Chapter 129 – Elixir

I sent everyone back to their own rooms.

They were probably sweating and tired from taking the elixir, so I told them to soak in the bath and rest well today.

Normally, I’d also take my elixir and review the fight with Samaela while moving my body.

“…Customer?”

“Be quiet for a moment.”

“Y-yes, ma’am.”

Instead, I dragged Ophelia to my private training hall for observation.

‘How does it look up close?’

[Hmm… I’m sure of it. She was born human but is turning into something else.]

‘Is it possible for a human to turn into a Demon?’

[No, it’s not a Demon. But… hmm…]

Sparkle paused, looking thoughtful.

While she was thinking, Ophelia tilted her head.

“Um, customer?”

“What.”

“I don’t know if I should ask this, but…”

“If you don’t know, then don’t ask.”

“No, but I think I can actually help with this one…”

I narrowed my eyes at Ophelia. She hunched her shoulders but opened her mouth anyway.

“Um… did you put padding in your chest?”

[Ah.]

“…What? Padding?”

What kind of nonsense? I glanced down.

My chest… looked puffed up.

Sparkle was hiding near my chest.

Why? She said it was roomy and comfortable there.

“If you put in padding like that, it’s super obvious. I can show you a better way…”

“It’s not padding, so shut up.”

“Then if it’s not padding, what is it…?”

“If you keep babbling, I’ll rip your jaw off. Can your so-called master make you a new jaw?”

“I’ll be quiet.”

Leaving the now silent, downcast Ophelia behind, I called to Sparkle.

[…Sorry. But there was nowhere else to hide…]

She liked that it was roomy near my chest… Should I just accept that she found a hiding spot, or should I be annoyed…?

‘Forget it. How is it? Does she feel ominous?’

Asking if she’s ominous is basically the same as asking if she’s Demon-like.

If a spirit, especially a light spirit like Sparkle, senses something ominous, that means there’s no difference from a Demon.

If Sparkle says it’s ominous, what do I do?

If I kill her here, the Puppet Emperor will know.

He’ll definitely come for revenge, causing a scene. Could I beat the Puppet Emperor right now?

Leona… is a different league, so I try to imagine fighting him as the Flame Empress.

If I’m prepared to die together, I could kill him.

But if the Puppet Emperor fights a bit dirty, Yurasia, Stella, or Pina might get caught up.

So what should I do?

While I was thinking, arms folded, Sparkle spoke up.

[She’s not ominous. She’s not a Demon.]

‘But she has Magi in her?’

[Yeah. She has Magi in her human body. But… ugh, I can’t see clearly. Can you get a bit closer?]

I sighed and leaned forward.

“W-what are you doing?!”

“Hold still.”

“U-um, but… we’re both girls… Isn’t this a bit… Actually, I prefer men…”

I glared at Ophelia, making her shut up.

Still leaning in, our breaths almost touching, Sparkle spoke.

[There’s something near her chest.]

‘Her chest?’

I looked down. Ophelia flinched, hugging her chest with both hands.

“…They’re not that big… It’s really nothing! Honestly, mine are padded, too! They’re not even half this size!”

“Ugh, it’s not that. Just shut up.”

Hiccup.

Looking closely, infusing Mana in my eyes and watching the Mana flow around her, nothing appeared.

But Sparkle kept squirming inside my clothes, as if she could see something.

[Magi is spreading out from near her heart. It’s mixing with her Mana, making it feel like it’s always been there, tricking her senses. There’s nothing physically wrong with her, though.]

‘Would it be clearer if I stripped her?’

[Probably… but isn’t that a bit dangerous? And besides, even if she’s suspicious and has Magi, she’s still a girl.]

‘So what? I’m a girl too.’

[…Well, that’s true. Ronan is a pretty girl now.]

‘And even before I got this body, I didn’t care about girl or boy.’

[You piece of trash. Ack?!]

Pretending to scratch my chest, I smacked Sparkle’s head and straightened back up.

I asked Ophelia, who finally exhaled the breath she’d been holding.

“When handling requests that come into the Information Guild, do you get help from your master?”

“No, I do it all on my ow…”

“If you lie, I’ll rip your arm off. That still stands.”

Ophelia’s blue eyes shook as she avoided my gaze.

“If it’s not enough, so I do get help from my master. But it’s only advice; I handle the important things myself.”

“What about the side branch job I gave you before?”

“…I got help.”

“Was the order to cut ties with the cartel given directly by your master?”

“Yes.”

“What about this time? Are you planning to get help for the Holy Kingdom job?”

“No, I can handle this one on my own.”

“Do you at least inform your master?”

“There’s no need to.”

Even if she doesn’t, the Puppet Emperor will find out.

He probably already knows.

He’s always watching Ophelia’s every move. That sneaky bastard.

So, what do I do next.

I still don’t know exactly what she is.

But it’s also too risky to just let her go.

If I do let her go, I’d at least like her to stay somewhere I can keep an eye on her.

“Ophelia.”

“Yes.”

“Senior Ophelia.”

Ophelia’s expression twisted strangely.

“Wh-why are you calling me that?”

“Senior.”

“I mean, if you want something…”

“Senior.”

Ophelia’s mouth opened and closed like a fish. Then, clenching both fists, she forced a smile.

“…Junior?”

I grinned back at her.

“Senior, did you ever join any clubs?”

“I… I haven’t, but there’s one I was thinking of joining. Why do you ask…?”

“Would you like to join ours?”

Her face contorted even more in horror.

“…What kind of club is it?”

“You can find out once you join. So, what do you think? I really want you to join, Senior. All my clubmates are in the same year as me, so I think it’d be nice to have at least one upperclassman.”

“And if I refuse…?”

“I’d be really upset and sad. Like back at that pub.”

Tears welled up in Ophelia’s wide, horrified eyes.

“Why does my junior always do this to me?”

With a bright, beaming smile, I replied.

“Because I like you, Senior. I want us to be even closer.”

Tears rolling down her cheeks served as her answer.

* * *

I got Ophelia’s fingerprint on the club application, and finally got some time to myself.

[Hey Ronan. Is it really okay to be so pushy with that girl? Isn’t she the Puppet Emperor’s disciple? Can you even beat him?]

“It’s fine. In fact, the best way to keep him from getting suspicious is to act like I always do. Don’t worry about that. Just think about why Ophelia’s body is like that.”

After Ophelia left, Sparkle mentioned seeing someone like her once before.

But she couldn’t remember exactly what that person was, or how their life ended.

Well, that makes sense, back then, Sparkle hadn’t grown to this state yet.

Just as people’s childhood memories are fuzzy, it’s the same for spirits.

Besides, it was nearly four hundred years ago.

If anything, spirits remember less than humans.

“Hey, Sparkle.”

[Yeah?]

“When are you planning to come out from under my clothes?”

[…Do I have to come out?]

“You sound like you don’t want to.”

[Yeah. It’s actually comfortable. If the chest was huge, I’d feel suffocated, but Ronan, yours is… uh… small and soft, so… it’s really comfy. There’s just the right amount of cushion, and it smells nice too. Sniff sniff, what is that scent?]

What is this crazy flying squirrel even saying?

And what does she mean, ‘small and soft’?

“You better be glad you’re a girl.”

[Huh? Spirits don’t have a gender, though?]

“Your voice is female. And there aren’t any peanuts hanging down below, either.”

[P-peanuts…?]

I felt Sparkle squirming, changing positions inside my clothes as I took out the elixir for today.

The one I’m taking isn’t much different from the ones I gave to the others. An elixir that strengthens the body and improves health.

If I take this, I’ll probably be able to open my upper dantian within three months.

Sixth Rank. The stage where you can infuse Intent into Mana.

And, Havar.

I’ll be able to draw out this bandage’s true power.

If it hadn’t been damaged… I’d learn where Luna is by summer break.

Where was that place I saw in the vision?

Luna and Paulo were in different locations.

But both places were dark and damp.

There was no Magi. So it wasn’t the Demon King’s Castle in Gevihenum.

That means somewhere on the continent.

The source of the Holy Relic said to be in the East?

The Dragon’s Tomb in the South?

The White Wastes in the North?

Where could it be.

It doesn’t matter right now.

If I’m still weak, I couldn’t save them anyway.

So first, I have to get stronger.

Reunite with them, face those bastards.

At least not embarrass myself.

…Though, no matter how hard I try, it’ll probably still be embarrassing.

Snickering, I opened the elixir.

A sky-like scent wafted out of the tiny glass vial.

[Huh? Celestial Ocean Essence! Wow, it’s been ages since I smelled this! This is amazing…]

Celestial Ocean Essence.

An elixir received from the same being as Purifying Essence.

[…Wait.]

Sparkle squirmed violently inside my clothes.

[Wait?? Wait??? Ronan! I think I remember! I just recalled something the World Tree told me!]

“You remembered what Ophelia is?”

[Yeah! Celestial Ocean Essence!]

“What nonsense. Ophelia isn’t Celestial Ocean Essence.”

[No! The elixir! Remember how I said I’d seen someone like Ophelia before? That person… uh, ugh…]

Sparkle’s excited expression suddenly darkened.

“Why? What? Say it.”

[…That person, their very existence turned into an elixir. Ronan, they were a living, breathing person like you, but their flesh, blood, and organs all took on the properties of an elixir. And then… they got eaten. By another… human.]

“They got eaten? What happened to the one who ate them?”

[I don’t know the rest… but according to the World Tree, that person left humanity behind and became something else.]

“Transcendence, huh… So there really is a way for a human to become a Demon.”

Transcendence.

Leaving behind humanity and becoming another, higher race.

And the race they become is probably one that holds Magi, like what flows through Ophelia’s body.

Demon.

If a Sixth Rank or Ninth Circle human transcends and becomes a Demon, what kind of Demon would they become?

At the very least, a Legion Commander.

Then.

“Should I kill Ophelia before she’s fully transformed?”