Chapter 279 – 279: Magical Girl Appears!
◈
After wiping the pee off Tikia’s body and clothes, I waited for a while until she regained her strength.
Before calmly waiting, Tikia asked me to carry her a little further away.
It seemed she was very uncomfortable being near the spot where she had peed.
Ten minutes later.
After regaining her strength, Tikia said she wanted to change her clothes.
Fortunately, she had spare clothes, stockings, and shoes in her inventory.
However, even though there was no one around except us and the slimes, Tikia was very embarrassed to change in the middle of this field.
For Tikia, I created a temporary changing room with my mana weapon.
“Please change here, Tikia.”
“Huh?! T-this is…”
Tikia looked at me with wide eyes, but then shook her head and said,
“Thank you…”
And then, Tikia changed her clothes inside the changing room and came out.
They were the same clothes, but I could tell they were new.
Even though she had changed into new clothes, she probably didn’t feel good about the pee that had gotten on her body.
So, I said to Tikia,
“Tikia.”
“H-huh? Why?”
Still embarrassed about showing me that she had peed, Tikia looked at me, startled.
“Since tomorrow is also a holiday, I’ll take you back to the third floor tomorrow. So, how about we go up to the surface now?”
“Oh… Y-yes. Let’s do that.”
“Ah, and…”
“And?”
“Don’t you want to take a bath?”
“A bath?”
After that, I took Tikia back to the Fox’s Rest.
Of course, I brought her because she said she wanted to take a bath.
Actually, I had a gut feeling that Tikia suddenly losing her strength and peeing was my fault.
『I have a hunch about what happened.』
Really?
『Yes. But I think we’ll know for sure after Tikia finishes her bath and talks to Rent. Until then, it’s just my guess, so I won’t say anything for sure.』
“Ah, Rent! Welcome back!”
When I returned to the Fox’s Rest, Tina, who had slept well and regained her energy, greeted me.
“Huh? Who’s the girl next to you?”
“Ah, this is Tikia, whom I met yesterday. She’s three years older than us, by the way.”
“Huh?! R-really? I-I’m sorry!”
Tina immediately bowed her head and apologized.
“No… It’s okay.”
“But why did you come with Tikia, Rent?”
“Well… It’s complicated to explain… I’ll tell you later. Tikia, the bath is over there. I’ll guide you.”
“Okay.”
“Rent?”
Tina tilted her head, looking at me guiding Tikia to the bath.
Then, her face turned pale as she looked at me.
“N-no way, is she your new…”
“It’s not like that, Tina.”
It seemed Tina thought Tikia was my new lover.
I decided to postpone explaining to Tina for later and guided Tikia to the changing room.
“Please wait here for a moment.”
I picked up the magic stone placed in the changing room and immediately went into the bath, activating the magic tool to release hot water.
Then, I went back to the changing room and said to Tikia,
“The water is filled by the magic tool, so you can go in now. I’ll go out now.”
“Ah… Okay. Thank you for everything.”
“It’s nothing, don’t mention it. Then, I’ll be going.”
As soon as I left the bath, Tina, who had been waiting at the door, let out a sigh of relief.
“Phew… You weren’t going in together.”
“Tina… I told you it’s not like that.”
“Rent is cool and reliable, but he’s not reliable when it comes to women.”
“Ugh…”
I couldn’t argue with that.
“Anyway, please tell me in detail what happened.”
“Okay…”
“Oh my, oh my. Will you tell me too?”
Miranda approached with a bright smile.
It wasn’t a smile that blamed me, but a smile of excitement, as if she was about to hear an interesting story.
“Yes.”
First, I sat at the same table with Miranda and Tina and told them roughly about my meeting with Tikia and what happened today.
How Tikia, who had become a new adventurer yesterday, had used my muscle carriage.
The fact that Tikia was a devoted reader of the magical girl Marin, whom Elsie also read.
The fact that we met again at lunchtime today after she borrowed the book.
I felt a little responsible for Tikia’s disheveled state, and as a reward for recommending an interesting book, I treated her to a meal.
And after lunch, we went to the dungeon… Tikia said she would look at my magic power once, and then suddenly collapsed and peed, etc…
After telling them everything, both Tina and Miranda tilted their heads.
“Why did she pee?”
“If you listen to the story calmly, there shouldn’t be any problems, but it’s strange…”
“I think so too… But I feel like it’s my fault…”
“So, you let her use our inn’s bath?”
“Yes.”
“Well… I don’t know much just from Rent’s story, so I think we should hear Tikia’s story too. But Rent…”
Tina said, puffing out her cheeks slightly.
“I think it’s a bit much to invite a woman you’ve only met for a day to a restaurant!”
“Oh, r-really? I thought I’d eat too, and if possible, I wanted Tikia to have a delicious meal too…”
“That’s a good intention! I think that kind of kindness is Rent’s charm! But! As your lover, I… I…”
Tina wiggled her tail and fidgeted with her fingers as she spoke.
“I get… jealous.”
“Tina…!”
So cute!
“Hehe, Rent’s intentions are certainly good, but I think the restaurant was a bit much. Didn’t Tikia perhaps misunderstand that Rent was hitting on her?”
Even Miranda said that.
“Oh, really?”
“Of course, it might not be, but… if I were invited by Rent… Hehe♡ I’d want to spend a passionate night with Rent as a woman♡”
“Miranda!”
If today wasn’t the day I was giving Elsie the monster vibe set, I would have loved Miranda and Elsie together right away.
“Mom… Don’t say things like that in the middle of the day…”
“Hehe, sorry, my Tina.”
Hmm, but after listening to Miranda’s words, I looked back at my actions so far.
…Hmm?
Somehow, my actions felt like a creepy old man hitting on a loli!
I feel a little excited, like becoming a character in a manga.
No, no, no, that’s not it.
Hmm, but there wasn’t any direct approach, so I’m still safe, right?
No, it’s not that I dislike Tikia, but I’m talking about human relationships.
More importantly, the important thing now is why Tikia reacted like that in the dungeon.
Hmm…
While I was pondering the reason.
The bath door creaked open, and Tikia came out.
Even after taking a bath, Tikia was wearing her magical girl outfit.
However, her face was slightly red after the bath.
“Ah, Tikia.”
Tikia approached us.
“The bath… It was great, thank you.”
“If you’re going to say that, please say it to Miranda. Ah, this is Miranda, the owner of the inn, and this is Miranda’s daughter, Tina.”
Tikia bowed her head to Miranda.
“Thank you for the bath.”
“Did you wash well?”
“Yes.”
Tikia raised her head again and said to Miranda and Tina,
“Um… If you don’t mind, could you please step aside for a moment? I want to talk to Rent alone.”
“Hehe, I understand.”
Tikia, who had spoken stiffly to Lenny, also spoke politely in front of Miranda.
This is Miranda’s mama power!
Miranda and Tina went to the counter to watch us, and I sat at the table, facing Tikia.
“Tikia, can you tell me now? Why did you…”
“That’s…”
That was when it happened.
“”We’re back~.””
“I’m back.”
“I’m back. Ah, Rent’s here. And… Huh?”
My lovely lovers had all returned together.
“That person is the one who went to the dungeon with Rent yesterday…”
Melissa, who had seen Tikia before, recognized her and tilted her head.
“Ah, everyone, welcome back. Tikia, let me introduce you first. These are my party members, Elsie, Noah, and Ninya. Next to them is Melissa, who is from the same hometown as me. She also works as a waitress at the Adventurer’s Guild.”
“Ah… Hello.”
Tikia seemed a little reluctant and raised her hand slightly to greet them.
And then, I looked at everyone and said,
“This is Tikia, whom I met yesterday. Her job is a mage.”
When I introduced Tikia, Noah was the first to smile brightly and wave her hand.
“Hello~♪”
Following her, Ninya and Melissa greeted her.
“Hello~.”
“Hello.”
After greeting her, Noah tilted her head and asked,
“Huh? But if it’s Tikia, is she the person Rent met yesterday?”
“That’s right. By the way, Tikia is three years older than me.”
At my words, Noah’s eyes widened.
“Oh, really?!”
“Yes.”
Ninya wasn’t very moved, and Melissa wasn’t surprised because I had told her yesterday.
But…
“…”
Since a while ago, Elsie had been quietly looking at Tikia.
She seemed a little dazed, not even greeting her, just staring at Tikia.
And then, Elsie quietly approached Tikia…
“T-that… It’s the basic transformation outfit of the magical girl Marin!”
She said to Tikia with sparkling eyes.
“Ah… U-uh, yes.”
“Wow! Wow! I can tell just by looking! It’s exactly like the description in the novel! No, there are some slight differences, but it’s really the same! It’s such a cute outfit! And the ribbon is also conscious of Marin’s ribbon, right?”
“…That’s right!”
Tikia, who had been in a slightly gloomy mood until just now, said with renewed energy.
“I had a hard time finding this slightly large ribbon!”
“H-h, do you fight in that outfit?”
“Of course! I have to fight in this outfit to become like the magical girl Marin! I carefully selected the material for practicality, and above all, I enchanted various magic on the clothes, so they’re strong against fire, don’t get wet in water, and are strong against impact!”
“Wow! That’s amazing. It’s like Marin’s magic dress!”
“It’s the result of trying to make the setting as realistic as possible!”
“That’s amazing! Really amazing!”
I’m very pleased that Tikia and Elsie are having fun.
And seeing the two of them like that, Noah nodded her head.
“She’s the same type as Elsie~.”
Noah, when you’re excited with me, you’re like that too?
“And look at this too! This staff…”
When Tikia was about to take out her staff from her inventory, I thought that if we continued like this, the story wouldn’t progress, so I interrupted Tikia, though I felt sorry.
“Tikia, let’s talk first…”
“Ah. C-cough. Sorry.”
Tikia calmed down her excitement, then looked at Elsie, Noah, and Ninya calmly and said,
“Since we’re talking, I’d like Rent’s party to listen too.”
At Tikia’s request, everyone sat next to me in a row.
Melissa was at the counter with Tina and Miranda.
It seemed they were being considerate because it was a matter related to adventurers.
Before Tikia spoke, Noah and Ninya whispered next to me.
“It doesn’t seem like a family recruitment story, right? I thought Rent was now reaching out to that type.”
“It might be ‘not yet’? Let’s listen to the story first.”
It seems they don’t have any trust in me when it comes to women either.
I’m very sad.
Tikia, who was in front of us, cleared her throat once and said,
“Cough! Then, I’ll ask you directly. Rent… What exactly is your identity?”
“Huh? My identity?”
“Yes, your identity. At that time… I… I used a skill. It’s a skill that allows me to know about the magic power of the target within a certain range. It’s called Mana Search…
With that skill, I can feel not only magic power but also the target’s presence. I think it’s because I have a talent for that.”
Presence too?
Hmm… So, does that mean Tikia felt my presence, which Solly acknowledged as surpassing even the Demon King, the Hero, and even dragons?
“So, I used the skill, and what I felt was… a magic power and presence that were more intense, enormous, and overwhelming than anyone I’ve ever seen in my life. An overwhelming magic power and presence that I don’t even know the limit of… When I directly perceived that… I… I was so surprised…”
“Ah…”
Now I understood.
In other words, Tikia had already used Mana Search at that time and felt not only my vast magic power but also my presence.
At that time, I was just expecting a surprise like, “What the heck is this?!” after seeing my enormous magic power…
I didn’t expect her to feel my presence and end up like this.
『My guess was roughly correct. I thought she felt the enormity of the magic power, but feeling the presence too was unexpected.』
“O-oh, I peed myself… Ugh!”
Tikia covered her face with both hands after finishing her sentence.
…Tikia.
You didn’t have to say that out loud…
But that look was very cute.
