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It’s been a while―though it hasn’t even been a year―since we saw Mother Fii, and she hasn’t changed at all from how I remember her.
Her beauty, praised to be almost hand-crafted by the gods, remained unchanged, and even the clothes she’s wearing are not very different from what’s in my memories.

Well, I say ‘almost,’ but she was probably hand-crafted by the Creator God itself, and since she’s different from mortals, it’s not particularly unusual for her to wear the same clothes regardless of the season.
Still, it does appear that she has clothes for different seasons, though it’s probably less about her preference and more about the manor servants’ inclinations.

Besides, Ciel isn’t really that much different when it comes to seasonal clothing. Yup, it’s my fault. I prioritized protecting Ciel so much, I couldn’t make time to let her live a normal life and cultivate normal sensibilities.
Well, at this point, I have no regrets about that. After all, if I regret it, it’s Ciel who would be saddened the most.

「It’s good to see you back. Welcome home, Cielmer.」
「Yes, Fiiyanamia. We’re back. No, we’re back home? Right?」
「That’s right. Welcome home.」

Ciel tilted her head while responding, and Mother Fii simply repeated her words.
The first time, her voice was dignified but commanding, but the second time, it was soft and spoken with a gentle smile.
Hearing the change in Mother’s voice, Ciel also softened her expression.

「Now then, we can’t start while still standing, so let’s sit down and eat, shall we?」
「Right, that’s right. I’ve eaten various different foods now, but the cooking here at the manor is still my second favorite. I want to eat now; I want to eat already.」

Ciel’s eyes were already glued to the food. The main staple is white bread of multiple varieties. There was warm golden soup, clear and unclouded, and a salad vibrantly severed in a glass bowl.
The main dish is a steak. It’s quite thick, and I don’t know what kind of meat it is, but nothing served within this manor would have anything weird mixed in. Maybe monster meat, at most.

「Oh my, just second?」
「My most favorite is Ain’s cooking, you know?」
「That’s certainly tough to beat.」

Mother Fii chuckled in response, but I really can’t agree with Ciel’s assertion. Compared to a professional, the difference between their cooking and mine is greater than heaven and earth. It’s fine since we’re in the manor, but if we were somewhere else, that might just piss someone else off.
And unfortunately, if it turns into a cook-off, I would have no chance of winning. While I may be able to make something unfamiliar and new, I don’t have confidence in its flavor.

After sitting down, we have an enjoyable chat over the delicious meal―not at all, Ciel enjoys the meal with graceful conduct, ignoring everything else as if in a silent trance.
As this was happening, Mother Fii and the manor servants simply watched over Ciel with gentle eyes so they wouldn’t scold her for this.

I, meanwhile, am gently watching over her while enjoying the meals as well, something only possible since we share sensations. Still, our food preferences do have slight differences.
As Ciel finished eating most of the food on her plate and her hands stopped moving, Mother Fii spoke to Ciel.

「Say, Ciel. How was the academy?」
「I don’t really know how to answer. Anywhere is fun as long as I’m with Ain, after all.」
「In that case, did you have any new discoveries?」
「I rediscovered how amazing Ain really was!」

Ciel happily continued; meanwhile, Mother had a strained smile.
She was asking about academy happenings, and yet Ciel started talking about me, so I can understand her feeling.

「Come to think of it, we met Munyechka. She’s an interesting person.」
「So you’ve met her. Being able to live so long for a human, her magic power manipulation is quite impressive, isn’t it?」
「She can do things that even Ain can’t do; it’s amazing. And puppet sorcery is very interesting, too! Very interesting!」
「Is it because you want to make Ain a body?」
「Yes, yes! If Ain can have a body, I’m sure it’ll be a very delightful thing!」

Ciel then got excited, and Mother also nodded with a smile.
Speaking of Munyechka, what was that branch that Mother gave to her for her dolls?

「By the way, what was the branch you gave Munyechka in the past?」
「Branch? Ah, that. You mean the bough of the Spirit Tree?」
「What’s the Spirit Tree?」

Hearing an unfamiliar name, Ciel tilted her head. I can guess that it’s probably a tree that gives birth to spirits or a tree managed by spirits, but I don’t know the actual answer, so I’ll wait for Mother Fii’s explanation.

「You could describe the Spirit Tree as a world maintenance apparatus that the Spirit King manages, I suppose? Think of it as a very large spirit rest place.」
「Do you not have any branches left?」
「Unfortunately, I don’t. Moreover, it’ll be difficult to acquire new ones as well. The one I had was a fallen branch from when the Spirit Tree was still unstable. These days, it can likely continue existing without any branches falling, I believe.」
「That’s unfortunate.」
「While there might be no fallen branches, why not try visiting the Spirit Tree at least once?」
「Ain, what do you think?」
『That sounds interesting, so I’d like to visit it sometime.』

Ciel asked me, so I immediately answered. Since we were offered the opportunity, it would be nice to go there with Ciel.
Still, if there aren’t any branches left, then we’ll have to use Ciel’s hair instead. In other words, it’ll be like implanting Ciel’s magic circuits in me. Thinking of it that way, it’s undoubtedly compatible with me. In the first place, I can only use sorcery and magic through Ciel.

Still, I’m very hesitant about cutting Ciel’s hair.
While it’s true that cutting Ciel’s beautiful hair would be a waste, most importantly, it will directly weaken Ciel.

「Since Ain wants to go, then there’s no time to waste!」
『It doesn’t need to be now, though.』

I halted Ciel, who was ready to fly out as soon as possible, and urged her to return to the topic of the academy.
We’ve met people like Princess Leshimiiya―Miss Leshy―Palra, and Belltina, who I personally think we could consider as friends, and I’m sure Mother Fii would be happy to hear about them. Moreover, it’ll divert attention from the topic of me.

While I don’t hate Ciel gleefully talking about me―it even makes me feel proud at times―it’s extremely embarrassing.