The first thing Mira heard after coming out of the tent was a couple of lively voices.
「I chopped the veggies.」
「Ah, put them in this bowl.」
「I’m done washing the pan.」
「I’m almost done setting things up here, hold onto it for a bit longer.」
There were four people there. Red, White, and two others Mira had not seen before. They were all around Red, who was manning the grill, and Mira felt a bit out of place seeing how busy they appeared, but then one of them spotted Mira in front of the tent and ran to her.
「I guess you’re Mira? I’m Green, nice to meet you! It’s already late though, is it alright if she stays with us for the night?」
Green was a woman with shoulder-length chestnut hair. She smiled brightly as she spoke with a cheerful and high timbre voice. Her body was covered in a coat with reinforced patches in vital spots, and some of the many dozens of weapons concealed inside peeked from the seams.
「Hmm that’s indeed true. I’ll spend the night here, thank you.」
If she flew away as soon as she was out of the Tenma Labyrinth then she would have been able to reach Hunters Village late in the night, but if she headed out now, she would get there at dawn the next day. Thinking about it for a moment, eventually she nodded to Green and thanked her for their hospitality.
「Of course she can stay if she wants!」
「But we only have beds for us…what should we do about that?」
The other unknown person spoke, a woman with a languid-sounding voice that currently held a knife in one hand and a halfway cut rotund vegetable in the other one, which resembled a pumpkin.
That woman was slightly taller than Mira, but her body was much more robust. The unkempt dark red hair and thick eyebrows made it obvious to Mira that she was a dwarf.
「Also hi Mira~ I heard about you from White, I’m-」
「Wait, I’ll try to guess!」
Before the dwarf lady could finish her introduction, Mira stopped her and went through the names she had heard already.
(They all seem to use colors as code names, they are called the multicolor platoon after all. I’ve met Blue, White, Red, Geren, and their leader Silver. So I guess colors like Gold and Silver are reserved for high-ranking members, which would leave…)
Mira continued thinking which colors were missing there. She could think of a couple.
(Black… that’s not really a feminine-sounding name. Then Pink… hmmm, not really, as pretty as it is, it’s not colorful enough. What color would fit her carefree appearance…)
She arbitrarily thought of rules for the names, trapping herself in her own thoughts as she fished out a response from amongst her mistaken beliefs.
「You are Yellow!」
「I’m Purple.」
Mira announced with unfounded but absolute confidence, but the correction was a color that had not even popped up in the corner of her mind.
「…that’s not fair.」
Something seemed to crumble into small pieces inside Mira as she cowered in shame under the light of lamps dispelling the darkness of the night.
「…What happened to Mira?」
When Blue came out of the tent, she found Mira curled into a ball, hiding in the shadows of the lively preparations happening around. That took him by surprise, and once he recollected his thoughts he asked White.
「To put it somehow, she’s like the detective that announced the perpetrator was in the room, when in fact he was far away.」
「What does that even mean…」
Blue’s brows lifted at the quizzical response that explained nothing, even though Mira’s back twitched hearing that.
「Basically, she’s ashamed of something she brought upon herself.」
Recalling Mira’s confident expression from earlier, White took her fingertips to cover her lips as she chuckled before telling the whole story to Blue.
「Well… that certainly sounds embarrassing. I wonder why she thought of Yellow.」
「Same.」
Mira had succeeded in spicing up Blue and White’s usual boring conversations.
Hearing their entertained voices, Silver came out from the tent as well, quickly being informed of Mira’s mishap. At first, a complex expression took over his face, remembering the existence of that medal, but when he saw Mira’s curled up body, he burst out laughing without caring about it anymore.
「Now now, little lady. Dinner is no time to be sulking around, and what happened is no reason to feel so ashamed. If you heard Blue’s war stories he’d be in a far worse state than you are now, but he chose to live without care, just look at him standing up straight with that cheeky smile.」
Silver approached the corner Mira was hiding in, speaking in a low voice only she could hear. She slowly lifted her face hearing him and turned to look to where he was pointing. Blue stood there, manning the grill with a relaxed face.
「Now listen, he might look that way now, but there was this time…」
Silver told her stories of Blue’s past, and when Mira heard all of it she finally stood up with a clear expression.
「Even if it’s a bit embarrassing, that was nothing in comparison to other stuff I’ve done.」
「Exactly, that’s why you shouldn’t think that something so small is reason to be embarrassed around us.」
Silver smiled happily, Mira standing at his side while Blue also spoke kindly to her.
「Silver, Mira, we’re about to start so come here.」
「Alright, we’ll go in a bit.」
Red finished the preparations at the grill and called out to the two who were sitting at the side of the tent. Silver raised one hand signaling he was on his way, while Mira nodded quickly.
When everyone was together, Blue handed Mira a cup.
「Let’s start with a toast, you sit on your usual spot sir, and Mira you go to Green’s side.」
Mira took the cup, then Green placed her hand on Mira’s shoulder and took her to the side with all the other females.
There was a large circular grill on top of the fire, with many plates with raw food on them around it. Everyone was standing in a circle, and when Silver was in his spot, Red took the lead speaking.
「Today is a very important day for us, now that we’ve captured a member of Chimera. This was accomplished thanks to Blue and White, as well as the much-appreciated help received from Mira. Now to celebrate the occasion, I’ve gone all out gathering the best meat around here, so enjoy as much as you want. Cheers!」
「「Cheers!」」
Their synchronized voices resounded through the night sky as they raised their cups and lightly hit them against each other. The collisions made some drops spill onto the grill, creating a sizzling sound that only made the moment all that better. Next, everyone began placing their favorite ingredients on the grill filling the surrounding area with a mouthwatering smell and cheerful voices.
After the celebration was over, it was time to put everything away before calling it a night, and everyone went to their respective tent. The tents were separated into one for females and one for males. Mira felt like she had eaten too much as White guided her wobbly feet towards the females’ tent when something happened.
「Hm…?」
They heard the sound of grass rustling from somewhere hidden under the darkness of the forest, as well as a pair of eyes that spied on them.
「It’s something small, it shouldn’t be a problem.」
「Yeah, looks that way.」
The two instantly activated Life Sensing to figure out what it was, but they only got a small reading, so assuming it was just a small animal living in the forest, they opened the tent. But just when they were about to enter inside it, the thing came out of the forest and darted in a straight line towards Mira.
「You are…!」
It had a slick shape that could easily run away if it felt endangered, but it still approached Mira’s feet. It was the rabbit with blue fur, a Pure Rabbit said to bring good luck.
It looked up at Mira, pleading to be carried with soft cries. Mira could not resist it and knelt down to embrace it in her arms.
「Is that a Pure Rabbit? I’ve never seen one before. I only heard that they’re really shy so it’s rare to see one. But this one looks used to people.」
White spoke as she peeked over Mira’s shoulder to see the animal, but when the rabbit noticed White was looking, it became frightened and scurried inside Mira’s chest. At the same time, White looked dejected, noticing it was not used to people after all.
Pure Rabbits normally would never let themselves be seen, or even less approach someone, but this one seemed to feel reassured in Mira’s arms as it squeaked happily while indulging in Mira’s care.
「Did… you follow me all the way here?」
There was only one Pure Rabbit Mira recalled being friendly with her, the one she found before entering the Tenma Labyrinth. Thinking about that, Mira immediately summoned Cait Sith.
A small magic circle appeared, a multitude of kittens jumping out to perform a line dance before exploding into confetti leaving only Cait Sith in the center. He remained in his finishing pose, turning only his head in expectation towards Mira.
「Hmm, not too bad. 8 points.」
「That’s meow highest score so far!」
The cat in wizard clothes held a 「I’m so moved」 sign high with both hands, while someone spoke behind Mira.
「Who’s this cute kitty…」
White’s eyes glistened as she looked at the cat that suddenly appeared there. Cait Sith looked surprised at first, then resting his elbow on the sign while saying 「You have good taste」, the sign glowing with 「’Tis everyone’s idol」 written on it.
「But anyway, first lieutenant, can you be my interpreter for this bunny?」
Saying that, Mira showed the Pure Rabbit she held to Cait Sith.
「Peowsy of cake.」
Cait Sith announced pridefully while thumping his chest. 「Let’s do this then」 Mira patted his head before starting to converse with the Rabbit through Cait Sith, asking why it was there.
After their talk, Mira was slightly worried, while also gently petting the blue rabbit’s head.
The Pure Rabbit had really followed Mira all the way there, lying in wait until most of the people around here were gone before showing itself. As to why, it simply wanted to be with Mira. That made Mira’s heart melt, but also worry terribly. Thinking about it objectively, Mira would constantly be flying from one place to another to accomplish her mission, and that included going to really dangerous places. In other words, she could not take the Pure Rabbit with her all the time.
「I’m really happy you think of me that way, but I’ll often go to dangerous places… so I might not be able to protect you properly, so this isn’t really…」
Cait Sith translated Mira’s words to the Pure Rabbit, and when it heard them it looked down, the hopeful glint in its eyes vanishing as it squeaked in a more sad tone. Its ears also plopped down, the happy appearance it had earlier crumbling into dust as it rolled its body into a lonely ball.
Mira’s heart was split in two. She knew she would end up going to places where she had to be very careful to come out alive, so it would be hard to keep watch on the Pure Rabbit at the same time. So thinking that one mistake on her end could end the life of a creature that got so attached to her made her feel even more heartbroken.
「Couldn’t you just leave it with someone you trust to watch over it during those times? I also leave my little Pinya at a friends’ place when I go out. And ah, Pinya is my kitty, she’s even cuter than that cat there.」
「Meow did you say?!」
White spoke with a sweet and indulging voice, showing how fond she was of Pinya. Still, the unexpected comparison at the end caught Cait Sith off guard and he drooped his head while the sign read 「That’s a bit excessive」.
But that still made Mira aware of that possibility, there was nothing saying she had to be with the rabbit all year round, so she had plenty of other options. Cait Sith helping with communicating with the little animal also helped to make the process seamless, as opposed to a simple owner-pet relationship most people would have.
Thinking it through, Mira told her conditions to Cait Sith, so he could pass them on to the Pure Rabbit. In short, the Pure Rabbit would not accompany Mira all the time, but it could stay at her home as long as it pleased. There was someone else living there as well, so it would have to listen to her as well though. But on the bright side, they would be able to spend a lot of time together every time she was back from a mission. The last bit was purely Mira’s desire, if possible she would want to be with the creature all the time, but since she wanted to avoid putting it in danger it was best if it stayed at her home. Those were her conditions for the rabbit.
When Cait Sith finished translating all of that, the Pure Rabbit raised its head and jumped into Mira’s chest. It squeaked happily again, rubbing its face against her.
「Those are good conditions, and I’ll listen to anything that person says so please take me with you, it says meow.」
「I’m glad everything could work out.」
After Cait Sith communicated the Pure Rabbit’s reply, White was teary-eyed for some reason as she nodded firmly.
Mira thanked Cait Sith and sent him back, then hugged the Pure Rabbit that had just become her beloved pet and walked into the tent together with White. Green was there getting the beds ready, but when she saw the blue rabbit she silently ran over and grinned as she looked at it from up close. This time it entirely trusted Mira’s care as it did not shake nor try to escape as the two others petted him to their hearts’ content.
Purple, on the other hand, had already fallen asleep before Mira came into the tent. She had completed her duties earlier than anyone else that day, so halfway through dinner, she had reached her limit. Now she was happily snoring away the weariness.
「I only need a bit of space, I have plenty of high-quality pelts, so I’ll make do with them for the rest.」
The Multicolor platoons moved in small groups, so they always packed the bare minimum necessary so they could quickly relocate if necessary. That meant they had no equipment ready for any guests, so Mira had no choice but to borrow a bit of space from someone else.
White and Green looked more than pleased to oblige with that. Mira had the pelts she used to warm herself up during her flying trips, wrapping herself in it as she curled into a tight space left in the tent. The sleeping space for the other girls could hardly be called a bed either, it was more like an oversized sleeping bag made with an emphasis on comfort. Fitting two adults in one would have been a bit too tight, but with Mira’s petite frame there would be no problem in getting her inside.
「Nights get really cold during this season.」
「Yeah, and if you sleep in a cramped place like that your body will be all sore tomorrow. Come sleep inside here with me, it might look a bit wonky but it’s actually really comfortable.」
White and Green kept inviting her like that, but Mira firmly shook her head. She still felt a certain guilt when thinking about sleeping together with a woman.
Eventually, the two gave up and let Mira sleep the way she wanted.
She took her coat off and laid down in the pelts. It was not the most comfortable way of sleeping, but she still fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. The Pure Rabbit followed her too, cuddling against her.
When her relaxed breaths filled the tent, White and Green gently carried her into one of their sleeping bags, careful to not wake her up. The Pure Rabbit noticed that, looking up at her body being carried, and tottered after her. Once she was inside White’s sleeping bag, it quickly secured the spot next to her.
「…It took it…」
The blue rabbit had claimed the space to Mira’s side, plopping on the very middle of the sleeping bag. Because of that, White and Green ended up having to sleep in the same sleeping bag, pretty much hugging each other to fit in.
After the night was over and the sun once again shone brightly outside, Mira woke up naturally and looked around with a languid gaze.
「Ah… I slept here…」
She muttered as she recalled how she came to spend a night in the Fifty Bells Union’s camp, but something felt off about the exact spot where she woke up.
She recalled going to sleep in a corner of the tent, wrapped in pelts, but at some point, she had been transported to a place with a soft mat under her. The Pure Rabbit was also there, still sleeping happily, but White, Green and Purple were absent, though their voices could be heard outside, talking in a low whispering tone.
(They worry too much for no reason.)
A soft smile sprouted on her lips as she put on the coat she had folded beside her pillow, happy and thankful she had a pleasant wake up time, and carefully got out of the tent while being careful not to wake the Pure Rabbit. The women were preparing breakfast, but they all stopped when they saw Mira.
「Oh, good morning. Did you sleep well?」
White spoke as she began straightening Mira’s disarranged hair and clothes.
「Good morning Mira, breakfast will be ready soon. Is there anything you dislike in here by the way?」
Green was holding a bowl with many ingredients as she greeted Mira.
「Good morning, there’s a shower over there, so feel free to use it.」
Purple pointed to a conical-shaped tent hung on a branch a few paces away from there.
「Mm, Morning. I slept really well thanks to you all. Also, I’m fine eating anything in there.」
As Mira replied, Purple handed her a large towel.
「There’s a towel hanger inside, so just leave it there when you’re done showering.」
「Alright, thanks for everything.」
Thanking them, Mira went to take a shower. The tent was of bright green color, and the interior was split into two layers. There was a changing room and the actual shower.
Mira took her coat off, then her dress and lastly her underwear, placing them on a simple shelf that was there. There was a lever for the shower, and when pulled water would drop from a hole in the roof of the tent. Mira used it until enough water came down, which was pleasantly warm.
The tent was only dimly lit, but Mira’s soft white skin still shone brightly. The drops of water trickled down her hair and face, spreading out from her neck to her arms and chest, continuing downwards. There were still traces of infancy in her appearance, but her limbs also had a more lady-like appearance to them, creating a wondrous scene covered in steam.
As the drops of water fell on her body, the vestiges of sleepiness were washed away and Mira stretched out as far as she could. The sound of water drops hitting the floor seemed to be intermittent, becoming louder and then lower again continuously for as long as Mira stayed in the shower.
When Mira was done thoroughly washing her body, she took the towel lent to her and dried her entire body while relishing the satisfying feeling of fabric against her skin. Then she opened her Item Box and took out her clothes basket from it, selecting the underwear that spoke to her the most at the moment and wore it.
Finally done changing, Mira came out of the shower tent and found the rest of the members all around the fireplace.
「Oh, sorry. Did I keep you all waiting?」
That was Mira’s first reaction, but White turned around and denied it.
「Don’t worry, the men are still all half asleep. But isn’t your hair still all drenched? You should dry it more carefully.」
Saying that, White made Mira sit on a chair before standing behind her and combing through her hair with bare hands, the strands slowly drying up as the fingers passed through them.
Feeling the slight weight of wet hair pulling down on her head was gone, Mira gently touched her dried hair and only felt a soft warmth remaining there.
「Hmm… was that some form of concept magic?」
As White combed Mira’s hair, she asked that.
「Yes, that’s exactly it… You never used it?」
「No, this is my first time seeing it.」
White had used one of the common life skills, which included skills useful to dry hair or clothes, purify water, create lights, and many other similar ones. Most of them had been developed in the last thirty years, since wet clothes or hair were no issue when everything was still a game. But that also meant that Mira was unaware of most common life skills.
「It’s best if you dry your hair quickly, having wet hair in cold weather can make you sick. Not to mention your hair is so pretty it’s a waste if you don’t take better care of it.」
The last bit was something White added in a murmur, mixed in with a sigh. She was jealous. After overcoming the weird sensation, Mira began curling her hair around her finger while thinking.
(Concept Arts huh… something like that does sound really useful. I guess I just have to figure out how to learn that…)
Concept Arts were a set of skills separate from all the other classes in existence of Magic, Saint, Sage, Onmyoji, Necromancy, Forbidden Arts, and Exorcist Arts. But the way of learning them had no consistent way, some even spontaneously becoming usable for a spellcaster.
For example, creating a light orb was one of the skills Mira knew how to use, and became usable after she spent around ten hours inside a dark place with only the light of a torch.
They ranged from really simple requirements to mind-melting complex ones. But that defined the essence of Concept Arts, and made it the skill tree with the most spells out of all the classes.
「So, about that skill-」
「You definitely should learn how to dry your hair. If you want…no, I’ll make you learn it.」
When Mira was about to ask for the requirements to learn the skill, White interrupted her, ready to do it. She simply could not bear thinking Mira being careless could end up ruining such beautiful hair.
Faced with White’s enthusiasm, Mira could only nod instinctively. In the end, it became a full-on lesson on many more skills on top of simply how to dry hair.
「So to wash my scalp I… then to rinse it… to dry it I just-… also when sleeping I can-…and when my rabbit needs a bath…」
When White’s lesson was over, Mira remained staring blankly into space, constantly repeating something under her breath like a brainwashed zombie. At the same time, her hair was being rearranged into two braids to either side of her head, making her look like an actual princess, and behind that stood White with a wide and proud smile having granted Mira that look.
By that time the men were pretty much all awake as well, and seeing Mira’s empty eyes they could easily piece together what happened. But they chose to pretend they saw nothing and breakfast started.
Halfway through, something darted out of the womens’ tent. The men took stances ready to defend themselves, but the blue blob ran up to Mira’s feet and squeaked at her.
「Ohh, you finally woke up.」
Saying that, Mira petted its head and carried it to her lap, quickly losing herself in petting it. White and Green also snuck their hands whenever there was an opening, while Purple hesitantly reached out to the soft fur. The men watched from afar.
「So that’s the Pure Rabbit I heard about earlier. I guess it really did come to bless us with good luck.」
「It’s so blue… it kinda makes me feel like we have a connection.」
「It truly looks so plump and tasty.」
The last one was Red, but it made everyone present turn around and stare daggers into him, White being the last one to turn against him, while Mira was just one step before using her Magic Eyes.
「It was just a joke…」
He looked around flustered, fearing for his life, before grabbing a bit of leftover salad and holding it in front of the Pure Rabbit’s nose.
「Here, I bet you must be hungry. Eat as much as you want.」
The Pure Rabbit’s nose moved up and down as it began eating those leaves. Everyone there seemed to melt watching that cute creature eat, though Red was the only one who sighed heavily in relief having almost passed out before.
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