Chapter 28 The New Moon Is Dark. But

 The new moon is dark. But..,

"...Why, sir? I also heard Tien-san being called a 'ghost dog'... If it was foreman-san who said that, it's no wonder Tien-san is angry."

"It's a new moon today."

"...Huh?"

"The night of the new moon is dark, and it can be hard to see what lies ahead. If you were stranded in the depths of a mine and all you had was the light of a magic lamp, it would be much more difficult and frightening than a new moon night. On a new moon you have to wait patiently for the full moon, but if it's an accident, I might be able to help you."

 What Tien remembered were the words of her parents.

 --The Moon Wolf Tribe lives with the phases of the moon. There are full moon nights when the moon is as bright as wet, and new moon nights when the moon is so sad you want to disappear.

 --Even if you have a bad day, in half a month you'll have a good day again. That's why Tien...

 So Tien is (・・・・・・・・).

 I couldn't remember the rest of the words because my memory was foggy.

 But now - now that his body was full of strength, Tien felt that he could understand.

 --When times are hard, remember the night of the full moon. Walk forward.

 Of course, the metaphor of the moon was something that only Tien could understand.

 But even so, Nina could tell that Tien had strong feelings about the darkness, and wanted to help her even if she hated her.

"I understand. I'm glad to know that Tien-san is that kind of person."

"...happy?"

"We'll help you."

"It's no good. We're in a mine, we don't know when there's going to be a collapse, and we can't take Nina with us."

"I may be a liability, but I have friends I can count on!"

 Nina looked back at him,

"Of course. This is where my magic comes in."

"Well, if there's a drilling machine inside, I suppose I could be of some use."

 Emily and Astrid said.

"Out of the way, out of the way! You've got a crack in the ceiling there!"

 When Emily's voice reached them, the limping workers rushed to the side.

"Quiet spirit of the earth, invigorate your strength and heal the bedrock."

 It was the magic of the second level, and when a mass of magic power emanated from Emily's hand, the cracked ceiling closed up with a squeaking sound and turned into a smooth surface.

"Fickle spirit of the wind, whisper to the spirit of the earth, and find the fragile bedrock."

 The wind radiated out from around Emily, wandering deeper into the cave.

"...I hear it. There's another one about 30 meters up ahead that's out of alignment with the bedrock. I'll fix it as soon as I can."



 Tien was astonished.

 As Emily entered the mine, she found a place that was about to collapse and reinforced it.

 I had heard that Emily was a mage, but I had never imagined that she could use it so freely and not get tired no matter how many times she used it.

 But this wasn't the only surprise.

 Doodadoodadoodadoodadoodadoodadoodadoodad.

 A huge machine coming from behind you, making the earth shake.

"Hey Emily, Tien. I've borrowed your drilling machine."

 It has a drill attached to the end and is operated by a lever to destroy rocks.

 Tien knew it was powered by magic, but..,

"It'll get us up to walking speed, you two should get in."

"Heh . That's easy. But my butt hurts...?"

"Well, there's no such thing as cushions. If you don't like it, you can stand."

"I will..."

 As far as Tien knew, the drill machine did not have wheels, nor did it have any self-propelled functions.

 If you look closely, you can see that the wheels of the grimoire used to carry the iron ore and this drill machine are being used - are you saying that they were transplanted from the grimoire to the drill machine in such a short time?

"Tien, kun should be on it."

"Yes, sir."

 I could only react the same way I had seen Emily's magic.

 The mage, Emily, is standing there with her arms folded, looking as if she deserved it.

(Yes... Nina is special.)

 The maid-san who saw the reason why Tien couldn't eat and served her a meal.

 Even the best sandwiches are made by Nina.

 If she's so special...

(Even these two with Nina must be special...)

 That's what Tien thought as he watched Astrid manipulating the magic drill car at will and Emili reinforcing the tunnel by activating magic while moving.

"...you've gone. Emily-san, Astrid-san, thank you."

 Nina saw the three of them off at the entrance to the mine.

 The three of them would be able to get over a little trouble without a hitch.

"Ow, that hurts..."

"They said the first aid room is full."

"Where are the clerks?"

"Guys, there's too many of us injured, we've gone off in a huff."

"What the hell is that?"

"--Let's at least pretend we went to find a doctor."

 The square in front of the entrance was filled with injured miners sitting in a light rain.

"I have to do what I can."

 Then Nina began to move with tremendous speed.

 She doesn't look like she's running. It is too awkward for a maid to be running.

 But the speed is that of an adult running at full speed.

 The first thing she did was to open up the first floor of the administration office and the mine cafeteria next door.

 Since the clerks were not available, I took the liberty of clearing out the office to make room, and persuaded the cooks in the kitchen to work in the cafeteria.

 The people in the cafeteria had heard about the accident, but they had not thought of turning the cafeteria into a makeshift doctor's office.

 Still, he said he would accept people who needed help.

 What surprised them was what followed.

 The cafeteria was too dirty for treatment, but when Nina started to move, the tables and chairs were quickly cleared, the floor was mopped, and we found ourselves looking at the beautiful grain of the floor.

"Let's have them take their shoes off at the entrance. It's not good for dirt to get into the wound."

"Uh... okay."

 Nina ran outside.

We've got space in the administration office and the mine canteen, we'll take care of your injuries there!"

 Nina is small.

 And being a maid is not a job to be shouted at.

 But her voice was so resonant that all the workers near the mine entrance could hear every word she said, even in the rain.

 If Emily were here, she would say, "Why do you have such a good voice when you're a maid?

 It's only natural for a maid," he said.

Bring me some water. And get as many bandages and disinfectant as you can. Cut a sheet from the management office into thin strips and use it as a simple bandage. If the wound is severe, we'll treat it as soon as possible, even if it's with high-alcohol content alcohol instead of disinfectant."

 Nina will lead the charge and direct the treatment.

"Miss-chan, that's fine, but without money we can't get bandages or medicine for wounds. And high-alcohol liquor... fire wine, yes, but it's also expensive."



 Nina didn't hesitate to offer her own pouch.

"It's my money. You can use it up, please."

"Nah..."

 The cooks were stunned to find several gold coins in the pouch, but with their backs to her, Nina made her move.

 As the injured people moved out, they seemed relieved to have been sheltered from the rain.

 There is much that can be done with just the items that are here now.

 We'll start with the most deeply wounded.

"...it's going to need sutures soon. We'll need antiseptic..."

"Firewhiskey's fine, right?"

"!"

 Then a red-haired man held out a bottle of liquor from the side.

"Are you sure?"

"...Of course. There's no way we're not going to do it when a girl like Ojou-chan is paying for it."

 The man says,

"Hey! There's gotta be someone who can move like this, right? You're coming with me!"

 He shouted at his friends.

 Then one of them, almost unharmed,

"Going... where?"

"It's obvious. It's in the mine."

"? Are you kidding me? I'm trying to get away from here."

"The foreman is still here."

"That's a joke. .... No one is going to give up their life for that disgusting bastard."

 Many workers nodded their heads and voiced their agreement.

"Tien's gone."

 The red-haired man said, as if to refute the anger of the workers.

"...Ha! Why? Tien-chan was the one who was bullied the most!"

"I told her not to go either. But she went. ...Aren't you ashamed? These girls are risking their lives to save us, to save the mine. And here we are, sitting on our asses. Is that what you want?"

 The room was quiet and still.

"...I think I broke a finger, but my leg is still intact. There must be something I can do to help. I'm going."

 The red-haired man runs out into the rain.

 The room had been quiet,



"Yeah. If you don't go for it, you're not a man."

"Huh? It's not just men. Women are going down, too."

 More than ten people stand up.

"Maid-san, I'm sorry but you'll have to take care of these guys. I'm sure the clerks went to get a doctor, but there aren't many in this town. It'll take a while."

"Yes, sir. Have a safe trip, everyone."

"Oh."

 As they left, Nina found herself feeling a little relieved.

 It seemed that Emily and the others would be safer with these professionals in the mine.

"I have to work hard too."

 Outside the mine, Nina's solitary struggle has begun.


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