The Leisurely Established Advertising Agency in the Other World Handles Nobles, Adventurers, and Merchant Guilds with Ease
(Slow, isn’t it? It’s safe to assume that something irregular must have happened. But knowing Ito-san, I can’t entirely dismiss the possibility that he’s deliberately not coming back just to surprise us. Still, given this situation, I don’t think he’d be so socially oblivious as to do that… )
After waiting in the magic circle room for about an hour, Fumino tried stepping into the circle again, even though she knew it would be futile. As expected, it only emitted a faint glow and no teleportation occurred. Realizing there was nothing more to gain by staying there, she returned to the living space.
(Since we can’t leave except through that magic circle, it’s not wise to move recklessly. Hoping it’s nothing life-threatening, all we can do is wait…)
With no other options available, Fumino decided to wait. However, rather than simply sitting idly, she figured she might as well search for any clues regarding why Taichi hadn’t returned by combing through documents once more.
In case he came back at any moment, she brought a chair, a sleeping bag, and a few books into the magic circle room. She began by flipping through research texts.
(Still, the details are unclear, but apparently summoning requires an immense amount of magical energy… Well, it wouldn’t be good if summoning were too easy, so I suppose it makes sense. Thinking of teleportation as similar to summoning since it involves calling someone to a place where nothing existed before, it’s reasonable to assume it consumes a lot of energy…
But since I don’t fully understand what magical energy even is, I can’t gauge how difficult it is to gather large amounts of it. Hmm… This book really only discusses summoning, so I’ve hit a dead end here. If only I could read the foreign language sections; I’m sure they’d provide some answers… No use wishing for things I don’t have.)
She shook her head slightly and started looking over the stories she had hardly touched before.
To her surprise, the narratives she began reading half-heartedly turned out to be treasure troves of hints.
(…This was my blind spot. Of course, these are stories, so naturally they include information about this world and its way of life. It’s so obvious when you think about it. We both got so worked up that our perspectives narrowed…)
The various tales, which could be considered biographies of past heroes, depicted this world despite being set in different eras.
Though there may be some embellishments due to their nature as stories, the environment, lifestyle, culture, and societal activities surrounding the protagonists were likely close to reality.
Moreover, because many of these tales involved heroes challenging a demon king alongside companions, descriptions of magic often appeared.
Reading with this in mind allowed Fumino to gain various insights into magic that she hadn’t understood before.
As she progressed through several books, she noticed certain scenarios recurring multiple times.
(Magic depletion, huh…)
Apparently, almost everyone possessed some level of magical energy, and by following certain rules, they could consume it as energy or a catalyst to perform magic.
When one’s magical energy decreased, their physical strength and stamina would also diminish. If they ran out of magical energy completely, they would lose consciousness — a state referred to as “magic depletion.”
(Assuming teleportation also uses a large amount of magical energy, it’s possible he used it all up getting here and collapsed upon arrival? Since magical energy naturally recovers over time and significantly regenerates during sleep, even if he did pass out, he should return once his energy replenishes and he wakes up…)
It was wishful thinking, she chided herself, but she reached that conclusion nonetheless.
(And then there are magic stones…)
Another frequently mentioned item in the stories was something called a “magic stone.”
True to its name, it was a blue gemstone imbued with magical energy that could be worn as jewelry. By using it while casting spells, one could draw from the stone’s energy instead of their own, making it quite convenient.
(It’s hard to tell from children’s books, but the stone in this pendant feels familiar…)
In picture books and stories, magic stones were always described as diamond-shaped and glowing blue. The stone embedded in the heirloom pendant looked exactly like what was described — very likely a magic stone itself.
(Teleporting and constantly passing out would be far too inefficient, and summoning requires even more energy, so it’s safe to assume he’d carry a magic stone.)
While forming these hypotheses and continuing to read, fatigue eventually caught up with her, as it inevitably would when reading alone. Despite her strong willpower allowing her to push through for over four hours, sleepiness finally overwhelmed Fumino. Just as she started nodding off, the book slipped from her hands and landed on the floor with a thud.
(“!!! Oh no, I was asleep…”)
She quickly tried to pick up where she left off, but realized she had already gleaned most of the useful information from the books. Perhaps it was better to take a short nap?
(That’s right. It’ll be worse if I’m too sleepy to act when Ito-san returns. I should just go ahead and rest.)
No sooner had she climbed into the sleeping bag and lay down than she drifted off within seconds.
“Mmm…”
The brightness seeping through her closed eyelids stirred Fumino from her slumber. A few seconds later, a heavy thud echoed through the room, jolting her fully awake.
Turning toward the sound, she saw Taichi collapsed inside the glowing magic circle. The light faded after a few seconds, and Fumino rushed over.
“Ito-san!?”
“Ugh… Ayan…o-san… I’m… okay…”
Though barely able to speak while lying face down, Taichi’s pale complexion made it clear that something was seriously wrong.
“Are you alright!? You don’t need to strain yourself talking!”
Unable to move on his own, Fumino dragged him out of the magic circle, propped him against the wall, and brought a cup of water to his lips.
“Here, drink some water first!”
Seeing him slowly sip the water, albeit spilling some, Fumino finally let out a sigh of relief.
“You look like you’re in no condition to talk for a while. You should rest. Sleep will probably help you feel better.”
Taichi looked surprised at how much Fumino seemed to know about his situation, but exhaustion had already taken its toll, and he quickly slipped back into unconsciousness.
(It seems my hunch was correct — he exhausted his magical energy…)
As Taichi immediately fell into a deep sleep, Fumino covered him with a blanket she had brought from the living quarters. Then, climbing back into her sleeping bag, she quietly closed her eyes once more.