81 – Test Subject
“How about it! There’s hardly ever a chance to become Mariel’s test subject! You have talent!”
“I don’t want to.”
Has this eccentric wizard gone mad?
First of all, he almost got split in half due to a partial failure in his teleportation spell. Who in their right mind would want to be a magical experiment subject for such a wizard?
“Are you… refusing my proposal?”
“Yes.”
When I firmly refused, Mariel took a step back, as if shocked, and exaggerated her gestures.
Her two large eyes, bulging out of their sockets, and her hair, precisely split between pink and white, left a strong impression.
“Do you even know what talents you possess? It’s such a waste to let them go to waste!”
“What does wasting talents have to do with being a subject for magical experiments?”
“Oh! By the heavens! Algot! Algot, are you there?”
Mariel began shouting the guild master’s name loudly.
As a result, the attention of other adventurers in the guild turned towards us.
It seemed as if a question mark was floating above their heads.
Well, that’s to be expected.
Even I don’t know what the situation is right now.
After a while, the office door swung open and Algot came out.
He glanced at me and then at Mariel, sighed softly, and gestured for us to come over.
“Since you’re interrupting guild business, both of you come in here for now.”
Following Algot’s instructions, we entered the office.
As soon as we stepped inside, Mariel spoke to me again.
“The moment I saw you, I thought it was fate! I thought the gods had sent me a human for experimentation. Think about it again, this kind of opportunity doesn’t come by easily! Algot, as the guild master, please try to persuade them!”
“No… because I don’t like it.”
“Why is that?”
“Algott, what should we do about this person?”
Leaving Mariel, who was acting recklessly, I sent a pleading look to Algott, asking for his help.
At times like this, it’s best to seek the help of someone who is relatively sensible.
Whether Algott is sensible or not is another matter, but I hope he can at least stop that crazy magician from suddenly turning people into lab rats.
“Mariel, stop it. Yunoa doesn’t like it.”
Well done, Algott!
Mariel stared at me, narrowed her eyes slightly, and leaned her head forward as she spoke.
“No, this is too much no matter how you think about it. I can never give up on this man.”
“…Is that so, Yunoa?”
You’re giving up too easily, Algott.
Please try to intervene more actively.
“The magician, Mariel, never had any intention of giving up on Yunoa.
The moment she first saw him, she sensed a foreign flow of magic power from him.
Furthermore, through observation, she discovered that the amount of magic power was slightly different from that of an ordinary person.”
In a difficult situation, a narration echoed in my mind.
So the reason Mariel has been showing me such persistent interest is because of that.
She was able to observe my foreign-colored magic power and the fact that there is no limit to the amount of magic power I can hold, which I obtained from Einblad?
So every time she looked at me, she scrutinized me with those strange eyes, making me feel uncomfortable.
Anyway, I had no intention of becoming a dubious subject for magical experiments.
“Anyway, I don’t plan on being experimented on. Do you think I would willingly do something when I don’t even know what I’ll be subjected to?”
“…Well, Mariel.”
Algot turned his gaze towards Mariel this time.
Mariel was anxiously biting her lips.
Her wide-open eyes were fixed on me, making me feel a little scared.
I wish they would give up already.
“hehehehe… You two! You’re underestimating Mariel too much!”
“…”
“Do you think I would give up? You’re an excellent subject for experiments that I won’t be able to meet again in my lifetime!”
“I’ve already said I don’t want to.”
“500 gold!”
“What?”
“I’ll give you 500 gold if you agree to be my experimental subject! Isn’t that a great deal?”
Mariel presented me with a striking condition.
500 gold in exchange for becoming a magical test subject.
It was certainly a remarkable offer.
If it were back when I was struggling to make a living before becoming an adventurer, I would have agreed without hesitation, doing all sorts of odd jobs.
It’s not like being a magical test subject is much different from being a living experiment or something.
But I had already sold Bellafork Manor to Mariel, and I had my own house in Cubel.
There was no reason for me to participate in such human experiments, as I felt no financial need or lack.
“No, thank you.”
“How about 1000! 1000 gold!”
“I said no.”
“What! Are you refusing such an offer? You! My magical experiments are very safe and fun!”
“It doesn’t seem safe, considering the involvement of teleportation magic.”
It seems that 1000 gold is the maximum amount that can be offered to a human subject.
Still, he must be a really wealthy magician.
Even after buying the mansion, he barely calls for human experiments with such an amount.
But I absolutely had no intention of accepting.
My heart had already hardened like a fortress, and all I wanted was to go home as soon as possible.
“I tried not to use this method… but you…”
Marie started glaring at me, trembling.
What, what’s going on? What is he trying to do?
He’s a magician, so he wouldn’t use some cowardly mind control magic to force me, right?
I unknowingly tensed up while paying attention to Marie’s reaction.
With Algott in front of me, it didn’t seem like a fight would break out, but given Marie’s strange personality, there was still a good chance of some unexpected action.
In this unnecessarily tense moment…
Marie suddenly fell to the ground in front of me, pressing his forehead against the floor and shouting.
“I beg you like this! Please! Just once! Let me study you just once!”
“……”
“If you just become my research material, I’ll do anything you ask!”
… Anything?
『Yunoa harbored disrespectful thoughts in her mind at Mariel’s statement that she would do anything she asked.
She imagined herself asking Mariel for various things, almost accepting the offer in that moment.
Her determination, which had never wavered even for money, seemed to falter in the face of desire. She couldn’t help but think she must be a trash pervert.』
No, no, that’s wrong.
Why would she go to such lengths to study me? That’s what I was confused about.
The narration is definitely not true.
Anyway… I should reject her quickly and go home.
『On the other hand, Mariel’s proposal was sudden and absurd, but it had its benefits for Yunoa as well.
Mariel was very interested in Yunoa’s unique magical constitution.
Although she made mistakes occasionally, her skills as a mage were genuine, so she couldn’t help but be fixated on Yunoa’s constitution, which she had never seen before.』
Just as the firm refusal was about to burst out of her throat, the narration echoed in her mind again.
Even in this moment, Mariel was still on the floor, as if ready to lick my shoes, rubbing her head against them.
But if there are benefits for me too, I can’t just let it go.
What kind of benefit does it mean to become a human magic experiment?
『Mariel not only researched various types of magic, but also studied the very essence of magical power, which is the source of magic.
Although there may exist mages who use more powerful magic than her, there was no one who understood magical power as well as she did.』
No, I mean, what kind of benefit does it mean for me?
I was getting frustrated because it felt like the narrator was beating around the bush.
I had made up my mind to reject Mariel’s proposal, but the words of refusal just wouldn’t come out.
Considering that the narrator had conveyed relatively accurate information, except for when they tried to sell me off as a perverted freak, it made it even more difficult.
If the narrator were to say that participating in Mariel’s experiment would benefit me, there was a high possibility that it could be true.
“Yunoa not only possessed a unique magic different from others, but also had a special way of using magic, just like someone with ordinary magic. Mariel’s extensive knowledge of magic could potentially provide answers that would suit Yunoa’s unique condition.”
Upon hearing those words, I began to think that it might actually be helpful.
Just a while ago, I couldn’t properly control my own magic and ended up making a sword out of dragonite ore.
Thanks to that, the phenomenon of magic running wild has disappeared, but relying on the sword for magic control is unsettling and worrisome.
Moreover, as the narrator mentioned, my constitution for absorbing magic was different from others.
For adventurers, their capacity to hold magic is infinite.
But compared to a large container, the ratio of magic that I accumulate through magic conversion is ridiculously low.
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It was like filling a container that can hold the ocean with just one drop of water.
It’s a situation where I have the advantage of unlimited magic, but I can’t become as strong as I think.
Could Mariel’s research find a way to solve my various problems?
If so, maybe this is a good opportunity for me…
No, but is it really okay?
I recalled the pathetic sight of Mariel struggling in the gap of a dimensional rift, flailing her legs in the air.
She probably wouldn’t go as far as intentionally killing me like a real laboratory rat, but still…
Even if I didn’t intend for it, there’s always a risk of an “accident.”
But the possibility of solving the problem with my unique constitution and magical efficiency is intriguing…
When I think about my safety, I can’t trust it… But still, magic… No, safety comes first… No…
“Like this! Please! Can’t you do it! If you become my experimental subject, I’ll give you money and grant any request you have! You’re worth that much as a research material!”
Mariel continued to shout in front of me, prostrated.
Magical efficiency… Safety… Magic… Safety… Magic… Saf…
My thoughts are a mess.
I didn’t expect the narration to create such a conflict in me.
“Please! I beg you! Like this…”
“…I will.”
“Don’t just say it, think about it once more… Huh? Oh! Oh!”
I don’t know anymore.
If I just refuse and go back like this, it feels like it will haunt me even in my dreams.
I’ll believe in the narration’s words that it will help me.
Accepting the proposal, Mariel suddenly got up from her seat and hugged me tightly.
A refreshing scent emanates from her hair, divided into pink and white.
I’m flustered.
“You thought well! You’re my precious and irreplaceable experimental subject in this world!”
…My experimental subject?
*Ahem…*
Algot watched Mariel’s expression and cleared his throat, giving her a hint.
After distancing herself from me, Mariel looked at me with a sinister smile.
Seeing her like that, I couldn’t help but regret not rejecting her.
But now, rejecting her again would be a little awkward…
I’m curious to see what she can find out about me through her research and how she can help me.
“Just a moment. You’ll keep your promise, right?”
“Huh? What promise are you talking about?”
Surely she didn’t forget what she just said.
“I said I would give you money and fulfill whatever you want.”
“Th…th…that’s right! Y-yes… I’ll keep the promise!”
“If you don’t keep it, I won’t do it. Mr. Algot here will be a witness as the guild master.”
I said firmly.
Judging by her reaction, she must have thought that the conditions were a bit excessive even after saying them herself.
But I had no intention of compromising.
* * *
What happened to the ghost girl?