Sorry for the long update!
I have a work piling up so I can't actually make other things.
But please be patient~ I'm doing my best!
Thanks for reviews/comment/favorite/follows! I love it!
Thanks to Crimson too for the editing!
Toujou's residence, night time;
"Nozomi! What is this?!" Eli yelled as she took out dirty dishes out from under her bed,
"Eh? It's a plate and a pair of chopsticks…" the now sweeping girl replied without a single guilt in her voice,
"I'm not asking about that! Why is it under your bed!?"
"Because I placed it there?"
"And do you think that's appropriate?!"
"hnnn….I forgot to place it back?"
"Nozomi! Stop joking with me!"
"I'm not joking…" Nozomi said innocently.
"Sheesh, what kind of room is this— you're literally living above garbage…"
"Still extremely comfortable…"
"Hah—! That because you've been living in this place for many years already! I wonder how you haven't gotten any skin diseases!" Eli said as she took out a lot of dishes out of the bed's vault.
"Hmm? Because… I'm thick skinned? I think I've built enough resistance to such things ever since I was little?'
"That's not a question and that's not a compliment!" Eli yelled in frustration.
Nozomi giggled,
"Ericchi, you're taking things too seriously…"
"I'm serious because you're such a mess!"
"I don't mind if others call me a pig or anything…"
"I mind! Listen up, Nozomi, if you want to be my lover, then you better help me clean up this place! Or else… I'll force you to do it!"
"Hyaaan—Ericchi is going to use her force again!" Nozomi said teasingly.
"Nozomi!" Eli tried to grab Nozomi but she quickly dodged,
Nozomi sticks out her tongue.
"Ericchi can't catch me!" she said mockingly before she quickly ran away.
"Oh I can catch you!" Eli frowned as she ran to reach Nozomi,
The two started to run around the hallway,
"Come back here!"
"Hyaaaaan—Ericchi is going to catch me! So scary!"
"Nozomi!"
And they continue to run until they reached the underground garage entrance,
Nozomi smiled mischievously before she swiftly solved the lock puzzle, opened the door and quickly attempt to close it—but before it could close, Eli held the door with her right arm, and swiftly moved in,
"Ahh! Ericchi is so rough!" Nozomi said teasingly before she ran again, Eli quickly chased her around and caught her as she tried to go through the Glass Garden,
"Got you!"
"Ahh—rape! Rape! Ericchi is going to rape me!"
"What?! I didn't even—!" Eli quickly released her,
Nozomi giggled,
"Joking, Ericchi, now why are we here?"
"You brought us here!"
"Ah—I see, so Ericchi wants an intimate time…"
"Nozomi! We haven't finished your room!"
"Hmm… I wanted to ask so many things about your ship…"
"Hey! Listen to me!"
"Nope, you should listen to me…"
"Sheesh! Nozomi!"
Nozomi giggled,
"Come on, I'm still curious about everything you have…" Nozomi said.
"We haven't finished cleaning your room, let's go back…." Eli said.
"You're stubborn…."
"W-what? Hey! You're the stubborn one!"
And without even asking for permission, Nozomi opened the Glass Garden's door,
"Nozomi!" Eli grabbed Nozomi's hand,
Nozomi turned to her, and smiled mischievously as she gazed at the blonde while carefully dragging her inside the ship, leading her to sit down on the pilot seat as she sat on Eli with her back leaning on the blonde's chest,
Eli sighed,
"Fine… I'll tell you a bit, but then let's go back to your room and finish cleaning, ok?"
"Yup, then…hmm first….I want to ask about—This!" Nozomi pointed to a set of screens and buttons on the left of the pilot's seat,
"It's just a navigating screen, nothing special…" Eli replied.
"Why would you need a navigating screen, you can't see?"
"Of course I can, it just helps us to know our position—and plus prevents us from getting ambushed…"
"Boring stuff… hmm…what about this one?" Nozomi pointed to the front set of screen and buttons with a driver handlebar.
"That's Driver and communication system panel, we can communicate with others using it, though we have to add them as contacts first—it's just like an ordinary cellphone with connection…"
"I never had a cellphone in my entire life…"
"You never did? I thought it's the 'must have' things in life…"
"I never got in contact with anyone far from the village, so I don't need them…"
"Now that you mention it, I never did see any phone in your house…" Eli sighed.
"Do you always use them?" Nozomi asked,
"No…not quite, I don't have anyone to call either…"
"Then, what do you use this for…?" Nozomi asked.
"Uh—for communicating with my comrades of course, when we're in the battle field, we can't stay close to each other due to our roles… I'm someone that takes front line, then Umi should be at the back, while Maki, she is always in stealth modes for surprise attacks. Sometimes we use that for arranging strategies as well."
"Then who's in the middle…?" Nozomi asked.
"No one, we're always in a group of three…"
"Why does it sound like you have no other friends than them or something?"
"It will be a lie if I said that's not true…"
"So you only have those two as your friends…?"
"Do you need to ask that again…" Eli sighed,
"I'm just wondering! Sheesh! Ericchi is so sensitive…"
Eli smirked at her,
"So does Ericchi want to make more friends?"
"Not really, it's a waste of time…"
"I'm glad we agree on that matter… but, don't you think we have to do the opposite? We have that mission called: Learning how to friendship love…."
"It doesn't work that way, you know…. it supposed to happen naturally…" Eli said.
"But how will it happen if we never try to approach them?"
"Coincidence? Forced to a situation? Whichever works…?"
"What about… we make this 'Forced Situation' instead of waiting for it to happen…?"
Eli sighed again,
"Alright, so what's your plan?"
"Hmmm…let's…travel together! All of us!"
"Then what about your school and the other things?"
"I can always set the students on project month…."
"Project month?"
"Yup, means that they're given liberty to research anything they want as long they can make the project that I request from them during a specific date I assign…"
"Uh…that sounds like literature class's homework for me…"
"Really? Then, does Ericchi have that homework?"
"No… fortunately not… why are you asking anyway… it's not like you can help…" Eli replied.
"Maybe you would want to write about earth or something?"
"No… that would be too dangerous…" Eli huffed,
Nozomi giggled,
"You're really cute when you're annoyed, you know, it makes me want to bite you…" Nozomi said.
"Huh? I am? Then I suppose those stupid girls like it when I'm giving them a cold shoulder…"
Nozomi giggled again before she turns around to face her,
"Do you hate them because they're trying to approach you?"
"No, it just that…they…." Eli paused,
Nozomi tilts her head,
"I just can't describe how I hate them… sorry…."
"You can't describe why you hate them? Then why don't you tell me a story about the time when you started to hate them?" Nozomi asked.
Eli shook her head,
"I don't want to remember it…" Eli replied,
"That's not fair, I told you about my past, why do you refuse to tell me about yours?"
"I can't…ok?"
"Ericchi is being unfair…" Nozomi puffed her cheek,
"Why are you always puffing your cheeks like that…"
"Because I'm upset at Ericchi!"
"It's not going to be scary if you puff your cheeks like that, you know… it just makes you look cute…" Eli said.
Nozomi remained quiet as she kept her cheeks puffed.
"Nozomi…stop giving me that face…"
Nozomi was still quiet, shoving her face closer to the blonde—still with her puffed cheek,
"Nozomi!"
No change.
Eli started to giggle,
"I'll make it explode…"
Nozomi shoved her face even closer,
And Eli claps her hands gently on her cheek,
"Poof!" Eli said playfully.
Nozomi and Eli giggled,
"Aaa! Now it's Ericchi's turn!" Nozomi said.
"Alright… here…"
Eli puffed her cheek,
Nozomi poked Eli's Cheek.
"Poof!" She said playfully.
"My turn again…" Eli said.
Nozomi puffed her cheek,
Eli poked her cheek gently.
"Poof!"
And they giggled again as they kept doing the same routine for a while, until….
"Here…." Eli puffed her cheek,
Nozomi placed both of her hands on Eli's cheek then carefully pressed on it as the wind blew out from Eli's mouth.
"Poooooooooooooooooooooff….."
They giggled sweetly,
"My turn now…" Nozomi said before she puffed her cheeks, her hands still placed on the blonde's cheeks. Eli placed both of her hands on Nozomi's cheek and also tried to deflate it slowly,
"Pooof…" Eli whispered—her voice somehow sounded extremely seductive,
Nozomi smiled faintly.
"That's sexy, you know…" Nozomi whispered back,
"I know…." Eli smiled back at her,
The two stare into each other quietly, realizing that they both are charmed by each other's beauty—and the range of their faces were just a few centimeters in distance,
Their cheeks took in a shade of dark red,
"Hey…shall we kiss?" Eli whispered,
"Aren't you the one who said you won't do it before I learned all the lessons you want to teach me?" Nozomi asked,
"You're right…." Eli replied.
"But…I don't mind it if you want to do it, I'm very curious about how a kiss feels like…" Nozomi whispered softly,
"I don't know either…." Eli replied, her voice low and gentle, enough for a person to faint just from hearing it.
"Why does Kotori say this is a big deal? Is there anything else that's going to happen?"
"Other than you losing your first kiss, no…. don't think so…." Eli said.
"And what does this first kiss mean?"
"It's just meant to be a special kiss… just like your first kill…." Eli smiled softly,
"I see…. so what makes it special is not because it's given to someone special— but because it happened, right?"
"Pretty much… but since you'll remember it for the rest of your life time, the kiss could either end up as a regret or greatest memory…. So that's why it's safer if you give it to your special someone…. " Eli replied,
"Ah—so it just all about safety…huh?"
"Yes…"
"But I like to play everything dangerously…" Nozomi smiled mischievously.
"Really?" Eli chuckled,
"Yup, I don't care about myself that much….and I always do whatever I want…."
"Then I suppose you don't care about what I will do to you?"
"As long it doesn't harm me or get me in trouble…. I don't…."
Eli chuckled again,
"Is this a trap? You know I haven't believed you with all these…" Eli asked.
"What do you think I will do to you if you kiss me?"
Eli smiled,
"I don't know…. that's why I want to stay alert…"
"I'm not going to put you through any trouble either… silly…as long as you're taking good care of me, I'll take care of you too…."
"That's what every liars say…" Eli said.
"Then, let's just do this…" Nozomi leaned in closer to her, placing her lips right in front of Eli,
"Do whatever you want to me… I won't complain…" Nozomi said.
"Sure?"
"Yes, I will never complain about it…"
"Very well then….."
The road, morning;
Maki rested her back on the car, taking a short break after long nights drive. She turned to the trio who has been asleep the whole time. Then averted her eyes to the small luggage under the steering wheel and decided to check it out,
There was a map rolled up along with a journal.
She opened the map, browsing around; she noticed two places marked with a red marker,
'White Lily'
'Pure Love Lens Lake'
Maki raised her eyebrows slightly,
Then she turned to the journal, that seemed to be a little burnt around the borders,
She decided to open it, flipping from page to page, until she stopped at the page where she found a blueprint of a familiar glove,
Maki widen her eyes, then she tried to read a few explanations about it,
….I've finally made it,
A glove that's able to multiply power, hasten magic channeling, and create an instant shield. It's a very powerful glove and I'm sure the governor will be very happy to have it. The glove is a magic technology that will be remembered as one of the legendary weapon of mages! It will be powerful! It will take our family to the high-place!
Nozomi-chan will be very happy and she is, no doubt, going to be the daughter of a genius inventor! It will be easier for her too to find someone who will treat her like a princess. She always wanted to be treated that way. Lazy girl, but I'm glad she inherited my brilliant mind so at least she will be the next genius of magic technology!
Then Maki started to examine the sketches next to it, plus the blueprints of the mechanic, it seems to be a little too complex for her, but she is sure someone will be able to understand it,
Maki tried to look at the back again; none of the three were awake yet.
She quickly searched Hanayo's bag, looking for a paper and pen, much to her luck the red-head pulled it out and quickly copied the blueprints on it.
Kotori's workshop, morning;
Honoka and Kotori were already busy doing their own work in the workshop, as Umi came in carrying a roll of paper,
"Morning…" Umi greeted them politely,
"Ah, Umi-chan! Food?" Honoka asked as she turned to a box of manjuu that she placed on the end table.
"Yeah, would be nice, but I'm going to bring them to the Inn, if you don't mind. I need to talk with Eli…" Umi said.
"Yup, no problem!" Honoka replied.
Kotori seemed to not have noticed Umi's presence, as she was too busy with the flask of poison that she was working on.
"Ah, by the way Kotori…." Umi said,
Kotori stood quiet,
"Do you have any request today? Because there's something I want to do as well…."
Kotori didn't make any response,
"Kotori…?" Umi called again,
No response.
Umi turned to Honoka, the ginger gestured to her, telling her to try and poke her,
Umi nodded and she walks closer to Kotori,
"Kotori…" Umi poked Kotori
"Ahh!" Kotori jumped slightly, accidentally dropping her flask.
"K-Kotori?"
"A-aa ….U-Umi-chan! You surprised me!" Kotori said in a panic, as she quickly crouched down, about to touch the broken flask, Umi quickly grabbed her,
"What substance is that?!" Umi asked clearly,
"A-aaahh! I-It's poison! B-B-but I'm not going to use it on you, I swear!" Kotori said in panic as she cowers,
"Then don't touch it with your bare hands…" Umi said.
"Eh…?" Kotori flustered,
"Come on, you've been an alchemist for long enough, right? You shouldn't touch poison with bare hands…" Umi said.
"Uh…right…S-Sorry…."
Umi sighed,
"Come on, get up and I'll clean that mess for you…" Umi said.
"But…."
"It was my fault that you dropped it, so I'll be responsible for the mess…" Umi said.
Kotori stared at her in awe,
Umi started to look for a rubber cloth, gloves, and a dustpan to clean up the mess with.
When she found it, she quickly used them all in a very effective way—it was as though she was very experienced in cleaning messes,
"Umi-chan….." Kotori blushed slightly while watching her,
"Yes?" Umi replied,
"N…Nothing…it just that…. I…." Kotori struggled with her words; she glanced towards Honoka who has been busy writing something in her notes,
Umi remained quiet as she kept working,
"I….I...uh….I wonder….if…." Kotori twiddled her finger,
"If….?"
"N…Nothing….Never mind…" Kotori sighed weakly.
"Alright…" Umi calmly replied.
"W-waaaah! I forgot to fill the water last night!" Honoka suddenly shouted.
"H-Heee?!" Kotori jumped, getting startled once more,
"The horses need water! Be right back!" Honoka ran out from the workshop.
Umi turn her sight to the hasty Honoka, and then she sighed,
"Sheesh, can't slow down a little… can she?…" Umi said.
"Uhhnn! Umi-chan!" Kotori called, somewhat eager.
"Yes?" Umi replied.
"I think you're more reliable than Honoka-chan!" Kotori said.
"Huh?"
"Yup, you're very reliable! I hope you can stay here!"
"Uh? I…I can't… I have to graduate first and… I have family in Terra…." Umi said.
"Ah….right…" Kotori replied sadly,
"But thanks for the compliment…" Umi said with a gentle smile.
Kotori blushed madly,
"Aaa—uhhhh….uhnnn….. I…It's not a love confession, ok? It just… a compliment…" Kotori said.
"Yes it is… who thought that as a love confession?" Umi flustered.
"N-No one….ahahaa…" Kotori laughed awkwardly.
Umi chuckled softly before she returned to cleaning.
Kotori twiddled her fingers again,
"S-say though…Umi-chan…. I wonder….How can you resist a lot of my potions effect? Do you have some…sort of…uh…special…body immunity?"
Umi paused for a moment,
"No…" she replied flatly,
"Uhh…uhm…then…uh…. A…Are you…uh…familiar with…uh… The Alaistair…?" Kotori asked.
Umi looked somewhat surprised,
"What about them?" she asked looking up at the ash-brunette,
"Well…. uh… H-Honoka-chan is one of them… she is—"
"You shouldn't tell that to anyone, you know…" Umi cuts in.
"E-Eh? W-why?" Kotori flustered.
Umi sighed again,
"Just don't tell that to anyone…not even to your most trusted friend…" Umi said a little coldly,
"B-but…Honoka-chan did…." Kotori replied,
"She must be tired of life… or just doesn't care about them…" Umi said as she finished her cleaning.
"Eh?" Kotori flustered.
"Anyway, I'm going out to dispose this… then head out to the Inn, good luck with your school today… if there are any tasks for me to do, just write the it on the white board, I'll do it immediately later…" Umi said coldly before she walked out of the workshop.
Kotori watched Umi leave the workshop, as she felt confused towards what just happened…
The Stable, morning;
Honoka was currently filling the water on the horse's drinking tank as she was also working on adding hay to the feeder box, cheerfully humming a song, while doing so.
Then she heard someone dumping something to the trash bin near the stable.
She turned towards the noise,
"Ah, Umi-chan! You're fast on cleaning up…!" Honoka said.
Umi turned her gaze towards the ginger-head,
And within seconds, she charged at Honoka, pulling out her fist—Umi aimed to hit Honoka, but stopped just a few millimeters in front of the girl who didn't even attempt to dodge or protect herself.
"Eh? Umi-chan?" Honoka flustered,
"Honoka… are you…really tired of life…" Umi said.
"Uh? But…I was surprised by that attack though; I certainly would've gotten hit if you had really done it…" Honoka replied.
Umi sighed,
"Honoka….Why did you tell Kotori that you're an Alaistair?" Umi asked.
"Because… she is my friend?"
"No…. you shouldn't tell that to anyone…" Umi replied.
"Why?"
"Have you forgotten about what the creatures from the other planets did to us?"
"Us…then…you are—…"
"Don't say it; I don't want to get into the same trouble with you…" Umi cuts in.
"What do you mean? I'm lost…." Honoka said.
"Honoka… don't you know what our blood can do?"
"Eh? No…" Honoka replied.
Umi sighed,
"Then you really know nothing about it…."
"No… what are you talking about?"
"Honoka… our blood can nullify all kinds' magic and poison…"
"Oh…."
"If someone knew about this, they will try to squeeze our blood out of us…do you understand?"
"Yes…. But I don't think Kotori-chan will do anything like that…"
"She just told me that you're one of The Alaistair…it's just as dangerous as that, you know… what if someone heard it? You won't be living in peace until you can silent them…" Umi replied.
"I still don't really get it, Umi-chan… doesn't that just mean that we can help them if they need it?" Honoka said.
Umi sighed heavily,
"Honoka…. Do I really have to tell you…?"
"Yes, I just know that I and my family are the Alaistair, but I never actually knew what it meant…" Honoka replied.
"It just means that you're not an ordinary race…" Umi said.
"What does it mean to be 'not an ordinary race' here? Why are you making such a big problem out of it?" Honoka asked.
Umi smiled wryly,
"Do you remember, the time when we were abducted?"
"No, I don't remember to have ever been abducted…" Honoka said.
"Then, you must have been not part of the group— but… I was…" Umi replied.
"Please tell me more…" Honoka said.
Umi started to look around all ways, before she beckoned to Honoka leading her to the back of the stable, hiding from the open space.
Before starting, Umi made sure that they were the only two there,
"It was about six years ago… our planet, Eamon was invaded by a giant pirate ship, they were kidnapping almost half of the population. I don't actually remember the details, but I remember my parents telling me that our people didn't have good military units at the time, we were losing. I was one from the group of people that were kidnapped by them."
Honoka began to feel a mix of concern and sympathy towards the blue-haired girl,
"They sold us off to many places… I'm not sure to where but I'm sure a lot of planet bought us… but I believe, they were just as unfortunate as our group…."
"We passed about a few months, living in the pirate ship, traveling from planet to planet… galaxy to galaxy. They fed us strange food, food that was not even worth to be eaten, it was disgusting, it smelled and it didn't taste any better…"
"Until we finally reached the planet that we were going to sold at, it was a very dry planet, and it looked like there has been a disease outbreak— they were desperate to look for an antidote… they saw us as their hope…"
"They put us in a room, and threw us in a mixer, one by one… It was lucky of me and my family, because right when it was our turn, the soldiers from Terra and the space police attacked them. Apparently, the police had been watching over them for a long time, though they never knew what they've been up to until that day…"
"So you were saved by Terra's soldiers and the space police?" Honoka asked.
"Yes…and that was also when I had my first encounter with Eli. She was fully human back then… she was so clever, agile and powerful, it was my first time seeing a perfect human such as her… I was so amazed that I…. I wanted to be like her…" Umi replied.
"She has become my role model, even as of now, she still is, but I realized that I cannot be exactly the same as her… When my family moved to Terra, I was placed in the school as a common soldier, then a year later, I got to choose which role I wanted to try out and eventually become what I choose… at first I tried to be a vanguard, and I failed horribly, I can swing my swords, I can use a shield, but I was too focused on my duty, it made me unable to protect my comrades… so I took another path. This time as a Marksman instead of a Vanguard and I proved myself to be very good in the role and before I even realized it, I reached the top three student ranks— right under Eli, who ranked first…"
"Wait-wait….Complete human? Is she not?" Honoka asked, replaying the whole story in her head, and stopping right at that specific information.
"AH—I….I can't tell you any further about that. Sorry… but now you know how bad it is for others know you're The Alaistair…right?" Umi wanted to confirm.
"Yeah… sorry I didn't know…" Honoka said.
"That's fine… just don't tell anyone else, ok?" Umi said,
"Yup! I promise!" Honoka said cheerfully.
"Now…let's go back to work…hmmm… I should go visit Eli…" Umi said.
"Ok!" Honoka replied,
And they could hear a sound of a horse running; Umi and Honoka quickly turned to the stable,
"Ah… that must be Kotori-chan…" Honoka said.
"Did she hear that?" Umi said.
"Not sure, but maybe she has been eavesdropping…" Honoka assumed.
"That's not nice…" Umi frowned slightly,
"Eh—that's fine, Kotori-chan will not do anything to us…" Honoka said.
"You sure?"
"Oh—Come on! She has been my friend for like…what? 5 years? She is not a bad person…." Honoka replied.
"Situations can change at any time, you know, when someone is desperate, they will do anything to have what they want…" Umi said.
"True, but Kotori-chan has gotten through that phase, she is a tough woman, you know…" Honoka said.
Umi sighed weakly,
"If you say so..."
The road, morning;
Maki continued to drive, passing through a forest; she had folded papers in her pocket and placed the bags back neatly where it belonged,
Suddenly, someone woke up, as movement could be heard from the back,
"Ahhh…. That was a really good night's sleep-nya!" Rin said. Stretching her hands upwards then bringing it down in front of her to do the same.
"Hey, morning…" Maki said.
"Morning-Maki-chan! Where are we going-nya?" Rin asked.
"Back to the village, you were all drunk so I had to do it…" Maki replied plainly.
"Ehh… you could've just let us rest and continued to go towards the other cities-nya…" Rin said.
"No way… with me being watched by the guards, I don't think so…" Maki said.
"Why are you being watched by the guards anyway nya…"
"No idea… Don't ask me…" Maki replied.
"Hmnnn…that sounds suspicious, Maki-chan!" Rin replied playfully.
"Heh—Hell if I know why… maybe they don't like my red hair…" Maki said.
"Really? Not because you're too cute-nya?" Rin giggled,
"W-what!? H-Heck no!" Maki blushed slightly,
"Being too cute is a crime, you know…" Rin said playfully.
"W-whatever!" Maki replied,
Rin laughed,
"Ah—Maki-chan is so cute… who knew Maki-chan is such a strong soldier on the side too-nya! Hehe…"
Maki sighed,
"Don't judge a book by its cover…" Maki said.
"But Maki-chan's cover is so good, inside is good too-nya! So Maki-chan is a fair book!"
"Sheesh, why don't you just go back to sleep instead of teasing me all day…" Maki replied.
"Ehhhh? But I just woke up nya…."
"I said go back to sleep, we'll be back to village in about three or four hours…" Maki said.
"Nope, not listening-nya!" Rin said.
Maki sighed again,
"Fine, then just do something by yourself… don't bother me, ok?"
"But I want to talk with Maki-chan though-nya…" Rin whined.
"Then talk about something useful…" Maki said.
"Hmmm… then… uh…ah right! Maki-chan! Do you want to learn magic-nya?" Rin asked.
"Depends on what kind of magic it is…" Maki said.
"Ehh….uhm…. it's a… uh… a buff magic-nya! You can hasten your speed like swooooshh!" Rin motioned with her arms, having one arm swiftly zip across in front of her face, even though she knew Maki wasn't watching the cat-like girl.
"Then, also increase your power like Bam! Hehe..." the orange haired girl lightly punched her own palm, while letting out an excited giggle.
"Huh? What makes you ask that all so sudden?" Maki asked.
"Didn't I ask you to teach me how to fight like you? I want you to do that—then as exchange, I'll teach you my magic-nya! Knowing that you have a mage lineage, you should be able to learn it-nya…"
"Heh… I guess it wouldn't hurt to learn…" Maki replied with a smirk.
"Really? Then, we should start up with—the things I would need?" Rin asked,
"Claws and roller-skates, would be better if you can add a little machine in it, either to boost speed or just to dash off with it…" Maki replied,
"Roller-skate… uh…I think I have a skateboard instead of that-nya…"
"Skateboard, huh? That's fine too… but it's going to be slightly different…"
"Ehhh? Maki-chan can play them too?" Rin asked.
"Yeah, it's like the common sport in our ship—except it's called a hoverboard instead of skateboard…"
"Then, Eli-chan and Umi-chan can play it too?"
"Yeah, but I'm the best in that sport, compared to the two. Umi is a little difficult, and so is Eli, she often gets a bit too rough and ends up breaking her hoverboard in the middle of the race… she is planning to make her own hoverboard later…"
"Ah—why are you all so skillful nya!"
"Huh—well…we're forced to… almost all students in Terra know how to hoverboard, you know…"
"Ohh…. Really-nya? Hnn… now I want to try to be a student there-nya!" Rin said.
"No—No you don't…just stay here and learn things by yourself…" Maki replied.
"Ehhh? Why-nya? Is it bad to live there?"
"Yes, and you really don't want to live there…." Maki said.
"Uhn…ok… since you are so insistent about it…but…. you will still teach me how to fight, right-nya?" Rin asked.
"Yeah…"
"Ok! Hnn…I can't wait to return to village-nya!"
The School Of Magic, morning;
Kotori just arrived at the stable to park her horse—she noticed someone hiding behind a dark horse,
"Uhm…Nozomi-chan?" Kotori called her,
"Kotori-chan….morning…." Nozomi replied.
"What are you doing there?" Kotori asked.
"Uhnn..Just… a little thing…" Nozomi said.
Kotori tilts her head slightly, as she decided to take a closer look and..
"W-waaa! N-Nozomi-chan! W-what happened to your cheek?!" Kotori said in panic,
Nozomi took a deep breath….putting her hand mirror back inside the bag that was on the horse
"….an idiot bit my cheek…." Nozomi said sadly as she brought up her hand to rub the visible red bite mark on her cheeks.
"E-ehh?"
Nozomi faked a sob,
"She said she has been wanting to do that to me the whole time because I'm was too cute!" she pouts,
"I…I'm not sure with what's happening…but… uh…a-are you okay?" Kotori asked.
"No—I'm not okay! My heart is not okay!" Nozomi whined,
"W-wah? N-Nozomi-chan…."
"Ericchi is an idiot! Idiot! Idiot! Idioooot!"
"A-Ayase-san? Eeehh? So Ayase-san bit you?! B-but why?"
"I told you because she said I'm too cute for her!"
"I…I still don't understand…" Kotori said.
"Then let's just forget about the details! Give me a healing potion! I can't go to class with this mark on my face!"
"O-Okay?"
Kotori began to fluster.
"Ah… I shouldn't have complained about it, but that's fine… stupid Ericchi…! I was the one who came up with the idea of biting someone cute first!"
Nozomi said to herself as she walked away from the stable.
Koizumi's Inn, morning;
Eli lay down on the bed; she looked like she hasn't been getting enough sleep—not that she can…
As she sighed heavily, the tired blonde heard someone knock on her door politely,
"Eli… are you in?" a familiar voice.
"Yeah, come on inside… Umi…" Eli replied.
With that Umi cautiously opened the door,
"Eli… Good morning…" she greeted,
"Morning…" Eli replied,
"You don't look well, not getting enough sleep?" Umi asked.
"Yeah kind of… I was cleaning up Nozomi's room all night…" Eli replied.
"Oh…."
"What brings you here?" Eli asked.
"Ah…well…I made another sketch… I wonder if you can also add a few more functions to it later…"
"I'm sure I can, but don't you think you have to slowly add things? If I add too many functions at once, you'll get confused…." Eli replied,
"True, but I'm afraid that we will have to change mechanics for it later, so… it's better if we apply the set mechanics and take time to practice…" Umi handed over the rolled paper she had to Eli
"Ah, I see… then we should make the set mechanics and add the function later…" Eli replied as she opened the paper to check out the sketch.
They both remain quiet for a moment,
"Hmm… I think these mechanics are a little too complex, we can simplify it… but I think I would want to ask Maki's opinion about this sketch, because… adding a shield on the claws, will increase weight on her arms which will cause her speed to decrease—and make her less effective as an assassin…" Eli put a hand on her chin in thought.
"Ah…I didn't think about that…" Umi said.
"Then as for your bow, it looks good, but remember that you'll have to practice switching modes later… plus, along with your two-handed sword mastery, it will be a lot heavier with shield added…" Eli said.
"Understood…"Umi nodded in reply,
"Then as for mine, I think the idea is fine, but we need another way to work out the mechanics, because if I am to be using a shield that switches out from my sword-axe, then I'll need to make a mechanism that will allow me to instantly change into the shield—not this complex mechanics that will force me to wait 3 seconds for it to change…"
"I didn't think about that either, sorry…" Umi replied.
"It's fine…I like your idea. I think I can tweak a few things later to be able to make this happen… also, we need a powerful metal… just like my arm…" Eli replied.
"You mean… something like a Cathmore Alloys? Wouldn't that be hard to make? We need to craft it near the sun to be able to melt it… and we also need cold equipment's and mold too"
"That's why I've been trying to search around in Nozomi's house for any mechanics that will help to multiply energy functions, I'm going to try to apply it to the forge mechanics, see if it can multiply heat without destroying the forge and the mold too…"
"I see, then I shall wait for your search…" Umi replied,
"Tell me though, Umi, did you find anything useful…?" Eli asked.
"No...not really, but I just think that I really want to go home earlier today… there's something that's really bothering me…." Umi replied.
"Oh? Did she harass you too?"
"Kotori? No…Not at all…it just that… I…just don't feel comfortable here…" Umi said shyly,
"You can always tell me if they do anything to you…" Eli said.
"T-thanks, but it's alright… anyway, did you get my tablet?" Umi asked.
"I did, it was lucky of me that we had something happen and I got to enter the underground garage without having to sneaking in there…. " Eli used her hands to search under her pillow,
"It cost me something, but I got it. Now I hope you will use it well…" Eli continued as she handed Umi's tablet.
"I…I hope I can pay you back…" Umi said.
"No, it's fine. It was my fault anyway—I don't know why I was so nervous, I suddenly ended up doing something I didn't mean to… my brain totally went dead…"
"I…I see…." Umi transformed her tablet to a beret and wore it.
Eli smiled faintly at her,
"Looks good on you…" Eli said.
"T-Thanks…" Umi replied shyly.
"Now good luck with your activity, I'm going to try and get some sleep…" Eli said.
"Understood, then I shall leave you to it…" Umi said as she stood up and left the room.
School of Magic, lunch time;
Nozomi sat on her usual spot for lunch, her lunch box ready,
Kotori came by with a lunch box too,
"Ah, Nozomi-chan… sorry for the wait…" Kotori said as she handed the lunch box to Nozomi,
"No problem… thanks for the potion before, it saved me from the embarrassment for having a bite mark on my cheek…" Nozomi replied as she handed her lunch box to Kotori.
"Yup, I'm glad… but anyway, why didn't you just do that before you came to school? I only knew that you were leaving very early…"
Nozomi giggled,
"You caught me, I thought you won't get through that detail… but since you're a good friend, I tell you why…" Nozomi said with a faint smile,
Kotori remained quiet to listen,
"Because I want her to feel guilty…" Nozomi replied.
"Why?"
"She is all over me when she feels bad—then she will try to do everything she can to make up for it….it makes me feel so loved…" Nozomi chuckled,
"Sheesh, don't do that or she will eventually get tired of you…" Kotori said.
"Don't worry, I would still give her what she wants or needs. I'll play fair…"
Kotori sighed,
"You know what, Nozomi-chan, I think we've already gone too far. We should let them go home or enjoy their vacation…."
"Then, I guess we can just plan to make them enjoy their vacation…and at the same time, help me to forge my glove back… " Nozomi said.
"You want to take us to White Lily and Pure Love Lens Lake?"
"Yup, all of you… We need to hang out with each other to give them memory about earth, right? So there…"
"Are you sure that's alright? If they know you're using them to forge your glove back…"
"They won't know. Ericchi will not find it at home. I lost papa's journal long ago when I went to the city. Must be somewhere in the garbage by now, or destroyed… but anyway, I really need to get my glove back before they leave…"
"Hmm…Nozomi-chan, I still think that's not nice… are you sure you've changed?"
"There, you brought that up again, but I really was serious about changing myself for the better, ok? But there is something else that I really feel concerned with… I couldn't tell you right now, but just make sure you're well powered and stocked, ok? Tell that to Hanayo-chan too…""
"Something else?"
"Yup, it should be going to happen in about one year from now on…so, don't work too hard until then... and as for me, I'll play the cute, flirty and innocent girl in front of her until then… she is so helpless when I do that…"
Kotori sighed,
"Nozomi-chan…. don't confuse me with your attitude. I really don't understand what you truly want to do…"
"I do what I want to do…so don't mind me… besides, you'll enjoy being spoiled by her, just check out what I got her to make me this early in the morning…" Nozomi said as she gestured to the lunch box that Kotori held,
Kotori open it slowly, "T-th-this!" Kotori looks somewhat very excited,
"C-Cheese Cake!" Kotori's eyes sparkle as she looked into the excellent cheese cake in the lunch box,
"You like that, right? So I told her I want to eat that for my lunch… and she made it… thank me…"
"T-this is great! I'm glad I made you steamed bun with a lot of meat inside it!" Kotori said.
"Oh? Is that my lunch? Hmm… Sounds delicious!…" Nozomi replied as she open her lunch box,
Kotori eagerly took one bite,
"T-this is very perfectly made! I can't believe someone can make it like this!" Kotori said excitedly,
Nozomi also took one bite,
"Ahh..This meat steamed bun is so good too….I'm happy to have it!"
"Yup! I'm glad we decided to do this! Ayase-san is a really good cook!"
"Speaking of which, we should plan to make a school project month for next week…" Nozomi said.
"Next week? Ok, that means we're going out next week too, right?"
"Yup, next week…. I'll make sure to prepare everything for the event…"
"Alright! Hmm…I should synthesize supplies then…"
"Yup, you should, it might get a little bloody here and there…"
"Then, uh… maybe also a few poison to help the fight…. Hmmm I wonder how they're doing with their temporary weapons…"
"We can just give them their weapons back, no one will see them using it in those places… besides, I think they're fine unarmed."
"Eh, still don't think so… Umi-chan is an archer…" Kotori said.
"You gave her a wooden bow, right? That should be enough…"
"True…uh…then….what else….?"
Yeah...what else?
lol.
See you next chapter! Again, it's going to take a while. Work first! Sorry . a
