So your alchemy skills are innate?
'Yes!　I'd like to say that, but the truth is that my skills grew after I was 20, and my teenage years were only as good as the weeds out there compared to Elle.
Hmm?　Excuse me, but how old are you now...?
I'm 45 years old this year.


　A rustle........and the room begins to buzz. Currently, several hours had passed since then and it was nighttime. Marie was receiving a press conference at the association, as she was the second Blue Star Class《Blue Star》in history.

　And me, Fee and Leif were staring at the scene. I was worried that Marie might say something strange, but she seemed to have a certain amount of common sense and the press conference was progressing smoothly.


Well, looks are trivial," he said, "but what's inside is important. Well, looks are trivial, but what's inside is what's important.
Ha....ha....
Excuse me, can I ask you a question?
"Mm.


　Then the next reporter poses a question.


''I heard that you broke the record held by Elweed Willis, the first blue star class "Blue Star", do you think you are better than him?
"...and so is this!　I'd like to say that, but I can't really say what it is. There is a part of me that is better than Elle, and a part that is inferior. It depends on what you define "superior" as, but I can't possibly be considered superior to Elle. He is the genius of the geniuses I admit to being.
'I see........a rivalry?'
'Competitors?　I don't have that in mind, but I'd like to have a good relationship with him. And for the sake of my future research.
Speaking of research, Marie, what are you majoring in?
It's not a secret...


　The press conference proceeded like this, and ended after about an hour. The scene was broadcasted in real time throughout the kingdom, and it became a well-known fact that this was how the alchemist named Marie Blanc became the second blue star class "Bluesteller".


　◇


'Oh, oh, oh, oh!　You can't live in a place like this!
Okay. It's my stuff. I have a room available, and I'll rent you a room.
'Fee!　Are you a god?!
No, I'm sorry, but it's not that bad.
'Oh, oh, oh, oh!'


　Marie's residence is now on the same floor of the same apartment as ours. Fortunately, there were still rooms available, and even if it was just me, Fee, and Monica, there were other rooms left over. That's why we agreed to give Marie a room. Of course, they'll sign a contract and pay rent every month, but once you become a "Blue Star"-class member, you won't have to worry about various financial matters such as research funding. If the results of the research come out, there will be even more money. I won't say that money is the most important thing, but still, it's better to have it.

　By the way, I heard that Fee did all the procedures.


''........Whoa!　Your room is beautiful!
Well, I didn't use it.
'Whoa!　Your bed is so soft!
Yeah. That's why I didn't use it. Plus, I put new furniture in there for a quick fix.
'Whoa!　God?!
No, I'm human, but...

　The two of us had such an exchange, and after a while, Marie's tension finally calmed down and we decided to talk about the future.

　But Rafe was in my room and said, "I'm sleepy, I'm going to bed. I'll leave the future plans to you," and he's already gone to bed. Marie is also asleep, snoring loudly. Well, there's nothing wrong with just talking to me and Fee.


"So, Fee. What do you want to do now?
We're heading to the fifth labyrinth, but the problem is the ice that even Levatain can't melt. Maybe it's not just ice.
''Well no, it's probably not ordinary ice in the first place. There's definitely some alchemy or magic involved.
'Yes, I know. But it seems that if you can't get through it, you can't even get in.
'Honestly, with my eyes, I can do something about it. There's no substance that can't interfere with me now. I could easily make it disappear, like ice, but...
What's that eye of yours, exactly?
It's...


　I scratched and explained. The peculiar name of the said singular ability 《Dunamis》 is the Elemental Eye 《Decoding Site》. It is able to visualize the first quality "Primamateria", and thus is able to interfere with the code that resides in living things. That's why I was able to use the anti-matter code to instantly return the giant Kraken to the First Quality, Primamateria.


''That's great, but... but there's still a price to pay...''
'At the moment, removing this eye patch will cause extreme pain. I haven't gotten it completely under control yet.
Hey, are you all right?　I'm terribly worried about...
Well, I'll take care of it. They don't call me a genius. I'll figure it out.
Well that's okay.


　After that, we packed up the conversation further and made plans for the future. As I did so, I was about to leave the room and for some reason, Alice was standing in front of the door.


'Hey Alice I've always told you........what's up?'
....


　He's shaking. And he's acting weird. Normally she would have hugged me and made one of her lighthearted remarks, but today she's still hugging me and shaking. This is the first time I've seen Alice like this.


'Are you okay?'
....


　I don't know what to do. I've got Rafe in my room, and I doubt there's a place outside that's open right now. Then...........


'Do you want to go to my lab?　I've got Rafe in my room right now.
....


　I nodded with a chuckle, and I used the transition to jump straight to the lab at once.


'Can I have tea?'
....


　As usual, he doesn't want to talk. He was still staring down, his face dark. The trembling seemed to have stopped, but his expression never cleared up.


'Here, tea.'


　I set it down on the desk with a ton and reluctantly Alice put her hand on it.


　Until now, my impression of Alice was that she was a mischievous and bright princess. A bottomless glow that knows no stain, no darkness. I've never seen Alice not in good health before. But that must have been my assumption. This is the kind of person Alice is. That's a prejudice, not the whole story. There is a side of you that you haven't shown me, and this is how it is now.


　I decided to ask her what happened for now.


'What's up?　What happened?　Is that something I can help you with?
What do you think of me, doctor?
He's a valued student.
What about without the students?
My dear friend but you are one of the most important people to me.
I see.....


　Alice stares at the sky through the window in a daze.

　What in the world was going on?


'Will you still care for me if I'm no longer me, doctor?
"?　What do you mean?
No, it doesn't mean much. But I just want someone to care about me, that's all.
'Does that mean you want me to answer my feelings?'
'Oh you've noticed that, haven't you? But that's not what I meant.


　I was aware of Alice's feelings. She was always joking around with me, but I knew it was out of love for me. I've never been in love, but I knew that Alice admired me in a romantic sense.

　Because even in the joking aspect, I could read the real feelings in the joking aspect.

　But he didn't want me to answer that, apparently.

　What the hell...?


'Sir, we're going to the labyrinth again, aren't we?'
'Oh. I finished my classes this evening, and I've turned in a bunch of assignments. I'll be holed up in the labyrinth for a while.
'Then I'll discuss it with you when the doctor comes back thank you for going out of your way today.


　With that, Alice left the room.


　All I had left in my mind were endless questions.


　The next time I saw Alice, I would regret this moment. But I couldn't know that now.