Chapter 90 - One More on the Friend List
After the grand reveal, our random chatter died down. Having achieved our goal in a surprisingly short amount of time, we had no reason to linger and left the atelier.
With Nia tagging along, we all headed out of the [Mirage Workshop] base.
"So, are you sure you don't want any payment?"
As we passed through the clan home's large doors, I looked back at the indigo-haired girl who had stuck to us. This was the second time I'd asked, and she responded with the same deadpan stare as the first.
"Like I said before… I can't even call something like that a proper job! My pride as Nia-chan won't allow me to take money for it!"
Her energy ramping up on its own, she pointed at my [Ruby Rabbit's Hair Ornament]—formerly the [Crimson Rabbit Ornament]—while glaring at it as if it were her mortal enemy.
"Just adding a little decoration without any cutting or polishing! This is why gemstones that are already perfect from the start are so not cute!"
Apparently… the item I brought in didn't require two of the normal crafting steps. To be more precise, there was a risk that any clumsy attempt to modify it would have ruined the already-perfect effects.
So, this indigo girl had convinced herself it was due to her own lack of skill and was now angry about it. It was fine for her to be stoic despite her appearance, but the way she threw her tantrum was so half-hearted that it honestly just looked like she was messing around.
"Well then, I guess I'll just have to give you my business from now on."
Considering her experience as a player and her position as a skilled member of a major clan, I, a newcomer, was in no position to be talking about giving her my 'business'…
"Ehh? What's this, what's this? Did you end up taking a liking to little Nia-chan after all? W-e-l-l, if you insist! Then I, the great Nia-chan, might just maybe consider becoming your exclusive artisan, just like Kagura-san!"
"Too close, too close, you're annoying."
It was because she was like this… Her attitude was so casual that I couldn't quite bring myself to respect her. In fact, I almost felt a sort of pressure from her to treat her as an equal.
I wondered if she had taken a particular liking to me for some reason, or if she was like this with everyone.
As I struggled to push away the slender avatar that kept trying to snuggle up to me at every opportunity, Kagura-san watched from the side, looking as amused as ever.
"Don't just watch, help me."
"You two look good together, so I just thought you might not mind so much."
What a terrifying thing for this woman to say.
I really wanted to introduce her to my partner, a true angel. Compared to Sora's natural healing aura, this merely flirty indigo girl didn't stand a chance—man, even I think I'm being rude now.
This was the first time in my eighteen years of life that I had met someone who could so thoroughly dismantle my sense of reservation on our first meeting. Maybe I should just go all out and praise her as a monster of communication skills.
In any case, it wasn't good to be so overly familiar with someone I'd just met. I needed to control my interactions so I wouldn't get too swept up in Nia's own pace—
"Ho-ho? You don't mind? You really don't mind, huh? That's right, that's right, you're a boy after all! There's no way you wouldn't be happy to have the cute, cute Nia-chan grow attached to yo—mmph?!"
Do I really need to hold back with this one?
As Nia's ego skyrocketed with no end in sight, I grabbed her face in a claw grip to shut her down and shot Kagura-san a weary look that said, Seriously, what is her deal?
The master artisan, who had been enjoying the exchange between her junior and her exclusive client, finally let out a genuine laugh she could no longer hold back.
"Grabbing a maiden's face like that, how rude!"
"Well, looking forward to working with you."
"You're just ignoring me! Looking forward to it, too!!"
Less than an hour after meeting her, I was already used to her exaggerated pouty face.
Ignoring her angry pose, I operated the system window. With a light chime, a new name was etched into my friends list.
[Nier]—that made three people. Now that I'd debuted in the main fields, I'd be happy if I could keep making acquaintances like this, just like in a real online game.
"—Alright, I'm going to take my leave here. I've got something to take care of."
Just as I finished, Kagura-san raised a hand to cut in. We were already in the process of parting ways, so Nia and I both followed suit with a "Got it," and "Okay-dokey."
"I'll make sure to handle the horns, so don't you worry. Let's see… I'll have them ready by the time we were originally scheduled to meet up, so look forward to it."
"I'll be counting on you. I'm going to resume my tour of the hot spots as planned."
Though it had resulted in a major victory, I had already spent over two days of precious time. From here on out, I would need to pick up the pace and dash through the Garden of Divine Creation.
"Nia-chan will be cheering you on! If you get any good materials, you're welcome anytime!"
"Yeah, thanks. I'll be counting on you too, Nia-chan."
Though meeting you one-on-one seems scary in a lot of ways—I managed to swallow those words.
Even if I wasn't sure where it came from, I was grateful for her goodwill and kindness.
And with that, we parted ways. Kagura-san gave a light wave and logged out, and as for Nia, the moment she declared, "A farewell hug!" I shoved her back into the clan home.
Feeling her resentful gaze on my back from the crack in the door, I waved and said, "See ya," before leaving the building.
Then, just as I was about to open my map data to figure out the next spot—it happened.
"Whoops."
A sound indicating an incoming message chimed, and a small, envelope-shaped icon lit up in the corner of my vision.
I'd just received one from Kagura-san a moment ago, but she had already logged out. As for Nia, if she had something to say, she was close enough to run after me and tell me in a few seconds.
Which meant the sender had to be—
[Sora]—'Good morning. If you have a moment, would you like to meet up?'
—none other than my adorable partner.
—The following is a series of rambling notes.
It's been a month since I started posting, and the other day, the overall rating finally reached five digits. I stared at the number 10,000 over and over again, and this truly unexpected evaluation gave me a fever, as usual.
I'm so happy and also a little scared to have received so much support, and recently, my hand has started to tremble when I click to post the next chapter—just kidding, that didn't happen. I'm surprisingly tough.
Thank you so much for all the 'likes,' 'bookmarks,' and 'rating points.' I am drawing encouragement from every single one of them.
As always, I spend my days restraining myself with reason, lest I go on a posting rampage. I've already finished writing out the details for the story up to the end of the second arc in my head, and my fingers won't stop typing on the keyboard because I want to deliver it to you all as soon as possible.
I will continue to tell this story with everything I've got, so I would be honored if you would join me on this journey.