Life in Another World as a Maid Mage

Leave the client to Clemens and head upstairs. Looking down the stairs leading to the lower level, the large hall was submerged. The depth of the water doesn't seem so deep.

As he watched, he felt a slight discomfort, and Shiori tilted his neck.

"... ah. Is the tower leaning?

I see.

One end of the wall sculpture, which drew a horizontal line against the floor, sank beneath the surface, while the other end was located above the surface. This side of the staircase is deep and the corridor side is shallow.

"That's why the water came this way."

"Oh, I hadn't noticed it before, but it's leaning a lot."

On the other side of the hierarchy, Alec took his hand and went down the stairs to the nearest water surface, thinking that it would have been so cold. Louis, who followed me from behind, put a tentacle on the water.

I don't think you're gonna tell me you're gonna drink all this.

When Alec joked, he slapped his feet with his tentacles, telling him how much he could do.

He looked at the manga and laughed, and then turned his gaze back to the water. In order to drain the water, we had to drill a hole somewhere, but before that, we explored the signs of the third floor with magic. There seems to be no sign of the Beast. Instead, multiple magical reactions with the power of fire, and...

"... are you there?"

"... yeah. It's just you and me."

The magic reactions scattered underwater would be the magic stone of fire, as Nadia said. And there were two signs in the back of the corridor that was overflowing with water. Yeah, just two.

"Only two people can feel it....."

"I guess the other one is..."

Alec dared not speak, but that's what the signs are missing. Once that happens, you can't find it with Exploration Magic.

"What should I do? If you drain the water, it might come out of the bottom... but don't."

"... yeah, let's just pull it out. I care about both of them."

One of those three Empires may emerge after the water has been drained from the hall. I don't really want to think about what kind of condition it is.

"... I see. Okay, please."

"Yeah, but we ended up draining water."

"- I see."

Unless there's a lot going on during the expedition, it's better not to touch anything you're not sure about. It's a species of life. That's why I walked through that room bare yesterday.

Look around the hall where the water has accumulated and determine the appropriate place.

"Do you think you can?

"Yeah, but it could take a while. I don't want to punch a big hole because I'm scared."

It would be wiser not to make thoughtful decisions because you are an amateur. The equilibrium of the tower collapses by drilling a bad hole, and if it collapses, I can't even see it.

I don't know if it's around here.

I stretched a magic net around the wall where the water depth would be deepest, specified the location of the perforation, and deployed earth magic to drill several holes in several centimeters. The starchy water moves, and the water level drops gradually. Looks like it worked.

Still, as expected, it's going to take a while. Lower your hips to the stairs from either side and watch the water slowly move toward the drain. Louis began to play by slapping the water.

The water flowing out may look like a little pond in this amount. Summer would annoy other adventurers, but now it's a rare winter. It's still frozen and will melt away in spring.

"--I wonder why the Imperial... came here."

Speaking of doubts, Alec raised his face as he looked at Ruli and laughed bitterly.

Yeah?

"The Empire's trio. I didn't seem to have enough equipment or food, but I couldn't help it... why did I come here?"

Obsolete and damaged equipment. They were further reduced in their luggage in the battle against the Beast, but still did not return to the city and proceeded further.

"Ahh....."

His gaze turned to the other side of the hall, to the back of the corridor.

You know the Empire is in civil unrest.

"Yeah."

According to newspaper reports, junior aristocracy on the border, who could not withstand the central oppression, united and raised the crowd. Immediately after the outbreak of civil unrest, newspapers with sensational headlines such as "the puppet emperor has no hands or feet" and "imperial annihilation is approaching" stood out.

"Originally, it was a huge country that accounted for some of the continent, but the drastic expansion of the country has led to huge military expenditures. As a result of continued impossible tax collections to compensate for the shortfall, the rebellion was followed by a complete decline in national power. Over the past decades, tax revenues seem to have been even lower because fewer farmers have been forced into conscription. And yet you can't forget the life of a rich time, and without stopping the luxury, the money of every noble family is a fire train."

That's why he said he was gathering the artifacts of his ancestors that were once part of the Empire and adding them to them.

I'm sure those three are such aristocratic adventurers.

This tower used to belong to the Empire nobility. I wonder if you came looking for the treasure that was in the tower.

"You said everything you took was gone and nothing was left. And even if it did, we can't go back to the Empire."

Immediately after the civil unrest, access to the Empire should be restricted. It seems that the only people currently operating in the country are the Imperials who entered the country before the civil unrest.

If the time comes to return, it will be at the end of the civil unrest. By the time they return to their homeland, now that the civil unrest is said to end in the rebels' victory - there will be no more homes.

That's pathetic, Alec closed his story.

"Really....."

I'm sure they had to move on. Even if I knew it was empty.

"... but I can't sympathize with you."

karma. It's only time to pay for what you've done.

"... that's right."

Alec said that Louis at her feet trembled as she agreed.

"--Looks like it's about time."

After a while, Alec stood up. There is still water left by the wall, but the floor is almost visible and there seems to be no problem walking.

As he stood up with his arm pulled by the stretched hand, Theori looked around the hall. I saw nothing suspicious. The Imperial appearance that I expected. Maybe the two survivors have already recovered it.

I feel relieved and exhale.

Well done on draining the water.

"Yeah."

Walk carefully through the wet floor and peek into the water reservoir left behind by the wall. In a slightly cloudy water that feels powerful magic. I saw a lot of small red and sparkling stones sinking there. It's a magic stone of fire.

"Oh, this is... more than I thought."

Yeah, it's amazing.

Some of them may have flowed out with water, but the amount just in front of me is fine. Enough to hold both hands together.

"Wow... it looks like a cocksucker."

"Ufuha, that's right. It certainly looks like a cokemon."

A bright red magic stone the size of a centimeter that sinks a lot in the water is like a cokemon. When I picked them all up and bottled them up, they resemble magic stones to the point where they can't be seen at first glance.

"Is it hot when you touch this?

I thought it might be hot because it prevented that amount of water from freezing, but Alec shook his neck sideways.

"It's not hot. It feels warm."

Alec, who took off his gloves, picked up some magic stones when he got into the water. Put one of them on Shiori's palm. A slight heat travels through the gloves.

"It's true. Warm....."

"Each force is small, but they interfered with each other to amplify the power of fire. That's why the water wasn't supposed to freeze."

"I see... that's what happens. But..."

Theoli tilted her neck. Did you intend to imitate it? Lori's body leans in the same direction.

"I wonder what happened to so many. Maybe this is the treasure the Imperials were looking for?

"... no, there can't be anything like this left untouched. With this size and amount... it's probably left behind by the fake Oni-Fire (Falsk Whisper)"

"Fake Onyx? Heeheheh"

Fake Onyx. A small fireball-like beast that builds and inhabits deep forest swamps. It seems that there is not much ecological research going on to destroy it immediately if it is defeated without a substance, but generally it seems to be thought of as a spiritual devil without intelligence. It seems that this beast, which cannot be defeated without a magic attack because of its lack of substance, often contains magic stones in its body with strong magic elements.

It suited my difficult eyes to be flushed into the water, but I was lucky to get the beast's droppings without hassle instead.

"Something stuck in the tower died for some reason..."

"Dead fighting other beasts?

"I wonder. I don't know if I'm going to look into that room."

"Yeah."

Anyway, it would be a pity to keep this amount of magic stone. Each one is small, but if you sell them all out, they should be worth a lot of money. I want to pick it up as much as I can.

Alec and I picked up a magic stone underwater. The hands in the water were cold, but if you hold the magic stone you picked up, your body temperature will return.

With this amount of water, Alec laughed, saying that if you leave the magic stone submerged for a while, the water would be better or worse.

"If you put it in a bag, it's going to replace chrysotile."

"Oh, I'll make and distribute it for the number of people. We'll distribute it properly when we get back to the city. I'm sure you want Annelier too."

Put some together in a small storage bag and make it look like a boiler. I took one and put it in my pocket and it got slightly warmer. Keep the rest of the boiler in your waist pouch for now.

Louis was playing with the magic stones he picked up by sticking and stroking them at the tip of his tentacles. Apparently he liked it.

"You want it?

When Alec asks, he trembles.

"It was great. Nobody complains when I give them one reward."

Particularly large grains were picked from the magic stones picked up and placed at the tip of the stretched tentacles. Louis trembled happily, stroking and enjoying herself, and then took care of it. A small grain floats in the rugged body. Maybe he's going to take it out and play sometimes.

Looking at Louis walking around, they laughed at each other, and then turned to the corridor.

"Well... I'm going to go ahead and make sure, but what about you? I don't mind coming back and resting. Maybe you'll see something less pleasant."

--of the Empire, whose signs are gone.

I'm sure Alec cared for me. But...

"... or I'll come with you. We decided to work together."

That said, he opened his eyes for a moment before laughing a little bit.

"... I see. Yeah, that's right. You're right. Then let's go together."

"Yeah."

Barricade the hole in the wall before rising.

It's the end of the line of sight from either side. The entrance of a long corridor on the main road, which I had no idea when I arrived, now looked rather dark.