“Welcome back, Niil.”
“I’m back, boss~!”
“Did you give Iris the message?”
“Of course! She said she’ll be sure to teach you the ‘Ancient Magic’~. However, she has the investiture ceremony for her ‘Guardian Knight’ in a few days, so she was wondering if it would be okay to do it after that~.”
“Yeah. Tell her that’s fine. Were there any other messages?”
“There are~!”
“Okay. Let me hear it.”
“Well, there’s Version One all the way through Version Twelve…”
“Why are there so many?”
“She said it’s because she’s a maiden~.”
“Just let me hear all of them for now.”
“I can’t do that~.”
“Why not?!”
“She said it’s because she’s a maiden~.”
“Even after two hundred years, I still don’t understand how Alice’s mind works…”
“I understand. Because I’m a girl, you see~.”
“Let me just confirm, is this message the kind of thing where something terrible will happen if I don’t hear it?”
“Not at all~.”
“Right.”
“Besides, the contents are almost exactly the same~.”
“What in the world is she doing, that Alice… I mean, Her Highness Iris.”
“For now, I’ll deliver the final version~.”
“Please do.”
“Let’s see, then~. Ahem.”
Niil gave a deep bow before me.
“‘I am grateful to the fate that has allowed me to reunite with my Lord. Please use this life of mine for your sake. I look forward to our long and happy future together.’ That’s what it says~.”
“…Are all the versions pretty much the same?”
“They are~.”
“…………That’s Alice for you. That part of her, at least.”
“Well then, I shall be returning to Lady Iris’s side~.”
“Good work. And one more thing—”
I stopped Niil just as she was about to take flight.
“I’ve given you a larger than normal dose of ‘Mistel Blood.’ Your strength and endurance should be much higher now. With that power, protect Alice—no, protect Iris. You must.”
“Understood~!”
And with that, Niil flew off into the night.