?

 CH 78

    We were brought to the largest mansion in the deepest part of the city.


    Though, it might be more fitting to call it a castle or a church rather than a mansion.


    However, compared to the castle we saw at Estoque Kingdom, this building doesn¡¯t have much of a distinctive appearance.


    It has white walls and a subdued brownish orange roof.


    In other words, it has a simple design. Its architectural style is close to that of a renaissance-style design, I think.


    Not too over the top.


    Ciel and Fiiyanamia-sama are currently standing a fair distance away to have a good view of the mansion.


    Additionally, I¡¯ve already returned control to Ciel.


    After all, we do plan on explaining our situation to Fiiyanamia-sama and now, there aren¡¯t any bothersome people around too.


    ¡¸Well, well then. What do you think about my mansion?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s big. And¡­¡­ white¡­¡­ uhhh¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Fufufu, it¡¯s fine. Sorry for asking that.¡¹


    I understand that asking Ciel for her opinion of the building is difficult, but I¡¯m glad that Fiiyanamia-sama doesn¡¯t seem to mind it much.


    In Ciel¡¯s defense, it¡¯s not as if Ciel doesn¡¯t have anything to say about this mansion.


    However, it¡¯s difficult for her to put her impressions into words, I think.


    Speaking of mansions, Rispelgia¡¯s mansion coming to mind might be a reason for her being tongue-tied as well.


    To begin with, even if I was the one being asked instead, I don¡¯t think I can give a decent reply as well.


    If I had to say anything, then I would bring up the fact that many of this city¡¯s buildings, perhaps using this mansion as a reference, have simple designs.


    Which is probably to harmonize with the gentle colors of nature in this city overflowing with nature.


    The focus here¡­ is probably not the humans, but nature itself.


    In other words, the spirits¡­¡­ Still, while I can mull over things here, I should do so after we get comfortable.


    ¡¸For now, why don¡¯t you come inside?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes.¡¹


    Escorted by Fiiyanamia-sama, we stepped into the mansion.


    The interior isn¡¯t too flashy, having a neat elegance to it instead.


    Immediately after the entrance is a hall with a tall, arched ceiling. There¡¯s a path leading to a corridor from here, which probably connects to the rooms.


    Me finding pillars inside a house refreshing might be due to the sensibilities I had from modern Japan.


    While there should be buildings in Japan with visible pillars, I didn¡¯t see any within my past activity range.


    Being that this is a mansion, there are helpers as well and, as Ciel and Fiiyanamia-sama entered, there were a few of them on standby who greeted with ¡¸Welcome back.¡¹


    Due to how sudden this was, Ciel was startled.


    She has never been greeted home before, so I guess it can¡¯t be helped.


    ¡¸Allow me to carry your belongings.¡¹


    ¡ºShould I?¡»


    In regards to luggage, we only have magic bags. A magic bag by itself is plenty expensive enough, so it takes courage to just hand it over.


    However, not giving anything here might plant seed for future problems.


    ¡ºLet¡¯s give only the large one.


    It¡¯s important to avoid conflict here, so I believe it would be better show amiability.¡»


    Heeding my advice, Ciel gave the magic bag (large) to the nearby maid.


    On closer inspection, this maid has long ears.


    It appears that they hire regardless of race, as the maid next to her, having round ears, is a human.


    As we¡¯re told that the luggage will be brought to our room, we left that to the maid and continued following as we were dragged along.


    Passing through the corridor, we then ascended to the second floor, eventually arriving at a balcony area.


    Extending right below us is a flower garden filled with blooming flowers.


    The flowers aren¡¯t just growing randomly. Some flowers similar in color are grouped together, some are separated by size, so intensive work has definitely been put in this garden.


    From the balcony, it even looks like a vibrantly colored carpet.


    I wonder how many varieties of flowers there are here.


    ¡ºAin, Ain! Somehow, it¡¯s really pretty!


    And there¡¯s a lot of spirits too!¡»


    As the excited Ciel said, there¡¯s a lot of spirits around.


    Seemingly taking care of the flowers, the spirits are flying from one place to another.


    And those of them who see Ciel even approach her hairpin to take a rest.


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    Fiiyanamia-sama watched Ciel with a smile on her face, but after a while ¡¸Here, here. Take a seat.¡¹ she urged her to sit down.


    Having a seat in a balcony with a scenic view, it somewhat reminds me of a noble kind of thing. Though, come to think of it, this is the mansion of a person with a status higher than that of nobles.


    Upon sitting down, tea and cake were brought in.


    Wait? Is this the so-called tea party? One of those noble lady activities?


    ¡ºSay, Ain, there¡¯s an etiquette for this sort of thing, right? Do you know about it?¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m powerless this time¡­¡­¡»


    ¡ºI see. Then it can¡¯t be helped.¡»


    ¡¸My, my? Is this your first tea party?¡¹


    ¡¸It is my first, yes.¡¹


    I felt anxious hearing Ciel¡¯s response, which might be my Japanese nature rearing its head.


    And as if to laugh at my worries, the two continued their conversation.


    ¡¸A tea party is something you only need to enjoy. It¡¯ll depend on the time and place, but Cielmer-chan is going to be the one catered for, so you don¡¯t need to worry about it so much in my opinion.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ll be catered for?¡¹


    ¡¸My, my? Do you perhaps have low self-esteem? Still, you¡¯ll understand this eventually.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    After replying, Ciel took a sip of the black tea.


    While it does have the distinct bitterness of tea, I can also taste sweetness.


    Among the tea we¡¯ve drunk up until now, it¡¯s the easiest to drink.


    It seems that it suited Ciel¡¯s taste as she has a somewhat delighted expression.


    Ciel hasn¡¯t really been choosy about food as long as it has some sort of flavor, so I¡¯m glad to see that she¡¯s starting to discover her own likes and dislikes.


    Though, being choosy is another problem in and of itself.


    ¡¸While I don¡¯t really feel like it, let¡¯s continue the prior discussion.


    The one regarding you. What proof do you have of being a test subject?


    This is related to the name Ainsel, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸Ain is my special person, she¡¯s always with me.¡¹


    ¡¸By always with you, you mean?¡¹


    ¡¸Ain said that she¡¯s haunting me.¡¹


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s words, Fiiyanamia-sama stared intently at us.


    Her gold eyes almost seem like they can see through anything, it¡¯s unsettling.


    ¡¸I see, I see. Two kinds of magic power in one body. You have two souls, yes?


    Moreover, it¡¯s not one soul that was split into two, it looks like one was added to the other.¡¹


    ¡¸I think. Ain should know more about it.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so? In that case, can I have a chat with Ainsel-chan?¡¹


    ¡ºAin, would it be okay?¡»


    ¡ºI don¡¯t mind. Rather, this topic will be easier to explain if I do it.¡»


    After all, I came to this world practically right after Ciel was born.


    What Ciel had relayed to Fiiyanamia-sama is nothing more than what she has heard from me.


    We¡¯ve switched places, but what should I say now?


    I practically never come out to the surface as Ainsel, so I don¡¯t know what to say first.


    ¡¸Nice meeting you again. My name is Ainsel.¡¹


    ¡¸So you¡¯re Ainsel-chan. Uh-huh, you really are different from Cielmer-chan.¡¹


    ¡¸You can tell?¡¹


    ¡¸The difference in how you talk¡­ is intentional, so that¡¯s not enough.


    First, the quality of magic power subtly changes. No, among the two existing magic powers, the one you possess subtly swells¡­¡­ yes.


    To begin with, since you¡¯re concealing it, Cielmer-chan¡¯s magic power is difficult to sense, you see?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ So you can tell.¡¹


    I did my best to make sure that when someone capable of sensing magic power at the same level as me appears, they¡¯ll misread Ciel¡¯s power.


    ¡¸I only noticed it after close inspection. A top-class sorcerer would only barely notice something out of place, you know?


    Besides this, the easier one would be from the reaction of the spirits.¡¹


    Saying so, Fiiyanamia-sama amusedly shifted her gaze to my lap.


    Following her gaze, as I expected, the forest spirit was sitting on my lap.


    The forest spirit waved at Fiiyanamia-sama, and Fiiyanamia-sama waved back in reply.


    Do they know each other?


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    ¡¸With how different the spirits react to you two, those that can see are likely to immediately notice something out of place.


    But with that said, they probably wouldn¡¯t think that you became a different person.


    Now then, would you mind telling me what Duke Rispelgia has done to you two?¡¹


    Since we went extremely off topic, Fiiyanamia-sama forcefully redirected the conversation.


    ¡¸That man¡¯s objective was to turn Ciel into a god. To be exact, ummm, a god¡¯s blood¡­¡­ the blood that can only be drawn once¡­¡­ he¡­¡­¡¹


    It wasn¡¯t something that can be said so casually, so I couldn¡¯t help but hesitate. After all, it¡¯s a really sensitive topic for Ciel. Even if Ciel is telling me ¡ºI don¡¯t really mind if you say it, you know?¡» inside my head.


    Fortunately, Fiiyanamia-sama seemed to have understood and¡¸You don¡¯t need to say.¡¹told me so.


    ¡¸Regarding what exactly he did in the attempt to make Ciel a god, I don¡¯t know anything.


    However, since the Jobs were something given by the gods, he seemed to have speculated that following the trace of the Jobs would lead to the gods.¡¹


    ¡¸Jobs¡­¡­ is it. The one that could be called the gift given by the gods to the human race which excelled at nothing.¡¹


    Fiiyanamia-sama had a distant gaze. The way she spoke in such a roundabout manner makes me want to ask her about it, but I decided to continue our current topic.


    ¡¸By tracing the magic power, which presumably was granted by the gods, consumed during the usage of the Jobs, he could find out where the gods are located and have a god possess Ciel, making Ciel herself into a god. This is only a speculation, but I¡¯m likely not wrong.¡¹


    Fiiyanamia-sama raised two fingers and then pointed to me.


    ¡¸There isn¡¯t any solid proof that can be told to people, as well as any evidence that it really was done by Duke Rispelgia, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Exactly. You two want to keep the existence of Ainsel hidden, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right.¡¹


    ¡¸Well, you don¡¯t really have any obligation to tell those children about yourselves to begin with anyway.


    I only have to say that what you two have said to them is the truth. Those that won¡¯t believe this don¡¯t deserve to be in my garden.¡¹


    I was considering at least divulging the fact that we have two Jobs, but it seems like we won¡¯t need to.


    ¡¸Also, I¡¯m only asking out of curiosity but, having two souls, do the two of you have different Jobs each?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ That¡¯s right. The one that was made known, Song Princess, is my Job.


    Ciel has a different Job.¡¹


    Fiiyanamia-sama nodded curiously and then moved to the topic of Rispeliga.


    After everything that happened, it¡¯s not as if we actually got a self-introduction from that man.


    We only judged that he might be Rispelgia from the documents and writings, so I can¡¯t throw away the possibility that it might just be a regular man being made to seem like Rispelgia.


    ¡¸The next topic would be whether it was truly Duke Rispelgia, but I can ask you regarding this, no?¡¹


    Fiiyanamia-sama spoke to my lap. No, to the forest spirit sitting on my lap.


    Hiya~! After several dozens of chapters and about 2 years in universe, our princesses have finally found someone to open up to!


    P.S. Me gushing over Ain and Ciel¡¯s characterisation because of a short exchange between Ain, Ciel, and Fiiyanamia incoming.


    Ciel and Fiiyanamia¡¯s interactions are really cute, to be honest. Outside her interaction with Ain, this is one of the few times she have showed reactions befitting of her age, and in my opinion, this is because this is the first time she¡¯s been asked about what she thinks about something, rather than about what she knows. I might be overreacting just from their short exchanges, but this might honestly be the first time she¡¯s been treated as a child but not looked down upon. It¡¯s such a simple question, ¡°What do you think of this?¡± and she¡¯s completely overwhelmed. Anyhow, more of Fiiyanamia being on a different level in general, lol. Seeing through Ain¡¯s concealment, waving at a spirit, seeing spirits in general (it¡¯s still unclear if it¡¯s a race thing or otherwise though), and also, being so welcoming in general. She¡¯s not kidding when she referred to them as guests and it shows in her actions. Ain is still cautious as usual and while Ciel was doing well talking with her, it was a bit of a shame that Ain had to take over the discussion, albeit it¡¯s understandable. It would be really nice if they find a way to talk simultaneously to another person, but this limit does make for interesting developments.


    As I¡¯ve suspected before, I honestly think that the one most affected by what happened during the first ten years at Rispelgia¡¯s mansion is Ain. Not that I¡¯m comparing but Ciel being raised in that environment really broke her before she could have any frame of reference to what a normal life should be. This, for lack of other words, worked to her advantage in this situation, making it easier for her to become numb to her own suffering. And thankfully, because Ain was with her, she did not lose herself and her emotions. On the other hand, while receives and feels the same torment as Ciel does, it affects her on multiple levels exactly because she isn¡¯t a newly born existence. First, the reality of this kind of things happening to a *newborn baby* is crushing enough, and she had practically no power to stop it. Second, the reality that this child would never experience a normal childhood. And then when *that* happened, the fact that Ciel might never have a normal relationship in the future and the fact that Ain *did* have some power now to protect her, but she let her guard down. And then the realisation that the reason why Ciel didn¡¯t react much was because the duke told her beforehand and *this could have been completely avoided if not for the fact that Ain **didn¡¯t** even try to learn about the language which even Ciel have learned*. And then after that the fact that Ciel was then tormented while she was gone, *that she couldn¡¯t be there for Ciel when she needed her most*. With this in mind, Ain is seriously pushing herself because she doesn¡¯t even think that she deserves to live a second life, because she feels like she¡¯s just leeching off a child. And, for lack of any other words, I like how she¡¯s characterised like this. Ain stays strong for the sake of Ciel, and Ciel becomes strong due to her positive influence. Again this is purely my opinion. Also, Ain doesn¡¯t really have much of an obvious ¡°fatal flaw¡± (except maybe being too soft on Ciel, leading to some of their flirty shenanigans) but Ain has made many mistakes so far, honest mistakes, which aren¡¯t caused by fatal flaws or anything, and it¡¯s nice to see pure mistakes.


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    I always think that it¡¯s the little things that make something good and reading this again, I can honestly say that I really do love the little things. Maybe too much.

 CH 79

    Being asked by Fiiyanamia-sama, the forest spirit levitated from my lap to Fiiyanamia-sama.


    Then, she moved her lips and seemingly started talking to her.


    I¡¯m a bit jealous of her being able to converse with spirits.


    I¡¯ve been watching them converse for a while, but their interaction somehow emanates a refined aura.


    I suppose that¡¯s just natural since both Fiiyanamia-sama and the forest spirit are beautiful.


    ¡ºIs it something the forest spirit would know?¡»


    ¡ºI don¡¯t know. I¡¯m not knowledgeable about spirits after all.


    However, the forest spirit does seem to be the more powerful among the spirits, so it wouldn¡¯t be a surprise if she has some sort of special ability.¡»


    ¡ºIs that so? I suppose that¡¯s possible.¡»


    Ciel responded with a conflictingly convinced yet still somewhat unconvinced reaction, but unfortunately, I can only answer her with my own guesswork.


    As Ciel was tilting her head and mulling about it, it appears that Fiiyanamia-sama has just finished talking to the forest spirit.


    ¡¸Yes, yes. It seems that the Rispelgia Household was the one that imprisoned you, no doubt about it.¡¹


    ¡¸Umm, she can tell?¡¹


    ¡¸Of course, of course. This child is of greater-class even among spirits. The power she can use is significant as well.


    In her case, she can perceive everything that happens inside forests. She doesn¡¯t remember everything though and it¡¯s not as if she can recall what happened instantly, but as long as there¡¯s a trigger for her to recall something, we can manage.¡¹


    ¡¸Spirits really are amazing.¡¹


    ¡¸Just being able to borrow the power of spirits would be enough to make one a top-grade hunter after all.


    Still, I¡¯m stronger than spirits, you know?¡¹


    Fiiyanamia-sama giggled.


    Is she joking around, or is she really stronger than the spirits?


    To begin with, I have no idea how to measure the strength of spirits.


    Regular people can neither touch nor see them, and even though I can see, I still can¡¯t touch them.


    With this being the case, arm wrestling is definitely impossible, so physical contests are impossible.


    If not this, then sorcery¡­¡­ or magic, I suppose? Being unilaterally attacked by an enemy you can neither touch nor see is most likely going to be difficult.


    Not only that, but she probably means that people don¡¯t stand a chance against them in terms of sorcery strength and skill.


    ¡¸How powerful is a top-grade hunter?¡¹


    ¡¸Right, right. But before we talk about that, why don¡¯t I continue explaining how she knew that it was the Rispelgia Household?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s because of the forest spirit¡¯s power, right?¡¹


    ¡¸No, no. This child seems to have been worried about you two for a long time, you see?¡¹


    ¡¸A long time?¡¹


    ¡¸Perhaps I should say ever since you two were confined in the mansion.


    Though, this child said that all she could do from the outside is to peek inside the mansion. Spirits typically don¡¯t intervene with the workings of people, so she couldn¡¯t do anything.


    If you two could see spirits back then, she might have helped you two with her power though.¡¹


    ¡¸So it was from that far back.¡¹


    I thought that it was when Ciel¡¯s hairpin was first made, but I guess I was wrong.


    But why is that? To begin with, I don¡¯t even understand why only now we can see spirits and I don¡¯t have any idea of why we came to own a resting place for spirits as well.


    I don¡¯t know why, but it¡¯s probably true that we¡¯ve been watched over for that long period of time.


    ¡¸I heard that you watched over us, thank you very much.¡¹


    For us, a being that has been with us all this time is important to have.


    The forest spirit kindly smiled at me in reply.


    These sorts of times really make me wish that we could properly converse with them.


    ¡¸Now then, you wanted to learn more about a spirit¡¯s strength, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸Umm, yes. To begin with, I don¡¯t know what exactly a spirit¡¯s strength is.¡¹


    ¡¸Simply put, it¡¯s their influence. Spirits are nature itself. Spirits can manipulate the power of the element they have at will.¡¹


    ¡¸Is it similar to sorcery?¡¹


    ¡¸If I had to say, it would be magic. Still, they¡¯re not that different. In the first place, sorcery is a form of magic.¡¹


    It¡¯s a more user-friendly version of magic, practically like a downgraded version of magic, so it¡¯s not a stretch to call sorcery a type of magic.


    It can be said that being able to use magic makes one greater than a sorcerer.


    ¡¸Spirits can manipulate the elements that match theirs like their own limbs.


    The range of their influence would depend on the spirit¡¯s class.¡¹


    ¡¸By class, do you mean greater or lesser-class?¡¹


    ¡¸The greatest of them is the Spirit King. From there, the classes from top to bottom are Greater Spirits, Intermediate Spirits, Lesser Spirits, and Juvenile Spirits.


    The greater spirits comprise only less than 10 percent of the total population if I¡¯m correct. Because of that, I¡¯m quite close with the greater spirits.¡¹


    What does she mean by ¡°Because of that¡±?


    Fiiyanamia-sama is the founder of Central. In other words, since she has a very long lifespan, she has had a lot of opportunities to meet greater spirits, I guess?


    Considering her saying quite close, I do feel like this isn¡¯t entirely what she meant though.


    ¡¸Now about their strength. A juvenile spirit can reach the same level as a high-ranking hunter and is as strong as sorcerers that would be employed by countries.


    As for intermediate spirits, regular humans can¡¯t reach their level anymore. Magic would be needed to compete at that point. Greater spirits, it goes without saying.¡¹


    ¡¸If that¡¯s the case, then why is the forest spirit following us?¡¹


    Based on what she said, this always serene-looking forest spirit should be a remarkably powerful being.


    To the extent that Ciel and I wouldn¡¯t even be comparable to her.


    Yet despite this, why is she with us?


    ¡¸That¡¯s something you should personally ask in the future.


    However, I will say that this child is following you out of good intentions.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so?¡¹


    As I asked the forest spirit floating next to Fiiyanamia-sama, she delightedly nodded.


    In that case, I¡¯ll control my urge of wanting to know the truth until the time when we¡¯re able to converse.


    In the first place, she was with us ever since Rispelgia, so I guess her having some sort of plot against us would be implausible.


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    ¡¸In that case, then I¡¯ll wait for that time to come.¡¹


    ¡¸Hopefully it comes soon.¡¹


    ¡¸Still, why we¡¯re now able to see spirits is still a mystery.¡¹


    ¡¸Gaining the ability to see spirits as an acquired trait¡­ isn¡¯t really in any way possible. Even the people that hold spirit-related Jobs are said to be capable of perceiving spirits even before gaining their Job, you see.


    For that reason, I think that a fundamental part of you two has changed.¡¹


    Unable to understand what Fiiyanamia-sama said, I tilt my head in confusion.


    If this is too much for even her to handle, then who else would be able to handle explaining it?


    Seeing Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s troubled look, I couldn¡¯t bring myself to ask her more.


    ¡¸Well, well. You two must be feeling tired now, don¡¯t you agree?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s true.¡¹


    ¡¸We have a lot of time, you know? It¡¯s time for you two to retire for the day.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Okay. We¡¯ll take up on that offer.¡¹


    ¡¸We can chat anytime. I¡¯ll have you two guided to your room.¡¹


    Saying so, Fiiyanamia-sama rang the bell that was sitting on the table.


    Guided by the maids that quickly arrived, we were led to a room inside the mansion.


    The bed of the room, a room comparable to the one at the high-grade inn we stayed at in the past, was extremely snug and comfortable. As soon as we switched, Ciel instantly fell asleep.


    Since a lot of things have happened today, she must have been really exhausted.


    Goodnight, Cielmer.


    ¡ó


    At a certain room in Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s mansion, Ciel is fast asleep in this allotted room.


    And as usual, I¡¯m awake and conscious.


    Due to that, I immediately noticed the visitor caught by my detection. Since this person intentionally got caught, I really have no comments. Still, we can¡¯t just turn this visitor away, so while feeling sorry for the exhausted Ciel, I opened the door.


    ¡¸Uh-huh, you really were awake. Ainsel-chan, good evening.¡¹


    ¡¸Good evening, Fiiyanamia-sama. Still, what brought you here this late at night?


    Speaking of which, you expected me to be awake right now?¡¹


    ¡¸I did consider that both of you might have been sound asleep but if one of you were to be awake, I was sure that it would be you, Ainsel-chan. I came to have a chat.¡¹


    ¡¸While you did say that we can chat anytime, I never would have expected for it to happen immediately tonight.¡¹


    ¡¸You do have things that you wouldn¡¯t want Cielmer-chan to hear about, don¡¯t you?¡¹


    Things that I wouldn¡¯t want Ciel to hear about¡­¡­ Sure, there are. But if I had to choose, I would prefer not to tell Fiiyanamia-sama about these things as well.


    However, since she went out of her way to come here, I suppose I have no choice but to speak.


    I do still have some things that I want to confirm with her as well.


    ¡¸Are we going to talk here?¡¹


    ¡¸You don¡¯t want to burden that body too much, correct?


    I¡¯ll sit on the chair, I don¡¯t mind if you stay lying down in bed.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ll at least sit up.¡¹


    While laying down should be fine since she said so, I don¡¯t really have the nerve to do so.


    Still, I really appreciate her leaving some distance between her chair and the bed.


    After all, since I have no clue on what Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s objective is, it¡¯d be unfavorable if she can close the distance easily.


    ¡¸Now, now. Ainsel-chan, you¡¯re probably wondering why I¡¯m letting you two stay in my mansion, correct?


    Goodwill of unknown reason is frightening after all, isn¡¯t it?¡¹


    That¡¯s not true, as I was about to object, I was stopped by Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s words.


    It¡¯s not like I¡¯m trying to put up a front when Ciel is present and I don¡¯t think I do that at all to begin with.


    ¡­¡­ Or do I, really?


    At the very least, I¡¯ve been doing many things for Ciel¡¯s sake up until now.


    While I haven¡¯t consciously thought of wanting to keep Ciel from seeing my inadequacies, I have put effort into not showing any weakness to other people.


    ¡¸To begin with, saying ¡°That¡¯s not true¡± doesn¡¯t really sound convincing with how cautious you¡¯re being, you know that right?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m very sorry.¡¹


    ¡¸Don¡¯t apologize. You¡¯re not mistaken in your reaction.


    I imagine you adopted that behavior so your questions would get answered.


    You two will be staying here for a while, so the fewer suspicions the better, don¡¯t you think?¡¹


    It¡¯s already decided that we¡¯ll be in this mansion for a while?


    Perhaps this thought showed on my face, as Fiiyanamia-sama chuckled at me.


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    ¡¸I believe that being in this mansion would decrease your encounters with trouble the most, you see?


    After all, you two would be recognized as someone associated with me. In simpler terms, you two would receive the greatest protection in this land.¡¹


    ¡¸Now that I think about it, that is true. We don¡¯t have any intention of antagonizing you as well, so that would really help a lot.¡¹


    ¡¸However, you don¡¯t understand why I¡¯m saying that I¡¯ll protect you, right?¡¹


    Being asked so by Fiiyanamia-sama, this time I honestly nodded.


    I don¡¯t think she¡¯s a bad person. At the very least, I don¡¯t feel any hostility from her nor does it feel like she wants to take advantage of us. However, just as Fiiyanamia-sama said earlier, because I don¡¯t know why she¡¯s treating us so well, I have no idea on how I should react.


    Despite telling Ciel not to be hostile against her, I¡¯m being indecisive here. Ughh.


    ¡¸Just to be sure, I believe that I¡¯ll be able to give you a convincing reason.


    However, could you answer my question before that?¡¹


    ¡¸If it¡¯s something that I can answer, then yes.¡¹


    ¡¸Well then, could you tell me exactly how you two were treated when you were at Rispelgia¡¯s?¡¹


    ¡¸I see, so that¡¯s why you came now that Ciel is asleep?¡¹


    ¡¸Sure, of course. After all Ainsel-chan, you don¡¯t want her to hear it, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, thank you for your consideration.¡¹


    As much as possible, I don¡¯t want Ciel to remember those days.


    After all, she was cut, nearly killed, defiled, imprisoned, wounded, nearly killed, and sold back then.


    Still, since I¡¯ll be talking without consulting Ciel, how much should I disclose?


    While somewhat reluctant, I decided to tell as much as I can.


    ¡ó


    ¡¸I see, I see now. Considering that environment, your unbelievable magic power reserves, that white hair, and your skill in sorcery makes sense now.¡¹


    After relaying all that I consider acceptable to share, Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s reaction was¡­ surprisingly unaffected.


    I don¡¯t really mind since this is better than getting overly sympathized, but it¡¯s amazing how she listened through that without batting an eye.


    I guess this is the so-called wisdom of age.


    ¡¸Still, I¡¯m amazed you even thought of using those pills to increase magic power reserves.¡¹


    ¡¸I tried thinking it might be the case and it ended up actually working. It was perfect for practicing magic power control.¡¹


    ¡¸Ainsel-chan, you seem to be considerably skewed as a person, are you aware of that?¡¹


    ¡¸Well¡­¡­ that might actually be true. I have experienced death once before after all.¡¹


    ¡¸Oh, that¡¯s right.¡¹


    A human that experienced death and then got revived into a hellish environment just after having hope that it could be a second chance in life¡­ is no longer a normal human.


    I have full understanding of that. Thanks to this, I can pretend to be normal and fortunately I don¡¯t surface that much, so I only need to pretend for a short amount of time.


    Still, it¡¯s not like I have destructive or murderous urges but I suppose I¡¯d say that my emotions have grown numb. Something of that sort. Due to that, although I would rather not do it, I don¡¯t think I¡¯d feel too shocked ever if I kill people now.


    ¡¸As I thought, would it be better if I do something about it?¡¹


    ¡¸No, no. In this case, there¡¯s no right or wrong answer. Fortunately, it doesn¡¯t look like you got skewed in a way that would trouble other people.


    Rather, perhaps this skewed nature of yours might even work to your advantage from now on.¡¹


    ¡¸What do you mean?¡¹


    ¡¸Fufufu, what do I mean indeed.¡¹


    Fiiyanamia-sama giggled, dodged my question, and then shifted to the topic of my sorcery.


    ¡¸By the way, regarding that barrier of yours, it¡¯s beyond the realm of sorcery, isn¡¯t it?


    After hearing your story, I¡¯m sure of it. You¡¯ve sublimated it into magic.¡¹


    ¡¸I see, just as I thought. I taught myself sorcery, so I couldn¡¯t distinguish it properly.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s true, isn¡¯t it. After all, you two couldn¡¯t seek teachers in your case.


    As you said, this would mean that you were able to use magic by chance.


    Besides, it¡¯s likely¡ª


    ¡ªNo, that¡¯s not something to be said here.¡¹


    Fiiyanamia-sama was about to say something, but I had no clue on what she intended to say.


    Hiya~! With the discussions finished¡­¡­ Another discussion appeared! This time, only between Fiiyanamia and Ain!


    Let me say, I really like the discussion between Ain and Fiiyanamia for many reasons. First, this is the first time Ain has ever spoken with anybody (not Ciel) in private; and secondly, more elaboration on Ain¡¯s ¡°weaknesses¡±! But yeah, as Fiiyanamia said, despite what Ain says, she¡¯s always alert. Always. It¡¯s justified, of course, but it is an issue that haunts her and affects Ciel as seen in Ciel¡¯s interlude of the bath with Viviana. Also, Ain does seem to have some self-awareness of her increasing detachment to other people, which makes sense not only because of her ¡°dead and wake up to something almost worse than death¡± experience, but also because of her feeling guilty of ¡°leeching off¡± a child.


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    The other part of this chapter is more on worldbuilding in regards to spirits~! It was a surprise how the forest spirit was basically watching them the whole time and could have helped if not for the fact that spirits generally *never* interfere with the people, unless the people in question can see them. Other than that, a few ominous remarks from Fiiyanamia:


    >perhaps this skewed nature of yours might even work to your advantage


    >¡ªNo, that¡¯s not something to be said here.


    Plus the roundabout way she talked about Jobs a chapter ago. *Really* ominous.

 CH 80

    ¡¸Incidentally, have you two ever been to a temple before?¡¹


    ¡¸A temple? We¡¯ve never been to one. There wasn¡¯t any reason to do so after all.¡¹


    The originally ominous topic suddenly shifted to the topic of temples which took me by surprise.


    Though, I¡¯ve never even gone to church, let alone a temple.


    ¡¸In that case, you don¡¯t know temples very well, do you?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. If I had to say, it¡¯s a sort place that I don¡¯t ever want to get near to.¡¹


    ¡¸My, my? Have you perhaps done something bad, Ainsel-chan?¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t really know. In front of Ciel, I try my best not to do anything bad but I don¡¯t really know what exactly is bad.


    But the reason I don¡¯t what to be near one is because I¡¯m a Song Princess.¡¹


    ¡¸Right, I see. Besides, Song Princesses don¡¯t need to go to churches.¡¹


    Saying so, Fiiyanamia-sama smiled, but how should I interpret this reaction?


    Is my assumption correct? Am I mistaken instead?


    Is this one of those probing each other out thing? This honestly seems impossible for me.


    ¡¸We¡¯ve barely ever gotten injured after all.¡¹


    ¡¸Opponents that can bypass Ainsel-chan¡¯s barrier doesn¡¯t pop out that often after all.¡¹


    ¡¸But some do occasionally slip through. Besides, Fiiyanamia-sama, you also can break through it, right?¡¹


    ¡¸I believe so but, if you don¡¯t mind, could you try defending yourself with all you have just this once? ¡¹


    When talking about all I have, then it would be the barrier that makes use of that higher-level magic power-like thing but that is my most valuable trump card.


    It¡¯s not something to show off so easily. As of now, I can¡¯t use it continuously, so I wouldn¡¯t be pleased at all if this ever gets found out.


    However, in the sense of knowing about my own strength, I think it would be best to show this to Fiiyanamia-sama.


    Either way, if we ever get into hostilities with Fiiyanamia-sama, what we ought to do is run away at full force, so I guess it doesn¡¯t really matter if she knows it anyway.


    ¡¸Understood. Please give me a moment.¡¹


    ¡¸Sure, no problem.¡¹


    The truth is that I can make it instantly but I desperately, or rather underhandedly make it seem that it would take some time to cast it.


    It should be able to work as a one-time surprise.


    I then thoroughly circulate that magic power throughout my body.


    As thorough as I possibly can.


    Doing this as a sort of practice, I somehow feel like I can now use it more efficiently than I had before.


    ¡¸Finished.¡¹


    ¡¸Uh-huh. Just as I thought. Being this skilled is proof of how much you¡¯ve studied and experimented with barrier magic.


    At this level, even I would have difficulty breaking through it.


    While it is possible, this land would give in before you do.¡¹


    ¡¸Isn¡¯t that too much of an exaggeration?¡¹


    Fiiyanamia-sama being capable of using sorcery that can impact this land is already extreme enough, but this barrier having more defensive potential than the land beneath us is really too much.


    Or maybe this is about how the scale of the impact is different?


    Any wyvern-class monster can destroy large boulders after all, so if this power is directed towards the ground, then it would at least create a ditch.


    An attack stronger than that would probably form a small crater.


    If we¡¯re talking about this sort of thing, then it likely would be able to withstand it.


    ¡¸I¡¯m not joking, you know? That barrier would be capable of withstanding an attack at least powerful enough to erase a small island.¡¹


    It appears that she wasn¡¯t joking.


    Still, I just can¡¯t imagine an attack powerful enough to erase a small island. I also can¡¯t imagine my barrier being able to protect us from that.


    Finally, Fiiyanamia-sama can do an attack of that level? I can¡¯t even see her limits.


    ¡¸Against monsters, how much can it endure?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s at the level where it¡®d be easier to count how many creatures, including me, can actually destroy that barrier than the inverse.


    Even the one you use regularly can¡¯t be contested by A-rank monsters.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ It¡¯s that much?¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t know why you¡¯re so shocked, but this is the truth.


    Do you now understand just how skewed you are from the norm?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. Somewhat¡­¡­¡¹


    I understand that this is amazing but, even after being told specifically how it is, it still feels very surreal.


    Just when did I reach the realm of superhumans?


    ¡¸As to be expected at this point, we can narrow it down to one possibility.


    You unintentionally used magic, casting away your combat and healing sorcery to sublimate your barrier, concealment, and detection to a much greater level. It¡¯s likely that both the combat and healing sorcery you cast away that time had the potential to make you prominent in either field.


    Perhaps even more prominent than Cielmer-chan is.


    The transmutation via magic is not necessarily always that of equivalent exchange. Even so, offering something better has greater chances of rewarding better results.


    Additionally, in regards to your barrier, on top of having an equal talent for this to begin with, you¡¯ve been using it constantly and have made repeated improvements on top of it.


    Furthermore, your hair has become circuits and you¡¯ve increased your magic power through such recklessness in a span of 5 years, so it makes sense that the two of you are at this level at that age. Inversely speaking, this would be impossible without doing that much.


    If only your Job can complement your barrier, then perhaps even the one that you¡¯re using regularly might become powerful enough to fend off S-rank monsters?¡¹


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    Woah¡­¡­ that¡¯s a shocker.


    So if I hadn¡¯t given up on combat sorcery, then it could¡¯ve been a direct augment to our firepower.


    That¡¯s¡­ practically a pie in the sky, so I don¡¯t have any regrets with my current choice.


    It¡¯s not that I can do everything even if I wanted to anyway and it¡¯s exactly because I lost my combat sorcery that I constantly keep the barrier up chantless.


    If all of this is true, then if I can incorporate the Song Princess¡¯ power into my barrier, it should solve any defense issues in combat, which is somewhat frustrating now that I know this.


    If I had been able to reinforce my barrier with the Song Princess before, then properly defending against our first encounter with the spear of ice and the golden wolf¡¯s claws could have been possible.


    It might even be possible to completely block against Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s attacks with my full power barrier.


    If I can just reach that level, I could then leave Ciel in peace.


    ¡¸Now then, back to temples. You two have never gone to one, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, do you know the difference between a temple and a church?¡¹


    ¡¸Umm, a temple is where gods are called upon while a church is where believers pray¡­¡­ right?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s roughly correct. One thing I will correct you on is that temples are where oracles descend upon people.


    Temples are a sacred place where, when individuals of certain Jobs and races offer their prayers, there¡¯s a chance of being granted an oracle.


    Because of that, the average person normally doesn¡¯t go there. You can enter with a fee, but the most you¡¯ll get to see is the entrance part.¡¹


    ¡¸Oracles¡­¡­ is it?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right, these were quite common in the past, you know? For example, about where a stampede would occur or where a powerful monster would appear.


    The church is a place for prayer. While there are restrictions on where temples can be made, that¡¯s not the case for churches.


    That¡¯s why many towns and villages may have a church but no temple.


    Besides that, the church is also a place for healing illnesses and injuries. Because of that, normally a hunter would have an inseparable relationship with the church, you see?¡¹


    The reason why Fiiyanamia chuckled while looking at me is probably because, mainly thanks to me, Ciel became a hunter with absolutely no interaction with the church.


    While they do heal people, it isn¡¯t for free, so I wonder how much money hunters have spent with the church?


    ¡¸Unfortunately, I couldn¡¯t meet the church¡¯s expectations.¡¹


    ¡¸If it¡¯s unnecessary, then that¡¯s for the best.¡¹


    Nothing¡¯s better than not getting injured and sick at all.


    Still, injuries aside, the fact that we¡¯ve never gotten sick for the past 12 years is practically a miracle.


    Ciel¡¯s body is delicate but I guess it might be strong in this regard?


    Anyhow, speaking of 12 years old, that would be the last year of elementary. Like, how many elementary school classmates did I have that have never gotten sick throughout their elementary life?


    Rather, while not everyone has been absent due to sickness, there were some that attended class with a cold, so it¡¯s zero as far as I can tell.


    ¡¸As for why I raised the topic of temples, that¡¯s simply because this place is one of these said temples.¡¹


    ¡¸This place¡­ this mansion?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right, that¡¯s exactly right. For that reason, there¡¯s a chance that you might receive an oracle as well, Ainsel-chan.¡¹


    ¡¸Since I¡¯m a Song Princess, wouldn¡¯t that be impossible?¡¹


    ¡¸Fufufu, that¡¯s right, that is a fact.¡¹


    I understand why she was fixated on temples but this time I don¡¯t understand her smile.


    It doesn¡¯t seem like she¡¯s teasing me or anything though. In contrast, her smile is an amiable one.


    ¡¸You seem to be confused but this matter is something that I cannot make any decisions for, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸I see, only a god can decide whether I receive an oracle or not.¡¹


    ¡¸For that reason, this conversation ends here. Now, let me answer your doubts.¡¹


    We¡¯re finally getting to the main subject but my brain is honestly not ready for this.


    There¡¯s too much information that I still can¡¯t process. Though, I also can¡¯t just simply ask for the time to sort out everything first, so I decided to chuck these to the back of my mind for now.


    ¡¸You¡¯re going to tell me why you¡¯re accommodating us?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, of course. Still, it¡¯s not anything particularly complicated.


    But let¡¯s get things in order. First of all, the reason for why I welcomed the two of you as my guest.


    You two properly greeted me when you came here, didn¡¯t you?¡¹


    ¡¸Is¡­ that all?¡¹


    ¡¸Without any exaggeration, this land which is generally called Central is my manor.


    On top of greeting me, I also welcomed you in, so of course I¡¯d accommodate you two.


    Though, the freeloaders did something uncalled for this time around.¡¹


    Fiiyanamia-sama smiled, but honestly it¡¯s scary.


    However her scary aura quickly vanished.


    ¡¸Then does that mean the term ¡°freeloader¡± is also not an exaggeration?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, that¡¯s right. It started when people seeking peace and security arbitrarily settled down on this land which I was already overseeing and lived in to begin with.


    They kept coming back even after chasing them out again and again, so I decided on rules and permitted their freeloading.


    And then after that, an organization that isn¡¯t affiliated with any country came along¡­¡­ and so on. It¡¯s not like I¡¯m their king or anything. I don¡¯t receive any taxes from them after all.¡¹


    ¡¸You don¡¯t receive any?¡¹


    ¡¸Right, right. Perhaps I don¡¯t now would be more correct?


    Fiiyanamia-sama called it tax but it¡¯s probably more of a rent for her.


    Or rather, she¡¯s renting the land out for free? What started as the topic of her house suddenly became weirdly big, it¡¯s really amusing.


    In other words, writing it down on a map, it wouldn¡¯t be *** country but just Fiiyanamia Manor instead.


    ¡¸I¡¯ve been told that only people B-rank and above can enter but what¡¯s the reason for that?¡¹


    ¡¸I made it a rule to limit the number of people called from the outside entering here, so they might have made it for that reason.


    It might also be because the Hunter Guild will be kicked out if hunters end up causing problems on this land.


    So, do you understand this place now?¡¹


    ¡¸It looks like it¡¯ll be fine as long as I don¡¯t go against Fiiyanamia-sama.¡¹


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    Answering somewhat jokingly, Fiiyanamia-sama was stunned for a moment before answering ¡¸That¡¯s right.¡¹ with a giggle.


    ¡¸Unless there are extreme circumstances, you will not be bound by the arbitrarily made rules here in Central.


    After all, the guest is more important that the freeloaders for me.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you very much.¡¹


    ¡¸Now then, let¡¯s return to the previous topic. The reason I welcomed you as a guest is just as I said earlier.


    However, that reason alone isn¡¯t sufficient to answer this level of accommodation. Correct?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes.¡¹


    There¡¯s also a chance that she¡¯s just simply fond of us.


    However, if that¡¯s the case, this would mean that our situation could change depending on Fiiyanamia-sama¡®s whims.


    Because of that, if she has clear reasons, I want to know it. If she doesn¡¯t then I might have to consider leaving this place.


    ¡¸There are three major reasons, I suppose? But one of them isn¡¯t definite. So only two.


    First is, as I said earlier, that you two are highly capable.¡¹


    ¡¸But in your case, you would win against us, right Fiiyanamia-sama?¡¹


    ¡¸Even if I would, this will result in great damage to this land, you know?


    That¡¯s not something I would want. Compared to fighting you, bringing down a country would be easier, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸Isn¡¯t that a bit too much?¡¹


    ¡¸No no. Even you can easily bring down a country after all. All you need is, I guess sufficient food supplies?


    No matter how many hundreds or thousands you are up against, all you have to do is cast your barrier and walk straight to the castle.


    There¡¯s generally no one that can do anything against your barrier after all. Just by the numbers, I imagine that it¡¯d be a drawn-out war, but the first one to give in here would be the country, no?¡¹


    Certainly if my defensive power is really as she says, then I might be able to bring down a country.


    It¡¯d be impossible for me alone, but it should be doable with Ciel.


    Walk to the country, enter their castle, and take the king¡¯s head, the end.


    ¡¸But there are devices that prevent the use of sorcery, right?¡¹


    ¡¸It doesn¡¯t matter to you since you¡¯re constantly using sorcery, does it now? Besides, you even used sorcery in that dungeon, no?


    Then you shouldn¡¯t have any issues.


    In other words, there¡¯s no benefit to fighting someone that can bring down countries. Instead, it would be better to get along with them, don¡¯t you agree? ¡¹


    While I¡¯d rather deny this to be a fact, basing objectively on what she said, it¡¯s not wrong.


    Against someone that isn¡¯t wrong to fight against, it¡¯s either building an amiable relationship or avoiding interaction with them.


    ¡¸Second is that the spirits are attached to you.¡¹


    ¡¸They certainly do come gathering to me.¡¹


    Even while we were discussing, spirits were constantly jumping around me.


    Some went near Fiiyanamia-sama too, but there are more spirits near me.


    ¡¸Do you know that places with many spirits become bountiful?¡¹


    ¡¸The forest spirit explained it to us somewhat.¡¹


    ¡¸I see, I see then. Since you know that, then it makes things easier.


    Since spirits gather around people that are loved by spirits and this makes the land bountiful.


    In short, just by walking around, you bring benefit to the places you¡¯ve gone to.


    Conversely, if you are displeased, it would also cause the spirits who love you to be displeased.


    When that happens, it would ruin the land. Being caretakers of the world, the spirits would never turn the land barren, but it will most likely cause a reduction in harvest and degradation to flavor of the crops. That¡¯s still on the better side, if you ever lose your life somewhere, the spirits might get enraged and cause natural disasters all over the place.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s why we¡¯re accommodated like this?¡¹


    ¡¸Just by having you stay, we can eat delicious vegetables, you know? Wouldn¡¯t it be normal to accommodate you two so that you¡¯ll stay here longer?¡¹


    Fiiyanamia-sama had a broad smile on her face. I understand her in that regard.


    Delicious food is important. After all, it makes Ciel happy.


    While I have no clue why the spirits like me so much, that fact doesn¡¯t really change, so that¡¯s more of a reason not to fight with us.


    ¡¸It seems that you¡¯re somewhat convinced now.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. Pardon me for being so skeptical.¡¹


    ¡¸You don¡¯t need to apologise for that.¡¹


    Saying so, Fiiyanamia-sama came next to me.


    As my body reflexively tensed up, Fiiyanamia-sama gently embraced me.


    ¡¸There is no one in this mansion that will hurt you.


    That¡¯s why, unwind yourself by just a bit.


    I will not harm the two of you. I¡¯ve already told you my reasons, haven¡¯t I?¡¹


    Hearing her gentle, almost motherly admonishment, made me want to lean onto her.


    After all, I was just taught that there are no enemies here, that this place is safe.


    Maybe, just maybe, I can be allowed to relax a little more. As that thought went through my mind, my consciousness had already melted into deep slumber.


    Hiya~! And so it finally came, the day when Ain finally gets some semblance of sleep.


    This chapter was pretty chunky with exposition this time around. The difference between temples and churches, Ain¡¯s power level and scrapped potential, Central¡¯s past, and the truth behind why Fiiyanamia welcomed them with open arms! As some in the comments have expected, yep, they just rang the figurative doorbell and the lady inside the house just welcomed them in. That¡¯s it in laconic. Lol. Speaking of which, the formation of Central was actually somewhat hilarious. The mental image of Fiiyanamia chasing off some children who want to build a lemonade stand on her lawn is what suddenly came to mind, lol. I know, the lemonade thing is probably ancient by now, but my knowledge of big lawns mainly came from cartoons. Fiiyanamia was just minding her own business when suddenly people just keep building houses at her place, lol.


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    Again, we received more light info about the nature of AIn¡¯s powers. Just a bit. Also, Ain still seems to be focused on making the barrier stronger despite the already abnormal toughness it already has. *How far beyond humanity to you plan on drifting to? Lol. Also, the small hinting of Fiiyanamia¡¯ strength lol. Well, I guess this will be the last chapter for a while.


    Still, that last part with Ain having internal conflict with having a rest. Just rest already, you¡¯ve kept Ciel protected long enough for now. Sleep.

 CH 81

    When opened my eyes, I was in a garden sitting on a chair.


    In this garden I¡¯ve never seen before, both familiar and unfamiliar flowers were arranged in such harmony that it took my breath away.


    However, the gentle sunlight beaming down on this garden gave me a serenity that I¡¯ve never experienced up until now.


    If I had to describe this place, it¡¯s like a venue for a noble¡¯s tea party.


    On closer observation, the ambience here is similar to that of Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s courtyard.


    Still, it seems to have a different air compared to that place¡­¡­ To put it into words, it¡¯s like¡ª


    ¡¸Heaven, I guess?¡¹


    Since I was looking around absentmindedly, I was late at noticing that there was someone on the other side of the table before me.


    Perhaps amused in seeing my jaw drop, or that I reacted exactly as she expected, the lady on the other side let out a chuckle.


    She¡¯s a lady that catches the eye.


    Her long black hair flowed straight down to her hips like a waterfall and her jet black eyes felt like it would draw in anything looking at it.


    She had slightly drooping eyes, plump lustrous lips, a shapely nose, and clear white skin.


    I can¡¯t take my eyes off of her but it¡¯s probably not because I was formerly a male. Any being that can recognize beauty would likely be charmed by her. Calling her a high class work of art wouldn¡¯t be an exaggeration.


    However, her appearance doesn¡¯t quite match this place.


    In a tea venue with a western aristocratic ambience, she¡¯s wearing a set of western-style clothes that matches Japanese preferences.


    While it is stylish and does look good on her, it¡¯s so mismatched that my brain just help but ask ¡¯Why though?¡¯.


    ¡¸I assumed that this would be more familiar to you, you see?¡¹


    I see, I get it now. It does certainly feel nostalgic to see. Now that I think about it, her face also has a Japanese-ish look. Though I¡¯ve never seen anyone this beautiful before.


    ¡¸Despite how I look, I am of the gods and being so seems to come with an extraordinary appearance. Also, I don¡¯t have a gender, so unlike you I can become a man as well.¡¹


    ¡¸A¡­¡­ god?¡¹


    Whooh, I¡¯m starting to get confused,


    If what she said is true, then this beauty in front of me is a god, and can become both male and female.


    It¡¯s hard to believe this situation but considering this place and her beauty, it might be true.


    After all, unlike on earth, the gods in this world definitely exist.


    ¡¸While this won¡¯t be any sort of proof, if you see your appearance right now, you should somewhat understand that this situation isn¡¯t normal.¡¹


    As the god said so, a large mirror appeared before me.


    Reflected on the mirror is a black-haired girl that looks similar to Ciel.


    In other words, this body isn¡¯t Ciel¡¯s.


    ¡ºCiel. Ciel, are you here?¡»


    There was no response to my call. I don¡¯t sense Ciel¡¯s presence. I can¡¯t feel Ciel¡¯s existence.


    ¡¸Is Ciel alright!?¡¹


    While it was only self-proclaimed, I forgot that she is a god and pressed her for an answer.


    Her eyes went wide open in surprise but she immediately smiled.


    ¡¸You really cherish that girl, don¡¯t you?


    Hmm, she¡¯s sleeping soundly right now. She¡¯s fine, don¡¯t worry about it. Fii is nearby after all, so there won¡¯t be any danger. Uh-huh.¡¹


    For some reason, it sounded awfully untrustworthy.


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    ¡¸If this is a lie then even if you¡¯re a god, I will never forgive you, okay?¡¹


    I don¡¯t have any expectations of being able to defeat her. After all, I can sense an infinite amount of that higher order magic power-like thing.


    Gradually getting used to my current senses, I can clearly tell now.


    She was not joking, she¡¯s undoubtedly a god.


    If I fight her, there¡¯s no question that I would die. I might even face a nasty end like having my soul destroyed or so.


    Even so, without Ciel, I don¡¯t care. Without Ciel, there¡¯s no point in living.


    ¡¸There¡¯s no need to worry. With the exclusion of extreme circumstances, until you two reach 15 years old, I won¡¯t let you two die.¡¹


    ¡¸Promise?¡¹


    ¡¸Sure, sure. As long as the two of you don¡¯t die instantaneously, you two will be alright.


    To begin with, your barrier is still active. Really, why did things end up like this?¡¹


    If my barrier is still active, then that¡¯s somewhat of a relief.


    The god replied with a tone of disbelief but is staring curiously at me for some reason.


    Putting the truth of her words aside for now, I once again turn my attention to the mirror right in front of me.


    As I thought before, the girl in the mirror looks like Ciel. The color scheme is Japanese with Ciel as the basis.


    In other words, she¡¯s quite beautiful.


    As I raise my right hand, the girl in the mirror raises her left hand.


    I raise my left hand and she raises her right.


    I make a grimace and she does too.


    I see, it¡¯s a mirror. In other words, this would be my appearance if I ever had a body. Still, based on my own life experience, I should be beyond 30 years old.


    To begin with, why do I look similar to Ciel?


    ¡¸Why do I look like this?¡¹


    ¡¸We¡¯re finally back on topic. That¡¯s because your soul has altered to fit Ciel¡¯s body.¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t really think that anything particularly changed from before I died and right now, though.


    After all, my memories do continue on from before.¡¹


    ¡¸You didn¡¯t have any fixation on your former appearance, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸Well, that is true.¡¹


    I¡¯m not even fixated on my gender.


    If I was, then I wouldn¡¯t have changed the way I talked.


    Rather, how did I talk in the past?


    ¡¸If you have wanted to stay a man no matter what, then things would be different; but because you didn¡¯t display any resistance, your soul gradually adapted to her body.


    Since you are haunting her in a sense, it shouldn¡¯t be any surprise for your body to be based on the host¡¯s body.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡­¡­ does make sense.¡¹


    ¡¸Besides, appearance isn¡¯t the most important thing, don¡¯t you agree?


    There are people that are mature despite looking young, as well as those that talk childishly despite appearing stern. The important thing is for you to be yourself,¡¹(Yumemura Reon-kun.)


    Suddenly, someone¡¯s name echoed in my head, startling me.


    For a moment, I was wondering who she was talking about but it was me she was referring to, huh. Also, it seems like she took that thing into consideration just to be sure.


    Yumemura Reon. Certainly, I do think I had that name. It has barely had any use ever since I came to this world, so I completely forgot about it.


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Even I didn¡¯t think that you¡¯d forget your own name, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸Yumemura Reon is already dead after all. The one before you is Ainsel.¡¹


    ¡¸Ainsel¡­¡­ is it? I know exactly why you chose to name yourself that but¡­ are you sure about that?¡¹


    ¡¸I wonder about that myself. So far, I have no regrets. I think. ¡¹


    Ainsel is the name of a certain fairy. To be exact, I think it¡¯s a bit different but in this situation, the details aren¡¯t important.


    ¡¸Forgive me for my lack of knowledge, but may I ask what you govern as a god?¡¹


    ¡¸Oh, such an unnatural way of changing the topic, isn¡¯t it?


    While there¡¯s no reason for me to answer the questions of a human, I shall answer.


    I am the god who governs over creation and destruction. The Creator God, so to speak. The supreme deity. The creator and overseer of several worlds, or their divine split to be exact.¡¹


    ¡¸The real body is in a different place?¡¹


    ¡¸Correct, exactly that. My real body can¡¯t just come before anyone willy nilly after all, and even in this form, I¡¯m limited to staying in each world¡¯s divine realm. If I carelessly show myself before a human, that said individual would be crushed by my power upon seeing me.¡¹


    ¡¸I just have more questions now but, about that¡­ Will I be fine?¡¹


    ¡¸The reason we¡¯re here is precisely to teach you about that. Although the preface to this has become awfully long for some reason.¡¹


    Certainly, it¡¯s undeniable that it took time to reach this point.


    Still, I was suddenly brought to this unfamiliar place and even separated from Ciel, so considering this we actually got into the main subject quickly.


    ¡¸Haha, true enough. You were more stubborn than I imagined.


    Now then, let me explain the current situation. This is a location in the divine realm that¡¯s nearest to the surface. You can consider this as my working area.


    Since you lost consciousness at Fii¡¯s place, I connected to your dream. In other words, you¡¯re currently asleep.¡¹


    There¡¯s a lot of things I¡¯m having a hard time understanding.


    Since Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s place is a temple, getting connected to the divine realm is still understandable, I guess.


    However, all I was told was that oracles could descend. I was never told that I could be taken to the divine realm.


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    ¡¸Oracles, is it¡­¡­ That can only convey things unilaterally from this side, you see?


    ¡®A monster appeared such and such. At this rate, the country will be in danger, so why don¡¯t you have a subjugation team assembled?¡¯


    Something like that. The details that can be communicated are limited in length too. Usually, this would be sufficient enough either way but, in your case, your situation is a bit complicated, so in case anything happens, I planned to communicate with you in this way.


    In other words, I¡¯ve been preparing for this for a long time. This only happened now since you¡¯ve just finally satisfied the conditions.¡¹


    Conditions¡­ probably coming to a temple.


    So since I stubbornly kept my distance from one, there wasn¡¯t any chance for this until now.


    ¡¸Something like that.¡¹


    ¡¸What are you going to tell me?¡¹


    ¡¸Basically everything about your existence, I suppose? Though I can only tell you about what I¡¯ve tampered with, so don¡¯t expect that I¡¯d say absolutely everything about you.¡¹


    ¡¸Then¡­ You did something to me, Creator God?¡¹


    ¡¸You say it like that but you already guessed that gods were at least involved with you, didn¡¯t you?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s as you say.¡¹


    Ever since a while ago, I couldn¡¯t hide anything from her.


    She just casually responds to my thoughts after all, this god is no joke.


    Leaving that aside, since something changed because of the Artificial Divine Messenger, it wasn¡¯t difficult to deduce that some sort of divine entity had done something with us.


    ¡¸Save the questions for later. As a prerequisite, I¡¯d like you to know my duties here in advance but can you tell?¡¹


    ¡­¡­ What does a creator god do? After creating the world, I imagine that watching over the world would be the creator god¡¯s duty.


    And being a god of destruction at the same time, I guess destroying the world too? I don¡¯t really see any sign of that, in fact, the world doesn¡¯t seem to be anywhere near destruction.


    ¡¸I don¡¯t know.¡¹


    ¡¸The answer is, miscellaneous duties in general. Basically working behind the scenes. Which is probably why my existence isn¡¯t well known to the surface, I suppose? I created the foundation for the Jobs System though.¡¹


    She just casually said something amazing but being the Creator God, I guess it was nothing special for her.


    ¡¸Among these is something that only I can do, the management of souls between worlds.


    The cycle of death and rebirth and the reincarnation of the dead to a different world are exchanges that happen between worlds, so I¡¯m the only one that can do it, you see?¡¹


    ¡¸That sounds difficult.¡¹


    ¡¸Exactly, it is. That¡¯s why my motto is to at least find enjoyment wherever I can.¡¹


    ¡¸So was I singled out as a sacrifice for that then?¡¹


    ¡¸Hahaha, precisely so.¡¹


    The Creator God began laughing, but I don¡¯t understand what¡¯s so funny about it.


    Although from the flow of our conversation, it seems to be somehow connected to my use of the word sacrifice.


    That aside, is the Creator God the reason for my reincarnation?


    In that case, did I acquire some special ability like those in the stories?


    ¡¸Not really.¡¹


    ¡¸So there was none.¡¹


    ¡¸It was a complete coincidence that I chose you after all. Hmm, but I guess ¡¯You weren¡¯t supposed to have¡¯ would be more correct of a statement.


    Your current power is a bit too strong for the surface, you see? Fortunately enough, you¡¯re specialized in defense.¡¹


    ¡¸Will it perhaps¡­¡­ need to be sealed?¡¹


    ¡¸That won¡¯t happen. After all it¡¯s something you earned, power that you obtained within the rules of the world.


    I was the one that allowed this, so I have no objections against that.¡¹


    That¡¯s a relief. If my magic power was to be sealed, I¡¯d have no idea on how to protect Ciel.


    ¡¸Well then, let¡¯s discuss the topics in order; about what sort of being you are and what you will turn into from now on.¡¹


    Prefacing with that, the Creator God began to speak.


    Hiya~! Once again, I¡¯m back and it seems like there¡¯s some juicy exposition about to drop next week! But first of all, there are some things that are lost in translation that I want to discuss here before I go on my usual long winded gushing~!


    First of all, there¡¯s an interesting thing about the Creator God, or rather her divine split. Her (for convenience¡¯s sake) first person pronoun is the usual feminine pronoun (which also doubles as the neutral pronoun) ¡°Watashi (˽)¡± but there¡¯s a certain something in Japanese called ruby characters, which serve as an annotation for how to read certain words or names. Which is why in the Fate series, Noble Phantasms have two names, the full kanji name (ex. Sword of Promised Victory) and the reading of the name (ex. Excalibur), the ruby characters would function to show the reading Excalibur on top of the full kanji Sword of Promised Victory. Anyway, I digress. The interesting part is that the Creator God¡¯s personal pronoun is ¡°Watashi¡± but is read as ¡°God (Éñ)¡±. In other words, every time she refers to herself, she refers to herself as god. Speaking a bit meta, this is honestly my first time encountering something like this. What I get from this is that she¡¯s an individual as a divine split yet also every god that split from the real Creator God at the same time, so every time she refers to herself, she refers to both versions of herself, the real god and the divine split, but that¡¯s my take on it. Feel free to wrack your heads as well~! And I¡¯m sharing this so you do exactly that!


    Second one is a minor thing that I still managed to handle quite fine in my opinion, but on the part where Ain was trying to remember how she spoke before, she was referring to the first person pronoun she was using, since there are two male pronouns, ¡°Boku (for mostly young boys, so it has a hint of youth)¡± and ¡°Ore (for more active/aggressive boys/men, also sometimes women since it makes them sound more intimidating; ex. Big Mom from One Piece). So yeah, minor thing but she forgot if she used ¡°Boku¡± or ¡°Ore¡± before settling down with ¡°Watashi¡± because, you know, what happened five + years ago. Another minor thing is about the part with sacrifice. The literal translation there would be that ¡°Hit with the white feathered arrow¡± which refers to a way of choosing sacrifices in the past. Specifically, it¡¯s based on an ancient tradition where people choosing a sacrifice would randomly shoot a white fletched arrow to the air and whichever house it lands on would be the one they¡¯d choose to get the sacrifice from. The more you know~!


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    Argh¡­ I already blabbered so much¡­ Ugh, I guess it¡¯ll be a short gushing today. Ain was completely out of her mind, having to remind herself several times that she¡¯s looking at a mirror, lol. The Creator God is being really ominous, lol. Also, Ain¡¯s name was revealed~! But why exactly did the Creator God *not* audibly call Ain by that old name? Why is it such a big deal that Ain chose the name Ainsel? (Research the story Ainsel if you want to~) Also, good thing Ciel¡¯s asleep right now~! Argh!! So much I want to say, but I¡¯ve talked to much~!!

 CH 82

    ¡¸First of all, you are not a personality that suddenly sprung forth from Cielmer. You are unquestionably a soul from someone who had died in another world.¡¹


    ¡¸I didn¡¯t really have any doubts about that matter though.¡¹


    ¡¸Are you sure about that? Can you truly prove that you are not just a split personality born with the memories of a completely random individual?¡¹


    ¡¸Well I certainly can¡¯t but¡­¡­¡¹


    If you¡¯re bringing that up, even if you say that the world was just made a minute ago, there¡¯d be no way to prove that too.


    As I thought that, I couldn¡¯t help but furrow my brows.


    Seeing me sulk, the Creator God chuckled again.


    ¡¸You really are no good without Cielmer, aren¡¯t you?


    Returning to the topic, wouldn¡¯t the fact that your self-perception is correct serve as an important benchmark?¡¹


    ¡¸Well, that is true. It¡¯s a lot better than being told that everything I know is a misconception at least.¡¹


    In other words, I¡¯m not a psycho under the delusion that I have memories of a Yumemura Reon.


    Or rather, I guess I should be glad that Yumemura Reon actually existed to begin with.


    ¡¸You died once and were reincarnated in this world.


    Originally, the soul of the dead is supposed to be reformatted and readjusted before being sent into the world as a completely different person.


    That¡¯s why this is actually your second time coming here, not the first. Souls right after death enter a dormant state so to speak and will not wake up until their reincarnation, so you likely don¡¯t remember it.¡¹


    ¡¸Are inter-world reincarnations unusual?¡¹


    ¡¸Not at all. Being reincarnated in the same world is common, but I frequently do it with the worlds under my jurisdiction for balance regulation since the souls are going to be reformatted either way.¡¹


    ¡¸So my reincarnation itself wasn¡¯t anything special then.¡¹


    As the Creator God said, since the souls will be reformatted and readjusted anyways, it won¡¯t matter which world they¡¯re sent.


    I suppose that means that the sort of reincarnation I¡¯ve read in stories is really just fiction.


    ¡¸The new game plus sort, right? I can¡¯t really say that it never happens.


    I¡¯ve let some reincarnate with their memories intact on a whim after all and there were times the souls of the dead woke up before reincarnating and negotiated with me.


    In general, it all depends on my mood at the time. In your case though, I honestly had no intention of doing any of these. None at all.¡¹


    From what I¡¯ve heard so far, I thought that was the case as well.


    Rather, there¡¯s literally no reason for me, who hasn¡¯t done anything remarkable in my lifetime, to be given special treatment.


    ¡¸However, I did plan on giving you sorcery-specialized talent.


    I temporarily put your sorcery parameters to maximum and was pondering on how I should go about decreasing it, you see?


    Wouldn¡¯t dealing with reincarnating souls one by one be time consuming?


    There¡¯s probably no need to speculate but she¡¯s likely dealing with multiple souls in parallel using some sort of godly power or so.


    ¡¸Something like that. I am a Supreme Deity after all.¡¹


    ¡¸Even when we¡¯re talking leisurely now, I¡¯m sure that you¡¯re constantly working behind the scenes.¡¹


    ¡¸Hahaha, revere me.¡¹


    ¡¸Even without that, I already revere gods.¡¹


    During my life, I don¡¯t remember particularly thinking about gods.


    However, I do bow my head before the shrine archway every time I go to shrines and I do at least clasp my hands together in front of the jizou statues.


    That¡¯s why with a god before me right now, I show respect.


    ¡¸Considering that, you were awfully ready to eliminate me earlier.¡¹


    ¡¸Ciel is more important after all.¡¹


    ¡¸Fufufu. Now, onto the main topic. As I was adjusting your soul, something unexpected happened.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ There was an interference from the surface?¡¹


    ¡¸Exactly. The impudent fool was trying to capture me, a god, so I let him take the soul I had at hand on a whim.


    I could¡¯ve retraced the interference and cut it at the source but in light of his efforts of reaching the divine realm while being merely mortal, I opted with that instead.¡¹


    Am I some sort of award now?


    Or rather, since he managed to reach the divine realm, will the gods be alright?


    At worst, that man¡¯s experiment might even succeed.


    ¡¸Regarding that, there¡¯s nothing to worry about. While he might have stepped into the divine realm, it¡¯s not like he can do much here.


    Ants may walk on the surface, but a single ant stands no chance against a person. It¡¯s similar to that. Though, in actuality, the hurdle completely different in comparison.¡¹


    ¡¸Anyhow, because the Creator God let me get captured, I arrived at Ciel¡¯s side, is that correct?¡¹


    ¡¸Additionally, since I haven¡¯t reformatted you yet, you still have your memories; and you¡¯re that proficient in sorcery since I¡¯ve already tampered with your sorcery-based parameters. If the timing was just a bit skewed, you probably wouldn¡¯t be as proficient as you currently are with sorcery and you might not even have any of your memories.¡¹


    ¡¸If I didn¡¯t have my memories, I likely would¡¯ve panicked inside of Ciel.¡¹


    If that had happened, I probably would¡¯ve cried every time Ciel started to cry.


    ¡¸Oh? I was expecting you to at least have some grievances against me but it seems that you don¡¯t.¡¹


    ¡¸Considering that it¡¯s thanks to this that Ciel was saved, well¡­¡­ Besides, from how it¡¯s going, you did do something for us, right?¡¹


    Now that she mentioned it, Ciel surviving through our first five years was nothing short of a miracle.


    While I did as much as I could to protect Ciel, I couldn¡¯t stop that one brutality he called mealtime.


    ¡¸To be exact, before you got taken, I embedded a part of me inside of you.


    By doing that, I am able to find your location and protect the two of you.¡¹


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    In that case, does that mean that all the effort I¡¯ve made was pointless in the end?


    That¡¯s a bit depressing. Still, while I was being miserable, the Creator God continued her exposition.


    ¡¸However, I had two miscalculations.


    The first is that a certain someone worked too hard. Before I embedded a portion of myself into you, I calculated it so that all my power will vanish by the time that you two reach 15 years of age.


    However, you worked yourself harder than I imagined. As a result of your effort, there¡¯s considerably a lot more of my power left than I first anticipated.


    Your efforts were not in vain. While you did reach your current level of proficiency with assistance from me, you¡¯ve only reached it because of your own efforts.


    These past years, you¡¯ve been researching magic and sorcery for literally 24 hours a day. People would consider that insanity. Moreover, you¡¯re always on the alert. You¡¯re practically in constant combat-ready mode.


    With more than 12 years of combat experience, your abilities are abnormal compared to other people.


    And, well, about my power, there were actually a few situations when it was used. Like the first time you used magic or that time when your Jobs were being determined. Even so, there¡¯s still a ton of it left.¡¹


    Being told that my efforts weren¡¯t in vain honestly makes me happy. Now that I think about it, regardless of our current situation, I would¡¯ve still needed to exert this much effort anyway in order to protect Ciel once we reach 15 years old.


    Also, it turns out that the magic I thought to be just accidentally activated was actually made possible with the aid of the Creator God¡¯s power.


    With that, well of course I¡¯d be able to use magic. If our Jobs were settled with her help too, then I really can¡¯t thank her enough.


    ¡¸Still, I don¡¯t feel any magic power¡­¡­ divine power? Any power of that sort.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s because it¡¯s been kept concealed. After all, a person that would cause you two problems if, by any chance, the fact that you have divine power got exposed was constantly nearby.¡¹


    Yup, he definitely was. If he had discovered it, then the moment we reach 15 years old and lose this power, we would¡¯ve been locked in instant checkmate.


    ¡¸I¡¯ll say this just to be sure but this part of me¡ªlet¡¯s just go with divine power. My divine power is embedded onto you alone. Cielmer had been protected together with you only because she is your host.


    Since it¡¯s inside of you, no matter what Cielmer does, she won¡¯t be able to feel any trace or presence of this divine power.¡¹


    ¡¸I understand.¡¹


    ¡¸Excellent. Now, despite the fact that there¡¯s much of it left, it wouldn¡¯t have been an issue as long as you gradually exhaust all of the divine power upon reaching 15 years old and beyond.


    However, this is where the second miscalculation comes in.¡¹


    ¡¸The Artificial Divine Messenger.¡¹


    ¡¸Right, that. That thing was made by the individual that took you, right? But this time he harnessed the divine power that¡¯s drifting within the world. Seriously, mankind is pretty creative.¡¹


    Considering her reaction, it seems that Duke Respelgia¡¯s activities aren¡¯t particularly out of line from the Creator God¡¯s perspective.


    As I was looking at the Creator God, she blinked in surprise before letting out a small chuckle.


    ¡¸It¡¯s not like he¡¯s done any significant damage after all. If I had to say, I¡¯m letting him roam free only because he might provide some amusement.


    On the other hand, I¡¯m not particularly attached to the individual, so I¡¯m leaving his handling to the people on the surface.¡¹


    So if we hypothetically punish Respeliga, it¡¯s not as if the Creator God will be angry about it.


    ¡¸And so, when you defeated the monster he created, you two came into contact with what you can call the atmosphere of the divine realm.


    At that moment, my divine power assimilated with you. The remaining excess, all of them.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Wait, wouldn¡¯t that turn me into a god?¡¹


    ¡¸While I call it a lot, it¡¯s still only an extremely small fragment of me, so you¡¯re just half-¡­¡­ or rather 1/10th divine?


    While it¡¯s only a miniscule amount for us, it¡¯ll turn into an extremely powerful force on the surface. Because of that, there are but a few that can break through your divine power-infused barrier.¡¹


    A barrier infused with a god¡¯s power. Well no wonder Fiiyanamia-sama would prefer not fighting against me.


    Still, that same Fiiyanamia-sama did say that she can destroy my barrier and the Creator God does know Fiiyanamia-sama well enough to refer to her with a nickname, so¡­¡­


    ¡¸I was the one that dispatched Fii after all. And the spirits too.


    Fii was sent to that world to fulfill certain duties, while the spirits were sent to maintain the world¡¯s natural balance.


    Fii is the overseer, while the spirits are the workers. There¡¯s plenty of ways to describe their roles, but I dispatched them so that the world and mankind doesn¡¯t fall apart. Though, since the spirits multiply on their own, the only spirit I actually sent in was the one called the Spirit King.¡¹


    ¡¸Would that be the reason why the spirits are attracted to me?¡¹


    ¡¸The divine power you have was originally mine after all.


    At the very least, they recognize you as someone related to me and they might even mistake you as family or a parent, so that¡¯s only natural. To answer your numerous questions regarding spirits, this is also the reason why the high spirit was concerned for you, and the reason you started seeing spirits is because of the divine power assimilation as well.


    While it was embedded onto you before the assimilation, you likely couldn¡¯t see them since the power was still under my control; after the assimilation, it was then under your control. Since the divine power turned into your own power, you could now see them.


    As for why Cielmer can seem them as well, it¡¯s because Cielmer¡¯s body changed upon coming into contact with your divine power.


    And as for why you two can only see the spirits, I suppose that¡¯s because you can¡¯t even be considered a half-baked god at this point? ¡¹


    All of my questions up until now are being answered like they¡¯re nothing.


    Yeah, there¡¯s no way I would¡¯ve figured it out by myself. It¡¯s too absurd.


    Wait, now that I think about it, everything started with Respelgia trying to make a god, so it¡¯s all just coming back to a full circle.


    ¡¸What would be my relationship with Fiiyanamia-sama and the Spirit King then?¡¹


    ¡¸Family, of sorts¡­¡­ I suppose? Fii was quite kind to you, wasn¡¯t she?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. I doubted her the whole time though.¡¹


    ¡¸Fii isn¡¯t the type to get angry for something that small, you know. And I imagine she had some understanding about your worries and concerns as well.¡¹


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    That¡¯s definitely the case. If it wasn¡¯t, she wouldn¡¯t have attempted to get close to me knowing that I¡¯m on the guard against her.


    ¡¸In summary, most of the mysterious things that happened to you were generally the result of my divine power.


    In actuality, more absurd things were supposed to happen, you know? Like staying alive despite being pierced through the heart and stuff.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s that powerful of a protection?¡¹


    ¡¸You were living in a place where that could actually happen anytime after all. Still, something like a beheading would be impossible to survive despite the protection.¡¹


    ¡¸It would be absolutely horrific if we revived from that.¡¹


    That would definitely traumatize any witnesses.


    And if that happens, we might end up becoming zombies or monsters of that sort.


    With the discussion reaching a natural pause, the Creator God was sipping on a teacup that suddenly appeared out of nowhere.


    There¡¯s also one in front of me before I even noticed, so I decided to have a sip as well.


    It was just a small sip, but the gentle aroma of the tea filled my mouth.


    It¡¯s not bitter, it¡¯s distinctly sweet.


    And as I was enjoying my drink, ¡¸Let¡¯s proceed to the next topic.¡¹ the Creator God continued our conversation


    Hiya~! Whew, a lot more exposition today, as well as some clear answers to certain events. The part with divine power being a trigger for Ain and Ciel to see spirits was easy enough to anticipate, but the exact reason why Ain is just plain popular with spirits was a bit hard to figure out, since there¡¯s just a lot of possible reasons. Also, one small detail I like about the spirits flocking to Ain and Ciel was that not much flocked to Ciel while Ain is popular with them. Why is that? After this chapter, it¡¯s simple. That¡¯s because while Ain¡¯s new divine power is like blending with Ciel, the original divine power from the Creator God, despite being assimilated with Ain, is *only* assimilated with Ain. In other words, Ain has more of the Creator¡¯s divine power (which attracts spirits) while Ciel only has Ain¡¯s divine power (which is probably somewhat similar to the Creator¡¯s since it assimilated with Ain).


    Now, one of my favourite thing about these past chapters is definitely the characterization of the Creator God (or the divine split that¡¯s talking to Ain at least). One of my biggest gripes in isekai is how gods are presented. Not in a religious ¡°That¡¯s blasphemy!¡± sense or anything, but it¡¯s the consistency between the nature of the lore god and the character main character¡¯s treatment of them. First, many of the gods in other isekai are just plain poorly conceptualised as a character. To the point where some isekai are actually better when you don¡¯t read the ¡°Meeting with the god before reincarnating¡± prologue. And some isekai just circumnavigate around this by, wouldn¡¯t you know, just not having a meeting with god. An example is Death March. Moving on, the fact that the god have either flat characters or are just made to be the butt of the joke is really really annoying. Look, if I was one of those flat character gods that are basically just office workers stamping your reincarnation passport and cheat power documents, I¡¯d just send them to the shredder if the idiot was being rude and didn¡¯t have an ounce of respect for us low level gods, letting him either just go back to where he should die or just sending him to the tundra isekai. I¡¯m damn busy and one mistake is negligible. Anyhow, another is how when the gods are shown to be mind readers, and basically omnipotent, they don¡¯t act like it. They just read the mind once to prove the point and become senile. Which could work well, but it¡¯s definitely not intentional in a lot of stories. Now what I like about the Creator God is that she doesn¡¯t bother to explain anything outside of the needed discussion. Why would she need to? Sure, she has some pity over Ain, but that¡¯s it. Like, there¡¯s just suddenly a cup of tea and she didn¡¯t even tell Ain, it¡¯s just there. She basically caused Ain five years of hell because, well, consolation prize for the little mortal¡¯s efforts. Ain¡¯s hell did save poor little Ciel though. And she fully expects Ain to be somewhat angry with her, but didn¡¯t really mince her words anyway. She has a personality, but it¡¯s not good or bad. But yeah, I guess the main point here is that writing gods as actual characters is the way to go, but a lot seem to just take some isekai god stereotype and just use it without even thinking if that god even works in that kind of story.


    Now then, to another part I¡¯d like to give my opinion on: how the god¡¯s divine power protects the two of them. As I mentioned above, the Creator God doesn¡¯t explain any further than necessary, so the exact effects of her protection is pretty vague. All that I can tell is that 1) It can protect Ciel from lethal and life threatening danger as long as it¡¯s not an instant kill and 2) It only keeps the two of them alive PHYSICALLY. Because if it was just almighty, Ciel and Ain wouldn¡¯t have all the mental scars they have right now. While it might be able to save Ciel form dying due to a psychological shock just causing her heart to fail because of the trauma of being practically disemboweled everyday, it doesn¡¯t remove the trauma get as both Ain and Ciel have issues. Like how Ain is, as the Creator God says, no good without Ciel and how Ciel basically turned into an empty husk for the few hours she was separated from Ain at the start. Also, the protection really depended on Ain and Ciel to escape, it would¡¯ve been useless otherwise since once it disappears, Respelgia can do whatever he wants. If it was only Ain, she would¡¯ve just given up on life from the beginning, if it was only Ciel, she would¡¯ve just turned into an empty doll ready to be manipulated by Respelgia as she really had nothing but torture and instructions to follow. Really, the protection is only of use if they had decided to escape, and they wouldn¡¯t have if they were alone. Ain wanted to go out to give Ciel a chance in actually living a life, while Ciel just wants to be with Ain. As the Creator God said, Ain¡¯s struggle was not in vain. Divine Protection sounds OP, but it was nothing without the two of them keeping each other mentally intact and motivated to take on the world. As usual, it¡¯s just my opinion. Still, I really wonder what mysterious shenanigans the divine power would¡¯ve caused if Ain instead chose to either focus on offence or be a well rounded mage, lol.

 CH 83

    ¡¸About what will happen to Ciel and I in the future, isn¡¯t it?¡¹


    ¡¸Yup, exactly that. Intriguing, right?¡¹


    ¡¸You did say that I¡¯m one tenth divine now after all. Will there be duties or obligations of any sort?¡¹


    Before anything, I have to ask about this first.


    It¡¯ll be troublesome if we¡¯re suddenly told that we need to do this and that as a god.


    Besides, if possible, I¡¯d rather decline godly duties if it would end up involving Ciel considering that only been alive for 12 years so far.


    ¡¸None in particular, actually. It isn¡¯t like you¡¯re officially a god after all. I also haven¡¯t commanded you to do anything yet.


    It¡¯s more of a reward for you this time. You earned this power, use it as you please. Though, if you plan on destroying the world, I¡¯ll have to ask Fii to stop you.¡¹


    ¡¸Destroy the world¡­ Is that possible for me?¡¹


    ¡¸Hmm, can you dig away at the ground with a shovel?¡¹


    ¡¸Can a shovel even destroy the world? Even if I borrow Ciel¡¯s body, shoveling continuously would be impossible for me, don¡¯t you think?¡¹


    While it¡¯s not like I can¡¯t use physical reinforcement, it still wouldn¡¯t add to my offensive capability when I use it.


    I can run faster, move longer, and jump higher, but only my offensive ability would see no change.


    With it being this thorough, I¡¯ve frankly given up on everything concerning offense.


    Not even the Song Princess¡¯ power can do anything about it.


    ¡¸It certainly is. As you are right now, even if you spend your whole life digging, it¡¯d be the end as soon as you reach a layer you can¡¯t desytro.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. My offensive abilities are weak after all.¡¹


    ¡¸If you had gone full offensive instead, Fii would¡¯ve had to take action as soon as you became 5 years old.¡¹


    ¡¸So that¡¯s what Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s duties are.¡¹


    ¡¸A part of it, to be exact. Still, you two don¡¯t particularly have any of that sort.


    Now, let¡¯s have a serious discussion.¡¹


    The Creator God, who was joking around up until now, quickly changed to a serious expression.


    ¡¸Regarding your circumstances, at this rate, you¡¯ll gradually draw closer to godhood.


    And eventually, you¡¯ll become a god.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ I¡¯ll really become a god?¡¹


    ¡¸100% become a god.¡¹


    ¡¸Didn¡¯t you say that this will be a serious discussion?¡¹


    The Creator God chuckled with elegance. Like I¡¯d let you just laugh it off.


    No, I guess I should just leave it be. She¡¯s a Supreme Deity, there¡¯s no point going against her right now.


    ¡¸You see, the assimilated divine power appears to be steadily encroaching your magic power.


    That¡¯s why if left be, your magic power will be replaced solely by divine power and you¡¯ll become a god.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s like a cancer cell.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s quite a way to describe such a sacred power.


    Well, as I said earlier, the conversion is currently at about 10%. Beyond 50%, you¡¯ll be at this side.


    The encroachment rate, if nothing else happens, will be about 1% a year for now, I suppose. There are proper ordeals of sorts that you need to pass to be recognized as a god, but that doesn¡¯t really have to be explained right now.¡¹


    In other words, if nothing else happens, I¡¯ll only stay human for forty more years?


    Honestly, even after hearing that, it doesn¡¯t feel real. To begin with, it¡¯s already doubtful if I¡¯m even human as is and the only impression it¡¯s leaving me is that¡­ is my defensive ability going to be even stronger again?


    ¡¸You likely don¡¯t even have 40 years. The encroachment rate is going to increase the more you use divine power after all, as well as when your total divine power increases.


    You likely have about 10 years until you become half-divine. Depending on how frequently you use divine power, you¡¯ll have even less time.


    Additionally, stopping the deification is impossible. Once you become a full god, you¡¯ll probably be given some duties, but there¡¯s still a long way to go before that happens.


    I¡¯ll say it in advance, but even after becoming a god, you likely won¡¯t be capable of using your divine power for offensive combat.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s quite thorough.¡¹


    ¡¸You earned your power thanks to that after all. Already having enough control over divine power to the point of integrating it into barriers? A newborn god would cry hearing that, you know?¡¹


    While it is true that integrating it into a barrier was difficult, is it really difficult enough to mention?


    As I thought that, the Creator God looked at me in disbelief.


    ¡¸I already told you, didn¡¯t I? It¡¯s too strong. I believe Fii told you that as well.¡¹


    ¡¸I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d be skewed even compared to other gods.¡¹


    ¡¸Newborn gods have a tendency to be overwhelmed by their great power.


    Becoming accustomed due to starting with a small amount of divine power and having been restricted through magic before shifting from magic power manipulation; there were various factors at play, but regarding your control over divine power, you should be at the level of a lesser god.¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t know about the hierarchy.¡¹


    ¡¸The newborn gods are apprentices. After them are the lesser, intermediate, advanced, and high gods before, lastly, the Supreme God.


    Though once you become a god, you¡¯ll be exempted from apprenticeship. Hooray to you.¡¹


    I have no idea if I should be happy about that.


    To begin with, can you really call a defense-only god a proper god?


    ¡¸Based on their respective idiosyncrasies, gods display distinct strengths and weaknesses. With your weakness being so emphasized, your strengths will probably be astounding. Compared to those at the same hierarchy that is.¡¹


    ¡¸This should be enough about me, so please tell me what¡¯s going to happen to Ciel as I become more of a god.¡¹


    ¡¸Alright, alright.¡¹


    As expected, the Creator God showed a dissatisfied look.


    ¡¸Just as how she began seeing spirits through your influence, the more you draw closer to godhood from now on, the more her body and soul will display changes.


    Specifically, when you go past 50%, she¡¯ll become unaging. From there, she¡¯ll eventually no longer need food, sleep, and it¡¯ll become extremely difficult for her to die.


    Her soul will also be affected and she¡¯ll eventually join us in godhood as well.¡¹


    ¡¸Isn¡¯t becoming a god a bit too easy?¡¹


    ¡¸You assimilated a part of the Supreme God, you know?


    If I tell you that you¡¯re the first case of this ever happening, can you still say that it¡¯s too easy?¡¹


    Now that she said it like that, it probably isn¡¯t as easy as I thought.


    It seems that at this rate, both Ciel and I are going to turn into gods.


    I should probably ask for Ciel¡¯s decision on this matter.


    ¡¸Incidentally, would the magic I¡¯ve prepared function properly?¡¹


    ¡¸That ridiculous thing, correct? Since the conditions are satisfied, it¡¯ll work. At the very least, it will exhibit the bare minimum effects you require of it.


    Still, it¡¯ll be unusable if the conditions are no longer achievable, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸As long as it¡¯s usable. It was something I started from a sudden thought, so I wasn¡¯t sure if it would be actually usable, you see?¡¹


    ¡¸Considering that, I can¡¯t believe you still did it.¡¹


    ¡¸I did it just to be sure.¡¹


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    If it doesn¡¯t work, then I only need to find another method.


    Come to think of it, even if my deification can¡¯t be halted, can Ciel¡¯s deification be?


    ¡¸It can be, but only if you disappear.¡¹


    ¡¸I thought so.¡¹


    ¡¸Moreover, it¡¯s irreversible, so be careful.¡¹


    ¡¸So even if I hypothetically disappear right now, Ciel will still be able to see spirits?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. Due to that, if you want to keep Ciel human, then you¡¯ll have to vanish before reaching 50%.¡¹


    Vanish, huh. If Ciel wishes to remain human, then I won¡¯t hesitate but¡­ as expected, it¡¯s a bit scary.


    If it was immediately after I was sent into this world, then I likely would have done so without any hesitation, but it seems that I¡¯ve been together with Ciel for too long.


    Still, I don¡¯t particularly want to be a god and I don¡¯t plan on dragging Ciel into things she doesn¡¯t wish for.


    ¡¸How much do I need before being able to talk to spirits?¡¹


    For some reason, it feels like she¡¯s concerned about me.


    As though she¡¯s talking to a troublesome child, the Creator God let out a sigh.


    ¡¸You are, in a sense, my child after all. It¡¯s normal to give some special treatment.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you very much. If possible, please give Ciel some special treatment too.¡¹


    ¡¸Fufufu, no.¡¹


    ¡¸I know that I¡¯m the main person involved in this god business. Still, Ciel also got involved in this trouble, so couldn¡¯t you do something for her too?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s close enough but Cielmer survived only because I sent you to her, so I can¡¯t agree to that.¡¹


    ¡¸Please, mom.¡¹


    It looks childish anyway, so I put all my heart into pleading.


    Regardless of me being a former man, I currently look similar to Ciel. I¡¯ll do anything for this, puppy eyes and all.


    There¡¯s even an expression saying: ask for those already off their seats, even if it¡¯s your own parents.


    ¡¸That¡¯s not exactly how you use that expression, you know?


    ¡­¡­ Haa. Well, alright then. I¡¯ll hear only one of Ciel¡¯s requests.


    Still, there¡¯s a limit to what I can do. If I, the Supreme God, carelessly use my power, there¡¯s a risk of it having a great impact on the surface. Although I can already imagine what she¡¯ll desire.¡¹


    ¡¸Of course, thank you very much.¡¹


    The privilege of being able to make one wish to the Creator God. Won¡¯t hurt to have it.


    ¡¸Additionally, let me correct one thing, I do favour mankind¡­¡­ or rather intelligent lifeforms in general.


    The people of this world are given Jobs after all.¡¹


    ¡¸Come to think of it, that is true. Is there a reason in particular?¡¹


    ¡¸Intelligent lifeforms are one of the benchmarks in world creation, you see.


    Part of it is that, since they can understand our will and act in accordance to it, gods would have the urge to mess with them¡­¡­ though at the same time, those that disregard our will, despite understanding it, always appear as well.¡¹


    ¡¸So there are those types of people here too¡­¡­ Well, there is one that¡¯s quite obvious.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m not particularly bothered by it, but one of the gods has been sulking about this, you see?


    I¡¯ve already forgotten how long it¡¯s been since that god¡¯s started sulking but you be careful, alright?¡¹


    Is that a situation we need to be wary of going to happen in the future? It might just be a possibility, but I¡¯d rather we not get involved with that.


    If we do, I¡¯d prefer that we get involved before turning 15. The Creator God might help us out after all.


    Still, from a god¡¯s perspective, ¡°just a moment¡± might be about a few decades and that¡¯s scary.


    ¡¸That happens pretty frequently. Again, be careful, alright? There are even some gods that just absentmindedly stare at nothing without noticing that several centuries has passed.¡¹


    ¡¸Do you have any personal experience with that?¡¹


    ¡¸My real body is still spacing out at this very moment. A countless number of divine splits are actively working though.


    If you¡¯re asking about the me here, then not really.¡¹


    As the Creator God said so, ¡¸Well then.¡¹ she ended that topic.


    ¡¸This ends our discussion, any more questions?¡¹


    ¡¸Not that I can think of.¡¹


    ¡¸Regarding Cielmer¡¯s request, if you contact me at Fii¡¯s place, I¡¯ll hand down an oracle.¡¹


    ¡¸Oracles come there pretty easily after all.¡¹


    ¡¸You should be more conscious of your own status. Or perhaps I should say being too humble can also come off as condescending, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ll make sure to bear that in mind.¡¹


    ¡¸Now then, about three days has passed on the surface, so good luck.¡¹


    Waving goodbye, the Creator God bid me farewell, but please wait a minute.


    Three days? I¡¯ve left Ciel alone for three days?


    That time when I lost consciousness for a whole day, Ciel was already in tatters. With three days gone past, is Ciel going to be alright?


    Hiya~! It appears that Ain is finally coming back home but in a weird twist of fate, it¡¯s been three days since she fell asleep?!?!


    Before anything, there¡¯s another few interesting translation kinks in this chapter. First would be Ain¡¯s very cute ¡°Please mom~¡± pleading to the Creator God which is, first of all, adorable, lol. The interesting thing about it is the use of ruby characters here, as ruby characters usually do. Here, the ruby characters convey that Ain is saying ¡°Ka-sama¡± here, which is a somewhat semiformal way of saying mother. It¡¯s not completely formal, since that would be ¡°Oka-sama¡± with the ¡°O¡± making the difference. If you consume any Japanese medium, you may notice how some nouns have ¡°O¡± before them. Otou-sama, Onii-sama, Onee-sama, Ofukuro-san (which refers to someone¡¯s wife btw), Oyome-san (bride), Osamurai-san. The ¡°O¡± here adds respect here. Anyone currently watching One Piece may notice due to Wano being heavily Japanese (and maybe the Demon Slayer watchers too, I haven¡¯t watched it yet). Though some children do add ¡°O¡± to random stuff, which is cute. Anyhow, while Ain is being like ¡°Mom~¡± here, the kanji actually says ¡°Áxĸ˜”¡±, meaning mother-in-law or step-mother. Which is a bit funny, because the Creator God did just sort of adopt her randomly.


    As for the second interesting translation kink, it¡¯s the saying that I directly translated: Ask for those already off their seats, even if it¡¯s your own parents. I actually considered using a western equivalent to it: Needs make the old wife trot; which isn¡¯t exactly the same. The translation I read: Make use of anybody who is at hand; while being correct and being fitting of the situation, doesn¡¯t exactly translate the ¡°parent¡± part that Ain is trying to relate here as well, so that resulted to my final choice. Still, being the youngest child who¡¯s always first to get off the dinner table and ends up being asked to get just about anything, from toothpicks to a pitcher of water, this saying is just plain relatable, lol.


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    Now, to the meat of the chapter, it¡¯s been 3 days. Ciel has been left alone for 3 days. Well then. Anyhow, going back a bit, Ciel seems to be on the way to godhood along with Ain, and while they don¡¯t have any god duties so far since they aren¡¯t actually officially gods (and aren¡¯t even completely gods yet), the fact that it could change in the future is a bit interesting. Ciel also has the right to ask for one thing from the Creator God, which is quite something to look forward to. We also got more confirmation that Ain is practically a call in Fii-level threat if she had gone offensive build instead, which also gives an idea of what Fii¡¯s duties are. She¡¯s basically like a server moderator from how it sounds, only that the server is actually a whole world, and the chat are just mankind in general. Also, Respelgia *isn¡¯t* considered a world ending threat, since Fii would be called to intervene on his shenanigans if that was the case. Also! It¡¯s possible for them to talk and maybe even touch the spirits in the future, yay~!

 CH 84

    ¡¸It¡¯s delicious, it¡¯s so delicious! So black tea can taste different depending on the variety.


    Although I can¡¯t tell which is better¡­¡­ It¡¯s so fun!¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, yes. I¡¯m glad you enjoy them. As for which one you like best, we¡¯ll have plenty of time to learn it from now on.¡¹


    As I opened (?) my eyes, I overheard this exchange.


    The first voice was Ciel¡¯s and the other one was Fiiyanamia-sama¡®s.


    It seems like they¡¯re having an awfully enjoyable conversation.


    It felt like my head was hit with a hammer.


    I felt dizzy, like my head was swaying back and forth.


    The two of them became very close while I was gone.


    After all, Ciel is talking normally right now.


    Up until now, Ciel would only talk normally with me. That¡¯s why I¡¯m sure that Ciel has great trust in Fiiyanamia-sama.


    Seeing Ciel being able to talk to someone other than me, I should be happy, I should be proud, and yet I can¡¯t even tell her that I¡¯m awake now, much less congratulate her for it.


    Ciel repeating her words twice is proof that she¡¯s extremely pleased.


    Then Fiiyanamia-sama won over Ciel in just three days?


    Murky emotions are welling up from within me.


    I¡¯m glad that I don¡¯t have a body. Otherwise, I would¡¯ve been trembling right now.


    Every time Ciel makes a happy, delighted look in front of Fiiyanamia-sama, it stirs up my emotions.


    Wouldn¡¯t it be fine if I stay hidden and just silently disappear?


    Wouldn¡¯t it be better for me to just use the Ainsel¡¯s magic right now?


    Aren¡¯t I and this ugliness of mine unsuitable to be with Ciel?


    No matter how much I reject these thoughts, my emotions remain murky as before.


    I¡¯m sure that what I¡¯m feeling right now is jealousy.


    I¡¯m jealous of Fiiyanamia-sama. I¡¯m irritated with Ciel for having so much fun with Fiiyanamia-sama.


    Disgusting, disgusting, disgusting.


    My thoughts, my emotions, are heading toward a negative direction.


    I¡¯m sure that if I speak right now, I wouldn¡¯t be able to stop my emotions from running my mouth.


    I don¡¯t know what I could say. I can¡¯t trust myself with speaking.


    Before I noticed it, the two of them had finished their tea time and I was left stunned at how I was so upset that I remember absolutely nothing from their conversation.


    ¡ó


    Ciel returned to the room we were given. As she muttered ¡¸Are you still out Ain?¡¹ while lying on the bed, I finally got the chance to reveal my presence.


    ¡ºUmm, good morning, Ciel.¡»


    ¡¸Ain! It¡¯s you, right Ain? Good morning, Ain.¡¹


    While I feel glad to hear her repeatedly call my name with delight, what happened earlier is still on my mind, so I honestly can¡¯t feel happy.


    ¡ºUmm, Ciel. Were you alright?¡»


    She¡¯s already calling Fiiyanamia-sama by nickname. So that could mean, she let Fiiyanamia-sama call her Ciel?


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    Somehow, that¡¯s¡­¡­ yeah.


    No, this is bad. The cynicism I¡¯m hiding is going to slip out of my lips.


    ¡¸Oh, so you knew, Ain? Did you see us?¡¹


    ¡ºYes, I saw. It seemed like you were really enjoying yourself.¡»


    ¡¸That¡¯s right, that¡¯s true. You see, Fii was-¡¹


    ¡ºOf course it would have been enjoyable!


    Rather than some vague unknown being like me, some former male from a different world, talking with a female born in this world like Fiiyanamia-sama must have been more enjoyable, right!?¡»


    I¡¯ve said it now. And I yelled at Ciel.


    Ciel would hate me if I said these.


    So to avoid that from happening, I¡¯ve always kept these to myself.


    I¡¯m sure that Ciel would be disgusted with me. After all, I¡¯m male like Duke Respelgia.


    I¡¯m sure that Ciel would find me unsettling. After all, I¡¯m not someone from this world.


    Still, I would eventually need to tell her this.


    I intended to tell her this once we reached a safe place.


    This mansion where Fiiyanamia-sama resides is probably the safest place in the world, so timing aside, this might be the best place for it.


    Thinking that, I resigned myself. Just as how children eventually need to be independent from their parents, Ciel would eventually need to become independent herself.


    It¡¯s just that this time is now, I¡¯m sure of it. Although it¡¯s more like I just pulled a trigger.


    In that case, then I¡¯m glad that Ciel is going to hate me because if she does hate me, she likely wouldn¡¯t be sad for what would happen next.


    ¡¸Fufufu, I see. I see. Then, what Fii said was true, perhaps?¡¹


    ¡ºUmm, Ciel?¡»


    Ciel was surprised but suddenly broke into a giggle, so I reflexively called her.


    ¡¸Fii told me, you see? That if I got along well with Fii, Ain might get angry.


    I told her that Ain wouldn¡¯t get angry from that but she said that Ain will get jealous since I¡¯m important to you.


    Jealousy isn¡¯t really a good emotion so I¡¯m sorry, Ain, but I¡¯m really glad that you got jealous. After all, it¡¯s proof that I¡¯m really important to Ain.


    Still, being so happy about this, I might be a bad girl.¡¹


    ¡ºI¡¯m¡­¡­ originally a man, you know?¡»


    ¡¸I¡¯ve always had a hunch.


    And so, what about it then?¡¹


    ¡ºSo what¡­¡­¡»


    What I¡¯ve been worried about for such a long time was accepted that easily.


    Rather, she knew it from the very beginning?


    ¡¸Ain, you seem to have a small misunderstanding but actually I¡¯m not particularly bad with men, you know?¡¹


    ¡º¡­¡­ You aren¡¯t?¡»


    ¡¸I¡¯m also bad with men but I¡¯m bad with people in general, you know?


    If I were to differentiate between people, I¡¯d first divide it into Ain and other people. Ain is the most important, you see?¡¹


    With that sudden bombshell, my brain stopped. I was absolutely ready to disappear but now? Not anymore.


    Rather, I was faced with straightforward affection and it¡¯s making me feel restless in a different sense.


    ¡¸Besides, even if the old Ain was different, Ain right now is a girl, right? You¡¯re a Song Princess after all.¡¹


    ¡ºUmm, yes. It seems so.¡»


    ¡¸Then there¡¯s no problem, right?¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s¡­¡­ is it?¡»


    ¡¸There¡¯s no problem, is there?¡¹


    ¡ºYes.¡»


    Feeling a strange intensity from her, all I could do was nod.


    ¡ºStill, I wasn¡¯t a person from this world, you know?¡»


    ¡¸And is there a problem with that? Or rather, I also had a hunch that that was the case.¡¹


    ¡º¡­¡­ This too?¡»


    ¡¸There are several reasons but the language ¡°Cielmer¡± came from¡­ ¡°Ferentch¡±, was it?


    I¡¯ve never heard any country with a language like that.¡¹


    How careless. If I had already slipped up from that long ago, then I have probably slipped up even more after that.


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    ¡¸That¡¯s why, Ain. Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m no good without you.


    Without Ain, I¡¯m always so anxious and uneasy.


    And I¡¯m sure that this will never change in the future.


    That¡¯s why, Ain. Stay with me forever.


    If you disappear, I¡¯ll search for you until I die, you know?¡¹


    ¡º¡­¡­. Yes. I understand.¡»


    Perhaps relieved, if not convinced, with my reply, Ciel rang a bell before lying back down on the bed and falling asleep.


    Although it somehow feels like Ciel just ditched me right now, I do feel somewhat exhausted as well.


    ¡ó


    As Ciel fell asleep and I was pondering on what to do, I immediately heard knocking from the door.


    It must be Fiiyanamia-sama but I¡¯m somewhat reluctant to talk to her with my feelings being complicated right now.


    Although with that said, I can¡¯t just ignore her either.


    After all, this is Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s home.


    ¡¸Do you have time?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. It¡¯s fine right now.¡¹


    Before I could leave the bed to open the door, Fiiyanamia-sama entered the room.


    With her looks the same as before, it made me think that I¡¯ve really kept on meeting pretty people ever since I came to this world but come to think of it, I guess I¡¯m also one of those pretty people too now. I look like Ciel after all.


    ¡¸It¡¯s fine, sit down.¡¹


    ¡¸Umm, how may I help today?¡¹


    ¡¸Ciel-chan asked me a favor.¡¹


    I feel an ache in my chest.


    Hiding this, I ask about it.


    ¡¸A favor?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, yes. That¡¯s why, could you drink this cup of black tea?¡¹


    ¡¸Black tea?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, would you mind?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Understood.¡¹


    It¡¯s extremely suspicious. Rather, it¡¯s nothing but suspicious. Though, since it¡¯s a request, I can¡¯t just decline.


    Taking the cup she¡¯s handing me, I drank the black tea which had a beautiful hue in a single gulp.


    I waited for a moment to see if it had any side effects but since nothing happened in particular, I decided to ask what exactly this tea is.


    ¡¸Don¡¯t take Ciel, please, don¡¯t take Ciel away from me¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡­¡­!?


    That¡­ I had no intention to say that. I just wanted to ask what the tea was about.


    As I was surprised, Fiiyanamia-sama wipes my cheeks with a handkerchief.


    Tears? I¡¯m crying right now?


    ¡¸I know, I know. It¡¯s shocking, isn¡¯t it? What you just drank is¡­ a truth serum of sorts, I suppose.


    It draws out the thoughts you¡¯ve kept under wraps.¡¹


    ¡¸Why¡­ why? I¡¯m not strong, I have to be strong.


    It¡¯s so hard, I want to stop but, but I can¡¯t say this!¡¹


    Because if I put it into words, Ciel is going to be worried.


    I have to protect Ciel but it¡¯ll be meaningless if she¡¯s concerned.


    But, it was really hard. It was grueling; there were even times when I¡¯ve thought of giving up.


    Again and again and again people wanted us dead. I¡¯ve never even felt killing intent in my whole life up until then. I thought I was dead just from that.


    It was scary, just terrifying.


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    And noticing myself gradually changing was terrifying too.


    ¡¸No, no. You can let it out. It was tough, wasn¡¯t it? After all, you were so pressed that it wouldn¡¯t have been strange for you to break down any moment.


    If you hadn¡¯t, you wouldn¡¯t have been able to protect Ciel-chan, right? You always think about Ciel more than you do of yourself, don¡¯t you?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s fine, it was all fine. No matter how tough and scary it was. Because Ciel was with me then. So please, please don¡¯t take Ciel away.¡¹


    ¡¸Of course, don¡¯t worry. No one is going to take Ciel-chan away from you. That¡¯s impossible to begin with.


    Still, the timing was terrible, wasn¡¯t it? It must have seemed like I was going to do so.¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t want to be separated from Ciel. But I¡¯ll need to someday. It won¡¯t be good for us to be together forever.


    I need to disappear for Ciel.¡¹


    Because I¡¯m sure that that day will come. I can¡¯t be selfish. If I say something selfish, it¡¯ll only trouble Ciel.


    ¡¸No, no. You don¡¯t have to disappear. Nobody wants that.¡¹


    ¡¸But, but, Ciel shouldn¡¯t become dependent on me. Right?¡¹


    ¡¸Isn¡¯t that fine? After all, whether you like it or not, the two of you can¡¯t be separated from each other.


    Besides, isn¡¯t it fine as long as the two of you are happy?¡¹


    ¡¸Really?¡¹


    Is it really? I don¡¯t think both of us can be happy unless we can be independent from each other.


    Is it different for us?


    Or is that just how outsiders see codependency, while the people in question are actually happy?


    ¡¸But even without me, Ciel can¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸You see, the reason I¡¯ve gotten close with Ciel-chan is because we were talking about you.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­..?¡¹


    ¡¸That shows just how important you are to Ciel-chan.


    After all, she nearly closed heart to everything after only one day without you. That¡¯s why I had to somehow get close to her, Ciel-chan could have broken down otherwise.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Is that¡­ so.¡¹


    ¡¸My my, are you done letting your feelings out?¡¹


    ¡¸Forgive me for the shameful display.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s fine. You¡¯ve heard from the Creator God, didn¡¯t you? We¡¯re like a family of sorts after all.


    Rely on me anytime, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you very much.¡¹


    ¡¸Have a good rest.¡¹ After Fiiyanamia-sama said so with a smile, she left the room.


    Hiya~! Today¡¯s chapter is just, Just Relax and Unwind for once Ain: the Chapter~! Borrowing the actual words of the author: ¡°This chapter Ain is somewhat delirious. Be warned.¡± lol. Also, I haven¡¯t had the chance to reply to the comments lately but I do read them all. I really need to reply again¡­


    First of all, Ain once again in a negative spiral, which last happened I think during the Tolt dolt incident? Though that was minor, The last major one is the most memorable one after all, the one right after the Rispelgia incident. Really, the stress on Ain is really heavy, since as I might have repeated, she has knowledge and memories of what ¡°normal¡± should be and it¡¯s extremely stressing for her to see Ciel being deprived of that ever since she was born. It¡¯s made more obvious here (and of course in the Ciel interludes), as you can practically see the difference in Ain¡¯s expectation of a ¡°normal¡± reaction to her weirdness and Ciel¡¯s actual reaction and lack of concern to what Ain sees as ¡°normally weird¡±.


    Also, Ain is really, really focused on ¡°disappearing¡± for some reason. Ominously so. Like it¡¯s actually possible.


    Anyhow, what makes this chapter really exciting for me is actually everyone¡¯s reaction from the last main story chapter. Everyone¡¯s so worried about Ciel and rightfully so, but what about Ain? Hehehe. While Ain is practically expected to be the more ¡°mature¡± and calmer one, honestly, Ain¡¯s as fragile, if not more, than Ciel. Ciel¡¯s a tough girl to be honest and her environment has a lot to do with that. She was born into a tough environment, which resulted to her being tough (with Ain¡¯s presence being a strong emotional support of course). Ain of the other hand? She¡¯s born in a normal household, died, woke up in an approximation of hell on earth, gave up in life, noticed that there¡¯s an actual innocent baby that¡¯s going to be living in this hell which enraged her greatly, causing her to want to protect her, failed protecting her the time she needed it the most *and* failed to be there when she needed moral and emotional support. Ciel saw this life as ¡°normal¡± which is by no means good, but it does skew her perception of life and makes her enjoy the most of things. Remember, Ain was the one who cried the first time they tasted real food, not Ciel. She¡¯s put pressure on herself to give Ciel a ¡°normal¡± life, or at least protect her until she can get one. I¡¯m probably repeating myself at this point.


    On the last part, Fiiyanamia has really been upping her resident mom levels, it seems. Despite how fine Ciel is, it seems like Ciel was doing so badly within these three days that Fiiyanamia took matters in her own hands. Also, they¡¯re on nickname basis now, that was some quick action on that regard. That would¡¯ve been interesting to see what actually happened. Who knows, maybe we¡¯ll get an interlude for that sometime soon. *wink, wink.

 CH 85

    The sun is up. It seems like I fell asleep again.


    Last night, if I remember correctly, Fiiyanamia-sama drugged me, which made me speak out about some stuff.


    While I do feel somewhat refreshed thanks to that, the fact that I¡¯ll have to see Fiiyanamia-sama again today is already making me feel embarrassed.


    Despite it being due to the drug, yesterday was such a shameful display.


    Still, Fiiyanamia-sama called us family.


    Then it should be alright? Maybe it is, maybe not? Waking up just a while ago, my mind is still somewhat fuzzy.


    ¡¸Morning Ain.¡¹


    ¡ºGood morning Ciel.¡»


    And as Ciel called out to me, I reflexively greeted in reply.


    I always reply when I hear her voice, although sometimes when I get too occupied with something, it just passes through my ears and I don¡¯t reply.


    Rather, I think I always greet Ciel first in the morning.


    This time though, maybe because I fell asleep, Ciel was the one that greeted me first.


    In any case, it¡¯s nothing more than a casual exchange.


    However today¡¯s Ciel seems extremely happy for some reason,


    ¡¸That¡¯s right, fufu, good morning.¡¹ and replied with so.


    Seeing her delight, the spirits approached her and flew around and around her.


    ¡ºYou seem to be quite happy.¡»


    ¡¸I mean, Ain is here after all. Up until yesterday, there wouldn¡¯t be any reply no matter how much I give greetings, you know?¡¹


    ¡ºUhh, that¡¯s-¡­..¡»


    Perhaps due to being at the Creator God¡¯s place, I don¡¯t really feel like a lot of time has passed but I¡¯ve actually been out for three days.


    During those days, I couldn¡¯t greet Ciel and, naturally, I couldn¡¯t greet her back.


    Yesterday, Fiiyanamia-sama said that Ciel nearly closed her heart after only one day. That might not have been an exaggeration.


    It makes me feel extremely guilty and, at the same time, afraid of discussing with Ciel what will happen to us from here on out. After all, Ciel might have to make a difficult choice.


    ¡¸But you know, it¡¯s fine. After all, it seems like you¡¯re feeling better now, Ain.¡¹


    Come to think of it, Fiiyanamia-sama also said that Ciel asked her a favor.


    To be honest, I couldn¡¯t really tell just how much pressure I was putting myself under, but considering the fact that it feels like a heavy weight was lifted off my chest after what happened yesterday, it might have actually been dangerous.


    And understanding that, I guess Ciel asked Fiiyanamia-sama for help.


    If it was Ciel in the past, it would¡¯ve been unlikely for her to do so. I already know that Ciel wants to do something for me, so I suppose this was the perfect opportunity for that.


    However, I think that I¡¯ve never whined about anything in front of Ciel. And for argument¡¯s sake, even if I was drugged and was made to talk, I likely wouldn¡¯t have awoken feeling this refreshed right now if it was Ciel instead.


    I¡¯m sure that if it was Ciel there that heard what I said yesterday, she would have been stumped with how to reply.


    At the very least, if I was at Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s position, I don¡¯t know if I can end things as smoothly as she did.


    Ciel likely realized that herself, which led her to request this.


    This fact makes me feel somewhat lonely but also touched to see Ciel¡¯s growth.


    At this point, I would never doubt the fact that Ciel really cherishes me.


    After all, she just casually accepted me being formerly male and coming from a different world.


    ¡ºThank you.¡»


    Hearing my words of gratitude which were unintentionally filled with various different emotions, Ciel showed a somewhat lonely expression.


    ¡¸I¡¯m sorry. No, thank you, Ain.¡¹


    Of the emotions filling her reply, how much do I understand?


    I have no idea. But since it would be rude to ask about it, I kept this question to myself.


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    ¡ó


    A short while after, we were called for breakfast, but it feels really awkward to see Fiiyanamia-sama face to face.


    While I am in a sense of being hidden within Ciel, Fiiyanamia-sama knows of my existence.


    Called by a maid, we were led to a place that looks like a dining room for nobles.


    A table that could accommodate a dozen or so people and a wide open space.


    Eating in this room were only Ciel and Fiiyanamia-sama, no one else.


    It seems like they¡¯ve already used this place several times before as Ciel sat on one of the several chairs available without any hesitation.


    ¡¸Uh-hm. You two really came.¡¹


    ¡¸Fii, morning.¡¹


    ¡¸Right, good morning Ciel.¡¹


    Ciel greeted Fiiyanamia-sama with a smile.


    Yesterday just a simple exchange like this would rip into my heart, but not today. Instead, I¡¯m quite happy that Ciel has found someone other than me who she can converse with and open her heart to. We can¡¯t talk to spirits yet after all.


    However, I hope you¡¯d forgive me for feeling somewhat lonely.


    ¡¸Is Ainsel-chan doing well?¡¹


    ¡ºThanks to you.¡»


    ¡¸Thanks to you, she said.


    Thank you for yesterday Fii.¡¹


    ¡¸No, no. Don¡¯t mention it. Rather, it had some perks to it you see.¡¹


    Fiiyanamia-sama made a small gap between her thumb and index finger to tease Ciel.


    Please stop it. Stop it with this topic already, please.


    ¡¸What is it, what is it? So something happened between you and Ain?¡¹


    ¡¸My my, ufufu. It¡¯s a secret.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s unfair, so unfair!¡¹


    Seeing how Ciel seems to be enjoying the exchange, it doesn¡¯t seem like she actually wants to get it out of Fiiyanamia-sama.


    The two of them probably understand that I don¡¯t want Ciel to hear anything about what I said yesterday.


    That¡¯s why this is just banter. While I¡¯m fine with Ciel enjoying herself, hearing them talk about it is just¡­¡­ embarrassing.


    ¡ºU-um, why don¡¯t we eat breakfast first? Look, it seems awfully delicious.¡»


    That¡¯s why I shifted the topic to breakfast.


    I¡¯m sure that Ciel should pay attention to it. After all, when all¡¯s said and done, she does love eating.


    As I expected, ¡¸Alright.¡¹ Ciel agreed but after this, she let out a chuckle.


    ¡¸I might not know what happened between Fii and Ain yesterday, but you don¡¯t know how Ain is right now. So it doesn¡¯t bother me.¡¹


    ¡¸My my. Well then, it¡¯s time to eat.¡¹


    After that unexpected exchange, breakfast began.


    There¡¯s bread, soup, and salad. They¡¯re simple dishes, but all of them appear to be prepared with high quality ingredients and are extremely delicious.


    It¡¯s been a long time since I had a meal like this, so I was completely captivated by the taste but as this happened ¡¸By the way, by the way¡¹ Fiiyanamia-sama spoke to Ciel.


    ¡¸Do you have any plans for the day? Since Ainsel-chan is back now, would you like to go outside?¡¹


    ¡¸Ain, do you have something you want to do?¡¹


    ¡ºUmm, there¡¯s something I have to discuss with you about, so could you spare some free time?¡»


    ¡¸Ain seems to have something to talk with me about.¡¹


    ¡¸Knowing what the Supreme God discussed with Ainsel-chan is important after all.


    I understand. Until you two finish discussing, I¡¯ll try to avoid summoning you two as much as possible.¡¹


    ¡¸Thanks Fii.¡¹


    Should I be glad that things were decided this smoothly or should I have bought myself some more time?


    Even if I did choose the latter, it would have only decreased the time Ciel would think about it, so it¡¯s just nonsense.


    ¡ó


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    With breakfast finished, we returned to our room.


    The maids were also informed about this, so there should be no one disturbing us.


    Sitting on the bed, Ciel is waiting for me to start the conversation.


    I had impulsively spoken about the fact that I was a man, even though it was really something that should have been a lot harder to talk about.


    What I¡¯m about to talk about this time is just as hard to say but how long I muse about it isn¡¯t going to change anything. For now, I¡¯ll look for a good opportunity while talking about things.


    ¡ºCiel, you know where I was during the past three days, right?¡»


    ¡¸Fii said that Ain was probably in the divine realm.¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s correct. I was summoned by the Creator God to the divine realm.¡»


    ¡¸The divine realm, what kind of place was it?¡¹


    ¡ºIt was a pretty place. I suppose I¡¯d say that it¡¯s similar to the garden here.


    But there were a lot of flowers that I¡¯ve never seen before and the sunlight there was very gentle.


    There, I had a seat with the Creator God and we talked about things. She was a really beautiful person¡­¡­ Or I guess god?¡»


    During these sorts of times, I get a bit stumped on expressions.


    With the current flow of the conversation, I was thinking of talking about what the Creator God told me about when suddenly ¡¸What did you say just now?¡¹ Ciel asked me a question, so I paused the topic there.


    ¡ºWhich do you mean by that?¡»


    ¡¸You said you had a seat with the Creator God, right Ain?¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. I sat on a beautiful chair while we conversed.¡»


    Seeing her weird interest in that part, I wondered if Ciel is the type to pay attention to furniture. Though she¡¯s probably curious about other things as well, it just seems like she¡¯s starting from this topic.


    However, Ciel¡¯s response was different from what I expected.


    ¡¸You said sat, right? In other words, Ain has a body in the divine realm? Is that the case?¡¹


    ¡ºUmm, rather than having a body, I think that it was just my soul taking human shape.¡»


    ¡¸Then that means that this shape would be how Ain would look like if you had a human body?¡¹


    ¡ºThat would be the case.¡»


    I expected Ciel to be interested about it, but I¡¯m amazed that she noticed with just the fact that I sat down.


    I didn¡¯t even notice it. Even though I was the one sitting down.


    ¡¸So then what did you look like Ain? What did you!¡¹


    ¡ºI had an appearance similar to you, Ciel. Since I¡¯m using your body, it seems like my soul was influenced by it.


    But the colour palette I had was the same from when I was still alive. My hair and eyes were black, my skin was¡­¡­ light orange, I think?¡»


    The skin color of Asian people, how do I actually describe it?


    If I just say flesh-coloured, then that would refer to the typical skin colour of the people in this world, but I don¡¯t actually have any idea of what the typical skin colour is. Or rather, I¡¯ve seen quite a lot of different skin tones so far.


    Typical skin colour probably also varies depending on race, so as a former Japanese that had flesh coloured skin, I¡¯m really stumped here.


    ¡¸That¡¯s so nice, so nice, I want to see it too!¡¹


    ¡ºI see¡­.. What I want to talk about is somewhat related to that as well, so why don¡¯t we go to the main topic.¡»


    If I become a god, Ciel will probably have the opportunity to see my body.


    Outside of that however, I don¡¯t think there will be other opportunities.


    But before that, I¡¯ll discuss my situation up until now.


    Ah, this part might be something that I should have explained to Fiiyanamia-sama as well.


    There¡¯s no point worrying about it now, so I suppose I¡¯ll just tell Fiiyanamia-sama when she asks me about it in a later time.


    ¡ó


    For now, I explained to Ciel the details of how I got to her side and how I obtained divine power.


    This time I didn¡¯t touch on anything about my past life.


    While I was talking, Ciel listened with a serious look on her face.


    ¡¸So in other words, that man¡¯s experiment partially succeeded?¡¹


    ¡ºThat would be the case. However, making it completely succeed should be impossible.¡»


    ¡¸That¡¯s true. Besides, that man doesn¡¯t even seem to know just how well his experiment went too.


    Nonetheless, us being able to see spirits is probably all thanks to that man, right? It¡¯s giving me really complicated feelings.¡¹


    ¡ºI feel the same way.¡»


    ¡¸More importantly, Ain really is amazing! You used magic after all!¡¹


    ¡ºAlthough because of that, I won¡¯t ever have the ability to use combat sorcery at all but¡­.. I¡¯ll leave this to you, Ciel.¡»


    ¡¸Yes! Of course, of course!¡¹


    That ends the preface.


    Now it¡¯s time to go to the real main topic: What will happen to us from now on.


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    Hiya~! In today¡¯s chapter, we finally have more bonding moments with Ciel~! However, Ain¡¯s still not quite ready to enjoy the Central and their safety here in the mansion¡­ What more will Ain have for us to see?


    Before anything else, there¡¯s a portion I honestly cut out because I had no idea how I could translate it without it being too explanatory. It¡¯s one of those kinds of things that really really get lost in translation. I lament not being capable enough to keep it in without it reading too unnaturally, but as I usually do, I¡¯ll explain that part here.


    Right after Ain changed ¡°-beautiful person¡­.. or I guess god?¡± this part follows:


    *In these sorts of times, I get a bit stumped on the use of expressions.


    Like when describing a cat¡¯s life, do I say ÈËÉú (the usual word for ¡°Life¡± being the combination of the kanji ¡°Human¡± and ¡°Live/Raw/Alive/Fresh¡±) or èÉú (¡°Cat¡± + ¡°Live/Raw/Alive/Fresh¡±) or something of that effect.


    Although since the language is different, making words like èÉú is pretty difficult. (How meta of you, Ain)*


    And the most hilariously meta part of this is¡­¡­ I feel the same way, Ain. I¡¯d extremely stumped on how to express this due to language difference¡­ Now, if you¡¯re not interested in me excessively elaborating this part, you may skip the paragraph from here on¡­¡­¡­ Okay then. In this case, the word person uses the kanji ¡°human¡±, which the creator god isn¡¯t, but it¡¯s not ¡°human¡± in the sense of specifically **** sapiens or human race in fantasy novels, the closest would probably be ¡°mortal¡± or ¡°person/people¡±. Now, it wouldn¡¯t be natural for regular people to say ¡°She¡¯s such a beautiful human/mortal¡± when describing other people, so the choice there is obvious. So yeah, it¡¯s complicated. Also, a lot of Japanese puns operate like this, where the reading means one thing while the kanji forming the word is actually some kanjis that aren¡¯t usually put together. You can see that in Kill la Kill¡¯s ¡°Stripped of the will to fight¡± endings after the enemies are defeated, it can be heard as ¡°fighting will lost¡± while it¡¯s actually spelled out as ¡°fight(battle) fiber(thread) lost¡±. Honestly, Kill la Kill just has a lot of these, they like the puns and stuff. But yeah, it¡¯s not really common in English unless as puns, dad jokes, or whacky stuff like superhero/villain names, so it¡¯s hard to translate especially since English isn¡¯t my mother tongue.


    Now, back to the actual story. Ain once again fell asleep, but this time it¡¯s actually her having a rest, which is a good thing. A really good thing. Immediately after, our adorable princess finally have the opportunity to enjoy each other¡¯s presence, finally after a long while (especially since I only translate once a week and I¡¯ve been late recently¡­). Cute. Still, it¡¯s cute how Ain feels absolutely awkward with Fiiyanamia, while Fiiyanamia being no mere mortal, isn¡¯t really bothered at all. Also, I haven¡¯t really elaborated on this, but how Fiiyanamia acts really highlights her having a different morality from other people, or rather regular people. Which is pretty fitting for her since she¡¯s not really mortal.


    Anyhow, it was also pretty nice that we get to see more of Ciel opening up to other people, hopefully a continuing trend from here on out. Still, I think I already said this before, but it¡¯s funny how Ciel and Fii share not only physical features (hair colour and general shortness) but also verbal tics. Fii tends to repeat herself, while Ciel only does so when excited or emotional but that might be because she generally doesn¡¯t speak too much. More on Ciel, it was really cute how she was really excited about just knowing that Ain *has* a body, regardless of it being a spiritual body.

 CH 86

    ¡ºAbout the next topic, for now, unlike Fiiyanamia-sama or the Spirit King, we don¡¯t have any duties.¡»


    ¡¸Meaning we can continue on as we usually do, right?¡¹


    ¡ºThough, it won¡¯t be that way for long. There¡¯s already a little divinity mixed into me and it appears that I¡¯m gradually going to get closer to godhood.


    Eventually I¡¯m going to be one of the divine.¡»


    ¡¸Then Ain is going to be a god?¡¹


    Ciel tilts her head.


    Hearing me saying I¡¯m going to be a god all of a sudden probably doesn¡¯t feel real and honestly, my situation doesn¡¯t really matter.


    ¡ºMe becoming a god is relatively inconsequential, so let¡¯s leave it at that for now.


    Continuing on, once half of my magic power becomes replaced with divine power, it seems like that¡¯s when I become one of the gods.


    And I was told that at most it would take 10 years to reach that point.¡»


    ¡¸So what¡¯s the problem?¡¹


    ¡ºAs I become more of a god, you¡¯ll be pulled along and become a god as well.¡»


    Saying this felt like I¡¯m facing the greatest challenge of my life, but Ciel doesn¡¯t seem to understand it.


    If I had a body, the anxiety I feel right now would probably tear my heart open but it seems like this feeling is still going to continue on for a while.


    ¡¸What happens when I start becoming more like a god?¡¹


    ¡ºLet¡¯s see. At a certain point, you¡¯ll start being able to hear the voice of the spirits and then it will be possible to touch them as well.¡»


    ¡¸That¡¯s amazing.¡¹


    ¡ºThen once you step into godhood, you¡¯ll stop aging, gradually food and sleep becomes unnecessary and then it¡¯ll be hard for you to die.


    The problem is that it¡¯s irreversible. Once you¡¯ve stepped into godhood, you can¡¯t go back to being mortal anymore.¡»


    Even after saying this much, Ciel¡¯s expression is as serious as before.


    I don¡¯t think that Ciel doesn¡¯t understand what this means, but it probably feels surreal for her.


    That¡¯s why the thing I¡¯m about to say next¡­ might be a bit unfair.


    ¡ºIn order for you to not become a god, I need to disappe-¡­¡­¡»


    ¡¸Then there¡¯s no need to think about it. Ain disappearing is a straight no.¡¹


    I was interrupted before I could finish.


    I feel undoubtable resolve from the clarity of Ciel¡¯s voice.


    Honestly, this relieved me. Even if I were to disappear, I¡¯m already prepared for it but even so, parting with Ciel is painful.


    Still, I can¡¯t just stay all relieved here. After all, it¡¯s not something that should be decided impulsively.


    ¡ºPlease think about it properly, Ciel. You¡¯ll stop being human, you know?¡»


    It¡¯s an important decision, so please choose more carefully. As I spoke with this in mind, Ciel puffed her cheeks.


    She huffily pouted her lips. Frankly speaking, it seems like I made her angry.


    ¡¸Then what about you, Ain? Are you really thinking properly? I said it, didn¡¯t I? If Ain disappears, I¡¯ll search for you forever. I¡¯ll do it until I die, okay?


    Intimidated by Ciel, I ended up agreeing.


    This might be the first time Ciel became angry at me. Yesterday might have been the first time I yelled at her as well but the situation is completely different. If there was someone else watching us, they¡¯d probably be asking who¡¯s the real mature one here.


    As I was feeling depressed from my lack of dignity, Ciel asked me with a quiet voice.


    ¡¸Say, Ainsel. Ain, do you perhaps hate me?¡¹


    ¡ºNo, I really love you. If not, I wouldn¡¯t have remained with you until now.¡»


    ¡¸Me too, I really love you too, you know?


    That¡¯s why, no matter what happens, I¡¯ll always choose Ain. Is that not good?¡¹


    ¡ºNo¡­¡­ no.¡»


    Ciel¡¯s words make me extremely happy. Happy, but for some reason, it¡¯s bothering me.


    Fiiyanamia-sama told me that us being together is fine.


    I¡¯m sure that Ciel right now honestly doesn¡¯t mind if she becomes a god.


    She likely doesn¡¯t have any attachments to being mortal.


    Then why do I feel bothered?


    What¡¯s making me feel uneasy?


    Why was I convinced that I have to part with Ciel?


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    So she can be independent?


    ¡ªNo.


    Because I need to let her be free?


    ¡ªNo.


    Ahh, I see. It¡¯s because I thought that if she doesn¡¯t become independent and I don¡¯t let her go, she won¡¯t get happiness.


    That¡¯s right. I¡¯m uneasy because I don¡¯t know if I can make Ciel happy.


    If I had died at a slightly younger age, I could probably say that I would make Ciel happy no matter what hardships we face. If I had been a highschooler, I might even confidently declare so with baseless conviction. I wasn¡¯t looking at reality yet, after all.


    However, while I can¡¯t call myself a proper adult, I¡¯m not so immature as to not understand the difficulty of taking responsibility for the life of a person.


    Moreover, if we become gods, that life likely won¡¯t end. It¡¯s much heavier than the life of a human lasting only several decades.


    ¡¸Something¡¯s bothering you, isn¡¯t it?¡¹


    ¡ºI¡­¡­ I don¡¯t want to part with you, Ciel.


    But¡­ I¡¯m not confident that I can keep you happy. When I think that I might cause you unhappiness after dragging you along with me, it makes me feel anxious.¡»


    Ah~ah. I¡¯m exposing my insecurity to Ciel.


    But I have to properly tell her this. I can¡¯t just say ¡¸I¡¯ll definitely make you happy¡¹ so irresponsibly. If I had to say anything ¡¸I¡¯ll continue to protect you¡¹ is the most I can say.


    Hearing my words, Ciel tilts her head and thinks about something.


    ¡¸You know, Ain. I like Ain. I like how Ain laughs, I like how Ain sings, and I like it when you enjoy yourself.


    However, I also like seeing Ain being stumped. I also like seeing Ain embarrassed and I also like how you get angry for my sake.¡¹


    ¡ºIs¡­¡­ that so?¡»


    ¡¸But you know, you know, I don¡¯t like seeing Ain actually troubled and I don¡¯t want to see you being sad either, okay?


    Ummm, I¡¯m glad that Ain is thinking about making me happy, and that¡¯s already enough to make me happy, but I think what Ain means by making me happy is impossible.¡¹


    ¡ºWhat do you mean?¡»


    Ciel mustering everything she has to speak is adorable but I can¡¯t see her point, or rather I can¡¯t understand her well.


    ¡¸Ain and I are different after all. When Ain seems troubled, I get happy seeing Ain being stumped. You¡¯ve never known about this up until now right, Ain?


    Besides, even I don¡¯t know everything that would make me happy. I¡¯m sure that if I see another side of Ain I never knew before, I¡¯d either be happy or sad.


    In the same way, even I don¡¯t know how I can become happy.


    That¡¯s why, I think I¡¯ll just become happy on my own.


    I¡¯m sure that you also get happy on your own, right Ain?


    But even so, while I don¡¯t know how I can become happy, I at least know that I need Ain to be happy.


    How about you Ain? Does your happiness need me?¡¹


    Certainly I had no idea that Ciel enjoyed seeing me be troubled. For some reason, it makes me feel really ticklish.


    Still, does my happiness need her¡­¡­ huh.


    If it was before I met Ciel, I can¡¯t say that it does; but now after I¡¯ve met her, happiness without Ciel is unthinkable.


    Rather, it¡¯s because I was clinging onto Ciel ever since I came to this world that I was able to live on.


    ¡ºIt does¡­¡­ yes.¡»


    ¡¸In that case, there¡¯s no problem. After all, Ain doesn¡¯t need to make me happy.


    From now until forever, let¡¯s be happy on our own together.¡¹


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    Ciel smiled. Like a blooming flower, with the brightness of the sun.


    Somehow it sounded a bit like she was proposing and the thought made me break into a smile as well.


    Ahh, but that¡¯s true. Our relationship isn¡¯t something which we can just be independent or let go of. It can¡¯t be at this point.


    I will continue to protect Ciel and I plan to do as much as I can to make Ciel happy, but that¡¯s because I want to see Ciel be happy.


    Ciel probably feels the same.


    And it¡¯s fine that way.


    Being with each other feels natural, being with each other is necessary, both of us want to make the other happy, and just being with each other gives us happiness.


    It feels like we¡¯re about to sink into a bottomless quicksand but as long as we¡¯re happy, it doesn¡¯t matter.


    The two of us are mutually dependent on each other. However, it¡¯s not in a negative way. At the very least, that¡¯s what I think.


    ¡¸So Ain, no more talk about disappearing, okay?¡¹


    ¡ºUnderstood.¡»


    ¡¸Then are we done talking now?¡¹


    Hearing that, I remembered.


    We aren¡¯t here for a reaffirmation of our relationship but to talk about what will happen to us in the future.


    However, I think that I¡¯ve already talked about the things that needed immediate discussion.


    After all, the main issue was about Ciel¡¯s transformation into a god.


    Ah, but come to think of it, there is another thing that I have to inform her about as soon as possible.


    ¡ºThere¡¯s one more thing that I have to talk about.¡»


    ¡¸What is it?¡¹


    ¡ºThe Supreme God said that she¡¯ll grant any single wish of yours, Ciel. Although it¡¯s not exactly anything, it seems.¡»


    ¡¸She¡¯ll grant a wish?¡¹


    ¡ºI was told that an oracle will be given to answer whether it¡¯s possible to grant or not.¡»


    While there are limits, it¡¯s the Supreme God herself who¡¯s going to grant it, so most things should be possible.


    But the clich¨¦d raising the dead, immortality, or world domination is probably not allowed.


    Becoming a noble might be complicated too.


    What would I wish for if it were me? As I was pondering that, it seems like Ciel has decided on something.


    ¡¸I want Ain¡¯s body.¡¹


    ¡ºMy body?¡»


    ¡¸I want to touch and interact with Ain too. Ain has a spiritual body, so it should be possible, but what do you think?¡¹


    ¡ºFor now, let¡¯s wait for the oracle.¡»


    Yeah. ¡°Wait for the oracle¡± sounds so amazing. Though I don¡¯t really think that oracles are things that just come if you wait for them.


    ¡¾If it¡¯s only one day in Fiiyanamia¡¯s manor, it¡¯s viable.¡¿


    ¡ºWoah¡­¡­¡»


    Since it¡¯s Ciel¡¯s wish, I don¡¯t intend to interfere.


    Rather, Ciel looks as if this was frankly the most natural wish in the world.


    She¡¯s absolutely not thinking about asking for my opinion on it.


    Now that I think about it, the Supreme God sounded like she knew what Ciel¡¯s wish would be, so I guess she expected this.


    Or rather, preparing my body needs limitations, huh.


    Like, I feel that providing a homunculus-like thing for me to go into would be good enough though.


    Ah¡­¡­ but it likely won¡¯t work unless it¡¯s capable of withstanding divine power.


    In that case, it might be considerably difficult in the technical aspect. Or rather, a homunculus with divine power smells like an ¡¸Artificial Divine XX¡¹ case.


    ¡ºCome to think of it, when exactly will the countdown of that one day start?¡»


    ¡¸That¡¯s true. If it starts right now, then it¡¯ll be a bit awkward. Maybe tomorrow? ¡¹


    ¡ºI think that she should be overhearing this conversation, so she¡¯ll likely consider that.¡»


    ¡¸Then I¡¯ll have to talk to Fii about this too.


    It¡¯s a rare opportunity to interact with Ain after all, so I¡¯ll have to make sure that no one gets in the way as much as possible.¡¹


    ¡ºI don¡¯t really think that she¡¯ll get in the way though¡­¡­¡»


    I have no clue if my words reached her ears, but Ciel energetically flew out of the room.


    Hiya~! And at last, Ain finally finds true peace with herself. And we finally find more AinCiel fluff~!


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    I love this series, especially this chapter. Honestly, I have a lot I want to say but I really can¡¯t think too much right now, so let¡¯s see how much I can go.


    This chapter, Ain finally realises that *NO*, deleting yourself *isn¡¯t* the only answer, as well as why she was thinking that way. It¡¯s insecurity. Ain has always been insecure and it¡¯s understandable why. The happenings in the mansion five years ago really broke her self-confidence, in addition to her thinking of herself as a mere parasite to begin with. What I like about Ain her as well is, well, the way she was talking about responsibility. Based on what she said, she likely died as a college student and it shows in her mindset. For many people, college is when you start to think about the uncertainty of your future. While this isn¡¯t the case for everyone, and some even think about it at a much earlier age, it reflects on both Ain¡¯s pragmatism and pessimism, though her pessimism might have been more influenced by the first five years. The uncertainty regarding her ability to make Ciel happy seems to give her dread, so much that she¡¯s driving herself into a corner. Her denseness and tendency of overthinking does seem to be a factor here as well, as based in some studies and my personal experience, overthinking does lead to much anxiety. However, Ciel was there to the rescue.


    I think this sentiment is shared between a lot of us readers, but Ciel is really great. Anyhow, Ciel here finally snapped hearing Ain dense and airheaded about Ciel¡¯s feelings and very bluntly asks if Ain hates her. After all, why else would Ain repeatedly ask if Ciel is *completely sure* that she doesn¡¯t want Ain to go and vanish? Lol. Oh Ain. And then here we have Ain finally, of her own will, opening up to Ciel about her insecurity, possibly the first time she shows anyone her more sensitive side. I absolutely love it.


    And then after some more bonding and talking, we end with Ciel¡¯s predictable but still exciting wish and her wanting to reserve a whole day with Ain without anyone barging in on them, lol.

 CH 87

    Regarding the topic of doing whatever Ciel wants on the day I get a body, Fiiyanamia-sama quickly acknowledged it.


    To begin with, we don¡¯t have any actual plans, so it could be said that there¡¯s no need to particularly worry about it.


    We were also told to refrain from going to the Hunter Guild until our current status is confirmed, just to be sure.


    Our status¡­ isn¡¯t it Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s guest?


    Still, it¡¯s only that we shouldn¡¯t go until we get her permission, so it¡¯s fine.


    Today, we spent the remaining time lounging around before going to sleep.


    I don¡¯t need sleep but as though dragged along by Ciel¡¯s slumber, I lost consciousness.


    ¡ó


    I open my eyes.


    For some reason, my head feels fuzzy.


    I found this strange but my mind isn¡¯t clear enough to understand why it¡¯s so strange.


    I slowly opened my eyes to get accustomed to the glaring light and before it was a pretty face asleep.


    Long eyelashes, white skin. Even the way one strand of her silky lustrous hair being stuck in her mouth looks adorable.


    Her closed eyes make her seem like a doll but the up and down movement in conjunction with her breathing shows that she¡¯s alive. Somehow I felt an urge to touch her and as I reached my hand to her cheek, I felt her skin pleasantly cling to my touch.


    Perhaps due to my touch, the eyes in front of me opened up slightly.


    Seeing me, her sky blue eyes went wide in shock but then immediately narrowed delightedly.


    Her hand touched the hand I had rested on her cheek.


    And as though to ascertain something, she caressed my hand.


    She then broke into a wide smile and softly embraced me.


    The distance between us quickly disappeared but it didn¡¯t feel unpleasant at all and the light embrace of happiness naturally made my eyelids heavy.


    ¡¸You¡¯re Ain, right? Morning, Ain.¡¹


    Hearing a dozy voice, I similarly return a greeting.


    ¡¸Good morning. Ciel.¡¹


    ¡¸Fufufu. Sleepy Ain looks adorable too. How about we sleep in for today?¡¹


    ¡¸That sounds good too. Somehow it¡¯s really comfortable, it feels so nice.¡¹


    ¡¸I know I was the one that suggested it, but we don¡¯t have much time today, so let¡¯s get up?¡¹


    ¡¸Mnn¡­¡­¡¹


    I sluggishly rise from the bed, changing into a seated position for now, slowly rocking left and right as I wait for my head to clear up.


    And as I became completely awake, I finally began to notice a lot of things.


    Because of that, this is the first time I¡¯ve ever experienced this sensation again since I came to this world.


    Also, Ciel is in front of me. And I can touch her.


    In other words, the day about the thing with my body and stuff is probably today. This might also be why I involuntarily fell asleep yesterday.


    In other words, I fell asleep with Ciel. Still, I don¡¯t feel nervous or any guilt, only a strong feeling of happiness.


    Hmm, I guess it¡¯s because I got accustomed to living as a girl.


    ¡¸Ain, Ain. Are you awake now?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, good morning.¡¹


    ¡¸Good morning, Ain. Uh-huh, you¡¯re adorable, Ain. Adorable.¡¹


    ¡¸I look like you after all, you¡¯re the adorable one, Ciel.¡¹


    ¡¸No, not at all! Just knowing that it¡¯s Ain makes you more adorable.


    Besides, both your black hair and eyes are things that I don¡¯t have.¡¹


    Right, it¡¯s a fact that even a simple change of color can drastically change one¡¯s impression after all.


    My black hair is the opposite of Ciel¡¯s hair color, so it probably gives a completely different impression.


    And my skin tone is exactly that of an asian¡¯s.


    Ciel cheerfully looks at me.


    Come to think of it, what am I wearing right now? Thinking so, I noticed that I¡¯m wearing a negligee made out of thin fabric. My skin is visible on the shoulder and some particular thinner parts, so it¡¯s a bit embarrassing.


    After staring at me for a while, Ciel abruptly hugs me.


    And perhaps it¡¯s because Ciel is wearing something similar, I can feel the warmth of her body.


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    (Please visit Re:Library to show the translators your appreciation and stop supporting the content thief!)


    ¡¸I can finally hug you, Ain. I always, always wanted to touch you.¡¹


    Ciel nuzzled against my neck, so I wrapped my arms around her head and gently brushed her hair.


    Just as Ciel wanted to touch me, I¡¯ve always wanted to touch Ciel on many occasions.


    I wonder how many times I¡¯ve ever thought of caressing her head and praising her, and of embracing her tight and consoling her.


    Experiencing the most unexpected occasion of being able to physically touch Ciel, my heart silently but surely throbs in delight.


    So calming, so gentle. I have full confidence that I can spend the whole day drowning in this happiness but as Ciel said, today is our only time.


    After a certain point in time, I held Ciel¡¯s shoulders and gently pushed her away.


    Getting torn off of me, Ciel seemed somewhat displeased but upon seeing my face, she chuckled.


    That chuckle of hers was so adorable that I reflexively looked away.


    And seemingly pleased by this, Ciel took my hand and ¡¸Let¡¯s get breakfast.¡¹ started walking.


    ¡ó


    Since I have a body, there¡¯s one thing I¡¯m curious about.


    Which is to say, am I able to cast a barrier on Ciel of the same level that I¡¯ve been using up until now?


    In my current state, even a degraded barrier should have enough defensive strength.


    But that¡¯s a different story. In protecting Ciel, I have no intention of compromising.


    With that said, as I¡¯m being pulled along by Ciel, I confirm my current condition.


    First, magic power. I can¡¯t feel anything magic power-like. In contrast, I feel the same power I felt from the Creator God.


    Next, magic. I was able to cast a barrier on Ciel much smoother than usual. The defensive power is satisfactory as well.


    Yup. Yeah. This, it looks like I¡¯m sort of a god right now.


    After all, it¡¯s not like I can be a real god just because of yesterday¡¯s wish and the power I feel isn¡¯t as great as what I felt from the Creator God and Fiiyanamia-sama.


    How should I say this, my current state is like a ¡¸God: Trial Mode¡¹ sort of thing.


    That explains why I can¡¯t leave the mansion.


    If some knockoff god was released into the world, even for just a single day, who knows what could happen.


    Specifically, there¡¯s a chance that the individual in question would use physical reinforcement with divine power, charge into a castle at full strength and destroy a country. Which I of course won¡¯t do.


    I can¡¯t do any major damage even if I attack but if I go to the royal family and stab all of them with a knife, it¡¯ll practically destroy the country. Not that I¡¯ll ever do it.


    Another thing that I can say is that it¡¯s possible that my current state could be what¡¯s going to happen if either Ciel or I, if not both of us, were to become gods in the future.


    I don¡¯t really know much about becoming a god so I can¡¯t say for sure, but currently my body is composed of divine power and yet this body is definitely mine.


    For now, my worries are gone, so I head to the breakfast area just as Ciel leads me.


    ¡ó


    Fiiyanamia-sama was already waiting for us and Ciel took a seat without any hesitation.


    Now, what am I going to do? Just as I was pondering that, a maid pulled out the chair right next to Ciel, so I sat there.


    After I sat down, Fiiyanamia-sama looked at me with curiosity.


    ¡¸My, my, Ainsel-chan. You look quite similar to Ciel.¡¹


    ¡¸I was told that I was influenced by Ciel.¡¹


    ¡¸I suppose that could happen? Still, you two look like twins, it¡¯s quite delightful.¡¹


    ¡¸Incidentally, I see that there¡¯s also a share of breakfast prepared for me. I was very surprised when I noticed what had happened to me this morning. The mansion¡¯s personnel doesn¡¯t seem to be that surprised about it though.¡¹


    ¡¸The mansion houses a considerable number of people, so a large volume of food is prepared beforehand. An additional meal isn¡¯t any issue.¡¹


    Now that she mentioned it, there¡¯s a lot of maids and there should be a number of cooks as well.


    The larger the amount cooked, the less decreased everyone¡¯s portion will have to be for an extra person¡¯s portion. So, true, there shouldn¡¯t be any problems.


    ¡¸Besides, the maids are professionals. Something like that wouldn¡¯t faze them nor would they divulge information about you.¡¹


    Maids are amazing. As expected of the real deal, I suppose.


    Perhaps due to my amazement, Fiiyanamia-sama started giggling.


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    ¡¸No, no, that was actually a lie. They¡¯re actually surprised but they were trained not to let it show. That said, they should be shocked underneath.


    They certainly won¡¯t divulge anything though. After all, if they do, it¡¯s not going to end with a simple dismissal.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s a relief.¡¹


    I don¡¯t really find them talking about me as something to worry about though.


    And if that happens within Central, there¡¯s no doubt that Fiiyanamia-sama will know of it.


    ¡¸Now hurry up and eat.¡¹ As Fiiyanamia-sama urged me, I decided to stop chatting there and have a taste of the laid out meal.


    ¡ó


    As I was thinking about what to do next with breakfast finished, ¡¸For now, Ainsel-chan will need some clothes.¡¹ Fiiyanamia-sama muttered.


    That reminds me, I was walking around in a negligee, huh. While there¡¯s only women around here, now that I remember this, it¡¯s embarrassing.


    And yet, despite being in similar clothes as I am, why is Ciel giggling at me?


    ¡¸However, I can¡¯t go outside today, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s absolutely, most definitely, nothing to worry about. From what I see, you have the exact same figure as Ciel, yes?¡¹


    ¡¸Logically, that would be the case.¡¹


    Since my body is based on Ciel¡¯s, we shouldn¡¯t be that different.


    And after using this body for a while, I don¡¯t feel anything out of place.


    If I had to say, I guess the fact that the hair flickering in and out the corner of my eye is black feels weird.


    I¡¯ve already had experience with this since Ciel¡¯s hair was originally blond and turned into its current white color, so it¡¯s not really particularly that bothersome.


    Come to think of it, I also have circuits in my hair but¡­¡­ Well, I guess it¡¯s good. I don¡¯t have any complaints.


    Incidentally, I can also use Ciel¡¯s circuits freely. And I suspect that Ciel can use mine as she wants as well.


    Basically, our circuits are doubled, so even just that makes our current state abnormal.


    ¡¸Right, right. In that case, I have several prepared, so it¡¯s not a problem.


    Ciel will have to get accustomed to proper clothes too, after all.¡¹


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s unexpected refusal made me nervous but Fiiyanamia-sama didn¡¯t seem to be particularly bothered by it. On the contrary, she began playfully admonishing Ciel.


    ¡¸My my, are you really sure about that? Just for today, you can dress Ainsel-chan up as you like, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸And what about that? Ain is adorable no matter what she wears.¡¹


    ¡¸Certainly, certainly so. Ainsel-chan is quite adorable. However, she¡¯ll become even more adorable when dressed up, you see?¡¹


    ¡¸Is that true?¡¹


    Answering Ciel¡¯s skeptical gaze, Fiiyanamia-sama replied ¡¸Yes, of course.¡¹ with a smile and clapped her hands twice.


    And out of nowhere¡ªwell, not really¡ªa maid just normally appeared.


    She goes behind me, says ¡¸Excuse me.¡¹ before helping me up.


    She places a light-colored stole on my shoulders and walks around me while examining me closely.


    And after a large nod, she says ¡¸Pardon me.¡¹ and sits me back down.


    My skin being visible was something that was bothering me, so I¡¯m thankful for the stole covering it up but what was that all about?


    Also, this stole is strangely pleasant to the touch. So this is what a luxury item feels like, huh.


    With this texture, it might be good to buy one even if it¡¯s a bit expensive.


    After all, something like this shouldn¡¯t damage Ciel¡¯s skin.


    ¡¸How about that?¡¹


    ¡¸I see, right¡­¡­ I can understand your point, Fii.¡¹


    ¡¸Right? I expected so. With that said, why don¡¯t we find some clothes for Ainsel-chan?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, of course, let¡¯s do it. But only for half a day, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸That I understand. I have no intention of idly wasting your time together. ¡¹


    ¡¸Then let¡¯s hurry. Where do we have to go?¡¹


    While I was completely distracted by the stole, Ciel and Fiiyanamia-sama suddenly hit it off with each other. I had a hunch that this would happen but for some reason, Ciel seems to be more enthusiastic about it than I originally expected and I¡¯m getting somewhat of a bad feeling about this.


    Hiya~! And now, finally, after 86 chapters and roughly 12 years in-universe, our main characters can finally see each other, touch each other, cuddle with each other for the first time. I¡¯ll be honest, these past few chapters have been a wild ride for me and I cry real easy.


    Anyhow, today we¡¯re blessed with the full airheadedness (if that¡¯s even a word) of Ain. We already know Ain can be airheaded around Ciel due to her only being able to relax near her (and it¡¯s highlighted by Ciel¡¯s own quick wit), but now in this chapter, we see Ain really being adorably dozy. First, that adorable wake up scene. And the other I like, Ain being completely distracted by the stole, which gave Ciel and Fii the time to come into agreement.


    (This chapter is provided to you by Re:Library)


    (Say no to content thief!)


    Another thing I like about this chapter is how distinct I feel Ain and Ciel are, possibly because this is one of the first times they¡¯re actually in the same ¡°scene¡± together with other people. I can¡¯t quite describe it well, but even when Fii was talking to them before, Fii only either speaks to ¡°both¡± or ¡°the speaker¡±. That¡¯s because only one of them can have a voice in the conversation. Now that Ain is out, everyone¡¯s reaction can be seen and heard at the same time. Also, with her body, a true body of her own, you can see that there¡¯s a difference in body language.


    Anyhow, that¡¯s my own opinion. A subjective thing. Now what¡¯s not subjective is how cute this chapter is, but I¡¯m going on a bit too long. Feel free to gush about the wholesomeness in your own ways. Also, Fii really knows how to handle Ciel, lol.

 CH 88

    ¡¸I don¡¯t know anything about this, so I¡¯ll just watch for today.¡¹


    For some reason, the moment we entered the dressing room prepared for Ciel, Ciel said this and quickly gave up on dressing me up.


    Still, her eyes were sparkling brightly, like an audience enjoying a fashion show.


    Seeing that, Fiiyanamia-sama replied ¡¸Right, right. That might be for the best.¡¹ with a nod.


    Ciel¡¯s fashion sense is¡­¡­ by no means bad. Rather, it¡¯s a mystery.


    I¡¯ve only chosen innocuous hunter clothes and Ciel really stands out, so no matter what she wears, it¡¯s hidden underneath a robe most of the time.


    I don¡¯t have the courage to choose anything flashy, so it¡¯s not an exaggeration to say that this resulted in Ciel not developing a fashion sense.


    If I had to say, there was that time Celia-san taught us about fashion but that was just one time from more than two years ago. Ciel has grown a lot since then, so the clothes we bought don¡¯t fit anymore.


    That¡¯s why it¡¯s not a bad thing for her to learn today.


    The fact that I¡¯m delegated to be teaching material is something I don¡¯t agree with, but if it¡¯s for Ciel¡¯s sake, then I can endure.


    A scary thing is that among the five maids that came with us, three of them are strangely enthusiastic.


    They look as if they just found an excellent toy.


    After looking at me with a sharp gaze, they quickly shift their gazes on the clothes.


    One of the other two maids went to Ciel and Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s side, and the remaining one went to mine.


    As I was looking on with fear and dread, the maid that was beside me lowered her head and apologized.


    With glasses over her upturned eyes, she seemed like a somewhat serious maid. She¡¯s about twice my height¡ªthough that doesn¡¯t mean she¡¯s particularly tall¡ªand she gives off a cold impression when she¡¯s silent.


    ¡¸What about?¡¹


    ¡¸About them. They haven¡¯t served anyone other than Fiiyanamia-sama, and both Ainsel-sama and Cielmer-sama are quite adorable, so they¡¯re in high spirits today.¡¹


    ¡¸You included Fiiyanamia-sama, but Ciel is also a subject for dressing up?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. And we, by all means, would love for the two of you to be dressed up side by side-¡­¡­ No, for Cielmer-sama to grow accustomed to dressing up for the better.¡¹


    Considering the quick and excited way she was speaking at first, which showed her true personality for a moment, this person might have actually wanted in with the clothes selection as well.


    Despite this, why is she here next to me?


    Come to think of it, I don¡¯t know their names and I also don¡¯t know how much they know about our circumstances.


    Due to that, I don¡¯t have any idea on how much I can talk.


    The cold feeling she gives seems to be only an outward impression, so maybe I can just ask.


    ¡¸If you don¡¯t mind, could you tell me your name?¡¹


    ¡¸Me? My name is Martha.¡¹


    ¡¸Martha-san, are you not going to join them?¡¹


    As I pointed to the maids picking out clothes, Martha-san gently shook her head.


    ¡¸I am here because I won the right to serve Ainsel-sama after all.¡¹


    ¡¸You won?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. After all, being entrusted to serve Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s guests is a great privilege. There are only a few that have been invited to this mansion as a guest, you see.¡¹


    So that¡¯s how it is. Being entrusted a guest would probably show that Fiiyanamia-sama has trusted you enough to do so, so I guess that is a privilege.


    Now that she mentioned it, Martha-san does somewhat look proud and triumphant.


    Besides, serving probably includes helping out with changing clothes.


    In that case, I guess I really should confirm things with her.


    ¡¸Martha-san, how much do you know about me?¡¹


    ¡¸Nothing at all¡­¡­ is what I would like to say, but I¡¯ve been told that you are a being that would eventually become of equal standing to Fiiyanamia-sama.¡¹


    ¡¸That doesn¡¯t surprise you?¡¹


    ¡¸No. At first I was surprised, but since you are a guest of Fiiyanamia-sama, it shouldn¡¯t be inconceivable.¡¹


    Does that mean that the maids of this mansion know about Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s true nature?


    At the very least, they seem to know that she¡¯s not mortal. Though, whether they know that she¡¯s of a divine messenger-like status or not is a different story.


    Her appearance doesn¡¯t change and she doesn¡¯t necessarily always eat. She¡¯s like a living legend, so I guess even the appearance of someone like me isn¡¯t too shocking for them.


    In other words, even for us who are about 10th of a god at this point, this mansion might be much more comfortable to live in than I thought.


    Well, the part about me becoming a god was something I only knew after coming here though.


    Before that, probably just someone with a multiple personality disorder.


    ¡¸Well then, the preparations seem to be done, so let us now move on.¡¹


    (This chapter is provided to you by Re:Library)


    (Please visit Re:Library to show the translators your appreciation and stop supporting the content thief!)


    With 3¡­¡­ no, 5 pairs of eyes looking at me with anticipation, I walked in the midst of this slightly awkward atmosphere.


    ¡ó


    With the help of Martha-san and the maids that selected the clothes, the first thing I wore was a white dress.


    It was filled to the brim with laces and frills and looked like something girls would love to wear.


    It had no sleeves but in exchange, I was given a long glove.


    I¡¯ve seen it before in manga and the like, but it¡¯s my first time wearing this.


    It could be good during the summer to prevent sunburn. That random thought suddenly crossed my mind.


    I was also dressed in a corset. It¡¯s not tight since I¡¯m still a child but being that it¡¯s something used for figure correction, it somewhat seemed to give me more of a feminine look.


    I stood before a full-length mirror that showed my whole body for a final confirmation.


    I¡¯m not really well-acquainted with these sorts of things but I think that a mirror this clear is hard to find even back on earth.


    At the very least, it¡¯s completely different from the clouded mirror back at my place¡¯s bathroom.


    As I thought, with the presence of magic, there¡¯s a difference in how developed things are. This strangely impressed me.


    As for the vital part which is how I look, I think I became quite adorable.


    Though, my body is based on Ciel¡¯s, so it¡¯s only natural.


    Since the dress is white, my black eyes and hair stand out. It¡¯s already good enough as is, but just when I thought that it looks somewhat incomplete, Martha-san wrapped a blue ribbon around my waist.


    Yup, that should do it.


    Two of the maids then nodded to each other and started working on my hair this time.


    It¡¯s a bit late to say this, but since my hair is based on Ciel¡¯s, it¡¯s super long. After all, these are circuits. Cutting them would shorten our circuits, so it shouldn¡¯t be cut. Also, it¡¯s probably tougher than regular hair, so it couldn¡¯t be cut so easily.


    To begin with, it¡¯s also protected by my barrier, so it can¡¯t be cut. If there¡¯s a scissor that can cut it, it should be usable as a weapon.


    Ponytail, braids, pigtails, I can see from beyond the mirror that they¡¯re trying different styles, but just a change of hairstyle changes one¡¯s impression a lot.


    Even men give off a different impression when they cut their hair short, so I guess it makes sense that a change of hairstyle would make someone seem different.


    Looking at it this way, it¡¯s actually quite fun.


    Eventually as an accent, only my left side was braided and now it¡¯s complete.


    ¡¸It suits you very well!¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you very much.¡¹


    The maid excitedly praised me, so I gave her my thanks.


    As for me, it¡¯s been a good learning experience. Leaving the dress aside, learning the use of accessories and the effects of a change in hairstyle was quite fruitful.


    Completing my look, I was brought back to where Ciel and the others were and Ciel immediately approached me.


    She then held both of my hands and excitedly spoke to me.


    ¡¸Adorable, adorable! Ain looks really good in a white dress.¡¹


    ¡¸It would look well on you too in my opinion, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so? As for me, it doesn¡¯t really matter as long as Ain¡¯s adorable.¡¹


    ¡¸If something looks good on me, it would definitely look good on you too, Ciel. We have the same build after all.


    Besides, I also want to see you wearing cute clothes too, Ciel. ¡¹


    It would be nice if this gets Ciel to be interested in being fashionable but from how it looks, it seems like getting me dressed up is more important here.


    Being called adorable by Ciel is, well¡­¡­ isn¡¯t bad at all, but even so, I want Ciel to look cute myself.


    ¡ó


    After that was a black dress. It had sleeves that covered upto my upper arm but it was see-through around the shoulder part.


    I was thinking that the black dress would overlap with my own natural colors, but after being worn a large pearl¡ªI think¡ªnecklace, it balanced things out pretty well. After that, a bright-colored hair accessory and now, complete.


    I think I know the reason why girls like accessories now.


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    While I was being dressed up like a doll in this situation, it was a lot different from what I expected and I found it just normally enjoyable.


    From my point of view, it was practically like we¡¯re dressing up Ciel after all.


    We have different colors so the same clothes would probably give a different impression on her, but the fashion itself is understandable. The issue is that all the clothes here are expensive.


    If I try to prepare a similar outfit, there¡¯s no telling how much it would cost us.


    While we do have a large amount of money, it¡¯s a personal problem¡­¡­ or maybe not.


    Actually, how much money do we have?


    Putting aside the practical talk, I look to my side as I¡¯m being dressed up.


    As our eyes met, Ciel smiled at me.


    After several changes of clothes, Ciel joined the dress up doll side of things.


    I heard that after being told that she can be together with me, she immediately switched sides. Will Ciel be alright? Isn¡¯t she a bit too easy to handle?


    Or so I say, but I do understand that it¡¯s probably only because it¡¯s related to me.


    This makes me feel somewhat ticklish. I can¡¯t help but feel embarrassed.


    If I didn¡¯t have a body, I could hide how I feel but right now, I probably can¡¯t hide it at all.


    After being dressed up, the two of us stand before the mirror side by side.


    Ciel is wearing a black one-piece dress while I¡¯m wearing a similar dress in white.


    Our hair is styled in a way that we¡¯re mirroring each other. I have an earring on my left ear, while Ciel has one on her right.


    All of the small details on us are horizontally reversed and inverted colour.


    The meticulousness of the maids is on full display. Though, if I had to say, my eyes being black in contrast to Ciel¡¯s blue is probably the only thing that couldn¡¯t fit the theme.


    It can¡¯t be helped. After all, we don¡¯t have colored contact lenses here.


    Reflected in the mirror, Ciel stares happily as she compares her appearance to mine.


    And then she snuggles close to me.


    ¡¸We¡¯re matching Ain, we¡¯re matching clothes!¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right, we¡¯re matching clothes. Also, it looks good on you, Ciel.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so? You¡¯re adorable too, Ain.¡¹


    Seeing Ciel cheerfully frolicing around, it really warms the heart.


    Besides, seeing Ciel wearing something pretty makes me somewhat want to dress her up myself.


    As expected, being of Japanese color, Ciel¡¯s white skin looks really pretty.


    I¡¯m really glad that I protected Ciel from the sunlight.


    Ciel¡¯s white hair is a result of it turning into circuits, so it probably wouldn¡¯t change even with exposure to sunlight.


    With that in mind, black hair that functions as a circuit might actually be unique.


    Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s hair is white too after all.


    ¡¸It¡¯s the same for Ainsel-sama but, Cielmer-sama, your skin is so fair, it¡¯s hard to believe that you¡¯re a hunter.¡¹


    ¡¸Ain protected me after all.¡¹


    ¡¸How enviable.¡¹


    Seeing Ciel talking normally to the maid is¡­ quite moving.


    Though, it might be that she just couldn¡¯t change her way of talking very well since I¡¯m next to her.


    Naturally, I won¡¯t get jealous anymore. I don¡¯t find it just a bit irking, not at all.


    Despite this, Ciel looked at me. And then giggled.


    Somehow it feels like Ciel is the mature one, it¡¯s frustrating.


    And as I got a bit displeased, Ciel gently patted my head.


    I really can¡¯t win against her. I lightened up a bit.


    I¡¯ve called Ciel easy to please before but I¡¯m not much different myself.


    Hiya~! And today we¡¯re greeted with one of the clich¨¦s of the gender bender genre (especially of the Japanese variety): the dress up scene aka. dress up doll chapter~!


    (This chapter is provided to you by Re:Library)


    (Say no to content thief!)


    First of all, I love how different this scene is to the usual one you see in the gender bend stories. I think it¡¯s due to Ain being already ¡°female¡± for a long time, with her being in Ciel¡¯s body and whatnot, but also due to Ain basically seeing Ciel in the mirror in most cases, lol. Most of the time, it¡¯s once again Ain thinking of what would work on Ciel rather than how she looks, and I think this is one more thing that makes it different. A lot of the ¡°dress up doll¡± chapters in other series don¡¯t do much to progress the story or to, well, *tell* something. Rather, it sometimes ruins some of the characters for me, particularly the pushy one that wanted to dress the protag up in the first place. It sometimes gets uncomfortably pushy and rarely gets referenced to again. It¡¯s somewhat disengaging to the story when done wrong and there¡¯s usually a new character introduced to avoid existing characters being forced to be the uncomfortably pushy one. Here, we get more information not only about Ain and Ciel, but also the maids and the mansion. For example, Ciel getting dressed up with Ain after being convinced by someone (likely Fii) is in-character, and we get to know more about how the maids are somewhat lacking in excitement due to the infrequency of guests. Ain being Ain and thinking about what would be nice for Ciel and so forth.


    And then of course, more bonding time with Ciel and Ain. Ain being extra adorable due to being unable to hide absolutely anything now with her having manifested a physical body, meanwhile Ciel just keeps on winning, lol. Ciel could already read Ain like an open book but now it¡¯s like Ain was adapted into a movie, there¡¯s not much left to the imagination (that¡¯s another issue for another topic, lol). We get our new character Martha and the whole day still left for our princesses spend.

 CH 89

    After being dressed up like a doll, we ate lunch and holed up in Ciel¡¯s room, without the maids naturally.


    I¡¯m alone in the large room with Ciel. It sounds questionable when I put it like that but it¡¯s basically the same situation as this morning.


    Nonetheless, we are already in our room and all but we still haven¡¯t decided on what to do.


    With this being the case, there¡¯s naturally only one thing for us to do, but then a great idea suddenly came to mind. It will need Fiiyanamiya-sama¡¯s permission though, so we¡¯ll have to leave the room again.


    ¡¸Why don¡¯t we try asking if we can use the garden?¡¹


    ¡¸I see. That would be nice. I can¡¯t wait.¡¹


    Just from those few words, Ciel seems to have understood my intention, causing her to stand up with excitement befitting of her age.


    At this rate, I have a hunch that Ciel might just take me by the hand and lead me running around the mansion to search for Fiiyanamia-sama.


    ¡¸I¡¯ll ask her right now, so please wait a moment.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­? Ah, that¡¯s right. Ain can contact Fii at any moment, right? I¡¯ll leave it to you, good luck.¡¹


    ¡¸With that said, can we borrow the mansion¡¯s garden?¡¹


    Since Fiiyanamia-sama likely heard us anyway, I asked like so. And with the same method she used in the past, she gave her permission.


    ¡¸It seems to be fine.¡¹


    ¡¸Then let¡¯s go.¡¹


    Ciel took me by the hand and launched off energetically.


    ¡ó


    As I thought, the garden of Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s mansion is really beautiful.


    Viewing it from the terrace was nice too, but actually being in the middle of it has a different charm.


    Like the appearance and scent of the flowers can be distinguished now, unlike when viewing from afar.


    It¡¯s really impressive how the garden was not only made to be pleasing to the eye but also to be enjoyable to walk around in.


    Now then, the reason we¡¯ve come here to the garden isn¡¯t really because we wanted to see the flowers.


    We also do want to see these flowers, but what we actually came here for is to sing and dance in the midst of these.


    I¡¯m sure that singing in the middle of such beautiful scenery must feel amazing.


    It seems like Ciel can¡¯t wait to move as well, as it¡¯s clear from her side glance that she¡¯s definitely excited.


    Now, what should I sing? Just as I was pondering this, I heard a song riding the winds.


    It¡¯s sung by a gentle feminine voice.


    From what I can understand, Ciel can¡¯t hear this mysterious singer.


    And this voice, for some reason, is really memorable.


    I have a lot of songs I can sing and among them are a few in particular that I liked so much that I could sing it after the first hearing.


    After all, despite the fact that the song is still going on, I already want to sing it.


    I should have no knowledge of the language, but I can¡¯t help but want to sing it out.


    It was refreshing like the blowing wind, gentle like the swaying of leaves, and warm like the sunlight passing through the trees.


    A song, a tune, like that of a forest.


    With every note being important, this song reminded me of the joys of singing.


    Before I realized it, I was already singing.


    What should¡¯ve been an unfamiliar song, with what should¡¯ve been an unknown language.


    I should be singing out of my own accord but I don¡¯t exactly know why I¡¯m singing it.


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    Like breathing, the song naturally flows out of my lips.


    However, for some reason, I don¡¯t really have the leeway to think about it right now.


    After all, I love singing. So as long as I can sing it, it¡¯s fine.


    And I love watching Ciel dancing, so rather than questioning this, I¡¯d rather burn Ciel¡¯s dance to my memory.


    Matching my song, Ciel dances.


    Like a fairy frolicking by the lake. Greatly moving her small body, she expresses joy.


    On the ground meeting Ciel¡¯s feet, it¡¯s as if light was spreading outwards, like the flowers were singing her praises.


    Ciel¡¯s eyes met with mine.


    Her eyes narrowed in joy and mine similarly did in reply.


    Something only possible with a body.


    A smile only visible to me due to having a body.


    ¡ªAh, what joy.


    ¡ªFun, it¡¯s just so fun.


    Before I realized it, Ciel had used sorcery.


    The large ball of water she abruptly launched to the sky falls down in the form of rain.


    Ciel dancing in the middle of the rain reminded me of a child playing in the rain. It¡¯s quite adorable.


    Then, as though to follow her movements, Ciel manipulated the water to leave trails behind as she moved.


    The flowing trail of water was like a serpent under Ciel¡¯s control and the splashes that reflected sunlight seemingly served to highlight Ciel.


    I¡¯m also changing my singing to match Ciel¡¯s dance.


    Naturally that would be impossible without ending the song, so I¡¯ll try my best to end the song while matching Ciel¡¯s timing.


    I wonder how long we¡¯ve continued this? I¡¯ve begun to see exhaustion from Ciel, so I stopped singing.


    Matching with me, Ciel stops dancing as well.


    In the end, I can¡¯t remember how many songs we went through but seeing how Ciel¡¯s shoulders are bobbing up and down as she breathes, I likely sang a lot.


    If I had secretly added stamina recovery effects while singing, we probably would have likely continued until it got dark.


    Worse, we might have continued even beyond that.


    With Ciel¡¯s magic power control during the duration of Dance Princess¡¯ use, it would have been easy for her to illuminate the area even at night.


    With the ambience slightly differing at night, I want to see Ciel dancing in the garden under the starry sky too.


    As Ciel¡¯s breathing settled down, she spoke to me.


    ¡¸It¡¯s my first time hearing Ain¡¯s songs like this.


    What was that first song? It¡¯s the first time I ever heard it. Also, it doesn¡¯t sound like to be the usual words, is that right?¡¹


    ¡¸I heard a voice from somewhere, so I just tried singing along with it.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so? I haven¡¯t heard anything, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸It could be related to my current state then.¡¹


    ¡¸Right, right. How strange. Really strange. Still, it was a great song.


    Would you sing it again, Ain?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, certainly.¡¹


    As we were talking, a pleasant breeze blew between us.


    I was wondering what we should do but since Ciel seems tired, and the scenery here is good as well, I beckoned her to my side.


    Despite being puzzled, Ciel went to me without any caution.


    And while she was doing so, I sat on the grassy floor.


    As Ciel arrived before me, I made her sit down and gently laid her head on top of my lap.


    It¡¯s the so-called lap pillow.


    Ciel¡¯s body is quite thin, so I don¡¯t really know if my lap can serve the purpose of a pillow. But since my lap does have the characteristic female softness, on the other hand, this shouldn¡¯t be exhausting.


    The way Ciel is in wide-eyed wonder on my lap is adorable.


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    ¡¸This wonderful position, what is it! What is it!¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s a lap pillow. It seems like you¡¯re quite tired, so please take a rest.¡¹


    ¡¸I see, that is true. I¡¯ll take up the offer.¡¹


    While she said that, will Ciel really be able to rest with this excitement of hers?


    While singing an appropriate song so Ciel can relax even just a bit more, I continuously caress Ciel¡¯s cheek.


    Ciel ticklishly chuckles, so I might have just missed the timing to stop.


    Before long, Ciel reached her hand to my cheek as well.


    Just as she was touching my cheek and enjoying its softness, she broke into a laxed grin.


    This side of Ciel is quite rare to see, so I just let her do as she likes. It¡¯s hard to sing though.


    After that, she then snuggled close to hold hands, so I handed over the right hand I was caressing her cheek with.


    After seeing Ciel hold my hand with a satisfied look, feeling Ciel¡¯s warmth, I closed my eyes, and began singing as I felt the breeze.


    ¡ó


    Without noticing, it was already night. I suppose I only have a little time left to have a body like this.


    Will it end the moment I sleep today or will it keep on going until the date changes, I don¡¯t know.


    Ciel, who was on my lap, fell asleep without me noticing, and as she woke up, she hugged me tight.


    Before I died, I¡¯ve never embraced with someone else like this¡ªthough I can¡¯t really say for sure, since my memories around elementary school aren¡¯t really too vivid¡ªso it¡¯s a bit embarrassing.


    Even so, it¡¯s extremely comforting. It¡¯s not because of the body warmth or the softness of a girl¡¯s body, but it¡¯s because of the feeling of being physically together with Ciel. It¡¯s extremely satisfying emotionally.


    We can¡¯t stay like this forever though, so I helped Ciel up while we embraced.


    ¡¸It should be dinner sometime soon but I want to wash up before that.¡¹


    ¡¸I see. In that case, please take a bath-¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸We¡¯re going together, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Umm, right. If you don¡¯t mind, then I¡¯ll be accompanying you to the bath.¡¹


    I don¡¯t know if we can just enter on our own, so I asked for Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s permission before heading back inside the mansion.


    On the way, we encountered a maid, and she prepared towels and clothes for us.


    She suggested that they could help with the bath, but since Ciel and I want to be alone together this time, we declined.


    Her absolutely disappointed look really left an impression on me, but let us off for today.


    It seems like the maids of this mansion really hunger for work.


    Fiiyanamia-sama likely doesn¡¯t really need assistance, so they probably want things to be busy with.


    But I also don¡¯t really need assistance myself.


    And in Ciel¡¯s case, it¡¯s probably enough to just prepare her food to eat.


    After guiding us to the changing room, only Ciel and I entered inside.


    Undress and put the clothes in the basket. The things to do before entering the bathroom aren¡¯t any different from the usual, but today is going to be my first time being naked in this body, so I¡¯m nervous.


    Since this body is based on Ciel¡¯s, I know that there¡¯s nothing I should feel ashamed of, but this really rouses the shame that I originally had.


    I know that what I¡¯m saying is weird after having borrowed Ciel¡¯s body and taken a bath together with Viviana-san.


    But it is embarrassing, so I turn my back on Ciel and timidly undress.


    If I had been given a dress on the last change during the dress-up show, I might have not been able to remove my clothes on my own.


    After undressing completely, I took a peep on how Ciel is doing. Ciel was already done undressing and was intently observing my body.


    Well, yeah. It¡¯s practically her own body, so I don¡¯t really mind much, but it¡¯s really embarrassing.


    As I was enduring the embarrassment, ¡¸So this is how my body looks like.¡¹ Ciel said so with a strangely impressed tone.


    ¡¸Ciel¡¯s body is pretty, so it¡¯s quite nice for me.¡¹


    ¡¸Then, has Ain seen a lot of other female bodies other than mine?¡¹


    Hearing Ciel giggling as she asked, I¡¯m stumped on how I should reply.


    There¡¯s no doubt that despite how sheltered Ciel is, she knows what having seen a lot means with me being formerly male.


    Practically speaking, if I had to say whether I¡¯ve seen some, I haven¡¯t really seen that much.


    The only ones I¡¯ve seen naked in reality, excluding Ciel and my family, is more or less Viviana-san.


    Still, it¡¯s not like I didn¡¯t have any at all.


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    Ciel is only teasingly looking at me, and doesn¡¯t seem to have a criticizing look, but I guess this is the negative side effect of me divulging that I was formerly male.


    ¡¸Unfortunately, I haven¡¯t seen enough to make any comparison.


    The only girls that I¡¯ve actually seen naked are more or less Viviana-san and my mother. However, I do think honestly that Ciel¡¯s body is pretty. So personally, I feel privileged.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so? I see, I¡¯m really glad that Ain likes it.¡¹


    I somehow managed to shake her off.


    Putting myself aside, it¡¯ll be bad for Ciel to stay naked here in the changing room for too long, ¡¸Let¡¯s enter now, shall we?¡¹ so I suggested moving.


    Ciel took my hand, ¡¸Let¡¯s.¡¹ and charged in.


    Hiya~! And today, we just got even more AinCiel cuteness! As well as the first dancing scene in a while!


    I don¡¯t really have much to say in this chapter. In a sense, it¡¯s a really action packed chapter, with a big portion allotted for the dance scene. Still, there are a few subtle things here and there. First is how, as usual, the two are really good at reading each other¡¯s minds, which should be a bit obvious with all the dancing considered. Secondly, Ain just heard a strange song, what does that mean to say? Where does it come from? And such. Real mystery. Thirdly, the subtle difference with Ain and Ciel exchanging glances now since Ain has a body, that¡¯s adorable. And possibly finally, Ciel just being so excited all the time in general, lol.

 CH 90

    In the wide bathroom that could fit a lot more people even with Ciel and I inside, there wasn¡¯t anything resembling a shower.


    Instead, there¡¯s a faucet and a wash basin, so we¡¯ll just use those for rinsing our bodies.


    Even in my past life, it¡¯s not as if every bath was furnished with a showerhead, so it¡¯s nothing unusual.


    Rather, having something like a showerhead is more unusual in this world.


    Ciel, who had been leading me by the hand, released her hold ¡¸Can we do that washing each other thing?¡¹ and tilted her head.


    Come to think of it, I do remember us making that promise.


    If I¡¯m not mistaken, I should have made this promise with Ciel when she was sulking about me being in the bath together with Viviana-san.


    At that time, I didn¡¯t think that the promise would be realized this fast. No, I didn¡¯t even think that it would ever be realized.


    Since we¡¯re here, I¡¯d love to thoroughly scrub Ciel down squeaky clean but it would probably be better to ask the maids to do that instead. In our case though, just rinsing our sweat off would be enough.


    ¡¸Washing each other means that we just have to wash each other¡¯s body, right?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. Though, as for the hair, we can just rinse off the dirt as usual.¡¹


    ¡¸I see. I only have to wash Ain first, right?¡¹


    Understanding what I said, Ciel filled the wash basin with warm water.


    To make sure that Ciel won¡¯t catch a cold, I¡¯ll keep Ciel warm with sorcery. I can¡¯t make combat-level sorcery, so I guess I could just use any fire-type sorcery.


    Now then, regarding Ciel, due to a certain someone, she¡¯s become extremely good at making soap lather.


    I¡¯m still better than her for now, but she¡¯ll likely catch up to me eventually.


    In the meantime, I¡¯m sitting on a chair and waiting.


    ¡¸¡­¡­ hiya-¡­¡¹


    While I was waiting leisurely, something caressed my back.


    I know full well that it¡¯s Ciel¡¯s doing but I let out a strange voice and it¡¯s embarrassing.


    ¡¸Ain¡¯s voice really is adorable.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Our voices should be the same, though.¡¹


    ¡¸You think so? Ain is a Song Princess. Wouldn¡¯t it be natural for Ain to have a more adorable voice then?¡¹


    ¡¸Now that you mention it, that might be true.¡¹


    I was sulking a bit from the surprise attack but as we continued talking, it eventually became irrelevant to me.


    On the topic of voice, Ciel certainly seems to be right.


    And I likely can¡¯t dance as well as Ciel can too.


    As we continue talking, Ciel¡¯s hands glide as if tracing the outlines of my body.


    It¡¯s honestly pretty ticklish, so I¡¯m desperately holding back my voice but maybe Ciel can still hear it.


    Our bodies are just so close together after all.


    I don¡¯t know if the heat I feel from my body is caused by embarrassment or just the heat from the bathroom, but I¡¯ll just say that it¡¯s the latter.


    ¡¸Ain¡¯s skin is really soft.¡¹


    ¡¸It shouldn¡¯t be any different than yours, Ciel. I think.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s true. But in that case, would our size here be the same too?¡¹


    As she said that, Ciel¡¯s hands reached for my chest.


    I already prepared for this but I still couldn¡¯t stop myself from yelping out ¡¸Hiuu-¡¹ the moment she touched me.


    I¡¯m really not used to a lot of the female sensations.


    The worst part about this is that the manner of Ciel¡¯s touch feels like she¡¯s just genuinely enjoying the texture, so I find it difficult to stop her.


    ¡¸It¡¯s not big but it¡¯s quite soft. How should I say this? It¡¯s somewhat addicting.¡¹


    ¡¸A-as the one being, touched, I¡¯d rather that you don¡¯t get addicted to it though¡­¡­¡¹


    Ciel didn¡¯t reply to my words, instead, her hands moved to a different location.


    ¡ó


    It was a struggle.


    Even after washing me, since it was practically the first time Ciel had come in touch with another person, it seems like Ciel took quite a liking to the sensation of my body and kept on poking and touching my upper arm and such.


    She was like a child that has been bought their first memory foam pillow, her actions itself were of pure heart.


    Even though her touch occasionally deviated from that, it seems like she¡¯s mainly ascertaining my warmth.


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    How do I say this? Every time I react, she smiles teasingly but in general she has a beaming smile. If possible, I would¡¯ve loved to see her from the side.


    As for me, I wholeheartedly focused on washing Ciel squeaky clean.


    When my hands touch her, Ciel seems to be really enjoying it, so I ended up getting pretty serious about it.


    And now, I¡¯m in the bathtub, soaking side by side with Ciel.


    Having hair soak in the bathwater might be heresy but with the barrier coating, our hair and the bath won¡¯t get dirtied, so we entered without caring about that.


    Thanks to that, our hair spread out on the surface of the water and between us, a black and white marble pattern was formed.


    While it is pretty, if not for the barrier, our hair would have gotten caught with each other and this would have been a disaster.


    We entered the tub holding hands with our shoulders touching each other but Ciel suddenly let go and abruptly sat me on top of her lap.


    And then she embraced me from behind.


    She¡¯s probably copying what I did with Viviana-san before. Anticipating her motive, I settled in between Ciel¡¯s arms without any resistance.


    Still, I must be heavy sitting on Ciel¡¯s lap, so I squeezed in and sat in the space between her legs.


    And then, I brushed my hand against Ciel¡¯s arm.


    With embraces from behind, it¡¯s generally a man that does the embracing but being embraced by a Ciel1 like this isn¡¯t bad at all.


    Though, even if I did the embracing, appearance-wise, it¡¯d still be a girl doing it. On the inside, I don¡¯t know. Honestly, I only vaguely remember that I was formerly male.


    I might be both or none, but being influenced by Ciel¡¯s body, I guess I¡¯m leaning more on the feminine side.


    As I was pondering about that, Ciel rested her head on my shoulder.


    While caressing her head, I decided to speak about something that I probably should talk about.


    ¡¸To tell you the truth, there¡¯s still something I haven¡¯t told you, Ciel.¡¹


    ¡¸Really? Other than being formerly male, coming from another world, and being on the way to becoming a god, there¡¯s still something that Ain wants to say?¡¹


    Now that she mentioned that, it does feel a bit late to be worried about this.


    Still, this is a topic that Ciel has been curious about for a long time. While combing Ciel¡¯s hair, I continue the conversation.


    ¡¸The origin of Ainsel.¡¹


    ¡¸You¡¯re going to tell me?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. After all, I have no reason to keep this a secret anymore.¡¹


    ¡¸I see. Then could you tell me now, Ain?¡¹


    ¡¸Of course. The name Ainsel originated from a fairy¡ªsomething like a mischievous spirit, I suppose¡ªin my former world.¡¹


    ¡¸There were spirits in your world too, Ain?¡¹


    ¡¸No, there weren¡¯t any as far as I know. They¡¯re fictional beings that only existed in stories.


    Fairies are generally depicted as very small people, some would help people, some would cause mischief. There¡¯s a great variety of them.¡¹


    Somehow, I¡¯m struggling on a topic different from what I expected to struggle on.


    Explaining fairies is pretty difficult.


    Trying to somehow understand my explanation, ¡¸Hmnn¡­¡­¡¹ Ciel groans.


    ¡¸Is it like how spirits also appear differently from each other?¡¹


    ¡¸Something similar to that. Among these fairies is Ainsel.


    And simultaneously, the word Ainsel also meant¡ºMyself¡»in a certain country in my former world.


    One day, the fairy Ainsel appeared before a boy who was playing near a hearth. Ainsel introduced herself and the boy replied ¡ºI¡¯m Ainsel2 too.¡» in kind.


    The two played happily together but then the boy accidentally got the fairy burned.


    The fairy cried for her parents. And the parent came before her crying child asked ¡ºWho did this to you?¡»


    Since the boy introduced himself as Ainsel, the fairy answered ¡¸It was Ainsel!¡¹ but this only troubled the parents, so the fairy was then taken back to their home.


    That should be the gist of the story.¡¹


    The details are probably different but that was what approximately happened.


    Thinking about it, I can¡¯t help but feel bad for Ainsel. If I¡¯m not wrong, there are some that say that she was also scolded by her parents.


    ¡¸I understand the origin of Ain¡¯s name. But why did you keep it a secret?¡¹


    As expected, Ciel is displaying an extreme reaction. As if to keep me from leaving, the arms around my neck tightened and our bodies got even closer. To calm Ciel down, I gently caress her arm.


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    ¡¸Yes. Since there¡¯s no need for me to disappear anymore, I decided to talk about it.¡¹


    ¡¸Really? That¡¯s not a lie, is it?¡¹


    ¡¸Of course.¡¹


    As I answered her, Ciel loosened her arms.


    Even so, our bodies remain close to each other. Our cheeks are also stuck to each other.


    This warmth is different from that of the bath, this sensation of skin touching without anything in between, I just want to surrender myself to it.


    ¡¸Now, about how I would disappear, in short, it¡¯s because Ainsel means ¡±Myself¡±.


    Even just Ain would still hold the meaning ¡°Me¡±.


    Therefore, even if Ciel calls me Ain, it would be no different from you pointing to yourself. That would be how it would seem from an outsider¡¯s perspective.¡¹


    ¡¸So even if I say, Ain casted this barrier, it would be like I¡¯m saying that I casted this barrier, right?¡¹


    ¡¸I wasn¡¯t confident that it would work, rather it was more of wishful thinking from me.


    As we know, some sort of sacrifice is required to use magic. ¡¹


    Thanks to that, I can¡¯t use combat sorcery.


    I probably can¡¯t use healing sorcery as well. Though, in the case of healing, Song Princess can cover for it.


    ¡¸That¡¯s why I thought of a magic that would grant all my capability and skill in sorcery to you, Ciel.


    After all, with that, you would be able to cast a barrier on your own.


    The sacrifice will be my own existence. It would erase the fact that I existed, leaving not even a trace behind.


    It would also alter memories and it¡¯s quite doubtful if it¡¯s even possible to do, but since I used the name Ainsel3, that somehow made it possible.


    In other words, if this magic is activated, everything that I have done will become Ciel¡¯s.


    After all, excluding the people of this mansion, the only person who knew and used the name Ainsel is you, Ciel.


    Excluding Fiiyanamia-sama, since she¡¯s a divine messenger, the maids who assisted me might feel something out of place since they assisted ¡°themselves¡±. But other than that, I should disappear from everyone¡¯s minds without any big issue.


    None of the people we met before coming to this mansion know about any Ainsel, so memory alteration wouldn¡¯t be necessary.¡¹


    Whether it was even possible or not, I honestly didn¡¯t know.


    It¡¯d be nice if I could, it was practically wishful thinking from me, but since I got the Supreme God¡¯s approval, this should become magic.


    Or rather, it might be that this is possible to do exactly because there¡¯s an excess of the Supreme God¡¯s power.


    Whatever the case, if Ciel doesn¡¯t want to be a god, if she can¡¯t accept what I actually was, or if it¡¯s judged that I¡¯m unnecessary; I intended to disappear using this magic.


    ¡¸Then, even now, Ain is still in a state in which that magic is usable, right?


    What can we do to make that magic unusable?¡¹


    ¡¸If I¡¯m given a different name and called that, the magic will become unusable.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ That¡¯s troubling, really troubling. To me, Ain is Ain, any other would feel really weird.¡¹


    Well, I understand how large of a hurdle it is for Ciel to think of a name for me.


    Besides, I understand the feeling. It would feel weird for me to be called by the name Yumemura Leon after all this time too.


    In that case, if Ciel can¡¯t think of anything, having her call me by my former name should be the best option.


    After all, even the Supreme God didn¡¯t speak of it.


    Still, with how I look now, the name Yumemura Leon doesn¡¯t really fit me.


    ¡¸In that case, even just this once, please call me Yume.¡¹


    I was considering Leo, but Yume sounds a bit more girlish.


    Hearing what I said, Ciel tilted her head in confusion but because our faces were close to each other, Ciel¡¯s head hit mine.


    For now, I gently brushed her cute head and Ciel ticklishly narrowed her eyes.


    ¡¸Is that Ain¡¯s old name?¡¹


    ¡¸A nickname made from my old name¡­¡­ I suppose. I thought that this one would fit my current appearance the most, you see.¡¹


    ¡¸I see.


    ¡­¡­ Say, Yume. I like Yume. I like Yume so much. So please, don¡¯t go disappear, okay?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, of course.¡¹


    I lean my head on Ciel as well. There¡¯s hair in between us, this somehow feels extremely calming.


    At the same time, I understood by instinct that I can no longer use the magic that¡¯d make me disappear.


    Ciel is asking me for answers with her gaze, so I whispered to her:¡¸I can¡¯t use it anymore.¡¹


    Hiya~! Yes! We finally got to hear the secret of Ain¡¯s ominous other magic, which is actually a self-destruction switch for herself!?


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    Anyhow, here in this chapter, we see Ain finally opening up with the last secret she¡¯s keeping, and in my opinion, this is the true final show of Ain opening herself and exposing her vulnerabilities, something that has been happening this whole arc. As I¡¯ve read with from other people¡¯s comments, and in my own personal opinion as an individual, the time with Fiiyanamia was a bit forceful. Even Fiiyanamia herself recognises that her method isn¡¯t a fair method. However, for me, that functioned as a good contrast to the opening up that Ain is currently going over right now, to the most important person that she really needs to open up to first. The one with Fiiyanamia functionally served as a sledgehammer to make Ain self-conscious that led to Ain gradually opening up instead of letting her feelings overflow uncontrollably again. It did lighten the burden a bit, but only temporarily, since it wasn¡¯t really a conscious choice. It was these little interactions with Ciel that really made the difference.


    I also really loved how the story of Ainsel (Me aan sel, or My own self) was melded into this. It subtly hints on the type of person Ain was, knowing a bit of fairy tales and loving songs. It really does strengthen the Disney Princess image of Ain, lol. And I don¡¯t think this is a well-known story either. As for me, I only learned of the story through this series, lol..


    As for the adorable interactions, really, what else can I say? Still, Ciel subtly weaving in impure intentions with her innocent touching was funny. Also small callbacks like how Ain taught Ciel how to make good lather with soap, Ciel mimicking what happened with Viviana, subtle things.

 CH 91

    Exiting the tub, I wipe myself dry before wearing the provided negligee.


    The one I was wearing when I woke up, that mysterious negligee.


    What exactly is this? I have a hunch that it¡¯s something that the creator god made, maybe I was just given this negligee simply as a bonus.


    It¡¯s also possible that Fiiynamia-sama noticed my incarnation and had put it on me.


    Whatever the case may be, it shows off my shoulders, so I really want a stole.


    After putting the negligee on, I call Ciel.


    Ciel was also done dressing up and approached me, seemingly puzzled.


    ¡¸Ain, what¡¯s the matter?¡¹


    ¡¸I was thinking of drying your hair. Could you sit down?¡¹


    ¡¸Sure, understood.¡¹


    I pulled the chair that was in the corner to the center of the changing room and had Ciel sit down.


    Her damp white hair likely wouldn¡¯t particularly get damaged even if left out to dry.


    I can even just dry it out immediately if I had to, but this time, I use sorcery to dry her hair the way a hair dryer would.


    While combing through Ciel¡¯s hair with my fingers, I also lightly massage her scalp.


    Ciel is sitting still with her eyes closed, so doing this is extremely easy.


    Right now, it somewhat feels to me like we¡¯re actual sisters.


    Though, it¡¯s not like I would know how sisters act with each other.


    Anyhow, it seems like Ciel is quite pleased based on her laxed lips, so I¡¯m quite satisfied.


    As I finished drying her, ¡¸Finished.¡¹ I pulled my hand away and Ciel, opening her eyes, looks at me, seemingly sad


    ¡¸Done already? Too bad.¡¹


    ¡¸I can¡¯t keep on drying it forever, after all.¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah. Thank you, Ain. It felt really good.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m glad to hear that.¡¹


    Saying so, I presented my hand before Ciel.


    Taking my hand, she stood up, and we left to eat dinner.


    ¡ó


    Dinner was really delicious as well.


    I was thinking of something to talk with Fiiyanamia-sama about but knowing that there¡¯s only a few remaining hours left, she quickly escorted us to the bedroom.


    I can¡¯t keep count on how many times I¡¯ve felt grateful to Fiiyanamia-sama today.


    It would be nice if I can return the favor sometime in the future.


    Right now, however, I need to focus on my time with Ciel.


    ¡¸The day¡¯s going to end soon, isn¡¯t it¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸We still have a little time, so we can do what you want to do, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸Let me think¡­¡­ I wonder how Ain¡¯s body is right now.¡¹


    Saying so, Ciel touches my upper arm.


    She curiously, but gently, pinches it repeatedly, it¡¯s quite amusing.


    ¡¸I suppose it¡¯s like divine power is coating my soul.


    Because of that, this body doesn¡¯t seem to need any actual food sustenance.¡¹


    ¡¸Divine power¡­ does that mean if I become a god, I¡¯ll be able to make Ain¡¯s body?¡¹


    ¡¸I believe so, but I can¡¯t say for sure.¡¹


    ¡¸I see, so that¡¯s how it is.¡¹


    Ciel holds my hand and starts contemplating while repeatedly squeezing.


    My other hand feels somewhat lonely, so I decided to gently brush Ciel¡¯s cheek.


    Somehow, I already feel really happy just from touching Ciel¡¯s soft and smooth skin, but then Ciel held my hand with her other free one.


    And as she smiled with great delight, I was overwhelmed with emotion.


    ¡¸You know, Ain, I¡¯ve been always thinking to myself, is there a way to make Ain a body?


    And so, just seeing a possibility for us to be together like this, really makes me so happy, I feel like my heart is about to burst. It¡¯s true, you know?¡¹


    Saying that, Ciel sat me on the bed and embraced my head.


    Beyond the soft sensation, I hear Ciel¡¯s heart beating really fast.


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    I never had anything more than cloudy fantasies of me being able to physically touch Ciel one day.


    Rather, I probably decided unconsciously that I should disappear before even considering the matter of having a body.


    That might have been why I wasn¡¯t able to properly imagine how overjoyed Ciel would be.


    I¡¯m sure that Ciel has always wanted to be able to touch me even before this opportunity of having a wish granted by the Supreme God came. Definitely for a longer time than I did at least.


    And this difference should proportionally affect emotional attachment to this wish as well.


    However, now I know. The happiness of being able to physically interact with Ciel. What should¡¯ve been just trivial happiness.


    This normal state that never had a chance of getting a hold of in the past.


    That¡¯s why, I want to have my own body too.


    I¡¯m fine even if I can¡¯t have it everyday, but just one day is painful.


    ¡¸It will take 10 years at most for our deification to stop us from aging.


    From there, it will likely take even more time for us to completely become gods.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right, you said that before.¡¹


    ¡¸However, there is a way to hasten this.¡¹


    ¡¸Right, I somewhat realized that too. After all, the way Ain spoke implied that.


    How can we do that?¡¹


    ¡¸By using a lot of divine power. Basically, just mixing some into the barrier should speed it up.¡¹


    Right now, it¡¯s still impossible for me to use it constantly but once some of my magic power gets converted into divine power, I should be able to do it.


    And while I don¡¯t know how much we can hasten it, it should at least speed up by a few years.


    ¡¸Then will this be all on you, Ain?¡¹


    ¡¸Ciel still can¡¯t manipulate divine energy after all. I¡¯m not sure when you¡¯ll start being able to use it but I¡¯m basically the one influencing the transformation, so this¡¯ll likely be mostly on me either way. ¡¹


    ¡¸If possible, I really want to help out too¡­¡­¡¹


    Ciel began contemplating about this, but there¡¯s something I absolutely need to convey to her.


    ¡¸I also want to have physical contact with you, Ciel.


    However, if we rush too much, you¡¯ll stop aging before you finish your growth.


    So please keep this in mind.¡¹


    Ciel is going to be 13 soon. Considering the maximum years, which is 10, she¡¯ll stop aging at about 22-23 years old.


    Since the deification accelerates based on the encroachment, there is a possibility that, if we give it our all, we¡¯ll experience the halt of aging within a few years.


    If we can halve the time, this¡¯ll be around 17-18. It might even be possible for her growth to stop at about 15 years old.


    Ciel¡¯s plenty charming even now, but she¡¯s far from being an adult woman.


    ¡¸Ain, do you think that I¡¯m no good as I am right now?¡¹


    ¡¸No. You¡¯re cute as you are right now. You¡¯ve been cute ever since.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, I don¡¯t mind it. I want to do my best to become a god as fast as possible.¡¹


    With a slightly flushed face, Ciel asserted so.


    With that being the case, I¡¯m sure that she thought this through. That¡¯s where I was mistaken yesterday, after all.


    As I was thinking this, Ciel added so.


    ¡¸After all, it¡¯s what you want, Ain.


    I want to hurry and be able to freely interact with Ain too. With that being that case, there¡¯s no reason to hesitate.¡¹


    I felt my cheeks breaking into a small smile, but I immediately refocused and replied with a resolute tone.


    ¡¸I understand. I¡¯ll use divine energy as much as I can.¡¹


    ¡¸And besides, I don¡¯t know how much a god can do, but the god Ain met could change her appearance freely, right?


    In that case, wouldn¡¯t we at least be capable of changing our age?¡¹


    Certainly, there is a possibility that it could be as Ciel says but only a possibility.


    However, being able to physically interact with Ciel is my happiness. And since we¡¯ve decided to be happy on our own, I¡¯ll take action to gain my own body as soon as I can. That¡¯s what I¡¯ve decided to do.


    As long as it doesn¡¯t cause Ciel unhappiness, I¡¯ll pursue my own happiness myself.


    ¡¸If that the case, then it might be good to try and search out ¡°Artificial Divine Messengers¡±.¡¹


    ¡¸Right, that is true. After all, Ain was able to become a god after defeating that wolf¡­¡­ right?¡¹


    ¡¸Roughly speaking, yes.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, if we defeat more of those Artificial Divine Messengers, Ain¡¯s deification could speed up by a lot.¡¹


    ¡¸There should be some merit in trying that. The real issue is whether there are other more of these around or not but¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸So in the meantime, gathering information seems to be the best option.


    And it¡¯s that man after all, so it¡¯s highly probable that he experimented with more things than just that.¡¹


    Nothing will start if we don¡¯t move. We haven¡¯t had any plans ever since we arrived at Central, so it¡¯s good that we found something to do.


    I don¡¯t have any plans on setting foot on Estoque again, but they might have escaped to other countries. And it¡¯s not like we won¡¯t become gods if we can¡¯t find more of them.


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    ¡¸With that decided, I¡¯ll have Ain as a hug pillow today, I will!¡¹


    As our future plans were decided, or perhaps it¡¯s because she got the information she wanted, Ciel had an absolutely satisfied look as she pushed me down.


    ¡ó


    On the bed, we faced each other with our hands held together.


    At first, Ciel was eager to have me as her hug pillow but after she actually tried it, she seems to have realized that the human body is not fit to be a hug pillow and after various experiments.


    It seems like for Ciel, the fact that she couldn¡¯t see my face when she was hugging me scored the hug pillow a negative assessment.


    Ever since we settled into this position, we haven¡¯t exchanged any words nor have we done anything in particular.


    Through the feel of our joined hands and the face we see before us, we simply ascertained each other¡¯s existence.


    Our gazes intertwined and, as we got captivated by each other¡¯s eyes, the two of us giggled.


    Just from this, for some reason, I felt awfully fulfilled.


    After who knows how long, Ciel¡¯s eyes gradually started drooping drowsily.


    The number of her blinks increased and I¡¯m sure that she¡¯ll fall asleep any moment now.


    Even so, knowing that she¡¯s trying her best to stay awake and be with me for even just a second longer, it warms my heart.


    How sweet, how adorable.


    ¡¸Say, Ain?¡¹


    I heard Ciel¡¯s voice, which had a somewhat sleepy tone.


    ¡¸Would you sing for me? I want to hear Ain¡¯s songs while feeling your presence right now.¡¹


    ¡¸Can I sit up? It¡¯s difficult to sing lying down, you see.¡¹


    ¡¸Will you hold my hand?¡¹


    ¡¸Of course.¡¹


    Saying so, I sat up and sat on the edge of the bed.


    Then, I grabbed Ciel¡¯s left hand with my right and rested my free left hand on her shoulder.


    Closing my eyes, I started singing.


    All the while recalling this dream-like day. For this day that I was able to physically touch Ciel, I try to make it even just a bit more special for her.


    I sang the few lullabies I¡¯ve sung many times before, one by one, carefully and extensively.


    Gently, affectionately, while making sure that it reaches Ciel¡¯s ears.


    To lull her to sleep, I rhythmically tap my left hand.


    Gradually, Ciel¡¯s hold loosened.


    And her breath started to follow a consistent cycle.


    When Ciel completely fell asleep, I stopped singing.


    The moonlight shone on her sleeping face.


    This familiar face of hers was adorable like that of a fairy¡¯s yet at the same time, had a hidden beauty like that of a goddess.


    As I rested my palm on her cheek, she smiled happily while asleep.


    This innocent expression that Ciel normally doesn¡¯t show heals me greatly.


    Caressing her snow white hair, I whispered: ¡¸Good night, Cielmer.¡¹


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    Hiya~! And this ends Ciel¡¯s eventful day with Ain~ Gotta say, adorable arc all around and very therapeutic for Ain too~


    One thing I like about this series is that the author knows that it¡¯s the small things that hit really hard. In other words, subtlety. And this synergizes well with the fact they¡¯ve never experienced all of this trivial skinship before. Ever. All the casual touching is treated special, because it is due to Ain¡¯s physiology. Also, Fiiyanamia once again being considerate and giving them alone time together. Nice.


    And now on the second half, we get more of our two princesses and one important thing for the progression: where do we go from here? Well, it seems like the two can¡¯t wait to be able to touch each other again (sfw), so it¡¯s artificial divine messenger hunting season for the near future. That opens the possibility of travelling to other places, hopefully the guest reception is better that Estoque¡¯s, lol. Still, Estoque is the most human-centric country, if my memory is serving me right, so I guess it¡¯s time to meet more non-human races~!


    I¡¯m really overwhelmed by the last part though, I can¡¯t think any more than this, so I¡¯ll end it here.

 CH 92

    Separating Ciel¡¯s hand from mine while making sure not to wake her up, I gently rest it on top of her chest.


    I was thinking that it might be a bit cold tonight, but then I remembered that it shouldn¡¯t be an issue with the barrier on.


    I only have a short time left in this form but there¡¯s someone I have to speak to before I lose this body of mine.


    Talking while being next to sleeping Ciel isn¡¯t really a good move, so I guess I¡¯ll head to the balcony for now.


    Thinking so, I exited the room and saw Mohsa-san right outside the door.


    ¡¸Is there a problem?¡¹


    ¡¸No, I was simply waiting for you, Ainsel-sama.¡¹


    As I asked so, she courteously lowered her head.


    What does she mean by ¡°waiting for me¡±? Mohsa-san said that she¡¯s in charge of assisting me, so I guess it¡¯s related to that?


    Still, there was no assurance that I¡¯ll go outside at this time. Rather, wouldn¡¯t it be normal to assume that I¡¯d be asleep together with Ciel?


    Or so I thought, but there¡¯s one individual that can at least read my movements.


    ¡¸Was it Fiiyanamia-sama?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. I was informed that you likely will go outside tonight.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯d like to go to the balcony, but will that be alright?¡¹


    ¡¸Of course. Preparations will be done after we arrive.¡¹


    What do you mean by ¡°preparations¡±? Or so I wondered, but I decided to leave this to her.


    I¡¯m not used to ordering people around, after all.


    ¡ó


    Treating maids¡ªservants¡ªlike they aren¡¯t there and just talking seems to be an unspoken rule amongst nobles.


    In other words, they¡¯re the same as the stagehands in theaters.


    And they¡¯ve also been trained to absolutely not speak about whatever they overhear.


    If they do, they¡¯re dismissed. The employer is naturally higher in social status than the employed servants, so finding new employment after being dismissed won¡¯t be easy with possible obstructions. If rumours about what the servant did spread, they¡¯ll never find a new workplace.


    It¡¯s already bad enough, but there¡¯s even a possibility that their family would be endangered as well.


    Being employed by someone with influence that great, the one who has betrayed their trust is in the wrong.


    This might seem high-handed back on earth, but it looks like it¡¯s normal in this world.


    Though, if I¡¯m being honest, I¡¯ve thought that this was a world unrelated to us.


    ¡¸Mohsa-san, why are you working as a maid?¡¹


    That¡¯s why I asked out of curiosity.


    I don¡¯t know the specifics, but in this world where many nobles of lower standing attend those of higher status, being employed by Fiiyanamia-sama would mean that she should be of high social status.


    At the very least, she¡¯s likely not from a family that should lower their head to some doubtful, unknown strangers like us.


    Based on bloodlines, we¡¯re of a duke¡¯s family so everyone else outside of royalty should be either equal or lower in standing, but currently we don¡¯t have that social status. Or rather, when we were sold, our existence should have been practically erased.


    ¡¸Everyone working in this mansion was taken in by Fiiyanamia-sama.¡¹


    ¡¸Taken in?¡¹


    ¡¸Some who were shunned by their noble family for being the child of the previous wife, some nearly banished from false charges, and some simply had given up to reduce the number of mouths to feed. Fiiyanamia-sama employs people that have lost their place for whatever reason on a whim.¡¹


    ¡¸I see.¡¹


    I could say that that isn¡¯t true, but is probably just based on her whims.


    Fiiyanamia-sama is kind, but she only directs a certain amount of her kindness towards people.


    It¡¯s also possible that she hired people that have nowhere to go as to lower the chances of betrayal.


    Regardless, if there are people who are saved from this, then I think that¡¯s fine.


    Being accepted by Fiiyanamia-sama, I don¡¯t have any intention to find faults with that, rather, I want to follow this stance of hers as well.


    After all, while I don¡¯t intend to get too involved, since we¡¯re living in this world, having relationships with other people to some extent would be necessary.


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    As this happened, we arrived at the balcony.


    The table and chairs that were used when we had tea are still there and as I sat down, Mohsa-san said ¡¸I shall prepare the tea.¡¹ before leaving for someplace.


    ¡¸Forest spirit-san. You¡¯re there, right?¡¹


    Their presence is that of nature itself. Because of that, detecting them is nearly impossible.


    Nonetheless, I somehow felt that she came along with me, so I tried calling out for her.


    ¡¸Y~up. I¡¯m here. First time talking to you like this~, Ainsel.¡¹


    Just as I heard a slightly laxed, gentle voice, the forest spirit suddenly descended on top of the table.


    I see, so she was up then. Standing on top of the table, as expected, she¡¯s now taller than my head.


    On the other hand, if she sits on the chair, the table will cover her. What a predicament.


    ¡¸Glad to hear from you. Are you fine with me calling you forest spirit?¡¹


    ¡¸Let¡¯s see~. I do have the name Liessyl~ but I don¡¯t mind if you call me with something easier to say~.


    How about Lisyl~?¡¹


    ¡¸Then, Lisyl-san. Thank you very much for today.¡¹


    The forest spirit, now Lisyl-san, flashed a gentle smile before sitting on top of my lap.


    As expected, she can properly sit down today.


    ¡¸So you can touch me as I am right now.¡¹


    ¡¸After all~, we can also talk like this too~¡¹


    I¡¯m 100% deified during this god trial period, so I suspected that talking and coming in contact with her should be possible and it seems like I was right.


    ¡¸The song earlier this morning was from you, right? Lisyl-san.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right~. Watching you two, I just couldn¡¯t help myself.


    Although I was pretty shocked when you immediately copied it~.¡¹


    While she says she¡¯s shocked, she doesn¡¯t really sound that surprised.


    And even based on her expressions, she just looks like she¡¯s enjoying herself.


    ¡¸The fact that we didn¡¯t see the other spirits today was also you¡¯re doing, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Knowing what you two have been through~, it would¡¯ve been inconsiderate~.


    Still, I ended up being a bit intrusive anyways~¡¹


    ¡¸That song was really beautiful, was that a spirit¡¯s song?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right~. Though, with that said, it¡¯s just a song I like made from mimicking people~¡¹


    ¡¸There isn¡¯t anything special about it?¡¹


    Just the fact that it¡¯s a ¡°spirit¡¯s song¡± sounds like it¡¯s somehow amazing in of itself though.


    Seeing Lisyl-san contemplating, with her head tilted and her palm on her cheek, I guess I might be overthinking it.


    ¡¸It¡¯s a song that a spirit likes to sing, so it¡¯s not really anything special~ but in the sense that a spirit sang it, that might make it special~.


    At the very least, people normally can¡¯t sing it~.¡¹


    ¡¸After all, they can¡¯t hear the song to begin with.¡¹


    ¡¸Hmm~, that¡¯s not what I mean~ but, well, no need to think about that~.¡¹


    I¡¯m super curious. Still, if she won¡¯t talk about it, then it can¡¯t be helped.


    I do think she would tell us if it¡¯s bad news, so I guess there¡¯s no need to worry in that regard.


    On top of my lap, Lisyl-san looks up to the sky.


    Following her, I look up to the sky and see a blanket of twinkling stars.


    In the midst of this, the two moons, silver and gold, stand out.


    It¡¯s just like when I looked at the sky with Ciel before. However, right now, Ciel is somewhere a bit farther away.


    This alone doesn¡¯t sound like anything special, but this might be the first time I¡¯ve gotten this far away from her ever since I came to this world.


    Reaching this point took more than 10 years, by no means a short amount of time.


    Even if I start counting from when I was able to communicate with Ciel, it would still be 5 years.


    ¡¸Ainsel, do you like this world~?¡¹


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    Hearing her suddenly say so, I had no idea how I should reply.


    It wasn¡¯t all just good things for me when I came into this world. Rather, it was a daily struggle.


    Still, at every important opportunity I could consciously have a look, the sights in this world weren¡¯t bad at all.


    Why? It¡¯s because Ciel was there.


    In that case, do I like this world?


    The blue sky I haven¡¯t seen in a while, the night sky where the silver and gold moons rest upon, the blue sea where the spirits frolicked about.


    ¡¸Honestly speaking, I don¡¯t know. I haven¡¯t given attention to this world enough to have an answer.¡¹


    ¡¸I see~. Then that¡¯s a relief~.¡¹


    ¡¸A¡­¡­ relief?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s a relief that you don¡¯t hate it~.¡¹


    Lisyl-san held my hand.


    Her face had genuine happiness, I couldn¡¯t figure out why she had that expression.


    Perhaps understanding this, Lisyl-san spoke for more context.


    ¡¸I was thinking that, while Ainsel hating the world would be sad, it can¡¯t be helped~.


    You¡¯ve suffered through enough to feel that way, right? ¡¹


    ¡¸Now that you mentioned it, that might be the case.¡¹


    Normally, it probably wouldn¡¯t be strange for anyone, or rather anyone in their right mind, to curse the world while staying at Rispelgia¡¯s mansion.


    Just after being sent to this world, your life is being targeted everyday.


    Even I don¡¯t know how I would¡¯ve ended up if it wasn¡¯t for Ciel being where I was sent to.


    I suppose I would¡¯ve been like a corpse, thinking about nothing at all.


    To begin with, I¡¯m a being that had already died, so I had no intention to involve myself in this world too much.


    ¡¸However, from now on, I want to pay more attention to this world.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes~. I¡¯ll do my best to have you come to like it~.¡¹


    Seeing Lisyl-san with a wide smile, I realized something that made things click.


    She¡¯s a spirit. A being that manages this world. From her standpoint, having me like the world might have greater meaning when compared to those already living in this world.


    Moreover, while only a little, I possess some of the Supreme God¡¯s power. Enough for her to say that I¡¯m something like a parent, so I think she doesn¡¯t want me to hate it.


    As for people, in Estoque, I didn¡¯t really associate much with the people of Estoque.


    Not being able to leave Estoque because of attachment would defeat our main objective, after all.


    From now on, being a bit more relaxed and socializing with other people could be good.


    In the meantime, I suppose we¡¯ll start with the servants of this mansion.


    ¡¸Mohsa-san, you can come in.¡¹


    ¡¸Excuse me. Would it be better that I provide two teacups?¡¹


    Being asked that, I looked at Lisyl-san and she nodded.


    Can she drink tea? Or so I wondered, but since she nodded, she probably can.


    ¡¸Please do.¡¹


    ¡¸Then please give me a moment.¡¹


    In an experienced motion, Mohsa-san placed two cups before me.


    Since she didn¡¯t put it on the other side, can she see Lisyl-san?


    ¡¸Mohsa-san, can you see spirits?¡¹


    ¡¸No, I can only somewhat feel their presence.


    The spirit-sama on top of your lap appears to be exceedingly powerful.


    I cannot see her, but I clearly feel her presence.¡¹


    Anyhow, it seems like she didn¡¯t think that I was a weird person just talking to empty air at midnight.


    Though, Fiiyanamia-sama probably talks to spirits too sometimes, so it should be unlikely for me to be seen that way.


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    ¡¸Lisyl-san, can you drink?¡¹


    ¡¸Don¡¯t worry about it~.¡¹


    The cup clearly doesn¡¯t match her size, so I was wondering how she¡¯ll drink from it but she made the cup float in the air and skillfully drank.


    I feel like I should be able to do it if I wanted to, but it seems like it needs rather delicate magic power manipulation or a fairly complicated magic circle.


    Being someone who uses sorcery in place of a hair dryer, I don¡¯t know if I have any right to say this but it¡¯s a pretty way of using her power.


    Staring for too long of a time would be impolite, so I took a sip of the tea as well.


    It¡¯s not just a regular black tea, it has a honey-like sweetness and the scent of ginger reaches my nose.


    Breathing out after this somehow calming sip, I feel a pleasant warmth from the core of my body.


    It¡¯s Mohsa-san¡¯s consideration for me, who¡¯s in a chilly looking outfit at night.


    As thanks, ¡¸Thank you very much. It¡¯s very delicious and warmed me up.¡¹ I gave my impression of the drink with a smile.


    Hiya~! You thought the last chapter was the end of this arc? Think again! We¡¯ve got a bit more of Ain and our very special spirit friend~!


    First of all, I¡¯ve changed the spelling of the name of the maid that¡¯s assisting Ain (Martha => Mohsa). It¡¯s more phonetically correct and identifiable this way. Secondly, for the pronunciation of Liessyl, it¡¯s Lee-es/yes-syl. It should be easy to figure from her nickname Lisyl but clarifying it would be for the best. I¡¯ll try to clarify as much as possible if there are more¡­ *interesting* names in the future. Also, just a little thing I noticed, but a lot of Japanese nicknames are First syllable + Last syllable (or two), which is a bit interesting.


    Now, before I start gushing again, we got reintroduced to a familiar friend, the forest spirit Liessyl~! It¡¯s quite nice that Ain tried to find her before the day ended. We¡¯ve also gotten a fair bit of info about the mansion and the servants living in it.


    This chapter, we got a bit more of Ain introspecting, generally her being more upfront about how she never really appreciated the world outside of when Ciel¡¯s appreciating it as well. One thing I like about Ain is that she¡¯s a bit more relatable in some aspects (though I can¡¯t say for sure since I haven¡¯t read other novels in a while). Despite the fantasy world, she¡¯s a bit too occupied to really appreciate it. She¡¯s got her share of pessimism and cynicism towards people (which, honestly, is understandable after what she¡¯s been through). The general overthinking that chips on her self-confidence. I think it¡¯s something people experience in their life at least once. And what¡¯s nice about this arc is how she¡¯s moving on, little by little. The short remembrance of the beauty of the world she¡¯s in, the appreciation of Mohsa¡¯s small gesture of consideration, and her seeing more of what she¡¯s done than what she¡¯s failed to do. Life is a series of failures. No matter how capable you may be, mistakes and accidents happen. But sometimes, dwelling on them too much will only lead to more mistakes, which was quite close to happening this time. Still, it¡¯s hard to be self-aware, but as much as possible, it¡¯s best to see what you can do that what you failed to do. Tomorrow¡¯s a new day. Ain won¡¯t have a body anymore, but there¡¯s are things to live for and goals to look forward to. Maybe socialise a bit more, make new friends, make the impossibly hard barrier a bit more harder, do some odd jobs to pass time and earn money, or just spend some time with love ones. The story goes on.


    Also, it¡¯ll probably be an interlude fest starting from now on. Of Ciel¡¯s Pov of course~

 CH 93

    I woke up from unconsciousness.


    There was no time for me to enjoy the absentminded yet comfortable drowsiness, my mind was immediately awake.


    It feels as if what happened yesterday was all just a dream, I can still remember the feeling of Ciel¡¯s warmth.


    That undeniable warmth is a reminder to me that what occured yesterday was real.


    And because of that, my current state feels somewhat lacking now.


    Even if I caress Ciel¡¯s cheek as she¡¯s asleep, I only pass through. No matter how many times I try to move my hand to touch Ciel¡¯s cheek, it only goes through.


    It can¡¯t be helped, it¡¯s only natural but still, an indescribable sadness envelops my heart.


    Fortunately, I suppose, my senses are linked with Ciel¡¯s.


    If not for that, this sadness might just drive me crazy.


    I can¡¯t help but wish to have my own body asap. Since when did I get this greedy, I wonder?


    As this ran through my mind, ¡¸Uhh¡­¡­ Mnh¡­¡­¡¹ Ciel woke up.


    The way she rubs her eyes as she stretches her body is a familiar scene by now and it fills my heart with warmth.


    ¡ºGood morning, Ciel.¡»


    As I greeted her, Ciel moved her arm, as if in search of something.


    And perhaps realizing that it¡¯s nowhere to be found, she dejectedly moved her hand back to her side.


    ¡¸Yes, good morning, Ain.¡¹


    Her voice sounded somewhat dispirited.


    I guess Ciel is also feeling the same sense of lacking that I¡¯m feeling.


    Knowing that Ciel feels the same way as I do, I can¡¯t help but be happy.


    ¡ºCiel¡­¡­ let¡¯s become gods as soon we can, alright?¡»


    ¡¸Right, of course! I don¡¯t want yesterday¡¯s to remain a one-day-only dream, after all!¡¹


    ¡ºThen for that cause, let¡¯s do our best for today as well.¡»


    ¡¸Of course.¡¹


    Now that Ciel¡¯s lively again, I urged her to have breakfast.


    ¡ó


    ¡¸Fii, thank you for yesterday.¡¹


    ¡ºThank you so much.¡»


    ¡¸No, no, don¡¯t mind it. Regardless if it was a day or two, or even a few years, it wouldn¡¯t have bothered me anyhow.¡¹


    At the dining table, Ciel lowered her head and thanked Fiiyanamia-sama who was waiting for us there.


    How do I say it, seeing Ciel naturally displaying gratitude, seeing her growth, it makes me happy.


    Rather, I need to pay attention and honestly show gratitude myself.


    In the past, it was pretty common for them to feel so awkward and embarrassed that I couldn¡¯t honestly say thanks.


    Still, even a few years wouldn¡¯t bother her?


    ¡¸Now, now, what will you two be doing today?¡¹


    Like an adult asking a child what they want to do, Fiiyanamia-sama asked Ciel but we probably don¡¯t have any plans for today.


    ¡¸Nothing particular in mind. I do have a few things I want to ask Ain but it shouldn¡¯t take much time, I think?¡¹


    ¡ºThings to ask me?¡»


    ¡ºYes, like, now that we¡¯re out of Estoque, how do I interact with people? And what kind of place was your world?


    Concerning the latter, I won¡¯t ask if you don¡¯t want to talk about it, Ain. Other than that, well, what about you current state?¡»


    True, now that we¡¯ve exited Estoque, there shouldn¡¯t be any problems with connecting with people.


    Rather, even while we were at Estoque, we did interact and connect with people from the Central, so I suppose doing an extension of that should work for now?


    And regarding Earth, if I were to talk about it, then it would be best to properly take the time to talk about it.


    ¡ºI¡¯ll answer the first one after putting some thought on it first. And regarding the world I came from, I¡¯ll explain it gradually.


    For today, if there¡¯s something Fiiyanamia-sama wants us to help with, then that might be good too.


    Also, my current state?¡»


    ¡ºIf you haven¡¯t realized it, then let¡¯s talk about it later.¡»


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    Is there something strange with me?


    I¡¯m curious but as Ciel said, the current conversation with Fiiyanamia-sama should be prioritized.


    ¡¸With that said, we also don¡¯t have anything that needs doing.


    Fii, do you have anything you want me to do?¡¹


    After Ciel relayed my words, ¡¸Right, right then.¡¹ Fiiyanamia-sama tilted her head.


    ¡¸In that case, shall we discuss about the future then?¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    ¡¸But before that, breakfast. I will call Mohsa and Saueluna to be present in the discussion, will that be alright?¡¹


    ¡¸Ain, is that okay?¡¹


    ¡ºUmm, yes. It should be alright.¡»


    ¡¸It¡¯s alright, Ain said.¡¹


    While I don¡¯t actually know who this Saueluna-san is, she¡¯s probably a maid assigned to Ciel, just like how Mohsa-san was to me.


    Ciel didn¡¯t show any negative reaction, so they might have already met.


    ¡¸Well then, let¡¯s continue this later. Let us eat.¡¹


    Urged by Fiiyanamia-sama, Ciel delightedly began to eat breakfast.


    ¡ó


    Since Fiiyanamia-sama said we were going to discuss the future, I expected this to be a somewhat serious discussion but after breakfast, we were brought to the usual garden overlook balcony.


    There¡¯s tea prepared too, it¡¯s a completely ¡°have a fun chat¡± atmosphere.


    The view of the garden from here is pleasing to the eyes as usual, while the spirits playing in the garden occasionally stealing glances is adorable to see.


    And Liessyl-san is sitting on Fiiyanamiya-sama¡¯s lap today.


    Does she like sitting on people?


    Rather, Fiiyanamia-sama should be somewhat like ¡°associate of my boss¡± in relation to her, does that just not matter much to Liessyl-san?


    Wait, in that sense, I¡¯m probably also equal to Fiiyanamiya-sama, right? I don¡¯t really get it.


    ¡¸Now, now, Ciel, Ainsel-chan, can you remember what your current position is right now?¡¹


    ¡ºFiiyanamia-sama¡¯s guest, right?¡»


    ¡¸Fii¡¯s guest, right?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. Currently, you two are the only guests I have here at Central.


    Not many people greet me before they enter, you see?¡¹


    How troublesome, it was as if this was written on her face but I don¡¯t think anyone would notice normally. Even Ciel couldn¡¯t notice it, so wouldn¡¯t there be less than several people in the world who can greet Fiiyanamia-sama?


    Or maybe Fiiyanamia-sama just has no intentions of meeting with anyone unless they¡¯re at that level? Yeah, that seems more plausible.


    It¡¯s not like she¡¯s a divine messenger that would guide the people after all, her purpose is to maintain the world.


    So to begin with, she doesn¡¯t need to interact with people.


    ¡¸Because of that, in essence, you two are the number 2 here in the capital.¡¹


    ¡¸Umm, so does that make us important people?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, that¡¯s right. You two are distinguished people here. Though, it¡¯s not that I¡¯m in my position because I wanted to be particularly distinguished.


    If someone here at Central bothers you, I don¡¯t mind if you get rid of them.¡¹


    ¡¸Really?¡¹


    Fiiyanamia-sama is surprisingly extreme but I just told myself that she¡¯s not here to guide people, haven¡¯t I?


    ¡¸Though, with that said, limit it to people you can handle.¡¹


    ¡¸That makes sense. It¡¯s not good to push yourself, after all.¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s unlikely anyone here that you could lose to though.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so? No, that¡¯s right. I don¡¯t think that there¡¯s anyone capable of breaking Ain¡¯s barrier, after all.


    Even Fii can¡¯t do it.¡¹


    Ciel said so puffed up with pride, how can she be so confident about that? Actually, please don¡¯t compete with Fiiyanamia-sama.


    While it¡¯s probably just how much Ciel trusts me, Fiiyanamia-sama did also say that the ground would give in first or so.


    How do I react in these situations? I really don¡¯t know.


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    ¡¸Fufu, true, even I would need to break a sweat.


    In a few years, it even might grow too strong for me to contend with.¡¹


    ¡¸Ain is amazing, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, yes, she¡¯s amazing.¡¹


    ¡ºUmm¡­¡­ Could we perhaps move forward with the conversation¡­¡­¡»


    I¡¯m feeling d¨¦j¨¤ vu. Still, it¡¯ll be a problem if they only keep talking about me.


    Hearing my words, Ciel giggled happily.


    ¡¸So, what are we actually talking about? It¡¯s not only that, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Oh, that¡¯s right. Ciel, Ainsel-chan, if you two are alright with it, would you two be my child?¡¹


    ¡¸Fii¡¯s child?¡¹


    ¡¸In my eyes, I already see you as family, you see? Being siblings as my little sister is fine too but there is quite the difference in age after all.¡¹


    Fiiyanamia-sama said so with a broad smile, it really surprised me.


    While she did say that we were like family, I didn¡¯t expect it to actually be the case.


    Still, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a bad offer. After all, we would get the protection of the Central¡¯s top figure. In fact, even if some incident were to happen, she might just leave it for us to handle.


    I wonder what Ciel¡¯s answer would be? As I waited for her reply, Ciel called me in a way only I could hear.


    ¡ºAin, Ain. What does she mean by ¡°be her child¡±?¡»


    ¡ºLet¡¯s see. Perhaps she means that she¡¯ll adopt us.¡»


    ¡ºAdopt?¡»


    Right, Ciel might not understand it too well.


    To begin with, she also doesn¡¯t have much understanding about families. If I had to say, Ciel¡¯s family is me¡­¡­ probably. Our relationship has been a bit confusing lately.


    I intended to act as Ciel¡¯s guardian but since Ciel is so level-headed and mature, it¡¯s really hard to tell who¡¯s the adult between the two of us sometimes.


    ¡ºAdoption is when one takes in another family¡¯s child as their own child, I guess.


    You can think of it as a parent-child relationship with no direct blood relation.¡»


    ¡º¡­¡­ I see. It would be a problem for nobles if they can¡¯t have children after all.¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. The public will recognize this as well, so you could say that it¡¯s a firmer position compared to being Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s guest.¡»


    ¡ºWhat do you think of Fii¡¯s offer, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s by no means a bad offer but may I talk with Fiiyanamia-sama for a moment?¡»


    ¡ºSure, I don¡¯t mind.¡»


    With Ciel¡¯s permission, we switched.


    Seemingly noticing this, Fiiyanamia-sama blinked a few times before smiling at me.


    ¡¸I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a bad offer. However, may I ask a few questions?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, feel free. As expected, Ainsel-chan would be better for these sorts of things, right?¡¹


    ¡¸I wonder? Ciel should be able to make these sorts of judgments in the near future.


    Now for the questions, Fiiyanamia-sama, you¡¯re not particularly worried about a successor, no?¡¹


    ¡¸No, I¡¯m not. My role is mine alone to play, after all.


    That¡¯s why even if you do become my child, that wouldn¡¯t particularly change anything. Just as I said earlier, I already see you two as family.


    For me, this would only make introductions much easier. This will cause some annoyances to flock about, but you two should be able to deal with these, yes? ¡¹


    ¡¸Fiiyanamia-sama, If what you¡¯ve said before is true, then Central would break before anything were to happen to me.¡¹


    In that case, it should be alright to accept. There¡¯s no catch behind it as well. If there was, then it¡¯s probably something that we aren¡¯t equipped to deal with in the first place.


    I suppose that¡¯s a relief, as I gave an innocuous reply, Fiiyanamia-sama was staring at me disgruntled for some reason.


    And as though she thought of something good, her expression did a complete turn around.


    ¡¸Right, right. I don¡¯t mind taking you two in as my children but under one condition.


    Fiiyanamia-sama looks at me with a broad smile. What she said is by no means wrong, I think.


    I don¡¯t actually know what¡¯s common sense in this world, so I can¡¯t comment on it too much but at the very least, you don¡¯t directly use sama with your parents.


    It¡¯s a bargain of an offer but I can¡¯t help feeling hesitant to call Fiiyanamia-sama by just Fii. I¡¯m reluctant to call someone of higher position by their nickname.


    ¡¸If you don¡¯t like that, then perhaps I should call you Ainsel-sama from now on.¡¹


    ¡¸Please don¡¯t. Also, please give me time to discuss with Ciel.¡¹


    ¡¸Naturally. I¡¯m looking forward to it.¡¹


    ¡ºAin, what¡¯s bothering you so much? Fii can be trusted, in my opinion.¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s not that I don¡¯t trust Fiiyanamia-sama.


    It¡¯s just, I feel reluctant in calling her by just Fii.¡»


    ¡ºIs that so? If you don¡¯t feel like it, then I don¡¯t mind staying the way we are right now.¡»


    ¡º¡­¡­ No, it¡¯s just a matter of me getting used to it, so I¡¯m thinking of accepting it.


    Do you have any objections, Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºSince it¡¯s Fii, it¡¯s alright.¡»


    In that case, I¡¯ll have to resolve myself. Also, Ciel is calling her by a nickname, so it would be lame of me not to do that as well.


    But, well, family, huh.


    ¡¸We¡¯ve decided, we accept the offer.¡¹


    ¡¸Well then, why don¡¯t you try calling me by name now?¡¹


    ¡¸I understand. Fii-kaasama.¡¹


    ¡¸Well, well, that wasn¡¯t quite what I expected.¡¹


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    Fiiyanamia-sama ¡ª¡ª Fii-kaasama showed a very surprised expression.


    Seeing Fii-kaasama, who seemed to know nearly everything, make this sort of expression was quite refreshing, it feels as if I managed to outdo her somewhat.


    ¡¸But we are family after all, so it shouldn¡¯t be a problem, right?¡¹


    ¡¸That is true. Besides, being called that is quite interesting and refreshing.¡¹


    It looks like Fii-kaasama really liked it.


    So Ciel doesn¡¯t notice, I let out a breath of relief in my mind.


    Hiya~! Once again, Happy New Year~! It¡¯s been a while, and I¡¯m back far later than initially planned, but the show must go on regardless! Today we continue on the main story, which left off with Ain interacting with the maid Mohsa and the forest spirit Liessyl.


    This chapter starts with a really good bittersweet tone, a sad but hopeful beginning. I admit, I¡¯m a sucker for these sorts of emotional moments, which what drove me to translate to begin with (despite my first project Succubus being more action-adventure than¡­ romance? drama? Really hard to explain, but intimate and emotional). Moving on, there seems to be something strange about Ain that Ciel is hinting at but¡­ well, Ain can be absentminded sometimes, lol


    I really liked how Ain subtly admits that she wasn¡¯t really a good parent figure, despite her trying to be one. It¡¯s a difficult thing to do and Ain wasn¡¯t ¡°physically¡± present for a huge part of Ciel¡¯s life until that terrible time, Ciel mostly didn¡¯t think of Ain as a different being until she was wailing powerlessly that time, and they only began to have proper communication a few years more after that. With context, Ciel was somewhat alone the first few years, though Ain¡¯s presence and songs certainly gave her reprieve from her situation, which made her mature fast. Ciel even learned the language despite her situation, likely from conversations since the people there did treat her like she¡¯s possessed by a god and informs her of what they are doing for the day. Now the point is, Ciel became really mature. And by the time Ain became ¡°physically present¡± she was already who she was. Adding to that how Ain can¡¯t physically interact that much and she also doesn¡¯t like borrowing Ciel¡¯s body too much, at that point, they can be only be step-sisters after a remarriage at most. You¡¯re right Ain, it¡¯s really vague and complicated, lol. Personally, I like comparing Ain to Shishou (Master/Teacher) from Reincarnated as a Sword. Being embodied really makes a big difference. Still, this is all my personal opinion and thoughts on this, feel free to ignore it.


    More importantly, a thing that actually happened: Fii is adopting them, lol. Which is perfect, since they are practically siblings with no guardians. Also, this certainly smells like more Ain teasing in the future, certainly something to look forward to.

 CH 94

    ¡¸Uh-hm. With this, we¡¯re family.¡¹


    With a single clap, Fii-kaasama joyfully smiled. On the other hand, Liessyl-san was pulling on her clothes as if in protest.


    Yesterday I could still hear her voice but now I can¡¯t.


    Still, perhaps because I heard her speaking yesterday, I feel like I can hear what her soundless lips are saying.


    It¡¯s just my imagination, though.


    Fii-kaasama, who can actually hear her, nodded a few times before saying ¡¸You¡¯ve been with them up until now, isn¡¯t that good enough?¡¹ in reply. Reacting to that, Liessyl-san looked displeased but still nodded.


    Finishing up their conversation, Fii-kaasama then turned to the maids who came along with us.


    ¡¸With that said, let¡¯s have a proper introduction, shall we?


    Mohsa. Saueluna, come forward.¡¹


    As she said so, the maids ¡ª¡ª Mohsa-san and the other one named Saueluna-san¡ª¡ª answered ¡¸Certainly.¡¹in unison and came before us.


    Mohsa-san seems to be the serious type while Saueluna-san seems to be the kind type.


    ¡ºSo the other one is Mohsa, right. Wasn¡¯t she the one next to you yesterday, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºAnd Saueluna-san was the one by your side, right Ciel?¡»


    As Ciel and I were talking, kaasama began explaining our situation to the two.


    The maids might have already suspected it but since it wasn¡¯t formally explained before, I suppose she wanted the people assigned to us to have proper knowledge about us.


    I don¡¯t plan to needlessly talk about myself but even if it¡¯s spread in this mansion, it should be fine¡­¡­ I think.


    ¡¸As you have seen, there¡¯s two individuals inside this child. Because of that, you two will generally be together with them. Whoever is currently out will be the basis of which of you will mainly assist them.¡¹


    ¡¸Affirmative.¡¹


    While Mohsa-san immediately lowered her head in affirmation, Saueluna-san was staring at us with a somewhat troubled expression.


    ¡¸Is there any issue, Saueluna?¡¹


    ¡¸My apologies. I was pondering about how to distinguish between the two ladies, Ainsel-sama and Cielmer-sama.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s a good point. While it would be easy to distinguish from their behavior, they do have the exact same face when judging only from a quick glance.¡¹


    ¡¸But kaasama, that alone is something we can¡¯t do anything about¡­¡­¡¹


    I see, since we¡¯re Fii-kaasama¡¯s daughters now, we¡¯re called by ¡°lady¡± and ¡°-sama¡± now, huh.


    While we¡¯ve been called ¡°little lady¡± several times in the past, being referred to as a ¡°lady¡± feels different this time, I can¡¯t quite get used to it.


    That aside, even the best of the best attendants wouldn¡¯t be able to distinguish between us when we¡¯re quietly sitting still.


    Anyone that could probably are using some kind of mind reading technique at that point.


    And if there are ways to do so with magic or sorcery, I¡¯d likely notice its usage. If the user has enough skill to bypass my detection, they should be able to know whenever Ciel and I would switch anyways.


    Still, even considering this, it¡¯s not like I can just automatically wear a ribbon or something the instant we switch.


    Why should we have to be considerate? And as this thought instantly came to mind, it seems like I¡®ve gotten a bit too influenced by the world¡¯s brutality.


    Probably, in terms of wariness against people, I might be much worse compared to Ciel.


    ¡ºSay, Ain.¡»


    ¡ºWhat is it?¡»


    Since Ciel called me, I stopped thinking and focused on the conversation.


    ¡ºCouldn¡¯t you make my body look like Ain¡¯s appearance?¡»


    ¡ºLike turning your hair black and so on?¡»


    ¡ºYes! I think it should be possible!¡»


    Ciel sounds really eager, so it¡¯s hard to just lightly rebuke it.


    With Ciel suggesting this, I¡¯ll have to at least try before passing judgment.


    Though, with that said, where should I even start?


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    The Creator God told me that that form was the form of my soul, so perhaps it¡¯d work itself out if I just let the soul do the work.


    As I thought that, the divine power inside of me suddenly began to envelop Ciel¡¯s body.


    ¡ºFufu, just as I thought! It worked, it worked!¡»


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s excited voice, I looked at my skin and saw that it changed into a complexion warmer than hers.


    The hair flowing from my shoulder to my chest is also black now.


    ¡¸Kaasama, have I changed?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, yes. With this, it¡¯s much easier to know. However, doesn¡¯t that form exhaust you?¡¹


    ¡¸It does use divine power, so it isn¡¯t as if it doesn¡¯t, but I should be alright for a while.¡¹


    If I can change my appearance like this, then maybe I can change into other different forms. With that, I tried to do so but it seems like this is the most that can be done.


    You could say that it¡¯s only possible because it¡¯s the form of my soul.


    Still, I¡¯m really puzzled.


    ¡ºHow did you realize this, Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºSo you really haven¡¯t noticed it, Ain. Even without us switching, Ain now always looks like Ain, you know?¡»


    Did my appearance stabilize after having my own body?


    Reasons aside, now that I think about it, this does remind me of something from this morning.


    ¡º¡­¡­ Come to think of it, when I tried to touch your cheek, my hand passed through.¡»


    ¡ºAin, you were hoping to touch me? You were, right?¡»


    I¡¯ve said something unnecessary again. Rather, I feel ashamed for not realizing this earlier.


    I know that I should only look like a sphere of light from Ciel¡¯s point of view.


    ¡ºI couldn¡¯t forget about yesterday¡­¡­ so, um¡­¡­ I felt lonely.¡»


    ¡ºYes, yes. Me too, Ain.


    I¡¯m happy to hear this but I really think you should pay more attention to yourself.¡»


    ¡ºI know, right? Honestly¡­¡­¡»


    Like, ever since we arrived here in Central, haven¡¯t I been too absent-minded? Well, yeah, I guess I was already like that since Estoque. After all, Ciel did figure out my gender, and the fact that I came from another world.


    As I was feeling down, Fii-kaasama met my gaze.


    For some reason, she had a really tender gaze. Actually, me casually ignoring them is really bad.


    So I quickly lowered my head.


    ¡¸I¡¯m sorry, kaasama.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s fine, it¡¯s fine. I already know how much you two value each other.


    It must be hard for you two to talk freely in public, so feel free to talk here in the mansion.¡¹


    ¡¸Um, thank you very much.¡¹


    I expressed honest gratitude for kaasama¡¯s consideration. I shouldn¡¯t refrain from talking to Ciel from now on.


    The two maids also have pleasant smiles for some reason.


    ¡­¡­ I shouldn¡¯t refrain from talking from now on.


    ¡¸Now, anyways, it should be fine if you appear that way here in the manor.¡¹


    ¡¸Right.¡¹


    ¡¸Well then, time for a formal introduction. As you two are now my daughters, Mohsa and Saueluna will be assisting and caring for you two as your personal maids.


    You should already know, but Saueluna will be assigned to Ciel and Mohsa to Ain. Still, I can¡¯t really say if this distinction would be of any particular meaning though.¡¹


    As Fii-kaasama reintroduced the maids, the two lowered their heads.


    Just staring at them silently feels discomforting, so I said ¡¸Pleased to be with you from now on.¡¹ in reply.


    Suddenly, I recalled that they are, in fact, our maids.


    I don¡¯t quite know for sure but don¡¯t nobles have to pay attention to how they interact with their servants too?


    Like having to maintain an unwavering demeanor, or something along those lines.


    I honestly don¡¯t know the details, so I decided to ask the surprised, blinking kaasama.


    ¡¸Kaasama, is there a problem with how I spoke just now?¡¹


    ¡¸No need to be concerned about that, Ain. After all, there is no one in this manor that would misjudge their standing from something as small as that.


    People who underestimate you because of that merely display their own shallowness.


    These two will be with you likely only for the duration of your stay in this manor, so I don¡¯t think you should worry about it that much. Just to be sure, calling them without any honorifics might make it easier for you in the future.


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    For some reason, there are some particular fussy with the use of honorifics, you see?


    Though, at worst, you do have the strength warranting you ignoring this altogether.¡¹


    In other words, just call them Mohsa and Saueluna.


    In Japan, adding ¨Csan to people you just met, or rather people you aren¡¯t familiar with, is the safe option but this is a different world. There¡¯s distinct social classes, and we are joining the so-called upper class, so there will be less friction following this rule.


    As they say, when in Rome, do as the Romans do.


    Still, we¡¯ve also strayed from the framework of humanity.


    Living in harmony with people is no longer a complete necessity, and there¡¯s no need to be bound by mortal rules.


    I guess we¡¯re going to have to consider this balance as we go on with our lives as well.


    That¡¯s surprisingly bothersome. As long as there¡¯s no harm to Ciel, it might be easier to just live in compliance with people of higher position.


    ¡¸I¡¯ll spend time thinking in regards to that topic.


    For now, Mohsa, Saueluna, I imagine that we might bother you two but please treat us well.¡¹


    Saying that, I switched with Ciel.


    The colors turn back to Ciel¡¯s and I turn into a humanoid form.


    Yeah, so this really is my actual form now. In other words, black-haired Ciel.


    I can¡¯t believe you didn¡¯t notice this, me.


    As I closely observed my own body, I noticed Liessyl-san staring at me from the corner of my eye. And as I looked at her, she waved at me, so I waved back.


    Even when I was still just an orb, the spirits reacted as though they could hear our conversations, so I¡¯m sure they could see me as well.


    Ciel spoke to the two, finishing our current topic at hand. Fii-kaasama then moved to the next topic.


    ¡¸Right, that¡¯s right. Ciel, will you be continue being a hunter?¡¹


    ¡¸We probably will. I don¡¯t know any other way to earn money, after all.


    It¡¯ll be necessary when traveling, right?¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, it would be best to go visit the Hunter Guild. Tell them that you¡¯re my daughter and they should treat you well.


    Other than that, do you remember the guild personnel that wanted to exploit you before?¡¹


    I had no idea what Fii-kaasama was talking about for a moment but, right, the acting guildmaster at Capital City Estoque.


    Despite it only being a few days, so much has happened ever since we came here, so I totally forgot about it.


    And if I¡¯m being honest, I also forgot about the elf, Yunmika-san, the dwarf, Bajo-san, and the beast-kin, Wangwan-san.


    ¡¸The substitute, right? There was someone like that, now that I recall.¡¹


    And that seems to be Ciel¡¯s only impression of him. Actually, just how many people are there that have been impressionable on her? While it might have been my idea to begin with, maybe it would be best for her to interact and mingle with other people.


    And as though they¡¯re just talking about yesterday¡¯s weather, they continued talking about the acting guildmaster.


    ¡¸That person, you see, was already arrested by the Hunter Guild.


    Considering the gravity of what happened, I¡¯ve been told that he¡¯s to receive heavy punishment.¡¹


    Ciel¡¯s absolute lack of interest is amazing. It¡¯s as if to say that the cookies she¡¯s eating right now are more important than that.


    I do share her sentiment though.


    While it has a simple taste, the wheat flour, sugar, and butter has a deep taste, I can just keep eating forever.


    ¡¸Now, what does this have to do with anything, you ask? The Hunter Guild doesn¡¯t want to have friction with you, it seems.


    I heard that even without my intervention, they had intended to treat you cordially.¡¹


    ¡¸That would make working a lot easier. Is it perhaps because of Celia and Carol?¡¹


    ¡¸My my, that reminds me, you two were acquainted with her.¡¹


    Which implies that kaasama is acquainted with either Ceila-san or Carol-san, huh.


    It wouldn¡¯t be a surprise if it¡¯s Carol-san, though.


    Now, we did get somewhat close with the Central hunters. I think. So I guess it¡¯s safe to say that correct information has been circulated?


    Or maybe it¡¯s plainly because of our strength.


    ¡¸And, right, for the searching of Artificial Divine Messengers, I guess staying in the Hunter¡¯s Guild wouldn¡¯t be a bad idea.¡¹


    ¡¸Artificial Divine Messenger¡­¡­ Ah, that one. That man-made sham.


    If I¡¯m not wrong, defeating that made Ain assimilate divine power. In other words, you two are ready to come over to this side, then? ¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, after all, I want Ain¡¯s body.¡¹


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s answer, Fii-kaasama giggled.


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    ¡¸You two really are close.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ve been with Ain since forever, after all. And we¡¯ll be together forever.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, you¡¯ll also require information from outside Central. Certainly, for gathering these types of information, the Hunter¡¯s Guild should be the best bet.


    Also, having a high rank really makes crossing national borders easy.¡¹


    ¡¸Is it difficult even as your daughter, Fii?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯d say what happens after entering the border is more annoying, you know? I generally don¡¯t leave here after all and I can¡¯t invite people so easily. Still, there are many who want to hold connections with me, you see?¡¹


    In other words, after entering the country, there¡¯s a possibility that they¡¯d interact with us to be a mediator for kaasama.


    If, for example, we might want to ask for something, then there might be some who¡¯d do everything to make us indebted to them.


    After roughly explaining this to Ciel, she had an annoyed look ¡¸That¡¯s a bother.¡¹ and murmured so.


    Hiya~! Today we continue on with the¡­ adoption details? And the story, of course~!


    First of all, the small interactions with Liessyl was cute, lol. Like, ¡°Hey! What about me!?¡± tugs on Fii¡¯s sleeves. And her sulking. And her waving at Ain. Speaking of Ain, yup, she¡¯s kept her humanoid form, she¡¯s no longer a Zelda navigator fairy, lol. And they¡¯ve found a way for her to have a ¡°body¡± that¡¯s distinctly hers, if only temporary. That¡¯ll be an interesting thing to keep in mind.


    On the topic of Ain, her full air-headedness is on display this chapter, or rather is on the spotlight, lol. Ciel telling Ain to pay attention to herself more is really great. And, well, that¡¯s about it for me today~! Hopefully I can be earlier next week, but I¡¯ll try to get the next chapter done before weekends¡­

 CH 95

    ¡¸Right, right. Now, let¡¯s head to the Hunter Guild, shall we?


    After all, it¡¯s necessary to relay the matter of you two being my daughter. While this might not completely get rid of people who would underestimate you two, this way you can¡¯t be blamed if, for example, you kill them.¡¹


    Fii-kaasama is being quite extreme right now.


    Still, even on Earth, there were time periods when insulting a prince could result in beheading for lese-majeste.


    Now whether the same could be applied to this world, it likely could.


    Actually, I can¡¯t deny that I¡¯m finding it convenient that killing is an option.


    Still, I didn¡¯t really think this way back on Earth.


    It seems like I¡¯ve gotten quite extreme myself. In this regard, I¡¯d say that Ciel is much more peaceful, since due to her general apathy, insults don¡¯t really affect her at all.


    Although in her case, it¡¯s dangerous to step on her landmines.


    ¡¸But it¡¯s better not to kill indiscriminately, right?¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. After all, if you kill someone, it¡¯s possible to gain the resentment of their friends.


    I think turning the tables on those who intend to kill is fine.¡»


    ¡¸I see. Understood.¡¹


    ¡ºStill, this depends on the situation as well.¡»


    I can¡¯t really comment much on this.


    On Earth, or rather in Japan, just saying ¡¸You can¡¯t kill people.¡¹ is likely good enough, but in this world, it¡¯s common for people to go for the kill and, honestly speaking, public order is terrible.


    Looking at Fii-kaasama, it doesn¡¯t seem we would be punished for killing people within Central.


    Actually, what¡¯s the situation regarding rules, or rather laws in Central?


    ¡ºCiel, there¡¯s something I want to ask Fii-kaasama, so can we switch?¡»


    ¡ºSure, I don¡¯t mind.¡»


    Ciel lent me her body without any hesitation.


    No, actually she seems more proactive about it. As for why¡­¡­ Well, it¡¯s not that I don¡¯t understand.


    ¡¸My, my. What¡¯s the matter, Ain?¡¹


    ¡¸On this subject, I was wondering about the rules here in Central.


    Are there any laws and such?¡¹


    ¡¸I see, how do I say this? You could say that there are, but you could also say that there are none.


    There are rules for the people borrowing this land, so to speak. However, those are rules they¡¯ve decided on their own and are irrelevant to this mansion.¡¹


    ¡¸Then are there rules in this mansion?¡¹


    Saying so, kaasama patted my head.


    Her combing through my hair with experienced motions is great and all, but please stop casually attempting to dispel a bit of my barrier. Thanks to that, I can¡¯t really enjoy it.


    Is a new kind of torture?


    ¡¸Kaasama, please stop trying to remove my barrier.¡¹


    ¡¸Fufufu. Each strand really is covered by a separate barrier. That¡¯s not normal, if you ask me.¡¹


    ¡¸Kaasama, aren¡¯t you also capable of doing this if you wanted to?¡¹


    ¡¸You normally don¡¯t think of trying that. For a mortal child only slightly more than a decade old to reach this level, unbelievable.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ve borrowed the Creator God¡¯s power, after all. Besides, I¡¯ve existed for more than thirty years, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸From my perspective, it¡¯s barely any different. But I suppose we¡¯ll leave it at that. ¡¹


    Fii-kaasama stopped combing her fingers through my hair and showed a gentle smile.


    That¡¯s true, from her eyes, 10 and 30 years aren¡¯t that different, but please stop with that all-knowing smile.


    Muu¡­¡­ While winning isn¡¯t necessary, I don¡¯t feel like I can win against her. Which might be because I let out everything that burdened my heart to her.


    ¡ºI see, I see! So that¡¯s how much older Ain is!¡»


    Ciel, meanwhile, is in very high spirits.


    It¡¯s quite adorable. I don¡¯t feel like I can win against Ciel either.


    ¡ºHave I not yet told you my age before?¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯ve had a hunch that Ain was probably older, but this is the first time I heard actual numbers, you know?¡»


    ¡ºIn that case, I¡¯ll tell you the exact details that are in my memories, alright Ciel?


    On the planet called Earth, in a country named Japan, I died in an accident at 20 years old.¡»


    ¡ºAs I thought, you were an adult, right Ain?¡»


    ¡ºI can¡¯t really say. You see, in my country, you were considered to be an adult at 20. However, I was still a student when I died. I haven¡¯t gone out into the world, gaining actual working experience.¡»


    ¡ºThen that means Ain started working at the same time as I did, right?¡»


    ¡ºThat would be the case. Before I noticed it, we¡¯ve gotten a lot of money.¡»


    After answering so to Ciel, ¡ºEhehehe¡» she let out a happy giggle.


    ¡¸Are we done now? We will be going to the Hunter Guild, but as for the compensation for the transgressions done by the fool we were talking about earlier, you will have to negotiate yourselves, alright?¡¹


    Kaasama instantly changed her mind. As I thought, isn¡¯t she a bit too sweet on us?


    I¡¯m thankful, so I don¡¯t mind at all. Still, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s that big of a moment.


    ¡ºI¡¯m doing it? I¡¯ll do my best!¡»


    ¡ºIn general, it¡¯s fine as long as you are satisfied with the results, so please think of this as practice.¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood.¡»


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    Now then, I wonder how Ciel will go? She didn¡¯t seem interested much in the acting guildmaster, so it¡¯s possible that she¡¯ll just end it without much thought. On the other hand, she has seen how I negotiated in the past, so she might ask for some nasty demands.


    Thinking back now, most of my negotiations were pretty high-handed.


    Still, I have not a single regret regarding that.


    ¡¸Now, shall we go then?¡¹


    Fii-kaasama is leading the way, so I switched with Ciel and, for the first time in a while, we left the mansion.


    ¡ó


    While walking through the Central¡¯s streets, Ciel¡¯s eyes wander from one place to another.


    Come to think of it, this is practically the first time we walked through these streets.


    After all, we were surrounded by soldiers when we arrived and then after that, Fii-kaasama ¡ª¡ª Fiyanamia-sama was guiding us and there was no opportunity to calmly look around.


    Even now, we¡¯re being guided by Fii-kaasama but we¡¯re now in a different position compared to when we entered the mansion.


    Now that we¡¯re kaasama¡¯s daughter, we¡¯d probably be forgiven for looking around and occasionally stopping on our tracks for a bit.


    kaasama is looking at Ciel with a warm gaze, after all.


    Central¡¯s town is, based on my impressions, like a quiet residential area¡­¡­ I think?


    The roads are wide enough to accomodate carriages using it and on both sides of the road, there are trees planted by the roadside.


    Compared to the other towns, its tidiness leaves a good impression.


    The clouds are pretty high up, the sun feels gently warm, and the leaves changing colors makes it feel like autumn, it really lifts the spirits.


    Ciel who¡¯s looking around the area restlessly is probably feeling this too.


    Taking a good amount of time, we reached the Hunter Guild.


    Fii-kaasama, seemingly not particularly bothered, casually opened the door and went inside.


    While there were hunters that raised their eyebrows upon seeing a blooming lady ¡ª¡ª kaasama ¡ª¡ª that by no means looked like a hunter suddenly arriving, the guild personnel were flustered the instant kaasama entered.


    ¡¸W-what might be the purpose of your visit for today?¡¹


    ¡¸Is Rhavelt in?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, I¡¯ll show the way at once.¡¹


    The receptionist said so and led us to a room with fixtures that are pretty high quality for a Hunter Guild.


    The receptionist said ¡¸I will call him, so please wait here for a short while.¡¹ before bowing down and leaving.


    Left with Fii-kaasama, Ciel muttered ¡¸I wonder why we were led here?¡¹ as she tilted her head.


    ¡¸Right, right, I wonder why myself. It would¡¯ve been completely fine for me if we were immediately led to where Rhavelt is.


    However, it seems like it¡¯s not good for me to be the one going. Really, mortal society is such a bother.¡¹


    ¡¸It really is. But Fii is always involved in it, right?¡¹


    ¡¸While I may be involved, I don¡¯t particularly associate myself with it.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so?¡¹


    Ciel replied as she tilted her head.


    She probably doesn¡¯t understand it at all, but, honestly, I don¡¯t feel like I can articulate Fii-kaasama¡¯s sensibilities either.


    After that, the harmonious chatting continued until the door was knocked.


    ¡¸Rhavelt, right? You may enter.¡¹


    It was as if Fii-kaasama was the owner of this room, but now that I think of it, it is hers to begin with, huh.


    If she so desires, she can drive out everyone in the land of Central.


    And if you know that, you can¡¯t really treat her lightly, so kaasama¡¯s behavior isn¡¯t particularly wrong.


    While the way kaasama is acting may seem different from person to person, she isn¡¯t mortal to begin with. So she probably doesn¡¯t care about mortal perceptions.


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    Entering the room with kaasama¡¯s permission was an old man. However, he¡¯s not the weak from age type but rather seems to be one of the martial arts expert types.


    He¡¯s like those weirdly strong old men who appear in stories.


    ¡¸I¡¯m honored to have you here today.¡¹


    ¡¸Enough of that. I only came here today to tell you about something.¡¹


    ¡¸Is it regarding that girl?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. I have decided to have this child ¡ª¡ª Cielmer be my daughter.¡¹


    Hearing kaasama¡¯s words, Rhavelt¡¯s eyebrows twitched and his gaze shifted to Ciel.


    This shift was so natural and it doesn¡¯t feel like he¡¯s staring at all.


    However, it does feel like he¡¯s observing us carefully.


    ¡¸This girl is¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, the child that has been repeatedly troubled by the Hunter Guild.¡¹


    Fii-kaasama¡¯s smile is blinding.


    Quite the smile, indeed.


    Which probably just inflicts damage to Rhavelt¡¯s stomach.


    ¡¸I¡­¡­ see. My apologies for the great trouble.¡¹


    Rhavelt lowered his head.


    Having someone clearly older than me lower their head personally feels somewhat uncomfortable, so I would¡¯ve likely said ¡¸Please raise your head.¡¹ if I was the one negotiating. Unfortunately, both Ciel and Fii-kaasama don¡¯t seem to be interested in saying the same.


    ¡¸So, what will the Hunter Guild do about it?¡¹


    ¡¸As long as these old bones are able to do it, anything.¡¹


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s high-handed question, it seems like she¡¯s perfectly tainted by my methods.


    Specially-educated indeed. With Ciel¡¯s current standing, she¡¯ll at least need to be capable of doing this, so I guess this is a good thing.


    On the other hand, the Hunter Guild seems surprisingly on board with this. In reality, it¡¯s possible that they¡¯ll just be evasive about this but, really, I wonder what Ciel is going to ask for?


    Hiya~! It¡¯s been a while since we¡¯ve been in the guild again! Any bets on how long they¡¯ll be here?


    Joking aside, on the next chapter, it seems like we¡¯ll see how much Ciel has learned from watching Ain negotiate! And from what we have right now, it seems to be promising, lol. Ciel¡¯s general disinterest + Ain¡¯s high-handed ¡°who cares about my reputation, we¡¯re probably not going back here anyway¡± methods that Ciel has been exposed to repeatedly to, lol. I feel bad for the guildmaster, as I tend to.


    Back to the earlier half of the chapter, it was cute how Ciel was so happy to learn Ain¡¯s age. And meanwhile with Ain, I really liked how Ain explained why not to kill (needlessly, at least). In most isekai stories, the ¡°Don¡¯t Kill¡± morality is, honestly, badly handled. Just my opinion. Really? Just ¡°Well, we don¡¯t kill back in Japan, so I won¡¯t kill here and so should my friends¡± isn¡¯t a very satisfying answer. And it¡¯s understandable, the protagonists tend to be so overpowered that not killing is a viable option for survival, since they basically don¡¯t experience the difficulty and desperation that caused by the ¡°Kill or be Killed¡± internal conflict. Also, they tend to first encounter monsters, and humans basically don¡¯t do much against them. Now, with Ain, it¡¯s an objective reason why you don¡¯t kill much. Retaliation. The most real and grounded reason why you shouldn¡¯t kill. Kill someone, and their family/friends will possibly retaliate. And even if they don¡¯t, you are now seen as a threat to normal society. Now, even in Ciel¡¯s world, you¡¯ll still be feared, which in normal circumstances will be a problem, which is clear even from just what they¡¯ve done so far. Previously, a guildmaster butt in between Ciel and a promising beginner because of Ciel¡¯s track record on dealing with people. So yeah, while murder might be first and foremost morally wrong, it¡¯s also an objective mistake *if* you are in situations where this can be avoided. Actually, it¡¯s a bit more complicated, but the point is, it¡¯s better for the story and the readers when protagonists think more about their morals and beliefs. Though ironically, Ain seems to be admittedly more open to killing than she was before, lol. Also, sometimes protagonists are on the ¡°Murder is fine¡± side of things from the start, but I think in most cases it¡¯s just a countermovement against the badly done ¡°Don¡¯t kill¡± characters and a bit jarring sometimes. Just my bad take. Even soldiers on the battlefield get PTSD from all that¡¯s happened around them after all. Well, in literature, as long as it works, it works. Just a nitpick about isekai protags.

 CH 96

    ¡¸What rank can go in and out of countries freely, without restrictions?¡¹


    Cutting to the chase, Ciel asked about something that is likely necessary for our future activities.


    Yup. Whether it¡¯s A-rank or S-rank, I¡¯m sure she¡¯s going to ask for whichever of them is said to be necessary. It hasn¡¯t been that long since we reached B-rank, though.


    And before B-rank, a lot of things did happen.


    After we became B-rank, we could go to Central and from there, freely to other countries. However, freely is not quite exact.


    Once you reach B-rank, you can literally go to Central unrestricted.


    To begin with, becoming B-rank also means that you¡¯re considered to be a person who won¡¯t cause trouble at Central.


    People that keep causing problems will never reach B-rank. There are people who start causing problems after becoming B-rank, though.


    From Central, you¡¯re free to go to another country but, beyond that, your freedom is not guaranteed.


    It¡¯s said that B-rank hunters can deal with lesser nobles but on the flipside, they can¡¯t oppose the words of greater nobles.


    In becoming a B-rank hunter, countries may want to take you in, so it¡¯s really difficult to enjoy sightseeing.


    And so, to prevent this from happening, the hunters typically visit while ¡°deployed by the headquarters¡± but in this case, naturally they will have to do some work for the Hunter Guild.


    That¡¯s why Carol-san and the members of the Fools¡¯ Gathering came to Estoque with duties.


    In other words, to have the footing to freely travel around the continent without using Fii-kaasama¡¯s name, B-rank just isn¡¯t enough.


    On the other hand, becoming an A-rank hunter is like becoming a greater noble.


    A proportionate amount of contributions and strength will be necessary.


    To become A-rank solo is like, in another country for example, demanding to be given the rank of marquis.


    Ciel hasn¡¯t said anything yet though.


    ¡¸S-rank, is what I¡¯d like to say, however A-rank is where hunters have the most freedom.


    At S-rank, you become conspicuous. Considering the balance of convenience and freedom of movement within the country, that would be my answer.¡¹


    ¡¸Then first, make me an A-rank Hunter.¡¹


    ¡¸That can be done immediately, if you so wish.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ An A-rank hunter¡¯s obligations are?¡¹


    Perhaps because this was accepted easier than she anticipated, Ciel cautiously asked him so.


    If I was the one negotiating, I¡¯d probably be cautious too. After all, it¡¯s pretty hard to read his expression.


    If this acceptance had a catch, that is even though the countries can¡¯t intervene, the Hunter Guild will instead have a tight hold on us, it would be meaningless.


    ¡¸As long as you complete a certain amount of requests, that would be enough.


    It¡¯s an extreme example, but in the case of A-rank requests, completing one per year is sufficient. After that, feel free to do as you wish.


    However, Cielmer-sama, if you become A-rank, you will likely be subjected to many troublesome encounters.¡¹


    ¡¸When that happens, I¡¯ll just beat them up.¡¹


    ¡¸We like to ask you to hold back in those encounters, however¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Isn¡¯t it self-responsibility?¡¹


    Due to Ciel¡¯s appearance, it¡¯s inevitable for people to pick on her and so, it¡¯s also inevitable for them to get beat up as a result of that.


    A hunter must be responsible for their own safety. The moment that someone misjudges Ciel¡¯s true abilities, they¡¯ve already failed as a hunter. It¡¯s sophistry, but we can only say that.


    And, if needed, me casting a barrier normally would probably be threatening enough.


    After all, even a sloppy barrier made with half the effort should have enough defensive power.


    ¡¸If we want to limit the casualties, then we should resolve it ourselves, huh¡­¡­ it¡¯s certainly as you say.¡¹


    ¡¸I probably won¡¯t kill. Other than that, I don¡¯t know.


    Another condition. Don¡¯t randomly promote me to S-rank.¡¹


    Rhavelt opened his mouth and was about to say something, but he kept silent and had a slight grimace.


    Judging from his reaction, he was probably going to say that an arbitrary rank promotion won¡¯t happen.


    Normally that would be the case, but unfortunately we don¡¯t have any trust in these matters.


    After all, we were blocked from getting to B-rank just because of our age.


    It¡¯s easy to imagine them suddenly raising us to S-rank when they find it convenient for them.


    ¡¸Next condition. Allow me to freely state that my rank is lower than A-rank.


    And allow this for Ain too.¡¹


    ¡¸To state that your rank is lower than A¡­¡­ is it?¡¹


    While it was good that the first half caught Rhavelt¡¯s attention, Ciel absolutely said my name just now. Though, since we can now change colors and Ainsel can now act in the open, there might be situations where we can use that.


    In that case, it might be better for me to register separately. But since we know someone from the top, I guess we can just say ¡¸Please verify with Rhavelt.¡¹ whenever something happens.


    Well, Ciel¡¯s first demand was also pretty big.


    Big enough to warrant ignoring my existence, at the very least.


    Allowing us to state that our rank is lower is the same as the guild allowing the falsification of our rank.


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    Ciel¡¯s perspective here is that having a rank that fits our appearance should lessen the probability of people picking on us.


    Rhavelt likely recognizes that as well.


    While it¡¯s certainly easy to abuse this, I don¡¯t think Ciel would misuse it.


    Though, if I¡¯m involved, I feel like she¡¯ll probably do it as much as needed.


    If it¡¯ll be of help to Ciel, I¡¯m sure that I wouldn¡¯t hesitate abusing this power myself either.


    ¡¸Acknowledged. However, please refrain from accepting requests of C-rank and below.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. Then what about Ain, Ainsel?¡¹


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s words, Rhavelt looked at Fii-kaasama, as if to ask for help.


    Ciel is currently in her taciturn mode, or rather I don¡¯t want to say anything more than the bare minimum mode, so it¡¯s practically next to impossible to ask her about me.


    That¡¯s why he¡¯s correct in asking kaasama for help.


    I have no idea how kaasama will answer, though.


    ¡¸Right, right. The guild hasn¡¯t earned enough trust for them to teach you about this so easily.


    However, you can think of her as my other new daughter. While her abilities are only specialized in a certain aspect, she¡¯s my equal.¡¹


    Hearing Fii-kaasama say equal, Rhavelt stared at the distant horizon.


    Let me guess, he¡¯s another wise sufferer. I don¡¯t have a good image of the Hunter Guild, but I¡¯ve seen a lot of wise sufferers who¡¯ve gotten the short end of the stick.


    That¡¯s why, to be honest, it¡¯s not like he doesn¡¯t have a good impression on me personally.


    Besides, I think the only truly terrible guildmaster was the one at Royal Capital Estoque¡¯s Guild.


    The different guilds in the towns before that were all favorable towards Ciel in the end.


    ¡¸¡­¡­ As long as she is always in the same party as Cielmer-sama, we¡¯ll accept this as an exception.¡¹


    ¡¸My, Rhavelt. How reasonable of you.¡¹


    ¡¸This land is a land that you have lent to us. Despite how I look, I do know where I stand.


    In this land, whatever you state to be black, even the color white, will turn black.¡¹


    Somehow, these two seem like they¡¯re on really good terms.


    How do I describe it, it¡¯s like the exchange of a student who feels indebted to his teacher even after achieving greatness.


    Anyhow, it looks like I¡¯m recognized as a Hunter now.


    ¡¸You¡¯re accepting it so easily, why?¡¹


    Just as she said, or maybe not, with how easily and quickly her demands are accepted, I can¡¯t help but be curious about what¡¯s at the bottom of this.


    While it can be explained as simply them making up for the troubles, it still feels too generous considering that.


    Rhavelt then stares at Ciel, as though appraising her.


    ¡¸Being that she was adopted by Fiiyanamia-sama, she should be plenty capable. Besides, I cannot refuse an individual that Fiiyanamia-sama has deemed acceptable.


    Additionally, the unassisted resolution of an artificially induced stampede, unassisted subjugation of an unknown monster, and wyvern extermination during a naturally occurring stampede; these deeds are already beyond that of an A-ranker.


    There will be people objecting to it considering your age but with all the trouble we have caused so far, it¡¯ll definitely be approved.¡¹


    In other words, our contributions are already well beyond that of an A-rank promotion. Now that he enumerated it, yeah, I think we have done more work than a regular A-rank. Since that¡¯s the cause, then I suppose we can trust him for now.


    Besides, as I thought, Fii-kaasama has a really big influence. After all, we are accepted thanks to Fii-kaasama¡¯s acknowledgement and, Ciel and I aside, I¡¯m sure that he wouldn¡¯t betray kaa-sama¡¯s trust.


    And if, hypothetically, there¡¯s a catch to this, since kaasama is involved, making a move within Central would be not just risky but extremely risky.


    Actually, if they had some sort of plan, kaasama should already know about it.


    ¡¸I see. Also, find the people in the Hunter Guild¡¯s upper management who wanted to use me and punish them.¡¹


    ¡¸That will certainly be in order.¡¹


    I suspected this could be the case. After all, the guildmasters up until now seemed to have asked for permission or received instructions from some higher-ups.


    Actually, this would be a great opportunity to reform the whole organization. If that happens, it¡¯s likely that Ciel would be able to have a more peaceful time. Besides, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a bad thing for the Hunter Guild either.


    ¡ºIt seems like this will finish without any issues.¡»


    ¡ºHow do I say this, it¡¯s settled a lot easier than I thought it would be.¡»


    ¡ºWhile it might have been anti-climatic, things settled the way you wanted it to, so isn¡¯t that good Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s true. With this, Ain can now come out freely.¡»


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    Ciel cheerfully stated her goal. So it¡¯s just as I thought¡­¡­


    Ever since we arrived at Central, I was thinking that it would be best to decrease the frequency that I borrow Ciel¡¯s body but it looks like Ciel made her move first.


    Still, considering that we¡¯ll eventually lose our lifespan, perhaps I don¡¯t need to think about ¡¸Ciel¡¯s time¡¹ that much anymore.


    Hmmmm¡­¡­


    ¡¸And while it may be unneeded, we have prepared for you a certain amount as reparation, so please accept it.¡¹


    ¡¸Money is unnecessary. We¡¯ll probably get more anyway.


    So, use that to gather information.¡¹


    ¡¸By information, you mean?¡¹


    ¡¸About Artificial Divine Messengers. It doesn¡¯t matter where. If you find one, we¡¯ll defeat it.¡¹


    ¡¸Cielmer-sama, are you saying that you¡¯ll personally engage?¡¹


    ¡¸For our goal.¡¹


    ¡¸I see, very well then.¡¹


    For some reason Rhavelt seemed deeply moved, which I suppose it¡¯s because we¡¯re taking the initiative to defeat a monster estimated to be at A-rank.


    It¡¯s the so-called sharing of mutual interest.


    While we don¡¯t plan on being used by the Hunter Guild, we¡¯ll still prioritize engaging the Artificial Divine Messengers. And now against an unknown monster, the Hunter Guild has secured a guaranteed war potential of at least 1.


    While I say guaranteed, last time I was of no use at all, actually¡­¡­ I¡¯m starting to lose confidence now.


    I completely forgot since a lot happened at the manor but as of late, I¡¯ve been losing constantly.


    If I lower my guard down too much just because I have divine power now, I might get the rug pulled under me.


    After that, with our task done, Fii-kaasama quickly left and Ciel followed behind her.


    If possible, it would¡¯ve been nice to know where all the people who¡¯ve helped us back at Estoque are, but I guess we do have some time tomorrow, or even the day after that, to ask.


    After all, without anyone pursuing us, we now have so much free time in our hands.


    Hiya~! Well, that was pretty quick for a guild chapter, lol. Honestly, I don¡¯t have much to say about today, but our princesses are now A-rank! That was quick¡­


    One thing that I do love about this chapter is how much Ciel is preparing for Ain to be out in the world freely. It was funny how she was pretty quick to say Ain¡¯s name with zero context too, lol. As usual, I feel bad for the guildmasters, all of them except the acting guildmaster and the previous Royal Capital guildmaster. The Hunter Guild is simply reaping what it sowed, of course, but the chaos of both the ill mannered people that characterise the typical not very competent, but overly haughty low ranking hunters *and* the shenanigans in middle to top level management that got AinCiel pissed¡­ Actually, I feel bad for a different reason here, since on the other times it was Ain talking and she¡­¡­ let¡¯s say, doesn¡¯t talk like Ciel does.

 CH 97

    Even during dinner later on, Fii-kaasama didn¡¯t tell us about what she was scheming.


    Moreover, saying that the two of us seem to have something to talk about, she urged us to go back to our room, so we returned without getting a chance to interrogate about it.


    The room has a better quality interior than the high-class inn and I think Ciel likes this room a lot.


    After all, the bed is so soft.


    The same can be said towards the food, but this is probably just a side effect of our life at Rispeliga¡¯s mansion.


    Looking at Ciel now, people might think that she¡¯s the type that is easily delighted by trivial things.


    I¡¯m sure that they¡¯d never understand just how precious those are.


    And frankly, I can¡¯t say that I fully understand this myself.


    I guess this is exactly what Ciel meant by us just being happy on our own.


    I have no complaints in regards to the room, it has excellent furniture all around, but Mohsa and Saueluna being here like it¡¯s natural is bothering me a bit.


    Though, I should probably get used to it as part of being Fii-kaasama¡¯s daughter.


    The two are quite good at minimizing their presences but since I constantly have detection on, this doesn¡¯t hold much meaning to me.


    Ciel doesn¡¯t seem to be bothered by them at all, so I guess it¡¯s fine.


    It¡¯s not like we¡¯re actually going to physically converse, so no one¡¯s going to hear us anyways.


    The two of them might grow bored but I hope they can bear with it.


    And now Ciel is currently sitting on the bed, enjoying its bounciness.


    Next to the bed is a night table and on it is a cup of tea poured by Saueluna.


    This steaming hot tea was then thoroughly enjoyed by Ciel.


    In actuality, it is delicious. It¡¯s not too harsh and just a small sip fills you with its scent.


    ¡ºAin, Ain. I¡­ there are some things I want to ask about.¡»


    ¡ºWhat is it, Ciel?¡»


    I wanted to talk in regards to Viviana¡¯s family myself but Ciel¡¯s questions are more important, so I¡¯ll put it aside for now.


    ¡ºUmm, there a few, but what should I start with?¡»


    ¡ºHow about the one bothering you the most?¡»


    ¡ºThen, let¡¯s see¡­ Fii and us are parent and child now, right?¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. While our relationship with her is a bit unusual, it shouldn¡¯t be of any problem.


    Does it bother you?¡»


    ¡ºNo. Fii being my mother now doesn¡¯t feel real yet to me, but I¡¯m fine with that.


    After all, Fii is someone I feel okay with.¡»


    ¡ºThen what¡¯s bothering you?¡»


    Asking her again, Ciel¡¯s expression turned somewhat anxious.


    ¡ºUmm, umm. Say, Ain. Our relationship, what is it?¡»


    ¡ºOur relationship¡­¡­. right.¡»


    At first, I wanted to be like a parent. That was because I thought of myself as someone who would guide her and then vanish when no longer needed.


    Ciel was, in this new life, my everything and my reason to live.


    And I¡¯m sure that Ciel thinks of me as an important person as well.


    Without each other, we can¡¯t stay mentally sound.


    Our current relationship of mutual reliance is, I guess, what I know as codependency.


    However, this is probably not the sort of answer Ciel is asking for. It¡¯s more on the lines of interpersonal relationships, like parent-child or siblings.


    Taking Fii-kaasama into account, I suppose we¡¯d be sisters but, honestly, that doesn¡¯t feel quite right. It feels like an afterthought in that regard.


    ¡ºRegrettably, I don¡¯t know the proper words to describe our relationship.¡»


    ¡ºOh¡­¡­ I see¡­¡»


    ¡ºHowever, at the very beginning, I lived with the intention of being a parent to you. But currently, I can¡¯t say that I feel the same anymore.


    Right now, it feels like something more.¡»


    Not knowing how to describe this emotion, this feeling, this relationship, it¡¯s really frustrating.


    Because I¡¯m sure that while I¡¯m saying this, Ciel is still feeling anxious.


    And to begin with, I think the reason why Ciel is asking about this is because we have obtained a clear and objective relationship through Fiikaasama.


    Fii-kaasama is her mother, but what am I to her?


    She might be a bit mature, but Ciel is still about the age of a middle schooler.


    ¡ºFor me Ciel, you are special, you are the one I cherish the most.


    However, if this still makes you feel insecure, I will be whatever you want me to be.


    I will be your parent. Your sister. Your teacher. Your best friend. Your partner. And everything else you want me to be.¡»


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    It¡¯s pathetic, but this is all I can muster.


    ¡ºFufu, I see, I see. In other words, it¡¯s ¡¸a special relationship we can¡¯t attach a name to¡¹ right?¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s how I feel, at least. It might not be the answer you wanted to hear though¡­..¡»


    ¡ºNo, no. It¡¯s fine, really, it¡¯s fine. I was just a bit hung up about it.


    After all, I wanted to be special to Ain. I wanted Ain to be special to me.¡»


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s excuse-like answer, I felt happy and, at the same time, embarrassed.


    Still, as long as Ciel is satisfied with my answer, it¡¯s all good.


    ¡ºUmm, there are other things you wanted to ask about, right?¡»


    ¡ºYes, right, right. If you don¡¯t mind, I want to know about Ain¡¯s previous world.¡»


    ¡ºAbout my world?¡­¡­ It¡¯ll be a long story to tell all at once, so I¡¯ll just keep it short for today.¡»


    ¡ºI don¡¯t mind. I¡¯m looking forward to hearing more about it from now on.


    So, in that case, could you tell me about yourself, Ain?¡»


    While I already expected this, I don¡¯t think it¡¯ll be too interesting of a topic.


    It¡¯s the short life of a dull man. Still, if Ciel wants to hear it, then I guess it¡¯s fine to tell.


    My memories continue from my death and I¡¯ve already accepted my past, talking about it doesn¡¯t bother me.


    ¡ºBefore I talk about myself, let¡¯s start with the world I came from.¡»


    To even start talking about myself, well, the context of the world is too different.


    From Ciel¡¯s perspective, it¡¯s a completely unknown world. Frankly, without any prior knowledge, if I talk about buses and such, I imagine that she wouldn¡¯t understand.


    Actually, how do I go about words? Should I just use Japanese?


    Now Ciel seems to be a bit pouty, probably because she wanted to hear about me, however it doesn¡¯t sound like it¡¯ll happen now.


    But please, forgive me for this.


    ¡ºUmm, the world I came from was completely different from this world.


    That¡¯s why, even if I talk about myself, there are portions you probably wouldn¡¯t understand without knowing the background.¡»


    ¡ºI see now.¡»


    ¡ºYou see, to put it simply, there is no sorcery, magic items, or even monsters in that world. ¡»


    ¡ºThat kind of place actually exists? How mysterious! Since there aren¡¯t monsters, it sounds like it would be a safe place but isn¡¯t it inconvenient without magic items?¡»


    She was a bit disgruntled but since that caught her interest, I began with a brief explanation of Earth.


    ¡ó


    ¡ºAin¡¯s world sounds like a tough place to live.¡»


    ¡ºWell, you could also say that.¡»


    Ciel¡¯s reaction was a bit different from what I expected. I¡¯ll keep the fact that I¡¯m stumped with how to answer to myself.


    But yeah, in Ciel¡¯s case, in terms of traveling, in the worst case we can move freely through the sky. My barrier can ward off most dangers and many electronics, starting with hair dryers, can be substituted for with sorcery or magic.


    And for communication equipment, it¡¯s probably not in her interest.


    Also, there¡¯s the issue of common sense. Ciel and I have not had much firsthand experience of what¡¯s common sense in this world.


    There¡¯s no basis for comparison. That¡¯s why, just based on Ciel¡¯s experiences ¡ª¡ª in addition to my existence ¡ª¡ª life in Japan sounds more difficult. In reality, both worlds have their own troubles and advantages if you ask me.


    Still, since Ciel is calling Japan a tough place to live, on the flipside, that means that she¡¯s comfortable with our current life.


    ¡ºHonestly, I really want to hear about Ain¡¯s life right now, but I¡¯ll hold back for now.


    So, this is the last thing I want to ask but¡­ how should I interact with people from here on? ¡»


    ¡ºNow that¡¯s a familiar question.¡»


    The same question back in Estoque, actually not quite.


    Still, I don¡¯t think there¡¯s a strict right or wrong in interacting with people, so this is a really difficult question.


    But somehow we managed to gain power, so I think it¡¯s fine for Ciel to do as she likes.


    When Ciel is exposed to danger, it¡¯s my duty to protect her.


    Still, just leaving the decision to Ciel isn¡¯t good either.


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    ¡ºRight. In general, be like a mirror in regards to social interaction.¡»


    ¡ºA mirror? What does that mean?¡»


    ¡ºIf you are shown kindness, you can repay them with kindness. And if faced with malicious intent, you can just repay with that as well.¡»


    ¡ºI see now. So with Celia and Carol and the others, I show them kindness, right? ¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right, but you don¡¯t have to think too much about it. If anything happens, I¡¯ll be there to help anyhow.¡»


    ¡ºThen, how do I treat people that haven¡¯t done anything to me in particular?¡»


    ¡ºIn those cases, you can decided based on your impression on them.¡»


    I don¡¯t know if there¡¯s even anyone who can leave a good impression on Ciel at first glance, but that¡¯s a different issue.


    It¡¯s not like I particularly want Ciel to be a good child.


    More so a saint that would shower anyone and everyone with kindness.


    ¡ºThat, can I even do it?¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s something that we¡¯ll have to practice on. Either way, we are secured enough that whatever happens, we can pull through.


    If there comes a time when you can¡¯t stand interacting with other people anymore, just staying in the manor and refusing outside interaction is not a bad option.


    As long as we help out in the mansion, I think Fii-kaasama will allow it. At worst, the idea you had some time ago, living hidden in the middle of a forest, might be good too.¡»


    ¡ºAre you alright with that, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºIf it¡¯s with you Ciel, I don¡¯t mind staying anywhere.¡»


    ¡ºFufu, me too. As long as Ain is there, I can live anywhere.¡»


    The only thing I want is nothing else but Ciel¡¯s happiness.


    If Ciel is happy, then I¡¯m sure that I would be happy.


    That¡¯s why, as long as Ciel prioritizes herself first in her decisions, I¡¯ll happily agree with it.


    ¡ºRight, I understand, Ain. Thank you for answering my questions.¡»


    ¡ºDon¡¯t mind it, I¡¯ll always have an open ear for whatever you want to ask.


    And I¡¯ve recalled something to talk with you about too, Ciel. ¡»


    ¡ºOh? What is it? What is it?¡»


    Since it sounds like Ciel is done with her questions, I shifted the topic to settle my side of the discussion and Ciel sat up straight, ready to listen.


    ¡ºDo you still remember the letter of introduction we received from Viviana-san?¡»


    ¡ºOh right, that did happen. If I¡¯m not wrong, it was so we could get her family¡¯s support, was it?¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right.¡»


    ¡ºIn that case, we don¡¯t need it anymore, right?¡»


    ¡ºWhile that might be true, I think we should at least tell Viviana-san what has happened since we last met.¡»


    ¡ºSocial interaction, right. In that case, why don¡¯t we go to the Hunter Guild tomorrow?


    After all, we haven¡¯t even gotten our A-Rank card since we were following Fii.¡»


    Now that she mentioned it, that is true.


    While I¡¯m impressed about how carefree Fii-kaasama actually is, I¡¯m starting to enjoy my own absentmindedness.


    ¡ºThen, why don¡¯t we look for Celia-san first? Celia is a guild personnel, so I think she¡¯ll be the easiest to find.¡»


    ¡ºWould it better for you to talk to her when we find them, Ain?


    Since I have never had any direct interaction with either Carol or Celia, right?¡»


    ¡ºCome to think of it, that is true. Still, please be the one to interact with them, Ciel.


    If needed, I will talk to them as well, but it should be alright to explain our situation to the two of them.


    ¡­¡­ And to be honest, maybe they¡¯ve already had a realization of their own. I do remember giving them a hint, after all. ¡»


    I actually don¡¯t remember what I said, to be honest.


    I mean, it¡¯s already been 2 years since. Ciel¡¯s mind is excellent but in that case, I was the one using it and memory storage probably doesn¡¯t happen in the brain but rather the soul or something.


    That¡¯s why, me being absentminded and forgetful is my own fault.


    ¡ºCelia and Carol should be okay for me to practice social interaction with, after all.


    There aren¡¯t any things that I need to keep a secret, right?¡»


    ¡ºNot that I can think of.¡»


    And you did manage to talk to the members of the Fools¡¯ Gathering after all.


    As I was about to say that, Ciel was starting to nod off, so ended our conversation here and began to sing a lullaby.


    Hiya~! Aaaand that was a wholesome chapter. And it seems like we might be meeting some familiar faces in the near future~


    First of all, Ciel was once again cute over all. From her slight insecurity, to then her wanting to hear more about Ain¡¯s past, then being pouty because she thought that Ain wasn¡¯t going to tell her about it, and then to curiosity once she heard about a world with no magic. Cute. And then to Ain, being a bit self-aware this chapter. Now, in my opinion, it¡¯s a shared opinion between many readers, me included, that Ain has been¡­ questionable, as a parent figure. She¡¯s doing her best, yes, but that doesn¡¯t mean she¡¯s good at it. And Ciel herself, doesn¡¯t really think of Ain as a parent figure, because she doesn¡¯t know what a parent figure should be like outside of, just maybe, stories she¡¯s read. Her first opinion of Ain was, in fact, a hero that protects and rescues her which then quickly turned into ¡°actually a frail princess trying her best that also needs protecting¡±. Now, Fii might also be questionable as a parent because of the sense of detachment from her divinity but at least she has the experience and maturity to be a life mentor, hopefully for the both of them this time. Ciel wasn¡¯t the only one that needed an adult in this series, in my opinion. Also, Ain being a bit more aware of her being a bit airheaded is so funny to me, for some reason.

 CH 98

    We¡¯ve agreed that when Ciel is asleep, I can generally make use of her body as I want.


    However, I try not to borrow it too much.


    This is because I feel like the exhaustion might inevitably drag on to the next day.


    Still, at times where I have something to do, I make the effort to not hold back.


    Since if I¡¯m too reserved, Ciel would start sulking.


    With that said, today, I¡¯m borrowing her body.


    ¡¸I¡¯m sorry. It was boring, wasn¡¯t it?¡¹


    Saying so, I called out to the two maids still in this room.


    While I don¡¯t necessarily have to apologize, I asked them that with the intent of giving a conversation starter.


    The two in question were a bit surprised but then immediately shook their heads.


    And, perhaps seeing my hair currently black, Mohsa-san opened her mouth to answer.


    ¡¸No, not at all.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so? When we chat, I¡¯m sure it only looks like Ciel is silently sitting by herself though.¡¹


    Fii-kaasama is the one employing them, so I don¡¯t really have any final say but I could at least try.


    After all, while Ciel and I are talking, it only looks like she¡¯s silent from an outsider¡¯s perspective. Moreover, since she¡¯s focusing on our conversation, she¡¯ll occasionally forget about her surroundings completely.


    So I was thinking that the two of them probably have things they¡¯d rather do instead of passing time meaninglessly, ¡¸It¡¯s our duty¡¹ Saueluna gently but sharply denied.


    ¡¸But Saueluna, don¡¯t you have some other things you¡¯d rather do as well?¡¹


    ¡¸Ainsel-sama, please simply call me by Luna.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. So Luna, don¡¯t you have other things you¡¯d rather do?¡¹


    ¡¸While I appreciate your sympathy, we are by no means bored, so that¡¯s a non-issue.


    Certainly, the conversations between you two might not reach our ears but it¡¯s easy to see from Cielmer-sama¡¯s face that it¡¯s quite the delightful chat.


    Her jovial expression as you two converse is so adorable that even I, a mere beholder, can feel the joy.¡¹


    Doesn¡¯t she sound a bit enthusiastic?


    True, Ciel is cute when she¡¯s talking to me. Her expressions change a lot and she practically has her guard down.


    I¡¯m not jealous. Not at all.


    Coming back to my senses, I looked at Luna and, for some reason, she was looking at me with a really tender gaze.


    While I feel like hiding myself, I endured it and continued the conversation.


    ¡¸I understand that I don¡¯t need to talk to kaasama about it.


    By the way, from your eyes, what are your opinions of Ciel¡¯s general demeanor?¡¹


    ¡¸Cielmer-sama¡¯s demeanor?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. I imagine that we¡¯ll need to pay attention to it from here on.¡¹


    ¡¸Couldn¡¯t the same be applied to you as well, Ainsel-ojousama?¡¹


    As Mohsa-san asked me that, I zipped my mouth.


    True, it might also become necessary for me but in general, it should be more important to Ciel.


    And honestly, in Ciel¡¯s case, there might be a chance for her to make use of Dance Princess.


    Also, I really can¡¯t get used to the ojousama.


    ¡¸With that said, however, from my estimates, it shouldn¡¯t matter much in regards to the two of you.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that because we¡¯re Fii-kaasama¡¯s children now?¡¹


    ¡¸That is part of it, of course. However, even without that, you two are already capable of the minimum demanded conduct for nobility.


    Let¡¯s not even start with manners, those vary based on the location after all and, regarding the manners in Central, it isn¡¯t something you two should be worried about to begin with.¡¹


    ¡¸Because those are rules made by the freeloaders, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Exactly.¡¹


    In regards to etiquette and stuff, I¡¯ve tried teaching Ciel everything I know that might also be useful here but that probably isn¡¯t enough to warrant this reaction.


    In other words, Ciel¡¯s effort has actually bore fruit. Somehow, that makes me feel happy.


    After all, being a Dance Princess, Ciel always pays close attention to refine her movements day by day.


    I only learned how to do it naturally because Ciel can do it.


    If both of us do it seriously, I¡¯m sure that Ciel¡¯s movements would be much more beautiful.


    ¡¸However, yes. At the end of the day, the most important aspect of those, if I have to say, is how you present yourself.


    Therefore, using Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s bearing as reference should do well enough, wouldn¡¯t it?¡¹


    Certainly, having lived long, Fii-kaasama¡¯s movements are refined even from an amateur¡¯s point of view.


    ¡¸I see. Thank you very much.


    Well then, good night.¡¹


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    To rest Ciel¡¯s body, I cut the conversation there.


    The two maids lowered their heads ¡¸Good night.¡¹ and exited the room.


    Author¡¯s note: Due to pacing reasons, this chapter is less than half of a usual chapter. For this reason, there might be an interlude today or tomorrow.


    My note: Probably more like tomorrow or the next day in the translation¡¯s case.


    And hiya~! This ends our princesses¡¯ day~! While pretty short, it is a nice chapter for Ain and the maids. I don¡¯t think I have much to say today, but anyways!


    This chapter presents the two maids we¡¯ve meet before talking in a single chapter. It¡¯s honestly nice to see Ain interact with other people more. We also get a moment of Ain being an older sibling, lol. Also, Ain realising that she¡¯s being a bit possessive, lol. On the other hand, it was funny how Saueluna was gushing about Ciel¡¯s reactions while talking to Ain. It looks like Saueluna really wants to keep their night shift though.

 CH 99

    Today, we arrived at the Hunter Guild Headquarters by ourselves.


    Fii-kaasama wanted to come as well, but we convinced her to stay.


    It¡¯s not because I hate her or anything, it¡¯s just that kaasama has so much influence. Being with her would limit our movements.


    Actually, rather than that, other people might get overly attentive, just like with yesterday, which would drag on conversations.


    While we might already be on her side, we should still fare better alone compared to when Fii-kaasama is with us.


    Entering the Hunter Guild, as expected, eyes shifted to Ciel.


    This is inevitable.


    After all, it¡¯s likely rare for there to be hunters of Ciel¡¯s age at the Hunter Guild Headquarters.


    Still, there should be some present.


    While hunters coming from the outside are only of B-rank and above, there are hunters that were here in the Central to begin with as well.


    It wouldn¡¯t be good if they disallow people already in Central to become hunters, after all.


    Also, what kind of guild headquarters would it be if it doesn¡¯t allow the surrounding residents to be hunters.


    That¡¯s why there should be some present.


    In particular, some children who have hunter parents might even be taught how to become a hunter from an early age.


    That aside, I wonder what the Central hunters would be hunting?


    While monsters exist everywhere in this world, they¡¯re more frequent in places untouched by people and, in the case of Central, kaasama should have a complete grasp on this place, I imagine.


    In other words, she should be able to control the monster population and make it so that monster attacks basically never happen in Central.


    With that in mind, there should be less of a demand for hunters.


    However, there¡¯s still a lot of hunters here at the headquarters, befitting its size.


    It¡¯s as if Fii-kaasama isn¡¯t even thinking of controlling them, and while it¡¯s possible that she¡¯s just leaving this to the hunters, as someone who walked here from the national border, I don¡¯t believe that it¡¯s as simple as that.


    It was Ciel who did the actual walking, though.


    ¡ºAin, is there something wrong?¡»


    ¡ºNo, nothing at all.¡»


    ¡ºReally? Okay then, I guess.¡»


    Called by Ciel, I stopped my line of thought.


    Whatever the answer is, I can just ask kaasama or our hunter acquaintances later on.


    For now, we need to settle the A-rank qualification thing from yesterday.


    Ciel headed to the reception desk and had someone there call the guild master, or I guess it¡¯s grand master since he¡¯s the leader of the headquarters.


    At first, the receptionist was confused but after hearing the name Cielmer, something seemed to have clicked, as she had Ciel wait while she headed towards the back.


    It looks like this information has been spread without any issue.


    As I started to think this might take a while, ¡¸Aren¡¯t you Cielmer-san?¡¹ someone from the back, where the guild staff are, called out to me.


    Looking there, I see a familiar face surprised to see Ciel.


    ¡¸Celia, long time.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Yes, it¡¯s been a while. I didn¡¯t expect us to be reunited so soon.¡¹


    Long time¡­¡­? Well, yes, that is the right way to answer but this should practically be their first time meeting for Ciel, so it¡¯s somewhat strange.


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s reply, Celia-san lost her words for a moment before responding while having a slightly strained smile.


    Since Ciel is speaking instead of me and we have a vastly different way of speaking, perhaps it¡¯s giving her some weird conclusions?


    Even if that¡¯s the case, I¡¯m really impressed that she¡¯s continuing on as if there¡¯s nothing wrong.


    The only reason her smile feels strained is because we¡¯ve been with Celia-san for some time, too.


    So I imagine that people who just met her would see absolutely no difference.


    ¡¸Carol?¡¹


    ¡¸She¡¯s here in Central. She¡¯ll likely come if I call her, shall I?¡¹


    ¡¸If possible.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. But before anything else, Cielmer-san. I¡¯m sincerely sorry about the Hunter Guild.¡¹


    ¡¸Nn.¡¹


    To Celia-san lowering her head, Ciel gave a short reply.


    In my opinion, Celia-san doesn¡¯t really need to apologize but I suppose it¡¯s her way of drawing the line.


    An adult response, I suppose. I find that admirable.


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    Raising her head, Celia-san used some sort of magic item and seems to be contacting someone.


    She talked about calling Carol-san, so I suppose it¡¯s related to that.


    After operating the magic item, Celia-san turned to Ciel once again.


    ¡¸There is a lot I want to talk about but for now, I¡¯m really glad to be able to see you again, Cielmer-san.¡¹


    ¡¸I want to talk with you too, Celia. But maybe it¡¯s better together with Carol.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s true. I¡¯m sure Carol is looking forward to see you as well.¡¹


    ¡ºCiel, there¡¯s something I want to ask, may we switch for a moment?¡»


    ¡ºI don¡¯t mind? I wonder what it is.¡»


    Since it¡¯s a good opportunity to ask about what I¡¯ve been wondering earlier, I asked to switch and Ciel gladly complied.


    ¡¸By the way, how do hunters work at Central?¡¹


    ¡¸Right, it¡¯s your first time here at Central, isn¡¯t it?


    While Central does have similar requests seen in other countries, the major difference is-¡­¡­ ¡¹


    ¡¸What? You came here without even knowing that?¡¹


    Ah, okay. I completely forgot the usual pattern.


    There was a prideful voice of a boy. While it might be my fault for displaying ignorance, if he¡¯s paying attention to the previous conversation, he should know what Ciel¡¯s rank is.


    Him not realizing this is just telling of his capacity¡­¡­ in my opinion.


    ¡ºI¡¯m sorry. Because of me, it seems like we¡¯ve gotten into something troublesome.¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s not Ain¡¯s fault at all. It¡¯s those coming to pick a fight who¡¯s bad.


    Besides, if it¡¯s too annoying, we can just fight them off!¡»


    Ciel cheerfully answered but¡­ is it fine to choose this method now?


    Up until now, to avoid being discovered by Rispelgia due to standing out, we¡¯ve tried to settle things as peacefully as possible. However, we don¡¯t need to worry about that anymore.


    What it means to pick a fight with an A-class hunter, the boy cutting in the conversation should know well. Showing him some pain for his unlucky choice might be good.


    ¡¸Don¡¯t ignore me.¡¹


    From a mocking tone, his voice changed to an angered one.


    That reminds me, I didn¡¯t really think about it much but since I know his approximate position from detection, I haven¡¯t even turned my face to him yet.


    Didn¡¯t something like this happen before? Just as I thought that ¡¸She isn¡¯t someone the likes of you can simply lay a hand on. If you prefer not to die, pull back that hand of yours.¡¹ I heard an unfamiliar female voice.


    Turning to the voice, a blooming young lady with bright red hair, a hat like that of a witch¡¯s, and upturned eyes was pointing at the boy.


    The boy ¡ª¡ª who seems to be not even twenty ¡ª¡ª looks at her, turns completely pale, bows deeply, and ¡¸I¡¯m sorry!¡¹ then leaves the guild in a dash.


    ¡¸I was fine.¡¹


    ¡¸I know full well that it wasn¡¯t a problem for you. Looking at your barrier, it¡¯s easy to guess that you¡¯re a B-rank hunter.¡¹


    It seems like this lady isn¡¯t underestimating Ciel from her appearance.


    Well, she has properly gauged the strength of the spherical barrier I¡¯ve consciously put up, so I guess it¡¯s just natural.


    Still, I wonder why she¡¯s confident that Ciel is B-rank?


    I noticed her presence through detection, but it didn¡¯t seem like she overheard Ciel and Celia-san¡¯s conversation.


    In other words, all she could do was guess Ciel¡¯s rank from my barrier.


    However, people don¡¯t normally use their full strength in these sorts of situations.


    Because of that, I should be seen as at least, at minimum, or more than B-rank. Or at least, that¡¯s what I think.


    ¡¸So you¡¯re the record breaker for the youngest to reach B-rank Viviana was talking about?¡¹


    I see, she¡¯s related to Viviana-san, huh. Viviana-san does know that Ciel became B-rank and if we¡¯re talking about B-rank hunters of Ciel¡¯s age, Ciel¡¯s likely to be the only one.


    And she wouldn¡¯t have expected Ciel to be A-rank so soon.


    ¡¸You¡¯re, Viviana¡¯s acquaintance?¡¹


    ¡¸Ah! I haven¡¯t introduced myself yet, haven¡¯t I?¡¹


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    For some reason, this person is really dramatic. Is she the type that isn¡¯t satisfied unless she stands out?


    Her movements are noble-ish, or rather¡­¡­ like, she gives the impression of a high-handed daughter of a noble all grown up.


    And for the ¡¸Scorching Hot Princess¡¹ I hear from the surroundings, that¡¯s probably her nickname.


    Speaking of nicknames, I remember Carol-san had ¡¸Ice Witch¡¹ but if I¡¯m not misremembering, Carol-san didn¡¯t really like it.


    It looks like it¡¯s the opposite for her, she seems to enjoy being called by her nickname.


    Ice and scorching heat are extreme opposites and, from their personalities, they probably wouldn¡¯t get along too well.


    Still, I missed the chance to return Ciel¡¯s body.


    ¡¸I am Friere Iazick. A B-rank hunter called by others as the Scorching Hot Princess.


    My relationship with Viviana, correct? I am her mentor!¡¹


    Resting her palm on her chest, the Scorching Hot Princess Friere-san introduced herself.


    With her outfit, she really stands out.


    She said that she¡¯s Viviana-san¡¯s mentor but I¡¯m honestly amazed that she went to study under this person.


    Or maybe Friere-san is simply an excellent teacher?


    ¡¸I¡¯m Cielmer.¡¹


    ¡¸Cielmer, is it? I no longer care about the small fry from earlier, can I ask you of a request?¡¹


    ¡¸What?¡¹


    ¡¸Could you have a mock battle with me?¡¹


    ¡ºSo she says, what should we do?¡»


    ¡ºI don¡¯t mind either way. If I would act like a mirror, then does that mean I can accept it?¡»


    ¡ºIn this case, she doesn¡¯t quite have good will nor ill intent¡­¡­ I would say it¡¯s more curiosity?


    Ciel, are you curious about her?¡»


    ¡ºIf I have to be honest, not really. But so I get interested in people, maybe it¡¯s better to accept. What do you think, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºThen I guess we should accept it. If you still aren¡¯t interested afterwards, let¡¯s take that result as a learning experience regardless.¡»


    ¡ºOkay, understood,¡»


    With the discussion settled ¡¸The conditions?¡¹ I urged her to continue.


    ¡¸Thank you for accepting. First of all, the reward. How about 50 gold coins, regardless of the outcome?¡¹


    ¡¸For a B-rank request, too much.¡¹


    ¡¸True. But I consider the experience to be worth this price.


    The battle rules will be that of the usual hunter rules. No killing allowed and try to keep large injuries to the minimum.


    The opponent¡¯s surrender or incapacity to continue, and/or the landing of a solid blow will determine the victor. How about that?¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. The witness?¡¹


    ¡¸Celia, I¡¯d like to ask this of you.¡¹


    Friera-san requested for Celia-san, but she only replied with a troubled look.


    I¡¯m sure Celia-san has her own work to do and doesn¡¯t she need someone to formally process this request too?


    As expected, she has the uninhibited boldness of a noble daughter. ¡¸I¡¯ll do it.¡¹ Suddenly, I heard a sigh-mixed reply coming from behind.


    Seeing who it was, Friere-san glared sharply at her.


    ¡¸What are you here for, Ice?¡¹


    ¡¸I have business with that girl. Been a while, hasn¡¯t it? Cielmer.¡¹


    ¡¸Carol, long time.¡¹


    Since she talked to me, I curtly replied.


    As expected, Carol-san was surprised as well, but she immediately showed a smile.


    ¡¸I¡¯ll have a long, thorough conversation with you later. For now, I¡¯d be refreshing if you beat up the red one there for me.¡¹


    ¡¸Are you selling me a fight? I¡¯m not buying it.¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah, yeah. You¡¯re fighting with that girl, right? It¡¯s a great opportunity, so go ahead and suffer a complete utter loss.¡¹


    ¡¸Since you¡¯re saying that much, then I¡¯ll show you a decisive victory. Don¡¯t come crying later!¡¹


    Right after Friere-san declared so, she turned to me ¡¸That being the case, if you want to blame anyone, blame it on Ice over there.¡¹ and said so.


    Hiya~! We¡¯re back at the guild again and, as it is usually, there¡¯s someone picking a fight¡­ but unlike the usual, we¡¯ve got someone who is giving due credit and respect to our princesses!


    Also, first of all: the pronunciation of Friere¡¯s name. Ff-rii-rEH (e)Ya-zii-Kh. The (e) isn¡¯t that emphasized. Also, as you can tell, I don¡¯t know the phonetic thingamajigs that much, ehe. Anyways.


    After several tens of chapters, we finally got to meet Celia and Carol again~! Hooray! But in Celia¡¯s case, it seems like Ciel¡¯s silent demeanor in contrast with Ain¡¯s usual tone is confusing, and worrying , her a bit. Understandable, hearing everything that happened on the way to Central. Our girls had a really hard time, and all the mess some of the guild people have started with them did the opposite of helping. She really cared for them, or just Ain acting on behalf of Ciel, back then and is obviously emotionally invested on their troubles. Which isn¡¯t really good for a receptionist of people in a deadly line of work, but I digress. Carol, on the other hand, is pretty giddy to hear whatever explanation Ain has for her, since she was hinted about the possibility of two souls, and this extreme change in tone basically proves it¡¯s validity, although it actually is just Ain copying Ciel.


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    Now, to our new character. Friere. She¡¯s a nice breath of fresh air compared to the other challengers in the past. This time, it¡¯s not a fight to simply beat down an opponent or to settle an argument, it¡¯s (hopefully) a learning experience for both sides (just like with Carol¡¯s, now that I think about it). And Friere¡¯s actually making this an official request for them. And, most important of all, it¡¯s not from someone hostile. We had a hostile upstart in the first half, but our scorching hot lady over here shooed him before he could make a fatal mistake. Now, this isn¡¯t actually our first time meeting her, she first appeared unnamed, only called ¡°teacher¡± by Viviana. Nicknamed Scorching Hot Princess for her flamboyant and dramatic demeanor, she¡¯s also hot in a figurative sense, lol. It¡¯ll be fun to see how their fight goes.

 CH 100

    My name is Friere Iazick. The second daughter of the Iazick family, I made a name for myself as a young B-rank hunter.


    I am now widely renowned, but when I first announced my intent to be a hunter, my parents were vehemently against it. It was because, while I do have talent for it based on my Job, they could not approve of me taking a path where I might die at any time.


    Furthermore, as the Iazick family is similar to a noble house in other countries, in addition to me having another noble lady as a disciple which I¡¯ll omit the details to, they might be a bit worried that I start something.


    Other than that, perhaps because I have value as a child of nobility.


    However, maybe due to having an excellent noble of an elder sister and a capable little brother, they eventually allowed it.


    The reason why I wanted to be a hunter is simple, it is because I imagined it to be the fastest way for a woman to gain a decently high standing. When speaking of the hunters, while they might be a gathering of low-class non-permanent workers, their large organization holds influence in many nations.


    In particular, upon reaching A-rank, I would obtain more influence than the Iazick family itself.


    I simply didn¡¯t want to live and die as just another daughter of nobility, that¡¯s all.


    If my Job was not ¡¸Advanced Flame Sorcerer¡¹ then I might have not aimed towards this goal but, as a consequence, I¡¯ve become a B-rank hunter even with my youth which the Iazick family received favorably.


    ¡¸Scorching Hot Princess¡¹ Gaining even this perfectly fitting alias, it might appear as though my life as a hunter is going swimmingly. However, there is one thing I cannot accept.


    It¡¯s the existence of the ¡¸Ice Witch¡¹ Carol.


    We became hunters at roughly the same time and we rival each other in rank, but I have yet to win against Ice to this very day.


    She¡¯s always one step ahead. She was the one who reached B-rank first and now, she¡¯s even reached A-rank. It should¡¯ve taken at least 5 more years, 10-20 years for normal cases, but she just left me in the dust.


    Ice¡¯s passion towards sorcery is praiseworthy. I personally can¡¯t study sorcery to the same extent.


    Generally speaking, I¡¯m not good with meticulous tasks, you see.


    Though, in exchange, I¡¯ve put great effort in practical training and experience¡­¡­


    Moreover, lately it seems as though my apprentice Viviana might be about to reach my level.


    With the sudden growth of my contemporaries, as one would expect, I¡¯m feeling a bit pressured. By all rights, I¡¯ve achieved enough already so feeling pressured is rather unnecessary, but this is this and that is that.


    I cannot accept being left behind by Ice more than I already have.


    Then, as this was happening, I heard from Viviana about a certain hunter that has risen through the ranks at the fastest pace ever.


    Just as this made me reflect on how there¡¯s always someone better, I also had a hunch that this hunter might have played a role in the growth of my peers.


    ¡ó


    And now, I found this person in question.


    With white hair and a delicate figure. I pay considerable attention to my beauty, but her skin is much fairer than mine. While there is an age gap between us, even if I were as young as her, hers would still be far fairer than mine.


    Now the barrier protecting this rather unhunter-like girl is by no means as adorable as the girl herself.


    A dome shaped barrier is enveloping her threefold. The outermost layer appears to have the defensive capacity to block attacks from C-rank monsters.


    Beyond that, it¡¯s difficult to tell, but the closer to her the layer is, the more robust it seems.


    If that¡¯s the case, then how strong would the innermost layer be?


    Moreover, this barrier is so pristine.


    Her magic power flows uniformly without any inconsistency. To break through that barrier, the only way would be to purely overpower it.


    At the very least, she isn¡¯t someone a small fry like the one presently barking at her can handle.


    Perhaps this would serve him the good lesson to never judge by mere appearances.


    Although, there¡¯s no telling how much of that lesson will cost him.


    Nevertheless, now that I¡¯ve been shown a barrier such as that, I can¡¯t just sit quietly myself.


    Still, if I challenged someone to a fight just to satisfy my curiosity, both the Hunter Guild and the Iazick family would be livid.


    There, I came upon a brilliant idea.


    And to enact it, it would be best to first be her acquaintance. I should be able to converse without arousing her caution.


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    For that, sorry small fry, I¡¯ll be dealing with her in your stead.


    Find someone else to teach you a lesson, alright?


    ¡¸She isn¡¯t someone the likes of you can simply lay a hand on. If you prefer not to die, pull back that hand of yours.¡¹


    Just from those words, he ran off. Being a hunter, I would¡¯ve preferred if he showed a bit of a backbone, but if he knows of me, then it¡¯s understandable.


    After all, it seems like people normally prefer not to stir up trouble with high-ranked hunters.


    I just crush everyone and everything in my path though.


    ¡¸I was fine.¡¹


    As the man was gone, I heard a brusque reply from the girl.


    Rather than her bearing something against me, it feels more like she has no interest in people.


    ¡¸I know full well that it wasn¡¯t a problem for you. Looking at your barrier, it¡¯s easy to guess that you¡¯re a B-rank hunter.


    So you¡¯re the record breaker for the youngest to reach B-rank Viviana was talking about?¡¹


    Confirmation is important. Once in the past, I learned this the hard way. I faintly recall it being how Ice and I met, but just remembering it annoys me.


    No, this now¡¯s not the time for that. Thinking about that woman is wasting my time.


    ¡¸You¡¯re, Viviana¡¯s acquaintance?¡¹


    ¡¸Ah! I haven¡¯t introduced myself yet, haven¡¯t I?


    I am Friere Iazick. A B-rank hunter called by others as the Scorching Hot Princess.


    My relationship with Viviana, correct? I am her mentor!¡¹


    Having your name remembered is highly important. Whether you¡¯re a hunter or a noble, this doesn¡¯t change.


    Perhaps because I named myself, the girl before me spoke somewhat miffed.


    ¡¸I¡¯m Cielmer.¡¹


    If picking fights with people isn¡¯t good, then why not just make it a request? Since I¡¯ll be paying for it and there¡¯s mutual consent, I¡¯m sure that it won¡¯t be an issue.


    I¡¯ve made it so that it¡¯s somewhat harder to refuse, but this should be acceptable still.


    Just as it seemed to me that Cielmer was silently staring at empty space, ¡¸The conditions?¡¹ she curtly replied.


    ¡¸Thank you for accepting. First of all, the reward. How about 50 gold coins, regardless of the outcome?¡¹


    ¡¸For a B-rank request, too much.¡¹


    ¡¸True. But I consider the experience to be worth this price.¡¹


    To begin with, the opportunities to have a mock battle with hunters B-rank and above is quite rare.


    If I can buy such an opportunity with money, then I won¡¯t hesitate. After all, this is an uncommon chance to grow stronger.


    Moreover, this time it¡¯s with an individual that urged Viviana¡¯s growth¡­¡­ or at least that¡¯s what I assume. Hesitating here will only be to my loss.


    ¡¸The battle rules will be that of the usual hunter rules. No killing allowed and try to keep large injuries to the minimum.


    The opponent¡¯s surrender or incapacity to continue and/or the landing of a solid blow will determine the victor. How about that?¡¹


    ¡¸Understood. The witness?¡¹


    ¡¸Celia, I¡¯d like to ask this of you.¡¹


    Being an acquaintance and well-experienced, Celia should be a perfect witness. As I nominated her with this in mind, ¡¸I¡¯ll do it.¡¹ I heard that annoying voice from behind me.


    Why did you come to this place?


    To sell me a fight? That ticks me off, so I¡¯m absolutely not taking it.


    ¡¸What are you here for, Ice?¡¹


    ¡¸I have business with that girl. Been a while, hasn¡¯t it? Cielmer.¡¹


    ¡¸Carol, long time.¡¹


    As I thought, these two appear to be acquaintances.


    Moreover, they seem rather friendly with each other.


    While this proves my guess that this girl, Cielmer, is related to my peers¡¯ rapid growth, Ice¡¯s presence is irking.


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    ¡¸I¡¯ll have a long, thorough conversation with you later. For now, I¡¯d be refreshing if you beat up the red one there for me.¡¹


    ¡¸Are you selling me a fight? I¡¯m not buying it.¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah, yeah. You¡¯re fighting with that girl, right? It¡¯s a great opportunity, so go ahead and suffer a complete utter loss.¡¹


    ¡¸Since you¡¯re saying that much, then I¡¯ll show you a decisive victory. Don¡¯t come crying later!¡¹


    She really is such an annoying woman. I¡¯ll absolutely make you apologize later.


    ¡¸That being the case, if you want to blame anyone, blame it on Ice over there.¡¹


    Right, right. I¡¯m sorry about this, but I can no longer hold myself back. Though, I didn¡¯t plan to do so from the start.


    ¡ó


    We move to the place where we are to battle.


    There should be space at the Hunter Guild to conduct mock battles in but, for some reason, we exited town.


    The location Cielmer guided us to was a wide grassland a distance away from town.


    Perhaps this is because, unlike in town, here we can fight with all our strength.


    I¡¯m rather glad I don¡¯t need to limit myself.


    Cielmer and I stand facing each other, while Ice is watching us from a fair distance away.


    While I¡¯m still not happy about Ice being our witness, in the sense that she probably won¡¯t die even if she gets hit by stray spells, she might not be a bad choice.


    ¡¸Are you ready?¡¹


    ¡¸Anytime.¡¹


    Cielmer replied so, but she¡¯s only looking at me without making a move.


    Does she mean to hand me the first move?


    Or is she perhaps aiming for a counter?


    Either way, she¡¯s expecting me to simply test the waters, isn¡¯t she?


    However, I¡¯m not holding anything back today. It¡¯ll take me some time, but since I¡¯m given the opportunity to attack first, allow me to muster my all.


    This is a sorcery special amongst the sorceries I use, the only one amongst the sorceries I¡¯ve created that was bestowed a spell name.


    Burning red fire hotter and hotter, reaching the pale blue world.


    At a slightly higher elevation than my shoulders, a total of four pale blue flame clusters levitate.


    This is an advanced flame spell that takes several seconds to prepare even with chant omission and I rarely make use of it.


    After all, in most cases those several seconds can be the difference of victory or defeat.


    Even so, its power leaves nothing to be desired.


    I¡¯m sure that this area will end up a burning wasteland, but I¡¯ll leave the fire fighting to Ice.


    Even as I finished, Cielmer stared at me without any change in expression.


    I¡¯ll have that seemingly complacent look of hers warp in an instant. And perhaps even have Ice whimper in surprise.


    ¡¸Feel free to dodge as you like.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Nothing to say, is it? Fine then. Take this. ¡°Blanse Fregerium¡±1.¡¹


    Invoking its name, the sphere of flame flew and surrounded Cielmer.


    Cielmer showed no signs of evasive action, she simply stared at the flame.


    Does she merely see it as some ordinary flame? Then that would be a let down.


    Contrary to its appearance, this blue hellfire houses a vast amount of magic power.


    No, it¡¯s precisely because such a vast amount is encapsulated in such size made this capable of burning wyverns and wyrms whole. This flame has such heat that any superficial resistance is meaningless against it.


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    The flames connect to Ciemler¡¯s barrier and burn through it.


    And in an instant, the flame spread.


    What was once grassland is now a sea of flames.


    These flames do not inflict damage on me, so I don¡¯t have to worry about myself but seeing Ice completely able to protect herself ticks me off.


    Couldn¡¯t you at least have light burns?


    And now looking at my opponent, her barrier is still burning.


    Which layer is it now?


    Whichever it is, there¡¯s nothing that the blue hellfire can¡¯t burn away.


    That was what I expected.


    But, at the next instant¡­


    I felt a chilly breeze.


    The vestiges of blue hellfire, the ever spreading flames, were overtaken by a field of ice.


    And in the middle of that frozen space, at its source¡­


    Cielmer was just looking at me, as if nothing had happened.


    Author¡¯s Note: Since the battle scene might be more interesting from the opponent¡¯s POV, I tried doing it that way.


    And as a result, it took a while to reach the said battle scene in question.


    Translator¡¯s Note: And right you were, seeing the near invulnerability of AinCiel from the attacker¡¯s POV is all the more terrifying.


    Hiya~! Allow me to apologise again for the delay. Continuing on, it¡¯s a nice change of mood to have another POV chapter and this time, it¡¯s not an interlude, which is quite rare for POV chapters now that I think of it. Actually, if I hadn¡¯t had so much delays, it¡¯s much more easier to see how many POV chapters there are in this arc, just a lot.


    This chapter, we¡¯re introduced to Friere Iazick in more detail. I honestly like how she¡¯s basically somewhat of a musclehead-type character. First of all, the fact that she ran away to be a hunter basically because being a daughter of a noble is such a chore and boring, while still retaining an air of bombast that characterizes the usual Noble Villainess-type (I¡¯d know from Commoner Villainess, lol). She¡¯s pretty prideful, considering how she sees her rivalry with Carol and her reaction to her peers growing faster than her, but from her offhand comment of how not to underestimate people, she¡¯s not so stubborn that it¡¯ll get in the way of her learning, in actuality, she is into the learn what you can from anyone thing, it seems. Also, the way she thought ¡°Sorry bud, find some other guy to beat you senseless¡± was hilarious, lol.


    All in all, I just like the proud (maybe even prideful) but not arrogant noble type, and moreover it seems like her main mindset is ¡°hit it until it breaks¡± instead of the usual scholarly mage one ¡­ I honestly love straightforward characters like her. Anyhow, to the battle. She used her strongest attack (Which actually read as ¡°pale blue¡± flame in one instance, so maybe it¡¯s whitish-blue or bluish-white) and it burned through Ain¡¯s barriers¡­ but there¡¯s more to our duo than just barriers, and it immediately painted the landscape with the chill of ice. Now, the stage is ready, and the performers are, in my opinion, quite warmed up.

 CH 101

    To be honest, I don¡¯t expect Blanse Fergelium1 to be enough to end this.


    Blanse Fergelium2, like with Glacio Lentso3, is originally for use against A-rank monsters. It isn¡¯t normally used against people.


    However, Ice should know that much. Because of that, if this spell would result in death or otherwise injury of rule-breaking severity, she should have stopped me.


    And as she didn¡¯t, it means that Ice is confident that this attack will not incapacitate Cielmer.


    Rather, since she gloated that much before the battle, she must have thought that Cielmer could win against me even with my use of Blanse Fergelium4.


    For this exact reason, I put all of my strength in it to win this battle.


    To end this with one attack if ever possible, and to cause enough damage to keep the battle advantage in my favor in case it continues.


    The spell was a success. The hot blue flames enveloped Cielmer and its aftershock drowned the surroundings in a sea of flame.


    There were no signs of evasion, so it¡¯s a direct hit.


    With that, even if my opponent is of A-rank, this should cause some major damage¡­¡­ it should have.


    But no matter how I look at it, right before my eyes, Cielmer is in perfectly good condition.


    To begin with, her layers of barriers haven¡¯t been completely destroyed.


    On closer inspection, her barrier is by no means unscathed, so I might be able to destroy it with another cast of Blanse Fergelium5, but a second time would be too much.


    I don¡¯t want to admit it, but even Ice isn¡¯t capable of using sorcery that can freeze the entire surrounding area. In other words, it¡¯s Cielmer who has the capacity to do so.


    One of my choices right now is to slow down and properly assess her strength.


    However, with that said, I¡¯d be a fool to wait for her to make a move. From the moment I cast Blanse Fergelium6, my remaining magic power is not enough to fight a war of attrition.


    In any case, I press the offensive at once.


    Using a barrage of weak sorcery as a cover, I¡¯ll then hit her with a powerful spell.


    I can¡¯t afford to give her any opportunity to attack me.


    With the battle plan decided, I put it into action.


    ¡¸It would be great if the barrage breaks the remaining barrier, but¡­¡­ there.¡¹


    Innumerable small clusters of fire are released and headed to Cielmer.


    It has enough force to defeat weak monsters with ease but it¡¯s undeniably insufficient against that barrier. Still, I should be able to fire a continuous barrage for a while.


    As I was thinking this, Cielmer began to move.


    Her movement was graceful, as if an air of magnificence can be felt.


    Her dance was so enchanting, I forget that we¡¯re battling this very moment.


    With soft movements, and with the minimum necessary motion, she shook off my spells. As if to play with the fire, she twirled around and around.


    The humiliation of seeing her using my sorcery as if it were stage props and the sheer beauty of the dance unveiling before me is sending my mind into disarray.


    Cielmer¡¯s dance attracts the eye not by the use of showy bombastic motions, but by the refinement of her every move.


    The simple extension of an arm, the simple act of walking, the simple twirling motion. It¡¯s precisely because these movements are simple that the difference can be seen.


    No, this isn¡¯t the time to think about this.


    We¡¯re in the middle of a mock battle.


    I have to make my next move, the spell to destroy that barrier.


    From the magic bag I carry hidden by my waist, I took out a throwing spear nearly two thirds of my size.


    The weakness of fire sorcery is that it doesn¡¯t have physical mass. Although it can burn objects, it isn¡¯t suited for destroying things.


    With wind, one can cut right through. With earth, it goes without saying. And with water, one simply has to use the advanced ice spells.


    In contrast, fire sorcery by itself is mainly only specialized in burning no matter how advanced it gets.


    There is the method of triggering explosions, but it¡¯s considerably complicated to use mid-battle.


    Unlike fire produced by one¡¯s own spells, explosions can inflict damage on yourself if the distance is misjudged, and while it¡¯s easy to use for demolishing walls, it isn¡¯t suited for destroying small but tough objects.


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    Cielmer¡¯s barrier is clearly the small but tough type.


    Blanse Fergelium7 burns everything down, regardless of toughness and size. If hit, whether it be steel or walls of stone, it can melt it down. Despite that, Cielmer¡¯s barrier defended against it.


    That¡¯s why, I¡¯ll focus the impact onto a single point and break it from there.


    The throwing spear I took out was crafted with the use of wyvern materials, it can maintain its form without burning or melting under extremely high heat.


    I¡¯ll heat this up, heat it even more, and using this as the core of my flame sorcery, I hurl it to my target.


    By doing this, I can compensate for the weakness of the fire sorcery I specialize in.


    Due to that, I¡¯ve also trained in the use of spears. With my spearmanship, I could probably win against Ice in 10 battles out of 10. Though, a win like that doesn¡¯t make me happy at all.


    Anyhow, using flame sorcery and a spear that can take its heat, I can produce an attack with great penetration power.


    However, it¡¯s so overspecialized in penetration that it can¡¯t actually defeat monsters with just a single hit.


    For this single hit to be lethal, I would need to pierce through my enemy¡¯s heart or head. With me not being a professional spearman, I cannot hit a moving target with that much accuracy.


    The most I can do is target the body, arms, or the legs. Even so, just that makes it more than useful.


    Incidentally, in the case where I were to have someone else throw it for me, it would be too hot now that only I can hold it.


    Still, this time is different. I only need to destroy this barrier.


    Rather, I actually have to avoid landing a clean hit on Cielmer.


    My opponent is skilled. She is likely capable of dodging a spear of my caliber and even if it only hits the near end of her barrier, it should crumble from there.


    For that reason, I also make use of physical reinforcement to hurl it with my all.


    Naturally, the barrage of fireballs continued on. I aim at the opening made as she deals with the barrage.


    Or so I thought. The moment the spear left my hand, Cielmer¡¯s eyes met mine.


    As though ignoring the fire bullets completely, she stares straight at me.


    Her sharp gaze seems to see right through my plan as it¡¯s directed to me.


    However, the throwing spear has already left my grasp.


    Flying straight and true, the spear closes in at Cielmer at a speed she can¡¯t dodge with her gentle movements.


    Cielmer however, who is undeniably looking at me, shows no signs of wanting to dodge. In the end, my spear connected with her barrier.


    It slightly lost momentum, but the spear pierced through the barrier and is heading directly towards her.


    There, Cielmer finally moved.


    With the same elegant and refined movements as before, she moves to the side as though pulled by the spear and with her hand, she catches the spear that would have flown past her small body.


    That spear should have enough heat to surely scald anyone who touches it.


    However, that thought of mine was instantly overturned.


    Using the momentum of the spear, Cielmer twirls the spear around.


    As though to shake off all of the approaching fire bullets.


    Looking like that of a fluttering butterfly.


    She utilizes it like a familiar old tool, but she¡¯s not manipulating it as a weapon.


    It¡¯s like a prop spear for the purpose of dancing.


    Those are not forms for killing an enemy, and while it seems as though she¡¯s being overwhelmed by the excessively long spear, she has firm control over it. Her movements are like that of flowing water.


    After shaking away all of the fire bullets, she twirls the spear as she thrust it into the ground.


    All of her movements were so organic that I couldn¡¯t help but watch. The short time that transpired felt shorter than it was, yet felt so long at the same time.


    It almost felt like a dream to me.


    That was until I saw the planted spear freeze.


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    And just when I felt a sudden chill, sharp pain ran through the base of my neck. Moving only my eyes down, I saw a thorn of ice extending from the ground to my throat.


    If this wasn¡¯t a mock battle, this thorn of ice would have absolutely pierced my neck.


    I let my guard down?


    That may be partly true. However, above all else, I was made to realize the overwhelming gap between us.


    ¡ô¡ô¡ô¡ô¡ô¡ô¡ô¡ô¡ô


    £¨Ainsel POV£©


    The mock battle with Friere-san. Showing composure, Ciel gave her the first attack ¨C¨C Ciel is higher up rank wise, so it¡¯s only natural ¨C¨C but I was surprised when she cast sorcery rivaling Glacio Lentso8 from the very first move.


    Unlike Glacio Lentso9, which can be managed as long as it¡¯s deflected, this one had a long effective duration which was extremely troublesome.


    Though, on the other hand, Glacio Lentso10. was usable in rapid succession.


    Due to that sorcery, with the exception of the usual barrier enveloping Ciel like a membrane, all but the innermost layer of the barriers were burned away.


    Even the innermost barrier that I made thinking it could probably endure an attack from an A-rank monster got pretty damaged. Honestly speaking, she really showed no mercy.


    And since she¡¯s attacking us with all she has, we decided to show some of our real strength as well.


    Specifically, Song Princess and Dance Princess were unbanned.


    As the surrounding area was burning from the first sorcery¡¯s aftermath, we purposefully covered it with Ciora Elicinary11..


    Ciel was the one who chose it though. I was singing, so I couldn¡¯t speak.


    Intentionally leaving the damaged barrier as it is, I decided to use this dance to test its durability.


    As long as she doesn¡¯t cast the first sorcery again, it probably won¡¯t break. As I thought that, it then got pierced by a spear that was thrown under the cover of fire bullets.


    I don¡¯t know what came to Ciel¡¯s mind when she caught that spear and started dancing with it, but the mock battle ended safely.


    Ciel flourishing a spear was a great sight to see. Today in particular, she could use the power of Dance Princess as much as she wanted, so Ciel seems really happy about that.


    Come to think of it, I think this is the first time Ciel ever fought using Dance Princess with other people looking.


    Ciel¡¯s opponents getting fascinated by her dance mid-battle is a surprisingly interesting discovery.


    I don¡¯t know if it really does fascinate, but Friere-san clearly stopped attacking, so this might actually be the case.


    In a sense, this might be the proper form of Dance Princess.


    ¡ºIt ended without any problems. Good work, Ciel.¡»


    ¡ºGood work too, Ain. I was surprised when she broke Ain¡¯s barrier, but it was a lot of fun doing so much!¡»


    ¡ºThen I¡¯m glad that you enjoyed it.¡»


    ¡ºThat aside, it isn¡¯t it curious that Carol wasn¡¯t surprised seeing how I fought?¡»


    ¡ºTrue, she didn¡¯t look shocked at all. On the other hand, she did seem to be in deep thought though.¡»


    After Friere-san¡¯s loss was declared, I talked with Ciel while we headed to Carol-san.


    From what happened, Carol-san should have noticed that we have multiple Jobs, and she might have even noticed more than that. I already plan to talk about it later, so it¡¯s like we¡¯re just showing her in advance. It¡®d also be easier to explain if she took the hint, so it¡¯ll help.


    ¡¸That was a brilliant defeat.¡¹


    As we reached Carol-san, she gleefully taunts Friere-san.


    Friere-san grimaced in displeasure, before then letting out a huff.


    ¡¸Yes. This time I¡¯ll frankly accept my loss. It was a complete defeat.¡¹


    ¡¸I was a bit surprised too.¡¹


    ¡¸I broke through your barrier, didn¡¯t I? Yet even that is just slightly surprising¡­¡­¡¹


    Friere-san seemed pretty prideful to me, but I guess she¡¯s the type that honestly accepts these sorts of results.


    Still, it¡¯s true that being prideful doesn¡¯t necessarily equate to being incapable of accepting losses, maybe it¡¯s even because she¡¯s prideful that she accepts that she lost to someone clearly younger than her.


    As I was there all convinced by myself, Carol-san joined Ciel and Friere-san¡¯s conversation.


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    ¡¸So talking¡¯s done now, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Don¡¯t right me. What¡¯s with you, Ice?¡¹


    ¡¸What I mean is that we don¡¯t have the time to play around with you.


    To begin with, she didn¡¯t come to the guild to have a mock battle with you, right Ciemer?¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah.¡¹


    Ciel immediately answered Carol-san¡¯s question.


    Probably because of this, Friere-san can¡¯t respond strongly and she¡¯s not saying anything even though she looks like she has something to say.


    Carol-san ignored this and began walking away.


    Ciel followed suit and left.


    ¡¸I get it already! I¡¯ll definitely make you cry someday!¡¹


    And though she says that, Friere-san also follows behind Carol-san, and I can¡¯t help but think that they might actually get along well.


    And that ends Friere POV~! Hiya~! Continuing from the last chapter, we get our first mid-combat dance in a long while. And, for the first time ever, it¡¯s even from another character¡¯s POV!


    First of all, dance chapters are one of my favorites not only to read but also to translate, as it should be. Lore wise, from what was confirmed in this chapter, Ciel¡¯s dancing has the ability to *really* take a target/enemy¡¯s attention. Well, by nature, excellent dancing is enchanting and fascinating to see, but the implications this has for combat purposes is just¡­ yeah. And as Ain says, this is probably the true form of the Dance Princess, or any offence type Dancer Job in that regard, to enchant the opponent with refined movements, while increasing or reinforcing the combat ability of the dancer either from following a song or from performing a form perfect ¡°dance¡±. They¡¯d be highly athletic or acrobatic too, and have good conditioning, so while they might not have explosive power against monsters by themselves, with a team or even against (single) human enemies, they probably excel just from the feint potential. But yeah, this is all just speculation at this point and not really on topic¡­


    Back to topic. I love how it¡¯s from Friere¡¯s POV and another of my favourite parts of the chapter is actually Friere¡¯s throwing spear. The show of her creativity on how to overcome her weaknesses her own way. As she admitted in the previous chapter, she¡¯s kind of a muscle head compared to the pure sorcerers Carol and Viviana. With Carol, she¡¯s just plainly a genius in sorcery and loves the studying part. With Viviana, she¡¯s pragmatic and practical with her spells because of her magic power issues, which forced her to learn to make the best of what she has (but she overcomes it by being cured, so yeah). With Friere, she was hit with a roadblock that¡¯s in the very nature of her magic, the lack of literal destructive weight. And she solved it in a way that¡¯s telling of her personality. Not by making a new spell through research (something that Carol would probably do), but by using a brute force method with an actual physical spear.


    What I like most is how this shows a reoccurring theme that I¡¯ve found in many Game-like Job/Skill system novels: Using unconventional methods and thinking that¡¯s beyond the skill system to overcome the inherent ¡°box ¡± you were born in to make the best out of it. It¡¯s mostly in the case of protagonists of those series or the supporting characters/harem members, like how the mc¡¯s ¡°weak¡± class or skill is actually OP when abused correctly, but many of these stories are also plagued by cliched writing, so yeah¡­ Anyhow, just as with Ain and Ciel, their Jobs aren¡¯t inherently ¡°Magic-based¡±, except for Ciel¡¯s, maybe, but they still learned magic even though they don¡¯t have the ¡°additional buffs¡± the magic Jobs provide. Heck, Ain can¡¯t even integrate her Job with her Magic. Still, their Jobs are inherently unconventional, unlike in other stories where the ¡°non-special Job¡± needed an mc with unconventional thinking. This reflects again with Friere¡¯s brute force method. And, I think, the main reason I like this theme is what the best telling of this theme stands for. Common? Normal? Mediocre? Or maybe even Weird? Whatever ¡°Job¡±, ¡°Skill¡±, or ¡°Talent¡± you were born with doesn¡¯t matter, what matters is your personal efforts and how you apply your toolset in the journey through life. I¡¯m being cheesy, aren¡¯t I?


    Also, Friere being a non-toxic version of a standard prideful noble lady while being also a muscle-head and somewhat tsundere is funny. Yes, I like her as a character. And I¡¯ve strayed too far off topic from just an offhand scene, yes.

 CH 102

    As we were heading back to the Hunter Guild, Carol-san asked Ciel if it¡¯s fine to reveal her rank, so Ciel nodded.


    Since it¡¯s going to be known that we¡¯re Fii-kaasama¡¯s child, I think it would be safer to say we¡¯re A-rank here in Central, hence I didn¡¯t oppose it.


    Though, even if it¡¯s somewhere else, as long as Ciel wants to reveal it, I wouldn¡¯t oppose her.


    While revealing it might make things easier, it also brings trouble.


    What I do is shoulder her troubles with her. Though, if it¡¯s obviously a wrong choice to make, I¡¯d probably stop her.


    Whoops, leaving our situation aside, Carol-san had the expression of a child about to do a prank.


    It¡¯s definitely going to surprise Friere-san¡­¡­ Since she thinks we¡¯re B-rank¡­¡­


    ¡¸Friere, you might not know, but she¡¯s an A-rank hunter.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Could you give me a moment?¡¹


    Friere-san put her hand on her head and started mulling over this, but Carol-san ruthlessly continued her attack.


    ¡¸Also, I heard she became Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s daughter.¡¹


    ¡¸Didn¡¯t I just say¡­¡­ Yeah, could you please give me a moment?¡¹


    ¡¸Isn¡¯t it great that you didn¡¯t pick a fight with her? One wrong move, and you might have lost your place in Central.¡¹


    Hearing Carol-san¡¯s words, Friere-san¡¯s face went a bit pale¡­¡­ I think.


    Maybe she¡¯s good at hiding it, it¡¯s difficult to read her expression.


    ¡ºSo Carol already knows that we became Fii¡¯s daughter, right?¡»


    ¡ºAfter all, it¡¯s the Hunter Guild who¡¯d be troubled if a hunter caused an incident.


    Though, it seems like Friere-san was yet to be informed. Or maybe they considered the fact that Carol-san is acquainted with us and informed her before anyone else.¡»


    ¡ºI see, then. Still, it¡¯s nice that we don¡¯t need to explain anymore.¡»


    ¡ºSaves us the effort, yes.¡»


    While watching Carol-san and Friere-san¡¯s comedy act, I chatted with Ciel until we reached the Hunter Guild.


    ¡ó


    After returning to the Hunter Guild, for some reason, it¡¯s been decided that we¡¯d be taken to Carol-san¡¯s house.


    When I asked why, ¡¸I promised to invite you home when you reached B-rank.¡¹ was the reply.


    Moreover, she added ¡¸You¡¯re already A-rank, but that¡¯s a minor difference.¡¹ but I really don¡¯t think the difference between B and A-rank can be called minor.


    Nonetheless, I do understand what she meant, so I didn¡¯t have a comment for Ciel.


    We parted with Friere-san at the guild and met up with Celia-san.


    I was worried if it¡¯s fine for her to leave work, but she was permitted to go since she had nothing that needs more precedence than attending to Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s daughter.


    Well yeah. We do have that much influence, huh.


    Like¡­¡­ How do I say this? Seeing the influence Ciel ¨C¨C and I ¨C¨C have in unexpected situations makes me feel a bit uncomfortable.


    Ciel might not feel that way, but unfortunately, I¡¯m originally just a lower middle class citizen.


    And so we were led to Carol-san¡¯s house, which looks more like a noble¡¯s dwelling.


    Isn¡¯t this a mansion?


    It¡¯s hard to imagine this to be the magic geek, Carol-san¡¯s home.


    I imagined something more laboratory-ish, you know.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s a big house, but is there anything about it bothering you, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºNo, it¡¯s nothing important. It¡¯s just that this was different from what I imagined.¡»


    ¡ºImagined?¡»


    ¡ºHow do I describe it? I expected it to be more eerie, or rather have an ominous feel.¡»


    ¡ºFufu, so that¡¯s what you imagined. Why is that? Why is that!¡»


    Ciel is strangely interested, but¡­ I see. The specific image I have of a researcher or rather a mad scientist comes from my former world.


    How the researchers of this world are, I don¡¯t really know. So naturally Ciel wouldn¡¯t know either and I guess it¡¯s only normal that she¡¯s curious about it.


    ¡ºIn my former world, researchers or specifically people who are engrossed in research live in buildings with that sort of atmosphere. Imagine with lighting and such.¡»


    ¡ºHave you ever gone to houses like that, Ain?¡»


    ¡º¡­¡­ Come to think of it, no. I guess it¡¯s just scientists in stories tend to have that image.¡»


    While I¡¯ve never been to an actual research institution before, I feel like it should have proper safety measures and be more on the tidy side.


    Rather, I really don¡¯t know much of my old world. I lived in a quite narrow world, huh.


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    Going inside, the entrance had a pretty extravagant appearance.


    The ceiling was high and there were decorative vases. The parlor, reception hall, and the dining hall had expensive-looking furniture but these really don¡¯t feel like Carol-san¡¯s taste.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s really different from what I expected.¡»


    ¡ºThat I can understand. If I had to say, I didn¡¯t think she¡¯d like these sort of things.¡»


    After passing through several rooms, we finally arrived at a moderately messy room that matches my imagination.


    ¡¸Now that¡¯s more relaxing.¡¹


    ¡¸There you go saying that again¡­¡­ Cielmer-san¡¯s here today, you know.¡¹


    ¡¸Oh that¡¯s right. Welcome to my palace.¡¹


    Saying so, she directed our sight to a book and a magic circle filled room.


    It¡¯s not to the point where there¡¯s no floor to step on, but I can¡¯t tell what¡¯s what.


    In contrast to the proud-looking Carol-san, Ciel looked somewhat puzzled.


    ¡¸The other rooms?¡¹


    ¡¸Just for show. The guild gave this to me when I reached A-rank, you see.


    Even though I told them I didn¡¯t want it. Since I¡¯m A-rank, they said it would be problematic if I don¡¯t live in a house like this.¡¹


    Hearing Celia-san¡¯s supplementary information, Ciel¡¯s face warped into a slight grimace.


    ¡¸That¡¯s troublesome.¡¹


    ¡¸For you, it¡¯s irrelevant. Your house is Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s house after all, so people won¡¯t be visiting there anytime soon.¡¹


    If I remember correctly, I think we were told that we¡¯re the first guest in a while.


    I guess visiting someone not much different from the king of a nation is not easy even for a noble.


    Moreover, Central is practically under Fii-kaasama¡¯s dictatorship. If she says no, it¡¯s an unshakable no.


    ¡¸Well then, the nuisance is gone and we¡¯re in a comfortable place now. I can ask you now, right?¡¹


    ¡¸What?¡¹


    Carol-san straightened her back and spoke to Ciel.


    How do I say this? It¡¯s like she¡¯s been itching to ask since forever, based on her reaction.


    ¡¸Is it ¡®nice to meet you¡¯? Or perhaps ¡®it¡¯s been a while¡¯?¡¹


    ¡ºThis means that I don¡¯t need to hide it, right?¡»


    ¡ºIt should be fine. Though she¡¯s using a leading question, we already planned to tell them about it anyways.¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s true.¡»


    ¡¸Nice to meet you, Carol.¡¹


    ¡¸In other words, you¡¯re not Cielmer? Or are you the actual Cielmer?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. I¡¯m Cielmer. Nice to meet you.¡¹


    ¡¸I see, I see. So that¡¯s how it is.¡¹


    While Carol-san seems to understand, Celia-san next to her is confused.


    Still, she¡¯s not interrupting the conversation. This is likely because she decided to just listen for the time being.


    Though, in this situation, neither Ciel nor Carol-san seems interested in explaining anything.


    ¡¸And so the one who we talked to at Sanowa¡­¡­ is inside you, perhaps?¡¹


    ¡¸Should we switch?¡¹


    ¡¸Could you do that for a moment? Celia right next to me might get a headache otherwise.¡¹


    ¡ºIs it fine?¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s alright.¡»


    If we switch while Celia-san is about to have a headache, isn¡¯t that just going to make it even worse? Still, this should make things easier to explain, so we switched.


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    I was wondering what to do about the colors, but I decided to change to black for easier discernment.


    ¡¸It¡¯s been a while. Or should I say pleased to meet you?¡¹


    ¡¸You have different colors, but you are the Cielmer we met before, right?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. I¡¯ve been able to change my colors just recently. Easier to distinguish between us now, isn¡¯t it?¡¹


    ¡¸True. Can I ask for your name?¡¹


    ¡¸My name is Ainsel. I don¡¯t really know how to describe it well, but let¡¯s see¡­


    Please think of me as a being coexisting with Ciel.¡¹


    As the conversation continued, Celia-san is trying her best to understand it.


    And then Carol-san continues on without taking Celia-san in consideration.


    ¡¸In other words, you mean to say that the body is Cielmer¡¯s?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right.¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s wrong! It¡¯s our body!


    At least it¡¯s that way until Ain¡¯s body is made!¡»


    Ciel strongly objected inside my head, which made me nearly chuckle a little.


    I ignore my conversation with Carol-san for a moment and began soothing Ciel.


    ¡ºI just meant that the original owner is Ciel.


    Since it¡¯s difficult to explain our relationship and sensibilities.¡»


    ¡ºWell, that¡¯s true. Only Ain and I can understand it, after all. That¡¯s right, only Ain and I!¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. So please rest assured.¡»


    It felt like I just went with the flow there, but since Ciel went silent in satisfaction, it should be fine.


    ¡¸So what is it?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ You, you didn¡¯t listen at all, didn¡¯t you¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, I had an important conversation, you see.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Fine then. So you two can just casually speak to each other.¡¹


    ¡¸So what was the topic again?¡¹


    As I asked so as though nothing happened, Carol-san stared at me in shock.


    Well I can¡¯t help it, Ciel¡¯s more important, after all.


    If there¡¯s anything more important than Ciel¡­¡­ Hm? There¡¯s nothing else, is there?


    While I contemplated about obvious facts, Carol-san started talking with a sigh.


    ¡¸You two have your own distinct Jobs, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. Actually, you even witnessed it.


    Incidentally, just to be sure, could you explain how you noticed the two of us?¡¹


    ¡¸¡¯Just to be sure¡¯. Is an explanation really necessary?¡¹


    I feel bad about Celia-san not being able to enter the conversation, so it¡¯d be nice if she gets necessary information now.


    I can explain it myself, but I do also want to know why Carol-san is so sure.


    ¡¸I get it, alright. To begin with, Cielmer¡­ No, Ainsel, wasn¡¯t it?


    You, Ainsel, gave me a hint, didn¡¯t you? That you know magic power dwells in the soul from actual experience, wasn¡¯t it?


    I don¡¯t know any being that can actually have that sort of experience to begin with.


    So I thought, theoretically, this could be testable this as long as one can separate the soul from the body. I don¡¯t know how exactly that can be done, though.


    Beyond that, you two aren¡¯t actually hiding that you¡¯re a Song Princess, right?


    Rather, it seemed as if you didn¡¯t care even if this got widely known. Though, in general, it seemed like you are trying to keep it secret.¡¹


    ¡¸I sort of noticed that too.¡¹


    Celia-san finally joined the conversation.


    Rather, they can get that much information from Central?


    Or was it because they know us, that they managed to tie in and piece together fragmentary information about us?


    From how the people of Central reacted, it¡¯s probably the latter.


    ¡¸Despite having such a conspicuous Job like Song Princess, wasn¡¯t it strange that you weren¡¯t thorough in keeping it hidden? It¡¯s different if you¡¯re trying to gain attention, but you two had the threat of potentially being chased after.


    The Job and name, with just these, one can practically identify an individual. However, the reason you weren¡¯t identified was because the one that¡¯s after you two thinks that you have a different Job.


    It¡¯s only my speculation and it¡¯s full of holes, but it¡¯s still strangely convincing to me.¡¹


    ¡¸That is actually the case, after all. I¡¯m the Song Princess.¡¹


    ¡¸Then, Cielmer is¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Asking that is a breach of etiquette, you know?¡¹


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    As I replied with a smile, Carol-san stared with a look of disbelief.


    Well, we just had a fight where we didn¡¯t hide Dance Princess at all, so I guess that¡¯s only natural.


    Heya~! Finally, after long hinting and foreshadowing, Carol and Celia are finally told of our princesses¡¯ true secret!


    Before anything else, I really loved how Carol felt the need to tell Friere about Ciel¡¯s rank and status as Fii¡¯s daughter *only after* the fight has ended. Really shows the nature of their relationship as more of a one-sided rivalry with Carol being disinterested or just doesn¡¯t care about it, while Friere is the hotblooded shounen protag (or the hotblooded martial artist/fighter type side character that¡¯s more prevalent than of the shounen protag these days) that likes competition. Also, just how Carol intentionally reveals information layer by layer to scare Friere more than necessary, lol.


    Alright, one of my favorite parts of this series in general is how it¡¯s constantly shown that Jobs aren¡¯t everything. This might seem out of topic, but I mainly put this in the spotlight because if there¡¯s one thing this series shows constantly, it¡¯s that being smart and intelligent about how you handle things is rewarding to *most* characters in this story, not only the main character. First, there¡¯s obviously Ain and Ciel, though they might bulldoze some of the problems. Actually, when they really get hit hard when they make mistakes, so the point somewhat stands. Then of course we have the newbie party back at Sanowa who are more intelligent than Brat-kun and became better hunters as a result, despite Brat-kun having a superior Job. Then we have the underground boss back at the Capital (if I¡¯m remembering right), he greatly contrasted the impulsive couple that planned to sell of Ciel to pay for their debt by handling things smartly rather than what you¡¯d expect from the usual thug boss. Then there¡¯s Friere with her less mage-y but still in character out of the box solution to her ¡°fire has no mass¡± issue. And then here again, Carol, being the scholarly mage type, quickly picked up Ain¡¯s hints and thought up of a spot on theory by herself despite the lack of certain evidence and other information. Honestly, I feel bad about Celia, she¡¯s so left out, meanwhile Carol and Ciel both lack the consideration to help ease her into the conversation, lol. Well at least Carol was self-aware enough and had Ain switch in. But yeah, Carol, and Celia since she was attentive enough to notice Ciel¡¯s not being ¡°Ciel¡±, being attentive and figuring things out by herself, only asking to check if her assumptions are right was really nice.


    I went way out of topic again, so let¡¯s back up and have some highlights, lol. Ain ignoring Carol to talk to Ciel, lol. And of course Ciel being cute. Ain being overall playful and sassy in her pseudo-polite way is always fun to see. Celia, again, I feel bad for you being the normal person stuck between them. And Carol being mildly exasperated with Ain in another fun sight in general, lol. They really talk like same age friends/classmates in these kind of situations. In contrast, Ciel¡¯s interaction with Carol and Celia does show her acting her age, which is nice to see.

 CH 103

    ¡¸So in short, you weren¡¯t at full force during our battle.¡¹


    ¡¸I believe we fought with everything we had at that time, but the one who was fighting wasn¡¯t me.¡¹


    ¡¸That means fighting is Cielmer¡¯s domain then?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s precisely the case. In times of combat, I support her.¡¹


    ¡ºYou¡¯re fine that way, Ain, because I¡¯ll fight.¡»


    ¡¸In other words, it was all Cielmer during the mock battle with Friere?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. Until then, it was me speaking.¡¹


    Ciel and I switched before the start of the mock battle.


    Relaying this to her, Carol-san¡¯s face winced just as I expected.


    It¡¯s unfair how grimacing doesn¡¯t really make a pretty person¡¯s face look weirder.


    Well, Ciel is cuter though. And I should have the same face as Ciel.


    And since I didn¡¯t have a face until recently, my awareness about it is a bit numb, or I guess weak.


    ¡¸May I reiterate for confirmation?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes.¡¹


    After saying this much, Celia-san seemed to have understood and is asking for confirmation. I don¡¯t really mind, so I nodded.


    ¡¸Inside Cielmer-san¡¯s body are the souls of both Cielmer-san and Ainsel-san, and you two can switch control freely, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. We can also converse in a way only we can hear. We can¡¯t become two separate people.¡¹


    ¡¸And you said that the two of you have your own distinct Jobs, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. If one¡¯s Job dwells in the soul, it shouldn¡¯t be strange for us to have our own individual Jobs.¡¹


    ¡¸So then it was Ainsel-san who was actually the Song Princess and Estoque¡¯s house of Duke Rispelgia believes that Cielmer-san has a different Job?¡¹


    ¡¸They know her correct Job, after all. Since her Job was appraised right before them.¡¹


    If not for that, Ciel could have fought more boldly in the open but on the other hand, if not for that, we would have lost an opportunity to learn our Jobs.


    Even so, we might have been able to manage regardless but, in that case, Ciel would have been less active and our relationship would have been different.


    While this is not something limited to my relationship with Ciel, our current relationship was the result of our tightrope of experiences.


    The happiness of being with Ciel right now. Had there been one misstep, it might have been lost forever.


    That¡¯s why I¡¯ll cherish it. So that I¡¯ll never lose it, that¡¯s precious and dear.


    As I was lost in thought, Celia-san¡¯s tone became heavier.


    ¡¸In other words, people with multiple Jobs might appear resulting from Rispelgia¡¯s experiments, yes?¡¹


    ¡¸Ah, right, it does imply that.¡¹


    I¡¯m pretty sure that Duke Rispelgia won¡¯t do the same experiment though. Even if he does, I don¡¯t think the creator god would entertain him with another human soul anymore.


    From what the creator god said, even if he were to interact with the divine realm, the most he could do is scoop the remnants of the power drifting afloat there.


    Still, as expected, I can¡¯t talk about this to them. It¡¯d be a stretch to expect them to believe it.


    ¡¸However, Rispelgia considered us a failure, so wouldn¡¯t it be unlikely for him to do the same thing?


    It was a 10-year project, after all.¡¹


    ¡¸True, that¡¯s a valid point.¡¹


    Despite her reply, Celia-san still went into deep thought.


    It must be tough being a guild receptionist, or rather personnel. Celia-san likely holds an important position, so she can¡¯t just ignore what I said.


    ¡¸We were told to grant someone who has yet to appear in the Hunter¡¯s Guild A-rank qualifications but, I see, so that¡¯s how it is.¡¹


    ¡ºObviously! After all, Ain and I are always together!¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. It also makes it so that we¡¯ve been in a party ever since.¡»


    ¡¸About me being granted qualifications too, right?


    Since we exited Estoque, I don¡¯t need to hide more than necessary anymore, you see. I believe you already know, but please don¡¯t tell this even to Rhavelt-san.¡¹


    ¡¸Of course, I promise.¡¹


    ¡¸Well, yeah. Now that I think about it, you two have a higher position than the grandmaster now.¡¹


    ¡ºWhat¡¯s a grandmaster?¡»


    ¡ºI think she¡¯s referring to Rhavelt-san. It¡¯s likely someone who presides over guildmasters.¡»


    Hearing Carol-san¡¯s words, Ciel asked a question.


    I¡¯m glad that ¡°grandmaster¡± was correct. I just speculated that it might be the case based on titles used here, so I¡¯m a bit happy it¡¯s spot on.


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    In the hierarchy here at Central, Fii-kaasama is on the topmost and we, as her daughter, are probably right under her.


    Beyond that, I don¡¯t know. It might be the leaders of the respective guilds and there seem to be aristocrat-like people too.


    Still, as for whether this is relevant to us or not, I¡¯d say not really.


    ¡¸Still, being Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s daughter is going to be tough.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that so?¡¹


    ¡¸Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s policy is ¡°strength over all¡±, after all. She¡¯s said that if anyone wants to be the top of Central, they just have to defeat her.


    You two might get dragged into it.¡¹


    ¡¸Nothing like that has happened here in a long time, though.¡¹


    Celia-san supplemented Carol¡¯s statement.


    Fii-kaasama would definitely say that. The issue would be who can defeat Fii-kaasama.


    Or rather, wouldn¡¯t the lands of Central get destroyed first before she gets defeated?


    Seems like it would be a similar case as when defeating Ciel¨C¨Cme.


    ¡¸Besides, even if you two do get involved, I can¡¯t think of anyone that can deal with you.


    That barrier that endured Friere¡¯s blue hellfire, that¡¯s not your best, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Right. This barrier was made with the intention of probably being able to block an A-rank monster¡¯s attack.


    The most toughest one is active even now.¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah, I know. The barrier that lets you nap regardless if you¡¯re outside town, right?¡¹


    It¡¯s not wrong, but it sounds weird describing it that way.


    ¡ºNot only naps but full sleep. Ain¡¯s barrier is amazing, amazing you know!¡»


    ¡ºYes, I¡¯m always protecting Ciel, after all.¡»


    ¡ºFufu, not only while sleeping, right? Thank you for always, Ain.¡»


    Uh-hm, it¡¯s not a nap-use barrier, it¡¯s for protecting Ciel.


    As long as Ciel understands that, I guess I don¡¯t mind if Carol-san doesn¡¯t.


    More importantly, let me confirm something that came up in the conversation here and there.


    ¡¸Come to think of it, Carol-san, you¡¯ve reached A-rank, right? Congratulations.¡¹


    ¡¸Do I take that as praise?¡¹


    ¡¸Rather than praise, it¡¯s a gesture of celebration?¡¹


    ¡¸You don¡¯t seem very interested though.¡¹


    ¡¸Ranks for us were only a means to escape from Estoque, after all. Even now, it¡¯s just handy for achieving a different goal.


    Since our status as Fii-kaasama¡¯s daughter is at the forefront, there might be clamoring for every move we make.¡¹


    For the amount of trouble they¡¯ve cost us, I intend to make good use of our rank.


    We just need to work occasionally after all.


    As I was thinking that, Carol-san who had been disgruntled a moment ago suddenly started grinning.


    ¡¸Kaasama¡­¡­ is it.¡¹


    ¡¸What, do you have something to say about that?¡¹


    ¡¸Not really? I just thought that you¡¯re acting like a proper daughter.¡¹


    I¡¯m not doing anything wrong at all but, I don¡¯t know, why does it make me feel embarrassed?


    Fii-kaasama¡­¡­ Right, I can¡¯t deny that saying it feels a bit weird, but I think it¡¯s better than just Fii.


    And okaasan¡­¡­ doesn¡¯t fit either.


    Ciel giggling in my head is another factor adding into the embarrassment.


    Mnnh¡­¡­ She did say that seeing me troubled makes her happy, but is this what she meant?


    As I was stuck contemplating, I suddenly felt a hand on my head.


    ¡¸What is it?¡¹


    ¡¸Nothing in particular.¡¹


    When I asked poutily, Carol-san curtly replied and lifted her hand away.


    What was that all about?


    I don¡¯t get it at all, but ¡¸Oh, right.¡¹ Carol-san then shifted the topic.


    ¡¸You two becoming Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s daughters is a big problem in of itself, so be careful, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. It might be best to communicate that in advance.¡¹


    ¡¸What does that mean? It¡¯s different from the previous issue, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Being Fiiyanamia-sama¡¯s child, there¡¯s a likely chance you will be seen as a successor and there are people who¡¯d become agitated just from that.


    These are only rumors, but there seems to be people already unhappy about this.¡¹


    ¡¸Well, I don¡¯t think you two would get killed, though.¡¹


    Aah¡­¡­ That does sound troublesome.


    For some reason, what Fii-kaasama told us on the way home yesterday went through my mind, but I want to believe it¡¯s unrelated.


    Fii-kaasama likely knows most of everything but still¡­ actually, if there are rumors now, then she definitely has an understanding of the situation already. In that case, the rumors are either groundless, or she¡¯s intentionally leaving it be.


    It might be fortunate that we¡¯re at least in a position where if something happens and we have to use force, we¡¯ll be forgiven.


    At worst, I suppose I could ask Liessyl-san a favor. Shifting my gaze to her, our eyes met and she waved at me, so I smiled in reply.


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    ¡­ Ah, I¡¯ve been out for a bit too long. Opportunities for Ciel to converse with people other than me are invaluable, after all. So I was about to tell Ciel that we¡¯re switching, but then I remembered that I was in the middle of a conversation with Celia-san at the Hunter Guild.


    ¡¸Celia-san, continuing our talk at the Hunter Guild, what sort of activities do the Central hunters perform? ¡¹


    ¡¸Oh right, we were talking about that. Here at Central, there is a place with many monsters called a Den.


    Dens are cave-like areas that expand deeper and deeper underground. These were discovered to have, for whatever reason, monsters that are weaker in the shallower parts and stronger as you go deeper, and they inexplicably don¡¯t travel between floors.


    There, a hunter¡¯s main work is to hunt monsters for materials and bring them back.¡¹


    ¡¸What a mysterious place that is. Are there treasure chests too?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­? No, there are only monsters from what I hear. Carol, have you heard about anything like those?¡¹


    ¡¸Nope. But, well, there seems to be some people who call deceased hunters treasure chests.¡¹


    I thought that it¡¯s one of the famed dungeons, but it seems to be different.


    It does sound dungeon-ish, though, only without treasure chests.


    As for why these exist¡­¡­ I have a hunch Fii-kaasama and the creator god would probably have the answer, but will they tell me?


    ¡¸Carol-san, you¡¯ve gone there before, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Going to the den is the easiest way to live here as a hunter after all. While it doesn¡¯t pay as much as requests do, you can earn a considerate amount there if you¡¯re B or A-ranked.¡¹


    ¡¸As for the Hunter Guild, they sell the materials to the Merchant Guild wholesale.


    The Merchant Guild then sells these to other countries. After all, with the existence of monsters, there is an unending demand for weapons.¡¹


    Just as Celia-san said, they¡¯d probably sell as many weapons as they could.


    A stampede just happened at one certain country too, so it won¡¯t be weird for other countries to be on high alert. Besides, there¡¯s probably demand here within Central itself as well.


    ¡¸Ainsel¡­¡­ and I guess Cielmer too, do you two intend to delve in?¡¹


    ¡¸Who knows? We don¡¯t have a need for money, after all. So I suppose we might go out of curiosity?¡¹


    ¡ºAin, do you want to go?¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯m a bit interested about it.¡»


    Although I intended to part from it, my past life interests still remain.


    Dungeons¨C¨C or rather dens ¨C¨Care common in game settings, so I¡¯d love to go there and sightsee. Still, would it be fine to go there with Ciel for sightseeing?


    For whether we should go or not, I¡¯ll decide with Ciel later. More importantly, I just remembered why we went back to the Hunter Guild.


    ¡¸Come to think of it, we called for Rhavelt-san. Was it really alright that we just left?¡¹


    ¡¸The grandmaster¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s fine. It was because Friere asked you for a fight, after all. Rather, you¡¯re greater than him in status now, so no need to care about it that much, don¡¯t you think?¡¹


    ¡¸That may be true, but I still can¡¯t help caring.¡¹


    I forgot about it until now, though, so I can¡¯t really say that I cared that much about it.


    But still, if it¡¯s fine, then good. Once we finish here, I¡¯ll show my face there.


    ¡ºNow then, I¡¯ll return your body now, Ciel.¡»


    ¡ºNo.¡»


    ¡ºUmm¡­¡­ Right, I¡¯ll switch with you now, Ciel.¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood!¡»


    While thinking about how adorable this side of Ciel is, I returned control to her.


    ? Previous


    Next ?


    ? Index ?


    Heya~! Today¡¯s chapter is quite a treat, more Ain being cute~! Ciel is adorable most of the time, and she was this time as well, but it¡¯s rarer for Ain since she¡¯s putting up the ¡°I¡¯m older so I have to be more responsible/stoic¡± front, so¡­


    Anyways, this chapter is a bit of a refresher in general, since our two allies are putting together our protagonist¡¯s main conflict in the first part. Still, it¡¯s really nice that Carol and Celia are shown here to come to their own conclusions from the information they just got. Carol does this more, since Ain left more crumbs for her, but now it¡¯s Celia¡¯s time to puzzle it out now! And we can finally feel better for her since she¡¯s not out of the loop anymore, yay! We also learn about ¡°dens¡± today, the story¡¯s equivalent of a dungeon it seems. No treasures except from those that came and failed before you though.


    Carol-Ain interactions are really fun in general because of Ain being somewhat sassy with her, but this time it¡¯s really great. We got the usual Ain-Carol dynamic of Carol being mostly irked or in disbelief of Ain not acting her appearance, but we also got Carol teasing Ain and patting her in the head! Despite how much they appear somewhat more distanced from each other, compared to Celia¡¯s more friendly approach, Carol does care for Ain and Ain does think of her as somewhat like a collage friend. Really nice. Also, Ciel giggling at Ain being embarrassed and refusing to switch with Ain because she was talking like they don¡¯t share the body was also cute. Ciel is just plain cute, cheery or pouty.


    Now then, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 104

    ¡¸With the previous colors back, you¡¯re Cielmer now, right?¡¹


    As Ciel and I switched back, Carol-san quickly reacts and asks Ciel.


    Changing my colors and speech pattern personally doesn¡¯t take that much effort, so I can likely just trick people if I wanted to.


    Though, I don¡¯t really think my acting is perfect either, so people familiar with us would probably notice.


    Other than those¡­¡­ Just as I started thinking, Ciel answered Carol-san.


    ¡¸Magic power changes.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Right, that makes sense. If the soul in control changes, magic power should change as well.


    Still, people who can sense magic power are by no means common. While I can do it if I try, it¡¯s still difficult to identify who¡¯s who.


    Also, because of that barrier, it¡¯s even more difficult to tell it apart.¡¹


    So this barrier had that effect too, huh.


    Up until now, Fii-kaasama was the only one who ever mentioned things like the quality of magic power and magic power of an individual, so I didn¡¯t really take notice of it.


    Wait, but didn¡¯t Fii-kaasama also say that Ciel¡¯s magic power is concealed by mine or something?


    While Carol-san explained so with a serious look, that¡¯s all I can think about on my part.


    Undoing the barrier is unthinkable anyways.


    ¡¸Well, it¡¯s fine. Even if it¡¯s Ainsel acting like Cielmer, I¡¯ll just treat you as Cielmer. ¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s fine.¡¹


    ¡¸By the way, was it Ainsel who said she wanted to see my research?¡¹


    ¡ºNow that I recall, I did say that.¡»


    ¡ºShould we switch again?¡»


    ¡ºNo, it¡¯s fine as is. However, right¡­ Could you try asking her about how to apply the Job¡¯s power to one¡¯s sorcery?


    Please.¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood! Leave it to me! Leave it all to me!¡»


    Ciel answered excitedly.


    Is she really that delighted about me asking her a favor?


    If so, that¡¯s somehow really adorable of her.


    Still, if it¡¯s just asking her a favor, this shouldn¡¯t be the first time I¡¯ve ever done that.


    Is it because this was more personal to me?


    ¡¸How do you apply Job¡¯s power to sorcery?¡¹


    ¡¸I see now. That barrier, it¡¯s going to get tougher, isn¡¯t it¡­¡­¡¹


    Carol-san had a blank stare.


    Still, I think the barrier is already several hundreds of times stronger than how Carol-san remembers it.


    I¡¯ve incorporated divine power, after all.


    Saying that the barrier can be further reinforced does sound somewhat excessive even for me.


    Still, there¡¯s no loss in knowing it anyways.


    ¡¸Alright. First of all, the Job isn¡¯t a Sorcerer-type, is it?¡¹


    ¡¸It isn¡¯t, why?¡¹


    ¡¸With Sorcerer-types, it¡¯s really easy to integrate into sorcery.


    So since I have a Sorcerer-type Job, this might not be absolute, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s fine. Tell me.¡¹


    Heeding Ciel¡¯s request, Carol-san nodded.


    ¡¸From my study, it¡¯s through talent, experience, and a Job¡¯s level of growth.¡¹


    ¡¸Job¡¯s growth?¡¹


    ¡¸When constantly using a Job¡¯s abilities, there are cases when its capabilities expand.


    Someone with a Swordsman Job suddenly doing a sort of physical reinforcement activity is one example.


    With talent, the integration will be easy. Without, you¡¯ll just have to use your Job¡¯s abilities again and again, until you learn from intuition.¡¹


    ¡ºAin, Ain, is that enough?¡»


    ¡ºYes, thank you very much.¡»


    Talent, experience, and growth. As for growth, well, it can¡¯t be helped.


    While we did have a lot of opportunities to make use of it, we¡¯ve only had our Jobs for 2-3 years.


    If it grows that frequently, this world¡¯s older people would all be superhumans, which I don¡¯t think is the case.


    If so, then do I just have no talent? I¡¯m confident with my skill in sorcery, but that¡¯s not within the scope of my Job.


    Doing sorcery while singing might be another issue in and of itself.


    After all, I just can¡¯t help myself from either watching Ciel dance or just focusing on the song.


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    ¡ºSo judging from what Carol-san said, you have amazing intuition, Ciel.¡»


    ¡ºIs that so?¡»


    ¡ºYou¡¯ve combined the use of Dance Princess and Sorcery ever since our first fight.


    I still can¡¯t use Song Princess¡¯ abilities to reinforce my own barrier, so that¡¯s amazing Ciel. I really envy that.¡»


    Moreover, she¡¯s not just relying on talent, she¡¯s put in effort as well.


    Being able to run through the sky was the result of her hard work, and she can use Elicinaries1 other than water, wind, and ice.


    Like fire, though there¡¯s no telling when it can be useful.


    After all, while it doesn¡¯t spread as much as Friere-san¡¯s, it still turns the area into a sea of flames.


    Still, that was pretty awkward of a praise from me.


    Even so, Ciel seemed to be pleased, and so she replied with a cheerful tone.


    ¡ºHearing that makes me feel happy, really happy.


    But, Ain is even more amazing!¡»


    ¡ºThank you very much.


    If you¡¯re fine with it, would you mind asking Carol-san when Jobs will grow? ¡»


    Since we¡¯ve ignored the people around us and talked for too long.


    Carol-san even looks like she has something to say to Ciel.


    ¡¸Are you done talking?¡¹


    ¡¸Yup. Tell me when Jobs grow.¡¹


    ¡¸Argh, geez, I get it already.¡¹


    As though something snapped in her, Carol-san answered.


    I understand how you feel, but please pardon Ciel. After all, it¡¯s likely going to take some time for Ciel to learn to be more considerate.


    Also, I¡¯ve already mostly forgotten how to be considerate in these situations as well.


    ¡¸I¡¯ll teach you the fundamentals regarding a Job¡¯s growth.


    If something catches your interest, ask about it afterwards.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    ¡¸First, while it¡¯s referred to as Job growth, this isn¡¯t actually a unilateral thing. Even among sorcerers, there are those who are good at using large spells and those that are good at rapid fire use of small spells. You can think of this as a difference in growth.


    As a sorcerer, it would be best to be able to do both, in short, that¡¯s just how it is.¡¹


    ¡¸Yup.¡¹


    ¡¸Now for when growth happens, this actually differs between people.


    Some just have it earlier, while some have it much later. However, it usually takes between 5-10 years, I think?


    There are some who are already of old age yet hasn¡¯t had any growth at all, though.¡¹


    ¡¸I see.¡¹


    ¡¸But, well, you two shouldn¡¯t have any problems either way.¡¹


    ¡¸Yup.¡¹


    It¡¯s the truth. Ciel still nodded with no hesitation at all, as Carol-san broke into a strained smile.


    Rather, it feels to me like Ciel¡¯s Dance Princess has grown, but I wonder if that¡¯s really the case?


    After all, it¡¯s not like there would be a level up fanfare when you experience growth like in games, so maybe we just didn¡¯t notice it.


    ¡ºIn that case, there¡¯s no telling when I¡¯ll be able to use the barrier with Song Princess.¡»


    ¡ºThat isn¡¯t really a problem, is it? Since it¡¯s already enough as it is right now.¡»


    ¡ºWell, that is true.¡»


    ¡¸Are you satisfied?¡¹


    ¡¸Yup. Thanks.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s fine. To begin with, I was able to reach this far because of what Ainsel said.


    My achievement of A-rank was also thanks to this. Glacio Lentso¡¯s2 power has increased compared to that time, but¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Not possible. Ain¡¯s barrier won¡¯t break.¡¹


    ¡¸Thought so. From what I saw, it should be able to breach the barrier that Friere nearly destroyed but as for the innermost barrier, I have no idea at all.¡¹


    Carol-san stares at Ciel, or rather the barrier protecting Ciel.


    And then, ¡¸Not even a clue.¡¹ she gave up.


    It¡¯s concealed and recently mixed with divine power as well, which caused more spirits to approach us. So while it might be weird for me to say this, people who can see it are amazing.


    The elves seem to excel in sorcery, so I wonder if they can see it?


    Will I be able to see the people of other species I met at the building I was first led to here in the Central again?


    Well, that isn¡¯t relevant right now.


    Also, Ciel just exposed that the barrier is mine, but I don¡¯t particularly mind it either.


    After all, it¡¯s not like knowing it¡¯s mine makes it any less reliable.


    ¡¸Come to think of it, what do you two plan on doing now?


    Your objective back then was just to reach Central, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Find Artificial Divine Messengers.¡¹


    ¡¸The rumored gold wolf, right? Did Rispelgia perhaps make that too?¡¹


    ¡¸Probably. There¡¯s a high chance.¡¹


    ¡¸So it¡¯s not certain yet. Did it have any distinctive traits?¡¹


    ¡¸Part of its body was covered in special magic power?¡¹


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    I think it¡¯s remnants of divine power enveloping the parts, but we¡¯ll have to give more tiresome explanations if that was mentioned.


    Unfortunately, it seems like Carol-san hasn¡¯t been chosen for that tiresome talk.


    It might be that Ciel only approved of telling them about us because I brought that topic up.


    ¡¸Got it. If we gain any relevant findings, we¡¯ll relay it to the two of you.¡¹


    ¡¸If I¡¯m not wrong, the Hunter Guild also asked for the same thing, no?


    Will it be alright to report the defining traits?¡¹


    Celia-san joined the conversation and Ciel ¡¸It¡¯s fine.¡¹ curtly replied.


    After this, we promised to meet again before leaving Carol-san¡¯s house.


    ¡ó


    It¡¯s now our second time at the Hunter Guild.


    It¡¯s already evening and the place is quite packed with hunters.


    Not caring about this, Ciel went directly to the reception counter.


    A lot has happened today for some reason, so I forgot but we originally came here today to see if we can find Viviana.


    So now we plan to tell Rhavelt about it so he can relay it to her when she comes. Admittedly, this might be too small of a matter to ask of him.


    Well, Rhavelt is the only person we know here in the headquarters.


    There are people glancing at us, maybe the result of our mock battle with Friere-san was spread?


    Or maybe it¡¯s because they¡¯ve been warned about me.


    Whatever the case, it¡¯s nice to have no one obstructing us.


    As Ciel¡¯s turn came, the receptionist had a surprised expression and then guided us deeper into the building.


    We were led to the same room we, with Fii-kaasama, were guided to yesterday.


    Ciel sat down on a chair and immediately Rhavelt arrived.


    ¡¸It appears that we have caused you trouble again today, my apologies for that.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s fine.¡¹


    ¡¸If that¡¯s the case, I¡¯m grateful to hear that.


    Incidentally, what might be your purpose for visiting today?¡¹


    ¡¸Tell me where Viviana¡¯s house is.¡¹


    ¡¸Viviana¡­¡­ Ah, of the Amulute family, correct? From here¡­¡­¡¹


    Since Rhavelt gave it away without any hesitation, I immediately thought What about personal privacy? but then I remembered that we¡¯ve gained enough authority to disregard that.


    This, we really need to be careful about who to ask requests and favors from.


    There might be occasions we ask something under the assumption that it¡¯ll be refused, but the other party actually can¡¯t refuse it.


    If it¡¯s Carol-san, she¡¯ll likely say no when she doesn¡¯t want to do it, but for people who don¡¯t know us personally and only know us from our status, they won¡¯t dare to refuse.


    Though, since this time it¡¯s Rhavelt ¨C¨C or rather the Hunter Guild ¨C¨C we made this mistake on, I don¡¯t really feel guilty about it.


    ¡¸Also, if Viviana comes, inform her about me.


    And that I might have no more opportunity to use that.¡¹


    ¡¸Sure, loud and clear.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s all for today. Have you found the person I asked for yesterday?¡¹


    ¡¸Found already. How should they be dealt with?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ll leave it to you. Just punish them properly.¡¹


    Even if asked that, it¡¯s not like we have any good ideas in mind, nor do we particularly want any money.


    That¡¯s why leaving it to them is easier. Still, if this wasn¡¯t Central, we would never leave the punishment to the same guild they¡¯re part of.


    It¡¯s because Central is under Fii-kaasama¡¯s supervision that we can settle with this decision.


    Otherwise, it would be when I can manage to do what Fii-kaasama does.


    With this, our business is done. Just as I thought that, Rhavelt lined up several cards on top of the table.


    Several of them look familiar, but there¡¯s one unfamiliar.


    ¡¸These will be the new hunter cards.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    Two whole sets of cards from A-rank downwards.


    One should be Ciel¡¯s and the other mine.


    Come to think of it, this might be the first thing that belongs to me.


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    (Say no to content thief!)


    Well, technically, the black-haired form is mine. Still, Ciel and I generally share our possessions, so I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever had anything with my name on it, anything that undoubtedly belongs to me.


    As I told Ciel that, ¡¸Let¡¯s go shopping tomorrow! Yes, definitely!¡¹ she then became competitive for some reason.


    ? Previous


    Next ?


    ? Index ?


    Heya~! We¡¯re quite heavy in exposition this chapter, moreover, it¡¯s exposition regarding Jobs! Yay~!


    But first of all, let¡¯s focus on the character interactions. With Ciel on the driving wheel this time around, Carol seems quite frustrated in multiple occasions, lol. It¡¯s understandable with Carol¡¯s character in mind, she doesn¡¯t seem to be that patient with people, nor does she seem good with children. But maybe that¡¯s just my bias. Still, you can really see that Carol is having a hard time adjusting to Ciel in her full social awkwardness. And to be fair to Ciel, she¡¯s not really used to keeping a conversation going, nor is she usually interested in doing so. She¡¯s just happy to be of help to Ain, which is adorable but is admittedly awkward. I blame Ain for being overprotective, lol. This is why I can¡¯t see you as a parent figure, Ain. You over doting guardian, you. But that should be fixed now that they¡¯re out of Estoque. Also, they¡¯re really making the grandmaster do chores, huh.


    Now, for the Jobs! For this one, if you¡¯ve ever read the raw, I¡¯ll be using Job ¡°power¡± and Job ¡°ability/-ies¡± interchangeably like I do with ¡°sorcery¡± and ¡°spells¡±, just a heads up. Anyhow, it appears that Jobs have a level up-like growth system to them. In gaming terms, a Job¡¯s abilities and powers act like skills, and there seems to be ¡°active¡± and ¡°passive¡± types¡­ actually, there¡¯s no assurance because the Jobs really are intertwined with the people that have them at their best case. For example, is Ciel¡¯s dancing mesmerizing because of how well she dances or because her Job makes it mesmerizing? Or is dancing well what actives some mesmerizing effect? To what degree? Etc, etc. Anyways, Job growth seems to be either an expansion of one¡¯s ability skillset (ex. Physical Reinforcement without Sorcery use, Quick Casting) or an improvement on one¡¯s use of the existing abilities (ex. Maybe Ciel¡¯s dance enabling her to cast even more powerful spells than before?). I honestly like it because it¡¯s more like an extension of the person itself rather than the person tapping into a game-like combat system. Your Job has abilities, figure it out and get a grasp of it first, then maybe you can grow into it and refine it. It¡¯s just that, honestly, Ain hasn¡¯t been very creative and open with her use (or rather she just had more focus in her barrier), so it¡¯s fair that she hasn¡¯t figured out how to use it in parallel with her barrier yet. Also, Ciel just seems to be a natural at dancing, and has more child-like creativity, being an actual child and all. And that¡¯s it.


    Now then, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 105

    ¡¸Right, right. It seems like you two got into a bit of a trouble.¡¹


    ¡¸It happens often, so there¡¯s no point worrying about it. After all, no matter what happens, Ain will protect me.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, yes. And excluding me, there is no being in Central that can overcome Ain¡¯s barrier.¡¹


    The day is ending and, while having dinner, Ciel and Fii-kaasama are in a conversation.


    Yesterday¡¯s dinner was a saut¨¦ed meat of something, I couldn¡¯t quite tell. It was garnished with heated vegetables and some kind of consomm¨¦ soup.


    I don¡¯t really know the typical cooking of this world, so I¡¯m not sure what it¡¯s really called. Though, even if I do know, my mind will probably still recognize the consomm¨¦-like soup as just consomm¨¦.


    Regarding our meals, other than what¡¯s served at the inn, we only eat from outdoor stalls or food I cook.


    And this is how I learned that the flames I produce can only mildly warm up a steel cooking plate.


    It¡¯s perfect to use for warming yourself up, but it¡¯s a bit useless in cooking. At most, it¡¯s only useful for heat retention.


    That was the moment I realized how insanely thorough my inability to use magic power to attack was.


    Back to the main topic. At the very least, I don¡¯t know about typical home cooking and, at inns, we mostly eat what was served instead of picking from a menu. So, I don¡¯t really know what the dishes are called.


    ¡¸Which reminds me, Rhavelt left a message earlier.¡¹


    ¡¸A message, what is it?¡¹


    ¡¸He said that the Amulute girl will be at the Hunter Guild tomorrow noon.¡¹


    ¡ºWhat¡¯s an amyuloot?¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s Viviana-san¡¯s family name.¡»


    ¡ºOh, that¡¯s right. Then, should we go shopping in the morning?¡»


    ¡ºLet¡¯s do that.¡»


    ¡¸Got it. We¡¯ll try going just right after noon.


    Until then, we¡¯ll go shopping.¡¹


    ¡¸That sounds nice. There might be something tomorrow, but feel free to deal with it as you like.¡¹


    ¡¸? I don¡¯t really understand, but we can do as we like, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, yes. However, it would be best to avoid such acts like threatening or stealing, alright?


    It makes living among people more difficult, you see?¡¹


    Fii-kaasama replied with that, but she really is a bit off.


    She doesn¡¯t want us to threaten people or steal, but it doesn¡¯t sound like she¡¯s heavily against it either.


    I guess that¡¯s just how transcendental beings are.


    It¡¯s true that with us though, robbing a shop or two of their merchandise isn¡¯t that particularly hard to do.


    While I do recognize that as a bad thing to do, I feel like my stopper is less tighter now compared to my previous life.


    It¡¯s fine since a stopper isn¡¯t necessary for something as small as this, but I have to be careful not to make misjudgments.


    ¡¸I won¡¯t do things that will make Ain hate me, you know.¡¹


    ¡¸Right? It¡¯s not a cause for worry.¡¹


    ¡¸Come to think of it, what were you doing Fii?¡¹


    ¡¸Information gathering, I suppose? I guess you can call it a bit of preparing.¡¹


    ¡¸Is there something about to happen?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ll talk about it when the time comes. Borrowing your strength should make things go smoother, you see.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    Fii-kaasama said that with a casual tone, so I don¡¯t think there will be any major issue. However, I feel like, by her standards, a whole town disappearing might just warrant a huff from Fii-kaasama at most.


    If she doesn¡¯t plan on saying it, she likely wouldn¡¯t tell us no matter how we ask, so I¡¯ll just leave this aside for now.


    ¡¸Which reminds me, do you plan on going to the den?¡¹


    ¡¸We¡¯re interested about it.¡¹


    ¡¸I see, I see. With you two, even reaching the deepest depth shouldn¡¯t kill you.


    However, defeating the monster there might be difficult, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸You¡¯re really knowledgeable about it, Fill.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s the reason I¡¯m here at Central, after all. Managing the den is one of my duties.


    Though with that said, I don¡¯t really have much to do. Perhaps some culling if the hunters weren¡¯t around?¡¹


    Fii-kaasama said so jokingly, but since it¡¯s one of her duties, wouldn¡¯t it be extremely important?


    I wouldn¡¯t even be surprised if it turns out that a world-endangering demon lord is actually sealed in the deepest of depths.


    Still, even if there was actually one, Fii-kaasama is probably stronger than it.


    ¡ó


    With dinner done, we returned to our room.


    Naturally, Mohsa and Luna followed behind us and I¡¯m slowly getting used to it.


    Though, the most I do in our room is talk to Ciel and mess around with magic power, so there isn¡¯t really a problem even if there¡¯s other people anyways.


    Regarding magic power, probably because I gained divine power? I¡¯m a bit more versatile with it now.


    For example, I can change a barrier¡¯s color, make barriers shaped like different objects, change the shape of a pre-existing barrier and make it look like it¡¯s moving or so.


    Still, even if I change a barrier¡¯s color, you can still see through it.


    And even when I make a sword-shaped barrier, it doesn¡¯t become a weapon. Being hit by it feels like being hit like a pillow.


    Even though it can be moved, it can¡¯t be ridden on. No, actually you can ride it, it¡¯s just that the magic power consumption becomes ridiculously high.


    As for why my barrier is what¡¯s getting versatile, it¡¯s because I can use it even when I¡¯m ¡°not outside¡±.


    Magic is amazing. And convenient. I can¡¯t attack though.


    ¡ºYou¡¯ve gotten quite good at controlling magic power, Ciel.¡»


    ¡ºReally?¡»


    ¡ºDuring today¡¯s mock battle, you seem to have detected nearly all of Friere-san¡¯s sorcery and you even caught sight of that final spell.¡»


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    I believe detecting magic power should be considerably difficult to do, so I think Ciel is already quite capable as she is now.


    I was driven to learn it out of necessity though.


    I guess this is thanks to the talent for sorcery that I had ¨C¨C or rather was left with since I was thrown out mid-adjustment ¨C¨C to begin with?


    ¡ºI see. Those were easier to detect than Ain¡¯s barrier, after all.


    But I still can¡¯t sense your barrier, you know? Even though I could faintly feel it in the past.¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯ve been playing around with my barriers ever since. I still can¡¯t lose to you, Ciel.¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯m definitely going to reach the point where I can sense Ain!


    So then, even if Ain is asleep, I won¡¯t have to go looking for you. Ain oversleeps a lot, after all.¡»


    Right, being someone who was once asleep for three whole days, I can¡¯t argue with Ciel.


    It¡¯s not like Ciel is criticizing me either, so I probably shouldn¡¯t be too worried about it.


    Right now, I should be happy to see Ciel being able to cheerfully giggle, laugh, and joke about it.


    I don¡¯t quite know how to react, but even that makes me happy.


    ¡ºAin, Ain, Ainsel.¡»


    ¡ºI can hear you. What¡¯s wrong?¡»


    ¡ºHow do I say it? There¡¯s nothing wrong about it, but various people are now calling Ain by name now, right?


    Up until now, I was the only one calling Ain, but since other people have started calling your name¡­¡­ Jealous! I feel just a little jealous.¡»


    Even though Ciel said she¡¯s jealous, on her face is a smile befitting of her age.


    Still, I guess it isn¡¯t unreasonable for her to feel that way.


    After all, even I got jealous when Fii-kaasama referred to Ciel only by her nickname ¡°Ciel¡±.


    ¡ºEven so, Ciel was the first to ever call me ¡°Ain¡± and even now, only Fii-kaasama calls me so.


    And most of all, the only one who knows the remnants of my former name is you, Ciel.¡»


    I¡¯m being a bit unfair, but there are no lies in my words.


    In the case of my former name, I¡¯m sure the Creator God knows of it, but as for its remnants, Ciel is the only one I¡¯ve ever told about.


    There¡¯s likely no hiding anything with the Creator God anyways, so it should be fine to leave that out of the headcount.


    Still, I want to avoid lying to Ciel as much as possible..


    ¡ºThat¡¯s, somehow, really wonderful. Wonderful!¡»


    ¡ºBesides, even if everyone in the world calls my name, it can¡¯t even compare to when you call my name.¡»


    ¡ºIs that true? If so, that makes me happy. I¡¯ll say it again and again, Ain. Ain!¡»


    Ciel delightedly calls my name.


    Her saying my name again and again, the last time was probably when I first introduced myself as Ainsel, wasn¡¯t it?


    Compared to that time, Ciel has grown a lot.


    Thinking about it, I can¡¯t help but feel sentimental.


    It¡¯s been 13 years since I met Ciel. She¡¯s grown up so much since¡­¡­


    Still, some things never change and Ciel calling my name is just simply adorable.


    ¡ºAin, is there something wrong?¡»


    ¡ºNo, nothing at all. Incidentally, would you like to try talking to Luna and Mohsa?¡»


    ¡º? Why?¡»


    ¡ºBecause we¡¯re likely going to spend more time with them from now on.


    They might even know about things that I don¡¯t know about.¡»


    ¡ºAin, is there anything you don¡¯t know that you want to know?¡»


    ¡ºHow Estoque is seen from the outside, I guess? Since if that is what¡¯s considered typical, we might have to think a bit before going to other countries in the future.¡»


    I tried bringing that up for Ciel to practice socializing, but things are going slightly different from planned.


    Though, as long as this gets Ciel conversing with Mohsa and Luna, it doesn¡¯t really matter.


    Ciel nodded ¡ºGot it.¡» in reply and turned to Luna.


    ¡¸Luna.¡¹


    ¡¸What might it be, Cielmer-sama?¡¹


    ¡¸Tell me about Estoque.¡¹


    ¡¸About Estoque, the country you two originally came from, correct?¡¹


    Luna paused with a slightly downcast expression.


    Is there some problem with Estoque?


    ¡¸Right. Estoque has the reputation of being an insular nation.¡¹


    ¡¸Insular?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. While the Church and the Hunter and Merchant Guilds do have a presence there, their people seem to have peculiar values¡­ or rather, they hold prejudice against non-human races.


    Additionally, they¡¯re famous for having more firmly-rooted Job discrimination compared to other nations.¡¹


    ¡¸Song Princess¡¯ was terrible.¡¹


    The moment rumors about Ciel being a Song Princess spread, the looks from everyone immediately changed. It¡¯s a bit nostalgic now.


    It was relatively better at the Hunter Guild, but if it was a different place, we might have been chased out.


    That¡¯s why, in a sense, we were lucky.


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    Making an enemy of a country is troublesome, after all. We could probably outrun them, but this¡¯ll obviously make our life difficult.


    We won¡¯t be able to live freely, that¡¯s for sure.


    ¡¸Right. Their discrimination against Song Princesses are incomparable compared to other countries.


    Part of this is due to historical issues, but that country also seems to be a special case.¡¹


    ¡¸Why?¡¹


    ¡¸In the case of Estoque, they have received considerably little influence from Central.


    For example, the leaders of the Hunter Guild and the church mostly come from people of Estoque.


    In other words, people with Estoque¡¯s peculiar views tend to gather, by which includes discriminatory views against other races, Jobs, and so on.¡¹


    In other words, it¡¯s the nature of their country.


    While the Hunter Guild isn¡¯t bound to any country, if only Estoque people gathered in their guilds, it¡¯ll naturally make their views and values the norm.


    Even so, I suppose it¡¯s thanks to the Hunter Guild¡¯s intervention that they behaved somewhat tolerant towards a Song Princess.


    Well, if Estoque¡¯s views and values are just peculiar, then that¡¯s a relief. We shouldn¡¯t experience persecution in other countries.


    Though, even in Estoque, I don¡¯t think it really reached persecution.


    ¡¸Still, it¡¯s known for having a generally peaceful land, as well as a competent leader.¡¹


    ¡¸Is that Rispelgia?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ That¡¯s right. Disregarding his character, Rispelgia¡¯s competence is well-known even here at Central.


    To the extent that his place is even considered a hunters¡¯ dreamland.¡¹


    Was her momentary pause because she somewhat knows the relationship between Cielmer and Rispelgia?


    Since she¡¯s in charge of taking care of her, I guess it¡¯s information necessary for her to know.


    We¡¯ve gotten into troubles even unrelated to being a Song Princess, so it¡¯s weird to call it peaceful, but considering that a preteen girl alone ¨C¨C or so it would seem ¨C¨C was able to travel by herself, that might be true. With this in mind, it¡¯s within the realm of peacefulness.


    Even Japan can¡¯t be called safe with full confidence.


    ¡¸Troublesome.¡¹


    ¡¸Indeed. With such obfuscation, it would be best to keep a level of caution.¡¹


    ¡¸Ain is with me, so it¡¯s fine.¡¹


    ¡¸Cielmer-sama, you are really fond of Ainsel-sama, aren¡¯t you? ¡¹


    ¡¸Naturally.¡¹


    ¡¸If you don¡¯t mind, could you tell me more about Ainsel-sama?¡¹


    The instant Luna said so, Ciel¡¯s eyes sparkled.


    Might be weird for me to say it, but this is not a good topic.


    Because I won¡¯t know where to hide myself.


    Not that I can be seen.


    After that, Ciel with her usual tone, yet with slightly more delight than earlier, proceeded to brag about me.


    ¡«The maids afterwards¡«


    Luna ¡¸¡­¡­ Today, I once again realized just how admirable Ainsel-sama is.


    I never thought that I would be able to see Cielmer-sama being so cheerful at such proximity. ¡¹


    Mohsa ¡¸Yes. I sincerely believe that I can get along very well with Cielmer-sama as well.¡¹


    Luna ¡¸Oh my, it seem like we don¡¯t have the same thing in mind, do we now?¡¹


    Mohsa ¡¸Perhaps if you find yourself having the opportunity to converse with Ainsel-sama as I have, I¡¯m sure you¡¯d understand how I feel.¡¹


    Luna ¡¸My, well that¡¯s something to look forward to then.¡¹


    ¡«Ain and Ciel afterwards¡«


    Ain ¡ºCiel, you¡¯re awake, right? Why did you pretend to fall asleep?¡»


    Ciel ¡ºOh, I¡¯m exposed. I mean, it¡¯s been so long since it was just us two on a bed together.


    It¡¯s not like I dislike the two of them, but I really want to have alone time with Ain, you know?¡»


    Ain ¡ºIs that so. Then shall I sing you a song?¡»


    Ciel ¡ºNo lullabies, alright? It makes me go to sleep, after all.¡»


    Ain ¡ºFufu, understood.¡»


    Heya~! Not only was there AinCiel fluff this chapter, we also have a little bit of screen time for the maids! Yay~!


    Following the last chapter, we got a short mid-dinner interaction with Fii, who is once again being extremely ominous about stuff. But anyways, we get a bit of set up for a reunion with Viviana and foreshadowing so blatant, it¡¯s more of a display of just how different Fii is compared to the normal folk. On that topic, we also obtain more info about the den. Apparently, it houses monster/s beyond our duo¡¯s offensive capacity. Demon Lord? Maybe, but Fii is already Demon Lord-ly enough from an objective standpoint, lol.


    Moving on, we have our AinCiel interaction, which neatly connects with the very first Ciel POV, where she finds the weird magic power around her (which she doesn¡¯t even know is magic power yet) one of the few sources of comfort during her confinement. In short, she could sense magic power *that* early on. Seriously. Also, we get another source of motivation driving her to want to be able to sense through Ain¡¯s veil of concealment; so she can comfortably know if Ain is with her even if Ain is knocked out or asleep. Just¡­


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    (Say no to content thief!)


    And for the part, we have Ciel interacting a bit more with the maids, specifically Luna. It¡¯s more on the exposition heavy side, but at the last moment Luna wittily got Ciel to talk by her own volition with the super effective ¡°I¡¯d like to hear more about Ain¡± card. Good job. Also, the short post-chapter snippet is really nice.


    Now then, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 106

    The following morning. After finishing breakfast, Ciel enthusiastically left the manor.


    This is the first time I¡¯ve ever seen Ciel like this and while I do find it delightful, I feel somewhat nervous knowing that I¡¯m the reason for the enthusiasm.


    ¡¸Which shop should we go to? I suppose the ones for clothes? I want to dress Ain in the most fitting clothes!¡¹


    With her eyes sparkling as she walked, I pondered for a bit before giving Ciel a serious answer.


    ¡ºSince we¡¯ll be shopping, let¡¯s buy something that we can always use.


    Clothes would cease to fit once you grow out of them, after all.¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯d be great too! In that case, let¡¯s also look at accessories!


    I¡¯ll find the perfect accessories for you, Ain!¡»


    This is that, right? Ciel seems to be already dead set on the matter with clothes.


    Ciel really enjoyed herself that day, so I have already anticipated this. Still, I¡¯d be happier if she can aim that passion towards herself a bit more.


    Ciel is the one who should be dressed up, in my opinion.


    With pure white hair and smooth white skin unaffected by the heat of the sun.


    Beautiful eyes with a blue like that of the fair sky¡¯s.


    Unlike me and my black eyes and hair, she gives off a transient yet firm presence.


    Dressing Ciel up would absolutely be better for the world.


    Also, I just can¡¯t get used to having money be used for me.


    ¡ºIf possible, let¡¯s buy some that would suit you as well, Ciel.¡»


    ¡ºOh? Why is that? Today¡¯s shopping is for Ain¡¯s stuff, you know?


    I¡¯ll buy something that won¡¯t lose to the Hunter Card, okay?¡»


    If it¡¯s something from Ciel, then don¡¯t really care what it is. Still, if I say that out loud, it¡¯ll just spoil Ciel¡¯s currently cheery mood, so I¡¯ll keep it to myself.


    Besides, compared to a card, times like these where we can freely go out are a thousand times better, and are irreplaceable.


    Ciel¡¯s victory is already rigged in this competition but still, I really want to buy something that suits her.


    ¡ºIf we buy something that also suits you, we can share it and wouldn¡¯t that make it feel just a bit more special than the Hunter Card?¡»


    ¡º¡­¡­!? That¡¯s true! That¡¯d be wonderful too! Really wonderful!


    Let¡¯s also buy something we can both use! Let¡¯s find one!¡»


    I knew it, I knew it all too well.


    That it¡¯s difficult to stop Ciel once she reaches this point.


    I know that the more I say something, the more things we¡¯ll end up buying.


    Still, Ciel seems to be having fun, so I guess it¡¯s all good. Fortunately, we have plenty of money, as well as things that should be worth money lying idly in our magic bag.


    Yeah, we should do something about the wyverns soon.


    And so, the cheerful Ciel, who¡¯s practically skipping her way about, stopped in front of an accessory shop.


    Not too gaudy, yet not too plain.


    I guess refined is the best descriptor. And perhaps it¡¯s because this is a secure area where the wealthy and influential gather, there isn¡¯t much crowding of people either.


    Though, maybe I just have the impression that people of those sorts don¡¯t gather inside one shop enough to crowd it.


    The shop is unassuming in appearance, but they seem to be selling items of good quality that¡¯s on the expensive side.


    Well, in short, it¡¯s not a bad choice of a shop for Ciel.


    The interior is also neat, it¡¯s a pleasant place to be in.


    I have no idea how much of this is reflected in Ciel¡¯s eyes, though.


    The shop employee seems to be a good person too, only warmly watching over Ciel from a distance and not approaching us too closely.


    How do I say it? Do they think Ciel is a noble¡¯s child on an errand or out to buy a present?


    That¡¯s not too far from the truth, honestly.


    Ciel was undoubtedly born from nobility, and she¡¯s currently Fii-kaasama¡¯s daughter.


    Additionally, yeah, the clothes Ciel is wearing, which are from Fii-kaasama¡¯s residence, could be another factor.


    I guess in these sorts of shops, they employ people who can assess the value of these clothes.


    ¡ºWhich would be good? All of them should look good on Ain, in my opinion.¡»


    Inside the shop, with its numerous lineup of accessories, Ciel glares at the merchandise.


    Although I said glare, it¡¯s by no means terrifying.


    She isn¡¯t angry after all, she¡¯s just choosing seriously.


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    While I probably could share my opinions, I deliberately keep it to myself. After all, I want something that Ciel specifically chose for me.


    Nonetheless, there are a lot of accessories.


    In my previous world, I wasn¡¯t really the type to be particularly concerned about fashion. I just lived life unassumingly, so I¡¯ve never bought accessories before.


    The only accessories I can think of are, at most, necklaces, rings, and piercings, I think?


    Other than that, I guess wristwatches? I¡¯ve bought a wristwatch in the past, but it¡¯s more for the functionality.


    Because of that, I actually don¡¯t feel so comfortable wearing necklaces or rings.


    That aside, when it comes to female accessories, there are brooches, hair ornaments, and also those charms that can be attached to your bag, so it¡¯s pretty fun to look around.


    Many of the accessories are metallic and decorated with jewels, but there are some that are made of more natural materials as well.


    There¡¯s a necklace crafted from the vines of a plant, a ring carved from wood, and even an extravagant-looking circlet of leaves.


    From the fact that these occupy a whole area in the shop, these probably sell well. Maybe they¡¯re for elves?


    For crafting with plants, is sorcery used or is there a specific Job for it?


    Whichever it is, they look like accessories that can only be made possible in a fantasy-like world.


    ¡ºHave you found what you¡¯d like to buy?¡»


    ¡ºCan I go with ¡°everything¡±? ¡»


    ¡ºThere¡¯s the issue of money but, if possible, I¡¯d be happy if you only choose one thing for me first, Ciel. If you give me so many things at once, I feel like how special they are would be divided among them.¡»


    ¡ºIs that how it is?¡»


    ¡ºThe more things there are, the longer it would also take for me to to wear all of them. Ciel, I want the first thing you choose to be something I¡¯d always have on me.¡»


    If I had a body, that is. Even so, I want to wear it while I¡¯m borrowing Ciel¡¯s body.


    Preciously safeguarding gifts is fine too, but things like these are best to be used. I¡¯m on the ¡°let me keep it away in absolute safety¡± side but, on the other hand, I understand that using the gift would make the giver happy.


    ¡ºUnderstood!¡»


    ¡ºThen, let¡¯s see. If possible, I want you to choose something you would like me to wear.¡»


    I shared a request, just to make sure.


    I¡¯m happy that she¡¯s choosing with me in mind but if I had to say, I want to fit Ciel¡¯s preferences instead.


    I want to be the me that Ciel would like.


    Ciel was in deep thought again, so I began exploring the shop once more.


    I can¡¯t stray too far from Ciel, but I can move some distance away to an extent.


    Since Ciel is choosing an accessory for me, I plan on choosing one for her as well.


    Leaving whether we¡¯ll actually buy something or not, it¡¯ll be a good way to kill time, and I can wait while looking forward to what Ciel will choose for me.


    Still, wouldn¡¯t Ciel look good no matter which one of these she wears?


    Wouldn¡¯t it be better off to just buy everything?


    Though I think so, I advised Ciel against this, so I gave up on that.


    Honestly, I want Ciel to try these on first, but then she¡¯ll know what I¡¯m planning, so nope.


    So I just made do with my imagination, but that red-jeweled necklace over there, that blue gem earring, that green hair ornament, and even that silver bracelet, I can¡¯t imagine any of these not suiting Ciel.


    Still, wearing all of those at once would be so cluttered, wouldn¡¯t it?


    Moderation is key in everything. So, I have to choose just one.


    Ciel is a Dance Princess. So, something that looks good while she¡¯s dancing would be great.


    In that case, it isn¡¯t exactly an accessory, but how about a stole?


    The fluttering of cloth would absolutely accentuate her dances well.


    On the opposite end, a ring might not stand out enough.


    Then how about accessorizing Ciel¡¯s beautiful long hair?


    I think even just a hint of color mixed in her pure white hair is enough of a highlight.


    Let¡¯s stop there. I shouldn¡¯t do something that¡¯s way above my ability.


    In that case¡­¡­


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    Just as I was lost in my thoughts, a single necklace caught my eye. From its thin chain¡­ is that a black pearl? Some sort of black jewel decorated it.


    There are other different accessories but, for some reason, this got my interest.


    Its simplicity should fit Ciel perfectly too.


    ¡ºThese will be good! ¡»


    I heard Ciel¡¯s voice, so I paused the thought for a moment.


    ¡ºHave you decided yet?¡» Calling to her, Ciel then delightedly showed me a ring and a hair ornament.


    The ring had a brilliant gem with the same sky blue of Ciel¡¯s eyes and the hair ornament was a shell with a pure white pearl with it.


    A white hair ornament wouldn¡¯t be conspicuous on Ciel, so it¡¯s obviously just for me.


    Come to think of it, we do keep the spirit¡¯s rest stop on even when my hair is black, so I wonder how it looks then?


    Since it seems considerably adaptable, I¡¯ll try having it match with this hair ornament Ciel chose.


    All this aside.


    ¡ºSo it isn¡¯t just one thing.¡»


    ¡ºI wanted Ain to wear my colors, you see¡­¡­ would that be bad?¡»


    Answering Ciel¡¯s slightly uneasy voice, I replied ¡ºNot at all.¡»


    Did it sound a bit too mean? I didn¡¯t intend it to be that way, though.


    ¡ºThose are what you for me, so I¡¯m happy with both of them.


    After all, it isn¡¯t like I don¡¯t understand how you feel, either.¡»


    ¡ºI see! Then I¡¯m glad to hear that!¡»


    About wanting me to wear her colors, I¡¯m sure that I also thought the same thing.


    That must have been the subconscious thought that attracted me to that black pearl necklace as well.


    And as I was conflicted on whether I should tell her or not, ¡ºAin, is there something wrong?¡»Ciel spoke to me.


    ¡ºCiel, while you were choosing accessories, I was also looking an accessory that would look good on you.¡»


    ¡ºReally!? Where is it? Which is it!¡»


    Ciel¡¯s eyes sparkled as her gaze scoured the shop interior.


    She¡¯s quite curious about which accessory but there¡¯s no need for her to be so restless, as I immediately pointed to the black pearl necklace.


    ¡ºA necklace with a black stone. Fufu, that¡¯s Ain¡¯s color, isn¡¯t it?¡»


    ¡ºIt wasn¡¯t really a conscious choice on my part, but perhaps we just think in similar ways.¡»


    ¡ºThen let¡¯s buy them all. And then I¡¯ll wear this necklace. It¡¯s what Ain chose for me, after all.¡»


    With a broad smile, Ciel picked up the necklace.


    How do I say this? While I did choose it, and we practically have shared assets when it comes to money, like¡­¡­ this situation where Ciel is buying it in my stead feels awkward.


    Though, if we reversed roles, Ciel would probably think the same way, so I guess it¡¯s fine.


    No matter how uninterested Ciel is in speaking to people, it¡¯s quite easy to buy in this sort of shop.


    You just need to show what you want to buy and simply pay for it, so it¡¯s not really complicated.


    And Ciel knows how to calculate too. Or rather, I occasionally teach her how.


    The way Ciel¡¯s brain just easily absorbs everything makes shudder though.


    After exiting the shop, Ciel put on the necklace.


    ¡ºHow is it? How do I look!¡»


    ¡ºIt looks great on you.¡»


    ¡ºAin chose it, after all. There¡¯s no way that it wouldn¡¯t look good on me! And besides, it¡¯s Ain¡¯s color, after all!¡»


    I anticipated this sequence. Still, I don¡¯t have any intention of avoiding it, so I silently accept Ciel¡¯s praise.


    Inside my head though, I had a reply. Rather than the gift giver, it¡¯s the beauty of the wearer that¡¯s more important.


    ? Previous


    Next ?


    ? Index ?


    Heya~! Shopping, gift buying, oh how surprisingly wonderful and heartwarming it is! Today¡¯s menu, the chef is serving a healthy amount of AinCiel fluff, and there¡¯s nothing more I could ask from it!


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    In this chapter, we have an excited and cheery Ciel, which is always a pleasant read. However, financially speaking, it ¡°shopping for Ain¡± and ¡°excited Ciel¡± is not the most reassuring thing to hear, in my opinion, lol. Moreover, even Ain thought of just buying everything. Good thing they barely use money outside of necessary expenses. Anyhow, back to the topic. Lovely chapter. As usual, whenever there are opportunity for Ciel to make decisions for herself, even in just the little things, it¡¯s really nice to see. I¡¯ve always repeated this, and I think we all agree on this, but Ain is overprotective to a fault for understandable reasons. It¡¯s only because she has good sense to let Ciel do what she likes when there¡¯s no imminent complications that she doesn¡¯t end up a redeemable Disney (or just plain fairy tale) Villain/step-sister/mother type of character, as they do have the makings of an obsessive witch and her step daughter type of story. I¡¯m off topic, but anyhow.


    It¡¯s cute how both of them had the same mindset ¡°Ain/Ciel looks good in every of these, let¡¯s just buy it all¡± and ¡°I want her to wear my colour¡±, though it was not so conscious of a decision for Ain. Also, just the part where Ain convinced Ciel to just keep it to one thing, that was funny to me for some reason. It¡¯s exactly how parents try to convince their child to choose only one toy, only for the child to come back with two and the parents just softly accepts it. But it makes sense since Ciel ¡°has¡± sky blue and white, which I think is a hard combination to find. And both of them going ¡°You¡¯re beautiful¡± ¡°No, you¡¯re beautiful¡± reminds me of both the spiderman and the Keanu Reeves memes.


    Also, I like the tiny world building aspect of the plant and wood accessories. While using plant fibers and wood itself isn¡¯t that ¡°fantasy¡±-ish, it¡¯s funny to think that those really ornate elvish plant-vine/flower hair accessories can just be bought at a specialty shop. Maybe even right next to the dwarven specialty beard bands and combs. And maybe it¡¯s not just elvish, since they do seem to have a good enough market to warrant a whole space in the shop. But yeah. Another one is how Ciel, even in the raws, *specifically* identified the pearl as a ¡°stone¡±, since she likely never saw pearls (or maybe she doesn¡¯t even know what a pearl is yet) up until now. Both because they live inland and because this is their first time actually having the leeway (and interest) to look at jewelries and other luxuries.


    Now then, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 107

    After shopping at the accessory store, we then decided to buy clothes. Since this is probably Ciel¡¯s main objective, I don¡¯t have any reason to refuse.


    Time-wise, we also have some leeway.


    Though with our status, we wouldn¡¯t be rebuked for being late, but that¡¯s a different issue.


    We mustn¡¯t be complacent about our position¡­¡­ or rather, we should at least make an effort to keep in touch with society.


    Still, even without this position, the thought ¡°we could just go late¡± would have likely still crossed my mind.


    After all, the highest priority for me is Ciel. As long as Ciel is enjoying herself, there¡¯s even a chance that I¡¯d break promises made with Fii-kaasama.


    It¡¯s fine since I¡¯m still rational enough when it comes to these matters, but I once again realize how out of touch I am with normalcy.


    I don¡¯t find it to be a very positive trend, but I don¡¯t intend to stop prioritizing Ciel.


    Even this is just so that Ciel wouldn¡¯t have a difficult time blending in with society in the future. Anyways, in short, I¡¯m just being conscious of time for Ciel¡¯s sake.


    I digress.


    Clothing store, tailor, boutique, I don¡¯t know what exactly it¡¯s called, but Ciel and I are looking for a shop that sells clothes.


    Actually, we have come upon two establishments at this point, but they wouldn¡¯t sell for us.


    At the first one, Ciel¡¯s age was questioned. After being told that unsupervised children aren¡¯t permitted in their shop, they then welcomed a child slightly older than Ciel to their establishment.


    At the other, we were clearly not welcomed and was told ¡¸We have nothing to sell for your stature.¡¹ in a superficially polite tone.


    That really infuriated me but Ciel was absolutely unbothered and only replied with a Hmmmph of indifference.


    For that reason, we moved on to looking for our third establishment.


    Another reason is that we¡¯re only on a personal errand right now.


    Had this been an errand from Kaasama, perhaps they might have been at least exiled for that?


    I don¡¯t know if we have the authority to do that though.


    Speaking of Fii-kaasama, her remark from yesterday was probably pointing to this.


    In other words, it¡¯s possible that there¡¯s someone systematically trying to get in the way of Ciel¡¯s shopping.


    ¡ºAin, is there something wrong?¡»


    ¡ºNo, there¡¯s just something in my mind.¡»


    ¡ºWhat is it? I¡¯m curious, you know?¡»


    It¡¯s extremely infuriating, but I¡¯m conflicted on whether to tell Ciel.


    Despite the fact that we were turned away, Ciel is still enjoying our time right now.


    I¡¯d rather not tell her unpleasant news.


    Still, dodging the question here is also difficult.


    After all, Ciel has already shown her interest. Ughh, I really want to be able to react flexibly or rather cleverly in these sorts of situations.


    ¡ºI was thinking that there¡¯s likely someone getting in the way of Ciel¡¯s shopping.¡»


    It¡¯d be like saying ¡¸We have nothing to sell for the prince.¡¹ in the case of other countries.


    I don¡¯t know how the hierarchies of this world works but, at worst, l¨¨se-majest¨¦ could be a straight trip to the guillotine.


    Even if it¡¯s not that extreme, it¡¯s practically like picking a fight with Central¡¯s top. It should make doing business harder for them in the future, in my opinion.


    Hmmm¡­¡­ while the probability of this is low, maybe there¡¯s a faction that wants to challenge Fii-kaasama?


    After all, Fii-kaasama does welcome usurpation by force. Still, isn¡¯t this a bit too reckless of them?


    It¡¯s even doubtful whether they can break through my barrier.


    ¡ºThen in that case, we just need to find a place where we can shop at.


    Fii probably knows something about this anyway, wouldn¡¯t she just tell about it eventually?¡»


    ¡ºTrue, that¡¯s a valid point. Though, it¡¯s doubtful whether she¡¯ll simply tell us or not.¡»


    ¡ºBesides, no matter what happens, Ain will protect me, after all.


    So with that, this time of shopping with Ain is something that should be enjoyed.¡»


    ¡ºLeave it to me. No matter what happens, I¡¯ll protect Ciel.¡»


    Even if we, hypothetically, were to fight with Fii-kaasama.


    ¡ºHow heroic of my princess, so heroic.¡»


    Saying that, Ciel then giggled but I think I just heard something that I just can¡¯t let pass.


    Maybe it¡¯s because I¡¯m a Song Princess but I¡¯ll ask her just to be sure.


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    ¡ºUmm, where did the ¡°my princess¡± come from?¡»


    ¡ºOh, have I never talked about it?


    It¡¯s what I thought when we first defeated a monster. I thought that Ain was a hero protecting me but, in reality, Ain was a princess that trembles in front of monsters.


    During that time, the world of stories was a big part of my world, you see.¡»


    True, since Ciel couldn¡¯t go outside, her only knowledge of the outside world was from my words or from reading books.


    Moreover, many of the stories in that room were of the heroic epic sort, many of which are about saving captive princesses.


    And certainly I was paralyzed by fear during our first battle with the cyclops¡­¡­


    Yeah, I can¡¯t refute it.


    For me, Ciel who jumped out before the cyclops back then is the one who was heroic.


    So I guess I am a frail princess just looking from behind.


    I¡¯m still not on board with it, however.


    ¡ºBut, at the same time, I thought that Ain was so strong. Even while trembling, Ain still tried to fight.


    You were so cool back then, Ain. You¡¯re also cool right now, though.¡»


    ¡ºIf we¡¯re talking about that, you¡¯re much cooler than I am. After all, you were able to do what I failed to.¡»


    Even if we just stayed there hiding and/or got discovered, the cyclops wouldn¡¯t have been able to pass through my barrier.


    Regardless, that¡¯s not the point. Ciel who danced while placing trust in me was undoubtedly much cooler than I am.


    ¡ºNow then, let¡¯s go to our next shop.¡»


    Since Ciel¡¯s eyes have locked onto a certain shop, I gave my agreement.


    ¡ó


    We¡¯ve been walking around a sort of high-class district up until a while ago, but now we¡¯re in an area that¡¯s slightly less high-class.


    Perhaps this is where the modestly wealthy gather?


    The shop we went in was one that looks like it clearly sells clothes.


    It seems to be a shop for women and it has a somewhat different atmosphere from a regular shop. As I was contemplating why, I noticed that, other than fashionable clothes, there are also protective gear on display.


    I see, so I guess this is a shop aimed towards female hunters.


    After all, higher-ranked hunters should have plenty of money and women do like dressing up.


    In this moderately spacious shop, there¡¯s one female employee. As she is paying a lot of attention to us, it¡¯s as if she doesn¡¯t want us to leave.


    Ciel starts looking at the clothes fitted to some sort of misshapen manikins but, honestly speaking, there doesn¡¯t seem to be any that would fit our size.


    There aren¡¯t any hunters at Ciel¡¯s age that can earn enough money to buy in this shop, so I guess it¡¯s only natural.


    They sell at a pretty good price, though.


    From our experience, the clothes here don¡¯t feel too expensive.


    Still, it does seem a bit more expensive than regular clothes, I think.


    As Ciel enthusiastically stared at the clothes, the female employee that was keeping watch began approaching us.


    Ever since we entered, I detected about B-rank hunter level magic power from her.


    Considering the possibility that she¡¯s concealing it, she might even be at A-rank level.


    Rather, is she a former hunter or something?


    Appearance-wise, she looks a bit younger than Carol-san and Celia-san. She¡¯s considerably slender in build. She also gives off a somewhat affable or, I guess, cheerful vibe.


    How do I describe it? She seems to me like an always happy, subconsciously humming type of person.


    She also has pointy ears and she¡¯s stealing glances at Liessyl-san who¡¯s with us as usual.


    Yup. An elf, huh. I don¡¯t exactly know much other than their main image of appearing different from their actual age.


    If she¡¯s as strong as she is while being younger than Carol-san, then she might be well-renowned but if she¡¯s an elf, she might be at 50 or something despite her looks.


    Though, I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s any use to speak from a human¡¯s perception of time.


    After observing Ciel closely, she spoke.


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    ¡¸There might not be any clothes that¡¯ll fit you, I think?¡¹


    ¡¸Thought so. Why?¡¹


    ¡¸This shop never really expected to have any customers at roughly your age, you see.


    Still¡­¡­ I see. If it¡¯s you, I guess it makes sense. Actually, aren¡¯t you perhaps stronger than me?¡¹


    What she saw that surprised her is probably my barrier, but I wonder how far she saw.


    She¡¯s saying stronger than her, so maybe it¡¯s the innermost of the spherical ones?


    The skin-fit barrier has been described as being ¡°insane¡±, so seeing that should cause a bigger reaction. It¡¯s not really that complex, though.


    ¡¸You¡¯re a hunter?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m Shusii Shagal Mesi. I¡¯m a seamstress who became a hunter to gather clothing material and reached A-rank before I even realized it!¡¹


    Shusii-san said with her chest puffed out in pride, but she immediately deflated.


    Just as I was wondering why, she started talking with a dispirited tone.


    ¡¸It¡¯s something I¡¯m really proud about, but it¡¯s hard to be with you here.


    I¡¯m weaker than you, after all¡­¡­. Despite how I seem, I have my own moniker, you know¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Like Ice Witch, Scorching Hot Princess?¡¹


    ¡¸Yup, yup. Like those¡­¡­ So, might you be perhaps the daughter of Fiiyanamia-sama, Cielmer-sama?¡¹


    Seemingly realizing something, Shusii-san¡¯s tone suddenly became more polite.


    How do I say this? She has a really unique sort of rhythm to her.


    ¡¸Yup.¡¹


    ¡¸Right, right. I thought so. You¡¯re just as described, after all. You have a high-ranked spirit along with you as well¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Is that bad?¡¹


    ¡¸Not at all, it¡¯s just that my sister strictly instructed me to make sure to be proper and polite if I ever meet you¡­¡­


    So I thought that I might have done badly when I first talked to you¡­¡­ yes.¡¹


    ¡¸It doesn¡¯t matter.¡¹


    ¡¸Umm, even if I talk normally?¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t mind. I want clothes.¡¹


    Looking at this exchange, Ciel really tends to march at her own tune.


    That might be a good thing about her though. At least, she won¡¯t get drunk with power and authority.


    Though, her careless indifference might cause its own set of problems. We¡¯ll deal with it when it happens.


    ¡¸There¡¯s none of your size, so we¡¯ll have to make them, is that okay?¡¹


    Shusii-san seems pretty bold, actually. After all, she immediately returned to being casual and it doesn¡¯t look like she plans on leaving all the designing to Ciel.


    Perhaps this just goes to show her pride as a craftsman.


    Even for Ciel, listening to professional opinion is important in making a good product, so I think of this as a good thing.


    ¡¸That¡¯s fine, but it¡¯s not for me.¡¹


    ¡¸So it¡¯s a present?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes.¡¹


    ¡¸To whom?¡¹


    ¡ºYou can say that it¡¯s for a twin sister.¡»


    Ciel was a bit tongue-tied, so I lent her a hand.


    Since I¡¯ll be appearing more from now on, it¡¯ll be more convenient to just have us be twins anyways.


    ¡¸My twin sister.¡¹


    ¡¸Then her sizes are the same as yours, Cielmer-sama?¡¹


    ¡¸Exactly the same. Her hair and eyes are black.¡¹


    ¡¸Then I¡¯ll be taking your body measurements, will that be alright?¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t mind.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, could you come here?¡¹


    Saying so, she led us deeper inside the shop.


    Heya~! This chapter we have more shopping for our princesses and a new character for us to meet!


    As warned? Anticipated? Prophesized? by our landlady mom, there¡¯s a bit of trouble in our peaceful tour. The daughter of Central¡¯s landowner herself, denied entry in the shops at the rich people avenue!? Yeah, I don¡¯t quite find that to be a big brain move, unless the goal is to upset Fii. They did manage to upset Ain though, but as usual Ciel is unfazed and disinterested. The time spent with Ain is more important that the shopping itself, after all. Still, they did manage to find a new shop and a new character as well! What a bargain!


    Here, we¡¯re introduced to the elf Shusii who, interestingly enough, can perceive our friendly neighbor spirit Liessyl! But not Ain, it seems. But yeah, she seems like a pretty cheerful and amiable person, and also ditzy, and it appears that whatever conspiracy there is to ruin the day of our princesses, she and the shop she works at doesn¡¯t seem to be a part of it. As such, now Ain has no escape from Ciel¡¯s gift of clothing!


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    Now then, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 108

    Led by Shusii-san, we arrived before a weird kind of stand.


    I suppose it looks similar to a weighing scale?


    ¡¸Could you stand on top of this?¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    Ciel unhesitatingly stood on top of the mysterious object.


    Well, frankly speaking, it¡¯s probably some sort of body measuring tool as it seems to be.


    If it¡¯s a trap¡­¡­ would that be overthinking at this point?


    I¡¯m confident in protecting her from anything, but there¡¯s still a one in a million chance of failure¡­¡­


    Still, after being so concerned about her lack of social interactions, I guess I really shouldn¡¯t be saying that.


    Also, Ciel¡¯s act of standing on the device with confidence probably speaks less about her trust in Shusii-san and more about her trust in me protecting her no matter what happens anyways.


    As Ciel got on it, some string of numbers suddenly appeared.


    I assume those are Ciel¡¯s height and whatnot, but the units of measurements are different, so I can¡¯t understand it.


    Anyways, Shusii-san is showing a troubled look, so I can tell that there¡¯s a problem.


    ¡¸Umm¡­ Could you at least momentarily disperse that barrier?¡¹


    ¡¸No-¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡ºFor now, let¡¯s try disabling the spherical one. If that isn¡¯t enough, then we have no other choice.¡»


    Ciel almost immediately refused, so I suggested an alternative choice.


    I don¡¯t want to leave her defenseless either. Even if we reach the point of trusting Shusii-san, there¡¯s no assurance that something won¡¯t come flying from outside.


    The only place I can deactivate my barrier completely is probably Fii-kaasama¡¯s manor. Not that I¡¯ve tried it.


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    As Ciel replied, I deactivated the spherical barrier.


    This one only serves as an intimidation and a way of measuring other people¡¯s capabilities, so it¡¯s not a problem.


    If the issue was barrier interference or something, the barrier that¡¯s always on was made to be skintight, so she should be able to get Ciel¡¯s measurements.


    ¡¸Alright, thank you.¡¹


    It finished in just a few seconds, so Ciel stepped down from the device.


    I know it¡¯s late to ask, but was that a magic item?


    As expected of a world of magic, such a convenient thing to have. Speaking of measurements, I really thought that Shusii-san was going to use a tape measure for this.


    ¡¸What¡¯s next?¡¹


    ¡¸Next is to decide on what sort of clothes to make, do you know how many of what you want to order?¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t know. For now, I¡¯ll buy what looks good.¡¹


    We came here with no plans, after all, didn¡¯t we?


    Or so I think to myself, but to begin with, Ciel has never shopped like this before and it¡¯s not like I¡¯ve had plenty of experience either.


    ¡¸Then¡­¡­ Do you want to come up with the designs together?¡¹


    ¡¸Yup.¡¹


    I have no idea why she asked that, but Ciel and Shusii-san are going to design clothes for me together now.


    ¡ó


    Once again, magic and sorcery are really convenient. That was my thought while observing the two rowdily chatting.


    Now at the designing stage, since they thought it would be easier to imagine with the clothes being actually worn, a doll of me was made.


    Using the earlier measurements and sorcery that uses wood, in mere seconds Shusii-san crafted the mannequin.


    Being capable of doing such a simple-looking yet complicated feat, her being an A-rank hunter is unlikely to be a lie.


    Maybe I should try doing it later.


    With the mannequin even being colored, they dressed it up again and again in order to solidify their designs.


    The clothes¡¯ basic design is also crafted with sorcery, and then they build up from that.


    ¡¸This one looks better,¡¹


    ¡¸This one suits Ain more.¡¹


    ¡¸Hmm¡­¡­ That might be true, but isn¡¯t this one cute too?¡¹


    ¡¸Both¡­ wouldn¡¯t be good.¡¹


    ¡¸Want me to make one for each?¡¹


    ¡¸Do it.¡¹


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    Ciel is being extremely talkative. She still has the same tone, so she is drawing a line somewhere but even considering that, she¡¯s really talkative.


    This time, I don¡¯t feel even a hint of jealousy.


    After all, it¡¯s just so overwhelming right now, I don¡¯t have the leeway to feel jealous.


    As for how this happened, it all started when Shusii-san, having a better look at Ciel¡¯s appearance, seemingly had her seamstress heart burning with enthusiasm.


    I can understand that. Even I want to make clothes for Ciel, clothes that would accentuate Ciel¡¯s cuteness, from scratch.


    With Shusii-san directing that passion into designing clothes for me, teamed up with Ciel as well, this happened.


    Ciel seems to have some things she wouldn¡¯t give up on, so while exchanging ideas with each other, the two worked on the designs.


    Had this been for Ciel¡¯s clothes instead, I would¡¯ve joined in the discussion but since it¡¯s my clothes they¡¯re designing, it¡¯s hard to interject.


    Rather, seeing them dress up a mannequin that looks like me feels, how do I describe it¡­ fairly uncomfortable.


    It only feels that way since I think of it as me, so I could just look at it as a palette swap Ciel instead but, unfortunately, since I have a permanent form now, my mind can¡¯t help but process palette swap Ciel = me now.


    I wonder how much time has passed. I¡¯ve started to feel lonely just watching, so I was playing with Liessyl-san ¨C¨C since it seems like in my current state, only spirits with considerable magic power can see me ¨C¨C when suddenly ¡¸Shusii, are you in?¡¹ a voice echoed from the storefront.


    At the same time, Shusii-san instantly froze.


    It¡¯s a familiar voice. If I remember correctly, isn¡¯t it Yunmika-san who we met at the Hunter Guild?


    Why is she here? I first thought, but are they perhaps sisters?


    Welp. I only remember Yunmika-san¡¯s first name.


    ¡¸Ah¡­¡­ Umm¡­¡­¡¹


    With pleading eyes, Shusii-san stares at Ciel. On the other hand, Ciel¡¯s puzzled.


    ¡ºFor now, tell her that ¡¸It¡¯s fine.¡¹¡»


    ¡¸It¡¯s fine.¡¹


    ¡¸T-thank you. Then, I¡¯ll be back in a minute, okay.¡¹


    Saying so, Shusii-san hurried out of the room.


    Left by herself, Ciel tilted her head.


    ¡ºI wonder what that¡¯s all about?¡»


    ¡ºThe one who just arrived should be Yunmika-san, I think¡­¡­¡»


    ¡ºWho¡¯s Yunmika?¡»


    ¡ºThe elf we met at the headquarters.¡»


    ¡ºOh, she was there. Yunmika Maa Mesi, right?¡»


    ¡­¡­ Yup, it sounds like Shusii-san and Yunmika-san are undoubtedly sisters.


    More importantly, back to explaining to Ciel.


    ¡ºBetween you and Yunmika-san, you should be higher status-wise. You¡¯re Fii-kaasama¡¯s daughter after all.¡»


    ¡ºRight.¡»


    ¡ºBecause of that, leaving you unattended to welcome in Yunmika-san might be bad in terms of courtesy.


    However, for Shusii-san, she is probably a person that Shusii-san can¡¯t simply ignore.


    But saying that, you would be, again, going against common courtesy, so she likely wanted you to take a hint and permit her to go.¡»


    ¡ºIt honestly wouldn¡¯t have bothered me, but I suppose she just couldn¡¯t go against that, right?¡»


    ¡ºI can¡¯t say for certain, but that¡¯s probably the case.¡»


    I don¡¯t know the etiquette regarding that either.


    While I do have some past life knowledge at disposal, that knowledge only came from skimming through books, I¡¯ve never put it to practice nor did I have any opportunities to do so.


    Still, Ciel is impressive as always. I¡¯m glad she understood it from that explanation.


    ¡ºHaving authority is so troublesome.¡»


    ¡ºConsidering how we still get into dragged into trouble even without it, it¡¯s difficult to judge which is more troublesome.


    At the very least, I believe that we¡¯ll have less trouble than we would without having authority.¡»


    If we have to deal with nobles while having no firm standing, a mistake while interacting might make things messy.


    Specifically, if we¡¯re pushed to use force, we might get into an all-out war with their house and, if it¡¯s an important noble, it might be even with the country itself.


    Though, starting a war against one girl would probably affect the reputation of the country.


    Currently, people who don¡¯t want to have hostilities with Fii-kaasama likely wouldn¡¯t escalate things even if Ciel has a few awkward interactions.


    While we might get into more trouble as Fii-kaasama¡¯s daughter, with our status, things shouldn¡¯t go too bad even if we resolve problems with force.


    While it¡¯s best to behave in a way so that this doesn¡¯t happen, unfortunately neither Ciel nor I know how to behave like a noble.


    As I contemplated this, I sensed two people approaching the room.


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    ¡ºIt seems like she¡¯s heading back now.¡»


    ¡ºOh, that¡¯s a shame. I wanted to talk with Ain more, though.¡»


    ¡ºI feel the same.¡»


    While we can talk anytime, we do need to make sure that we don¡¯t take this for granted.


    ¡¸Cielmer-sama, sorry for the long wait.¡¹


    The door opens, showing Shusii-san and Yunmika-san.


    Seeing Shusii-san speak the way she spoke to Ciel earlier, Yunmika-san went pale and smacked her on the head.


    She then pushed Shusii-san¡¯s head down, as if to make her apologize.


    ¡¸Please excuse my fool of a little sister.¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t mind it, I gave my permission.¡¹


    ¡¸See, even Cielmer-sama is siding with me.


    I¡¯ll make sure to act properly in public, okay~¡¹


    Hearing Shusii-san¡¯s insistence, Yunmika reluctantly let go of her.


    With her head now freed, Shusii-san sighed as she rubbed her neck.


    ¡¸Cielmer-sama, what business brought you to such a placed as ours?¡¹


    ¡¸Yunmika, you can talk normally too.¡¹


    ¡¸Umm, Right. Affirmative, no, understood.


    What brought you here, Cielmer-sama?¡¹


    While having some difficulty, Yunmika-san changed her tone.


    Shusii-san changed her tone easily because she¡¯s, if I have to say, a bit airheaded while in contrast Yunmika-san did due to her rationality.


    As expected of the chief of the elves, I suppose.


    And just as Shusii-san said, I guess they¡¯ll be speaking more courteously outside of private situations.


    ¡¸I came to buy clothes.¡¹


    ¡¸While this shop certainly does also sell clothing, there are better clothing stores to shop at, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸I wasn¡¯t let inside.¡¹


    ¡¸Onee-chan, you¡¯re so mean.¡¹ Ignoring Shusii-san¡¯s words, Ciel answered her.


    I feel sorry for Shusii-san but while this shop may be expensive for hunters, it¡¯s an average shop from a noble¡¯s perspective.


    Naturally product quality is also important but one¡¯s name value speaks louder in this case.


    After all, nobles pay great attention to what they wear.


    Still, if the product quality is great, your shop should gain fame eventually.


    As I mulled on that, Yunmika-san had a grim expression and looked at Ciel.


    ¡¸Is that true?¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ I can¡¯t believe it, do they want to die?¡¹


    ¡¸Who?¡¹


    Ciel and I tilt our heads in confusion.


    Do we provoke their anger or something? I don¡¯t think that¡¯s the case, though. Rather we didn¡¯t have any time to do so.


    ¡¸Do you remember the people who were cornering you back at the Hunter Guild?¡¹


    ¡¸Vaguely.¡¹


    ¡¸They¡¯re among that group. Pretty much unjustifiable resentment, but maybe they assume it¡¯s fine to go after just the daughter?¡¹


    With a grim look, Yunmika-san started mulling over it but, as for me, I understand the bigger picture now.


    So they¡¯re not targeting Fii-kaasama, but perhaps Ciel directly instead.


    And they probably don¡¯t believe that Ciel is Fii-kaasama¡¯s daughter now, do they?


    Well, while I¡¯ve got some clues now, it¡¯s not like we can do anything about this right now, so we¡¯ll just resolve things as they happen.


    Fii-kaasama likely knows something about this anyway.


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    ¡¸I¡¯m sorry to say this, but there¡¯s nothing I can do.¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t mind. It doesn¡¯t matter.¡¹


    That¡¯s a Ciel-like answer.


    In the end, she¡¯s still getting clothes for me with her ideas incorporated in design.


    Rather, maybe she¡¯s even thankful about being chased away from the other stores?


    It¡¯s fine since I¡¯m mad in her stead though.


    Anyways, that¡¯s the end of that topic.


    Just as we moved to the next topic, a spirit suddenly popped out from behind Yunmika-san and our eyes met.


    ? Previous


    Next ?


    ? Index ?


    Heya~! We got another new character, or rather a returning character, once again! And it seems like there¡¯s going to be some spirit shenanigans abound!


    First off, we get a good amount of worldbuilding for fantasy clothes and dressmaking. A surprise, sure, but in these kinds of slice of life fantasy stories, a welcome one. Ain¡¯s barrier interfering with proper magical device readings is funny though. And as usual, it¡¯s nice to see magic actually being used to circumvent the more laborious and time consuming parts of work, just as normal people would use it should it exist and be moderately simple to use. Having a manikin of you (size unconfirmed, actually, the more you know~) being dressed up in your stead is a bit haunting though. Just when you thought you could escape the dress up sequence because of being non-corporeal, there¡¯s an effigy of you, showing you what your fate would have been otherwise, lol.


    Ciel having fun, at Ain¡¯s expense (lol), is a nice read as always. And of course Ciel would be vocal when it comes to Ain. Being not very social will not stand in the way of buying Ain new clothes, lol. Meanwhile in the background Ain is just plain overwhelmed with a pinch of dread. Again, the manikin/doll doesn¡¯t help, lol. Good thing Liessyl was there to play and distract her from reality. I do like Ain being like ¡°But what if it¡¯s a trap¡­ so much for wanting Ciel to have more social interaction. Okay, let¡¯s just do it.¡±, self-awareness is good. In the past interludes, it has been shown that Ciel is sensitive when Ain is on alert and it¡¯s one of the things that stops her from opening up, so it¡¯s nice to see Ain being a bit more relaxed, while her caution is understandable.


    And lastly, we have the introduction to Yunmika¡­ and her spirit? Not much to say yet, but I think this is the first time we¡¯ve ever gotten an actual on-screen sibling character interaction? Just a random thought. The ¡°See, I¡¯m not doing anything wrong!¡± part with Shusii was very relatable as a younger sibling though.


    Now then, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 109

    The spirit I locked eyes with was different from Liessyl-san, it was a somewhat timid spirit with mostly blue colors.


    As for its human-like appearance, do powerful spirits just generally take on a humanoid form, or is it by chance?


    The spirit is smaller than Liessyl-san but slightly taller than the spirits I usually see.


    Are we really locking eyes? I waved at it to be sure before it showed a startled reaction and hid behind Yunmika-san, timidly lowering its head.


    Is this spirit a shy one or is this because I have the divine power of the Creator God?


    Or maybe there¡¯s some other reason?


    While I was leisurely thinking to myself, Yunmika-san noticed the spirit¡¯s strange behavior.


    Yeah, she definitely noticed. Of course the spirit would tell Yunmika-san about me.


    I guess she¡¯s contracted with it.


    ¡ºI¡¯m really sorry.¡»


    ¡ºOh, Ain. Why the sudden apology?¡»


    ¡ºA spirit who¡¯s likely in a contract with Yunmika-san discovered my existence.


    It might even end up informing her about how I have divine power.¡»


    ¡ºFufu, Ain making such a blunder, isn¡¯t that pretty unusual? Still, I don¡¯t mind.


    It¡¯s not like they can do much with that knowledge.¡»


    I¡¯m glad that Ciel isn¡¯t bothered about it.


    True, there isn¡¯t really much she can do with this information, but I¡¯d rather keep the people knowing about me to the bare minimum.


    About me being inside Ciel and being capable of using divine power.


    Still, if Ciel comes to learn on utilizing divine power, it¡¯ll be another hidden trump card for us to use.


    Anyhow, the spirit informed Yunmika-san and she¡¯s now staring at Ciel in wide-eyed shock.


    To be exact, she¡¯s likely looking for me but she probably can¡¯t see me.


    Rather, can Fii-kaasama even see me when I¡¯m in this state? She probably can.


    ¡¸Cielmer-sama. I realize that it¡¯s discourteous to ask, but¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Is it about Ain?¡¹


    ¡¸Is that perhaps the¡­¡­ god that¡¯s beside you?¡¹


    ¡¸Ain isn¡¯t a god, but that¡¯s pretty close.


    The one who you talked with at the Hunter Guild was Ainsel.¡¹


    Hearing Ciel¡¯s reply, Yunmika-san started contemplating about something.


    Well, I imagine that it¡¯s pretty difficult to make sense of what Ciel just said.


    After all, while it isn¡¯t a lie, it¡¯s not in the realm of common sense.


    As for Shuusi-san, she already can¡¯t follow the conversation and is just there blinking her eyes with her head tilt in confusion


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Right, understood.¡¹


    ¡¸You want to talk?¡¹


    ¡¸If I may, could you allow me the opportunity? ¡¹


    While she seemed to have come to some sort of conclusion earlier, Yunmika-san immediately jumped at Ciel¡¯s offer.


    ¡ºIs it fine?¡»


    ¡ºI don¡¯t mind. Seeing it directly would likely make it easier to explain anyways.¡»


    ¡ºIn that case, I¡¯m leaving her to you.¡»


    Since it¡¯s Ciel¡¯s request, I have no intention of declining.


    ¡­¡­ I might refuse depending on the request itself but this one isn¡¯t an issue, so I gladly accept.


    Anyways, just so it¡¯s easier to observe, I guess it¡¯s time to turn black.


    As Ciel and I switched, I paid no attention to Yunmika-san before me and instead put on the ring and hair ornament Ciel gifted me.


    The blue jewel is reminiscent of Ciel¡¯s eyes, somewhat touching my heartstrings.


    I took out a mirror to check the hair accessory and it works as a really good highlight for my dark hair.


    ¡ºDoes it look good?¡»


    ¡ºYes, yes! As I thought, you¡¯re adorable, Ain. Really adorable!


    But still, seeing Ain wear the accessories I chose makes me feel a bit restless.


    Am I feeling happy? Or am I feeling embarrassed?¡»


    ¡ºPerhaps it might even be both.¡»


    ¡ºRight, right! It is a pleasant feeling though.¡»


    I¡¯d love to just continue talking to Ciel forever, but I can¡¯t really do that, so I faced Yunmika-san and began speaking.


    ¡¸Pleased to meet you, or should it be ¡°it¡¯s been a while¡±? I¡¯m Ainsel.


    Would it be easier to understand if I introduce myself as Fii-kaasama¡¯s other daughter?¡¹


    ¡¸Pleased to see you again, Ainsel-sama.¡¹


    Ohh, she adapted quite impressively.


    Shuusi-san¡¯s confusion is also pretty impressive. Her pupils are darting about and she¡¯s at a loss for words.


    Honestly, it¡¯s really amazing how Yunmika-san adapted.


    ¡¸I don¡¯t mind if you interact with me the same way you do with Ciel.


    Since I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be out too much.¡¹


    ¡ºThat¡¯s a no. I intend on having Ain act more, alright?¡»


    ¡¸Understood. Still, it¡¯s best that you don¡¯t treat your own position lightly, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you very much for the warning. While I can¡¯t say that we¡¯ve gotten a complete grasp of it yet, we¡¯re currently acting not as Fii-kaasama¡¯s daughters but simply as a pair of hunters.


    We will ask for appropriate treatment whenever we are to use Fiiyanamia-kaasama¡¯s name.¡¹


    Ignoring Ciel¡¯s insistence, I responded to Yunmika-san¡¯s warning.


    Ciel¡¯s behavior likely gives off the impression that we make light of, or rather don¡¯t care about our social status and such, but there¡¯s really no helping it.


    She might be thinking that if people underestimate us too much, it could reflect on Fii-kaasama¡¯s authority and disrupt Central¡¯s power balance.


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    Though if that happens, Fii-kaasama would just kick everyone out, but I would honestly prefer that we don¡¯t become the cause for this to happen.


    ¡¸So, what would you like to talk with me about?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ What are you?¡¹


    ¡¸You can just think of me as an extra to Ciel.


    Only one of us can be outside at a given time and I don¡¯t particularly plan to do anything to spirits.


    I¡¯d like to be at least capable of conversing with them but as I am now, I lack the ability to do so.


    And if I have to add anything else, I¡¯ll prove my words to be true in due time, I suppose?


    I won¡¯t answer anything beyond this.¡¹


    ¡¸I see. Thank you.¡¹


    When I called myself an extra, ¡ºAin¡¯s not an extra!¡» Ciel immediately countered, but since I couldn¡¯t find the timing to respond, I controlled myself and continued talking to Yunmika-san.


    I should tell her ¡ºThings will be easier if people think of me as an extra.¡» later on.


    ¡¸Anyhow,. I don¡¯t plan on harming the spirit, so please be at ease.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m not worried about that at all. After all, one who has a high spirit by her side and is adorned with a spirit¡¯s place of rest can¡¯t be a wicked being.¡¹


    ¡¸Come to think of it, is the spirit that¡¯s with you one that you made a contract with?¡¹


    From my question, Yunmika-san was dumbfounded for a moment.


    Was that perhaps something that should be common sense? Well, I am ignorant about the world, so forgive me for that.


    Pulling herself together, Yunmika-san answered.


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. This little one is a water spirit. A very strong one at that and the very reason I was entrusted the role of being a mediator of Central.¡¹


    ¡¸Your spirit can even see me, after all. Liessyl-san once told me that only powerful spirits can see my form.¡¹


    Told me, or to be exact, it¡¯s my interpretation of her gestures and stuff.


    As I brought up Liessyl-san¡¯s name, Yunmika-san once again had a troubled look.


    ¡¸And Liessyl is¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸The forest spirit.¡¹


    Replying so, I looked at Liessyl-san and she was staring back at me.


    As our eyes met, we smiled at each other.


    ¡¸A named one¡­¡­ no, I half expected that.


    Speaking of your appearance, I don¡¯t quite remember you changing colors back then.¡¹


    ¡¸I gained the ability to change my colors after that time.


    I can wear the same colors as Ciel, but there¡¯s no meaning in doing that now.¡¹


    So we¡¯re easier to distinguish, is my outward reason, but the truth is that I just want to wear the accessories Ciel picked for me, so I don¡¯t intend to change my colors.


    It¡¯d be awfully convenient if we could automatically change equipment when switching, is there some way to do that?


    Ciel picked these for me, so I won¡¯t allow even Ciel to wear them.


    ¡¸By the way, is your spirit equal in power to Liessyl-san?¡¹


    As I said that, the water spirit suddenly started quivering.


    Yunmika-san quickly gestured to the spirit that she¡¯s open for listening.


    Liessyl-san didn¡¯t seem to be particularly bothered and is simply floating around.


    ¡¸Umm, it would be presumptuous to consider myself her equal, she says.


    In actuality, named spirits are a step beyond. They¡¯re literally at a different level.¡¹


    ¡¸Really?¡¹


    ¡¸This little one is at the upper level among intermediate spirits, meanwhile the forest spirit close to you two are at the upper level among high spirits.¡¹


    ¡¸As I thought, Liessyl-san is amazing.¡¹


    Saying so, I faced Liessyl-san and there she had a triumphant look. While it might be weird saying this when I look about 12-13 years old, it¡¯s cute of her.


    That aside, it seems like spirits that have names are powerful.


    Are they strong because they have names or do they get their names because they¡¯re strong? It¡¯s probably the latter.


    ¡¸By the way, you two are sisters, correct?¡¹


    Since I feel somewhat bad leaving Shuusi-san in the dust, I directed this question to her, but she seems to be busy drawing something with great enthusiasm.


    She probably didn¡¯t hear my question.


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    That¡¯s why, as with earlier, Yunmika-san answered.


    ¡¸Yes, that¡¯s right.¡¹


    ¡¸But aren¡¯t your names are slightly different?¡¹


    ¡¸I suppose it would be better to teach you about this. Since it¡¯ll be convenient to know.


    Our first names are our given names. Yunmika for me and Shuusi for my little sister.


    Our last names are our tribe¡¯s name. In our case, that¡¯d be Mesi.¡¹


    So it¡¯s Yunmika-san from the Mesi tribe, then.


    ¡¸In other words, even if your last name is the same with someone, that doesn¡¯t necessarily make you related by blood?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s the idea. Though, we would be what you call relatives in human terms.¡¹


    ¡¸What about the middle name?¡¹


    ¡¸That one stands for what spirit we¡¯re contracted with. It¡¯s Maa for water spirits.


    Shagal for tree spirits.¡¹


    It isn¡¯t the four classical elements? Or so I thought, but Liessyl-san is a forest spirit, right.


    In other words, does that make the spirit Shuusi-san is contracted with related to Liessyl-san?


    I don¡¯t know if there¡¯s a well-defined hierarchy among spirits, though.


    I do have the vague impression that there¡¯s one at the top, with the other spirits doing as they please regardless of power.


    ¡¸Are all elves contracted with spirits?¡¹


    ¡¸No. Only a few have contracts.


    For the ones that aren¡¯t, they¡¯ll only go by their given name and tribe name.


    Dwarves should be similar to us in that regard.¡¹


    ¡¸I see. Understood.¡¹


    If I remember correctly, the dwarf Bajo-san also had some sort of middle name. I already forgot if though.


    Ciel probably remembers it.


    ¡¸Can all elves speak to spirits?¡¹


    ¡¸No, there are some who can, but the majority can only somewhat understand them. Every elf can see spirits though.¡¹


    ¡¸Elves are amazing.¡¹


    I only started seeing spirits quite recently. Comparing this, the elves¡¯ unique nature can be seen.


    No, I guess in this case, it might be our unique nature that¡¯s actually highlighted.


    And as our conversation continued, it eventually became noon.


    ¡¸Thank you very much. I have business that needs attending to this afternoon, so I should excuse myself.¡¹


    ¡¸Right. Sorry for holding you here for so long.¡¹


    ¡¸No, it was a quite beneficial time.¡¹


    ¡ºShall we switch?¡»


    ¡ºLet¡¯s stay as is. Since if I come out now, I could drag things out.¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood.¡»


    ¡¸Well then, see you later.¡¹


    As I was about to leave, Shuusi-san suddenly perked into action.


    ¡¸A few days, come back again after a few days. The clothes should be done by that time.¡¹


    ¡¸I understand. I look forward to seeing you then.¡¹


    The designs Ciel thought up are going to be incorporated, so I¡¯m looking forward to it.


    After all, I don¡¯t actually know all the details on how it¡¯ll look when completed.


    Heya~! We have more spirit world building this time, as well as regular old world building, and now we¡¯re finally leaving the shop!


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    Some spirit interactions after a long time without, yay! This time we have an adorably timid water spirit a bit nervous with Ain. And so it seems like unlike the regular spirits who only sense/see Ain when she takes over Ciel¡¯s body, stronger spirits do see Ain regularly. Also, I¡¯m wondering the same thing, can Fii see Ain when she¡¯s in spirit form? And has she actually been enjoying Ain¡¯s embarrassment all this time when Ciel starts praising her? Lol.


    As expected (?) elves have high affinity with spirits but the more interesting part is their naming convention. It¡¯s a neat touch that I may or may not be stealing for when I finally get organized enough to attempt writing my own stories. I still need to be consistent here first anyhow. Also, more cute Ain and Ciel banter, with Ciel responding every time Ain makes even the slightest self-depreciating remark, cute. I do await more Ain being forced to be Ain and interacting with the world as Ain from Ciel though, that¡¯d be nice to see Ciel reacting instead.


    And for the last part, our resident clumsy but competent Shuusi has promised the completion of her work in a few days (unspecified even though she explicitly says that she¡¯ll be done by they come by, is she pulling an all nighter and in plural?). Next up, to the guild!


    Now then, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 110

    Having left Shusii-san¡®s shop, Ciel was about to head to the Hunter Guild when suddenly ¡ºThat reminds me, Ain.¡» she called out to me.


    While a bit startled from the hint of joy in Ciel¡¯s tone, ¡ºWhat is it, Ciel?¡» I replied.


    ¡ºWhen we switched, you put away the hair pin and ring, right?¡»


    ¡ºUmm¡­¡­ that¡¯s¡­¡­ You bought them for me and they¡¯re mine, so¡­¡­ If you want to wear them, I won¡¯t say no, but¡­¡­¡»


    Being called out over this, I feel somewhat awkward.


    I won¡¯t lend these accessories, even to Ciel. Or so I said to myself, but if Ciel actually asks for them, I probably wouldn¡¯t refuse.


    Still, if possible, I want to keep them only for me.


    I¡¯m such a pain to deal with, if I say so myself, but I can¡¯t help it. That¡¯s just how I feel.


    I just have to make sure to keep this troublesome side of me to myself.


    And while it might have seeped through a bit in my answer, I was just taken by surprise.


    It¡¯s fine, I¡¯m sure of it. Or so I consoled myself, when I heard Ciel giggling.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s fine, completely fine. After all, these are Ain¡¯s.


    That just means that Ain values them to that extent, right?¡»


    That¡¯s exactly the case, but hearing that from the very person that gave them to me is awfully embarrassing.


    ¡ºThat¡¯s why, I won¡¯t lend this to Ain either.


    If Ain really wants to borrow it, I might just give in, but for now, I won¡¯t lend it. I won¡¯t.¡»


    Ciel said so while happily touching the necklace hanging from her neck.


    ¡ºThat¡¯s, yes. Naturally. I chose that accessory for Ciel to wear after all, so I won¡¯t use it.¡»


    ¡ºI feel the same way. Everything from the color to the accessories themselves are different, but we¡¯re matching, aren¡¯t we?¡»


    ¡ºIt seems so.¡»


    The first presents we ever chose for each other to wear.


    While they may look different, it¡¯d be wonderful if the feelings that inspired our choices matched. Would that be a bit too romantic to think so?


    ¡ó


    When Ciel arrived at the Hunter¡¯s Guild, Viviana-san was already inside.


    She¡¯s there, sitting at the area with tables and chairs free for hunters to use.


    How do I say this, she looks agitated or maybe nervous?


    Due to the unusual air around her, the surrounding hunters don¡¯t dare to sit near her.


    Actually, even the members of the Fools¡¯ Gathering are watching over her from a different table.


    Now, I wonder how it ended up like this?


    No matter how you look at it, there must have been some issue with the relaying of information to Viviana-san.


    Or perhaps Viviana-san herself doesn¡¯t have enough information?


    Listening to the surroundings, ¡¸That woman, isn¡¯t she the Fools¡¯ Gathering¡¯s¡­¡¹ ¡¸Yeah, ¡°Lady Quickshot¡±¡­¡­ I¡¯ve got no idea why she¡¯s firing off such intense aura though.¡¹ I overheard a few things.


    So Viviana-san¡®s alias is ¡°Lady Quickshot¡±.


    She excels in casting sorcery quickly, so I guess that¡¯s where quickshot came from.


    As for the lady, it must be due to her coming from a well-off family.


    Once again, I can¡¯t help but wonder what alias we¡¯d have¡­ but it¡¯ll most likely be ¡°Fiiyanamia-sama¡®s Daughter¡±.


    I mean, that¡¯s a bit weird to be considered an alias, but I¡¯m pretty sure that it¡¯s the most easily recognizable identifier for the public.


    That aside, what about ¡°Dancer of Hues¡± for Ciel? It immediately exposes her as a Dance Princess, though.


    I digress.


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    And so it¡¯s quite difficult to approach Viviana-san in this current situation, but Ciel doesn¡¯t pay any heed and simply heads towards the eye of the typhoon named Viviana-san.


    Viviana-san, meanwhile, doesn¡¯t seem to notice that Ciel is approaching her. She¡¯s just staring at the edge of her table.


    And perhaps thinking of something, ¡¸Sorry for the wait.¡¹ Ciel sat at the side facing Viviana-san and greeted her.


    Hearing that, Viviana-san sprang up with a straightened posture and answered ¡¸N-no, I haven¡¯t waited at all.¡¹ with a cracking voice.


    Yeah, she probably would have reacted the same way regardless of how Ciel greeted her.


    ¡¸What¡¯s wrong?¡¹


    ¡¸No, umm¡­¡­ Huh? You are, Cielmer¡­¡­ right?¡¹


    Properly recognizing Ciel, Vivana-san asked with a confused tone.


    By the looks of it, I guess she was only told that ¡°Fiiyanamia-sama¡®s daughter¡± called for her?


    And Viviana-san doesn¡¯t seem to know that Ciel and I are Fii-kaasama¡®s daughter.


    Currently this information is yet to be completely relayed within the Hunter Guild, so the timing might have been terrible.


    From the Hunter Guild¡¯s standpoint, the fact that Ciel is Fii-kaasama¡®s daughter is of the utmost importance, so they might have prioritized that part.


    It¡¯s far better than just relaying Ciel¡¯s appearance, which might risk the people underestimating us and treating us lightly.


    ¡¸Yup. It¡¯s been a while.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, it certainly has been. Umm, so Fiiyanamia-sama¡®s daughter refers to¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Me.¡¹


    ¡¸Wait, could you give me a moment? I¡¯m really disoriented now. And I¡¯ll have to adjust, don¡¯t I? Yes, right.¡¹


    Viviana-san¡®s confusion was a real sight to behold.


    We waited for her to calm down and after a few minutes passed, Viviana-san went back to normal.


    ¡¸Please excuse me for my discourtesy up until now.


    And then there¡¯s this extreme change. As expected of a lady from a wealthy family.


    While we might be acquaintances, she recognizes that we can¡¯t interact in the way we usually do in a place with this many eyes on us.


    Well, not like I¡¯m knowledgeable enough to have a definitive opinion on these matters.


    Ciel seems to have understood this as well, as she didn¡¯t make any comment about Viviana-san¡®s way of speaking.


    Instead, she called over a guild staff ¡¸I want to talk with her alone.¡¹ and said so.


    For a moment, the staff person had a puzzled look, but seemingly realizing something, she nervously began to guide us.


    It might be a bit heavy-handed, but if we start chatting right here and then, it¡¯d just trouble the Hunter Guild.


    Rather than that, isolating us would be better for both parties involved.


    Inside a room a bit too spacious for only two people to use, Ciel takes out a letter from her magic bag.


    More specifically, a letter of introduction.


    ¡¸I¡¯m returning this. Thanks.¡¹


    ¡¸No, my apologies for not being of much help.¡¹


    ¡¸You can speak normally now.¡¹


    Hearing that, Viviana-san showed a troubled expression.


    From our standpoint, it feels really weird to suddenly hear her talking differently but, on her end, she¡¯s probably just showing proper etiquette, so I suppose it is troubling.


    Even so, it¡¯s not like people with friends of different social status don¡¯t exist and it should be fine to interact normally in private.


    Otherwise, there¡¯s no way to explain Shusii-san and Yunmika-san¡®s behavior.


    ¡¸Right. I understand. Since you¡¯re returning this, you don¡¯t need the backing anymore, right?


    No, that goes without saying. With you becoming Fiiyanamia-sama¡®s adopted daughter, something like this isn¡¯t necessary anymore.


    While I can understand that you deserve that status, I¡¯m still impressed that you caught Fiiyanamia-sama¡®s eye.¡¹


    ¡¸I just greeted her when I entered Central. Then, I was welcomed as a guest.¡¹


    Rather than the act of greeting itself, I think having the capability to even just notice Fii-kaasama¡®s magic power is more important.


    It¡¯s probably impossible even for Ciel, so who knows how many people can actually achieve this feat.


    That¡¯s why ¡¸Just from greeting?¡¹ I think Viviana-san¡®s confused thought process should be wrong.


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    ¡¸Why were you nervous earlier?¡¹


    ¡¸I was summoned by Fiiyanamia-sama¡®s daughter, after all.


    I didn¡¯t know was actually you, so of course I would get so nervous about it.¡¹


    ¡¸Just that?¡¹


    With Ciel¡¯s further question, Viviana-san raised both her hands as if to surrender.


    ¡¸Nope. I got a request from my family. To find out what kind of individual Fiiyanamia-sama¡®s daughter is and such.¡¹


    ¡¸Why?¡¹


    ¡¸Now that I¡¯ve said that much, changing topics would be useless at this point.


    There¡¯s a faction that is planning to drag Fiiyanamia-sama down from her top position. They don¡¯t quite like how she¡¯s at the top despite not having to do anything, it seems.


    And in the midst of this, if Fiiyanamia-sama truly did adopt a child, then it would give them an opening to take advantage of.¡¹


    I sort of remember being told that there¡¯s a possibility of us getting dragged into some mess for being Fii-kaasama¡®s daughter, so I already expected this, but aren¡¯t things developing a bit too fast?


    I don¡¯t plan on being an easy target though, so I¡¯ll make sure to be extra alert with my detection magic.


    Don¡¯t tell me that the people of the Merchant Guild that closed their doors to Ciel are in cahoots with this faction? Actually, maybe it¡¯s the reason they treated Ciel like that to begin with.


    In other words, they¡¯re confident that they can take Fii-kaasama down.


    ¡ºAren¡¯t they a bit too reckless?¡»


    ¡ºI agree. Still, these people don¡¯t think that they¡¯re being reckless, which is why they¡¯re doing it, right?¡»


    ¡ºSince this is a good opportunity, could you ask Viviana-san¡®s about this?¡»


    She definitely has more info on them than we do.


    We could ask Fii-kaasama too, but it¡¯s best to have information coming from a different perspective.


    ¡¸Are those people¡­ okay?¡¹


    ¡¸It seems like they¡¯ve mustered a fairly impressive fighting force. I¡¯ve heard that they also have some people at A-rank level, but¡­¡­ ¡¹


    ¡¸Only that?¡¹


    ¡¸I can¡¯t imagine them being able to win against Fiiyanamia-sama with this either, but Cielmer, will you be alright?¡¹


    Right, thinking about it normally, we might not have a winning chance against multiple A-ranked people.


    But I think we should be able to defend every attack they can throw.


    It didn¡¯t sound like Fii-kaasama was joking about my barrier, so we probably wouldn¡¯t even budge.


    ¡ºA-rank is right about a wyvern¡¯s strength, right? Then it wouldn¡¯t be a problem at all, would it?¡»


    ¡ºEven if there¡¯s someone specialized in offense with nearly S-rank level strength, it should be alright. If what Fii-kaasama told us is true, that is.¡»


    ¡ºI think you should be a bit more confident about yourself, Ain. Still, just having Ain by my side puts me at ease, you know? Since Ain protects me not only with a barrier, but with other things too.¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯m grateful to hear that then.¡»


    Me replying¡­ just a bit curtly was, as always, because I felt embarrassed.


    Besides, if I get carried away, I might get the rug pulled right under me, so I¡¯ll just continue striving to make an even stronger barrier.


    As we were chatting, we ended up leaving Viviana-san hanging.


    While it wasn¡¯t for too long, she¡¯s staring at Ciel just waiting.


    And so Ciel asked Viviana-san a question.


    ¡¸Do you know blue hellfire?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, that¡¯s my master¡¯s ¡ª master Friere Yazick¡¯s sorcery, no?¡¹


    ¡¸The lower power barrier that I usually use can withstand it.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ You don¡¯t¡­ sound like you¡¯re lying¡­¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s no point lying about it.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, I suppose there¡¯s no need for any concern. I already knew you were strong, but I didn¡¯t realize you were that strong.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s the barrier I¡¯m proud of.¡¹


    Ciel saying it so proudly is probably because she meant it as a praise for me too.


    It¡¯s adorable to see Ciel showing such a rare expression, but from Viviana-san¡®s standpoint, this probably only looks like Ciel¡¯s bragging.


    Ciel doesn¡¯t seem to mind that, though.


    At this point, either asking for more information or just simply enjoying a bit of catching up with each other would be fine, but there¡¯s something I want to confirm before moving on.


    ¡ºCiel, there¡¯s something I want you to ask Viviana-san, will that be alright?¡»


    ¡ºWhat is it? You can also ask her personally too, you know?¡»


    ¡ºLet¡¯s decide whether to switch or not later. This question is also for deciding whether it¡¯s fine to switch in front of Viviana-san, you see.¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood. What is it?¡»


    ¡ºAbout what side Viviana-san¡®s family will be on.¡»


    This is something we honestly have to know.


    The reason why she was requested to look for Fii-kaasama¡®s daughter could be to prevent disorder in Central or protect Fii-kaasama¡®s reign. However, it¡¯s also possible that this is so they can scheme against her. Even if Viviana-san doesn¡¯t want to do that, she might not be able to go against the will of her family.


    ¡¸By the way, which side is Viviana¡¯s family on?¡¹


    (This chapter is provided to you by Re:Library)


    (Say no to content thief!)


    As Ciel asked so, Viviana-san¡®s expression grew clouded.


    ? Previous


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    ? Index ?


    Heya~! It¡¯s been a while since we¡¯ve last seen Viviana and now we¡¯re having a slightly tense development with the last question!


    Just as a refresher, Viviana comes from a semi-aristocratic family in central (since there¡¯s no aristocracy here), so the chance that she could be dragged into the seemingly brewing mess non-negligible, which would be interesting since she seems personally against the ¡°f around and find out¡± tier stupidity of trying to overthrow Fii, lol.


    As for our protags, it¡¯s bit heartwarming that Ciel is so on board with having Ain interact with Viviana in person, especially with how Viviana tried to help her (as Ciel) ease up prior. Combined with how they said goodbye to her, it seems like even though they were only together for a short while, Viviana have left a big impression on them. At the very least, Ciel seems to trust her enough to be open with her meeting Ain. Also, Ain going slightly tsun when she gets embarrassed never gets old, cute Ain.


    Anyways, it might get delayed since I¡¯ve got a minor issue preventing me from sitting for too long of a time but there¡¯s a chapter baking for next Friday, so I hope you look forward to it~!


    Now then, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 111

    Hesitant to speak, Viviana went silent for a moment before turning her eyes to Ciel with resolve.


    ¡¸There¡¯s no point hiding it, is there? I¡¯ll tell you the truth.¡¹


    ¡¸Okay.¡¹


    ¡¸My family, the Amyulute family, can be generally considered to be of the Fiiyanamiya faction.


    However, while the Amyulute family is by no means large, it has a strong foundation. In terms of influence, my family is weaker than Master¡¯s, but were we to be won over, one can make use this power power.¡¹


    ¡¸So?¡¹


    ¡¸So there¡¯s a faction that¡¯s annoyingly persistent about trying to win us over right now. And they already got my older brother.


    Currently, they¡¯re appealing to my father through my brother. My father has been ignoring it so far, but he plans on making a proper decision based gathered information, including the results of this request.¡¹


    Uwah¡­¡­ How do I say this, that¡¯s really messy.


    On top of her family having a divided opinion, they¡¯re also being targeted by troublesome folk.


    ¡ºThat¡¯s quite unfortunate.¡»


    ¡ºIs that so? I suppose so?¡»


    ¡ºTo put it simply, it¡¯s like if you and I have differing opinions.¡»


    ¡ºIn that situation, as long as it¡¯s not too bad, I think I¡¯d follow Ain¡¯s opinion.¡»


    ¡ºWell, sure, I think I¡¯d adopt your opinion as much as possible myself¡»


    ¡ºOh, you¡¯re right, it¡¯s a problem, a big problem.¡»


    Ciel answered cheerfully, but that¡¯s not it.


    Though, since she¡¯s enjoying herself, I guess it¡¯s fine.


    Rather, it¡¯s on me for giving a bad example.


    ¡¸How do you think it¡¯ll go?¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ll convince him to stay with the Fiiyanamia faction.


    I have my older sister as well, so even if I¡¯m against the next head of the family, we should be on roughly equal grounds.


    And I¡¯ve also had a glimpse of your power. That should help, but¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡ºIf things don¡¯t go well, we might get targeted it seems.¡»


    ¡ºBy Viviana¡¯s brother?¡»


    ¡ºYes. Since if he claims that Fii-kaasama¡¯s daughter is actually weak and is able to show proof of it himself, it would weaken Viviana-san¡¯s credibility.¡»


    ¡ºIn that case, then the answer is simple.¡»


    ¡¸Even if it¡¯s your brother, I can¡¯t guarantee his life.¡¹


    ¡¸Of course, I¡¯m aware of that. I don¡¯t believe he can cause you harm, but if he¡¯s fallen to the point of attacking you, then I¡¯d accept whatever that happens.


    And to be frank, I don¡¯t really have many good memories with my family.¡¹


    ¡¸Really?¡¹


    Ciel asked, but now that she mentioned it, I do remember her saying something similar before.


    After all, since her circuits were short, her maximum output was extremely low and so she was considered to be lacking as a sorcerer.


    ¡¸While I¡¯m now at a point where I¡¯ve gained an alias thanks to you, I was originally a failure.


    From her words just now, I suppose only her older sister didn¡¯t shun her.


    While there are also people like Friere-san, abandoning aristocracy to be a hunter against your own will must¡¯ve been extremely humiliating.


    ¡¸I¡¯m glad I became a hunter.¡¹Though it seems like Viviana-san¡¯s fine with it now.


    Well, Viviana-san has reached the rank where she can be on equal footing with nobles as a hunter, after all. I guess she also doesn¡¯t have much lingering ties with her family.


    Rather, it¡¯s possible that maybe it¡¯s her family that¡¯s making the effort to appeal to her now.


    Yup, the more I think about it, the more messy it gets.


    Is this the world that Ciel would have been originally cast into?


    Still, as much as she is part of the Amyulute household, Viviana-san is also an individual now.


    One that¡¯s independent enough to cut ties with her family if need be.


    Actually, isn¡¯t her older sister the only reason she¡¯s still with the Amyulute family?


    Hmm, this is tough. Honestly, I don¡¯t want to poke my nose in other people¡¯s family problems.


    But too bad for Viviana-san, I still want to meddle in it to expose Ciel to different kinds of worlds.


    As a sample for the upper-class world, I just have to give Ciel exposure and she¡¯ll figure out her own answer to the situation.


    ¡ºWould you mind if we switch?¡»


    ¡ºNope, but is it okay?¡»


    ¡ºI¡¯ve judged that Viviana-san is alright.¡»


    ¡ºAlright, understood. Go for it.¡»


    Ciel removes her necklace and switches with me.


    Fully switched, I then put on my ring and hair ornament.


    It might seem unnecessary, but I actually find it enjoyable.


    Seeing the change in color, Viviana-san had a look of surprise, but she didn¡¯t seem to be bothered by our actions.


    ¡¸Trusting what your words until now, let¡¯s discuss about what to do from here.¡¹


    ¡¸You, are you Cielmer-sama?¡¹


    ¡¸No, I¡¯m Ainsel. I¡¯m an ext-¡¹


    ¡ºAgain, you¡¯re not an extra!¡»


    ¡¸No, I¡¯m Cielmer¡¯s protector¡­ I suppose?¡¹


    It seems like Ciel really doesn¡¯t like me calling myself an extra to her. So with no other choice, I went with protector instead and ¡ºThat¡¯s right.¡» she sounds quite pleased.


    Viviana-san was puzzled but still nodded and began speaking.


    ¡¸So back then at Estoque, there were times when it was you and times when it Cielmer-sama?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. Don¡¯t be too hard on us for hiding it from you.¡¹


    ¡¸Of course. Considering your situation, it¡¯s only natural. Rather, had you thoughtlessly shared it, I would have cautioned you against it.


    Still, sharing that right now¡­¡­¡¹


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    The latter probably didn¡¯t need to be said, but I intentionally said so to show that I¡¯m not keeping any secrets.


    Viviana-san is a noble herself, so I hope she takes the hint.


    ¡¸You believe me?¡¹


    ¡¸We¡¯ve shared a bath, after all.¡¹


    ¡¸It was you back then? Rather, your colors change?¡¹


    ¡¸We were able to change recently.


    The appearance is generally that of Ciel¡¯s, so it won¡¯t be wrong to say that you bathed with Ciel. However, I was the one in control then.¡¹


    She could probably tell from the way we speak, or so I thought, but there¡¯s no way she would remember after such a long time.


    And even if she did, anyone can change the way they speak anyways.


    ¡¸What did you mean by ¡°protector¡±?¡¹


    ¡¸No comment, or so I¡¯d prefer, but just think of me as a being that¡¯s possessing Ciel. I can¡¯t separate from her and when I¡¯m not in control, it¡¯s not like I can do anything.¡¹


    ¡¸I see. No, I can¡¯t really say that I fully understand it.¡¹


    ¡¸We¡¯re just two souls sharing one body.¡¹


    What of it is ¡°just¡±, I don¡¯t know myself. It¡¯s difficult to explain briefly in any other way.


    That¡¯s why I can only leave it to Viviana-san¡¯s flexibility.


    Somehow, she doesn¡¯t seem to be too confused with our conversation, so it should be alright.


    Viviana-san has interacted with both Ciel and I, so perhaps she already had some suspicions before.


    ¡¸So, for what reason did you appear?


    You wanted to discuss about something, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. However, I have a few things I¡¯d like to check, so please let me hear your answers.¡¹


    ¡¸What is it?¡¹


    ¡¸Viviana-san, are you with the Amyulute family only because your older sister is there?¡¹


    There¡¯s not much point being indirect and most of all, I don¡¯t know how to ask in that way, so I just went straight to the point.


    Viviana-san¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change, but I somewhat feel like she¡¯s surprised.


    ¡¸That¡¯s true. If not for nee-sama, I would¡¯ve cut ties with them long ago.


    I¡¯m not particularly attached to that house, after all.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, how about we lend a hand in pulling your sister away from the Amyulute family?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Why, do you say that?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s to study society. Our lives up until now haven¡¯t been normal, so we practically have nothing of what¡¯s called common sense.


    Nothing¡­ probably won¡¯t work as an answer.


    It¡¯s not like I want to do volunteer work, but saying that it¡¯s just for societal study would likely make her uneasy.


    I still haven¡¯t said anything about how we¡¯d help though, so I don¡¯t even know if it¡¯s worth asking something for.


    ¡¸Loyalty to Fii-kaasama, I suppose? That¡¯s not quite right, but anyway, it¡¯ll be fine to just swear that you won¡¯t go against Fii-kaasama.


    And depending on the situation, we might have to take custody of your sister.¡¹


    The former is for formality, the latter is just to be sure.


    She seems to be alright with it, so anyways I continue the discussion.


    ¡¸I¡¯m not very informed about these matters, how can you break off from your family?¡¹


    ¡¸The simplest way is to be thought of as talentless. You¡¯ll be sent off with ease.¡¹


    ¡¸Is your sister talentless?¡¹


    ¡¸Far from it. Her being talented is precisely why she can¡¯t leave the family.¡¹


    ¡ºIs just running away not enough?¡»


    ¡ºDepending on where she escapes to, she might get taken back. Besides, even if she succeeds, she likely won¡¯t be able to appear in public.


    After all, if she gets found out, the family would probably come for her. If she had to escape, she¡¯ll have to at least leave the country. But if she could, then this wouldn¡¯t be an issue, would it?¡»


    ¡ºWe also took a long time, after all.¡»


    ¡ºIt was pretty short, actually.¡»


    In this world, getting to B-rank by 20 is already considered fast.


    Our journey can¡¯t be used as reference at all.


    Besides, even if we take her out of the country, we don¡¯t have anyone to entrust her to, and I don¡¯t know if Viviana-san has anyone either.


    And if we do successfully get her away, the issue would be how she¡¯d make a living from then on.


    Having her escape but then die from starving due to unemployment won¡¯t be funny.


    Viviana-san might be able to provide her sister by herself, but I suppose this is something they should talk amongst themselves.


    All I need to do is to present as many alternatives as I can.


    ¡¸Another is to persuade the head of the family. Children are generally the property of their parents.


    In the case of girls, this continues until they marry, I guess? I¡¯ve left the family, so it¡¯s not exactly the case.


    Also, orders from the people above.¡¹


    ¡¸Even if it¡¯s from above, it wouldn¡¯t be that easy, would it?


    Doing things high-handedly for no reason would invite the fall of authority, in my opinion.¡¹


    ¡¸You¡¯ve became the child of someone with authority that¡¯s completely untouchable, what are you even talking about?¡¹


    Right, Fii-kaasama isn¡¯t someone that can be stopped if she decided to do something like that.


    Rather, even if everyone in Central fought againstkaasama, I¡¯m sure she will win.


    As for us, well, we probably wouldn¡¯t die.


    ¡¸For this, I want to do things properly and avoid going by force. It¡¯s a study of society, after all. And so that Ciel doesn¡¯t abuse her authority.¡¹


    ¡¸How wise.¡¹


    ¡¸By the way, we¡¯re making progress here but does your sister have any intention to leave the family?¡¹


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    (If you are reading this from other sites, that means this content is stolen without consent. Please support us by visiting our site.)


    We¡¯ve made progress, but it¡¯ll depend on the future.


    And, well, even if we continue from here, it¡¯ll end in vain if we don¡¯t know if her older sister¡¯s on board with it.


    I started this whole thing, though.


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Who knows? There¡¯s no telling until we ask.¡¹


    ¡¸Then please ask her about it. I¡¯ll ask fromkaasama as well.¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    ¡¸Now, we¡¯re still not done with this topic, but let¡¯s end the discussion here.


    Or do you have anything to ask?¡¹


    ¡¸You will be in Central for a while, correct?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. As of now, we don¡¯t plan on leaving.


    If you send out a messenger to the manor, we should be able to keep in touch.


    And even without that, I plan on visiting the Hunter Guild occasionally, so it should be fine.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, let¡¯s finish here. Let¡¯s talk again sometime.


    It¡¯s awfully late, but I¡¯m glad that you reached Central safely.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you, see you later.¡¹


    I waved goodbye, switched with Ciel, and left the room.


    ? Previous


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    ? Index ?


    One familial conflict to dive into, fresh from the oven! We¡¯re doing the opposite of hiding now, it seems like it¡¯s time to dive into a bothersome affair!


    First of all, it¡¯s nice how Ain can now introduce herself as herself, it¡¯s been, like, the 5th person excluding Fii and the maids. Moreover, Viviana is someone that tried to help her (them), although she was refused. Once again, it¡¯s nice to see that Ain, despite not being too concerned about it, can now appear in the world as herself.


    Second, I like how there¡¯s a slight similarity between AinCiel and the Amyulute sisters, both from a family that¡¯s not quite the best, exiled for uselessness (Ciel and Viviana) and only has a good relationship with an elder sister (elder sister figure in Ciel¡¯s case). Not that Ain noticed it, she seemd to be just concerned about the opportunity, though it¡¯s also hard to deny that Ain can be a tsundere sometimes, so maybe she does want to help? Well, two birds with one stone at least.


    Anyhow, it seems like we¡¯ll be getting a new character soon, so I hope we see her soon (sweats).


    Now then, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 112

    Since becoming Fii-kaasama¡¯s daughter, we¡¯ve been eating dinner at the same time.


    Though, it¡¯s only Ciel that¡¯s eating, not me.


    Anyways.


    Perhaps it¡¯s actually unusual for Fii-kaasama to show up to dinner everyday.


    After all, she should be able to stay alive without eating anything.


    For that reason, a lot of times I can¡¯t help but think that she shows up everyday because of us.


    Just like a mother asking her child how her day has been at the end of the day, I feel like this could be her way of showing affection.


    I¡¯m not going out of my way to tell Ciel, though.


    After all, rather than being told about it by others, this is something best realized on her own.


    Sappy stories aside, there are once again things that we need to ask Fii-kaasama about.


    ¡¸My, my, it sounds like today was quite eventful as well.¡¹


    ¡¸Really? Ain and I went shopping, which was fun, but we only met with Viviana after that.


    But, right. Fii, could you tell me about the stores that wouldn¡¯t let us buy things and the Amyulute¡­¡­ Or rather the people that are opposing you?


    You should know all about this, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, yes. I know about it. I can hear everything, after all.¡¹


    Well, I thought so. If there¡¯s anything Fii-kaasama doesn¡¯t know about in Central, it would be things only gods would know.


    So, the issue now is if she¡¯ll actually tell us what she knows but surprisingly Fii-kaasama continued with the topic.


    ¡¸Since you already know that much, then it should be fine to talk about it.


    The reason you weren¡¯t allowed to shop was, I think you already heard about it, because they were given orders to do so.


    Specifically from one of the people who encircled you two at the Hunter Guild.


    It¡¯s a person on the upper management of the Merchant Guild who has done considerably crooked deeds in the past.¡¹


    ¡¸And that person is still in the upper management?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s not known to the public, after all. And with the shops this time, it seems like some were forced and reluctantly obeyed.¡¹


    And those that weren¡¯t were in agreement with his way of doing things from the beginning, I guess?


    Whatever the case, I am impressed that they would dare show such an obvious antagonism against Fii-kaasama.


    Hmm, still, were they to go against their superior¡¯s demand, it¡¯s not like Fii-kaasama would protect them for sure.


    Part of why she doesn¡¯t accept money was to avoid being involved with those annoying matters to begin with.


    And I think kaasama only wants to be helpful to those who she wants to help.


    They¡¯re doing as they like in this borrowed land, so they should at least clean up after themselves, I guess.


    Fii-kaasama takes no responsibilities. After all, she¡¯s not the king of Central.


    If they don¡¯t like how she handles things, then they should just leave.


    For this incident, perhaps we can just file a complaint to the Merchant Guild.


    ¡¸Additionally the upper management man is part of the faction desiring to overthrow me.¡¹


    ¡¸Quite fearless of him.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯ve watched people for a long time, but that¡¯s just how they are.


    As time passes, they forget things. Sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. I wonder which one it is for this case.¡¹


    Saying that, Fii-kaasama smiles.


    The reason why she doesn¡¯t simply insist on the latter is probably because if they can overthrow her, that faction would be on the side of justice.


    Ciel doesn¡¯t seem to understand it, she tilts her head in confusion.


    Perhaps Ciel is still too inexperienced to comprehend this.


    Though, I can¡¯t say that I completely understand it as well.


    ¡¸So what is this gathering of fearless people trying to pick a fight with Fii?¡¹


    ¡¸Right, right. People who just appear periodically, I suppose?


    It seems like they believe that I might actually be weak and cannot be entrusted with Central as I never do anything. The people who hold influence in Central¡¯s self-governing body would hold this misconception.


    I crush them every time, however. Though, they always forget.¡¹


    ¡¸You think it¡¯s that time again?¡¹


    ¡¸Right, that¡¯s what I believe.¡¹


    People¡­¡­ Or at least I don¡¯t properly comprehend events that happened before I was born.


    You can only get a vague understanding of what happened from asking others, learning, and seeing by chance.


    I don¡¯t know how long people of this world live, but I¡¯m sure events could be completely forgotten in 100 years.


    People who can comprehend events a century before as reality are likely only few.


    Though, when exactly did Fii-kaasama display her power previously, I have no idea.


    ¡¸I¡¯ll call them aristocrats for convenience¡¯s sake but this time a high aristocrat family¡¯s young head voiced their skepticism which caused the younger generation to raise theirs as well.


    Also, parts of the Hunter Guild, Merchant Guild, and the church are riding on this wave.¡¹


    ¡¸My, isn¡¯t that a big problem?¡¹


    ¡¸Not particularly. At worst, there was a time I crushed all of the organizational leaders. The leaders this time are still on the reasonable side.¡¹


    Certainly, I can¡¯t imagine Ravelt-san going against Fii-kaasama.


    Though, as for the Merchant Guild and church, I have no clue.


    ¡ºIs that young head someone that we are acquainted with or a relative of theirs?¡»


    ¡¸Is that young head someone we know?¡¹


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    Ciel relayed my question with brevity.


    It seems like Fii-kaasama can¡¯t hear my voice in my current state.


    With a ¡¯Hmm¡¯, Fii-kaasama displays some thinking gestures.


    ¡¸By that do you mean people who you met here in Central?¡¹


    ¡¸Carol, Celia, Viviana, and Friere. Is the young head a relative of theirs?¡¹


    ¡¸Nope. Though, as you know, the Amyulute-family¡¯s eldest son has been influenced by him.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, it¡¯s nothing to worry about.¡¹


    Since he¡¯s going against Fii-kaasama, it¡¯s unlikely to end well, so I¡¯m glad that he¡¯s unrelated to our acquaintances.


    For Viviana-san¡¯s brother, no comment.


    Now then, we¡¯ve been listening to this without much care, but since they are against Fii-kaasama, that means we might get targeted as well.


    Actually, we are definitely the ones getting targeted.


    After all, we seem easier to deal with than Fii-kaasama and if we were to be captured as a hostage, they might believe that they can gain the upper hand against her.


    In that case, why don¡¯t we just stay confined here?


    That feels so wasteful though, so that¡¯s rejected.


    Rather, is this what Fii-kaasama meant by an annoying matter?


    The reason why she said that it might end quicker due to us is because she expected the existence of Ciel as her daughter to be spread to the public.


    By showing what seems like a blatant weakness, she can lure out¡­¡­ No, it¡¯s not necessary, so I guess it¡¯s more so that they¡¯ll make a move and she can destroy them faster.


    ¡ºFii-kaasama is quite hardy. Well she has ruled Central to this day, so I suppose that¡¯s only natural.¡»


    ¡ºWhat do you mean?¡»


    ¡ºI believe that she hinted at our existence in hopes that the anti-Fii-kaasama faction would act earlier.¡»


    ¡ºYou mean we¡¯re made to be her weakness?¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. In other words, we might get targeted a lot in the future.¡»


    ¡¸Are we going to be genuinely targeted from now on?¡¹


    ¡¸Right. There¡¯s nothing better than to be on guard, but there¡¯s really no one who can overpower you two. No, no. If there are such people, it would be my work to deal with them.


    And if you¡¯re inclined to beat them all, it would make things much easier for me.¡¹


    ¡¸Could it be that that was what you wanted?¡¹


    ¡¸If possible, yes. If you two became their target and you overpowered them all, people with strange ideas should stop appearing for a while.¡¹


    Fii-kaasama smiles unapologetically. I suppose this just shows how much trust she has.


    As for being targeted, it¡¯s nothing new at this point and since we have a stable position now, we can let loose to some extent, so things should be easier than before.


    If there¡¯s someone who can defeat us in direct combat, that does sound like a Fii-kaasama situation and I guess she doesn¡¯t plan on making a move until that point.


    It¡¯s not like we can rely on Fii-kaasama for everything, so I guess that¡¯s only natural as long as there¡¯s no danger.


    Eventually we finished eating, so I asked Ciel to switch.


    I could¡¯ve asked Ciel to relay my words, but that would mean extra effort for the two of us, and if I don¡¯t come out occasionally, Ciel might start sulking.


    Of course Ciel sulking is cute as well but anyhow, it¡¯s time to ask my question.


    Gladly agreeing, Ciel put her necklace inside the magic bag before switching with me.


    I then take my hair clip and ring out of the magic bag for me to wear.


    Fii-kaasama simply watched as this scene unfolded.


    ¡¸My my, is there something bothering you Ain?¡¹


    ¡¸There is something I want to ask about.¡¹


    ¡¸I vaguely expected this, but what is it?¡¹


    ¡¸Demanding something from someone who attacked you and lost, how sensible would it be in this world?¡¹


    While it might be enforceable depending on one¡¯s status, I want to confirm the common sensibility regarding this.


    I don¡¯t want to use our status to force through things, so if it¡¯s not generally sensible then I need to think of another plan.


    ¡¸If it¡¯s someone of lower status losing to someone of a higher one, it shouldn¡¯t be particularly unusual.


    Rather, if you don¡¯t do anything, people might treat you lightly.¡¹


    ¡¸True, that might be the case.¡¹


    Now that she mentioned it, that¡¯s right. I should have been aware of it, but it¡¯s difficult to keep in mind.


    You could say that targeting someone of higher status requires enough resolve to risk it.


    Otherwise the attackers would be the winners in this world.


    It¡¯s precisely because it isn¡¯t that simple that there¡¯s people of high status.


    ¡¸If those of higher status lost to one of lower status, all I can say is that it depends on the situation.


    I heard it could even result to death penalty.¡¹


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    (If you are reading this from other sites, that means this content is stolen without consent. Please support us by visiting our site.)


    I know it¡¯s a characteristic of a class-based society, but it¡¯s really unfamiliar to me.


    It isn¡¯t like I have strong emotions against it though, so it doesn¡¯t bother me.


    ¡¸It¡¯s due to being a class-based society, right? I¡¯m unfamiliar with it, so it¡¯s quite new for me.¡¹


    ¡¸Ain, did you perhaps come from a world without social classes?¡¹


    ¡¸How do I explain this? When I lived, there was no disparity based on social class. Even so, I can¡¯t really say that everyone is equal.¡¹


    Thinking at the global scale, there might be places that still practice a class-system. And since names come to mind when imagining people of ¡®higher status¡¯, while it¡¯s not to the extent of this world, perhaps we were in some form of class-based society.


    Yeah, enough of my previous life. It¡¯s not really fun to talk about this, so I¡¯m sorry to kaasama but I¡¯m changing topics.


    And I haven¡¯t gotten to my actual question yet anyway.


    ¡¸Another thing I want to ask, can we hire people in this manor?¡¹


    Now for the main issue. Fii-kaasama probably heard it already, so she should already know the reason.


    With how I said it, I feel like a child wanting to keep a stray dog.


    It¡¯s very rude to call Viviana-san¡¯s older sister a stray dog, though.


    ¡¸As long as she is to be treated like the other servants. She will have an apprenticeship period, but there shouldn¡¯t be any issue regarding livelihood. And with the Amyulute¡¯s oldest daughter, there should be no issue with her personality.¡¹


    In that case, that¡¯s a relief. If she had said no, I would need to consider personally hiring her instead.


    It wouldn¡¯t be an issue financially, but we don¡¯t actually need her for anything, so we wouldn¡¯t know what to do with her.


    Since I heard everything I needed to know, I was about to switch with Ciel but Fii-kaasama suddenly pointed at my hair clip.


    ¡¸It¡¯s a newly bought hair clip, right? And that ring?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, Ciel chose it for me.¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, yes. It suits you very well. I thought the same with Ciel¡¯s necklace, but you two really look good no matter what you wear.¡¹


    Being praised by Fii-kaasama, I couldn¡¯t hold my cheeks from smiling.


    As I was fighting against my facial muscles not moving as I want, Ciel let out an uncontrollable cheerful laugh.


    Hiya~! And so their long day has come to an end. But not without some family time!


    Not really a surprise, but it¡¯s always scary to seriously think of how much actual power Fii has even just from her ability to overhear *everything* within Central. Imagine if she was a more active participant in Central¡¯s governance, the governing officials would be either in awe of her nigh omnipotent knowledge or be unnerved by her inhuman perception of whatever shenanigans might be happening behind the curtains. I¡¯m not even sure if the rebellion would be gone, the rebels might think of themselves as distopia novel protags trying to take down a godly tyrant and that¡¯s a much powerful marketing pitch than ¡°she¡¯s not doing any work anyways¡±. But yeah, she might not be a king or ruler, but she¡¯s the owner of the land, so it¡¯s just theft and assault, lol.


    It was also nice to see Fii doting on the girls, mentioning their new accessories and whatnot. Ain being cute is cute as usual. Still, it¡¯s really nice to see how ¡°non-human¡± Fii is with how she handles things and her general thought process. Literally making our girls bait since they won¡¯t get killed anyways, not really caring about governance or whether the people stay or not, and so on. Just mostly indifferent, which funnily makes her and Ciel seem like actual family with this similarity.


    The indifference makes her an avatar of nature, in a sense. She embodies nature¡¯s more primal side, nature is an unbiased judge working by the survival of the fittest. If they win, they win. Whether through scheming or honesty, nature doesn¡¯t care, it¡¯s all part of survival. After all, it¡¯s not for nature to care if you jump in off a cliff thinking that it might just be a short and safe fall, your stupidity and lack of understanding rewards you a Darwin award nonetheless. If they can win against inertia (regardless the method), good for them. If not, not really a problem for nature, regardless of their importance to Central¡¯s governing.


    Now then, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 113.1

    7-9 minutes


    The day after meeting with Viviana. Up until now, I would be doing sorcery experiments, or rather something like magic power training, but since Liessyl can now see me even when I¡¯m incorporeal, I play with her occasionally.


    What we can do is limited since we can¡¯t converse, but I¡¯m teaching her games from my past life like rock-paper-scissors and follow the finger. While doing so, it seems to have caught the interest of young spirits, as I¡¯ve noticed a few playing rock-paper-scissors here and there. I¡¯ve been thinking hard on how the non-humanoid spirits can play as well, but that aside, Liessyl and I occasionally have serious games of follow the finger.


    We do rock-paper-scissors to match our rhythm and after a beat, the winner points to one of four directions. I could yell out the timing instead, but in that case it wouldn¡¯t be fair when Liessyl wins rock-paper-scissors and it works surprisingly as is.


    Having the R-P-S winner to win follow the finger consecutively, having to keep rhythm at high speeds, and so on. Our repertoire increased in weird ways. I still continue training while playing, though. And as we played today as well, Ciel began moving, so I stopped my hand and looked her way.


    ¡ºGood Morning.¡»


    ¡¸Morning Ai~n.¡¹


    Maybe recognizing this house as a place where she can relax, Ciel has loosen up a lot here, or specifically in this room. Greeting the morning with a yawn, half-asleep, without any care about the hair in her mouth is no unusual sight these days. And when that happens, it takes a long time for her to completely wake up, so I wait accordingly.


    ¡¸Morning Ain!¡¹


    ¡ºGood morning to you too. What shall we be doing today?¡»


    After our second morning greeting, I asked Ciel about today¡¯s plans.


    ¡¸What indeed? If I remember, there¡¯s something called a den here in Central, right?¡¹


    ¡ºWe were told so, yes. Do you want to go there?¡»


    ¡¸It seems like it¡¯s the only place to do hunter work, after all. Let¡¯s try going there.¡¹


    ¡ºIn that case, it might be good to visit the Hunter Guild first to see if there¡¯s any suitable requests.¡»


    ¡¸That¡¯s true.¡¹


    And with that, today¡¯s schedule is set, so we exited our room to have breakfast.


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    ¡¸And so we¡¯ll try visiting the den.¡¹


    ¡¸Right, right. It might be best for you to have a quick look there. After all, I might come to ask you to cull the monsters there sometimes.¡¹


    ¡¸Come to think of it, you were tasked to manage it, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, that¡¯s right. I don¡¯t imagine it being any dangerous for you two, so I won¡¯t be giving unnecessary warnings now. However, keep track of when to go home, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸Understood.¡¹


    We had a conversation with mother after breakfast.


    True, we¡¯ll have to pay attention to the time. It¡¯s not like there¡¯s no clocks and watches in this world, but maybe because of how complex one is, it¡¯s treated as a luxury item.


    ¡¸But that¡¯s right, you might not have to time to go there today, you know?¡¹


    ¡¸There¡¯s something happening again?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes, yes. There¡¯s been some development, you see. What to do about it, I¡¯ll leave it all to you two.¡¹


    ¡¸What to do about it¡­ we¡¯ll think about it when it happens. But thanks for telling us.¡¹


    ¡¸Don¡¯t mention it.¡¹


    So something is going to happen again today? In that case, buying a watch might be the only thing we get done today.


    Rather, wouldn¡¯t daily incidents continue happening from now on? Since this probably means that the faction opposing mother is making their move. I really hope things don¡¯t get bothersome, though.


    ¡¸Well then, take care.¡¹


    ¡¸See you later.¡¹


    While I was in my thoughts, mother Fii saw us off as Ciel left the mansion.


    ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó ¡ó


    ¡ºI¡¯d like to buy a timepiece, but could we first go to the Hunter Guild?¡»


    ¡ºA timepiece? Why buy one?¡»


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    (Please visit Re:Library to show the translators your appreciation!)


    Seeing Ciel puzzled, I realized that I didn¡¯t give proper context.


    ¡ºIf it goes as I imagine, we probably cannot tell time inside the den. After all, we¡¯ll be entering a place the light of the sun can¡¯t reach.¡»


    ¡ºA place like that prison, I see. True, we wouldn¡¯t be able to tell time. I only learned what day and night was after leaving there, after all.¡»


    Ciel talks about it so casually, but it holds bitter memories for me. Memories of the times I failed to protect Ciel, memories of Ciel suffering every day.


    Perhaps due to my sudden silence, Ciel peered into my eyes.


    ¡ºAin, it seems to bother you, but it doesn¡¯t bother me at all. After all, it¡¯s where I met you, Ain.¡»


    Replying¡ºI see.¡»to her beaming smile, we arrived at the Hunter Guild.


    ¡ºLet¡¯s go to the Hunter Guild first then.¡»


    ¡ºIt would be weird to turn back when we¡¯re so close, after all.¡»


    Inside the Hunter Guild is¡­ just as usual.


    We just came here yesterday, so it¡¯d be more of a surprise if anything changed at all. Though if I had to point out something curious, it¡¯s that Viviana is intently staring at the entrance.


    And upon seeing Ciel, she looked relieved and approached us.


    ¡¸I have been awaiting your arrival.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m a hunter right now.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ Right, got it. I¡¯m glad you came today.¡¹


    Ciel had Viviana correct her tone, but I really understand how weird it feels for Viviana to be so formal, so I¡¯ll just let it pass. To begin with, Viviana is from a fairly well off family herself, so us speaking like friends shouldn¡¯t be an issue.


    ¡¸Did something happen?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s right. I want to talk about something we discussed yesterday.¡¹


    ¡¸Should we move?¡¹


    The two stand out, so there¡¯s many people stealing glances at them.


    Upon noticing this herself, Viviana replied ¡¸Right.¡¹ and exited the Hunter Guild.


    Hiya~! More adorable AinCiel interactions, a good thing to start the chapter with if you ask me. As well as more of the forest spirit Liessyl and Viviana, very nice.


    As always, it¡¯s nice to see Ain having more interactions with outside of Ciel. Let¡¯s be honest, they do need a healthy dose of ¡°other people¡± interaction, so Ain playing games with the spirits is as adorable as it is healing. Ciel oversleeping is also great, as Ain says. The image of non-humanoid spirits making up equivalents for rock-paper-scissors is funny to me, though. Like, how will a tiny salamander spirit play rock paper scissors against, I don¡¯t know, some bird-like spirit? Adorably, maybe.


    Next, it seems like we¡¯ll be having a dungeon tour soon but before that, it looks like Viviana is making her move. Understandable, considering last interlude. Very excited to see the fool of a brother, not gonna lie.


    Now then, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 113.2

    She led us to a sort of open-air cafe. I¡¯m honestly surprised that they have something like this. It¡¯s a fancy place with many female customers.


    Before I died, I wouldn¡¯t have gone to places like these. I thought to myself, but that aside, I leave the conversation to Ciel.


    ¡¸What happened?¡¹ Ciel asked after a sip of her ordered tea. It¡¯s not terrible, but the one we drink back at home is more to my liking.


    Viviana then spoke with a slight tone of urgency. ¡¸I want to break my older sister away from the Amyulute family as soon as possible.¡¹


    ¡¸Why?¡¹


    ¡¸If we don¡¯t hurry, she would get wedded to someone from the anti-Fiiyanamia faction.¡¹


    ¡ºIsn¡¯t that an unavoidable thing for nobles?¡»


    ¡ºCome to think of it, you¡¯ve been somewhat exposed to those sorts of topics. However, since it¡¯s a matter with the anti-Fiiyanamia faction, I do want to help her.¡»


    ¡ºJust thinking about it normally, you wouldn¡¯t want to fight with Fii. How do we help?¡»


    ¡ºThe easiest way would be for either me or Ciel to act as bait. The one trying to have her married off is likely her older brother who¡¯s a part of the anti-Fiiyanamia faction, so I think it¡¯ll be easy to lure him if we¡¯re all alone.¡»


    ¡ºI see. I¡¯ll be the bait. Not that there¡¯s much difference whether Ain or I do it anyway.¡»


    ¡ºStill, I feel reluctant about having you as bait.¡»


    It¡¯s dangerous¡­¡­ Actually, no. First of all, she¡¯s unlikely to lose and I¡¯m confident that I can defend her no matter what comes her way. Though it goes without saying that I won¡¯t be any more useful if I was the bait.


    ¡ºI was planning to go to the den anyways. Wouldn¡¯t it be good if we deal with this while we¡¯re at it? You¡¯ll protect me no matter what, right Ain?¡»


    ¡ºYes. I won¡¯t let even a finger touch you.¡»


    ¡ºThen we¡¯re good.¡»


    Now, with how long our exchange was, Viviana probably finds Ciel¡¯s state strange. She¡¯s staring at us inquisitively.


    ¡¸Were you discussing with Lady Ainsel?¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah.¡¹


    ¡¸I see, then it can¡¯t be helped.¡¹


    ¡¸Can¡¯t be helped.¡¹


    Not to put words in Ciel¡¯s mouth, but I feel like Viviana¡¯s likeability just increased for Ciel. Actually, wouldn¡¯t just praising and acknowledging me make Ciel like a person easily?


    Though to begin with, only a few know I even exist.


    ¡¸I¡¯ll play bait.¡¹


    Viviana was blindsided by Ciel¡¯s sudden words, but she basically just returned to the main topic.


    To help her older sister, luring her older brother and having him attack us would be an immediate victory. Attacking someone of higher status would mean they can¡¯t complain being demanded a significant reparation.


    That¡¯s the plan at least, but Ciel was a bit lacking in words.


    As I was about to tell Ciel to explain so that Viviana can understand, she suddenly confirmed with a serious look,¡¸Are you sure?¡¹


    ¡¸I don¡¯t mind. I¡¯m going to the den with Ain after this, so just tell them about it.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ I¡¯m counting on you.¡¹


    She sounded pretty reluctant there, maybe she¡¯s hesitant about leaving everything to us? After all, Viviana doesn¡¯t have much of a role to play in this plan.


    To put it simply, it¡¯ll be a situation where a young aristocrat not knowing his place picks a fight with royalty and gets beaten. Interpreted like that, they can¡¯t complain even if the guy gets killed.


    Well, no killing this time though.


    ¡¸I¡¯ll buy a timepiece now, so tell them before we finish.¡¹


    Saying so, Ciel stood from her chair. And with light footsteps, she left the place.


    ¡ºYou seem to be in a hurry.¡»


    ¡ºIn a hurry? Not really. I¡¯m just¡­ Happy to go shopping with you, Ain.¡»


    ¡ºThen it can¡¯t be helped.¡»


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    (Please visit Re:Library to show the translators your appreciation!)


    I have no idea what part of it can¡¯t be helped, though.


    But since Ciel cheerfully answered with ¡ºCan¡¯t be helped.¡», I think it can¡¯t be helped.


    ¡ó


    And so for the watch itself, those are sold at stores for high rank hunters. Probably to use in the den.


    We tried asking what lower ranked hunters would use and we¡¯re told that they measure time with candles. Once the candle is melted halfway or less, it¡¯s time to go home it seems.


    Also, we were told that the den is bright inside, for some reason.


    ¡ºWhich would be best?¡»


    ¡ºAt worst, we can just keep it in a magic pouch, so feel free to pick what you like.¡»


    ¡ºI see. Then let¡¯s go with the black one.¡»


    Ciel giggled. As if to deliberately announce that she¡¯s choosing my color. Realizing that, I feel a mix of happiness and embarrassment surging through me.


    Knowing that Ciel can see me, I feel embarrassed and escape inside her. And even that, Ciel watches over with gentle eyes. However, she doesn¡¯t say anything beyond that. This is probably the boundary Ciel has currently drawn.


    Ciel loves to trouble me, but it¡¯s the line she won¡¯t cross. I don¡¯t dislike being troubled by her, but the fact that she¡¯s being considerate of me makes me feel happy. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be going outside Ciel for a while.


    And that ends the chapter, adorably if I may add.


    The Viviana interlude buildup is immediately affecting the main storyline, leading closer and closer to the exiting entrance of a fool into the main story. Ain is being a bit overprotective as she does and Viviana seems to feel guilty about our princesses having to take care of the brunt of the problem. Ending with some light (literally and figuratively) worldbuilding and Ciel being smooth with Ain as she tends to be. Remember kids, being suave is never not the wrong move, lol. Resists flashing back to Gandondorf Suavemente


    Now then, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please feel free to comment. Stay clean, stay safe, and have a nice day~!

 CH 114.1

    By buying a watch, we can now accurately tell time.


    ¡ºIs someone following us?¡»


    ¡ºA group that looks like it has been for some time.¡»


    ¡ºIn that case, all that¡¯s left is to randomly explore!¡»


    Saying so, Ciel eyes the entrance of the den.


    ¡ºWhere should we enter from?¡»


    ¡ºLet¡¯s use the one with a lot of people. Though I say many, it¡¯s moving forward smoothly, so it likely won¡¯t waste us much time.¡»


    ¡ºBut there wouldn¡¯t be any issue even if we chose an entrance where people can enter immediately, right?¡»


    ¡ºYou¡¯re at A-rank, so I believe it should be fine. However, it¡¯s not necessarily the same case for the group behind us.¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s true.¡»


    If we just quickly went in and continued deep below, we might not be able to achieve our objective for today. Besides, there could be a rule in place that requires immediate progression to a specific level after passing through the high-rank entrance.


    It would have been better if we researched these matters beforehand, but because of Viviana¡¯s matter I completely forgot.


    Thus, we pass through the entrance that exudes an intimidating aura reminiscent of the Creator God¡¯s power, entering the den.


    The 1st stratum looks like a really wide field? There are no visual obstructions, it¡¯s a sprawling space. Naturally, the ceiling and the walls are made of stone and now I¡¯m sure I feel the Creator God¡¯s power.


    ¡ºThe walls here seem quite hard.¡»


    ¡ºReally? How hard?¡»


    ¡ºHarder than the barrier Friere broke but not as much as the true barrier, I suppose?¡»


    ¡ºSo Ain¡¯s barrier is harder. Just as expected, just as expected!¡»


    Ciel says cheerfully, but it¡¯s a bit unsatisfactory to hear my barrier being described as merely harder than a rock. Still, if it¡¯s compared to the strength of a structure created by the Creator God instead, it does sound more pleasing to my ears.


    The monsters of the 1st stratum are weaker than goblins, even common folks can defeat them. They are so feeble that even normal animals pose more of a threat, I¡¯m conflicted about calling them monsters.


    However, you can obtain magic cores upon defeating them, so it¡¯s become a place of income for apprentice hunters. Children a bit older than Ciel are desperately chasing after their prey.


    In the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th strata, the same scene unfolds but only with different kinds of monsters. Though at the 4th stratum, a slightly strong civilian would probably get injured and there are also monsters that could kill battle experienced people if they¡¯re careless.


    Like many hunters, Ciel only gives a side glance to that stratum and passes through. The people behind follow without any issue.


    Entering the 5th stratum, it¡¯s become a little more labyrinthine.


    ¡ºIt¡¯s suddenly narrow now. Rather, it¡¯s become a path?¡»


    ¡ºIt seems so. I think it¡¯s now closer to what I was imagining it to be.¡»


    ¡ºReally? Specifically, what were you imagining?¡»


    ¡ºI imagined it to have paths confusing people, with traps and treasure boxes scattered around, and monsters suddenly appearing, I suppose?¡»


    ¡ºWhy would treasure boxes be in a place like this? And if it were, is it alright to bring them along?¡»


    Well, I expected this question to come. How do I say this? As someone who¡¯s been educated by the world of games at a young age, I don¡¯t find it weird but thinking about it realistically, it is a weird thing.


    These sorts of game settings, when incorporated into novels, are adjusted to be reasonable, if I remember.


    ¡ºPerhaps it¡¯s because what I¡¯m imagining is a ¡°dungeon¡±.¡»


    ¡ºA ¡°dungeon¡±, I see?¡»


    ¡ºAs for why there are treasure boxes in dungeons, in many cases, it¡¯s to act as bait to lure and gather people, I suppose? In stories, that is.¡»


    ¡ºWhy are people being gathered?¡»


    ¡ºWhether they¡¯re to be killed or not varies, but mainly for the dungeon¡¯s nourishment.¡»


    While talking, Ciel randomly pierces a monster with a spear of stone. There might be usable parts and materials, but it¡¯s tiresome so we only take the magic cores and leave.


    In the case of dungeons, many are written in a way that the defeated monsters disappear on their own and it seems like it¡¯s not much different in dens. However, only the magic cores remain.


    So, how do you acquire materials then? You just have to harvest it quickly. It¡¯s been discovered that things disappear after being in contact with the den¡¯s floor and walls for some time, they say.


    After getting through the 5th stratum, at the 6th and 7th stratum, there were no longer any hunters visible around. The people who may or may not be hunters following us are still there though. So maybe they¡¯ll finally make some sort of move?


    Just when I was thinking so, the stalkers movement changed.


    ¡ºThey shot an arrow¡­¡­ didn¡¯t they.¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s true. It¡¯s not an issue though. Actually, I couldn¡¯t tell if it even hit.¡»

 CH 114.2

    By the time Ciel noticed the arrow, it had already pierced several layers of my barrier before being stopped.


    It was a young noble in a hunter¡¯s attire.


    He wasn¡¯t even the one who shot the arrows, why does he look so puffed up about it?


    Is he the type that takes this underling¡¯s achievements as his own?


    Rather, they should¡¯ve just continued shooting, why did he even show himself?


    ¡¸Fiiyanamia¡¯s daughter you may be, in the end, you¡¯re no more than a weakling who can only make such flimsy barriers.¡¹


    At first I thought ¡®Isn¡¯t that rude all of the sudden¡¯, but I then nearly let out an audible Ah.


    I felt Ciel¡¯s body instantly tense up.


    She¡¯s absolutely using her Dance Princess powers if he does anything stupid, no questions asked.


    Yielding to Ciel¡¯s silent intensity, the slim man suddenly started talking again.


    ¡¸T-that look of yours does not change the fact that you¡¯re outmatched. I¡¯ll personally deliver you to your end.¡¹


    It seems like he thinks he can defeat Ciel as long as they can get rid of the barrier.


    While it¡¯s true that a barrier that can overpower C-ranks is pretty strong, barriers of this level shouldn¡¯t be uncommon with high ranking hunters.


    Also, Ciel paid absolutely no attention to the slim man¡¯s monologue.


    ¡ºSay, Ain.¡» The tone of her voice was really scary. I know that this anger isn¡¯t directed to me, though.


    ¡ºWhat is it?¡»


    ¡ºI want to lock them up, is that okay?¡»


    ¡ºWill you be using an Elicinary1?¡»


    ¡ºCan we go with Sphilamote Elicinary2?¡»


    ¡ºOne moment. Let me check if it¡¯s doable.¡»


    Ciel¡¯s Elicinary-type dances are techniques that require the boost of power from Song Princess.


    I think that¡¯s why she asked me for confirmation, the problem is that we¡¯re inside the den.


    In other words, we¡¯re in a place infused with the Creator God¡¯s power. Since she will be using thorny briars, those will have to sprout from the ground or walls.


    For that reason, I¡¯m checking if it¡¯s possible to do it here, but it might be difficult for Ciel alone.


    Normal magic power would be repelled.


    ¡ºI will assist. I¡¯ll be using divine power, please try to grasp the feeling of using it as well.¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood. I¡¯m counting on you.¡»


    And with Ciel¡¯s agreement, I started to sing.


    While Ciel and I were talking, the ignored slim man seemed to look quite angry, but I could care less.


    It¡¯s your fault for angering Ciel.


    Matching my song, Ciel began to dance.


    Like a spring bud sprouting vigorously in the summer.


    She deftly moved her limbs, extending her arms out as she twirled about.


    And following her lead, sharp thorny briars surrounded us.


    The thorns crawled and twisted into a dome-shaped enclosure.


    A thorny dome, or rather a prison, is created to showcase Ciel¡¯s dance.


    Since it¡¯s for growing a field of briars, I was using the song Liessyl sung before and, to my surprise, the spirits with us are jumping around happier than usual.


    Liessyl is also with them. She looks like someone in a daycare.


    And it seems like she¡¯s doing something to the briars.


    Ah¡­¡­ she strengthened it. It was already quite sturdy to begin with, but now I don¡¯t think even a charging wyvern can make it budge. It¡¯d probably be shredded by the thorns, even.


    This spell originally had the defensive ability of around roughly C or B rank and immediately heals from any cut and burn damage.


    ¡¸W-what is this?¡¹


    ¡¸Well, do your best.¡¹


    Imprisoning the slim man and all his cohorts, Ciel sat down with satisfaction.


    The panicking men attempted to get rid of the briars, but it didn¡¯t have any effect at all.


    These briars, while made with the assistance of the spirits, are composed of Ciel¡¯s magic power, so you can escape as long as you outlast her magic power reserves.


    Another way out would be to attack Ciel herself, but my barrier is tougher than these briars, so people who can actually defeat Ciel should have already escaped the horns easily.


    And since the men can¡¯t break through the briars, they¡¯re now forced into a battle of attrition.


    The men are aware that Ciel is the origin of the briars, so upon concluding that they can¡¯t escape, they turned their attacks to Ciel. However, I won¡¯t allow any of it.


    From how they haven¡¯t noticed the existence of the B-rank barrier, their strength must be below B-rank, so I don¡¯t actually need to do anything.


    How do I describe it? They¡¯re raining arrows, swords, and spells right now, and it¡¯s an eyesore.


    Even so, from the use of magic power, I can feel some upper C rank level sorcery in use.


    It looks like they¡¯re giving their all.


    A cloud of dust was rising around us and when we couldn¡¯t see them anymore, their attacks stopped.


    I can hear laughter from beyond the dust cloud, does he think he¡¯s defeated Ciel?


    ¡¸That¡¯s what you get for ignoring me. Resent your own folly!¡¹


    As I heard his smug voice, the dust cloud began to clear.


    And while all this happened, Ciel didn¡¯t move one bit. She¡¯s sitting down, staring only where they should be.


    ¡¸Something happened?¡¹


    ¡¸Ha, ha, ha¡­¡­ haa?¡¹


    The slim man¡¯s loud laughter stopped in surprise.


    It was likely their all out attack, so I understand the surprise, but isn¡¯t he a bit too careless£¿


    In my opinion, one should never let their guard down until the enemy¡¯s defeat is confirmed. Rather, he should have noticed that the briars are still around.


    ¡¸If you can break two more barriers, I¡¯ll fight you, so good luck.¡¹


    Saying that, Ciel then completely forgets about the slim man.


    She¡¯s void of wariness, as though she¡¯s just about to go to sleep.


    It¡¯s not out of carelessness, it¡¯s out of disrespect. Not out of overconfidence, but out of complete trust.


    In other words, she wants to show off just how amazing my barrier is.


    This has happened before, but whenever someone belittles my barrier, Ciel will not be satisfied until she shows the opposition just how strong my barrier is.


    And while it does make me feel happy, it also makes me feel conflicted.


    By ¡®two more barriers¡®, she likely wants them to break as much as Friere did, but considering the earlier attacks, they can probably only break one more at best.


    Frustrated about being looked down on ¡ª or maybe he just either doesn¡¯t see or doesn¡¯t want to see the large gap in power ¡ª the slim man angrily started to fire off spells.


    His underlings followed after him and resumed their attack on Ciel.


    ¡ºCome to think of it, Ain?¡»


    ¡ºWhat is it?¡»


    ¡ºYou¡¯ve been doing something with the spirits lately, right?¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s right. We can see each other after all, so I¡¯ve been playing games with them.¡»


    ¡ºCould you teach me those games, too? It feels lonely to be left out, you know?¡»


    ¡ºOf course. It¡¯s not really anything complicated, though. Right, then first let¡¯s start with rock-paper-scissors, shall we?¡»


    ¡ºYes, yes. What is this ¡®rock-paper-scissors¡¯ thing? What is it!¡»


    While various attacks rain down on us, for some reason, I¡¯m about to teach Ciel rock-paper-scissors.

 CH 115.1

    While Ciel and I have been playing for a long time, the slim man and his gang are struggling with the B-rank barrier. I guess they¡¯ve gotten better teamwork after their repeat of rest-attack-rest, since this barrier is about to break soon. Though what¡¯s waiting for them on the other side is the A-rank barrier.


    ¡ºThen I¡¯ll use rock next.¡»


    ¡ºIn that case, I¡¯ll use scissors.¡»


    Getting used to the game, Ciel has started playing little mind games against me. She¡¯s acting her age and I¡¯m really happy to see that.


    ¡º¡ºRock, paper, scissors!¡»¡»


    We simultaneously showed our hands. Rock for me and from Ciel, paper.


    Yup, that¡¯s so her. She¡¯s soft on me, specifically when she tries to make me win. Though she is serious when it counts.


    However, I personally want her to win, so I also intentionally show a losing hand.


    ¡ºAin, you lied! It¡¯s not scissors!¡»


    ¡ºIsn¡¯t it the same with yours? That¡¯s not rock.¡»


    ¡ºThat¡¯s true, that¡¯s true, but¡­!¡»


    It¡¯s adorable how disgruntled she is about it. Right now, we¡¯re exploring other ways to play Rock-Paper-Scissor, but earlier we were playing follow the finger.


    I taught her that she had to look the opposite of where the winner is looking at, but Ciel always just happily looked at where I pointed to. She¡¯s happy we chose the same direction, she said.


    And after hearing that, I couldn¡¯t say anything else.


    ¡ºWe should eat soon.¡»


    ¡ºIs it that time already?¡»


    ¡ºWe¡¯ve played a lot after all. Why don¡¯t we check the timepiece?¡»


    ¡ºRight.¡»


    Ciel takes out the watch and I see that it¡¯s about sunset. Really, wow many hours have we been playing?


    When Ciel was playing follow the finger -seemingly- alone, the slim man and his subordinates were weirded out and said something but sadly for them, it didn¡¯t reach Ciel¡¯s ears.


    Still, from the side, we¡¯re a girl playing alone -or rather doing something weird- with several men attacking her, it¡¯s just an awful image.


    ¡ºCome to think of it, is it alright if we don¡¯t go home?¡»


    Since entering the den, mother Fii¡¯s magic power gradually became harder to sense, but it should still reach this deep in. I don¡¯t think she has a full grasp of what¡¯s happening, but she should know the gist of things.


    I suspect both Ciel and I just completely forgot about the very idea of going home.


    ¡ºThen it should be okay.¡»


    ¡ºBy the way, is your magic power still alright, Ciel?¡»


    She¡¯s maintaining the Sphilamote Elicinary, so her magic power is being used non-stop. Other than that, she¡¯s not using any magic power at all, so it shouldn¡¯t be much of an exhaustion, but she¡¯s kept it up for a long time, so it might just run out soon.


    ¡ºI still have a lot. It¡¯ll likely be fine for several more days? Though if a fight starts, the duration will be shortened by a lot.¡»


    ¡ºI see.¡»


    Ciel has an impressive amount of magic power. Though it helps that most magic power is consumed during the first deployment of the spell. That¡¯s the reason why the briars don¡¯t disappear even when I stop singing.


    She can¡¯t manipulate it, but she can maintain it.


    With that out of the way, it¡¯s time to start dinner. From the magic pouch, Ciel takes out dried meat, hard bread, dried vegetables, and other preserved ingredients, as well as a small pot which she fills with water procured through sorcery and puts over a flame manifested the same way.


    She adds the dried meat, vegetables, and an adequate amount of seasoning, cooking it for a while. Ciel then dips the bread into the finished soup and starts eating.


    The taste of dried meat takes me back. It¡¯s not bad, but it¡¯s naturally incomparable to the food back at the manor. Still, I think these kinds of food are more delicious in places and situations like these, so I don¡¯t mind it.


    Ciel doesn¡¯t really mind it either. Rather, it¡¯s because Ciel¡¯s eating it that the flavors reach me.


    The slim man¡¯s group begrudgingly stares at Ciel while eating their tough looking bread and meat. I don¡¯t believe there¡¯s much difference between our meals, but I suppose the additional preparation and cooking makes a world of difference.


    Still, I¡¯m actually surprised they brought food with them.


    I don¡¯t plan on starving them to death, but I was thinking that they might listen to our demands better if they¡¯re in a weaker state.


    However, seeing Ciel enjoying a good meal while they¡¯re eating their awful rations is practically a form of torture.


    With dinner finished, it was time to sleep but now we just noticed a certain issue.


    ¡ºCiel, can you maintain your sorcery while asleep?¡»


    ¡ºI can¡¯t. That¡¯s a problem. Still, I can just stay awake.¡»


    Having an all-nighter at your age, I won¡¯t allow it.


    Perhaps my tone was a bit harsh, Ciel nodded ¡ºUnderstood.¡» looking a bit surprised.


    ¡ºFor now, I¡¯ll try managing this with my barrier. While it won¡¯t be as strong as the one protecting you, a barrier they can¡¯t break should be enough.¡»


    ¡ºCan I leave it to you?¡»


    ¡ºKeeping them here is all I can do, though.¡»


    I know I can¡¯t suffocate them, but maybe I can keep them enclosed until they starve to death? Testing that will take a long time though, so not doing that.


    ¡ºWell then, goodnight Ain.¡»


    ¡ºGoodnight Ciel.¡»


    As Ciel took out a sleeping bag from the magic pouch, I created a barrier outside her briar dome.


    Like I thought, the barrier¡¯s defensive power weakens the farther it is from Ciel. Also, it consumes a lot of magic power. Still, if it¡¯s only this much, I can probably make it last a year.

 CH 115.2

    And as Ciel is falling asleep, the men are loudly talking amongst themselves. It doesn¡¯t seem to be a falling out, but they do sound quite combative.


    I soundproofed Ciel¡¯s barrier when she fell asleep, so thankfully she won¡¯t be disturbed.


    Several minutes into Ciel¡¯s deep slumber ¨CI made it so they wouldn¡¯t see Ciel¡¯s face¨C the slim man and one other guy drew near.


    ¡¸Hmph, to sleep in a place such as this, it¡¯s so ridiculous that I can¡¯t be flabbergasted. No matter how powerful of spells she may manipulate, in the end she¡¯s just a little girl.¡¹


    I nod to the slim man¡¯s monologue. Normally, sleeping will dispel one¡¯s sorcery. In fact, Sphilamote Elicinary vanished a few minutes after Ciel fell asleep. Rather, I¡¯m amazed that it lasted as long as it did.


    ¡¸Resent yourself for your complacency in doing that incomprehensible ritual of yours.¡¹


    Spouting off that petty villain line, the slim man took the knife on his hip and aimed for Ciel¡¯s neck.


    At first I didn¡¯t understand what he meant by ¡°incomprehensible ritual¡±, but I realized that it was about Ciel playing in general. It certainly might look like some ritual without any context.


    The approaching knife was blocked by the B-rank barrier, stopping it midair. The shock on the slim man¡¯s face was evident as he quickly turned his head, likely to check the one responsible for securing their retreat. Just then, the man whom the slim man had been fixated on exclaimed loudly, ¡¸It¡¯s no use, we can¡¯t get out¡¹.


    ¡ó


    I asked Liessyl if she would be willing to inform mother Fii about what happened here and she happily obliged. Liessyl is a pretty powerful spirit. Is it really okay to ask her to do errands like this? Well, she happily obliged, so I¡¯ll consider that a yes.


    I can¡¯t say for sure since it¡¯s hard to distinguish time here, but Ciel woke up as morning(?) came.


    ¡ºGood morning Ciel.¡»


    ¡ºGood morning Ain.¡»


    Today, she¡¯s fully awake from the start. It¡¯s probably because she¡¯s properly aware that we¡¯re outside the manor. With this, she should be alright in case anything ever happens.


    ¡ºDid anything happen while I was asleep?¡»


    ¡ºHe attacked you but after seeing the barrier blocking it, his face went pale.¡»


    ¡ºIs that so? Why is that?¡»


    Or their difference in status. Even if he¡¯s spearheading a coup to bring about a revolution, until that happens Mother and Ciel and I are still of higher status to the public.


    After doing this, he can¡¯t expect his actions to have no repercussions. To avoid that, he¡¯ll have to shut Ciel¡¯s mouth for eternity, which he can¡¯t do in the first place.


    It¡¯s a perfect checkmate.


    ¡ºAt any rate, it¡¯ll be nice to be home soon, so let¡¯s settle things here and go home.¡»


    ¡ºTrue. The food is more delicious at the manor, after all.¡»


    Yup. After a good night¡¯s rest, Ciel¡¯s anger has subsided.


    With bags under his eyes, a clear sign of their sleep deprivation, the slim man addresses Ciel as she awakens and crawls out of her sleeping bag.


    ¡¸What do you want?¡¹


    It seems like he still doesn¡¯t understand their difference in status. Or maybe he¡¯s intentionally talking in this tone despite understanding that. Either way, it doesn¡¯t change anything. In the end, he¡¯ll understand whether he likes it or not.


    ¡ºHow should I reply? If I say little sister, he won¡¯t know if it¡¯s Viviana or the other, right?¡»


    ¡ºWouldn¡¯t older little sister work well enough?¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood.¡»


    ¡¸Your older little sister.¡¹


    ¡¸Why! Why do even you always bring up Sumiaria!¡¹


    He suddenly exploded in anger, evidently hitting a sore spot. I guess this is the embodiment of an older brother consumed by jealousy towards his younger sister¡¯s brilliance.


    One could also interpret our desire for Viviana¡¯s older sister, Sumiaria, as an aspiration for her exceptional talents. Consequently, his perception of us wanting his little sister instead of him, who is standing right in front of us, likely gives him the impression that we consider him inferior compared to his sister.


    Under ordinary circumstances, no one would willingly seek the company of someone who launched an unexpected attack. It seems that his anger surfaced instinctively, before rational thought could kick in. Isn¡¯t such behavior deemed inappropriate for someone from the upper class?


    I¡¯ve noticed that Ciel also instinctively becomes angry when I¡¯m insulted, and I suspect the same might apply to me as well, reacting in a similar manner when Ciel is affronted.


    ¡¸To begin with, I can¡¯t give her to you. It has been decided that Sumiaria is to be with Triadol for Amyulute¡¯s better future. If we go back on this, the Amyulute family will lose credibility.¡¹


    It seems like Ciel¡¯s reply was far from his expectations, as the slim man was agape with shock. But in reality, the Amyulute family¡¯s circumstances are irrelevant, we have the power to demand it either way.


    While that could cause antagonism from the so-called Triadol family, they¡¯re already against us in the first place, so I don¡¯t feel the need to be considerate.


    Naturally, Amyulute family¡¯s credibility is none of our concern. Viviana is practically divorced from them anyways.


    In my eyes, they¡¯re nothing more than thugs assaulting Ciel. For some reason, I¡¯m starting to really hate having Ciel talk to them.


    ¡ºCan I switch with you?¡»


    ¡ºSure, but why is that?¡»


    ¡ºI just had a thought, there¡¯s no need for you to deal with this.¡»


    ¡ºI see, got it.¡»


    With that, I switched with Ciel without changing colors and gave the slim man an empty stare.

 CH 116.1

    ¡¸So what¡­ you say? Who do you think I am?¡¹


    No longer frozen, the slim man said so. He probably wants to say something like ¡¸I¡¯m the Amyulute family¡¯s heir, I¡¯m important. Don¡¯t you know what will happen if you oppose me?¡¹ or something.


    ¡¸The Amyulute family¡¯s next head.¡¹


    ¡¸Then-¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸That makes you greater than Mistress Fiiyanamia¡¯s adopted daughter?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸That makes you more powerful than me?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­¡¹


    The weak are eaten by the strong, that¡¯s how Central works.


    Those who lose are lesser and those who win are greater. The only reason things aren¡¯t like this in everyday life is because organizations like the guilds and the nobles govern themselves. However, for those that go against mother Fii and us, the victor is in the right. That¡¯s why he wouldn¡¯t have been in any trouble if only he won against us.


    The slim man stared at the ground in frustration before suddenly scowling at us with complete hostility. I suppose he¡¯s doubling down now since he¡¯s gone past the point of no return.


    ¡¸To begin with, Fiiyanamia¡¯s lack of proper governing is to blame! It¡¯s clearly better to have a capable leader instead of an uncommitted sloth. A king exists for the people!¡¹


    ¡¸Mother is not a monarch. Central is Mother¡¯s house and garden. You are freeloaders. You think freeloaders can make decisions for the homeowner?¡¹


    ¡¸What nonsense! There¡¯s not a single proof of that being true!¡¹


    After being agape for a moment, the slim man¡¯s face ¨Cseemingly remembering something¨C suddenly drained of color. It appears that he belatedly recognized certain overlooked aspects, although I can¡¯t help but think it¡¯s too late for such realizations.


    She¡¯s the head of the community called the Central, making her a monarch of that country. Authority and taxes are then to be bestowed to the populace to further the development of the country. Is that how he thought things worked?


    That might be true for other countries. But Central is not a country. And mother Fii is not a king. These facts were probably forgotten and neglected in the passage of time, along with Mother¡¯s true strength.


    ¡¸Fools who don¡¯t even pay any rent pushing their opinions on Mother, unbelievable.¡¹


    ¡¸B-But Fiiyanamia said she would hand over Central¡¯s throne to anyone who wins-¡­¡­.¡¹


    ¡¸And, have you won? Can you? When you can¡¯t even defeat me?¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s¡­¡­¡¹


    The slim man has no more power behind his words. I nonetheless continue my verbal assault.


    ¡¸Why you¡¯ve done this, I won¡¯t ask. I¡¯m sure you just wanted to outdo your talented sisters. What trivial misfortune of yours.¡¹


    ¡¸Trivial!?¡¹


    He raised his voice, it sounded like I hit a landmine. Just as earlier, he¡¯s letting his feelings control him.


    ¡¸Your misfortune, my misfortune, they are but one of the many misfortunes in the world.¡¹


    And any misfortune, big or small, always feels larger when they befall you. But dragging us into your problem for your own self-satisfaction is something I cannot tolerate.


    Not that I¡¯m going to say that out loud. There isn¡¯t any reason to.


    ¡¸Incidentally, you dared to challenge and assault a household of higher status. Now, I ask you this: Will you surrender your older younger sister?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­Do as you wish.¡¹


    ¡¸Come again?¡¹


    ¡¸¡­By all means, take her as you please.¡¹


    Gaining the slim man¡¯s powerless mutter of agreement, all that¡¯s left is to go to the Amyulute manor. However, I¡¯ve just realized that we haven¡¯t thought of how to transport these captive men.


    ¡ó


    ¡ºAin, you were a bit mean earlier.¡»


    ¡ºI got a bit heated back there.¡»


    I think it might just be you fawning me too much. Still, it¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve been in this situation, I admit that I might have overdone it. Next time, I should keep enough composure to avoid startling Ciel. Rather, it would be best if we don¡¯t get into situations like this anymore.


    In the end, we decided to tie the men with a rope, letting each of them decide whether they want to walk or be hauled along. They chose to walk on their own feet for now, so it¡¯s stress-less.


    Well, Ciel is the one doing the actual hauling. Since even with physical reinforcement, I can¡¯t properly tug them along.


    Leading tied up men, Ciel attracted a lot of attention but being conspicuous might actually be better in this case, so I decided not to worry about it. Ciel meanwhile wasn¡¯t worried about it to begin with.


    ¡ºI know I should bring them outside, but what should I do after that?¡»


    ¡ºIt would be great if Viviana is just waiting for us nearby. However, we stayed overnight, so that wouldn¡¯t be realistic. Why don¡¯t we just bring them to the Hunter¡¯s Guild?¡»


    ¡ºRight. Let¡¯s do that.¡»


    I imagine that things would be smoother if we bring only the slim man ¨Cor rather Viviana¡¯s older brother¨C along to the Amyulute¡¯s.


    Shortly after, we found the exit, bathed in the radiant sunlight. Although the interior of the den wasn¡¯t particularly dim, the sunlight outside feels much brighter. And as we exited, I saw a certain person running towards us with a frantic expression.


    ¡¸Viviana, what¡¯s wrong?¡¹


    As Ciel asked, Viviana drew closer with a grouchy expression.


    ¡¸You didn¡¯t return last night, so I came to check up on you. But it seems like there was no need for concern. Just in case, I brought along everyone from the Fool¡¯s Gathering.¡¹


    ¡¸Then haul the nuisances away.¡¹


    ¡¸To the Hunter¡¯s Guild, right?¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah.¡¹


    After Ciel nodded, she called for Chasse.


    As I thought, this is his usual role. ¡¸She wants these men to be brought back to the Hunter¡¯s Guild.¡¹ Viviana said. And while he gave Viviana an awfully unenthusiastic look, upon seeing Ciel, Chasse showed a kind smile and accepted the task.


    ¡¸Where¡¯s the Amyulute?¡¹


    ¡¸Right, of course. It¡¯s understandable you don¡¯t know. You could just ask my foolish brother, though.¡¹


    ¡¸Can¡¯t trust him.¡¹


    Being called a foolish brother, the slim man glowered at Viviana but she continued talking, completely ignoring him.


    ¡¸Fair enough. Alright, would you follow my lead?¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah.¡¹


    As Viviana walked off, Ciel followed after her.

 CH 116.2

    ¡¸Incidentally, what happened that resulted to this?¡¹


    After giving the slim man a quick glance, Viviana asked Ciel and she replied concisely. In this case, what¡¯s important is that she knows we were attacked. Since he attacked us ¨CMistress Fiiyanamia¡¯s daughter¨C and got defeated, he has no way of talking his way out of this.


    ¡¸Amyulute is finished.¡¹


    ¡¸How dare you-¡­¡­ To begin with, Viviana. Why are you even-¡­¡­¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m only speaking the truth. After laying your hands on someone who would be the king¡¯s daughter if we were in a kingdom, you assume that there will be no consequences? Also, I¡¯ve made acquaintance with Lady Cielmer in the past, so there is nothing odd with me standing by her side. For that reason, I gave you information with full understanding that this would be the result.¡¹


    The slim man was speechless but continued to glare at Viviana. However, she was completely unfazed. Instead, she continued talking with an almost gleeful disdain.


    ¡¸You did great outwitting father, but when the unexpected happens, you just crumble on yourself. Just as you always did in the past. Easily emotional, never knowing when to fall back. This is precisely why people call you inferior to our sister.¡¹


    Hearing Viviana¡¯s change of tone, the slim man wanted to say something, but maybe because she¡¯s completely correct about the cause of his downfall, he kept quiet.


    Seemingly satisfied, Viviana turned her eyes away from the slim man.


    ¡ó¡ó¡ó


    Our destination, Viviana¡¯s family home, was a grand mansion.


    Even so, it looks small compared to mother Fii¡¯s residence, it¡¯s just on a different level. Mother¡¯s manor is probably big enough to be a hotel, so it¡¯s not a fair comparison.


    I have no idea how many servants there are and I only know a few by name. It seems like Mother limits who is allowed to interact with us to a certain extent. Though part of it is probably due to my caution against people.


    ¡¸It¡¯s a big house.¡¹


    ¡¸Thank you¡­¡­ I suppose? I don¡¯t plan on staying in this mansion any longer and I believe Mistress Fiiyanamia¡¯s mansion should be bigger, no?¡¹


    Ciel nodded, and ¡¸Right?¡¹ Viviana replied.


    Entering the large door, Viviana said ¡¸I¡¯m back.¡¹ and was greeted ¡¸Welcome home.¡¹ with a graceful bow by an elderly man. However, upon seeing this household¡¯s heir in custody, ¡¸This is-¡­¡­!?¡¹ his eyes were wide open in shock.


    ¡¸My foolish brother caused a mess. For now, we are going to father¡¯s office. Your head will fly if you don¡¯t treat this girl courteously, so be mindful.¡¹


    ¡¸This lady is¡­¡­?¡¹


    ¡¸No need for you to know.¡¹


    At the very least, she¡¯s of higher standing than the Amyulute family. As though to say there¡¯s no need for further context, Viviana leaves it at that and heads deeper inside the mansion.


    Unconcerned, Ciel follows along while hauling Amyulute¡¯s heir.


    Before long, Viviana stopped at a door and opened it without as much as a knock, causing the middle-aged man inside to look at her displeased.


    ¡¸What¡¯s going on? This ruckus, have you forgotten your manners?¡¹


    ¡¸This isn¡¯t the time to be worrying about manners, father.¡¹


    ¡¸What?¡¹


    Viviana remained unfazed when confronted with his obviously irritated tone. Seeing that, the man was bewildered and after finally realizing that Viviana was not alone, his eyes went wide open.


    ¡¸What happened? Why is Conrant in custody!¡¹


    ¡¸My foolish brother simply assaulted Mistress Fiiyanamia¡¯s daughter and was beaten. Lord Amyulute.¡¹


    ¡¸¡­¡­ What have you-¡­¡¹


    ¡¸The Amyulute family was defeated. And Lady Cielmer wants my older sister, don¡¯t you have something to say?¡¹


    While her father raised his voice to say something, Viviana indifferently continued. This lack of respect, she seems to really hate him.


    As if to cling to what little hope that¡¯s left, Lord Amyulute turned to his captive successor.


    ¡¸Is it true, Conrant?¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s¡­ the truth.¡¹


    This guy was probably only brought here to say this. After all, since Viviana is in our company, we probably would have gained entry even without him. Rather, his name is Conrant? First time hearing it.


    ¡¸So she is truly that powerful¡­¡­¡¹


    Lord Amyulute muttered weakly as he stared towards the sky. From how he didn¡¯t get enraged, he¡¯s a much proper aristocrat than Conrant was. Not that I actually know what a proper aristocrat is.


    ¡¸I was wondering why you, being of the Fiiyanamia faction, have been awfully obedient recently. Viviana.¡¹


    ¡¸More importantly, would you give your answer now? We¡¯re taking my sister, alright?¡¹


    ¡¸Do as you please.¡¹


    ¡¸In that case, I am grateful for everything up until now. I don¡¯t know what the Amyulute household¡¯s future will be, but farewell.¡¹


    With a noble¡¯s unreadable smile, Viviana ended the conversation.


    As Viviana walked off, Ciel followed after her.

 CH 117.1

    ¡¸Sister Sumiaria!¡¹


    Inside Viviana¡¯s family home, we entered a certain room and Viviana suddenly ran into the arms of the lady inside.


    A beautiful woman with characteristic long brown hair and indigo blue eyes. Being Viviana¡¯s older sister, they do have similarities but she appears to have a more gentle and calm disposition.


    It seems like the upper class are a gathering of pretty men and women. It¡¯s probably because that sort of genes are passed down in their bloodline. Still, I have the impression of sleazy nobles sometimes being fat and plump. Maybe they¡¯re also pretty boys if they lose some weight?


    ¡¸Viviana, welcome back.¡¹


    Seeing Viviana, Sumiaria greeted her with a warm smile. However, is it just me or is there a hint of sadness in her eyes?


    Noticing Ciel, she tilted her head in confusion, likely wondering why we¡¯re even here. To begin with, I¡¯m sure she doesn¡¯t even know about our standing.


    Still, was it Ciel¡¯s near-aristocratic beauty ¡ªrather, Ciel does have actual noble blood¡ª or Sumiaria¡¯s personal disposition that prevented her from immediately shooing Ciel away?


    Sumiaria fixed her gaze on Ciel, and as if struck by a sudden realization, her eyes widened in surprise. Abruptly, she rose from her seat and dropped to her knees before Ciel.


    ¡¸It is my pleasure to be meeting you. I am the eldest daughter of the Amyulute family, Sumiaria Amyulute. I believe that you are Mistress Fiiyanamia¡¯s daughter but, my apologies, I do not know of your name.¡¹


    ¡¸I¡¯m Cielmer.¡¹


    I feel like this is the most respect we¡¯ve been shown as the daughter of Central¡¯s highest authority. No, perhaps this is the expected reaction. Viviana remains silent, merely nodding in agreement.


    After taking a step back, Sumiaria then stood up and said,


    ¡¸Forgive me for not being able to receive you with proper hospitality, but may I ask the reason for your visit?¡¹


    ¡¸I came to get you.¡¹


    ¡¸Ummm¡­¡­¡¹


    While it¡¯s not wrong, she wouldn¡¯t understand without any other context. Since this is a good chance for Ciel to have a conversation partner, I suggested ¡ºWhy don¡¯t you sit and talk with her?¡»


    Viviana also seemed like she has something to say, but I hope she restrains herself, since this is a part of our reward.


    ¡¸Should we sit and talk?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. I would greatly appreciate that.¡¹


    With those words, Sumiaria led us towards the table inside the room. As Ciel approached, Sumiaria smoothly pulled out a chair for her. Perhaps due to the chair being tailored to Sumiaria¡¯s height, Ciel¡¯s feet can¡¯t quite reach the floor.


    As Ciel tried to find a comfortable position for her feet, Sumiaria settled into the chair across from her. At the same time, Viviana selected a sofa some distance away, her gaze attentively monitoring the unfolding scene.


    ¡¸May I ask what course of events led to Lady Cielmer coming to get me?¡¹


    ¡¸Conrant? attacked me, so I defeated and captured him.¡¹


    ¡¸For my foolish brother to do such a thing¡­¡­ How can we even make amends for this¡­¡¹


    That¡¯s exactly why we¡¯re here for her, but it seems her distress over Ciel being attacked has clouded her realization. Ciel points at Sumiaria, who after a moment of surprise, reciprocates by pointing at herself.


    ¡¸Me?¡¹


    ¡¸In the first place, it was Viviana¡¯s plan to separate you from Amyulute.¡¹


    ¡¸That¡¯s¡­..¡¹


    Upon saying so, Sumiaria turned her eyes towards Viviana, who swiftly responded with a nod.


    ¡¸May I pose a few queries?¡¹


    ¡¸Yeah.¡¹


    ¡¸Am I correct in assuming that I am to serve as a maidservant in Mistress Fiiyanamia¡¯s manor?¡¹


    ¡¸You don¡¯t want to?¡¹


    ¡¸Far from it. That would be such a great honor. However, I don¡¯t believe I¡¯m equipped for the role¡­¡¹


    ¡¸Fii said you¡¯d be fine.¡¹


    ¡¸Really!?¡¹


    Sumiaria¡¯s sudden show of excitement took Ciel aback, causing her to pull away in surprise. Receiving direct approval from your king might certainly be a thing to be happy about. Not that I can completely understand the feeling.


    Rather than getting a king¡¯s recognition, receiving Ciel¡¯s recognition would make me a hundred times happier. No matter how often Ciel praises me, a king¡¯s acknowledgement can never win against Ciel¡¯s praises.


    Realizing that she jumped out of her seat, Sumiaria shyly returned to her original position.


    ¡¸My apologies.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s fine. You¡¯re going with us, so get prepared today.¡¹


    ¡¸Your consideration is deeply appreciated. But there¡¯s no need for preparation. I have nothing of importance here to begin with.¡¹


    ¡¸I see. Any questions?¡¹


    Seeing Sumiaria shaking her head, Ciel urges her to continue.


    ¡¸My sister, Viviana¡­ Are you well acquainted with her?¡¹


    ¡¸I met her at Estoque.¡¹


    ¡¸She hasn¡¯t been impolite with you, has she?¡¹


    ¡¸I was just a hunter back then.¡¹


    We were lower in rank too and she wasn¡¯t at all impolite. If she had exploited our difference in status to belittle us, we would have kept our distance. Instead, she was always humble when interacting with us.

 CH 117.2

    Perhaps noticing that Ciel seems entirely indifferent, Sumiaria seems to relax¡­ at least, that¡¯s what I believe. I couldn¡¯t discern this change from her expression; it was something I sensed through my detection, so I can¡¯t confirm it with absolute certainty.


    ¡¸Lady Cielmer, you are quite broad-minded.¡¹


    ¡¸It¡¯s not like that.¡¹


    ¡ºI¡¯m just not that interested in it.¡»


    ¡ºOther than myself, what else has your interest?¡»


    ¡ºSpirits and gods, I guess? But I¡¯m also a bit curious about Carol, Viviana, and so on, you know?¡»


    ¡ºWell, no need to force yourself to be interested, okay?¡»


    It might backfire, after all. Forcing Ciel, who has difficulty dealing with people, to feign interest in people wouldn¡¯t be wise. She doesn¡¯t show blatant signs of disliking people in my presence, though.


    ¡¸I have a question too.¡¹


    ¡¸What might it be?¡¹


    ¡¸How did you notice that I¡¯m Fii¡¯s daughter?¡¹


    I thought Ciel might gotten some slight interest in Sumiaria because of our topic about interest, but her question proves that it wasn¡¯t the case, which is perfectly in line with Ciel¡¯s character. Actually, I¡¯m also quite curious about that, so I appreciate the question.


    ¡¸I suspected it after seeing your barrier, I suppose? After all, if it¡¯s an individual who can create barriers of that level, I can understand why Mistress Fiiyanamia would consider taking you in.¡¹


    ¡¸How much can you see?¡¹


    ¡¸Right. I can sense four with certainty. The barriers get stronger the more layers they are behind, but conversely, they become less detectable if I¡¯m not mistaken. Only a select few can make even just one barrier with such uniform density. Also, if I am correct, there¡¯s still one more layer deep inside? That one I can only barely sense, but if it does exist, its strength might be able to rival Mistress Fiiyanamia.¡¹


    Hearing Sumiaria¡¯s response, Ciel reacts with a blend of surprise and applause. Apart from her, Mother is likely the only other person capable of probing so deeply into my barrier. Considering that even Carol and Friere couldn¡¯t detect as much, Sumiaria¡¯s talent must be extraordinary.


    ¡ºSumiaria is amazing. Even I can¡¯t sense that much.¡»


    ¡ºYou¡¯ll be able to sense it in the near future, Ciel.¡»


    ¡ºI really hope so. Still, I can sense up until the A-rank barrier, so perhaps I am close?¡»


    ¡ºWouldn¡¯t it feel unpleasant when you can finally feel the last barrier?¡»


    Considering she¡¯s entirely wrapped in magic power that¡¯s not her own, it might indeed stress her out. If that¡¯s the case, should I alter the shape of the current barrier? If it¡¯s spherical, though, no one would be able to approach Ciel. Frankly, that would become quite an inconvenience, especially when shopping and the like.


    ¡ºThat won¡¯t happen, I¡¯m sure of it! Being able to feel Ain¡¯s magic power is comforting, after all. Back in the mansion, when I could still sense your magic power, it was enough to make me happy, you know? At that time, I still didn¡¯t know what happiness was, though.¡»


    ¡ºI see, understood. Then I¡¯ll keep it the way it is. It might grow more difficult to detect as a result.¡»


    ¡ºAin is so mean right now.¡»


    Ciel answered with a slight pout.


    Since we are conversing, Her ever changing expressions seem to have puzzled Sumiaria. For now, our task here appears to be finished.


    ¡ºWell then, shall we go home? While she did say there¡¯s nothing to prepare, she might still need mental preparation.¡»


    ¡ºUnderstood. Should we pick her up tomorrow?¡»


    ¡ºI believe it would be better to have her go to the manor herself since it might not be a good look if we directly came for her.¡»


    ¡ºIs that so?¡»


    Ending our exchange, Ciel stood up.


    ¡¸Will you be leaving now?¡¹


    ¡¸Yes. Come to the manor tomorrow.¡¹


    ¡ºIt would be nice if there¡¯s something to proof that we called her.¡»


    ¡ºIt should be fine for Fii.¡»


    ¡ºIt¡¯s more so Sumiaria won¡¯t feel anxious, if I have to say.¡»


    I suspect that having an introduction letter or a similar proof of acquaintance with us might give her more confidence to approach Fii¡¯s manor. A written proof would be a safe bet, but Ciel seems to have come upon her own idea.


    ¡¸At the manor, just say that you came to see Ainsel.¡¹


    ¡¸Ainsel¡­¡­ Is it?¡¹


    Well, yeah. Just knowing my name is sufficient proof of her connection with us, after all. I don¡¯t particularly mind Ciel telling her as long as it doesn¡¯t spread. I guess we¡¯ve finally reached this point, huh. Still, I¡¯m genuinely pleased that Ciel thought of it and expressed it on her own.


    ¡ºWas that bad?¡»


    ¡ºI think it¡¯s alright. Only a few people know my name, after all. However, are you fine with that, Ciel?¡»


    ¡ºYes, I don¡¯t like having more people know Ain¡¯s name, but it¡¯ll be known anyways when Ain starts going out more. Besides, even if more people know Ain, you¡¯ll still protect me, right?¡»


    ¡ºOf course.¡»


    ¡ºThen it¡¯s fine. Yep, yep. It¡¯s true, you know?¡»


    (This chapter is provided to you by Re:Library)


    (Please visit Re:Library to show the translators your appreciation!)


    Her adorable behavior nearly makes me giggle. She seems both happy and a bit embarrassed. And with that, we promptly left the Amyulute mansion and went our way to the manor.