805 Talking to Bear and Mane Part 2 - Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear

"Even if that Luthum had a terrible personality, she was supposed to be quite strong." Well, it's understandable that they can't imagine a girl dressed like a bear defeating the captain of the knights. "Normally, it would be unbelievable. Moreover, do you remember the monster dismantling event organized by the Adventurer's Guild a while back? The cockatrice and wyvern presented there were subdued by her." Ellelaura begins to reveal my secrets one by one. "Wait a moment. You fought a cockatrice and a wyvern? And you defeated them... That's impossible." "Well, I couldn't believe it when I first heard about it myself... but we're talking about Yuna-chan." What does she mean by "because it's Yuna-chan"? That phrase isn't a magical word to make anyone understand. "It might be hard to believe, but it's the truth." For some reason, Ellelaura is boasting as if it's her own achievement. "I even received some of the materials from the cockatrice and wyvern for my research lab." Really? "I thought the materials from that event were managed by the Adventurer's Guild?" "Yes, but it's free for anyone to purchase. Even the castle bought those precious materials." It's true that buying and selling is free. "Did you make something with them?" "I made a quill pen from the cockatrice's feather." "A quill pen?" When I asked, Mane stood up from her chair and walked over to a desk piled high with books. After searching for something, she exclaimed, "found it," and returned. "The cockatrice feather?" It's the feather that was aimed at me during the fight with the cockatrice. "This quill pen still contains a trace amount of the cockatrice's magic." Mane began to write something on a piece of paper she brought along with the quill pen. "...It's not writing?" Mane seemed to be writing, but no ink appeared on the paper. She smiled and suddenly, a red line appeared. The red line shifted to green, then blue, and finally black. "The color is changing." "If you adjust the amount of magic, the color changes. Isn't it fascinating?" She boasts, and indeed, it's impressive. "It's made with special ink too." "What’s the point of using a cockatrice feather?" "For the ease of channeling magic. With regular pens, magic doesn't flow easily through the ink. Fine magic adjustments are difficult. The cockatrice feather allows for a smoother magic flow and simpler adjustments. Would you like to try?" Mane handed me the quill pen, and I accepted it. I tried writing on the paper. At first, nothing appeared. But when I infused a bit of magic, a red line emerged. Wow. With further adjustments, I could change from light red to deep red. By putting in more magic, it changed to green, then blue, and eventually black. "Amazing." When I admired it, Mane looked pleased. "But when would you use this?" "I thought it might be useful for contracts. If the color changes while writing, it would be difficult to produce a duplicate." Replicating something in monochrome versus color? Color would definitely be more challenging. There's also an element of randomness involved. "It's tough to replicate, but using it for contracts is impractical." "Yes, that's why it was rejected." Certainly, even I understand why colorful pens can't be used for contracts. "Plus, the ingredients for the ink are costly, so it's not suitable for mass production or sale. It's a failed attempt." "I don't think it's a failure. You can learn from failed attempts. Despite the cost, artists might appreciate it." Using it for contracts may not work. But I think it has various potential uses. "That's true, Yuna-chan. In that case, why don’t you try it in a picture book?" "A picture book?" A question mark seems to appear over Mane's head. "Um, something like this." Ellelaura suddenly produces one of the picture books I drew. I swallow back my surprise that she has it. Mane takes the picture book and flips through it. "You even drew this kind of bear picture book?" "Eh, for Lady Flora." "Yuna-chan is an adventurer, a cook, and also a picture book artist." I’m neither a cook nor a picture book artist. I've been so lax as an adventurer that I'm not sure I should call myself one. With the way I've been traveling around, perhaps "explorer" might be a better fit. "Indeed. Then, I'll give you this pen." Mane offered the cockatrice feather quill to me. "Are you sure?" "Yes, it's not useful for anything at the moment. If I find another use for it, I can just make it again. I have the designs and the ink materials, the procedure for making it, all recorded and stored as materials, so I can recreate it anytime." "In that case, I'll gladly accept it." I accepted the quill pen. I'm a little happy about it. "I'll also give you the ink I made." Mane headed back to her book-filled desk and returned with a small bottle filled with ink. "It's transparent, isn't it?" "It changes color when you infuse magic." I placed the quill pen and ink vial into the Bear Box. Then, the conversation returned to earlier. "So, did a girl like you really defeat a cockatrice and a wyvern?" "If you find it hard to believe, you can confirm with Sanya." Ellelaura and Sanya, the guild master of the Adventurer's Guild, are aware of this. It's not surprising given their elven connection. "Really..." Mane looked at me, then at Kumayuru and Kumakyu. "I'll trust Ellelaura's word. She wouldn't send me into danger." It seems she trusts Ellelaura. Mane shifted her gaze from Ellelaura back to me. "Yuna, would you be willing to be my escort? Of course, I'll pay for your services." "Before that, is the place you're going to so dangerous?" If it's dangerous, I can't casually accept the task. If it's just me, I can manage. But if I have to protect someone else, that’s a different story. "I'm looking for a particular material. It was recently discovered in a forest west of the royal capital. But the forest is deep and dangerous. I did put in a request for an escort with the Adventurer's Guild, but they refused, not wanting to escort someone who looks like a child. It’s quite rude since I'm not a child." It’s understandable; she looks like a child. "That's not the only reason. Taking someone into a dangerous forest carries its own risks, so they likely decided it was too difficult to ensure your safety." The difficulty level drastically changes with or without an escort. In games, there were events involving the escort of civilians, and during those fights, how many times did the escorted NPC perish? "In that case, why not ask someone else to do the collecting instead of going yourself?" "The method of collection is quite specialized, and I can't entrust it to anyone else. I have to go and gather it myself." "There are similar items, and there's a risk of confusing them." It's true; there are flowers that look alike. A single extra petal, or a slightly different leaf shape. Even if I were asked, as an amateur, I wouldn't be able to tell them apart. "So, since I couldn't find an escort, I asked Ellelaura about requesting knights or magicians from the castle. But..." Mane glanced at Ellelaura. "I couldn't get approval." "Why not? Mane, you work here at the Ministry of Magic, right? If the materials are for research, you should be able to get permission." "This collection is a personal matter. I can't use the castle's knights or magicians for personal reasons." "Yet, Ellelaura, you did mobilize knights for the bandit subjugation." When I first arrived in the royal capital, they deployed knights for bandit extermination. "That was to ensure the safety of people heading to the capital. This situation is personal to Lady Mane." Still, I think they could at least provide some escort. But if a private individual was going into a dangerous area and used police officers for protection, they would likely face criticism. "What's this personal matter? Is it worth the risk?" "Well..." Mane hesitated a little. "If Yuna-chan is going to be your escort, it's okay to tell her." Mane watched me, contemplating deeply. "When you first saw me, you thought it was strange, right?" I looked at Mane more closely. "Um, you did seem quite young." Despite being an elf, she appeared quite youthful. Even Ruimin has matured. Assuming she's around the same age as Sanya the elf, it's odd. "Half-elves don't stop growing..." "That's not the case." Right. "There’s a reason why I’ve stopped growing. My mother was an herbology researcher. She met my father, who was well-versed in plants, and they became close, which is how I was born. My mother researched herbology, and my father would bring home rare plants for her to study. I used to play in my mother's laboratory from a young age. But at some point, I realized I wasn’t growing. While other children grew bigger, I stayed small. My parents didn’t mind at first, but after years passed without any growth, even they started to think it was odd for a half-elf. So they investigated. As a child, I had a habit of putting anything in my mouth. My mother thought it might have been because I ingested some herbs or such from her lab." "Really?" "There was an anomaly with the magic inside my body. But at the time, we couldn't determine what was affecting it. We didn’t know which herbs I might have ingested, in what quantity, how much time had passed since ingestion, or if I swallowed other things simultaneously. Frankly, I don’t remember any of that." Indeed, if someone asked me what I ate a year ago, I wouldn't remember. Especially if they asked about amounts or sequences—there's no way I could provide an answer.