Chapter 313: Prototype
“Well, I thought I could make a Storage Bag, but I never expected it to explode.”
“What?”
“Hmm… But I think Shuu could probably make one.”
“What… did you say?”
“Oh wow.”
The members reacted in their own unique ways to Ivan’s words. El, who I had asked to search for a Storage Bag, seemed more surprised than angry at the thought of me trying to make one myself. Phonia, on the other hand, was curiously examining the exploded bag, her interest piqued.
“I asked El to look for one too, but I wasn’t sure if she could make it,” I explained.
“Is that so?”
“Yeah, yeah. I’m in contact with Mesaria to help find one.”
“Until now, it was just me and Rio carrying the stuff, so if we’re going to act independently, it would be better for everyone to have a bag.”
“I’m feeling that right now.”
As Ivan sighed deeply, El shrugged her shoulders.
“While we have most things here, it’s true that there are ingredients and cooking tools that only Shu and the others have.”
Phonia pondered whether it would be better to have those items as well. She unzipped the bag, stuck her arm inside, and playfully slung it over her shoulder. Maybe it wasn’t necessary to force Phonia to match the others with bags.
Taking a moment to refocus, I considered the bags again. Given the explosion, it seemed a bag made from a more durable material would be better. A bag crafted from Monster hide might be the way to go. I rummaged through the Dimensional Box once more to find a suitable bag and attempted to imbue it with magic. I didn’t have many unused bags in stock, but after sacrificing four, the fifth one didn’t explode.
“Oh?”
“Huh?”
“Seriously?”
With a mix of hope and curiosity, I opened the bag to peek inside, revealing a space that looked just like the inside of a Dimensional Box.
“Did I succeed…?”
I decided to test it by placing the exploded bag inside. When I closed the opening and folded the bag, it became as thin and flat as if it were empty. I opened it again and reached inside, confirming that the broken bag was indeed inside, so I pulled it out.
“Whoa…!”
I handed it to Ivan, who looked delighted as he eagerly stuffed the broken bag inside, closed the opening, and then opened it again to reach inside. However, his brow furrowed as he struggled to pull it out.
“What’s wrong?”
He couldn’t possibly be stuck, could he? Just as I thought that, he suddenly withdrew his hand and presented the bag to me.
“I can’t get it out.”
“What?”
I couldn’t believe it, but when I reached into the bag, I easily pulled out the broken one.
“Why?!”
“Let me try.”
Rio extended her hand, so I passed her both the newly made bag and the broken one. She had no trouble storing and retrieving the items.
“Wait, what?!”
Ivan’s shock deepened, while Rio tilted her head in confusion as she repeatedly took the bag in and out. After a moment, she reached inside again, rummaging through the contents before nodding in understanding.
“I think we might be unconsciously using Spatial Magic when we retrieve items.”
As I listened to Rio’s explanation while accepting the bag she handed back, it seemed that was indeed the case. When I consciously tried to avoid using magic while reaching into the bag, I found it difficult to know where anything was located.
“You’re right… So that means we also need to imbue the bag with Spatial Magic to keep track of what’s inside.”
That made sense.
“Creating a Storage Bag won’t be as easy as I thought.”
“No, no! The fact that we managed to create a bag that can store items in less than a day is already amazing!”
While I found the challenge rewarding, it seemed Ivan didn’t share the same sentiment. He didn’t complain just because he couldn’t use it; instead, he praised the effort. What a good guy.
“We’ve identified the next challenge, but for now, it’s a step forward.”
Looking over, I saw Phonia, equipped with the torn bag, using it as a pillow as she peacefully drifted off to sleep.
“Shall we continue this tomorrow? — El.”
“Yes?”
“Could you gather sturdy bags available in this town?”
“Understood.”
Satisfied with El’s respectful bow, I took out my smartphone and joined Phonia’s photo session. After a while of snapping pictures with Rio, we decided to call it a day.
Having managed to create a bag that could store items, Ivan set off the next day with his prototype, brimming with enthusiasm. However, I must note that he received complaints about the bag’s opening being too small to fit any prey. It seemed he hadn’t considered that the entrance to the Dimensional Box could be adjusted in size. That was another area needing improvement. Unsurprisingly, I ended up accompanying Ivan on his quest to retrieve his prey that day as well.
By the way, the Storage Bag I had requested from Mesaria had gathered information by the next day. I used Teleport to go directly and acquire it, but just like before, I couldn’t store anything larger than the bag’s opening, so I left it to be used within the organization.
Finally, the day arrived when I would speak with Mr. Jinpei. This time, everyone was heading to Japan together. Ivan, Phonia’s older brother figure, and El, who was deeply immersed in Japanese culture, were both eager to go.
“Thank you for coming.”
As we entered the familiar Dragon Corporation, Mr. Jinpei greeted us with a warm smile.