"Haha, I think I misheard you." The Servant giggled menacingly. "I think you called my greatest work only an Eight out of ten."
"You're basically just copying yourself. How could you call this your greatest work?" I replied. "You were going to introduce yourself as Leonardo Da Vinci, yes?" She nodded. "Oh, by the way, do you still want to be called that? I don't want to presume since you made yourself a woman."
It was easy to guess her identity once I took a look around the room in addition to some other small clues. There were drawings and blueprints with designs that were rather iconic and conntected to a well known artist.
She blinked, smiling lightly as the tension eased. "That's sweet. I don't really care about Gender. Man, woman, what's the difference, my Genius transcends all of that. So, feel free to just call me Da Vinci-chan~"
"Da Vinci it is." I nodded. "I'm actually a little bit of a fan."
"Oh?" She perked up. "What one of my works is your favorite?"
"That's hard to decide." I tapped my chin. "I want to pick out one specific project of yours, but honestly, I think my favorite overall were the plethora of designs that basically predicted a lot of modern inventions. Though, honestly, all of your works are cultural icons that make it hard to choose a favorite."
"Those old things?" She flipped her hair back with a bright smile. "Those was just some doodles I scribbled when I was bored. But I suppose it's to be expected from a genius like myself."
"I wish I had been told you were here beforehand; I would have prepared something proper to ask for your autograph."
She let out a cute laugh. "Oh, that's kind of you to say. I really do appreciate that my works have managed to survive and continue to inspire people even centuries later."
"…..what's happening." Olga said in confusion. "You insulted her looks, and now she's happy."
"That was that, and this is this." Da Vinci shrugged. "It's obvious for him to lavish me with praise, even if he seems to be a bore that can't recognize beauty perfected when he sees it.."
"She introduced herself as a craftsman, not a model of sorts. I was critiquing her work in that same spirit, not insulting her looks." I defended myself. "And I disagree that it's a representation of perfection."
I would never be so crass to just wantonly critique a woman's looks with blatant disregard. However, it was obvious she had been promoting herself as the crafter, more so than propping herself up through her own looks.
"I suppose everyone's entitled to an opinion, no matter how wrong it is."
"I couldn't agree more."
We stared at one another for a moment, a twitching smile was on her face. "Says the person whose eyes lingered on my legs for an extra .32 seconds."
"Well, they're nice legs." Was she trying to fluster me?
Hah!
Though, the corners of her lips curled up. "They are, aren't they?" She looked at me coquettishly, her dainty hand lowered down to the hem of her skirt, a single finger tugging on it, raising it up an inch. "One might even say perfect."
"W-what are you doing you perverted Servant!" Olga squeaked out. I almost forgot she was there, as Da Vinci understandably held my full attention for the moment. But the Director was sporting a very red face as she threw her finger at the Servant in accusation. "B-Be decent you scoundrel!"
"You can marvel at my perfect form as well, Director, I don't mind~" The Servant stopped her act with a laugh, plopping back into her seat. Though, she did have a little smug look about her when she noticed I gave her Legs another glance. "Can't take your eyes away, hmm? It seems that someone isn't being honest."
"I've seen better." I said nonchalantly, making her smile twitch again.
"Hmph, playing hard are you? I'll make you admit to my perfection sooner or later." She relaxed, the playfulness of hers settled back down. I could more or less parse her personality from the first few moments. I didn't feel like she would be truly insulted when I made that comment. "Atleast you're more fun than most of the other Magi here, stuffy blowhards."
"I'll take that as a compliment from the great Da Vinci." I chuckled. "Even if that's not much of a threshold to overcome."
"Will you two stop flirting!" Olga stomped her foot.
"Oh fine." Da Vinci exhaled. "I guess we'll get started on the boring stuff, then I can go back to my own projects. What can I do for you, Director? I assume it has something to do with the blind Magus you brought. Do you need me to make him a Mystic Code to repair his vision? That may be a task that even a Genius such as I would find difficult."
"It's weird, I've never had a problem with my vision before." I replied with a rather dry tone. "Maybe it's someone else who's blind and projecting a little bit here."
"Enough." Olga huffed. "I don't care if you two hate each other but stop bickering and wasting my time."
"I don't hate her." I shook my head.
"Why would you think that?" Da Vinci also blinked in confusion.
Olga covered her face, letting out a groan. "Just…..let's settle what we came here for. We were going to request –"
"Mystic Codes for those cute B-Team members you're training, yeah, I know." Da Vinci interrupted. "I mostly got the designs ready."
"….how?" Olga questioned softly.
"Did you not hear me earlier when I said I hacked the surveillance system for the training rooms?" Da Vinci once again said it with complete nonchalance. "Do keep up."
"Wonderful, that saves some time." I interjected, noticing the fuming expression that Olga had. "What were your thoughts?"
"Tricky, tricky." Da Vinci tapped her chin. "But I managed to get something that should work. You may give me your praise." She beamed/said/preened as she grabbed a piece of paper out of a stack at the desk she was sitting at, shoving it into my hands.
I looked it over and couldn't help but be impressed. "Did you copy the idea of my Talisman Shield and add it on?"
….how long ago did I even show that off?
"It was a quaint spell." She shrugged. "For people who have no knowledge of Spell craft I had to tone down any of my usual inventions to something they could properly manage."
"Give me that." Olga growled, still seething as she tugged it out of my hands. "A modified uniform, acceptable. You added in Spells with a single activation phrase. The power is limited, and you focused nearly entirely on utility. I suppose it's the best we can expect in these circumstances."
"Using a form of Displacement Magecraft, the Shielding Spell can be used on oneself or the target of choice." I leaned over Olga's shoulder, further reading the document. "An elegant change and one I hadn't considered. Even more so when it still completely retains the simplicity of pointing and saying 'Shield' to actualize."
It will certainly be a useful tool, and one capable for them to learn to use without much effort.
"Of course, who do you think I am?" Da Vinci preened. "I had to make room for something like that, along with the Healing Spell, and for offense I included a Gandr Spell. Obviously, they all have a set amount of uses before they have to recharge, but for complete beginners, it's the best I can manage. That being said, it originally included a strengthening spell, but that's pointless if you're teaching them Reinforcement. So….you have room to add another spell if you're fine with what I've created already; even though we both know the answer to that."
The smuggness in her tone was not hidden whatsoever. "What about a binding spell similar to what I used?"
She tapped her chin in thought. "I can manage that easily enough."
"When do you think you can have them all done, so I can schedule them to get some practiel use with the training simulation?"
"Today's Tuesday so – Friday, since I do have something else I need to wrap up." She hummed.
"Really? You can get them all done in threeish days? That's really impressive." I was being completely genuine. Looking over the designs for their uniforms, it wasn't standard material she was going to work with. And she was going to make some decent Mystic Codes, as simplified as possible, which was not an easy take, and get it all done in a few days.
"Well, I can have 80% of it done three days." She said cheerfully.
I had to resist the urge to let out a sigh. "You're going to hold a grudge, aren't you?"
"Let's call it eight tenths of a grudge."
Ah well, I suppose I asked for that.
I like her though.
[***]
I hummed to myself as I walked down the corridors of the facility. A small smile and nodded as I greeted the other staff members.
I've been here for…. A couple weeks now, give or take a day or two. At this point, I think my face was becoming familiar.
And I could more or less figure out where everything was here. Having explored the corners when I had free time meant no more getting lost!
With a pep in my step, I pushed open the door leading to the facilities library. It was open to basically anyone, but it was practically empty this time of day. I think it got most of its use later in the evening when a good portion of the staff clocked out.
One of the benefits of the job was the extensive amount of knowledge they gathered here. There was a good chunk of the staff that were Magi of first and second generations. They mostly composed of non-essential positions, but in return for their several years of service, they could have access to things like this. A library filled with many different crafts, albeit nothing of any true secrecy but some rare and obscure works could be found here. It was leagues beyond the resources available to those first and second-generation families that were trying to muddle through by themselves without any foundation.
This was of course, just one of many benefits the staff here would receive for their work. They were dedicating literal years of their life to this place, but they were certainly not losing out for their contributions.
Once I stepped through the threshold, I did notice someone else in here. "Fancy seeing you here." I waved to Hinako who sat quietly in a corner, reading a book. She obviously noticed me when I walked in.
"Did you need something or did you just come here to bother me?" The Elemental slammed her book shut, sending me a glare.
"I didn't even know you were here." I blinked in confusion at her sudden burst of anger. "But if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were avoiding me." I haven't seen her since the day in the simulation room awhile ago.
And despite Wodime's insistence on my training with A-Team, they haven't had any team training exercises recently.
"I was." She huffed.
"Do you really have to be so blunt about it, maybe spare my feelings a little? I don't think I've done anything to earn this kind of response."
"You blackmailed me."
"Because you basically kidnapped me and tried to blackmail me first."
"I did not kidnap you." She scowled.
"What do you call forcing a young and impressionable youth to a dark corner away from prying eyes?" I countered.
"Young and impressionable?!" she scoffed.
"I'm barely in my twenties, y'know."
"Like I would believe that." She accompanied that a very visible eye role.
"And that's only because I spent time in a place that time flowed differently. Based on my birthday, I'm barely out of high school. Actually, I'm a high school drop out."
It was still a funny thought. Honestly, I think the only one who would care about that would be Venelana, and not in the way of being ashamed or anything. I don't think she cares about human education. Speaking of, I should call her, well, her and the others. I think it might be important with her since she's the newest to my Harem and as such I wanted to make sure she knows I value our relationship
"I can't tell if you're lying or not and it's concerning me."
"Why would I lie about something like this?" I shrugged, not really caring if she believed me or not.
"How would I know why one of your kind does anything?"
"One of my kind? That sounds vaguely racist. And you don't even know what race I am, considering my mother was human, I'm pretty sure you have no idea." I faced the nearest bookshelf, looking over the titles.
"I am not racist!"
"Sounds like something a racist would say." I barely held back the snicker as I pulled a book from the shelf. I briefly flipped through the pages before putting it back. "But you keep assuming I'm a Divine Spirit when I'm really not. As I said, I'm barely into my twenties and my mom was human."
"Then how else do you have Divinity and an Authority! That's not just something you can pick up on the street." She huffed in annoyance.
I turned back and looked at her with a completely straight face. "I usurped it from the deity I killed." I didn't elaborate and turned back around.
Another scoff I heard told me that she wasn't believing me.
Oh well.
"Though, I was adopted by a Goddess. I go to visit her sometimes, she's really sweet. Oh, and one of my best friends is a Goddess, I go to her death realm to visit her sometimes as well. And then there's my lover who's an Eldritch Goddess –"
"Stop mocking me." She growled, slamming her book on the table.
"If you say so." I whistled innocently, going back to doing what I was doing.
Specifically, I was looking for a few books on theory for my team to study in their down time. I couldn't keep shoving lectures down their throats and running their bodies rampant. They did need some down time but that could be spent casually reading some helpful materials.
The only issue was that I was not a beginner, and I was having trouble filling in all the gaps they would need. It's been…..way too long since I had to think with that mindset. Even when I regained my memories, I never thought of myself as a novice. Sure, I was not well equipped and had to build myself back up, but my foundation was solid beyond reproach.
That's not to mention all the miscellaneous knowledge I accumulated in my past life that I inherited.
"What are you looking for." I cast a sideways glance at Hinako who had approached me by her own accord. Her tone was a lot….softer than it was just moments prior.
"Want me out of your hair quicker? Relax, I'll stop bothering you once I get what I came here for." I put another book back onto the shelf, ignoring her presence.
"Look, I'm sorry, alright? I didn't meant to come off as a bitch. I'm just…..not used to dealing with other people, and you're…..making me nervous by just being here." She said quietly. "You're right, I was the one who forced us together and started everything."
I looked at her for a moment before relenting. Honestly didn't expect her to apologize, she seemed like the type to keep doubling down regardless of the circumstances. "Alright, apology accepted. I can understand where you're coming from. Even if we reached an agreement, I'm sure you've been feeling anxious about everything. I don't know what this Servant means to you, but obviously they're very important that you don't want your chances ruined." And it was left unsaid that my own offer, that she seemingly accepted last time, she was still a little skeptical about.
"….my husband." She whispered. "He was my husband."
"Oh." I was unsure of how to respond to that.
There was a small but awkward silence that ensued before she spoke up again. "What are you looking for, maybe I can help?" She offered, and I happily took the chance to change the subject. I did not expect her to be so honest like that and it took me completely off guard.
"Study materials for my team for their down time. They're complete and utter novices, as you know, so I wanted something to help them learn and put them in the right mind set. Maybe a couple books on self-hypnosis since I will be touching on that soon enough."
"I'll check on the other shelf, and start pulling things off I think will help." She replied, immediately going to the side to start scanning through the books. "I haven't found anything yet."
"…..yeah, we just started looking."
"No, I mean, I was looking into things, quietly of course, and I haven't found anything out of the ordinary about what's going on." She clarified, taking a book off and tossing it on the nearby table before continuing.
"You mean you didn't conveniently overhear someone's diabolic plans as they conveniently explained it step by step in detail?" I let out a faux noise of surprise.
The Elemental let out a snort of amusement. "Unfortunately, no convenient villainous monologue."
"Mmm, have you tried putting Lev infront of a mirror? Maybe he'll start practicing when no one's watching."
"….after you mentioned him, he's been giving me an unsettling feeling. I knew he wasn't human already, but I didn't really care. But now that I'm paying attention, it's obvious he has something against you. And I have no idea what he is."
"He was antagonistic the moment I first met him. And oddly enough, I feel the same way towards him, and I have no idea why. My current theory is that our bloodlines just don't mesh well, but...I'm not entirely convinced."
"I don't suppose you're going to tell me what you are?"
"What aren't I? I'm part God, part Dragon, Part Angel, Part Devil, Part –"
"Can you be serious?" She huffed, tossing another book onto the growing pile. "I guess it's not my place. Not like I go around wanting humans to know about my background."
I smiled and chuckled lightly. "It's not like I expected this to be easy. But I also appreciate the effort."
"I did it for what you promised." She grunted, tossing one last book onto the table before stopping. "And this should be enough for now, what do you think?"
I carried a few more books myself, adding them to the pile. "Looks good, thanks."
"You're really acting as B-Teams leader." She said, looking over what we collected. "You're not just playing around."
"Of course. The moment they put their lives into my hands, I made a promise to do what I could to make sure they survive while we settle this singularity. Honestly, I hope they don't get deployed, but I'll do what I can to help them if they do."
"Does that include revealing yourself?" She asked.
I paused only for a brief moment. "They're my subordinates, I'll do what I have to in order to protect them."
"….I'm starting to believe you aren't a Divine Spirit. The ones I've met in the past would never care about humans like you apparently do."
"I think that's the nicest thing you've said to me."
She crossed her arms with an eye roll. "Don't get used to it."
I couldn't help but chuckle a little bit. Looking at her relaxed posture, I thought maybe we could actually get along. "Takao Shimoda."
"What?" She looked at me in confusion.
"Maybe we got off on the wrong foot before" I held my hand up. "Takao Shimoda, it's the name my mom gave me. It's not the name I normally use, but it's not necessarily fake either."
She looked down at my hand before letting out a sigh and taking it in hers. "Hinako Akuta, It's not my real name, but it's what I go by here."
I think I saw the tiniest hint of a smile as she said that.
[***]
Meant to release this chapter with the one earlier today, but I only got like 3 hours of sleep and couldn't do it in time.
If you want to read 7 chapters ahead or support me, visit my p.a.t.r.e.o.n.c.o.m / astoryforone