“Well…
everyone just calm down first.” Subaru urged Old Man Rom and Emilia to keep their cool.
“We’ll buy that top-tier merchandise you mentioned, through a barter exchange.”
“…What is this?
I’ve never seen one before,” Rom asked, rather than arguing, pointing at the flip phone Subaru had placed on the table.
“The item you want to buy probably isn’t cheap.
Your offer might not be enough to buy it.”
“Don’t underestimate my bargaining chip,” Subaru presented the phone to Rom.
“This is a magical tool capable of freezing time itself: a [Cell Phone]!”
Subaru picked up the phone and started fiddling with it.
Beside him, Emilia leaned in out of curiosity to get a better look.
Subaru aimed the camera at Old Man Rom, who was staring in shock at the mysterious object he was seeing for the first time.
Then, a white flash cut through the dimness of the shop.
“Take this!
A nine-shot burst in one second!”
Click!
The shutter sound rang out.
Shocked by the rapid succession of flashing lights and sounds, Rom tumbled backward behind the counter.
“You brat!
Are you trying to kill this old man?!
Pulling a strange stunt like that, are you looking down on me?!”
“Wait, wait.” Subaru held the phone screen in front of Rom, whose face was red from something other than alcohol.
Seeing his own face suddenly appear on the screen, the old man’s eyes went wide.
“That…
isn’t that my face?
What kind of trick is this?”
“Didn’t I tell you?
It’s a magical tool that can slice through time and freeze it.
I just used it to slice away Old Man Rom’s time and lock that instant right in here.”
Subaru explained while changing the direction of the camera lens.
“Here, Emilia-tan, do this.” Subaru demonstrated a V-sign and prompted Emilia to copy him.
Seeing her follow suit, Subaru nodded in satisfaction.
“Yep, absolutely adorable!
Say ‘cheese’.”
“Ch-cheese?”
Emilia tilted her head, placing her V-sign next to her cheek.
As expected of Emilia-tan!
She naturally mastered a super cute posing posture without even being taught!
Subaru excitedly pressed the shutter button.
Click!
Emilia’s face appeared on the phone screen.
“Slicing time feels exactly like this.
How about it, pretty rare, right?”
Subaru showed the photo on the phone to both Emilia and Rom.
“Even though that pretentious face and pose are completely useless, this is certainly…
hm…”
Despite his heavy criticism of Subaru’s actions, Old Man Rom’s gaze and interest were firmly glued to the phone.
Even more successful than I expected!
Subaru pumped his fist in excitement.
“Subaru…
this [Metia] that can slice time, using this to trade for my insignia…
She quietly tugged on Subaru’s sleeve and leaned close to his ear.
“This thing is very precious, isn’t it?
And it must be very important to you, too, so…”
“Alright, that’s enough of that.” Subaru gestured for Emilia to stop.
“It’s fine.
The priority right now is helping you get your insignia back.
We can worry about the rest later…
Wait, what’s a [Metia]?”
“‘Metia’ is the general term for tools that allow even those who can’t open a Gate like a mage to use magic,” Rom answered.
“The original meaning seems to be ‘a gift fallen from the heavens.'”
“The value of this thing is incalculable.” Getting fired up at the prospect of handling a rare and unusual item seemed to be a universal trait in the fencing industry.
Rom, excited to the point of discussing its value aloud, rubbed his chin while looking down at Subaru.
“This old man has been working in the loot house business for a long time, but this is my first time buying or selling a [Metia]…
It obviously holds an astronomically high value.”
Hearing the words “incalculable value,” Emilia bit her lip.
Both hands tightly gripped the emerald pendant at her chest, as if she had just made a firm resolution.
“You huge dummy…”
Knock, knock, knock.
Just then, the sound of knocking echoed through the room.
Subaru and Emilia looked up.
Old Man Rom’s massive body reacted to the knock, and he moved toward the door with surprising agility.
Looking entirely mysterious, the old man pressed his ear to the heavy wooden door and said:
“For the giant rat?”
“Poison.”
“For the White Whale?”
“A harpoon.”
“For our most noble Dragon?”
“Eat shit.”
The person outside instantly replied to Rom’s brief questions with vulgar answers.
Satisfied, Rom unlocked the door.
What a unique set of slang.
That must be the password and counter-sign.
“—Sorry to keep you waiting, Old Man Rom.
I managed to shake them off super easily, which is why I got back so early.”
A young girl stepped past Rom into the loot house, affectionately boasting about her achievements.
“Eh?!
How did you track me all the way here?!”
It was a girl with messy, shoulder-length blonde hair.
Her eyes were as red as a rabbit’s, and a snaggletooth peeked from the corner of her mouth.
Her petite frame was clad in tattered…
let’s phrase it more politely: clothes that were easy to move in.
Seeing Emilia sitting by the bar, the girl instantly went on high alert, hissing like a cat whose fur just puffed up.
“Old Man Rom, run!
The owner tracked us all the way home!”
“Alright, so you’re Felt, right?” Subaru tried to interject.
“We’re here to…”
“Please return my insignia.
The sound of something cracking filled the air as the room’s temperature plummeted instantly.
Emilia raised her hand toward Felt, and icicles materialized out of thin air, hovering all around her.
“What’s the meaning of this, kid?
Turns out you were planning to take it back by force after all.”
At some point, Rom had armed himself with a heavy club.
However, the massive arm holding the weapon didn’t look entirely committed; he seemed hesitant, almost bewildered, his grip on the club repeatedly tightening and loosening.
“Wait!
What’s wrong with you guys?!”
Subaru quickly scanned Emilia, Rom, and Felt.
Their eyes were filled with mutual distrust and wariness.
“You’re a really persistent woman, aren’t you?
Time to give it up.”
“Unfortunately, giving up isn’t an option…
If you behave, I won’t do anything to you.”
Facing the gritting teeth of Felt, Emilia’s voice was frigid—a tone Subaru had never heard from her before.
The atmosphere in the building grew increasingly dangerous and tense.
Subaru felt a massive headache coming on.
Weren’t we just having a perfectly civil conversation?
Why did Emilia completely flip the moment Felt walked in?
“I only have one demand: return the insignia.” The icicles floating in the air multiplied to six.
Their tips were blunt and rounded, prioritizing the sheer concussive force of their weight over piercing sharpness.
The air churned around her, whipping Emilia’s silver hair into a frenzy.
“Everyone, just calm down a little…” Subaru’s attempts to intervene had absolutely zero effect.
“Miss…
are you an elf?”
Rom noticed the pointed ears peeking through Emilia’s silver hair, his lips trembling as he asked the question.
Faced with Rom’s question, Emilia closed her eyes for a fleeting moment, then let out a small breath.
“Half right—my elven blood is only half.”
Felt’s reaction was intensely violent.
She twisted her body while backing away.
“A half-elf…
and with silver hair?!
Don’t tell me you’re…”
Crap!
Another landmine in Emilia’s territory!
Earlier, when Emilia told Subaru she was a half-elf, her eyes had carried a deep sense of loneliness and sorrow.
It was obvious she had suffered unfair treatment or discrimination because of her identity.
And now, that discrimination was being shoved right in Emilia’s face.
If Subaru had been the one facing that kind of prejudice, there was no way he could calmly continue negotiating.
And right now, it was his companion being discriminated against…
did Subaru have any choice but to stand up for his companion?
Besides, things had escalated to a point where mere words wouldn’t solve anything anyway!
My super intellect is telling me it’s time to use my superpowers.
BOOM!
Subaru violently clenched both fists.
Terrifying wind pressure shattered the glass windows of the loot house, dust rained from the ceiling, and hairline fractures spread across the walls.
The tense atmosphere stalled instantly.
“Hey!
All of you, calm down!” Subaru’s expression darkened—a rare sight for him—as his cold gaze swept over both Rom and Felt.
Drop Stones to Push the Story Forward!