“Mr. Beowulf is off today!”

Aierfu said to me with a smile from behind the counter.

“……”

Seriously…?

“Is there anywhere around here that sells, uh… magic items, or those rune-powered machines I saw at the moneylender’s?”

“You mean Aichi Magic Shop! It’s a magic shop chain with branches all over the kingdom! They sell everything from moving toys for little kids to high-magnification rune telescopes!”

She rattled on and on. Her lovely face and bell-like voice really were tempting enough to make you want to buy something.

But was this really just a scheme with that shop to fleece customers…? It felt just like those shady tour companies.

I looked back at Eileen. She was playing with some furry little animal I didn’t recognize.

“Hey, does the guild have any devices that measure magical ability?”

“Magical ability?” Aierfu tilted her head.

“Uh, something that can measure how strong someone’s magic is, or what kind of magic they’re suited for… You don’t have anything like that?”

This country’s tech tree was a little different from the ones I’d seen in light novels. They seemed to rely on technology called “rune machinery,” even though it was basically magic.

“Hmm… I haven’t heard of anything like that. You could try over there.”

“Oh, I see…”

I thought it over for a moment, then leaned forward and lowered my voice as I spoke to her.

“Um, I have one more question.”

“Mm-hmm?”

“Do you know about fairies?”

“……”

For a split second, she seemed utterly astonished. But she quickly answered me with a bright smile, her long, pointed ears twitching softly.

“I’m sorry, but I’ve never heard of that race.”

“All right… Thanks for your help.”

She hadn’t even heard of elves…

But what exactly was the relationship between fairies and elves? Eileen and Aierfu both had those long, pointed ears.

【Fairy race: The archives only record them as an endangered race, creations of the previous Moon God. They possess extraordinary magical aptitude and astonishing beauty.】

【No other records could be found.】

That was what Paper-chan had told me before.

I mulled it over for two seconds, then used Ascertain on the elf in front of me.

【Aierfu】

【Race: Elf】

【Age: 322】

【Class: Silvermoon Priest】

【Level: 39 (Can spin your head 3,600 degrees)】

【Combat Power: Unlock the [Combat Power Assessment] system to view】

【Current Status: Blessing of the Moon God】

That string of stats gave me instant brain damage.

Holy crap, she looks like a seventeen-year-old beauty, but she’s actually a three-hundred-year-old hag!!

This woman cannot be trusted!!

Time to bail, time to bail!!

“Eileen! Let’s go!”

“Ah! Coming!”

The petite girl waved goodbye to the furry little animal, held down her wizard hat, and hurried over to me. Then we left the guild together.

……

…

After the two of them had completely disappeared down the street…

“Hah… Haa… Hahaha…”

As if she’d been under immense pressure for a long time, Aierfu suddenly slumped over the table. Her face flushed as she panted heavily, her blue eyes trembling.

“Aierfu?! What’s wrong?!”

The receptionist beside her hurried over with a worried look, ready to help her up.

But the moment the girl saw Aierfu’s face, she stumbled backward in fright.

“Aierfu… your expression…” She covered her mouth and pointed at Aierfu, who sat frozen in place.

“Huh…?”

“Your expression… it’s terrifying… You look like you’re about to kill someone…!!”

“Huh? Do I?”

Blankly, she took out a mirror.

Yeah.

Her smile was twisted to the extreme, her pupils narrowed like a predator’s as it closed in on its prey. Thin threads of red ran through those beautiful eyes, and her flushed face was so far from normal that a chill-inducing bloodlust seemed to spill from her.

Like a wolf that had been starving for ages and had finally found its prey.

A perfect smile.

But no.

She couldn’t act rashly.

She couldn’t let anyone else see.

That face absolutely couldn’t…!!

She had to be sure.

She couldn’t get it wrong again!!

“Aierfu…?”

The girl, still sitting on the floor in fright, called out to her timidly.

“I’m fine. Sorry for worrying you.”

As lovely and charming a smile as ever.

As if that ghastly face from a moment ago had never existed.

“I’m fine. I’m just a little tired.”

“Ah… So that’s all it was! You scared me…”

“Mm.”

Heh heh heh~~~

So I’d heard

something incredible.

……

…

A fairy, huh.

Interesting.

And now, inside Aichi Magic Shop.

Eileen and I stared at the clearly marked prices on the various wands displayed on the shelves and promptly froze.

What the hell, every single one starts at five gold coins… Some even cost over a hundred…

Why don’t you just rob us…

“See anything you like, sir?”

Nearby, the manager, dressed in a white suit and sporting a curled mustache, rubbed his hands together expectantly.

But I wasn’t planning on buying anything… Maybe I should get a spellbook, then.

“Do you have one of those devices that measures magical strength?” I asked the manager.

“Magical strength…?”

He tugged at his mustache, looking thoughtful.

“Ah, you mean a magic aptitude tester. It’s a device that evaluates someone’s magical aptitude.”

“Right! That’s the one!”

“Then please wait just a moment.”

The manager soon returned from the back with a crystal ball. Its smooth, rounded surface shimmered with magic, glowing in a dazzling array of colors.

“It’s so pretty…”

Eileen leaned on the counter, curiosity shining in her ruby-red eyes.

“Would you like to take the test?”

“Yeah. We both want to.”

“But, looking at you, sir, I’d never take you for a mage. You look more like a Paladin.” He glanced at my ornate armor and joked.

I just shrugged.

“You never know. These things can surprise you. Does the test cost anything?”

“Not at all! Just place your hand on it. I’ll interpret your current mana level and the types of magic you’re suited for.”

“Then I’ll leave it to you.”

I didn’t hesitate. I placed my gauntleted hand on the crystal ball.

Almost instantly, the crystal ball erupted in a dazzling array of colors—black. But the light quickly faded. Soon, the deep black gathered together, and a thick, oily liquid, like gasoline, writhed disgustingly inside the crystal ball.

That didn’t look like a good sign…

“This…”

The manager let out a thoughtful little sound, his expression impossible to read.

“What is it? How did I do?”

“Well… Your current level is about average for a magic apprentice, but the types of magic you’re suited for…”

He seemed to struggle to find the words.

“Is the result that weird?”

“You could say that… You’re suited to some rather unsavory kinds of magic…”

Eileen and I looked at each other and tilted our heads at the same time.

Seeing our reaction, the manager didn’t bother with tact and just shrugged.

“For example, dark magic, stealth magic, or necromancy. Basically, magic that isn’t used for respectable business.” So I was right…

Necromancy, huh… I was planning to go down the Necromancer path anyway.

“May I ask you something I probably shouldn’t, sir?”

“What is it?”

The manager’s voice suddenly turned serious and sharp. His piercing gaze seemed to cut through my armor and stare straight into my empty body.

Eileen looked a little frightened and shrank behind me.

“You… haven’t run into any suspicious people, have you…?”

I knew what he meant. He thought I was some kind of shady character, or that I’d been in contact with shady people. Either way, he didn’t think I was respectable.

“Relax. If I were one of those guys, I wouldn’t be bored enough to come here and get my magical aptitude tested.”

I changed my tone, mixing three parts casualness with seven parts menace. The manager recoiled half a step.

“If I were, what makes you think you’d still be standing here chatting with us?”

I’d cowed the manager. He froze for half a second, then gave a few apologetic laughs and put on his welcoming smile again.

“You do have a point! It was wrong of me to judge you by your appearance. Please forgive me.”

I gave a dry laugh. As the tension eased, I pointed at Eileen.

“Could you test her too? I want to see what kind of magic she’s suited for so I can buy her a basic spellbook.”

“Mm-hmm!” Eileen nodded. Once she had permission, she placed her little hand on the crystal ball.

“Oh, this color is… Huh? Huh?!”

The crystal ball had only just begun to glow.

But the next moment, a light brighter than the midday sun burst out of the shop, blinding everyone in the street!!

By the time Eileen and I came out with our newly purchased spellbooks, a few people in the street were still covering their eyes, rolling around on the ground and wailing. I had no idea if they’d come down with light-induced seizures or what…

Meanwhile, the two culprits—Eileen and me—strolled down the street as if nothing had happened.

“I had no idea Eileen’s magical aptitude was this high…”

I’d instinctively covered Eileen’s eyes just in time to keep her from getting blinded. As for me, I was a skeleton, so I was fine.

The manager had it rough. He was sprawled on the ground, covering his eyes and wailing like a ghost. If you knew what happened, you’d know he’d been blinded by a flashbang. If you didn’t, you’d think he’d pulled ten whites in a row.

Still, I managed to piece together just how powerful Eileen’s magical aptitude was from his tearful rambling.

Paper-chan helpfully compiled it all into a list.

[MAX Mana Reserves: A boundless sea of spirit, with a mana capacity far beyond that of ordinary people]

[Innate Spirit Sea: No activation required; she was born with a spirit sea]

[MAX All-Attribute Magical Aptitude: Can master magic of any attribute and wield any spell at 100% power—or even more] In short, she had an absurdly huge mana bar. While other people could cast ten fireballs a day, Eileen could cast a thousand.

Her maximum ability was unknown. Other people topped out at level 50; Eileen might reach level 100 or even higher. Of course, she was only level 17 right now.

And even so, she was still a higher level than me…

Also… she could learn every type of magic. No blind spots, no backlash.

“Good grief… I’ve picked up one heck of a little girl…”

I looked at Eileen. She was staring at her mage robe, so excited she could hardly contain herself. Her little hands gripped the black fox staff tightly; she looked nervous, but absolutely thrilled.

A fairy, huh…

She really was a terrifying existence in a way…

【Her magical aptitude exceeds this system’s prediction by 32%. Very impressive.】

Paper-chan spoke up in my head.

【This system had assumed the fairy race merely possessed exceptional magical abilities and a high aptitude for certain types of magic. I didn’t expect this girl to exceed my prediction by so much.】

【She’s very likely to become a hot potato, Ojer.】

[Yeah, I know. That’s why I haven’t told her I know what her real race is yet.]

I paused.

[I need a good enough reason—a reason to keep her by my side.]

[If she’s trained properly, Eileen could become a powerful fighter. At least, that’s how it looks for now.]

But all I wanted was someone to keep me company.....

【Looks like you’ve pretty much made up your mind. This system won’t interfere with your thoughts, then.】

With that, Paper-chan fell silent. I helped her pull up the hood behind her, then gave her little head a pat.

“Cover your ears and no one will suspect what you are, Eileen.”

“Yes, Master!”

She looked up at me, her little face flushed.

It seemed she trusted me to some extent now.

But I gave a bitter smile and snuck a peek at my purse.

All I had left was.......300 silver coins......and a dozen or so copper coins......

Raising a girl sure cost a lot......

“Ahem. Eileen, we’re going on an adventure in a little while. Are you scared?”

“No! By the way, what are we going to fight?”

I looked at the quest slip in my hand, then took out the slightly crumpled map and compared them.

“Uh... it looks like a maze exploration quest.”

“We’re fighting skeleton soldiers.”

Eileen blinked her red eyes. It took her a while to catch on.

“Huh......?”