Chapter 95
Creak-.
Late at night, the sound of friction rang out unusually loudly in the silence.
The door opened, and the one who entered the room was Yusti-ah.
She was wearing a pure white slip dress with a thin cardigan draped over her shoulders.
Judging by her attire, it seemed she had come right before going to bed.
Given the late hour and her sleepwear, it was a situation that would make any ordinary man feel conscious for one reason or another.
But Franz was not like that.
He simply thought she had come because she had business with him.
They had already spent too many years together for him to feel any flutter of excitement.
Honestly, she felt closer to a colleague or a friend than a woman.
“What were you doing?”
“I was just about to sleep.”
“I-is that so?”
Yusti-ah looked flustered.
She was probably sorry for interrupting his sleep.
At that, Franz shook his head.
“It’s fine. It’s not like I’ll die from sleeping a little late.”
“Are you sure it’s fine?”
Yusti-ah put on a genuinely worried expression.
It seemed the joke he added to tell her not to feel sorry was a bit of a shock to her.
Her stuffy personality was still the same.
Franz thought so and let out a chuckle. Pfft-.
“Yeah, it’s really fine.”
“Then excuse me for a moment.”
Franz shrugged and snapped his fingers. Then, the chair that was with the desk flew through the air and landed in a suitable spot.
Yusti-ah, who flinched for a moment, sat on the chair and spoke.
“Every time I see it, I’m reminded of how convenient this ability is.”
“Well, it is.”
Magic had already become a huge part of his daily life, so it would probably be incredibly uncomfortable if he went back to the days when he couldn’t use magic. For instance, if he returned to the reality he originally lived in.
“Actually, I have a lot on my mind lately.”
At first, his goal was simply to finish all this and return to his original world.
Perhaps that was why he had acted a bit more sharply.
It was a situation where it was no exaggeration to say that everything depended on the subjugation of the Demon Lord.
Anyway, now his original goal had faded a lot.
Even if he went back, what more would he do besides live as an ordinary office worker?
Now that he was used to this world, he thought it wouldn’t be bad to live as the Magic Tower master, even if it was a bit busy.
Well, even though the stupid status window was still tormenting him.
Franz slowly shook his head to erase his thoughts.
They were all pointless thoughts anyway.
Resolving the matter right in front of him came first.
“So what is it?”
“I came to continue the conversation we were having earlier today.”
Come to think of it, they hadn’t been able to finish their conversation because Yuna and Arian suddenly appeared during the day.
Perhaps because the village tour had been quite enjoyable, Franz had completely forgotten about it.
“Where did we leave off?”
“I definitely heard up to the point where you found out where the sealed artifact is.”
“Ah, from there. That cultist guy told me the location. He definitely said it was when a ray of light shines on a lake in the Western Region of the continent.”
“When a ray of light shines on a lake in the Western Region of the continent?”
Yusti-ah’s brow furrowed.
Seeing her look as if she were pondering, Franz asked with a small sense of anticipation.
“Do you happen to know?”
“No. I just got annoyed. They could just tell us normally, but they always have to use something like a code.”
“I agree with that. It’s so annoying it’s killing me.”
Having to go to that region in person, ask around about the code one by one, and verify it - it was truly a massive hassle.
It was a good thing the code was solved quickly this time thanks to Arian’s grandfather, otherwise it would have taken a considerable amount of time.
“But about that sealed artifact. Do you happen to have it with you right now?”
“Yeah, I have it.”
“Then could I possibly see it? It might be of some help.”
She was certainly right.
When it came to this kind of matter, there was a high chance that the saintess would be more helpful than a mere mage like himself.
Franz immediately took out the sealed artifact in question from his small bag.
The spearhead that emerged from the bag was shining brilliantly with a divine light.
And Yusti-ah, taking it in with her eyes, let out a low voice as if she were mesmerized.
“This is definitely…”
“Do you know something?”
“I can at least tell that this is an incredible item. It’s beyond the holy relics kept in the cathedral.”
To think it was such an amazing item.
But come to think of it, weren’t there several more of these to come?
Furthermore, the one who had to find them was none other than himself.
'This doesn’t seem like an ordinary task…'
Then again, since a god had personally appeared to ask for this favor, it was naturally an important matter.
Franz was once again realizing the severity of the situation.
“Franz, what do you plan to do with that?”
“Well. Wouldn’t it be best if I held onto it for now? It might help in finding the other artifacts.”
“I see. Understood.”
“Huh? You’re not asking me to hand it over?”
Just as Yusti-ah had said, a tremendous power dwelled within the item.
From the perspective of someone who served the Goddess, it was an item well worth coveting.
So he had naturally expected her to ask for it, but he was flustered by her unexpectedly calm response.
At Franz’s reaction, Yusti-ah’s eyes widened as if she felt wronged.
“I’m not that shameless, you know?! And the holy relics kept in the cathedral are all things that followers donated or that we bought for a fair price…!”
Surprisingly, the cathedral in this world ran cleanly.
Why had he naturally assumed it would be corrupt in the first place?
It was when Franz was thinking that.
Yusti-ah added in a very low voice.
“…And if it’s you, I can trust you with it…”
“What was that?”
Unfortunately, Franz didn’t hear her words.
Even though it was a remark that could have been a critical hit.
“N-nothing! Never mind, just put that away already.”
Yusti-ah raised her voice and turned her head away. Swish-.
It was because she belatedly felt embarrassed about having said such a thing.
Why on earth was she acting like this.
She ended up blurting out things she wouldn’t have said normally.
“This is all because of the Goddess and that stupid secretary…”
Yusti-ah truly resented those two.
One side was telling her to make a baby, and the other side kept fueling her competitive spirit.
Of course, there was no way Franz could know Yusti-ah’s feelings.
He just put the spearhead back into his bag with a bewildered look.
In the meantime, Yusti-ah calmed her heart and spoke.
“Then are we going to the Western Region next?”
“Well, I suppose so. Though I don’t know exactly how far west we have to go.”
“You know? If it’s too hard to handle alone…”
Call me anytime.
…Those words were right on the verge of popping out of Yusti-ah’s mouth.
Thud-!
Suddenly, the door opened, and something came tumbling in from outside with a crash.
* * *
'I can’t sleep.'
Unlike usual, Arian couldn’t fall asleep.
Tossing and turning on her bed, she eventually sat up.
Looking out the window, the moon was shining exceptionally bright.
It felt like it would be really nice to chat with the Magic Tower master and quietly fall asleep by his side.
Soon, Arian quietly slipped out of her room.
Just in case, she wore pretty underwear and put on light makeup.
Who knew? A miracle of the night might happen.
Worried that someone might see her or hear a sound.
She made her way down the corridor very carefully, and was just about to arrive at Franz’s room.
As soon as she turned the corner, she saw someone.
It was clearly another guest, standing in front of Franz’s room.
Arian hid herself, holding her breath. Gasp-.
She then only poked her head out to observe the situation.
“Why is the saintess here…?”
The person standing in front of Franz’s room was none other than Yusti-ah.
At that moment, a scene flashed through Arian’s mind - the scene of Franz and Yusti-ah having a secret meeting in the corner of the mansion during the day.
According to Yuna, they were talking about making a baby or something.
“Th-that, that shameless woman…!”
She had wondered if such a thing could really happen.
Even if her personality was a bit bad, wasn’t she the saintess?
She thought there was no way she would do that with a man, let alone have a baby.
But looking at it now, those thoughts were all a delusion.
The saintess seemed genuinely intent on having Franz’s baby.
While Arian was in shock like that, Yusti-ah opened the door and went inside.
Arian checked her surroundings and very carefully approached the front of Franz’s room.
It was because she wanted to know what was happening inside.
It would be sad if that kind of thing really happened, but conversely, wasn’t there a possibility that nothing would happen?
“Right, the Magic Tower master will definitely refuse.”
It was the moment Arian thought so and was about to press her ear against the door.
“Arian, what are you doing…?”
A half-asleep voice, as if just waking up, was heard.
Turning her head toward the source of the voice, she saw Yuna rubbing her eyes.
Arian suppressed the scream that was about to pop out and brought her index finger to her lips.
It meant to be quiet.
At her reaction, Yuna tilted her head.
It was a huge relief that even though she was clueless, she listened well.
Soon, Arian took Yuna and turned the corner, going quite a distance away.
“Yuna, the saintess went into the Magic Tower master’s room.”
“Huh? Why?”
“You know, we heard them talking during the day, right?”
“Baby, making a baby?!”
Grasping the situation, Yuna headed to the front of Franz’s room with Arian.
And just as the two were about to listen closely.
“Hm? What are you two…”
Shh-!
Afterwards, Hera joined in a similar manner, and an eavesdropping party was formed.
It was truly a party of utter chaos.