Became the Villainess’s Guardian

Before falling into the world of [Londinium Survival Journal],
In my previous life, there was a custom of revering a certain great scholar in the summer for not receiving a Nobel Prize, while condemning him as a leader of environmental destruction in the winter.

And that person’s name was none other than:

“Willis Carrier.”

During my university days, a professor once asked who we respected and wanted to model ourselves after.
My classmates listed famous or socially recognized figures like Michael, Magni, Her Majesty the Queen, the Prime Minister, and so on.

With an expression conveying “How predictable,” Professor Magni dismissed the students’ answers before tilting his head slightly when it was my turn and asking,

“Who is that? A magician?”

“Ah, you don’t know. He was the… inventor of air conditioning, a great personage.”

“No, seriously. I know pretty much every notable magician, but I’ve never heard that name before.”

“I suppose so. Air conditioning hasn’t been invented yet, after all…”

“…?”

Ah, so this world too is inhabited solely by mere humans. How lamentable-
Usually muttering such nonsense while half-delirious from the sweltering summer heat, I suddenly realized something.

Air conditioning, huh.
Might be worth giving it a try?

While the dream of becoming a graphics card manufacturer in this other world had to be abandoned, this was a comparatively more attainable dream, wasn’t it?

It was a fact I occasionally forgot since there were no teleportation or time-rewinding spells, nor curses to inflict 2cm kidney stones on enemies in this world.
But this was undoubtedly a modern fantasy realm where magic, demihumans, and 18-hour non-stop child labor (legal) existed.

Of course, spewing fire from one’s palms, conjuring water, and summoning wind was novel at first. Even now, I sometimes fail to become accustomed when watching magicians’ performances.
But moments like these were when I was freshly reminded that this was indeed a fantasy world where magic existed.

“Edan.”

“Yes.”

“Battery.”

“Coming right away.”

By channeling mana into stones with excellent conductive properties, magic stones imbued with corresponding powers could be created.
Add fire magic, and it becomes a flamethrower. Add water magic, and it’s a Bluetooth faucet.

And as the legitimate heir to electromancy, if I charged the stone between my fingers with power,

-Crackle!

“Good, a quality product. Make ten more like that.”

“Understood…!”

Sparks would fly, creating a fantasy-battery.

That’s right.
Eco-friendly power generation had arrived at least a hundred years ahead of schedule.

If cast by a proficient magician, the efficiency wasn’t too bad either.
Of course, for industrial-scale mass production of large capacities, it would be necessary to have teams of electromancers whipped into action or resort to boiling water to spin turbines with steam, but the mere ability to produce high-efficiency, high-capacity batteries was a major breakthrough.

Just a few years prior, refrigerators with copper coils had emerged, if still inefficient.
Since air conditioning was essentially an advanced form of refrigeration, there was now at least a basic technological background instead of having to create something entirely from scratch.

It wasn’t that the people of this era disliked cool environments.
However, in times when words like human rights and welfare were still unfamiliar, most inventions inevitably began in the industrial sector.

“Ah, I get what you mean. Like installing them in steel mills?”

“I’m not sure if the effect would be that significant.”

“If it also has dehumidifying effects, we could supply them to publishing houses or textile mills sensitive to moisture…!”

“That’s possible too.”

“Hehe, then if things go well, I’ll have something to present at this shareholder meeting…”

Upon hearing the simple presentation I had hastily put together in 11pt Humanist, Freyja showed a hint of hopeful laughter.
But she couldn’t conceal the tinge of resignation within. Her weary appearance already hinted at the general situation.

Sadly, the legal owner of a palace was not the palace master, but the investors holding shares.
And those with their hard-earned money sluggishly squirming like worms in the stock market, occasionally gushing forth waterfalls when bored, had been rather displeased of late.

I requested and thoroughly read through the records of the previous shareholder meeting from Freyja.
It contained a stack of disgruntled investors’ grievances and Freyja’s shameful history of being verbally battered by them.

‘Isn’t it about time to develop some new products? We hired a large batch of talents from Londinium Magic University with great expectations, but there are no tangible results.’

‘Um, we are indeed diligently investing and researching in the areas you shareholders have requested-‘

‘So are you saying it’s our fault?’

‘That’s… not what I meant…’

‘Breaking news, Palace Master Freyja [regrets being born] massive crash forecast…’

‘I never said anything like that…!’

I could finally grasp Professor Magni’s deeper intentions.
While he could have simply plugged me into any old palace position, at reputable and solid palaces, one could only follow the higher-ups’ directives. It would naturally delay producing results.

However, at Ceres Palace, there was a suitable platform in place for me to take a stab at something.

That’s right. Didn’t Professor Magni task me with elevating electromancy to greatness?

“I’m in your care, Palace Master.”

“Hm? Ah, yes…!”

After verbally agreeing before any formal written contracts, I left the palace around midday when the sun had crossed halfway across the sky.

I had gained employment, but there was work to be done.
The next day, I headed to the orphanage, which I would no longer be able to frequently visit.

With scant experience meeting people outside the East End slums, it was difficult for Freugne to make sweeping judgments.
But by borrowing her ability, she could roughly grasp the kind of person her counterpart was to some extent.

Although Freugne lacked the social experience to see through Edan’s poker face, she did have one unique workaround only she could use.

“Um, well. Mister.”

“Again today?”

“…Yes.”

Glimpsing the future also meant peeking at someone’s private side.

Plop.
She slightly raised her arm out of habit, and a firm hand overlapped hers.

It was the kind of action lovers would take, but this was solely for investigative purposes.
Freugne decided it didn’t matter what his outward appearance was.

The rough, calloused hands she used to handle coarse fabrics amidst the oily machinery of the factory could hardly be called soft.

And yet, Edan’s hands were larger and firmer than her own. Freugne gently brushed his knuckles with her thumb.
When testing her ability by glimpsing the futures of other children, she had only lightly poked their knuckles, so holding someone’s hand in this manner was still an unfamiliar sensation.

She had thought magicians’ hands would be different since they didn’t perform rough labor, but unexpectedly, they could become quite calloused from directly handling magic tools.

When they first met, spring had just begun, but the seasons had already begun shifting towards sweltering summer.
And although she didn’t visit daily, after spending around three months together, she could form a general assessment of his character.

Of course, she didn’t always see helpful futures.
His lunchtime menus or the beverages he ordered at the club house were data points about his tastes, useless unless she planned to celebrate his birthday herself.

However, she at least gained the certainty that he was not the kind of person to don a friendly orphanage donor mask by day while transforming into a serial killer prowling deserted streets by night.

‘Ah, that’s right.’

But since she was holding his hand now, she would set aside such idle thoughts.
She slowly closed her eyes and took a small, deep breath.

By focusing her mind like this, she could narrow the scope of the future she wished to glimpse, even if only slightly.
Specifically, to matters somewhat related to herself.

‘Perhaps with more practice, I could view only the desired futures someday.’

Her head throbbed slightly as a particular scene flashed before her eyes.
The location was the orphanage, the subject was herself as expected. The timing seemed to be about a year later at most.

There, she was walking hand-in-hand with Edan along the fence. As it was an ordinary scene, there was nothing particularly noteworthy to glean.

But just in case, she decided to watch a bit further. If she could gather any information about the state of the world from the conversation, it wouldn’t be bad.
However, upon listening, the content was just mundane daily matters like ‘what did you do yesterday’ and ‘what will you do tomorrow’, truly seeming devoid of substance.

And just as Freugne was about to disengage her ability,
Suddenly viewing the scene from a third-person perspective instead of first-person, something felt slightly off.

Holding hands, conversing, occasionally sharing small laughs.
It was unmistakably the sight of two amicable people enjoying a leisurely stroll together. To an outside observer, there would be ample room to speculate about their relationship.

In other words.
…Just like right now.

“It seems I won’t be able to visit as often from now on.”

Freugne, who had been staring blankly, started and snapped her head up in surprise.
Then, she belatedly processed his words in her mind with a slight delay.

“…Pardon?”

“Summer has begun. Thus, I have important matters to attend to at the palace.”

Freugne’s smile faded slightly.