Tay suddenly hugging my waist took me by surprise.
Still, I gently brushed aside her messy hair.
Even with such a sudden action, she’s just too cute to resist.
Kyah. Sure, she’s a bit behind her prime, but still, she’s amazing.
Just looking at this mana stone makes me want to smile.
It’s beautiful.
A masterpiece that maximizes the traits of the mana stone without any damage.
It’s a textbook example of high-grade mana stone processing.
“I guess she’s calmed down a bit now.”
Huh. “Yeah…”
I don’t know why she suddenly burst into tears, but I’m not caring.
Whatever it is, it doesn’t matter.
As long as Tay becomes my exclusive mana stone processing factory from here on out, that’s all I need.
“I have one more suggestion besides the next mana stone commission. How about becoming my exclusive craftsman?”
“What? Exclusive?”
“It’s not that I want you to take only my commissions. Feel free to accept other requests, but if I give you one, that has to be your top priority. That’s all I ask.”
“Are you asking too much…?”
“N-No! I’ll do it! Exclusive craftsman! No, I want to ask you! Please make me your exclusive craftsman!”
I was worried she might refuse.
As expected, Tay is different from the main heroines; she doesn’t repay grace with malice.
How can I not adore her?
“This mana stone has a symmetrical structure. I think cutting it in half will be best. The output won’t really decrease if I do that…”
“Then go ahead. You can work freely without asking me about everything. What I want is for you to fully utilize your skills to create the results I desire.”
“Really? No conditions? Just work however I want?”
“Yes.”
Tay’s eyes sparkle with excitement.
It’s like seeing an illustrator get thrilled because they can freely insert their tastes into their work, thanks to a laid-back client.
The results will surely be the best when Tay works as she likes, so it’s pointless for me to put conditions on her.
“Once you’re done, just contact me at the hotel room, same as before.”
“Yes, yes! Goodbye! Mi Jeong!”
With the exclusive contract finished and the next high-grade mana stone processing commission given, I leave the workshop with a much lighter step.
[Mi Jeong: 4.9%]
[You are receiving mild admiration. You are a special person to someone.]
Warning. Impersonating others.
A special person to someone?
Given the context, that someone can only be Tay.
Just as I was pondering this oddity,
“My lord!”
Is she calling me?
I turn around at the rough voice.
It’s an elderly artisan that Tay had been tending to.
“Thank you!”
He approaches me, panting, and bends his already awkward back with great effort.
“That Tay girl has been struggling because of her peculiar habits until now. I always thought that her habits would become talent when handling high-grade mana stones, but I never thought of entrusting something so expensive. So, I thought she wouldn’t be able to do anything in this industry and was going to push her to find a new path… But thanks to your bold investment, she could bloom! I’m deeply grateful!”
Well, that’s what they say.
Looks like he cared a lot for Tay.
It’s not my business to know how hard Tay struggled or how significant it was for her to regain her confidence.
“You have a good teacher.”
“I’m… a foolish teacher. I still didn’t recognize Tay’s talent…”
“If it were me, I would’ve kicked her out long ago. I just want to express my gratitude to you for keeping her by your side.”
Choke. Huh…!
Ugh, why is he suddenly crying?
I didn’t want to witness an old dwarf sobbing like that.
Is it a trait that dwarves cry a lot?
I’ve already seen a dwarf cry twice today.
“Please take good care of Tay moving forward.”
Before I witness more of this sad sight, I turn and leave.
As always, there’s a mountain of tasks awaiting me today.
Despite being a well-developed city, Basel has quite a few unconquered dungeons around it.
Isn’t it normal for important city surroundings to have all dungeons cleared?
It’s because all the dungeons around Basel are Black Star Dungeons.
They are dungeons that have already drawn blood multiple times, and the mercenary council has declared them abandoned.
Abandoned doesn’t mean a prohibition on conquest, but very few fools are daring enough to challenge such dangerous dungeons.
In other words, there are plenty of dungeons around Basel that can be subdued leisurely without interference.
Some even have double dungeons, where there’s another dungeon beyond the first.
Sweet double rewards, right?
I’m currently heading toward that dungeon.
Ugh!
“Stop yelling. I won’t drop you. Do you not trust me?”
“…I trust you.”
I’m carrying Mi Jeong on my back, crossing the city.
Of course, this is the time when the water is flowing again, and Mi Jeong’s freaking out, begging to be carried.
Thanks to her squirming, I can’t even enjoy the beautiful view reflected in the shimmering mirror of the city.
The only relief is that Mi Jeong has stopped growing at such a young age.
To others, it looks like I’m just carrying a little sister.
But it’s nonsensical that she’s actually older than me.
“But does she really have any regrets about life?”
I can’t help but wonder about that.
Having a guardian knight active means Mi Jeong recognizes that she’s being protected by me.
That implies she has a desire to survive as well.
But seeing Mi Jeong’s actions leaves me doubting if she truly wants to live.
Even when hungry, she never asks for food until she’s about to collapse.
Even when wolf claws are right in front of her, she doesn’t budge.
She’s just… strange.
I wonder if there’s a principle of action I don’t yet know about.
I’ll figure that out eventually.
“Is it getting tiring, even on the second run?”
“…I’m… overflowing with strength.”
Inside a dungeon in a remote mountain.
Mi Jeong is showcasing nonexistent muscles by lifting her arms.
I just supplied her with fresh blood, so her condition should be at its peak.
Of course, since Mi Jeong doesn’t eat any other blood, I had to scratch my arm to feed her.
At this rate, my left arm might end up covered in cuts.
Does she refuse any slightly less fresh blood?
I hope it’s not because she has a special liking for my blood or anything.
I should’ve experimented with the fresh blood from the bandits last time.
“Shall we test its performance a bit?”
The mana stone that Tay processed, scattering a radiant glow.
I originally intended to embed it into a sword, but I was so short on time that I just brought it as it is.
To maximize the stone’s performance, it’s crucial to have it close to the body.
Since there’s nothing else to secure it to, I place it on my left hand and wrap some bandages around it loosely to secure it.
“Wow. There’s definitely a noticeable difference.”
When I couldn’t handle mana, I had no concept of why good mana stones were so expensive.
I thought they simply made my body feel a bit lighter?
Even that was on the verge of being a placebo effect.
It was just like wearing a germanium bracelet.
But now, with traits and mana control, it’s vastly different.
Before, I had to focus all my nerves to control the flow of mana, but now it feels about ten times easier.
Naturally, the time I can maintain control without going berserk has increased.
Extra concentration can now be applied to combat, so my overall fighting power has to rise significantly.
The more skilled I become, the more prominent that effect will be, so it’s definitely worth risking my life over a single mana stone.
Keek! Kyeck!
“Oh.”
Just in time for a performance meter to show itself.
A goblin.
But unlike Blin, this one looks creepy with its mangy skin and bleary eyes from living in the dark.
I remember realizing that Blin was rather good-looking compared to this one.
Swish…!
The creature suddenly pulls back its bowstring and shoots an arrow.
Unlike Blin, this one seems filled with malice, leaving no room for conversation.
I immediately go into a ready stance.
“Are you hurt?”
“…No.”
Mi Jeong catches the arrow right in front of her.
Usually, I would’ve shoved her aside to dodge, but thanks to mana control, the arrow looks so slow that I can intercept it.
“Those punks. They shoot arrows like elves.”
“Kkyek!”
Thud.
I throw the arrow straight back, penetrating the chest of the goblin with the bow, which then lodges itself into the head of the goblin behind it.
I can feel my fighting power surging sharply.
Next, let’s test with my sword.
“Kkyyeeeek!”
“Kyek!”
Their screams echo loudly in the dungeon, though they quickly fade.
It’s no challenge; they’re just goblins.
At this rate, I could probably take on a pack of Fenrirs head-on.
“No need for crossbow tricks. Let’s advance.”
“…Okay.”
After dispatching the goblins, a long corridor stretches ahead.
At the end of the empty corridor, a door emerges leading to the final chamber.
If we can just reach there, it’ll be the end without a final boss.
“This place is full of traps. We must only step where I have.”
“…Okay.”
Of course, there can’t be nothing on the way.
The long corridor is packed with deadly traps.
How dangerous must it be to warrant an abandoned rating even when the only monsters here are goblins?
Of course, I didn’t memorize that by banging my head against the wall for twelve rounds.
Once in a while, some idiots would declare they want to challenge an abandoned dungeon, and I just tagged along, noting down how the front-runners died.
I repeated this every round to gather up a safe path all the way to the corridor end.
“If we slip up, we both die.”
“…Okay.”
It’s nothing hard.
It’s simply repeating the task of stepping on the path I memorized.
I still seem to remember everything, and we safely cross without forgetting anything.
Now, all that remains is for Mi Jeong to cross over.
“Hey! Hurry and cross!”
“…Huh?”
The moment I turned around.
At the corridor end, a goblin whose upper body was cut off draws back its bowstring.
It releases the string, but it loses consciousness and falls immediately.
What a resilient bugger.
In an instant, the arrow flies toward Mi Jeong, landing right on the platform in front of her.
“…Ah.”
The platform crumbles, and Mi Jeong falls down below.
