She Professed Herself The Pupil Of The Wiseman (LN) - Volume 4 - Chapter 9

Chapter 9

THANKS TO CAT SITH’S DIRECTIONS, Mira had already secured five of Solomon’s desired Pips. It seemed she would finish sooner than she planned. In a cheerful mood now, Mira ran through the trees with light steps.

As she was locating the sixth Primordial Pip, the greenery began to rustle, and something emerged from the foliage. 

“Careful, meow. Something wicked this way comes…” Cat Sith glared daggers at the ambushers, fully in danger mode. He put on rather a brave display for a cat hiding behind Mira’s head.

“So, they’ve come,” Mira murmured, glancing at those who blocked her path.

Treemen existed not just in the Primal Forest, but in all wooded areas. Their figures were humanoid, but their bodies were made of withered wood. Since this was a Devils’ Labyrinth, all the monsters that appeared were subspecies of their respective overworld monster species. This subspecies of treemen were called Nildreants, Mira seemed to recall.

Tree bark covered their faces, and their faux skeletons were all wood. Wriggling vines held them in a humanlike form, giving them an even more uncanny appearance than normal treemen.

When the Nildreants walked forward, their vines writhed more aggressively, and their bodies warped eerily. Their wood creaked as they approached, spear-sharp arms at the ready.

“Stay still for a moment,” Mira commanded Cat Sith, pulling him from her neck. She used her free hand to pull down the neckline of her dress and shoved Cat Sith in.

“Understood, ma’am!” Cat Sith settled in and saluted, only his head peeking from within.

“And control your tail, please. It tickles.” With that, Mira pushed Cat Sith’s head down and shuddered.

“Yes’m!” Cat Sith answered, curling it under him.

While Mira was busy with Cat Sith, the situation was evolving. One of the three enemies facing her leapt into the air to attack.

Spotting it as it descended, Mira quickly jumped backward. The Nildreant—focused on nothing but hunting its foe—attacked precisely where she had been. Its spear-like arm dug into the ground.

Its arm would not move again, for suddenly, a black hand appeared behind the monster and brought a jet-black sword down upon it. The blade was heavy, its impact sending bark, splinters, vines, and green liquid flying. That was certainly a Dark Knight’s blow, although the Dark Knight was only a partial summon.

It seems the summon’s power doesn’t suffer, thought Mira. She’d tested the strategy at the academy’s gymnasium, but this was the first time she’d tried it in a real battle. Satisfied with the result, she quickly started thinking of applications.

The two other Nildreants cut her pondering short. They kicked aside their fallen friend’s corpse and ran toward Mira; their thudding steps echoed through the forest. One sprang upward, bending its limbs at horrifying angles. The other rushed forward.

A pincer attack from above and ahead. Unfortunately for the Nildreants, it ended in failure. The one that had jumped collided in midair with a large, white shield—another partial summon, this time a Holy Knight.

Hrmm. With the right timing, this could be very useful!

As her mental gears whirred away, Mira noticed the enemy still charging at her. Its spear arm carefully aimed a strike, which she evaded with practiced ease, placing a hand on the monster’s torso as it passed.

[Immortal Arts Earth: Crimson Bouquet]

Fire billowed forth and turned the Nildreant to ash.

Only one Nildreant remained. The shield-blocked treeman stood up awkwardly, but just as it righted itself, another black sword cleaved it in two from the top. The executioner’s arm disappeared into nothing, and a green pool spread where the monster died.

This is surprisingly convenient…

All of partial summoning’s potential applications tickled Mira’s inquiring mind. Since partial summons immediately disappeared after use, she didn’t have to worry about keeping track of one that might get in the way later. A partial summon also appeared soundlessly, making it useful for ambushes. The ability seemed especially useful for battles in tight spaces, such as this one.

“That’s my ringmeowstress for ya!” After confirming that the monsters were gone, Cat Sith jumped from Mira’s dress and puffed out his chest. This time, his placard read Back in action!

“Now, where was the sixth Pip again?” Mira wondered aloud. The ambush had thrown her sense of direction off, and she couldn’t discern one branch or vine from another. 

Her party member didn’t answer immediately—he was busy rummaging through the Nildreants’ corpses. Before Mira could ask what he was looking for, Cat Sith deftly pulled an object from a corpse.

“Got you something!” In Cat Sith’s raised paws was a black chunk of tangled ivy.

“Oho. You can recover loot too?”

The tangled ivy was a Nild Heart, an item obtainable only from this subspecies. Cat Sith offered it to Mira and ran to the next corpse. In total, he recovered two hearts; the heart of the Nildreant that had exploded was unsalvageable.

Mira put the increasingly useful Cat Sith on her shoulder and followed his guidance to the next Primordial Pip.

***

A little over an hour into their foray in the Primal Forest, Mira had secured all ten Primordial Pips that Solomon had requested—thanks to Cat Sith. After felling countless more Nildreants, she felt she had also deepened her understanding of partial summoning.

Three basic kinds of Nildreants existed: ones with spear-like arms, ones that lobbed poisonous fruit, and ones that launched toxic pine needles. Countless black stains now covered the area, the remnants of crushed poison fruit that the second Nildreant variety had thrown at Mira.

Meanwhile, Cat Sith recovered yet another Nild Heart and offered it to Mira. He was quite used to this work now.

Mira was currently at the outer edge of the Primal Forest. The deeper she went, the rarer the items that awaited—and the rarer the monsters too. In the forest’s innermost depths were beasts that even Wise Men would struggle to handle solo. Mira had no need to go that far this time, since Primordial Pips were evenly scattered throughout the labyrinth.

“Well, our work here is done. Shall we get going?”

“Yes’m!” Cat Sith climbed up to Mira’s shoulder again.

Devils’ Labyrinths had separate entrances and exits, so Mira would have to search for the latter in this forest of random branches. Any normal person would immediately have lost their sense of direction—but since Mira had been here many times already, she knew a way to find the exit.

She strained her eyes and looked around before putting Cat Sith back on her head. “Mm… I don’t see it. Can you spot any blue flowers, Party Member One?”

“Blue flowers? Hmm, purrhaps.” He widened his eyes and held a placard that read Searching! His gaze scanned every last branch, under every leaf, and behind every vine. Only ten or so seconds later, Cat Sith used his cat-eye searchlight to point toward the flowers. “Found ’em! Right over there.” 

Mira offered him a word of praise, then made a break for it. Beyond a few branches that she could use as footholds, an especially thick vine bore four blue blooms, each the size of Mira’s palm. It was only a matter of time until she and Cat Sith reached the exit.

Mira found the next blue flowers; they bloomed at set intervals, as if guiding her. If she followed this trail, she would be out of here in a flash.

***

Mira and Cat Sith followed the flower trail for a while; Mira used any Nildreants they encountered as test subjects for partial summoning. Finally, they spotted a worn chest at the end of a branch.

“Meowstress, we’ve got treasure!” Cat Sith’s eyes sparkled. In one hand, the feline held a placard with a suspenseful phrase: Pandora’s box?! An ancient chest hidden on the frontier. Does it hold hope, or despair?!

“Mm-hmm! A treasure chest.”

Faced with the chest, Mira remembered the words of Leoneil, the leader of the Mages’ Guild. Specifically, he’d said the reason the Primal Forest was restricted was none other than the box before her. This strange treasure chest reappeared even after one took its contents. In-game, respawning treasure chests were the norm, but that sort of behavior was an aberration in a real world.

Mira pointed her palm toward the treasure chest.

[Immortal Arts Heaven: Pulse]

Roaring winds collided with the chest, denting it before dispersing.

“Hrmm. Seems safe enough.”

“Such violence, Ringmeowstress!” Cat Sith hopped down from her head. However, the impact of landing had numbed his legs, and he toppled over. “Y’know, identifying treasure chests is kinda my thing.”

Cat Sith managed to raise his upper body and gazed at the treasure chest, red light shining from his eyes. His placard, which supported him like a cane, said Moment of truth!

Now apparently recovered, Cat Sith turned around and declared confidently, “No purr-oblem!”

“Well, no. I just tested it.”

“You sure did!” Cat Sith collapsed dramatically at Mira’s blunt answer. On his placard now was a set of speed lines around the words Totally rekt…

“I understand your point, though. You can see inside chests, eh? I had no idea, but that is incredible.”

“That’s what thirty years of training gets ya!” Cat Sith stood and twirled his placard—now reading Harder, better, faster, stronger!—as he ran to the chest.

There were two chest types in Devils’ Labyrinths: actual treasure chests, and mimics. To tell the difference, one simply had to attack the chest, like Mira had. If it was a real treasure chest, nothing would happen; if it was a monster, it would counterattack. The treasure chest didn’t react this time, so it was normal.

Cat Sith opened the chest and passed Mira the contents, whereupon the box faded to dust and disappeared. 

Mira eyed the fist-sized piece of wood in her hand. “Hrmm. What is this for?”

The cat climbed up her shoulder and peeked at the wood before saying, “Meow what have we here… Hmm. An Yggdrasil Chip, it looks like.”

To Mira, it looked like a mere block of wood, but Cat Sith knew more. “Oho. You can identify items now too?”

“I’ve seen an Yggdrasil Chip in an encyclopedia.” He proudly patted his chest, holding his updated placard aloft: A one-cat appraisal machine!

Yggdrasil Chips served as materials for powerful potions. They could also be used to make weapons that boosted healing power and gave users the strength to heal ailments such as poison, paralysis, and curses. The weapons sold for high prices among veteran adventurers.

Yggdrasil, hm? Come to think of it, Luminaria wanted Yggdrasil Charcoal as a catalyst. If I burned this, would it turn to charcoal?

Luminaria had asked Mira to bring her certain catalysts, for which Mira would receive the Encyclopedia of Skills, 2146 Edition. One such catalyst was an item called Yggdrasil Charcoal. The item was just what its name said, but Mira wasn’t sure if burning a Yggdrasil Chip would create the “right” charcoal.

Well, I might as well show her. Deciding to leave it up to Luminaria, Mira tossed the chip into her Item Box.

***

The pair found no other treasure chests—but plenty of Nildreants—before arriving at the exit.

At the end of the chain of blue flowers was a large hole in the rock face. Mira and Cat Sith proceeded through and arrived in a chamber with dirt walls. Bioluminescent vines blanketed the ceiling, making it as bright as midday. A pool rippled in the corner; lotus-like leaves floated on its surface. The whole chamber seemed very out of place, with foliage unlike any Mira saw along the way. Everything was overgrown with colorful wildflowers.

Enshrined in the center of the chamber was a guide to the Primal Forest’s exit, which spoke. “People rarely come here. Out searching for something?”

“It talks!” Cat Sith gasped.

“We were hoping to leave,” Mira answered, looking up at the towering blue flower before her. Her feline companion watched excitedly.

The guide was easily as large as a house. It was bluer than the sky and emitted an herbal scent. Blooming in the rays of vine light, it beautifully made its presence known.

“I see, I see! Well, I think I can help you with that. Bring me a source of power, and I’ll send you to the surface.” The flower, which had a stem many times stouter than Mira, shook its immense petals as it spoke. Its voice seemed to echo from below, reverberating through the whole room.

All Devils’ Labyrinths guides demanded a power source. Along with having to find the exit, one also needed an item to leave. That wasn’t too difficult if one had the power to fight the monsters inside the labyrinth. Any item those monsters dropped could be used to escape.

“This ought to do it.” Mira offered up a Nild Heart.

“Perfect. Toss it into the pool there, and I can send you to the exit!”

Mira once again tucked Cat Sith into her dress and threw the Nild Heart into the pool as the guide directed. Ripples spread across the pool’s surface, and the heart gave off pale light as it sank.

“Power source received. Off you go!” The thick-stemmed flower wrapped its petals around Mira as if devouring her.

“What the meooow?!” Panicking at the sudden darkness, Cat Sith clung to the closest thing at hand: Mira’s bra.

“Relax. All it’s doing is taking us to the exit.” Mira remained calm and allowed the flower to do its thing, though she frowned at having her bra pulled.

The room rumbled, jostling the lights above and sending ripples through the water. Finally, the blue flower with Mira in its “mouth” was sucked into the ground—or, more accurately, it dug downward. With Mira in tow, it plunged through the earth. After a few minutes of unnerving vibration, they stopped.

The flower spat Mira out, and she landed butt-first on the hard rock floor.

“Couldn’t you be a little gentler?” she grumbled, standing and rubbing her aching backside.

The flower paid her no mind. “Follow that river, and you’re out. Goodbye, rare visitor!” it called before returning below, sending tremors though the ground once more.

***

They were inside a small cavern closed off by rock walls. The light shining from the river in the very middle was the only thing that suggested a connection to the outside.

“Guess that’s the tail end of our journey. A real shame.” Cat Sith leapt out of Mira’s dress, looking at the river. Now, his placard read Homeward bound.

“There will be more to come.” Mira smiled. “I hope you’ll join me.”

“Yes’m!” The cat jumped for joy. He looked thrilled as he twirled his placard, which now said The adventure never ends!

Amused by Cat Sith’s excitement, Mira began to undress. She removed her robe, dress, and even underwear, throwing it all into her Item Box.

“Now, Party Member One, let’s go.”

“To the ends of the Eeearth!”

With that, Cat Sith and Mira—who didn’t even try to hide an inch of her skin—jumped into the river together. They found themselves swept over the very waterfall that flowed into the lake next to the labyrinth’s entrance. Thrown by the river’s rushing current, Mira plunged into the lake.

“Um… Emergency! I…can’t swim!” Cat Sith screamed, clinging to his placard—which read SOS!—like a life preserver.

“Now, now. Calm yourself.”

The lake was not especially deep; Mira could stand up in the shallows. She lifted Cat Sith by the scruff of his neck, placing him on her head. That done, she climbed out of the water.

It was nearly sunset, and darkness gradually crept over the forest. Mira stood naked on the lakeshore, wringing water out of her hair. The flowers blooming around her made her allure even more magical. Once she’d wrung her hair out, she pulled the large bag with her clothes inside from her Item Box.

As she tried to retrieve a towel, she noticed a sound. Using her Biometric Scan, she confirmed something unusual. There were countless pings in the forest—likely small animals—but only one on the mountain peak above. The latter was well hidden and unmoving.

Mira glared toward the summit. “Who goes there?”

Realizing they’d been beaten, the stalker jumped down to meet her. He was dressed in a mantle as black as night. The man’s toned arms were tense, and black cloth was wrapped around his hands. He had rectangular glasses, and a mask covered the lower half of his face; he looked like a genuine ninja.

Wary of Mira, the man kept his eyes fixed on her searchingly, holding something behind his back. “You’re…not a spirit?” he asked, glancing at the bag at her feet.

“A spirit? What part of me looks incorporeal?” Mira glowered at him, annoyed.

“Yeah, she ain’t a spirit! She’s the ringmeowstress!”

Apparently letting his guard down somewhat, the man relaxed his shoulders and stared at Cat Sith, who peeked out from behind Mira’s leg.

“Is that a cat fairy?” he asked.

“Indeed. I am a summoner, you see.”

“That she is! The ringmeowstress is unbeatable!”

Mira’s reply caused the man, who now totally dropped his guard, to frown with guilt and look away. “I see. Er, my apologies. You’re as beautiful as a spirit, so I was…mistaken.”

“Oho! Is that so?” The flattery lifted Mira’s mood somewhat; clearly, this man had what it took to notice her current form’s charms. Then she remembered just how suspicious this character was. “If you mistook me for a spirit, why did you act so cautiously?”

“Yeah! Unlike the ringmeowstress, spirits are actually nice!”

The stranger raised his eyebrows nearly imperceptibly, then cleared his face of all emotion. “Oh, well…once upon a time, I stepped into a testy spirit’s territory and ended up getting chased out.” He punctuated this with a laugh. “Hoo boy, that was a riot.”

“Hrmm, I see. Well, I suppose you aren’t to blame,” Mira said. She opened her bag and retrieved a towel.

Cat Sith cackled at the man’s expense. “You’re a big dummy!”

“Pipe down.”

“Yes’m…”

After wiping herself dry with the towel, Mira wrapped it around Cat Sith.

Spirits are free; they don’t have territory, she reflected. He’s just making up excuses because he thinks I’m a child. What could he be hiding?

As a summoner, Mira often mingled with spirits, and her knowledge of them was profound. Something about this man made her incredibly suspicious. “So, what were you doing in a place like this?” she asked him.

“Just collecting herbs and fruits, y’know. I was about to head home.” He patted a pouch at his hip. Mira didn’t know what was inside, but the pouch didn’t seem very full for someone who was allegedly foraging.

“Hrmm, I see. If you came this far, I’m sure you found plenty of quality items.”

“Yeah, more or less. Oh! By the way, have you seen any, uh…spirits hanging around?”

“No, I have not. Why do you ask?” Mira asked, scanning his face.

“I just want to avoid them,” the man said matter-of-factly. Based on his words, he must have been awfully worried about spirits. “Anyway, I’m going back to the village close by. See you.”

Immediately, he spun around and ran into the woods. When he turned his back, Mira spotted a black shortsword with mysterious emblems on his hip.

The man was just too suspicious. Aside from his appearance, his odd geniality, obsession with spirits, and blatant lying added up to one shady fellow.

“Hrmm. Perhaps I should investigate.”

Following the man with her Biometric Scan, Mira noted that he abruptly changed direction and sped up. Then she deftly put away her towel and bag, thanked Cat Sith, and dismissed him. The cat’s indignant cries echoed through the glade.