BCloud
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MMMS 26
🕑 Added 2025-04-18 01:17:00 +0000 UTC"Great, lost all my money again. I swear those machines at that place are rigged."
When Ryuuto returned to the Sajyou house from the pachinko parlor around noon, he noticed a cardboard box sitting on the ground in front of the house.
Despite people walking by on the street, nobody seemed to pay any attention to the box, which sat there all alone beneath the Sajyou nameplate.
"Is this a package for Hiroki?" he wondered.
The man of the house often ordered magical supplies online, but normally the delivery person would knock and ask someone to sign for it.
He bent down to examine the cardboard box. There wasn't even a delivery label on it, let alone any indication of who it was for. However, he did notice a sender's name written on it: Alice Kuonji.
"...Oh," he said quietly as he picked up the box and carried it inside.
He quickly went to his room, locked the door behind him, and opened the package right away.
Inside, he found a letter, several bankbooks from foreign banks, and an elegant gift box wrapped with a white silk ribbon.
The letter was remarkably short—just two lines: [Here are all the remaining funds you asked me to manage. Please verify everything. The box contains what we previously agreed upon.]
The writer's detached style was obvious, as if adding even one more word would have been too much effort.
As soon as he finished reading, the letter in his hand suddenly caught fire and vanished within seconds, not leaving even a trace of ash behind.
Ignoring the bankbooks, he pulled out the gift box from the package.
"Let's see what kind of surprise the witch has prepared for me," he muttered to himself.
Six months ago, Alice had promised to give him a PLOY [Fairy Tale Monster] as a reward for his help in the past.
He hadn't really thought much about it since then, and was just starting to forget about the whole thing when the promised gift finally arrived.
Regarding Fairy Tale Monsters—normally, Alice's Ploy could only be used by her alone in this world, as it was a special familiar tied to her bloodline. But he wasn't exactly a normal person, so that restriction didn't apply to him.
He licked his lips with excitement as he began eagerly unwrapping the gift. "Could it be the [Thames Troll]? No... judging by the size of this box, it's probably the [Flat Snark]."
Both creatures were Fairy Tale Monsters originally created by the first-generation Witch more than a thousand years ago, containing mysteries far beyond what modern magical practices could achieve.
Actually, he had no plans to use the fairy tale familiar for fighting—he just viewed it as an interesting collectible.
Even if he received a Demon King-level PLOY capable of going toe-to-toe with a Servant, he still wouldn't use it in battle. Of course, he was smart enough not to mention this to Alice.
He opened the gift box and removed a peculiar object.
It was difficult to describe exactly what he was looking at.
Without any context, someone might mistake it for a generic enemy from a low-budget JRPG—the kind designers create using basic polygons to save on production costs.
It consisted of a blue hexagonal mirror in the center, surrounded by six smaller hexagonal mirrors. At the outer corners of the smaller hexagons were star-shaped decorations.
"What is this supposed to be?" he wondered. Despite having played "Mahou Tsukai no Yoru," he couldn't recall any fairy tale familiar like this one that Alice had sent him.
Fortunately, there was also an instruction sheet included in the box.
[Name: Snow White]
"Snow... White... Snow White. Hmm, is it powerful?" he wondered.
If a fairy tale familiar's strength was connected to how famous its story was, then this would certainly be one of the most powerful ones available.
He continued reading eagerly.
[Material: The First Mistake]
[Effect: Creates powder snow for several minutes]
"...?"
He flipped the instruction sheet over, hoping to find more information.
But the back side was completely blank—that was the end of the instructions.
"This thing is completely useless!" He tossed the instruction paper aside in frustration, feeling strangely disappointed.
That Alice, sending him something like this...
After a moment, he glanced at the worthless PLOY sitting on his bed and couldn't help but smile ruefully. "I see... Alice saw right through my childish thinking."
She must have already figured out that he never intended to use the Ploy for fighting. That explained why she gave him a familiar that couldn't battle at all. Even though it was basically useless, he had to appreciate her thoughtfulness.
He stood up from the bed and headed toward the living room. He should probably call and thank her anyway.
"But what exactly does 'The First Mistake' mean?" he wondered as he walked.
...
Unlike the international metropolis of Tokyo or the bustling mid-sized city of Fuyuki, Misaki moves at a much slower pace.
In this small community that only recently changed its status from town to city, there's an old mansion sitting on a mountain that people say is haunted.
It's an impressive Western-style mansion covering over a thousand square meters, with extensive gardens surrounding the main house and several functional outbuildings.
Tall iron fences encircle the property, now almost hidden beneath thick, climbing vines.
Even when viewed from several kilometers away in the town center, its grand classical appearance makes the rumor that it was shipped piece by piece from England seem entirely possible.
Being the subject of local gossip was practically inevitable.
Building such an unusual mansion on a hill, one that clashed so dramatically with the rest of the town, was bound to raise eyebrows. The whispers that a witch lived in the mansion spread through the community almost immediately.
At that moment, on the first-floor staircase of the mansion, a girl who could easily be mistaken for a beautiful doll sat on the steps.
She had thick, jet-black hair, delicate limbs, and pale skin that suggested she rarely went outdoors.
She wore a black sweater with a brown patterned skirt that complemented her slim figure perfectly.
If Manaka Sajyou could be compared to a brilliant flower that glows even in the darkness of night, then this girl was more like a narcissus that melted into the shadows—distant from everything around her, wrapped in her own world.
The girl's head rested against the wooden stair railing, her long dark eyelashes covering her closed eyes.
Her chest rose and fell gently as she enjoyed her peaceful nap.
Everything around her, even time itself, seemed to have quietly fallen still along with the sleeping girl.
"Ring, ring, ring, ring."
Suddenly, the old-fashioned telephone at the foot of the staircase broke the perfect silence.
The loud ringtone barely lasted a second.
The girl, almost as if she had known the call was coming, rose quickly with her eyes still closed and picked up the receiver.
"..."
She brought the receiver to her cheek and slowly opened her eyes.
They were cold eyes that seemed to keep everyone at a distance, the same color as her beautiful hair.
A pure, deep black.
The girl stared expressionlessly at the polished floor and spoke into the receiver:
"Hello, Kuonji residence."
Then, the moment a cheerful male voice came through the line—"Hey Alice, it's me, Ryuuto. Are you home?"—something changed.
On Alice Kuonji's doll-like face, which normally showed neither sadness nor joy, emotions suddenly appeared, like a princess awakening from a deep sleep caused by a poisoned apple.
...
A month flew by, and suddenly it was time to flip the living room calendar to their departure date from Tokyo to Fuyuki.
The night before leaving, the Sajyou household prepared an elaborate, formal dinner.
The table looked like they had cooked up the entire world and arranged it for everyone to enjoy.
Chinese cuisine included Cantonese roast goose with glistening, crispy skin and juicy meat, alongside crab meat meatballs that were both adorable to look at and packed with flavor.
For soup, they served Hungarian beef with generous amounts of paprika, known for its rich, deep taste.
There was also a seafood stew that filled the room with its wonderful aroma.
Grilled lamb skewers threaded with green peppers, onions, and bell peppers—the kind you often see in movies and TV shows—were arranged on a platter.
The salads and appetizers had a distinctly French flair, as if prepared by someone with an artist's careful touch.
Beyond the classic dishes like Beef Wellington, German pork knuckle, and borscht, they even included more exotic options like escargot and century eggs.
"Come and eat, Ryuuto."
Standing behind him, the girl held a tray in her arms, smiling brightly.
"I know the table is a little small. If you need more food, there's plenty in the kitchen, alright?"
"Oh...okay."
It was clear that Manaka had gone all out today, and he nodded, looking somewhat stunned by it all.
Thankfully, he had the [Natural Body] skill—otherwise, with how Manaka insisted on feeding him, he would have ended up as large as a sumo wrestler by now.
He picked up his chopsticks and asked, "Is all this just for me?"
Manaka had apparently arranged for just the two of them to have dinner together tonight. Hiroki and Ayaka had gone out, and Morgan had shut herself away in the guest room.
"Of course," she replied cheerfully, placing her hand on his shoulder. "You're my precious child who could devour even the entire world, so this much is nothing."
