When we finished shopping in town and returned to the garrison, the sun was already out and Susana had prepared a meal for us.

　Noelia seemed to be concerned about my collapse the whole time, so I only explained to her on the way home that it was my own problems that caused that.

　However, it was hard to say that I fainted due to the trigger of remembering the abusive words from Alfine, so I falsely claimed that I was a little tired from the trip.


'Such a thing... Master Flick, if you're tired, would you like to rest in this garrison for a while?


　Susana, who had just finished preparing the meal and was sitting down, heard from Noelia that I had fallen ill while shopping and offered to do so.


　Noelia agreed with that, and she and Susana suggested I take a rest, but .......

　I'm sure resting won't cure that thing, though.


　That fainting event was the kind of event that confronted me with the reality that I thought I had changed my name and appearance, and that I had not yet broken free of the spell of Alfine.


　Maybe that's my punishment for trying to face Noelia in such a half-formed state. ......

　After all, I should try to get more deeply involved with women in the future: .......

　Maybe it would be better for both of us if we tried to keep a reasonable distance from Noelia during our travels, and make it clear that we are master and apprentice.


I've had a bit of a break, so I'm feeling pretty good. Besides, I'm sure he'll be on the run by now, so let's just make preparations to be ready to go to the Abyss Walker sighting site at any time. Thank you Noelia and Shinzia-sama for your help today. It helped.


　I turned to Noelia, who was eating her meal in good spirits, and thanked her again.


'Ho, are you sure you're okay?　I too can use recovery magic, but wouldn't it be better to find a doctor in the city of Inverness and have him examine you?

I'm fine, really. You've been through a lot lately and you're just tired. You know, I'm a very sturdy guy.


　I was trying to cheer up Noelia, who was looking at me anxiously, and I was trying my best to give her a bright smile.


''Oh, I see. If Frick-sama says so: ......

'Flick says it's okay, too. More importantly, this one is way off.


　The Cinzia bone bird that was in my bosom came out on the table.

　When I looked at it, I saw that it wore a covering made of pieced together skins so that the bones were not visible, and it looked like a little red bird.

　It was slipping and wrinkling, so I pulled it off and fixed it.


''Ah, it feels right. Susana, don't you think you made it a little too loose?

'Skins are difficult. Still, I stitched it so you couldn't see the seams.


　Susana, who has long been concerned about the prominence of the bone bird that Cinzia's emissaries use, apparently made it by sewing the skin in the time she was away from home.

　Up close, it looks somewhat unnatural, but from a distance, I have a feeling that this would still look like just a bird.


''Shinzia-sama also said she didn't want to show off. That headgear looks good on you. It looks as if it's just a bird.

'Something about Flick's words doesn't sound like a compliment: ....... Well, okay. I'm going to take Noelia's shoulder.


　Cinzia, who was looking at the leather covering her body on the table, flapped her wings briefly and stopped on Noelia's shoulder.


'You look like a messenger of Noelia's when you're there.

In fact, you can have an errand boy. We can share sight and sound. Noelia, how about I break into Flik's sleeping bag and we share a room?

'In Master Fricke's sleeping bag!　I-I don't... no. I-I-I don't want that!　Prepare yourself!

You want me to explore an unexplored world?


　I was picking up the whole leather covering as Cinzia stopped at Noelia's shoulder and started talking about something she didn't want.


'No such thing. I'll dismantle it if you're playing tricks on me.'

Oh, that's boring.


　Sponging and leaving only the leather coverings behind, Cinzia turned into a bone bird and flew around the room.


　I'm acting with her as a master of emissary magic, but that free-spiritedness is something that I feel is similar to Master Gawain's.

　I wonder if all top-notch magicians who create their own magic are often free like that.


　I was almost sighing when I saw Sinzia flitting around the ceiling of the room.


　Well, but thanks to Cinzia, the heavy atmosphere seems to have changed.

　Maybe this is a person who is an antagonist.


　I was a little grateful to Cinzia for acting freely and unrestrainedly without reading the atmosphere of the place.


It's time to let Shinzia-sama go and have a meal. I'm kind of irresistibly hungry today.

'Yes. And come to think of it, we didn't seem to have eaten lunch.

'Yeah, right. That's why I was hungry.

'Thanks to the vegetables and other things the garrison has grown, we've cooked a lot of meals for you, so please have a full meal.


　When Susana recommended it, my stomach started to growl in grandiosity, so I decided to level out the meal in front of me.