Let me brag to Mashiro

Back at the base, I ran into Mashiro-san fresh out of the bath.

Since I had the chance, I figured I'd show off all the gear I got from Aishia's hometown.

"Mashiro-saaan! Look, look! I got all kinds of stuff at Aishia's hometown!"

"Ooh, looks like you picked up quite a bit."

"See this? Revolver pistols. I'm gonna go bang-bang with these dual pistols!"

I drew the guns from their holsters and struck a sideways pose with a satisfying click. I made sure not to point them at anyone.

"Guns, huh. These are way different from the ones Beibei and her crew had."

"Those were more like specialized concealable weapons among guns."

At least compare them to muskets. You know, like what pirates used.

"These babies are special-made to fire six shots in a row."

"That's impressive. Do they work on monsters?"

"Depends on where you hit them. The wounds are small, so they're harder to get kills with compared to a rapier, but they pack a punch."

"Well, you've got magic too, Karina… But more importantly."

Mashiro-san was staring intently at my pouch, ring, and hair ornament.

The cup and knife are inside the pouch, by the way.

"Hehehe, you've got a good eye. These are presents I received from my local wives at the dwarven village."

"Dwarven… local wives? What have you been getting up to???"

"It just kind of… happened?"

Teehee.

"Apparently in dwarf culture, if you give someone your prized creation as a gift and they accept it, it's like getting married? But it's not that serious, they said. It's not like I'm bound to them or anything."

"Ah, I see… So the fact that you didn't send them back means you accepted."

"Well, they were cute, and I had no reason to refuse… Oh, and I also got this cup and knife!"

"Huh, five items… wait, hold on. Hey, wait. Huh? Hey. Wait a second?"

Mashiro-san stared at the presents from the Five Elders with growing confusion.

"… Whoever made these is an incredible craftsman, right? I can sense magical enchantments on them."

"That's right. And by the way, the materials are Arthur-kun's fangs and scales and such."

"So they're made from dragon materials!? No wonder the enchantments stick so well!! And a dwarven craftsman on top of that… no, that's not all. A master… no, a super master-class craftsman made these. Even I, an A-rank adventurer, couldn't get my hands on something like this."

"Oh, yeah. Apparently they're called the Five Elders or something."

"The F-Five Elders!?"

Mashiro-san choked. She coughed and sputtered.

Are you okay? Want some water? You can use the cup.

"You… the, the Five Elders… I can't believe big shots like them were at Aishia's place…"

"Should I have them make something for you next time, Mashiro-san? Want me to introduce you?"

"Idiot, I can't afford their commission fees!! No, wait, I'll save up. I'll definitely save up, so introduce me when I do!!"

Huh? Wait a second. Mashiro-san, you're an A-rank adventurer, right?

And you can't just casually pay the commission fee? How expensive are we talking here?

"So, which of the Tessin Five Elders did you manage to seduce?"

"Huh? The Five Elders."

"I mean, which one of the Five Elders?"

"Huh? Like I said, the Five Elders."

Mashiro-san froze.

"Wait. Hey, wait. Don't tell me those five incredible pieces of equipment…"

"They each made one for me! All five of them are super cute little lolis, you know? Well, they're not actually lolis, but I don't really get dwarf ages, so they're lolis to me."

"Let me see the maker's marks! If they're prized works, they'd have signed them, right!?"

Maker's marks. Come to think of it, if it's a proposal gift, it would make sense to put your name on it.

So I showed Mashiro-san the five pieces of equipment… huh, so that's where the marks were.

"The Five Elders… all of them… are you serious?"

"Oh. They told me if I didn't want them, I could sell them to cover travel expenses, but I'm absolutely never selling these!!"

They've been marked, so even if they get stolen, I can get them back.

But I wouldn't mind lending them to Mashiro-san.

I've got Spatial Magic, so I don't really need any of this equipment myself, but for Mashiro-san, the pouch, knife, hair ornament, cup, and ring would all be useful.

… Actually, there wasn't a single one that wasn't useful.

"… I feel like if I borrowed any of these, I'd incur someone's wrath."

"They're all cute and nice, so that won't happen. Mashiro-san, you're one of my important people! This ring is my favorite, but want to try it on?"

"Th-then just for a moment…"

And just as Mashiro-san was about to slip her finger through the ring…

The ring disappeared.

"Huh? What!? The ring vanished!?"

"Hey Karina, your finger."

I looked where Mashiro-san was pointing. The ring had returned to my left ring finger.

"… Phew. I see, so it's an anti-theft feature. That's why they said I could sell it."

"If it comes back after you sell it, you could sell it over and over again. Don't sell it… no, that's not the point. Hey."

By the way, I found out that if I declared I was lending something before handing it over, I could lend out items other than the ring. But otherwise, if they got too far from me, they'd automatically return to my hands.

This is definitely thanks to using my potion as a secret ingredient. No doubt about it.

"The ring probably comes back right away because it's life-related. What a love-filled feature! Ahh, how cute. I love them all!"

"Are you okay with that!? … Cursed equipment… well, if you're fine with it, whatever. So basically they've all marked their territory on you. They like you way too much… what did you even do to them…"

Cursed equipment? Nah, at most it's a good-luck charm. They're lolis after all.

It's more like "I'd never let you sell this!" That kind of thing.