Chapter 178 The Itchy Armor and the Analyst’s Bargain
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
”Ivrita’s armor, as is often the case, was discovered in a Dungeon. It improves physical abilities and heightens various senses, but in exchange, it causes the wearer’s body to itch uncontrollably,” Bishop Canon explained, referring to Ms. Ivrita’s magic item armor.
Upon hearing that, I (Koji) finally understood why Ms. Ivrita had that tense expression—she was enduring the itch. I asked if the Holy Church, which handles healing magic, could somehow counteract it.
”So that’s why her face looked so strained. Is there no way to suppress the full-body itch?” I inquired.
”It’s not uncommon for magic items to come with unwanted side effects. Some believed this was a curse and tried to use uncursing magic items to eliminate the effect, but…” the Bishop paused, giving a troubled look.
”You make it sound like… it failed?”
”Indeed. There was a suspicion that the uncursing magic item might have been a fake, but since it successfully removed the curse from someone who was genuinely cursed, the general conclusion was that the effects originally inherent to the magic item itself cannot be erased.”
”Hmm… Wait, was there conveniently someone already cursed?” I asked, picking up on a small detail. The Bishop answered me with a look of slight exasperation.
”Yes. The symptoms of the cursed vary greatly, but people generally first suspect an illness and seek out a Cleric. That’s how the Holy Church compiles information about who is cursed.”
”Ah, I see. That makes sense.”
I’d heard that a curse is a type of magic, and can be cast with the right aptitude and catalyst. So, it wasn’t surprising that there are people cursed for various reasons, much like Arisa was probably targeted for political reasons. The Bishop then addressed a concern I’d had.
”Did you think someone from the Holy Church might have cast a curse purely for verification purposes?”
”…A little. I don’t know much about the Holy Church, so I apologize if I caused offense.”
The Bishop shook her head at my apology.
”No, no, there’s no need to apologize. There are, after all, some factions within the Holy Church that would resort to such methods.”
By ‘factions,’ she must mean the Hardline Faction. Well, putting that aside, a thought occurred to me regarding the unwanted effects sometimes attached to magic items. It was about Seria’s ability, Commercial Recovery. That power, which can heal injuries or remove curses by consuming money, might be able to nullify the negative effects built into a magic item if it works by eliminating disadvantageous conditions on the target.
In the future, Ms. Sakura will probably be treated well if she is officially recognized as a ‘Saint,’ but if she is forced into doing things she doesn’t want to, that would be unfortunate. Therefore, improving Bishop Canon’s opinion of me, and securing her good word, might be worth the effort—perhaps by removing the negative effect from Ms. Ivrita’s armor.
However… she wears the armor despite the drawback, which means the benefits must be huge. I would need to take possession of the armor to use Seria’s ability, and she likely wouldn’t agree to that. Even if I could take it and remove the negative effects, it’s easy to predict that everyone else would immediately want to know how I did it with their own magic items. That would result in me fielding many more ‘invitations’. I can easily imagine myself being pushed into compliance, so I need to find a reason not to use this plan.
…It’s better not to use it. Commercial Recovery might accidentally cancel out the armor’s good effects, too, turning Ms. Ivrita’s armor into mere ordinary metal. So, a different approach: I could create an anti-itch medicine using my Imitation skill and let Ms. Ivrita deal with the symptoms that way.
Lost in these thoughts, I was staring at Ms. Ivrita’s armor when she started shifting awkwardly, her face troubled.
”W-well, I think it would be inappropriate for the Bishop to be your companion, given her position, and w-while I’m not saying I’m willing to be your companion, I wouldn’t reject it either,” Ms. Ivrita stammered, looking away but repeatedly peeking at me.
Based on her words, she wasn’t actively trying to be my partner, and I had no intention of forcing her to be. However, Bishop Canon immediately jumped in to object.
”Oh, are you planning to monopolize him? That’s not fair, is it?”
”Eh? No, while the Holy Church doesn’t restrict it, considering your position governing this city and all…” Ms. Ivrita tried to protest.
”Are you worried that I would let Mr. Koji manipulate me in public and private life? Then that’s an unnecessary concern. If he were trying to curry favor with me, he would have accepted that invitation just now, wouldn’t he?” the Bishop countered.
”Well, yes… but he might be declining now just to make a better impression,” Ivrita pointed out.
”But I could also simply concede right there. If that happened, it would become much harder for him to bring the topic up later. Don’t you think it’s disadvantageous to flatly refuse, considering that possibility?” the Bishop pressed, nonplussed.
”Guh… you’re right,” Ms. Ivrita conceded, convinced by the Bishop’s political logic.
Of course, I had no intention of currying favor with the Bishop, and to dismiss Ms. Ivrita’s concern, I spoke up.
”Actually, the reason I was staring at Ms. Ivrita was that I was considering whether I might be able to suppress the itching effect of her armor…”
Both women looked astonished at my statement.
”Eh?! Is that true?!” Ms. Ivrita exclaimed, the most invested party.
”Oh?” the Bishop responded, but then asked the sensible question.
”The Holy Church’s view is that effects originally attached cannot be erased. How would you eliminate this effect?”
”I wouldn’t eliminate it, just suppress it.”
”Ah, you mean using a medicine? However, we’ve already tested that within the Holy Church…”
”I figured you would have tried that much. Well, I have a somewhat unusual medicine, so let’s try a small sample.”
With that, I returned to the room I was scheduled to stay in, created two types of ointment, and returned to the women, pretending I’d brought the medicine from my luggage. I confirmed a few things with Ms. Ivrita.
”So, the itchiness only occurs on the parts of the body covered by the armor?”
”No, my entire body itches if I wear even one piece.”
”Does the itchiness stop immediately when you take it off?”
”Yes.”
Since her entire body itched, it could have been an allergic reaction, but there were no visible symptoms on her face. The fact that removing it instantly stopped the itch confirmed it was a unique effect of the armor itself.
”I see… then let’s try a small, easily accessible spot. I’ll try it first.”
I created the ointment to suppress the itchiness, but I needed to prove it was harmless by applying it first. I took some of a commercially available Japanese anti-itch cream I had Imitated and put it on the back of my hand. This was a liquid formula, easy to use even on the scalp, as the itch affected her whole body.
Slick-slick…
”Alright, now you, Ms. Ivrita.”
”Y-yes,” she replied.
After confirming nothing happened to me, she applied the ointment to the back of her hand, just as I had. I noted that the skin beneath the removed armor piece looked normal. The itchiness must be directly affecting her nerves. The medicine was massaged into her skin.
Rub-rub…
”…”
”Well? How is it?”
”Unfortunately, there’s no effect.”
”I thought so. Let’s try the other one then.”
Next, we tested the second ointment—the one whose specifications I had determined myself, rather than imitating a commercial product. I applied it first as before, and since there were no negative effects, Ms. Ivrita applied it too. This time, she applied it to her opposite hand.
Smear-smear…
”!?”
When she spread it across the back of her hand, her eyes widened instantly.
”Did it work?” the Bishop asked.
”Y-yes,” Ms. Ivrita answered breathlessly. “It’s only on the part I applied it to, but the itchiness disappeared immediately!”
Oh, it worked. I had specified that it must suppress itchiness and cause no adverse effects on the human body, so there was a risk of the effect being weak, but it turned out well. As I sighed in relief, the Bishop leaned across the table and grasped my hand.
She leaned so far forward that the gravity-pulled mass of her large chest was emphasized even through her clothes.
Grip! Jiggle-Jiggle
”Mr. Koji, is this medicine a rare item?” she asked urgently.
”Um, I can deliver it regularly, but…”
She continued to press me for details about its shelf life and the maximum number of items I could deliver at once. After I finished answering, she took on a dead serious expression and started negotiating.
”Would it be possible for you to share the manufacturing method with us?”
”That would be difficult. It’s created using the specialized ability of the manufacturer,” I explained.
This response was not a lie. The fact that the ointment was created by me, the manufacturer, using the special ability Fake, was the truth.
”I see…”
The Bishop looked disappointed by my refusal, but then quickly switched back to a smile, ready to negotiate the price.
”Then, how much for a single container?”
”Hmm…” I hesitated.
The raw material is my magic power, which costs me no money, but it does consume my Magic Stones. So, I couldn’t give it away for free; the price should match the effect. Considering all that, I stated the price for the ointment.
”I’d like one million Oar per container.”
””Ugh.””
The Bishop and Ms. Ivrita groaned in unison. The Holy Church itself should have plenty of money, but much of that is attributed to the Hardline Faction. Due to that influence, the Moderate Faction’s budget, while not strictly ‘tight,’ isn’t exactly flush with cash, either. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have sent only Martina and her team to the Dungeon City to search for the ‘Saint,’ even if they restricted the search to trustworthy people. In fact, Martina and her team were later attacked and pursued. Due to the Moderate Faction’s financial constraints, the two women who groaned at my price immediately entered into a negotiation for a discount.
”Mr. Koji. This armor cannot perform to its true potential because of the itchiness. The sense-heightening effect amplifies the itch, so we desperately need a more affordable price point,” Ms. Ivrita pleaded.
The Bishop quickly followed up.
”Mr. Koji. Including this incident, the Hardline Faction is steadily increasing its influence. We need to prepare against them, and I want Ivrita to be in the best possible condition.”
With that, Bishop Canon used her grip on my hand to lift it from below, pressing it against the soft mass of her large chest.
Moooo-nyuuu…
I could feel the ample mass and softness, and while I certainly wouldn’t mind enjoying that, I was focused on establishing the condition for the price drop, which I decided to state right then.
”Actually, I don’t mind lowering the price to ten thousand Oar per container, provided you accept one condition.”
””Ten Thousand!?””
The price suddenly dropped to one-hundredth of the original amount, astonishing the two women. The Bishop nervously asked what the condition was.
”Well, what is this condition, then?”
”It’s nothing too difficult. Simply, you must not analyze this medicine or let anyone else know about its use.”
This was a safeguard, anticipating that someone might be able to detect the true nature of the items I create using my magic power. There is still the risk that if my power to create items using magic power is exposed, I could be suspected of forging currency. If I hadn’t given them the medicine, the problem would be solved, but if I let the Hardline Faction continue to grow in power and the Moderate Faction disappears, Ms. Sakura would inevitably be exploited by the hardliners. If the opposing faction were to gain her ability, their position would become even more stable, and they might push their demands even more forcefully. To avoid that, it’s most convenient to keep the Moderate Faction strong as a necessary counterweight.
Upon hearing the condition for the price reduction,
””Then we accept.””
…the two women nodded in unison.
—
Summary:
Koji exploits the political tension within the Holy Church by using his unique ‘Imitation’ skill to create a custom anti-itch cream, solving the debilitating side effect of Ivrita’s powerful magic armor. After demonstrating the cream’s effectiveness, Koji uses the Bishop’s urgent need to strengthen the Moderate Faction against the Hardline Faction to negotiate a massive price reduction (from 1 million to 10,000 Oar) in exchange for a critical secrecy clause. This clause protects Koji’s ultimate secret—his ability to create things with magic power—from discovery and potential accusations of currency forgery.
—
Character Insight:
Koji’s altruism (protecting Sakura) is always filtered through meticulous risk assessment and political pragmatism, ensuring his own safety while achieving his goals. Bishop Canon’s dedication to her faction is paramount, overriding personal dignity and leading her to aggressive, physical negotiation tactics. Ivrita is revealed to be a dedicated warrior whose effectiveness is severely hampered by her equipment’s curse.
—
Behind the Scene:
This scene establishes Koji’s core philosophy: intervening only when it strategically benefits him and allows him to maintain control and secrecy. The price negotiation serves as a brilliant political maneuver, offering a massive financial benefit to the Moderate Faction while imposing a non-financial, high-value condition (secrecy) that protects Koji’s vulnerability.
Notes:
• Ivrita – Canon’s personal bodyguard. She is a highly skilled warrior. Her appearance is notable for the ornate, spiky suit of armor she wears.
• Canon – The Bishop and the superior of Martina, leading the moderate faction within the Holy Church. She has an elegant appearance, wearing a slightly low-cut, but still refined, casual dress in her private chambers.
• Arisa – Alicia’s (Iris’ sister) fake name.
• Seria – The first cleric.
• Sakura – Orphaned, raised by merchants, later became manager of a women’s apartment house. Met Koji when he sought a room, reluctantly accepted him with Frederica’s backing. Trademark: black-hair kuudere manager (strict outside, shy inside). Revealed by the Ceremony as the Saint of Ten’i (Teleportation Saint), marked by both factions of the Holy Church. Holds memories of a past life in Japan.
• Martina – Cleric of Moktaris’ Holy Church, moderate faction. Met Koji in Dungeon City while posing as “Tina,” an adventurer’s companion to secretly investigate rumors of the new Saint. Trademark: long black-hair majime-chan (serious beauty, stiff even when undercover). Later revealed her Church role at Lord Brandl’s audience, warned of hardliners, and recognized Sakura as the Saint.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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