I was surprised when, early the next morning, my door opened and both Erina and Hisako entered the shop. I'd only just about settled into my chair after flipping the sign when they both entered, Erina with that graceful sway to her hips as Hisako followed behind like a diligent secretary.
"Erina, Hisako," I greeted them both.
"Tiberius-kun," Erina curtsied politely.
"Please, just call me Lynx," I waved it off. "Lynx-san if you must be formal."
"I'll remember that Lynx-kun," Erina smiled at me lightly, looking around the shop slowly with surprise on her face. "It's bigger, it also has a certain sheen to it now that it didn't before… You renovated, then?"
"I came into some good money recently and decided to renovate since I'm now offering some higher tier potions," I smiled at her. "Mid-Low and Mid. 40% and 50% respectively."
Her eyes lit up before she nodded. "I see, it's good that you constantly keep expanding your business," she nodded. "You might want to consider adding more variety than just potions though."
"That's a future expansion, for now I plan to dominate the potions market," I smiled. "So, what brings you to my shop today?"
"Restocking on potions, and perhaps some advice," she informed me.
I leaned on the table. "Go on."
"Well, Hisako and I both chose the mage class," she explained. "I chose to be an Aeromancer, while Hisako chose the Druid Class. But the problem is that levelling up our skills is a bit slow- and we have no way to increase our levels beyond sparring with one another. And we are hesitating to spare because Hisako is my trusted aid and the idea of hurting me is very difficult for her, and likewise I can't think about hurting Hisako like that."
I smiled slowly. "Luckily for you, I just started offering a new service the other day that fulfils both of your needs perfectly..."
I more than happily explained to them about both the Dungeon and the training room, which solved both of the problems they were having.
"That's perfect!" Erina's eyes lit up before she sighed. "I do wish there was a door to the shop closer to my Condo though, coming here at the ideal times would be around late at night, and I wouldn't want my grandfather to worry."
"Then why don't we just do that?" I asked her.
Erina blinked, as did Hisako.
"It's one of my skills related to my shop," I told her. "I can place a 'Marker' down that can act as another entry and exit point from the shop. I just haven't done it yet because it never really come up as important before- and now it has."
Her eyes lit up. "Really? You can place this marker anywhere then?" She asked with intrigue.
"Yep," I nodded. "Though it has to be a big enough space to accommodate a door. So, I can't just put it on a bracelet or something and have it magically transform. It has to be big enough for a door."
"That's easily manageable," Erina nodded. "Would you care to join us for the day then?" She suggested. "I'm sure you're bored, staying cooped up in the shop all the time."
I thought about that... Managing the shop was pretty boring. Fulfilling in its own way, but dreadfully dull when waiting for customers.
"Alright," I nodded in agreement. "You both step outside first, I'll be out in a moment."
"Need to do something?" Hisako asked.
I nodded. "Just need to get someone else to watch over the shop while I'm away."
"Then we'll wait for you outside," Erina smiled, turning around and leaving together with Hisako.
After getting Unum to watch over the shop while I was away- leaving behind a calculator so she could accurately determine the prices- I made my way outside and joined Erina and Hisako in their limo.
"I feel a little under dressed for this," I told Erina, feeling a bit nervous despite myself. I'd never ridden in a limo before; it felt fancy on another level for me.
"It can't be helped," Erina waved it off. "After all, we didn't exactly give you time to change."
"Then I'll just change here," I told her.
Both she and Hisako blinked. "Eh?"
I just smiled as I changed the clothes I was wearing through my equipment menu.
Suddenly, I was dressed in a custom made suit that fit me completely perfectly. The jacket and pants were both white, with black shirt and a blood red tie to match my hair.
"This is much better," I smiled. "I should look the part when travelling with such lovely company, right?"
I saw both of their cheeks slowly pink, and my lips quirked up in a very tiny smirk... I supposed, to them, I must look rather dashing in a suit, right? I was glad that I'd decided to buy something for more formal occasions.
"Y- yes, I suppose that works quite well," Erina coughed, glancing away. "Your system comes with an equipment option? Ours didn't, we have to change our clothes ourselves."
"Well, like I said it was a minor system," I reminded her. "Don't worry too much though. I know there are worlds out there with hammer space magic that can function just like an Equipment system, so I'll see if I can pick up a book on it. It shouldn't be too hard for you to learn, since you chose the mage class."
"Easier because we chose mage classes?" Hisako decided to ask.
"Because you know what magic feels like when it moves through your body," I told her. "For Rogue and Warrior classes, they don't have that. The Rogue class might have some magic spells in some subclasses, but for the most part that's a big no. If you can understand the flow of magic through your body, then it's possible to convert your magic to the relevant attributes so long as you have an idea of what you're doing..."
I trailed off... I realised quickly that I was too short-sighted.
Why did I think that my magic was so limited?
Thread-Make, Dream Magic, and Runecraft.
Why did I not realise that I had more options than these three right from the start?
I could feel the flow of magic through my body; feel it surge at my command... What if, instead of directing it into one of my normal spells, I left it as it was and shaped it manually?
I lifted my hand and began to let the magic flow through my body, surging up to my upward facing palm... I envisioned the magic crawling out of my hand and forming a sphere above it. A sphere of pure magic and nothing else.
Slowly, swirling crimson energy gathered around me and converged on my hand. It wobbled and trembled as it slowly shaped itself, becoming a perfect sphere of red energy above my hand.
You have obtained the Magic – Ether Magic!
The box notification confirmed what I knew, and I gave a wry smile as I looked at Erina and Hisako, who stared at the crimson orb above my palm. "Just like this," I told them. "You can even learn magic that you wouldn't expect you'd be able to learn. Just by shaping magic like this, you can learn a very simple Magic - Ether Magic. It's essentially magic with no attribute. Very basic, but useful."
"Amazing…" Erina's eyes lit up. "Then, so long as we have an understanding of something and can find a way to convert the magical energy… It's possible to create any type of magic?"
"Theoretically, there would be a magic or skill for everything, though I can't be entirely sure," I admitted. "And, as the system explains, magic that aren't directly related to your class cost more Mana to use. But any mana issues will be resolved when you level up."
Hisako quickly tapped on her tablet, clearly making notes about my words for them to look back on in the future.
While she did that, I chastised myself internally.
What kind of isekai idiot was I? I'd seen proof that doing certain actions could lead to new skills, why didn't I consider that also extended to Magic?
No, rather, I already knew that extended to magic- I had given that magic book to Duae after all. I just hadn't thought to do it myself, instead more focused on nurturing the servants instead of my own abilities.
It was an oversight and mistake on my part- one I wouldn't be making again in the future if I could keep it in mind... Though I'd also need to make sure I didn't go overboard. Having magic was good- but having too much wasn't always a good thing.
Moderation was key.
From there, we had a lovely chat as we drove through the Campus of Totsuki. I was surprised by how long it was taking to travel and asked if the Limo was necessary.
"It is," Erina nodded. "For more reasons than just the size of Totsuki though. Totsuki is massive, and using the Limo helps save a lot of time as I travel from place to place to do my duties as a member of the Elite Ten. But also, because I'm the Heiress of the Nakiri Family- the biggest family within the Food Industry and the ones who run Totsuki. Kidnapping attempts are, sadly, something I have to deal with semi-regularly. So, I ride in the limo to not only stay hidden, but also to stay safe. Bulletproof glass, reinforced doors, and the driver and my small guard are all military veterans who act as my bodyguards."
I was surprised... Things like that weren't in the manga...
However, realistically, Erina's words made sense... Actually, it made even more sense given I knew her father needed to use Erina for his 'True Gourmet' plan- which, by the way, asinine plan...
He just wanted all food to taste exactly the same. There would be no difference no matter where you went to, and food itself would become boring if he did that.
"Any other reason you're so famous?" I decided to ask as a joke so that she'd reveal her God's Tongue on her own.
"Yes," Hisako was the one who answered. "Erina-sama is a once in a generation genius who has inherited the divine skill of cooking- the God's Tongue. Using it, she can taste the flood on another level that normal people just can't. She can even tell if something is over or undercooked by even half a second."
"... That must suck," I said flatly.
They both blinked in surprise and looked at me...
Before Erina began to laugh in amusement, a smile curving onto her lips. "Yes," she agreed. "It does suck. I could only be served the most exquisite dishes from a young age because anything else wasn't manageable... They even had to get a special formula made for me as a child because I found breast milk too unappetizing..."
I couldn't help but snort at that... Holy shit, wasn't that a joke that happened in the pilot of the manga? Where Erina's first words were 'disgusting' from tasting her mother's breast milk?
I guess something similar must have happened here too- likely Erina throwing up or something after tasting the milk.
"But I have to thank you for freeing me from the curse of the God's Tongue," Erina smiled at me warmly.
"... Pardon?" I blinked.
"The God's Tongue is registered as a passive skill within the System," Hisako explained. "According to the System, Passive skills can be activated and de-activated as the user wishes... Therefore, Erina-sama can turn off the God's Tongue after receiving the System and is no longer required to simply dine on high end cuisine and can just enjoy normal food."
My eye widened in surprise... No, in pure shock.
Are you serious!? System, isn't this Minor System a bit too overpowered if it can do that!?
I thought the God's Tongue would be a Trait, not a skill... Maybe it's because the God's Tongue can be improved further, so it doesn't classify as a trait?
But, more than that, the God's Tongue itself is the entire driving force behind the events of the series. The entire reason Senzaemon gathered the Jewels Generation, the entire reason behind the 'BLUE' Competition that was now being run by Erina's mother- all of it was to find a way to create a dish that had 'never been seen before on Earth' that could finally allow them to break free of the God Tongue's curse.
But the System had bypassed that. Now, Erina only needed to use her God's Tongue for Shokugeki and for examination visits. Otherwise, she could turn it off and just enjoy normal food for once.
This wasn't just diverging canon.
I had inadvertently bent canon over and fucked it so hard, it couldn't tell what the directions were any more.
'Whoops...'