## Chapter 278 – 278: Magical Girl Appears!
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And I regretted giving my permission.
Lant bent down, and I climbed onto his shoulders.
When Lant stood up, my eye level rose dramatically.
Being higher than Lant was honestly exciting.
But the most important thing was…
Ah, right now my legs and panties are pressed against Lant…
Hwaaaah!
I was so caught up in the fact that Lant recognized me as a girl that I forgot, but in the end, I’m still pressing my panties against the back of Lant’s neck!
“Then, we’ll depart, Tikia.”
Moreover, Lant seems completely normal after giving me a piggyback ride!
What is this?
Is he quick to give up?
Or is it that after carrying me, he just sees me as a child and doesn’t care?
If it’s the latter, I’ll be a little hurt…
Kwaaaaaang!
“Kyaaaaaaaah!”
Lant started moving, and the speed was so fast that I couldn’t think properly.
I could definitely feel that the wind pressure was stronger when riding piggyback.
Lant stopped in a place where there were no other adventurers around.
“We’ve arrived.”
Lant bent down, and I got off his shoulders.
…The speed was so fast that all the embarrassment and shame flew away.
Is my hair messed up?
I took out a hand mirror from my inventory and checked my hair.
Ah, it’s a little out of place.
I also took out a comb and tidied my hair.
Swish, swish.
…Okay! It’s well-groomed.
As I put the hand mirror and comb back into my inventory, Lant spoke to me.
“So, is it time to start magic practice?”
“Yeah. But my mana is a bit low…”
“Mana?”
“Yeah, I want to use a big spell this time, and since it’s an original spell, it takes more mana than other spells. I need to actually use it a few times to review the formula and increase its efficiency.”
“Ooh… You’re going to go through trial and error to get even better results, right?”
“That’s right.”
“How long does it take to recover your mana?”
“I ate and rested, so if I meditate now, it’ll take about 20 minutes.”
“That’s quite a while.”
“I have a lot of total mana. And using the spell I’m trying to test will consume quite a bit of my mana.”
Lant thumped his chest with his fist and said.
“Then, I’ll watch over you while you recover your mana, Tikia.”
“Thank you.”
Ah, so this is the reliability of having a vanguard.
“By the way, how long does it take to recover your mana after testing that spell once?”
“If I recover through meditation after using most of it… it’ll take about an hour.”
“That’s quite a while.”
“I have a lot of mana. Of course, if I use a simple spell, 5 minutes is enough.”
“I see.”
“Actually, there’s a faster way to recover mana…”
“Is there? Then why don’t you use that?”
“Hmm…”
But this method requires a companion with a lot of mana.
Lant is… a martial artist, so honestly, he doesn’t seem to have much mana…
“Lant, do you happen to have a lot of mana?”
“My mana?”
“Yeah.”
Lant flexed his biceps and said confidently.
“I’m confident in my mana capacity.”
Not strength?
But Lant has no reason to lie to me.
Still, maybe he just means he has more mana than other martial artists?
Martial artists and other vanguards also consume mana when using skills.
Therefore, a promoted swordsman or martial artist often has more mana than a non-promoted mage.
In my case, I’m a genius with innate talent, so I have a lot of mana.
“I… from birth, I was a genius not only in terms of elemental aptitude but also in mana manipulation.”
“Yes.”
“My mana capacity is also naturally higher than other mages.”
“That’s amazing.”
Lant nodded repeatedly, showing a good reaction.
I’m getting excited.
“So, I tried various spells and faced one problem. Even if I can use various spells, it’s the time it takes to recover mana. Of course, I can drink mana potions instead of meditating, but it’s hard to drink when you’re full, right?”
“I guess so. Ah, did you find a new way to recover mana, Tikia?”
“That’s it!”
Lant is good at agreeing.
“I’m also a genius at mana manipulation. To recreate magic like the one in Magical Girl Marine, I have to create original magic, and creating original magic requires a lot of mana and trial and error!
That’s why I discovered a way to recover mana more efficiently and reliably than any other method besides mana potions or meditation!”
“Ooh… What is it?”
Lant looked at me with sparkling, expectant eyes.
Excited, I raised my stick high and shouted.
“It’s Mana Drain!”
“Mana Drain?”
“Simply put, it’s a spell that absorbs another person’s mana and makes it my own. And this isn’t an ordinary Mana Drain. I developed and arranged it myself, so I can make almost 95 percent of the absorbed mana my own!”
“What about the other 5 percent?”
“That’s the amount I use when using Mana Drain. I also changed it so that it consumes the other person’s mana and doesn’t consume my own!”
“So, the user can recover mana from another person without consuming any mana.”
“That’s right!”
Lant also had a good understanding.
“But to use that, the other person needs to have a lot of mana…”
That’s why I was trying to find a vanguard with a relatively large amount of mana.
But among the adventurers who would accept my offer right now, there was no one who met my standards.
“Hmm… Then, Tikia, please use my mana.”
Upon hearing the story, Lant readily offered his mana.
“What?”
No, well. I did go on and on about it because I wanted to share mana with Lant, but I didn’t expect him to offer it so easily.
“No, you shouldn’t say such things so rashly, Lant.”
“Shouldn’t I?”
“Of course. Mana is important to a person’s body. Of course, even if all of it is drained, you won’t die, but you shouldn’t readily offer your mana.”
Lant is so kind that even though the purpose was to borrow mana, I was now dissuading him.
“But you’re not planning to absorb all of my mana, are you, Tikia?”
“Of course not.”
“Then it’s no problem. Besides, I really have a lot of mana, so please feel free to use it as much as you want!”
Well, he’s been an adventurer for two months, so he must have been promoted once, and his mana capacity is probably higher than lower-ranked adventurers.
Even in front of another mage who can use Mana Drain, Lant wouldn’t say such things.
Here, as a senior in life, I should give Lant some advice.
Yes, like Marine giving advice to a junior magical girl in Volume 26!
“Lant, you shouldn’t say that to someone else who can use Mana Drain. I can tell how much mana other people have, so I can adjust it appropriately. Other mages just look at the other person’s complexion and make a rough guess.”
“Huh? Can you tell how much mana other people have, Tikia?”
Lant tilted his head.
That reaction made me feel good about being able to show Lant how amazing I am.
“Hehe! I’m a genius, and I have innate talent. From birth, I have a spell called Mana Search that can detect mana within a certain range.”
Actually, I can also measure existence power, but I won’t mention it now.
I can reveal that later and surprise him again.
“Ooh… That’s amazing. Ah, then can you tell how much mana I have right now?”
“I don’t know yet since you haven’t used any skills, but I’ll know soon after you use them.”
“Ah, I see.”
Lant suddenly grinned, puffed out his chest, and made a confident expression.
“Then, why don’t you try it? You’ll be surprised when you see my mana capacity.”
His confident face is like a large dog showing off, so cute.
Why does Lant look so much like a dog?
“What, are you that confident?”
“Of course.”
If Lant is that confident, then let’s see.
I’m sorry to Lant, but a martial artist’s mana capacity can’t be that high.
Even if he’s been promoted, it’ll be a little more or the same as a non-promoted mage.
I’m sorry to Lant, but sometimes, telling him the harsh reality is something I have to do as a senior in life.
“Okay, then let’s see how much mana Lant has!”
“Yes! Please, feel free to look!”
I activated Mana Search.
…
Huh?
What is this…
The moment I activated Mana Search, what I felt was an existence that was hard to put into words.
An enormous amount of mana.
An immense… no, an amount of mana and quality that was more fitting to be called infinite.
Someone like me… even my teacher couldn’t compare to the enormous mana that appeared before my eyes.
“Ah, ah…”
All the strength left my body.
I couldn’t stand properly.
The trembling in my body wouldn’t stop.
It wasn’t just because the amount and quality of mana were absurd.
If it was just about mana, I would have just been shocked.
What made my body lose strength.
What made my body tremble like this…
It was an existence power that was beyond measure.
I had never seen or felt such existence power before.
An existence power that felt higher, more sublime, and more powerful than any other existence.
An existence power that no one could approach… an existence power like that of a god.
“U-u-u-u-u…”
I couldn’t speak properly.
“Tikia!?”
The moment the being with god-like existence power called my name and approached.
“Hic!”
Overwhelmed by that existence power, I…
Shhhhhhh…
I peed my pants…
The liquid coming out of my body soaked my underwear and the spot where I was standing.
“Huh?! T-Tikia, are you okay!?”
No! No! No! No!
Don’t come closer!
I’m suffocating because of your existence power!
Don’t come closer while emitting such absurd existence power and mana that makes my body lose strength just by perceiving it!
Fortunately, I instinctively turned off Mana Search.
“Ah…”
And then, I was finally able to see Lant… not as a mass of existence power and mana.
“Uh, are you not feeling well? Are you okay?”
Eyes that genuinely worried about me.
The same look I’ve seen so far… like a large dog worrying about its owner.
It felt like I had been pulled from a dream into reality.
It was a feeling that was too different from the overwhelming existence power and mana I had just felt.
“Lan…t…”
“Yes! Tikia! Are you not feeling well? I-I’ll take you to the temple right away!”
I grabbed Lant’s arm as he was flustered.
“No… I’m okay. More importantly…”
As my senses returned to reality, I realized.
“Is there… a river or something on the second floor?”
I peed my pants in front of Lant.
Like an impatient child.
After turning off Mana Search.
What remained for me was not the pressure or fear of the enormous existence power and mana.
…I want to die of embarrassment.
It was just the shame of making a mistake in front of a man I was starting to like.
Ah, it got on my skirt, my stockings, and my shoes are all wet…
◈-Lant SIDE
Tikia suddenly used a skill, then started trembling and peed her pants.
I was confused about what had happened, but first, Tikia asked if there was a river on the second floor.
Unfortunately, there’s only a meadow on the second floor, no river.
Tikia seemed to have lost strength in her body, so I put my hands under her armpits and lifted her up.
Drip, drip, drip, a yellow liquid fell down her legs.
“Ugh…”
Tikia was very embarrassed.
A yellow puddle formed below where I lifted Tikia.
“Just a moment.”
I put Tikia down in a place where the puddle didn’t reach.
“Tikia, are you not feeling well?”
“I-I’m okay… but, I can’t… seem to put strength into my body…”
Even when she grabbed my arm, it seemed like she barely managed to muster the strength to grab it.
I don’t really understand why Tikia is like this, but first, I need to wipe off the pee on Tikia’s clothes and legs.
I created a towel with my mana weapon as usual.
“Uh…?”
Tikia’s eyes widened in surprise when she saw it, but now is not the time to worry about that.
“…Tikia. Can you wipe it off yourself?”
At my question, Tikia’s face turned bright red, and she bowed her head and shook it.
“Then… is it okay if I wipe at least the parts that touched your legs or clothes? If we leave it like this, you’ll be uncomfortable…”
Tikia was silent for a moment.
“…Please.”
She said.
“Okay.”
And I wiped the parts of Tikia’s skirt, shoes, stockings… and the inside of her legs while lifting her skirt.
It’s rude to Tikia, but this kind of situation is very maniacal, so honestly, I was a little excited.
