Episode 182: Asahi Falls Apart
＜Cosmos＞ used Albatross Chrysanthemum to acquire several Magic Tools in North End City.
Of course, through legitimate channels.
＜Ringo＞ had instructed her to avoid using forceful methods as much as possible.
First, there were the items secured by the Adventurer’s Guild.
Maso Meter, Heal Potion, Heal Salve, and Magic Potion.
All of these were stored for the purpose of providing, lending, or selling to adventurers as needed.
They were reluctant to part with them, considering them emergency reserves, but the potions, at least, had expiration dates, so they were actually more than happy to release them.
It was probably just a formality.
Furthermore, there were several weapons and pieces of armor found in the market.
Some adventurers seemed to own them, but those were their livelihoods, and they wouldn’t give them up so easily. Besides, there was no need to go that far to obtain them, so they searched for items that were for sale.
There was a leather shield that was surprisingly sturdy, despite its appearance.
And a fang-like thrusting sword, specialized solely for piercing.
A decent number of these were circulating in the market, and multiple units could be obtained for comparison and verification, so these two types were chosen for the time being.
Two Maso Meters were secured.
It seemed that they couldn’t provide any more at the moment due to a shortage of materials.
The issue with the material supply was due to the impact of ＜Paraiso＞’s occupation operation, which was unavoidable. There were no adventurers going on expeditions.
However, that problem would likely be resolved soon.
＜Paraiso＞ hadn’t imposed any restrictions, and was even prepared to actively support the activities of adventurers.
There were also stock issues with Heal Potions and Heal Salves, but since the raw materials were plants and could be stored for a while, there seemed to be some leeway.
However, once processed into medicine, they needed to be consumed within a few days.
Apparently, regardless of their effectiveness, they would rot like normal food.
It would be pointless if you healed your wounds but then got a stomachache or became ill.
The same was true for Magic Potions, which were manufactured in fixed quantities every day and sold to adventurers the next day.
Since the adventurers weren’t active right now, the result was an oversupply of inventory.
Since ＜Cosmos＞ was able to obtain a significant number of these potions, she decided to store some of them for the time being.
Some were left as is, while others were kept in a cool, dark place, a refrigerator, or frozen.
Since they could be continuously obtained, detailed comparative verification would be conducted separately, and the investigation of each Magic Tool began.
◇◇◇◇
“Onee-sama! Asahi, Asahi vehemently protests! I’m appealing! I demand a direct negotiation!”
Asahi returned to ＜The Tree＞ in a frenzy, making a screeching noise that sounded like “Kiiii!”
“How unusual. For Asahi to come back here.”
For the past few months, Asahi had been holed up in Telek Port City.
She seemed to be enjoying her magic research immensely.
Although ＜Ringo＞ had told her that progress wasn’t going well.
“I came back because I couldn’t get anywhere! That Cosmos is so stubborn! So mean!”
“Mean?”
“It’s a word that means ‘malicious.’ It’s more of a friendly way of saying it, though.”
“U-uh, okay? Well, I can tell that Asahi and Cosmos are fighting about something?”
Asahi, who had just disembarked from the Albatross, tried to rush towards Commander (Onee-sama), but was smoothly captured by ＜Ringo＞.
She was grabbed by a manipulator designed for heavy work and carried away.
“Aaaaaah, ＜Ringo＞, let me go! There’s still something I want to say to Onee-sama! Aaaaaah!”
“Let’s talk in a calm place.”
“Asahi, since you’ve come back, let’s give you an overhaul.”
“I don’t have time for that! Stop it, ＜Ringo＞, seriously, stop it! Don’t take control! Onee-sama, Onee-sama, help me, please! Aaaaaah!”
As this treatment showed, even though Asahi and the Strategic AI ＜Cosmos＞ were fighting, it was more like Asahi was picking a fight with Cosmos, who was trying to get the job done properly.
＜Ringo＞ also supported Cosmos, and since she couldn’t get anywhere, Asahi had come home to directly negotiate with the supreme authority (Eve).
Eve hadn’t heard the details, but she vaguely understood the situation and didn’t complain about Asahi’s rough handling.
“Go get properly maintained. I’ll hear you out later.”
“Noooo! Onee-sama, don’t be so unreasonable aaaaaaaah!”
It was Asahi herself who had been skipping the regular maintenance using the facilities inside ＜The Tree＞. Presumably, ＜Ringo＞ would be performing a thorough inspection and maintenance.
Well, it wasn’t like she was so fragile that a few months of neglect would ruin her.
Asahi was a mechanical doll made by ＜The Tree＞, regardless of cost performance.
However, there was little operational data, and ＜Ringo＞ wanted to perform regular inspections and maintenance.
But Onee-sama (Eve) had been spoiling Asahi because she seemed to be so happily engrossed in her research.
Just when it was about time, Asahi came back, so she was immediately captured by ＜Ringo＞.
Well, it would be easy to just seize control of her body without any fuss.
However, it was to avoid putting unnecessary stress on the Brain Unit.
And for the sake of aesthetics, a physical capture was carried out.
She was being too violent, so in the end, her control was seized. It couldn’t be helped, since it was in front of Eve.
And so, Asahi, who had returned to ＜The Tree＞ first thing in the morning, was thrown into a maintenance pod and finally released eight hours later.
“I’ve been through so much…”
“You got properly maintained, so isn’t that good?”
Asahi pouted as she hugged her beloved Onee-sama (Eve) on the sofa.
“Don’t you think my treatment is strange compared to everyone else?”
“Oh, doesn’t this girl realize it?”
Her cheeks were pinched and twisted, and Asahi let out a whiny voice.
“…Uuuuu. More importantly, please listen, Onee-sama…”
“Yes, yes. What’s this all about, after all?”
“Cosmos, Cosmos won’t give me the research materials…”
According to Asahi, the story was that ＜Cosmos＞ wouldn’t send the Maso Meter, a Magic Tool that she had finally obtained, for research purposes.
“If I understand the principle behind that, I should be able to make progress in researching this mysterious thing called Maso. If there are two of them, I can research them thoroughly and do comparative verification, so Cosmos should give it to me.”
“＜Ringo＞?”
“Yes, Ma’am. Cosmos insists that it should be used for surveying within the Demon Forest. I agree with that. First, we should confirm the distribution of Maso. Create a Maso concentration map. Check for changes in concentration over time. Investigate sensitivity and confirm reproducibility. There are many items that should be confirmed on-site, and the number of Maso Meters is small. It’s a natural decision.”
“That’s awful, even ＜Ringo＞! If we could mass-produce that, we could finish such a survey right away!”
“The probability of mass production is too low. We should do what we can do for sure.”
It was probably a rehash of the discussion that had taken place between Asahi and Cosmos.
In reality, they were probably exchanging messages directly, so it was probably an argument that was resolved in a few seconds. But ＜Ringo＞ was deliberately voicing it so that Commander (Eve) could hear it.
“Yes, yes. I understand Asahi’s argument and Cosmos’s argument. And I understand that Asahi is stuck.”
“Onee-sama!”
“But if I give the Maso Meter to Asahi, she’ll break it, right? So no.”
“Onee-sama!?”
Asahi had no chance of winning.
“Also, what’s the possibility of re-obtaining Magic Tools in the future?”
“Yes, Ma’am. It’s highly probable. Adventurers have resumed collecting materials, so it will be soon. Cosmos is also considering the feasibility of dispatching a unit. There is little merit in securing two Maso Meters at this point, and we expect that it would be better to collect operational data on-site.”
“I see. Then Asahi, be patient a little longer. I think they’ll come out again in a month or two, right?”
“Gunuunu… I can’t go against Onee-sama’s orders… I guess I have no choice…!”
“I really wonder how this girl turned out like this…”
“I have no excuse.”
◇◇◇◇
What is needed to produce Magic Tools are materials with magical properties.
Magical metals and magical wood, which had been excellent materials but had not been widely distributed due to their volume and weight.
The intervention of ＜Paraiso＞ dramatically improved the efficiency of this recovery.
The materials were Metal Turtles and Trents.
Both were monsters often avoided due to their massive size.