Bookbound Bunny 2: Chapter 74

B2 - Chapter 74 - Impressing

Lily wasted no time showing off what she could do to her two guests, providing a demonstration of the wand and her knowledge of glyphs. Unfortunately for Lily, the latter was wasted on the two, as they had no interest in learning about the subject at all.

Feeling a little sad that they didn't share her enthusiasm, they instead talked about the mock dungeon gauntlet and their results. Talking about the dungeon immediately piqued Rose's interest, and she marveled at hearing how the two did.

"That's amazing! I knew you could do it, Lily," Rose joyfully exclaimed when she heard how Lily not only got through the entire trial, but also claimed first place.

Rose even went so far as to ask for a detailed recount of every room's challenge and her solution. This led to a rare moment where Rose was forced to admit that Lily's glyphs actually held a lot of potential inside the dungeon.

"I can't believe you thought they weren't useful. Did you forget the shadow cloaks we used to sneak out at night?" Lily asked in disbelief.

"I didn't, but… Well, in the dungeon, might makes right," Rose responded. "I didn't think sneaking around would be that useful."

"Why wouldn't it be?" Lotte asked curiously. "Being able to progress unhindered has its advantages."

"But then you miss out on any potential loot and growing stronger," Rose countered.

Lily and Lotte could only sigh in response; it was a very draconic answer. When Lily was done explaining her side of the events, Lotte also explained hers, which basically boiled down to "melt everything with acid," a solution that even Rose was quite surprised by.

"I think you're going to make a killing in the dungeon," Rose stated honestly. "Even I struggle with some enemies unless I exploit their weak points, but it sounds like you can ignore all of that."

"I didn't know the word struggle was even in your dictionary," Lily said teasingly.

Rose smirked. "It normally isn't, but I've learnt a lot thanks to Alice. For example, I couldn't destroy the Brassbound guarding the bridge."

"How did you get across then? Did you fly?" Lotte asked, pointing at the folded wings on Rose's back.

Rose shook her head, her mood visibly sinking. "I wish. I'm still not having much luck in that department… But what I ended up doing was wrestling them off the bridge and into the water."

"You wrestled with a monster…" Lily said in disbelief.

"That's quite dangerous, no? Weren't you worried about getting disqualified?" Lotte asked, also looking quite surprised.

Rose stared at the two, her face showing visible confusion. "No? They didn't have weapons; they only had shields. Pushing them off is sort of the official way of getting across. Of course, it's usually done with magic, not muscle."

Lily and Lotte shared a glance at each other; apparently, they had both missed the fact that the Brassbound didn't have weapons. Rose shared a bit of her test, which sounded like it was mostly the same except for a few changes in order and obstacles. For example, they had to fight a swarm of gremlins rather than three skeletons.

As they chatted, Lily had been completing glyphs one by one, unbeknownst to the other two. She didn't want to stop the conversation midway and kept proceeding to work on the next glyph. Eventually, the dungeon talk ended, and she could demonstrate why the wand was totally better than a storage bag.

"Okay. You two have seen this before, but now I basically have a permanent version of it," Lily explained as she pointed to an inscription.

The two observed Lily, then moved the magical construct and laid it horizontally against the floor. She then activated it, and a "bathtub" of water formed above it.

"Wait, that's permanent now?" Lotte asked with surprise.

"Well, I can turn it off and on, and the inscription will remain," Lily answered.

To demonstrate, she turned and toggled it, and not only did the glyph depower, but the water it summoned vanished without a trace. This was surprising to both observers, as while they'd seen Lily's magical bath before, she'd always removed the water through other means.

Lily couldn't help but grin smugly at their reaction. She'd hardly shown off any of her inscriptions to anyone, as it was usually not worth the time, effort, or resources—but the wand had changed all of that.

As for the inscription itself, it was straightforward, as it only involved two water glyphs and was thus naturally balanced. One glyph summoned the water, while the other removed it, and they were linked together by sigils that controlled their respective activations when toggling between off and on.

"Okay, I admit defeat, that's pretty awesome," Rose admitted.

"I want one!" Lotte exclaimed.

Lily held her finger against her lip as she thought about it, before eventually nodding. "I can probably draw one in your room."

"Yes! Please, Lily!" Lotte begged.

[That shouldn't be a problem. Unless you put a lock, anyone can interact with a completed glyph. The only potential issue is Lotte being unable to refuel the glyph with her Mana, since it's so heavily aligned.]

Lily heard Arakil's explanation, but she didn't see it as too much of an issue if she needed to occasionally give it a top-up.

"Sure. I don't mind. Do you want one too, Rose?" Lily asked, turning to her big sister.

"I do want one, but only once you're allowed to explore the dungeon," Rose answered.

"I can do both," Lily offered.

Rose snorted. "I got a bathtub."

"Wow, they really treat the older students way better," Lotte commented.

"Yes and no," Rose responded. "If you rank well, then you get better treatment. If you only scrape by, well, even the dungeon might look more accommodating then."

The two girls nodded in understanding.

"Speaking of which," Rose said, pointing at the glyph. "I think you'll have no issue staying in the dungeon if you can draw these everywhere."

"Lily could make a home away from home," Lotte said jokingly.

Rose, however, nodded in agreement. "Pretty much."

Lily smiled. This wand really was the best choice.

After that, she showed off the few other glyphs she had drawn. They were much simpler, at least for now, and were just basic things like lights or temperature control. The latter really caught the other two by surprise as they hadn't expected glyphs to be able to do this much.

"I… Might need another one," Lotte admitted, looking slightly embarrassed.

"Heating for winter?" Lily asked.

"Yes…" Lotte sighed.

"I wouldn't mind some cooling during the summer, but it would be a luxury more than a necessity in my case," Rose replied.

"I really don't mind. I need all the practice with glyphs that I can get, especially with using this wand," Lily explained.

"Really? Cause you look pretty darn good with it already," Lotte replied.

"Yeah, these are nothing like the stuff you were drawing back in Ceedale," Rose agreed.

Lily gave an understanding smile in response. "Trust me… I've barely scratched the surface."

And that's not even taking into account learning to draw without the wand!

The two looked like they didn't really believe what she was saying, but didn't press further. After they spent a bit more time together, Lotte eventually excused herself.

Lily wasn't sure if she actually had something planned or if she was giving Rose some private time. Regardless, they said goodbye and mentioned meeting either at dinner or the next day for a trip to Kaeling.

"Everyone wants to buy more stuff now that they've got storage bags," Lotte explained. "And I've probably got enough space for both of us, so don't feel left out!"

Lily nodded and thanked her friend as she departed.

"I'm going to try to get you a bag," Rose declared shortly after Lotte had left.

"You don't have to do that," Lily replied. "I'm very happy with my choice."

Rose sighed and shook her head. "You say that now, but when you're in the dungeon proper, you'll soon think otherwise. You haven't seen past the first floor yet, and everything that there is to find."

"Loot?"

Rose chuckled. "And more."

Lily sighed. "If you can get one without going out of your way, I won't say no…"

"If it makes you feel better, you can earn it," Rose replied.

"Earn it how?" Lily asked, tilting her head.

"Well, remember when I said I needed someone to make my potions?" Rose asked. "I've got quite a lot of plants and stuff waiting to be brewed."

"You don't need to pay me," Lily said. "Especially if you're supplying the resources."

"Didn't that old witch tell you the importance of paying for labor?" Rose asked, snickering.

"She did… But you're family."

"Oh. Well, if you're going to pull the family card, then why can't I get you a storage bag?" Rose asked, now smirking victoriously.

Lily opened her mouth to refute that, but the words failed her. After a moment of silence, she could only sigh and admit defeat.

"Hopefully I can get you one, even a small one, before the camping trip," Rose said. "I got some stuff I could sell in Kaeling… Maybe I can just buy one?"

Lily gasped. "Do not buy one. I saw the price tag and it was atrocious!"

Rose chuckled. "Yeah, they aren't cheap… But if I trade in some stuff, I might be able to work out a deal."

Lily wanted to stop her, but knew it would be impossible. Once Rose made up her mind, only the gods could even try to sway it.

"What's the camping trip? And why is a bag important for it?" Lily eventually asked.

"You spend a few days on the second floor of the dungeon," Rose answered. "It's great, it's when you finally get to witness the true extent of the dungeon! Plus, it's the most freedom you'll have this early on, you can even do some gathering if you're up to it."

"Gathering? Like what?" Lily asked.

Rose winked and held a finger to her lips while trying to fight back a smirk. "Secret. Just trust me, it's stuff you'll want."

"I'm tired of all the secrets…" Lily grumbled.

"Sorry. Even dragons are afraid of Alice," Rose said with a nervous chuckle. "I can't risk my access getting revoked, even for a week."

Lily was forced to agree, as the last thing she wanted was to be the reason Rose got into trouble. The two continued to chat and catch up, with Rose asking quite a few questions about how Lily was finding Regarth.

Naturally, Lily expressed her unbridled enthusiasm, as it really felt like a dream to her. A few years ago, she would have never imagined ending up here. Rose responded in kind and was positively thrilled that Lily had seemingly found her place.

"Not to be negative… But what are you going to do for your bloodline progress?" Rose asked.

"I'm currently in the process of learning two new astral spells," Lily answered. "It just took a bit of a backseat recently with everything going on. Although admittedly I really want to focus more on glyphs right now…"

"Just be careful," Rose warned. "They do want to see you progress, and it sounds like you've shown a lot of your cards for this mock test."

"I didn't show everything," Lily countered.

Lily knew that if she was desperate, she could show her maximum Starburst or demonstrate her mastery of Nebula Veil as evidence of "progress". Although she was willing to admit that she did need to start focusing on the spells Arakil had assigned to her.

"That's good, although, like I said, they will want to see progress. Especially if you're sacrificing the slots for other activities," Rose explained.

Lily shrugged. "I mean… No offense, but I don't think they can help me with astral magic at all."

Rose sighed. "That's true, and I'm sure Arakil has it all planned out for you. I'm just worried, you know?"

Lily smiled in response. "Thanks, Rose. Don't worry, I won't let either of you down."

Rose chuckled and proceeded to ruffle Lily's hair and ears. They chatted for a bit longer before they left to eat lunch.

Sounds like there's still lots more to look forward to this year. I can't wait!