Before long, the shaky journey on the carriage led us up to the harbor in Habbah town. It's been so long since I last went on a journey with a ship, so obviously, I'm excited. During the journey on the carriage, I finally got used to be called as Murphy, and got used to the others' disguises, as well. It was quite hard to get used to Rupert's disguise—I mean, he's totally a beauty when he disguised as Ruby.
We arrived in the biggest harbor of the Habbah Port City. There are so many ships, and it's lively here. Cargo ships, ferries, even normal boats are there.
We have to wait for our ship to depart, so during that time, after taking a lunch in a nearby restaurant, Dad and Rupert decided to check on something around the harbor, leaving me and Alt-nii alone with Gale still at our table—eating desserts.
"Ga—Robert-nii, what's the matter?" Alt-nii asked out of curiosity, a while after Dad and Rupert went off somewhere we couldn't see.
"Ah, Mom and Dad have to check on something related to their work, Rye. Anyway, Murphy, you want more ice cream?"
"Eh? Uh, no, I'm full," I replied.
Something related to their work—does that mean that they are off to check on underground activities that might be happening here? This harbor is so lively and buzzing with people... any suspicious activities would surely be exposed quickly, right?
Anyway, Rupert and Dad soon came back. Their expressions seemed to show a little disappointment. Seems like they got nothing that they expected here.
"How is it, Dad, Mo~m?" Gale asked while teasing the two of them. Pretty sure Gale teased Rupert way more than he teased Dad.
"We found nothing," Rupert calmly said that, smiled, while extending her hand to pat Gale, who's now supposedly her first son.
Right at the moment she touched Gale's head, I felt that Gale's expression was distorted for a moment—Rupert must have either pulled his hair or put a little bit pressure upon patting him.
"The intel we got only gave us the information regarding Chinosato's suspicious activities, no wonder that we still have no evident lead over here," Dad explained.
"Anyway, it's about time. We should go to the ship."
Rupert calmly announced.
"Mom, grab my hand!" Gale continued to tease Rupert.
"Oh Robert, I have to hold your little brother and sister's hands for now. You are the eldest, aren't you? Wait for another moment, okay?"
Rupert is now seen as a mother smiling lovingly at her spoiled first son, but I can sense that he's really upset. Seems like his expression is telling us, 'Just you wait and see...'
When we boarded to the ship, I immediately started to run towards the deck, feeling the breeze and the smell of the sea. Alt-nii, in his disguise as Rye-nii, quickly followed me. Dad—with his now-fat-belly, tried to chase after us. But as the fat body is just an illusion, he can quickly chase after us.
I just learned about the difference between illusion and transformation the other day, but I still have questions...
"You two sure are excited, eh? I wish Cass would be able to see you two like this…"
Mom should have departed in a ship that sailed just right ahead us. Too bad we couldn't board on the same ship…
"Hey, we'll be resting in the small room we rented downstairs. Feel free to take your time," Female Rupert—I mean, Ruby said.
"Oh, right. Take care, Ruby and Robert," Dad didn't even stutter upon calling those two. That's… awesome.
"Huh, why won't you two join us? The view here is amazing!" I asked. It's such a waste… well, it's not everyday that we can see the waves and the seagulls very nearby. If we are lucky, some beautiful sea monsters could leap from the sea.
Rupert and Gale both smiled bitterly.
"The thing is, we need to conserve energy," Gale said.
"Huh?"
Dad then lightly brushed my head and whispered in low voice.
"They will take off their disguise and rest in the room."
…Right. Since they are using magic, not the Hartmann secret arts, of course they need to conserve their mana and stamina. They would deplete more rapidly than us, who are using our family's secret arts.
And that's also why, although the journey is only a few hours long, we are renting a small room to rest. It's good to take a nap, too.
The two of them then went downstairs and the three of us sat down somewhere near the ship's railings.
...Seems like Rupert will finally pay Gale back for everything he did earlier!
"Hey, Dad, can we transform into anything we want, just like illusion magic?" I asked as an opening statement—before I asked the question that's been bugging my mind since earlier. Well, seeing that transformation magic was way harder to do, I guess there would be more limitations?
"Well, Lyra… Generally speaking… where should I start explaining?" Dad furrowed his eyebrows.
He may not expect that he has to explain more to me right now. He did explain more to Altaire when Alt-nii turned 5.
"Well, alright, I'll probably explain the details now. So, Lyra, have you heard of the term [Oracle]?"
[Oracle].
I remember.
Yes, my suspicion and the word that Dad lisped earlier—it's all clear now. It is [Oracle].
It is the term used to explain special abilities and power that someone might possess. Like how someone can predict things right. Like how someone can solidify something they touch. Not to be confused with magic, as normally, one would feel easier to accomplish something that their [Oracle] let them do.
"Yes. It's like, special power?"
"Uh huh, listen, Lyra!" Alt-nii jumped from his seat and raised both of his hands high.
"Our family's secret arts is actually [Oracle]~"
…I have had this suspicion since before but since Hartmann's Illusion and Transformation Oracle was something that required training to master, I thought it was just their secret arts or techniques... Since the type of [Oracle] that I know doesn't really require training to use—the only training needed is to switch it on and off.
I wonder if they are going to let me know more about Hartmann family's Oracle?