Even if my only strength is water magic, having modern knowledge should be sufficient, right?

Episode 39: Frim-chan, the Sage, Fairy, Dragon, and God.

Ael-san’s devoted caregiving continued.

Without making a single unpleasant face, she would change the bandages soaked in a medicinal liquid that smelled like concentrated green juice, and she even helped me bathe. Although she said I could eat, she would cut the food into pieces and bring them to me one by one. I have to pour the drinking water myself, but for some reason, she seems pleased by it.

Ael-san has been by my side all along, and on the first day, she even slept next to me. It’s evident that she can’t help but care for me, and her maternal instincts are in full swing.

If I ask for something, she gets it for me, and she even dug out my belongings. From the collapsed shack, she retrieved a rusty Draggen family short sword, a bag of gold coins, a broken staff of dark attribute, protective clothing, and gifts received at the castle. Although some cups and gifts were missing, it was good to find the reward in the bag of coins.

Her service is splendid. However, there’s a problem.

A noble’s chamber pot… according to the standards of this country. I never dreamed that as an adult woman, I would be doing something so unseemly, especially under the watchful eyes of the maids. It’s the worst.

No, yeah. Even in modern times, seriously ill people might end up like this, I guess.

But it’s way too embarrassing, isn’t it?!?!

Someone who can use light magic comes once a day and uses healing magic on me.

“”

But it doesn’t work at all. Unlike medicines that work so mysteriously, this one doesn’t work at all. The palace magician is scratching his head. The power of light spirits is said to be pure and has effects like enhancing healing power regardless of who the recipient is, but it doesn’t work much for me. The conclusion was that it’s difficult for light magic to be effective on me because the king cast double protection magic using his own protection magic and the dark spirit’s protection magic.

I thought, what’s that, but apparently, I was used as an experimental subject before I was born.

“Sorry. You might see or hear strange things… um, do you feel like you’re different from other people?”

“I can use amazing water magic.”

“I know that.”

That’s my caregiving life, but the king also occasionally comes to visit.

He comes to see… and leaves snacks and fruits behind, just like Boss-san.

When it comes to darkness, is it like night or shadow? According to the grimoire, it’s something that evokes the abyss, demons, and even death, but according to the king, the blessing of darkness is considered a “mysterious power.”

The king of this country is the only person who can use contract magic that binds spirits and humans, but first, the person themselves must become capable of various kinds of magic. According to Ael-san, there were kings in the past who turned into fire giants. Magic with spirits has various effects, and it’s troublesome for the user as well. Since they’re in a contract, you’d think they’d be told, but spirits generally can’t speak. Few can communicate through mutual understanding, and there are hardly any who can converse in language.

The king made a contract with a spirit, but among them, there’s a mysterious magic called “blessing” whose effects are unknown. It’s basically harmless to the body and, in fact, sometimes increases magical power slightly, makes it easier to manipulate magic, or promotes health… but occasionally, it has strange effects.

If it’s fire, getting closer to fire increases its power, if it’s water, water sticks to the body, if it’s wind, you can see far away, and if it’s earth, pebbles come out from under your feet. That sounds painful in the end.

“Ael-sensei, isn’t fire a good thing?”

“According to the records, the mansion caught fire and they couldn’t get close to the fire anymore.”

“Wow…”

And light has effects like purification, illumination, and enhancement of healing abilities. Light is the most primordial and pure power, and it also affects healing power.

Darkness… There are few records of spirits of darkness making contracts, and there is little data. According to the grimoire, there are cases where people who sleep end up in completely different places or start seeing the forms of the dead.

“What effects does that blessing have?”

“It varies from person to person… but spirits of people or animals may provide comfort or advice.”

The dead, the dead… Maybe it’s because I died in modern times and somehow became one with Frim-chan. As I listen closely, the effects of the blessing of darkness seem to be a magic that attaches something like a guardian spirit. According to the king’s experiments, the spirits of the dead give advice, but people who are scared of ghosts stopped being guards and ran away, so it seems like it’s not being used anymore.

I’m getting better… and I’m starting to think about things.

Receiving the reward is decided, but what comes after is the problem.

Should I return to Dugga’s gang, go back to the Lucarim family, or maybe seek protection from one of these three, or perhaps even go on a journey?

Of these four options, returning to Dugga’s gang seems like the best one. However, if a professional mage attacks us because I interfered with someone who might have been disturbed by me, not only the people at the gambling den but also I would be in danger.

Having interfered with the assassination and having supported the former king’s elder brother, who is likely to be thought of as having sent the assassins, my existence will be in danger even in my (temporary) home. Probably there’s no escape from either accidental death or poisoning.

Protection from one of the three… I absolutely refuse to have a poison-proof wall around me!!? Plus, it seems like there was something akin to a war even within this palace, and even if I were protected, there would be no guarantee of my life!!

This country is in chaos, and going on a journey… no good. It seems that a few years ago, during the succession to the throne, foreign countries tried to invade, and there’s no guarantee that the environment is better than in this country in the first place.

The last option that came to mind. Me, Frim-chan, doing cleaning jobs in the downtown area! …I’m gonna die. Killed by enemies among the royal family, my (temporary) home, and Boss Dugga, that’s what the options would be.

From Dugga’s gang’s perspective, I’m already a member of the family.

Inside the castle, my story has spread…

She’s seen through assassins, eliminated dozens of threats to this country, risked her life to save people without holding any grudge against the king, amazed the genius chef Rorai with her gourmet cooking, and mastered the four major attributes as a sage.

A beautiful girl with azure hair. A great hero who defeated renowned seasoned warriors all by herself.

Rumors abound that it’s an old man, a cleaning fairy, a lump of muscle, blessed by the spirit king, the goddess of mayonnaise, the incarnation of a dragon, and so on.

The mayo god thing must be because of Chef Rorai.

“Why the four attributes? I can only use water magic, you know?”

“Rumors tend to spread excessively.”

Furthermore, after a few days, I learned from the maids that information about Frim is not calming down, but rather accelerating.

Water remains unchanged, but fire has been seen by the king. Wind was thought to be a secondary attribute of water’s egg. Soil might have been thought so because it was cleaned and repaired perfectly after the stone statue cleaning… Bursa-sama was fixing it. Additionally, loud noises were attributed to the lightning attribute, and there were traces of ice from somewhere in battle. They saw a huge pillar of fire. Nonsense rumors are circulating, like the fire spirit king being angry.

By the way, according to rumors, the mysterious girl defeated nearly 200 people. With her explosion magic… how did this happen!?

“There’s a myriad of nicknames to choose from.”

Frim of Explosive Flames, Frim of Clear Streams, Frim of the Four Attributes, Frim of Alchemy, Frim of Egg-like Winds, Frim of Stone Statues, Frim of Loyalty, Frim the Beauty, Frim the Fairy, Frim the Sage, Frim the Dragon, Frim the Toilet, Frim the Mayonnaise Goddess, Frim the God of Destruction… what’s going on? Are people in the palace bored? What’s Toilet Frim? I hate them all, but the one I’ll definitely put a stop to the toilet one. The king had that rumored bombshell of a girl strip off her clothes in public?… My outfit wasn’t exactly nice, but well it was all tattered.

— I probably can’t live peacefully anymore. I miss the life in the shack.

“This meat is delicious, aaah!”

“Aaah!”

Being taken care of by beautiful maids like this… this life is hard to give up, isn’t it!?