Chapter 146 - Safe Zone
"I'll see you later, then."
"Yeah, see you back here."
It was around 6:00 PM in the virtual world's clock. Here, the transition to night begins around midnight, so at this time, which would be dusk in the real world, the sun was just starting to set.
In real-time, it was exactly 12:00 PM. We had returned to the [Safe Area] to take a lunch break from our tour and agreed to meet up again in an hour of real-world time. We were both about to log out.
I watched Sora go as she gave me a polite little wave before leaving the virtual world—...Alright, I've still got a few things to take care of here.
"Let's see... oh, they're on."
I checked my friends list and confirmed that the two names I was looking for were both showing as online.
I hesitated for a moment, wondering who to contact first, and then—
Hey Kagura-san, you there?
I sent a message to my exclusive magitech artisan, who had been kind enough to let me postpone my thank-yous the other day.
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"You're quite the considerate one, aren't you?"
"If I don't show it now, when would I?"
When I asked if she had a moment, she replied with an immediate "OK," and I found myself visiting her workshop for the first time at her invitation.
The layout and construction were probably the same as Nia's atelier. While that place was coordinated with a stylish, feminine atmosphere, this place was, for lack of a better word, minimalist.
One desk, two chairs. The only other things were shelves lined with small items and tools along the walls, giving the impression that the rather large space was being underutilized.
The location, like Nia's, was in the [Mirage Workshop] Safe Area branch—but wait, didn't she casually mention she was the Sub Master or something?
"As someone important, shouldn't you be at the main headquarters or something?"
"I have a workshop in the Vestol home base too, but it's just easier to be here for a number of reasons, like taking direct requests from players of other factions."
So she said.
Just as she frequently visits Istia, players from other factions can, in principle, enter each other's cities.
But apparently, regular players usually need permission. There's a player-run 'government office' facility in the Safe Area where you have to request a pass from the respective faction's counter for your destination.
A player-run government office exists within the game...?
Between that and the 'Four Pillar Management Committee,' this game has really gone beyond the realm of simple entertainment.
Well, that aside.
"Kagu—"
"I'll say this first: I don't want any of your mushy thank-yous or any of that stuff."
Seriously...? She shut me down before I could even start...
"I wanted a result. You delivered a result. This time our roles were reversed, but it's the same kind of give-and-take we always have as artisan and client."
She said it with a light tone.
Watching me, now left hanging after she shut down my attempt to thank her, she looked amused and held out a lightly clenched fist.
"So this is good enough—well done. I'm expecting great things next time, too."
"............Haaah."
There it is, that cool-as-hell move. When she flashes a smile like that, I can't exactly refuse.
"Well then, I'll do my best to live up to those expectations."
I bumped my fist against hers, which was small and feminine, belying the sheer coolness of its owner.
A small thump sounded, and Kagura-san's lips curled into a satisfied smile.
"—Got 'em. How do you want to receive the finished product?"
"Hmm... It'd be nice to match it with Nia's outfit... Ah, right. Sorry, but this time too..."
"Don't worry, I'll coordinate the design with her again."
She's so thorough. As expected of my personal artisan.
I entrusted her with the materials I had gathered from my earlier hunt and mining (?), and we briefly discussed the details of our little plan, which was still a secret from Sora.
"By the way, it seems Sora-san isn't a fan of gloves that cover her fingertips completely..."
"I see, got it. Well, I was planning on making them fingerless like yours anyway, so no problem there."
I also passed on the requests my partner had given me when I told her I was dropping off some materials on an errand, and with that, the commission was complete.
"Alright, once I finish them to match Nia's work, I'll just leave them with her."
"Pick them up from her when you're ready," Kagura-san said with a nod. My business was finished, so I stood up from my seat—but still...
"You know, I did give Nia something as a token of my gratitude..."
"Hmph?"
I understand Kagura-san's personality from our time together, and I actually like our relationship this way.
So I could have just let it end with our previous exchange, just as she wanted—but no, I can't, can I? From the day we met until now, I've clearly been the one receiving way too much.
"So, uh... what? It's just that I won't feel right about it otherwise, so would it be okay if you just accepted a little something from me...?"
I watched her expression as I asked my rather halting question. Kagura-san let out a somewhat exasperated sigh, propped her chin on her hand at the desk, and looked at me with an unreadable expression.
"You really are... I guess it's a good thing about you, but..."
"Hmm...?"
A mumble, more to herself than to me.
As I tilted my head, unable to grasp her meaning, she shook her head and said, "It's nothing."
"Well, I'll think about it—you still have other things to do, right? Now go on, get out of here."
She said it dismissively, waving her hand as if to shoo me away.
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Sometime after shooing the young man out. After waiting for his presence to completely fade away, Kagura sank into her chair with a heavy sigh.
"...Honestly. Being unaware is a scary thing."
What kind of environment would you have to grow up in to produce a person with such a low sense of self-worth?
Despite producing extraordinary results in everything he does, his stance of seeing himself as insignificant shows no signs of changing.
His tendency to treat everyone so kindly probably stems from that very fact that he perceives his own value as being so low...
With a wry smile, she pictured her cute junior, a fellow artisan from the same clan.
When they first met, she must have been watching him through the wall. From the moment she opened the door, her strange excitement, followed by her all-too-obvious attitude, had given Kagura a rough idea of what was in the girl's heart.
At first, she had watched with detached amusement, thinking things like, "So love at first sight really exists," and "They seem like a good match." But the object of her affection was proving to be mysteriously difficult to conquer, and to top it all off, a formidable rival was waiting in the wings—
Finding herself in the position of watching over her junior, who had unexpectedly been set on a thorny path, only one thought came to mind.
"I'm so glad he's not my type..."
She, who had always preferred quiet men, muttered it as if it were someone else's problem.
And while she felt a little bad for her junior, she breathed a sigh of relief at her own disposition, which allowed her to see that young man purely as a friend.
Watching someone else's romance from the sidelines is always entertaining.