Grade V Seeker ②
I cleaned up the bodies with Ms. Liv.
Although, really, it was just me using 【Vanish】 to erase the corpses she gathered.
Since Ms. Liv had already seen 【Vanish】, I explained it to her again.
Ms. Liv groaned, saying, ‘Nn… for cleaning… way too… convenient.’
Yeah, well, it sure is super handy at times like this.
“…What do you think, Ms. Liv?”
“Nn… about what?”
Ms. Liv was crouching down, collecting their Seeker tags.
She said she’d submit them to the Guild. Watching her, she kind of looked like a child playing in the dirt.
“About killing guys like these.”
“Nn… requests… for bandit… subjugation exist… so it can’t be helped… I think…”
“That’s true, but…”
“Boy… these kinds… are hostile creatures… same as Goblins… If they attack… they have the will… to kill us… Intent to kill… Nn. Boy… do you want… to die?”
“Of course not.”
“Nn… then killing them… is the only way… Discussion… impossible… persuasion also impossible… Wasted effort… Might regret it later… Liv doesn’t want that… That’s why I kill them.”
Ms. Liv turned around, her expression as blank as ever.
Her red eyes, reflecting me, looked blankly curious.
Well, yeah, that makes sense, I muttered to myself.
I was brought to Torquetum’s base. That mansion.
Thinking this was the second time Ms. Liv had guided me here, I was led to a room on the second floor.
Huh, come to think of it.
“Are Ms. Pachira and Ms. Lupinus not here?”
“Nn… at Tasan’s place.”
“Tasan?”
“Various things… various… you know.”
“Right.”
I looked around the room I’d been shown into.
This was Ms. Liv’s private room.
A warm-colored carpet. A closet. A shelf for small items. A bed.
A small table. A simple desk. A large black box in the corner.
That was all there was to this simple room. A metal box sat on the desk.
A light orb floated near the ceiling. Looking closely, the bed was a pipe bed.
The closet also looked somewhat mechanical, storing a jacket and a suit.
Simple…? In a basket near the closet… underwear was haphazardly tossed in.
Somehow, I got the feeling she probably didn’t do laundry. And then I realized. A shiver ran down my spine.
Ms. Liv’s private room. That meant it was a girl’s room.
Um, is this okay? Just thinking about it made me feel restless.
“…Boy… what’s wrong?”
“Ah, no, anyway, about fixing the knife…”
“Nn… just a sec… wait… Sit down… anywhere around there… wherever…”
“O-Okay.”
Anywhere around there… I sat on the pipe bed.
A pipe bed. A bed made of pipes.
Pipes exist in this world too. You can’t transport water without pipes.
Copper pipes are the mainstream. No, that’s not the issue. The bedding was fluffy.
It’s bedding, so of course it’s fluffy.
But for me, still using a straw bed, this bedding felt incredibly fluffy.
Ms. Liv was rummaging through the large black box. Countless white glowing lines ran across the box’s surface, and small lamps blinked red intermittently.
I didn’t know what kind of box it was, but it didn’t feel like fantasy.
That feeling applied to various things scattered around this simple room.
But still, what I was most conscious of was that this was a girl’s room.
However. A pipe bed, huh. I see. Pipes.
“Ah!”
Come to think of it, I’d obtained a large sum of money. Couldn’t I renovate?
That’s right. Now’s the time to graduate from the straw bed.
And also. I instinctively saved the unexpected windfall, but… what was that thing from my past life’s memories?
Ah, FIRE. Could I do it?
“Nn… found it.”
What Ms. Liv pulled out was a smooth, silver, shining box.
It resembled a capsule. About the size you could hold with both hands. Actually, this is a capsule.
“What’s this?”
“…Pretty sure… Nano… Nano……… Nn. Forgot.”
“I-I see.”
Nanomachines… they exist here? Well, it’s a standard trope, but really, nano, huh.
I kind of figured out how it was going to repair the knife.
“But… how to use it… Liv. Knows…”
The capsule had four buttons on the side: ■△〇×. Remarkably simple.
Pressing 〇 opened the lid. Inside the capsule was just a simple black partition.
“Nn… put… the knife… fragments… in here…”
“Okay.”
“Then… press… the button… again…”
The lid closed. Then she pressed the ■ button.
The lid turned into a monitor, displaying an image of the knife.
Whoa, it’s Mr. Agaro’s Knife. But an error sound played immediately, and red text appeared on the monitor.
Error... Insufficient materials...
“Ms. Liv?”
“Nn… not enough…”
Well, it did mostly turn to dust…
“Do you have any metal or something?”
“…Metal… don’t have.”
“Anything at all?”
“Boy… Liv… was curious… about something… That pouch… different… smell… from Elixir… Ore… Metal…?”
“Metal? Ah, maybe…”
I took a cloth bag out of my pouch.
From the bag, I took out a square, dice-shaped piece of metal.
Its surface glittered like gold, but it wasn’t pure gold.
It looked like Fool’s Gold, but it wasn’t.
This metal was finely divided into tens, no, hundreds of layers.
Moreover, it faintly but countlessly flickered with light.
I didn’t know what it was. I had a few candidates from my past life’s memories, but that was it.
Any of them might be correct, or none of them might be.
So, its identity was unknown.
This was the blue light / Super Ultra Rare I found in the Junkyard at the Grave of Death.
Even now, checking with [Wheel of Fortune], it glowed blue.
Well, this room had several things glowing yellow or blue, making me want to close my eyes.
I was curious about them, but… why was there a blue light in the basket filled with underwear?
“…That… Unobtainium.”
“Eh, what did you call it?”
“Nn… put it in.”
The capsule had opened at some point.
As told, I put the mysterious metal, Unobtainium, inside.
Unobtainium. Never heard of it.
I had my doubts, but Ms. Liv was the one who knew about this capsule.
If this could restore the knife, then that was fine.
Closing the lid, Ms. Liv pressed the △ button.
“What’s that for?”
“Nn… mixing.”
The △ button flashed green, and when it finished, she pressed the × button.
“And that?”
“Nn… combining.”
The × button flashed black, and when it finished, the knife was displayed on the monitor.
Yep. Mr. Agaro’s Knife. A knife resembling the one belonging to a certain professor who uses his pet dog’s name.
And the letters OK. It seemed like it could be made.
Ms. Liv pressed the ■ button.
“That one?”
“Nn… restoring.”
The ■ button was flashing blue.
“…Nn. Boy.”
“What is it?”
“This time… I’m sorry… Liv… went too far…”
“It’s fine. It’s getting fixed like this, anyway.”
“Nn… Boy was strong… it was fun… so… I got carried away.”
“Well, it’d be a lie if I said I didn’t have fun either.”
I was desperate, but I was glad I got to spar with Ms. Liv.
For the record, against the Witch, even if she’s unarmed and I use a knife, I can’t land a single blow.
Liv smiled faintly.
“Nn… good… that Boy… had fun… playing… with big sister’s body.”
“…Right.”
What a way to put it…
Then, the blue flashing of the ■ button stopped, and Ms. Liv pressed the 〇 button.
When the capsule opened, smoke like dry ice billowed out.
As it cleared, the knife revealed itself.
The restored Mr. Agaro’s Kni— Restored?
“…”
I picked up the knife. The hilt and fittings hadn’t changed.
It looked the same as before. Except the blade had a burning blue color.
That’s strange. It was supposed to be burning red.
I looked at Ms. Liv. I gave her a skeptical look.
“Nn… it’s… harder… than before…”
“…”
When I moved the knife, depending on the light, the blue flame dwelling in the blade seemed to flicker… I think.
Hmm, hmm. It’s strange. Compared to before… hmm. What happened here?
“Boy… don’t like it… Should I… do it…?”
Did she interpret my curious staring that way?
Ms. Liv asked awkwardly. Do what?
“No, that’s not it, um, this is fine.”
I sheathed the knife.
Ms. Liv’s red eyes welled up as she bowed her head.
“…Boy… I’m sorry…”
“Ms. Liv. It’s okay now. I forgive you.”
“Nn… Boy… thank you… If you ever… want to play… with big sister’s body… again… Nn… just say the word… For Boy… Liv… will do her best…”
“O-Okay…”
“Nn… Okay.”
Ms. Liv smiled.
Seriously, it’s the way she says things…