Angell had seen everything he wanted to see.
So the moment his puppet's head fell off, he turned around and went back to Cecilia without a backward glance.
The buzz around Magical Girl☆Maya didn't die down. Discussions about it grew more and more heated, and for the next six months, it remained a hot topic in major newspapers and film magazines.
The discussions affected the people of Cecilia before the movie itself did.
After all, it would still take time for the movie to be released, but information could already reach people through newspapers and radio stations.
The reviews had left the people of Cecilia itching with anticipation. Every so often, someone would drop by the Magic Gear to ask about the movie.
Angell, of course, wasn't about to miss out on this business opportunity.
"About time to start building anticipation."
After returning from Xiesse, Angell said to Mithril Cat.
The anticipation Angell meant to build wasn't for the movie itself—he had left the movie's publicity entirely to Sir Mandela, since that was what the professional was for—but for the merchandise.
While filming the movie, he had already been planning a series of commercial promotions to follow. It was just that post-production took even longer than he'd expected, and he couldn't exactly go to Xiesse to supervise it himself, so he had put the matter on hold.
Angell thought he could get started now.
So, on a dark and windy night, Angell went outside the workshop with Mithril and waved his Magic Wand.
The Magic Wand Angell used, of course, wasn't a Pseudo-Wand. It was the Alchemy Staff reserved for the owner of the Magic Gear.
It wasn't as shiny as a Pseudo-Wand, but its construction was incomparably complex. At the tip were intricate patterns of stars, moons, and suns. The stars were magic crystal gems, while the vertical lines representing the sun's radiance were magic circuits. All of them could move. By adjusting the gears behind them, the positions of the magic crystal gems and magic circuits could be changed to form different Magic Circles.
With a staff like this, an alchemist could skip the process and get straight to the result.
In that respect, a Pseudo-Wand was more like an Alchemy Staff than a Magic Wand. Both were intermediary tools with fixed spell runes or Magic Circles that produced fixed spells.
That was the biggest difference between Mages and alchemists.
A Mage's own abilities were complete. They didn't need a Magic Wand to amplify, stabilize, or enhance their power; they could cast spells without one. But their own abilities—their talents—also limited them to learning spells in a particular field.
Alchemists, on the other hand, were incomplete, so they needed external tools to produce magical effects. At the same time, however, they weren't limited by their abilities or talents. As long as they had enough materials and followed the right steps, they could get the results they wanted—and even create miracles greater than a Mage's.
The workshop in front of him was one such example.
When Angell inserted the Alchemy Staff into the floor tile beneath his feet, enormous alchemical patterns appeared beneath the entire workshop. Different magical patterns flowed across the building itself. The walls and floors, even the bricks themselves, began to float apart, like building blocks that could be freely taken apart and put back together.
Angell pulled out the prepared fourth floor and placed it beneath the first floor, turning the original first floor into the second. Then he pulled out the fifth floor and placed it above the current second floor—the original ground-floor shop—to make it the third. The two floors above that moved up in turn, making the Rune Studio the fourth floor and Angell and Enlise's bedrooms the fifth.
"Isn't this a little too high?" Angell complained. "It feels like getting back to my room every day is going to be a hassle."
"You're fine. You can Teleport, after all. But it really is a bit high for Enlise and the Rune Masters." Mithril rarely agreed with Angell, but this time it did.
"Next time we renovate, we'll put an elevator in the shop," Angell mused.
"No. Have you considered moving into the workshop's main residence, meow?" Mithril asked, looking at him strangely.
Even the employees had dormitories, so of course the workshop's previous owners had all had residences of their own. Angell had just thought the place was too big and difficult to clean, so he had kept living above the shop.
Now that the workshop was turning a profit, Angell could afford to treat himself a little better.
But as a Black Robe Mage, Angell had a different idea of what "treating himself a little better" meant.
"The main residence? We could definitely make use of it. Once I make a killing at the end of the year, I'll turn that house into a Mage Tower... I mean, a research room! Then I'll have a research room of my own, too." Angell mused.
...What research room? He'd plainly said he wanted a Mage Tower.
Mithril shot Angell a sidelong glance.
Still, it could understand how he felt.
Every Mage wanted a Mage Tower of their own. It was just that only High-level Mages were qualified to build one, so an Intermediate Mage like Angell could only dream about it.
Now that he had money, he wanted to build a copy of a Mage Tower just for the fun of it. Mithril had no objections.
As long as he didn't pour the money into a bottomless pit like the Mana Base Station and affect the workshop's regular business, Mithril didn't care what peculiar hobbies its master had.
Besides, among all the workshop's previous owners, Angell's way of treating himself was already one of the most socially beneficial.
*
How Angell chose to spend his money was his own business. Angell's "wallets" just had to pay up.
When the Magic Gear's members came to the workshop the next day, they noticed that it had changed.
They found that the Game Tables they usually played had all been moved to the second floor, while the first floor had become an open-plan merchandise store. The store even had a members-only section, where certain limited-edition magical products could only be purchased by members.
The customers didn't mind much.
They had no idea that this floor of shops would become an inescapable Nightmare for the rest of their lives. They still thought they could keep their spending urges under control. Only a few customers who had money to spare bought some Four Seasons Game Table plushies to show their support. Most of them watched the Magic Wands in the members-only section cautiously, and didn't give in even when told they could get 20% off by preordering.
What really got the customers excited was the Arena in the second-floor gaming area.
The Arena had been a huge hit when it first appeared on the day the Magic Gear reopened, but it had never been promoted or made the main way to play. There were a couple of reasons for that.
The first was the same old problem: controlling the characters took too much Mana. Most players couldn't pull off impressive Ultimate Skills, so most of the time it was just noobs clumsily bashing into each other. That made the game boring—or so Angell thought. In truth, most of the noobs were having a blast. They didn't even know what an "Ultimate Skill" was.
The second problem was how difficult it was to develop. Designing the appearances, fighting styles, and Ultimate Skills for N different game characters would take too much effort on Angell's part. He figured he'd be better off doing something that would bring in money faster, so he put development of the game Arena on hold.
When the members arrived on the second floor of the Alchemy Workshop that day, they saw that the Arena had been placed in front of the entrance to the third floor.
A ring of golden chains encircled the Arena. The chains stretched outward and wound all the way around the third-floor stair railing, forming layer upon layer of barriers. At the very top of the stairs, a huge lock hung in place.
"What's this supposed to mean?"
Customer George asked, "Can we not play this anymore?"
George was one of the noob customers who loved the Magic Arena.
He had signed up for a membership at the Magic Gear on the day it reopened, and after half a year, he was practically a veteran. But George thought the toys on the Game Tables were "girly," so he only chose Miss Cecilia and the Magic Wolf on the Arena, where they could fight like "real men."
So even though George had already reached VIP5 just from spending money on Carbonated Water, his Mana level was still F.
Half a month ago, George had finally earned his first achievement icon: "Stubborn King."
More than a hundred other people had earned the same icon, and the number might keep growing.
Angell couldn't understand the gaming spirit of these people.
Still, whether he understood them or not, the customers were still customers. A Receptionist Cat immediately answered:
"Of course you can play, meow!"
"Just play the way you normally do."
"Then why'd you put up all these weird chains?" George grumbled. He walked over to the player's seat at the Arena and inserted a coin.
Another customer walked over to the opposite player's seat.
He was a little kid, maybe eight or nine years old. He was so short that he couldn't even see over the seat. A Receptionist Cat had to bring him a stool before he could reach the buttons and use them properly.
George took one look at him and got annoyed. "Hey, kid, don't mess around! This isn't for you!"
"I paid, so why can't I play?!" Little Bolo shouted back fearlessly.
Little Bolo had only recently joined the Magic Gear as a member.
He lived on the outskirts of Cecilia City. For a nine-year-old boy, going all the way from the edge of the city to the center by himself was like going on an adventure.
But Little Bolo's Charity School was a pilot school for the Mana Base Station.
After repeatedly trying to stay behind and play games (X) learn magic, only to be chased away by the old man guarding the door, Little Bolo finally found out about the Magic Gear. Then, on a day off, he made the long journey to this Alchemy Workshop to see if he could "learn magic" through the Magic Gear's merchandise.
He could, of course. But Little Bolo was captivated by the Magic Arena.
A real man needed a heated battle, after all!
Little Bolo immediately forgot about his dream of becoming a worker. He felt that being born in the Magic Era meant he was destined to be a brave warrior.
On this day off, Little Bolo came to the workshop again.
Since Little Bolo had made such a "long journey" to get here, of course he wasn't going to back down now. He taunted his "enemy." "Mister, you're not scared of losing to a little kid like me, are you?"
"Whoa! You've got guts!"
"Come on, Old George. Show the kid what you've got."
The spectators, hoping to stir up trouble, started egging them on.
George's face turned red. "Just you wait!"
He rapidly pressed the buttons, "summoning" the cute Miss Cecilia. Then he made her raise her Magic Wand toward the Magic Wolf Little Bolo had summoned.
George had been playing this game all along, so he knew how to control it.
Little Bolo, on the other hand, was struggling.
The last few times he'd come, he'd only watched from the side. This was his first time playing himself. The Magic Wolf failed to dodge in time and took a brutal hit, a huge splatter of blood bursting above its head.
"Hahaha! Kid, go back to your mommy and suckle!" George laughed.
The people around them kept hollering, too:
"Take him down!"
"Kid, this isn't the place for you!"
"Show him what you've got!"
The jumble of shouts and not-so-clean language made several Receptionist Cats stop to watch.
The users of the Magic Arena and the Game Tables had been getting younger lately. The games were becoming less and less suitable for children.
The Receptionist Cats had been keeping a close eye on things. They were determined to pull the human cub out of there before the situation got out of hand.
But the cub was calmer than anyone expected.
Though he was surrounded by foul language, Little Bolo didn't panic at all. He controlled the Magic Wolf and dodged the opponent's second attack, feeling his way around the Keyboard and gradually getting the hang of it.
Then the difference in their Mana levels began to show.
Little Bolo might have been young, but he had received regular (?) magical education for the past six months. Not only had he worked hard to earn extra lessons for himself, but he also diligently moved bricks during Meditation Class every day—and still thought he hadn't moved enough.
His game rating at the Magic Gear had already reached C-level, which was enough to play the Game Tables normally.
George, on the other hand, was the opposite.
He was the most common kind of Commoner, with no talent for Mana. Since he wasn't interested in the Game Tables, he had no other chance to meditate, either. So after controlling his character to attack a few times, his movements slowed down.
George had to rest for quite a while before he could recover even a little Mana.
If his opponent had been a noob like him, they would have entered the usual standoff. The characters on the Arena would usually stand completely still while the two players shouted at each other from their seats to see who had the louder voice. When they got worked up, they might even challenge each other to a fight at the public park. In the end, the game would either be forcibly stopped after neither character moved for too long, or other players would simply chase them off the Arena.
Little Bolo wasn't about to let George's "weakness" go to waste.
His Magic Wolf charged at Miss Cecilia and bit her by the neck.
"Damn it!" George frantically hammered the buttons.
But what good would that do? His Mana had already run out.
Blood kept bursting above Cecilia's head.
"Your buttons are broken!" George shouted angrily.
The audience didn't wait for the Receptionist Cat to answer. They immediately booed him:
"You're just useless!"
"If you lost, then just admit it!"
"You can't even beat a kid, you wimp!"
The onlookers were very "fair." They always sided with the strong and mocked the weak.
George wasn't as calm as Little Bolo. He angrily slapped the buttons.
"If you're so good, then you play!"
The audience booed.
A few people really did think, I'm good, let me try. But maybe it was because it was a rest-day morning and all the strong players were still at home asleep. Not one of them managed to beat Little Bolo.
When Little Bolo reached his thirteenth win, the Magic Wolf bit Miss Cecilia to death. But instead of striking its usual victory pose, it took a few steps toward the stairs.
"Hero, if it were you, perhaps you could save this woman from her tragic fate."
"Are you willing to accept this challenge?"
What was this?
An adult would have asked that.
But Little Bolo was only a nine-year-old boy. He thought it was perfectly natural for the Magic Wolf, which had fought for him all this time, to ask him for help. After all, he'd already proven how strong he was!
Little Bolo immediately answered excitedly, "I'm willing!"
The Magic Wolf nodded. Its entire body turned into a Silver Light Orb and landed on the chains surrounding the Arena. The chains on the stairs clattered to the ground, and even the lock at the top clicked open.
It made a tremendous racket and blazed with a brilliant light, attracting the attention of almost every player on the second floor.
A Maine Coon wearing boots leaped onto the open stairs and said to Little Bolo:
"Please follow me, meow, Hero."
Little Bolo followed the Maine Coon up toward the third floor.
"What was that?"
The other players were naturally curious and wanted to follow, but as Bolo climbed the stairs, the golden chains rose up behind him again, layer by layer, blocking the way.
The Maine Coon's voice came down from above:
"Only Heroes who have passed the test are allowed to enter the third floor!"
"What's this? A new event?"
"Is there a new game on the third floor?"
"I'm already VIP9. Let me go up and take a look!"
The other players gathered around the Arena. They soon learned the rules from the Receptionist Cats:
"Win thirteen times in a row;
"or use an Ultimate Skill;
"once five players have passed the test, the Arena on the second floor will be removed, and all players can enter the 'Illusion Arena' on the third floor."
Naturally, the number of players using the Magic Arena that day multiplied several times over.
Even players who weren't interested in the Arena came to play a couple of rounds out of curiosity about the third floor.
That was how people noticed a problem they hadn't paid attention to before: the more often someone played the Game Tables, and the higher their Mana level, the more agilely they seemed to control their characters in the Arena. Though there were also hopeless Clumsy Players like An XX, who couldn't be saved no matter how much Mana they had.
"You're forcing us to spend!"
After being slaughtered countless times, George and the other noob players grumbled as they made their way to the Game Tables.
*
Little Bolo had no idea there was a commotion going on below.
He followed the Maine Coon up to the third floor, but the cat didn't take him through the large door that looked like a Theater entrance. Instead, it led him down a long corridor to a small room with five floor-length mirrors.
Little Bolo walked past all five mirrors, but only one reflected his image.
Curious, Bolo looked at himself in that mirror and saw that he was wearing a Jazz Hat.
Then he felt his own head, and to his surprise, he really could pull a hat off it.
"This is your prize," the Maine Coon said. "Only Heroes who are the first to pass the test can get this equipment for free."
"Dear master, I'm the Hat of Wisdom. I'll guide you in battle from now on," the hat said.
"Free... So does that mean I can spend money?" Bolo asked strangely.
He seemed to have a level of attentiveness in this regard that no nine-year-old boy should have. "I saw similar hats in the membership section of the first-floor shop. They're merchandise, aren't they?"
But how could Angell possibly make such a mistake?
"No, no, this hat is special!" The Maine Coon was taken aback by Bolo's question. It hadn't expected the boy to ask something so pointed, but quickly replied, "See the blue ribbon on it? That's something only you have. You'll find it has a special use during battle, and your Membership Token will contain a Hero Badge that belongs to you alone."
By this point, the Maine Coon was thoroughly impressed by Angell.
Why had its master thought of everything?!
Even the customers' desire for exclusive ownership had been factored into the prizes!
Still, the Maine Coon had gotten one thing slightly wrong. Little Bolo didn't really care about having something "all to himself." He was only checking whether the item in his hands was the Magic Item mentioned at the first-floor counter.
Now that he had confirmation, Bolo happily put the hat on his head.
As he did, his reflection and the mirror itself disappeared, revealing a door behind them.
"From here on, you must continue the journey on your own." The Maine Coon placed its left paw over its chest and bowed.
"Leave it to me!"
Little Bolo marched through the door with his head held high.
Beyond it was a gigantic Arena, suspended alone in the middle of the sky. Looking down, he saw the Mage Tower stretching beneath him in layer upon layer. The tips of the towers stood upright like spikes in a trap, making the prospect of falling down there terrifying.
But of course, the Arena wasn't where Players went to fight. Beyond the door Bolo had walked through was a spectator seat for Players.
Bolo didn't hesitate. He placed his hand on the Status Panel and channeled Mana into it.
A Magical Girl dressed primarily in blue appeared before him:
"Magical Girl Lisa, answering your call."
"Guide me in battle, my partner!"
The Magical Girl spoke.
On the other side of the Arena, a group of little monsters jumped out. If Bolo had seen the Movie Magical Girl, he would surely have recognized them as Monsters from the film. But even if he hadn't seen it, that wouldn't affect the game.
Little Bolo quickly began controlling Magical Girl Lisa as she fought the little monsters.
But just as the battle reached its fiercest point, he heard his hat suddenly speak. "My clever master, why are you fighting in such a clumsy way? Lisa can use much stronger moves."
"What should I do?" Little Bolo asked.
The hat recited a series of incantations. "Use this magic. It'll help you!"
Little Bolo loudly repeated the incantations, and the Magical Girl began chanting along with him. Together, they defeated the monsters.
But...
At that moment, the game didn't matter at all.
At least, it didn't matter at all to Bolo.
Little Bolo didn't immediately start the next round. Instead, he asked the hat a rather unusual question: "How do you know such complicated incantations?"
"I'm a magic hat with a good memory!" the hat replied.
"If I asked you to remember something else, could you do that too?" Bolo pressed.
"If you have enough Mana, of course I can remember it."
"Even all the textbooks?!"
Little Bolo's eyes began to dart around.