Chapter 220
The soft and moist sensation was felt on his lips.
Flustered, Franz immediately opened his eyes, but he could only see Hera’s back as she went into the house as if running away.
“What in the world was that…”
Of course, he could guess to some extent. The feeling of contact was exactly like that, after all.
But he couldn’t be certain. He hadn’t seen it with his own eyes.
It was when Franz was feeling confused like that.
The closed door opened, and Hera peeked her head out.
“H-have a safe trip…”
Hera’s face was dyed red, and her ears were flapping up and down vigorously.
At that sight, Franz burst into a chuckle, pfft-.
“Yeah, see you next time.”
His conversation with Hera ended with that.
It would have been nice to have a cup of tea, but he had things to do afterward, so it couldn’t be helped.
Snap-.
As he snapped his fingers, a magic circle was drawn beneath his feet.
Soon, Franz left the Great Forest, seen off by Hera’s gentle gaze.
The floral scent lingering at the tip of his nose left a strange aftertaste.
In many ways, it was a different day than usual.
* * *
Returning to the Magic Tower, Franz headed straight for the secretary’s office.
Since there was nothing left in the Magic Tower Lord’s Office anymore, he had no choice but to borrow the secretary’s office to do his work.
Upon arriving at the secretary’s office, he saw Seri-ah and Zeni-ah organizing documents.
“You’ve both done enough. I’ll do the rest, so you two can get off work now.”
Of course, if they helped with the work, it would end a little faster.
But his mind wouldn’t be at ease that way.
It was better to do it alone, even if it finished a little later.
“Seri-ah, that scrub says he’ll do it alone? Looks like he’ll be at it until tomorrow morning.”
“Zeni-ah, I don’t think Franz is a scrub.”
“Ehh? Are you taking that scrub’s side right now?”
“T-taking his side?! I meant that the word scrub isn’t enough…! He’s a super idiot and a super scrub who thinks he can somehow manage on his own.”
What in the world were these kids saying with the person right in front of them?
Having instantly become a super idiot and a super scrub, Franz let out a long sigh.
“Do whatever you want.”
Franz held his tongue. There was nothing good to come from talking more.
Also, looking at the result, they were saying they would help, so their intentions weren’t bad, unlike their words.
The problem was that they were idiots who couldn’t get praised because of their words even after doing a good deed.
They say a kind word can pay off a thousand-gold debt, yet these two seemed determined to incur one with their mouths, only to settle it with their toil.
Anyway, he couldn’t understand them.
Afterward, Franz worked together with the two kids.
“Franz, what should we do with this?”
“Reject it.”
“Then what about this one?”
“That one can be approved.”
Seri-ah and Zeni-ah’s work abilities were beyond what they had thought.
It was all thanks to Arian’s teaching them well.
That is, even though she wasn’t here.
Well, he could just praise her next time.
Thinking that, Franz signed the documents.
How much time had passed since then?
“Zeni-ah, it’s finally all done. We went through quite a bit because of that scrub.”
“Tell me about it. I think Franz has an obligation to buy us sandwiches.”
“That’s right.”
Seri-ah and Zeni-ah giggled as they conversed.
Thanks to them, it finished early, and he was just getting hungry too.
It would be perfect if they went to eat sandwiches together like this, but unfortunately, he couldn’t do that.
Franz took out a gold coin from his pocket.
“You’ve both earned this. Buy whatever you want to eat with this.”
It was an excessive amount for sandwich money, but considering they stayed behind and worked hard, it wasn’t a waste.
But they didn’t take the money.
“Seri-ah, he seems to think we said that because we don’t have money.”
“He’s clueless, just like a scrub. I don’t know if he’ll be able to get married like that.”
Shaking their heads as if he were pathetic, the two stood up. And they stood on either side of Franz.
He found himself looking up at them, a stark contrast to their usual dynamic where he towered over them.
“It’ll be a big problem if you grow old as a scrub like that.”
“Still, don’t worry. No matter how hopeless you are, we’re on your side.”
Seri-ah and Zeni-ah whispered softly into both of his ears.
He didn’t know why in the world they were doing this, but he could clearly tell one thing: they were full of the desire to tease him.
“If you’re bored, go play with Levi for a bit. Have a meal together while you’re at it.”
Come to think of it, what would Levi eat?
Until now, she didn’t need meals, but it was a different story in a human form.
If it were a body that needed meals, she would be quite hungry. She hadn’t eaten anything since morning, after all.
“If you’re not going to be with Levi, tell me now, because I’ll have to go and get her a meal.”
“We are going to play together for now, but…”
“We are going to eat together too, but…”
The two trailed off with strange expressions.
It seemed they had something to say, but Franz had no intention of listening to it.
It was obvious they were going to tease him, so listening would only be a loss.
“Then use this money. Try not to go outside with Levi if possible. If you go out looking like that, strange rumors will definitely spread.”
Franz placed the gold coin he was holding onto the desk and snapped his fingers.
Soon after he vanished, the two kids let out short sighs and looked at each other.
“Seri-ah, He obviously went to work, right?”
“It certainly seems that way. Anyway, he’s a severe workaholic.”
The two soon slipped out of the secretary’s office, chatting quietly about how they would teach a lesson to the new kid who had appeared in the Magic Tower.
Meanwhile, the place where Franz appeared after disappearing from the secretary’s office was the 5th basement floor, the research lab left behind by Deliaspi Dyne.
The reason he went out of his way to come here was that he needed the equipment he had used when treating Seri-ah.
“Then shall I start with the orc.”
Franz took out the giant green-skinned orc from his bag.
After that, dissection work and various experiments followed.
What level of durability its skin had, what components its teeth were made of, and what its mana conductivity was like.
He experimented and researched all sorts of things that came to mind.
Then, if a test subject was ruined, he replaced it with a new one.
If someone saw him, they would ask what kind of mad endeavor he was doing while skipping meals, but…
It was an essential process he had to go through to counter the new threats that would appear in the world.
However, a bigger reason than that was curiosity.
There was no way he could hold back with so many unknowns in front of him.
If there were such a Mage, such a mage would be unworthy, so it would be right to expel him from the Magic Tower.
One hour, two hours, like that…
In the basement without even a window, he devoted himself solely to research, losing track of time.
He compressed and disposed of the corpses that had become useless, and gathered and organized the usable materials in one place.
Among them, the most surprising discovery would definitely be this.
“Should I call it a refined mana stone…”
A mana stone existed in the form of a crystal inside the monster’s body. Unlike the existing ones, it harbored an immense amount of mana despite its small size.
Of course, not all of them were like that. The color and shape varied depending on the type of monster, and the ones that came from stronger Monsters were of higher quality.
Because of that, the mana stone that came from the boss was truly an item beyond imagination.
It was enough to build an airship, with a little exaggeration.
“Then the organizing is almost done now.”
The four books floating above Franz’s head flew through the air and piled up neatly on the table.
He had recorded information about the Monsters in the books, so he just needed to deliver it to the emperor tomorrow.
‘I’m hungry…’
His stomach, which had been fine while he was researching, suddenly sent a signal.
He hadn’t eaten anything since having a light breakfast, so it was only natural.
Putting the four books that were on the table into his bag, Franz headed straight for the Magic Tower Lord’s Office.
“Seri-ah and Zeni-ah probably took good care of her, right?”
Arriving at the Magic Tower Lord’s Office with that thought, he found Seri-ah, Zeni-ah, and Levi there, just as expected.
Perhaps exhausted from playing excitedly, the three were asleep with their heads together, leaning their backs against the wall.
At the sight of them, Franz burst into a chuckle, pfft-.
When they’re sleeping, all three are cute like kids, though…
Anyway, he couldn’t just leave them sleeping like that.
Franz brought out blankets and pillows from the room.
And as he was laying them out comfortably, he suddenly discovered something.
[Scrub]
There was a piece of paper with 'Scrub' written on it.
Thinking there was something underneath it, he lifted the paper, revealing a sandwich placed on a plate.
“They really are kids with good hearts, after all…”
Franz looked down at the three fast asleep and smiled.
Afterward, as he went into the room and snapped his fingers, the Magic Tower Lord’s Office was plunged into darkness.
It wasn’t long after that.
The place where Franz, who had fallen asleep in his room, opened his eyes was Goddess Luan’s Temple.
“Franz, a dimension has connected with another world.”
You certainly deliver news quickly.
Franz let out a sigh.