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Mira’s breakfast that day were sandwiches from a good bakery in Gran Rings, the name of which she had overheard from housewives gossiping in the streets. There were the staple tomato, as well as ham and cheese sandwiches, but Mira had added a teriyaki chicken sandwich to the pair, making for a hefty breakfast.

It had all been according to the housewives’ suggestions, and they were all tasty. Especially the teriyaki chicken sandwich, it had plenty of volume and was really juicy, but it was so good that it made one want to eat a second one.

「I knew it, I’ve finally unlocked the true purpose of the Item Box.」

Her sandwiches could remain fresh for as long as she wanted now. Once she ate the ones she selected for breakfast, she also took out something to drink. It was a malt based drink, made with powdered malt and chocolate, as well as some milk, making it an actually decent pick for breakfast.

That drink was also a recommendation Mira had overheard from some female adventurers she passed by. Apparently it was commonly sold as a breakfast staple by a café of Gran Rings. Incidentally, that was the same place that sold the Coffee Milk Flower Star.

「I really feel like I’ve been maintaining my figure perfectly.」

Mira looked down at her own body, smiling with satisfaction. It was still too early to decide whether eating unhealthily would affect her appearance at all, but for now she was still in what she considered her ideal shape, so that was no concern. Sometimes her stomach would protrude slightly when she ate too much, but that did not affect her at all.

Regardless, she was done eating breakfast, so she finally decided to put on some clothes and began preparing to depart.

「Good, I have everything.」

After getting dressed and packing her things, Mira did one last sweep of the living room to make sure she was not forgetting anything. Seeing that everything was in order, she opened the door and left the spirit mansion.

Sending the spirit mansion away would be a faster way to get out, rather than going through the door, but there was a reason for that ceremony of hers. Leaving through the door would accentuate the feeling that she was about to depart on an adventure.

And there was another reason, Mira simply enjoyed looking at the mansion from outside.

「Yes…this is perfect. Being the lord of one’s castle is the dream of all men after all. A spirit mansion…my own home…a home I can carry wherever I go. Yes, this is my perfect home.」

One’s home, a sanctuary of safety and peace, and a life goal of any man. Mira was no different, and the sight of the spirit mansion filled her with indescribable pride.

And as long as there was enough space, she could summon her home anywhere she wanted, just like here in this vast grassland. That fact alone made her home all the more unique, as not even nobles or royalty possessed such portable homes.

「I’ll be counting on you again soon enough.」

That was her home, and there was no other like it. It had recently grown to fit a bathroom as well, and it would likely continue improving.

Just thinking of how it would grow next filled Mira with excitement, and she knew she would be using the spirit mansion quite often from now on.

「Alright, let’s see if I can make it there today.」

Mira checked her map to see how far away from Haxthausen she was, since that was her destination. At the same time she began to wonder what kind of inn was awaiting her there. Staying in her home was not bad, but visiting inns was an important part of traveling as well.

Thinking of that, she headed to the river, since the wagon had been parked next to it. But then she noticed something.

「What…what’s that…」

She noticed an unknown object slathered onto the wagon’s driver seat. Seeing that made Mira jump a little, and she froze where she stood, trying to discern what she was looking at.

With time, she realized the object had the figure of a person, but was completely drenched, like a body salvaged from the sea.

Whatever it was, it looked rather creepy. But as she stared at it for longer, she noticed a particular detail, which instantly revealed what it was, so she quickly eased her wariness and sighed in relief, saying, 「Oh, you already made it here.」

Mira had noticed translucent blue hair, and the glow particular to spirits. That unknown object was actually a spirit.

Realizing that, Mira also remembered the conversation she had the day prior, when she summoned Worthramble.

Back when she met the Holy Sword Sanctia and the spirit of stillness Worthramble, there had been a third spirit accompanying them, the water spirit Anlutine. She was the only one of the trio who had not formed a contract with Mira, and now that the Spirit King had created a spirit network, she had started to feel left out.

After discussing that with the Spirit King, he quickly arranged for Mira to be able to form contracts with multiple spirits of the same type, and as soon as Anlutine heard that, she departed to see Mira instantly.

Somehow she had completed that trip in just one day. Though moving so quickly had clearly drained her strength and she collapsed as soon as she reached the wagon, leading to her current appearance as a washed up body.

「Heyy, are you alivee?」

Mira first approached the wagon, where she gently shook the spirit’s shoulder while talking to her. That also showed her face, letting Mira know for sure that it was Anlutine.

But she was clearly exhausted, as no matter how much Mira shook her, she just moved like a wet rag and would not wake up.

「Now then, what should I do here…」

Since the Spirit King had let Mira form multiple contracts, she had no reason to refuse any spirit who came to her. Except that as Anlutine was unresponsive, she could not accept the contract yet.

Eventually Mira decided that waiting for Anlutine to wake up would be the best choice, though she had no way of knowing when she would wake up.

Mira still had the mission to catch Fuzzy Dice, and she wanted to gather as much information about the location before anything happened. Sitting there twiddling her thumbs until Anlutine woke up was not exactly something she felt like doing.

So she began to consider forcing Anlutine awake to get the contract over with.

But considering how exhausted she was, Mira could not bring herself to do that. Then again, she also disliked the idea of wasting time waiting for her to wake up on her own.

In the end, Mira decided they would depart together, so she dragged Anlutine down from the driver’s seat and pulled her into the wagon, where she placed a mattress on the floor for Anlutine.

「She’ll be so shocked when she wakes up.」

Anlutine would wake up inside the wagon, and maybe even high up in the air. Mira was looking forward to her reaction when that would happen, and she went to finish the preparations before departing, though there was only one thing she still had to do. Go outside and summon Garuda.

Mira activated her summoning spell, and Garuda emerged from the magic circle, and quickly lowered its head to Mira in reverence, the bird’s whole appearance majestic.

「I’ll be counting on you again for today.」

That display of loyalty was something Mira felt grateful for, gently rubbing Garuda’s beak.

So far Mira had never forgotten to be thankful to her summons. She had a habit of talking to them back in the game as well, but now that everything was real, it was something she did without really thinking about it.

Knowing her summons were always helping her so readily brought her immense joy as well.

Garuda then stood up and spread its wings wide in response to Mira’s words. That was the most common pose of Garuda used when depicting the bird, highlighting the feathers with a rainbow sheen. It basically signaled that Garuda felt proud to serve Mira.

Mira and Garuda had been together for a long time, so they shared a deep bond. Garuda had vowed eternal loyalty to Mira, feeling indebted to her, and also admiring and revering her.

Because of all that, Garuda felt like it was an honor to help carry Mira around.

「I’ll leave it in your hands then.」

Seeing that Garuda was ready, Mira nodded satisfied and returned to the wagon, where she sat down next to the window like usual, and looked at the river and grasslands outside.

Then, sensing that Mira had settled inside, Garuda gently lifted the wagon into the air. Inside, Mira heard the usual sound of wind passing by the wagon as she watched the ground grow distant as they gained altitude. No matter how many times she saw it, it was always a breathtaking sight.

Sitting within the wagon adorned like a traditional Japanese room with a vast landscape far below was yet another luxury Mira had grown accustomed to.