Chapter 46: Chapter 45: After the Confession

It took a while for Mariana and Creos to calm down after Mira told them the truth. When the two had managed to accept the situation, Mira explained how she became like that.

The source of it all had been a certain item with a special property. That item was shaped like a box, and after she opened it, she turned into her current appearance. She would need another one like that to return to her original form, but it was uncertain if she would ever be able to get one.

She also added that she was afraid the two of them would despise her if they knew who she really was, so she kept quiet about it. The first one to speak afterwards was Mariana, her voice filled with a hint of indignation.

「I would never despise Lord Danbulf for something as worthless as that. I never expected you to be that kind of person.」

「Same goes for me.」

Creos mentioned his alignment with Mariana’s words as he drank his fifth cup of tea.

「We fairies would never judge a person for their appearance. No matter how you look, you will always be Lord Danbulf for me, and I’ll never stop serving you with my life.」

「Me too, I don’t care about that at all… Or rather, you look less frightening now so I’m glad about that.」

After Mariana’s assertion, Creos also agreed with it even though his sentence ended on a low note. But his eyes showed he was serious about it.

「But hmm, a box that can change your appearance… Maybe it’s a type of artifact.」

Creos closed his eyes, deep in thought. Even amongst the most powerful Magic Wares, there was none that could physically change one’s appearance. If an item capable of causing such a miracle existed, it had to be a relic handed down by the gods themselves, also known as an artifact.

Even back when it was a game, a couple of artifacts had already been found. They were generally rewards for really long and complicated quests, or drops from uber-legendary monsters, but even then there was nothing like the Vanity Case.

In a certain way, that was close enough to the truth. An item granted by the gods…namely, an item obtained directly from the developers through microtransactions.

Either way, saying that this world used to be a game and that she bought an item with a currency called yen was something Mira could not prove at all, so it was needless information now that this world became reality.

「It probably was one. I still was careless with it.」

Keeping all of that in mind, going with the artifact explanation would be enough while not continuing to lie. It was an item that could do that kind of miraculous magic after all. It was an easy to understand way of putting it.

「And one last thing, don’t tell anyone about this matter.」

「Understood.」

「Eh, why? If we told everyone that Lord Danbulf returned to his seat amongst the Nine Wisemen, the future summoners will be able to rest assured.」

Mariana accepted her request straight away, but Creos still wanted to ask why. Telling everyone about it was a sensible option, but Mira still recalled Solomon’s words. Even if everyone accepted her as Danbulf, her image was too different from his’.

Creos and Mariana were the closest to her so they accepted it rather quickly, but there was no guarantee it would go as smoothly with other people. But more importantly, there were things she could only do in her current state. If she returned to her seat as a Wiseman, it would become much more difficult to randomly go out, which means her search for the other members would be impossible. She did want to recover her old title, but it was still not the best time for that.

「Hmm, well…」

Mira reorganized her thoughts a bit before deciding to tell them even more. She could trust the two of them, and by telling them they would probably grow even closer. Their relationship would become a bit different, becoming an actual relationship between people now.

「There are two other people who know my identity, namely Solomon and Luminaria. And Solomon asked me to search everywhere I can for traces of the missing members.」

「What, you mean the remaining Wisemen?!」

That was a completely unexpected turn of events for Creos.

The disappearance of the Nine Wisemen was said to be Arkite Kingdom’s most serious incidents, and as far as he knew, there was no news of any ongoing search for them. They were the country’s strongest people, but they did not even attempt to search for them.

There were many rumors going around as to why that was the case, the most accepted theory being one that started amongst top-class adventurers. That theory was very simple, the reason why no one searched for them was because they simply were not in this world anymore… There was much credibility behind that theory, so it was widely accepted as the truth.

Creos had also heard that story.

But now he heard that the leader of the country, King Solomon, and one of the Nine Wisemen, Danbulf, were currently searching for those remnants. In other words, that meant the rest of the Nine Wisemen were still somewhere in the world.

「If I take my old spot again, I won’t be able to finish this job. I’m sorry but I’ll have to leave everything to you two for a while longer, is that fine?」

「But of course! If that means all the Nine Wisemen will return, then I’ll gladly do my part.」

Creos was shaking with excitement after hearing Mira’s story, remembering how it looked when everyone was together. That time was considered the golden age of the Silver Linked Towers, but as a spellcaster himself, he felt overcome with joy knowing things could go back to how they were.

「Either way, I guess you’ll be going away again now?」

Mariana asked with a low voice. When Mira heard her, she remained in silence for a moment. She had just returned, Mariana had received her with tears of joy, but now she was going to leave her behind again. But even then, these were matters that would heavily affect the future of the entire country so she could not abandon her mission.

「I’m sorry for saying such a selfish thing.」

Seeing Mira’s strained face, Mariana could guess her internal turmoil so she apologized immediately after and smiled saying it was not a problem. But her eyes exposed her loneliness.

「I understand how you feel, Mariana. But this is something important for the entire country. And Danbulf will be here with us now, it’s different from before. I’m sure we’ll get to be happy soon.」

The ‘we’ Creos spoke about meant the three of them, Wiseman, aide, and vice-elder. All the Nine Wisemen were eccentric oddballs, but their aides and vice-elder were people they trusted wholeheartedly. Creos seemed to be saying that to himself, turning to Mira with a smile to see if she agreed with him.

「Exactly, and I promise I’ll come back as often as I can.」

Mariana and Creos nodded in relief hearing that. Mira picked her cup and drank from it again, even though the tea was already somewhat cold. Her travels from one place to another would prove to be tiresome so she smiled wryly, but her heart felt like it was being filled with something warm.

「Still…」

Muttering that, Creos turned a complicated look at Mira.

「What is it?」

Puzzled, Mira asked him that. Hearing that, a reassured, if not somewhat amusing smile overtook Creos’ lips.

「It feels a bit too strange to call you ‘Lord Danbulf’ while in your current appearance. We’re also supposed to keep that secret, so is it alright to keep calling you Mira?」

「Hngh…」

Mira frowned while debating with herself. What Creos said was completely true. If they were going to keep it a secret, then calling her Mira was important so her identity would not get leaked by accident.

「Hmm, you do have a point… Alright, as long as I have this appearance you shall refer to me as Mira.」

「Alright then, Mira.」

Deciding to stop any source that could cause her identity to be exposed, Mira told them that. Creos accepted it without problems, though 90% percent of his decision was because of the disconnect with her appearance, while the remaining 10% were to keep the secret.

「Is that good for you too, Mariana?」

「Yes. I’m okay with that.」

As she replied, Mariana caressed the feather shape on her hand. It was proof they were connected through the Fairy’s Divine Protection. In front of her was that person she held most dearest, who she had formed that oath with. For a fairy like her, that was more valuable than anything in the world. A name change seemed completely trivial in comparison.

「But well, that’s about the extent of things. I’ll be away from home for a bit again, so take good care of the tower.」

「You can count on us.」

「I’ll do all I can to keep things in order.」

Mariana and Creos sounded somewhat happy while also serious as they nodded. An instant later, a sound like a very loud bell pierced their ears.

「Hm, what’s that noise?」

「That’s the alarm for an urgent magic communication!」

Creos hurried to the office’s desk, opened a black box on it and twisted a lever of the mechanism inside.

「This is vice-elder Creos.」

『I’m Jozu from Silver Horn’s border patrol. I’m calling to ask what the towers’ orders are in case of an emergency.』

A distressed male voice, although slightly distorted, rang in the room. It sounded exactly like a voice through a phone. Mira and Mariana remained silent listening to what that voice had to say.

「Well, tell me what happened.」

『Around three hours ago, we received a report from a citizen who claimed to see a giant dragon landing in an area nearby. One of our patrols went to search the area, but we found no dragon.

However, in a clearing inside the forest to the northwest of Silver Horn, we found traces left by something large. We searched the area around that clearing but were unable to find the source of those traces.

We thought it might have been a mistake by the witness, but we just received information from Silver Wand saying that they saw a large dragon flying high up in the sky and heading our way.

We currently believe both witnesses saw the same dragon. But no one saw a dragon leaving from here, so there’s a high possibility there’s still a large dragon that excels at camouflaging itself hiding somewhere near.

This is all we were able to accomplish within our capabilities. If there’s anything more that can be done, we would like to request the towers’ cooperation.』

「A dragon you say… Since it was seen coming from Silver Wand, it might have also passed near Lunatic Lake…」

[Yes, that’s very possible.]

Creos was aware that Lunatic Lake came into view if one climbed up the mountain range near Silver Wand. With that in mind, he formed a first guess and glanced straight at Mira.

Author: Ryuusen Hirotsugu

Original Source: Syosetu

Word Count: 3870 characters

Translator: Nomad

English Source: Re:Library

Word Count: 1881 words

Editor(s): Fire

In reaction, Mira quickly looked away. Her whole body began fidgeting as she lifted the cup back to her lips only to realize that it was already empty.

「…」

Seeing Mira’s reaction, Creos’ hunch was pretty much proven correct.

「Leave the least number of people possible in the scene until we contact you again, the rest can return to the city. Also, who else has been filled in about this situation?」

[Understood, we’ll proceed as ordered. Lady Luminaria is the only other person aware of this.]

「Alright, I’ll contact Luminaria myself. The rest of you can return now.」

「Understood.」

After the last word rang, the office was shrouded in silence once again.

「Mira, you were in Lunatic Lake until yesterday, right? How did you travel here?」

As Creos closed the black box, he looked very slightly irked, but he also looked at Mira with very inquisitive eyes. His face seemed to say he already knew everything.

「Well… ah… err… you see…」

「Ah, could it be that…」

Seeing that interaction between the two, Mariana also realized what happened and giggled slightly. That was the breakpoint for Mira, as she hung her head down and replied with a resigned voice.

「I tried…riding Isenfald…」

「So it really was Isenfald… It makes sense he would create such a commotion.」

Back when Danbulf dragged him around everywhere, Creos had met Isenfald countless times. He remembered how large he was, his overwhelming presence, and his brave character. If a beast like that was seen near a human settlement, it was obvious everyone would get alarmed.

Mira was also aware of that and that was why she summoned him inside a forest away from Lunatic Lake. But that effort had been nullified by a whim of the world. As soon as people saw an existence that dwarfed theirs by such a magnitude, they became afraid of even the darkness of night.

「I’ll tell Luminaria about all this. And you try to be more careful next time, Mira.」

「Okay…I’m sorry.」

Seeing Mira’s sulky appearance, Creos felt a bit more reassured as he stood up and left the office behind.

(That call came in just the perfect moment. Thanks to it I can run away before Mira confronts me about all the complaints I made. But in either case, to think she would try riding on Isenfald. Her reckless nature has not changed at all. Things will probably get more entertaining around here.)

Creos headed to the Tower of Magic in a very gleeful mood.

「You really haven’t changed in all this time, Lady Mira.」

Mariana smiled as she reminisced how Danbulf used to be, reckless in more than one way. Mira on the other hand blamed herself only for not being careful enough.

(I’m sorry Isenfald. I might not be able to call you as leisurely as I thought from now on.)n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

When she saw him off, she said she was going to rely on him a lot moving forward, but seeing the development of things it seemed she was not going to be able to summon him as much as she thought. She apologized in her mind and decided to fill him in once she went to an isolated place away from people. Isenfald was her large and cute child after all.

Mira and Mariana were left alone after Creos departed. For whatever reason Mira felt somewhat nervous now, so she took hold of her cup again, only to remember it was already empty. When Mariana saw that, she said 「I’ll serve you some」 while standing up and holding their two cups. She went to one corner of the office where Creos had set up a magic device exclusively to make tea.

Seeing Mariana like that, Mira’s face relaxed a little.

(We look just like a newly-wed couple!)

But in their case, it was ambiguous who would be the husband and who the wife. Like always, Mira busied her mind with worthless thinking. If anyone else saw them like that, they would look more like a well-behaved older sister and a rambunctious little sister.

「Here you go, Lady Mira.」

「Thank you.」

Mariana left the cup on top of the table. Mira thanked her and then took the cup to her lips.

「Phew…」

The scent of tea filling her nostrils calmed Mira down. She then looked at Mariana sitting down in front of her.

「You’ve been cleaning and keeping watch over my room and things while I was away, right? I’m sorry for all the trouble.」

「No need, it wasn’t troublesome at all. It’s just the life I chose for myself.」

Mira apologized after recalling what Solomon said, about how Mariana had been waiting faithfully, convinced that her master would return one day. But Mariana waved it off with a smile, as if she would do it all over again if needed, and then the two began talking about all the memories they had together.

While Mira emotively listened to Mariana talk about her life during the last thirty years, Creos returned after cleaning up the commotion.

「I’m back. Luminaria and I managed to cover up the dragon story so there’s nothing to worry about now.」

Creos reported to them, smiling more seeing the two enjoying their conversation.

「You seem to be having fun. Can I join you too?」

Saying that, he picked up his cup that was left on the table and went to make tea with leaves from another shelf.

「I would also love to join your little group here.」

Mira turned around at the unexpected female voice coming from behind her. There she saw, looking at her daringly, a beautiful woman with long crimson hair and wearing a red Sage Robe with black lines.

「What do you want from this family reunion?」

Mira spoke jokingly to that beautiful woman who already knew her identity and could be called her best friend. In response, Luminaria hugged her from behind.

「Gramps, did you forget the face of your granddaughter?」

She grinned as she brought her face closer, her nose almost touching Mira. 「I see you told them about you, I guess you were able to build up some courage,」 she whispered into her ear. She let go of Mira immediately after and went to receive a cup of tea from Creos. After a sip of tea, Luminaria smiled even more, satisfied with the taste.

「Given today’s reunion is such a special occasion and should be celebrated as such, I’ll be treating you all to a feast for dinner. The idea sounds just perfect to me after all.」

Deciding everything on her own without giving them even a chance to object, Luminaria told them to assemble in front of the Tower of Magic at 6:30 pm, then left in a hurry so she could get everything ready.

「She’s as forceful as ever, huh…」

Mira grimaced after Luminaria left, though she also felt glad. As they waited for the appointed time, they resumed their reminiscing conversation together with Creos.

「I thought everything was done in good faith, I’m sorry Creos.」

「Not at all…it really was nothing…」

The flow of the conversation naturally leads them back to the complaints Creos had spilled before, so Mira had to apologize like that. Mariana was still completely composed, but he felt thoroughly ashamed, an unknown type of sweat drenching his body as he constantly refused to let Mira apologize.

At the appointed time, the three from the Tower of Summoning went to the Tower of Magic. Since the vice-elder and aide were together like that, they stood out whether they wanted to or not.

There were researchers that came to greet them, while some even handed over prototypes of Magic Wares they hoped would help with the revival of summoners, shortly explaining their use. As far as Creos could see, they had some use but not enough to be able to form a contract with a summon. They could help, but there was not much that could be gained with them.

Mira was once again reminded that this place was still the same as before.

「Sorry for the wait. Come on in.」

The tower door opened vigorously and Luminaria made her appearance, inviting them to pass inside the tower.

「Where? I thought we were going to eat somewhere?」

「We can’t talk freely in a common restaurant. I heard a lot of things happened during your latest adventure and I want to hear all about it.」

「Hmm, so that was it.」

What happened during her latest adventure. In other words, she wanted to hear about the spirits and the devil. The three followed Luminaria inside the Tower of Magic as she led them to the top floor and into her personal room.

The furniture in her room was nothing too fancy, though it was well built. There was a really big contrast between Luminaria as a person and her room. Then again, she never was one to be concerned with furniture or interior design. All her furniture had been selected by her aide who knew what kind of person she was after all. Her aide really knew how to do their job even when it came to Luminaria’s personal life.

That aide herself, Litaria, was just finishing with placing all the food on the table. Everything they were going to eat that night for dinner had been prepared by her.

「I’ve really been looking forward to this. I can finally hear Danbulf’s stories from you, Mira. This will be fun.」

「Ah…yes. Well, later… I guess…」

The last time Mira was in the Tower of Magic, she promised to do that before departing. Remembering that, Mira was unable to come up with anything to say now.

As the group of friends ate dinner together, Mira became the main guest talking about her travels.

She spoke about Soul Howl’s footprints, the appearance of devils officially said to have been exterminated, the abduction of spirits that was still being kept secret from the public, and other topics that normally would never be mentioned in a public place like a restaurant.

While they were all engrossed in her entertaining stories, only Litaria looked at Mira with judging eyes. Figuring it was about time she knew, Mira disclosed her true identity to her, which Mariana and Creos corroborated. Litaria froze with a vacant smile as she attempted to understand and it would take many minutes before she was able to think properly again.

Apart from that, Mira also spoke to Luminaria about the incident in the academy, making sure to thoroughly scold her. Next, they also spoke about the revival of summoners, and Mira even made Luminaria promise she would help Creos while Mira was away. Meanwhile, Creos just kept producing that weird sweat from earlier.

In return, Mira would procure another set of catalysts for Luminaria. Namely catalysts of three types, melted snow crystals, pale dragon scales, and icicle shards.

Mira could do nothing but agree to those terms, and so they continued their conversation loaded with state secrets, leaving aside Litaria’s struggling mind trying to comprehend what she heard.