'Aldis!　Aldis!

　Filia and Liana clung to each other, screaming in unison, as if they had forgotten what else to say.

　Their platinum blonde hair, which clung tightly to each side, was a head shorter than Aldis'.
　When they first met, they were both only around Aldis's waist, but they had grown a lot in height.

　The strength of their arms, which clung to each other, was unexpectedly strong.
　Of course, it is strong enough that Ardis doesn't feel any pain, but even so, she can feel the growth of the twins.

　Ardis suddenly recalls the line that Duke Nilesteria said to Moore.

(I see, the duke was right: ......)

　As I was thinking about this, the twins' voices gradually began to muffle.

'Ardizz!　Ew, Al, Dezoo!　Hiccup!

　The happy voice calling Aldis's name seemed to turn into a muffled cry, and then it gradually turned into a sound that made no sense.

'Ew, wow!

　The twins are no longer just sobbing and clinging to Aldis.
　While Aldis was bewildered by the change, there was one shadow that approached them.

'You're home so late, my Lord.

　A girl who looks to be seventeen or eighteen years old slowly walks up to me, swinging her long Alice blue hair.
　A single impeccable appearance, as if she were a figment of an imaginary angel, is broken by a slight smile.
　I'm sure you'll be able to find out more about this.

Yeah, sorry about that.

　With relief and gratitude, Aldis simply replies shortly.

'What, as long as you're back in one piece, that's all that matters.

　Nere's answer to the question was also tepid.

　Eventually, the twins began to calm down, but they clung to Aldis groggily and wouldn't leave.

'Well ......, how long do I have to do this, me?'

'I've been suppressing my anxiety all year. A little indulgence should be tolerated.

　Indeed, there were no words to return to Aldis, who had disappeared for a year without contacting him at all.
　It's not because Nele told me to, but I had no choice but to leave the twins to their own devices until they had come to their senses.

　It's a very good idea to be able to have a good time with them.

I'm home. Filia, Liana.

Gusun ......, yeah.

Welcome back, Aldis: ......

You had me worried.

　Aldis smiled at them both, and the twins returned the smile with their teary eyes.
　They were finally back where they should be, Aldis realized in a strange way.

'I think it's time to go home,'

No.

I like it that way.

　After calming them down, Ardis and her heartless squire, who won't move, start to walk towards their old home, where they are still holding on to each other.

　--The two girls, who have compromised, embrace each other's arms tightly and refuse to let go.





　It's late at night in the Duke's house.

　Minerva is engrossed in her bedtime routine.
　It has been long enough that she has been staring at the pebble that Aldis handed her and instructed her to observe every day.

'Feng ......'

　Minerva fidgeted with her eyes as her vision began to blur, using it as a signal for the end.

　A year has passed in this world, but in Minerva's subjective view, only two whole days have passed.
　It's a good idea to be able to have a good time with them.
　But at the same time, the lack of change has led to the realization that we have returned to our daily lives.

　Minerva turns off the light and slips into bed, lying down and remembering that brief, intense experience.
　A strange landscape, a strange beast, a strange night.
　All of these scenes are not easily forgotten, and are truly otherworldly.

(Best of all: ......)

　The image of Aldis looking at Minerva with wary eyes is vividly burned into my mind.

　A man whose appearance is clearly different from the master he knows.
　The well-honed muscles that cover his entire body are no less than those of Captain Greystar, and what can be sensed from his appearance is his unshakable confidence and strong will, even against unimaginable beasts from the other world.
　But on the other hand, a sternness reminiscent of a bared blade overflows from his body, and he is surrounded by an unapproachable atmosphere that rejects those who try to approach him.

(Is that ...... the real master?)

　The unknown figure of a mentor who thought he was hardly different in age from himself.
　The fact that Aldis was not much older than Captain Greystar was also surprising, but what was even more unbelievable was the difference in the air he wore.

　The expression he showed to his student Minerva was not flattering in the first place.
　But even so, there is still a small glimpse of underlying thoughtfulness, and even during the course of instruction, there was never any overt irritation or anger towards Minerva.

(But really: ......)

　The emotions that had been suppressed in the back of her mind must have continued to stagnate.

　That night, the moment Ardis's hand seized Minerva's arm, the various scenes, people and emotions that flowed in the moment.
　The agony of being stabbed in the chest with countless needles.
　A hatred that does not lose its red glow like burnt iron, but blows up to burn up all around her.
　Emotions, not logic, understand that this is the cry of a soul forcibly suppressed within Ardis.

''Um, Master ......?''

What?

'Um, ................... No, it's ...... nothing.

　When Aldis came to say hello to him in the early afternoon when he was leaving the mansion, he suddenly tried to ask him about the scene he had seen, but eventually stopped himself.

　Perhaps that was a past that the master did not want to be touched by.
　It's not something that should be asked easily, he thought.

　Surely what Minerva dreamily saw was Ardis's memory, a heartbreak etched in the past.
　There is no reason for this. But there was an incomprehensible certainty.

　And I felt a strange overlap between Ardis and myself.

''Miss, look out!

Leila?

"Ugh, ......!

　The older side servant pushed Minerva away.
　A sharp blade stabbed into the chest of the side servant who threw her body out to replace the duchess to the place where she was until just before.

''Kyaaaah!　Leila!

"Shit, b*tc*!　Let go of me!

"If you die, don't let go of ......, don't let go of ......!

　Grabbing the blade that had been stabbed into him with both hands, he used his entire body to hold the assassin's arm down as a side servant.

''Leila!　Somebody, somebody get in here!　Leila!

　Other guards rushing in. The assassin who is seized. And the body of a side servant sinking into a pool of blood.

Leila. ......

　The name spilled out of Minerva's mouth with a pout.

　It was six months ago in her subjective time that the side servant she adored as much as her sister became a victim of the deadly blade instead of Minerva.
　A sadness fills her closed eyelids, almost flooding them.

　Both Minerva and Ardis are rooted in the desire to protect someone, and the pain of losing someone they care about has sustained that will until now.
　If the desire to protect someone has made Ardis so strong, then so have I.

(Stronger, I should be ....... No, I must be strong.)

　At the same time, he realizes that the emotional scars that Aldis has carried are incomparably deeper than his own, and he feels self-hatred at the thought of her struggles.

　Aldis probably wanted to stay in the other world.
　The hours that Minerva and the others waited after they returned to this world must have been a void created by Aldis's hesitation, perhaps.

　The feelings of regret and regret, feelings of remorse and impatience, and the impulse of sadness and hatred that he felt when he touched Aldis's past.
　Shaking off these feelings, Aldis chose to return to this world, abandoning the opportunity to reach for her revenge.

　How painful the choice was.

　I'm sure Minerva's presence must have played a part in that decision.
　I don't mean to boast that this is all, but Ardis must have had feelings of concern for Minerva and Captain Greystar.

(With all that pain and frustration, that man was still there for us: ......)

　That's why my gratitude to Ardis is unending, and I feel equally sorry for her.

(I hope that my power will be useful to her--I hope that day will come.

　There is a power gap between the two of them that separates them.
　It is unlikely that Ardis will ever need Minerva's power.

　The only thing that Minerva has that Ardis doesn't is at best the bloodline and the political power that comes with it.
　But if you are the head of a duke's family, Minerva's power as a young lady who is not even an heiress is negligible.

(I can't even adequately repay the favor with my own strength alone, can I?

　Frustrated by her own helplessness and disappointment, Minerva just let go of her consciousness and began to breathe in her sleep.