“You idiot, it’s a magitech magnet. It won’t crush you to death.”

Elucia’s voice was muffled. It seemed to be coming through some kind of cheap speaker.

“Huh?”

“Hmph. I thought you called yourself a Hero. I figured you’d have a little more courage. I didn’t expect you to cry like a little girl.”

“Uh!”

At that, Lonis’s pretty face flushed red.

She knew she’d gotten a little carried away just then, but she couldn’t help it.

Anyone would lose their nerve with a ball of iron that heavy hanging over their head, especially when they couldn’t run away…

“Next, the iron ball will lift the cage. Keep your feet steady, and don’t start crying.”

“I’m not crying!”

Lonis quickly got a hold of herself. And just as she’d said, the iron ball’s pull lifted the entire cage into the air.

It was a lot like the cranes Lonis had seen in the past. Under Elucia’s control, the cage Lonis was in was pulled up into the air… It swayed gently, much like a cable car.

“Next, press the red 7, green 3, and yellow 4 switches. Then, when I tell you, press the safety valves at the five-, ten-, and fifteen-minute marks.”

“W-what’s a safety valve?”

“You’ll find out when the time comes!”

Lonis didn’t dare ask anything else. She just kept carrying out one task after another under Elucia’s instructions.

It turned out the iron cage was a control room, built to let people who couldn’t fly work inside this enormous factory.

After about three hours of work, Lonis still had no idea what she was doing. But at last, it seemed everything was ready.

The metal gears turned slowly, and the cage Lonis was in was lowered onto a platform high above the ground.

…

…

“Phew… Most of the equipment is broken, but thankfully… the main functions still work.”

Before long, Elucia came into view.

With her long, jet-black hair and slender figure, the black-haired girl looked graceful and beautiful as ever.

“Elucia!”

The moment she saw Elucia, Lonis felt a genuine sense of relief.

But then embarrassment washed over her, making the silver-haired girl too ashamed to meet Elucia’s eyes.

“Hmph. You masochistic maid sure was making a scene just now, crying and screaming, weren’t you? Anyone who didn’t know better would think I’d been whipping you or something.”

“I-I…”

“And you said, ‘If you won’t tell me, then don’t!’ You sounded pretty confident when you said that, Lonis~~”

“I didn’t know things would turn out like this! And… M-Mistress Elucia, what are we even doing?”

“Repairing the magitech ship. What did you think, that we were going to walk out of here?”

“Huh…”

“It’s true that the Flame Abyss Temple is in the Snowrealm Kingdom. But the Clear Temple isn’t anywhere around here… It’s on Sky Island, home to Clear Academy. You could walk your whole life and never get there.”

“Clear Academy… Sky Island?”

Hearing that, Lonis stared at Elucia in shock. “There are Sky Islands in this world?”

“Hmph. Of course there are. Looks like you really don’t know anything.”

“Urgh…”

“What are you standing around for? Come on… Or do you want me to lock you back in that cage?”

“I-I’m coming!”

…

…

Following Elucia, Lonis walked into an adjoining workshop.

It wasn’t as spacious as the hall they’d just left, but a streamlined vehicle stood inside.

Its color was a dark gray,

and had several windows on either side. Judging by its size, it looked a lot like the large RVs Lonis had known in her previous life, but it had no wheels.

“What’s that…?”

“A magitech ship. But the balance-line engine is broken, so it can only move using its air cushions.”

“Huh?”

“Phew… I forgot you’re an idiot. There’s no point explaining it—you wouldn’t understand anyway.”

“I’m not an idiot! I’ve just never seen anything like this before.”

Lonis clenched her fists and protested firmly… without realizing that the way she said it made her sound like a little girl who’d been wronged.

“Still putting on a brave face… Lonis, you know less than a child who hasn’t even finished elementary school. They know how different kinds of magic crystals are classified and what they do, and they know the difference between magic and magitech. You? You don’t know a thing.”

“Wha—?!”

“Here’s the situation: even if I had you do something as simple as a low-ranking worker’s job, like adding fuel to the magitech furnace, you’d probably blow the whole thing up. Aside from warming my bed and acting cute, what can you even do?”

Elucia’s words pierced Lonis straight through the heart like a sharp blade.

Back when she was a Hero, Lonis had plenty of combat experience… But as the saying went, brute force could overcome any skill. No matter how decisive and courageous she was, in a girl’s body like this, she couldn’t possibly beat a monster.

And although this world had countless connections to the one Lonis remembered, it was full of unfamiliar knowledge. There was not only technology combined with magic, but all kinds of strange creatures and monsters, too.

She’d never encountered any of this before. She’d have to start learning from scratch.

Maybe, aside from acting cute and warming someone’s bed… there really wasn’t anything she was good for?

(No. I refuse to accept that!)

…

Lonis wanted to prove her worth, but Elucia only sighed as she looked at her.

“You big-breasted, empty-headed slave maid. You’d better behave yourself! If you do as I say every day and make a good little maid, I’ll keep you safe, since you’re my slave maid.”

“Uh…”

“That’s all for now. Come inside with me and learn what you’ll be doing from here on.”

…

Elucia opened the ship’s door. Inside, Lonis saw a small living room.

It was about ten square meters, with a dining area like one on a train. The seats and table could fold away—though a layer of dust covered them, perhaps because they hadn’t been used in a long time.

“The water supply is all set. There’s a rag and a bucket in the bathroom at the back. Your next job is to clean this living room.”

“Huh?”

“You don’t need me to teach you how to clean, do you? Remember, your job is just to clean the room. Don’t do anything extra. And don’t slack off. If I catch you dragging your feet or pretending to obey while doing whatever you want, you know what kind of punishment you’ll get.”

Elucia smiled and raised the remote in her hand.

Lonis had only experienced that feeling of being tormented once, and she absolutely didn’t want to go through it a second time…

The silver-haired girl could only nod obediently and say,

“I-I understand…”

“I’ll be out for a while. Don’t go wandering off while I’m gone, got it?”

“Mm…”