Chapter 22
MIRA RETURNED TO THE WAGON and looked at Anrutine, still passed out in the corner. The peacefully sleeping spirit hadn’t woken at all yesterday.
“Now, what do I do about her…?”
Despite how soundly Anrutine was sleeping now, she’d probably wake up perfectly refreshed in a few days, so Mira decided to leave her alone. She took a towel out of the closet and put it over the sleeping spirit. Anrutine’s hands moved a little, gripped it tightly, and pulled it close around her. Now, she didn’t look much different from a human.
After confirming that the spirit was okay, Mira exited the wagon, then focused in order to summon weapon spirits to stand guard. Soon, she’d created two ashen knights through synthesized summoning and the Spirit King’s blessing. They stood by, wielding holy swords.
Ashen knights were convenient summons—both for getting used to the Spirit King’s blessing and for practicing synthesized summoning. Mira regularly chose them as her nighttime security team.
Mira looked the knights up and down, confirming that they were complete. “Mm, yes. Very well done.” This spell was still new to her, so—unlike other evocations—it didn’t come as naturally as breathing, despite her abilities. She needed to focus to combine and link summons.
She looked for defects in the summoning. Though she’d invented a new summoning spell, that didn’t mean she didn’t need to scrutinize those summons; she’d now have to apply trial and error until they were perfect.
Hrmm… Their armor’s thicker, so now it’s compressing the dark knight parts I adjusted. I’ll have to take a closer look and readjust that sometime.
By repeatedly finding and resolving problems, she’d take step after step toward perfection. A standard process, maybe, but a certain one.
“Someday, I’ll perfect you. Let’s do our best together,” Mira told the ashen knights before opening the mansion door. As she disappeared behind it, the silent knights began patrolling the area outside the wagon and mansion spirit, as she’d ordered.
Apart from rare exceptions, like Sanctia, weapon spirits typically weren’t seen as sentient. But if one watched closely, they might notice that the patrolling knights seemed to have awfully light footsteps tonight.
As for Mira, she drew a bath right away. While the tub filled with hot water, she picked out a drink, then used the bathroom and waited, thinking about that evening’s dinner. Once her bath was ready, she immediately tore her clothes off and jumped in.
Tonight, her window commanded a view of Haxthausen’s towering walls. Though she couldn’t see it now, the city beyond was bursting with life. The sight of the walls, illuminated by the moonlight, was quiet yet steadfast. One almost felt the city breathing.
***
Getting out of the bath, Mira opted to put on a full outfit this time instead of just her undies. Not because she’d finally learned to be a little ladylike, of course, but because of her current location.
The mansion spirit wasn’t far from the gates to Haxthausen. That meant, if they really looked, someone close to the gates could see something where Mira was.
So why had Mira summoned the mansion spirit in this area? It was yet another strategy to flaunt the power of summoning.
Someone would surely come to investigate a mansion suddenly appearing outside the city. When they did, she’d greet them with a smile and explain, “This is summoning magic. Train well, overcome adversity, make fortunate contracts, and you could do this too!”
She knew that summoning a mansion spirit was beyond the common person, so her pitch included an admission that it was a rather difficult task. Still, all she needed to do was let people know it was possible for summoners. That was her goal.
After ensuring she was prepared to receive visitors, she had dinner. Tonight’s meal was a fresh, piping-hot beef bowl. Thanks to her Item Box, it would’ve been hot and fresh forever. Thankful for that feature, Mira stuffed her face.
After dinner, she devoured more of Soul Howl’s written research and perused the Encyclopedia of Skills, constantly increasing her knowledge. She also synchronized with the ashen knights as practice, taking the opportunity to see whether anyone was coming to check out the mansion.
I guess people won’t really gather here at night…
About five hours after she’d summoned the mansion spirit, she was struggling to stay awake.
Mira was certain that this mansion seemed to have suddenly appeared beside the road. To be fair, though, it had already been nighttime when she set it up, and there was little foot traffic in the area. People might not even notice the mansion until the sun rose. And in fact, based on her looks through the ashen knights’ eyes, not a single person had come near.
The only people she saw were gatekeepers at the city gates in the distance. It was probably time for their shift change; about ten had gathered and were discussing something. Before long, half went back into the city, and the other half remained.
It was midnight now. Working this late? Goodness. Mira desynchronized, mentally praising Haxthausen’s night guards for their diligence. Then she put away the notes and encyclopedia, closed the mansion’s shutters, and slipped into her special sleeping bag for a night’s rest.
***
Mornings in the mansion spirit were truly pleasant. Mira woke just past seven, used the washroom, opened the shutters, and greeted the morning. The early light was the perfect stimulation to awaken her tired, foggy brain. As it did, she heard commotion from afar.
What an unusually loud morning, she grumbled to herself.
Instantly after, she realized something. The mansion spirit was still outside the city walls, some distance from the road, so wasn’t it strange to hear commotion here?
Recognizing that, she chuckled; her scheme had borne fruit. When the sun rose and lit the world, people must’ve discovered the mansion spirit. Surely their interest had been piqued, and they’d wondered what it was. All according to plan.
Certain of her success, Mira took swift action to raise awareness of summoning. First, she dressed up—or so she thought. She just wore the dress the maids had made for her.
She’d learned one thing from her experiences so far: Defying expectations amplified the power of first impressions. Based on the reactions she’d received, using magic as a little girl impressed people much more easily than using the same magic as Danblf.
That made perfect sense. Which was more astounding? Someone who looked like an expert performing amazing feats easily, or a cute girl who didn’t look the part whatsoever? Now that she was stuck in this form, Mira planned to make the most of it.
The sheer commotion… There must be a lot of people!
The mansion spirit’s convenience, plus an utter beauty performing the ultimate summoning magic… Mira was certain that combination would improve summoning’s reputation.
After dressing well enough to suit her tastes, she threw open the mansion door and gracefully stepped out, but then stopped in wide-eyed surprise.
“What the…?”
She didn’t witness quite what she expected. She’d envisioned various people crowding around the mansion in sheer fascination, but those who’d actually gathered were guards and armed adventurers. When they saw her, they raised their swords warily, fully ready to fight.
Mira shuddered at the unexpected sight and looked around, bewildered.
***
Mira wasn’t the only surprised one. Guards and adventurers had been stationed to surround the mansion. Mira’s emergence clearly shook them all, man and woman alike.
“Hey, what’s going on? What just happened?”
“A cute girl just came out, right?”
Everyone was confused. This wasn’t what they’d signed up for.
“What’s the plan? She’s scared,” an adventurer asked the guard next to him.
That guard wore finer armor than any of the others. He must’ve been the captain in charge of this operation.
Perhaps because she was suddenly surrounded by an armed mob, the girl who’d emerged from the mansion jumped in surprise, then looked around in confusion.
Though very distressed by what he saw, the knight captain responded to the adventurer sternly. It was possible that the girl was the great phantom thief, or connected to him, so they had to remain wary until they knew what she planned to do.
Having communicated that to his cohort, the captain slowly approached Mira, hoping to find out just who she was.
***
Mira herself was still pondering what the hell had brought this small army here. Then, amid the hushed whispers, she heard telling words exchanged.
Did he mention the “phantom thief” just now? Could he mean the same…? As she got the gist of the situation, she spotted the well-dressed soldier—seemingly the one in charge—walking in her direction. If things are as they seem, then he must be…
As the captain moved, the ashen knights automatically positioned themselves to remove an interloper.
“Enough. Stand down,” Mira told the knights. She intentionally said it audibly to show the guards that she had no ill will.
The ashen knights stepped aside as she instructed, waiting beside their master. Amazingly, that seemed to set the guard captain at ease. When he saw the knights’ movements, he sheathed his sword and approached Mira more comfortably.
Once he’d closed the distance between them to five meters, he stopped and asked, “Are you willing to talk?” His stern look was gone, replaced with an inquisitive expression.
“Of course. I couldn’t ask for a kinder offer,” Mira assented, facing him head-on. She knew that a conversation was the likeliest solution; after all, this was just a misunderstanding.
When Mira readily agreed, the captain relaxed and sighed in relief. “All right. Good.” But that relief was fleeting. He tightened up again a moment later, demanding, “First, answer this—are you in league with Fuzzy Dice?”
That was exactly what Mira had expected. They’d surrounded her suspecting that she was in cahoots with the phantom thief.
“No. I’m a simple adventurer. I heard rumors that Fuzzy Dice was arriving in Haxthausen soon, so I came running to apprehend him myself.”
Mira showed her adventurer’s license as if it were a police badge. It was still in the cute card case she’d been given. The captain came closer, scrutinizing it from two meters away.
“I see… Whoa! An A-rank adventurer at that!” Confirming that the license was real, the captain was stunned to see Mira’s rank.
When the other guards and adventurers heard that, more chatter rose among them. That was to be expected; A-rank adventurers were among the best of the best. They held a rank worthy of admiration.
“And you’re here to help rid us of the phantom thief to boot? Ah, it’s very reassuring to have an A-rank adventurer on our side! People like you don’t visit us often these days, so this is a big help.”
It seemed Mira’s license and rank earned her a whole lot of trust. The captain’s wariness faded entirely; he was fully welcoming now.
“Oh ho, really? I thought this event would lead to a gathering of high-caliber adventurers.”
Why hadn’t other A-rank adventurers come out for this? Mira’s curiosity was piqued.
A Fuzzy Dice appearance was a major event that resounded in even faraway cities. The Adventurers’ Guild Union had posted an urgent request to apprehend him. The reward was extremely generous, attracting even more attention. It was certainly a perfect opportunity to seize fame and stand out even among A-ranks—or so Mira thought, subconsciously equating the situation to a video-game event. But reality was seemingly quite different.
“From what I hear, those adventurers flocked here in droves at first. When they arrived, they attracted spectators. Someone there told me that it was like an annual festival.”
The captain recollected his acquaintance’s experience with Fuzzy Dice. The event had been vivid and overwhelming. Ten A-rank adventurers had arrived, either in response to the Adventurers’ Guild Union’s request or because they were personally called in. Even if a fiend that could level a city had appeared, that combined force would’ve fought it off. Everyone looked forward to their exploits, trusting that they’d win.
But when it came down to the fight, they’d been overwhelmingly defeated. Those ten up-and-coming A-rank adventurers hadn’t stood a chance in hell against Fuzzy Dice. To add insult to injury, he’d wrapped them in bamboo mats and thrown them onto the union’s doorstep.
“Such an easy victory against ten A-rank adventurers… He’s clearly a formidable fighter.”
The man she’d met at the baron’s mansion had been immensely strong. Just watching him fight, she’d known she only saw a fraction of his power. If he was Fuzzy Dice, then according to the guard captain, he’d easily defeated ten A-rank adventurers at once. He and Mira might just be evenly matched.
“Yes. I hear he’s incredibly tough. Those poor adventurers had so many expectations on their shoulders, and after that, all trust in them was lost. Worse, there’s a bit of a problem with pursuing that thief now…” Sighing, the captain added with a sad chuckle, “It makes us the bad guys.”
“Right, right. Since he’s a noble thief, and all.”
“Exactly.”
Back when Fuzzy Dice first appeared, people considered him a simple criminal. But he became a star as he racked up heists and a trend became clear. The pattern that emerged was that he only targeted villains—people ceaselessly surrounded by rumors of wrongdoing that he personally verified.
That had happened the day before yesterday too.
Baron Ardoloris was an evil man. No wonder the noble thief had gone after him. Indeed, Fuzzy Dice had a sense of justice that spurred him to Mira’s aid even when his clothes were in the wash. His state of undress and misunderstandings aside, his strength and sense of justice were genuine. Of course people hailed him as a hero.
What did that make people who stood against him, then? Villains, of course.
Opposing him gave an A-rank adventurer a negative image, undercutting their influence. As a result, almost none took missions to arrest him. The only ones who did were testing their skills or observing Fuzzy Dice’s work; few at best wholeheartedly attempted to imprison him.
To be fair, I’m not really interested in bringing him to justice either.
Mira’s objective was to question the thief and find out whether he knew where Artesia’s orphanage was. She was ready to apprehend him, but hardly interested in jailing him. In fact, she planned to release him as soon as she had what she wanted.
Not that she’d say that now, of course. Mira spoke with the captain as if she genuinely planned to turn Fuzzy Dice in.
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