Magic Store 27



Even after connecting the Wi-Fi, there were still many things to do.

"Next, go into the security settings and set up a pattern or fingerprint lock."

"Okay."

"And... ah, power-saving mode. This old device tends to drain the battery quickly."

"Got it..."

I'm just doing as I'm told, but I can't help feeling like I'm here to change my smartphone plan, not prepare for magic.

The operation is no different from my own phone.

The design is similar too - just a black phone with a good grip, that's about it.

The only difference I could see was a small magic circle engraved on the back instead of a brand logo, but did that really make this a magical tool? If so, every toy store in my world would be a magic shop.

"I set the power-saving mode. What's next?"

"That's it."

After finishing the smartphone setup, I'm felt like I had become a mage or something.

"Seriously?"

“Yup. Anything else you're curious about?"

There was a mountain of questions in my mind, so I started with the most pressing one.

"Why do we need Wi-Fi to use magic?"

"Well, you see... In your world, there aren't really any books on magic, are there? You've probably never even read any."

"Not really, but there are some similar things, like the Necronomicon or the Apocalypse of Hell..."

"Really?"

"That's what conspiracy theorists say, anyway."

"Ah, so there really aren't any, huh."

She responded with a slightly disappointed tone and proceeded to explain that there were two key requirements for using magic - mana, and the computational formulas for magic.



Since I didn’t have any knowledge of those formulas, I apparently needed to download the data each time I wanted to use magic.

The manager said that even learning a simple fire spell can take at least 6 years, which was the equivalent of finishing high school in my world.

"I can lend you a few reference magic books from home, if you need them."

"If it's not absolutely necessary, I'll have to pass."

"Suit yourself, then."

I didn’t want to spend 6 years learning how to light a cigarette lighter or take the equivalent of the GED exam in this world.

Plus, I didn’t meet the other conditions, anyways.

"Well, I'm glad I don't need the books, at least. But how about the mana?"

"There's a mana stone inside this smartphone, a tiny one in the battery."

"Do all smartphones in this world have mana stones?"

"No, just this model. That's why it's so hard to get it serviced - you can't drop it or anything, got it?"

I had no intention of carrying it around anyway.

It wouldn't work without connecting to the store's Wi-Fi.

What I was more curious about was why the manager had something like this.

"A friend of mine gave it to me, a few years ago."

The manager was quick to avert her gaze, so I assumed she must have a much more extensive network.

As the recipient, it felt a bit rude to pry too much.

"Anything else I should know?"

"Hmm... Other than the Wi-Fi, you can't use an unlimited data plan either, right?"

"That's right. The computations eat up a ton of data, so you'd max out your regular plan in no time."

"So even the Wi-Fi wouldn't be enough to handle it?"

"Don't worry about that part. We have super-fast 5G signal here."

I was still a bit confused, but I decided to just go fix the door and head home.



"Alright, let me try it out. Do I just launch the app to use magic?"

"Yeah. Scroll down the home page, you'll see three apps."

Just as the manager said, there were three very unusual-looking apps on the screen - one with a star shape, one with a shield, and one with a hammer.

"The first one is just a certification mark, so you don't need to worry about that. The shield app is for defensive magic, and it should work automatically, so no need to tap it. The third one is for restoration magic."

"How do I use that one?"

"Just follow what the app tells you to do... I think."

The manager seemed unsure, having never used it herself.

When I tapped on the app, the camera view came up with a translucent rectangle in the center.

A message appeared and disappeared at the bottom, instructed me to focus on the entire object I wanted to restore until it became clear.

The object to be restored was the broken front gate.

I adjusted the focus to frame the entire gate and heard a camera shutter sound.

Then a slider appeared at the bottom.

As I dragged the slider to the left, the scene on the screen started shifting - customers who had visited reappeared and then disappeared, the street behind the gate grew darker and lighter.

Wait, could this be... ?

The screen showed my own figure clutching my head next to the sprawled minotaur, then rewinded to finally reveal the intact front gate.

There was a round button at the bottom of the slider.

I glanced nervously at the manager, but she seemed unbothered.

So, I pressed it.

The screen immediately went black, and then the events I had witnessed started replaying on the actual broken gate.

It shook and flickered, the ghostly forms of the customers appeared and vanished, until...

Tada!

The front gate had been restored to its previous state.

The manager approached the gate, gently opening and closing it.

"It worked."

"Uh, manager."

"Yeah?"

"Was that... time travel just now?"

"Yep."

Someone with a physics background might have fainted at this point.

As for me, with my limited knowledge, I just felt a sense of unease.

"Will it pose no problem?"

"What kind of problem?"

"For example, if we used this on the minotaur, would it turn it into a calf?"

"If you used it on a living being, that's what would happen."

"Really?"

“Yep. If you knew how to do it, that is."

And apparently, there was no one in the current world who knew how to perform that kind of time manipulation on living creatures.

Even with all the funding and research by magic practitioners, they hadn’t figured it out yet.

What a bunch of tax-stealing scoundrels.

So there was no risk of harming any living beings with what was just displayed on the screen.

After hearing the manager's explanation, I also tried opening and closing the gate handle.

It worked perfectly.

The manager looked up at me and asked,

"Is there any other magic you'd like to try?"

"I get to choose?"

"A couple, at least. Depends on the type of magic, though..."

"How about a money duplication spell?"

"But that would be illegal, wouldn't it?"

I mean, stock trading futures is legal, so why is this illegal?

I tried to think of what other magic options might be available, but really, I just wanted to take a nap.

After all, without the store's Wi-Fi, I can't even use any of this magic anyway.

"I'll think it over more slowly when I come in for my shift tomorrow."

"Alright."

The manager then closed the blinds, locked the front door, and even pressed a button for spatial displacement.

Just as I'm about to head out, the manager suddenly remembered something.

"Oh, don't forget to bring an umbrella when you come in tomorrow."

"An umbrella?"

"Yeah, it's supposed to rain tonight."

......

You might wonder, why did the manager care about the rain when I work indoors at the convenience store?

Well, even us convenience store workers don't enjoy the rain that much.

Especially during the night shift, when we must go out at least once to take out the garbage.

There are a few other small tasks that require going outside - wiping our feet, bringing out the umbrella display, setting up the umbrella stand.

The most annoying part was when customers came in with wet shoes, tracking mud all over the place.

If you didn’t clean it up, it could turn the store into a construction site in just a couple hours.

So, I did the math - if the rain didn't stop by the end of my shift, I'll have to mop the floor at least eight times.

What a huge waste of manpower and time.

"In that case, would it be possible to just install a cleaning magic app instead of all that mopping?"

"Hmm..."

I came in 10 minutes early just to ask about this.

As I posed the question to the manager, standing by the umbrellas stashed behind the counter, she let out a long, contemplative hum.

A reaction that I had not expected.

"Is it not possible?"

"It's not that it’s not possible... but if it's going to clean the entire store, I wouldn't really recommend it. It's pretty difficult."

"More difficult than time travel?"

"Yeah."

Why would cleaning magic be more difficult than time travel, I wondered.

The manager elaborated that she didn’t use cleaning magic to clean the store.

Instead, she used levitation magic to lift all the shelves, and water magic to mop the whole floor.

The reason was that the caster's will played a significant role when using magic.

For example, if a rude customer walked in during the cleaning magic, they might get caught up in it as well.

I was tempted to say that would be a good thing, but the manager brought up the risk of the store getting shut down, so I decided not to press the issue further.

As long as I had a non-shedding burlap sack, I could manage the cleaning somehow.

Instead, I asked something else.

"So, you can't make the apps yourself, Manager?"

"Nope. I can't code."

"Well, don't worry, I can't do it either. So, this was made by one of your acquaintances then?"

"Yeah. I'll invite them to the store sometime when I have time."

As long as they were not a troublemaker, that should be fine.

They were an acquaintance, so they probably won't cause any issues.

As we're talking, I start hearing the pitter-patter of raindrops outside. I ask the manager,

"Is it going to rain a lot today?"

"They say it's going to really pick up after 10 o'clock."

"Then you should head inside quickly."

"Yeah, take care."

As the manager left, I watched her small frame disappear through the glass door, holding a compact umbrella.

I couldn’t help but vaguely think about when I might be able to treat the manager to a meal.

I've received my daily pay and even a makeshift magic wand smartphone from her.

I feel like I've been taking a lot, so I should probably express my gratitude by offering to buy her a meal.

But the practicalities made it hard for me to bring it up.

We worked opposite 12-hour shifts, so we barely saw each other except for the shift change.

Hiring a weekend part-timer could solve this, but the manager didn’t seem inclined to do that.

"Goddammit, hey!"

I recognized that familiar yell.

I glanced up to see the chihuahua-headed customer just coming in, angrily folding up their dripping wet umbrella.

"Where's the umbrella stand?!"

"I just changed shifts, so I haven't brought it out yet, but you can just leave it standing somewhere convenient."

It was more of a hassle having to wipe up the dripping water, but it was better than dealing with this customer's anger management issues.

Or so I thought.

I was gravely mistaken.

"Then the water's going to drip, you little shit. Are you going to clean that up?"

"Yes."

"Don't give me that crap, just go get the umbrella stand. I'm not going in until you bring it."

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