"W-Woah!"
Deep inside every adult, there is a child, more or less close to the surface, and sometimes certain spectacles inevitably awaken it because they are so impressive.
Upon reaching post 8, Noah clearly did not expect what he was about to find. It looked like a nighttime festival was taking place there – large luminous circles of various colors and sizes rippled everywhere he looked. Colored sparks floated in the air of the gigantic station-like room, while a black tide – likely employees – flowed in and out of the circles without pause.
"Welcome to MineCoin, the company's second extraction station!" Kate announced, proudly stepping in front of him as if the place belonged to her.
"(Extraction station? Is this the mine?)"
For someone expecting a grim place, his surprise was immense. But he shook his head gently.
"(Ah… Well, it's a fantasy world. Why am I getting excited? It's probably nothing special.)"
Instead, he looked into the crowd, trying to orient himself, but quickly realized he was too unfamiliar with the place for that.
"*Sigh* (Why am I even trying? I just need to wait for her to show me the way. It's not like I can do much else.)"
"..."
Kate, on the other hand, remained silent, a complex expression on her face. From an outsider's perspective, it looked as if the two had just argued and were giving each other the cold shoulder. But it didn't last long – soon enough, Kate took a deep breath and grabbed Noah's hand.
"Come on! Let me show you our mine!"
"H-Huh?! Woah!!!" Noah exclaimed as he was pulled so vigorously he nearly fell.
The crowd filling this "station" of white marble seemed dense and impenetrable to an outsider, but Kate was visibly experienced. Before long, they reached a counter where an older man was seated. He was handing out some sort of passes to employees, their colors varying.
"This is a registration desk," Kate suddenly said, turning to Noah. "We just need to give the name of our team, and he'll give us a ticket that teleports us to a specific mine. Oh! Don't worry, I'll handle everything here!"
"O-kay?"
It wasn't as if he could handle it anyway.
When they reached the man, Kate explained the situation in a few words. Apparently, he was now an acquaintance from far away looking for work.
"Ah, is this the boy the woman was talking about with Mr. Dansert? The little refugee."
"(Boy?)"
Well, he WAS a boy, but only on the inside. How would that man know that? Was he a better psychic than Kate?
Noah turned to Kate, who looked as surprised as he did. After a second like that, she barely suppressed a chuckle before turning to the man.
"Actually, he's a she! You made the same mistake with me the first time, remember?"
The man's eyes widened. "What? Who? Me? No, I don't make mistakes like that."
"Of course, of course !" replied Kate, chuckling.
Noah sighed in relief.
"(Oh, it was a mistake…)"
While he would be happy if someone recognized him as a boy, it being done so suddenly freaked him out. Besides, the reveal that it was only because the way he looked made him feel a bit frustrated. What? Wasn't he girly looking enough? Well, not he, his avatar.
"(Wait… Should I really be thinking this way? Even if it was for a second, I considered myself a… Ah…)"
He heard once that the body could influence the mind. A terrifying prospect for him. Would he one day refer to himself as a girl and even start to like… other boys?
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!" he yelled in horror, holding and shaking his head.
"What's wrong with the lass?" asked the man, raising an eyebrow.
"Dunno," replied Kate, shrugging. "Oh, her name is Trumpet, by the way! Don't mark that wrong too!"
"(Wait, what?! What kind of ridiculous name is that?!)" internally yelled Noah, now back to reality again.
"Honestly, kids these days are so insolent. Talk like that, and people will think my eyes are failing. Tsk, here are your tickets."
He carelessly tossed two red tickets, which Kate barely managed to catch.
"Hm?" Kate said. "Why are you giving me a ticket too? I already took one this morning, and it lasts 12 hours. It's only been…"
She glanced at a clock in the room – it was 3:04 PM.
"It's only been 9 hours!"
"That's because they received a request. A cave has appeared, and they needed staff for the exploitation."
"Oh…"
Kate suddenly looked worried.
"(A cave? What's that?)" Noah wondered, momentarily forgetting his complaints about the ridiculous name he had been given.
"Hm?" Kate looked confused.
He pointed to the tickets and shrugged to ask where they led.
"Eh? Are you sure? But isn't a cave a bit much for your first time?" Kate asked, visibly concerned.
"(As I said, what's a…)"
He sighed.
"(Never mind. More danger, more money, right? Good, I can pay you back faster.)"
"Huh…"
"(I can pay you back faster,)" he insisted, rubbing his fingers together.
Kate seemed to understand this time but still looked worried, which made Noah frown. What exactly was in these caves that made the same girl who dragged him here despite him just waking up hesitate to bring him along?
"Hey, assfaces! Are you going to let us pass or what?!" another miner shouted behind them.
Noah was shoved aside without ceremony, Kate following close behind. Despite all the snide remarks murmured by the annoyed miners behind her, Kate ignored them, still seeming hesitant about bringing Noah along.
"(What now?)" Noah asked, frowning.
"Hm? Oh… nothing," Kate said, seeming to snap out of it. "Ah, right, you can use the [Great Lightning Arrow]. You should be able to defend yourself… right?"
From her smile, he could see that she wasn't sure of what she was saying, but he nodded anyway. It seemed that the spell he had was quite powerful in this world, even if he found the lack of variety in his arsenal disappointing.
"Alright, we just need to pass through the depot and then use a portal!" Kate said, seeming to have regained her energy.
Noah gestured for her to lead the way, which she did with her usual enthusiasm, though he didn't quite understand the reason for her earlier worry.
The trip to the depot was quick. They presented their ticket and introduced themselves as sorters from the May–Levak union.
The depot manager then provided them with vials containing a strange green liquid that Noah had seen once before at the manor.
However, the liquid seemed murkier and slightly more diluted than he remembered.
He was also given a map and a lamp.
"Would you like to change the spells in your slots as well?" the clerk offered.
Noah, intrigued by this remark, wanted to volunteer, but Kate stopped him, giving him a stern look.
"What did we agree on?" she murmured in a panicked tone. "You mustn't speak to strangers here! It could get you into trouble!"
"B-But..."
"No buts! Don't let anyone see your status either, okay?!"
"..."
"OKAY??!"
"O...kay..."
Noah sighed inwardly. Just a little patience, he just had to wait to be free, and then he could do whatever he wanted.
"(Hey, are you really going to let me go once I settle my debt?)" he asked inwardly.
It was a fleeting, confused, and complex thought. If the little experience he had with this Kate had taught him anything, it was that she often didn't grasp this kind of inner monologue.
However, this time, Kate smiled at him and handed him one of the daggers she had taken from the depot.
"If I don't keep my promise, then..." She looked him straight in the eyes. "Then you're free to correct the mistake you made that night! I give you permission!"
"(The mistake I made... that night?)"
What was she talking about? The night he fled from the manor? Was she one of the employees chasing him? No. He couldn't say with confidence he knew every employee at the manor, but there was no one as young as her, that much he was sure.
Yet, she undoubtedly knew Vasilisa and now that he was looking closer, her face was somewhat familiar.
A girl that knew Vasilisa but that he didn't met at the manor. Apart from maybe the princess, he couldn't see who that could be.
"...?"
His caught something – a spark of yellow light coming from one the portals. There were many of those, flying around like multicolored fireflies in a summer night.
"(Sparks?)"
A flash came to him. Quite literally.
That moment—when he cast his first spell—there was someone else. A girl.
"Ah! It's... uh... You are..."
Kate frowned and pouted. "Hmph. I didn't want to believe it, but it looks like my savior doesn't even remember me. And here I am offering her a job and a roof during her exile! Well, I suppose the great Vasilisa, whose hand strikes both the cheeks of the princes of the East and the princesses of this kingdom, doesn't have time to remember little Kate?"
The image in his mind became clearer. That girl, it was…
"(The one who wet herself...)"