Chapter 268 - Common Sense!?
Ais's clear eyes quivered slightly at Mahiro's words, her gaze settling on him with a flicker of emotion.
"Agreement?" Lefiya squeaked, her voice betraying her surprise.
The ambiguous term sent the innocent elf's imagination spiraling, a blush creeping across her cheeks.
"Could it be... Miss Ais and Sir Mahiro, you two..." She darted her eyes between them, incredulous.
"Is it what Tiona said before?"
"Said what?" Tiona blinked, then grinned mischievously.
"Oh, you mean having a baby with Mahiro?"
Her brazen words turned Lefiya's face crimson, her voice trembling.
"T-Tiona!"
"Yep, it's true," Tiona teased, a playful smirk tugging at her lips.
"A-Ais... Miss Ais!" Lefiya stammered, turning to Ais for rescue, desperation in her wide eyes.
"No, Lefiya," Ais replied softly, dispelling the notion.
"It's just a promise I made with Ais," Mahiro explained with a smile.
"After her expedition, I'd teach her some ways to grow stronger."
"That's right," Ais nodded.
"Oh, I see!" Lefiya exhaled in relief, then shot Tiona a glare.
"Lefiya, you lusty elf," Tiona teased, sticking out her tongue.
"I'm not lusty!" Lefiya protested, summoning her courage.
"You're the one obsessed with baby talk, Tiona!"
"You say that, but one word—'agreement'—and your mind jumped straight to something different," Tiona countered, feigning disbelief.
"Not lusty, huh?"
"I-I-I-I..." Lefiya's face flared redder, her words jamming like a stuck record.
Overwhelmed, her eyes spun dizzily.
"Alright, Tiona, stop teasing her," Riveria interjected with a sigh, seeing Lefiya on the verge of collapse.
"She takes things too seriously."
"Lefiya..." Ais reached out, resting a gentle hand on the elf's head.
"Miss Ais..." Lefiya relaxed under the touch, gazing up gratefully.
"Even if you're a lusty elf, I won't judge you," Ais said, her voice flat as ever.
Lefiya froze, as if struck by lightning, her brief calm shattered.
"Hahaha!" Tiona doubled over, laughing until tears welled up.
"Look at her face!"
"Ais, you're a bad girl," Mahiro said, twitching his lips in amusement.
Her attempt at comfort had backfired spectacularly—delivering a critical blow instead.
Poor Lefiya was nearly broken by their combined antics.
"Bad girl?" Ais tilted her head, oblivious to the devastation she'd wrought.
"Rest up, Lefiya," Riveria said, pulling the dazed elf aside.
She didn't scold anyone—such banter was the Familia's harmony, after all.
"Mahiro, are you teaching me that power to surge my strength?" Ais asked, her eyes gleaming with anticipation.
The memory of Boosted Gear's "gift" lingered vividly in her mind.
"Not yet," Mahiro shook his head.
"That kind of power's off the table for now."
Boosted Gear was his ace.
"Oh," Ais murmured, a flicker of disappointment crossing her delicate features.
She craved power above all, and the Gauntlet's boost was her ideal.
Hearing it wasn't an option dimmed her spark.
"For now, I can offer two things: Shunpo and magic," Mahiro clarified.
"What a joke," Bete snorted, rousing from his rest against a tree.
His eyes snapped open at Mahiro's words.
"I don't care what this 'Shunpo' is, but teaching Ais magic? Ridiculous."
"Ais, give it up," Bete sneered.
"You're chasing strength, and he's just stringing you along."
"Don't measure me by your narrow worldview," Mahiro shot back, glancing at him coolly.
"You—fine, let's see how you justify this lie," Bete huffed, crossing his arms.
After repeated setbacks from Mahiro, he felt a mix of guilt and skepticism, convinced this was just posturing for Ais.
He awaited Mahiro's inevitable humiliation.
"Mahiro," Riveria said, frowning, "with all due respect, teaching Ais magic is impossible."
"Yeah," Tione chimed in.
"Humans can't learn innate magic on their own."
"Exactly," Lefiya added, recovering from her daze.
"Only races like us elves can, unless it's through falna."
In this world, magic split into innate and acquired types.
Innate magic was exclusive to races like elves, honed through bloodline and practice, often rigid in scope.
Acquired magic stemmed from a god's blessing aka Falna, granting one to three spell.
Humans, lacking innate magical heritage, relied solely on Falna.
Without one, self-taught magic was a fantasy.
Ais, according to everyone was a human, fell into that category.
"You don't even know basic street-level common sense," Bete taunted.
"Are you really an adventurer?"
"I think Mahiro's got something up his sleeve," Tiona countered, her eyes shining with faith in Mahiro.
Mahiro glanced at her, amused. 'She's really into this, huh?'
"Common sense?" Mahiro raised his right hand casually.
"Is it always right?"
A magic circle flared at his fingertips, conjuring a fireball that streaked toward Bete.
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