On the first day aboard the Mystic Eye Collection Train, after meeting Ciel and talking with Trisha, Naoki and Rei didn't encounter anyone else.
More accurately, they didn't sit down and converse with anyone else. Magi weren't particularly trusting of others. Moreover, this train wasn't a place for socializing but for attending an auction. To acquire the Mystic Eyes they desired, most Magi spent their time studying the Mystic Eyes up for sale.
People like Naoki, who didn't care about Mystic Eyes and wandered around aimlessly, were a minority.
After dinner, in Naoki and Rei's room.
Lying flat on the bed, staring at the ceiling, Naoki closed his eyes and immersed his consciousness in sensing his surroundings. The Forest of Einnashe was an existence akin to a Reality Marble. Its expansion eroded the world. As a Fairy of the planet, Naoki could easily detect changes in the world itself.
Of course, the condition was that the erosion occurred within the range of his senses.
(Nothing unusual… At least within a ten-kilometer radius, there's no change. Still far from entering the Forest of Einnashe's appearance zone?)
That was for the best. Naoki wanted to make some preparations before entering the Forest of Einnashe's territory. If it were just him, it wouldn't be an issue at all. But this time, he not only had to defeat the Forest of Einnashe but also protect Marie on the train.
This would stretch him a bit thin.
Returning from his senses, Naoki opened his eyes. "Should I summon a Fairy with Summoning Magecraft and place it by her side temporarily?"
This way, Marie's safety would be assured, but Naoki also had to consider the collateral damage a Fairy's battle might cause. Without his control, the Fairies would likely follow their instincts and do whatever they pleased.
Naoki estimated that by the time he returned, he'd see the train in ruins, wrecked by both the Fairies and the Forest of Einnashe.
"Are you thinking about Miss Marie, Master?"
At that moment, Rei came to the bedside and asked, looking down at him.
Naoki nodded. "Figuring out how to protect her from the Forest of Einnashe's attack is quite a hassle. Ciel will definitely head straight into the Forest, so I'll have to go in too. But that makes protecting the train a bit tricky."
"It is indeed a problem. No matter how strong you are, Master, you can't be in two places at once. After all, the Forest of Einnashe isn't like us, able to split time as needed. But don't worry, Master, there's a solution."
As she spoke, Rei quickly climbed onto the bed, pulled the blanket over them, and covered both herself and Naoki. She leaned forward, gazing at her master. "Leave the task of protecting the train to me, Master. I swear, before you defeat the Forest of Einnashe, this train won't suffer a single scratch."
"Hmm… That's one way, but won't it be too much for you? The train is pretty large."
"Setting up a barrier is quite simple. Essentially, you handle the offense, Master, and I just handle defense, so it won't be too taxing. The only thing is, maintaining the barrier requires a lot of Mana, so Master—"
"Stop!"
Before Rei could finish, Naoki hurriedly slipped—or rather, fled—from the blanket.
"Didn't I give you enough Mana last night to last half a month?! Why are you asking for more today? Do you burn through Mana that quickly?"
"Just to be safe. After all, inside the Forest of Einnashe, natural Mana can't be used at all. I can only rely on the Mana you provide to set up the barrier. Since I don't know how much Mana it'll take, I want to store as much as possible."
As she spoke, Rei changed her old-fashioned maid uniform into a more revealing and cute style. She got off the bed and slowly approached Naoki.
"Of course, I'd actually prefer to keep having intimate contact with you, Master. You don't think two weeks of restraint can be resolved in just one night, do you? The scent you picked up outside—we'll replace it with ours during this trip."
Grasping Naoki's hand and guiding it to the ribbon at her back that held her outfit together, Rei smiled. "Or, you could see this as practice, Master. After all, in the future, you'll be undressing someone like this many times. Practicing now isn't a bad thing, is it?"
"Tell me, this ribbon… isn't it tied a bit too much?"
The maid outfit Rei wore now, whether intentionally designed or not, was held together by just this one ribbon.
Like decayed wood teetering, a slight push would make the rotted part collapse entirely. And now, Naoki's hand was on that rotted part.
If Naoki applied just a bit of force, the ribbon—and the entire maid outfit—would come undone. By tomorrow, he'd once again be a completely dried-out lemon, unable to be squeezed any further.
"Rei, it's not going to be like this every night, right? We might have to face the Forest of Einnashe tomorrow morning. What if I'm too exhausted to fight?"
"About that, I can use vitality-enhancing Magecraft on you, Master, ensuring you won't feel tired at all." Rei said, unbuttoning her own shirt. She also bit the ribbon on her chest to keep her outfit from slipping off. "Or… would you like to use it now?"
Under Rei's deliberate control, her body, which previously seemed somewhat thin to Naoki, gradually approached Aoko's level.
Taking a deep breath, Naoki swiftly untied the ribbon at Rei's back, lifted her, and tossed her onto the bed. "Fine, then. Once we enter the Forest of Einnashe's territory, I'll leave protecting the train and Marie to you."
"Alright, leave it to me, Master. But please don't forget the Mana. You wouldn't want to come back and see me turned back into a ball, would you?"
Of course not. Compared to her original form, Naoki clearly preferred the current Rei and Manaka.
"How much more Mana do you need?"
"With my current reserves, I can set up and maintain a top-spec barrier for a full day—to be safe, please give me as much Mana as last night, Master."
"That's already more than enough, isn't it? Do you still need to store more?"
"Just to be safe, right? Besides…" Rei's now fuller legs curved slightly, brushing against Naoki. "Master, you're not really suited for the tsundere act. A body and words that don't align aren't a good habit."
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At the same time, in another carriage quite far from Naoki's room.
Marie and Trisha sat quietly in a corner of the carriage, as if waiting for someone. When the carriage door opened, a red-haired woman immediately entered their view.
"It seems you were deliberately waiting for me. What's up?"
"If there was nothing, we wouldn't be waiting for you here." Marie said, looking at the newcomer. "Are you interested in doing business with the Department of Astromancy, Grand Puppeteer Aozaki Touko?"