She Professed Herself The Pupil Of The Wiseman (LN) - Volume 14 - Chapter 12

Chapter 12

AFTER RECEIVING THE PRECIOUS SOUVENIR from Mira, Solomon promised that he’d let the Hinomoto Committee know that they could come to pick up the other rare materials from the Machina Guardian she’d gotten whenever they wanted.

They both returned to Solomon’s office, where there were always high-quality desserts and black tea readily available.

“By the way, what is it that you said you wanted to give to me yesterday?” Mira remembered after first grabbing a slice of cake.

“Oh, that? I’m sure you’ll put it to good use,” Solomon said confidently. He then put a box on the table about the size of his fist.

“What is it?”

At first glance, it looked to be nothing more than an ordinary box. Yet Solomon said it was a truly revolutionary invention.

“It’s a prototype storage item that was developed by the Hinomoto Committee only a few days ago,” Solomon prefaced before continuing to explain. It was revolutionary and boasted hidden capabilities that would be incredibly useful for Mira.

It was known as the deluxe item box.

With the item box that Mira and the others were currently using, if something was unclassified as an item, it was unable to be stored. However, they could work around that By using the Ethereal Arts technique [Itemize], so this wasn’t that big of an issue. Most things could usually be classified as items.

So what was so groundbreaking about this? The answer was that this new item box could now store things that had previously been unable to be stored as items. Solomon said that the box that sat on the table was capable of storing only one thing: vehicles.

“It can only hold vehicles up to two tons and with a length, width, and height of up to sixteen feet. With this, you’ll be able to carry your wagon around with you.”

And the box itself was classified as an item… In other words: By storing the wagon in the box, then the box in her item box, her item box became something like a parking garage. And they were also working on developing boxes compatible with storing all sorts of other things. Solomon said that they’d eventually figure out how to expand how much they could hold, such that people could transport things that’d previously been impossible to carry around.

“That really is convenient!”

Having to always find parking for her wagon wherever she went, Mira was very impressed with its utility.

“Go ahead and use it. But let me know what you think next time. I’ll let the Hinomoto Committee know your thoughts.”

From the way Solomon said it, it didn’t sound as if he were simply giving her a present. She’d also be testing it out. That didn’t change the fact that it did seem to be quite useful.

Mira assured him that she’d do as much. The two then relaxed by chatting while enjoying some of the desserts that Mira had brought back.

“All right, that’s all for now. Go and get a little rest.”

“Hrmm. That is very much the plan!”

This had been a decisive moment in the mission Mira had undertaken to find the Nine Wise Men. Even if she didn’t count herself, if Soul Howl and Kagura were to return like planned, there’d be five of the mighty Wise Men in the Kingdom of Alcait.

As opposed to before, with only Luminaria around, their fighting strength had gone up fivefold. They’d certainly have enough power to deter any potential war from breaking out. Even if the Limited Non-Aggression Pact expired, nothing was likely to happen right away.

Depending on how things panned out, Meilin might very well return. But Flonne was completely impossible to predict, and they didn’t have even the slightest clue as to where she might be.

Considering all of this, Mira now had some room to breathe. It was as if the crises they’d been facing had been averted. She still planned on finding the remaining Nine Wise Men, but it was no longer quite as urgent as it had been.

Feeling relieved for the first time since she arrived, Mira had a positively radiant smile on her face as she stuffed herself with the desserts she’d brought back.

“So what do you plan to do after this?” Solomon asked casually, as if simply curious.

After thinking this over for a moment, Mira cheerfully answered, “I think I’ll go back to my tower and take my time thinking it over.”

“I see. So you’ll be in your tower… Yeah, that’s probably a good idea. You’ve gotta spend some time with your family after all,” Solomon said with a chuckle, insinuating that Mariana was waiting for her.

“What are you going on about?!” Mira asked, without disagreeing with him.

Their chat stayed on the topic of Mariana before straying to Cleos for a bit, then moved on to the academy.

Several days ago, Solomon and Luminaria had gone to the academy to visit and observe.

Due to the fact that Luminaria had been keeping a watchful eye on them ever since the incident where Caerus attacked Mira, the School of Sorcery had been toiling earnestly and diligently, as if they’d finally come to their senses. And while she’d heard from Cleos that there was an issue with rivalries within the School of Evocation, it seemed as if things were starting to calm down. Similar hostilities between other schools of magic were becoming less frequent as well.

“And then, as I was wondering what the sound could possibly be, I opened the door and right there…”

Changing topics once more, their conversation had now switched to the laboratory beneath the castle. Solomon was referring to the time when he’d gone with Luminaria to check on the odd sounds that could be heard there every night. But in the middle of the story, they heard someone knocking on the door.

Cutting the story off, Solomon answered the door and discovered that the knocking had come from Suleiman. Solomon was due to meet with a very important guest who had just arrived.

“Jeez, is it already that time? All right, then how about we continue this next time?”

He’d been about to get to the good part of the story—and yet, Solomon simply smiled and stood up, as if the timing had been just right.

Mira protested, “Oh, come on. Are you really gonna leave me hanging?”

“Well, in that case… Why don’t you just ask Lily?” Solomon answered with a rather amused look on his face as he opened the door of the office. Sure enough, standing right there was not just Suleiman but Lily as well.

“All right, see ya next time. We’ll catch up.”

Solomon and Suleiman both headed toward the conference room. And thus, the only ones left were Mira and Lily.

If there really was an important guest, then wouldn’t the head maid have to go as well? Mira nervously asked her, to which Lily bluntly replied, “I came here to welcome you back, Miss Mira.”

Mira let herself be reluctantly dragged away to the maid’s lair. There was no use resisting.

“I never would’ve expected something like this…”

Lily brought her to one of the rooms within the maid’s domain. There, surrounded by several maids, Mira stood in a swimsuit.

From the sound of things, it seemed they wanted her to try on some new clothes. At least that was what Mira had expected—but then they unveiled something a little different. She never would’ve guessed that it wasn’t any kind of magical girl clothes. Rather, it was a swimsuit…and not just any swimsuit. A bikini.

“Ahhh, you look like a goddess that drifted down onto a beach!” Lily called out, swooning, as another of the maids worked a camera with practiced ease.

The bikini was blue and white. It complimented Mira’s natural charm while accentuating her magnificent aura, such that even the ocean or sky themselves would struggle to match it.

Why was this all happening now? Because it was summer, of course.

There was a pool on the castle grounds. And while it was primarily used for training, during the summer months, it was open to the public for recreation. Many people used it as a place to cool off. This was true of the maids as well. There were even those who worked while wearing swimsuits under their clothes.

But what had given rise to the current situation was the innerwear conference that’d been held alongside their meetings on what to make next for Mira. The maids were divided into different factions that were advocating either boy shorts, bloomers, stockings, underskorts, or briefs. And while they all outlined their proposals in detail, they’d been unable to come to an agreement.

But with the coming of the new season, a new bloc had emerged: swimsuits. Rather than wear underwear, why not wear a swimsuit?

When initially suggested by a maid who was always going to the pool, the proposal was dismissed as blasphemy. But on second thought, making a swimming suit their next project didn’t seem like a bad idea. Perhaps it was due to the summer heat boiling their brains, but talks continued, and their latest work was crafted.

“Aren’t there days where you just want to leap into the ocean, a river, a waterfall, or a pool to beat the heat? Whenever you do, you can wear this!” Tabitha—second in command behind Lily—said. She then took out several additional bikinis.

It seemed as if they’d also subtly taken into consideration that the swimsuit would be used as a substitute for underwear, and so they’d made sure she could wear a different set every day.

Naturally, Mira had to try on all of these as well. In the end, they made her try on and be photographed in all of the various innerwear prototypes they’d come up with. These photos were to be used at their next conference as reference material.

“What about the autumn line? I guess I’ll end up having to do this again…”

Fall came right after summer. After having to try on swimsuits, she’d have to try on fall clothes. Lily said they’d already begun production on these.

Despite sighing about how such a thing was inevitable, Mira felt fortunate. The reception she got from the overzealous maids could be a bit of a nuisance, but the desserts they served were made with her taste buds specifically in mind. That more than made up for the trouble.

“Cake from the maids’ refectory really is the best.”

Having thoroughly enjoyed her fill of post-lunch desserts, despite having to be dressed up like a mannequin, Mira was seen off by the maids. She managed to get three pairs of swimsuits. And seeing as it was currently summer, it was highly likely that she’d be wearing them soon. In fact, the timing was probably just right. Or at least that was what she thought before shifting her attention to other things.

She hadn’t managed to get an answer from Lily about the story Solomon was telling before they parted. Aside from Lily, she’d also asked Tabitha and the other maids. All of them dodged her questions.

What exactly was the truth they were hiding? It was likely that the maids were somehow involved.

Mira decided to let sleeping dogs lie and opted to just forget about it.

The next place she visited was the workshop on the west side of the castle, where her wagon had been brought for maintenance.

Dag, the shop’s foreman, came forward when she peeked inside. Having given it a maintenance check, they’d determined that there was absolutely nothing wrong with the wagon.

The upper beam, which bore the most force, was exactly as it was when they installed it. No looseness was detected. Every other part of the wagon seemed to be in sound shape as well.

With the fluids changed and a fresh cleaning, maintenance had been concluded.

After answering several questions having to do with her experience using the wagon, Mira was impressed to hear about the equipment that’d been added to her wagon during maintenance.

Going to check on her wagon in the garage, she saw that something had been installed near the ceiling in the corner. It was none other than an air conditioning system that’d been created by one of the castle’s technomancy engineers. It was an additional component that would ensure her journeys in the wagon were more pleasant.

It was a prototype, so they wanted her feedback on her next visit.

With maintenance all done, she got the wagon back. Thanking Dag and saying farewell, Mira hurriedly pulled out a box while she stood in front of the wagon… The very vehicle-storage box that she’d gotten from Solomon.

“Whoa, this thing is amazing!”

Using it as instructed, the huge wagon fit perfectly into the box, no matter how odd it seemed. It was easy to take it out as well. When she opened the lid and put it on the ground, the wagon simply came out in the direction it’d been opened.

After putting it in and taking it out several more times, Mira was pleased with how useful the device was. From now on during her travels, she could simply find a place to stay without having to worry about parking. And most importantly, that would save money.

She’d gotten her hands on something pretty nice. And seeing as they’d worked so hard to make it portable, Mira stored the wagon in her item box and cheerfully left the royal castle.

With the castle behind her and work finished for the day, Mira made straight for the busiest shopping street in Lunatic Lake. She had some time to spare, so she’d decided to finally go take in the sites of Lunatic Lake, like she’d long hoped to do.

After all, the only new place she’d seen was the academy. The city was sure to always be changing. She could check things out while also taking a nice stroll.

“Hrmm. This place is bustling.”

Feeling as if she were a parent looking at a grown child, Mira took a look around the city.

The city that stood before her was much more densely packed than it had been thirty years ago; a fact Mira celebrated as if the accomplishment had been her own. Then she mentally commended the hard work Solomon had put in to protect the city.

“Ah, that’s right.”

Going down the main street, Mira remembered something as she stood before the Adventurers’ Guild Union buildings that neighbored each other. It had to do with something that’d happened while she was in the Ancient Underground City in Grandrings. She’d gotten word from the Adventurers’ Guild Union here that she’d received some presents from fans and been instructed to pick them up at the reception desk of the guild union here in Lunatic Lake.

Reflecting on how she’d become famous, Mira pranced into the Mages’ Guild.

The guild’s facilities in Lunatic Lake had been set up to resemble libraries. They were lined with shelves packed with books that looked like they’d be of great use to adventurers, and it seemed as if one could read as much as they’d like within the building.

Furthermore, they weren’t for the exclusive use of adventurers, either. Here and there, she caught sight of children who aspired to one day become adventurers themselves. Aside from the children who were eagerly reading books, she spotted a child with a woman who worked at the guild. She was something like a tutor and was helping the child with their studies.

It was what one would expect of a country that housed the Alcait Academy, the foremost institution on the continent when it came to training mages. Appreciating the vibe of the guild and how passionately the children were studying, Mira headed to the reception counter.

“I heard I had some things sent to me from a fan,” she announced proudly the moment she arrived at the counter, presenting her adventurers’ ID.

Getting presents from fans made it almost impossible not to feel full of herself.

“Sure. Please wait here for a moment,” the woman at the counter answered with a kind smile while passing the ID through some kind of device with practiced ease. After checking something, she walked off.

Mira was beside herself with excitement.

“Thank you for waiting. These were sent to you,” the woman said when she returned, placing a small box that’d been wrapped up like a gift and a sealed envelope together on the counter. It seemed that the box and the envelope had been sent by different people. “I’ll need your signature to confirm that you’ve received them,” she said, presenting two documents.

“Hrmm, sure thing.”

It seemed rather odd that she needed to sign to pick up presents. Mira asked about that as she signed her name. She smiled at the answer she got, which was very simple and yet threw her for a bit of a loop: One of the previous guild staff had taken some of the gifts for themselves.

Hrmm… That could definitely be an issue with famous people like Cyril, Jack Grave, or Eleonora.

People as famous as them probably got tons of presents from fans. Smiling cheerfully, Mira walked off, her gifts in hand, as she thought to herself how much trouble it’d be to sign for so many things.

“This is rather odd, isn’t it?” Mira said.

She sat in a corner of the Mages’ Guild, surprised by the flavor of what was inside the box. It appeared to be nothing more than a sweet-smelling piece of paper about the size of her thumb. But upon putting it on top of her tongue, it melted like butter.

The present she’d gotten was candy. Not only that—it was fancy candy.

Impressed, Mira put two or three more on her tongue while picking up the letter that she’d also received.

Just what kind of fan had sent this?

If it ended up being a love letter…that could get awkward. It certainly wasn’t easy being famous. Mira checked who’d sent the letter and found it was someone she was very pleased to hear from.

“Well, I’ll be. If it isn’t from Tact!”

The letter was from the young boy she’d met when she’d gone to the Ancient Temple on her first search for Soul Howl. It was thanks to Tact that she’d been able to meet the members of Écarlate Carillon.

In the letter, Tact wrote about how he was currently studying hard to become a cleric while also training his body every day. The members of Écarlate Carillon were overseeing his studies and training. There was still a lot he didn’t understand, which made his studies difficult, and the physical training was no walk in the park. And yet, he managed to enjoy doing both every day. Though his writing was still a bit clumsy, he’d nevertheless written a good many sentences that conveyed just how content he was.

However, he’d written the most about his parents.

“Hrmm, I’m glad to hear it.”

Tact’s parents had both gone missing. It was only after the climactic battle with Chimera Clausen that she learned they’d been placed under the protection of the Isuzu Alliance. While busy mopping up, she had drinks with Aaron and some others who were connected with the Isuzu Alliance. They’d mentioned how Ashley and Leene had been safely reunited with their child, and that was when Mira put two and two together and realized that she’d both met the two before and heard of them somewhere. It was because they were Tact’s parents.

She wasn’t very good with names and this was a case of her not being very perceptive.

Moving on from thinking about those days, Mira broke out into a smile as she thought about how happy Tact sounded. The whole family was getting special training. On some days, Cyril, the guild master of Écarlate Carillon, would train with them personally.

Tact seemed to really respect Cyril, and so he would train even harder than usual on those days. Leene also seemed to be a big fan of Cyril’s. Despite Tact’s painstaking attempts to impress her with his hard work, his mother always snubbed him to cheer on Cyril instead. He also mentioned in his letter how seeing this left him with mixed feelings.

“It seems like Tact is hard at work, too, huh?”

There were several thoughts Tact was trying to convey in the letter, such as how Écarlate Carillon was doing a good job of looking after him from time to time. She could infer from much of what he wrote that despite being very busy, he also felt quite at peace.

Taking all this in, Mira hurriedly pulled out a pen and paper and began writing her reply.

After leaving the letter she’d written with the receptionist, she continued her stroll down the main street.

“Wow, look at this place!”

Mira found herself standing in front of a very large shop right in the middle of the main street. The store looked like an art museum, and the exterior gave off an air of elegance and class. The products they dealt in appeared to match the same vibe that the exterior gave off.

Upon seeing this shop, a certain thought popped into Mira’s head. She wondered if she might be able to add to her collection.