Is That Out of Ten?

"And so, as long as I've got this Magic Tool, I'm basically an ordinary person, see?"

"Is that so, Karina-sama."

After having Lakto-sensei check the Magic Tool, I bragged about it to Fletta-chan in the classroom too.

But Fletta-chan didn't seem to grasp the value of this Magic Tool. Well, I don't really feel it myself either.

"Still, your five wives made this Magic Tool. In a single night."

"Yep. Talented, right? Ah, Fletta-chan, if there's anything you want, just say so. All five of them are itching to make something new. For the time being they'll probably be improving this Magic Tool, though."

If I offer up my body (materials), I bet they'll knock one out as a side project.

"We have Magic Tools at home too, and as for something I'd want… ah, rather, shall I show you our family's Magic Tool? We have a piece crafted by one of Tessin's first-rate Magic Tool artisans."

"Ooh. What kind?"

"A magic sword, no less! It has the function of a magic staff, and it's a top-class blade too. The sword itself even has a feature that lets it clad itself in flames!"

"That sounds fun. I wanna see, I wanna see!"

"Certainly! You may bring your wives along as well!"

And just as we were about to arrange a visit, Dea-kun, who was sitting on the far side of Fletta-chan with me in between, spoke up.

"… Flaretart. I'd advise against it, you know?"

"Oh my, Deasalt-sama. I can get along splendidly with all five of the wives, you know? I'm sure it'll be a good learning experience!"

"Indeed. It does sound like it'll be a good learning experience."

"Now now, Dea-kun, honestly. Are you jealous that Fletta-chan and I are getting along?"

Geez, that's no good, Dea-kun, being cold to your fiancée.

Men like that get hit with a "serves you right," you know? … Ah, but Dea-kun's a girl, so it's fine, I guess?

"Wanna come with us, Dea-kun?"

"No, I'll pass. It could turn into a politically troublesome situation."

"Politically."

Khh, I don't get politics at all. Well, can't be helped, then…!

"… Am I maybe not supposed to go either? Or bring everyone along?"

"No. You can do as you please, Onee-san… Besides, it'll be a good learning experience for Flaretart too."

"Oh, yeah? Then, Fletta-chan. Mind if I come hang out at your place after school today?"

"Certainly! Heheheh, inviting a friend to my home… it's my first time…! Maybe I should leave early to prepare."

"Flaretart. Wouldn't neglecting your studies be putting the cart before the horse as a student?"

You're one to talk, Dea-kun, taking a leave of absence to go traveling. But since I didn't actually want Fletta-chan to leave early, I agreed.

By the way, right now Dea-kun apparently finds studying fun. The Magic Tool knowledge the Five Elders taught him is meshing together perfectly, and his understanding of magic has deepened enormously, or so he says.

Spots he never understood before are clicking like puzzle pieces falling into place, going "Oh, so that's what that meant." Nice, you're really being a student!

So, setting aside the diligently studying Dea-kun, I ended up taking the Five Elders to go hang out at Fletta-chan's place.

 

*

 

After heading home once, I brought the five of them to Fletta-chan's house.

She'd told me where it was, so we didn't get lost… I could've just teleported, but Rena said, "If you don't visit properly, don't blame me if you're treated as an intruder," so I had them take us by carriage.

"I've been waiting for you, Karina-sama. Honored wives."

It was a large mansion. Fletta-chan was waiting for us at its gate.

"I am Flaretart… please, call me Fletta."

"Oh, she's a cute kid, just like Kari-chan said."

"Hmm, but the Dea-kun girl is more tempting. Among elves she's number two!"

"I feel that. But she's definitely cute. There there."

"Would've been nice if she could sense mana pressure, but oh well. So, you've got a Magic Tool?"

"It'd go faster if we had someone to help with the improvements. Well, she's got a granddaughter-y vibe, so it's all good!"

And just like that, Fletta-chan was being doted on by the five of them in a flurry.

In the flow of that, we got introductions out of the way more or less.

"Now then, for a tea party at once—"

"""""Forget that, show us the Magic Tool!!!"""""

Yaay. All five in perfect sync. Well, that is the main event.

"… Very well. I was planning to show you while we had tea. I hurriedly got Father's permission, since it's necessary for deepening my friendship with Deasalt-sama. This way, please."

Yaay! And so the five of them, and me too, followed Fletta-chan.

Where we followed her to was the garden, where a tea party had been set up. Wow, lovely, there's even one of those tiered stands with scones and such on it. The maiden's heart in me is going pitter-patter!

But the Five Elders headed straight over to the magic sword, which was displayed nearby on a pedestal, and surrounded it.

"The finish as a sword is sloppy. 5 points."

"It's just a staff stuffed inside a sword. I want more ingenuity. 3 points."

"Feels like something made for practice? Crude. Factoring in historical value, 7 points."

"This is all it is, huh. What a letdown. 6 points."

"More to the point, this habit in how the magic script's strokes stop and flick… that's my great-uncle. 2 points."

Is that out of ten? Eh, out of a hundred?

W-wow, harsh.

And in an instant the five of them lost all interest and took their seats at the tea party.

"It was a decent enough little show for a breather. An antique, when all's said and done."

"Well, I didn't expect anything from the start. If it were really impressive, they wouldn't put it on display outside."

"Oh, the tea's delicious. This one's 90 points! As expected of the real deal."

"The tea sweets are good too. 100 points!"

"Kari-chan, Fletta-chan, come on over, let's eat together?"

Heey, Fletta-chan's dumbstruck over here?

"Hey, everyone! We didn't come here to bully Fletta-chan, you know?! Honestly!"

"S-sorry, Kari-chan. It was just too much, so I couldn't help it… Then, let me whip something up to give her as a gift. A real Magic Tool. Can I use this butter knife?"

"Maybe I'll make an accessory. Kari-chan, give me some metal materials. I'll put a poison-nullification effect in, so even lead is fine. Not Orichalcum, though, I can't process that here."

"Anyone have a gemstone? I'll make it into a Magic Tool with a spell built in… It's small, but well, this'll do. If anything it's a chance to show off."

"Is processing this teapot okay? Or not?"

"Here, I made some ink, so use this."

And so the tea party table turned into an impromptu workbench, and in five minutes four Magic Tools were finished.

"… Kinda sorry about that, Fletta-chan."

"N-no… it was a family-heirloom magic sword, but it seems it wasn't to the honored wives' liking… So, what are these?"

The four completed Magic Tools.

"For starters I made a butter knife equivalent to that magic sword. Ah, if you clash them together that one'll break, so be careful."

"It's a poison-nullification pendant. Well, it's handy. You'll be able to drink hydra venom and the like."

"It's a ring that lets you blast off high-tier flame magic when you pour mana in. The body's a gemstone so it can be made into an earring too, but it's hard to aim, so I recommend keeping it as a ring."

"It's a teapot that dispenses tea-flavored water. The flavor's perfectly reproduced, so even muddy water turns tea-flavored."

"I provided the ink."

So there you have it.

"Um? Aren't these… national-treasure-class items?"

"Eh, really? … Maybe so? Hey, everyone, isn't this going a bit too far?"

Now that she mentioned it, maybe it was. With that thought, I asked the Five Elders.

"Well, my skills have leveled up again lately."

"Thanks to you, Kari-chan, we're leveling up like crazy, so this much is just a way to pass the time."

"We're rejuvenated and raring to go, plus everyone's sharing knowledge and techniques at full throttle. Fufufu."

"Our past works are so childish I kind of want to smash them all and update them."

"That reminds me, did you get a thief we can do whatever we like with? Not yet?"

The Five Elders, united as one, are probably dangerous. Even I sort of thought so.

For now, I'll give all these items to her as a token of apology for the trouble. Go ahead, go ahead.

Ah, the scones are delicious. What kind of jam is this? Flowers? Huh. So there's such a thing as flower jam.