What should I do? Should I tell Senya about Gria?! But because Gria stole that Yggdrasil Sap, it was able to save my life. If I tell Senya now, what would she do? Will she get furious to Gria? Should I just stay quiet so it won’t cause any trouble?

 I’ll just keep quiet about it for the meantime.

“What’s wrong, Asagao?”

“Ah…nothing…It is just tha--!”

“Ah! Turn to that door to the left! That’s the alchemy and magic laboratory.”

“Eh…Okay…”

As what Senya said, I turn to the door on the left. Upon arriving at the front of the door, Senya opens it and beckons me to enter.

Upon entering, the surrounding drastically changes from the grand hall of the mansion with full decorations and pillars with intricate embedding to a well lit large room that has two floors with our current place is the first floor and a stair downwards can be seen on the side.

The smell of aroma and such wafts in the air and magical power in this place fluctuates from repetitive use of the researchers here whether if it is related to alchemy or invention and improvement of new magic.

The room is divided into two.

The so-called left wing is filled with cauldrons and even large adobe ovens. In the long table lays various ingredients and apparatus used for the production of certain materials and experimentation for a new product. The girls on that side are all wearing protective gears such as lab coat, glasses, and gloves. Some give instructions and some read some books to prepare for their product trial.

The right wing is filled with scattered books and some rune stones. Some runes are elemental runes used for compounding and some are already compounded which are used to compound a more complex elemental magic structure. Weaving a fire and earth rune to water rune to create magma is one of those elemental magic weaving. Also, there are disposable runes that amplify magic output to a certain degree, however, those amplification runes won’t work to those people with higher magic output than the rune itself. I really don’t have any interest in such activity since I am just a hopeless barrier user.

The field where magic is being researched is teeming with adept magicians. They are holding conversations that connect with magical theory and such. Also, those magicians have trained as in sewing a thread made out of special material imbued with runes can produce magical clothes. One of the best examples would be the dragon fiber I am wearing.

As I stare at the spectacle, Senya called out to me.

“So how is it, Asagao? What do you think?”

“It’s fantastic! Miss Senya, everyone here are experts in their own field and they know what they are doing! If it is me, I would immediately give up because of lack of proper knowledge and deficiency in magic aptitude.”

“Yeah…everyone here dedicates their whole life into it. No one forced them to do it. It’s their passion and it is what they love. But you know, Asagao, lack of proper knowledge and deficiency in magic aptitude isn’t a viable reason.”

“Miss Senya?”

“Asagao, you learned the basics of Calm Dragon Tempest without anyone forcing you, right?”

“Yes!”

“Then let me ask you, why did you train it?”

“Because I don’t want to hold back anyone anymore… I want to stand up for myself and walk to the path I am destined to.”

“See. You are not good at it but you’re passionate about it.”

“That’s cruel!”

“Ah! It’s Miss Senya and the alien!”

Alien?!

The voice came from a woman who just emerges from the stairs. It’s a woman with four tiny horns and bright blue scales on her jaws. Her brown messy hair is untidily tied in a ponytail that only reaches past her nape. She is wearing a leather coat with lots of pockets and underneath it is a star themed pajama. She is wearing a thick glass that I am unable to see her eyes and she wears an indoor slipper with fur.

She lazily waves her hand towards us with a tardy smile.

“Gosh, something interesting appeared at my lab!~”

“Don’t call me alien!”

“Sorry, sorry, but, you look so different from any other race I have ever seen like, are you even living in the same plane as us? Like, did you come from another dimension or something? Did the gods and goddesses had a secret meeting and seriously created a being that looks so ephemeral? Man, I’d love to put you on a tube right now as a special specimen!~”

“S-Stop that! You’re creeping me out…! Who are you anyway?! Don’t put me on those creepy tubes! Miss Senya, who is this anyway?!”

I already referred her as this.

Goosebumps started appearing on my skin and my senses went full alert and tingling. I unconsciously pull my sword from my dimensional storage as she got closer and closer. There is something about her that I can’t put on words.

“Woah, woah, Senya, her senses aren’t dull like what you said!”

“Asagao, this is Mimosa.”

“This?!”

“This is the one who manages and everything here and this also the head researcher here. As you have sensed, this is an Arcana magician.”

“Well, despite you guys treating me like a thing, I’ll say it myself. I am an arcana magician. My magic is All-sight. It is an ability that enables me to see someone’s abilities, stats and some trivial information of a person whom I used it. All I have to do is to get some fluid sample from the target and consume it.”

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E-Eww…but that does sound convenient and imbalance.

“After consuming it, a floating screen pops up out of nowhere and it shows everything about the target. The screen that shows up is only visible to me. So now, Miss Alien, please give me your spit.”

“NO!”

“What a shame. I could look into your skills that you haven’t discovered yet.”

………

I look at Senya for confirmation if it is real or not. She looks at me with her usual closed eyes smile and nods lightly. I look at Mimosa with uncertain gaze and it just smiles at me creepily as it licks its lips.

I am tempted right now…I really am…

If its power is genuine, then I’ll have a landslide of information regarding my strength, however, if I do it now, I feel like I’ll lose for a lifetime…

“Maybe some other time…”

“Oh? What a real shame. Oh yeah, we have a lot of soaps, toothpaste, shampoos and conditioners today on the stock. Take some as a proof of our acquaintanceship.”

“Eh…What?! EH?! SO MANY?!

Mimosa drops a heap of everything from inside her pockets to me! There are so many that I immediately open my dimensional storage. It didn’t only have the items she said but there are also runes and some magical fabrics with it.

Hehehe….

Acquaintanceship isn’t so bad after all.

“Ah, please to meet you, Miss Alien. I’d like to introduce to you my assistant but she got involved into something again and now enjoying another day sex. Well then, Senya, what do you need from me?”

“Hmm? Nothing, in particular, I just want Asagao to tour around and this is the first place she definitely needs to see. So she can learn more about this place and what wonders and knowledge we can share with her.”

“Ah, I see! Since our theme this year is magical beast materials, then Miss Alien, among the soap that I gave you, there are those that are made up from the magical beast material. And we all know that magical beasts are poisonous. Do you know why?”

Wait! What’s with the sudden pop quiz?!

How should I respond? Maybe I should answer in a simple way. However, before I can even open my mouth to say anything, Mimosa brought out a green soap.

“Miss Alien, try eating this.”

“HA?!”

“It’s not poisoned or anything and I promise you that it is edible.”

“Uh-huh…”

I reluctantly take the soap presented to me. Mimosa just smiled as I bring the soap closer to my mouth. I shouldn’t worry since Senya trusts her but I cannot help not to be anxious. My mouth quivers as I open it and get the soap closer for me to bite. I close my eyes and readied my stomach for the upcoming bubbly and soapy sensation that is about to hit my palate when…

OOMFFP!

………

What the hell is this?!

It tasted like sweetened green tea! As I took a bite out of it, it did feel like soapy when I am chewing it but the taste is definitely spreading throughout my mouth and the soap easily melts.

“So, how is it?”

“Delish! But, why do you need to make an edible soap though?!”

“It’s actually a bath bomb. It is also good for skin and regulates your blood circulation. It also has an exploding aroma that calms both mind and body.”

“Eh? Really?! What is it made of to gain such result?!”

“…Magical beast materials.”

“No way…”

Then isn’t this literally a poison?!

Just thinking about that makes me want to vomit. I cannot forget how horrible they tasted…

“I told you, it is not poisoned. Do you want to know why?”

“…For fact checking, please do.”

“Alright. Magical beasts, as we all know, came from normal animals. Animals turning into magical beasts are caused by an influx of magical power into their bodies. But there shouldn’t be a lot of cases of animals turning into one, should it not?”

“……”

“This world’s ecosystem naturally has predation. And predation is something in the wild commonly happens. If a single small rabbit turns into a magical beast, it gains new traits whether new or not, it depends on the nature they live. However, if a more powerful prey hunted down that rabbit that turned into a magical beast, then the magic inside that rabbit will be transferred to the predator.”

“That’s already common sense! It is like a cycle of nutrients!”

“Yes, yes! The predator has now a chance to evolve into a magical beast because it receives some magical power and naturally, that predator will now gather magic all by itself and then at some point of time, it will become a magical beast. Then, if that predator that turned into a magical beast dies and smaller creature feeds on it, those critters will now have a chance to evolve too.”

“Ah! So basically, as long as an animal receives magic from another being, they may start gathering magic too by themselves unconsciously and by their deaths, lots can also feed to the magic that it gathered producing more magical beasts.”

“Correct!~ Now, getting back to the real topic, do you know why they are poisonous?”

“…Why?”

“Because of the magical power inside their bodies.”

“Eh?! But…shouldn’t it be beneficial for us too if we consume them?!”

“True as it may sounds but, no, it is not. It is not beneficial for us. They have a different magical structure than us, especially those long-lived magical beasts. Our body cannot adapt to their magical power which is extremely foreign to us. It is poisonous since it is filled with their magical power in which predated from a succession of prey.”

“What about this soap here? Isn’t this made from that?!”

“You’re right. However, there are no more traces of the poison because the magical power is extracted.”

“…wait…HOW?!”

“Oh? Trade secret, but it involves using my arcana magic.”

“EH?!”

“Give me your spit, I’ll answer.”

“No…”

Even after with all those unnecessary explanations, she is still fixated on getting my spit…

Senya who was just listening to our conversation clasp her hand and call out for Mimosa’s attention.

“Alright, that’s enough of you Mimosa. We’re only here to tour but you are taking too much time. Asagao and I should be heading out now.”

“Oh, sorry for that! I am just having fun looking at Miss Alien.”

“Dear me, you’re such a rude girl.”

“Well, since they’ll be staying here, I still have a chance!”

“Yeah. Just don’t scare them too much. We’re going now! You’re so chatty like always…aren’t you busy?”

“Oh shit! Yeah! There’s something I need to do! Bye Senya and Miss Alien!”

It arrived like a hurricane and left like a hurricane. What a creepy thing.

Since we spent too much time in here, Senya decided that we will just go to the kitchen for now. It is also a good timing since I am getting hungry. That should be obvious since I slept for three days straight.

We left the research laboratory and make our way to the opposite hall of the door we just got out. There, I saw a huge door with girls dressed in maid and chef uniform comes and go.

“They look so busy.”

“Un. They are preparing for lunch after all.”

“Eh? But isn’t this a little early?”

“Nope, since the population in this mansion exceeds hundred, you know.”

“That many?!”

“Yes, however, it seems they have gotten busier since you guys arrived.”

“I’m sorry. We need to get some work here after all or we are just going to be useless freeloaders.”

“Oh, that’s a good one! However, the consumption is heavily scaling towards the devil you brought with, Topaz.”

“Eh?”

“Look at the door next to the kitchen.”

Now that I notice it, there are awfully a lot of maids outside. They seem all excited to come and go inside with food in their hands.

“What’s inside that door?”

“It’s Topaz room. That’s where we isolated here…that’s actually the plan but…”

“But…?”

“Actually, her room previously was on the second floor but, we decided to move it here because it is easier to bring her food. We really do not mind how strong she eats and she doesn’t complain much if she gets to eat or not but…”

“But?!”

“S-See for yourself…”

That’s weird…everything is…

As what Senya proposed, I left her and head towards Topaz room where dozens of maids gathered. As I stride closer, the maid's faces went from flustered to hysteric like they want to do something terrible to me.

I ignored any eye contact since I feel like they will devour me anytime…

I made my way to the door and snappily open it…

………

What the in the actual flying duck…

“Here, here, Little Topaz, eat this cake!~”

“Ooommphh…”

“Little Topaz, you want some tart? Here’s a strawberry flavored!”

“Ooommphh…”

“This! Eat this!

“Open your mouth!

“Do you want to drink? Here’s a juice…!”

“Ahh! Such healthy appetite!~”

Topaz is surrounded by so many girls who just kept feeding her. Topaz never hesitated to eat what’s served to her and deluge herself in an eating spree.

I though they isolated her because she is a devil, now, why does it look like she is a pet!? Also, is her stomach bottomless?! Is this what’s she’s doing for the past three days? She did say back then that she is still in a growing phase and she needs to eat a lot but…really?

Wait, now that I look closely, there are some slight changes to Topaz and that’s definitely not getting fat!

Topaz’s below average breasts size becomes a little bigger now and her height seems to have grown too. Her face hasn’t changed though…

“Eat well, Little Topaz, eat well.”

“Everything will pay off after endearing you with so much food, hehehe…!”

“I’m getting excited, I wish she can open up to me first!~”

“How does her moan sounds like….ahehehe…”

No good...everyone inside the room is carnivores.