Tsukaishi ⑨ – Training Begins.
Chimera eyeballs are big. About the size of a baseball, maybe?
The knife melted when I was gathering them.
“……”
I had a bad feeling. I really did.
That’s why, when I tried to insert the protective knife from the Lady Goddess of Knives behind the eyeball and gouge it out…
A dissolving liquid oozed out from the gap, smoking and sizzling. When I pulled the knife out…
The blade was smoking, sizzling, and melting.
I hastily threw it away, and it completely dissolved.
“…”
“Wow, that’s awful, isn’t it?”
Lupinus-san said without any ill intent. Using Mr. Agaro’s Knife Modified, I removed both of the Chimera subspecies’ eyeballs and put them into a large jar.
I wasn’t sure if I needed some kind of preservation fluid, so I tried adding Elixir.
It looks incredibly gross. What kind of training machine uses this as a material?
Shiro-san came carrying a tea table. The wall of light had disappeared.
“Looks like you’re done.”
“Mhm. My thanks.”
“Thank you very much.”
“Nn… Nice… wall.”
“It was nothing. Wof-kun. Looks like you got the materials.”
“Yes. Thanks to you all.”
“In that case, let’s return to the surface.”
No objections. We all headed out of the Fire Dungeon.
For now, we all went to The Witch’s House.
“”””””Welcome home, Master.””””””
Munieca-san, acting like a Maid… Uhhh.
“Wh-what is this?”
“It’s quite a spectacle.”
“Nn… Good work.”
“…I-I’m home.”
“An interesting setup.”
With Munieca-san at the center, Shardina and the other Menos Dolls lined up to greet us.
Wh-what’s going on?
“Everyone from 『Torquetum』. Shiro-sama. The bath is ready.”
“What, did you say…?”
“There’s a bathing area?”
“…Liv… bath… like…”
”
“This way, guide, I will, desu.”
Shardina spoke awkwardly and guided them.
『Torquetum』 went for a bath.
Shiro-san handed her tea set to Munieca-san before heading to the bath.
The other Menos Dolls also went about their housework efficiently.
“Wh-what is going on?”
“Is something wrong?”
“It’s Shardina and the Menos Dolls! Aren’t they acting like Maids?”
“They are Maids, Master. They are Maids.”
“But still…”
“Master. If I may? If they wear Maid uniforms, they are Maids.”
“…I-Is that how it works?”
“Besides, they are based on me, so they are capable workers.”
Indeed, the Menos Dolls’ movements showed no signs of amateurishness.
“How did this happen?”
“I spoke with Shardina and the others. I asked them what they wanted to do. What they wished for. They all replied that they wanted to work for, serve, and attend to Master. And so, the ‘Munieca Maid Squad’ was born.”
Th-The Munieca Maid Squad.
As I stood there bewildered, Shardina bowed her head.
I instinctively used [The Silent One].
“N-Nice to, meet you, desu. Master.”
(I’ll definitely pin you down someday, desu. Master.)
Why?!
“Ah, ahh, nice to meet you too.”
Shardina smiled sweetly, but for just a moment, she shot me a challenging look.
Then, following Munieca-san’s instructions, she headed off to the kitchen. Sigh, good grief.
“Munieca-san. Where are The Witch and Hayyarn?”
“They are in the Lab.”
“Guess I’ll head over there too.”
“In that case, this way.”
Munieca-san indicated a full-length mirror in a corner of the hallway.
Huh, was there always a mirror here?
And I’ve seen it somewhere… n-no way. The mirror had a keyhole.
I naturally looked at Munieca-san, seeking an explanation.
She said nothing, merely pointing to the keyhole.
Figuring as much, I inserted the key and turned it.
The surface of the full-length mirror rippled, revealing a different scene.
A room filled with stacked wooden boxes… I see.
“You connected them, didn’t you?”
This mirror is a Teleport gate.
It connects my house and The Witch’s House.
“Yes. The Witch and Hayyarn did it.”
I wish they’d at least asked the homeowner for permission.
Passing through, I emerged into the room I use as a storeroom on the other side.
It was just as it was when Dagaa was born.
I need to clean this up. Thinking that, I headed to the Watchtower.
The full-length mirror on the first floor. I passed through the Teleport gate.
The Witch and Hayyarn were in the Lab.
A table was placed against the wall, covered in Compounding tools and materials.
The Witch was Compounding something there. She smiled at me.
“Welcome back, welcome back, Wof boy.”
“You’re back, Wof.”
“I’m back. I brought the materials.”
When I placed the eyeball materials on the desk, Hayyarn checked them.
“This is definitely it. I’ll start creating it now.”
Hayyarn operated a panel, and the table activated.
The jar containing the eyeballs was swallowed by the table.
A display appeared in mid-air, showing numbers as percentages.
Then, from the center of the four tables, a platform rose up, holding a metal cylinder.
Eyeballs were attached to both ends of the cylinder.
“…A training machine?”
“Alright. Let’s head to the training room, Wof. Bring that with you.”
“Y-yes.”
I picked up the cylinder. It’s quite heavy.
We left the Lab, and when Hayyarn stood before the door on the right, it opened.
Beyond the door was a stark white room. It was fairly spacious, with a control room on the left upon entering.
There was a pedestal in the center.
“Place that cylinder on the center pedestal.”
“Here, I guess.”
I set it on the pedestal. Hayyarn was in the control room.
“Wof. Test run.”
As he said that, the pedestal lowered with a clunk and sank into the floor. The room darkened, and red lines traced across it.
Then, at the far end of the room, an eyeball floated.
The Chimera’s eye glowed eerily— In that instant, I understood. It was 【Evil Eye】.
My body froze as if paralyzed.
“…Hayyarn?!”
“Seems to be working well. Releasing it now.”
The paralysis lifted, but the eyeball remained floating.
“…”
“Ah, Wof. Let me explain. Listen up. By installing the 【Evil Eye】 machine, this training room can now generate 【Evil Eye】 at will!”
“What did you say…?”
Still with the ridiculously overpowered technology… It’s astounding. Utterly astounding.
“What’s your goal, Wof?”
“To control 【Vanish】. To use it with my gaze, like Alveld does.”
“—That’s right. Okay. I’ll explain the training method. 【Evil Eye】 will be generated and released at regular intervals. If you don’t want to be paralyzed, you must negate only the 【Evil Eye】 without making the eyeball disappear using 【Vanish】. Note that even if you make the eyeball disappear, it will regenerate immediately. The training session will end after one hour. How about it?”
“What’s the target?”
“To continuously negate only the 【Evil Eye】. Let’s see. For starters, let’s aim for 10 times in a row.”
Negate only the 【Evil Eye】 10 times in a row within an hour, without making the eyeball disappear… Alright. Let’s do it.
“Do it, Hayyarn.”
“Beginning training now.”
I braced myself.
I’ll succeed, even if it’s just once.
One hour later. The training room brightened.
“…Couldn’t… do it… not even once…”
Dammit. But I’ll do it.
I’ll definitely master this.
I instructed Hayyarn to continue the training.