Yurha appeared.
If you ask how she appeared suddenly, the answer would be through the power of magical engineering technology that Silverstar possesses.
A hologram.
In a world set in a medieval fantasy era, it’s quite amusing to see sci-fi-like technology appearing under the guise of “magical engineering,” but it’s not entirely strange.
‘The creators of this world were people of the modern era, after all.’
It wasn’t that they added the setting of magical engineering to introduce this technology.
– We have to sell skintight sci-fi battle suits made through magical engineering!
After designing skins to dress up the heroines, they started thinking about how to integrate those modern and near-futuristic elements into this Bread Academy world, and various modern elements began to be added indiscriminately.
All under the name of magic engineering.
When asked if it’s odd to go to battle against SS-rank beasts in a summer pool bikini—
– Since it’s a magic engineering suit, an invisible magical barrier surrounds the bikini, making it even safer than regular armor.
With this rather forced logic, they managed to push through their desire to, well, “reveal”.
So it’s not surprising that Yurha now appears like a hologram avatar, as if she teleported to my side.
Even the act of holding a glass and pretending to drink water is an illusion; the actual glass is in the connected room using hologram avatar magic.
“Phoenix?”
“Yes, Senior Yurha.”
“Our deal… it will continue, right?”
“Of course.”
Regarding the mass production of magic pants, I had always intended to commission Yurha Silverstar from the beginning.
A guaranteed money-making product. But it’s not something I intend to sell at a high price.
While it might seem a doubtful venture from the maker’s perspective, I have many persuasive tools to convince Yurha.
And Yurha was well aware of that because we had already “contracted” before Alhena approached her.
“I was thinking, listening to Alhena, what if someone like her is your type?”
Yurha showed no concern at all. With the contract already sealed with magic, she had no reason to worry about the magic pants issue.
“In case you might sell the ‘next product’ to Alhena.”
Regarding magic pants—
“Phoenix?”
“Yes, Senior?”
“Oh my, I didn’t come here as your senior at the Academy.”
Yurha crossed her legs and turned toward me.
“I came here as a business partner with whom you’ll maintain a beneficial relationship.”
Unlike with Alhena, she sat next to me, showing her allegiance while pressing me with a subtle holographic avatar made of light.
“Although I haven’t mentioned what the item after the magic pants is, I’m sure it holds as much value, right?”
“It’s similar.”
“What is it?”
“It’s a bit difficult to say, but I can assure you it’s comparable to magic pants in performance.”
“For example, a magic bra?”
Yurha smiled.
Knowing that she had overheard the entire conversation in this room, I nodded calmly.
“You didn’t think I wouldn’t know, right?”
“Of course, Senior Yurha.”
After all, some items in this room, brought in through the Golden Carriage, contain magic circles that can enable eavesdropping with slight magical adjustments.
“And I didn’t think you wouldn’t notice that I spoke ‘knowingly’.”
“Oh my, did you catch on to that?”
“Because it’s you.”
There’s an insider within the old school building, which will not activate unless the insider triggers it. Coincidentally, Yurha has an insider here.
“You deliberately mentioned the Magic Bra to me, right?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“I assumed that Senior Yurha wouldn’t be interested in such matters.”
“Well, common sense would say so.”
Yurha supported her mana pockets with her hand.
Her size seemed almost comparable to Yunia’s.
While not quite as much as Yunia if exposed, Yurha could still overshadow a hundred Alhenas.
Isn’t that excessive?
Perhaps it’s Alhena who is lacking in curves.
“So, what’s the real intention?”
“After creating a rivalry between Alhena and Yurha, the plan is to secretly collaborate in that meeting room and strategize on ousting Chairman Castor.”
“…”
Yurha looked at me, half-closing her eyes.
“To oust Castor, the direct head of Silverstar? The CEO and chairman whose shares are untouchable, even if you combine those of the six board members? That golden tyrant?”
Her look seemed to say, “Go ahead, try saying that again.”
“Shall we hear you out?”
“Chairman Castor will do whatever it takes to get his hands on the Magic Pants. Any Academy student who’s short on tuition or has a family member in Silverstar’s executive circle will probably offer them up.”
“Just like Alhena is coveting the magic bra.”
“When he sees the effectiveness of the Magic Pants himself, he’ll realize just how much money these items made by Phoenix at the old school building can generate.”
“…So, he’ll aim for something beyond the magic pants?”
“Yes.”
Alhena will tell Castor.
“Oh, with how stubborn the creator is, we’ll just have to settle for selling Magic Pants as bargain items. Might as well make money off something else.”
“Something else. New products, that will soon be sold exclusively under Castor’s domain.”
“Yes. Although the exclusive sale of Magic Pants didn’t go through, he’ll think the upcoming products, like the Magic Bra, will be different. That’s what he’ll assume.”
“Hmm…”
Yurha let out a thoughtful hum and raised her hand.
“So, to sum it up: from the public’s perspective, it’ll look like my side is selling at ‘reasonable prices,’ while Castor’s side is selling at ‘excessive prices.’ Through that, we’re shifting consumer opinion toward us?”
“That’s part of the plan.”
A true capitalist—she understands well the balance between price and people’s desires.
“But do you think consumers are that mature? Castor only needs to drop prices a bit, and they’ll praise him, trampling on me as they go. They’ll say the only reason Magic Pants were overpriced was to bait people into buying his other, more expensive products.”
“That will depend on the types of products coming out from here in the future.”
I tapped my temple.
“Magic Pants, Magic Bra. These may seem essential for men and women alike, but who’s to say all future products will follow that trend?”
“…”
“Technology doesn’t always develop for everyone’s benefit. Sometimes, products emerge with specific groups in mind, depending on the research.”
The items I’ll provide Silverstar—and more accurately, distribute to the world through Silverstar’s mass production—won’t all be universally useful.
“99.99% of children might be able to consume Silverstar’s formula instead of their mother’s milk, but the remaining 0.01% may require specialized formula due to physical constraints, and yet, it’s not produced.”
“It’s not that they lack the technology; it’s because they’d have to change materials and redesign the process. Trade secret, so keep it to yourself.”
“Of course. But those parents of that 0.01%… would pay anything to get that formula. Especially those who lack breast milk, suffer from milk fever, or can’t provide breast milk at all.”
A certain modern company, they say, shuts down its factory once a year to produce specialty formula.
Ultimately, it’s production geared toward profit. Such social initiatives boost the company’s image, maintaining a favorable consumer perception and driving them to purchase other products from the company.
But, even knowing that, one can’t deny the act of “creating products to help those in need at the company’s expense.”
However, that’s a “real-world” story, and Silverstar is unforgiving. It spares no expense on cost-cutting, regardless of the children struggling to drink formula.
“Senior Yurha.”
I approached Yurha’s side, putting my arm around her holographic shoulder.
“Hmm, what is it?”
Although it was a hologram without physical presence, I could see Yurha momentarily startle.
If I said anything strange, she seemed ready to signal her insider—Instructor Esta, stationed outside—to accuse me of “harassment” as Phoenix.
“Mana may have a natural limit set at birth, but everyone builds up mana as they grow, accumulating it in the body, right?”
“Right?”
“Now, what if there were a way to give children ‘a little extra’ mana from a young age to keep them healthier?”
“…!!”
Yurha’s gaze shifted from my hand to her mana pocket, where my hand pointed.
“I can’t go into detail, but…”
Spoiler alert.
“The best thing for a baby is still breast milk, isn’t it?”
A spoiler, but just this much to say:
Kyun-Kyun knows the answer.
