I finished breakfast and headed back to my room. As I was relaxing, a thought suddenly struck me. That teleportation magic tool I had sent as a return gift would probably be reaching Marie-san today or tomorrow.
"Man... she's definitely going to be shocked. I really messed up there."
When I first heard Tre-san's idea, I thought it was perfect—making a high-quality tool at a low cost to give back as a thank-you. But it wasn't until the tool was finished, sealed in its packaging, and I was sitting down to write the letter that the realization hit me. I couldn't mention Tre-san's ability in the letter.
Her talent was a top secret even within the Seditch Magic Tool Trading Company. Both Cento-san and Cien-san had begged me not to breathe a word of it. Tre-san herself never used it or talked about it when anyone besides me or her family was around.
Well, that wasn't strictly true. Around us, she used it for the silliest things. After we finished the teleportation tool, she had boasted, "With my ability, I could even make these Ripples sweeter!" She must have messed with the sugar content, because she ended up groaning in agony later, complaining that the fruit was so cloyingly sweet it made her feel sick. But again, that was only because she was in front of me.
Since I couldn't explain the secret, the whole logic of the gift fell apart. I had wanted it to be a fair exchange—a tool made for about 1,000R to match the value of the fruit she sent. Without the explanation, that premise vanished. All that was left was the reality: a magic tool forged from a magic crystal with a purity exceeding ninety percent.
I should have guessed Marie-san would be overwhelmed by something that valuable, but by the time I realized the discrepancy, the tool was done and the sealing formula had already been applied. Since Tre-san, Funf-san, and Zex-san had all gone out of their way to help me, I couldn't just back out and ask for something else. I just sent it.
I figured if she felt too guilty, I could just ask her for more Ripples later to balance the scales. But now? I wondered if I should have just prepared something else from the start.
"I don't see the problem. You didn't have any use for it anyway, right, Kaito-san?"
"Well, I mean, you're not wrong... also, why did you just show up out of nowhere and start drinking wine?"
Alice had manifested out of thin air and was currently swirling a wine glass. She was right, though—I really didn't have a use for the tool. I already had my specialized one. Besides that, Anima carried a spare in her magic box, and we had two more in the storehouse for the staff to use. Between the four portable tools and the specialized gate in my room that could bring me home just by thinking about it, I really had no need for another.
Honestly, since Illness-san and Caraway could teleport on their own, even the two spares in the warehouse barely saw any use.
"Besides, even if you had picked something else, you would've just pulled another seed of stomach pain out of thin air. There's no escaping it. Oh, and this isn't wine, by the way. It's grape juice. Want some?"
"Ah... sure, I'll take some juice."
I had an appointment this afternoon with Cornelia-san to visit a trading company specializing in custom-made brushes for monsters. Even if my blessings could neutralize the alcohol, I didn't want to show up to a meeting smelling like it. Grape juice was fine.
Alice poured a glass for me and gave me a wry smile.
"Look, no one's ever complained about having an extra teleportation tool. Don't sweat it. And if this 'too expensive' gift starts causing trouble or harassment for Marie-san and the Rich Baron House, I'll take care of it. Don't worry."
"If you're sure... then thanks. If things get messy with noble politics, please help them out."
"Yeah, yeah, consider it done. This K-Case is actually on the easy side, so Alice-chan is just going to take it easy."
"There's a 'hard' side?"
"Usually the stuff involving those world creators you keep attracting lately. Individually, their specs are total monsters..."
"Fair enough."
Compared to dealing with all-powerful entities who literally created worlds, smoothing over a few ruffled feathers among the nobility probably was child's play for Alice.
Phantasm King: "Honestly, if Kaito-san's life could be managed with simple predictions or countermeasures, Lilia-san and Elis-san wouldn't be suffering like they are. Whenever I try to fix things, he just brings in something crazy from left field and delivers a body blow to someone's stomach. Dealing with a predictable situation like this is actually a relief. I've even got time to enjoy the show."
Serious-senpai: "Don't enjoy their suffering... Still, if I had to summarize the situation so far..."
Stomach Pain Devil: "Alright, I've punched Marie enough for one day. Her meetings aren't for a while, so let's go hit Cornelia next."
Serious-senpai: "...Absolutely heartless."