As Kumi had finished the divine cuisine given to her, she moved on to her room to rest since she was too tired to try and do anything else.
Opening the door, walking in and closing it behind her, Kumi checked the room just in case someone or something was hidden around.
'Mmm. Maybe I am a bit too cautious, though it helps with the evil 'Sparring' that Ayaka puts me through.'
She thought as she fell on her bed and took a deep breath. Sniffing the air a moment later, she slightly frowned.
'I need a wash.'
She had been outside in the earth and trees for a few days without any cleaning so the slight stench of sweat was rather noticeable.
Forcing herself to stand up, Kumi let out a light breath as she moved out of her room.
Walking through the corridors, she soon made it to Hilde's office and knocked on the door.
Just as she heard Hilde start a sentence, the door opened.
Ayaka happened to open it.
'Ah. No escape.'
Kumi muttered in her head.
Looking past Ayaka and toward Hilde, who seemed a little annoyed that she wasn't able to finish her sentence or greeting or whatever other reason she was pouting because of.
As Kumi, with her head tilted to the side, waited for Hilde to stop sighing, Ayaka was staring holes in her head.
'I didn't come for more training. Please stop. It's honestly a bit frightening.'
Yet Kumi still stayed unreadable.
Hilde finally turned her gaze towards Kumi.
"Hello Kumi, why might you be visiting? Everything okay or do you want to talk to me about Ayaka's training?"
Hilde asked with a light smile as she glanced towards Ayaka.
The person in question looking slightly annoyed and the slightest amount guilty.
"No. Bath."
"Ah. That's right, you haven't had a wash in a while have you, I'll inform the maids, they'll bring you a towel and some fresh clothes and show you where the bath is."
"Okay."
"You can wait in your room, it'll take a minute."
"mhm."
Kumi nodded as she glanced at Ayaka who was holding the door open and walked away.
Ayaka then closed the door when Kumi had turned the corner as she looked back towards Hilde.
"Right, back to it. I had asked what you think of her."
Hilde continued as she signed a piece of paper and placed it in an open and almost filled drawer.
"The training is going well, she should have a few rare Resistances already, the Training Skill is still a ways off for now I believe."
"Yes, that is the answer you gave to my first question. My second question was what do you think of her?"
Hilde said with a glance as she took another piece of paper from the pile next to her and read through it, waiting for an answer.
"..."
"No need to hold back, any criticism is fine."
"I think she's cute."
Hilde looked up from her paper.
"Now that's a surprise. The Timeless Knife calling someone cute."
Ayaka sighed.
"Don't call me that, I'm a maid now."
"Right, right. So anything else? Can you tell what she's thinking through that blank face of hers?"
"Not really, but I can discern a few emotions like anger, sorrow and dread."
"See the problem here is that she had all those emotions during training, right?"
Hilde asked as she tossed aside her surprise at learning that Ayaka could almost understand Kumi's reactions.
'Maybe they do have chemistry.'
Hilde thought as she waited for Ayaka's answer.
"That is a slight problem yes. But she won't quit. She seems prideful."
"She does?"
"Maybe prideful isn't the right word. She doesn't give up easily. I had taken some of the items she had crafted and stored them away. When she didn't find them she just started making new ones.
And when I released a bit of pressure as she was walking back to the mansion she immediately realised but didn't seem phased."
Hilde blinked.
"Wait. You did all that? And she can craft?"
"Yes and yes. Her crafts are rather mediocre and very bad but she uses them effectively at least. I did mention how she used barely visible strings in our sparring session did I not?"
"She made those? And why didn't you at least tell me you were doing all that? Ayaka, you said you were a maid now so act like one. Maids don't act behind their master's back."
Hilde said with finality in her voice.
"I understand and apologize. And I do believe she made it herself, it was crude and weak but not as weak as plant fibre or some other material. She most likely used her hair."
Hilde sighed.
"Hair? This just raises more questions. How cautious is she?"
"Quite."
"Right, well it isn't bad. Now, the next topic. I got the bracelet fully manufactured. It isn't very safe but it isn't fatal. Quite draining though."
Hilde said as she reached into her pocket and pulled out a black bracelet. It was covered in hundreds, maybe thousands of different hexagrams.
"It isn't quite morally acceptable but we don't have much of a choice now."
Hilde said and handed it over to Ayaka.
"She will survive, that is what matters. I will hand it over."
"Don't forget to rest yourself. And don't push her too far. The mental drain might cause problems."
"Understood."
Ayaka said and walked out of the office.
Bowing slightly as she closed the door behind her after leaving, Hilde waved goodbye with a concerned smile.
As the door closed, she went back to her work.
'I hope she won't hold a grudge because of this. It's all for survival.'
...
Waiting for a minute or two in her room, Kumi heard a knock at the door and opened it.
Two maids walked in, both holding briefcases.
'That's suspicious.'
Kumi thought as she welcomed the two maids inside.
"Hello."
"Good day miss Kumi. Would you like to choose your clothing and towel now or at the bath."
"Bath please."
Kumi politely and slightly bowed her head.
"Oh please, no need to act so politely with us, we are just maids after all."
One of the maids said as she smiled.
'Hard to believe considering Ayaka.'
"This way please, we will show you to the bath where you can pick out your towel and clothes."
The maids walked out of the room, holding the door open and waiting for Kumi to join.
"Thank you."
'So polite.'
The maids thought while smiling.
'I hope the threatening suitcases just have clothes and towels in them as they said.'
Following the two maids outside the mansion, they followed a side road towards a few bare grassland hills.
Checking in at a booth, they were easily allowed to pass as they moved towards one of the two large grassy hills.
'Don't tell me there's just a small bath at the top of each hill.'
Kumi hoped as she felt like she had walked through a thin veil of mana.
'What was...'
She thought as she looked behind her but was stunned as soon as she turned back around.
A rather tall quartz-coloured wall, about 2 metres. Inside the walls, she could see steam rising into the air.
'Ah. How does this hiding magic thing work? I guess it helps against people who try to peep or steal a glance or something?'
Kumi thought as she followed the two maids inside the walls.
'They don't seem surprised. I can see the outside of the barrier or veil from here but I couldn't see inside. I wonder if the other hill has the same place but for men?'
She wondered as she saw a stick figure with a dress at the side of the quartz wall.
'Strangely familiar, where have I seen this before?'
She wondered only to realise that the two maids were waiting for her a few metres in front of her.
"Ah, sorry."
"No need to apologize, miss, it is a rather pretty sight, is it not?"
One of the maids asked with a smile.
"It is."
Kumi said as she followed the two maids through another door and veil.
Now she could properly see a shower area and a hot bath area.
'Oh wow. This seems really nice. Pretty futuristic too.'
Kumi thought as the two maids walked to the side covered in smooth wooden lockers and opened the metal briefcases.
"Over here miss."
One of them said as Kumi moved towards them.
"Please, pick any clothes and towels that you would like."
The maids stepped aside as two seemingly empty briefcases lay before Kumi.
'Huh. Strange.'
Kumi moved closer to one of them only to see something seemingly strange and futuristic.
A thin circle of water was created in the briefcase, floating and showing a 2-dimensional picture of her with her current clothes.
'Whaaaatttt? This isn't fantasy, this is sci-fi!'
Kumi was honestly very pleased.
'Coooollll!'
Seeing a few other water circles appear, she started looking through the options.
'So this one picks the shoes and socks, the one here has shirts and jackets and the like while the third one has dresses and pants. I am immensely impressed!'
Skimming through the options, and thoroughly enjoying her time, the two maids just grinned slightly as they watched Kumi almost in a trance, every once in a while seeing her eyes slightly light up.
'Ahh, the innocence of youth.'
The maids thought as they enjoyed the show.
In the end, Kumi picked out white comfortable silk straight pants and a black long-sleeved jacket that reached her waistline and had a long spread collar that reached above her lips, blocking some of her face. The sleeves of the jacket were large enough to allow her to flop her hands around for entertainment and log enough to reach the first joints of her fingers. The jacket was tightened by one button on the collar and another on her chest. Below the rather thin jacket, she wore a long sleeve white shirt. Besides that, she also got some short pink socks and white running shoes.
'I like it. Black and white are good colours, even though I've seen enough of them. The fashion and magical technology here are astounding!'
Looking at the maids and motioning to them that she was done with her choices, the maids glanced at each other but didn't comment on her fashion choices.
'She'll look cute either way.'
They thought as they inserted mana and reached into the open briefcase, their hands disappearing.
'Space manipulation? Cool.'
Pulling out the clothes she had chosen, they placed them in a wooden locker.
"You can move on to the next one now."
The maid at her side said as Kumi went to pick out her towel.
A similar picture appeared but in this circle of water, she was practically naked, only covered by a long white towel.
'Huh. For towels you don't really need to look at yourself when choosing, do you?'
Kumi thought as she skimmed through the options.
Besides towels, there was also underwear to choose from.
'I'll just take this bland black towel and some random pair of panties, don't need any bra at this age.'
Kumi thought as she just picked a random pair of black panties.
The maids were visibly concerned as their eyes were slightly more widened than regular.
Though they chose not to comment on it and took out Kumi's underwear and towel for her.
Placing the items in the same locker, they helped Kumi take off her clothes and showed her how to effectively wash herself.
'First a shower and rinse with soap then you can chill in the hot bath and as you get out another quick rinse. Got it.'
Kumi thanked the two again as they exited the room and stood guard outside the door, talking to one another about nothing else but Kumi herself.
Kumi then had herself a wash and a quick rinse.
Moving to the hot bath after a while, she enjoyed the comfortable feeling of steaming water.
And as she opened her eyes and looked up, she had a heart attack as Ayaka stood above her, cold gaze in her eyes as usual.
'Jesus Christ!' Kumi moved her head down and sat half a metre away. Both to get distance from the silent assassin and to not have to keep looking at her from that uncomfortable position.
"Hello."
Kumi said.
"Did you wash before going in?"
"Yes."
"Good. I'm here to have a bath myself."
"Okay."
'I didn't ask. You could have just talked from a few metres away and not scared me like that by just standing there quietly.'
Kumi thought as she moved her head back and soaked in the water.
'Though suddenly speaking would have scared me too.'
"Besides having a bath, I am here to hand something over."
"What is it?"
Kumi asked, hoping for it to not be a torture machine.
"A bracelet. For training."
Ayaka handed the black bracelet to Kumi as she crouched down.
"Ah. Thank you."
Ayaka didn't respond and moved to the wooden lockers where two metal briefcases sat.
'Does she just not know how to show affection and says it's for training to avoid embarrassment? That's a little cute.'
Kumi looked at the rather beautiful bracelet.
'How intricate.'
She thought and placed it on.
It hung around her hand loosely as she suddenly felt her mana draining.
'This is pretty uncomfortable. Maybe it is for training. And here I thought-'
Before she could finish her thought, a jolt of lightning spread through her body as the skin around the bracelet burned.
"Ow."
Kumi let out as she tried to deal with the pain.
Hearing this, Ayaka turned back to see Kumi already wearing the bracelet.
Her eyes widened slightly as she made quick steps towards her.
"Idiot! I told you it's for training. Don't wear it unless I say so, okay?"
Ayaka said with a slightly louder voice than usual.
'You could have said so earlier!'
Kumi thought as Ayaka removed the bracelet and healed her wounds.
It wouldn't have been so damaging if Kumi hadn't been in a literal bath.
'I almost fried myself there woman!'
Kumi held her hand in slight pain.
'Ow.'
She quietly thought as she glanced at Ayaka.
Meeting the gaze, Ayaka sighed quietly before whispering to herself.
"Don't blame me, idiot."
She then moved back to the lockers, placed the bracelet among Kumi's clothes and continued undressing herself.
Kumi let out a sigh, in her head, as she slowly sank deeper into the warm water.
'Resistance training is going to be a bitch isn't it?'