I'm not dead, so the story continues. :)

Chapter 29

I could hear Maki very quietly humming the 'mission impossible' theme as we explored the natural caverns inside the mountain. To be fair, we were trying to be sneaky. If the wyvern in here did clean up after our little kill-dive on the way to Rondel, then they were probably sleeping it off.

Sadly, my fears were justified. No, we didn't encounter any of them. But, like most egg laying critters, they had built a nest that would help keep their eggs in what ever the ideal environment was for them.

Cool, damp, and covered in crap.

"Maki?" I sighed, tying a thick cloth around my nose and mouth, "Give me a hand? As much as I want to bring these home, I really don't want to dig them out by hand."

"Good thing you brought the sacks and netting." Aisha nodded, "Even if you wash them, they're going to stink."

"Remind me how it goes again?" Maki asked.

I held out my hands, gathering up that weird, more nebulous power that floated over my 'mana' reserves, "Like so. Mizu Ame."

From my linked fingers, a modest spray of water shot forth. Kind of like a sprinkler. A moment later, Maki repeated my motions, and together, we started to... erode the egg laden pile of crap. This just made it smell worse, as the partially dried outer shell of flying lizard manure took on water again, but slowly, we started to reveal our prizes.

"I'll keep this up. Maki? Clean them off so Aisha can pack them. Remember, gently."

"The things I do for you and your weird ideas." Aisha sighed.

"Says the one who's going to wear the mother of these things as a hat?" Maki countered. "How many are we getting?"

The eggs were a bit bigger than a basketball, and we still had to get them to Alnus... "Go for a dozen. There's probably twice that in this heap."

"You better scrub my back when we get back." Aisha grumbled.

"Mine too." Maki agreed.

Aside from absolutely guaranteeing that we would need a bath, we didn't have any issue with getting the eggs out of the cavern. Getting them up a few ledges, over a narrow pass, and then to the cart was a pretty harrowing experience, but we only lost one egg to 'navigational hazards'. And as luck would have it, the timing couldn't have been better. If we'd taken maybe... three minutes longer in that cave, well...

We three were making sure the eggs were secured, wrapping them in the cloth sacks while bundling them together with the netting, when a lightning bolt cracked through the air. Without a single cloud nearby, it was obvious that it wasn't a 'natural' thing.

But then I felt a little tremor under my feet. Exactly the kind you felt in the dungeon when things were about to go sideways.

"Time to get into the air." I said.

"Yeah... got a bad feeling about this" Maki agreed.

"It's not the dungeon you know." Aisha said, though she got into the cart as well and braced for takeoff as I recreated my fox eared balloon. "What's the deal?"

"We're on a mountain, and someplace down there, they are blowing part of it up." Maki said, "And while I'm sure we could handle it, when was the last time you slept through a dungeon tremor?"

"Who knows how many are in this mountain. Or how heavily they sleep?" I looked up, saw that my balloon was properly made, and started filling it with foxfire. "I also kinda like those three, and don't want them to drop the mountainside on themselves."

"That's fair. They're a riot to have around. Even that old lecher." Aisha laughed, "So..." She started as we ascended, "I'm no expert, but this thing can only go up and down, right?"

"Yeah. Working on that. Maki? Signal them?" I started forming the 'idea' of my next projection, setting it up so it would attach smoothly to what I had in place. I didn't want to suddenly change or detach any of my shadowy lines of mana cloth and say, drop one of the corners of the wagon.

Maki unhooked her sword and took aim down the sheath. "Hold it steady a moment..."

I felt a little tingle of magic run over my tails as my adopted sister pulled out one of her combat tricks. First, she fired off one of her killer icicles. They were made of magic, sure, but until the caster 'released' the mana to sustain it, it was just like normal ice (just fast and pointy). A second later, she fired off a little dart of white hot fire. It wasn't as powerful as say, Bell's firebolt, but it was certainly hot enough to instantly evaporate the slower moving killer icicle when it connected.

Yes. Instant smoke screen. She'd done this all the time in the dungeon, though she'd set up stationary targets all over, and if the 'rookie party' needed to retreat, or distract, she could just zap it with a fire spell. Her mask, the one she made, had eyes that I'd made, and they could easily see through the fog made of magic particles of water.

But yes, as I created a black 'sail' of mana cloth in front of my balloon, Maki was making nice big puffs of smoke to signal the three mages. Well... I hoped they were. Those three had serious problems with hyper focusing.

"Oh look, you were right. Maki? More for you." Aisha laughed, "Hey, you don't need all these scales do you?" She picked up a couple of scales from the barrel and flipped them end over end like a throwing knife.

"Just try not to upset the wagon too much." I sighed, "When we get back, I am making you a bow."

"And I'm going to love it, I'm sure." Aisha laughed.

Thankfully, at least one of the three mages was paying attention, and by the time Maki and Aisha had 'discouraged' a couple of wyvern from taking bites at us, or breathing more than a little fire at our poor wagon, they were doing their own flyby and shooing them away. We had to kill at least three more and down another four, but we got down to the ground and the fruits of their magical endeavour in good time.

"Seems they've lost interest." Cato said, brushing a hand through his beard, "You managed quite the prize too."

"The wagon is only a little burnt, but it will still roll." I said after a quick inspection.

"I miss my salamander wool." Aisha sighed, "You okay rookie?"

"Just a little red skin." Maki looked down at herself, one of her pant legs had a crispy patch, and her arm looked like she'd been a little too close to a deep fryer. "You?"

"Just a little itchy." Aisha shrugged. She'd actually been caught in a half second stream of flame, but well, almost level five meant she was really tough, and the wyvern skin 'armour' was equal to the task of resisting their fire.

"The eggs are untouched." Lelei said, though she wasn't getting close to them, "We may want to stop by Italica to purchase soap."

Arppegio, who had also benefited from the cross language practise over the last couple days nodded, but then pointed towards the site of... Well, there was no real way to describe it other than, 'smoking crater'.

"Look look!" She said, walking towards the still smouldering trench that had been sheared out of the rocky ground, "Iron!"

I was no expert with this kind of thing. Sure, I knew a little, mostly by association with Gareth and a band of dwarves who had dug through a mountainside for me. But I could see the glitter of 'something that wasn't rock' over the newly exposed area. There was certainly metal here, and the partial red colour of rust meant it was what we were looking for. "How'd you go about it?"

"We used smaller blasts of lightning over the places young Arpeggio suggested." Cato said, stooping down and picking up a rock with a thin golden/green seam over it, aha, copper.

"He then got impatient." Lelei said, giving the old man a very scary look, "And this happened."

Arpeggio finished poking around for a moment, and came back with a couple of fist sized stones, "Look." She handed one over to me, then with a grunt snapped the stone in her hands in two. "Rich iron!"

"You found your prize too then." I nodded.

"This mine would be... Italica's, I believe." Lelei said, "But, I am certain we can replicate this process."

"We call that 'proof of concept'." Maki grinned, "You might end up very rich after this." She said to Arpeggio, then repeated in that other language.

"After she finishes her little happy dance, legs get going. We flying again or...?" Aisha asked as the Geomancer did a victory dance.

"Flying would be faster. I'd rather not spend any more time smelling like this if I can help it." I sighed.

"I can call the JSDF from their base there as well to let them know." Lelei nodded.

We didn't actually fly, but instead used the Fox Ballon to make the cart hover. This was just to spare the eggs from a bumpy road trip. We still made great time, since aside from Maki (who was making sure the eggs didn't shift around as we went along) Aisha and I could easily keep any pace the three mages could set with their flying.

"Halt!" A dozen armoured soldiers were posted at the gate of Italica, and all of them were wearing a different coloured sash, "Ah, Master Lelei, Sage Cato." A pause as the one in charge looked behind them and said something more. I wondered if all the guards were because of the recent bombing.

Lelei stepped forward and said a few things in return, then motioned to Maki, Aisha, Arppegio and myself. The word JSDF was used in there too, and the guard nodded, looked to his three fellows, nodded again, then waved us through.

Of course, I had to cut the Fox Ballon away to get under the gate, but pulling the wagon wasn't difficult. "Good to be famous hmm?"

"More trouble than it's worth usually." Lelei shrugged.

"So modest." Cato sighed, "The most brilliant mind of my time, and she's already so jaded."

"Nah." Aisha laughed, "She just knows what helps her, and what doesn't, when it comes to her hobbies. And dealing with people takes time. Isn't that right Fox?"

"Yup." I nodded. "So, plan?"

"Market for extra soap." Lelei said, "I will go ahead to the forward base, update the JSDF on our status, and clear the shower room for you."

"Deal."

We caused a bit of a stir in the markets. Sure, most people didn't want to get near the incredible smell. But the truly brave (or those with seasonal allergies) got a look at our cargo. It was quite clear that we'd not just killed some of the 'scariest' things out there, but we'd come back with their closest treasures.

We even had to say 'not for sale' more than a few times too. But, we got our soap, and even a little perfume. Then it was to the JSDF base. Lelei had indeed cleared the way for us, and we were met outside by a pair of fully equipped troopers, and one of the maids. The maid, keeping her distance from the smell, directed us to park the wagon in the stables, and to my surprise, those troopers went to guard it.

We were then told quite firmly that the shower room was this way and all but thrown into it by nothing but the maid's glare.

"This is actually pretty clever... how's it work?" Aisha asked as she moved a lever pump.

"You compress the air here, with that." I said, "Then you turn the valve." I pointed, "That releases the pressure, and pushes the water out."

"And I'm using a little foxfire, to make sure it isn't cold." Maki finished, "Since they lack proper pipes here, this is probably the best they could do without ripping the building up and starting over."

"Pardon us!" Arpeggio announced as she entered with Lelei.

"Good. You've figured it out." Lelei nodded, "I have news."

"Oh?" I didn't pause my scrubbing of Maki's back.

"Ryuu and Hagane are still here, and meeting with some of the nobles." She said, kneeling and pressurizing another shower for her own use. "Word of your quest has spread through a very select circle, and the project we are working on has drawn them here."

"Neat. Means we can maybe get this done." Aisha nodded, "What? These wyverns just don't scratch that itch, you know?"

"True. Well, suppose we'll have to delay our return to Alnus a little then."

"We are all expected for 'the dinner'." Lelei said, turning the knob and starting the shower, getting herself under it and scrubbing.

"Fox? Are you seeing what I'm seeing?"

"It's Ryuu-san... In a gown?"

"Yup, that's Ryuu." I nodded.

"Please don't tease me?" Ryuu sighed, almost pouted even.

Our 'outside' party of adventurers and mages had arrived at the central fortress in the middle of town, gone past yet another dozen guards of mixed banners, and arrived in a nicely tended garden and field of the local Lady. Ryuu and Hagane were there, waiting for us, as were Itami and Yao.

And someone had put my sister into a dress. A really nice one too! It was a pastel green, went down to her ankles, and had a shawl that ensured she showed as little skin as she usually did, while still letting you know she was a woman, no matter how modest her form was.

Yao had also changed into something more formal, and while yes, she showed just as little skin as Ryuu, she had far more curves. But still, Ryuu drew my attention far more.

"You look good." I said, "Couldn't avoid it, huh?"

Itami, who was in a full dress uniform, complete with beret and a few decorative medals on his left breast, shook his head, "Sugawara insisted. He caught wind of someone saying 'savage', and wanted to avoid that particular pitfall at the negotiation table."

I looked at Maki and Aisha.

"Oh no... no way." Maki backed up a half step.

"Really Fox? Me? In a dress?" Aisha raised an eyebrow.

"How long until dinner?" I looked back to Itami.

"Couple of hours I think?" He checked his watch, "They don't really follow a clock around here, so 'sun down' is the best estimate."

"Challenge accepted." I nodded, then looked around for a moment and spotted a maid, standing there looking attentive by a door and facing our way. "Can't have them think we're a bunch of savages, now can we?" I looked at Ryuu, "We'll fix that up a little too."

We were led to a room that seemed to be, of all things, the Maid's break room. Simple tables and chairs, a table (that one of them was eating at), a couple of full length mirrors, and a small corner that had what I assumed was this world's equivalent of a tailoring bench.

The one who led us here, an adorable black haired human named Meia, stopped us just inside the room, then quick stepped herself through another door. A moment later, she returned with the purple haired catgirl, Persia.

"Unya?" She looked at the four of us (since Yao decided she liked her dress as it was, and the mages were famous enough to be seen as minor nobility on their own), "A problem with your gown?"

"The fit is wonderful, but..." Ryuu seemed to have lost some of her assertiveness while wearing this new outfit. If I didn't know she'd beat the stuffing out of me later (or even right there), I'd have given her a headpat.

"Since what we are wearing now isn't meant for such a meeting..." Next time I talked to Rias, I'd have to get someone to hug her for me, Sona too. "We are here to be fitted for something else. But, we've our own tastes as well, and I had hoped we could come to a compromise."

"We found something for her, and did some minor alterations for her height, but..." She looked at the modest tailoring bench, "We simply use that to make sure our own uniforms are always in perfect condition."

"Bring me some cloth, and make sure I don't run out of thread." I smiled, "And I'm sure we can show you something new."

One hour and forty nine minutes later, and I was just tugging the last stitch into place. It had been a furious whirlwind of maids, cloth, sewing supplies, a bit of red wine (used as dye), and a giant metal cat who had arrived wondering where all his headpats (maids) had wandered off to.

"Ah." He said as Maki, Aisha and Ryuu did a little 'is my equipment dirty' look at themselves, standing and twisting in place to look at each other. He was also speaking in Kione, since his next words would have given something away, "A bold Arabic look."

Yes, I'd altered Ryuu's gown to change the dress to have a more streamlined poofy legging, and made sure she still remained modest. Aisha however, was dressed much like she was when I first met her. Far more modest, with no see-through fabric, but she was wearing the poofy leggings and a long sleeved belly shirt (like Loki liked to wear), that showed off her well maintained abs. I'd used that bit of wine-stained fabric for her too, just because it looked like fresh blood, and well, she was certainly a warrior.

Maki shared a similar look to Aisha, but in a much more muted colour. She'd also taken on the Amazon Tone, but was much more of a wall flower than Aisha. She'd also hooked her mask at her belt.

And me? Well, I broke the theme, but only because I'd re-made my 'battle dress' about a dozen times since Rias had forced me to make one, and I was half way done making another before I'd realized I was doing it.

And you can bet your life I was still wearing my gauntlets under the long robe sleeves.

"Can everyone take a deep breath? Do a little hop in place without anything falling out?" I asked.

I got three nods, and the maids around us did a little cheer. "I wasn't sure what to expect, but that was amazing work!" Persia said excitedly, before catching herself and ahem-ing, "But, ladies, we must hurry to-"

Then an older woman in a maid's dress entered, and her expression was almost identical to Mama Mia's before she would pick up her ladle. My introduction to the language didn't catch most of what she said, but in a half dozen words, she'd had three of the six maids shivering, and a half dozen more had them all practically running away to get back to work.

Once the room was cleared, leaving only us from Orario with the new arrival, she turned to us and then addressed Ryuu. To my surprise (not shock, just surprise) Ryuu replied slowly in the local language, then in Japanese said, "This is Kodori, our captain here." Then to me, "This is Kaine, the head maid here."

A reasonably tall human woman, she was in what most polite people call her 'fading prime'. Age had given her face a few wrinkles, but she moved with vigour still. Light brown hair that only had a few strands of grey, and sharp brown eyes gave her the perfect 'severe' air of someone in charge.

So, I gave her my best formal fist-in-palm bow, and tried my hand at the local language, "A happy meeting." I ignored Aisha's very quiet chuckle, "These are Maki, and Aisha."

And in a very crisp Japanese (as if she were saying each word on its own), Kaine said, "A pleasure. You are welcome in our house." Even if she was in her later years, her 'maid bow' was still perfect, "It seems the apostles of your world pick up language very quickly." She looked to Hagane, who had a failed attempt at a bra over his head, "Even him."

"I've forgotten more languages than there are in this world. Learning one more wasn't difficult." Hagane did his best version of a shrug, "And can someone get his off my head?"

I didn't bother correcting her on us being 'apostles' since by this world's standards we were. "We've learned to listen first." I smiled, "As the leader here, are we suitably dressed for the dinner?"

For being just a human, in her later years, her gaze had some serious pressure behind it. She did a tour around each of us, did a little lint brushing, a couple of tugs to get things exactly in place, and lastly looked at Maki and I. "You both require brushing."

Aisha couldn't help but 'Snrrk', while Ryuu quietly fu-fued behind her hand.

"We have half a candle mark before dinner." And she was suddenly holding a fancy brush in each hand.

While Kaine herself brushed my tails, and I brushed Maki's, Ryuu and Hagane were giving me a rapid fire tutorial of their experiences. This included their own observances about the local nobility. Most of them were rather... simple. Not 'simple minded' just very transparent with their goals. I was starting to wonder what a 'medium grant' was really worth, since that money seemed to be the real draw for many of the nobles.

Though, they might have been more interested in opening up a little window into Rondel, and the huge potential of the magic there. A little 'scratch my back' action so to speak. It could also have been much simpler. The Empire, and the nobility, had just thrown a huge amount of money into fighting the JSDF. So this money, any money would be welcome.

Well, far be it for me to stop them from being eager to help us. I just hoped no one tried to poison me at dinner or something.

Then she told me about Duran. A double amputee of the battle of Alnus, he was the lord that Rory had mentioned while we cleaned up the mosquito problem. Then again, when you're that old, you can call just about anyone 'boy'. But even Hagane had nice things to say about him, so he must have been a pretty good guy in this particular arena.

But, like all good tail brushings, or even not so good ones, it ended when we finally passed Kaine's standard for appearances and she gave us a smile befitting of a beloved grandmother. That didn't last however, and she quickly shooed us out of the Maid's room.

"You should have just enough time to meet with Sir Itami before the dinner." She then pulled a little rope on the wall, and about five seconds later Persia entered, "Guide them."

"Nyes ma'am!" Then to us, after a nice maid bow, "This way, honoured guests, ah, Sir Hagane?"

Hagane made no move to join us, but had instead nudged all our equipment into a pile, "Now that you're here, I'm done dealing with soft nobility for today." And with a final sounding 'thump' he curled up on all of out gear and weapons, a dragon guarding the hoard.

Even Kaine didn't argue with his choice in sleeping spots, and we left for dinner.

We had just enough time to find Itami, Yao, Tuka and our three mages before we were handed off to another maid (this one a medusa! With cute little pink snakes for 'hair' and a sunny smile!) who showed us to our seats. I was seated across from a Japanese man who had adopted the local 'noble' attire of that weird robe/toga. Aha, Sugawara. To his left was Ryuu, and his right a broad shouldered man with an eye patch and prosthetic arm, Duran. To my left was Leilei the only mage eating at this table, and my right was Itami.

Yes, it seemed that the 'less than noble' would be eating in another room. The other two mages, Yao, Tuka, Aisha and Maki, were politely but firmly, told to follow Persia to the next room, where the 'attendants' would be eating. I was about to ask something 'undiplomatic', but the Catgirl maid said, 'the room is too small, and its the same food', before I could.

I suppose, even with how large this room was (reasonably large for sure) having a noble (a dozen or so not including my party) bring their attendants in with them to eat, would have likely put the room far over capacity.

"Kodori-san." The Japanese-gone-native said quietly, "Have you been brought up to date on things here?"

"My sister is reliable." I nodded, looking at Ryuu for a half second, "How much do people know?"

He looked like someone had taken a mountain off his shoulders when he realized I knew (more or less) what I was doing. But, he was too professional to sigh, "That you have been working with the youngest ever Master Mage, on something, and that there is a modest amount of money involved for what you are looking for. We haven't discussed the exact items, but there have been hints about it here and there."

"A big reveal then." I mused, "Lelei? Do you want to handle the discovery, while I mention some of the 'exact items'?"

She countered with a question to Sugawara, "Should they know why?"

"Only if Lady Myui asks directly." He said after a moment.

I looked to Duran, who perked up as if just noticing we were talking. "I already know, but I'm just here for the food." He grinned, almost childishly, but his eyes had a hint of something else in them, but I didn't know what.

"All rise, for her Honour, Lady Myui." Kaine announced as one of the double doors of the room opened up (with a perfectly ponderous motion).

We all stood smoothly, save Duran, who was discreetly helped by Sugawara. And my first impression of Myui, was 'far too young looking to be doing this crap'. I was just guessing, but she looked to be maybe a teenager. But she still walked with purpose, and while her fine clothes (she favoured a rose pink, with sensible frills, and even wore pants under a short dress) were easily the equal of anything here, she didn't seem to be flaunting any excess. Her only adornment was a simple coronet with a modest ruby that dangled from the middle onto her forehead.

With clear aqua eyes that looked out from perfectly brushed long orange hair, she stood at the end of the long table and said, "Welcome, something of the Empire, and please, be something." It was no surprise she was using the local language, though to my surprise I still understood some of it.

We all sat, and with a incredible efficiency, a small army of maids seemed to appear from every door with carts laden with food.

After a meal of local bird, some kind of steak, a really good salad, reasonably good bread and several attempts at light conversation, the table was cleared and drinks were refilled. More than a few of the nobles had a decent grip on Japanese, which made sense. But I was still only picking up bits of the conversations running about the table. Thankfully, no one tried to bypass the after dinner topic, and most of the words directed towards me were 'hello' 'you look good' and 'my name is'.

But now that the dinner was over, Myui was professionally setting things up for actual business.

So, with Lelei translating for me, the business started like this.

Myui stood (and stood up on a stool that was probably just under the table) and began, "Again, we thank you for taking the time from your own affairs to attend." Myui said, "And I would like to extend a special welcome to Lelei La Lelena." She paused for a second so people could look at the blue haired wizard, then resumed, "And while some of you have gotten to know Ryuu, we are joined by her Captain, Kodori. These two, as well as Hagane, two others and the JSDF were essential in rooting out the recent plague of insects many of us suffered."

There was a little cheer, all very polite and such.

"While their party sees it as their job, one they did without hesitation and very little compensation, they are here to ask a small favour from those of us who are most likely to be able to fulfill it." Myui continued. She looked down the table, and sat down. Across from me, Sugawara stood up.

"I would like to assure you, they need nothing you likely do not already have on hand. Gold." He held up a hand to stall the start of a protest, "No, not money, but raw or worked gold of good purity. The work they've done proves they themselves could buy it, but the markets are random and inconsistent. What they seek is a source of a large amount of gold, or more practically, a multitude of smaller sources." He lowered his hand and met the eyes of the one who'd started to protest.

"Just how much gold are we talking about?" He asked.

In an attempt to lighten the mood, Sugawara motioned to Duran, "About Lord Duran's weight, from what I've been told?" He looked to Lelei, who nodded.

This did indeed ruffle a few feathers, but the more sensible people became thoughtful instead. They were likely thinking more on 'who had asked' and not 'what was asked'. If Lelei was the one asking, well, that would involve magic for sure.

"Master Lelei. What is this in aid of?" One of those thoughtful types asked.

Itami translated for me while Lelei spoke, "I plan on conducting a ritual, and the material needed for its foundation needs to be high purity and free of rust or stain."

To anyone who knew even a tiny bit about metal, gold was the only one that didn't oxidize easily. Copper would 'patina', iron would rust, silver, brass and bronze would tarnish. But Gold was timeless. And I'd have put money on almost everyone in the room had handled all of those metals, be it by jewellery or by military.

There was a pause, then, "You only need a source for the gold? You intend to pay for it?"

Itami gave me a very light tap with his foot under the table, so I stood. There were a few wide eyes at my appearance, but since no one stopped me I started speaking. "Yes. We could scour the markets, but that would waste time and invite predatory practices from the shrewder merchants. My party and I decided it would be wiser to find people who already had the gold we need, and buy it from them. But, as you've guessed, we do not offer something so simple as money in return." I looked to Lelei, but didn't pass the table to her just yet. "We've worked with Lelei, and uncovered something that might bring profit far past that of a simple exchange of coin. But, it would require something we are short on."

I sat back down, leaving the 'reveal' in Lelei's hands. There was a moment's pause as she fiddled with something, and then she stood up. "We have found a reliable way to create very strong Load stone." From her hand dangled the lock pick on a little bit of thread, "For those who use ships for trade, our discovery will make expensive navigation equipment a thing of the past."

There were a couple more 'thoughtful faces' at the table, but the idea didn't have any 'wow' factor.

But Lelei was far more adept with this than I thought, and she followed up with, "We have also discovered a way to seek out metal in the ground, using a slightly larger method than this, and a little magic."

That got people's attention. But someone asked a very smart question. "How 'slightly' is 'slightly larger'?"

Lelei pointed to Duran, or more importantly, the cane hanging on the back of his chair, "No longer than Lord Duran's cane. We have tested it, and proven its function as well, discovering a seam of iron and copper on this side of the Romaria mountain range."

There was a little chatter (very polite chatter), but Myui didn't even have to 'ahem'. No, she just took a sip of tea to get ready to speak. "What is your intention with this discovery?"

"We have no intention. We simply wanted to know if we were correct, and proved we were." Lelei said, "While it is a known nest of wyvern, we have reported its location to the JSDF already."

"Itami?"

"Ah, yes. We have marked it on our map. And while it's no secret we have methods to find metal, having another one is never a bad thing. If you need our help to do a proper survey, we stand ready." He said with his best (if lazy) diplomatic voice.

"Are you saying you can find metal on any of our lands?" Someone asked.

"No. We cannot find what is not there. And only metals close to iron work with this magic." Lelei clarified, "But otherwise, yes. I am sure any of you could commission someone from Rondel as early as next season, since we have yet to submit the discovery."

Lelei looked to me, so I stood again, "What my party is asking is simple. We require an amount of gold, and while we likely couldn't pay for it up front all at once, even with a modest grant from Rondel, we would like to offset this cost with the potential for greater profit later, once their scholars have refined the process and spread it to those capable of using it." I waited a second to let it sink in, then added, "And, if any of you have exhausted mines on your lands already, this may help you use existing tunnels to reach out of sight deposits, provided again, that they are there at all."

I sat again while the rest of them mumbled back and forth to themselves. But again, Myui silenced them with a sip from her teacup, "We will offer you our hospitality for the night for all those willing to stay, or unwilling to return home in the dark of night. Please, discuss all you wish in the mean time, but in the spirit of urgency, I hope you come to a decision one way or the other soon."

And again, with perfect form and efficiency, a storm of maids materialized from various doors around the room and started to help the various nobles out of the room. This left only the six of us in the middle, Myui, and Kaine (who seemed to just 'be there' when I looked to see if our hostess had left).

Room clear of all but us eight, our stood, came over to us, and sat again next to Itami. "I felt it unwise to ask exactly what you need an extraordinary amount of gold for among the other nobles. But I can't seem to help my curiosity."

It was almost as if we'd switched from 'high society' to 'spy movie' in a single breath. Sugawara leaned forward just a little and lowered his voice, "My Lady, I say this in confidence, but the sudden insect problem came from the other side of the Gate. That said, so did the solution."

I had no idea how secretive they had been about the mess that we'd come to clean up, but our little Hostess went a little wide eyed. But, it was Kaine who spoke this time, "Forgive me, but, you are from yet another world, apart from ours and the JSDF?"

Everyone but Duran nodded.

"And with it, they brought some of their own lore with them." Lelei said, "This was made possible through Kodori's lessons." She demonstrated the little north pointing lock pick again.

"Your world knows of magnetism?" Sugawara asked.

"Among other things, yes." I nodded.

"And the exact purpose of your ritual, Lelei?" Myui asked.

"The Gate arrived in their world in a highly hostile area. But that area is depended on to be as hostile as possible." I answered for Lelei, "So we intend on moving it, until it either vanishes on it's own, or we find some other way to deal with it."

It was clear she only understood half of that, but she did nod, "This explains the urgency of your quest. How soon did you require the materials?"

"As soon as is reasonable." I said, "We want neither charity or robbery." I smiled, "Oh, sorry..."

Myui gave me a curious look, but then noticed one of my golden tails getting curious, "Ah, it's no trouble." And very politely shooed it away. "Will you be staying tonight as well?"

I looked to Ryuu, who gave me a 'please don't go' look, but it was Sugawara who rescued her, "You could return to Alnus if you wanted. Some of the nobles live a distance away, and may need some time to return and see what they can come up with for this. But if you could at least stay until lunch tomorrow, it would likely make things easier in the long run."

Normally, the choice of 'mingle with nobility' and 'go work on future projects' would be simple. But Ryuu was looking at me still.

"We'll stay, but only if you do me a tiny favour first?" I looked to Sugawara.

"Something unrelated to this?"

"Distantly related. We brought back a short dozen wyvern eggs. But having them all from a single clutch will present problems. I'd like to exchange a few with other breeders." I said.

"Oh? You managed to make off with... well well." Duran chuckled, "I have a somewhat depleted roost of them on my lands, and my handler would be thrilled for some new blood I'm sure." He then looked to Ryuu, who helped him stand up without hesitation, "Thank you. If you'd like to walk with me to my room, we can discuss in a little more detail?"

"I'll let them know." Ryuu said.

"I suppose I'll be leaving the table first then. Pardon me." I stood as well, and walked around the table so I could walk beside Duran before he took a single step towards any of the doors.

NOTES!

Stupid shoulder... Writing is a little uncomfortable, but not painful. But, ignoring that...

MORE ART! WOO!

Go to my Ko-Fi page and take a look! The one who's drawn Delly and Maki, did something new, and in full colour! It's so adorable!

Daeore on Ko-fi

Daeore on Inkitt

See you in six days, unless my doctor puts my shoulder in a cast. x.x