Chapter 48: Summoned Again

Author: Kurohitsuji
Raw: https://ncode.syosetu.com/n2086fk/49/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

Thanks to this group subjugation doubling as a re-survey, the forest monsters are almost gone, apparently.
They’ll increase again given time, but we’re safe for a while.
As expected of the veterans; almost no casualties, and this group subjugation can be called a big success.
Glad tells me so with a smile that makes his face look even worse.
In the middle of that, scary-faced Gordon finds me and comes over.

“Ah, there you were. Oi, miss. You sure fooled us.”
“Hello. And what do you mean, fooled.”
“Don’t have a skilled adventurer play beginner. We were surprised.”
“Eh, no. I am a beginner too.”

Actually, I only started adventuring recently.

“No, if you can fight like that you ain’t a beginner. I wasted the worry.”
“Eeh. I was glad you worried, though.”
“…Anyway, contribute to the guild without pushing it too far. Got it?”
“Yeees.”

I get scolded with a sour face. I didn’t lie at all.
Hnn. Well, with Ring and the handguns I can fight, but… I’m basically a town girl.
Hearing it that much, I sink a little.

While I’m drooping a bit, Glad’s face nuus out of a circle of adventurers.
Uwah. Scary.

“Oi, Ouka. What did you pull this time?”
“Eh. I don’t think I did anything.”
“You’ve been summoned from the royal castle.”

Haa? Again? Eh, what is it this time.

“Umm. From who?”
“The knight-captain.”
“Tear it up and throw it out.”

I am absolutely not going.

“Can’t do that. This is a formal appearance order.”
“That person is scary, I mean it!”

She crosses lines she shouldn’t before you notice, that Hero.
I want as little to do with her as possible.

“But you can’t ignore it. And this time it’s jointly with Seamless Heavenly Robe.”
“Guu. Of all people, those two.”

Uwah. Personally the one I most must not be alone with, and the one I most want to complain to, as a set.

“Ah. Look, if it’s the two of them together, isn’t it fine?”
“…Got it. But if something happens I’m running.”
“Yeah, then I’ll notify your guardian from me.”
“Uuh. What did I even do.”

Well I know grousing won’t help.
…I’ll hope Arei sits in.

○○○○○○○○

“Uncle, konichaa.”
“Oh, you came, Ouka.”

I greet the gate-guard uncle at the royal castle as usual. I’m used to it.

“They want you at the training grounds today. Remember the place?”
“Ah. Where I did the exercise with the knight-order people.”
“That’s it. Where you ran wild, Ouka.”
“Uuh. I want to say that’s wrong… but it isn’t.”
“Hahaha. Come on, the Heroes are waiting. Go on.”
“Nn. Thanks.”

I wave to the smiling uncle seeing me off and head for the training grounds.

When I reach the destination, two people at opposite extremes are standing near the entrance.

“Yahoo, ohisaa!! Been well!?”

About as small as me, hyper Renju.
I’ll set this one aside.

“…Nice to meet, you.”

A woman in a robe, black hair in a short bob, smiling without much confidence.
A somewhat ephemeral beauty you want to protect.

And very unfortunately, Arei does not seem to be here.
I’ll raise the caution a little.

For now I’ll completely ignore Renju, who wants attention, and try talking to the other pretty girl.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Ouka. You’re Seamless Heavenly Robe?”
“Minazuki Kaede, here. Please treat me, well.”

She smiles softly. Uwah, insanely cute.
…Not the point.

“Likewise. Thank you for the epithet.”
“That, see. It’s my masterpiece. Ehehe.”

Gu. Her embarrassed laugh is cute too. No malice, which makes it worse.
How to put it, a person it’s hard to complain to, in a different way from Sister Naria and Liza.

“Umm. So, what’s today’s business?”
“Ah, today, I wanted to see, Ouka’s mana.”
“My mana? That’s fine, but I can’t use magic, you know?”
“Nn, it’s all right. Lend me your hands, a bit.”

She takes the tips of both my hands, kyu.
What is this. She looks older no matter how you see it, and I feel healed.
That thing. Like watching a small animal.
People like this are popular, I bet.

“…Activate magic formula.”

A small mutter. With it a magic circle appears on the ground, and white mana-light rises.
Uwah, that’s something. Pretty.

“Connecting to the deployed domain. Attempting… wait, failure? Is the magic-formula deployment domain’s format different…”

She starts saying stuff I don’t get in a small voice. Feels like Ring’s mystery language.

“Connect after proxy deployment. Calculation speed is fast. Mana capacity also… I see. I understand, now.”
“Ah, umm, is it all right now?”
“Yes. There was something that, bothered me, so I had you let me, check.”

The white light settles, softly.
Minazuki Kaede’s mana-light, I guess.
It matches the image; somehow adorable.

“Umm, a check?”
“Ouka, your mana capacity and calculation speed are tremendous. But you don’t seem able to activate a magic formula.”

…Ha? What’s she saying?
Umm. I get that it’s magic talk.

“…Meaning?”
“Probably, dedicated magic you can use, but this world’s ordinary magic, I think you, can’t.”

Dedicated magic, huh. Well, I have an idea.
Sakura-Drive. Install. Soul Shift.
All effects I’ve never heard of.

“Probably that, you were set that way, from the very, start.”
“Ah. When I was made, you mean.”
“…Nn.”

She makes a slightly awkward face, but I see. It clicks.
I have mana but I can’t use magic. Instead I can use Sakura-Drive.
Uun. Still, I wonder. I’m not particularly inconvenienced; I feel like it isn’t a problem.

“Ouka, your power to ‘reproduce’ is very high. So if you just know it, you can probably copy, most things.”
“Nnnyu. I have way too many ideas.”

Flying, digging holes, punching, various things.

“Muu. Well, it seems convenient, so I’ll use it gratefully.”
“Nn. No particular structural defects, I think it’s all right. Just, there’s something that, bothers me.”
“Nu. What?”
“Something, umm… like a water source, I think there, is?”

A water source? The thing rivers come from? What’s that mean?

“I think the proper flow is to bring information from there, but that seems unusable, now.”
“…Hnn. Ah. I kind of get it, vaguely.”

Really only vaguely, though.
Like there was a place that gathered information to install…?
Hnn. It’s fuzzy and I don’t get it well, but maybe I’ll ask Ring when I have time.

“So, so, so!! Is the talk over!?”
“Ah, nn. The errand is, done.”
“Then next is my turn!!”

Renju jumps in as if cutting between us.
Hyper as ever.

“Then, I was in the way—”
“Wait wait!! Don’t run!? Today’s a serious talk!!”
“Umm, what is your business?”
“I feel a distance in the heart!? Well anyway!! I have a little something that bothers me too!!”
“…Something that bothers you? What?”

At my words.
The smile slides off Renju.

That alone, my skin prickles.
The gesture of drawing a sword, just that, freezes my spine.

“Let me have you stand with me a bit.”

Blade bare, pointed at me, the strongest Hero, smile gone, said.