Chapter 54: The Mad Scientist Appears!
"Master, it's morning!"
I wake up to Shiro's voice.
Thanks to my convenient body, I wake up refreshed every day without feeling tired. It's completely different from my past life. I'm grateful to Eline.
After changing and taking out breakfast for Kuro and Shiro from the Item Box, I go downstairs.
"Good morning."
Cheerful innkeeper's daughter, "Rim," greets me.
I reply, "Good morning," and take a seat.
Several inn guests are already having breakfast.
"Sorry to keep you waiting."
Rim brings the breakfast. It consists of French bread, thinly sliced meat, and salad, similar to my past life's style. The drink appears to be milk. The taste is far better than the meals served in "Gondo Village," probably due to the difference in seasoning.
I put my hands together and say, "Let's eat," wanting to improve my cooking skill while savoring breakfast.
After finishing, I put my hands together again and say, "Thanks for the meal." As I stand up, Rim comes over.
"Takuto-san, what were those gestures just now?"
She asks curiously.
I explain it as I did in "Gondo Village," and she seems quite impressed. She says she'll try it too, so I demonstrate the "Let's eat" and "Thanks for the meal" gestures once more.
I feel good about starting the day by doing something nice. Today is bound to be a good day.
◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
In front of me are Shikibu and Murasaki. Next to Murasaki are an unfamiliar beastkin woman wearing glasses and Iria.
Despite only receiving a guild card, the atmosphere feels strangely serious.
"What's wrong?"
I can't bear the tension and speak up.
"Takuto, could you please sit there?"
I obediently take a seat on the sofa.
"...First, let me introduce this person."
The woman with glasses introduces herself as "Laura," a member of the "Foxkin Tribe" and the head researcher at the "Magic Research Institute" in the capital city of "Eldorado." She has been conducting investigations in this town since last month.
Yesterday, there was a special disturbance in magical waves around here, so she visited the guild to inquire about it.
It's probably all my fault. What did I do to cause a disturbance in magical waves? And what are magical waves, to begin with?
"I'll explain that," Laura offers.
She proceeds to explain that magical wave disturbances occur when time and space are forcibly distorted, and her measuring device detected such an anomaly. As a researcher, she naturally wanted to confirm it, hence why she got in the way of the most suspicious guild.
"...I see."
Both Shikibu and Murasaki can't speak up due to the promise they made with me, but it seems we can't ignore the suspicion cast on the guild. It can't be helped.
"The cause is probably me. Is it because of this item I used during the test?"
I use the Item Box.
All four of them are surprised since it's their first time witnessing it.
"Oh, I've been at the research institute for years, but it's the first time I've seen such a large Item Box."
Laura is deeply intrigued. Is she a mad scientist or something?
Looking at a measuring device that looks like a wristwatch, she says, "No, this isn't it. This disturbance is more significant and has a unique quality."
Wait, does that mean I unintentionally revealed my secret?
But I can't think of any other magic that could cause this... As I recall yesterday's events, I look around the room.
Shikibu is doing something with both hands above her head, moving her fingers in various ways.
...What is she doing?