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After her short speech, Eleonora smiled softly and waved her hand. This time it was the men who began clamoring and shouting ardently, which could be heard all the way up in the ship.

(Well, that makes sense. Having both men and women will do the trick.)

It would be hard to captivate the entire audience just with Jack Grave. While he was incredibly popular amongst women, that also made it easy to garner the envy of men. That was why the second person on the stage was Eleonora, a female knight.

(I can’t really blame them for getting so heated up though.)

Mira turned around, looking not at the screen but at Eleonora herself. She could not stop herself from sighing, witnessing her beauty that rivaled that of an angel.

Eleonora had long golden hair, her green eyes showing a strong and determined will, while her face still looked gentle. She was tall like a model, but what caught the eye the most was her very well endowed chest. Her silver armor looked like a skirt from her waist down to her knees, below that some black leggings were visible, and her feet were covered in silver greaves.

Certain parts of her body were not covered by the silver armor, replaced by a material similar to patent leather, either to keep the exposure of her skin to the minimum or to increase her mobility. All those places were the prime subject of fetishes however, resulting in an even more accentuated silhouette that was a sight to behold.

「…I’d never get tired of this.」

Mira chuckled as her eyes became glued to her chest and thighs, so perfectly concealed. At the same time, certain shouts from the ground made their way to Mira’s ears. They all went along the lines of 「My Queen,」 「Please step on me,」 and 「Look down on me with those eyes.」 There were even a few women that joined in shouting 「My mistress!」

(So there’s also people with such inclinations in this world…)

Mira ended up grimacing a little as she watched Eleonora continue waving her hand with a smile. The floating screen went blank as they moved towards the next collaborator, but Mira was able to see it. Eleonora glared at the ground, her eyes filled with murderous intent.

(Well, I guess she’s quite the diva after all…)

It seemed a large portion of the shouts had actually been accurate to her disposition. At the same time, that made Eleonora’s earlier smile seem like something else, which sent an oddly feeling chill down Mira’s spine.

After that other well-known adventurers introduced themselves, including Arlon. They were not as impactful as the first two, but all of them had their charm. As more names were announced, more people became interested in what they had to say, while the cheering became louder.

Eventually they called Sero, the leader of Écarlate Carillon. The moment he appeared on the screen, there were shouts and screams that rivaled those Jack Grave received, making Mira realize just how famous Sero and Écarlate Carillon actually were.

Once Sero was done speaking, Mira thought that was all of the people on the ship’s deck.

『And last but not least, one last adventurer. She’s not well-known amongst adventurers yet, but she was a great asset during our battle. She’s the inheritor of the Wiseman Danbulf’s skills, the only Pupil of a Wiseman recognized as such by Arkite’s King Solomon, the summoner Mira!』

Alioth exclaimed in an overly excited voice, while the screen switched to broadcast Mira’s face.

There was a distinct murmur on the ground in response. A Wiseman’s Pupil recognized by King Solomon. There had never been such a person before, so no one knew exactly how to react. Mira felt even more lost than all of them though.

(Wha-wha-what?! No one told me about this! What am I supposed to do?!)

Taken entirely by surprise, Mira scrambled for ideas of how to introduce herself, but somehow she managed to at least look dignified on the screen. Still, her mind was empty for words, while the pressure of so much attention made her know she could not remain silent.

「I’m Mira. I’m…you already heard. There’s no difficulty my summoning can’t overcome!」

In the end, Mira managed to turn things around by saying her usual declaration. Somehow the entire city seemed to go silent hearing that.

She began wondering if she had said something bad, when eventually the cheers came with their usual vigor. Though the voices said something different, so far they mostly had been shouts of 「Thank you」 and 「you worked hard,」 most of them went along the lines of 「she’s so cute」 this time, Mira did not seem to notice that.

Apparently Mira having to introduce herself as well had been planned from the start, as everyone else on the ship were looking at her full of expectations, and Alioth looked satisfied with her introduction.

(I feel like I lost a few years of my life thanks to that.)

Mira pouted slightly, wishing she had been told this would happen from the start.
A moment later the Spirit King’s Divine Protection mark on her body seemed to detach itself, floating up while starting to glow.

「Hm? What’s happening?!」

She felt an odd sensation, like she had become aware of blood flowing through her body. It was weird, but it did not hurt, it was almost pleasant even. Feeling that indescribable sensation, Mira had no idea what to do. Some time later, she felt like everything was starting to concentrate on her left eye.

Then that eye began to glow, projecting an image above her.

「Incredible…」

Mira had seen that silhouette in white robes before. Or more precisely, she would never forget such an awe-inspiring figure.

『I’m the Spirit King Symbiosanctius. I’m borrowing Mira’s power to appear in front of you here.』

The figure floating in mid-air said with a deep but kind voice. Anyone who heard it and could see his imposing presence understood he was telling the truth. And as even more proof, all the spirits aboard the floating ship knelt instantly, saying, 「My King…」 in voices overcome with emotion.

Mira was shocked realizing doing that was possible. The Spirit King did not seem to pay any attention to her surprise though, continuing his speech uninterrupted.

『Children of men, I thank you for rescuing my kin. Allow me to express my gratitude as representative of all spirits.』

As the Spirit King spoke, a bright light enveloped the entire flying ship. The adventurers on board had been entranced by the sudden apparition, but finally snapped back to their senses and watched as the light seemed to swirl around. Eventually it began to gather into a single spirit, vanishing inside it.

『I’ve imparted my power onto one of my children. This whole ordeal will surely have an aftermath, my power should prove a worthy asset when the time comes.』

His words sounding like a prophecy, the Spirit King turned to the spirit that obtained his power. ‘Stay always ready’ he said to the spirit before vanishing like mist. After a moment of silence, there was a loud and resolute reply, 「I’ll lay down my life if I have to.」

It all happened extremely fast. But it was not over yet, a moment later the sky turned black.

『And one final warning. Everyone who dared harm my children, prepare for your demise. If you admit your crimes I’ll spare your soul, however.』

The Spirit King’s grave and cold voice thundered through the city.

The sky regained its shine some time later. The people on the ground began to make noise again after the Spirit King’s appearance ended. Though this time they were discussing whether that had been the real Spirit King or just an act staged by the adventurers. The Spirit King was almost like a god in this world, so they only half-believed and half-doubted it.

Everyone on the flying ship was in high spirits, all convinced it was real. The spirits had all recognized him as their king after all.

At the same time, they all gathered around Mira asking how she did that. Mira had no way to answer that question though, as the Spirit King had basically appeared on his own.

The best she could do was simply mutter, 「I received the Spirit King’s Divine Protection, so I guess that caused that…」

「The Spirit King’s Divine Protection…I didn’t know such a thing even existed!」 Jack Grave exclaimed, impressed and surprised.

「Hearing someone receiving that sounds almost like a fairy tale.」 Eleonora’s eyes were ecstatic as she muttered that, walking to Mira’s side and whispering into her ear 「Say, wanna become one of my girls?」

Mira’s spine seemed to twitch, her body starting to feel strangely hot. There was a dangerous hue mixed into that charming whisper, which tempted Mira, but she managed to shake her head in reply.