Most players appreciated that, and assumed it was a feature of the game for those who were friendly towards spirits. It was reassuring to know spirits could come help them if they were in trouble. But the strange thing was that they would do that anywhere in the overworld, leading to some jokingly suggest that spirits were always stalking players. That was how spirits sometimes were referred to as stalkers.
Now Mira had learned that spirits did have a way to accomplish that.
That also made her wonder what those people who used to be friendly to spirits were doing now, since this world had become reality.
But soon she decided it was best to not think too deeply about that.
Thanks to the Spirit King, Mira was no longer restricted to one contract per spirit type. Coupled with her connection to the Spirit King, chances were that Anlutine would open the floodgates for more spirits to rush to Mira, desiring contracts with her.1
Realizing that from what Worthramble had told her, Mira was ready to generously accept any and all spirits that came seeking her. Part of that was also her interest at gaining more abilities from those spirits though.
「Anyway, getting back on topic, what shall I do about this…」
Since Anlutine could track Mira’s position, she did not need to stay in Gran Rings waiting for her, giving her the freedom to move to her next destination. But there was one thing blocking her way, the communications device.
「It would be perfect if I got a call from him right now though…」
Mira muttered while staring at the device. After the fight with Chimera Clauzen and on her way back from Sentopolly, Solomon had called her. Now she was hoping that would happen again, but reality was not so convenient.
(If spirits are connected, I’ll believe we also have a strong connection!)
Mira thought of her close friend Solomon, and began to try telling him telepathically to call her, to get in contact. Fate and bonds had a strong power in this fantasy world, so that had to work.
Mira began moving her body strangely as she focused her thoughts, trying to get Solomon to pick up on them. Meanwhile Worthramble just stood a distance away, completely lost for words at the bizarre dance, and did not make a single noise, which aligned with him being a spirit of stillness.
Five minutes passed, but the device remained completely silent. Solomon had been unable to pick up on Mira’s signals.
(Well, I guess it was worth a try at least.)
That was one of Mira’s bad habits. She always wanted to try any idea, no matter how ridiculous it was.
「Alright, let’s get into it then.」
Acting like nothing happened, Mira looked at the device again, this time actually trying.
She picked up the receiver, then dialed numbers. According to what Solomon had told her, such devices were always paired during construction, so that they could only call numbers that were mutually registered.
So even if she dialed a valid number that was not Solomon’s, the call would only connect if it was someone registered to receive calls from her as well. That registration process was also quite complex, so it was only done for necessary numbers.
Knowing there would be no catastrophic results, Mira continued dialing numbers.
「1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7…hmm, still nothing.」
Mira had decided to call numbers in ascending order. She did not know how many numbers were registered with the wagon’s device, but considering her position, it was easy to assume they were all related to Arkite. Then considering Solomon had called her once, she knew she could call him too.
So once she found a valid number to call, the chances of it being Solomon’s were high, and even if it was someone else, they would likely be able to pass on the call to Solomon, or give Mira his number.
「I can’t believe he did this. He should’ve told me how to use it from the start.」
After testing twenty numbers, she began to grumble. Unlike the world she used to live in, where nearly everyone had a personal phone, communication devices were still rare here, so the numbers should not be too complex. At least that was her initial theory, but now a different unnerving thought was taking root in her mind.
Such communication devices were often used for military purposes. Maybe contrary to Mira’s initial thought, the numbers were actually extremely complex, making it impossible to accidentally get it right.
「21, 22, 23…」
She eventually resumed her guesses, but she also began to consider leaving the report for later and just going in search of the orphanage now. Once she was done there, she could return and report everything at once.
「By the way, what is it you’ve been doing there for a while? Some sort of ritual?」
Having watched Mira robotically press buttons in order for so long, Worthramble was starting to get curious. In a way, Mira’s constant pressing of the buttons did look like a strange ritual with a foreign device.
「It’s nothing like that. These devices have a certain number, which you have to enter to establish a call with someone.」
Worthramble did not know how the communication devices worked, so Mira tried to explain as easily as she could. Inputting the right number would establish a connection, and then the other party would need to pick up for the call to start.
「The thing is, I don’t know what number I should call…」
Mira explained with a sour look, her fingers still trying out more numbers. Worthramble seemed to understand how it worked, so he muttered, 「So that’s why you’ve been pressing those numbers all this time,」 and started to look around for a bit.
「By the way, Mira, the lid you took out earlier and placed on that corner has a number written on it, would that help you in any way?」
He made yet another question, his eyes looking at the black box’s lid that Mira had thrown away carelessly.
「What…did you say?」
Hearing that, Mira’s face froze in shock and slowly turned around to the corner Worthramble was pointing at.
The lid she had discarded without a second thought was there, and Mira’s arms trembled as she reached for it and looked at the underside. A piece of paper was affixed there, with 『Employer: 0172』 written on it.
The Employer part likely referred to Solomon, who had employed Mira to search for the missing Wisemen. The numbers were undoubtedly his phone number, considering the location where the piece of paper had been left.
「Ohhh, that’s it! This must be the number! Why would anyone put it in such a hidden place? I would’ve never found it there, good job searching for it!」
Anyone would have thought that was an easy place to find the number, but Mira did not seem to think that as she stuck her upper body into the closet and continued to grumble about Solomon’s choice, while still rejoicing about the find.
Worthramble just looked at her and said 「I’m glad I could be of service」 with a smile.
