Clothbound Magic Circle – Part 4
I placed the medaka fish tank on the living room table.
Switching the air pump from the portable battery to the wall outlet, I sprinkled some food from above.
The little medaka darted up to the surface immediately, their tiny bodies wriggling adorably as they ate.
“…Cute little guys…”
I watched them for a while, but I had things to do.
I pulled out the embroidery patterns I’d brought from Grandma’s house and looked through them one by one.
Apparently, not all of them had magical effects.
To be honest, I’m a complete beginner when it comes to embroidery.
Grandma’s sewing box probably has needles and thread, and I could try copying beginner videos on my phone…
but if there was some kind of guidebook, that would be ideal.
While staring at the patterns, I started nodding off—
and fell asleep right there.
The next day — my day off
I headed to the library.
They had to have beginner embroidery books, right?
Sure enough, the handmade crafts section had plenty.
I pulled a few off the shelf—
and the monitor flashed in front of me so suddenly I felt a little dizzy.
When I looked back down, several of the books I’d pulled out were glowing.
“Embroidery for Beginners.”
“Sashiko Basics: 1‑2‑3.”
…So “Appraisal” works on books too?
This skill really is nonsense.
I borrowed the two glowing books.
On the way home, I stopped by Mimatsuya to buy practice thread and supplies.
“Wow, Heichan doing embroidery? That’s rare.”
The clerk today was a part‑timer, not the manager, but everyone here knows me.
“Yeah, I figured making something with cloth might be fun. You know… something with personality.”
“Ahh, I get that.”
She disappeared into the back and returned with an embroidery kit.
“It’s not for sale, so you can have it,” she said—
but with the manager gone, I couldn’t just take it.
I asked her to hold it for me and said I’d come back later.
On the way home, I felt like relaxing a bit, so I stopped at Snuback Drop—
a café everyone calls Snaba.
I ordered an iced coffee and flipped through the embroidery books I’d borrowed.
The more I read, the more I felt the urge to sew.
Oh man… I’m totally doing this when I get home.
Just as I was getting excited, something outside caught my attention.
Through the window, a group of humanoids in black suits were walking down the street—
led by one I recognized.
A humanoid.
In a place this ordinary?
That alone was strange.
But the leader—
the one in the black suit—
was entirely gold.
Flashy as hell.
I couldn’t help staring.
And then—
the golden humanoid suddenly looked straight at me.
And winked.
…Huh?
Before I could react, the group crossed the street and disappeared.
…Just a coincidence, right?
I sat frozen, straw stuck to my lip, staring blankly at the window.
