Chapter 22: A Disguise and a Date

The day of Serin’s “happy tavern date” had arrived.

‘But duty calls.’

Even if she was helping Serin, she couldn’t neglect her own tasks. So, Serin headed to the North Gate, and Rui went to the West Gate.

The wall reinforcement was already complete. Today’s tasks were to inspect the work and add supplementary formulas.

‘It’s a sort of alibi.’

A way to avoid suspicion about her knowledge of the Twilight Fortress.

“Lux.”

Nicker!!

“Ah, don’t run away.”

It seemed Nightlux had sensed her plan to use it as a stand for the Master Key again. She was a little hurt; she had even given it her premium carrots.

‘I should add a self-standing formula to the Master Key later.’

She opened a subspace and dropped a large chunk of ore. Platinum-colored, stronger than steel, and highly resistant to magic – mithril. But for now, it was a stand for the Master Key.

“Observation and alarm functions should be enough.”

Anticipating that the auxiliary formulas might be damaged by attacks from the Twilight Fortress, she buried the Master Key in the ground, away from the wall. It was like a seismograph.

“Lux. Come here, I’ll give you a carrot.”

Lux, understanding the word “carrot,” immediately approached. But it glared at the Master Key, as if warning her never to try that again.

“This one’s quite tasty too…”

Spit!

“…”

…Did it just…?

She had given it a premium carrot, but it spat it out as if it wasn’t good enough. Her hand trembling, she picked up the discarded carrot and tossed it into a subspace.

“…No more carrots for you.”

How dare it waste a carrot. No carrot soup for Lux for a while.

The target location to lure—no, invite—the hero was a magic tool shop in the back alleys. That wasn’t her only reason for going there.

‘I heard there’s a famous gem crafting specialist in Alphares.’

She had studied and researched various magic and auxiliary fields for the past five years, but there was still much she didn’t know. Gem crafting was one of them.

‘I want to make gem-type magic tools too.’

Gems and minerals were closely related to magic. Mana stones were the foundation, and countless ores and gems served as materials for magic tools.

And since she preferred her creations to be aesthetically pleasing, gem crafting was a necessary skill.

So, before leaving the mansion this morning, she had asked the hero for a favor while they were alone.

“[Hero.]”

“[Yes, Rui?]”

“[Could you… come to the East Gate early today?]”

“[Uh… why?]”

“[I have some business in the central shopping district… it’s in the back alleys, so I’d feel safer if you came with me.]”

“[…Okay. I’ll be there. Definitely.]”

The appointed time for Serin and the hero was 7:00 p.m. She had arranged to meet him at 4:00 p.m., so she had three hours to herself.

After finishing the inspection and her research, it was time to meet the hero.

“Lux, I’ll give you a premium carrot.”

She needed Nightlux to get there quickly, so she made peace with it by offering a premium carrot.

Nicker.

Nightlux approached and sat down beside her with an expression that said, “If you insist.”

“…You’re not a horse, are you?”

It was so cunning, more like a fox than a horse. She mounted Nightlux and headed for the central shopping district.

“Lux, you’re good with directions.”

She hadn’t even touched the reins, yet Lux guided her through the optimal route. Was this the perfect self-driving vehicle from cyberpunk novels?

As they neared the central shopping district, a thought suddenly occurred to her.

“…Do I need to change my clothes?”

She remembered the reaction of the mercenaries and adventurers earlier.

“[No wonder her robe looked so expensive…]”

She was going to a magic tool shop in the back alleys, a place frequented by less reputable individuals. She doubted they would bother a noble, but it depended on the person.

‘…And the hero would be overly cautious.’

Her excuse for bringing the hero along was “protection.” So he would do everything to fulfill that role.

‘The main event isn’t the magic tool shop, it’s Serin’s date.’

It wouldn’t do for him to be overly focused on protecting her. She needed to concentrate on the magic tools and gem crafting techniques, and those thugs would only be a distraction.

“…Let’s change.”

She summoned the door to her lab between two buildings and slipped inside. She changed into simple black clothes a friend had picked out for her.

Her shoulders felt a little exposed, but…

A female friend had chosen it, so it should be fine.

“Hero! Thank you!”

“You saved us!”

Several mercenaries cheered for a man.

“It was thanks to your support. I should be thanking you for fighting alongside me.”

Aswell sheathed his holy sword, acknowledging their cheers. If it were like yesterday, he would have continued fighting for another three hours, but he had a prior engagement today.

“Then I’ll be going now. Tempest.”

The white horse, waiting nearby, approached at his call. Aswell mounted Tempest and quickly left the gate.

‘I’m late.’

He was slightly late because he had to save a mercenary at the last minute. He doubted Rui would be angry, but breaking a promise still bothered him.

“The central shopping district is this way.”

He guided Tempest through the fastest route. Thirty minutes later, he arrived at the central shopping district.

“She said to meet under the clock tower.”

The clock tower was a common meeting place in the vast central shopping district. Fortunately, it stood tall and was easy to find.

As he approached the clock tower, he suddenly thought about his appearance. Even though he wasn’t injured and wasn’t covered in blood or dirt, he still looked disheveled.

It was a relief that he had left his armor with Tempest’s luggage. Thanks to that, no one recognized him.

Pat, pat.

He brushed off his clothes, trying to look presentable. He slowly walked towards the plaza where the clock tower stood.

She would be wearing her usual white robe.

Thinking that, he looked around for a white robe. But no matter how hard he looked, there was no one in a white robe.

“Isn’t she here yet…?”

Something could have happened at the West Gate, delaying her. It was an unavoidable part of being in the hero’s party.

‘It’s better for me to wait.’

But his thoughts were interrupted by a finger poking his back.

“Hero, you’re late.”

The voice of the person he was meeting. She had been waiting for him.

“Sorry, the request took longer than expected…”

He quickly turned around to apologize. No, he tried to apologize, but stopped mid-sentence.

She wasn’t wearing a white robe. It was the opposite, a black outfit. A dress? Or something else?

But one thing was certain. No single word could accurately describe what she was wearing.

“…Rui?”

She stood there, arms crossed, looking up at him with sharp eyes. He couldn’t tell if she had crossed her arms because she was angry, or to cover her slightly exposed shoulders.

“Even in the back alleys, shops have closing times.”

“Uh, ah, that’s… the battle took longer than expected… I’m sorry.”

She sighed softly. Then, she smoothed out his wrinkled sleeve and said,

“Well, it can’t be helped, you’re the hero. Fortunately, the shops aren’t closed yet. We’ll make it if we go now.”

“That’s a relief…”

“Then let’s go.”

She held his sleeve and led him away. Aswell, bewildered by her unfamiliar appearance, finally calmed down enough to ask,

“Um… Rui. That outfit…”

“Ah, I changed because I didn’t want to stand out. Is it… not good?”

She asked, glancing back at him. He couldn’t bring himself to say anything negative.

“…Not at all.”

“Then it’s fine.”

If she said it was fine, then it was fine. Aswell stopped thinking. If he thought about it any further… he didn’t know what might happen.