“Explooosion!” Someone with a hood concealing their face incanted the spell quietly. As soft as their voice was, though, the magic that was unleashed was tremendously powerful. A roar shook the air, and a blistering wind surged in every direction. The big, black monster that had been chasing me was easily blown away by it. But the spell, infused with tons of MP, didn’t stop there—no, it decimated my sacred play area, and the toy I’d been so lucky to find vanished without a trace. All of it was simply swept away by the power. It was a level of destruction far beyond any other magic. To think a single wizard with a single spell could summon up such extensive devastation. But what spell was it? I had never seen any of the grown-ups in the village use such awesome magic. The person in the hood walked over to where I was standing, dumbfounded with amazement. “Are you all right? You’re not hurt, are you?” The person knelt down so they were peering into my face. The drab robe mostly hid their body from view, but the act of crouching down emphasized a very large chest. …Incredible. The magic spell had been amazing, sure, but this was even more impressive! “How can I get to be like you, miss?” I didn’t even say thank you, just voiced the first thing that came to my mind. My mother had said something recently that I couldn’t get out of my head: “The women of our household have had modest proportions for generations, so just give up already.” But I wouldn’t give up. Not till the bitter end. I clenched my fist with this private resolution as I stared at the figure’s most striking attribute… I almost felt like the hooded woman was smiling at me.
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………………… There was a moment of silence, then the woman asked uncertainly, “…Is that a nickname?” “No, it’s my real name.” She went quiet again, then finally seemed to compose herself. “Ahem, so you want to know how you can be like me? Let’s see… Eat lots, study hard, and if you can become a great wizard, then I’m sure…” If I could become a great wizard, I could get a huge rack. Being a top spell-caster was the path to an abundant endowment! “Yes… If you can become a great wizard, I’m sure one day, you’ll be able to use that spell. But I can’t say I really recommend it.” The hooded woman kept talking, but I didn’t hear her. My head was already full of thoughts about becoming a great wizard. “Anyhow…” I was still muttering “great wizard, great wizard” as the woman put her hand on my head and looked around. “Say, little one. Are you by yourself? Aren’t there any grown-ups around? I’m sure there must have been somebody who broke the seal of this grave… I see the pieces of it right there, and I’m sure it didn’t break itself…” The woman cocked her head in confusion and started collecting the bits of my toy that were scattered at her feet. “I wonder who freed me. They can’t possibly have gone far… Well, I guess you wouldn’t know anyway.” Then the woman walked to the middle of the crater she’d created with her spell. The big, black monster was lying there, just about breathing its last. The hooded woman placed her hand on its head… “Sleep just a little longer, O other half of mine,” she whispered. “This world is yet too peaceful for you to awaken…” Then her hand glowed as if she was absorbing something from the beast. Before my very eyes, the giant creature shrank down and down. It shrank until it was the size of a kitten, and then it kept shrinking until it disappeared. “All right, then. In that case, I’d better… Hmm? What are you doing, little one?” The hooded woman looked at me. I was collecting the pieces of my toy from the ground. “I’m picking up my toy. Our family is poor, and this is the only thing I have to play with.” “Wha—? No, look, that’s not a toy, okay? Its job is to seal up a scaaary Dark God. Those pieces are important…… Wait, what?” I quickly put the pieces of my puzzle back together and immediately realized some of them were missing. Three of them, to be exact. “Three of the pieces went somewhere because of your spell, miss. Will you help me look for them?” “No, no way! This makes no sense! There’s no way you could put the pieces together so easily! Even sages have failed to break that seal, so how…?” The woman had her chin in her hand, looking troubled. “Listen, little one. How long have you been on these sealed lands? Didn’t the village grown-ups tell you to stay away from here?” “My mom said that whenever people tell you to Stay away or There’s nothing here or Better keep out, it almost always means there’s treasure, so I’ve been coming here every day.” “Wh-what are you saying…?!” The woman’s voice went up an octave, and her face contorted. Finally, she came up beside me and planted her hand firmly on my head. “I can’t say this makes much sense, but it looks like I’m the one who needs to thank you, little girl. Is there anything you want? I know I don’t look like much, but I’m a mysterious wizard with tremendous powers. I’d like to grant a wish for you before I go.” “A wish?” “That’s right. Whatever you want, okay? Anything at all…” “World conquest.” “…S-sorry, that’s not really feasible. I wonder what’s going on here. This girl might be something bigger than she appears. Er, do you have a different wish?” I could just make out her eyes under her hood, and I could see she was frowning a little. “Okay, then give me big boobs.” “Th-that’s not really possible, either. J-just how old are you anyway, sweetheart? I think you’re a little young to be worrying about that sort of thing.” Another dead end. All right, then… “Make me the Demon King.” “L-look, I’m sorry, okay? Let me amend what I said. Compared to someone as impressive as you, I don’t really have that much power, so I can’t grant wishes as big as yours.” I saw a bead of sweat run down the hooded woman’s cheek. I held up the pieces in my hands. “…Okay, well, my toy is missing three pieces. Just help me look for them.” “Wait! Now, that’s thinking too small—I can do better than that! B-besides, you shouldn’t play with those shards! That beast from earlier—I’ve only sealed her away again, you understand?! Don’t ever come back here, okay?! Come on—isn’t there something? Wish for something just a little bigger…!” The woman crouched down to look into my eyes, genuinely upset now. …Something a little bigger. A little bigger… Okay— “Teach me that spell you did.”