Though they planned to venture into the Dungeon,
Time simply wasn't on their side. Shortening incantations wasn't something you could just do on a whim—though if Riveria had stepped in to help, Alice and Lefiya could've managed it much faster.
After all, it was Riveria who had blocked Lefiya's magic earlier, using just a few key words to cast her defensive spell.
Even though Alice was the one who came up with the theory and had plenty of magical knowledge passed down from Patchouli, she still couldn't match Riveria's depth of experience.
Besides, Riveria had told Lefiya something like this:
'If you want to deepen your impression of the magic, find the key words that feel right to you. That's the only way you'll truly succeed.'
After saying that, Riveria simply turned and left.
As for when they'd actually head into the Dungeon—that was set for the next day. Riveria had arranged to go together with Alice, bringing Lefiya and Ais along as well.
In the study, Alice and Lefiya were deep in discussion about shortening the chant, while Ais stood quietly by the wall, watching them both.
Ais had an almost obsessive drive to grow stronger.
So when she heard from Riveria that Alice had a method to become stronger, she became intensely curious. Even though Riveria had clarified that it was a method for mages, not warriors, Ais wasn't ready to give up.
That's why she came—to listen in on what Alice and Lefiya were talking about.
But their conversation revolved entirely around shortening incantations, specifically for Lefiya's magic spells. There wasn't much theoretical discussion, so Ais couldn't really follow along.
The purpose of a magical chant was to deepen the impression of the spell. Though Lefiya tended to get nervous facing monsters, she was still a competent mage.
Once she understood which key words needed to stay, she had a pretty good idea of how to shorten her chants.
Before long, Lefiya had managed to shorten the incantations for all three of her spells to some extent.
She was really looking forward to testing whether these shortened versions would still work properly when chanted.
"Everything comes down to tomorrow," Lefiya said, her face beaming with excitement. She turned toward Ais, who was standing nearby, and hurried over like a child seeking praise.
"Miss Ais! If the shortened chant that Alice helped me with works tomorrow, I'll finally be able to help everyone a lot more!"
Lefiya had always relied on her friends' protection and support, so the thought of being able to contribute meaningfully made her incredibly happy.
Seeing Lefiya like this, a faint smile appeared on Ais's face. She raised her hand and gently patted Lefiya's head.
"Lefiya is amazing," Ais said softly.
"Hehe."
Watching the two get along so well, Alice smiled slightly and turned her gaze out the window, where the sunset was slowly fading.
'I wonder if Lili and the others have eaten properly,' she found herself thinking absently.
Just then, Ais and Lefiya walked over.
"Alice, would you like to stay and have dinner with our familia? Our dining hall is really good," Lefiya invited.
Ais stood quietly nearby, watching Alice as though whatever decision she made had nothing to do with her—which, honestly, was pretty much the case.
Alice shook her head at Lefiya's invitation.
"No, I should head back. It's getting late, and if we're going to the Dungeon tomorrow, I still have some preparations to make."
The Little Legion was capable enough in Orario—at the very least, they could protect Lili and her little shop without any trouble.
Last time, Alice had brought her entire house into the Dungeon with her.
This time, she didn't plan to bring her home or Lili along. Her shop still needed to stay open, even if there might not be many customers.
But just in case someone did stop by, it'd be good to have Lili there to take orders.
Without the Little Legion, even with Riveria and Ais there to protect her, Alice knew she still needed to improve her own strength. So she had to prepare a few things.
There wasn't enough time to make new puppets, so she focused on magical preparations instead—like spell cards and such.
Hearing Alice's reply, Lefiya couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.
"I see… Well, in that case, I guess there's no helping it. I was really hoping we could chat about magic under the covers tonight," Lefiya said, still smiling.
Alice returned her smile. "Next time, Lefiya. You can come to my place, and we'll talk about magic all you want. But right now, it's about time everyone in Loki Familia returns. To avoid anyone mistaking me for an intruder, could you walk me out?"
"Sure! Leave it to me!" Lefiya nodded earnestly.
--+--
Alice's presence inevitably caused a bit of a stir within Loki Familia.
Thanks to Loki's… particular interests, the familia had more female adventurers, but there were still plenty of men around.
And around this time, many of the adventurers who'd been leveling in the Dungeon had returned.
Alice wasn't wearing her cloak, so plenty of Loki Familia members saw her. Both men and women alike were struck by her beauty.
But thanks to the presence of figures like Riveria and Ais, while everyone was amazed by Alice's appearance, they kept their composure—unlike some of the less respectful adventurers outside.
It definitely raised Alice's opinion of Loki Familia.
'As expected of one of the top familias—their members have much better manners,' she thought. The gap between them and the three Soma Familia adventurers she'd chased away was like night and day.
After leaving Loki Familia, however, Alice was reminded of the downsides of not wearing her cloak.
This was the time when adventurers were either eating, had just finished eating, or were out wandering the city.
The streets were crowded.
Once again, Alice found herself troubled by her own appearance.
The desire radiating from the people around her was seriously unpleasant.
There wasn't much she could do about it, though. Her looks were natural, and she couldn't change them. All she could do was take it in stride. Wearing a cloak might solve the problem temporarily, but Alice knew that once she became famous—and she had no doubt she would—hiding her face wouldn't work anymore.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
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