Lately, my luck has been terrible.
Everyone's fortune moves in waves. When you're on the upswing, everything you do turns out well. When you're sliding down, even casual actions lead to bad outcomes.
After being a Hunter for several years, you start to get a vague sense of those waves.
I'm a Hunter, but I mostly stick to managing the Clan. I hardly ever venture into Treasure Halls. Yet in this short span, I'd been forced to go out twice. Setting aside the fact that something always happened every time, there was no doubt my luck had taken a downturn.
The urgent matter I needed to handle right now was recharging my Treasure Weapons.
If Rook had begun training in the deepest reaches of a Treasure Hall, then Lucia wouldn't be coming back anytime soon.
Most of my Treasure Weapons were out of mana. Even the trump card I'd had charged for emergencies was spent, and the Barrier Ring I relied on for protection had barely any left.
Normally, I'd just hole up in the Clan House and shiver while waiting for Lucia to return. But given my recent luck, that was a dangerously risky plan.
The problem was figuring out how to get the mana recharged on the five hundred-plus Treasure Weapons I carried.
Recharging Treasure Weapons had always been a massive burden for Hunters. The greater a Treasure Weapon's power, the more mana it demanded in proportion. An ordinary Hunter could manage one or two at most, and even a particularly gifted Mage often hit their limit at five or six.
Those who suffered Mana Depletion were struck by a devastating sense of collapse and couldn't even stand. If they weren't used to it, they might lose consciousness entirely. Inside a Treasure Hall, Mana Depletion was one of the most dangerous things a Hunter had to watch out for.
That was why most Hunters didn't carry many Treasure Weapons.
Even asking a fellow Mage to charge them had its limits. Mages spent mana just casting spells. There was no slack to spare.
Mana recovered naturally when you ate well and got plenty of sleep. Because of this, people often misunderstood — mana was a precious resource for Hunters.
But the biggest issue was the sheer number.
One or two weapons was one thing, but five hundred-plus Treasure Weapons was a number so absurd that even gathering every Mage in the Clan might not be enough.
There were plenty of Mages in the Imperial Capital who made a living charging Treasure Weapons, but even rounding them all up wouldn't cover a tenth of the job. And they couldn't afford to collapse either, so they'd almost certainly refuse.
In that sense, my sister Lucia — the one who always recharged my Treasure Weapons — was a truly special Mage.
The mana requirement varied by weapon, but one Treasure Weapon demanded an extraordinary amount of mana — the Barrier Ring.
It blocked a single attack. Simple yet powerful, it was the kind of weapon everyone wished they had just in case. But the Barrier Ring required a vast amount of mana befitting its power.
The amount — five to ten times that of an ordinary Treasure Weapon. No average Hunter could charge it. That was yet another reason the Barrier Ring was rarely used.
But I couldn't just skip recharging it.
The Barrier Ring was my lifeline. Without it, I'd have died about ten times in the past few weeks alone.
Setting that aside, for some reason I'd ended up getting a shoulder massage from Citry — who should have been completely exhausted from just getting back herself.
There was no one in the Clan Master's room besides the two of us. Eva was busy sorting through the rewards from recent investigation missions, so the only people around were me, sunk deep in my usual chair, and Citry, who had changed into casual clothes.
Having just gotten back from a high-difficulty Treasure Hall and then having her solve a problem for me, and now getting a shoulder massage on top of it — what a deadbeat I was.
I was even in debt... a total freeloader.
"Mm... how is it? Does it feel good?"
Citry's slender fingertips traced from the nape of my neck to my shoulders as though gliding across the surface, then pressed into spots that weren't even particularly stiff. Did she know the pressure points? Every time she applied force, a numbing wave of pleasure shot up my spine, so good it left me breathless.
Come to think of it, she did have deep knowledge of the human body. An Alchemist was a brilliant scientist, a sorcerer, and a doctor all in one.
All the members of the Mourning Specter were on good terms, but Citry and I were particularly close.
This went back to our training days, before we became Treasure Hunters, when Citry had been a late bloomer compared to the others. In the end, the reason was simple: being an Alchemist was a late-bloomer profession that required vast knowledge and equipment to master. But Citry had once been tormented by feelings of inadequacy, and I — talentless and idle — had cheered her up. She apparently still remembered that, being the loyal sort she was.
Citry often went out of her way to do things like this for me.
I'd long since repaid that small favor with interest — if it even was a favor in the first place. But when she said "If you don't want me to, I'll stop..." with that sad look, I couldn't very well refuse.
Besides, getting a shoulder massage really did make my body feel lighter...
She worked her way slowly along my spine, kneading the pressure points and loosening my muscles. Citry looked delicate, but she was surprisingly strong.
My body grew warm, flushed with heat. Her breath grazed the back of my head and brushed my ear, sending shivers down my spine.
A sweet, flushed voice tinged with excitement struck my ear.
"Mm... so stiff... Krai, you're really wonderful — mm! Ah...!"
I didn't care much about that, but she was making it sound like some kind of erotic service, so I really wished she'd keep those noises down. Why was the one giving the massage the one making weird sounds? It wasn't like my shoulders were that stiff.
I suppressed the involuntary moan that threatened to escape from the incredible pleasure and did my best to maintain my composure. A Party Leader was expected to remain calm at all times.
I took a deep breath, steadied my racing heart, and addressed the brain of my Party — whose voltage seemed inexplicably elevated.
"...Ah, what should I do about recharging the Treasure Weapons? It's getting pretty urgent."
"Mm...!"
Citry answered with a wistful moan. Where was that voice even coming from...
An Alchemist was technically a type of Mage, but their mana reserves were roughly on par with an ordinary Hunter. In the eyes of the general public, Alchemists were thought of as what failed Mages became.
Citry's mana capacity was better than the average Alchemist's, but she was still within the realm of an ordinary person. Her value lay in being a brilliant Alchemist, and that was worth its weight in gold.
"If I...! Could properly...! Modify Not Koclea — ! Ah!"
She was saying something alarming between breathless, sultry gasps, so I let it slide. If I reacted to every little thing like that, I'd never be able to keep up with Citry.
Her mischief was on another level compared to Rize. Like sister, like sister.
I could feel Citry's heartbeat through the body pressed against mine. Her fingertips, resting on my shoulders and back, no longer carried much force — more of a gentle brushing — but it still felt wonderful.
"At worst, I might have to ask Star's Holy Thunder for help."
Star's Holy Thunder was the largest Mage Party in Beginning Footprint. Each of its six members was a leading Mage in the Imperial Capital — and none of them were purely "human."
They were Spiritfolk, famous for demonstrating far greater Mage aptitude than ordinary humans. They possessed a unique sensibility, and to put it bluntly, they naturally looked down on humans. Whether they'd agree to help based on a personal request was highly questionable.
Citry let out a faint cry, wrapped her arms around my neck, and pressed her flushed cheek against me.
"N-No way! Krai... while you're with me, don't... talk about other women... please...!!"
It was fine that she was having fun, but I was always the one who ended up misunderstood. Citry's whispering voice tickled my ear.
"Big sister isn't here... this is your only chance, you know? Feel me more —"
"...Yeah, yeah, sure."
If Rize were here, she'd come flying at me. Anyone listening would get the wrong idea too. Just from the voice alone, it sounded terrible.
And just then, as if by design, the door to the Clan Master's room swung open.
Eva had her finger pressed to her temple, brow furrowed. Her cheeks were faintly flushed. Very few people could put that kind of expression on Eva, who was otherwise unshakable.
...Sorry for always causing trouble.
"...I suppose I'll ask, but... what were you two doing?"
"Exactly what it looked like. I was getting a shoulder massage."
"Th-This floor is... off-limits to Hunters..."
We were fully clothed, and there was nothing inappropriate going on between me and Citry. Eva pointed out the rule with a trembling voice, as if it mattered now. The reason she wasn't shouting yet was because this wasn't her first time walking in on this.
...Sorry for always causing trouble.
"Y-You don't know anything, so...! Don't you dare stick your nose between me and Krai!"
"Yeah, yeah. Don't pour oil on the fire."
Her strange noises had gotten me all riled up, so I gave Citry's arms — still wrapped around my neck — two firm pats. If I let Eva get angry, I'd be the one paying the price. Having fun was perfectly fine, but I wished she'd at least think about that.
Citry read my intent and reluctantly released her arms.
When I stood up, my body felt unbelievably light. It was as though all remaining fatigue had been washed away.
As I loosely rotated my arms to check how I felt, Citry looked at me with an innocent smile that was impossible to reconcile with the sultry voice she'd been making moments ago.
"Next time, instead of just your shoulders, how about a full-body massage...?"
Hmm... that was hard to resist.
"I have a really good potion. I'm sure... it'll feel better than anything you've ever experienced."
"Something tells me that would be bad for me, so I'll pass."
The way she always tried to find loopholes in the rules felt incredibly dangerous. It might have been an Alchemist's nature, but always reaching for potions and needles at every opportunity was one of Citry's few weaknesses.
"Alright, as much as I'd rather not, I should get the recharging done. Preparation is important, right?"
"I'll handle the negotiations. ...Part of the responsibility for the Treasure Weapons running dry falls on me, and... I've always been curious about Spiritfolk. ...If I could have crossbred Not properly, I might have created a magnificent Mage."
Why did every conversation always contain something that felt off?
Tilting my head in bewilderment, I headed for the Clan lounge with Citry in tow.