Volume 2 - The Aftermath of the Hunt

<Announcement>

Author-san here! Check my profile to see my new entry for the MAL x Honeyfeed Writing Contest 2022 titled "Defeating the Demon Lord Without Fighting it Myself: The Genius Directive" which is a prequel to the main storyline that this series is currently on!

I'm also going to slow down publishing the main story chapters to around 1 chapter per 2 days to give way for the publishing of the prequel series which is a contest entry, but it will not be detrimental to the narrative that this story has that was influenced in the prequel series.

That's all for now, and enjoy reading!

...

When I woke up on Mama Clara's lap inside what seemed to be a carriage, I can feel as if I have tears flowing outside my eyes with Mama Clara's worried expression now getting clearer in my sight. Compiled with the vibrations that I'm experiencing right now from a rough road terrain...

It seems that I've just experienced my first nightmare in quite a long while...

[Emi-chan... Are you okay...?]

[Eh...?]

As she asked, I noticed the tears I had on my cheeks. So I quickly wiped them off using the long sleeves of my maid outfit. I immediately responded to her worries.

[I-I'm alright, Mama... It's just a nightmare... Also...]

[Hm?]

[D-Did I got u-unconscious after that...? How l-long did I stay unconscious...?]

[......]

As I asked a question to Mama Clara, I got up from sleeping on her lap towards looked at my surroundings. There was no one within the carriage that we were on. I guess Eric-san and Sophia-san were on another carriage or probably outside right now.

She started telling me the story of what happened after I fainted. Mama Clara and Eric-san quickly came up to me as the other hunters were being healed with first-aid magic by the mages that they were with.

Unfortunately, around 9 were killed by the hornets' swarm including the ones who accidentally tried to set the hornets' nest on fire. It was really quite reckless of them to do so which earned Eric-san's fury to the rest of the hunters that we came with.

But after all of that being done, the remaining went back to the carriages at the side of the road that we've dropped out on, along with around a few giant boars that the other hunters have collected... 

That's where Mama Clara's story ended as she held her hand to mine as lowered her head a little bit...

[I'm sorry about that, Emi-chan...]

[Sorry? About what, Mama?]

[I did tell you about that Intermediate-class spell during our magic training, but I guess it was my fault for me to have not foreseen this development... 

Your level and MP level weren't sufficient enough for you to perform the spell with absolute control... I'm sorry, Emi-chan...]

With Mama Clara saying that in such frustration and with the expression of feeling guilty over it, my body just moved on its own as I hugged her quite tight. 

While I tried not to think over what I should do for now to be more steps ahead of my own game, I just can't possibly ignore that what happened in Celeste inside my dreams might happen to my new life as well...

[It's alright, Mama... I still managed to do it on my own since it was necessary, but I'll need compensation for that later~!]

[Fufu~ You're taking advantage of that, huh...? Alright. I'll let myself be fooled for now. So what compensation do you need from me...?]

Alright... I managed to get an upper hand from this. As of right now, I'm still sleeping beside Mama Clara so I can't really do any kind of work in a room. If possible, I could also go for a workshop at the mansion grounds itself, but it seems too far-fetched...

I guess I know what compensation I should need from Mama Clara...

[Mama... How about this...?]

[Oya?]

I immediately went to whisper something to her ears as her expression reacted from a surprise to disbelief, then finally to an exasperated look after seemingly much internal deliberation on her part.

[Alright, I'll give you that as long as you know your responsibilities of owning one, and also with Diana-sama's permission. Would that suffice?]

[Unnn~! Thank you very much, Mama!]

[Clara-san, we're near the city--Oya? It seems that you're now awake, Emi-chan... How are you feeling...?]

As I quickly hugged Mama Clara once again once my request has her approval, Sophia-san peeked through the back of the carriage to try and report her something only to be surprised about me being awake.

[Unn~! I'm fine, Sophia-san. Thank you for your concern, Onee-chan~!]

[G-fuhhhh?!?!]

[Unn...?]

[N-Nothing, Emi-chan... P-Pardon my e-extrusion...]

[Eh?]

Sophia-san who was checking us two on the carriage by the rear immediately left with what seemed to be her nose bleeding up... Wait?! Don't tell me that trope actually exists here even in this world?! No way it exists here?!

...

[Is that all you can report to me, Clara-san..?] 

[Yes, Diana-sama.]

[Thank you for the report, Clara-san. You may go now. Emi-chan, stay here.]

[As you wish, Diana-sama.]

Mama Clara said as she quickly left the office that we're currently on... Why are we here right now...? Well... To put it simply, we're reporting what happened to the boar hunt yesterday... Of course, it would be quite concerning for such events to have happened from what's meant to be a 3-day trip for hunting than a single day.

Immediately after the door was closed shut, Mama Diana quickly stood up and immediately ran towards me with a hug which she needed to kneel for it. She hugged me tightly when it happened. 

Based on what happened earlier, I'm already certain that she would be quite worried about that as well...

[M-Mom...]

[Please, Emi-chan... Just this once...]

[U-Unn...]

I just stood there with my arms responding to Mama Diana's hug very lightly. To be honest, I still don't know how to respond to kind of happenings like this. That's why the two of us left it like that until a few tens of minutes later.

After that really long hug, Mama Diana stood up from herself kneeling down and sighing in what seemed to be a relief or an exasperated one. 

We immediately went to continue with my report of what happened before, and also told her about the compensation that I've brought up on Mama Clara which Mama Diana immediately gave permission to start doing that thing.

...

Almost a week after the incident has passed, I'm currently in my own room within the Maid Quarters which was given to me as compensation by Mama Clara since she's the Head Maid of the entire mansion aside from being Mama Diana's personal maid.

I actually wished on having my own room ever since I came into this world since I can do all sorts of things here without anyone constantly barging in and out! Though of course, my actual room may very well be small by this world's standards. But it's still pretty much your smaller but standard Japanese house all in one go. 

Since my room was similarily-sized to Mama Clara's room, I also have all of the rooms and amenities that Mama Clara has in her room. Same kitchenette, a wardrobe room, a storage room, a bathroom, a queen-sized bedroom, and the most ridiculous of all, an office room that's linked to a second door towards outside!

[And here I thought that most nobles won't really give this much luxury to someone like a head maid here or any kind of retainers, but I guess... the Duchy's living standards are actually far more suitable than the other ones...]

I thought as I started prepping up my attire from my wardrobe room which was full of maid outfits except for my adventurer one. I probably should need more money to buy more equipment too, but I'll worry about it when I'm in a bind... 

[But that nightmare from before... I would've loved to think of something like that as some sort of a premonition or a warning for me, but things like airships could actually exist since the patents for a hot air-ship already exists in the form of the magic stoves that I idealized...]

As I thought about that, I sighed to myself and thought about putting stop to my inner thoughts. I wore my maid attire for now since I'm with little brother Clarence for today's job, but I'm quite excited for tomorrow since I'll be leaving the mansion early on to become a full-fledged adventurer!

...

[Are you finished preparing for your first adventure, Emi-chan?]

Mama Clara asked me as I wore my adventuring outfit with my adult form. It's still dawn but she's already awake while sipping her coffee on her mug with her red nightgown still on even if it's still at this point in time... And also, she's in my room right now so where the hell did my privacy go...?

[U-Unn... I already have my equipment as well as the coins I need in my item box. But...]

[But...?]

[What's with that nightgown, Mama? I didn't know you had that one like that...]

[Ohoooo...?]

She reacted to my question with a teasing smirk that she usually wears when she's with Mama Diana and Papa Edmund when they were being informal with each other... Oho, your *ss, Mama!

[Can't be helped when Kurayami-san died in his past life whilst being a healthy boy after all...]

[Mama, you'll get jailed in my world.]

[Is that so... Enough joking for me now, Emi-chan... Be careful out there, alright?]

[Yes Mama, I'll immediately escape if I deem it dangerous.]

I said to Mama Clara as the two of us hugged each other before leaving my room. Afterward, I immediately invoked my <Limited Teleportation> skill to a location just outside the Celestia Duchy's mansion where I tagged it with my skill which teleports me to the said place.

[This is weird... How am I not that tired after teleporting...? Anyways, that's not important right now...]

As much as I would've loved to go towards the mansion to give Papa Edmund and Mama Diana the courtesy before I leave the mansion for three days, I don't have much time to waste now that I have achieved one of my goals which would be to become an adventurer.

...

When I arrived at the Adventurer's Guild, the number of people inside it was smaller than when it was in the afternoon. I guess it's just natural since it's still early in the morning. Of course, there were still the staff people who were also here on their night shifts.

I intend on taking on some subjugation quests within the Celestia Duchy for the next three days... The reason?

Elemental magic stones and magic crystals... and also some materials needed for the inscription of magic circles...

Why...? Aside from making my own magic tools for daily uses, I found a way of using offensive spells that elemental magic stones can be utilized by imbuing them with magic circles & be substituted for any elemental magic spells that any mage would utilize.

In other words... I can produce a magic gun that can be cast simultaneously compared to being accompanied by a mage.

[Hello, Staff-san? Do you have any C-rank subjugation requests that I can do within the Duchy?]