Intrusion

Ethan said it bewilderingly and did as his teacher told him. And the book opened, revealing its content to Ethan.

[Wow!]

[As you can see, you can read the book using your mind instead of your eyes and hands.]

[Um, then for what is this 'Search'?]

[Good that you asked. But why don't you try to use it yourself first before asking?]

[How?]

[Use your mind like you did with the book.]

[Okay.]

He did as he was told, but only the empty rectangle appeared.

[Now, think about what you want to find.]

[What do I want to find? Um, then let's be it, 'Fourth circle magic'.]

The words 'Fourth circle magic' appeared inside the rectangle, and after one second, the line with the words 'Three matching were found' and three different pages of the book were shown.

[So I can find what I want without flipping the book?! It's amazing! You're truly a genius, teacher.]

Ethan said it from the bottom of his heart.

[There's nothing amazing. I just copied one of the functions of the device from my world.]

[You have such incredible artifacts in your world, even without magic.]

[Yes, though, because people in my world didn't have such a convenient thing as magic. So we didn't have a choice but to improve our understanding of our world. And byproducts of our understanding were technologies, which improved the lives of countless humans. So, Ethan, don't forget that you should spend more time trying to understand the world you live in; it will make you stronger.]

[Okay, I understand.]

[Good. Then let me finish this artifact for now.]

With such words, his teacher removed the bracelet from Ethan's wrist and took out one copper coin from his storage ring.

[Um, what do you need this copper coin for, teacher?]

[This mithril bracelet is very eye-catching; it would be better to hide it.]

His teacher melted the coin using the metal element and covered the bracelet's surface.

[It's done.]

Though he said so, he didn't stop controlling the bracelet with telekinesis. His teacher was waiting for the bracelet to cool down.

Suddenly, Ethan felt a cold wind on his neck.

[A draught?]

[Hm, let me control your body fully for now.]

[Um, okay.]

Ethan wasn't the only one who felt this wind.

***

The young boy stood up and turned towards the door, placing his hands behind his back.

"So what's brought you here, Ms. Leta?"

There stood the young maid, with her usual half-closed eyes and fake smile.

"Oh, I thought I concealed myself well."

Though she said it apologetically, her expression wasn't sorry at all.

"It's not the answer to my question."

Her young master's voice was cold, and his expression was serious—a far cry from his usual innocent, somewhat foolish, and at the same time cute expression, like from the different personality, though it wasn't unfamiliar to her. After all, she saw this sight of Ethan today in the black alley. And now she was curious about this side of him; she wanted to learn about how much different he was from his usual self.

"It's because I was worried about you, my dear."

'My dear? I forgot about this promise they made.'

Thought 'Ethan' without changing his expression. And seeing his low reaction, Leta wanted to approach him, but when she didn't even manage her first step...

"Stay still."

Said Ethan in a low voice, simultaneously taking out the gun from his ring and pointing at her. And after seeing such an intense reaction, Leta was flabbergasted, even forgetting to maintain her usual expression.

"Erm, Darling! Can you not point such a dangerous thing at me?"

"You tried to approach me concealed, so why not? Especially, why shouldn't I point the gun at the one who smells blood?"

If it were said that Leta was shocked, it would be an understatement. And she saw how Ethan's finger on the trigger tensed, ready to pull it.

"I can explain, so please don't shoot, darling!"

She raised her hands, and seeing it, Ethan relaxed his finger, albeit slightly.

"Then explain."

"Sigh... I think you already found out, so..."

She grimaced a little, not wanting to talk about her past. But there weren't any other choices in front of the gun. 

"I'm actually an ex-assassin, and I was sent to the Anselm family as a spy."

Ethan didn't say a word; he only looked at her as if he were telling her to continue.

"I was sent here to gather information about your family before, and now to gather information about you."

"Who sent you?"

"I don't know..."

But seeing the expression of Ethan, or more, the lack of it, she added.

"It's not an excuse; I really don't know. I only know that they are someone powerful with many subordinates, and one of those subordinates is my boss. But I can't tell about them because of the oath."

'Ethan' heard about oaths, though not in this world. In his world, some demon worshipers made oaths to the Demon King, so it was impossible to extract the information from them, even with severe torture. Though he was sure that it was some kind of magic,.

"Okay, I understand. So who is this unfortunate soul killed by you?"

"That adventurer who tried to rob you."

Ethan looked at her puzzled, not understanding why she killed him.

"It's because I was worried about you."

She said it shyly.

"Eh?"

There wasn't any falsehood in her words. So it was 'Ethan's' turn to be shocked.

"It's because if someone as powerful as my master sends me to spy on you, there might be other dangerous men who're interested in you. So I killed him, to be sure. But it turned out that this man was just a random robber."

'Heh, it looks like this boy is really in danger, and he didn't even know about it.'

Thought 'Ethan'.

'More reasons to make him gain more power. Though there's no need to speed up his training.' 

"Erm, I answered your questions, so can you put away your gun?"

"Ah, right, sorry. Though it's not even loaded?"

"For real?"

"You can check it yourself."

'Ethan' took the gun by the barrel, extending the handle towards Leta; she took it bewilderedly, and Ethan sat down at the bed.