CH 147

「Eh!? Not here!? Why!」

I am now at the place where Aya would be, as told to me by the Madams───Delyosas・Sushi. Compared to the old-fashioned exterior, the inside was fairly luxurious, but that doesn’t matter now. I immediately asked the receptionist here where Aya was and she said she wasn’t there. According to the Madams, it was about half an hour ago when they introduced her, so Aya should still be here, considering her normal eating speed, yet she’s not here… Then who would I suspect?

「…… Really… Are you sure you don’t know?」

「Ugh… I-I don’t know… !」

「………. I see. Thank you very much」

The clerk here is clearly crooked. She tries to make eye contact, but their eyes don’t meet, and she’s trembling, as if she’s extremely nervous or shaking. And I also got the impression that she was in some kind of a fidgety mood.

「… This needs to be investigated」

「O~i! Suzu-cha~~n!!」

「Hmm?」

I looked in the direction my name was called and saw Furin running towards me. Huh? I don’t see Merlin…

「Oh, yeah! Merlin said she’s coming in late~!」

「… I see」

Furin laughs while shaking her pink twin-tail hair. I could only smile bitterly.

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「… Haa… Phew… Sorry to have kept you both waiting… !」

「Mou, you’re late, Ma-chan!」

「I-I’m sorry, Fu-chan… !」

「Well, try to catch your breath just a little bit more…」

「Un…」

I knew it, these two are together, aren’t they?

「…… OK. I’m settled. Thanks」

「Un」

「So I did some research on the way here and I found out where Aya-chan is!」

「Ehh!? Really!?」

「Yes! Aya-chan is in a house near the Lord of Formana’s mansion!」

「How do you know that?」

「I’m a magician, remember? I created information-gathering magic. Well, it’s a trade secret!」

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「This is the lord’s mansion…」

「Well, it’s the mansion three houses away that we have to go to~」

「So how do we get in, should we go with my magic for this?」

「Understood」

「Un!」

While conversing we turn into a suitable alleyway.

「Then nearby… 《Area Delete》」

We then unlocked the windows with unlocking magic and broke in. Inside, it was dimly lit for daytime and there appeared to be no sign of people.

『Is she really here… ?』

『If she’s not here, we’ll have to look for her from scratch again~』

『It’s all right! I’m sure she’s here! She has to be!』

『You should be assertive there…』

After loosely exploring the mansion in every nook and cranny, I found one suspicious door. When opened, it was covered with a rainbow-colored barrier separating the inside from the outside.

『What do we do?』

『Do you want to throw something in~?』

『Then I’ll throw in an empty bottle of potion』

『You got it!』

Chatting silently, Merlin suddenly took out an empty bottle of potion and threw it at the barrier.

───Gunyon… !

『Emergency quest in progress. Would you like to participate? 1 at present』

『Something pop out』

『I see~ Are there any details~?』

『Let’s see… Once inside, it says weapons and skills are forbidden』

『Uee!? Me and Ma-chan won’t be able to do anything!』

『Well… Suzu-chan can go because she has that skill, but we don’t have it… So that’s it for us. Good luck with the rest, Suzu-chan!』

『Good luck~! I’m rooting for you~!』

『Yeah, thanks, both of you』

Thus I walked towards the door.

「──《Denjin》」

…… Chanting new skill.