Chapter 26
Chapter 26
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Unemployed Maiden (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Certain districts where specific trades gather develop their own unique atmospheres. That's because people with rare traits from all over flock to one spot.
In the blacksmiths' district, the clamor of metal clashing against metal mixed with the scent of incense from the shrine to the Goddess of Fire—a holdover that even centuries of Heavenly God Church priests couldn't eradicate—while the scorching heat from every forge added to the vibe.
The tailors' and weavers' district brimmed with eye-searing bolts of colorful fabric, the sharp tang of dyes, and the constant whir of spinning wheels and looms, all creating its signature feel.
And in the capital's Elixir Street, where the alchemists congregated, that defining element was sparkle.
"Arthur...! It's full of shiny, sparkly stuff!"
"Don't touch anything."
I repeated the warning I'd drilled into her head a dozen times before we even set foot here.
Alchemists weren't idiots; they wouldn't leave dangerous things out on the main street. But every so often, some fool wanders by.
Of course, I didn't trust Tiona's self-control, so I kept a firm grip on her hand.
That said, her excitement was perfectly natural.
Precious metals like gold and silver, gems in every imaginable color. Even special alloys and minerals that could only be conjured through alchemy.
Glinting under the sunlight, they wove the one-of-a-kind atmosphere unique to Elixir Street.
"Arthur! This place is so fun!"
"Don't let go of my hand."
Alchemy.
The art and science of inducing changes in matter beyond its natural limits, using mana.
Straddling the line between chemistry and magic, alchemists typically worked in workshops.
Famous ones drew crowds of aspiring apprentices, who had to pass grueling tests just to get in.
Fortunately, Dian Levius ran a solo operation.
But just before we reached the address Melti had given us, I stopped in my tracks.
I'd spotted a woman with blue hair sitting on a park bench, blankly staring at the sky.
Lea Eperios.
Last time we'd crossed paths, she'd been working the counter at the billiards hall.
But her vibe now... it looked like she'd quit. Or gotten fired.
Sure, even working folks take days off and lounge on benches.
But this Lea? She had the look of someone whose every day was a day off—and it was starting to bore her.
"Arthur? Why'd you stop all of a sudden?"
She followed my gaze.
"Is that lady another one of your acquaintances?"
"Please don't talk like I know everyone in the world."
"She's not?"
"Of course not."
Lea caught on to our conversation and shot us a curious look. We were a welcome distraction from her boredom, so she called out.
"Krishantimaiu Duke's Daughter?"
"Oh? You know me?"
"Probably everyone does... I'm Lea of the Eperios family."
"Nice to meet you! I'm Tiona, and this is Arthur!"
"I remember. You came to the billiards hall last time."
"!"
Tiona jumped in surprise and scampered behind me in a flash.
"Arthur, she's a stalker! Exterminate her—eep!?"
"What kind of nonsense is that from someone using the normal brain function called 'memory'?"
"How could she remember us from a first meeting!?"
"You saw her at the billiards hall counter, right when we ran into Beatrice."
"Really!?"
"That striking blue hair of hers didn't ring any bells?"
"Now that you mention it...!"
Tiona peered at Lea's hair with fascination.
"I still don't remember at all!"
"..."
"I wouldn't remember some random person sitting at a counter in the first place!"
"Fair point, but don't brag about it. Please be quiet."
Lea spoke up.
"I noticed last time too... Your lady-butler dynamic is pretty unique."
"Is it?"
"Has to be. I'm not a butler—I'm her home tutor."
"...Home tutor?"
Lea looked puzzled.
"Do home tutors do babysitting these days?"
"What are you talking about? Arthur doesn't have kids!"
"Th-that's not what I... "
I got it. Since becoming Tiona's home tutor, how many times had I sighed out a "that's not it"?
"So what brings you here, Miss Lea?"
Lea flinched.
"...Just bored. And it's Lea, not Lia."
"Aha! Miss Lea doesn't have any friends either?"
"Young Lady!"
"I have friends. It's not that I don't have any—it's just... calling them out feels kinda awkward..."
My hunch was spot on, no doubt.
This woman was unemployed.
She hadn't taken the billiards gig because she loved it; she'd probably grabbed it on a whim, then dropped it when the mood struck. Or got canned.
The real question was how someone of her caliber ended up like this.
Thanks to Tiona, the mood let me join in without it being weird, so I asked directly.
"If you're Lea Eperios, I figure with your skills, you could stay plenty busy if you wanted."
Lea eyed me. Or rather, my build.
"You're Arthur, right? I thought so last time too—you know your way around a sword?"
"I've handled one a bit."
"A bit, huh..."
The blue-ponytailed beauty gave a wry smile.
"Let's just say... I've lost interest in the sword."
"...Ah!"
Tiona suddenly yanked me closer.
"Arthur, don't pry anymore! I can guess what kind of state Miss Lia's in!"
"Lea, not Lia."
"Fancy types call it 'unemployed maiden'!"
Only my young lady would butcher some half-remembered slang like that.
- Don't say it that loud; she can hear you.
- There's no such thing as 'unemployed maiden.' 'Unemployed youth' works for women too.
- Don't call that 'fancy.' It just makes us look ignorant.
Too many corrections piled up in my head, tangling my tongue.
And then.
"...Unemployed youth?"
For some reason, Lea latched onto it.
"I'm not an unemployed youth."
"Huh...? But you're not job-hunting?"
Lea's body twitched for a split second, but she flashed a relaxed smile.
"Nah. Think about it, Tiona—you'll get it. What does it take to be an unemployed youth?"
"...No idea."
"You have to job-hunt first."
"...!!"
Lea grinned triumphantly, like she was daring us to come at her with those eyes now wide open.
"If you've never job-hunted and have no plans to... you're not an unemployed youth."
"Th-that loophole!?"
"Exactly. 'Unemployed' means you worked, then stopped for a while, right?"
"Totally!"
"So if you never worked and don't plan to? Not unemployed. QED. Got it?"
"Not an unemployed youth...! Amazing! Lea's right!"
"Heh, yeah. Finally, someone gets—"
"Lea was just a lazy bum who hates working!"
"..."
"..."
It was factual.
She'd only done that billiards side gig because she got pushed into it—not some die-hard work refuser. Just a flimsy patchwork of half-baked logic.
Lea herself probably didn't think that spiel could convince the world.
Still, most people wouldn't shove the facts in her face like that.
Because.
"Apologize."
"Pardon? For what?"
"Apologize!! For calling me a lazy bum, a useless drain on society!"
"I didn't say it that harsh!? And yelling doesn't make you scary at all!"
Tiona shouted boldly. While ducking right behind me.
"Wh-why don't you apologize?"
"Arthur!? How could you betray me!?"
"This isn't betrayal. And Miss Lea, maybe act a little more mature—"
"So you're saying I'm just older but no better than a kid in competence!?"
"Agh..."
What a mess.
How did she end up this ball of inferiority complex?
"Arthur, save me! She's scary!"
"You just said she wasn't—"
"That was just bluffing to escape! How'd you miss that? Are you dumb?"
"Young Lady, stop provoking her more!"
"You little...!"
Lea's hand twitched toward her waist.
Good thing it was empty now, but I couldn't relax.
Being unemployed didn't mean her sword skills had rusted away.
Even if she only had a fraction of her original strength at this point in the story, she'd still be deadly.
Plus.
It'd be a huge problem if things soured between her and Cynthia's group—the ones destined to join up and save the world later.
I didn't want a group project breakup dooming us all to apocalypse. Too real, zero laughs.
"Come here—"
"Save—"
BAM!!
The door to the building in front of us burst open from inside.
Tiona and I had come looking for Dian Levius at his workshop and paused when we ran into Lea.
So the guy storming out at our noise was...
"Quiet down! If you're gonna fight, take it somewhere else—not in front of my workshop!!"
White bobbed hair.
A face so delicately pretty for a man.
An oversized white robe draping his silhouette.
And dark circles under his eyes from days without proper sleep, clutching a coffee mug.
Not some white mage... more like an engineering grad student turned alchemist. Dian Levius in the flesh.