— — — — — —
"Oh, but remember—you have to go completely nude. Guys love that sort of thing. He'll forgive you the moment he sees you."
"M-Mira, please stop teasing me!" Lucy's face turned bright red.
Mira, gentle as she might seem these days, still had that mischievous streak buried deep down. Watching Lucy fluster and panic made her laugh with open delight.
"Oooh~ Naked, wrapped in ribbons, as a mere gift… maybe throw in a whip and some candles. Perfection!"
A calm, monotone voice suddenly joined in. A pink-haired maid appeared beside them, face expressionless—but blood was already trickling from her nose. She even gave Lucy a big thumbs-up, clearly lost in her own… vivid imagination.
"Stop it! Please stop! If you keep going, I won't even be able to face Kazuma again!"
"And who are you?! Do we know each other?!"
Lucy finally exploded, her voice echoing through the guild. She felt like a poor princess caught between two mischievous witches—helpless, cornered, and utterly done for.
'Wait, no. Not that kind of helpless. Stop it, brain! These two are corrupting me!'
"My apologies. I forgot to introduce myself."
"I am Virgo, the Maiden."
The pink-haired maid curtsied gracefully before turning toward Kazuma.
"I actually came here looking for my master, but I overheard such a… stimulating conversation that I couldn't help joining in. By the way, I personally prefer bondage play."
Virgo's face remained blank, her tone almost robotic, but her words were scandalously explosive.
"Virgo… Oh, right. You're one of the Zodiac Celestial Spirits from those golden keys Kazuma got."
"Wait—shouldn't your master be that fat Duke guy? Why are you here?! Don't tell me you dragged him along!"
"Kazuma, I told you not to get greedy! That pig of a Duke knows it's us now. We're finished!"
Lucy grabbed Kazuma by the shoulders and shook him like her life depended on it—until she suddenly froze. Her breathing went sharp. Her eyes narrowed, turning cold and dangerous as she looked around.
Then smack—
—Mira karate-chopped her on the head.
"Lucy, calm down."
Mira sighed. Spending so much time with Kazuma had clearly rubbed off on Lucy—she was getting violent way too easily these days.
"It's nothing like that," Virgo said evenly. "My contract with Duke Everlue has already been terminated. My new master is this man."
She pointed straight at Kazuma.
The moment Kazuma had taken the key and stored it in his Treasury, the Gate of Babylon, Virgo's contract with Everlue had automatically dissolved—and a new one formed with Kazuma in its place.
"Wait… come to think of it, my treasury does have that kind of function."
Kazuma blinked, then nodded to himself. The Gate of Babylon could assimilate anything placed inside—marking it as his possession and binding it to his will.
He'd never noticed before because everything he'd stored had been objects, not living entities.
"Hold on, that's impossible! Kazuma isn't a Celestial Spirit Mage!"
"Only a Celestial Spirit Mage can summon spirits! And you—Virgo—how did you even come out without being summoned?!"
"This… this has to be an illegal summoning!"
Lucy was losing it. This broke every rule she knew about spirit magic. Kazuma hadn't even done a summoning ritual!
She'd spent so much time mastering Celestial Magic, putting her heart into every contract.
And he? He just… did nothing?!
That had to be cheating. It had to be! She was filing a report!
"Actually, I don't even need Celestial Magic to summon them," Kazuma said casually. "With the Treasury's influence, I can directly use the power of any key in my collection. I just never bothered before—it wasn't necessary."
He could freely use the abilities of any item in his treasury. No rituals. No conditions. Just pure will.
Total cheat mode.
"Ughhh, so unfair! I'm so jealous!"
Lucy lunged at him and shook him again, her tears practically flying. She'd worked her butt off learning this craft, and Kazuma just… bypassed all of it!
What kind of logic was that?! So what if he had god-tier magic?! That didn't mean he could just break the rules!
And worst of all—he had dozens of keys! How was she supposed to compete with that?!
"Wait," Mira said, eyes widening a little. "If Kazuma really can use those keys, then with his insane magic reserves… couldn't he summon multiple spirits at once?"
Her words made everyone pause.
If Kazuma could summon even the entire Zodiac at once, that power would easily rival high-tier forbidden magic—or surpass it altogether.
"Relax, Lucy. I'm not taking your job," Kazuma said. "I don't even need that kind of magic anymore."
He was telling the truth. Maybe in the past it would've been useful, but not now.
Celestial Magic drained enormous energy, since it summoned across worlds. Meanwhile, his Shadowkhan legion required far less power and was way more efficient in combat... at least for him.
"Right… you still have that creepy ninja army summoning spell. You don't even need Celestial Magic."
Lucy slumped into a corner by the bar, hugging her knees. "Don't talk to me. I just want to sit here and die quietly."
"Now, now, Lucy. Don't be sad," Mira said kindly. "Even though you're weak, clumsy, and not particularly good at anything, we'll still accept you."
"Th-thank you for comforting me, Mira, but… somehow I feel even worse now."
Lucy forced a smile at Mira's sweet face—but something about that smile felt… evil. No, no, that had to be her imagination. Mira couldn't possibly be that cruel… right?
Meanwhile, Kazuma turned back to Virgo.
"So, Virgo, was there a reason you came looking for me?"
"Yes, Master. I bring a message on behalf of the Celestial Spirit World. It concerns a very serious matter."
Her face didn't change, but her tone grew solemn.
Well… as solemn as a deadpan maid talking about bondage could sound.
.
.
.