Four days after we saved the black knight father, both father and son showed up at the Aspozat residence. Colny and I were in the family’s personal drawing room when we were notified of their arrival. We were told that the lord and lady of the house were entertaining the guests, but I was going to be called in later. I tilted my head in confusion, much to Colny’s disbelief.
“Is it so odd that he might want to express his gratitude after you saved his life?”
“Hmm, I guess you’re right.”
All I’d really done was offer some basic aid. Though I suppose things could’ve gone much worse if I hadn’t been there.
Shortly after the initial report, I was called over.
“The mistress requests your presence.”
“Take care.” Colny saw me off with a smile.
“I’ll be back.”
I was taken to the nicest drawing room in the house. It only made sense that they roll out the red carpet for a man of equal stature as Lord Aspozat.
With the door opened for me, I entered. “Pardon me.”
I saw Thand and Sheila, and the black knight and the black knight father sitting across from them. They all turned to look at me, the black knight father glaring at me as he’d done at the ball a while back.
Wait. What did I do to deserve that look?
“Over here, Lera,” Sheila said, beckoning with her hand.
“Certainly,” I said, taking a seat next to her.
It was hard to sit comfortably with the look I was getting. Noticing this, Sheila held her fan over her mouth and said to the black knight father, “Lord Fezgahn, you’re liable to scare the girl with that look in your eyes.”
“Mm? Oh, that wasn’t my intention. Forgive me if I gave you the wrong idea.”
Wasn’t your intention? That was a glare, no doubt about it. I scooted ever so slightly closer to Sheila.
“It’s just,” he continued, “I couldn’t help but stare. It’s not often I see mana so bright as yours. I think I also owe you an apology for my rude behavior at the ball.”
“You can see mana?”
My confusion was written across my face. This was the first I had heard of something like visible mana. Was mana something you could see?
“The ability to detect mana with the senses is a unique trait of our bloodline,” he explained. “For me, it’s a matter of sight, but my late father was capable of touching mana.”
Touching mana! Incredible! Nielle would’ve been thrilled if she had been there to hear it. She would pounce, investigating everything she could.
I recalled how the black knight had told me during the hunting festival that he could smell mana. It was thanks to his nose that we figured out where Miss Cucumis was hiding.
“That reminds me, I’ve heard Sir Yuin can detect mana via scent,” Sheila said. “So he inherited it from his father.”
“My son informed me of that. Normally, this is a matter we don’t share with others, but...” But I had saved this guy’s life. “It appears I’ve been rather rude to someone I owe my life to. Please, forgive me for that.”
Uh, what do I say at a time like this? I glanced at Sheila and she gave me a small nod. Take it away!
“You needn’t worry, Lord Fezgahn. As you’re no doubt aware, thanks to your son’s assistance, Lera was cleared of suspicions placed upon her. In light of that, how about we just move past the event at the ball?”
The black knight father didn’t quite seem satisfied. Did he really want to thank me that badly? I couldn’t see why.
The black knight and I went out to the garden. I thought Colny might still be in the drawing room, but I couldn’t see her through the window. She must have gone back to her room.
While this was a capital residence, it was still a noble’s mansion. There was a proper garden, complete with a small gazebo. It was big enough for about four people, which very much appealed to my residual Japanese senses.
The servants brought out refreshments, served cold since it was such a hot day. Believe it or not, we were having barley tea. Barley was a common crop throughout Ozeria, including in Peylon. One day, I had asked Lord Peylon for some seeds, which I steeped in some water. It wasn’t long before he was hooked, along with everyone at the institute.
Given that it’s delicious and simple to make, I would have been surprised if they hadn’t taken to it. Being easy to prepare is enough to make any drink a hit with the people of Peylon, who never had an eye for precision. It wasn’t just Peylon either. The Aspozat domain was another region that enjoyed a nice cool glass in the summer. There was no better drink to beat the heat!
Though it was generally hotter outside than inside, the shade from the gazebo roof and surrounding trees kept us pleasantly cool. I took a drink from my glass, and it was just as refreshing as I expected. With a glass this small, I would have chugged it all if the black knight hadn’t been present. Not the sort of thing you want to do in front of others.
“This is an odd drink,” he remarked.
“It’s called barley tea. It’s nice when you want to cool off on hot days.”
“Barley...”
“It’s made by steeping barley seeds.”
It was rich in minerals, making it a good option for anyone who sweated a lot. But I couldn’t just tell him that. Things like vitamins and minerals remained a mystery to this world.
“I believe dehydration was one of the reasons your father collapsed the other day,” I said. “I’d recommend taking small drinks occasionally, even if your throat doesn’t feel dry. Especially in the summer. This tea is a good source of hydration.”
He held up his glass and peered closely at the contents. “I see.” He returned his drink to the table and gave me a strange look. “You’ve already heard it from my father, but please accept my apologies for his discourtesy at the ball.”
“That’s quite all right. I’ve come to realize that he didn’t mean anything by it.”
I totally understood. If I was at a dance and there was something sparkly and shining, I’d find myself looking at it, even if I had to squint. The black knight, however, wasn’t convinced.
“Still,” he objected, “he glared at a young woman.”
So I tried to push the conversation in a slightly different direction.
“Well, your father detects mana visually, right? I assume he can’t control that any more than you can stop smelling mana.”
“It’s an innate part of us, so nobody’s even proven capable of restraining it,” he admitted with a nod. “All you can do is endure it.”
Sounds rough, but I guess that’s just how they are. Wait.
“The institute has bracelets that suppress mana. If your own mana is the source of your ability to see or smell other’s, then perhaps one of the bracelets could ease the effects.”
If they could detect mana, then mana had to figure into the equation somehow, no matter what form the ability took. So while mana suppression might not be able to completely numb the sense, it might at least dull it.
“With the right research and measurements, perhaps the institute can make a magic tool suitable for your powers.”
“Is that possible?”
If my memory served, then there was an old model lying around the Aspozat residence. Maybe we could borrow that and see what happened? The black knight was very receptive to this idea. He must’ve endured some terrible smells, the poor soul.
Though I was confident that a mana-suppressor would work on their unique senses, suppressors had to be used with caution, or else things could get gnarly. The best thing would be for the black knight and his father to pay a visit to the institute in Peylon, where they could have various measurements taken for a custom bracelet. But with the possibility of a forest overflow, I wasn’t sure we could even access the institute.
What do I do?
“Is something the matter, Miss Lowell?”
“Oh, it’s nothing...”
If I had known this was going to happen, I would’ve asked someone to take his numbers last year. Nielle would’ve been more than happy to oblige. Children tended to have mana of a similar nature to their parents, so a tool that worked for the black knight would most likely work for his father as well.
Darn it! I hope this overflow doesn’t last too long! Honestly, I want to go to Peylon and take down all the monsters myself!
After that, I had some fun asking the black knight about the scents of various people.
“By the way, what’s Ville’s scent?”
“Aspozat? He smells like fresh spring leaves.”
That sounded pretty nice. While the black knight could smell mana, anyone with a bad personality or one incompatible with his would have an unpleasant scent. When searching for Ribbons and Miss Cucumis, he showed a pretty strong reaction to the stench of their luggage.
Did this mean he and Ville were actually pretty compatible? They seemed pretty antagonistic at first, but they had since grown to at least tolerate each other.
“What about Loks and Colny?”
“The younger Aspozat brother smells of mint, and the younger sister has a fruity sweetness.”
Even Colny’s mana was girly! A scent like that suggested she had pretty good compatibility with the black knight pretty well too, didn’t it? Oh, but perhaps this was mana compatibility we were talking about here? Maybe I could ask Sheila or someone else.