Chapter 2
HAVING SPENT A NIGHT in the extremely expensive inn, Mira resisted wakefulness for a while, then finally used the toilet and refreshed herself with a morning bath. Now, she was mid-breakfast.
“In the end, meat is key. Meat is love and meat is life.”
Her meal this morning included consommé, fruit juice, and burgers with ample toppings.
Beef, cheese, tomato, and lettuce were the stars of the show. Rather dense for breakfast, but the first burger was delicious, with a basil sauce.
Mira had requested this breakfast the night before. Owing to the inn room’s massive price tag, staying a night permitted one to order whatever breakfast they wanted from the inn’s head chef. Mira had used the privilege to request that the same beef from last night be served for breakfast in the morning. The result was these luxurious burgers.
“Such wonderful breakfasts are hard to come by.”
After making short work of the first burger, Mira murmured happily and reached for the second. This one wasn’t just meat between buns either; the beef was again accompanied by cheese, tomatoes, and lettuce.
This was a dish of the utmost perfection, made with a liberal amount of that exquisite beef. But the burgers weren’t all the same; the beef and lettuce held constant, but the other ingredients differed. The cheese might be replaced with cream cheese, sauteed eggs or mushrooms, or something else entirely. The variety of flavors satisfied Mira even more.
***
After finishing breakfast and checking out of the inn, utterly fulfilled, Mira mounted Pegasus and headed toward the Adventurers’ Guild Union.
The union was naturally busy, even this early, given the city attracted so many adventurers. It was chock-full of people engaged in various proceedings and types of paperwork. Mira’s objective was different this time, however. She side-eyed the commotion as she weaved through the crowd and stood in front of the corner recycling bin.
“Mustn’t forget this. It’s too important.” She casually, yet conscientiously, put her used Ancient Underground City permit in the recycling bin. An apparition of a girl appeared, thanked her for her cooperation, and disappeared with a smile. That technology had never ceased to bewilder Mira, no matter how many times she saw it.
Their curiosity piqued by the sound of the recycling bin being used in the early morning, some adventurers turned and exclaimed, wondering whether that could be the Spirit Queen herself. Their commotion drew even more attention toward Mira.
Apparently, during Mira’s time in the Ancient Underground City, the revelation that the supposedly bodacious Spirit Queen was actually a young girl had finally spread. Words to this effect and compliments on her beauty rose from the onlookers.
Hrmm. I’d say I’m on my way to being as famous as Cyril!
In response to the expectant looks, Mira puffed out her chest confidently—an implicit statement that she was the very queen they hoped she was.
At that point, a number of adventurers approached her. They bombarded her with questions about what the battle was like, her relationship with the Spirit King, her thoughts on Jack Grave during the battle, whether it was true that she’d refused Eleonora’s offer, whether she knew about the card game Legends of Asteria, which window she’d like to pick up a gift from someone named “M.T.” at, what color her panties were—on and on.
“Er, sorry! I have some urgent business to attend to!” Unable to take the endless questioning any longer, Mira used Air Step to leap over the crowding adventurers’ heads. In the process, she made sure to respond to one question: “Send that gift to Lunatic Lake, please!”
“Understood!” the employee replied.
Many in the room let out a collective groan, although Mira’s quick escape impressed some. Meanwhile, one man looked up in satisfaction, having received an unexpected answer to his question.
“Light blue, huh?”
***
“Phew. Things changed quite a bit in the past week or so.” Had news from Sentopoli come this far in so little time, or had her words on her first day here had such a strong effect? Both, perhaps? Either way, the Spirit Queen’s image as a buxom babe had been replaced with that of tiny Mira. “This is a bit of a problem.”
Fame came with its own set of issues, Mira realized, though she relished the satisfaction of the shower of praise. Then she remembered one of those voices she’d heard. It’s the icing on the cake that my fans are people of real culture! she boasted inwardly as she strutted out of the Adventurers’ Guild Union.
Now cognizant of her fame, Mira smiled at the prospect of summoning’s grand return as she headed to the parking lot near the union.
That parking lot was made for both horse-drawn carriages and wagons drawn by other creatures, and it was full of both. In other words, it was packed with necromancers’ golems and similar laborers.
Carriages and wagons were vital assets to adventurers, as well as status symbols. Such a vehicle’s purchase price and maintenance fees were too great for a newbie adventurer to bear. Often, new adventurer groups made obtaining one their first goal.
That meant these vehicles weren’t purchased just for convenience, but to show that their owner made a stable income as well. Here, those displays of wealth were on display all over the place, which proved that adventurers of corresponding caliber had gathered in this city.
The carriages before were all similar, but these ones have such varied designs.
Mira handed her numbered ticket to the attendant, who guided her to an area where she saw many other striking carriages. Her wagon was parked in a roofed lot for veteran adventurers, but they’d passed through an unroofed lot to get there. Along the way, Mira had seen countless carriages. They’d all had similar or identical designs, though, leading Mira to conclude that that was the standard adventurer style.
The roofed parking lot was a different matter. No two carriages there shared a design. The veteran adventurers’ carriages were all souped up in various special ways that showed off their status, with enhancements to comfort, driving power, and durability. They all seemed to be the kind pulled along the ground, however. Mira’s wagon, with its top supports for flying, stood out among them. Perhaps as a result, the adventurers using the lot were taking notice of it.
First things first. Let’s see if that communicator works. Thanking the attendant, Mira slipped into her wagon, avoiding prying eyes, then opened the closet door to check on the communicator set up within.
Its black case was installed in the closet, and it couldn’t be moved. That meant Mira had to crawl into the closet and use Ethereal Arts: Illumination to see it. In that pose, someone peeking through the wagon window could’ve seen her underwear, but she was obviously neither cognizant nor wary of that.
She took the lid off the case and tossed it aside haphazardly. Inside was a black device with a receiver. Mira picked it up, praying that it would connect her directly to Solomon, like the one she’d used to connect with Kagura.
“Hey, Solom—” Before she finished saying Solomon’s name, Mira realized something and put the receiver down.
If this call connected, she’d be reporting national secrets. Tons of adventurers were using the parking lot, and she didn’t know who might be listening in. If she reported in now, and they heard her, there’d be no end to speculation on the Nine Wise Men.
The temporary nonaggression pact still forbade war and all other aggressive acts. Alcait could perhaps escape scrutiny by claiming that Mira was searching for missing citizens, but that wouldn’t entirely hold water when it came to the raw military force the Nine Wise Men represented.
Searching for the remaining Wise Men—their homeland’s most powerful offensive and defensive assets—in anticipation of the end of the treaty was in itself an extremely risky mission. Some countries might even see it as preparation for war and, in turn, condemn Alcait.
That said, Mira had a simple excuse: She was merely searching for her countrymen. In light of that, condemnations likely wouldn’t lead to any serious repercussions. Still, it was all but certain that some would try to interfere with her quest. That would be a pain to deal with, Mira realized, so she decided to take measures to prevent eavesdropping.
The Mark of the Rosary appeared inside the wagon. As Mira incanted, it became fainter, then vanished into thin mist as the spell activated.
Wasranvel, the spirit of stealth, appeared without any sound or sign. “A much smaller space than usual, I see.” Mira had summoned him for short periods during the battle with the Machina Guardian. Looking around the wagon for a moment, he remarked with a smile, “Oh. Now that I think about it, this is where we first met.”
“Although I was asleep back then.” Mira grinned wryly. During their first meeting, Wasranvel had swept the sleeping Mira out of her wagon. She’d awoken in the middle of a lake.
“Come to think of it, you’re right.” If one considered their first meeting to consist of mutual recognition, it would actually have been in the middle of that dark lake—a rather disquieting place to wake up to a stranger’s face. Wasranvel viewed that meeting as a fond memory, however.
Based on the circumstances, Mira seemingly wasn’t in battle, so Wasranvel looked out the window and asked, “Now, then, what brings me here today?”
“Well, you see, I need to discuss secret matters that mustn’t be heard. I need you to prevent eavesdropping.”
“That makes sense. Certainly. That’s an easy request for me.” Having readily agreed, Wasranvel used his power of stealth right away. It produced no visible difference, highlighting how unobtrusive the power was; still, its effectiveness was no joke.
“Mm. Perfect!” Mira complimented him. This power prevented any sound from traveling to their surroundings. It also cut off even the faintest sound from outside, filling the wagon with such silence that they heard only each other’s faint breathing. “Now, I just hope the communicator actually connects…”
The stage was perfectly set. All that remained was to try to contact Solomon.
The summoner ducked back into the closet and grabbed the receiver. Praying that she’d reach her target, she called, “Can you hear me, Solomon?!”
Five seconds passed, and she tried again. She repeated herself five more seconds later. There was no response. Simply picking up the receiver and talking into it wouldn’t do the trick.
“Hrmm… It seems I need to operate it somehow.” Mira put the receiver back. Grumbling to herself, she investigated the communicator’s various buttons and levers. She kept talking into the black object, but there was nobody listening.
Curious, Wasranvel peeked over her shoulder. “What is this thing, Mira?” he asked finally.
“A communication device made possible by a technology known as technomancy. It lets you speak with people, even from afar,” Mira answered a little proudly as she fiddled with the device. These contraptions were expensive, and their usage was restricted, so they weren’t easy to find. Wagons containing communicators were generally restricted to the military and select nobility.
Mira had heard directly from Solomon that she was an exception to that rule, so it was natural that she’d feel smug. Not that that meant anything to Wasranvel; he knew nothing about the technology.
“I see. Humans use these devices to converse with distant friends?” He looked at the communicator again, impressed. Spirits had a way to communicate with others from a distance as well. They called it “airmail,” and it involved wind spirits putting words on the breeze to carry to others.
“If you know how to use it, that is…” Mira chuckled to herself, putting the receiver to her ear again. Experiencing the same sad result, she promptly hung her head. The communicator was a convenient tool, but a tool was essentially pointless if the person attempting to use it was too inept to do so.
As Mira pondered how to overcome this hurdle, Wasranvel said hesitantly, “Oh, speaking of conversing with distant friends, Mira… I hate to bring it up while you’re busy, but I have a message for you. May I share it before I forget?”
“A message?” What could that be about? Mira had no idea who might’ve sent a message. She turned with a surprised look, asking, “From who?”
“Well… From Anrutine. She asked me to get you to make a contract with her next time you summoned me. But when you last summoned me wasn’t a very good time for it. When I got back and told her I hadn’t brought it up, though, she was so sad…” Wasranvel grinned sheepishly as he explained the circumstances.
The primary reason for Anrutine’s request was obviously the connection Mira’s blessing provided to the Spirit King. Using the linking power it gave Mira, her contracted spirits could converse with each other, including those afar. That even applied to the king they revered.
That alone was a tremendous boon, but Mira had also recently made a contract with the progenitor spirit Martel. Martel had been missing for an extremely long time, and even the Spirit King was deeply moved by reuniting with her.
According to Wasranvel, the spirits Mira had contracted with so far were admired by fellow spirits across the world.
“Goodness. I had no idea…”
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Mira and the Spirit King had developed the kind of friendship that allowed them to converse casually. Still, one couldn’t forget that the Spirit King was a special being, and Martel was almost as special to other spirits.
“Anrutine’s request might just be natural, though. To us spirits, His Majesty and the progenitor spirits are like parents. Even if they can’t be by our side, we feel at peace if we only hear their voices.”
Making a contract with the summoner Mira enabled a spirit to listen to the Spirit King and Martel. The spirit could feel them close by, even if they really weren’t. That was a big deal for spirits like him, Wasranvel explained.
Even in the place where she’d lived with Sanctia, Anrutine alone couldn’t hear the Spirit King’s or Martel’s voices. She’d felt awfully isolated as a result, which explained her sadness, and her request that Wasranvel beseech Mira’s aid.
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