Table of Contents Cover Color Illustration Part 1: A Housekeeping Mage’s Daily Life Chapter 0: Four Years Earlier Chapter 1: The Woman Who Became a Housekeeping Mage Chapter 2: Making Portable Foods to Order Chapter 3: Making a Visit to Comfort the Orphans Chapter 4: Undertaking a Search for Lost Children Chapter 5: I Will Not Serve as Your Opponent in a Quarrel Interlude 1: A Gathering to Comfort a Brokenhearted Man Interlude 2: The Diary of Rurii the Familiar Interlude 3: Their Thoughts and Hearts Part 2: The Familiar’s Homecoming Chapter 1: The Visitor Chapter 2: Requests and Rewards Chapter 3: Closing the Distance Side Story: Rurii’s Soliloquy Afterword Bonus Short Story About J-Novel Club Copyright Part 1: A Housekeeping Mage’s Daily Life Chapter 0: Four Years Earlier “It’s so late.” As she walked toward home at a pace so quick it was nearly a trot, Shiori checked the time on her smartphone. The screen cast a faint illumination over the dim street with its few streetlights. The time indicated by the digital numbers showed it was late enough that, in just a few more minutes, the date would change over. She hadn’t had dinner yet, but making something would be too much work. There was a convenience store up ahead —she’d buy something there. Closing her phone cover with a snap, she tucked it away in her work bag. And then... All of a sudden, her vision distorted. A sensation similar to vertigo made Shiori stop in her tracks and shut her eyes tightly. She didn’t think she pushed herself too hard that often, but ever since she’d left her mid-twenties behind, she found it harder and harder to recover from exhaustion. For a while, she endured the dizziness, but when it felt like even the ground beneath her feet began to reel, she let out a small groan. The ground twisted and flexed, causing her to sway violently. In the next moment, she felt as if she were floating, like the street had disappeared from under her. “Oh...” The instant she realized she was going to fall, a crushing torrent of immense energy crashed down on her—and her consciousness was swallowed by darkness. Chapter 1: The Woman Who Became a Housekeeping Mage 1 In the northwestern part of the continent of Alphandis lies the capital of the Torisval region of the Storydia Kingdom, Tris. Not far from the town’s market district stands a building with plastered walls. Alec stopped and looked up at a sign that hung from those walls as it swayed in the wind. Lively chatter and noise could be heard coming from the building that had once been a shuttered inn and now, having been remodeled, was the Tris branch of the Adventurers’ Guild. It had been a little less than four years since he’d left, but the lively energy overflowing from the place was painfully nostalgic. Kreee. As he pushed open the amber-colored wooden door, which had been worn glossy with age, its hinges let out a creak. Inside, the clamor paused for just a moment, and he was pierced with assessing gazes. There were familiar faces he hadn’t seen in a while, and the number of faces he didn’t recognize had increased. Most everyone quickly lost interest and returned to their conversations, but those who knew him tossed friendly salutations his way. He returned the greetings with one hand as he headed toward the counter. A red-haired man had set up camp at the center of the counter, and was flipping through a ledger. He stopped what he was doing and looked up at Alec. “Hey. It’s been a while.” The man extended a rough and bony hand toward him. Alec grasped it firmly and returned the smile. “So, the great S-rank adventurer has finally become a guild master, huh?” said Alec. “Should I be offering my congratulations?” “The previous master said he was retiring,” the man replied. “Thankfully, they let me fill the empty seat. I was just thinking I wanted to settle down a bit, so it was perfect. But, man, this last job of yours was a long one, wasn’t it?” “Yeah, you could say that. I ended up shackled to a taskmaster of a client for a really long time.” “Did you just get back?” “No, I came back about a month ago. Spent some time resting my bones at my parents’ place.” “I see.” The red-haired man—Zack—smiled knowingly. “In that case, since I’m sure you must have energy to spare, can I ask you to take on a job for me? The difficulty level is A, but I’m having problems pulling together members for a party.” Alec paused a moment. “So, there’s a taskmaster here too...” He looked over the request ticket Zack handed him and frowned. “Manticore suppression deep in the Fibria wildwood. I can see why you can’t get a party together. Not only is the difficulty level high, this is going to be a pain to do.” Given the location, just getting there and back again would take ten days. After factoring in having to confront magical beasts along the way, the party that took this on probably wouldn’t return for about two weeks. And it would be hard for anyone to call that thickly wooded forest comfortable, with its heavy, damp air. For half a month you’d have to get by on tough, salty field rations and “beds” so uncomfortable that it would be impossible to get a good night’s sleep. While expenses were covered in addition to the generous reward, considering the term of the contract, the difficulty level, and the fact that you’d have roughly two weeks of awful camping, the job could in no way be considered a profitable one. “This request has been sitting around for two months now,” said Zack. “The Tourism Association keeps pestering me about it. I do have a few people who said they’d take it on for me, but we’re short on vanguards. I was starting to think that, worst case, I’d go. But if a magic swordsman who’s basically S-rank took it on, that’d make up for any other minor deficiencies, right?” Alec hesitated. “Heading straight back out into sleeping outdoors isn’t really...” While Alec might have had a month to recuperate, he’d only just gotten back from a long-term job. Frankly, all he’d wanted to do today was show he was back and grab a low- level request to warm up. He sighed, not bothering to hide the gloom in his expression. Zack gave him a smile pregnant with hidden meaning, as if to say he’d had an excellent idea. “Listen, if you do this for me, I’ll throw in my secret weapon. And in celebration of your return, I’ll pick up the hiring fee.” “Some solo-type adventurer of yours, is it?” asked Alec. “You’re being generous and I don’t understand why. Is he strong?” “Nah. Strictly a support-type mage. Not suited for battle at all, but she’ll definitely prove helpful.” “Is that so? Well, this mage must be either incredibly skilled or very lucky.” Feeling a little like he was getting snared in a dubious get-rich-quick scheme, Alec turned a doubting gaze on Zack, who confidently told him that he’d understand if he took this mage along. “She’s the reason the Tris branch’s success and completion rates on high-level quests has blown past those of the other branches,” said Zack. “Just take her with you. You won’t regret it.” Considering that Zack was going to the trouble of paying out of his own pocket, he must have really wanted this long- neglected request cleared up.