Extra: A Gift from Inglis
Just before Inglis and Rafinha loaded up the mechanical ancient dragon’s tail, they found something sparkling amid its withered remains.
“Huh? Chris, was that just something shiny?”
“Yeah, it was! Wait, could it be... A dragon gem?”
Buried in the wreckage, they saw a shining golden gem. It glittered beautifully, like a jewel of the highest quality.
“A dragon gem?”
“Yeah. A stone in which a dragon has imbued a part of its power,” Inglis explained. “You know how in stories, dragons always love to hoard precious metals? I think that comes from them making dragon gems.”
“Ohhh, okay.”
“It takes a tremendous amount of power to form a dragon gem, though, so this must be the mechanical dragon’s last gasp... It must have really, really trusted us.”
The mechanical dragon had said, in the end, that if there was anything else it could leave them, to take it freely. As Inglis touched it, she felt powerful, yet gentle, dragon lore. It wasn’t really a gem; it was extremely condensed dragon lore. It just looked like one because it had been condensed into a solid mass. The serene feeling it gave seemed to reflect the personality of the mechanical dragon, which had sacrificed itself to pacify Aulglora’s death.
“We should take this with us. The mechanical dragon must have wanted to leave it in our hands.”
“Yeah. It’s pretty, so should we put it on display or something?” Rafinha suggested. “We’d have to find a stand for it.”
“Actually, I think I have a better idea for it.”
“Like what?”
Inglis laughed. “Oh, you’ll see.”
Thus, she brought the mechanical ancient dragon’s dragon gem along with her back to the Chiral Knights’ Academy.
“Ahh, classes have got me all worn out. Let’s go to the cafeteria, Chris! There’s a new dessert starting today.”
“Ah, sorry, Rani. I’ve got to go to the principal’s lab for a little bit, so I’ll pass... Why don’t you go with Meltina?”
“Huh? Again? You’ve been spending all your time there lately.”
Over the days since they’d returned to the knights’ academy, Inglis had been holed up in Principal Miriela’s lab whenever she’d had free time.
“You’re not doing anything weird with the dragon gem you found, are you?” Rafinha shot her a look.
“N-No... Of course not. I’ll show you when I’m done, so look forward to it!”
“Well, if the principal’s keeping an eye on you, I guess it’s fine... Okay, I’m headed to the cafeteria! Let’s go, Meltina!”
“Of course! The infinite macaron parfait I proposed is finally going to see the light of day!”
“Infinite?” Inglis asked. “That sounds amazing.” But still, she had her priorities. She could wait.
A few more days passed in a similar way, and then one night...
“Ah, Leone. Leone!” Inglis shouted to her friend in the courtyard of the academy.
Leone was taking a short break from her training. Meanwhile, Inglis, on her way out of Principal Miriela’s lab, happened to pass by her.
“Oh, Inglis. Still at the principal’s?”
“Yeah. I just finished the Artifact I’ve been spending all this time on.” Inglis held a small box that looked like a jewelry box. The finished product was inside.
“If it’s in there, it must be pretty tiny. What kind of Artifact is it?”
“Look!” Inglis opened the jewelry box and pulled out a silver chain pendant with a golden gem at its center. The golden gem was, of course, carved from the dragon gem left behind by the mechanical ancient dragon.
“Oh, that’s so cute! Is this an accessory Artifact? I’ve never seen anything quite like it.”
“Yeah. It’s the kind of thing you just keep on you. Just wearing it will protect you.”
“Does it protect from Gifts and attacks from magicite beasts?”
“Yeah, things of that nature. Here, Leone, you can have it.”
“Huh? For me? Thank you!”
“Yeah. I think it’s really important for you to have, so keep it on you. Can I put it on you?” As Inglis spoke, she held the pendant out toward Leone’s neck.
“Yes, of course. Sorry, though, I just worked up a bit of a sweat.”
“It’s fine—ah!” Just before Inglis could place the pendant around Leone’s neck, it slipped from her hand. It was dark and she couldn’t see well. “Gotcha!” She caught it quickly so it wouldn’t fall, but her hand moved with enough force to push into Leone’s chest. It was very soft, and felt surprisingly different from Inglis’s own.
“Wha...?! Is it okay? You didn’t drop it?”
“It’s fine! Just, I, what have I done! I’m so, so sorry!”
“Y-You don’t have to be that worried about it. We’re all girls here.”
Well, Leone might have thought about it that way, but Inglis didn’t.
A few days later, Inglis was talking with Silva over breakfast at the cafeteria.
“Silva, I’d like you to have this.” Smiling, she handed him a pendant like Leone’s.
“Eh?! But this looks expensive! I mean, I appreciate the thought, but, I mean... Ripple... I don’t just want to take gifts from another lady... And if it’s from you, Inglis, I’d never hear the end of it from my brother...” Silva wavered, mumbling to himself, as Inglis handed him the Artifact pendant.
“Oh, don’t worry about it, Silva. Inglis hasn’t figured out the idea of giving gifts to boys she likes yet,” Rafinha commented from beside her. “It’s an Artifact. Chris made pendant-shaped ones—look, we have them too. Pretty surprising that it’s not a weapon, right?”
Rafinha showed him the one she was wearing. Leone, Liselotte, and Meltina, all seated at the same table, had them too.
“Well, this might even be a better weapon than a weapon Artifact, you know?” Inglis had made several of the Artifact pendants, and was passing them out. Apart from Rafinha and her other constant companions, she had a list of people who should get them, and Silva was one. She had already given one to Principal Miriela and one to Rochefort. Rafael was on her list. And she’d like to offer one to King Carlias, if possible.
“Oh, I see. So it’s an accessory Artifact. Thank you,” Silva said as he took the pendant and put it on.
“Got one for me?” Yua peeked over, a blank look on her face.
“Oh, I’m sorry, Yua. I haven’t made one for you...”
“Aww, that’s too bad.”
“Yua,” Rafinha began. “I can give you one of mine. I’ll be fine without it.”
“Absolutely not!” Inglis said. “You need to keep that on you, Rani!”
“But—” Rafinha pulled what she was talking about out and placed it on the table. Rather than the Artifact necklaces she was sharing with everyone else, this one was an imposing neck ornament lavishly studded with dragon gems. It was extremely flashy, the kind of thing that might be worn to stand out at a ball or so on. “I know you gave it to me, but this is honestly a pain to wear, and people are going to think I’m new money or something. So why don’t you take it apart and use it to make more for the others?”
“Absolutely not! I worked hard to make that for you, Rani!” Inglis had really wanted to give Rafinha something that stood out from the others. She’d worked hard to decorate it, even skipping out on the infinite macaron parfait at the cafeteria.
“Chris...” Rafinha looked at Inglis with obvious pity. She stood and patted Inglis’s head reassuringly. “I know, I know. You made this just for me, and you worked really hard on it. I’m grateful. That really makes me happy.”
“Really? You’re happy with it?”
“Yes. Just, your taste in fashion... If I don’t keep an eye on you, sometimes it ends up really dowdy...”
“Aw...” Well, Inglis couldn’t argue with that. It was something she had carried over from her previous life. She couldn’t be right about everything. That was part of being human.
“It’s okay. I’ll help you make it cute! Just warn me next time beforehand, okay?”
“Okay...” Inglis’s shoulders slumped.
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