| Author: Shizuku | Original Source: Syosetu | Word Count: 2652 characters |
| Translator: Nomad | English Source: Re:Library | Word Count: 1153 words |
| Editor(s): Robinxen | ||
Olivia appeared confused, still not understanding why she was there. However, it was something Charlotte wanted to resolve as quickly as possible. This was also why she scheduled two meetings on the same day.
“Do you remember the group I said we’d form to hunt the Rufus? They came back without having to fight at all. I’m sure you know why that happened, right?”
“Hm? Not really, I can’t think of anything.”
Olivia tilted her head slightly, unable to comprehend what Charlotte was hinting at. But Charlotte noticed how the magic automaton’s face changed slightly.
“Several nobles and I actually hired a group of experienced adventurers to investigate the area beforehand. I was astonished when I heard their findings. It appears that a single girl and two monsters managed to eliminate the entire Rufu flock.”
“Ah- Erm…huhh, I see…”
Olivia seemed a bit shocked hearing that, but she quickly tried to dissimulate her reaction, averting her eyes while sweating profusely.
“That was you and your Servants, wasn’t it?” She was not really asking, she already knew the answer, and stared intently at Olivia.
Facing so much pressure, Olivia slumped forward slightly and nodded, unable to keep playing dumb, “Yes. It was us.”
“I knew it.” Saying that, Charlotte stood up. “Follow me, we’re talking somewhere else.”
Olivia hesitantly followed her, being afraid that she would get blamed for acting on her own like that, or that Natalia would be blamed as she was the cause of everything.
They left the building and went into the garden, where ten magicians covered in robes and holding canes were waiting. At Charlotte’s behest, they all began casting an enormous spell. Olivia’s magic automaton was an avid user of that magic, so she showed a strong reaction as well.
Once their initial preparations were complete and the spell was activated, a large crack appeared in the air and an enormous clump fell out of it.
The black feathers quickly revealed the clump’s identity, it was the Black Roc they had fought not too long ago. Though now it looked quite distinct from how they fought it. Its body had been carefully dissected into feathers, bones, the beak, and other parts.
“Olivia, this is your reward for your service. Please take it.”
“Huh? Umm, what do you mean?”
While Charlotte offered the Rufu’s parts with elegance, Olivia could not shake off her confusion, as she had expected to be blamed for acting on her own.
“It’s nothing complicated, you defeated it, so you get the reward. It’s true that you ran off on your own without permission, but it’s not like we have a right to hold you back. Not to mention that you defeated a unique named monster, which is quite an achievement that should be rewarded accordingly. So please take it.”
While Charlotte had been acting as a representative of the students during the incident, she had already rescinded her position as president, and did not have the authority to restrict Olivia’s actions.
She was also only appointed as the official head of the relief operations by her father after Olivia had departed, so she could not retroactively punish her either. On top of that, if the hunting group had actually fought the Rufu flock, then it would have been inevitable for casualties to appear.
It was a shame that the magic automaton was the only survivor, but that had already been expected, and Olivia was not to blame for that. All Charlotte could do was reward Olivia’s efforts, and handed over all of the Black Roc’s remains to her, which originally would have been kept by the hunting group.
“Also, I’m not trying to act like I’m doing you a favor to get you as an ally either. This is merely your rightful reward. Though I took the liberty of using the meat and other perishable parts to aid with the relief operations, I hope you can think of that as a commission for retrieving the body and taking it apart.”
“That’s alright. I’ll take what’s here then. Thank you.”
Charlotte had tried to recruit Olivia to work with her in the past, so Olivia had been slightly suspicious that this was another attempt at that. But Charlotte addressed that and denied it, so Olivia decided to trust her.
“Natalia, can you store this?”
“I’m pretty sure I can.”
Olivia asked her magic automaton maid, and she gave a short reply while stepping forward. Then without chanting or creating any magic circles she created an opening into a different dimension and stored all of the Black Roc’s remains.
That sight was so unbelievable that Charlotte couldn’t help but cover her open mouth with her hand, while the magicians all murmured among themselves with their eyes wide open.
“Is that using a lot of space?”
“The Rufu’s parts are using around one percent of my total capacity I’d say. All of the meat and other bulky parts have been taken off, so it’s actually lighter than I expected.”
The magicians went pale hearing the exchange between Olivia and the magic automaton. All ten of them had struggled to keep those materials stored, but the magic automaton could store many times that amount.
As easy as it was to practice storing items with magic, expanding the capacity was rather hard, and there was next to no one in the entire world who could do it. Not to mention that it was a maid magic automaton doing it, and not an elf or some other race with a legendary affinity for magic, which both perplexed them and filled them with envy.
(I had heard rumors about it, but that’s really some incredible capacity. I’m regretting my failure to recruit her even more now.)
In truth, Charlotte didn’t view Olivia’s magic automaton as a mere tool or monster. She understood how much Olivia cherished her and recognized that she possessed genuine consciousness. Moreover, she was the masterpiece of the late sorceress Ophelia, and her magic storage could hold a hundred times the capacity of ten magicians combined. She was far more invaluable than a mere magic automaton.
But Seperion’s current laws and common sense dictated she was only a tool or a monster1. And as a noble, Charlotte had to show impartiality to that fact, which resulted in a large chasm opening between her and Olivia.
(I doubt Olivia will ever want to be directly associated with me in the future.)
Olivia might agree to collaborate with Charlotte depending on the situation or benefits, but that would merely be a business interaction that would eventually end. They would likely never get close to each other as friends.
Charlotte could feel a certainty about that, and she had no option but to give up on that hope.
“Seriously, I really can’t seem to control her2.”
Charlotte muttered between a sigh, her voice so low that no one could hear it.
