join p atreon.com/KeyofStars and become a Sequence 9: Reader for hundreds of additional chapters and over a dozen stories
It could be said that the Sheltered Ojou-sama was actually more eager to be bullied…
"What are you doing?"
The Ice Queen suddenly frowned and looked over, and the temperature in the air rapidly dropped.
"It's too cold, I'm helping her put on clothes," Amamiya Natsuki subtly withdrew his hand, looked at the Ice Queen, and asked with concern, "Miss Elsa, are you cold?"
Indeed.
There is no woman in the world who won't be jealous.
Amamiya Natsuki said as he continued to take off his clothes: "This last piece of clothing is for you."
"You wear it properly," the Ice Queen quickly turned her face away, her expression clearly a little shy, "I'm not cold."
Hey, hey, you're a widow, what are you shy about! Shouldn't you pounce on me like a wolf at this time!
"Miss Elsa, don't lie to me," Amamiya Natsuki's expression was serious, "You have so few clothes, how can you not be cold?"
This Queen wore a tight-fitting long dress, with large expanses of snowy white and delicate skin on her chest, and visible deep cleavage, her arms were also exposed… It was indeed very beautiful, but if an ordinary person wore this in the ice and snow, they would probably be gone overnight.
"I am a witch, and since I was a child, winter has always been especially kind to me," the Ice Queen extended her right hand, and as her fingers lightly tapped, snowflakes quickly appeared in the air, followed by the snowflakes condensing into snowmen, rabbits, and other animals, "So I really won't be cold."
Amamiya Natsuki sighed and said:
"What a pity, I still wanted to personally put clothes on Miss Elsa."
"…Liar!"
Shinomiya Kaguya's pink cheeks puffed slightly, and she complained in her heart.
Who would believe such a lie!
"I really don't need to wear it." The Ice Queen's lips curled slightly, revealing a faint smile, and she opened her arms, "I see you're a bit cold… Do you want me to hold you?"
Was he really fooled?
Hayasaka was right, women in love have no IQ!
"Stare—"
Shinomiya Kaguya pulled her clothes tighter, narrowing her eyes in warning.
Amamiya Natsuki said sternly:
"Thank you, Miss Elsa, I'm not cold."
What a pity.
The Sheltered Ojou-sama was staring intently from behind, giving no chance for a big move.
After a pause, Amamiya Natsuki suddenly had an idea:
"Magic looks very interesting… Can we learn it?"
In the advanced mall that refreshes weekly, various magic skills often appear.
Since magic skills can be purchased from the mall, can they be learned directly?
If they could be learned directly, it would not only save a lot of game coins but also open up new business opportunities.
After such a long period of analysis and discussion, the players in the mutual aid group had reached a preliminary consensus that the characters in the game dungeon were not pre-set NPCs, but more like living, thinking beings.
Many even believed that the so-called dungeons were actually unknown alternate worlds, and it was entirely possible for a game with supernatural powers to throw players into an alternate world to suffer.
Of course, it was too early to consider all that now; Amamiya Natsuki was more interested in whether he could learn magic.
Even Shinomiya Kaguya looked over curiously.
Currently, skills were scarce, and many players didn't even have a single skill. If they could consistently learn skills, it would undoubtedly be the greatest gain from the dungeon.
The Ice Queen gently shook her head and said:
"My magical ability is innate; there's no way for me to teach it to you…"
Understood.
So, it was innate talent.
They say all roads lead to Rome, but some people are born in Rome. The gap between people is so despairing.
The Ice Queen continued:
"However, besides innate magic, there is also inherited magic in the world that can be learned…"
Amamiya Natsuki's eyes lit up as he said:
"I have a great talent for learning. Please, Miss Elsa, introduce me to a teacher."
"Witches generally don't live in cities; they usually reside in forests." The Ice Queen shook her head and said, "Each witch usually has several residences, and I don't know their exact locations."
"It's okay." Amamiya Natsuki turned his head and smiled, "We still have the Omniscient Magic Mirror."
Magic Mirror: "…"
The Magic Mirror was in self-isolation, indicating it didn't want to speak.
"That is possible." The Ice Queen blinked, "But they only recruit talented apprentices, and they must pass their trials."
Amamiya Natsuki didn't care: "Where there's a will, there's a way. As long as there's enough effort, an iron rod can be ground into a needle. I believe the witches will accept us as disciples."
But everyone has weaknesses.
As long as one grasps the other's weakness, one can naturally make them comply.
There is nothing in the world that cannot be negotiated.
If not, it's either because the benefits aren't great enough, or the fist isn't big enough.
"You… probably can't." The Ice Queen's tone was subtle, "Witches generally only recruit female apprentices, and only one at a time."
Amamiya Natsuki said speechlessly:
"There's even gender discrimination."
Only accepting one at a time, master-disciple inheritance, only choosing the talented, rather than teaching everyone without discrimination—no wonder your witches are weaker with each generation; your scope is too small.
It's better to learn from Hogwarts, establish a school, and widely accept disciples. That's the best way to pass on knowledge!
"Actually, there's one last method." The Ice Queen pursed her pink lips, self-possessed and noble, "You can communicate with the inherited crystal balls left by other witches through meditation. If you're lucky, there's a certain possibility of obtaining the spiritual insights left by the witches from them."
Quite clearly, compared to being a chosen one or having a famous teacher, this last method was essentially relying on luck, not even counting as self-study.
The Ice Queen added:
"When I was on an adventure before, I unintentionally obtained an inherited crystal ball. Do you want it?"
Amamiya Natsuki decisively reached out and said:
"I'm deeply grateful."
Shinomiya Kaguya: "…"
You agreed too quickly. Why didn't you play hard to get a little!
"I'll get it for you."
The Ice Queen, whose heart had been captured, naturally wouldn't refuse and quickly took out the crystal ball.
This crystal ball was only the size of a fist, just enough to hold in one hand, and it was murky inside, looking quite ordinary.
"Hmm?"
The moment he took the crystal ball, Amamiya Natsuki couldn't help but raise an eyebrow and let out a soft "Oh."
[Item: Witch's Inherited Crystal Ball]
[Description: Many witches often become engrossed in knowledge and the unknown, and when they are about to die, they store their knowledge in a crystal ball as proof of their existence]
[Restriction: Female]
[Usage: Place your hand on the crystal ball; there is a low probability of acquiring stored memory fragments]
[Remarks: You have obtained ownership of this item; you can carry this item out of the dungeon]
The previous content was similar to what the Ice Queen said, but what surprised Amamiya Natsuki was that this item could also be taken out of the dungeon.
Unfortunately, the crystal ball was limited to female use; men could forget about it.
"What's wrong?"
Shinomiya Kaguya asked softly.
"Here." Amamiya Natsuki handed the crystal ball to Kaguya, "You'll know when you look at it."
Shinomiya Kaguya took the crystal ball, silently read the item description, and also showed a surprised expression.
The two exchanged glances, both understanding the other's meaning.
With the lucky coin in hand, the probability of obtaining knowledge fragments could be greatly increased, and the crystal ball was likely to become a truly useful item.
"Thank you, Lady Elsa."
Amamiya Natsuki unceremoniously put the crystal ball away, then returned the favor by taking out desserts like cake and chocolate and offering them to the Ice Queen. Both sides were delighted.
Only the Sheltered Ojou-sama had a small grievance.
The three continued to stay in the study, and Amamiya Natsuki continued to inquire about magic-related information.
After an unknown amount of time, a guard suddenly came to report that the previous foreigners had returned, bringing several commoners with them.
"Let them in."
In front of outsiders, the Ice Queen was cold, glamorous, and noble.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
The guard quickly took his leave, and before long, he returned with Fujiwara Chika and the others.
"Natsuki-kun, are you and Kaguya-chan alright?"
After Fujiwara Chika entered, she waved and asked immediately.
"We're fine." Amamiya Natsuki said, "In fact, there's no safer place than by Miss Elsa's side."
Shinomiya Kaguya had already changed out of her bunny girl uniform and softly said, "We are indeed fine."
Behind Chika, besides Hayasaka and the senpai, there were actually several random players.
"Brave Hero!"
The guide loli waved happily.
Beside Little Red Riding Hood, there were also several dwarves, and a few unfamiliar natives.
Amamiya Natsuki rubbed Little Red Riding Hood's head and looked at Hayasaka Ai, asking:
"Why did everyone come?"
A random player stepped forward. Because he had chosen to stay in the castle before, seeing Amamiya Natsuki now, he was clearly a bit guilty and nervously said:
"I was bullied on campus during junior high… That memory was too painful, Natsuki-kun, I beg you."
The reasons of the other players were similar.
Even players who knew the preciousness of memories had painful memories they wanted to discard.
Amamiya Natsuki sighed softly and said:
"Humans are always like this; joy and happiness are often taken for granted, while only pain is etched in memory."
Koyasu Tsubame looked up and quietly complained:
"Suddenly saying something so philosophical, you're actually a fake Natsuki-kun, aren't you?"
"I can prove my identity."
"How will you prove it?"
"Senpai, come to my tent tonight, and I'll prove it to you slowly."
"Ptooey~"
"…"
As for Little Red Riding Hood and the dwarves, they had come on their own.
Upon asking, it was learned that the dwarves all said that life was quite dull and monotonous. Every day was just chopping wood, mining, eating, and sleeping, day after day, year after year.
Let alone just a month's memory, even a whole year's memory could be traded away, especially the evil deeds committed after mushrooms grew on their heads, which were even more torturous for kind and orderly people.
Now that they heard memories could be deleted, they all followed.
After some pleasantries, Amamiya Natsuki looked at the Queen and asked her to bring out the Magic Mirror.
With so many people, the bedroom would inevitably feel crowded.
"Magic Mirror, did you hear that?" Amamiya Natsuki patted the Magic Mirror, "It's time for you to save those in suffering."
Magic Mirror: "…"
How could a Magic Mirror, created by an evil wizard specifically to devour others' memories, start saving the world?
"Just sit in front of the mirror." Amamiya Natsuki pointed, and someone had already moved a chair over. Then he asked, "Trading memories with the Magic Mirror is a big deal after all. Do you want to reconsider?"
"No need." The random player took a deep breath, his gaze firm, "I've already decided."
Fujiwara Chika said from the side:
"We have paper and a pen… If you have anything to say, you can write it down yourself, and then read it to yourself later."
The random player thought carefully for a moment and nodded in agreement: "Then I'll trouble you."
"Here you go."
Amamiya Natsuki took out paper and a pen and handed them to the other party.
The random player took the items and began to write seriously.
A moment later.
"I'm done writing."
After writing the letter, the ordinary player began to make a deal with the Magic Mirror, and the questions to be asked had, of course, already been discussed.
"Magic Mirror, what is the form of the Nightmare Seed?"
A line of text appeared on the Magic Mirror:
"You need to pay one and a half months of memory. Do you agree?"
The amount of memory required to be paid varied depending on the difficulty of the question.
If it was a question that could not be answered, such as how to manually build a Gundam, the Magic Mirror would choose to play dead.
"...Agree."
"Choose the memory you want to pay in your mind."
"..."
The ordinary player's eyes quickly became dull, but fortunately, their memory returned to normal after a while.
Immediately after, the Magic Mirror gave an answer:
"The current form is a human infant."
Shinomiya Kaguya was responsible for exchanging information nearby: "Human infant... a child?"
Amamiya Natsuki said:
"It should still be a child in human form, provided the Magic Mirror isn't lying."
"Hirata, how do you feel?"
Everyone else gathered around the first player to try it, curiously asking about the situation.
Fujiwara Chika reminded them:
"First, take a look at the letter you wrote."
The ordinary player looked down in confusion, and after reading the letter, their eyes quickly became moist.
Clearly, the forgetting effect was quite successful.
With the first brave soul trying it, someone else soon sat in front of the Magic Mirror, ready to make a deal.
Of course, those willing to delete memories were, after all, a minority.
"Magic Mirror, what exactly does the Nightmare Seed look like?"
"You need to pay a whole year of memory."
"Too, too much! If a whole year of memory disappears, the exams will definitely be ruined!"
"Change one... What is the weakness of the Nightmare Seed?"
"The most desired thing."
"Please be more specific."
"You need to pay three years of memory..."
"I refuse."
"..."
Perhaps due to the dungeon's restrictions, once specific information related to the Nightmare Seed was requested, the memory required would skyrocket, and in the end, they could only give up in frustration.
Even so, the time, place, and form of the Nightmare Seed's appearance were all clearly understood.
Amamiya Natsuki and the others obtained useful information, the evil Magic Mirror devoured memories, and the unlucky players deleted their nightmarish past... A multi-party win-win, everyone was happy.
join p atreon.com/KeyofStars and become a Sequence: 9 Reader for hundreds of additional chapters and over a dozen stories