If Kirios, who hates all the troublesome things, even stuck on notes like that and kept it.
âKiriosâŠâŠ treasures that painting very much.â
At the same time, a voice rang out with a laugh.
âThat painting, itâs my treasure.â
ââŠâŠ.â
âSo even if youâre a little kid, I wonât let you talk about how you sucked at painting my treasure,â Kirios said sternly.
Feeling a little cringe, I averted my gaze, staring unnecessarily at the note on the wall.
âWell, but what if you leave a note like that on the wall? What if it damages the wallpaper?â
âWhat are you worried about? You can just replace the wallpaper afterwards.â
ââŠâŠAh, yeah.â
At Kiriosâs smug reply, I stopped making a fool of myself.
Seriously, how can you be so emotionally invested in something when youâre not even trying to be?
And also.
âGosh, thatâs some strong sticky note paper,â I internally said to myself.
If I tried to rip that off, it would probably rip right through the wallpaperâŠâŠ.
âWell, Kyrios will take care of it, wonât he?â
I turned my attention to the desk.
The desk was piled high with papers. Documents relating to the magic of the mages under his command, Kiriosâs personal magical research, and the budget for the tower.
A dizzying array of papers.
But they all had one thing in common.
Without thinking, I called out to Kirios.
âYou know, Dad.â
âWhy?â
âDonât you think itâs inconvenient to write notes on papers like this?â
The common factor was the underlining and notes plastered all over the papers.
Since the notes were written with a pen, there was no way to correct the typos, so the marks were clearly visible where they had been roughly drawn.
If the papers were destroyed like that, it would be difficult to manage them.
Kirios narrowed his eyes.
âWell, it canât be helped, but we canât just write notes and pin them to the papers, can we?â
You see, Kirios has an intense aversion to hassle.
He doesnât seem like the kind of guy whoâd be meticulous about his paperworkâŠâŠ.
Looking at the mess of papers with a pitying gaze, I opened my mouth without thinking.
âThen why donât you make it so that you can stick them on and off?â
Yes, like the Post-itsâŠâŠ I used to use in my previous life. You know, sticky notes.
If you can stick them on and off your papers, theyâll stay put and the underlining wonât ruin the original documents.
Wouldnât that make it easier to keep them separate and organized?
âIf you apply a weak adhesive to the notepad beforehand, you can remove it whenever you want, right?â
At my question, Kirios looked at me, strangely impressed.
âI heard youâve been studying hard lately â so itâs true?â
âWhat?â
âI canât believe sheâs only ten years old, and she can already use such a difficult word as adhesive.â
Yikes.
I winced a little inwardly.
I had forgotten that I was currently ten years old. Adhesive is, after all, a rather difficult word for a child to use, isnât it?
âAnyway, kid, youâre right. The only type of note paper that can be torn and attached isâŠâŠ which meansâŠâŠ.â
Surprise gradually spreads over Kiriosâs face as he tries to make sense of the words.
As if he had just made the discovery of the century.
âHold on.â
With that, Kiriosâs mouth dropped open.
âWhat, whatâs wrong with him?â
I questioned, watching him closely. But no matter how long I waited, he didnât finish his sentence.
He just continued to ponder.
Impatient, I called out to him.
âEh, Dad?â
At my unsure call, Kirios jerked awake. His dark green eyes stared blankly at me.
He looked like someone had just slapped him across the back of the head.
âKid.â
âAh, yes?â
Kiriosâs voice was so serious, I felt a little nervous.
But after setting the tone like that.
âYou must be taking after me after all.â
âŠâŠWhat was this out of the blue?
Whether I was dumbfounded or not, he continued solemnly.
âOtherwise, you wouldnât be such a genius, would you?â
Huh?
I doubted my ears.
But Kirios didnât bother to explain, he just began snapping.
Snap!
Kirios snapped his fingers, and the desk drawer slid open of its own accord.
Amidst the jumble of inkwells, pens, and other items, a bell slipped out and sailed through the air.
Ding, ding, ding.
A clear bell rang out.
As I stared at the sequence of events, I asked, âWhy is that bell ringing?â
âTo call Melvin.â
âŠâŠThe bell kept ringing in Kiriosâs room, leaving out the question of how anyone named Melvin could hear it.
âWhoâs Melvin?â I asked, and Kirios was quick to explain.
âHe specializes in patents. Apparently, the Magic Tower has a lot of patents for magic tools.â
âI seeâŠâŠ But why are you calling him?â
âBecause, of course, we canât let this great idea go to waste, right?â
I suddenly understood the scattered conversation.
Apparently, Kirios liked my idea for sticky notes so much that he wanted to patent it.
âNo, shouldnât you be explaining that to me in the first place?â
I glanced disgruntledly at him.
âCome to think of it, itâs very rare for him to be so motivated.â
I felt a little better. At least he seemed to have a pretty positive opinion of sticky notes.
But after waiting for a while, the wizard named Melvin never showed up.
ââŠâŠ.â
ââŠâŠ.â
Just an awkward silence.
âWhy isnât he here?!â Kirios, who had been tapping his fingers impatiently on the desk, jumped to his feet. âI cannot wait, letâs go!â
âWhat? Where are we going?â I said with a stagger.
âWhere do you think we are going? We have to meet that guy, Melvin!â Kirios replied, scooping me up in his arms and opening the door.
Bam!
A long corridor opened up beyond the doorway. It was lined with doorways of all sizes and shapes. Round, triangular, sliding doors, and moreâŠâŠ.
The usual rectangular doorways were rather rare.
âEverything else aside, why on earth are there doors on the ceiling?â
I was at a loss for words at the esoteric structure of the corridor.
At the same time,
Boom!!!
The sound of a loud explosion rang out.
Apparently, the rumors of periodic explosions in the magic tower were not a lieâŠâŠ.
At the same time, a mage ran out of the room in a panic.
âEek!â
The wizard, who had hastily locked the door behind him, glanced nervously at the closed door.
âDamn it, why did it fail? Letâs start by double-checking the formulaâŠâŠ.â
âHey, Melvin.â
ââŠâŠ.â
For a moment, the wizardâs shoulders stiffened, then he turned with a squeak.
Kirios tilted his head sharply, asking, âWhat are you doing here?â
âMa, ma, Master of the Magic Tower?!â Melvin, the mage, stuttered in surprise.
He looked as if heâd seen a ghost, and I felt sorry for him.
âDid you blow something up again?â
âNo, I mean, IâmâŠâŠ!â
Melvin tried desperately to excuse himself, but sadly, smoke was drifting out of the closed doorwayâŠâŠ.
âTsk,â Kirios clicked his tongue and snapped his fingers once more.
Poof!
At the same time, the smoke that had been flowing through the crack instantly stopped.
Kirios gestured to the door with his chin.
âOpen the door.â
ââŠâŠ.â
Melvin broke out in a cold sweat and opened the door.