Chapter 34: Is it funny that I still can’t find a master?

After dealing with the three thugs who blocked their path, Alice and little Charlotte continued walking toward the end of the alley.

Along the way, Alice continuously praised little Charlotte’s chantless Ice Magic from earlier, her eyes showing intense envy.

“I can’t believe it, little sister Shaula, you actually know magic! To be able to use such powerful magic at such a young age, you’re definitely going to become an incredibly amazing witch when you grow up!”

“Oh, it’s nothing! I’m only this good because my Master taught me well!”

“That’s wonderful! Unfortunately, I don’t have that kind of talent. Even though I try so hard to learn magic, all I can learn is the most basic Dimensional Magic. Compared to you, little sister Shaula, I’m simply ridiculously weak!”

“What are you saying, Sister Alice? You’re obviously super strong! Didn’t you take down those three thugs who were blocking our way in an instant? With swordsmanship that amazing, I’m sure you’ll become a world-famous great swordmaster someday, Sister Alice!”

“Really? You think so too? My swordsmanship really is incredible, isn’t it! It looks like I truly have a talent for swordsmanship!”

Hearing little Charlotte’s praise, Alice couldn’t help but feel a rush of pride.

Little Charlotte, however, frowned.

‘Why don’t you try being a little humble for once!’

“Speaking of which, that sword you were using earlier, sister, wasn’t it a bit too long?”

The longsword was almost as tall as Alice herself. It clearly wasn’t a sword specially crafted for her.

The owner of that sword should be a very tall person. For Alice, who hadn’t fully grown yet, carrying that overly long sword was like a child trying to look cool by wearing adult clothes.

“Oh, my Master specially chose it for me. She said it would be just the right size for me once I’m fully grown.”

“I see. Then why are you using that sword now?”

“Well, this sword is going to be with me for the rest of my life! Of course, I need to take the time to build a good relationship with it!”

“Building a relationship with a sword?”

Little Charlotte seriously doubted if she had misheard.

Could it be that this sword could turn into a green-haired little girl?

It might actually be possible! After all, anything could happen in this world full of magic.

Thinking this, little Charlotte sighed softly, then took out the magic compass from her pocket for a look.

The arrow was still pointing towards the end of the alley. It seemed Master Chloe was not far from them.

Just as little Charlotte was putting the magic compass away and preparing to continue forward, Alice, who was walking ahead of her, suddenly stopped.

“Huh, why did you stop, Sister Alice?” Little Charlotte, who had accidentally bumped into Alice, asked in confusion.

“Uh…” Alice awkwardly moved to the side. Little Charlotte looked ahead and was startled to see a prominent wall just five steps away. “This seems to be a dead end.”

“Eh? How can that be? The magic compass was clearly pointing in this direction!”

Little Charlotte picked up the magic compass and lightly shook it, trying to confirm the direction again.

The needle inside suddenly began to spin wildly. Half a second later, a popping sound erupted from inside.

“Ah!”

The sudden noise made little Charlotte instinctively throw the magic compass onto the ground.

When she looked back at it, the smoke-emitting magic compass was completely broken and tattered. It seemed to have been utterly destroyed.

“No way, was this thing already broken? No wonder Master insisted on forcing this thing into my hands. She was treating me like a scrap yard!”

“Little sister Shaula, could the person you’re looking for have been… caught by those thugs?”

Alice looked slightly worried.

Little Charlotte, however, had a nonchalant expression.

“No, I don’t think Master is incompetent enough to be taken down by a few petty thieves.”

“Is that so? Then I’m relieved.”

“This is annoying!” Little Charlotte looked up at the sky, which was extremely compressed by the high walls on both sides. “This terrain makes it hard to fly up into the sky!”

“Then let’s keep searching carefully around here. The person you’re looking for should be nearby, right?”

“That’s all we can do.”

Little Charlotte turned to leave with a look of frustration.

‘Master, where on earth did you go?’

However, just as Alice was about to follow her, she suddenly paused as if she had discovered something. She turned her head to look at the corner of the wall, which was obscured by several wooden crates.

Something seemed to be twinkling there.

“Hmm?”

****

They spent most of the afternoon circling the alley but still couldn’t find a single trace of Master Chloe.

Little Charlotte even suspected that the fruit stall uncle had given them incorrect information.

She wanted to find the fruit stall uncle again to ask for clarification, but when she returned to the stall, the uncle had already packed up and left.

The search had reached a deadlock.

Seeing the streetscape darken, they realized that time had passed quickly. The sun was about to set.

“No way, is it that late already?”

Alice, her traveling companion, also looked surprised. She hadn’t expected time to pass so quickly when she was with little Charlotte.

“Little sister Shaula, are you going to continue searching?”

“Forget it, I’m not searching anymore. Master won’t die outside alone anyway. I’ll just go back to the inn and wait for her. I spent the entire afternoon searching for her. I’m exhausted! Sister Alice, thank you so much for helping me search today, even though we were just walking in circles.”

“Not at all, little sister Shaula. Just call me if you’re in trouble, and I’ll come right away to help you!”

“No, are you some kind of superhero on call?” little Charlotte couldn’t help but retort.

“Alright, I’m going back too! Little sister Shaula, may we meet again.”

“Mhm, may we meet again!”

After saying goodbye to Alice, little Charlotte walked towards the inn.

‘Crap, I didn’t even eat breakfast today. I spent the whole time walking in circles in the alley. If Master hasn’t returned, am I going to go hungry again tonight?’

Little Charlotte couldn’t help but feel anxious about this.

‘Well, maybe things aren’t as bad as I think!’

‘Maybe Master Chloe already found the little girl’s sapphire necklace and has returned to the inn.’

With this thought, little Charlotte returned to the inn and walked into her room.

After staring at Chloe, who was sitting comfortably at the table eating a watermelon, for two seconds, little Charlotte frowned and instantly froze the watermelon in Chloe’s hand solid.