Volume 7, Chapter 58 – A Brief Respite on the Eve (of What’s to Come)

“Th-thank you so very much! Lady Fia, you are like a second mother to me!”

“Lianne, you’re getting a bit too excited.”

In the testing ground, Lianne, wrapped in an emerald-green cloak, her body constantly shivering, kept bowing repeatedly to Fia. If not for Friede holding her back, the half-naked fox girl would have already knelt down to kiss Fia’s feet.

I may be a long-lived elf, but in terms of actual age, you’re older, Lianne, aren’t you?

Thinking this inwardly, Fia pulled the corners of her mouth into a bitter smile, both palms facing Lianne.

“No issues now doesn’t mean there won’t be any later. Lianne, stay in the Twilight Flower Palace during this period and don’t go anywhere else. That way, if anything happens, I can react immediately. Hmm… before that, Lianne, try to see if you can use magic.”

Though still filled with excitement, Lianne was, after all, a 6th-tier former leader of the Witch Hall. She silently recited the incantations that felt strange yet familiar to her, making a gesture of holding her hands forward.

“—[Food Creation].”

A hard-as-stone black object appeared in Lianne’s hands. Almost without thinking, she brought it to her mouth, her wide-open mouth seemingly forgetting to first soak and soften it, and took a ferocious bite.

Crunch.

A startling, heart-shuddering sound.

“Oww!”

A row of small, neat teeth marks appeared on the pitch-black stone, corresponding to Lianne’s tear-filled eyes and features contorted by pain. Even though Fia knew this fox-kin girl standing barely over one and a half meters tall was over a century old, she couldn’t help but find her cute.

Should this be described as ‘the brain turning empty after gaining a body’? It fits the setting rather well. In most cases, when something un-cute transforms into a cute loli, it gains a somewhat silly trait, making one want to tease them. I never thought Lianne would be exempt.

I have a feeling this might lead to Friede becoming the ‘top’ and Lianne the ‘bottom’—though, of course, this is just my mental fantasy. In reality, they’re just good friends, with no romantic sparks.

“So… so hard…”

Arms trembling, Lianne cradled the black rock with teary eyes. Friede, meanwhile, let out a long, motherly sigh and took out some baked cookies from her storage, handing it to Lianne.

“Are you an idiot? If you’re hungry, eat this.”

“Wh-what idiot! I’m just too excited! If you were to starve for decades like I did, you’d gnaw on stones too!”

Despite her unyielding words, Lianne’s widened amber eyes fixed firmly on the baked cookies. Like a resurrected hungry ghost, she directly pushed her head forward and took a bite. However, after just chewing a few times, her ferocious movements gradually slowed down. Immediately after, her shoulders trembled violently, and uncontrollable sobs escaped her throat. Even with her fair, baby-soft hands covering her face, tears could not stop overflowing from between her fingers.

“It’s sweet… it’s sweet… I… I’m really alive… I thought I’d have to live neither like a person nor a ghost for the rest of my life…”

Don’t be so sentimental.

Fia stroked Lianne’s head.

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The touch was very soft, not like an artificial object at all.

Though she could understand Lianne’s joyful tears, Fia knew she would later regret this. As someone who had lived over a hundred years, crying in front of so many people…

“You can feel pain, taste sweetness, and successfully use magic. That means the fusion of soul and body is going well, and the body’s durability is sufficient. Otherwise, your teeth would have been shattered by the stone. Apart from feeling cold, does Lianne feel any other discomfort? Earlier, I saw you couldn’t even walk steadily. That’s probably from not experiencing the sensation of controlling a body for too long, forgetting how to control it. You’ll likely have to relearn walking later. Also regarding food, you should start with easily digestible liquid food…”

At this point, the bitter smile on Fia’s face deepened. Lianne was still sobbing and whimpering, immersed in the emotion of being reborn. These words should be said to Friede—it seemed Friede and the witch apprentice would have to take care of Lianne’s daily life recently.

If possible, Fia would have liked to care for Lianne herself. The current Lianne had a clueless, dorky vibe, plus having just called her ‘mother,’ which evoked a maternal feeling in Fia. But this was just a hypothetical. Right now, Anastasia’s matter was more urgent. Lianne was a 6th-tier witch approaching the seventh tier. If a body for her succeeded, then creating one for Anastasia, who wasn’t even 6th tier yet, should just be a matter of time—perhaps even before dawn.

“Alright, alright, don’t let Lady Fia see you like this. Now do you believe me? Lady Fia truly is the Guide brought by the Witch of Hope.”

To comfort Lianne, Friede gently hugged her. Due to the massive height difference, Lianne’s head was buried at a subtle angle into the cleavage of Friede’s chest.

So this is what it looks like when I’m with Anastasia.

Good thing Claire is slightly shorter than Anastasia.

Let’s have these two go rest first.

Amused inwardly, Fia pointed towards the testing ground door.

“Friede, take Lianne to the bathhouse first to warm up. Stay in the Twilight Flower Palace tonight. If you need anything, ask the maids at any time.”

“Alright.” Friede nodded gently and gracefully, then raised her eyes to look at Fia, giving an exceptionally serious bow. “Please allow me to thank you again on Lianne’s behalf. In the past, Lianne sought help from the Darkborn, saying even becoming undead was fine if it could relieve the suffering of hunger and sleep. But the Darkborn’s price was impossibly high. She had already given up—”

Before Friede could finish, Fia raised a hand towards her, signaling her to stop.

She met Friede’s gaze with a serious expression.

“Not to mention I’m also doing this for myself… First, I was the one who brought you to Blossom. Since I’ve accepted my role as the Witch Hall’s leader, I must fulfill a leader’s responsibility. Let’s stop the thanks here. Take Lianne downstairs.”

“Thank you so much…”

Though wanting to say more, the atmosphere Fia projected was one of not wanting further thanks. Friede could only bow her head deeply, giving another respectful salute, then supported the Lianne who couldn’t maintain her balance due to too many tails, and left.

The adamantine door slowly closed. The testing ground was now left with only Fia and Anastasia.

The vast space was utterly silent, yet it drifted with a pleasant atmosphere.

Lianne’s success symbolized hope was right before their eyes. Both Fia and Anastasia felt their taut nerves relax.

And once her spirit relaxed, the bodily changes she couldn’t feel before emerged one after another. The most obvious was hunger.

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Gurgle—

A cute sound came from Fia’s stomach. Since receiving the materials in the morning, she had been immersed in restoring the body, not eating for most of the day. Though she wouldn’t starve to death from not eating, the feeling of hunger still existed.

“Ahem. Since Lianne’s soul and body have fused, I can just about continue making Anastasia’s body. At my speed, I could finish before dawn. Anastasia, wait a bit longer—no, Anastasia, you should wait outside.”

If Anastasia saw the look of her internal organs, she might be left with psychological trauma. Thinking of this, a faint smile appeared on Fia’s mouth. The speed of the soul fusion had lifted her spirits.

Not only Fia, but Anastasia too felt the same. In her light purple dress, she crossed her hands in front of her, tilting her head slightly with a smile as she responded.

“Since you can create the body for this subordinate so quickly, you should fill your stomach before working. If you become physically exhausted from hunger and make this subordinate end up with a child-like build like Lady Lianne, this subordinate wouldn’t even know how to cry.”

“Lianne originally had a petite build, so the created body looks like a child. As for me, I could digest even a stone.”

As Fia’s words fell, a sweet scent of food drifted into her nostrils. Along with her appetite being piqued, her empty stomach began to churn.

While she spoke, Anastasia had already brought a silver tray with food before Fia. Besides sliced cake for dessert, there was a small bowl of clear soup emitting steam and neatly stacked sandwiches. Even as a simple combination, the color and aroma were all there, just looking at it made one’s mouth water.

Anastasia had probably prepared this before coming upstairs. Fia hadn’t gone downstairs all day; Anastasia was always this thoughtful.

“You’ve already done well enough. You should rest first.”

While saying such things, Anastasia naturally sat in a spot beneath a stone pillar nearby. The testing ground had no furniture, so she could only place the silver tray on her lap.

If this were a sunny meadow, it would surely become a picnic atmosphere that made one want to nap for a while. Unfortunately, the testing ground floor was cold stone, and the only light source was magic lamps on the vaulted ceiling casting a cold glow. The only thing worth celebrating was the small glass window high on the wall. Looking outside, starlight filled the night, and wisps of thin clouds didn’t insensitively hide the moon.

After eating, I’ll speed up the creation of Anastasia’s body. Then I might still have time to take a walk in the garden before night ends.

Thinking such things, Fia sat beside Anastasia and reached for the bread on her lap. However, to Fia’s surprise, Anastasia grabbed Fia’s wrist, wearing a serious expression, her tone like an elder sister disciplining a younger sister.

“Your Highness is the Crown Princess. How can you grab food with your hands?”

“Eh, rules are made by people. I’m the Crown Princess; shouldn’t how I do things be up to me?”

This was, of course, a joke.

Anastasia raised her eyebrows, picking up the only cutlery on the silver tray with both hands, the disciplinary intent in her expression deepening by a few degrees.

“But you haven’t changed the rules yet. So until then, we must follow current rules. As a noble and holy elf princess, Your Highness should focus energy on more important matters. So mundane matters like eating should be handled by me, your personal maid.”

So she wants to play a little housekeeping game.

Seeing Anastasia close her eyes with a grand expression, Fia couldn’t help but find it funny. Anastasia had such a side too.

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But her own mood was very good. Going along with Anastasia wouldn’t be bad.

Fia blinked innocently, tilting her head at a cute angle.

“There’s such a rule? Well then, ah~”

Fia opened her mouth wide, waiting for Anastasia to feed her. The naturalness of the response left Anastasia stunned; she hadn’t expected Fia to cooperate so readily. However, things had already reached this point. She couldn’t make Fia wait too long. She quickly cut a small piece of bread, speared it with the fork, and gently brought it to Fia’s lips, where Fia took a bite with an “ah-um”.

“Mmm, much tastier than the bread I usually eat.”

“But this is just a piece I took randomly from the kitchen.”

“Then Anastasia must have cast a spell to make the bread delicious. What’s that saying? ‘Belief is magic.’ Here, it should be Anastasia’s intent poured into the bread. So I’m not just tasting bread, but also Anastasia’s intent. It’s sweet.”

“Ugh…”

Anastasia’s pointed elven ears immediately twitched, her expression becoming rigid.

Fia couldn’t help but curl her lips.

“What’s wrong? It was Anastasia who suggested this herself. Now that I’m accepting, you’re starting to get shy.”

“It’s because Your Highness… you never play by the rules.”

“Play by the rules meaning?”

“You’re too good at making people happy.”

“That’s because the person sitting here is Anastasia. That’s why I’m like this. Other maids don’t get this treatment.”

“Ugh…”

“Hmm?”

Because Anastasia’s body stiffened, Fia tilted her head in confusion.

Anastasia’s voice trailed off, dots of a red blush appearing on her cheeks. She spoke stutteringly, like a girl before a confession.

“It’s… it’s just… saying such words that make me happy. And just now when this subordinate fed you, you didn’t seem embarrassed at all. Normally, one should at least hesitate for a moment, right? Deliberately cooperating with me playing house… it’s too indulgent…”

Well, it’s not that I don’t want to feel embarrassed. It’s just that back in Aurora City, Claire fed me ice cream, and before that, the Queen Mothers surrounded and fed me. I’m quite skilled by now.

Of course, Fia wasn’t dense enough to say this directly. She looked up toward the bright starry sky outside the window, emitting a thoughtful sound from her throat.

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“Because the time to feel awkward has already passed?”

“Has already passed… meaning?”

“Anastasia can understand it as I’ve gotten used to it.”

“Wha?”

In an instant, Fia saw the joy in Anastasia’s deep blue eyes rapidly vanish. Her vacant eyes looked like someone who had lost hope.

Is it really worth being so disappointed?

“Not only sleeping together… even the right to proactively feed you cake has been stolen by the other me… then what use do I have later…”

Hey, Anastasia, I can hear what you’re saying.

Anastasia still maintained her out-of-focus gaze, staring blankly at the void, muttering with a tone completely devoid of emotion.

Though Anastasia looked pitiful now, Fia only felt amused and helpless. That Anastasia had such concerns showed that after seeing Lianne’s body restored, she was full of hope, already thinking about who would serve as the personal maid if this Anastasia returned.

Thinking about it, it would indeed become a very lively scene.

Without warning, Anastasia pulled herself out of her disappointment again. Her eyes became incredibly serious, her body leaning forward slightly, making Fia worry the stew on her lap might spill.

“Th-then, are there things Highness hasn’t done with the other me?”

“There are…”

“What are they!”

Anastasia’s face leaned in even closer.

Too close!

Fia shouted inwardly. She could even feel Anastasia’s breath on her face, smelling the fragrance pressed out from her collar.

Fia subconsciously leaned her body back. The awkward situation made her mouth move without thinking.

“For example… like a kiss?”