Saikyou Mahoushi no Inton Keikaku (LN) - Volume 2 - Chapter SS

Bonus Short Stories 

The Taste of Gratitude 

Attention! This short story contains spoilers, so it’s recommended you read it after finishing the book first. 

“Here you go...” 

It was the afternoon of a day off. A redhead bluntly thrust a small basket at Alus in his laboratory. 

Perhaps because of their serious side as students, Tesfia and Alice were showing up at the laboratory even on days off. 

“What do you expect from me...” Alus said, with furrowed brows. For some reason he didn’t want to accept these kinds of things from her. She tended to be strangely sly, so Alus was cautious, but Tesfia was gazing at him in puzzlement. 

That’s when Loki, who’d been making tea, helped ease Alus’ concern. Her intuition told her what was inside the basket based on the fragrance coming from it. “Are those cookies?” 

When Loki said this, Tesfia’s face lit up. “That’s right! Actually... I-I baked some for the first time in a while. So I was thinking we could have them for a snack.” 

This was something Tesfia had gotten up early in the morning to make as thanks for Alus’ help in the extracurricular lesson. Her not being able to say this outright was just like her. 

It wasn’t until those somewhat awkward words that Alus finally understood her intentions. I’m not sure whether to call her admirable or sincere, but at least it seems her heart is in the right place. 

“P-Please have them for tea if you like.” 

“Sure, we’ll have them.” 

“That’s the spirit!” Tesfia put the basket down on the table, and just as she was about to pull the contents out... 

“I can’t say that I have a sweet tooth, but I’ll have some since you went out of your way to make them.” 

Loki immediately made a mental note of Alus’ words, filing it away in the “Things Sir Alus Doesn’t Like” folder. 

Meanwhile, Tesfia clapped her hands together as if to celebrate her luck. “Really?! That’s good, because I think I managed to limit the sweetness in them.” 

As she said that, she pulled out the plate with the goods from the basket. They seemed to be misshapen... cookie-like things. 

“Hey. These are burnt no matter how you look at it. To think you have the gall to say that you limited the sweetness like this.” 

“I-It’s only a little.” 

As she finished pouring tea for three, Loki’s eyes opened wide at the sight of the black burnt objects before her. She quickly collected herself and feigned composure while whispering to Alus, “... Sir Alus, it’s fine to reject something like this.” 

“Yeah, I know, but...” 

Tesfia was insecurely waiting for his impressions. She had a timid, puppylike aura to her. Alus felt like not even he could choose not to try the cookies. At a closer look, he could see small cuts on Tesfia’s fingers. Besides... 

Maybe it’s not all charred. They do smell like cookies. So maybe just one... 

I still think it would be dangerous. 

Alus and Loki spoke to each other with their eyes in front of Tesfia. 

“...I-It really has been a while, so don’t get your hopes up, okay?” Tesfia’s words felt a little forced. 

Alus said, “Hmm. W-Well, I guess you do have a feminine side to you too.” 

Hearing that, Tesfia pouted. “What exactly do you think I am? Anyone can do something like this.” 

“Or so she says, Loki. She’s only made them to the level that anyone could pull off.” 

“I’m relieved to hear that. I couldn’t imagine what they would be like if they were any more elaborate...” 

Alus and Loki were still somewhat uneasy, but they’d made their resolve. If the black objects before them could be classified as cookies, then they couldn’t be all that bad. Even if they didn’t taste good, they could handle it. 

The two each grabbed a cookie under Tesfia’s expectant glance. 

Worst case, we can just wash it down with the black tea. 

That’s true. 

After speaking with their eyes some more, the two brought the cookies to their mouths and chewed. They were harder than expected, and only tasted like something charred. But they still weren’t inedible. 

Alus washed it down with some tea, then suddenly asked something that had been on his mind. “Now that I think about it, what happened to Alice? It’s rare for you to come here on your own.” 

“Yeah, Alice fell asleep after giving the cookies a taste. She was being pretty sloppy.” 

By the time they heard that, it was too late. The changes to their bodies were quick and ruthless. Alus and Loki both collapsed over the table. As his mind faded away, Alus could only think of how careless he had been. 

Tesfia looked on in blank surprise for a moment, but after seeing that disastrous scene, she realized she was the culprit and began to panic... Ultimately, she threw away even her pride and muttered as cutely as she could... 

“Uhmm... the secret ingredient is gratitude?” 

A Fateful Meeting 

After being taken in by the military, Alice was like an empty shell, which remained unchanged as she turned 12. That research project was without a doubt the crossroads that changed her life. Before long, she was always thinking about where she went wrong. 

Obsessed with her unchangeable past, Alice found herself standing before the military facility’s dojo that day. It was nothing but a mere coincidence. 

It was a place that specialized in teaching the arts of spearmanship. In order to vent the heat that built up, its doors were always open, and the energetic shouts of the disciples inside were as noisy as always. 

As she stared in from outside, the instructor roped her into trying it out. Alice simply didn’t have the courage to refuse that man’s forceful invitation. 

The pupils training there were mostly soldiers, meaning they were burly men. Despite that, they gave the young girl a warm welcome. 

After that, Alice began training in spearmanship. Not because it was fun, but because it was a comfortable place, and as long as she devoted herself to training she didn’t feel tormented by her remorse. 

Whenever she was alone, that negative spiral of thoughts popped up in her mind. She knew that she needed to keep looking forward, but it seemed her past wouldn’t let her. 

One day, as she was leaning against the thick trunk of a tree during break time, a redheaded girl entered her field of view. Her hair was a truly vivid red, and Alice found herself entranced by the girl. 

It wasn’t until the redhead abruptly turned and came her way that Alice realized the girl had noticed her staring. At a closer look, she seemed to be the same age as herself. Despite Alice hurriedly looking away, the redhead didn’t stop her approach. She thought of running away for a moment. 

But that’s when the redhead arrived in front of her and proudly said, “Nice to meet you. I’m Tesfia Fable. I heard from the people over there that you’re a disciple here.” 

Alice shook her head as the girl spoke to her. That’s when the girl suspiciously pointed at her dojo uniform. 

“I-I’m not an o-official disciple. Just an apprentice.” 

“I see. I’m sorry. I guess I was a little too wound up when I found someone my own age around here. May I know your name?” 

“—!! I-It’s Alice... Ti-Tilake...” 

When Alice said her name, she could feel a small weight drop. Just how long had it been since she last introduced herself with her full name? It was like reconfirming that she was indeed Alice Tilake as she spoke it out loud. This name was something that had been given to her... 

Having remembered something so obvious, she realized something. Even though they’d only spent a short while together, she had received a lot of things from her parents. And the very first thing was her name. And that still remained. When her parents passed away, Alice felt like she had nothing left. 

She had despaired at the thought. But that wasn’t the case. For each time she spoke her name, she could feel the emotions that had been put into naming her. 

Unaware of how Alice felt, the redhead went on, “Hmm, that’s a nice name. And your hair color is very pretty.” 

It was the honey-colored hair she’d inherited from her parents. Hearing that, Alice crouched down and began sobbing. 

Surprised, the redhead’s eyes opened wide and she lowered herself to face Alice. “Huh?! Did I say something rude...?” 

“No, i-it’s okay...” 

“R-Really?” 

Alice waved her hands to show she was all right, and slowly stood back up. She had a feeling tears likely wouldn’t flow from her eyes again, at least not the bitter and crushing kind... 

She then looked at the redheaded girl and proudly spoke. “... Yes, I’m Alice. Alice Tilake.” 

How to Spend the Day Off 

On a day off, on a certain weekend... to Alus, time off meant more time to spend on research. But he was convinced that today would be different from usual. 

The reason for that was Loki. The two of them had headed out into the city early in the morning. She was dressed differently from how she usually dressed, her taller heels striking the stone pavement with a rhythmical beat. Alus wondered where she’d gotten that purse she carried on her shoulder. He was sure he’d never seen it before. 

She wore a thin shirt with a cardigan on top. Against the clear skies, she was in perfect form. 

Loki hadn’t brought Alus out to the city for the sake of taking a walk or going on a date. If she didn’t at least present a logical reason on the surface, he would never agree to it. She’d been made painfully aware of that. 

Today’s logical reason was buying daily necessities. Even with her cooking, there was a serious lack of cutlery and cooking utensils. The vast majority of the things Alus requested from the military were meant to aid his research, and with him never intending to cook himself, any such tools probably would have been useless. But his partner who was managing his diet couldn’t allow that. The kitchen being pointlessly top of the line only spurred those feelings on. With the kitchen being so beautifully appointed, the paper plates and plastic cups looked painfully out of place. 

That’s why Loki was going to use today to gather the necessities she wanted. And with Alus showing no signs of getting any rest, she somewhat forcibly took him with her. 

“Sir Alus, let’s go to that store next. They do delivery, so let’s gather as much as we can there,” Loki excitedly said. 

He did consider these things useful, but wasn’t too into the shopping since the army could get the same for him if he made a request. But seeing this kind of expression on Loki’s face made it hard for him to say he’d head home first. 

Later, as they’d bought most of what they needed and were about to leave, Loki suddenly stopped in the middle of the road. Her gaze was drawn to a certain display window. It was a store that specialized in tea articles, such as cups and pots. 

“Sir Alus, can we make one last stop?” 

“Sure, I don’t mind.” 

Loki hurriedly made her way to the store. As the door had a bell attached to it, the bell rang out as she opened the door. 

Alus followed her into the shop. They seemed to deal in tea leaves as well as teapots, as the aroma of tea filled the store. 

Despite it being her first time here, the shop had a calming atmosphere to Loki. She immediately made her way to the tea set displayed in the window. 

She passionately stared at it. “You like tea, don’t you, Sir Alus?” 

“Hmm... well, I don’t hate it.” 

Loki had a slight blush as she turned his way, and having realized what she wanted, he figured he’d give her the answer she was looking for. The tea set wasn’t the kind of detailed thing used for formal events, but was much more simple. It also had a calming pale coloring to it as well. 

“In that case... can we get it so that you can enjoy my tea even more...?” 

“Yeah, that’s fine.” If you want it, just buy it, he was saying in effect. 

But Loki looked up at him with a slightly embarrassed expression. “So, uhm... Sir Alus, if you could buy it...” 

“Like I said, I don’t mind. In fact, you have my license, right?” 

“Y-Yes, I have it.” 

So far, Loki had selected everything and bought it using Alus’ license. In other words, he was paying for it. And she only needed to do the same this time too... but it seemed she had a different intention. 

“Well, you see... it’s better if you buy it personally. Especially for things like this...” With a blush, she handed Alus’ license back to him. She wanted him to buy it himself. 

“Is that how it works?” 

“Yes! That’s how it works.” 

When they stepped out of the store, Loki was holding the box the tea set was in like it was very precious to her. And she thanked Alus with a satisfied smile. “Thank you very much. I will use it carefully, Sir Alus.” 

The tea set being the only thing she didn’t ask to be delivered, must have meant that there were a lot of feelings at play. Feelings as warm as the tea it would pour. As warm as the bright smile on Loki’s face. 

The Hardships of a Lady 

Coming from a noble family, Felinella had received special education since childhood. 

Her ability to do anything stemmed from that experience. Yet now, she was struggling. That was perhaps because she was experiencing a dilemma. 

“Just what should I wear?” 

She crossed her slim arms, bringing her pale finger to her lips, and carefully considered for the third time today. She was currently in her bedroom at the girls’ dorm, and being surprisingly hesitant for her. All of her casual clothes were laid out on the bed. She’d been at this for over two hours, and in her underwear the whole time. 

Today was a day off, and Felinella was planning on having Alus look over her training like he’d promised. Or rather, she was planning on meeting with him to decide on a date for his guidance. She personally wouldn’t mind starting right away, so it was a rather roundabout plan for the girl who was always so quick to make a decision and put it into action. 

To Felinella, she was only following the correct procedures for nobility. That’s right—it was only natural that she be prepared for a situation where he might suggest they could start right away. After all, she was meeting with the current No. 1. As a member of the Socalent family, and as a lady, she wanted to properly look the part. 

The more outfits she tried on, the more strongly she felt that all of them had their own merits and demerits. At one point, she got out a dress to pay the utmost respect to her to-be instructor, but when her friend asked what evening party she would be attending, Felinella laid it aside. 

After all her deliberations, Felinella decided to play it safe with her uniform. Normally she’d never go this far, but when it came to Alus, she didn’t know what was the right thing to do. 

By the time she reached the research building, the sun was starting to set. Stopping outside the door to Alus’ laboratory, she took a deep breath. Once she calmed down a little and regained her composure, a serious expression came over her. 

Her hands were empty... she realized she hadn’t brought him anything. 

She’d forgotten to bring a present—something that could not stand, not from a lady from a noble family. 

“To think I could be so careless... I guess I’ll have to come back some other time.” 

Things just weren’t going her way, Felinella muttered to herself, as she turned her back to the door and walked away in disappointment. 

...In reality, she’d repeated this scenario several times over, ever since Alus had made the promise to watch over her training.