“Tek here, a lot of rich people like having massive houses, thinking that it makes them seem impressive--I just would hate to have to keep it clean, even with hiring a cleaning service. I much prefer studio apartments, at the most.”
“What are you making?” I walk up behind Mara, who is busy twisting and turning heated metal. Apparently, one of the Dwarven innate Skills allowed them to manipulate heated metal without gloves.
“It’s a wire--In the book of weapons you made for me, one of them seemed very interesting, so I wanted to try it.” Mara looked back at me with a smile, even though her eyes were pure tan without whites, irises, or pupils, I could swear I saw an excited twinkling.
“Which weapon?” I had a suspicion, since only a few of them used wire.
“It’s a whip sword.” Mara grinned and then went back to twisting the wire together again, before it cooled.
“I see.” I wanted to make one, but they never actually worked on Earth, I just included it out of interest--but if I made the right Magic Circuits on the handle, and where the wire attached to the metal, it could bend and move almost autonomously.
I was beginning to get excited about the potential, quickly plotting prototype Magic Circuits. Tama had wandered in some time, she curled up on my lap and looked at the drawings with glazed eyes--before leaning back and going to sleep.
Unfortunately, I can’t spend too long with Mara, though I did ask her to also make some metal wires, metal plates, and other simple things I will probably need for other manufacturing--Arisa came in and alerted me that it was time to go visit the workshops.
Mara seemed pleased with just that little of a visit, and Nana was staying with her--attracted by both the glowing flexible metal, and the cute Dwarven Loli that was manipulating it. At least Mara wasn’t lonely, she didn’t want to go out much, she was rather obsessed with her manufacturing.
***
The afternoon workshops are finished faster than expected, so I decided to go visit Toruma, as I promised the other day. I’m being followed by Arisa, and for some reason, also Karina, and her maid Pina. Pochi and Tama, Lulu and Mia didn’t want to go--they really didn’t like Toruma.
Liza wanted to come with me, but I requested that she try to teach Lulu and Mia some self-defence--she agreed with a pleased look. It seems that she asked to come out of a sense of duty--she also didn’t want to go see Toruma.
I imagined that Toruma’s residence will be rather small, since I was told that it’s a detached building, part of Viscount Shimen’s mansion, but instead, the residence is easily bigger than the mansion where we’re currently staying.
We enter using the back door, so I don’t get to see the main building completely--but if this is an offshoot, then the main building must be quite imposing.
“Hello, Hayuna.” I greet Toruma’s wife--who is a much better person than her annoying husband.
“It has been a while, Tek. Oh my, I have to stop calling you by that name--since you’ve got a Peerage, I wonder if I should call you by tour house name?” Hayuna, who I haven’t seen for a while, is wearing rather relaxed clothing.
Mayuna is being cuddled by a middle-aged maid, who looks to be a wet-nurse.
Karina watches the baby from a distance, looking like she is very interested in it--but she doesn’t try to approach.
“Do you want to try holding her?” Hayuna offered to Karina, but she only replies by shaking her head.
Come to think of it, Karina is very docile in front of Toruma--as I guessed, he was most likely her first love.
***
“Karina, have you gone to the opera house?”
“No, there wasn’t any good opportunities--” As Karina answers Hayuna’s question, she blushes and glances at me.
“You should go by all means. You have to hear the miraculous voice of Lulilutoa, the Fairy, at least once!” Hayuna says, a knowing grin gracing her face.
“Eh? By Fairy, do you mean Elf?” Karina tilts her head.
“It’s difficult to distinguish between the Fairy Races--but they’re probably an Elf.” Arisa answers in place of Hayuna, to help her.
We’re having a chat while enjoying tea and snacks on the terrace.
Hayuna is talking about various topics with Karina, who’s being surprisingly quiet and meek, she isn’t responding too well.
“Oh right, Tek.”
“What is it?”
Whatever Toruma was going to say will forever remain a mystery--because the mood has been destroyed by the appearance of a woman who pushes through the bushes.
“Oh my, Brother, I thought that you were eloping, you’ve come back?”
“Hey Rin, it’s been a while--you’ve become quite beautiful.” Toruma responds with an affectionate smile.
The one that appears is, of course, Ringrande. She’s calling Toruma ‘Brother’ due to a habit since her childhood--but he’s actually her cousin--which was explained to me by Hayuna in a quiet voice.
She doesn’t have her armour and great-sword today. She’s wearing red knight-like clothes with a thin sword hanging from a belt which is wrapped around, and accentuating, her slim waist--however, judging from how she appears, is she being chased by someone?
“Brother, I’m sorry, but can you let me hide here for a bit?”
“No problem. I’ve never declined a request from Rin, right?”
“Thank you, Brother is always reliable--” Ringrande scans the people around her while thanking Toruma, and as soon as she sees me from the corner of her eyes--she approaches.
“You, after failing to hit on Sera, now you’re trying to approach her by using her family?”
That’s quite outrageous, even for a false accusation--the misunderstanding should have been cleared by Sera’s explanation in the first place.
Arisa glances over for an instant, but I gesture to her not to cut into the conversation.
“Sera has most likely explained it already--but I just met her by chance when I was helping with the food distribution downtown.” I begin telling her that it’s just an unfounded misunderstanding--but Toruma does what he does best, and talks about unneeded things…as expected.
“So Tek is aiming for Sera, huh. I thought that you’d surely marry Karina, since you brought her all the way here from Muno territory. It’s still not enough with eight, huh? I’m really envious of young people.”
“Brother, are you speaking the truth?” Ringrande whipped her head around to Toruma.
“Yeah, it’s mostly true.”
Seriously, Toruma--please stop yourself from speaking statements that will result in trouble for me.
“You’re going to make my cute Sera your ninth lover? I won’t forgive you!” Ringrande pulls her thin sheathe at her waist--rapidly approaching me.
Karina is sitting with a blush on her face as she muttered about marrying me--Arisa was facepalming.
I sighed, “Ringrande--I’ll say this again, in the case of your sister being my 9th lover, it’s a misunderstanding, okay?”
I could completely understand where she was coming from--anyone who has had a sister sometimes feels protective to the point where they are willing to make sure that the person they love is actually worth it.
“Excuses are useless. I’ll beat you into shape at least one time, to correct your character. Or, is that sword at your waist just a decoration?”
I hear Arisa snicker quietly, and I can’t help but nod in response, causing Ringrande to let out a growl.
Looking over, I see that Arisa is grinning and manages to say, between giggles, “Go get her?”--she seems to find the situation hilarious, and wants to see where it ends up. Hayuna looks troubled, even though she doesn’t seem to understand the situation.
At a time like this, Karina, who’s usually the fastest to pick a quarrel, is quiet. I thought that she’s still being meek, but she looks grim for some reason. She’s muttering, “Ringrande? Cousin Rin? That’s the genius Mage who’s become the Hero’s companion?” In a low voice--maybe she things Ringrande likes me because she is attacking me.
Maybe, maybe I am misreading it and there is some kind of discord between them, so I will try not to involve myself in that.
“Oh, whatever,” It can’t really be helped.
I may as well use her to teach me how to fight--even the Demon Lord ridiculed me because of my lack of experience with swords.
While walking to the courtyard that Ringrande is standing by, I draw the Fairy Sword--which makes Ringrande, Hayuna and the other’s draw a breath in awe. I wonder who murmurs, “Beautiful.”
I don’t put any Magic Power into the Fairy Sword, and just wield it in its lightweight state.
Ringrande stabs at me with her thin sword, without any visible preparation. She is aiming for my cheek--the stab is as quick as one would expect of a thin sword.
I hold the Fairy Sword in a low stance, to brush the attack off--but before the thin sword touches the Fairy Sword, she retracts and holds her sword. While I’m swinging the Fairy Sword up, she stabs towards my defenseless chest--I should have expected her to use feints.
Wait, Ringrande, that’s going straight for my heart, you know?
I think that she’s planning to stop before hitting me, but she looks like she is thinking that ‘insects’ that follow Sera around should just die--
Using my other hand, I pull the short staff from its special sheathe, I wield it like a dagger to ward off the thin sword. Of course, if I hit it edge on, the short staff would be easily cut by blocking the thin sword, but I aim the point for the flat of her blade--but since she doesn’t clearly see what I drew, she pulls back her thin sword and opens up some distance.
“Hmm, you’re quite good. It doesn’t seem like your mithril sword is only for show--you were pretending to be an amateur, having your gaze flicker all over. I didn’t think that you had prepared your next move in advance.”
I see, my line of sight huh. I didn’t think about that.
Afterwards, I learn how to use my line of sight to use feint, how to read the opponent’s breathing--and may other techniques that aren’t covered by the instinctive knowledge of Skills.
Hmm, it seems that having high-level skills not only gives intuitive knowledge, it allows for accelerated learning--even allowing for muscle memory input at increased speed.
Misunderstandings can be good sometimes.
