The next morning, I was having breakfast with Seras in the dining hall downstairs.
Other guests kept stealing glances at Seras.
Her current face was the same as "Mist Barucas."
That beautiful appearance naturally drew the eyes of the opposite sex.
But right now, she was probably attracting attention as the discoverer of the Dragon-Eye Goblet.
"Hey, look—some mercenary's already cozying up to that woman."
"Heh, looks like the discoverer lady has a taste for guys like that."
"I heard a rumor she came out of that guy's room last night?"
"Hyoo〜♪ So she discovered not just the Dragon-Eye Goblet, but a man's flavor too!?"
"That sharp-eyed guy's got some serious luck〜♪"
The air was filled with teasing.
Seras's hand, holding her spoon, froze.
Her expression hardened.
She clenched her fist tightly.
"I can endure insults directed at me——but I cannot overlook such slander toward my benefactor, Hati-dono."
"If it's about me, just let them say whatever they want."
I said while bringing food to my mouth.
"Getting worked up over every little comment from people like that is wasted effort. It's not like they're going to pick a fight with me the way Monk did."
Causing a scene here would bring nothing but disadvantages.
At this level, though, it shouldn't be a problem.
Seras slowly unclenched her fist.
The hardness gradually faded from her expression.
She took a deep breath.
As if calming herself.
"You're very mature, Hati-dono."
"I'm used to malice."
More than used to it, I found it trivial.
Compared to that shitty goddess or Kirihara and the others, this was nothing.
Even if there was killing intent, sometimes it was easier to just ignore malice...
"Well, thanks for holding back. By the way, changing the subject... have you ever heard of forbidden curses?"
I had asked about the characters in the spellbook before.
But I hadn't yet brought up the topic of forbidden curses themselves.
"Yes, I have."
She had.
In fact,
"You really know a lot."
"I don't know everything. It's just that I've always enjoyed poring over old documents as a hobby."
Seras placed a hand over her chest with a gentle expression.
"Reading brings me a special kind of peace. It feels like a one-on-one conversation between me and the book alone, and that's comforting."
It was a sensation I couldn't quite relate to...
I tended to read text as strings of information.
Of course, there were times it moved me emotionally.
And here was a random observation:
Seras seemed to have a habit of placing her hand over her chest when speaking.
"Hm. Having a hobby that calms your mind is probably a good thing. Anyway, back to forbidden curses?"
"Ah, sorry. In general, 'forbidden curse' refers to a specific set of ancient spells."
"Do you also know why they were named 'forbidden'?"
"It is said that the one who named them was Goddess Vysis."
"――――――――"
"Hati-dono?"
"...By the way, what exactly is a goddess?"
"She is said to be a member of the divine race dispatched from the heavenly realm by the chief god to bring salvation and blessings to this world. The Goddess Vysis of Alion is the one who fits that description. When a colossal evil appears, she uses divine summoning techniques to call forth heroes from another world to fight that evil——on this continent, only Goddess Vysis possesses that ability."
That shitty goddess.
"So the ancient spells she forbade are what we call forbidden curses..."
"Yes, that is what was written in the documents I read. Therefore, it is reasonable to assume they were prohibited by the goddess's will. Well, the very existence of those forbidden curses is questioned by some."
This information felt important...
Spells designated as forbidden by the goddess.
In other words, weren't they dangerous to the goddess herself?
In short——
Forbidden curses likely held high potential as countermeasures against the goddess.
That would explain why the Great Sage brought the spellbook all the way to the abandoned ruins.
In that case, the necessity of meeting the Forbidden Witch had just increased significantly.
If this information was reliable...
There was great meaning in searching for someone who could read the forbidden curses.
Seras gave a faint, wry smile.
"I'm sorry. That's about the extent of what I know... Anyone who thoroughly studies old documents would probably know at least this much."
"No, that's plenty."
I looked into Seras's eyes.
"Thank you."
Seras placed her hands on her knees and shrank her shoulders.
"I-I'm glad if I was of help..."
Hm?
"You get that flustered just from being thanked?"
"It felt like the first time you've said 'thank you' to me so straightforwardly... so I felt a little embarrassed."
I see.
It seemed varying the intensity of my demeanor had a good effect.
I changed the subject.
"So, what are your plans for today? If possible, I'd like to leave Mills by tonight."
"Yes, my schedule after this——"
Seras explained her detailed plans moving forward.
From what she said, the reception would likely finish by late morning.
Incidentally, Pigi-maru was waiting back in the room right now.
After giving it the enhancement potion last night, I had observed it until I fell asleep.
Its color and sheen seemed slightly improved.
But there were no obvious external changes.
Well, that matched the description for the "second experiment."
What had changed wasn't its appearance.
It was something else.
Right...
I could test various things with it until I met up with Seras.
Breakfast finished.
Seras gracefully pulled back her chair and stood.
"At the latest, I'll receive my reward from the marquis and return by one o'clock this afternoon. They seem quite busy as well, so they said they would wrap things up before noon."
Converting the Seiryu Stone to cash might be troublesome.
On the other hand, gold coins were immediately usable currency.
She had apparently decided it was better to secure the Dragon-Eye Goblet reward after all.
As I had said yesterday, having plenty of money was never a bad thing.
"Then, Hati-dono, I'll see you later."
"Yeah. I'll be waiting in front of the inn after noon."
"Understood."
With that, Seras left the inn to head to the marquis's mansion.
▽
After parting with Seras, I returned to my room.
I had the room booked until mid-afternoon today.
Until ten o'clock, I tested Pigi-maru's post-enhancement abilities in various ways.
Next, I left the inn to find a place with no onlookers.
I entered a narrow path behind the inn.
A grove of mixed trees spread out behind it.
Further on, I came across some ruins.
Just as the innkeeper had said.
It used to be the inn's building.
Now relocated, business was being conducted at the inn where I was staying.
In other words, this was the previous incarnation of that inn.
"Pretty good spot."
I had come here because I wanted to test Pigi-maru's new abilities in a somewhat wider space.
Just in case, I searched for a place where I could avoid prying eyes.
I found a nicely secluded area with plenty of cover.
It was definitely larger than the inn room.
"All right, let's get started, Pigi-maru."
"Pigi!"
And so, Pigi-maru and I spent until around noon confirming and experimenting with the post-enhancement effects.
After finishing the tests, I returned to the inn for lunch.
By then, the time was past twelve thirty.
In another thirty minutes or so, it would be the appointed time.
If she finished early, she might already be here.
"Is she outside yet?"
I finished preparing to depart and went down to the first floor.
I called out to the innkeeper.
"Thanks for everything."
"Oh, Hati-sama! If you ever return to Mills, please stay with us again!"
"Yeah, if I ever come back to Mills, I'll definitely stay here."
A little tip went a long way toward smooth dealings.
I thanked the innkeeper and stepped outside.
Seras's figure was not yet in sight.
Together with Pigi-maru under my robe, I waited for Seras to arrive.
"..."
Even after three o'clock in the afternoon passed, Seras did not appear.