She Is Very Cute Indeed

After some distance crossing the town, they finally arrived at a house. Because Rei said that the person was a noble, Aria had already thought that she would see a house that was as big as Rei's or Hiki's. But aside from the rather large yard, the house with the wooden doll hanging on the door looks like an ordinary middle class house, where only one or maybe two people live.

Rei knocked on the door several times, but no matter how long they waited, there was still no answer. So as a last effort, Rei started banging on the door--

"In the back!" A woman's voice finally answered, sounding a bit angry.

Rei sighed softly, but in the end he and Aria went around the house and went to the backyard. And there is the figure of the collector of magic artifacts, an old woman who seems to be smoking her long cigar. She looks relaxed lying on a long bench, but strangely the red dress she's wearing still looks neat.

"Hah! See who it is? Turns out it's just a boy whose name I can't remember." She said curtly.

"Mrs. Loreine, I want to buy an artifact." Rei simply replied.

"I sell nothing here."

"Or at least loan--"

"Can't hear!"

Didn't stop there, the two of them continued to talk like that for a while so that Aria, who saw it, was confused. They look hostile yet also friendly at the same time.

Only after being fed up by the fighting, the woman finally got up from her seat to go back to her house. And that was when her eyes stopped as she passed Aria.

"Hm? Who's she?" She asked as if she had just realized Aria was also there.

And because the woman started looking her up and down, Aria who was nervous finally answered. "N-Nice to meet you. My name is Aria."

But somehow her white eyebrows raised in surprise. "A crimson??" She squeaked. "Where the hell did you find her?" She asked Rei.

"...?" Rei had already suspected that Mrs. Loreine could find that out without being told, but her rather happy reaction was still unexpected. "The city across the sea. Why?"

Even though instead of answering, now the woman was already busy squeezing Aria's palm. "Could it be that you're looking for an artifact for her?" She asked. "Well, of course. Judging by her low magic energy, she might not be able to protect herself at night."

"I… Does it look that obvious?" Aria asked.

"Wait!" But again the woman ignored her and turned back to Rei with an angry look. "What do you want with a sweet Crimson like her?" She asked.

And when Rei didn't answer, the woman immediately took off her shoe and threw it at Rei's head. "You want to send her to the academy? Are you crazy? If your mother knew this she would rise from the grave just to kick your ass! What an ungrateful kid!"

"Um, that--" Aria tried to stop her, but the old woman was already excited about hitting Rei.

Until finally Rei had to defend himself. "That's why!" He shouted then. "She needs an artifact!"

"...Tsk." The old woman pursed her lips bitterly. But finally she put her shoes back on and stepped back towards Aria. "Well, fine then." She said, and she started to pull Aria to come into her house.

And how surprised Aria was when she saw the inside of her house, which does not match the size of the house seen from the outside, at all! It's even wider than Rei's mansion!

"That's because of the hanger on the door earlier." Rei said when he saw Aria confused by herself. "That wooden doll can manipulate a space dimension. So even though it looks small from the outside, it's actually very spacious inside. After all, she keeps all her collection here." He explained

"I see…" Aria answered while still amazed looking around the house. Unlike an ordinary mansion, all the floors and walls looked like they were made of thick white and gray marble.

Maybe that's why everything in the house looks colorful. Starting from cabinets and tables that's made of maroon-colored wood, to the glass knick-knacks that reflect a rainbow light.

"Hurry up here." Call Mrs. Loreine from one of the right corridors, and Aria and Rei immediately caught up with her. They walked along the long corridor for some time until they finally arrived at a door. Which somehow already gives goosebumps even though they haven't entered it yet.

The room was still 2 times wider than the first room Aria saw. But what was even more amazing was the view of the antique objects that's neatly lined up all over the room. Everything was sparkling, but one thing for sure is, Aria could also feel the magic aura in all of them.

"Everything here… Is artifacts?"

"Don't look at the rest." Cut Mrs. Loreine. "You only need this one." She called out, as she stood by the glass case that was at the far end of the room.

Aria approached slowly and found a pitch black solid cube.

"This is Hera Cubik, an item that can store magic energy." She explained. "To be more precise, every time you fall asleep this thing will completely absorb the remaining magical energy that you haven't used during the day. Like saving magic, you can use it for extra power when you're tight."

"Wait--"

"I know! I'm not done yet!" Interrupted Mrs. Loreine who immediately covered Rei's mouth. "The downside, of course, is that you'll be incapable of using magic immediately when you wake up. Morning, of course. But if you take a nap, you won't be able to use magic right away when you wake up either."

Aria glanced at Rei for a moment, but even though he looked a bit dissatisfied, he didn't seem to think it was a big deal either. "You're not a nap person, are you?" Rei asked, and Aria immediately shook her head. As a poor person who has financial problems, taking a nap is not something she can do everyday.

"Then that's fine." Rei chirped. "How much does it cost?"

"I'll lend it for one gold coin a day." Reply Mrs. Loreine with a big smile. "But! You have to come every week to massage me. You can do healing magic too, right?" She said towards Aria.

"..." Aria herself didn't really mind that request. It was just that she wasn't sure if she could answer it herself, so she waited for Rei to answer it--especially since he was the one with the money.

But before he said yes, Rei decided to ask his curiosity first. "Why are you that interested in her? Because she is a red magic user?"

"Not your business. Just answer yes."

"Then no." Rei broke up proudly, which obviously had startled Mrs. Loreine. The problem is while the situation is like this, it would be a shame if Rei didn't take advantage of it. "How could I calmly just leave her here with you."

"You brat… You really become more and more like your father, you know." Grumbled Mrs. Loreine.

Rei looked displeased hearing that, but he still replied. "How about you teach her some magic too every time she comes?"

"Tsk. Professors like me are expensive, you know. And I have also retired!"

But suddenly Rei widens his noble style smile. "But have you ever taught a Crimson like her?" He asked, and Mrs. Loreine started looking doubtful again. So he added, "And she's quite smart too. She could even use some advanced magic she just heard on the spot."

"...Hmph. Geniuses is not my type though." Still doesn't want to lose, Mrs. Loreine just crossed her arms waiting for another reason.

"Err..." Rei was actually out of excuses. But when he glanced at Aria, he found something he could maybe push. "Well, but I'm pretty sure you never had a cute student like her…?"

"..." Aria was ready to bury herself in embarrassment because Mrs. Loreine wouldn't seem to buy it.

But she actually replied, "...She's very cute indeed." Said Mrs. Loreine while staring at Aria again. "Fine, then. But it costs 10 coins per week!"

"Deal." And they shook hands.