Chillin’ in Another World with Level 2 Super Cheat Powers: Volume 16 (Light Novel) E-Book

Miya Kinojo

• Herausgeber: J-Novel Club
• Kategorie: Fantasy und Science-Fiction
• Serie: Chillin’ in Another World with Level 2 Super Cheat Powers
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 266

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024

Beschreibung

An emergency has struck the world of Klyrode. Due to an incident involving a certain golden-haired individual and his legendary shovel, the magic barrier around the sky has been critically damaged! After the efforts of the drunkard ex-goddess, Telbyress, only make the situation worse, the authorities of the Celestial Plane turn to the only person on the world whose magic could possibly fix the firmament itself—Flio, the nigh-omnipotent merchant from another world. But does anyone at the Fli-o’-Rys General Store have the mathematical chops to keep the books in order while the boss is away? Will Elinàsze be able to keep her unsanctioned trips to the Celestial Plane itself a secret from the angel Zofina? And what will she and Flio find in the enigmatic Castle Celestia?

Leseprobe

Chapter 1: Flio Fixes the Sky

The world of Klyrode is a world of sword and sorcery, home to magic beasts and demihumans of all shapes and sizes. In this world, humans and demons had waged war since time immemorial, until the greatest of the human kingdoms, the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode, signed a treaty with the Dark Army, the single largest organization among demonkind, putting an end to the conflict and ushering in an age of lasting peace.

Klyrode, however, is only one of the many planetoid worlds orbiting a stationary pole, each protected from the cosmos outside by a magic barrier, spherical in shape. In a shocking event, unprecedented in the records of the Celestial Plane, the barrier surrounding the world of Klyrode has been damaged. The goddess responsible for overseeing Klyrode has dispatched her subordinates, the angelic Disciples of the Celestial Plane, ordering them to repair the barrier with all haste. Meanwhile, the humans and demons of Klyrode carry on with their peaceful lives, ignorant of such affairs.

And so, the stage is set. The curtains slowly rise...

◇***◇

Unlike our own world, the world of Klyrode is one where the sun and stars rotate around the planetoid body, not the other way around. The inhabited part of the world lies atop a massive continental shelf situated in the middle of a spherical firmament, atop which one could find its vast land masses and expansive seas.

In theory, a spellcaster using the Fly spell or one of the many magic beasts capable of flight would eventually be able to reach the firmament itself, except for the Proximity Rejection spell cast on the barrier, making it so that anyone who came close would simply find themselves in an endless expanse of atmosphere. It was arranged such that no matter how far one flew, they would never approach the barrier itself. The only way to get through would be to nullify the Proximity Rejection spell itself—a feat only possible through the use of Celestial Magic.

Celestial Magic, however, was the purview of Celestials. Only the Disciples of the Celestial Plane and their superiors, the ones who oversaw the management of the planetoid worlds could use it, aside from a vanishingly small number of individuals who had learned it by other means.

High up in the sky, on the outside of the barrier above the world of Klyrode, Flio and Elinàsze looked down on the land below.

Flio had mistakenly been given the divine blessings meant for two people when he had first been summoned to the world of Klyrode, granting him many powerful abilities including the spell Epiphany, which let him instantaneously master any magic system with which he came into contact. He and his daughter Elinàsze, who had inherited his abilities, were the only two residents of the world of Klyrode capable of using Celestial Magic, and therefore the only ones able to nullify the Proximity Rejection spell and approach the firmament itself.

“It’s quite something looking down on the world from so high up, isn’t it?” Elinàsze marveled as she gazed down at the continent of Klyrode far below. “Even Houghtow City is too small to make out from this far away!”

Elinàsze—daughter of Flio and Rys, and Garyl’s older twin. A serious-minded individual devoted to magical research, although her adoration for her father Flio could only be described as pathological. Recently, she had been spending every spare moment she had either gathering magic grimoires or studying her collection to implement the spells contained therein.

As the two of them flew above the firmament around the world of Klyrode, the jewel on Elinàsze’s forehead shone brightly, a sign that she had released the full power of her magic. Thanks to the double blessing he had inadvertently received, Flio’s abilities all shot up higher than the upper limit of his status window to display the moment he reached Level 2, and he instantaneously mastered every skill and spell that existed in the world of Klyrode. His daughter Elinàsze had inherited his abilities, giving her an aptitude for magic far beyond what a resident of a planetoid world could ordinarily attain, and it was all concentrated in the gem on her forehead.

Elinàsze floated in the air with her arms outstretched, a compound magic circle of impossible complexity spreading out before her hands. As she cast her spell, the color of the gem on her forehead changed, taking on a golden hue. Stretching out ahead of her was the damaged portion of Klyrode’s firmament. Her magic was working to mend the cracks, but the scale of the damage was vast.

“It is quite something, that’s for sure,” Flio agreed, giving his daughter one of his famous easygoing smiles as he floated in the air next to her, conjuring a similar magic circle in front of his own outstretched arms as he too expended his magic to repair the damage. “We don’t ordinarily get to see the magic barrier around Klyrode from the outside, do we?”

Flio—a former merchant from another world summoned as a candidate for the position of Hero. The blessing he received on his summoning gave him mastery over every skill and every spell to exist in the world of Klyrode. Together with his wife Rys, a former soldier in the Dark Army, he spent his days working as manager of the Fli-o’-Rys General Store.

“You really are incredible, papa,” Elinàsze said, an adoring expression coming over her face as she turned to look in her father’s direction. “I can’t believe your magic was able to take us outside the firmament of Klyrode! Meanwhile, the most I can do is open a portal to the underground world Dogorogma. Really, incredible is the only word for it...” A distinct flush rose to her cheeks as she spoke. Elinàsze, after all, truly took being a daddy’s girl to an unhealthy degree.

“Hey, now!” Flio said, wincing awkwardly at his daughter’s overbearing affection. “Opening a portal to Dogorogma is pretty incredible in its own right!”

“Not at all!” Elinàsze insisted. “From what Uncle Ghozal told me, a portal to Dogorogma should be relatively easy...”

“M-Miss Elinàsze!” chided Zofina, flying up from behind Flio and Elinàsze and placing a finger to her lips to urge her not to say anything further. “Please do exercise caution in speaking of such things,” she said. “Ordinarily, only a Celestial would be capable of opening a portal to Dogorogma in the Subaltern Plane. I would rather it not become common knowledge on the Celestial Plane that certain residents of planetoid worlds are capable of using such magic themselves...”

Zofina—an angel and Disciple of the Celestial Plane subordinate to the goddess in charge of the planetoid world Klyrode. Ordinarily she appeared as a woman dressed in white robes, except for when she took on the role of Contract Executor, the enforcer of Blood Oath Contracts, in which case she would take a form that was half young maiden and half skeleton, dressed in a worn and tattered cloak. At this moment, it was the former appearance with which she presented herself. She was quite fond of a particular eatery she discovered in the last world she had been assigned and liked to stop there between missions whenever she was able.

“I believe I’ve told you as much before, but your father Mister Flio’s ability to open a portal to Dogorogma is regarded by the Celestial Plane as a special case,” Zofina continued with a distinct sense of frantic urgency, bringing her face up close to whisper in Elinàsze’s ear. “The fact that you, too, are able to accomplish this feat is confidential information known only to a select few. Residents of planetoid worlds aren’t meant to be able to open portals to other worlds at all, you know. If the other Celestials found out that there were two of you, it could be the cause of all sorts of problems.” She glanced conspiratorially over at a spot some distance away, where a number of other Celestials were working along with them to repair the damage to the magic barrier.

“Oh, that’s right!” said Elinàsze, startled back to her senses by Zofina’s words. “I’m very sorry! Tee hee!” she added, cocking her head and sticking out her tongue.

Zofina smiled a tight lipped smile and let out a sigh. Of course, she thought, last I heard, the mages Bathea and Stellamh from planetoid world Palma have been creating portals to other worlds whenever it strikes their fancy and causing no end of trouble. Mister Flio and Miss Elinàsze, on the other hand, always make sure to abide by the rules and ask for permission before doing anything like this. Really, I suppose I should be grateful...

“By the way, I’ve been meaning to ask...” said Flio, glancing over at Zofina and Elinàsze as the two finished their whispered conversation. “The part of the barrier that was broken was on the underside of the world, wasn’t it? Why is it that the half up here is falling apart too?” He looked down at the world of Klyrode, the landmasses stretching out beneath them, testifying to the fact that they were, indeed, near the upper half of the spherical barrier.

“That’s a good point,” Elinàsze said, folding her arms and inclining her head in thought. “It was the lower part of the sphere that was destroyed, from the shock when Levana and the Hydrana fragment fell through the bottom of the world, wasn’t it? And didn’t I hear that they had already finished repairing that portion just the other day?”

“Y-Yes... About that...” said Zofina, suddenly seeming uncomfortable with the line of questioning. “As you say, Miss Elinàsze, we were able to repair the bottom part of the magic barrier that suffered the initial damage without incident. In the process, however, it seems one of the people we recruited to help with the repairs had a bit of an accident...”

“An accident?” Flio and Elinàsze both asked, remarkably in sync.

“Ah... Well, you see...” Zofina hemmed and hawed before heaving a heavy sigh and continuing, “This is far from the only planetoid world, you know, and the Celestial Plane is always short-staffed. At first, I was the only angel they could spare for the repairs to Klyrode’s firmament. I thought it would be best to enlist the help of another of the world’s residents...”

◇Meanwhile—Houghtow City, the Goblin Cottage on Blossom Acres◇

“Bwaaah...chooo!!!” In a room in the cottage where Hokh’hokton the goblin lived, on the farm known as Blossom Acres, Telbyress suddenly let out a powerful sneeze.

Telbyress—formerly a goddess of the Celestial Plane, stripped of her position and banished for neglecting her duties. Currently she was living in Hokh’hokton’s cottage, without having ever obtained permission from the goblin himself. She was meant to be helping out with the farm, but between her rampant alcoholism and bone-deep aversion to any kind of work, she found herself at the receiving end of Hokh’hokton’s temper more often than not.

“Ugwah!” Hokh’hokton exclaimed, at first startled by the noise and then scrunching up his face in annoyance. “How many times have I told you?! Cover your mouth when you sneeze, you buffoon! You’re getting your snot everywhere!” he snapped, smacking Telbyress with his fist as the fallen goddess rubbed her runny nose.

Hokh’hokton—a goblin who once served as a foot soldier in the Dark Army. At present he was a full-time employee of Blossom Acres, and he well and truly put his spirit into the farmwork. Unfortunately, he had found himself saddled with the responsibility of looking after Telbyress...

“Ah ha ha!” Telbyress said, laughing off Hokh’hokton’s punch. “I wonder if someone out there is spreading gossip about me...” Then, seemingly without a care in the world, she brought her handkerchief to her nose and blew it with a loud “Snrrrrrrrrfk!!!”

“Of course they are!” Hokh’hokton barked. “The Celestials in their magnanimity gave you another chance at the job, and you made a mess of the whole thing! If only you had done your work properly, they might have let you back into the Celestial Plane, but you can’t do anything right, can you?” Pressing his head to his hands, Hokh’hokton breathed out a deep sigh.

“Ah ha ha! Oh, well! We got the repairs to the bottom half done, so what’s the big deal?” Telbyress laughed again, dismissing it with a wave of her hand. “Still though, I can’t believe the upper part of the firmament is the one that needs repairs now! Who would have thought, huh?”

“Now hang on just one minute, Telbyress!” The doors to Hokh’hokton’s cottage swung open and in stepped Blossom, her arms crossed, glaring daggers at Telbyress.

Blossom—originally a heavy knight from a knightly company in service to Klyrode Castle who had since quit the knighthood and taken up lodgings at Flio’s house. The best friend of the company leader, Balirossa. Blossom came from a family of farmers and excelled at all agricultural skills, which she now put to work as manager of the vast acres of farmland located on Flio’s property.

Telbyress flinched and staggered back at the sight of the anger in Blossom’s face. “H-Huh? M-Madame Blossom? Wh-What’s gotten you all worked up?”

“What’s got me all worked up, you say?” Blossom replied, stomping on into the cottage and bringing her face right up close to the fallen goddess’s. “Whose fault do you think it is that Mister Flio and Elinàsze are up there in the sky right now fixing all that damage to the barrier? The whole firmament is caving in on itself because you cut corners on your job the first time around!”

“M-Madame Blossom...” Telbyress pleaded, smiling as sweetly as she could manage in spite of the sudden tension in her face and the cold sweat running down her forehead. “Th-There’s no need to get angry about it, is there?”

“Really,” Blossom continued, “you should be the one taking responsibility and heading back up there to fix what you broke, but Miss Zofina said she couldn’t trust you with the job and got Mister Flio to help out in your place, since he can use Celestial Magic and all. You promised to work twice as hard as you had been down here on the farm in exchange, remember?”

“U-Um...” Telbyress stammered. “I, well...”

“And yet, it had occurred to me that I’d seen neither hide nor hair of you for a while now!” said Blossom. “I had a feeling, and lo and behold, you’d up and gone back home!”

“You did what?!” Hokh’hokton bellowed, turning to face the no-gooddess. “Telbyress! You told me just now that Madame Blossom had given you the day off!”

“U-Um... Well... You see...” Telbyress said, grasping for an explanation.

“The day off?!” said Blossom. “I most certainly said no such thing!”

Blossom and Hokh’hokton both brought their faces perilously close to Telbyress, each giving her an earful in turn.

“Y-You didn’t?” said Telbyress, retreating further backwards with her forced smile still plastered on her face. “Th-That’s funny... I could have sworn you told me something like that...” Then, a moment later, her expression suddenly changed. “Ah ha ha... Well, sorry!” she said, turning around and running at top speed for the window in the back of the room.

“Hey! Telbyress! Stop!” demanded Blossom.

“I’m so terribly sorry!” Telbyress called back as she jumped up on the windowsill and outside the cottage. “I just remembered some urgent business I gotta take care of!”

As soon as her feet touched down on the ground outside, however, Telbyress was greeted by the sight of an enormous fist headed straight her way. “Hyaaaaaah?!” she screamed, taken aback, only for the fist to stop short a hair’s breadth away from making contact with her face. Then, she saw who the fist belonged to. It was Kora, who had been waiting outside the window while Blossom went inside the cottage.

Kora—only daughter of Ura, chief of the nearby oni village, Kora was a hybrid child born to a fairy folk mother and had inherited her father’s oni blood. She was an intensely shy and self-conscious girl but had opened her heart to the members of Flio’s household to a large extent and particularly adored Blossom, her adopted mom.

Kora was a little girl, but she had enlarged just her right arm as she swung her fist, pretending like she was about to clobber Telbyress. “Don’t make problems for mom...” she muttered quietly, fixing the fallen goddess with an icy glare.

“I-I-I won’t!!!” Telbyress wailed, tears streaming down her face as she pressed herself up against the wall in fear of the little girl in front of her.

“Right then,” said Blossom, grabbing Telbyress by the back of her dress’s collar. “Let’s get back to work, shall we?”

“Y-Yes, ma’am...” said Telbyress, as Blossom dragged her away from the cottage.

◇Back Above the Firmament of Klyrode◇

“I thought that since Telbyress happened to reside in this world I might enlist her help in repairing the damage to the barrier. Depending on how she performed, I was even considering using this as a test to determine whether she should be granted leave to return to the Celestial Plane. But instead, she had the absolute gall to decide she would rather not exert herself by using her magic power. Instead, she merely pretended to repair the barrier and instead simply stretched out the undamaged portion of the firmament to create a shoddy patch over the hole. As a result, the whole barrier became too thin to sustain itself and began to fall apart...” Zofina signed deeply and shook her head as she finished recounting the tale.

“I’m so very sorry,” Flio said with a grimace. “I had no idea Telbyress was behaving so badly on the job.”

“Oh, no, no!” Zofina hastened to reassure him. “You certainly haven’t done anything wrong, Mister Flio. It’s all the fault of that erstwhile failure of a goddess.”

“I appreciate you saying so,” Flio replied. “But we’re the ones who have been looking after Telbyress while she’s staying in the world of Klyrode. Her misconduct reflects on us, her caretakers, as well. And besides, the reason the firmament was damaged in the first place had to do with Levana, a member of our household. It’s only appropriate for me to take responsibility for any problems our family might have caused.”

The initial damage to the lower part of the firmament had come when a magically enlarged fragment of Hydrana, the Beast of Annihilation, had fallen through a hole in the bottom of the continental shelf together with Levana in her full leviathan form, crashing all the way through to the underground world Dogorogma far below.

It bears mentioning that Hero Gold-Hair and his party played a large part in what happened that day as well...but no one present was aware of that particular group’s involvement in the situation.

“I do appreciate the sentiment...” Zofina said, a complicated look on her face as she turned to look Flio’s way. “Nonetheless, she was given the job at the request of the Celestial Plane, on the basis of my own personal recommendation. I can’t help but feel that I bear the brunt of the responsibility here...” Flio had not stopped working his magic throughout the whole conversation, repairing the firmament at a remarkable pace.

“Not at all!” Flio insisted. “The Celestial Plane is always short-staffed on account of the sheer number of planetoid worlds they have to manage, right? I just hope we’ve been a bit of help in the grand scheme of things. Although...” Here, Flio turned to give Zofina one of his trademark easygoing smiles. “We certainly wouldn’t mind permission for a jaunt to Dogorogma, in exchange.”

“A-Ah, yes, of course...” Zofina said, returning the smile albeit with a certain undeniable stiffness to her expression.

The underground world Dogorogma lay below the space occupied by the many planetoid worlds, the bottommost stratum of the worlds under the purview of the Celestial Plane. Owing to its special place in the cosmos, it was directly governed by the goddesses of the Celestial Plane themselves. It served as a place the goddesses would relocate and preserve plants and animals from planetoid worlds whose lifespans had run their course, as well as a prison for the powerful Beasts of Disaster. As it was home to many living things that could fetch a ludicrous price in the right world, even Celestials required official permission before paying a visit to Dogorogma.

Flio, who had mastered Celestial-tier synthesis magic thanks to his spell Epiphany, was able to create a certain medicinal powder that had the effect—among many others—of restoring a youthful luster to even a goddess’s skin. Creating medicine like this was a lost art in the Celestial Plane itself. In fact, among all the worlds in this corner of the cosmos, Flio and his daughter Elinàsze were the only two known to be able to accomplish the feat.

We’ve given them permission on a number of occasions to enter Dogorogma in order to obtain the materials they need to make the medicinal powder from the flesh of the magically powerful Beasts of Disaster that have been sequestered down there—with the tacit understanding that they will be collecting rare herbs and magic beasts while they’re in Dogorogma as well... Zofina thought as she smiled awkwardly back at Flio. It really couldn’t have been more obvious that her smile wasn’t entirely genuine. But there are some goddesses who take a dim view of that sort of exchange. And securing permission for Mister Flio will mean negotiating with their faction as well. Honestly, it’s making my stomach feel queasy again just thinking about it.

“Come now, Miss Zofina,” Elinàsze said, looking up from her own work repairing the barrier. “Papa and I have been careful to follow the proper channels and only enter Dogorogma after we’ve obtained permission, haven’t we? We have every intention of following the Celestial Plane’s rules, you know. I certainly don’t see any need for you to look so distressed about the prospect.”

“Y-Yes... You’re right, of course...” Zofina said, lowering her head in thought. Miss Elinàsze isn’t wrong... she thought. Especially compared to some people from other worlds I could mention, such as the witch Stellamh, who keeps entering Dogorogma to collect herbs whenever she pleases, no matter what we tell her. And because her own magic power happens to be on par with your average Celestial, she’s able to nullify the spells we cast to keep track of her comings and goings. Mister Flio and Miss Elinàsze certainly would have no trouble doing the same if they were so inclined. I suppose I should be grateful that they’ve been so cooperative with our procedures...

Just then, however, another thought struck Zofina. “Miss Elinàsze,” she said. “Could I perhaps ask you about something unrelated?”

“Yes? What is it?” Elinàsze asked.

“Dogorogma aside, you haven’t visited other planetoid worlds by any chance, have you?”

“Hm?” Elinàsze replied innocently. “Whyever do you ask?”

“Well...” Zofina began. “It’s just that I’ve received reports that the Celestial Plane has discovered signs that someone has been traveling through this area of the cosmos...”

“I see...” Elinàsze said. “Well, I can’t say I’ve been traveling to any other planetoid worlds myself. Personally, I’d be inclined to think it’s someone from another world visiting Klyrode—especially with the barrier around the firmament damaged like this.” She smiled disarmingly, as if to forestall any further questions. “And on that note, perhaps we should hurry up and finish these repairs, to prevent something like that from happening again!”

“Y-Yes, you are correct, of course...” Zofina said, utterly overpowered by the force of Elinàsze’s argument. It was all she could do to nod meekly in response.

Flio, however, seemed to remember something as he watched the exchange out of the corner of his eye. You know... he thought. There are times I can’t sense Elinàsze’s presence, even when there’s no sign of her using any sort of concealment magic. She can’t be... Can she? He cocked his head slightly, studying Elinàsze’s face for a long moment.

“Yes, papa?” said Elinàsze, noticing her father looking her way and beaming brightly. “I haven’t got something on my face, have I?”

“O-Oh! No, it’s nothing! Don’t mind me!” Flio said. R-Really... he thought, a tight-lipped grimace on his face as he looked back towards his work repairing the firmament. There’s no way...right?

Of course, it’s the Celestial Plane I’ve been visiting, not any planetoid world... Elinàsze thought as she glanced back over at Flio. So technically, I haven’t lied about anything!

Fortunately for Elinàsze, no one in the vicinity noticed her sticking out her tongue in an impish expression of triumph.

◇Meanwhile—Houghtow City, Fli-o’-Rys General Store◇

It was another busy day in Houghtow City, with streets packed full from the area around the Fli-o’-Rys General Store just outside the city proper all the way on to the rest of town. The store itself was no less packed full of customers. Many there had boarded an Enchanted Frigate bound for Houghtow City at one of the many boarding towers Flio had built throughout the land in search of their quality selection of magic items, arcane implements, and other sundries.

Inside the store, Uliminas heaved a heavy sigh.

Uliminas—a hellcat known as Ghozal’s confederate during his time as Dark One. When Ghozal had abdicated his throne, she took her leave of the Dark Army as well, and now worked at the Fli-o’-Rys General Store under the guise of a demihuman. Now she was one of his two wives and the mother of Folmina.

“It’s been day after day of this...” Uliminas complained, scratching her head as she glanced over a stack of papers. “I’m as happy business is booming as anymeown, but we just don’t have the paws for this...”

“What’s that?” said Balirossa, turning to look Uliminas’s direction as she passed by, carrying a large wooden crate. She was dressed in her usual style, reminiscent of her time as a knight, albeit with a staff apron on top of her clothes. “We’re still short on staff, even with everyone we have helping? In my estimation, Snow Little has been performing commendably in the short time she’s been working with us.”

Balirossa—a former knight from a company in service to Klyrode Castle. She had since left the knighthood behind and now lived at Flio’s house, working for the Fli-o’-Rys General Store. One of Ghozal’s two wives and the mother of Ghoro.

Behind Balirossa, wearing an identical apron to hers albeit paired with a dress, Snow Little happily bobbed her head.

Snow Little—Garyl’s former classmate. As one of the few remaining members of the fable folk, she had a natural talent for summoning magic. Like many of Garyl’s old classmates, she harbored romantic feelings for the boy. After her graduation from the Houghtow College of Magic, she had found work at the Fli-o’-Rys General Store.

“I-I’m certainly doing my best!” Snow Little chirped. She was carrying a box like Balirossa of course—as were the fairy-tale dwarves she had summoned with her magic. “Please do let me know if there’s anything at all I can do to help!” Behind her, the dwarves all nodded in unison.

“Don’t worry, the stocking team is in good shape thanks to meowll of meowr efforts,” Uliminas said, smacking the stack of documents in her hand with a rueful grimace. “What we need now is meowr people to handle employee compensation!”

“I-I’m terribly sorry...” Balirossa said, her expression stiffening. “I’m afraid the level of mathematics employed by this store is somewhat beyond me. While you were in math class, I studied the blade...”

“It’s beyond me as well...” Snow Little agreed, smiling apologetically. “Although if you want me to read any tales for you, I am quite good at that.”

“Hey, no need to beat meowrself up about it,” Uliminas counseled the two of them with a smile. “There’s some complicated figures involved in our papurrwork, after all.” It would be one thing if it was just sales and purrchases by the general store itself, she thought. But we also have to worry about meowgic beast rental fees, opurrational expenses for the meowgic beast racing hall, venue fees from meowr other locations, which can be entirely different sums from region to region... Not to mention all the different expenses involved in running Blossom Acres... Fwaaah... The meowre I think about it, the worse my headache gets...

Uliminas found her eyes drawn to the sky outside the window, stretching out vast and blue into the distance. Mewster Flio’s been a meowrchant his whole life. He knows how to make a whole meowntain of accounting papurrwork vanish in a flash. But right now, he’s up there above the skies, helping out the Celestial Plane. In the meantime, I’ve gotta find someone who can pick up the slack! She sighed and turned her gaze back into the shop, stealing a glance at a flyer posted up on one of the walls: “Now Hiring! Especially Seeking Personnel Proficient in Mathematics!”

“Still...” she said, looking back out the window once again. “Is the furmament really falling apart? The sky looks the same as usual from down here...”

“Ah, yes...” said Hiya, appearing behind Uliminas as the hellcat stood in thought.

Hiya—the djinn who commands the origin of light and darkness. Although they possessed enough magic power to destroy the world of Klyrode in its entirety, even that wasn’t enough to prevent them from losing to Flio. Ever since then, they took to living in Flio’s house, worshipping him as the so-called Exalted One.

“That is because of the Celestial spell Proximity Rejection cast on the world-facing side of the magic barrier comprising the firmament,” Hiya explained. “From our vantage point, that magic makes it appear as if there is nothing above us but endless sky. If it weren’t in place, any magic user capable of casting the spell Fly or any magic beast with the power of flight could reach the firmament in theory. Proximity Rejection makes it so that anything that approaches beyond a certain distance will be sent backwards a set length without any awareness of the physical shift occurring, effectively sending them through an endless loop.”

“And not even mew could break through that barrier, Hiya?” Uliminas asked.

“Alas, I could not. I am able to use every magic that originates within the world of Klyrode, but I can cast nothing that would allow me to avoid the effect of Celestial Magic and reach the firmament itself. Only one who has mastered Celestial Magic could achieve such a feat, and on our world there are only four—the Exalted One Mister Flio himself and his esteemed daughter Miss Elinàsze, who inherited her father’s affinities, as well Telbyress and Tanya, our two former residents of the Celestial Plane. As an aside, the Exalted One’s other children, Sir Garyl and Miss Rylnàsze, seem to have inherited their affinities more strongly from the side of their mother, Madame Rys...”

Hiya concluded their explanation with a dignified bow before pressing their finger to their lower lip as something else suddenly occurred to them. “Ah, I forgot. There is one other being in this world capable of using Celestial Magic—a beast, in this case...” they said, looking up out the window themself.

“Mreowr?” Uliminas asked as she, Balirossa, and Snow Little all turned to follow the djinn’s gaze...

◇ ◇ ◇

“Hm...” Flio said, folding his arms as he looked all around the area. “Looks like this part of the barrier has mostly been fixed.”

“Yes, I would say so, papa!” Elinàsze agreed with a satisfied nod, hands on her hips as she scanned the area from behind her father.

“Papa! Big sis Elinàsze!” Just then, Flio and Elinàsze heard a girl’s voice coming towards them from down below. A moment later, it was joined by a second.

“My lord husband! Elinàsze!”

Flio looked down to see a magic beast with a flowing golden mane, four legs, and a great pair of wings rising up from the ground below, coming towards them with astonishing speed. On its back, he could see his daughter Rylnàsze and his wife Rys.

Rylnàsze—the youngest child of Flio and Rys. She was born with an exceptional potential as a tamer and an uncanny ability to befriend magic beasts. She had been putting her talents to good use looking after the magic beasts at the Houghtow College of Magic, where she now attended classes.