Chapter 47: Overgearing Is Always The Answer

After Karen and Ian visited the Fairy and Silver Coin, Ellie and Lydia had a lengthy conversation without me, using magical devices to keep it confidential.

I wasn’t sure what it was about, but it was likely about why the inquisitor was searching for Ellie.

If it was about sending me to the temple, they wouldn’t have any reason to hide it from me since I’d already firmly refused. Ultimately, it was about me.

Perhaps because of that conversation, Ellie occasionally wore a serious expression, and Lydia seemed lost in thought while looking at me more often.

Of course, Ellie still reacted amusingly to a little teasing, and Lydia sighed, telling me to moderate my jokes, as always.

As the days that seemed both changed and unchanged continued, Lemon and Apple suddenly kicked their way into the Fairy and Silver Coin.

“Where’s Jonah?”

“We’ve come because of a call from our boss!”

“Hmrm?”

Munching on Ellie’s cereal that she’d somehow recreated from my description, I looked up at them.

Despite calling for me, their eyes were fixed on the employees who were wearing tight gymnastics clothes and performing pole dances as they walked toward me.

With every step, they bumped into other adventurers, tripped over chairs, and hit their waists against tables, but their heads never turned.

Glancing around, I saw Ellie, like everyone else, hypnotically focused on the pole dance, and Lydia pretending to cover her eyes while peeking through her fingers.

“Hmm.”

Well, I did understand them. Even I would be distracted if someone was pole dancing in full-body tights.

But understanding was one thing, and wanting to tease was another.

I reached out and firmly tugged on Ellie’s empty sleeve.

“Eek!?”

Startled, Ellie let out a shriek with her wolf ears and tail standing straight up. Then, with a creaking motion, she turned to look my way.

“Ellie. So you like this kind of thing.”

“Ju, just wait a moment and listen to me, Jonah. This is something any woman can’t help but…!”

“I know, I know. After all, I was the one who taught you all about those outfits and dances. It’s only natural since I planned to charm every woman in the world.”

“…What?”

“Didn’t you know? Judging by your reaction, it seems quite to Ellie’s taste… How about tonight? Once all the hyungs are off work, we can have the first floor to ourselves. The first time doesn’t necessarily have to be in a bed.”

“Huh? Uh, euahh?”

Ellie had lost her ability to speak coherently. Leaving the flustered Ellie behind, I then turned to look at Lydia.

Despite having seen everything through the gaps between her fingers just a moment ago, she now covered her eyes completely as if she couldn’t bear to look.

“There’s no need for that now, Miss Lydia. No one will say anything even if you look at them openly.”

“I didn’t see anything.”

“Ah, what’s the big deal? We’re at an age where we know everything about each other, aren’t we?”

“I might be, but Jonah isn’t.”

“Then why cover your eyes, Miss Lydia? Ahah? Feeling guilty about something?”

“…No.”

“Let’s see. What could be so significant that Miss Lydia would hide it this desperately? Even as a noble knight, you’ve been visiting the Fairy and Silver Coin daily, but you’re suddenly reacting like this today… It’s because of that, right?”

“……”

With her eyes covered, Lydia shrank back, looking like an anxious prisoner awaiting judgment, and I brought my lips close to her ear.

“It isn’t because you saw the employee hyungs, but because you imagined me wearing those clothes and dancing like that, right?”

“……Eut.”

Lydia made a small peeping sound. I deliberately blew a gentle breeze as I continued speaking.

“I didn’t personally dress like that or teach them how to dance…but I did explain to Ellie what it was like with my own words. And Miss Lydia, you were right there listening alongside us at the time.”

“Ah, no…”

“Have you been imagining it since then? My provocative appearance.”

“I…that’s…”

“How could you, Lady Lydia? Even though I’m not a noble of high birth, to think you’d look at me with such eyes.”

“……!”

Having heard that, Lydia removed her hands from her face and shook her head in desperation with an urgent expression.

“No! It really isn’t like that…!”

“Eh.”

I was taken aback by her unexpectedly desperate atmosphere, but soon created some distance between us and flashed a broad smile.

“Surprise~ Just kidding, just kidding! I know well that Miss Lydia is not that kind of person!”

“…Really?”

“Really, really.”

“That’s a relief.”

Lydia let out a sigh of relief. Although I wasn’t sure, the joke from a moment ago must have touched a nerve.

The fact that she didn’t point out being called “Lady” suggested that it was the content of what I said that was the problem. I’ll remember this and be more careful next time.

Jokes always need to be carefully treaded. After all, I want to know and be with Lydia for a long time.

Nodding to myself, I was about to finish my prototype cereal when.

“I’ve found Jonah!”

“This is important!”

Lemon and Apple finally arrived at my table.

Fairy and Silver Coin was a pretty big shop, but it wasn’t big enough for them to have taken this long to get here.

Sure enough, when I lifted my head, the employee hyungs’ performance had ended. These guys. Were they so engrossed in the pole dance that they forgot what they were supposed to do? And here they were, saying it was important.

However, if they came all the way here, there was only one matter I assumed there to be, so I decided to be generous.

“Was the item I entrusted to Eve completed?”

“Whoa! How did you know?”

“Jonah, do you have a similar ability to the boss?”

“It’s not that Eve and I have special powers, but rather Lemon and Apple are just too simple.”

“No way! I’m a very complex woman!”

“That’s right! I don’t know about Lemon, but I am smart!”

Around the time that the betrayed Lemon and firm Apple began to bicker with each other, I put down the bowl I was eating from and stood up.

“Ellie. I have some urgent business to attend to, so I’ll be stepping out. I’ll probably be back by evening.”

“Oh? Have a safe trip, then?”

“Cereal. I appreciate you making it, but it doesn’t taste very good. Try making it mint chocolate flavored next time. See you tomorrow, Miss Lydia!”

“Okay….”

“…See you tomorrow.”

Leaving behind the two, who still seemed dazed as if under a spell, I exited the Fairy and Silver Coin.

Lemon and Apple, who followed me out, pointed toward the shop and asked.

“What did you do to those two?”

“Did you also know how to use psychic magic?”

“Psychic magic can only be used with a license issued by the Magic Tower, right? It’s not that, just….”

After choosing my words carefully, I slowly said.

“I straightened out the discipline of the household.”

“We wouldn’t know, we don’t have a family.”

“We’ve been orphans since we can remember.”

“Just think of it as deciding who is the older sister between Lemon and Apple.”

“Gasp!”

“I’ve never thought about that before….”

Lemon and Apple growled at each other as if they were in a rivalry. With those two, I headed to the Eternal Mercantile Eden.

A dazzling street. Dazzling buildings. Dazzling people. Amidst everything that was big and sparkly, the drab store instead caught one’s eye.

Ding-!

As I opened the door and entered the Eternal Mercantile Eden, Eve greeted me from her usual spot with a suspicious smile.

“Running here all out of breath… Did something good happen?”

You’re too late (X)

Sweaty body hot! (O)

Ignoring the internal translator that’s already gone down bad, I flashed a grin.

“Of course. Do you know how long I’ve been waiting for today? I ran here as soon as I heard the news from Lemon and Apple.”

“Oh? I was thinking of making you wait a bit longer. Would that make you angry?”

“I’ll show you my disheveled appearance any time, so let’s start with the item first…!”

Eve, who scanned me from head to toe, meaningfully licked her lower lip with her tongue.

“…Understood. I trust you will keep your promise.”

Saying so, she reached out into thin air. Was it a spatial artifact? Given Eve’s age and skills, she might have mastered subspace magic as well.

She pulled a box, slightly larger than my forearm, from the deep void she had plunged her shoulder into and placed it on the desk.

Sliiide.

Eve pushed the box towards me. As I blankly alternated my gaze between Eve and the box, her squint deepened, and she nodded her head.

…It may seem like she was offering dangerous drugs, but let’s not forget that she was just handing over a regular requested item.

“Sigh.”

Taking a deep breath, I touched the box. Then, the engraved patterns began to shine and connect as one, and a small sound followed.

Click.

“What’s this?”

“It’s a precious item, so I stored it in a box that only Sir Jonah can open.”

“…Wouldn’t that require my mana or a part of my body?”

“I used the hair you left behind last time you were here. How careless of you, Sir Jonah. “

“…….”

This clearly sounded like the words of a crazy stalker. But surely, it must have meant to be a concern for me.

A warning to be more careful since those things could be misused if one intended to… That must be it, right?

After debating whether to turn my broken internal translator back on or not, I decided just to open the box.

It’s only natural that Eve seemed suspicious, since I was the one who made her like that. Right now, the new equipment was first.

Thump thump.

My heart was pounding similarly to when I spun the gacha. The sensation of my entire body becoming sharply acute made an involuntary grin spread across my face.

“With this…!”

I could finally defeat the monsters that were too powerful to handle before. Perhaps I could even be able to deal sufficient damage to the guardian of the first floor.

I opened the box with one swift movement.

Inside was a dagger made from a unicorn’s horn.