Liberi Reader

Open.

Say 'aahh.'

......

Say 'aahh.'

Hmph.

Come on, open your mouth, please? I'm just checking your teeth. I promise I won't hurt you.

......

Come on....

Don't make me pull out the big guns every time.

Hmph, I'll make you behave.

Hey!

Look, Miss Perro, what do I have here?

?

It's your favorite, isn't it?

If you're a good girl and help me finish my exam....

These honey biscuits are all yours.

(Sniffing)

......

That's weird. Why isn't she reacting to the honey biscuits?

There's something wrong with your recipe, Hibiscus.

How many times have I told you not to put weird stuff in your food?

You never listen.

Here, little Perro, I'll give you this.

(Sniffing)

Awoo.

But you have to be a good girl.

Mmmm——

Awoo.

Ah——

It worked!

That's my little Lava. So reliable.

Too bad you're not.

Okay, let's proceed with the oral exam.

Swallow the crumbs, okay, and open wide...

Hey, Hibiscus?

Watch your tongue, Miss Perro——Hm, what?

Why did we bring her back with us?

Because we felt bad for her. Her infection is very serious.

And the head of the Leithanian branch even said:

'It's a good thing you subdued her. There would have been no hope for her if the police or bounty hunters found her first.'

An Infected person as far gone as her, with the way the laws in Leithanien have changed, almost certainly would have been euthanized.'

If it's at all possible, please at least get her out of Leithanien's territory. Thank you.'

Even if she wasn't Infected, the way she was just attacking people on the road would probably not have ended well for her.

At least twenty-four groups of travelers got attacked before us. She hurt nearly a hundred people.

And that's just in Leithanien. Who knows what she did anywhere else.

Not to mention her fighting skills. I don't think the five of us could've pulled off attacks like that.

But all she did was take some food. She was just hungry——Ow!

She almost killed me!

If Kroos wasn't looking out for me and Beagle wasn't so quick with her shield, this Perro would've crushed your little sister with that rock-covered javelin.

Miss Perro, please don't bite my hand!

Waah.

Okay, okay.

Your teeth are almost finished. Just a little longer. Hang in there!

Yeah. Good girl.

Come on, Lava, don't be like that.

Like what? I'm just stating facts.

What's with you all of a sudden? Getting pissy about every little thing.

I thought you loved Miss Perro?

Yeah, she's great. She loves me too.

That's why she threw all kinds of rocks and flames and ice and pretty much everything at me.

How did she master so many different complex Arts anyway?

Hey, little Perro. Are you sure you've never studied Originium Arts?

Ooh?

Heyyy, I told you not to move——Lava, quit screwing around!

I'm just asking...

LA——VA——!

All right, all right. My bad. Whatever.

Mmm?

Ah, sorry, Miss Perro, just a little longer.

And now here, and here.

........

........

Whew. And that should be it.

Now, Miss Perro, we're pretty much done. Rinse your mouth with this glass of water, and be sure to spit it out. Don't swallow.

Mmm.

(Gulp.)

Little Lava.

Huh?

Something's bothering you.

None of your business.

You were the first one in the squad to give her something nice to eat.

What's that got to do with anything?

After starving for that long, she shouldn't be consuming much sugar, from a nutritional standpoint. But she really needs to supplement pretty much everything at this point.

That's why...

Wait....

You snuck off and bought a bunch of candy.

Only later realizing you'd spent all your money.

That's enough...

Or when we were bringing Miss Perro back, everyone was worried she'd run off.

Only you were brave enough to try to communicate with her, building the trust we needed to take off her shackles.

Ugh...

And once we learned she liked honey biscuits, it was you, among the five of us, who worked the hardest to make the best ones.

Seriously, stop!

Your big sister is very proud of you.

Come on, don't talk about this stuff in front of her!

I- I just did what I had to do.

But it's so sweet. No need to hide it. Hehe.

Oh yeah!

What?

So, um, the, like, oral exam, that's the last part, right?

Yes.

And then, um, what happens to her?

Well...

That's not up to us.

The operators responsible for that are still talking over her case. Orchid said she'd have someone tell us in the afternoon.

Anyway, after a busy morning and all those examinations, it's time to find a place for Miss Perro to——

Hibiscus, Lava! Are you still not done checking out Miss Perro? If we don't leave now, we'll miss Dobermann's training! I'm going on ahead!

Huh?

Hibiscus?

Oh, what?

I thought you said got us out of Dobermann's class!

Huh? Uh, well....

I, er, I might have forgot...

Why didn't you say so earlier?

All I could think about at the time was helping Miss Perro with her checkup...

We're dead.

Let's go pick out a pair of coffins.

What are we gonna do?!

Okay, how about we take little Perro out now and give her to the first person who comes along? I just hope we can find them again after training.

That plan is a little...

Let's see you come up with one!

I'm not running laps around the bridge again.

And I bet you don't want to memorize anatomy textbooks while doing jumping jacks either.

Who would?!

Okay, fine. We'll do it your way.

I'll get her weapons. You deal with her.

B- but what about her mouthwash——

She already swallowed it!

Hurry!

(There's someone!)

Blacksmith!

Can I help you?

Can you take care of this girl for a bit? We'll come get her right after training.

What? Girl?

These honey biscuits are her favorite. If she gets cranky, just give Miss Perro one of these.

Huh?

And don't let her have her weapons just yet.

Thanks!

C'mon, c'mon, c'mon!

Wait!

I'm sorry, Miss Perro. We'll be right back!

Aahhh! Only three minutes! She's gonna kill us!

......

Wah...

???

So, what's your deal?

......

......

Just take the biscuits. Eat them whenever.

.......

You want me to carry your weapons?

(shakes head)

Good.

Come on. My workshop is this way.

Come on in. Have a seat.

If the forge gets too hot, you can go behind the partition.

Thanks (quietly).

Don't mention it.

......

Are you... a blacksmith?

I'm Rhodes Island's blacksmith. Codename Vulcan.

Vul... can...

Vulcan...

Vulcan... is... Minoan?

Yes.

Can Vulcan check my weapons for me?

I am not authorized to perform maintenance on unregistered weapons.

Sorry.

Oh...

Wahh...

(Although, the weapon she's holding...)

(It feels somewhat... familiar...)

But there's no harm in just taking a look.

Can I see that axe you're holding?

!

Yes!

Here you go!

Thanks.

(This is definitely Minoan craftsmanship. Brings back memories.)

(It's worn. It's been a while.)

(But it's been wiped down surprisingly clean. You're doing what little maintenance you can, at least.)

(The construction is solid. Doesn't look like it's too damaged. It would be like new after some basic touches.)

(Oddly, no chipping, no warping of the blade. Pretty low temperature steel.)

(The steel...)

(It's familiar... where have I seen smithing like this before...?)

(.......)

Um, ma'am?

(Ma'am?)

(Whatever. She can call me that if she wants.)

On the axe, near the grip,

There's a word.

It's my name!

In Minoan!

I wanted to go to Minos, but it's a long walk.

No one I met could tell me my name. They could only tell me it's Minoan.

Since Vulcan is a Minoan, you must know how to read it!

Can you read it to me?

Let's see here.

(....)

(Good thing, it hasn't completely rubbed away.)

(These characters...)

(They're definitely Minoan.)

(In standard pronunciation, this would be...)

(Ce... O... Be...)

'Ceobe.'

Should be Ceobe.

Ce... O... Be...

Ceobe.

Ce... obe.

Ceobe.

I'm Ceobe!

I've got a name!

Hm...

Vulcan, ma'am?

(Ma'am... again...?)

(Maybe I should give her a little nudge...)

Wh- what?

People usually have two names, don't they?

Like Lava has a different name when her sister calls her.

She's 'Little Lava,' or something.

I want one of those.

Sorry, I'm not very good at naming things...

Vulcan is a blacksmith. Blacksmiths are good people. And good people are good at naming.

(What is this logic?)

(Whatever. She's just a kid.)

Let me think for a moment.

Yeah!

(She wants a nickname?)

(But I only know how to name weapons. What should I do?)

(Ceobesius? Ceobenie? Ceobetia?)

(No, no, no. She's not a weapon. I need another scheme.)

(Think, Vulcan...)

........

Vulcan?

(She mentioned 'Little Lava' before, didn't she?)

........

Are you okay, Vulcan?

(Well, there's a pretty easy way out of this... might as well take it.)

We'll call you 'Kay.'

Kay?

Yes.

(It kinda sucks...)

Kay... Ceobe...

Thank you so much, Vulcan, ma'am!

You're welcome.

!

?!

Don't be scared, Kay, it's just someone looking for me. No bad guys here.

Put down the weapon, okay?

No bad guys?

No bad guys.

There's no bad guys at Rhodes Island.

If you're scared, you can go behind the partition.

Ceobe isn't scared of anything.

Good.

Vulcan, are you in?

Who is it?

Hello, Vulcan, I'm an operator with the logistics department. I've come to relay the decision regarding the little Perro girl who was brought to Rhodes Island yesterday.

Operator Hibiscus said she entrusted the Perro girl to you. Is she still with you?

Yes, come in.

Vulcan!

Don't worry, it's okay.

Good day, operator Vulcan.

Good day, little Perro girl.

Don't call me Perro girl. My name is Ceobe.

Oh?

All right, Ceobe.

Now then, we have been over the details surrounding your rescue, our determination is as follows. Please listen carefully.

Due to the circumstances surrounding your arrival, your personal freedom had been temporarily restricted.

We apologize for that. But from this point on, you will enjoy the right to free movement, effective immediately.

???

Am I not being sufficiently clear?

I think she may not be getting some of the legalese here.

Just give me the documents. I'll make sure she gets it.

That would be a big help.

........

..................

Okay.

Kay.

Hm?

Why were you out on your own back there?

I wanted to go to Minos.

But I think I went the wrong way.

According to information provided by the Leithanian branch, she traveled from Bolívar all the way to the Trijunction of the East, where she then turned back.

At that point, she made a large arc across the north, until finally being rescued by our people in Leithanien.

This girl can walk.

But why do you ask?

If you made it to Minos, what were you going to do?

Ask my name. And then...

And then....

I haven't thought that far ahead yet.

Operator Vulcan, please inform her of the situation and let her make her decision.

So what would you want to do after that?

I don't know....

Think it through.

It's important.

I... I want to eat until I'm full every day.

Operator Vulcan, what are you——

Shh! Quiet!

........

I want to spend half the day in a hot bath, and then wrap myself in a warm blanket.

And lay there until I'm hungry again.

And... and...

And I want a big house where I can keep all my treasures.

Carrying them around all day is kind of hard.

Especially when I'm hungry.

And I guess that's it.

Understood.

If there was a place where you could eat and drink and have a house to sleep in, would you want to stay there?

Who wouldn't?

But most of the time, you have to think a lot, and you have to fight a lot of bad guys, and sometimes you might not sleep for days. Even then, would you want to stay there?

I'm not very good with thinking...

But...

Vulcan, ma'am, are you talking about being a hero?

A hero?

Haha——Ah, um, ahem.

Heh. Yes. I'm talking about being a hero.

I want to go there.

I want to eat, and be a hero.

What more could I ever want?

Good.

Shouldn't you help her——

She's made up her mind, please take care of her paperwork.

If she needs a sponsor, you can put down my name.

But you're——

Should I repeat myself?

Uh...

If you insist, I have nothing more to say.

I'll prepare a follow-up test for Ceobe at once.

But please be aware that you will need to attach the appropriate guarantees——

——and an explanation.

I will.

Well, I'll take my leave then.

See yourself out.

Hmmm....

What's happening?

Nothing.

You still have a lot to learn, a lot of fights to fight.

It'll be a lot of work.

Get some rest while you still can.

Oh.

Hm....

Ma'am?

Huh?

(We'll get used to that.)

You want a honey biscuit? Lava baked them. They're good.

May I?

Here.

Thanks.

........

(What's this flavor?)

(It's kind of...)

(The crust isn't crispy enough, and something's wrong with the honey seasoning.)

(Other than that, it tastes exactly like the ones in Minos.)

Is it good?

Very good.

Right?

But.

Huh?

A biscuit like this should be eaten fresh out of the oven.

Put some jam on it, and pair it with a cup of tea.

Will it taste better?

Yes.

I'll ask Matterhorn next door to make some for you, when I get a chance.

He's great at making these sorts of things.

R- really?

Yes.

Thank you, ma'am!

You're going to be subjected to a lot of testing over the next few days.

We'll have to fix you up a bit, and your weapons too.

How do you want them?

Y- you'll fix them for me?

It's a blacksmith's duty to make sure a weapon meets its wielder's needs.

Just tell me what you need.

Um, I want all my treasures to look as good as the weapons here in your house.

And, um, I want the other weapons to be the same color as my axe.

Is that too much trouble?

That won't take much time.

I might be done in time for you to surprise Hibiscus and Lava.

Really?

Yes.

Bring your weapons. Let's get started.

Yeah!!!

Phew. *Pant*. *Pant*. I'm exhausted.

Little Perro is gonna be okay, right Hibiscus?

She's so good at fighting, and Vulcan is so nice. What could go wrong?

Huh? Vulcan? Nice?

Anyway, I know she won't do anything bad.

But I'm more worried about that logistics operator who showed up in the middle of training. He had a pretty big file with him.

Gave me a bad feeling.

Uh oh, not this again.

In my experience, your 'bad feelings' usually signal good things.

I hope you're right... oh, we're here.

Who is it?

It's Lava. We're here to see the little Pe——Miss Perro.

It's unlocked. Come on in.

Ah, Lava and Hibiscus! You're here!

Huh? Miss Perro?

Wh- what happened to your weapons?

Don't call me Miss Perro anymore. Call me Ceobe.

That's my name!

Huh——?!

I think you know why I asked you here today.

How did she do?

How do you think?

Fancy a guess?

She doesn't take orders. She just throws her weapons around and makes a scene.

How do you think she did?

Just tell me her results.

Her results. Heh.

........

She passed.

Oh.

She made a mess of herself and failed a bunch of tests. But her personal character and potential qualify her to be an operator.

And, taking into account the opinions of several of her proctors, the other details are less important.

The Doctor is never wrong about anyone.

Neither are you.

Well then, it's time.

Can I get a reason now?

Normally, the operator assessment process is initiated by the individual herself.

We typically look poorly on situations where an individual has the decision made for her. Especially when there is no guardian or relative involved.

Sorry.

That's all I get?

Ah well, it's not that big a deal. Rules were made to be broken.

Just give me a reason. I have to pass something upstairs.

A girl who likes weapons can't be bad.

All right.

Hold on, uh, that's it?

Yes.

I'm gonna need a little more than that. A few more sentences or there's no way I can finish this report.

I have to?

It's important.

Well....

I'm a blacksmith. I don't know people. But I do know weapons.

If you have someone with absolutely no knowledge of weapon maintenance and upkeep,

her weapons are going to get damaged after a long period of use.

Still, she did her best to keep her equipment in good shape, to the best of her abilities.

That was enough for me to affirm her talent and potential.

How can you be sure she doesn't know weapon maintenance?

She can't use a whetstone, she doesn't know her oils. That's long before we start talking about any rules or scientific principles.

The only thing she knows how to do is polish her weapons. And she's good at that.

Okay. What else?

That should be enough.

You know better than me what has to go on a resume.

I do.

She's a Bolívarian, traveled the whole world looking for Minos, and never quite found it.

Still don't get why.

All I can say is her spirit is commendable.

It's always good to have faith.

That's what I'm curious about.

You usually don't pay much attention to people.

This Ceobe, is she that special?

What is it about her that caught your attention?

Her weapons.

I'm serious, Vulcan.

I'm serious too.

How so?

Her name was carved into that axe.

Minos isn't Higashi. We don't just tape our names onto weapons in case we lose them.

If your name is on a weapon, it means something big.

Plus,

I couldn't forge that axe.

But that technique, I know I've seen it somewhere...

I want to help her solve the mystery of that weapon.

Then, maybe someday, she'll come back and solve something for me.

I guess you could say I'm just a selfish blacksmith.

?

Hmmm....

You craftsmen have your secrets.

Well, whatever.

That's enough for me.

Sorry to bother you. Go get some rest.

I'm sorry too.

No need. I'm just doing my job here.

Thanks.

Don't thank me either. Next time you're up for a drink, come by while I'm on. I've got a new mix, I'm calling it 'Kazimierz Fury.' Give it a try sometime?

Heh. Sure.

Ha....

That's why I say HR ain't easy.

Kids these days don't know how to write a proper CV.

It takes a good chat to dig up all the juicy stuff hidden down there.

It's all mysteries wrapped up in enigmas.

Damn it, I'm an HR director, not a detective!

(Short, but passionate words in a Victorian dialect)

Director?

Oh, what is it?

Director.... we're ready to interview the new operator. If you would.

I see. By the way, here's Ceobe's contract, all signed and notarized. File it for me and then send someone to inform the operator of her formal onboarding.

Understood.

Just a moment. Be sure operator Vulcan is there for that. She may be needed to explain some of the formal terms and conditions.

Understood.

Okay, enough chatter, back to work.

........(flipping through new operator files)

Heh.

Sure enough.

Another one who can't write a CV worth a damn.

Looks like I'm in for another long evening.